Diaries of a vacation - Part 5

Diaries of a vacation - Part 5

Excellence in life often boils down to very simple principles: Following one’s heart, dedication, willingness to commit oneself to a chosen task with passion, energy and zeal, grabbing opportunities as they come by, constantly innovating and finding ways of adapting to changing needs and times - all these are to found in the myriad books, inspirational speeches that abound for the benefit of common man. But what they don’t, won’t or cannot tell you is why then Excellence and success is so uncommon then, and discouragingly hard to come by. After all, if there is a fixed regimen to be followed; and if one is willing to follow it to the tee- then success must be inevitable. But that is not the case. It seems that Men and Women who are successful, and have reached the pinnacle of their chosen field of work seem to be “divinely chosen” for whatever they are destined to do, and the rest can, at best emulate their ways and means with a fervent hope that they too would touch the summit or come apologetically close to it.

Hearing Vishwanathan Anand speak at the Oberoi the other day to a close audience of 30 odd people raised a few fundamental questions in my mind. Here is a man whom one could term as child prodigy. Tutored by his Mother to play chess at 6, national champion at 14, Grand master at 15 and then to be followed by a meteoric rise in the international arena- baffling veterans with his prodigious understanding of the chessboard and its mathematical vulnerabilities; unassuming, simple, well-spoken and down to earth – that today the game of chess is almost synonymous with him along with the Bobby Fishers, Kasparov’s and karpov’s if his league. While most of the champions approached chess as a war of personalities, Anand transformed the game by looking at it from a purely number of squares on a board and its permutations.

He has been NIIT’s brand ambassador for a while now - in fact 16 years, if I am not mistaken, and every now and then we showcase him to speak about his extraordinary resilience when the chips are down. And what he had to say last Wednesday evening was quite interesting (for me, personally). Apart from normal pointers from successful people like - get the basics right, keep practicing, have a goal etc., Anand made two subtle but deep points that i need to elaborate upon. He talked about not getting caught up in ones journey towards excellence, and just get down to brass action at some point in time. He said Chess has reached a point, where individual players do not matter anymore or the game. It had become utterly predictable, and the only way to score an advantage is by playing random opening moves without thought of consequences. In other words, it pays to be chaotic and give into the moment. All of one’s preparation is just up to that point: after which, it is best to let go and trust in one’s intuition. This is a particularly insightful observation in a world that seems to be gravitating more towards order and control, where every line of work is systematized, and numbers and measurements seems to hold absolute sway over our decision making. But true Excellence is never planned. It is always those singular moments of brilliance that come unannounced and sweep away all predictions and averages from our feet. After a two year losing streak, Anand rose like a Phoenix towards the end of last year to win a couple of crucial games. And the reason, he emphasized was to abandon the trodden path and embark upon something new. It is in this sense that I said earlier that such moments of path breaking innovation cannot be learned or transmitted. It is a spark that illuminates individual breasts from within, and cannot be imitated.

The other important point that Anand talked about is the paralysis caused by psychological time. As a chess player, days and months of intense preparation are needed, cramming the brain with myriad possibilities; but on the day of reckoning – there has to be a let go, a deep understanding that the outcome of one’s effort is beyond ones control. That life has far more dimensions and variables that can possibly be coordinated, and pushing oneself too hard when it matters may possibly lead to negative results. Again, it is not mental laziness that leads to this attitude, but a crescendo of effort. This is pretty tough thing to do. In a world dominated by constant pressure to do consistently well, it takes a lot personal maturity and insight to not get bogged down by extraneous factors. The best sportsmen are those who just play for the sheer love of the game. And what is true for Sportsmen is true enough for excellence in every field of action.

I am writing this post sitting at 2.00 A.M in the morning. Dubai international airport is teeming with life, and all around me. I see people from Different nationalities - Africa, Chinese, British, French, and German – and I can hear their different tongues filtering though the buzz. This has been a glorious trip for me. I couldn’t have hoped for a better vacation. Spent real quality time with Mom and family, Met all my friends at work, pampered my tummy (to the point of upsetting it a bit) with all the goodness that rich food can offer, received hospitality and warmth that can only come with mutual respect and understanding, worked enough to keep things moving; worked out our Office in Gurgaon for the first time, took my team out for dinner; was treated to sumptuous lunches by my friends/colleagues in Delhi ( will never forget the taste of Rabdi - ever!!!) slept dreamlessly on my old bed at home; drank my mother’s hot filter coffee with intensity of an addict; watched a few serials on TV ( and actually began to like them); enjoyed the torrential and capricious rains that Kerala is blessed with; gossiped enough to last for a few months; talked philosophy with my mom - in all it was a replenishing break from professional routine.

Such periods of inactivity are required; otherwise one would tend to lose perspective and composure. And now I wait for another ten hours for my flight to New York. I have two books open in front of me. One, a tech book that I need to read for my work this week; and the other is a brilliant debut novel by Zia Haider Rahman titled “In the light of what we know”. They should keep me occupied for better part of my layover.

I must agree with Henry Thoreau - the great nature writer and existentialist – when he writes “He enjoys true leisure who has time to improve his soul's estate…” And it is for this quality of leisure that vacations are for.

God bless…

Yours in mortality,

Bala