Walking through the Dark
The ability to see what lies ahead of us is perhaps the most valuable gift that we have, that propels our actions in moving forward, be it a walk in the park, a drive on road or in general in our life. This ability provides us the opportunity to achieve speeds as we can plan our next steps much before we actually take them. And this ability is so profound in our nature that when we can not see far enough we sometimes are quite afraid even to take a step ahead.
Many times in our life we face these situations where what lies ahead is not visible or predictable. In many situations its simple enough to stay at your place till the light shines again and the path can be seen. But on many other times sitting back either has its own risk and cost or its simply not an option. Those moments can instill a fear or just a thought process as walking into the dark is not something what we do everyday. What to do next becomes the question. Which risk is worth taking, to sit back or to keep walking.Out of compulsion or for the adventure of it sometimes people choose to move ahead.
In our day to day lives we often see examples of people walking into the dark and the strategy they use is simple and built on experience. When it comes to life or career and we face similar situations , in my opinion , we can apply similar strategies. Based on what is dark in the context and what might be the worst risk associated with it, in fact , governs what you may choose to do.
One simplest strategy is , just keep moving ahead at you general pace or try to just run through it till you cross the dark. Well this might be odd but still lets say there is a 50 percent chance that you may pass without any problem. But then you need to decide if you can live with the other 50 percent outcome. This gives quicker results but you have to make the choice.
Another interesting way I observed while driving with my friend on highway in the winters. That day the fog was quite thick and we could hardly see few meters ahead of us. Being aware of the risks of highway accidents we were driving at humble speed of 10 Km/hr and often have to stop on the side with the twinkling parking lights on.Then to our surprise we saw a bus going past us with a decent speed of 40-50 Km/hr. With much better fog lights and perhaps because of higher seat of the driver, the bus driver was possibly more equipped for a better visibility to be able to drive at such speeds. To add to our surprise as he passed us we saw couple of cars following the bus from a distance but still going on same speed.The bus was acting like path finder for them and therefore they were able to reach the same speed which they could have never reached on there own. Although in such case the credibility of the bus driver and the car drivers behind is quite important . But to compare this situation with a non foggy day the car driver still doesn't see what lies ahead of the bus so he still has to be careful not to drive too close to the bus. This strategy of tagging along to walk through the dark or foggy situation is something we can see quite a lot around us. We tend to find people who have the same goals or destination or path same as ours but are equipped with better vision and then we choose to follow them.The strategy works, although just like the highway you need to be careful of the possible accidents.
Then there are other situations where there seems absolute dark. No tagging available and running through the dark is too much a risk. Sitting back seems the most safe option but its still not good enough. With high risks involved sometimes it becomes a difficult decision to make. So you are in deep thought of what to do and not , sitting in cafe sipping some tea and then you see a blind child walking on the other side of the road. In a moment you find out that the child has mastered the art of walking through the dark . He holds a stick to investigate the ground of his immediate next step and then very steadily he takes that step and at the same time checks the ground for the next. One steady step at a time and the child walks through all the ups and downs, the barricades,the stairs and what not. A daily routine for the child and a strategy for someone to keep walking through the dark.
Not one of the strategies is always better then the other but its the situation in which that strategy may be the better. What is amazing however, is how someone's question of an immense risk can have solutions in someone else's daily activity.
😃
Many times in our life we face these situations where what lies ahead is not visible or predictable. In many situations its simple enough to stay at your place till the light shines again and the path can be seen. But on many other times sitting back either has its own risk and cost or its simply not an option. Those moments can instill a fear or just a thought process as walking into the dark is not something what we do everyday. What to do next becomes the question. Which risk is worth taking, to sit back or to keep walking.Out of compulsion or for the adventure of it sometimes people choose to move ahead.
In our day to day lives we often see examples of people walking into the dark and the strategy they use is simple and built on experience. When it comes to life or career and we face similar situations , in my opinion , we can apply similar strategies. Based on what is dark in the context and what might be the worst risk associated with it, in fact , governs what you may choose to do.
One simplest strategy is , just keep moving ahead at you general pace or try to just run through it till you cross the dark. Well this might be odd but still lets say there is a 50 percent chance that you may pass without any problem. But then you need to decide if you can live with the other 50 percent outcome. This gives quicker results but you have to make the choice.
Another interesting way I observed while driving with my friend on highway in the winters. That day the fog was quite thick and we could hardly see few meters ahead of us. Being aware of the risks of highway accidents we were driving at humble speed of 10 Km/hr and often have to stop on the side with the twinkling parking lights on.Then to our surprise we saw a bus going past us with a decent speed of 40-50 Km/hr. With much better fog lights and perhaps because of higher seat of the driver, the bus driver was possibly more equipped for a better visibility to be able to drive at such speeds. To add to our surprise as he passed us we saw couple of cars following the bus from a distance but still going on same speed.The bus was acting like path finder for them and therefore they were able to reach the same speed which they could have never reached on there own. Although in such case the credibility of the bus driver and the car drivers behind is quite important . But to compare this situation with a non foggy day the car driver still doesn't see what lies ahead of the bus so he still has to be careful not to drive too close to the bus. This strategy of tagging along to walk through the dark or foggy situation is something we can see quite a lot around us. We tend to find people who have the same goals or destination or path same as ours but are equipped with better vision and then we choose to follow them.The strategy works, although just like the highway you need to be careful of the possible accidents.
Then there are other situations where there seems absolute dark. No tagging available and running through the dark is too much a risk. Sitting back seems the most safe option but its still not good enough. With high risks involved sometimes it becomes a difficult decision to make. So you are in deep thought of what to do and not , sitting in cafe sipping some tea and then you see a blind child walking on the other side of the road. In a moment you find out that the child has mastered the art of walking through the dark . He holds a stick to investigate the ground of his immediate next step and then very steadily he takes that step and at the same time checks the ground for the next. One steady step at a time and the child walks through all the ups and downs, the barricades,the stairs and what not. A daily routine for the child and a strategy for someone to keep walking through the dark.
Not one of the strategies is always better then the other but its the situation in which that strategy may be the better. What is amazing however, is how someone's question of an immense risk can have solutions in someone else's daily activity.
😃
There are risks and costs to action. But they are far less than the long range risks of comfortable inaction.
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