Guys, it is the 'Inaugural Speech' for the new batch at the Symbiosis BBA program held at Pune 23rd June, 2008 by Chetan Bhagat. Before moving towards Chetan Bhagat just take a look at his speech."Good Morning everyone and thank you for giving me this chance to speak to you. This day is about you. You, who have come to this college, leaving the comfort of your homes (or in some cases discomfort), to become something in your life. I am sure you are excited. There are few days in human life when one is truly elated. The first day in college is one of them. When you were getting ready today, you felt a tingling in your stomach. What would the auditorium be like, what would the teachers be like, who are my new classmates - there is so much to be curious about. I call this excitement, the spark within you that makes you feel truly alive today. Today I am going to talk about keeping the spark shining. Or to put it another way, how to be happy most, if not all the time.
Where do these sparks start? I think we are born with them. My 3-year old twin boys have a million sparks. A little Spiderman toy can make them jump on the bed. They get thrills from creaky swings in the park. A story from daddy gets them excited. They do a daily countdown for birthday party – several months in advance – just for the day they will cut their own birthday cake.
I see students like you, and I still see some sparks. But when I see older people, the spark is difficult to find. That means as we age, the spark fades. People whose spark has faded too much are dull, dejected, aimless and bitter. Remember Kareena in the first half of Jab We Met vs the second half? That is what happens when the spark is lost. So how to save the spark?Imagine the spark to be a lamp's flame. The first aspect is nurturing - to give your spark the fuel, continuously. The second is to guard against storms.
To nurture, always have goals. It is human nature to strive, improve and achieve full potential. In fact, that is success. It is what is possible for you. It isn't any external measure - a certain cost to company pay package, a particular car or house.
Most of us are from middle class families. To us, having material landmarks is success and rightly so. When you have grown up where money constraints force everyday choices, financial freedom is a big achievement. But it isn't the purpose of life. If that was the case, Mr. Ambani would not show up for work. Shah Rukh Khan would stay at home and not dance anymore. Steve Jobs won't be working hard to make a better iPhone, as he sold Pixar for billions of dollars already. Why do they do it? What makes them come to work everyday? They do it because it makes them happy. They do it because it makes them feel alive. Just getting better from current levels feels good. If you study hard, you can improve your rank. If you make an effort to interact with people, you will do better in interviews. If you practice, your cricket will get better. You may also know that you cannot become Tendulkar, yet. But you can get to the next level. Striving for that next level is important.Nature designed with a random set of genes and circumstances in which we were born. To be happy, we have to accept it and make the most of nature's design. Are you? Goals will help you do that.
I must add, don't just have career or academic goals. Set goals to give you a balanced, successful life. I use the word balanced before successful. Balanced means ensuring your health, relationships, mental peace are all in good order.
There is no point of getting a promotion on the day of your breakup. There is no fun in driving a car if your back hurts. Shopping is not enjoyable if your mind is full of tensions.
You must have read some quotes - Life is a tough race, it is a marathon or whatever. No, from what I have seen so far, life is one of those races in nursery school, where you have to run with a marble in a spoon kept in your mouth. If the marble falls, there is no point coming first. Same with life, where health and relationships are the marble. Your striving is only worth it if there is harmony in your life. Else, you may achieve the success, but this spark, this feeling of being excited and alive, will start to die.
One last thing about nurturing the spark - don't take life seriously. One of my yoga teachers used to make students laugh during classes. One student asked him if these jokes would take away something from the yoga practice. The teacher said - don't be serious, be sincere. This quote has defined my work ever since. Whether its my writing, my job, my relationships or any of my goals. I get thousands of opinions on my writing everyday. There is heaps of praise, there is intense criticism. If I take it all seriously, how will I write? Or rather, how will I live? Life is not to be taken seriously, as we are really temporary here. We are like a pre-paid card with limited validity. If we are lucky, we may last another 50 years. And 50 years is just 2,500 weekends. Do we really need to get so worked up? It's ok, bunk a few classes, goof up a few interviews, fall in love. We are people, not programmed devices.I've told you three things - reasonable goals, balance and not taking it too seriously that will nurture the spark. However, there are four storms in life that will threaten to completely put out the flame. These must be guarded against. These are disappointment, frustration, unfairness and loneliness of purpose.
Disappointment will come when your effort does not give you the expected return. If things don't go as planned or if you face failure. Failure is extremely difficult to handle, but those that do come out stronger. What did this failure teach me? is the question you will need to ask. You will feel miserable. You will want to quit, like I wanted to when nine publishers rejected my first book. Some IITians kill themselves over low grades – how silly is that? But that is how much failure can hurt you. But it's life. If challenges could always be overcome, they would cease to be a challenge. And remember - if you are failing at something, that means you are at your limit or potential. And that's where you want to be.
Disappointment's cousin is frustration, the second storm. Have you ever been frustrated? It happens when things are stuck. This is especially relevant in India. From traffic jams to getting that job you deserve, sometimes things take so long that you don't know if you chose the right goal. After books, I set the goal of writing for Bollywood, as I thought they needed writers. I am called extremely lucky, but it took me five years to get close to a release. Frustration saps excitement, and turns your initial energy into something negative, making you a bitter person. How did I deal with it? A realistic assessment of the time involved – movies take a long time to make even though they are watched quickly, seeking a certain enjoyment in the process rather than the end result – at least I was learning how to write scripts, having a side plan – I had my third book to write and even something as simple as pleasurable distractions in your life - friends, food, travel can help you overcome it. Remember, nothing is to be taken seriously. Frustration is a sign somewhere, you took it too seriously.
Unfairness - this is hardest to deal with, but unfortunately that is how our country works. People with connections, rich dads, beautiful faces, pedigree find it easier to make it – not just in Bollywood, but everywhere. And sometimes it is just plain luck. There are so few opportunities in India, so many stars need to be aligned for you to make it happen. Merit and hard work is not always linked to achievement in the short term, but the long term correlation is high, and ultimately things do work out. But realize, there will be some people luckier than you. In fact, to have an opportunity to go to college and understand this speech in English means you are pretty damm lucky by Indian standards. Let's be grateful for what we have and get the strength to accept what we don't. I have so much love from my readers that other writers cannot even imagine it. However, I don't get literary praise. It's ok. I don't look like Aishwarya Rai, but I have two boys who I think are more beautiful than her. It's ok. Don't let unfairness kill your spark.
Finally, the last point that can kill your spark is isolation. As you grow older you will realize you are unique. When you are little, all kids want Ice cream and Spiderman. As you grow older to college, you still are a lot like your friends. But ten years later and you realize you are unique. What you want, what you believe in, what makes you feel, may be different from even the people closest to you. This can create conflict as your goals may not match with others. . And you may drop some of them. Basketball captains in college invariably stop playing basketball by the time they have their second child. They give up something that meant so much to them. They do it for their family. But in doing that, the spark dies. Never, ever make that compromise. Love yourself first, and then others.
Finally, the last point that can kill your spark is isolation. As you grow older you will realize you are unique. When you are little, all kids want Ice cream and Spiderman. As you grow older to college, you still are a lot like your friends. But ten years later and you realize you are unique. What you want, what you believe in, what makes you feel, may be different from even the people closest to you. This can create conflict as your goals may not match with others. . And you may drop some of them. Basketball captains in college invariably stop playing basketball by the time they have their second child. They give up something that meant so much to them. They do it for their family. But in doing that, the spark dies. Never, ever make that compromise. Love yourself first, and then others.
There you go. I've told you the four thunderstorms - disappointment, frustration, unfairness and isolation. You cannot avoid them, as like the monsoon they will come into your life at regular intervals. You just need to keep the raincoat handy to not let the spark die.
I welcome you again to the most wonderful years of your life. If someone gave me the choice to go back in time, I will surely choose college. But I also hope that ten years later as well, your eyes will shine the same way as they do today. That you will Keep the Spark alive, not only through college, but through the next 2,500 weekends. And I hope not just you, but my whole country will keep that spark alive, as we really need it now more than any moment in history. And there is something cool about saying - I come from the land of a billion sparks.
Thank You!
Guys, in next article I am expressing my views about the author Chetan Bhagat. Let me allow to read his book "One Night at Call Centre"...Good Night!
Articles to Read :
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02. Beware of MOUSE (MOUSE ARM !!!)
03. Surface Computer : Microsoft
04. The Road is Never Long Between Friends !!!
05. Principle of Life !!! By Stephen Covey
06. FLY PEN TOP COMPUTER by LEAP FROG
07. The KPO Industry : New Horizen (Part-I)
08. The KPO Industry : KPO & BPO (Part-II)
09. The KPO Industry : Why GLOBAL concentrated to INDIA? (Part-III)
10. What next ? After the Death of One Love Bird.....
11. Amazing Photos From the Russian Website....
12. The Heaven on the Land....
13. Gorgeous photos of the Nature !!!
14. Awesome Pictures !!!
15. Magical Moving Images
16. 3 Words !!!
17. INDIA : The DARK Side !!!
18. Lightning burst captured in photo !!!
19. ...they take 9 months to download
20. Safe in Daddy's Arms !!!
21. Burning Rainbow !!!
22. Volcano oozes lava into the ocean !!!
23. The TULIP's World !!!
24. The Women World !!!
25. Play like a TOY !!!
26. Singapore Threatened by Poision Spider
27. Innocent Kids : Feel Your Childhood !!!
28. I meet SWAMI at our Factory !!!
29. Two Moons on 27th August !!!
30. Awesome Paper Art
31. Mother Power !!
32. Late Hour Working
33. If you plant honesty, it will determine what you will reap later!!
34. Plushy Airports of UK
35. Friendship : From My Mental Vision
36. Selective Listeneing
37. Online Big Bazar of Promotional Products
38. A Live Interview between YOU & INDIAN GOVERNMENT
39. My dear Sweethearts, What is Love?
40. Sir Sachin Tendulkar : Any thing missed here?
41. A Market of Holesale Shirts
42. A Love Story : Not to Forget
43. HP : The New Era of Inkjet Cartridges and Printers
44. Nature : A Natural Friend
45. Choose Your Frame at ZenniOptical.com
46. Mother Of Nation : Mother Teresa
47. Save your car with carinsurancerates.com
48. Arab Belly Dance : The Modern Era of New Dance
49. Keep Close Your Emotions in MailBoxes
50. The World's Most Expensive Vodka : Diva Vodka
51. Europe's Online Ticket Exchange Hub
52. Improve Your Life with Yoga and Meditation
53. Belief in yourself and your abilities
54. Countdown begins : Grab your Tickets Now
55. Health Mistakes We Did Regularly
56. The World of (E)mpire - A Online Shopping Mall
57. Abortion : The Dark Moment of Womanhood
58. Heena : The Mehendi World
59. Create Meaningful Pictures with Water Drops Art
60. Communication Skill : An Accomplishment of Life
61. Budget 2008-2009 : Highlights
62. Music Is Life : Create an email account for preserving songs
63. Smile : The key that fits the lock of everybody's heart
64. Innocence : An innocence review ... my way!
65. A review : 7 Secrets of Success
66. Crown : The mirror of your personality
67. Always allows the Boss to Speak First!
68. Body Art : An art to invoke emotions!
69. How you think about your Dining Room?
70. India : The creation of beautiful classical paintings
71. Mother : The Ocean of Love
72. School In A Cave : I just missed it
73. Birthday and Cake : A Delicious Treat and Emotions of Everyone
74. Photography : An art from the core of the heart
75. Classic Definitions & Cool Meanings
76. A Small Touching Story : Mainly for Professionals
77. Is it your dream bike? - You just dream about Dream Girl
78. 21 tips on take and give philosophy : worth for our lives
79. The Problem, could be very much within us
80. Memorable Gudhi Padwa : Received a greeting through the mail
81. Gather all resources before working on any project
82. India : Truth alone Triumphs - 1
83. India : Truth alone Triumphs - 2
84. India : Truth alone Triumphs - 3 (India Trade)
85. India : Truth alone Triumphs - 4 (Self Reliance)
86. Tata Nano wants the supplier for its 1 Lac Rs. Car. Anybody interested?
87. Honey, where would I have been without you?
88. India : Truth alone Triumphs - 5 (Pharmaceuticals)
89. India : Truth Alone Triumph - 6 (Foreign Multi-National Companies)
90. India Truth Alone Triumph - 7 (BPO)
91. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly
92. When you leave office today, Put the Glass Down
93. Poison that kill your dreams
94. Life is all about choices : You have Two Choices!
95. A Presence of mind!
96. Your Health is My Concern (Juice) - 1
97. Funny things just enjoy!
98. Let us choose the way to live : Warren Buffet
100. There are 4 things that you cannot recover
101. The Most Important Book – The Book of your life
102. Things that can be done with your cellphone
103. Cholesterol - A silent killer : The truth about your heart - 1
104. Cholesterol - A silent killer : The truth about your heart : Cholesterol and Heart Disease - 2
105. Cholesterol - A silent killer : The truth about your heart : Symptoms, Healthy Levels and Triglycerides of high blood cholesterol - 3
106. Cholesterol - A silent killer : The truth about your heart : Types of dietary fats in the food - 4
107. Cholesterol : A Silent Killer : A good cooking oil, Right Foods and Regular excersie - 5
108. Cholesterol : A Silent Killer : Stop overweight and smoking habits - 6
109. Request to all Sons and daughters on the eve of Father's Day
110. Top 22 things an Indian does after returning to India from "US"
111. Check your computers for DNS vulnerability
112. It is Google's Second Life
113. Voguish contact lens to monitor diseases
114. Water on the Moon
115. Guys, Just try Smiling
116. A Bridge of Love : Just get an essence of the story
117. A Difficult Judgement
118. Warning : I am almost at the end of my rope... and yours
119. Telephone Etiquettes : Make smile on your face
120. Prayer to Parmeshwara (God) : Please bless my computer
121. Mom and Dad, Please don't kill me! I am your unborn kid
