Thursday, August 14, 2008

What to do when you reach a crossroad

So, I was at the Global Brand Forum the whole of today and spent my time listening to some of the world's great mavericks. Among them were Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia and Will Wright, creator of The Sims. Anyway, wisdom and profoundness has rubbed off on me and now I feel mentally stimulated (which is quite rare these days). And so I hope this entry will stimulate you too.

Every year, round about this time, some 16-year-olds will be faced with a daunting decision. To retake or not to retake? I'm talking about the Chinese 'o' level papers. Back when I was 16, I remember walking towards my Chinese teacher and having her announce to me that I had gotten a C5. The advice which immediately followed was, "Can stop already", in her perfectly intoned voice. Under any normal circumstance, I reckon that any honorable Chinese student would be insulted by her statement. But I, I was too busy counting my lucky stars to bear a grudge. Considering I had seven more subjects to fall back on, and with absolutely no interest to migrate to China anytime soon, the decision became an easy one for me. I wasn't gonna retake my paper for sure.

I know that some students, unfortunately, do not have the same luxury of choice in such an easy breezy manner. In fact, over the course of the week, someone was in that exact predicament and decided to share it with me. And these were my thoughts to the person: If, by retaking the paper, you're confident of obtaining a higher grade (after putting in more effort of cos), then by all means, go for it. If, however, you think the grade is not going to improve significantly, then you might as well spend the time concentrating on other subjects instead.

Yes, it is a contentious statement and you are free to disagree, but the fact of the matter is, nobody, no one, not even parents or teachers, can offer a solid textbook answer to a child in that confused and stressed state of mind. At the end of the day, the student has to make a decision (although trivial as it may seem now, but to a 16-year-old, the decision is considerably weighty).

(If you're still reading, keep it up! The three paragraphs were just an analogy. I'm getting to my point now...)

I'm trying to draw a comparison with our lives. At some point in time, we'd be faced with a crossroad and forced to make a decision that could potentially affect the rest of our life. Sometimes, it's an easy decision to make. But mostly, it'll be tough and we'll end up spending lots of time racking our brains over it. At times like these, we'd turn to God and ask for guidance. Some have time to think and reflect, others get stuck because they're unable to decide. Perhaps if we could take a moment to see things from a student's perspective, things might get a little clearer.

In the first place, the student is in that dilemma because he/she doesn't want to make the wrong decision, screw up the results, end up going to a lousy school, blah blah blah. But what we often forget is that the decision we make is not the be-all and end-all; it is what happens after we make the decision that shapes the end result. What a student has to do after making a decision is simply to work hard in order to reach the desired end point. I think the problem with us is that we like to complicate things. If we took a moment to eradicate all the noises, this is what we're left with essentially: Crossroad (start point), options, and desired end point.

In the student's case, the crossroad is deciding whether or not to retake the Chinese 'o' levels. The options are (a) retake and (b) don't retake. The desired end point is to do well and go into a good school of one's choice.

What are some of the crossroads in our lives? As we stand there, at that point, thinking whether to go left or right, let's try not to fuss over the what-ifs and could-haves. Keep the desired end point in mind, take the plunge and go for it. If you're waiting for God to appear in a loud voice telling you which way to go, it's unlikely to happen. That's the beauty of free will; just like how I can't tell my friend whether or not to retake the paper. There is no right or wrong path to take. What matters is reaching our desired end point eventually.

Ok, that's it. Enough brain cells wasted for the day. Tired already. Good night world. Oh btw, I have new items on philanthropicjo!

Posted by Jo at 11:59 PM