Many times, we may have expectations of receiving a reward for our efforts, and when we don’t get what we believe we deserve, we end up feeling disappointed. This mindset may have been instilled in us from a young age, where our parents would offer rewards for our actions, but as we grow older, we realize that luck plays a role in the outcomes of our endeavors.
It’s not a good way to live if we constantly demand rewards of our work. Instead, it’s better to concentrate on the work itself and deliver our best effort without attaching any expectations or entitlement to the results. We must learn to accept whatever outcomes come our way and find peace with them because we cannot control luck.
This concept of detaching from the results of our work is universal and is present in different cultures and religions. The Hindu scripture, Bhagavad-Gita, teaches that we have a right only to our labor and not to the fruits of our labor.
Similarly, in Christianity, “man proposes, God disposes,” and in Chinese culture, there’s a saying that translates to “humans plan, but the final outcome is in the hands of the heavens.”
Bhagavad-Gita went on to elaborate, “work done with anxiety about results is far inferior to work done without such anxiety, in the calm of self-surrender… They who work selfishly for results are miserable.”
Therefore, the key to living a fulfilling life is to focus on the work, master how to do it well, and leave the outcomes to fate.