The Comfort Trap

A culture built on the promise of security has shaped generations of Kashmiris into job-seekers rather than risk-takers. It's time to rethink what real success means.

- Aamir Wani

For as long as I can remember, success in Kashmir has been measured in government job postings.

From a young age, children are told that the safest, most respectable path is through an office window with fixed hours and guaranteed retirement benefits. Parents take pride when their son becomes a doctor or their daughter clears the civil services.

These dreams are rarely about passion or purpose. They are about safety, a word that has silently replaced freedom in our collective imagination.

A government job looks like security. It offers steady paychecks, paid leaves, and the comfort of a pension. In a place where economic opportunities are scarce, it feels like winning a lifelong safety net. But this very comfort often becomes a cage.