Choose the right work

Questioner: Hello Sir. As you said that one needs to come out of the memory trap and live in the present, right? So, what other method do you suggest in keeping your mind occupied? One is that, do the right thing in the present. And, sometimes, I feel what forces should I follow, that can guide us to get out of this trapped feeling that we get, and we often are clueless that whom should we seek guidance from? Or what source should we go to get the right guidance? So, what do you suggest about that?

Acharya Prashant: You see, work is something you do to heal yourself. Right? Had you been completely alright, there would have been no need of work. Then, we could have just said that all our activity is just play. Play having no purpose at all. And, that purposeless play would have been very beautiful, because nothing would have been anywhere needed to be done. But, look at our situations. We need to do a lot because we are not alright. We are not okay. Therefore, work has to be something that heals you.

Are you getting it?

That’s how you’ve to make your choice of work. Not necessarily something that gives you the maximum money. Though, if in the process of healing you, work gives you money as well, wonderful. But money cannot be the central thing. It can be an enabler, or it can be a by-product. But money is not your central problem, therefore money cannot be your central motive. You have to know your central problem, and that will decide the work you do.

Your work has to be of a nature that challenges your central problem. Your work has to be something that will not allow you to remain the problemed and weak person you are, and all of us are. Don’t we talk of strengths and weaknesses. That’s a part of the standard fare. Every CV, every interview stands strengths, weaknesses these things. So, we do know very well that weaknesses exist, and our weaknesses are deeper and bigger than the ones we typically reveal on the CV. Right? So, work has to be something that takes care of those weaknesses. That’s the definition of work.

In practice, we proceed in a totally different way. We say, “Weaknesses have to be kept aside, and I’ll look at my strengths and choose work that can leverage on those strengths.” Because that’s when obviously, you will get the maximum rewards in terms of money, etc. “I’m good at something, so I’ll go and choose a job in that field.” It seems intuitively okay, but think of it.

You’re living by your so-called strengths and allowing your weaknesses to go unaddressed. How will you live? And remember, the so-called strengths and weaknesses are two faces of the same coin. What you call as your strength is not at all divisible or separable from your weaknesses. So, if you continue patronizing your so-called strengths, you’ll continue deepening your so-called weaknesses. Right?

Why not show some guts? And say, “I want to do something that will fulfil the central purpose of my life and the purpose of my life is not to live in fear. The purpose of my life is to get rid of the bondages of fear, etc. that I was born with and accordingly, I’ll choose my work.”

The work has to be very charming, very lovely. And, the love that you display to your work is actually the love you have for yourself because work is going to heal you.

Are you getting it?

I fully understand, I’m talking to business management students. This is not the kind of thing that goes around in MBA campuses but I suppose, we can once in a while, afford to listen to something a bit different, can’t we?

So, this is a very different paradigm. Not going through life with the intention to just consume. When you have the intention to just consume, what do you do? You say, “I’m good at these things, and I’ll go to the market and sell these particular traits or qualities of mine. And, when I sell these things, the market will give me money and privileges in return. And, I’ll consume them.” That’s the normal framework, in which we live. Right?

What I’m talking of is a very different thing, and we need to talk of this, if we are really to address the mental health epidemic. We’re not discarding money here. We’re not talking of any of that. We’re not talking of the stereotyped spiritual stuff that says, that money does not mean anything, success, etc. is just fiction, and one has to attain God and that is the purpose of life. You don’t need ambition, you don’t need hard work, all you need to do is chant the name of God all day and you’ll be done.” We’re not talking of any of that.

We want to honestly and closely look at the human condition, our own condition, and enquire, debate. What is it that we really need to do, what are we here for? You see, all these are the things in life, no? The education you get, the job you get, the family you’re born in, the spouse you choose. These are all things on the table, and it’s a very vast table. None of these is life itself. But, at times, when we’re afraid and we’re nervous, and when we don’t know, then one of these things or several of these things can appear larger than life.

Clearing an entrance exam can become a matter of life and death, getting that particular job can become the central purpose of life, a heartbreak in an affair can push you to contemplate suicide. These things start appearing so big, are they really so big or is there something else that you exist for? And, if there is something else you exist for, shouldn’t you utilize your knowledge, your courage towards that?

The knowledge you’d be getting in your campus would be fabulous. The question is what is that knowledge to be used for? For personal consumption, that will keep you fed and fat but never challenge you enough to shatter your weaknesses down? Am I making a sense, I don’t know, you’ve to tell me.

Questioner: Yes Sir.

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