Tuesday, April 05, 2005

Life, aspirations and everything ...

Time is 4:57 am. No, this is not another post with sleepy eyes. Just woke up. And read a nice article by an IIM guy about what and why we should(nt) aspire. And also about love.
Anyways, what i would like to know, Is there a need to have some ambitions, aspirations? Well to think, do i have any? (this question starts the great self-discovery process, after a million milli-seconds, the result tumbles out.) Do i need to have any? Wouldnt it be better to take life just as it comes. Not deliberate upon the future. Heard that this is a common question in many interviews, "Where would you like to see yourself 5/10/10++ years from now?". So, any answers?
My answer would be, i do not want to see myself anywhere 5/10 whatever years from now. I would rather, be there then, and be here now. Rather than having an ambition and running after it, maybe its better you walk, enjoy your walk, you may not have a destination, but thats the beauty of it. How many times have you enjoyed a walk when you had to get somewhere quick? And how many times have you enjoyed a walk which didnt take you anywhere in particular?
I dont think there is any such thing as a destination in my life. Or rather in anyone's life. You may want to achieve something, By the time you achieve that (or not achieve), your so called goals are set somewhere higher (or lower :P). A goal is nothing but a mirage. Why am i sounding like a self-help guru? :-SS Theres a lot of money in that field though...
Another benefit of not having any goals. No regrets. No disappointments. At the same time, not having a goal is not a passport to being useless. It does not mean that you neednt be sincere in what you do. The primary aim (if any) in life should be that you dont feel bad about anything that you did or didnt do.
Why am i preaching? That too something that may not make much sense. At a time when i have an endsem in 4 hours and another in another 10 hours. And i havent even started any preparation for the first one. But it doesnt really matter. What would you prepare for an exam that doesnt have a book, doesnt have any syllabus and you have no idea what you would be tested on. Its an open book, but i am not taking any book. Not due to over-confidence but due to the insufficient knowledge of what book to take :D. All that you can arm yourself with for facing such an exam is your luck and confidence. A dash of intelligence would also help i guess. :D
Finally, where would i like to see myself 5/10 years from now on? "Living a lovely life". Rephrasing it, "Continue living a lovely life" ....

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ah, that last line :) may you continue being happy! When I was once asked what I'd like to be 5 years down the line, I said "happy" and it made sense y'know! ;)

Anonymous said...

I read somewhere (I think on jayaram's blog) that Yahoo's CEO was once asked where he saw himself 10 years hence, and he replied, "How boring is the life of a person who knows where he will be 10 years hence!"

mythalez said...

For rastogi,
what is the point in living jus for achievin goals? Also, i havent been talkin abt short-term enjoyment, rather about not burdenin self with some ambitions. Jus that, generally when u hav a destination to go to, u forget to enjoy the journey. And when u reach the destination, u realise that it is not the intended destination. :)

mythalez said...

@persephone, Yeah, the only goal in life must be 'happy'. So better not wait for something to happen to start being happy. You can start anytime ..... :)
@ramneek, yeah, i remember this anecdote too...

Su said...

why set up high-funda targets, fail to reach them, feel disappointed and then crib abt... Live life as it comes and realise every moment of it.

mythalez said...

exactly Su, exactly :D

Anonymous said...

I totally agree with you

Anonymous said...

Ayehaiiiiiii look at Su goooo :D
Har har :D Su is realizing his life, beautifully :D

Goals are important, but they're not the only thing. Life is a journey, people think its the destination :)

Simeen

mythalez said...

Hi, anonymous..... leave ur identity next time. .. :D
And Simz, Life is a journey yes, so isnt the destination - death ?? :P

Anonymous said...

Well, i been doin a lotta preachin, not much o' practisin though :)

Anonymous said...

rama, e kukka karchindi ra ninnu ?? vedantam matladutunnav ?? :D ;)

Anonymous said...

bye bye doda
happy hols!

Simeen

Unknown said...

Nice blog, quite thought provoking, but too many a reader are interpreting this as defeatism (count me out). TO really know what im talkin about ,visit ravi's blog (kravikishore.blogspot.com)and sse the blog titled 'What's happening around me?'(unless he got to his senses and ripped it off).I would not know what's better.I the abscence of any reason to strive,for this moment,i.e in the abscence of any predicament that we must get through,would get complacent and slack off,not that one should be in panic mode all the time.But.. every donkey needs a carrot at the end of the stick,as does this one,even though im vaguely aware of the possibility that it will never be mine.
I would be feeling ridiculous doing anything of there was no end result in sight.Is'nt that what drives us to give it our best?? If not for it,would'nt we delude ourselves that what we are doing is enough? Who was it that said innovation ends the moment complacence begins.
Nice blog though.

mythalez said...

For watever reasons, the author has removed the mentioned post. But, i have read it, though i dont remember much of it now.
What i meant by my post was that 'do not limit your life to just achieving something'. Many a time, people tend to forget to enjoy life as such in their pursuit for something. Not having goals doesnt mean that u have nothing to do. It is more like, doing everything not because u want to get something desperately, but more like you enjoy doing it. This is an ideal scenario, i know, something not really possible.
In our case, try to perform well in everything u do, but the drive to perform well shouldnt overtake your life. Slacking off makes u feel guilty, so you wouldnt enjoy it in the long run.
In short, have goals if u want, strive for them, but dont forget to enjoy the struggle. :)