The Road to Success – Tokali, Class 12 Arts






Mariyappan Thangavelu, a resident of Salem, Tamil Nadu, was born in a family of five children. His father abandoned his family early on, and his mother had to shoulder the responsibility of raising the children all by herself. She did this by working as a laborer and later selling vegetables, earning not more than Rs 100 a day. When Mariyappan was five, he was run over by a bus being driven by a drunken driver. He suffered permanent disability in his right leg. He however continued to work hard and train for high jumping since the age of 14. Due to his perseverance, he was able to clinch the gold medal for India in the Men’s High Jump during the recently concluded 2016 Summer Paralympics. Heroes are not created by destiny. Success can be achieved only by those who give their best and dedicate their lives towards excellence. This week we present to you the thoughts of a student about achieving success in life.
The Road to Success
Everyone likes to succeed. Success means that we have achieved something that we’ve wanted or have been trying to accomplish. Success is not an abstract idea; it means tireless striving; it means putting together the failures, the sideway blocks and hurdles. It is learning from errors. Winston Churchill said, “Success is going from failure to failure without a loss of enthusiasm.”
This line reminds me of my cousin who worked hard to achieve success. Though he faced many obstacles and failures, he did not give up; instead he made them his lessons. He fell behind his friends, his parents stopped supporting him as he lost a year since he couldn’t pass the civil service exams. Friends talked about him in a negative manner saying he was too young to be giving exams, etc. Even his parents told him to stop giving exams. Nevertheless, he did not give up and tried his very best to achieve his goals because he knew that success smells better than failure. He worked on achieving his goal instead of listening to those naysayers. He at last got through. Now, he is enjoying the fruits of his labor as an ADC. By facing numerous challenges and in overcoming them, he attained success, he achieved his goals.
Success is the joy one gives to oneself and to others too. We have to perform certain things to get real satisfaction and joy. Success begins with one’s will. The fast paced world we live in today makes it even more necessary for us to learn and equip ourselves with tools essential to succeed in a highly globalized environment, and the more we learn, the better and useful we become. And education gives us knowledge and equips us with tools essential for success. It is like a flipper’s guide in magazines which helps the readers know the contents of the magazines. It is only when we read the articles that we come to know what they are all about. So too is education, it instils us with basic knowledge. It is when we make use of this knowledge, in practice, we attain our desired goals.
In addition to knowledge, I believe that hard work is necessary. Hard work is the key to success and there is nothing to be achieved without hard work. As the popular saying goes, there is no short cut to success; no one achieves anything through short cuts. John Maywood says ‘A hard beginning maketh a good ending.’ Only those who achieve success through sheer determination and hard work find full happiness in their success. Nothing is impossible for a hardworking person. I have an Uncle who told me that he attained success through his hard work. He said he was not a bright student; he was just an average student in the class and hard working.  As he was not from a wealthy family, his parents sometimes couldn’t pay for his fees. So in order to pay for his fees, he worked in the fields and earned money to pay his fees. And after a whole day’s of work in the fields, he helped his parents with household works. In spite of all these, he managed to study at the least, five to six hours a day. Because of all his hard work, he is a well-known person holding a Ph D. and is also the Principal of a well reputed college.
Success is like a flower. It is the finished product of series of efforts of preparatory stages. It is small things done with confidence which make achievements. “Everyone is trying to accomplish something big, not realizing that life is made up of small things”, said Frank A. Clark, the American politician. Nothing is impossible to a willing heart. So, if you want to achieve success, seize this very minute and victory will be yours.
Being a student, we all face many challenges, but we should know how to overcome them. As a student, one should be one’s own advocate. Stake a claim in the class room by making sure the teacher knows who you are in a good way. Be curious and ask questions. Moreover, one should be well prepared to face any challenges. We all want something great in life, I am sure. So let’s begin by working hard. They will all come true. The first and the most important step towards success is the feeling that we can succeed in accomplishing great things, and believing that we can. Take pride in how far you have come. Have faith in how far you can go. And, inevitably, success will truly be yours.

Degree of Thought is a weekly community column initiated by Tetso College in partnership with The Morung Express. Degree of Thought will delve into the social, cultural, political and educational issues around us. The views expressed here do not reflect the opinion of the institution. Tetso College is a NAAC Accredited UGC recognized Commerce and Arts College. The editors are Dr. Hewasa Lorin, Anjan Behera, Dr. Salikyu Sangtam, Nivibo Yiki, and Kvulo Lorin. For feedback or comments please email: dot@tetsocollege.org.

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