Take the bull by its horns

In this new series of blog posts, I have decided to share some insights about being inspired and motivated in things that you do - mundane or one off. Here I fire my first salvo. Enjoy! 

Take the bull by its horns

According to usingenglish.com –

Taking a bull by its horns would be the most direct but also the most dangerous way to try to compete with such an animal. When we use the phrase in everyday talk, we mean that the person we are talking about tackles their problems directly and is not worried about any risks involved.

    Often in life we come across situations that we have never encountered before. Things we have been always wanting to do, but for some reason, were unable to do. Tasks we always wanted to perform but were unable to do. The reasons for not having done such things may vary from your dog being ill to you being tied down to the social stigma attached with performing such an activity. It can be absolutely anything! Think of anything that is bizarre or stupid or insane or outrageous and that could serve as a good enough reason for you  to not do what you have been longing to do. ALL YOUR LIFE! But do you realize that deep inside the fear of not having done that thing in your life grows to the point of making you insecure and bogged down? Does the abstinence truly pay off?

    What I truly believe (and have realized over the past few days) is that the world anyways exists, with or without you. Your absence, temporary or permanent, may affect a 'close ones' in your life but then, that’s about it. Your absence in your job may affect your coworkers to a certain extent, but beyond a certain point, it certainly affects no one at your workplace as well. As Narayan Murthy, one of the founders of Infosys, famously said, "Always remember, you are not married to your company and that you are perfectly replaceable." If this does not serve as a wakeup call to you, what does?

    Do that one thing you always wanted to you. Break away from your mundane activities, activities that you do for the sake of pleasing people around you - for your boss, your family, your friends, your uncaring coworkers and do something for yourself. I just stumbled upon this thought once I was strolling in my garden - "If you are perfectly replaceable, you might as well spend some time doing something that makes you feel good, in harmony with yourself, your true self." And thats when I decided to take up the Yoga class, something I had dreaded all my life. And guess what? I feel alive again. Brimming with positive energy to share and rejoice.

    For you, that one thing could be anything or perhaps, many things. It could be going out for an adventure sport workshop; it could be taking up Taekwondo classes, it walking through the slums of Mumbai and meeting those people. It could be absolutely ANYTHING! I read a wonderful quote on my Team Lead's desk - "If not now then when? If not us, then who?" As Katrina Kaif says to Hritik in ZNMD(one of my personal favorite movies this year) "Seize the day my friend! Kal kya ho kisne dekha?" The more you try to postpone things, the more your fear of facing them increases, thereby inducing more reluctance in you. It’s very cyclic, isn’t it?

    So now is the time for you to take up that challenging role, that journey you had always wanted to undertake, that path you were always afraid to trod, that feeling you had always wanted to express. Go scuba diving in Lakshwadeep(if you are a hydrophobiac like me), go bungee jumping in Rishikesh, mountain rappelling in Uttaranchal(if you are an acrophobiac), water rafting in Haridwar, immerse yourself in the serenity of Kerala, start a Travel Guide blog, visit a wildlife sanctuary, travel in a bullock cart in one of the villages in India, explore the unexplored, meet new people, make new friends. Do just about everything you wanted to do. 'Cos if there’s any time to do it, it is NOW!

So take the bull by its horns!

GET…SET…GO...

We need to IMPLEMENT our solutions

          The other day, I came across this post of my friend on FB (Facebook, if you happen to belong to one of the the pre-human civilizations like Homo Sapiens, Homo Erectus and the like) expressing how extremely frustrated and irritated he was with the 'Traffic condition in Pune' and how he abhorred even the idea of venturing out in the city or traffic-prone areas during the peak hours of traffic. As soon as I saw that post, I was somehow compelled to 'Like' that post of his and ended up commenting on the post adding my own ingenuous experiences on the traffic condition on the city and bitten by this habit of mine added a '+1' in front of my comment, I promptly added one. However as I posted that comment of mine, it somehow struck me,"Dammit! I already know the problem. Even he did. In fact all of us do. What we need is not a reiteration of the problem by different people, maybe even in different languages or possibly in different characteristic styles. We need a solution!"
          Thats when it also struck me that it was not even the solution that we(I) are(am) looking for. All of us know a way out of the solution to the traffic menace in the city. All of us know that following basic traffic rules would save us a lot of time and effort. All of us know that we would not like someone to sneak through the signal when the light turns from Yellow to Red or maybe even Green to Yellow and we are at the receiving end! We scream, shout, yell and blurt out all sort of negative human and inhuman emotions that we possibly can when someone tries to do that. We may also choose to incessantly blow our horns in disgust and disrespect for the action performed for such a Rule-Breaker. On further prodding myself to pursue that line of thought, it occurred to me that when we ALL know this, where does the problem insane and unruly traffic scenario occur? And, mind you, by ALL I do mean you, me as well the Rule-Breaker. Not one of us does not know the Do Not's on a Traffic Signal. But, somehow, for some reason, we are tempted to 'Challenge Our Limits' if I can put it that way and speed up when the signal turns from Green to Yellow. Just to check whether we can make it to the other end of the signal (On a serious note, I wonder whether reaching across SAFELY is ever the motive of such an action). We try to make it as if our entire life depended on this One Moment, as if we were to win an Oscar, if not the traditional Filmfare, for achieving such a remarkable feat, as if getting to office EARLY is truly an excuse that pushes us to take such a drastic step and as if we are Over and Above the Law if we happen to make it to the other side without being caught by the Traffic Police. 
          Fact is, even the Traffic Police is, to a great extent, intimidated and daunted by such a beastly act that he treasures and values his own life far more than the 'Fine' that he may collect by getting hold of one such Rule-Breaker by putting his own life in the 'Line Of Fire' for this reason. One prime reason, as I see it is also mob psychology, which greatly infects our entire country. If the person right ahead of me has broken the rule and jumped the signal, there is no reason I perceive that would not entitle me from benefiting from such a a privilege and the reason why I should not cash in on it. If he is a Citizen of India, even I am one; even he has a License, even I have one; If he has a PUC (Pollution Under Control) certificate, even I have one; If he has all the valid documents, so do I; If he has not been caught jumping the signal, WHY SHOULD I BE CAUGHT? Is this the way young or old educated and literate Indians think? Is this why we are called good followers and bad leaders all across the world? Can we make a small difference here by bringing about a shift in perception, a change in mentality? Can we contribute and do our bit in making this city and this country a better and harmonious place to live in? The answer is - Yes, we can. But only if we choose to. And choose not only to THINK but also ACT. Walk the talk as they say.
          I also symapthize and agree to, to some extent, with such Rule-Breakers that it is very tempting to sneak through along with the last few vehicles esp when the Signal changes its color primarily because I was once a victim of this 'I-want-to-rush-through-this-signal-as-if-my-life-depended-on-it' syndrome. But after some self evaluation, I realized that when I do not like it being done to me, why do I do it to others?

"Do not do unto others as you would that they should do unto you" 

- The Holy Bible

          It is then that I decided that I knew the solution all along, what made the difference was how I IMPLEMENTED that solution to the Real Life scenario. We all know the solutions to this traffic menace - Follow the Traffic Rules, Follow Lane discipline, Yellow light is meant to clear the Signal Intersection Area and that No New vehicles can enter the Signal Intersection area after the light goes Yellow, Red Light strictly means 'Stop'. These rules are intended to make travelling and commuting a beautiful and enjoyable experience and not act as a stumbling block in the process of commutation, as we always perceive. Simple basic rules one can follow and the traffic situation that threatens to jeopardize the entire commutation and travelling experience would be cease to be a problem an instead become Pleasant Adventure. Lets all strive to make the changes we wish to see. One step at a time. 


So, until the next time then, Adiós and Que te vaya bien ("Good Bye" and "Take care" in Spanish).