Over the past six years, I found myself trapped in a persistent state of frustration. It wasn’t about the work I was engaged in at Sisimpur and IID, but a profound sense of lacking purpose. We all work, be it in an office, running a business, or even pulling a rickshaw, to provide for ourselves and our loved ones. I often referred to this as “LIVING.” Yet, deep down, I felt there had to be something more. From 2017 to 2023, I embarked on a six-year journey of self-discovery, driven by three burning questions:
1️⃣ Why am I doing what I am doing?
2️⃣ Is my work creating genuine impact beyond self-benefit?
3️⃣ If I fast-forward to 2040, will I truly be happy with how things have progressed?
Through this introspection, I made two profound realizations (which may resonate with you as well). Take a moment, close your eyes, and internalize:
✨ First, everything we do is geared towards improving the quality of life – be it through food, clothing, shelter, healthcare, education, or entertainment – all in the pursuit of happiness.
✨ Second, as civilization advances, we seem to be focusing less on the fundamental elements (bone-muscle and soul) and more on superficial aspects (feathers). Imagine impact as a bird; feathers are vital, but without a strong foundation of bone-muscle and soul, they are rendered useless.
So, what’s the significance of focusing on the essentials – the “bone & muscle” and the “soul”? Consider this: without food, one can’t survive a week; without soil, light, and water, existence is reduced to a matter of days. Beyond these, without air, specifically oxygen, survival is limited to just TWO minutes (barring extraordinary circumstances). So, what holds the utmost importance, regardless of your profession? My realization was simple yet powerful: OXYGEN!
The simplest way to produce oxygen is to plant trees. 🌱 And that’s how I started TREE – an organization with a mission to plant 16 million trees in Bangladesh by 2030.
I aspire to live a full life, inspired by Sir Abed, and proudly proclaim, “I produce my own Oxygen!” Join me on this journey if you resonate; drop a comment, and I’ll connect.