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 God made the Plan of Evolution and
he set it working. Evolution has been going on from
time immemorial. The plan has a system behind, and it
is open to one and all to cooperate with it and
accelerate his or her evolution. God became man for
us. Should we not have a plan to become god for Him ?
We know knowledge is power– power to unfold latent
powers in man. Intelligent and sustained efforts lead
us to success. A ship, howsoever strongly built and
mechanically impregnable by bullet it ought to be
equipped with direction pointing and other guiding
instruments, so that it may reach the destination.
To get full return of one’s labour and efforts, one
should always keep alert, and be ready to meet any
challenge whatsoever. Everything should be planned in
advance so that one may be in a position to receive
the full award and advantage of one’s potentialities.
Remember, the more ambitious the plan, the greater the
difficulties, the more strenuous efforts would have to
be put in. The great Chinese philosopher, Confucius
said some 2500 years ago that “A man who does not
think and plan long ahead will find trouble right at
his door”. The novelist of all times, Victor Hugo
advises his readers to lead a planned life : “He who
every morning plans the transactions of the day, and
follows that plan, carries a thread that will guide
him through the labyrinth of the most busy life.” The
orderly arrangement of his time is like a ray of light
which darts itself through all his occupations. But
where no plan is laid, where the disposal of time is
surrendered merely to the chance of incidents, all
things lie huddled together in one chaos, which admits
of neither distribution nor review. Most of you must
have seen big executives and men who matter
maintaining diaries of their assignments and
engagements. The first thing a successful officer does
in the morning, as soon as he takes his seat, is to
consult the nothings for the day and go through the
schedule.
A note of caution be struck at this point. Although
the fundamentals of the plan may remain the same, it
should be open for minor changes here and there to
suit the changing conditions. As rightly pointed out
by Publilius Syrus, “It’s a bad plan that can’t be
changed”.
To achieve the object or the goal, we must first of
all, have a strong urge or burning desire for it.
Without this urge or the will to do it, there will be
hardly any commitment, and as such, the pursuit
thereof is bound to be half-hearted. The German
philosopher poet, Goethe, reminds us again and again
that, “He who is of firm will moulds the world to
himself”.
Some people talk of one important factor, the
circumstances, and may go to the length of quoting
such statements as “Man is the creature of
circumstances” (Robert Owen), “Men are the sport of
circumstances (G. G. Byron) and the like. But we must
accede that different persons work
differently and show different results in the same
circumstances. The same teacher imparts the same
lessons to a number of students present in the
classroom, but no two students show the same result or
get the same number of marks at the examination. It
may help our attitude towards the
circumstances, if we try to take to our heart these
words of C. N. Bovee, “It is our relation to
circumstances that determines their influence over us.
The same wind that carries one vessel into port, may
blow another offshore.” Sir William Osler gives us a
tip regarding the influence of the
circumstances and their role in the scheme of things :
“When schemes are laid in advance, it is surprising
how often the circumstances fit in with them”.
There may be occasions when one is likely to be
tempted by small gains, and give up efforts to see the
plan through. These small successes are like the
serpents coiled beneath every flower, which seek an
opportunity to detract the worker from his goal. So,
neglect the serpents of small gains and go ahead till
you reach the temple of success on the top of the
hill.
Success is not a fruit which drops from a road side
tree, nor a matter of luck or chance. The tree,
yielding the fruit of success, does not grow in vacuum
or on a barren land. It is made to grow in the land
where soil is tilled with sweat-shedding and sustained
hard labour. The challenges of circumstances, are to
be met with self-confidence and indomit-able courage
and undiluted and pointed devotion to your plan. Know
it from the masters, who preside over our destinies
that the world is meant for those who are reckless of
wind and weather. There is no room for the lethargic
and slothful.
Above all, your success would depend upon your ability
to apply your intelligence in the hot pursuit of your
plan and to the working thereof with full and true
commitment. You will convert the adversities into
opportunities and bounce into the fight or the fray
again and again till you come out with flying colours.
To each individual, there is one road. The ambitious
one has to find the road which suits his nature,
temperament or Dharma. The plan to go along the road
has to be drawn, and details be worked out. A
navigator has before him the map of the routes he has
to take; the compass is a constant companion of an
experienced sailor. Then why not should a plan of work
ever be before an aspirant and the one who is destined
to achieve heights in his life ?
So, plan your work, and work your plan. |
Plan Your Work, Work Your Plan