This word is defined as a strong wish to achieve something. I recalled the word during the latest federal election in Australia, where the unexpected victory of the governing Liberal-National coalition was partially interpreted by some analysts and politicians as part of the population having aspirations in life preferring continuity rather than taking a risk with completely different and economically redistributive policies advanced by the Labor Party.
In principle, an aspiration is a good thing. It is good to aim for a a better quality of life, to have better health, see your children make even more inroads in life than you did, to be more comfortable, have more free time etc.
This leads to the person to endeavour, work hard, plan forwards. He or she would be more energetic than others, as an aim would be in mind that is desired to be reached.
Aspiration is also an attribute of organisations. One of the principal communications of the best of them is generally a tiny yet profound declaration about its mission, for example in offering modern telecommunication system to sustain communities, or the development of solutions to human health disorders, or to be good citizens in society etc.
These are all positive attitudes, nevertheless might they have a dark side or become negative, or have some negative aspect? I’d say, of course.
For example, when someone desires a better quality of life, be more comfortable etc, many interpret this in society today as being financially better off. Therefore, one might go to work with gusto, often in more than one workplace, undertake lots of overtime etc to earn more money, but if someone were to look at the situation dispassionately might ask whether the quality of life has really got any better.
I want to make it clear that some people do work flat out not out of a whim, but due to being paid with such a pittance constrains them to work long hours just to make ends meet. It is common today to read about the working poor.
I sometimes ask myself if what we see on TV, in apparently innocuous everyday programmes, with so many sparkles, attractive, beautiful, so many people laughing and smiling, seeming so content surrounded by objects that some can only dream of, aren’t in fact intentioned to entice us to change the dream world we see to become our dream that we spend the rest of our lives trying to convert to reality.
Perhaps the clearest example I can give you of this attitude is the program Better Homes and Gardens on Australian TV, which provides lots of useful information on how one might improve his/her home and garden. They had a segment in the program in which houses with fabulous architecture were presented, ones you’d be difficult to imagine anyone residing in unless they were millionaires, or were able to get into one massive loan. What was the aim of this segment, if not to fan the flames of desire? At the end of the program, you cannot avoid hearing the jingle ‘life is getting better all the time’. Really? For whom? For everyone?
I wrote a bit earlier about organisations and their positive ambitions. They might have other ambitions, perhaps unstated, but ones that can be expected, which might not be negative but can become so. The first that springs to mind is the aim of commercial enterprises to turn a profit. This is not bad per se, not at all, but many times there is the expectation that profit increases every hear, and this can happen with legitimate and illegitimate means, with ethical means or not. For example, decisions can be made which result in employees being squeezed more, stressed more at their workplace, customer service no longer being adequate, product or service quality being reduced etc. In other works, organisations slowly become simply machines where profits are first and foremost, with other considerations being only hot air that is issued only to avoid criticism.
How could one explain an organisation like Volkswagen, one of the best vehicle manufacturers in the world, install software in its cars to literally lie while being emissions tested? How could one explain why Australian banks deduct funds from their clients’ accounts for services that were not provided, or for financial advice that was supposedly being given while the clients were actually dead?
I say it would be wise for us individually to think long and hard about what are our aims and motivations in mind, whether they are reasonable and also whether they are worth the sacrifices that need to be made to achieve them. Some might be well worth the investment of our time and labour, others perhaps not.
We have only one life!
---------------------------
Id-dizzjunarju ta’ Aquilina jgħid li din il-kelma tfisser xewqa kbira għal xi ħaġa. Ftakart fiha waqt l-aħħar elezzjoni Federali tal-Awstralja, fejn ir-rebħa xejn mistennija tal-koalizzjoni governattiva Liberali-Nazzjonali ġiet parzjalment spjegata minn xi analisti u politikanti b’parti mill-popolazzjoni meqjusin li għandhom aspirazzjoni fil-ħajja jippreferu l-kontinwità milli jirriskjaw politika kompletament differenti u ekonomikament ridistributtiva tal-partit Laburista.
L-aspirazzjoni fil-prinċipju hija ħaġa tajba. Huwa tajjeb li wieħed ifittex kwalità aħjar tal-ħajja, li jkollu livell ta’ saħħa aħjar, li jara lil uliedu javvanzaw anke iktar minnu, li jkun iktar komdu, li jkollu ħin liberu iktar eċċ.
Dan iwassal biex bniedem jistinka, jaħdem, jippjana. Ikollu enerġija iktar minn ta’ madwaru, għax għandu skop f’moħħu u jrid jilħqu.
L-aspirazzjoni hija wkoll attribut ta’ organizzazzjonijiet. Waħda mill-komunikazzjonijiet prinċipali tal-aħjar minnhom ġeneralment tkun stqarrija ċkejkna imma maħsuba fil-fond, li biha tistqarr il-missjoni tagħha, per eżempju li toffri sistemi moderni ta’ telekomunikazzjoni li bihom jisseddqu l-komunitajiet, jew li jiġu żviluppati soluzzjonijiet għall-mard tal-bniedem, li jkunu ċittadini tajba fis-soċjetà u l-bqija.
Dawn l-attitudnijiet huma kollha pożittivi, madankollu jistgħu jduru u jsiru negattivi, jew ikollhom xi aspett negattiv? Jien naħseb, dażgur li iva.
Per eżempju, meta bniedem ifittex kwalità aħjar tal-ħajja, ikun iktar komdu eċċ, ħafna jinterpretawha fis-soċjetà tal-lum li jrid ikun finanzjarjament aħjar. Għalhekk, jista’ jinfexx f’ħafna xogħol, ġieli f’iktar minn post tax-xogħol wieħed, ħafna sahra eċċ biex jakkwista iktar flus, imma li wieħed iħares lejh minn barra jista’ jistaqsi jekk verament il-kwalità tal-ħajja qiegħda tiġi għall-aħjar.
Irrid nagħmilha ċara li hawn ukoll min jaħdem daqs kelb mhux b’kapriċċ, imma li tant jitħallas biċ-ċenteżmi li bilfors irid jaħdem ħafna sigħat biex ikun jista’ jlaħħaq mal-ħajja. Illum spiss sirt tisma’ bil-ħaddiema li jibqgħu fqar (working poor).
Jien kultant nistaqsi lili nnifsi jekk dak li naraw kultant fuq it-televiżjoni, f’programmi apparentement innokwi u ta’ kuljum, b’ħafna tlellix, tant attraenti u sbieħ, b’ħafna nies jidħqu u jitbissmu, jidhru tant kuntenti mdawrin b’ oġġetti li ħafna jistgħu biss joħolmu bihom, humiex fil-fatt intenzjonati biex iħajruna nibdlu il-ħolm li naraw fil-ħolm tagħna u nagħmlu minn kollox biex indawruh f’realtà.
Forsi l-iktar eżempju ċar tal-attitudni għalija huwa l-programm Better Homes and Gardens fuq it-TV Awstraljan, li jagħti ħafna informazzjoni utli fuq kif wieħed jista’ jtejjeb id-dar jew il-ġnien tiegħu. Imbagħad għamlu żmien iġibu segment fil-programm li jippreżenta djar b’arkitettura favoluża li diffiċli li timmaġina ‘l xi ħadd fihom ħlief jekk tkun miljunarju, jew tidħol f’xi dejn ta’ barra minn hawn. X’inhu l-iskop, ħlief li jxennqu lin-nies? Fl-aħħar tal-programm, ma jonqosx li tissemma d-daqqa ‘life is getting better all the time’ (il-ħajja kull ma jmur qed titjieb). Iva? Għal min? Għal kulħadd?
Ktibt ftit qabel fuq l-organizzazzjonijiet, u l-ambizzjonijiet pożittivi tagħhom. Jista’ jkollhom ambizzjonijiet oħra, forsi mhux mistqarra, imma li wieħed jistennihom, li forsi ma jkunux negattivi imma li jistgħu isiru hekk. L-ewwel eżempju li jiġini f’rasi huwa l-għan tal-impriżi kummerċjali biex jagħmlu profitt. Dan mhux ħażin fih innifsu, xejn affattu, imma ħafna drabi jkun hemm l-istennija li l-profitt irid jiżdied kull sena, u dan jista’ jsir b’mod leċitu jew illeċitu, b’mod etiku jew le. Jistgħu jittieħdu deċiżjonijiet li jfissru tagħsir tal-ħaddiema, żieda tal-istress tagħhom fuq il-post tax-xogħol, nuqqas ta’ servizz adekwat lejn il-klijenti, it-tnaqqis tal-kwalità fil-prodotti jew servizzi. Fi kliem ieħor, l-organizzazzjonijiet bil-mod il-mod isiru biss magni fejn il-profitt jiġi l-ewwel u qabel kollox, u l-bqija huma biss kliem fieraħ li jingħad biex ma ssirx kritika.
Biex nagħti eżempji, kif wieħed jista’ jispejga li organizzazzjoni bħall-Volkswagen, waħda mill-aqwa produtturi tal-karozzi fid-dinja, tistalla softwer fil-karozzi biex litteralment tigdeb waqt li qed isirulha testijiet ta’ kemm tarmi dħaħen? Kif wieħed jista’ jispjega li banek fl-Awstralja inaqqsu flus mill-kontijiet tal-klijenti tagħhom għal servizzi li ma tawx, jew għal pariri finanzjarji li suppost kienu qiegħdin jagħtu meta l-klijenti kienu fil-fatt mejta?
Jien ngħid li jkun jaqbel għalina li individwalment naħsbu sew fuq x’inhuma l-iskopijiet u ambizzjonijiet li għandna f’moħħna, jekk humiex raġjonevoli u jekk jiswewx is-sagrifiċċji li rridu nagħmlu biex nilħquhom. Uħud forsi jistħoqqilhom investiment ta’ ħinna u xogħolna, u oħrajn forsi le.
Ħajja waħda għandna!
No comments:
Post a Comment