Smart Plus - Rakesh Mittal IAS
In December 1994, I stayed at the Tata Steel Plant
at Jamshedpur in connection with a Joint Plant Committee meeting. The two days’
stay was very well organised by TISCO. Apart from the meeting, visits to the
plant, township, social activity centres, etc., were also arranged. In fact,
the social welfare aspect of the Tatas is worth seeing and gives an indication
of the philosophy as well as the vision of the founder Tatas. At Jamshedpur, a
museum named “Russi Modi Centre of Excellence” has been recently established.
It gives a complete picture of the history of the Tatas. I liked this place
most and it left a deep mark on my mind. At this centre, I came across a
biographical work on J.R.D. Tata and subsequently a copy of the book was
presented to me.
We all generally know about the great men and women of the
nation and the world. However, going through their autobiographies and
biographies one understands the real depth of their personalities. Somehow I
like going through such works. I keenly glanced through the book on that day
and subsequently read it closely. Naturally I learnt many things about the
Tatas which were not known to me earlier. One such fact is that JRD had no
child of his own. Despite this he had developed such a broad vision that this
loss was hardly reflected anywhere. Occasionally in private conversation, he
used to refer to this aspect of his life. But in no way did it constrain his
vision or thinking. On the other hand, he treated all his employees as his
family members and never considered his huge empire as a personal possession.
As a matter of policy the Tatas provided suitable employment for at least one
of the wards of their employees. This act developed so much feeling of
belonging in the employees that they put their head and heart for the
organisation and it is small wonder the Tatas have contributed so much in the
field of industrial development. Not only this, they paid equal attention to
the social side. Many prestigious institutions of the country in the field of
fundamental sciences, medicines, engineering, management and social sciences
were the result of this attention.
I was overwhelmed by this aspect of the Tatas and it made me
draw some deep lessons which I am going to share in this write-up. It reminded
me of an interaction of mine with a very senior officer who had retired from
the Indian Administrative Service. He is a highly spiritual person and has
played a great role in shaping my thinking.
One day I asked him whether at any time he had missed his
wish in life and if so how he took it. I was conscious of the fact that missing
one’s wish was something common and so was more interested in the second part
of the question. To this he gave a very interesting reply. He said that on
several occasions he did not get what he wished for but what he got in turn was
better than what he had wished for. Then he added one condition, that the wish
should be selfless and natural. The above principle applied only in case of
such a wish. I was quite satisfied with the answer and found it greatly true in
my life too.
It
is commonly seen that many good people suffer for no apparent fault of theirs. Their
natural wishes are also not fulfilled, be it getting a job, getting married,
begetting a child, owning a house or winning a promotion. None of them are
unnatural wishes. Everyone has a right to get them. But it does not always
happen so. There are many instances when deserving persons miss these things in
life. What to do in such a situation? One easier but of course defeatist way is
to fret and fume over the missing part of the life. People may listen to them
in the beginning but they end up making themselves as pitiable objects. They
hardly find any helpers. At best, some people may show sympathy but most of
them will turn out to be rejoicers.
The
other way is to accept the reality gracefully and to grow larger than the wish.
Such are the people who end up getting more than their wish. They expand their vision
so much that their own problem becomes too small. They find delight in seeing
others getting what they missed themselves.
There are numerous examples in the history of mankind when great persons
rose above their narrow personal problems to pursue a higher cause.
In
fact, all great men and women, we talk of, passed through such situations. J.R.D.
was, of course, one of them. The fact that he had no child of his own did not
stop him from expanding his vision and looking at the entire mankind as his children.
No wonder he laid so much emphasis on the welfare of his employees. He must
have always seen them as his children, getting delight in their growth. Who can
say that he had no child? After all, one wants a child mainly to keep the
family name going. By this criterion he has numerous children as the family
name is not only going but is running smoothly. In fact, the holding company of
the Tatas is named Tata Sons.
So
when you miss your wish, expand your vision and rise above the wish. Surely you
will end up getting more than what you had wished for.
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