Ferrari. Does It Really Matter?

I had a very humble upbringing and have continued to live a modest life. My home to work run has improved over time. You can see the transition below:

1. Walk to School (free in 1991)
2. Second hand Bike (Avon for 300 rupees in 1993)
3. New Bike (Hero Royal for 1050 rupees in 1994)
4. Public Bus (Mostly without tickets being student 1997-2000) & Autorickshaw (2000-2005)
5. Motor Bike (TVS Apache for 56,000 rupees, 2005-2007)
7. Car (Toyota Corolla for 1,100,000 rupees, 2008-till date)

I’m very satisfied with the way I commute to office now. The car has excellent pick up, AC is fantastic, and it meets my every need very well and hasn’t ditched even once.

What if I make a lot more money. Will Ferrari make much difference? Probably not. A car like Toyota Corolla is decent enough to meet my on-road requirements.

Then why the rich brats drive Ferrari? It’s more to do with how they are perceived than the pleasure derived from driving.

Same thing applies to watches.. Timex or Rolex.. they are equally efficient.

Let me tell you.. I’m not against Ferrari or Rolex. I’m just analyzing their utility. After it reaches a stage on quality scale, the scope to improve is miniscule.

If you are a white-made millionaire, go for Ferrari. Dirting your hands for it is not worthwhile. And taking a loan to drive the red monster is sheer insanity. To experience the best of mankind, it’s always available on hire for a day or two.

Money better be put to other use. Sorry GUCCI, Prada and Armani. No wonder, you’d call I don’t have taste.

Let Go!

During my trip planning to Europe I wanted to make everything perfect and did have a perfect start. The attractive airline fare advanced the trip by three months and my boss was kind enough to permit another vacation in first half of the year. WOW! May God bless you too, with such a boss.

Preparation started. I started browsing Tripadvisor more religiously than I do Bhagwat Geeta and very soon the hotels were booked. Of course I managed to get best deals everywhere.

Visas arrived, that too well in time. My dinar power felt another punch with fall of Euro at the peak of Greek Crisis.

Just before the day I flew, I got some Dinars exchanged to Swiss Francs. The money exchange I’m loyal to, offered me best rate and I blindly bought Francs. Only after returning home, I had realized that I lost close to 40 dollars. That was a good enough to upset me. I made a call to them, the manager profusely apologized, but that was not enough to repair the money lost. I was haunted for days for that loss and the reflection could be seen on my mood. I kept cursing myself.

Then I asked myself- Why am I upset?

I realized that the reason of unhappiness was my super high expectation. I researched everything well, and did get worthy benefit. But, I was expecting even better. And that was adamant to spoil my dream trip.

I stopped and said to myself, “Let go, you can’t get the best deal at all times.” This single sentence made me feel a lot better.

We have so many things to cheer about and mostly we kept counting what we have not. Let Go! is the way to a better living.

Perfectionists are Unhappy Lot!

How many times you have seen people puffing their chest in pride before calling themselves perfectionist?

It is considered positive weakness in HR terminology and advised by career experts to be used as weakness when asked for one in an interview. Like many of you, I too have used this trick a few times and am unsure of what impact it made. Maybe they thought, I have been trained to say so.

Over years this term has puzzled me more than anything else and I have been trying to untangle its covert meaning. Of late, I started asking myself, should one be perfectionist or not?

All the people around me, who the world presumes to be perfectionist, are broadly described through these adjectives (hope you too will agree)
-finicky
-irritated
-stubborn
-faultfinder
-my way or highway
-cranky
-ruthless

Which of these adjectives you would like to label yourself with? I know you will hate be associated with any of these words.

Does it mean you should stop doing your best? No. You must look for improvement. Get better at whatever you do. Just not, to the extent that makes you and others unhappy.

The Ash-cloud Dilemma

Ash Cloud has spooked all the travelers to Europe since last month and it continues to do so. I, with my wife is travelling tomorrow to London. For a middle-class Indian it’s once in a life time event and of course we were thrilled. Now, we are anxious.

My wife was adamant, come what may, we will carry on with the trip. One reason, she loves exploring new places. Second, the news has spread all across and it’s an embarrassment when the trip is cancelled. Every time she saw the news report on BBC, a kaleidoscopic expression was taking turns on her face.
I too, was not in mood to cancel the trip, but for a different reason- with cancellation, money used for non-refundable Eurostar and TGV tickets with get death sentence.

Despite my wife’s insistence and possible loss of Euros, I could not forget the tribulations experienced by travelers last month which I saw on TV. So, I kept my fingers crossed. Deep inside I was making up my mind, not to start the trip, if things are not in order. Trust me, what I was trying to prepare myself for, was not easy, assuming the imminent World War at home.

Many times in life, we have to take tough decisions, we have to dishearten people. Not because we don’t love them, but because we love them more.

All the flights to London were on time yesterday, hope it continues till tomorrow.
Cheers! My next hi to you will be from the Eiffel Tower.
Vivek

Are You Like a Flower?

Guys! Yesterday I came across this beautiful poem. Tried hard but could not track the author. Does it teach some lessons to a better life?

Vivek

I am like a flower
Not sure of when I will die.
Not sure of when I will grow back again
When I am crushed with pain and cry.

What do I do when I'm not given enough water,
to make it through the day?
What do I do when I look up in the sky?
And the sun doesn't show a ray?

I stand as tall as a flower would,
As long as I possible can.
I will stand and show my colors,
That is what I plan.

I may droop and my petals may fall,
But that won't stop me from growing.
My love, honesty and beauty,
I will keep showing.

I am like a flower,
Strong and supreme.
I may be trampled on,
But I will never lose faith in my dreams.

Keep Swimming

Two frogs fell into a deep cream bowl.
One was an optimistic soul.
But the other took the gloomy view.
"We'll drown," he lamented without much ado,
and with a last despairing cry,
he flung up his legs and said "Goodbye."

Quote the other frog with a steadfast grin,
"I can't get out but I won't give in,
I'll just swim around till my strength is spent,
then I'll die the more content."
Bravely he swam to work his scheme,
and his struggles began to churn the cream.

The more he swam, his legs a flutter,
the more the cream turned into butter.
On top of the butter at last he stopped,
and out of the bowl he gaily hopped.

If you can't hop out, keep swimming around!

When the Elephant Walks, A Thousand Dogs Bark!

This centuries old adage from Indian countryside was never before more relevant.

The flood of ideas, the courage to start new ventures, the confidence to jump all the barriers and the passion to create a new world never happened in the history of mankind like it is today. Thank God! I’m privileged to have taken birth in this era and so are you. The most noticeable point is- it’s not limited to Europe or America, it’s happening everywhere from San Francisco to San Diego and from Beijing to Botswana.

You will come across hundreds of soothsayers (as they proclaim to be) to stop you from trying a groundbreaking invention. Not to forget the universe is full of cynics who aspire to outdo you. Many of them would not be far away but in your own home or just nearby. But, are they wrong in their own way? No! Not at all. It reminds me what Paulo says:

“People see the world, not as it is, but as they are.”

Most around us live ordinary life. They have long back forgotten to dream and accepted Life by default. They can’t tolerate anyone designing his destiny. They want you to be one of them, not to stand out.

Should it stop you? Are you ready to relinquish your dream? Have you decided to play the victim of others ineptitude?

I know, it’s not easy to stay immune. Many a times they appear to be correct, particularly when the wounds of failure are apparent. It pains when you hear— I told you. Stop! Ponder! Refuel yourself and go unstopped, because I know you are going to do it.

The Fighter

A beatifully written and truly inspiring poem. It does deserve five minutes of yours.

Love

Vivek

The Fighter

I fight a battle every day
Against discouragement and fear;
Some foe stands always in my way,
The path ahead is never clear!
I must forever be on guard
Against the doubts that skulk along;
I get ahead by fighting hard,
But fighting keeps my spirit strong.

I hear the croakings of Despair,
The dark predictions of the weak;
I find myself pursued by Care,
No matter what the end I seek;
My victories are small and few,
It matters not how hard I strive;
Each day the fight begins anew,
But fighting keeps my hopes alive.

My dreams are spoiled by circumstance,
My plans are wrecked by Fate or Luck;
Some hour, perhaps, will bring my chance,
But that great hour has never struck;
My progress has been slow and hard,
I've had to climb and crawl and swim,
Fighting for every stubborn yard,
But I have kept in fighting trim.

I have to fight my doubts away,
And be on guard against my fears;
The feeble croaking of Dismay
Has been familiar through the years;
My dearest plans keep going wrong,
Events combine to thwart my will,
But fighting keeps my spirit strong,
And I am undefeated still!

By S. E. Kiser

The Thrill of Insecurity

Do you see a connection among these questions?

1. Why a man gambles?
2. Why People love travelling?
3. Why suspense stories sell more than self help books?
4. Why don’t you enjoy a movie second time as much you do first time?
5. Why are the guys crazy about sports?

The common point all these questions indicate to is- Unknown excites everyone.

Life is boring if you know everything that’s going to take place. It’s no different than watching the movie second time. We are crazy about sports because of the twists and turns it brings every moment. Because we don’t know what will happen next!

A part of each one of us loves adventure. We want to explore the unexplored. We want to see the places we have never been to. But, when it comes to life everyone wants security. WHY?

Assume that you are not going to lose job.. come what may.. will you still be excited about work? Will you still be passionate about bringing new ideas? Will you still exceed your targets?

Imagine right before the interview you know that you have been selected, will you still take time to prepare and find out more about yourself?

Unknown excites us! Unknown keeps us moving forward. Unknown stretches us to a new level. Unknown makes us more efficient.

The fear of unknown always compels us to come out of comfort zone and do something we have never done before.

If You Need Me..You're not Weak...You're Just Human

I was going through Paulo's blogs and this post caught my attention.

We as species do depend on others and ther's no wrong if you show it. Living like an island serves no one. It might create a illusion that you are stronger, that's it.

You must not miss this. Kudos Paulo! for sharing such a profound insight.

Vivek

Emotional Independance

“At the beginning of our life and again when we get old, we need the help and affection of others. Unfortunately, between these two periods of our life, when we are strong and able to look after ourselves, we don’t appreciate the value of affection and compassion. As our own life begins and ends with the need for affection, wouldn’t it be better if we gave compassion and love to others while we are strong and capable?”

The above words were said by the present Dalai Lama. Really, it is very curious to see that we are proud of our emotional independence. Evidently, it is not quite like that: we continue needing others our entire life, but it is a “shame” to show that, so we prefer to cry in hiding. And when someone asks us for help, that person is considered weak and incapable of controlling his feelings.

There is an unwritten rule saying that “the world is for the strong”, that “only the fittest survive.” If it were like that, human beings would never have existed, because they are part of a species that needs to be protected for a long period of time (specialists say that we are only capable of surviving on our own after nine years of age, whereas a giraffe takes only six to eight months, and a bee is already independent in less than five minutes).

We are in this world, I, for my part, continue – and will always continue – depending on others. I depend on my wife, my friends and my publishers. I depend even on my enemies, who help me to be always trained in the use of the sword.

Clearly, there are moments when this fire blows in another direction, but I always ask myself: where are the others? Have I isolated myself too much? Like any healthy person, I also need solitude and moments of reflection.

But I cannot get addicted to that.

Emotional independence leads to absolutely nowhere – except to a would-be fortress, whose only and useless objective is to impress others.

Emotional dependence, in its turn, is like a bonfire that we light.

In the beginning, relationships are difficult. In the same way that fire is necessary to put up with the disagreeable smoke – which makes breathing hard, and causes tears to pour down one’s face. However, once the fire is alight, the smoke disappears and the flames light up everything around us – spreading warmth, calm, and possibly making an ember pop out to burn us, but that is what makes a relationship interesting, isn’t that true?

I began this column quoting a Nobel Peace Prize winner about the importance of human relationships. I am ending with Professor Albert Schweitzer, physician and missionary, who received the same Nobel prize in 1952.

“All of us know a disease in Central Africa called sleeping sickness. What we need to know is that there is a similar disease that attacks the soul – and which is very dangerous, because it catches us without being noticed. When you notice the slightest sign of indifference and lack of enthusiasm for your similar, be on the alert!”

“The only way to take precautions against this disease is to understand that the soul suffers, and suffers a lot, when we make it live superficially. The soul likes things that are beautiful and profound”

Source: www.paulocoelhoblog.com