Success & Celebration

A student stood up and put up a question. ‘Sir, what does success mean?’

‘Success means many wonderful, positive things. Success means personal prosperity: a fine home, vacations, travel, new things, financial security, giving your children maximum advantages. Success means winning admiration, leadership, being looked up to by people in your business and social life. Success means freedom: freedom from worries, fears, frustrations, failure and corruption. Success means self-respect, continually finding more real happiness and satisfaction from life, being able to do more for those who depend on you. Success means reaching back to society and doing something for them. And of course for you, success means finishing your education with good grades and getting a job of your dreams’, I said.

‘Success means winning. Success – achievement - is the goal of life.’

‘Every human being wants success. Everybody wants the best this life can deliver. Nobody enjoys crawling and living in mediocrity. No one likes feeling second class and feeling forced to go that way.’

On telling a fact that in India Gross Enrollment Ration (GER) is just 12.4 percent, which means just this many people graduate; a student jumped and said, ‘that clearly means we  are winners and must open bottles of champagne.’ 

‘Yes, we must celebrate but you got to find your own way of celebration', I said.

Celebrate to Succeed More!

The sun rises and celebrates

The sky embraces and celebrates

Winds blow and celebrate

Rivers flow and celebrate

Clouds rain and celebrate

Birds sing and celebrate

Peacocks dance and celebrate

Trees flower and celebrate

Buds blossom and celebrate

How do we human beings celebrate?

'Find your own way of celebration. My acid test in the selection of a way of celebration is: it must be such that your parents, spouse, children and your favorite gods must feel great to join you in the celebration or at least they feel happy to hear.’

‘My company – IBM, completed 100 years of progress in 2011. I am proud to be an IBMer and wanted to celebrate the centennial; I reached back to you and did my bit to guide, motivate and inspire you towards a better tomorrow and it makes me happy. The world's average GER is 26 percent and we are way behind that. We must reach back to awaken interest in education.'

I cherish the brilliant moments spent with students. ‘Thank you so much for illuminating my life, god.’

By the way, ‘How do you celebrate?’