Steve Jobs once said:
“Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice.”
Shehzan was fifteen years old when he and his father Iqbal met with a terrible accident in the monsoon season. They were on their bike, coming home from grocery shopping. Shehzan was sitting behind his father, balancing the heavy bags when the bike skidded in a muddy puddle. Shehzan suffered a few bruises, but his father was bedridden for six months, with a fractured leg cast under a solid plaster.
Running the business now became a big question mark. They didn’t have any staff, and the spices shop was managed by Iqbal alone. However, friends and family consoled him, saying that health was more important and not to worry if the shop remained closed for a few months.
Though he was a teenager, Shehzan was a compassionate boy with a wise head on young shoulders. After much thought, he volunteered to run the shop while his father recovered at home. However, his friends and relatives forewarned him that his studies and free time would suffer.
Furthermore, due to zero experience, the business might also see depletion. Nonetheless, Shehzan did not heed any of the negative, noisy opinions around him. Instead, he only listened to his inner voice.
He proved everybody wrong. He made mistakes, learned, and each day was a new challenge. But his prime focus was to stand by his father in times of trepidation and keep the steady flow of money coming in.
Inner voice: sometimes very tiny, just a faraway whisper and on another occasion, loud and clear, as if constantly drumming in your ears. There are so many different ways people refer to it- Your inner voice, the call of your heart, a gut feeling, trust your instincts, follow your intuition, whatever you name it, it is your most prominent guard, censor and moral code.
How do we listen to our inner voice with all the outside loud clutter and our internal debates? Relax. Sit back and take a moment. Think twice before jumping into anything. Grab a quiet corner for yourself and ponder on all the pros and cons. You’ll find your answer, make better decisions and be able to convert each stepping stone into success with greater ease.