Life: No guarantee
A few days back one of my neighbors came to me with his son who is studying in the 10th standard. After talking a few minutes about the weather, the current affairs, etc., he jumped straight to the subject that he came to discuss. He wanted to know which subjects his son should take for the next two years—Maths or Science. Or in other words, he wanted to know whether his son should become an engineer or doctor.
When I asked him why he thinks that they are the only two professions, he looked at me as if I am an idiot. I told him there are other career choices in arts, literature, science, and so on. But he was not convinced. He asked me “What is the guarantee that he will get a job if he takes a degree in Commerce, English or Physics?” I asked him “What is the guarantee that your son will get a job if he becomes an engineer or a doctor?” He again gave me that ‘you idiot’ look and told the chances are better for engineers and doctors.
I asked his son which subject he preferred. The son was a little hesitant, but when I prompted again, he told me that he wanted to take a degree in Commerce and then do his MBA. I told that it was a good idea. But his dad was aghast. I think they had the same argument at home and he must have come to me to have one more person on his side. “How can you say that? You are an engineer?” I told him that I became an engineer because I liked the subject. I advised him to let his son make the decision.
I told him the secret of getting a job, irrespective of the subject chosen, is to study well and excel in it—become an expert in one’s chosen field. Also improve the soft skills like communication, computer literacy, and so on. If one is good in his/her chose profession, irrespective of the field there will always be opportunities. But my neighbor was not satisfied. He wanted guarantees that his son would get a job before finishing his course.
I told him that not all engineers and doctors get a job as soon as they complete the course. Only the best, the students who know their subject well, have excellent communication skills, good general knowledge, and a host of other soft skills get a job before they complete the course. He still was not convinced. He wanted something that guaranteed a high paying job for his son at the end of his course. I said I can’t help him; I can only give him options that have better chances of success, but no guarantees. Both of them took their leave—the father very disappointed but the son a little relieved.
I know a couple who decided not have children because of their fear of not having an intelligent, good-looking and healthy child. I can understand if the husband and wife decided not to have children because of some medical complications. I can believe a couple deciding not have children because they don’t have the financial means to take care of their children. I have seen couples deciding not to have children because they feel they are not up to the task of parenting or because they consider their careers more important than parenthood. But I couldn’t understand the decision not to have a child just because they feared the child would not be ‘normal’!
I told them that if their parents had the same idea about children, then they wouldn’t be here having the conversation with me. They told me that even though that is true, they are not willing to take the risk. “It is such a gamble and we are not doing that,” they told me. I couldn’t convince them that they were being foolish. I argued a lot and warned them that someday they will regret the decision. But they were resolute. They told me that they had made the choice after a lot of thought and nothing is going to change that. I just nodded.
But these two incidents got me thinking. Why are we so afraid about the future? Why do we want guarantees for everything in life? Why we want assurances? Why we are not prepared to take risks? I think the basic problem is lack of self-confidence and faith—faith in oneself and faith in God.
Life is not a machine or mechanical object that can be made to certain specifications–something that could be guaranteed to perform certain functions for so many duty cycles. Even such products, products that are made with high quality raw materials using the most sophisticated production processes, and where almost all the variables could be controlled, fail many a time.
Life is full of uncertainties. Nobody knows what is going to happen the next moment and expecting to know what will happen tomorrow is foolishness. But it is these uncertainties that make the life interesting and challenging. They bring stimulation to each day and force us into instances where we need to make decisions that will decide the course of our lives.
If you know the outcome of every day, every decision, and every event in life in advance, then life will become very boring and the joy of living will be lost as uncertainties will be replaced by monotony. And living will become a long and tedious experience.
Surviving and living your life successfully requires courage. The goals and dreams you are seeking require courage and risk-taking. As some wise person said, “Learn from the turtle, it only makes progress when it sticks out its neck.” And there are no guarantees in life. It was Clint Eastwood who said, “If you want a guarantee, buy a toaster.” No one could have said it better.
So take life as it comes, follow your heart, take calculated risks, don’t be afraid of failures, work hard and then leave the rest to God.
“None of us knows what might happen even the next moment, and yet still we go forwards. Because we trust. Because we have faith. Every moment in life is an act of faith.” (Paulo Coelho, Brida)
Source: Reflections of a Survivor (Guarantee)
When I asked him why he thinks that they are the only two professions, he looked at me as if I am an idiot. I told him there are other career choices in arts, literature, science, and so on. But he was not convinced. He asked me “What is the guarantee that he will get a job if he takes a degree in Commerce, English or Physics?” I asked him “What is the guarantee that your son will get a job if he becomes an engineer or a doctor?” He again gave me that ‘you idiot’ look and told the chances are better for engineers and doctors.
I asked his son which subject he preferred. The son was a little hesitant, but when I prompted again, he told me that he wanted to take a degree in Commerce and then do his MBA. I told that it was a good idea. But his dad was aghast. I think they had the same argument at home and he must have come to me to have one more person on his side. “How can you say that? You are an engineer?” I told him that I became an engineer because I liked the subject. I advised him to let his son make the decision.
I told him the secret of getting a job, irrespective of the subject chosen, is to study well and excel in it—become an expert in one’s chosen field. Also improve the soft skills like communication, computer literacy, and so on. If one is good in his/her chose profession, irrespective of the field there will always be opportunities. But my neighbor was not satisfied. He wanted guarantees that his son would get a job before finishing his course.
I told him that not all engineers and doctors get a job as soon as they complete the course. Only the best, the students who know their subject well, have excellent communication skills, good general knowledge, and a host of other soft skills get a job before they complete the course. He still was not convinced. He wanted something that guaranteed a high paying job for his son at the end of his course. I said I can’t help him; I can only give him options that have better chances of success, but no guarantees. Both of them took their leave—the father very disappointed but the son a little relieved.
I know a couple who decided not have children because of their fear of not having an intelligent, good-looking and healthy child. I can understand if the husband and wife decided not to have children because of some medical complications. I can believe a couple deciding not have children because they don’t have the financial means to take care of their children. I have seen couples deciding not to have children because they feel they are not up to the task of parenting or because they consider their careers more important than parenthood. But I couldn’t understand the decision not to have a child just because they feared the child would not be ‘normal’!
I told them that if their parents had the same idea about children, then they wouldn’t be here having the conversation with me. They told me that even though that is true, they are not willing to take the risk. “It is such a gamble and we are not doing that,” they told me. I couldn’t convince them that they were being foolish. I argued a lot and warned them that someday they will regret the decision. But they were resolute. They told me that they had made the choice after a lot of thought and nothing is going to change that. I just nodded.
But these two incidents got me thinking. Why are we so afraid about the future? Why do we want guarantees for everything in life? Why we want assurances? Why we are not prepared to take risks? I think the basic problem is lack of self-confidence and faith—faith in oneself and faith in God.
Life is not a machine or mechanical object that can be made to certain specifications–something that could be guaranteed to perform certain functions for so many duty cycles. Even such products, products that are made with high quality raw materials using the most sophisticated production processes, and where almost all the variables could be controlled, fail many a time.
Life is full of uncertainties. Nobody knows what is going to happen the next moment and expecting to know what will happen tomorrow is foolishness. But it is these uncertainties that make the life interesting and challenging. They bring stimulation to each day and force us into instances where we need to make decisions that will decide the course of our lives.
If you know the outcome of every day, every decision, and every event in life in advance, then life will become very boring and the joy of living will be lost as uncertainties will be replaced by monotony. And living will become a long and tedious experience.
Surviving and living your life successfully requires courage. The goals and dreams you are seeking require courage and risk-taking. As some wise person said, “Learn from the turtle, it only makes progress when it sticks out its neck.” And there are no guarantees in life. It was Clint Eastwood who said, “If you want a guarantee, buy a toaster.” No one could have said it better.
So take life as it comes, follow your heart, take calculated risks, don’t be afraid of failures, work hard and then leave the rest to God.
“None of us knows what might happen even the next moment, and yet still we go forwards. Because we trust. Because we have faith. Every moment in life is an act of faith.” (Paulo Coelho, Brida)
Source: Reflections of a Survivor (Guarantee)
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