The Way of Wisdom

I actually missed my blogging session yesterday because I had a dinner appointment after work with a friend. I had dinner at the MG Cafe and after that I had some errands to run. Upon arriving home, I forgot all about my usual Monday blogging routine.

Which is why I am blogging now, in the morning at the office. I enjoy the daily routine of going to the office. The ritual of dressing up and driving to my place of work allows me to set up the right frame of mind to work. I've always believed that a bit of pressure everyday is a good thing. It's like doing yoga: you need to stretch yourself a bit to develop strength and flexibility. The office is also a good place to socialize. I don't usually take lunch, but sometimes I join colleagues during lunchtime just to banter with them.

I don't have a particular topic to write about today. Or at least, I can't think of any right now. But I'm just going to let my fingers do the walking (or typing). Whenever I'm in the office, I think about how to make my day as productive as possible. Productivity becomes a challenge whenever you don't have a dateline to deliver a particular thing. So I do have a list of 'personal projects' to occupy these idle periods in between customer-related projects.

Personal projects are for learning purposes and to prevent unnecessary idleness. In my line of work, the only skill that's required is the skill to learn--for everything gets obsoleted very fast. There still many fields that I have not mastered. So these lull periods between major projects are extremely precious--it is the time when you can actually pick up something new. But that is provided that you have the discipline to do so.

I know many people while their time away on social media. That seems to be the default activity for everyone nowadays. People are so 'informed' these days but I doubt if all the information gets transmuted into knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge arises from a fusion of information, feeling and action. Information is just the raw material. It can so easily become waste material, if it is not digested and channeled into some useful purpose. Which is why projects are important. You only gain knowledge by applying information and through this process you experience pain (if things go wrong) or pleasure (if things work out well). It is the crucible of passionate action that transmutes information into knowledge, and when knowledge becomes instinctive, it is called wisdom.

Wisdom is instinctive knowledge. The transmutation of knowledge into wisdom requires time and practice. It doesn't happen overnight. It is like facial recognition--the knowing is instant and instinctive. It is a holistic knowing that transcends analysis. Every time we do something, we have to ask ourselves: are we cultivating more wisdom? If it is, then it is a worthwhile action. It is productive. There is no shortcut to it. It is a daily act of cultivation. One action at a time, one day at a time. And today is no different for me. Work. Action. That is the starting point and the path to wisdom. And may there be many more days like this.