Life is a dance, not just a chance

“Good to see you are still hustling around,” said a person with a lot of creativity. The word ‘Hustle’ has been evolving.

These days so many words have different meanings that one has to pause and think in which context the word ought to be taken.

The way to go about it would be the age and the personality of the speaker, which would take us on the track to know from where it is sourcing out from.

Hustle in the past was negative, but today it defines inspiration and work. Everyone is talking about side hustles too.

Lifestyle across the globe has changed and a side hustle seems to be the in thing — making the extra income.

In the past in certain cultures it was unthinkable to do certain jobs or think of having a part time job. Now it is all about feeling good about utilising your skills as well as time and getting reward for.

So then ‘hustling’ is a compliment. But now it is about the word ‘still’ in front of the word ‘hustling’.

What do you do when you are enjoying something you do? Should you worry about what others might be thinking?

You see, everyone can be thinking and having an opinion on something and everything. Only the individual would know what is right for them. An adventure is awesome as a holiday but when you want life long adventures it can be tiresome at times. Then again it depends on the person’s outlook.

Over the years I have had the pleasure of interviewing people who chose to do things differently.

In the 90s, I had interviewed a Bushpilot who flew through 70 countries, and in recent years a long distance hiker who walked from Europe to the GCC to visit Mecca. The explorers have an instinct, but not sure if they have a vision first and then follow it up. But they go with the flow. It seems when you are in the right frame of mind you can easily detect the opportunities and you are open to them.

Now would it not be lovely if all of us could have the attitude of exploring, thriving with the spirit of an explorer - taking each day with excitement, counting each experience as precious. Let us reflect on our own life and we realise how vividly we remember certain chapters in our lives that are emotional.

Bush pilot Tom Claytor had been flying through Africa and then reached Yemen. And from there he came to Oman and had the opportunity to interview the person who believed in ‘Wisdom of the Wilderness.” Environment and wildlife were his focus.

As for long distance hikers, Thair Abud, who has now completed 43,000 km on foot continues to walk with a cause and an objective. He has been walking from Nordkapp to Cape Town since 2018 supporting children with cancer.

What struck me the most were their passion, focus and determination. The undivided focus almost makes them a different species. And to them it does not matter what others think. They must have met thousands of people but they are more than faces because they will leave with them a spark - a spark that is extraordinary.

That reminds of the point late Sheikh Khalfan al Esry used to say, “Be extraordinary!” “There are too many ordinary people.”

Emotions are strong and they can inspire or distract. Distract because if not contained emotions can defeat oneself taking one away from the goal. It is important that we connect with our emotions because it can bring out creativity too. Nevertheless, it is important to bounce back to normalcy to continue your path because life is a gift bestowed upon us.

So let’s look inside and see what truly connects us. The world has just observed Environment Day and how about stopping the use of one time use of plastic products?