Magical effect of passion & perseverance

Right from the time I made a premature entry into this world, in the seventh month of my mother's pregnancy, I have always been a man in a bit of haste. The ability to revisit an examination paper, before giving it away, or taking a second look at the draft of a speech, or an article, before treating it as final, has never been a strong point with me either. For a long time, I am afraid, I found it rather boring. Which is probably why, whenever I sought my parents' blessings before going for an examination, my father would content himself with a simple "best of luck!", while my mother would invariably remind me to be sure that I revised my answer sheet before surrendering it.

Even several decades later, when I was a Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture in the Government of India, my boss, the Secretary Agriculture, Kamal Pande, always counselled me to "stay till the end" with drafts I was preparing.

I am glad to be able to say that I have now reached a stage where, I have realised fully, the value of holding my hand until I have gone back to a draft, whether speech or article, and dotting the 'i's and crossing the 't's, and, only then, regarding the task as completed.

Practice, goes the well-known proverb, makes a man perfect. It's origin can actually be traced back to the 1550s, when the Latin phrase 'uses promtos facit' was in popular use, meaning 'use makes perfect.' If one goes over something repeatedly, one gains excellency, be it studying, playing or anything else.

I am sure all of us recall the punishment that was meted out by the teacher at school – imposition – or writing the same word over and over a prescribed number of times, as a punishment for having got it wrong in the first place!

I remember several instances in my career when the validity of this dictum was established in experience. While I was lucky enough to have succeeded in my first attempt at cracking the civil services examinations, I know many others who had the determination, and persistence, to exhaust all the permissible attempts, before succeeding finally. Such was the intensity of their desire to become civil servants. During the conduct of elections to the cooperative societies in the state of Andhra Pradesh in 1986, my then boss K Subramaniam would repeatedly urge me to go over the arrangements being made again and again, to ensure that gaps and overlaps were duly taken care of. Similarly, when I was preparing to conduct auctions for the sale of arrack as Commissioner Excise in 1988, KVS Suryanarayana, my boss at that time, would go through every step taken with a fine toothed comb, to ensure that all care had been taken to conduct the auctions successfully. When I was a Member of NDMA, General Vij, the Vice-Chairman, used to make the Members pore over documents very carefully until he was able to call them, to use his own favourite expression, 'error free.'

The Cabinet Secretariat in the Government of India, a colleague once remarked to me, prides itself in being a 'zero error' zone. I know that for a fact from the painful memory I have of having my drafts (as Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Rural Development), repeatedly returned until they were perfect!

The value of the qualities of patience, perseverance and practice have invariably informed the approaches of great persons, whether they were sportsmen, orators or musicians. It is said that tennis maestro Ramanathan Krishnan's father used to make Krishnan aim his shots at a coin, placed on the other side of the court, and repeat the stroke hundreds of times until he got it right. While the story is probably apocryphal, it also used to be said that Bapu Nadkarni, the legendary left-arm spinner who represented India in test cricket, could land the six consecutive balls of an 'over', on a coin placed at the good length spot, near the batsman's crease! Sir Garfield Sobers, the legendary cricketer, also once famously said, "I never make the same mistake twice." Cricketers today spend hours watching videos of their batting, bowling or fielding in a previous fixture, in order to correct their weaknesses and build their strengths.

When I started learning to play tennis, I remember how the coach, Farqunda Ali Khan, would insist on my doing 'shadow practice,' far away from the tennis courts, and behind a net, until I had learnt the proper grip, foot work and swing of the racquet; and, importantly, to throw the ball up for service with one hand, and make it land within a semicircle he had drawn for that purpose. It took several weeks before I qualified to enter the court and start playing the game.

Artists, such as actors, singers, players of instrumental music, often participate in carefully planned, and long, rehearsals, in order to perfect their own part, and ensure harmonious team work, before performing before a camera or an audience. Actors and singers, in particular, do several' takes' before making the final attempt.

In important professions, such as law and accountancy, new recruits are made to undergo what is called apprenticeship. Similarly, doctors are given training as house-surgeons before they start practising on their own.

Aeroplane pilots have to put in a specified number of hours before they qualify for being in independent charge of a commercial flight, a task that carries with it the responsibility of ensuring the safety of hundreds of passengers. Edmund Hillary may have lightheartedly said that he had climbed the Everest, "because it was there," but only he, and his companion Tenzing Norgay, would know how much of determination, and grit, went into that successful effort. And, on the darker side, are the repeated efforts made by Mohammed Ghori to invade India till, finally, he tasted success.

Another aspect that calls for a great deal of grit, determination and willpower is the struggle to keep physically fit, especially as one ages. The need to keep muscles supple and joints in working order calls for adherence to a strict exercise regimen. I have personally experienced the great benefits of following such a rigorous schedule over the last several decades particularly in respect of attending to parts of the body that have issues caused the damage caused by old Injuries.

Success can never be achieved, in any endeavour in life, unless one pursues it with passion and determination. A striking example of that in modern Indian history, is the commitment, and dedication, Mahatma Gandhi brought to the fight for the cause of securing freedom for India, through the nonviolence or 'ahimsa' route.

Rocks suffer erosion on account of the unrelenting battering they receive from the wind over ages, and rivers cut through mountains, not because of their strength, but on account of the perseverance of their flow. Little wonder, then, that John Quincy Adams said, "patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish".

The entire spirit of persistence, focus and doggedness in pursuit of success was aptly expressed by Robert the Bruce, King of Scotland in the Middle Ages when said, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try and try again."

(The writer is former Chief Secretary, Government of Andhra Pradesh) 

(The opinions expressed in this column are that of the writer.

The facts and opinions expressed here do not reflect the views of The Hans India)