Life Lessons from Narayana Murthy - Concluding part

[Guest guest]

Dear All,

 

Love and Love alone...

 

I am sorry, I forgot to post the concluding part of the above. Here

it is.

 

Love and Love alone....

 

P. Gopi Krishna

 

=====

 

I want to share with you, next, the life lessons these events have

taught me.

 

1. I will begin with the importance of learning from experience. It

is less important, I believe, where you start. It is more important

how and what you learn. If the quality of the learning is high, the

development gradient is steep, and, given time, you can find yourself

in a previously unattainable place. I believe the Infosys story is

living proof of this.

 

Learning from experience, however, can be complicated. It can be much

more difficult to learn from success than from failure. If we fail,

we think carefully about the precise cause. Success can

indiscriminately reinforce all our prior actions.

 

2. A second theme concerns the power of chance events. As I think

across a wide variety of settings in my life, I am struck by the

incredible role played by the interplay of chance events with

intentional choices. While the turning points themselves are indeed

often fortuitous, how we respond to them is anything but so. It is

this very quality of how we respond systematically to chance events

that is crucial.

 

3. Of course, the mindset one works with is also quite critical. As

recent work by the psychologist, Carol Dweck, has shown, it matters

greatly whether one believes in ability as inherent or that it can be

developed. Put simply, the former view, a fixed mindset, creates a

tendency to avoid challenges, to ignore useful negative feedback and

leads such people to plateau early and not achieve their full

potential.

 

The latter view, a growth mindset, leads to a tendency to embrace

challenges, to learn from criticism and such people reach ever higher

levels of achievement (Krakovsky, 2007: page 48).

 

4. The fourth theme is a cornerstone of the Indian spiritual

tradition: self-knowledge. Indeed, the highest form of knowledge, it

is said, is self-knowledge. I believe this greater awareness and

knowledge of oneself is what ultimately helps develop a more grounded

belief in oneself, courage, determination, and, above all, humility,

all qualities which enable one to wear one’s success with dignity and

grace.

 

Based on my life experiences, I can assert that it is this belief in

learning from experience, a growth mindset, the power of chance

events, and self-reflection that have helped me grow to the present.

 

Back in the 1960s, the odds of my being in front of you today would

have been zero. Yet here I stand before you! With every successive

step, the odds kept changing in my favour, and it is these life

lessons that made all the difference.

 

My young friends, I would like to end with some words of advice. Do

you believe that your future is pre-ordained, and is already set? Or,

do you believe that your future is yet to be written and that it will

depend upon the sometimes fortuitous events?

 

Do you believe that these events can provide turning points to which

you will respond with your energy and enthusiasm? Do you believe that

you will learn from these events and that you will reflect on your

setbacks? Do you believe that you will examine your successes with

even greater care?

 

I hope you believe that the future will be shaped by several turning

points with great learning opportunities. In fact, this is the path I

have walked to much advantage.

 

A final word: When, one day, you have made your mark on the world,

remember that, in the ultimate analysis, we are all mere temporary

custodians of the wealth we generate, whether it be financial,

intellectual, or emotional. The best use of all your wealth is to

share it with those less fortunate.

 

I believe that we have all at some time eaten the fruit from trees

that we did not plant. In the fullness of time, when it is our turn

to give, it behooves us in turn to plant gardens that we may never

eat the fruit of, which will largely benefit generations to come. I

believe this is our sacred responsibility, one that I hope you will

shoulder in time.

 

Thank you for your patience. Go forth and embrace your future with

open arms, and pursue enthusiastically your own life journey of

discovery!

[Guest guest]

Dear Jabalimuni Garu,

 

Love and Love alone..... Respects.

 

Many thanks for your kinds words, which were immediately redirected to the

Lotus Feet of Bhagawan Sri Ramana Maharshi.

 

We get confused with many such issues, as we do not have the clear sight of

all aspects of life. I have many such topics in my folders, which I wish to

share with you all, but unfortunately a few members are objecting to my " TOO

MANY MAILS " . I am, therefore, restricting myself, as I do not want to

inconvenience or hurt anybody and, most of all, elderly and learned persons in

the group.

 

Love and Love alone..... Respects.

 

P. Gopi Krishna

 

===

 

Jabali Muni <jabalimuni wrote:

Dear Gopi Krishna garu,Thank you for your vivid explantion regarding fate. I

am of the firm conviction that every thing is ordained and predetermined .Thr

calculating will we have is limited as it is guided by the prevoius experiences.

Devaraj Mudaliar's conversation with Bhagavan throws light on fate and how

things are predetermined.I hope all must come to this conclusion at one stage or

other.

Best

wishes,

Jabalimuni.

 

 

Ready for the edge of your seat? Check out tonight's top picks on TV.

 

 

 

P. Gopi Krishna

 

 

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