Doing the RIGHT thing Vs doing what you WANT to do...

While in an effort to try and explain a lot of things that I do, a lot of decisions that I made and a sort of self-convincing that what I did was for the good, I realized the subtle differences between the things we do and how hard it actually is to do the right thing. So I concluded that it’s about time that I did a bit of a philosophical post.

Gyan Funda: As far as I have seen, whatever we do can be categorized into two things: Things that we WANT to do and Things that are the RIGHT thing to do

I have noticed that many a time, we want to do something and it’s not the right thing to do at that moment. And most of the times, we don’t want to do the right thing because it is not favorable to us. Unfortunately for me (and very fortunately for others around me), I have always wanted and have tried to do the right thing. Of course, I haven’t been completely successful at it, but, so far, the times that I actually indulged in doing the wrong thing that I wanted to do are quite few and very less damaging. And to be frank, I haven’t regretted doing any of the “right” things that I have done even though I may have wondered why I am doing it at the time of actually doing it.


Anyways, let’s get back to the point. I will depict what I want to say, with the following Venn diagram:
 

Things we want to do: These are things that we really desire and are positively favorable to us. 70% of the times, this thing involves a small loss or negative effect to others around us.

The right thing to do: These are the right thing to do in a particular situation. This means that outside the scenario, they may not seem right. And most of the times (approx 58%), this does not have any positive effect on the one doing it.

We want to do and is the right thing: This is the ideal situation wherein you want to do it and it’s also the right thing to do. This kind of “things” are actually rare.

Now why did I go to this extent to describe it? Coz of my belief. I believe that true satisfaction/ happiness/ peace of mind come by doing the right thing, even when it’s not what we want to do. When we do what we want to do, we are content but this is short lived if what we did was not the right thing (unless ofcourse, you are completely conscience-free and you are not like me who feels guilty for the smallest of hurt given to others) Doing the right thing may be hard coz of the situation or how it affects you and may not feel grateful in anyway. But in the long run, having done such things are the true key to happiness.

For the very few who are actually reading this and wondering what I am blabbering about, a hypothetical situation would probably help you understand. And to make sure you comprehend correctly, I have thought of a scenario that you can easily relate yourself to - Consider you have two very good friends of which one is a male and another is a female and both of them are interested in each other. Now, as a mutual good friend to both, you realize that the closer to each other they get, the farther they will move away from you (And you can’t really blame them for it coz they won’t be doing it intentionally). At this point, you have a chance to talk either/ both out of it and they would listen to you if they didn't know your true motive. And considering the alternative, you would probably want to do it too. But the question is, is that the right thing to do? Will you really be able to do it and be happy about it for long? If you are like me, you would answer no. And that’s when you realize the difference between doing things that you want and doing the right thing.

A long time back, I had written the following lines that describes this. A lot of ppl didn’t understand then. Hopefully, they would be able to do so now:

Kabhi aata hai zindagi mein aisa bhi ek pal,
Jab tumare ek galati se mil sakti ho kushi,
Ek pal jisme tum ji sakte ho poori zindagi,
Us pal mein ho saken tumara sapna sach,
Aisa pal jo tumare intezaar ka jawab ho,
Tumara barson ke kwaab ho,
Par us galati se is pal ko zindagi bar pachtaoge,
Ye jaanke bhi kya tum us galati ko kar paaoge?

So, always remember to do the right thing even if it hurts you a bit. You never know how much that would help you in the long run. And trust me on this, it will… even if it takes a bit longer to realize…