Oh, for efficient living
By I. M. Soni

MAN is a "learning" creature. Every experience leaves some effect on him. When he stops learning, he ceases to be man and his decline begins. Without the feeling of achievement and thrill and assimilation of new experiences, living becomes mere vegetable existence.

This learning potential is the foundation of efficiency. The development of this learning potential is the key to a rich life. Intelligent dissatisfaction is the basis of progress. The person who is smugly satisfied with himself and the world in which he lives, makes no progress and contributes little to collective community life.

Dissatisfaction, however, is double-edged, since it can be a starting point for improvement or cause of poor mental health and inefficiency.

To be effective, self-dissatisfaction must be accompanied by a feeling of confidence in the possibility of learning. Without this quality, the individual merely goes on feeling inferior and inadequate. He frets and fumes and becomes mentally ill.

We have potentialities and limitations, but a few of us make full use of potentialities. The problem we all face is how to make use of the most of what we have without becoming too concerned about what we do not have.

No two persons are alike. One person may have the necessary attributes for proficiency in music; another may possess great artistic or poetic aptitude.

The most important thing is to know ourselves well enough to be aware of the potentialities we have and the weaknesses also.

Some personal limitations can be overcome by learning, while others cannot. For example, a person’s limitation might be his inability to adjust socially. He is shy, retiring and blushes easily.

We are the product of environmental influences but this does not mean that we have to be slaves of the environment. We can select environmental influences to shape our life.

We can choose what we read, what we listen to, the persons with whom we associate, the kind of work we do and how we use our leisure. In fact, our environment is largely what we make it. There are, of course, some environmental conditions, such as war, accidents, loss of a member of one’s family over which we have no control. Even then, we can control our response to such situations.

There are many things in life that can be enjoyable and it is one of life’s greatest tragedies that many people fail to find them. Many of these sources of enjoyments occur when the individual is working for the welfare of others.

He has to lose himself in causes that are much broader than his own personal satisfaction.

One aspect of personal efficiency is the utilisation of the accumulated wisdom of the ages. This requires study of the recorded thoughts of sages and savants. This can be extremely satisfying and fosters growth.

Communication by the means of spoken and written language plays a key role in life. Efficiency depends on the adequacy of such communication. Efficiency in thought, perception and communication is helped by the command of vocabulary and language forms.

The human mind is a truly wonderful instrument. But we do not spend enough time to think things through. We read, listen and are exposed to a glut of information, but rarely is the information digested.

Management of emotions is another essential component of personal efficiency. Emotions are a part of human nature and their management does not mean an attempt to eliminate them.

One can either be the slave of emotions or their master. One can learn to harness the energy generated from the temper and direct it into a positive channel. Fear too can lead to paralysis of action or intelligent attempts to overcome the threat.

Undesirable behaviour stems from failure to face and understand the emotions. When fears and worries are examined, they can usually be fitted into a pattern of behaviour and dealt with adequately. However, when we fail to face fears and angers, they become disruptive.

A person who exemplifies efficient living is a symbol of harnessed energy, emotional poise and quiet self-confidence.

Such persons do not just happen by chance. They are the products of intelligent use of the same kind of potentialities we possess but they have learnt the ways of efficiency.