Exploring Possibilities: Ludo Of Life...

Ludo, a name when it strikes us, reminds us of our childhood memories, especially the leisure time during holidays.

Google says, Ludo is a strategy board game for two to four players, in which the players race their four tokens from start to finish according to the rolls of a single die. Like other cross and circle games, Ludo is derived from the Indian game Pachisi, but simpler. The game and its variations are popular in many countries and under various names.

Of late Ludo has been introduced as an online game, where people play and earn. This has given birth to a new argument that is this a game of chance or a game of choice.

Chance means, when nothing is in our control, and everything is driven by our fortune. In Ludo when a dice is rolled, it's rolling is a matter of chance as which number will come is in no one's hands. Now if we observe the game, this is the only uncertain aspect of the game.

Some other aspects of the game are as follows. We have four tokens to play. Each token comes out only when dice rolls six or one. Which token to take out, is our choice. Once the token is out, it’s journey starts. There are certain safe points in the way, where these tokens cannot be hit by any other token. Every player gets the opportunity to hit the tokens of other players.

Some players enjoy hitting other player’s tokens and sending them back to the starting point. Some players hit only when it's required. So every player has his philosophy which creates his strategy in the game. All these decisions are in our control. So barring the roll of the dice, every other act is our choice, and these choices impact the final outcome as to which player enters into his final gallery and reaches home first.

We have a similar debate for our life too, whether it's a matter of chance or choice. Game of ludo starts for a player when his token comes out of his den. Every player celebrates that. This is so much like the start of our professional life. We all start it with celebration, full of energy.

Soon we realize that we have competition, with the shark attitude, which creates and presents all kinds of uncertain situations to us. Some of us adopt the strategy of improving self and moving ahead in life and some adopt strategy to bring others down, to move ahead. Some Do the balance of both.

Though there is nothing wrong and right in these strategies, each of them has a different outcome. We have different parameters and strategies to move ahead. For a few it’s about improving the designations, and earnings. For a few it’s about improving the competency. If a designation is acquired without acquiring the requisite competencies, the success is short-lived and there are people ready to hit back at you, exactly the way in Ludo.

If we also make the right decisions and be more sensible, we can move ahead and complete our game. So just like Ludo, our life too has most of the things in our hands. But we just pine and lament for those which are not in our control and lose hope...

So friends as we say start today with what you have. A bad start is better than a no start. Choose your tokens wisely. You will explore the possibility of winning and hitting the home run first...and mind it win the race with grace…..

(The author is a Certified Designed Thinking Master practitioner and Clifton Certified Strength Finder Coach, Corporate Trainer and a Leadership coach. He is based in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh, India.)