Choose Your Battles Carefully(Pt. III)
Part I — https://medium.com/@nv.vishnukiran00/choosing-your-battles-carefully-pt-i-ccfc23484c0
Part II — https://medium.com/@nv.vishnukiran00/choosing-your-battles-carefully-c3cf11c7597e
Thanks for staying this long with the story and immersing yourself into Pranav’s world.
Being the best
“Being you.”
“Sorry, what?” Pranav wanted to make sure that he had heard it right.
“Being you.”
The 8 letters were floating within the confines of his head (No, not the 143 phrase, you goofy romantic).
B-E-I-N-G-Y-O-U
B-E-I-N-G-Y-O-U
O-U-B-E-I-N-G-Y
Y-I-N-B-E-G-O-U
All of the permutations made as much sense as the others.
“What? What the hell is that supposed to mean?”. Pranav was ready to bite her head off.
“Do you like quotes, Pranav?”
“Of course I do. Especially the motivational ones. Like, for example, Nothing is Impossible. It conveys to us that the sky’s the limit and we are infinitely potential.”
“Great. I have a quote that I want you to ponder over. Now, I am not sure if you have come across this already but I am pretty damn sure that you haven’t internalized it.”
“Okay. That is some overconfidence right there but go on.”
Everyone in this world is unique just like you
“Hmm.”
Now, I will also explain why this is my favourite of all time. It combines the teachings and lessons of so many adages: One — Just like how we shouldn’t compare apples with oranges, we shouldn’t compare ourselves with others. Two, you’re not special. We are different from others, yes but that is a trait possessed by every moral being. It relieves us from the feelings of entitlement and victimization. We shouldn’t get cocky demanding for things because we think we deserve them. There is one inquiry that I have forbidden myself from raising to god — “Why me?”. Every individual on this insignificant spec of a planet has their own set of problems. We just don’t know them.
“Hmm.”
It was one of those rare situations when Pranav did not have much to say and needed to do a lot of thinking.
Protect Your Peace
Pranav re-joined his work after a sabbatical. He was still making an impression with everyone at the office but now, he wasn’t hustling. He wasn’t burning himself out everyday anymore.
A novel approach of mindful productivity was becoming popular in his workplace when everyone jumped on Pranav’s bandwagon. I mean if the most impactful guy in the organization was doing something, there should be some value to it, right? It might not work for everyone but every employee in the building sure as hell wanted to give it a shot.
Pranav had to deliver a presentation on his new approach to work against the concealed wishes of the CEO of the company. One of the highlight quotes from the presentation:
“If we want to live a wholehearted life, we have to become intentional about cultivating sleep and play, and about letting go of exhaustion as a status symbol and productivity as self-worth.”
— BRENÉ BROWN
This transformation was not just internal. It was not just behavioral. There were clear indicators of the mindset shift from materialistic objects as well. A random dumpster miles away contained the torn up pages of the old motivational posters. Or hopefully, it had already been recycled and converted into paper again.
The genre of quotes that Pranav worshiped everyday were clear indicators of his metamorphosis.
His ex-band’s lead, Sanjay, reached out to him one day and begged him to join back in the band.
“Why?” enquired Pranav.
“Please Pranav. We miss you in the band man. The quality of our performances has decreased significantly after your departure.”
“So?”
“See, I know you are still mad about being kicked out of the band. That was a huge mistake. We met a potential guitarist and Akshay brainwashed me into believing that he was a better fit for the band owing to his obedience. Turns out, he is skilled and obedient but not able to think completely on his own. No improvisation skills. His overall expertise with the guitar is also not even close to yours. I beg you man.”
“I am sorry to hear about how things turned out to be and no, I am not mad about being thrown out. I already have a lot of things on my plate now and music is not my focus area at least for a while. I appreciate the opportunity but unfortunately, I have to decline. I wish you the best in your endeavor.”
With that, he cut the call.
Sanjay was still contemplating the veracity of his claim that he was not indignant but Pranav knew the answer clearly.
He was choosing his battles carefully. He knew now that not all battles are worth fighting.
He was just protecting his peace.
After I come back from the celebration of finally managing to publish my first short story, I will review any feedback/comments that you people have. Please do help a fellow hooman improve and embellish his writing skills.
Until next time, signing off, Vishnu.
