Day 72
30th September 2011
Wisdom consists of the anticipation of consequences.
It is ideal to wish that everything will go as we want. But, the reality is that certain things may not be in our control. Some unanticipated events may throw our plans haywire. Someone may not be as effective and efficient as he should be. Some assumptions could go wrong. You have to anticipate such eventualities.
You can ask the following questions as you are about to get out of your bed:
- What is the most important task that I have to complete today?
- Do I have all the resources lined up, including time?
- What could go wrong and what is my countermeasure?
- What critical assumptions could go wrong and what is my countermeasure?
- Am I realistic about my expectations of others? I am too optimistic?
I am not sounding pessimistic. While we should be optimistic, we should also plan for unexpected events. Perhaps we should be `optimistically pessimistic'!
Human beings are unique from other living beings in their ability to anticipate and plan and this has made us to survive millions of years where other living beings are becoming extinct.
N C Sridharan
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