I am sure all of us have taken or
given advice during the course of our lives. Sometimes we are so short of ideas
that we need family and friends to fill in for us. In difficult situations, we
are faced with tough choices, and even in favorable situations, we may have a
problem of plenty!
It is here at this point that we
commit our greatest mistakes. We seek advice, and we turn it into decisions.
All of us, at some point of time in our lives, have been guilty of letting
people influence us into making decisions and doing things which we actually
did not want to do.
Come to think of it, are there
really any right or wrong choices in this world? From what my limited
experiences tell me, there are only two kinds of acts: “legal and illegal”. If we are idealists, we might have another
category: “moral and immoral”. If,
however, a category called “right and
wrong” exists for us, then we might better look out for some kind of
rigidity which might have overtaken us.
From where I see, there is
nothing called right or wrong. There are only perspectives.Perspectives of
people who think differently because that's how mankind is supposed to be. For example, an
entrepreneur may look down upon a government job for being insipid. The same government
employee might look down upon an entrepreneur as a mindless risk taker.A girl
might dump her boyfriend for becoming a pain for her .That guy,at the same
time, might feel heartbroken. A child might want to be a painter in life
because that is his best skill but his parents might want him to opt for a safer
career. So are any of the above people wrong? Not really. These are just different perspectives
of different people.
So,instead of understanding
ourselves and understanding our own perspectives, we often fall in the trap of
seeking advice from ill informed people. These ill informed people are present
even among the closest family and closest friends. Just because we are close to
someone does not mean that we should seek advice from that person.By doing that,
we typecast ourselves. We run the risk of falling prey to our comfort zones.We
also run the risk of falling prey to preconceived notions of such people.Make a
note of it,advice is often based on experiences,but at the same time,advice also highlights the egotistical notions of people. Such people would go to all
means to justify what they say and believe, and we fall prey to the strength
these egotists possess. When we heed the voices of such people,act accordingly
and eventually realize that things have gone wrong ,these egotists are nowhere
to be seen and accounted for,and we are left to fend for ourselves.
In my opinion, it is more
important to seek facts,rather than advice, from people who possess more
knowledge than we do.Only these people,even if they are not friends or family, give
us the right facts. It is then our duty to analyse ourselves,our perspectives
and finally see where those facts lead us to. That is the only way we can do
justice to ourselves and show true respect to our desires and ambitions.
Remember, that no one,and absolutely no one understands us better than we do
ourselves.
And at the end of the day if someone comes to you and
says-“You don’t listen to anyone but do only what you have to”, the most crisp
reply would be – “Probably the best thing I do ! “ Its your life. Live it your way.
