Swavlamban Ka Mahatva - Self-Reliance Can Change Your Life

Patricia Sampson, the CEO of The Sampson Group Inc. and a renowned speaker once said, "Self-reliance is the only road to true freedom and being one's own person is the best reward."  

This statement got me thinking what exactly self-reliance is? Is it the lack of belief in one’s own abilities or our dependence on others we can’t tackle what’s required of us to live independently in the world. Growing up in a time of abundance of information easily accessible through internet, I read a few scholar articles and even watched some YouTube videos to properly understand if a low sense of self-reliance can really wreak havoc to a persons' life and how can a self-sufficient person impact his life positively.

Finding me so absorbed in an intriguing topic, mom too joined me in the mission and made me watch a cute animated story in Hindi on #SwavlambanKaMatatva to understand the concept of being competent and confident enough to handle essential chores on our own. 

She further guided me that it should be one of the first skills for each of us to learn to be responsible for our actions. There is no harm in seeking advice from parents, elders, peers or friends; but this behaviour should not turn into a classic symptom of dependent mindset. 

After a lush productive dialogue, what I understood is that Self-reliance is the foundation for independence on personal level. It does not mean that you dismiss everyone else and only listen to yourself. It shouldn't lead to becoming a self-oriented person either. 

It is also not about doing everything yourself or being financially independent. But it’s certainly making your best effort for shouldering every hardship you face. 

I personally feel if you're an independent person, you get that courage to stand up for what you believe despite knowing that it may not be well-received. But once you adapt to this perspective, you don't easily surrender to obstructions that might limit your growth and success.

PC: deepstash.com

Some might argue that being self-sustained might not come naturally to everyone, but remember it can definitely be developed with consistent practice. Self-dependence, whether physical or emotional, can be learnt or taught starting from the early growing years of a person's life. 

It is a characteristic strength and can help get ourselves through the difficult situations without whining about how unfair life is. 

Having stated how self-dependence is a boon for personal growth, it's vital to discuss the importance of Swavlamban in a broader perspective i.e. for a nation. For a developing country like India, self-reliance came as a buzzword when PM Modi stressed upon his vision of #AtmaNirbharBharat for the first time in his speech.  

As a nation that is committed to expand its horizon in terms of economy, the version of self-reliance does not imply isolationism and inward-orientation, but reducing country’s dependence on other nations. Building an independent national economy for India means building an economy which is free from dependence on other countries and stands on its own feet. An economy which serves one's own
people and grows on the strength of the resources of one's own country and by the efforts of
one's own people can only be considered a self-reliant economy. 

अंत में, मैं कहूंगा कि आत्मसम्मान स्वावलम्बन के साथ आता है  और मनुष्य अपने आत्मसम्मान से ही निर्मित होता है | जैसा वो विश्वास करता है, वैसा वह बन जाता है। याद रखिए - समस्त सफलताएँ स्वावलम्बन की नींव पर आधारित होती हैं। 

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Shamit Saini 
Class X