When I was 22 years old (that was nearly 20 years ago), I was not the same person I am today. I was shy, timid, weak (literally!) I remember I was on a train journey from Pune to Bangalore, a distance of over 600 miles. My first long distance journey alone! I was scared like hell! I thought the world was out there to cheat me. Barely a few hours into the 22 hour journey, a group of youngsters asked me to remove my suitcase from the ‘upper’ berth where I had kept it, as one of them wanted to have an afternoon nap on the berth. I refused! I pretended to be tough. The guys ganged up on me and threatened to offload me from the train. I surrendered but protested “You guys are bullying me” I told them, and asked myself “Why should this happen to me? It’s unfair..”

Many years later, I concluded that those guys were ‘Teachers’ in my life. They taught me when I should be tough and when to know my limits. They also taught me that there’s no point in trying to be tough for the sake of being tough. (In my case my ‘tough’ attitude was probably more out of fear than out of true protest.) An invaluable lesson it was, useful whether you’re on a train or off it!

Over the years, I started ‘noticing’ teachers everywhere. And they came in all shapes and sizes! The rash bus driver, the arrogant colleague, the lazy subordinate, the sleepy security guard, the naughty son, the possessive mother, the ungrateful friend, the committed jogger, the humble CEO, the nerdy neighbor, the honest vegetable vendor, the dishonest shopkeeper, the helpless beggar.. They all had a lesson to teach. And it always seemed that they came into my life primarily to give me that lesson.

Later I read, everyone who walks into your life is a teacher. Even if they drive you nuts they teach you because they show you where your limits are. Just because people are your teachers doesn’t mean you have to like them. Merely learning from them will do you a world of good.

Initially of course they were a bit hard to spot. They came and went from my life so discreetly. Sometimes they gave me a lesson without me even realizing that I got one. Sometimes they were there and the lesson was staring in my face, but I failed to see it.

But once you sensitize yourself to spot teachers, my goodness, you’re surrounded by them. No wonder then, the old Zen saying “The teacher arrives, when the student is ready.” When you tell yourself, “I’m committed to learning and change”, you’ll be surprised how your friends will lend you the right kind of books, you’ll stumble upon an inspiring article in an old magazine, you’ll bump into a stranger who will give you life-changing advice..

Life is all about lessons being given to us in perfect order. What we need to realize is that most of these lessons come to us through people who interact with us. Through those interactions we have the potential to learn, irrespective of whether those interactions are ‘good’ or ‘bad’. The sooner we keep our emotions and egos aside and treat people as ‘teachers’, the faster we will be on the path to happiness and self-growth.

Question to ask yourself “Am I ready?”. I think you are! Look around, your best teacher is most probably sharing the same house as you!

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