Two friends, Ahmed and Iqbal, both lived in the
same city. Ahmed was a graduate, while Iqbal’s
education had not gone beyond the eighth
standard. It happened once that Iqbal had to go to
an office on business and was accompanied by his
friend, Ahmed. When the business had been
transacted, and they were both coming out of the
office, Ahmed said to Iqbal, “You were speaking
such horrible English! With such bad English, I
would never have dared to open my mouth!” Iqbal
was not the slightest bit disconcerted at being so
roundly criticized. Exuding confidence, he said,
“Speak wrong so that you can speak right!” Then he
added, “Although you are a graduate and I have
not got any degrees, you will soon find that I will
start speaking in English and you will never be able
to do so.”
That was twenty years ago. Now Iqbal’s words
have come true. Ahmed is still at the stage he was at
twenty years ago, but Iqbal, astonishingly, has
made great progress. He now speaks English quite
fluently and no one can fault him on grammar and
pronunciation.
This daring attitude on the part of Iqbal certainly
proved to be of great advantage to him for, at the
outset of his career, he just owned a small shop in
the city, whereas today, he runs a big factory.
The motto: “Speak wrong so that you can speak
correct,” has obviously in his case been the key to
success.
This principle on which Iqbal operated has
a bearing not only on language but on all practical
concerns in life. In the present world, the potentially
successful are those who are possessed of courage,
who advance fearlessly and take the initiative in the
face of risks. Only those who have the courage to
err will accomplish anything worthwhile in life.
Those who are afraid of making mistakes will be
left behind in the race of life, and their ultimate
goals will recede further and further into the
distance.
--Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
( Ref - The Moral Vision)
