ON THE ROAD TO SUCCESS

- How do we prepare ourselves to achieve our goals in life?
A fisherman once heard about a certain magical golden fish which could possibly put an end to his misery. So, off he went to the middle of the sea, where the magnificent creature dwelt. Even 
though he spotted it with ease, much to his disappointment, he discovered that the task of capturing it was impossible with his fragile nets and his small fishing boat. 
The above mentioned story is neither a folk tale nor a myth, but what happens to most of us when we come face to face with golden opportunities in life. It is then when we realise how poorly equipped and unprepared we are. Sometimes we even fail to recognise the princes disguised in old rags. For example, rarely do we realise that the class tests, assignments and exams that we take lightly today are in fact the golden doors that lead us to our dream destinations – a prestigious degree or a well paid job.
Achieving success in life is not rocket science if certain things can be kept in mind. Equipping yourself is the key step and here's how we do it. 
• Set realistic goals and achieve them one by one. While we may have big dreams for our future, it is equally important to have small goals that would eventually take us there. I can aim at scoring my best for the upcoming tests and for the next one, I'll work on improving my scores even more. Remember, the top of the stairs can be reached only if we climb one step at a time. 
• Stop comparing ourselves with others. We are unique and our talents vary. As long as we've honestly put in our best efforts, we needn't worry too much about not achieving the expected results. There's always room for improvement. 
• Our recognition of our limitations should never motivate us to underestimate our abilities or
refrain us from moving towards our goals.
• The hurdles that we may come across should serve to improve our skills, rather than depriveus of off our confidence. There's no obstacle which can't be tackled with a little sincere effort. Also, never hesitate to ask for help as and when required.
• Failures are definitely the stepping stones to success. An essay which didn't come out too well should encourage me to read more and improve myself. A careless mistake in my calculations should make me more alert. An unexpected low score in an examination should lead me to think what went wrong in my preparations. 
• Have a to-do list, set our priorities right and live each day sincerely. If I have a class test tomorrow and my favourite show has a special episode today, I should be able to wisely decide between both. The special episode will anyway have a repeat telecast. 
• Last, but not the least, procrastination is an evil trickster. Start early. Don't ever wait for the day before the exam/assignment submission to start preparing for it. 
It is such little things in life that eventually lead us to great places. Success in life is not a measure of 
how many laurels we've achieved or how much money we'll earn one day. It depends on how sincere and honest to ourselves we've been, and of course how well we've lived our lives. 
Benjamin Franklin rightly said that by failing to prepare, we're in fact preparing to fail. Like we always say, nothing is impossible. Unlike the fisherman in the above story, let us gear up to lead a successful life.

(Published in the Naipunnya Annual Magazine,  Reflections 2018-19)