Track of Dream and Guidance of Inner Voice

Track of Dream and Guidance of Inner Voice

Dear Students and Parents, welcome to Loyola-Icam College of Engineering and Technology (LICET). We are happy that you have chosen this great institution for your study of Engineering – We shall fulfill your expectations, with your cooperation and collaboration. LICET would be your home of intellect and emotion forming home and LICET would take efforts to find a place for your future in this world of competition. While we promise to mould you, we invite you to work with us. Students formation is a triangular mission: involving the parents, the institution, and students themselves.

Dear Students, you have come here with dreams – The dream could be your own or for some, the dream might have been thrust on you by your parents, friends, or classmates. Whatever it is, kindly remember that you have the choice: either to do what you like or to like what you do. If engineering is not your choice, try to develop an interest in it and you would sooner or later excel in your studies. St Ignatius, the founders of the Jesuit Order, would say: Even if you do not have a desire, develop an interest to build up a desire to do things you are in. The rest would go fine. First start with a curiosity to know what it is, then develop interest as you make your way, and finally you would commit yourself to the study of engineering. So, curiosity, interest, and commitment is the way to go.

Follow the Track:

When you have a dream, then you should follow the track that would take you to the realization of the dream. Two friends, John and Tom, went for hunting in the African jungle. At the end of the first day, John came back with a rabbit and Tom returned empty handed. When asked, John replied: Just follow the track. I saw the footprint of a rabbit near a bush and I followed it – When it ended, I shot and I got the rabbit. On the following day, Tom left with a resolution to follow the track but came back again with no hunt or catch, whereas John came with a wild boar. When asked, he replied: Just follow the track. I identified the footprints of the wild boar and followed it and caught it. He added: My friend, just follow the track. On the third day, our friend, Tom, promised his companion: Today I shall definitely follow the track. Around noon time, John received a phone call from the police station saying Tom is under arrest. John rushed and met Tom under police custody. When asked about what happened. Tom replied, John I followed a track and I saw something standing and I shot but the police arrested me. What really happened was, Tom followed the railway track and when he saw a train at the train station he opened fire and the police arrested him.

Following the track is important but you should follow the right track. As ambitious future engineers you have the choice of money or mindset and you can choose between means and meaning in life. With the excellent formation in LICET you would get excellent placements and you could make money either in India or abroad but we would like to form your mindset – The value system of LICET would give you fulness of life. With excellent grades and coveted placements you would be persons of means with possession, position, and power but LICET would like you to be men and women searching for meaning in life. At times, especially when you face difficulty, obstacles, or even failures, you would get discouraged. At those moments of darkness, LICET would shed light saying: Search within yourself, ‘why’ you should live and we shall tell you ‘how’ you could live.  Based on the words of Nietzsche, namely, “He, who has a why to live for, can bear with almost any how”, Viktor Frankl found meaning and importance of having a sense of purpose during World War II while in a concentration camp separated from his wife and family. From that experience he noticed that people who had a strong sense of purpose could bear the cruelty of those camps. Frankl also discovered that tapping into that sense of purpose is critical for long term happiness and success as well as it brings a sense of inner peace.[1] Whatever you decide to do, make sure it brings a smile to your face and joy to your heart. Develop confidence within you and courage to face life. You have seen balloons going up in the sky – It is not what is outside but what is inside of a balloon that takes it to the greater heights.

Formation at LICET:

LICET stands for holistic formation of the individuals: The syllabi, designed by the affiliating Anna University, would enrich your intellectual capacity. In addition, you would imbibe ethical values from your teachers, that in life what matters is respect for others, understanding them, and accepting them as they are. You would pick up the skill of looking at the world of the other from his/her perspective and not from your stand point of view. And when you leave the portals of this temple of learning, you would inherit  a sense of justice and fairness in life based on ethics. All these intellectual, emotional, and social aspects would form you as fine persons who would let your light of greatness shine to the world. To this track of formation and preparation for your life we invite you: Do not lose your dream because your dream is the source of inspiration and energy and we shall give a concrete shape to your dream. Let not obstacles or challenges stop you but let your dream drive you through all along the track of achievement.

In LICET we have excellent infrastructure – Perhaps the best in Anna University. But you have to make use of them whether lab or library, the more you use them, the more you gain in life. Our teachers are well experienced and highly motivated – They would gently lead you from simple to complex nature of engineering. They would be mentors and hence you could trust them. Meet them even after the classes. Our faculty members are teachers 24/7.

When you meet with difficulties in studies, they would be there to walk the extra mile with you. At times, you may feel that you are weak in studies but they would tell you what you are strong in. A young man was going to the river which is about a Km from his house to fetch water. He used to hang two pots on either end of a pole and brought water. One pot had a bit of crack and hence on the way back some of the water spilled out. One day, the cracked pot told his master: Master, I feel bad, I am not able to do my best and I waste a bit of water on the way from the river to home. The man said: Do not worry. Did you see the path? – I keep you always on one side of the path. And in that side of the path, I planted flower seeds and you could see they have bloomed and make your side of the path beautiful and pleasant to walk along. In LICET, we shall teach you how to celebrate your weakness and how to deal with your short comings and difficulties, for we learn more from mistakes than from successes, for failures brings in enlightenment as well as character building. We are here to make you whole and to form each one of you as unique persons of quality and character.

At times, you might be broken hearted, either due to your inability to study or failure in your subjects or problems at home. When you become broken or crestfallen we shall make you fully alive. There was a man who was fond of collecting antiques. One of his rare collections was an esthetically made China cup. One day, it fell down and broke into pieces. He felt bad and he was ready to pay any amount to make it whole again. No one came forward as it was complicated. Finally, one came forward and he put together the broken pieces with fine wires and painted the scars with golden paint (This art is known as Kintsugi). The reworked cup looked, for the owner, more beautiful than the unbroken cup. We do this magic in LICET. When you get discouraged and when you lose hope of going forward our experienced faculty members and the counselors would put you on the right track of hope and confidence. You have come to the right place and we shall do our best and you help us shape you up.

And we shall also make you experts in self-formation. We shall motivate you and you shall grow up. We shall show the way and we shall walk along with you as well. As you count on our expertise, we too count on your infinite capacity to form yourselves and also to shape the world for the better.

Stress and Strain:

In Engineering studies, the words Stress and Strain are familiar words when dealing with metals. Already you might be familiar with these words in Physics. Stress is the force that acts on (the unit area of) a material and the effect of stress on it is known as strain. The ratio of stress by strain is, according to Hooke’s law, modulus of elasticity. And what is expected of a material as an outcome of stress and strain is its malleability or its capacity of being shaped – And this shaping up would be done by hammering, heating, or pressing etc. All this process is to make it effective and a workable material in its use.

You might also undergo stress and strain in studies. Some might find it difficult to understand the concept of engineering studies; some might get frightened by the stringent and exact measures taken in the lab; some might find it difficult to keep pace with the progress of others; some might simply feel that they and engineering studies are not made for each other and so many other stresses.  The outcome would be discouragement, feeling tired of prolonged studies, etc. But we shall make you malleable to cope with the academic stress and inner strain and our experienced faculty members and the excellent infrastructure would ensure that your modulus of elasticity tends to be optimum. All we need from you is  to keep up your interest, put in hard work, and be patient for the effective results. Do not get discouraged and feel diffident. We are there to transform you and we shall walk with you along the road of excellence.

You first build up a habit of regular timetable or schedule for yourself, ensuring regular time to get up, to study, for entertainment, for homework etc. This is called the biological clock which makes you become efficient and effective. Your aim should be to make progress, however slow the progress might be. You may not, especially in the beginning, make progress in leaps and bounds, but keep trying with hope. When you are not able to run, then walk – When you are not able to walk, then crawl. What is important is that you move forward, upward, and onward. Today you tell yourself that you would not only pass in the courses but you would come out with flying colours – Tell yourself the same often and you would see the miracle happening.

Always listen to the inner voice. It would be the inner compass that would guide you through thick forest of fear and uncertainty; and it would direct you as the pole star helping you to surf even over storms of troubles and failures.

Anxiety among Engineering Students:

The outward expression of anxiety among engineering students is anxiety. Anxiety is a normal reaction to stress and it is a feeling of fear, dread, and uneasiness – feeling a sense of incompetence, often leading to mild health problems too.[2] Anxiety stemming from the perceived challenges faced by engineering students might have its impact on academic performance, reducing one’s self-confidence, concentration, or reasoning capability, leading to even loss of motivation. Our mentoring and counseling system would help you come out of anxiety as well and would motivate you to acquire confidence to do your best. Further, peer-study group discussion would be useful – Feel free to sit with your classmates or with your seniors to deepen your understanding of the engineering subjects. This also fosters a spirit of community and shared enthusiasm among the cohort.[3] When the thought of difficulty in the course work surfaces, think of the day when you would graduate and then getting an attractive job and doing your best in work and life – You would get motivated to overcome your apparent difficulty. Never give up – Keep trying and success would be yours.

How to do your Best:

Normally people think that to excel in studies you should put in hard work. But I could tell you, it is not hard work but smart work. Find your energy cycle – Not all would be fresh and energetic at the same time: Some might be fresh in the morning, some in the evening after brisk physical exercises or sports, and some after supper. Find out your cycle of energetic space and do your productive work or study that might be difficult or that might need more concentration. When you are relaxed you could do homework or other assignments. And do not spend time more than an hour on one particular subject, your brain might get tired. After an hour or an hour-and-a-half, you could study some other subject. Just remember your classes last just for an hour or so because that is the maximum time one could concentrate in a subject.

Here are a few suggestions for you to excel in studies. You need to be motivated what to do in life and you should keep trying to do your best:

  1. Have a Dream and keep it alive: You have chosen engineering subject but then be clear about what you want to achieve in life as an engineer. Once, here in LICET, a student came in for admission and he wanted to do Mech Engg. I asked him what he wanted to do later. Out came the reply: I want to work on the brake system of the aircraft wheel in order to reduce friction when it lands. Immediately I admitted him in the course.
  2. Develop Curiosity: Sometimes simple questions turn out to be unexpectedly revealing. You might have heard of this in your school or even you might have seen demonstration: Why does your hair stand on end when you rub a balloon or a rubber or a plastic material on it? The usual answer is that electrons are transferred from your hair to the balloon or rubber or plastic, leaving your hair positively charged. Thus, as like charges repel each other, the positively charged hairs repel each other and stick out. But then, you could ask: why do electrons get transferred from the hair to the balloon; and why don’t they go the other way?[4]
  3. Nurture Interest: When you are interested in doing something, doing it is not hard at all. When you are interested in something, like playing cricket, you could do it whether rain or shine. Take interest in the subject, especially in an area of subject and try to go deep in your studies. This would reveal your inner potential; increase your capacity to do work more; and make you a genius in your own way.
  4. Develop Critical Thinking: Critical thinking is the key to the storehouse of knowledge. You need not accept what is printed in the text book nor what the teacher tells you in the class room but you subject what you read and hear to your critical thinking – The practical sessions in the lab is a way to check the gap, if any, between the theory and reality. Do not be afraid of asking questions? No question is a stupid question.
  5. Discussion for Clarity: When your critical thinking does not help you, then go in for discussion. Four eyes see better than two eyes, two brains think better than a single brain. You could hold discussion with your classmates or with your teachers. You could also read more on the same subject or area in question. At times, this would bring in confusion – Do not worry, when there is confusion there would be clarity at the end.
  6. Learning by Doing: In professional schools, lab plays a major formative role. You learn by doing – We see with our own eyes in the lab what we have learnt in the class. We are 90% visuals. Research at 3M Corporation indicates that we process visuals 60,000 times faster than text.[5] Practicals in the lab would help us learn better.
  7. Role of the Subconscious: Within you is a powerhouse. It is your subconscious mind. And within this subconscious depths lie infinite wisdom, infinite power, and infinite supply of all that is necessary in life for knowing and doing. Your subconscious speaks to you in intuition, impulses, intimations, urges and ideas. It always tells you to rise, transcend, grow, advance, and move forward to greater heights. And it has all answers to your questions. When you are working at a complex assignment or project, just make a request for a solution to your subconscious just as you are falling asleep and leave it to the subconscious to take over from you. The subconscious, which never sleeps, would work on it and would offer you the solution, sooner or later. Your thought is the action and the response of your subconscious is the response.[6]

Effective Concentration in Studies:

We do not learn everything in one go. We listen to the lecture; we read more; we revise the subject. This process of repetition, according to Jesuit education, is the mother of learning. Our learning is a layered system – listening in the class, assignments, discussions, revision etc. And we need to ensure effective concentration in studies. There are a few do’s and don’ts for effective learning:[7]

  1. Distraction: Avoid whatever would be distracting from your paying attention to the lectures in the classes. Do not worry about the cellphone and do not be tempted to use it during the lectures. Be present 100% to the lecture in the class.
  2. Time Management: You should have an effective time management. Avoid time-wasters and have a regular time table – regular time table to get up, to study, to do exercise, for entertainment.
  3. Eat Right: Eat well and do sufficient physical exercises. Eating at right intervals would help you keep to the diet and your energy level also would be optimum.
  4. Sufficient Sleep: Scientists have found that lack of sleep can lead to lower alertness, slower thought processes, and reduced concentration. You would have more difficulty in focusing your attention and may become easily confused. J. Murphy in his bestselling book The Power of Your Subconscious Mind says:

“Sleep is a divine law, and many answers to our problems come to us when we are sound asleep. Many people have advocated the theory that you get tired during the day, that you go to sleep to rest the body, and that a reparative process takes place while you sleep. This is a gross misunderstanding. Nothing rests in sleep. Your heart, lungs, and all your vital organs function while you are asleep. If you eat prior to sleep, the food is digested and assimilated. Your skin secretes perspiration. Your nails and hair continue to grow.”[8]

Sleep is a integrating process and digesting what has been learnt and classified. It is also a process of extending and enhancing one’s knowledge and inner power.

Holistic Formation:

In the light of Jesuit philosophy of education, LICET imparts education, in addition to academic excellence, holistic formation of individuals to become leaders with social responsibility. We want our students to be men and women who would bring about a society of unity and harmony. In LICET we expect students to be professionals in whatever they do. As engineering is science of precision, we want our students to strive after perfection and excellence and at the same time what is good for all the society at large.

To this end, sports, games, and culturals are encouraged. In addition to the lab practices, we train our students to be experts in their respective areas of studies. Through ‘system discovery’ and ‘system analysis’, we train our students to thoroughly understand how machines and gadget work; how they could repair if anything goes wrong; and whether they could bring about anything more practical and innovative.

Above all we want our students to imbibe values from the institutions that would make their lives useful and meaningful to others. Among other character formation, we want our students to be compassionate and have social concern. Recently I read a little story: A man walking along the road read a notice posted onto the lampstand. It read that a fifty-rupee note was lost by a visually challenged elderly lady and if anyone could find the currency, it could be passed on to her. Further, the direction how to reach her house was also given there. This person felt that he should help the lady, even though he did not find the lost note. He went to the hut of the elderly person and offered a fifty-rupee note saying that he found it on the way and it might be her money. The elderly lady thanked him and told him that already over 30 people had come and each offered her Rs fifty. Someone who wanted to help the lady posted the note and there are people who are ready to help others, however small the help might be. After all, even seas and oceans are made of drops of waters.

It is not how much we give but with what heart we give is all that matters. I would like to share with you the experience of Fr A. Victor SJ, may God rest him in peace. He was the Superior of the Chennai Mission, before Chennai Mission was elevated as Chennai Province. It was during his tenure that LICET was founded. Before our final training as Jesuits, we undergo some personal experiment to be with the people in order to understand them better so that we could serve them effectively. Fr Victor wanted to be a beggar for a month – He stayed on the platform in Saidapet suburban train station. Every day he used to beg – Some suspected him, some took pity on him, and some chased him away. One day he did not get anything – So, with empty stomach we went to sleep late night. One of his fellow beggars came to him and gave him Rs two telling him: I have been watching you and no one gave you anything. Here, take this two rupees and at the end of the road there is a small tea-shop you could get a bun and a cup of tea. Fr Victor was very much moved by the compassion of his fellow beggar. Let us have a heart for the needy. Out of the intellectual enlightenment, our compassion should blossom forth to do our best to the least. Compassion helps us connect with others, mend relationships, and move forward while fostering emotional intelligence and universal well-being. Compassion takes sympathy and empathy one step further because it harbours a desire for all people to be free from suffering, and it’s imbued with a desire to help.[9]

Best of Everything:

Often our expectation and experience may not synchronise. We may love to do something but we might end up doing something else. At times our love and destiny might collide. But what matters in life is destiny. And nature offers any number of opportunities to learn about life – its purpose and destiny. Most of the progress in science is the outcome of keen observation of nature and even replicating how things work in nature. We could even learn from a leaf. We have seen new and tender leaves springing up, then they become yellowish and falling down dried up, giving way for another set of leaves to come up. And we could learn something great from a dried and fallen leaf. It reminds us that we live as well as we can for as long as we can, until it’s finally time to let go and allow ourselves to drift away with grace.[10] Till then, we do our best, bringing meaning to ourselves and to others.

While I welcome you, dear students, to LICET, I have a request to the parents: Dear Parents, you also play a major role in the formation of our students. Everyday spend quality time with your children, even it is a few minutes. You, as parents, should be the depository for pouring out the hearts and minds of your wards and at the same time you should be the source of inspiration and strength and hope to them. In this noble mission of forming the future of the nation or the world, LICET counts on you. Visit us often and we would grow in better understanding of our students. And this way we could together shape and mould our students. All the best.

Francis P Xavier SJ

25Oct2022

[1] https://www.jlab.org/div_dept/admin/HR/EAP/07-28-08.pdf

[2]https://medlineplus.gov/anxiety.html#:~:text=Anxiety%20is%20a%20feeling%20of,before%20making%20an%20important%20decision.

[3]https://www.researchgate.net/publication/301702034_Sources_of_Anxiety_among_Engineering_Students_Intervention_and_Mitigation

[4] R. Munroe, What if? 2, John Murray, London, 2022, p.ix.

[5] https://ernestoolivares.com/we-are-90-visuals-beings/#:~:text=While%20others%20animals%2C%20such%20as,60%2C000%20times%20faster%20than%20text.

[6] J. Murphy, The Power of Your Subconscious Mind, Amazing Roads, Mumbai, pp. 3, 106, 176.

[7] https://www.betterup.com/blog/15-ways-to-improve-your-focus-and-concentration-skills#:~:text=It%20is%20the%20ability%20to,ideas%2C%20feelings%2C%20and%20sensations.

[8] J. Murphy, The Power of Your Subconscious Mind, Amazing Roads, Mumbai, p.177.

[9] https://www.mindful.org/how-to-be-more-compassionate-a-mindful-guide-to-compassion/#:~:text=Compassion%20helps%20us%20connect%20with,with%20a%20desire%20to%20help.

[10] N. Sparks, Every Breath, Sphere, London, 2018, p.39.