A ship docked in harbor cannot face the storm!

A ship docked in harbor cannot face the storm!

Gold gets its purity from being burnt in fire; and so does life by pain become austere. Unless one has faced the hardships of life, they are deemed unfit for higher grounds. The quote simply says the most believed truths of all time that one needs to take risks and put their life on uncertainty in order to achieve that most required strength to fight the odds.

However, this is not a very applicable idiom in today’s world where experience is not given priority over caliber and competence. Old employees are given slips when there is abundance of new talents that are more capable of handling advanced technology.

For

1. Experiences: Experience, they say, is the best teacher. When you are made to face the hardships of life or career for that matter, you learn a lot from the journey. You learn when to duck and when to leap. Practice of years and dedication is what differentiates an experienced employee from a fresher, even though they both might have the same qualifications. The ones who haven’t experienced clouds will never know how to stay protected from rain.

2. Learning from mistakes: When you are out at the front where your work and decisions matter and can make a huge difference in the lives of others, you gradually begin to learn and not to make the same mistake again. A couple of pressurized task is what it takes for someone to realize the importance of staying up and alert. When you stand behind someone else, giving them the right to decide for you, there is no learning for you.

3. Facing the world: Knowing how to face the world out there is one thing and doing it is another. You are built to tolerate the storm but unless you leave the comfort behind and try your luck with the real world full of challenges and risks, you do not know your real caliber. You can only be sure of what you can do when you have done it once, twice and again.

4. Taking risks is important: When life offers you an opportunity, you are often faced with the difficult question of whether to take it or not. And rightly so because one path will lead to struggle and the other has the safety of home. The one who chooses the struggle can only emerge as the winner. There is no doubt on the fact that success comes only to those who adapt to the ways of world, leaving behind the safe zone or the harbor for that matter.

5. Giving up the security: Yes, the world out there is cruel. There will be things you wouldn’t like. You will miss home. But the bird has to fly out of the nest if it has to find the place where it belongs. For all those leaving home for the first time for higher studies or jobs, the feeling is exactly the same we are talking about.

Against

1. Those born with silver spoon: Some people are born rich, others achieve richness and some have richness thrust upon them. The not so talented star kids do not really need to leave the harbor, to face storms to get what most of the common people would only dream of despite severe hardships. It is all a matter of who you know and you are suddenly proving all quotes wrong.

2. Winning over experience holders: It is not a new thing for companies to get past experienced employees and hand over promotions to those who come with whooping new degrees and technically advanced skills. The ones that fought the storm are left to deal with the aftermath of it while the high profiles enjoy all the scenic view in the cleanings.

3. Skills and degrees do matter: Just because someone hasn’t had the opportunity to explore their caliber, it doesn’t mean they do not have it in them to sail through the storms. Let’s not forget that amateurs are creating history while the much practiced hands get to work under them. It is all a matter of right time and opportunity when someone can prove what they can do and what not.

4. Judging by calm: We judge people by their position, clothing, taciturn nature and calm façade but what appears to be silent isn’t always symphonious. They could know a lot more than you and could be building a thousand thoughts within, to be put to use when the time is right. The same goes for the ship that hasn’t tasted the test of time.

The quote is as valid in present day as it was earlier with a few exceptions, of course. Having experiences of fighting in pressurizing situation is always considered a pro. Your skills are decided when you pass through such tests successfully.