The Missing Happiness in Software and I.T Professionals: Tips for happy life and to live life on a higher plane

Epilogue

Part -1

What is Happiness and why people are not happy

1. --- But still there is no Happiness

The present generation is proud of the modern Science and Technology. Let us see what the so called Science and Technology has given to mankind.

Science and Technology has given the following 9 ‘NESS’.

1. WEAKNESS

2. TIREDNESS

3. LONELINESS

4. LAZINESS

5. SLEEPLESSNESS

6. ILLNESS

7. RESTLESSNESS

8. GIDDINESS

9. BALDNESS

The one ‘NESS’ Science and Technology failed to give to mankind is HAPPINESS.

The modern FAST LIFE must actually give lasting happiness.

But alas! It is only rapping and sapping the Happiness.

The author of this book is fond of writing poems. Let us start this book with a poem describing the innate and inner feelings of the software and IT professionals some letting out from their heart and others suppressing it. Here is a short poem:

But still there is no Happiness

Though the outside weather is chill or hot,

The latest air-conditioners we have got;

To put on there are varieties of dress.

But still there is no happiness.

Living in a house in a posh locality,

For conveniences there is no paucity;

In all rooms we have wall to wall carpet,

But still there is no happiness.

We do not eat the same age old rice,

Our food has very good taste with spice;

With health-friendly nutrients it is nice.

But still there is no happiness.

We travel in AC cab with employer’s help,

It picks up and drops at our door step;

Office has wonderful work atmosphere,

But still there is no happiness.

Whole day willingly we work hard,

For shop purchases we swipe the card;

We get a fat salary perks and gifts.

But still there is no happiness.

In our relatives circle there is respect,

We have deep knowledge in the subject;

We efficiently complete our project,

But still there is no happiness.

2. Professional problems galore!

Amidst the rosy designation and cosy air conditioned working ambience, problems are galore in the software and I.T profession. Do you feel problems deep in your mind and or vomit the problems to your close comrades? The problems many professionals pronounce are aplenty. A few of the problems felt by multitudes of software and I.T professionals are listed below. The list is not exhaustive and you may have one or two not found in the list.

1. Restless and ruthless working.

2. No slow and steady work; but fast faster and fastest work.

3. Unduly elongated work hours.

4. Hurry sickness is contagious and flows down fast.

5. Relaxation became the event of the past history when we bunked the classes in college to see a film.

6. Sunday is not a Sabbath day; but a hectic preparation day for the Monday morning meeting.

7. Till a couple of years before we got only SMS in our mobile and rarely mails in laptop. Alas! Now on i- phones and i-pads we get mail after mail. We sit awe perplexed not knowing which mail to see and which mail to act.

8. Not able to vent out our feelings in the meetings.

9. Even marathon runs at steady speeds are O.K. We often have sprint runs for two weeks.

10. When one sprint run is over, another sprint run is handed over without even a day’s rest.

11. Fed up with the daily expression by boss – You are already late in project completion.

12. Alternating client pressure and boss pressure.

13. B.P gives birth to B.P (Boss Pressure causes Blood Pressure)

14. Food is bolstering our health; but fatigue is eating it away at a faster rate.

15. From body illness gradually moving to mental illness as we stack layers of neurosis.

16. Outer success but inner voids.

17. Not able to socialize with peers – No time.

18. Daily go home and fall on the bed like a beaten dog.

19. Boss often says You don’t match my speed.

20. We are viewed as inhumanly human machines.

21. Dreaded and deadly deadlines.

22. Office is simply a prison with wonderful facilities with only difference that the imprisonment is in daily installments.

23. The salary we are given is not that amount (given in the pay slip) at all. It is only half of it since our fitness age goes at double the speed of calendar age.

24. Coming to life partnering, well-woven families but ill-woven family life.

25. Our outer life is laudable, but inner life is intolerable.

25 problems have been listed above. All may not be for all. All may not be for some also. But some may be for all.

Further chapters in this book address many of these issues for professionals both beginners and beganers. The

author believes that the suggestions given in this book if convinced and put to test, will enable a happy and then happier and as years roll happiest life.

3. Are you really happy?

Here is a questionnaire with a dozen statements experienced by professionals. Read them carefully and tick mark which is true to you. Do it honestly and sincerely without turning the page. The inference is given on page 7.

1. You turn around many times before getting sleep in a comfortable bed and in a wonderful ambience.

2. When you get sleep, you get in your dreams, the face of your boss and scenes of doing the project work which is unfinished (it exhibits your fear).

3. Sometimes you get frightening dreams (there is intense residual fear in the mind).

4. You feel irritated many times almost every day.

5. You experience frequent indigestion and constipation.

Note: This statement needs some explanation. People understand constipation as great difficulty experienced in passing motion. In fact, the indication of constipation can be easily understood. While emptying your bowels, if motion starts first and then urine passes there is no constipation. If urine comes out first and then only the motion starts, it is the first degree constipation. Even if you have this first degree constipation please tick mark this point.

6. You smoke occasionally and daily.

7. You experience frequent financial crisis.

8. Many days, many times you experience forgetfulness.

9. Smiles and laughters are rarest commodities in your life.

10. You often get body pain / headache and occasional depression.

11. At least weekly once or twice you take intoxicating drinks.

12. You take sleeping pills or tranquilizers.

Inference of the questinnaire:

If you have tick marked honestly and tick marked 3 or more, it is sure that you have symptoms of unhappiness. You certainly have excessive stress in your mind.

4. Do you deserve to be happy or not?

Hello reader of this book – you are a professional with attractive designation, engaged in a responsible job in a reputed organization. If you look back your background, you would have been studious and very bright in studies right from school days, much ahead of many students in marks and ranks. You would have put forth hard work in your higher studies and most probably selected by high profile company in the campus itself.

All the above facts are secondary for me. Primarily you are 100 % lucky without even the above facts. You may not agree to this statement. You will, if asked, give a long list justifying that you are not lucky.

In our country alone, there are:

1.2 crore people who are blind.

About one crore people are deaf.

Including the above blind and deaf the total handicapped people are 8 crore.

About 45 lakhs people are leprosy patients.

About 70 lakhs people are chronic TB patients.

The list goes very long.

My only question is – Are you in any one of the above list?

The answer will be a firm negative.

If you want, here are the global facts:

If you woke up this morning with more health than illness, you are more blessed than the million who won’t survive this week.

If you can attend to your daily duties without fear of harassment, arrest, torture, or death, you are more blessed than almost three billion people in the world.

If you have food in your refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof over your head and a place to sleep, you are richer than 75% people of this world.

If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace, you are among the top 8% of the world’s wealthy population.

You do not feel and realize that God while creating you, through your parents has done his job perfectly.

He has put two eyes where exactly they are to be provided and has given the power of sight

He has given two ears where exactly they are to be provided and has given the wonderful hearing power

He has given you the power of thinking

He has given you the power of talking

He has given all the faculties for working

Millions of educated people in our country are jobless. You have a job in a good office environment with a fat salary.

Don’t you feel that you have everything? But many professionals have negative feeling thinking and grumbling that they do not have this, that, these and those.

You have to thank God profusely for having given everything and feel in your life that you are 100 % lucky.

When you are 100 % lucky, don’t you deserve to lead a happy life? You certainly deserve to live happily. Let us see the nuts and bolts of happiness in the succeeding chapters.

5. What is Happiness?

Everybody is a happiness seeker. In life, this is by default. But people want and long for happiness without even trying to know what happiness is. Let us see 10 characteristics of happiness.

1. Money can give everything except happiness.

2. Even if you are made the king of the whole world and are handed over all possessions and objects of pleasure, there is no guarantee that you will be happy.

3. Happiness cannot be purchased but only be experienced.

4. Happiness is an inside job.

5. Happiness is not an object. It is a state of mind.

6. Happiness is your true intrinsic nature. It is only to be discovered and not to be acquired from outside.

7. Happiness is your valuable treasure. Do not allow it to be snatched by varying circumstances and petty matters of life.

8. Happiness depends on what you can give, not what you can get.

9. The best secret of happiness is renunciation.

10. Fountain of happiness is inside you. Do not make futile attempts to search it outside.

The usual and plethora of complaints people liberally vomit are:

My wife/husband is not keeping me happy.

My children are not keeping me happy.

My neighbours are not keeping me happy.

My subordinates are not keeping me happy.

My boss is not keeping me happy.

And the list goes on elongating.

When you ask them a counter question – Whom all you make happy? they go blank.

The basic point one should understand to understand happiness is that others can neither give you happiness nor can make you happy. You alone are responsible for your happiness.

It is reiterated that you are the only person upon which your happiness depends. If you are of the view that your happiness depends on others, you will be really in great trouble. It is the choice you go on making in your life. You decide to be happy and practice such as understanding others, helping others, accepting people as they are, listening and consoling. Also develop the attitude of forgiving people unconditionally.

People ask and say:

I am sick and how can I be happy?

I cannot be happy because I do not have money.

I cannot be happy because it is too hot.

I cannot be happy because many people criticize and insult me.

I cannot be happy because I do not have a job I like.

Any of the above can be overcome if you decide and seek the opportunities with willingness to do hard work and insulating your mind for others’ criticisms.

Your happiness is in your hands, not hands really but your mind.

6. Why people are not getting the taste of happiness

Here are a dozen reasons.

1. People are only preparing and equipping to live happily and do not live happily.

2. People are working hard to improve their standard of living but not the quality of living.

3. People are busy in their interior decoration to show off to others and least bothered for their internal decoration.

4. People acquire lot of information and knowledge of outside world with utter ignorance of their inner self.

5. People do not experience joy and happiness but