This lesson goes back to about two years ago, but somehow stays with me to this day...
While working at mobilink we had a tradition of having company dinners at Monal, this new establishment our company had sponsored on Margallah hills. Since it was a friday, a group of colleagues and I said our juma prayers, grabbed some drinks and headed hillside.
When i finished my drink, i threw it out the window. Thats something that i had learnt while living in karachi, since it was unfortunately the practiced norm amongst my peer group. This group however turned out to be different.they stoppped the car, asked me to get out, pick up the trash and keep it in the car until i found a trashcan. All the way up the hill i got a lecture on how if everyone did the same, Islamabad would not be the clean city it was today.
On my back home today, i had a chewing gum wrapper that i wanted to throw outside, but as my hand went out the window it stopped and i remembered what my friends had said. It made me think, and i kept the wrapper in my bag.
the point im trying to make here, is the difference in mindset that we tend to have across pakistan. Whens the last time you ad trash and though 'yaar abhi is ko bahar hee phek do'
Think twice before you act on ure urge next time.
Its been a matter of great debate for me, with people asking me all sorts of questions about my return to telco instead of taking the standard fmcg route...after all thats what i had planned and why i did an internship with reckitt.
Heres the thing...when you go to college, your only objective shouldnt be getting a job, but rather finding a company that gives u a certain purpose, and thats what I saw in Telenor. we always tend to bitch about how the cleint never has the guts to change perspectives, how the client will not risk revenues to go for creative executions. Telenor did the absolute opposite with their karo mumkin campaign. Theyve provided us with a positioning that show all that is possible if we all start working towards an objective...together.
Its good to know that im part of a company that believes in changing customer lives by not simply selling soaps, but instead changing the very way they function. Whereas our ad strategy can be questioned, no one can argue what our services like easypaisa, doctor helpline and blood donation drive have done for this country.
And thats what i want to continue doing. Changing pakistan and taking it to new levels of success and contributing in my own way.
Think about it. What have u done for your country?
So Ive been away for a while. Changing cities calls for a change in mindset, timings and overall personality in my view. The recent week has been pretty hectic with me joining telenor Pakistan on the Djuice brand...and God do I love it!
Having said that, that isnt the subject of this post.
My last days in Karachi turned out to be some of the greatest moments of my life and I had really cool friends give me a totally new perspective on life. You know how we all talk about firsts in life? Ive figured out a better perspective...
My last days were spent saying goodbyes. Goodbyes may be emotional although us "men" dont like showing emotion even if we do get emotional at times. There was Saadis last match with IBA United, My last dinner with her and then my farewell lunch with a bunch of friends.
What was my major learning? It was how to make your last moments...last. Make your last moments lasting enough to be remembered as fond memories. So to everyone at the hostel, in college, at the match, at the dinner and at the lunch...thank you.
You made my last moments in K-town, Everlasting!
"prayer is not a spare wheel that you pull out when in trouble, but instead, should be used as a steering wheel, that gives you a direction in life"
Sometimes you need such golden words to jolt you back towards your values, and i thank Allah that i have friends and family that keep reminding me of His power and all that we owe Him.
Ive always been a muslim by default - i say that because many of us just got lucky by being born in Muslim homes. Ive always believed that I am a spiritual person (after hearing Lady Gagas recent interview in which she said she was a spiritual person im looking for a new word to describe my current behaviour) and understand what God has in store for me. There have been a number of times that Allah has bestowed his miracles on me, and ive been hugely lucky that way.
There have also been many times where ive wanted to return to Allahs fold and become a better practising muslim. However, of those times, my failure to submit to His glory has either been marred by laziness, or a fear that im just not doing enough to please Him.
When in the hostel masjid today I saw one of the new talent hunt sindhi juniors reading a Quran which had english translation, and thats when i was hit by a bout of nostalgia. I donated that Quran to the hostel when i left it in 2006 and it had a hand written message from my grandmother on it. Sure its a great namesake for my family, but somhow Ive always thought that donating it to the hostel masjid would affect people on a wider scale.
And thats why i call myself spiritual, because I believe that God is always on my side even in the most difficult of times. Not because im a very practicing muslim, but because of the small kindnesses and acts of charity that i remember to do on a daily basis. It is a very strong value that my parents have instilled in me and I keep it very close to my heart.
Having said that, i plan to get back into the practice of saying my prayers. Not because im scared, but because I want to, and that in my opinion is the best way to start!
So ive been pretty good at quitting things all my life....not that it makes me a serial quitter, but i guess youll get the point after reading the rest of the post..
i quit tennis as a kid because the coach just kept me on wall practice for a month and i had just had enough of it. I quit learning the harmonium because i just found it too boring and i quit the gym because lets be honest, its just too god damn tiring...
The next thing to quit wont be all that easy. Ive decided to quit tobacco. It wont be easy, heck ive already quit it 20 times.
The fact is, frankly im sick of it. Im sick of waking up every morning and reaching for my suicide pack. Im sick of needing to smoke every time i need to think and my life has somehow become a smokescreen with it. I hate the fact that I cough more often than not, and my throat has become a prime target for any virus that can be found. Im tired of not being able to run anymore, im tired of not feeling healthy and happy 24x7. The horrible thing about tobacco is that it becomes like a crutch for smokers. Once you get addicted, you depend on the death sticks to cure your boredom or any other challenge that you encounter in your daily life. Frankly, I think Allah made me stronger than that, and wanted a different path in life for me.
But the strongest motivation comes from my mother and how it makes her so unhappy that her son is a smoker. At first I thought shed get over it, but when I eventually found out that both my grandfathers (maternal and paternal) had died due to smoking I now understand why it hurts her and my father so much. Sure the fact that my doctor told me that I was a prime candidate for emphysema matters too, but I think a mothers feelings are a much stronger motivation than any other in this world.
Im actually thinking of starting a blog to right down my daily emotions so that other quitters can benefit from my experience. What do you think?
Oh and yes. I would appreciate your support in this trying time. It wont be easy, and jabbering on about how Ill never be able to quit will never help my cause.
Lets see how this goes! Wish me luck.
D-Day 18th June 2010 - My first day without smoking.
So im the sort of person who would rather wait and comment, rather than immediately post a current topic just to increase my blog rankings...and now that the ban is over, i thought id share my views on the issue.
i pissed off loads of my friends when i said i was against the ban. Its not that i love my prophet (pbuh) any less, i just dont think banning fb would really make a significant difference. Fb knows that a government enforced ban will never hold the weight that a people enforced ban would have held. The pakistani government keeps doing everything wrong without the people will and this was just another one of their knee jerk reactions as well.
Who knows, it just might have been zardari pullng strings to get his 'ullu ka patha' fan page removed...
When supporting bans on popular social networking sites such as facebook, people need to understand that there are whole economies attached to these sites. Non governmental organizations and movments use fb to improve effeciency of communication and goal alignment. Corporates use it as a mode of advertising their products that improve customer lives.
everything in life comes with pros and cons...its up to us to think before we react. As for the people who say that they supported the ban, id like to see them voluntarily close their fb accounts in protest...phir mein maaanun ga!
