It’s about 12:40pm and I am now at SJBIT (an engineering college at Bangalore) accompanying my students from SBM Jain College of Engineering (that’s where I work-part time!). About 550 engineering students from 7 colleges are writing their written test for getting a job at Subex, who said that they will take only about 100 freshers across the country this year.
I look at the process and wonder: we have deviated so much from the value systems that we used to follow and have materialized to a greater extent that TRUST, though being a very important factor for anything in life has been defeated by the post natally conceived notions of survival of fittest and competency. Phew!
I wonder: for about 100 requirements, thousands of resumes are reviewed, thousands write exams, hundreds are interviewed, etc... What’s the budget of the entire process? That’s not important now though! I don’t see where the individual’s moral values are checked and considered. Its all skills and skills and skills.
I believe and understand that moral values are what determine the character of a person and not money or fame. I would like to quote Mr. Li Hongzhi here: “No matter how the human moral standard changes, this characteristic of the universe remains unchanged, and it is the sole criterion that distinguishes good people from bad people. . . As a human being, you are a good person only if you can follow this universe’s characteristic of Zhen-Shan-Ren (Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance). A person who deviates from this characteristic is truly a bad person. In the workplace or in society, some people may say that you are bad, yet you may not necessarily be bad. Some people may say that you are good, but you may not really be good.”
We all know that skills can be taught and developed; but moral values need to be cultivated. Where have we forgotten our values amidst this cut throat competition where we are prepared to do anything to gain something?! We have now been living with so many reasons that give us temporary happiness that we have forgotten true bliss. I guess most of us who have got the time to spend with ourselves have had this thought occur at least once: “Am I really happy? Am I actually satisfied? Is there an end to this race?” But again, next morning, we are all running the same race.
I will close with this famous experiment and leave you with a thought:
A group of scientists placed 5 monkeys in a cage and in the middle, a ladder with bananas on the top. Every time a monkey went up the ladder, the scientists soaked the rest of the monkeys with cold water. (The monkeys don’t really enjoy cold water.) After a while, every time a monkey went up the ladder, the others beat up the one on the ladder. After some time, no monkey dared to go up regardless of the temptation. The scientists then decided to substitute one of the monkeys. The first thing this new monkey did was to go up the ladder. Immediately the other monkeys beat him up. After several beatings, the new member learned not to climb the ladder even though he never knew why. A 2nd monkey was substituted and the same occurred. The 1st monkey participated on beating the second monkey. Similarly, all the 5 monkeys were replaced. What was left was a group of 5 monkeys that even though never received a cold shower, continued to beat up any monkey who attempted to climb the ladder. If it was possible to ask the monkeys why they would beat up all those who attempted to go up the ladder... I bet the answer would be “I don’t know – that’s how things are done around here.”
Does it sound familiar?
Keep Smiling :)
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