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Cracking the Focus Code: Challenges Faced by IITians || Acharya Prashant (2022)
12.8K views
1 year ago
Purpose
Excellence
IIT
Socialization
JEE Preparation
Mediocrity
Focus
Bondage
Description

Acharya Prashant responds to a student who feels stressed about transitioning from a non-social, focused life during JEE preparation to a more social environment in college. He begins by questioning the student about her level of drive and focus during her preparation. He establishes that her intense focus was due to having a clear purpose: to clear the JEE. Now that she has entered IIT, that purpose has been fulfilled, and she is left without a new one. This absence of a purpose is what makes her feel the need to socialize, seek friends, and find someone to listen to her problems. The speaker points out that during her JEE preparation, she didn't need to socialize because her purpose was bigger than the company of friends. However, now that she is in IIT, she has become relaxed. He suggests that this relaxation is a shift towards mediocrity. He warns her that clearing the JEE is not the ultimate achievement and that she has not attained anything significant yet. He emphasizes that, especially as a woman in India, she cannot afford to let her guard down or reduce her pace. He advises her to find a new, higher purpose, such as becoming a top scholar, rather than just a campus sensation. Acharya Prashant asserts that what the student lacks now is the same fire she had during her JEE preparation. He encourages her to give herself a new purpose, which will naturally attract the right kind of company. He suggests that people and relationships should be secondary to one's work and goals. He advises her to immerse herself in the vast world of literature and philosophy, and to excel in the numerous co-curricular activities available on campus. He concludes by urging her to maintain the same spirit of excellence she had for the JEE throughout her life, warning that seeking pleasure, fun, and relationships without a higher purpose leads to mediocrity and ultimately, bondage.