Inside Out

Notes on seeking wisdom and crafting software

The right thing

It’s a long weekend here. Happy easter, dear readers! Also happens to be the end of current fiscal year in India. A good time to analyze the past year, achievements, shortcomings etc.. I want to use this post to share a few thoughts on some of my missteps.

I asked a simple question - what do you regret the most?

The answer was not doing the right thing. The right thing implies a greater good for a larger whole - for the world, for the customer, for the dependents etc.. And not doing implies, there was an awareness that good could have happened, yet the actions didn’t resonate with the awareness.

We talked about strategy in a prior post. My argument there was to look for bigger picture. In the play for winning a war, it’s okay to lose on few battles. It’s okay to cut down features, not ship products, disinvest. I believe there were some moments where I was aware of a greater good, and had an action plan for it. But for some reason (which may be internal or external) the opportunity to do good was missed!

May be we did (would do) a bigger good in future, if there were a thing such as the magnitude of goodness. But that small act which could have brought in happiness was never done. The winning wars line of thought does focus on the big picture, winning; but it pushes away the smaller battles and the lessons they have to offer.

We question now, why didn’t you do the right thing? I deprioritized it in favor of other investments.

But the other investments offered bigger good, isn’t it? It did and may be made sense for a rational mind. However everything futuristic is hypothetical, it has an opportunity cost. It is not a win-win discussion; there were opportunities to given up, missed chances of spreading happiness.

I currently think the definition of wars and battles are not really objective. The big words like strategy optimize on impact, business and capitalism; not on happiness. Call it shortsightedness, but the battle may have been a reality, need of the hour.

Or if I may assert, why not do an act which adds to happiness, even if it is one individual, one living being however big or small? Why create an urgency to give up one duty for another hypothetical one?

May each act bring upon happiness. Namaste!