building the future in the present
"I can't think of anything more exciting than being out there, among the stars." ~ Elon Musk
America in the 1960s laid the groundwork for a fast, interdependent, and technology-driven future. People believed that there was nothing they couldn’t do and that failure was unacceptable. Americans won the space race because they knew what their finishing line would look like and how that one race could change how the world looked at them. Not everyone took winning seriously, but those who did knew how to get others to run their race by simply proving that - “Us reaching our goal is inevitable. We will win despite you leaving, but if you stay, we can both win.”
Inspiration is a temporary, dopamine-filled substitute for unwanted desires. It’s very easy to forget about the important things that completely changed the world. So, to do great things, we choose to act on these inspirations with the hope of carrying the baton passed on by great men and women who once moved humanity forward.
One of the stories that greatly inspires me is of a janitor. President Kennedy visited the NASA Space Center in 1962 and saw a janitor carrying a broom. Kennedy introduced himself and asked the janitor “What are you doing?”.
The janitor replied,
“I am helping put a man on the moon Mr. President.”
We don’t know what the future will look like but I have a clear idea of what I want it to look like with infinite clean energy, extremely fast air travel, multi-planetary space flights for the public, connecting every corner of the world, and so much more. This is why I believe that it is very important for everyone to work on problems that are valuable for the future.
On reading about great scientists and engineers, dead and alive, I came across the fact that many of these people were pretty religious. It was a very interesting question of why. I came to the conclusion that people follow religion because it provides them with - meaning, purpose, and discipline. The 3 things we need to succeed in our work. Not everyone gets these sense of emotions from religion. I don’t. But everyone eventually finds something that can give them hope.
Meaning, Purpose, Discipline.
Duty, Honor, Country.
Love, Celebration, Life.
It’s important to find what you believe in. It’s important to find your religion.
I constantly try to tell myself that if I am not building for the future, I am doing something wrong. If my actions in the present do not make me a better person in the future, I am doing something wrong.
The chances of finding out what’s really going on in the universe are so remote, the only thing to do is hang the sense of it and keep yourself occupied. ~ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.