Living in Mumbai for the past few years you internalise the presence of monsoons that last for months. But there is one thing that it has taught me and I have tried to use it as much as possible – The Culture of Umbrellas. If you have been to the city during rains and spent some time here, you will soon realise what I am talking about.
Let me make one thing clear, at the beginning, I am a rain-lover and hence it happens to be the favourite time of the year. These months of rains, freshness, chaos, earthen smell and of course “Umbrellas”.
Have you ever noticed two people in a narrow lane with umbrellas trying to cross each others’ way? Well, I have. Either one of them gently slides the umbrella on one side or he will take it way above the head so as to avoid a clash with that of the other person. Or else on certain days you can also offer someone a shelter under yours and help them from getting drenched.
Now, this is the culture of Umbrellas and I believe it can either facilitate the simultaneous growth of people or give them a way to embark on their own and blossom. By allowing the other person and giving them way to move ahead and blossom you have shown an outstanding character and a flexibility that everyone must possess at the workplace.
If you are a senior person at work then I believe you need to take your Umbrella higher and let the other person feel double secure only because of your presence. Umbrellas are the metaphor for our own wills, wishes or to sum it up in one word – ‘purpose’. We have them to save ourselves from the rains. Rains of work pressure, family woes, personal goals and all of these culminate into one Umbrella – our will, our purpose that saves us and prepares us to face the rain.
There are people who often do not even budge on the side nor do they let go of their Umbrellas. Those are the ones who are blindly driven by their ambition and do not set the best example for ‘healthy competition’. We all meet such people, and know that trouble makers are everywhere, be it the roads or the offices. But on personal level, it is for you to decide if you want to follow the “true” essence of the culture of Umbrellas or not.
For me, I have tried and tested it. By adopting the same, both on the road and at the workplace, I have definitely found new friends and earned a few smiles for sure. Open your Umbrellas and let people in.
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