Bigger Station, Bigger Income

For what does it benefit man if his status is raised when he himself is not raised?”
- Louis Fisher on Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy

 
Story Line:
 
When reading about scandals in politics and corporations, I often think about the movie, Bhuvan Shom.
 
Bhuvan Shom is the story of a railway stationmaster in small town in India. Day in and day out Bhuvan Shom is portrayed as a man that has poor work ethics. He takes bribes, is rude to customers, and frequently skips work as there is no local supervisor to watch over him. Furthermore, Bhuvan Shom feels thoroughly justified in his actions.
 
One day, the head of Indian Railways goes to Bhuvan Shom's town for vacation. For the first time, Bhuvan Sh om shows up to work early and leaves late. He starts treating passengers with courtesy and stops taking bribes as a side business.
 
The boss sees these false qualities in Bhuvan Shom and even develops sympathy for Bhuvan Shom’s poor family. The boss decides to help him and offers Bhuvan Shom a promotion along with a higher salary at a larger station in an equally larger town. Just before his departure from the town, the boss gives Bhuvan Shom a tutorial on codes of conduct and ethics required for the new job. As the boss is boarding the train, Bhuvan Shom assures him that he will be the role model for ethics.

Once the train pulls out of the station and is out of sight, Bhuvan Shom exclaims, “Bigger Station, Bigger Income (also meaning that there is an opportunity for bigger income for bribes in a bigger station).”

 
Reflection:

The real change in the status of a person does not come from the change in position power or promotion, but through the transformation of character and values. How often do we all only decide to put out our best work only when the powers that be are watching or when we feel "it really matters?" Our work reflects who we are and the values we have. Measure yourself based on the work you do when no one is looking and when the only judge is yourself.

Comments

[Rommel]

Very timely sharing! I remember an anonymous quote that is very relevant to this story. It says "Integrity -- When you do the right thing even though no one is watching."