A lesson from F.R.I.E.N.D.S

The other day I was at my home getting ready for my office and a friend of mine was watching an episode from the famous FRIENDS sitcom. The voices of Joey, Rachel and Chandler fell on my ears and I was pulled to the television like a magnet pulling iron. Though I have watched the series a millionth of times it still has the aura to attract me back to any of its episode. But this episode that my friend was watching and eventually me watching, was not recallable. So I started to listen to all the comic lines, the jokes the funny one-liners of the three characters. Between the sarcasm and jokes there was a scene which made a lot of sense to me. And I would like to put it into words here.

Rachel is a very bad waitress as all friends fans may know. So in this episode Gunther asks Rachel to undergo a waitress training again. Rachel is stunned to listen to that and asks Chandler if he also thinks the same. Chandler in his trademark sarcastic way agrees to Gunther. Joey joins the conversation. And the conversation hereafter is what teaches a lesson. I’m leaving the laughable part of the conversation out and would rather talk about the very simple yet meaningful lesson that this conversation teaches. Joey asks Rachel that what is the status of the job she had applied job in the fashion industry (Rachel’s dream career) some time back? Rachel says she is following it and still trying. Chandler tells Rachel that she is not trying hard enough and that she is not taking "apply to the new job you like" seriously. The reason Chandler gives to her is this: "You cannot be serious enough to try harder for the new job unless and until you have FEAR". Fear of being jobless. He tells her that unless and until she leaves her current job of waitressing she won’t have the fear that will drive to try harder for a new job that she is interested in. It is this fear that drives the person to try for something new. It is this fear that makes the person think fast and think of options that can get him/her a job that he/she is really interested in. After listening to Chandler and Joey, Rachel goes to Gunther and explains him why she is such a bad waitress: because she doesn’t care about the Coffee or Coffee Mugs or How to serve or How to arrange things. And she quits.

Now are you able to get the point here. See, this happens with all of us. After leaving the Teen-Age behind and stepping into the real world, we want to make it Big in the career that we like, isn’t it? But life isn’t always fair. Circumstances’ make us do the job that we are least interested in. This is just because we have to earn the goddamn Money and make a living. Once we are with a good earning job, we are fearless and free. We get into our comfort zone. And once into the Comfort zone we are least bothered about other things, like trying for the career in which lies your passion. If you have to get THERE then you have to leave behind the comfort zone which will instill fear in you and eventually make you struggle for the dream job/career of a lifetime.

The conversation between those three awesomely awesome characters though comic and humorous teaches the very basic trait of human behavior and some or the other way inspires to do the job that we really really like.

Restlessness

"Restlessness is discontent and discontent is the first necessity of progress". These are the words of Thomas Elva Edison who has around 1093 patents registered in his name. How rightly he said that restlessness is the discontent which keeps telling the heart that something is missing, something needs to be added to keep on this drive to progress. And progress for what? Just to make the mind and heart happy, isn’t it? This necessity of progress which restlessness brings in is a mere means of satisfying the needs. And even if all these needs are satisfied, we may still, expect that new discontent and restlessness creep in. This is because we are never satisfied with what we have got unless we are doing what we are fitted for. Restlessness as I think, encourage us to strive hard to embrace anything and everything that will lead to a happy peaceful life. A Painter must paint; a musician must play music to be happy. It is as simple as that.

The million dollar question is… how will one know if he/she destined to be a painter, how will one come to know if he/she is a musician or anything else? The answer lies within oneself. One has to be open to all the options that life put forward to have this restlessness developed. How do you think that Thomas Edison was able to invent the electric light bulb, the phonograph etc? Did he just got up from bed one fine morning and invented the bulb in one go? NO! That isn’t the way life works. When Edison was working at the Associated Press he seized the time to read and experiment. This gave him chance to explore all the options around him. And when he was able to pick that one golden option which made him happy, he grew restless to achieve the excellence in his work.

Why I’m emphasizing on Thomas Edison’s life is that, I want to put forward a point here. If you are not sure of what your heart wants just give it chance to explore the never-ending options in life. If you think you are musician or not, how would you come to know unless you play any one instrument? Just go there, pick up a musical instrument, play it, learn it and see if your heart likes it. And if you like it, restlessness will follow. And this restlessness will encourage you achieving excellence. This is true for any profession any field in life. And somebody has said it right that "Always pursue excellence, success will definitely follow". So the mantra is, in order to pursue excellence make your mind restless; to have a restless mind open your arms for the world of options. Because restlessness is the key towards opportunities and opportunities are meant to be created.

I drink occasionally, but this Occasion comes often!!!

A for… Antiquity, B for… Bacardi, C for… Carlsberg, D for… Director’s special, this is the new ABCD I have been learning since the testosterone in me started charging up. And believe me these alphabets I’m learning is way too difficult to implement in real life, as there are many social and personal issues involved in that. ‘Why so?’ You ask. Well, I have an answer for that. See, when we were at kindergarten dint our teacher helped us to learn ABCD by actually seeing and feeling A for… Apple, B for… Ball etc. That was simple wasn’t it? No worries about social concern and no personal problems. Learn for sake of learning. Just a simple innocent childhood. But here, my dear friends, after you leave the teenage behind and try to learn and Feel ( most important) the ABCD that I’m learning requires courage, passion, pure love and most importantly strong bonding between the alphabets and you and a level of maturity. Because, mind you, those are not just alphabets those are the elixir of life. And the teacher here is none other than friends. Only those friends who have taken this elixir inside and experienced the feeling and also to those friends who always try to keep us away from it. Either way they are teachers. I will refer them as Teacher 1 and Teacher 2 in my narration ahead.

I drink occasionally, but this occasion comes often; is topic I want to discuss here. And having the base of this topic explained in above words it would be easy for me to continue. It is happening recently that the pace of experiencing these alphabets has been doubled and I’m having no control over that. One occasion comes where I celebrate a friend’s birthday party with lots of Carlsberg. The other comes the very second day to listen the story of a heart broken friend with a hard drink in one hand and other on my friend’s shoulders to give my condolences. The third day comes with another occasion where I party hard with my MBA friends just to celebrate their success which, I don’t know what it is, but I get a hell lot of RS whisky enough for a deadly hang over. Then the fourth day comes… then the fifth… and so does the occasions. Yet another week ends with a bang.

The Teacher 1 is happy as according to him I’m enjoying to the fullest and leaving no strings of life unplucked and getting the rhythm divine. On the other hand Teacher 2 curses me for the extent of stupidity I’m doing with my life and making my life miserable. My dilemma is Teacher 1 or Teacher 2? Whom should I listen to? Because both of them as I have said are you friend and teacher as well. It’s difficult task for me to choose any one of them. I tried to figure out something and here is an interesting funda where heart and mind play hide and seek depending on you are drunk or not.

When I’m cautious, awake and able to have sense of what is going around, then I think that what the friend Teacher 2 said is correct. I’m blaming the irrelevant occasions for making me drink. He says it requires self control and knowledge about hazards of drinking, to curb this thirst. Just partying mindlessly, wasting the Gandhi (money u know), making my liver suffer etc.. etc. won’t take my life anywhere. At that time I feel like Teacher 2 is my only savior. I’m under this impression for almost half of the week. Then comes Friday, the day when your heart says "Oye! It’s Friday". It is a very special day as it is the last working day of the week. As usual I’m in my office in that 10x10 cubicle on a hectic working Friday under the influence of the good non drinkers and not thinking of any damn occasion to drink. And as all this straight forward thinking is running through my nerves I get a call from a very dear friend and guess what he tells me? "Hey I got a job in an esteemed organization man!!!" he says " C’mon, lets party". The "Lets Party" words struck me like a thunderbolt. Another party? What about the teachings of Teacher 2. Again mind and heart start playing games. But as always heart wins over mind in such situations. "Give a damn to the good boy philosophy" my heart says "And get going and have fun". I pack my bag. Make my mind and charge towards another occasion. I’m an occasional drinker, no doubt J . And at this occasion its time for K.. for Kingfisher.