Perception-Not an Iota of Truth

Perceiving is believing. We all comprehend & believe certain things which do not exist in reality. Perception is the image of certain actions which you have taken in the past or of the words which you have spoken in the past. An individual can create an image but perception is an onlookers' creation. A vast majority of people spend their whole life trying to shed off a perception while rest others spend their life trying to create a perception. Perception is not necessarily a reliable indicator of the real persona.
Many people become victims of their perceived personalities. Especially the people who are active in public life, become the beneficiary or the victim of perceptions. The real person behind the created image can be judged only by those who know the real natural instincts of that person. An articulate speaker necessarily doesn't imply that he is an avid thinker. To express certain thoughts & to propound certain thoughts is all together a different phenomenon. The difference between kathni & karni  can be compared to image & perception. Some people have ideological opposition within themselves. So even the perceivers are confused about the real persona.
Dichotomy in ideologies often inflicts our political class who are driven more politically but less ideologically. However, there are few distinguished political personalities who are driven ideologically. But even they exhibit ideological inconsistencies.
Creating or destroying an image is much easy than creating or destroying a perception. The best test to assess ideological consistency is to gauge the difference between image & perception.
While I am too young to touch such subjects but I feel such discussions in long run can help us create & debate the real persona rather than debating preceptions.

Trap of Mediocrity

You can't succeed if you aren't driven by your aspirations. Well, this sentence may sound like some rhetoric of a motivational speaker but the actual substance to this sentence is far more than what we perceive it to be. The difference between so-called successful & unsuccessful people is their uncanny heart-burning desire to succeed. We all begin our aspirational stories with the slogans of meritocracy but most of us fall in the trap of mediocrity. There is a very thin separating mediocrity & meritocracy. Instant success kills the burning desire in a mediocre person or instant failure deters the mediocre person to pursue his dreams further. By aiming for small & instant success we often miss the larger picture. I don't believe that there is an ocean of difference between an ordinary & extraordinary person. But its that small difference in speaking, an extra element of grace, a perfect shade of perfection, an holistic approach to a simple issue that creates the big difference between them. Being mediocre is natural but defying that is what creates the marvel within a person. I don't think that all men are born great(though some are) but its that shear desire to reach the pinnacle that separates the jewel amongst the stones.
Burning desire for success, may not necessarily give you success but it will definitely give you that deep sense of satisfaction. An inner satisfaction that no amount of thrusted greatness can give. I also believe that being over-ambitious without being practical about the ground realities can be the greatest reason for disappointment. Having more ambition is as good as gambling big. With higher ambitions your probability to succeed also decreases proportionately.
Ultimately its all about being satisfied from within. Mediocrity or No-Mediocrity, its all about what you think you are doing right. Mediocrity is a worldly term used to describe certain parameters but it's that shear inner self belief that matters. I try to follow only one thing. By doing so I may have erred in worldly terms but I am able to stand myself in front of the mirror.
The thing which I follow is
"DO WHAT YOU BELIEVE IS RIGHT
DON'T DO WHAT YOU PERCEIVE IS RIGHT"
I hope you get the difference.