When I was a high school student , mathematics looked like a big hurdle for me and several of my classmates.When we reached the ninth class, we got Mr. Iyer, a strict maths teacher who was also our class teacher.He always stuck to his discipline.We had to arrive on time, pay undivided attention to his lectures, and dared not neglect any of h is homework. Even so, as our class teacher, we got to know him better.Noticing some of us fidgeting one day as the mid -term exams approached, he stopped solving a mathematical problem to ask us why." There' s too much to do," we sighed."We're afraid we'll never manage to finish our revision before the exams." "Nothing is impossible," Mr. Iyer told us. "This classroom is on the second floor. Do you have a problem reaching here ?" We reacted with blank stares. "No, you don' t !"he said , answering his own question."You have a staircase to help you climb up to this level.No one expects you to make it in two giant leaps.You simply take one step at a time.Any task can be solved if you focus on the immediate action to be taken.The rest w ill take care of itself, if you keep at it.One step at a time.That' s the secret." Then he wrote down an o ld motto on the blackboard --the longest journey starts with a single step.Having heard his staircase analogy , w e understood why he asked us the question and we saw him in a new light. Most of my classmates scored distinctions in maths.And I went on to become an English teacher.To this day , whenever I pass on Mr.Iyer's invaluable advice to my own students , they brighten up at the prospect of a lighter academic burden. Why did the author and his classmates react with blank stares ?
Because they were too tired to understand what Mr.Iyer said. Because they felt surprised at such an unbelievable problem. Because they had no interest in any subjects that were no good for their exam s. Because they first thought reaching the second floor had no connection with the worry.