Decoding Transformation — Optimism Series
Optimism Series#2: A fulfilling year already made me realize many more fulfilling years’ left
I recently came across an intriguing saying, “You cannot walk by looking at the sky; you can only walk by looking down,” it almost stuck with me for days for yet another introspection session.
Here “looking at the sky” means experiencing extreme emotions, both happiness, and sadness; “looking down” means focusing on the task at hand or one’s responsibility and moving forward and making progress.
Two words are essential in the above para, 1) Experience 2) Progress. It’s almost a given that experiencing emotions are inevitable and the only controllable are our response to these experiences.
Either you “look at the sky, and get lost, or, look down the path, and keep moving.” Further drilling down, on the “how-to” part, is to decouple emotion and experience, treat every emotion as a commodity, and learn how to use it, react, and respond? More often than not, these emotions are triggered based on situations. Overcoming these situations leads to progress. The Experiences, over time, enable us to build a strong character, and it becomes a constant loop.
“From experiencing an emotion as a commodity to bolstering the character further.”
The constant loop phenomenon can better be understood from a recent conversation between the presenter and the match-winning Captain in a major cricketing league tournament’s post “final” match presentation ceremony.
Presenter to the Captain: “You should be proud of the legacy you had left behind;” Well, I still haven’t left, replied the Captain.
There cannot be a better example to quote and interpret than the above Question and Answer to understand the constant loop phenomenon.
The interviewer here refers to “The legacy” in the question as
- irrespective of winning or losing a game on how to remain steady and bounce back to winning ways constantly
- handling expectations of an unwavering super maniac fan followers of the Yellove franchise
- to be able to prove the critics wrong time and again by showcasing how to defy age barriers and emerge as champions
- building a brand — arguably the best celebrated and enviable Franchise in the world of cricket that fosters and churns out high-quality talents by sheer means of persistence, trust, and focused on creating a secured environment for players
The above interpretation summarizes the phenomenon of the constant loop over a decade and a half to build a brand called Chennai Super Kings (CSK) that has seen “only” progress consistently. It is The most coveted brand that has garnered millions of mindshare globally among cricket followers. Perhaps, it is the only Franchise where its current players, ex-players, aspiring players, followers, management, and critics will not only feel proud of but certainly wear it as a badge of honor for their association.
To quote the response by the Franchise skipper, “Well, I still haven’t left,”; is the testimony to a fulfilling career spanning decade and half of the cricketing seasons, and the progressive brand of cricket will continue.”
As a true fan of the Yellove Army’s “looking up” win signifies a fulfilling 2021 already; however, by “looking down,” I was quick to realize that there are many more fulfilling years left to experience in the future.
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