K. Baruah
If you were to wake up one morning to find yourself famous, what would you do? Suppose you had invented a vehicle which runs on water, or a machine that could produce water from thin air, a rain making machine, a gadget that could reduce car smoke emissions to help control pollution and save the environment, produce electrical energy from potato, or you just discovered a new planet full of water. What would be your initial reaction? Coupled with the pleasant thought of the money you could make from your unique idea, this is a pretty nice dream, is it not? Just for a moment assume that you really made the discovery. What would you do? Run into the streets shouting “eureka” like Archemedes? Tell your parents or friends? Go to the Science institutes? Frankly speaking you will not have even the faintest idea on what to do. There is every chance that someone else will steal your idea and you will be left beating your brow in extreme disdain. What you need to do at that moment, is you will have to sit down quietly and plan out your next course of action. In other words, simply bring your Cutting Edge into action in order to reap the benefits of your rare discovery. Am I right? If you agree to this then it is apparent that you need to plan your life and career accordingly and there is a strong need for this. This can be achieved in two simple ways. First, change your way of thinking and second follow up your ambition with a well set plan of action.
Albert Einstein summed up this process in a most sublime manner, “The world as we have created is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.”
What, I am saying might seem fiction for you? Well, not really. If you turn the pages of history you will find that there was a great man who woke up one fine morning to find himself famous. That man was George Bernard Shaw, popularly known as GBS. If this be so, then what is the difference between you and GBS? The Cutting Edge of course! GBS had that. And if he could, you can also acquire it. Let us start the story from the very beginning.
Today we live in a world where there is competition in every aspect of life. And as time will roll on this is going to increase swiftly to even higher echelon. Today if we go for a new admission in any institute, there is competition. Same is the case if you were to take part in a contest. Even when it comes to showcasing your talent or self-produced work of art, it is there. It is also prevalent if you are into a business, carrying out your duties on a job or even when you go for an interview. So how do we proceed in life amidst such tough convention? The answer is we need to develop that Cutting Edge. It is the special dynamic frame of thinking which will give us the slightest of edge over our rivals and competitors.
Exams and subsequent results seem to be the goal for most youths. Achieving the best result becomes the benchmark for embarking upon a successful career. Now the question which arises here is that, do all students who perform the best achieve the best jobs or profession? It does not seem so. Even a mediocre student may end up working in a high position. A student who might have secured low marks in Mathematics, turn out to be a senior Scientist in a renowned scientific organization. Take Albert Einstein’s life as a case in point. Most of us associate Einstein’s name as synonymous with genius. But he didn’t always show such promises. Einstein could not speak until he was four and could not read until he was seven; he was thought to be mentally retarded, slow and anti-social. Eventually, he was expelled from school and was refused admittance to the Zurich Polytechnic School. It was through rational thinking and sincere hard work that at the end, he won the Nobel Prize and changed the face of modern physics forever.
You have been often questioned –“What is your ambition?” And the reply is always there – doctor, engineer, scientist so on and so forth. My question here is that, have all youths been able to fulfill their innate ambition? I do not think so. Or will you take a safer option and say that you will foster your Father’s or family career and possibly take it to new heights? In this case my question is that, don’t you have a passion in you to do something special all by yourself? Are you afraid to take the risk? Or you are rebuked at the thought of a bad name or reputation of being a non-performer? If this be so, than what is the latent factor which helps one to achieve laurels, recognition and exceptional distinction? I would call this The Cutting Edge. An interface, as I would name it, which sets you apart from others. It is this Cutting Edge which will shape your destiny? Having said this how can you develop this attribute?
What is required is rational or resourceful thinking. This is the crux to get the Cutting Edge into your life. Think differently and set out to express yourself in a more refined manner. Edward De Bono is a great modern writer who has been the exponent of this art of “lateral thinking “worldwide.
Suppose you had an ambition of becoming an Engineer. The first thing you would do after primary studies is look for a reputed Engineering institute. Next you would take up a stream. Let us say Mechanical Engineering, may be because it gives a better job opportunity. Then you spend your parent’s money and get yourself admitted. The idea is to come out as a successful Engineer, get a job and start earning. If on the other hand you were a thinker with a rational brain your action would be different. First of all you would select an Engineering Institute with the best teaching faculty at an affordable cost. You would select a branch of Engineering in which you would excel, maybe Mechanical is not your forte like IT or computing. Taking a course for job purpose is not a correct thinking. That is not all. You will also plan out how you will go about searching for a job. In case you got mediocre results then what would be your strategy? You may also plan up to run a personal business house if you could not get a job. You would also plan your expenses and deduce your optimum income range. This is the Cutting Edge of rational thinking.
Suppose you are up for an interview of a job. You know that there will be questions and answers will be sought, there will be number of candidates, what would be your attitude? Give your best and leave the rest to luck and chance? If you have the Cutting Edge, you would question yourself. What are the other candidates like? What are their backgrounds? What makes you different from them? And most importantly, in what way you aim to present yourself before your board in order to gain their attention? If you have got the answers you will win. You have the Cutting Edge.
Those going through this evaluation may feel that all is theory with least practicality. Through this article I am making an attempt to give a few glimpses of how youths today should think and act. In order to help them further in a practical manner let me give some clues. Answer my questions first.
Do you have a special training or a diploma that makes you stand apart from others? Have you given your academic career a high status? You may have a CV, but have you built your portfolio? Or you thought portfolio was only required for modeling aspirants? Do you know that a few hours of sincerity and dedication can help you take small online exams and award you meritorious certificates?
If your answers are “no,” to all the above asked questions then you can try out the following helpful sites on the Net. Try PARSONS, which provides integrated studies on Disciplines like Digital Design, Fashion Design, Fashion Business, Fine Arts, Graphic Design, and Interior and Architectural Design. Try Udaycity which provides various nano degrees on Credentials built by industry leaders, helps you build your portfolio to advance your career. Try Alison for hundreds of short diploma courses.
I have a firm belief that after you have seen these sites you will surely be able to lend a Cutting Edge to your career.
Last but not the least, incidentally, remember those inventions I mentioned in the very beginning of this article do not think that they are false, because if you search the Net you will find that such discoveries have been made already! So what does it mean? It means you need to have a Cutting Edge, so sharp, that it becomes capable of cutting through the most steadfast, cynical and obstinate of mindsets of people who come into contact with you. Are you up for the challenge?
