Abhijit Naskar's Blog - Posts Tagged "persistence"
Those Who Call You Mad (The Sonnet)
Those who call you mad will one day worship you,
For no great achievement is possible without madness.
Those who laugh at you will one day learn from you,
For working through the laugh is a criteria for greatness.
Those who know not you exist will one day seek your guidance,
For your endless sacrifice will make you a beacon.
Those who find you absurd will one day bow in veneration,
For the absurd ideas take us to the most breathtaking destination.
Those who look down on you will one day look up to you,
For your sacrifice will place you on a pedestal of glory.
Those who are deaf to you will one day cross limits for you,
For your voice will echo in the hearts as a purifying symphony.
Those who see you inconsequential will one day pay you homage.
Breathe your mission, live your mission and your acts will forge fate's foliage.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Mad About Humans: World Maker's Almanac
For no great achievement is possible without madness.
Those who laugh at you will one day learn from you,
For working through the laugh is a criteria for greatness.
Those who know not you exist will one day seek your guidance,
For your endless sacrifice will make you a beacon.
Those who find you absurd will one day bow in veneration,
For the absurd ideas take us to the most breathtaking destination.
Those who look down on you will one day look up to you,
For your sacrifice will place you on a pedestal of glory.
Those who are deaf to you will one day cross limits for you,
For your voice will echo in the hearts as a purifying symphony.
Those who see you inconsequential will one day pay you homage.
Breathe your mission, live your mission and your acts will forge fate's foliage.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Mad About Humans: World Maker's Almanac
Honor He Wrote Sonnet 47
Be the cactus, a proof of unsubmission,
And blossom amidst the fiercest environment.
In a world primed with the probability of hate,
Be love impossible and lift all lost in lament.
Aspire to expire for a cause uncausable,
And your heart will shine with light untamable.
When all go berserk for sect as bozos on booze,
Be the sectless sapiens and stand indivisible.
When all are possessed with the libido of liberty,
Be the first one standing, responsible ‘n righteous.
In a world founded on unfounded assumptions,
Be the first ink of understanding unpresumptuous.
Blockheads and blockhearts have only blocked amity.
It’s time to unblock, unfold and undivide our psyche.
And blossom amidst the fiercest environment.
In a world primed with the probability of hate,
Be love impossible and lift all lost in lament.
Aspire to expire for a cause uncausable,
And your heart will shine with light untamable.
When all go berserk for sect as bozos on booze,
Be the sectless sapiens and stand indivisible.
When all are possessed with the libido of liberty,
Be the first one standing, responsible ‘n righteous.
In a world founded on unfounded assumptions,
Be the first ink of understanding unpresumptuous.
Blockheads and blockhearts have only blocked amity.
It’s time to unblock, unfold and undivide our psyche.
Ambition in Motion (The Sonnet) | Yarasistan
Come hell or high water,
Never let caution cripple your feet.
Better to fall hard and learn a lesson,
Than speculate forever with couched feet.
Everything I’ve achieved is by trial and error,
There was no handbook to aid my mission.
Maps to known paths are available plenty,
But there is no map to uncharted destination.
You are the handbook to your ambition,
Not your background or family treasures.
If you persist long enough, at some point,
Your persistence will outrun your failures.
Better fail than frozen – failure is the foundation.
Failure is the first sign of ambition in motion.
Never let caution cripple your feet.
Better to fall hard and learn a lesson,
Than speculate forever with couched feet.
Everything I’ve achieved is by trial and error,
There was no handbook to aid my mission.
Maps to known paths are available plenty,
But there is no map to uncharted destination.
You are the handbook to your ambition,
Not your background or family treasures.
If you persist long enough, at some point,
Your persistence will outrun your failures.
Better fail than frozen – failure is the foundation.
Failure is the first sign of ambition in motion.
Naskar is Made by Naskar Alone | Abhijit Naskar | Bulletproof Backbone
Naskar is made by Naskar alone, not an industry or benefactor – or more importantly, by family wealth. I had a roof over my head, food on the table, and clothes on my back – that was more than enough.
I started writing with literally zero dollar in my pocket. Let me tell you how it began, because for some reason, I completely forgot a crucial event of my life when I wrote my memoir Love, God & Neurons.
I once met an American tourist at a local train in Calcutta. The first thing he asked me was, had I lived in the States? I said, no. Then how come you have an American accent – he asked. Watching movies – I said. We got chatting and he told me about a book he had recently published, a memoir. I believe, this was the cosmic event that planted the thought of writing my own books in my head – I had already started my self-education in Neurology and Psychology, and I was all determined to publish research papers on my ideas, but not books. Meeting the person somehow subconsciously shifted my focus from research papers to books.
So the journey began. And for the first few years, I made no real money from my books. Occasionally some of my books would climb the bestsellers list on amazon, like my very first book did, and that would keep the bills paid for several months. Then the invitations for talks started coming, but they too were not paid in the beginning. The organizers made all the travel arrangements, and I gave the talks for free. It’s ironic and super confusing really – I remember flying business class, but I didn’t have enough money to even afford a one way flight ticket, because I had already used up my royalties on other expenses.
Today I can pick and choose which speaking invitations to accept, but back then I didn’t have that luxury – I was grateful for any speaking gig and interview request I received, paid or not. One time, I gave an interview to this moderately popular journalist for her personal youtube channel, only to find out, she never released the video publicly – she posted an interview with a dog owner instead – whose dog videos had gained quite a following on social media. You could say, this was the first time I realized first hand, what white privilege was.
Anyway, the point is this.
Did I doubt myself? Often. Did I consider quitting? Occasionally. But did I actually quit? Never. And because I didn’t quit, the world received a vast never-before seen multicultural humanitarian legacy, that you know me for today.
There is no such thing as overnight success. If you have a dream, you gotta work at it day in, day out – night after night – spoiling sleep, ruining rest, forgetting fun. Persist, persist, and persist, that’s the only secret – there is no other. Remember this – the size of your pocket does not determine your destiny, the size of your dedication does.
I started writing with literally zero dollar in my pocket. Let me tell you how it began, because for some reason, I completely forgot a crucial event of my life when I wrote my memoir Love, God & Neurons.
I once met an American tourist at a local train in Calcutta. The first thing he asked me was, had I lived in the States? I said, no. Then how come you have an American accent – he asked. Watching movies – I said. We got chatting and he told me about a book he had recently published, a memoir. I believe, this was the cosmic event that planted the thought of writing my own books in my head – I had already started my self-education in Neurology and Psychology, and I was all determined to publish research papers on my ideas, but not books. Meeting the person somehow subconsciously shifted my focus from research papers to books.
So the journey began. And for the first few years, I made no real money from my books. Occasionally some of my books would climb the bestsellers list on amazon, like my very first book did, and that would keep the bills paid for several months. Then the invitations for talks started coming, but they too were not paid in the beginning. The organizers made all the travel arrangements, and I gave the talks for free. It’s ironic and super confusing really – I remember flying business class, but I didn’t have enough money to even afford a one way flight ticket, because I had already used up my royalties on other expenses.
Today I can pick and choose which speaking invitations to accept, but back then I didn’t have that luxury – I was grateful for any speaking gig and interview request I received, paid or not. One time, I gave an interview to this moderately popular journalist for her personal youtube channel, only to find out, she never released the video publicly – she posted an interview with a dog owner instead – whose dog videos had gained quite a following on social media. You could say, this was the first time I realized first hand, what white privilege was.
Anyway, the point is this.
Did I doubt myself? Often. Did I consider quitting? Occasionally. But did I actually quit? Never. And because I didn’t quit, the world received a vast never-before seen multicultural humanitarian legacy, that you know me for today.
There is no such thing as overnight success. If you have a dream, you gotta work at it day in, day out – night after night – spoiling sleep, ruining rest, forgetting fun. Persist, persist, and persist, that’s the only secret – there is no other. Remember this – the size of your pocket does not determine your destiny, the size of your dedication does.
