A lesson in life – at large

A lesson in life – at large
By U. Mahesh Prabhu

Life has always taken so many absurd twists and turns that I have stopped keeping its counts. Shifting over five professions, namely software programmer, web designing, marketer, writer, editor and now publisher cum administrator, I have come to but one conclusion: If you are capable, if you can believe in you… opportunities knock on your doors.

It's not easy to quit a job, for many. I have quit over forty times! You think I am lying? No-way! It's completely true. I have only quit, never was once that I was sacked. I quit out of my own reasons. People may call it "arrogance" but I call it conviction to values. I have lived by values and have seldom compromised on them – come what may. And because I have never compromised my credibility has seldom took a hit.

Today I am a publisher. I head a publishing company. I got this job after I spent over a year as a freelance writer. This job can mean a lot to many. I can certainly promote myself here, and well, but that's against my values. People may have blamed that I have promoted my self, but I know that I have never did it. And because I have never done that, and because I have promoted people with talents instead, I have with me an indisputable asset called 'Goodwill'. It is out of this goodwill that I am able to transcend any organization I work for in greater strata than it was, before me assuming a position there. Yes I may be proud of it, but certainly not pompous.

Across these professions I have learnt so many valuable lessons. Was it not for these lessons I would had been nought. I may not be a 'great' person, but what is being 'great'? Does someone have a definition for it? I wonder – if at all. All men no matter what they are or where they are… they are but men. Men have their own limitations, and, of course, strength. Many are despicable.
Their position is not for eternity, at some point in time they will fall, they all face failure before their rendezvous with death. They make mistakes and they may well make history… but they are men. You can't make men into gods and when you turn men in gods the history is replete with stories of savagery. Idolizing men is neither simple nor good.

Because all men have their limitation, many try to find people who are without it. They are ever in search of it, either outside or within. When they don't find it within, they find it out. And if they don't find one… they 'make' one. Cronies are nothing but men of such dreadful feeling. They make no good to the world. If at all they do something, it is but evil.

I have seen such crony's just on political or religious sphere but also on organizational as well as personal level. There are these 'leaders' who harp their power upon men trying to make them cronies. Cronies are so many in so many organizations. Their only job is to woo their bosses' ego.
In an organizational level, to get a work done… you always need to work with people. There exist no people without egos, while some may conceal… many of them show-off. Higher the position of a person in the hierarchy greater is his ego. To get a work done, it is imperative for a manager to play with these egos, but cautiously. If he plays it well… he wins. If not… he's gone.

In a nut shell the lesson I have learnt here is: In life travesties are innumerable. Life is never fair and so are people. Given that are we to conclude that world is a bad place to live in? Not really.

The world runs on simple formulae: [What's in it for me.] If you want to be a winner you need to have the genius to find what the other person wants and also the acumen to get that which he wants. Given you have these two, you can win the world. Should your knowledge fail to give that to you then its insane... sheer waste.