Paradox of Intention is the simple idea that we may reach a goal by giving up the attempt to reach it or, conversely, that we may be prevented from reaching a goal by our intentional efforts to achieve it. This idea is quite prevalent in philosophy, religion and psychology. You will have to read many texts, meet guru’s and do I don’t know how many things to get to the bottom of this.
Or, you go and buy a pair of shoes and experience it.
So here is how I learned it. In 2 weeks time I’m going to volunteer in few villages below a glacier called “Pindari” which is located in the northern state of Uttarakhand. One has to trek to reach some of the villages and you need decent trekking shoes. And with this intention I went to a outdoor sports retail shop called ” Kathmandu”. http://www.kathmandu.co.uk/ . I went to their shop Off Regent street in Central London.
So I tried a couple of shoes and finally bought Salomon trekking shoes. Nice ones, really liked them even though they cost me a bomb. But I thought its a one time purchase so let me invest this money.
I pay at the counter and carry them with me and in few hours I’m in India. Back in India I thought let me wear the shoes in Delhi so that I get used to them. So I tried them on and they really looked really nice and felt great- at-least for that moment. However as I started walking in them I was feeling a but odd. Something was not quite right. Back at home in the evening I noticed slight pain in my left foot. I thought may be this is the first time I’m wearing these shoes so that’s why they are a bit un comfortable but then just out of curiosity I checked their sizes. And this is what I found.
One shoe is size 8 and other is size 10. And I’m ocean’s away from the shop and the trek is in 2 weeks. I tried somes shoe shops in Delhi and no one has the right shoes for me. Somewhere in the Kathmandu shop there are two lonely shoes of size 8 and 10 are sobbing and desperately looking for their right match.
In my house here in Delhi two shoes can’t see eye to eye and they are depressed and purposeless sitting in the shoe box.
This is called Paradox of intention. Despite best intention and good money and a very good shoe store all I have is nothing to wear.
P.s: The mails to Kathmandu customer service have not been un-answered. May be I should not write to them to understand Paradox of intention fully. Or is this just poor retailing from a prestigious brand like Kathmandu. All I want them to do us send me a single Size 8 which is anyways lying in the store
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