Below, I am sharing some of my observations from a typical day in an Indian metro. I would be interested to have your views on the same:
Life in the office has become more & more competitive. Where performance measurement norms have become more stringent and the gap between spoils for a higher performer are lower becoming wider, the bonhomie that used to exist between you and your peers 14 yrs back (when I started my career) is simply not there! These days, I get a distinct feeling that others come over to your desk only for two reasons - either to get some work done (work as defined by the organization) or to gain influence with you if you happen to have a political clout. There is no such thing as a casual chat over a cup of tea! In such a materialistic and result oriented environment, the natural tendency of a bhakta's mind (which is influenced by thoughts of selflessness joy of sharing) is to hit back with the thought -- "if you dont care for me, so do I".. thus there is a strong tendency that if someone ignores you (when you are down in your career) to return the person in the same coin - a tit for tat reaction. I guess hitting back is a natural reaction of the mind.
Questions:
How does the bhakta "motivate" his mind to move beyond the normal reaction of "if you hit me with a brick, I will hit you back with a stone"? How does one convince mind to "steadfastedly" remain still in the higher principle of "go on doing your duty for a higher principle" when the environment is so
indifferent and at times negative to such higher goals? How does one remain firm on ones goals (you will be kind to others - even if the other person is rude) when the external environment doesnt appreciate such things?
Looking forward to hearing your practical suggestions.
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