Letter From a Father to a Son | Abraham Lincoln

Dear Son,

         It was a pleasant surprise to receive your mail. To start with, let me tell you are definitely not unique to go through what you are going through. Pressures are not new; I still have them, only the reasons change. But we all have to learn to handle them; the faster you do the better you are. All through my career, I have always tried to think and implement solutions to problems or pressures, different from the existing norms because I have always felt that there has to be a different method to approach a problem. But when you try a different approach, you actually invite more pressure. There is every possibility that you may fail. but it eliminates one more parameter of solution.

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        Most people think that I am not scared of failures. This is not true. Even today I am. But this scare has never discouraged me form from taking action, however silly it may appear to be. It has not prevented me from sitting in examinations or competing with my competitors. But yes, I am very scared of looking at the results of my action, and I still keep my finger crossed. Failures have never depressed me, but they have made me think about a different approach or a better understanding, never that I shouldn't try this out once again.

        Son, competition is here to stay. You will always find people who are smarter more hardworking, more knowledgeable or just smooth talkers. This goes on all through your life. We all have to handle it in our own way. For instance, I deliberately chose a field in which I thought I was good, comfortable and had less competition. That is the easiest way to defeat competition, but it took me for long years to decide where I wanted to go. One should never get scared of people who put in more numbers of hours on the job; I would just befriend them, ask a lot of questions and get to know what they know that I don't and then work on it.

        In one's career, the most important thing is honesty and reliability - all other things come later. Another essential is to ask questions and listen, it indicates how other have coped with their careers, and then think of the best way which suits you.

        It is foolish on your part to think that you need to prove anything to your parents. You do not need to. It would give us more happiness to see use enjoying your profession. Your parents are here to see you achieve goals set by you, not by us. If you are unable to achieve them, we are sad for you. We have no goals for our children; but it is our responsibility to see that you have a goal. Again, it is not important to achieve your goal all the time. But it is very important to know one's strong and weak points. Simply rely on your strong points to achieve greater heights and overcome the week ones.

            Look after your health. 

Lots of love,

Papa.