Threads of Life: Celebrating Your Unique Path

Three ways to discover the uniqueness of your life

On the street, one person becomes happy by selling a balloon and another by buying it. Because success & happiness mean differently to different people. It is subjective & situational; so, looking at it objectively & passing a judgment is not at all a good idea. However, social media; especially reels, have objectified successful people. Since we do not have access to their inner life, we only see what they prefer to show. We might see their success but not their struggles. We might see their joy but not their fears.

When a biographer writes a biography of a celebrity, they do not collect information from social media only. They dive deep into their ‘behind the scene’ life. Even if they glorify success yet they spend more time knowing the ‘Journey’. Because each one of us is on a unique journey in this life with its boons and banes. If someone has tasted success, they must have tasted struggles too. If someone displays abundant courage, they must have overcome their dark fears too.

Whom do you call happy & successful; a rickshaw puller whose daughter has become an IAS officer or an IAS officer whose son has become a drug addict. It is not easy to judge; indeed, a challenging task, even to understand from their point of view. The rickshaw puller’s first half of life is challenging and the IAS officer’s second half. It is not at all simple to put a label of success or failure on someone’s life until and unless that life is not yours or it has not yet ended. Because if you are alive, things can take turns, surprise you & give you a new definition of life.

Have you ever met a person who does not want to have a ‘Good Life’? Each one of us wants to have a happy, successful, fulfilled life, ofcourse the definition varies. From the moment we are born, we are influenced by numerous influential factors like parenting, education, country, life situations etc. All these unique elements shape us to become a unique individual in our unique journey of life.

Three ways to discover our unique life journey:

1.?????? Passion & Problems: Not everyone gets to follow their passion because they have problems too. So, knowing your passion is not enough; you must identify the problems that can prevent you from following your passions. Some continue to struggle with their life problems and fail to pursue their passion. Whereas some can accept their problems and go on to follow their passion. Stephen Hawking & Nick Vujicic are the two people I admire the most in this regard.?

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Reflect: What passions do you have and what problems do you need to solve in this life?

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2.????? Responsibilities & Resources: Some are born with huge responsibilities; to take care of their ailing parents, struggling siblings, family issues etc. and some get to live carefree. You must accept your responsibilities and accordingly scan your resources. Abraham Lincoln & Amitabh Bachan are one of the few people who exemplify success despite failures. Being able to optimize your resources and fulfil your responsibilities is success for you in this journey of life.

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Reflect: What are your responsibilities in this life & what resources you have or can build to fulfil those responsibilities?

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3.????? Experience & Exposure: Each one of us is born into myriads of exposure and eventually gain experience around it. Understand the kind of exposure & experience you got since childhood, language, culture, talent, life situations, success, failures etc. and decide to build on it. Deepa Malik the first Indian woman to win medal in Paralympic exemplifies it well. The closer you move towards your life experience & exposure the more fulfilled you will become. Because everyone of us is on a unique journey in life.

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?Reflect: How can you build on the unique experience & exposure life has given you?

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Published earlier in the newspaper tabloid "The Desert Trail"