Long v/s Hard work - Azara Feroz Sayed

This article secernates my ideas about hard work.
http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2007/09/labor-day.html
It disturbs the secure world of work alcholic me. Read on...

The meaning of hard work in a manual economy, without the leverage of machines and organizations, meant producing more. In the old days, we could measure how much grain someone harvested or how many pieces of steel he made. Hard work in manual economy, meant more work, more production.

Now we work "long", even a workaholic, doesn't works very "hard" at all. "long" and "hard" are now two different things. The future is about work that's really and truly hard, not time-consuming. Hard work is about the kind of work that requires us to push ourselves, not just punch the clock.

It's hard work to make difficult emotional decisions, such as quitting a job and setting out on your own. It's hard work to invent a new system, service, or process that's remarkable. It's hard work to tell your boss that he's being intellectually and emotionally lazy. It's easier to stand by and watch the company fade into oblivion. It's hard work to tell senior management to abandon something that it has been doing for a long time in favor of a new and apparently risky alternative. It's hard work to make good decisions with less than all of the data.

Today, working hard is about taking apparent risk. Not a crazy risk like betting the entire company on an untested product. No, an apparent risk: something that the competition (and your coworkers) believe is unsafe but that you realize is far more conservative than sticking with the status quo.

None of the people who are racking up amazing success stories and creating cool stuff are doing it just by working more hours than you are. And I hate to say it, but they're not smarter than you either. They're succeeding by doing hard work.

Some people (a precious few, so far) are realizing that this temporary recession is the best opportunity that they've ever had. They're working harder than ever -- mentally -- and taking all sorts of emotional and personal risks that are bound to pay off. Hard work is about risk. It begins when you deal with the things that you'd rather not deal with: fear of failure, fear of standing out, fear of rejection. Hard work is about training yourself to leap over this barrier, tunnel under that barrier, drive through the other barrier. And, after you've done that, to do it again the next day.

The big insight: The riskier your (smart) coworker's hard work appears to be, the safer it really is. It's the people having difficult conversations, inventing remarkable products, and pushing the envelope (and, perhaps, still going home at 5 PM) who are building a recession-proof future for themselves.

So tomorrow, when you go to work, really sweat. Your time is worth the effort

My First Post!! - Azara Feroz Sayed

Like everything else writing the first post too - is an experience - feeling excited and nervous - hopefully Feroz will be proud of me - as I am finally taking his advice of writing.

Don't know if you have had this oppurtunity of walking down for 15 mts in single digit Fahreneit - with wind chill below zero - the thoughts that come to mind when we undergo the ordeal of the walk or similar miserable situation - don't we feel that the situation should end too soon - also doesn't the experience makes us ponder over our situation in life - contemplate on why are we in this situation - to stop and think with our full strength of mind - an oppurtunity for self judgement - an oppurtunity for self examination of our actions - the wrong we have done - and an oppurtunity to improve our situation before it is too late (in the grave) to mend our actions

I never thought of failures this way - till I heard about this thought in a presentation - that when the going is good - we all are busy in enjoying our lives without much thought to our actions - we are narrow minded - but when bumped into failure - we use our full strength of mind - it forces us to think about our actions and correct those - ignites spirituality.

Miserable times also take us closer to God - Praying to God with fervour, to get us out of our situation - we participate in charity ( doing good works - least charity that one can do) - we examine and acknowlege all the good things in life - we are blessed with and thank God for them - asking God for 'strength to be humble' - a paradox - strength to stay in his path and not go astray (by complaining about prayers not being answered) and accepting his supernatural powers (being humble as a servant) to define the outcome of our supplications.

Another beautiful thought I heard - explained in form of anecdote - One rich man asks a beggar can you give me one of your leg for 10,000 bucks - he says no - then he asks will you give me one of your hand for 10,000 bucks - he says no - then he repeats the same for each of his eyes, ears, brain, heart and the beggar continues to say no - the rich man then tells the beggar - you are a millionaire - what are you unhappy about ? I really feel blessed with the treasure I have been blessed with - my family - my friends - my one in a million husband - mashallah - I pray to God to take care of my treasure and bless it.

The 15 mts walk in below zero weather also takes us to our destination - to expereince the good things awaiting for us in our destination - so the ordeal of the walk in the cold is worth the trouble

Sometimes we take the walk and find the destination is closed i.e. our expectations after the ordeal were not met - these times are the much troubled ones for us and the most crucial ones to not lose heart - but take strength from those situations - look at the long term gains rather than short term - not to be like the infant who is suffering from fever and wants to eat candy (instant good feeling) but not the sour medicine (getting cured of the fever) - I always remember the words 'If God loves a person he tests him all the more - as God wants to raise him in the ranks in this world and hereafter' - These words give me strength and the least I can do - for my dear ones - going thru the trying periods is - pray for their peace and strength - Amen!!