What gives you direction in life?
The text explores the factors that give direction and motivation in life, using nature and human experiences as analogies. It highlights the importance of strong motivation and willpower in achieving goals, comparing it to how plants grow towards gravity. Human emotions and aspirations shape personal journeys, often influenced by external forces like societal expectations and financial constraints. The narratives of individuals like Albert Einstein and Winston Churchill illustrate how overcoming challenges can lead to success. Ultimately, the text emphasizes the need for clear goals, careful planning, and resilience in the face of setbacks to maintain one’s focus and achieve aspirations.
Table of contents
Key Takeaways
- Motivation serves as the driving force behind achieving goals, influenced by internal desires and external pressures.
- People’s emotions and aspirations shape their individual journeys, as illustrated by figures like Albert Einstein and Winston Churchill.
- External factors, particularly financial constraints, can hinder the pursuit of personal ambitions and affect goal-setting.
- A focused approach, careful planning, and resilience are essential in navigating setbacks and achieving aspirations.
- To succeed, individuals must cultivate self-belief and determination, alongside learning from the struggles of others.
The banyan
Standing before a huge banyan tree, he was amazed by its vast expanse. The massive boroughs needed support. Nature has provided them with the intrinsic backing in the form of prop roots. These roots emerge from the branches and grow downward, penetrating the ground to become stout supportive pillars. Nature compensates one thing with another. In human beings, it is a little different in a way that humans are social. They seek mutual help and support in case they need it to chase their dreams with a driving force.
Motivation
The driving force is motivation. Destination and chosen path determines the course of human journey. Motivation plays a crucial role. Things arouse interest which in turn motivates to achieve. The intensity of wish to achieve the goal pushes for effort. Catalysed by motivation, the quality and amount of result keeps glued with the task. Despite impediments and struggle, the winning spirit comes from strong motivation. It determines the direction and speed of the journey. A strong will, supported by an equally strong motivation drives and carves out path. The essential thing is that forces should be overpowering and supercede peripheral things. Chosing right path is the test of prudence.
The experiment
If a straight potted plant is laid parallel to the plane of the earth, a strange thing is observed. The shoot of the plant starts growing upward, taking a “L” turn. The plant first struggles to grow against gravity, and the apex of it starts growing in an upward direction. On the contrary, the root, when observed, shows a downward trend towards the gravitational pull. Yet another interesting thing is observed if the plant is slowly rotated so that it gets equal force everywhere. In that case, it keeps growing straight without bending anywhere.
Inference of the experiment
The simple experiment described above shows how different forces affect organisms and their roles in shaping their future course of development vis-à-vis the environment and intrinsic forces. In terms of human beings, the analogy fits mutatis mutandis well.
Humans are a complex blend
Human beings are complex organisms so far as their brains are concerned. There are a plethora of emotions, sentiments, feelings, aspirations and desires. The feelings are like millions of ripples in a flowing stream, which emerge and subside. The feelings, emotions and aspirations are conditional, and it is difficult to frame them in a rule or two.
Development
The development of human beings starts from their beginning in the mother’s womb. Since conception, the embryo grows. Passing through various developmental stages, the embryo becomes a foetus. With gradual changes, the foetus undergoes various changes from mental, emotional and physical development. Emotions play an important role in shaping and chiselling out the best individual. It is emotions which shape the personality of an individual. The aspirations and ambitions are subtle but are crucial in the future course of an individual’s journey.
Albert Einstein
The great scientist Albert Einstein once opined that everyone is a genius, but if a fish is judged on its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it was ignorant. The message is loud and clear. The ability is like the aorta. It is intrinsic and needs identification to hone it. Einstein had to prove himself before becoming a great scientist. He was ranked below average in his school days and was a backbencher. Whether he was focused or not is insignificant. The point is, his interest in certain subjects was overpowering and exceeded other things.
Shifting choices
People dream of many things since childhood. A child is curious by nature. Things amuse the child. Looking at the moon, child Krishna wanted to have it. Keeping the wishes of her child, mother Yashoda brought down the moon in a saucer filled with water. The reflection of the moon in the water pleased child Krishna, who squealed after his vain effort to catch it. The aspiration is short-lived and frequently changes as the child grows. It is interesting to observe the shift in the interest of a toddler. As the growth continues and the child picks up experiences, the choices also start filtering out.
Winston Churchill on his early life
The future course of events is factor-dependent. Various factors influence future thoughts and aims. Some wanted to be an administrator but ended up in a field they never liked. Winston Churchill, in his book “My Early Life”, has interestingly described this ordeal. He writes:
“I had scarcely passed my twelfth birthday when I entered the inhospitable regions of examinations, through which for the next seven years I was destined to journey. These examinations were a great trial to me. The subjects dearest to the examiners were almost invariably those I fancied least. I would have liked to have been examined in history, poetry and writing essays. The examiners, on the other hand, were partial to Latin and mathematics. And their will prevailed. xxx I should have liked to be asked to say what I knew. They always tried to ask what I did not know. xxx This sort of treatment had only one result: I did not do well in examinations.”
Wartime Prime Minister
Winston Churchill later became the British Prime Minister and was considered the best wartime Prime Minister. He had no dearth of resources, nor did he face financial constraints, but the ability was different, and with time, it showed.
Factors affecting goals
Besides motivation, other factors that affect goals and the course of the journey are varied. It can be personal calibre, interest or external but unavoidable factors. Yet, out of them all, the financial constraints and resulting pressure are more crucial. Someone who aspires to become a player and wants to achieve in sports does not get entry because of the high cost of the competitive sports world. One has to relinquish one’s aspiration and vie for something other than money for survival. Hence, fixing a goal and being productive in the field of choice often becomes strenuous.
Screws are either very tight or very loose
Successful persons in position not because of their choice but by chance or other pressing conditions. Some who wanted to join the civil service ended up in an entirely different and unrelated field. Famous actor Annu Kapoor wanted to become an IAS officer, but financial constraints led him to the entertainment industry. They had no choice but to accept the place they were in. Most of the dissatisfied lots find themselves unfit, like a screw which is either very tight or very loose; neither condition is congenial. They have had no chance to fix their priorities and goals to focus on. In such a case, getting direction becomes irrelevant and meaningless. (Hindustan Times)
Direction and focused approach
Those who achieve the impossible are extraordinary persons of firm determination and commitment. These qualities give them motivation and keep them motivated. Usually, such dignitaries are people who don’t have anything to lose. In most cases, people with fewer financial constraints are seen as successfully wading through difficult situations to achieve their desired goals. In their case, the direction and focused approach play a vital role.
Hawk-eyed approach
Getting direction and being on the right track is sometimes a daunting task. The goal needs to be fixed with proper consideration, keeping every aspect in mind. It is followed by careful planning, considering impediments, and evaluating personal capacity. After the goal is set, there should be no looking back. A focused and hawk-eyed approach is then the only solution to achieve the goal.
Toiling pays rich dividends
The ride can be bumpy or rough. Repeated failures, rejections and ruthless criticism of family and societal pressure cause extensive pressure. It disheartens the person. In such a case, self-confidence and self-belief are the only string that helps in crossing the vast, disturbed sea. Self-belief, conviction, honesty and genuineness of efforts are the Mantras of success. It is rightly said that doors open only for those who knock at them. Epicaricacy is a favourite pastime of a select few. People having this trait are opportunists who try to associate with a successful person. The people’s criticism is phasic and according to their parochial perception. Their views are immaterial and must not deter a person from the path. Taking motivation from achievers’ struggle stories and choosing the right path helps a lot.
Clear conscience, firm determination and hard work in the right direction are the ingredients that result in a delicious dish that gives nourishment and pleasure after it is prepared.
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Kamal Kishore Srivastava
A retired government officer turned writer and photographer, Kamal Kishore Srivastava is a regular blogger and essayist who explores life’s deeper meanings through immersive reflections on nature, impermanence, and happiness. On his blog Nature’s Narrative, he blends philosophical storytelling with practical insights. Writing 1200–1500 or more words regularly, Kamal is committed to refining his craft, expanding his audience, and building a sustainable space where thought and feeling meet.
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