Disclaimer: The order of the points mentioned in this article should not be confused with their importance levels. All of them are equally vital.
I had a dream. I was the lonely, only audience in a huge auditorium. A faint light filled the stage on which stood a masked person, yelling, perspiring and pulling a heavy chain-the other side of which was still lost in the darkness. But not for long, for with all his strength he pulled in the light another masked fellow bound in his chains, dressed in rags, gagged and tied. Even before I wondered, I got the answer, for the masks fell, both were my own faces. I was shocked. My replicas- both the tired and the bound-looked at me with long faces; then I woke up. Later, I sat thinking about this while looking out of my office-window. Am I really not free? And how am I myself responsible for it?
Outside, kites were soaring high. Suddenly an answer echoed in my mind ‘Are you enjoying your work? How high will you rise like this’ the answer was in negative like always. But, why was it in negative?
The dream (nightmare) was a reminder of what I had done to myself. I had chained my potentials, given up my dreams and accepted my fate. So, ambitious and present-me, both were disappointed and depressed.
X wanted something else but got another thing. Can you relate to him? Then welcome to the majority party. But then how-come Y walks out of the crowd gracefully while X is left breathless in it.
Every breathing creature dreams; dreams of getting his dreams. But, things go wrong. We give up. Poof! The end. Just three mistakes are responsible for this:
So the Third mistake is being afraid of the pains, risks, failures…of being alone. These are vital ingredients of success without which victory is unimaginable.
Daydreaming about dream cannot fulfill it. It needs waking up and working. The formula is well stated by Fort Minor (my favourite mathe-sorry-musicians) - goals consist of 50% pain. Taking risk and not failing is hard to believe, but shining without taking risks is impossible. So, just hum Tagore’s Ekla cholo re’ and get ready for everything. Stop being afraid of falling or being alone. Loneliness is the best mate in the path of attaining the unattainable. This must be understood for the first position is just for that ONE whose suffering was worth it.
Second- giving up.
The king was inspired by a spider which never gave up and then became a powerful ‘bull’ in the battlefield, so why not we do the same to hit the bull’s-eye? Spider Theory is an important point in the handbook of success. Can’t find a door? Create one. Reached a dead end? Build the road ahead. The journey’s miles will be many and hurdles many more. Failures even more. Take rest but NEVER.GIVE.UP.
And First-realizing and correct time.
Yes, a rare point often ignored. Third mistake is not ‘realizing'. We toy the thought of pursuing our passion throughout our life initially. But then try to follow some ‘rational’ idea (for the people around us brainwashed us so easily), and by the time we realize that giving up was a bad idea the ‘convenient’ time is gone.
Realization of what we really want and grabbing the opportunities at the correct time can save a lot of effort. So, realizing the correct time is important. (But if the heart say it is too late for this point then it must be added that it is never too late to start pursuing your aims. hope using so many 'realise'-s in a single para was helpful!)
I am resigning from this clerical job to nurture the writer in me. Wish you luck for your dreams too!