Design your own Avatar. At least for your own story
I thought of devoting sometime now on writing an article on ‘how to be heroic or to be special’ before engaging myself in the business returns this month and the next.
Our culture is packaged our childhood, education, career, retirement, and entire life in a particular way through several parables, myths, legends, etc. Our life is ordained by others and by the situations created by ourselves.
In my student days, I believed that the professional courses I was pursuing would teach me everything that required to live. What our three courses (CMA, CS or CA) train us are really sufficient for ‘living’ (a noun) as defined by Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (OALD). It defines living as ‘earning money to buy the things that you need in life’.
How our neighbour and friends distract us or direct our lives.
Living also means ‘keep up with the Joneses’. That is ‘to try to have all the possessions and social achievements that your friends and neighbours have’. This is not a big deal for all the three professionals of our stream. Instead of debating how one’s neighbours should live or what shall or shall not possess by them, we shall have control on our own lifestyle and possessions first.
We don’t exactly know what’s happening in the next door. The social media is a big neighbourhood now. The Joneses at the social media keep us informed of their every moment through their posts. Posts at social media proliferated with the spread of Smart phones.
The lifestyle of our Joneses always distract us or direct us or trap into a way that is out of our control. We waste our time and resources to keep up with them. Incur debts. This make us out of control. Don’t bother by these Joneses anymore. Our lifestyle is our life – our style.
Being controlled by somebody?
What is control? OALD rightly defined control as ‘the ability to make somebody or something do what you want’. If you are at the ability to control others, this article is not for you. If you are being controlled by others, then definitely this piece of writing may helpful to you.
Who controls us? May be a teacher, parent, boss, spouse, children, a religious guru, pandit, or some-other person or circumstance. These controllers make sure that we don’t revolt against them and they create a web of life for us. They may control by power of authority, emotions, social stigmas, fear of failure, and so forth. If we defy the controllers, we will be punished. In Greek Mythology, Sisyphus (a king) was punished to roll an immense boulder up a hill eternally. In the same way, we are punished to work from Monday to Friday / Saturday in guise of success or fear of failure.
Realise that our controllers create obstacles to prevent us becoming extra-ordinary. The sooner the realisation better the results.
Breaking of control or authority is not similar to breaking of a rule or law or an ethic or a moral of a religion. It doesn’t also mean hating of our family and friends. Never disobey a rule or law. More particularly, never behave impudent before Government Authority. Such behaviour may put us in trouble. Don’t dispute ethics or morals. Never hate our family and friends.
Of course a law may not control us completely but love and affection may. We should always obey the law of the land; Always be moral, live a simple and basic lifestyle. Be environment friendly; Respect teachers, parents, boss, elders, spouse, children, neighbours, and so on. Respect is nothing to do with our out of box thinking. They can least control our thoughts.
Don’t confuse, unshackle from control with out of control. Decipher the distinction between ‘unshackle from control’ and ‘out of control’. We should be under complete control. Under whose control? We shall be under full control of ourselves. If we go astray or wayward, there is a supreme power to redirect us. It may be too expensive to our only life that we live now, that too a short period.
We frequently stumble in other’s direction or control. It is imperfect life. Under other’s direction, we seemingly revered but not in reality. This is a fact. Then why should we allow others to control us? NO we don’t allow.
Be a maverick!
A maverick is a person who does not behave or think like everyone else, but who has independent unusual opinions. Then how to be a maverick? How we control ourselves? How do we manage our affairs by our own wisdom?
The answer is this simple. By overthrowing the power on us. Can we overthrow it ordinarily? Impossible. Then how? Here is the solution. Be heroic, be special. Be someone like Hercules. Break the system. Come out of the web of life designed for us by others. Unshackle the controls. Challenge the authority over us. The controls, life web, authority are obstacles of building ourselves distinctly.
Be a hero
A hero challenges, breaks these obstacles and become extra-ordinary. A hero defies the authority. Who is a hero? Hero does mean a protagonist of story, novel, film, movie, etc.? Of course, similar to that character. As per the definition of OALD hero is ‘a person, especially a man, who is admired by many people for doing something brave or good’.
This is true. Hero is admired. Breaks the system. All our epics or myths run through the life of a hero who challenges the system. Who defies authority. Revolutionary. Subversive. The Greek are revolutionary in several ways. By their mythology, culture, war, games, etc. They created the Olympic games. The Olympics is a race. Breaking the previous records. It’s a kind of heroism.
A hero shall not be confused by his physical appearance. Handsome. Tall. 6 or 8 pack body. Not all these. Hero is someone who breaks the system. Withstand the evil of control. Use his wisdom rather than ego. Use his intelligence rather than hard work. He may or may be handsome but smart. He knows how to response to an unforeseen happening candidly.
What is the use of being a hero?
The founders of Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, Google, etc. have designed their own life. That means they come out the controls. They created new things, new opportunities. They are the true entrepreneurs. Such people are heroes. They not only heroes of their lives but heroes globally. They narrated a different definition to the entrepreneurship.
The stories of our great entrepreneurs are distinct from others. They can be separated easily or clearly. They are maverick. A few of the Indians for example are Mr. Dhirubai Ambani and Mr. Mukesh Ambani of Reliance Group; Mrs. Indra Nooyi of Pepsico (an American company), etc. Globally Mr. Bill Gates of Microsoft; Mr. Larry Page of Google; Mr. Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook.
Don’t make adventures
My writing is simply a metaphor and not to be taken literally. Don’t make adventures. Don’t be disrespectful to anyone. Be simple and straight. Finish your studies first. In the meanwhile, develop your attitude of heroism. Think for a Startup or a lucrative career in the employment or think of something differently of a heroic. Design it properly. Much beginning stage of your life.
Pursue excellence and success will chase you
Remember the words of Mr. Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani “it is very important to be positive and optimistic in life. Dismiss the prophets of doom. Have self-confidence. Believe in yourself and above all believe in India because this country gives every Indian an opportunity to realise his dreams and I think the best of India is yet to come.”
The key word of Mr. Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani: “Pursue excellence and success will chase you”
Don’t dabble! Be hero of the specialisation you choose.
Never dabble into many things. Specialise the area of your interest. Be a hero in that.
Also remember the words of Ms. Indra Nooyi, the current Chairperson and CEO of PepsiCo, USA. Whatever you do, throw yourself into it. “Throw your head, heart and hands into it. I love my job not as a job, I look at it as a calling and as a passion and I don’t care about the hours, I don’t care about the hardship. Because, to me everything is joy. So whatever you do, please look upon it as a calling and the passion. Not as joke, not something temporary”.
Excel in self-design
You are all up-coming professionals. Sooner or Later. Surely, will be employed by your boss or your client to study and design a system, a control, a procedure, a model, a process, a business etc.
That means, we tuned ourselves to find time to study and design things for others. We never find time for ourselves. This is the weakness of the system created for us by others. I am not an exception to it. I never studied myself, my strengths, my resources. I employed all my resources to work for others. My mobile, telephone, laptop, printer, internet, books, knowledge. My attire, appearance, demeanour, even a mobile ringtone can’t be irregular. I myself trying to unshackle the controls of others vigorously. So, I am yet to succeed. I am half the way. I take leave for now, with a lot’s hope of becoming a hero of my life soon. I am designing my Avatar.
CAclubindia
