We are the creators of our future...
Guiding Quote: What you are is what you have been, and what
you will be is what you do now. ~ Buddha
Point to Ponder:
We write our own future through our actions. Doing nothing
today will result in an empty tomorrow. If only we could carry this wonderful
piece of wisdom with us all the time, we would probably be more cautious and
conscious in our actions and words. But while we tend to forget, this is a
beautiful moment to be reminded of our own immense power to create the person
we want to be.
Our future is very much in our hands. Who do we want to be?
Let us think about that and start working toward it now.
Action:
As we take full responsibility of our past actions, we
accept the way we are now. We are delighted that it is in our power to
establish the person we want to become. We contemplate on this and determine
our actions toward our future being.
Scripted exclusively for the members of this group
R3 - Raman's Random Ramblings
by
Raman TSK
Growth Mindset
Intellectual growth should commence at birth and cease only
at death. ~ Albert Einstein
Point to Ponder:
Opportunities for growth are all around us, in people,
readings, experiences, and in the ways
our minds interpret them. Whether we choose to increase our intellectual
growth, or not, is entirely up to us. Emotional Intelligence is a significant
facet of intellectual growth that takes feelings into consideration along
with our capacity for critical
reasoning. For either emphasis of intellectual capacity, Einstein’s statement
makes perfect sense: we can experience the wonder of life as long as we
continue learning.
Action:
Let's try to be a student of and for life. Our teachers are
all around us: occurrences, people, ideas, animals, and plants. Through our
teachers we grow. For this we all ought to be grateful.
Scripted exclusively for the members of this group
R3 - Raman's Random Ramblings
by
Raman TSK
Glory is just Momentary
Guiding Quote:
Glory is like a circle in the water,
Which never ceaseth to enlarge itself,
Till by broad spreading it disperses to naught.
~ William Shakespeare
Point to Ponder:
It is beautiful to be glorified, but it is wise to keep in
mind that everything is impermanent. Our glory, like our misfortune, is just a
moment in time that evaporates as soon as something or someone else comes
along. We often think that glory will last forever. This is foolish and only
leads to despair. It is wiser to continue exerting effort, even at the height
of our eminence, because the seasons of life are like the seasons in a year,
which all have their value.
Action:
Let's be grateful for the recognition we receive. Yet,
let's pray it doesn't blind us. Everything passes, and splendor and failure are
each other’s mirror images. Let's not hold any expectations related to others’
opinions. Let's accept their rewards and their demerits.
Scripted exclusively for the members of this group
R3 Raman's Random Ramblings
by
Raman
1, 2, 3, 4, 5...
Connect, Give, Take Notice, Keep Learning, Be active..
1, 2, 3, 4, 5...
Collect, Save, Evaluate Value, Keep Sharing, Be Generous
This is truly amazing..
I was just saying..
1, 2, 3, 4, 5...
1, 2, 3, 4, 5...
I paused, something sprung out and this popped up..
- Connect
- Give
- Take Notice
- Keep Learning
- Be active..
Paused yet again.. and I said it once more...
1, 2, 3, 4, 5...
Immediately this sprang up spontaneously...
- Collect
- Save
- Estimate value
- Keep Sharing
- Be Generous
Wow! that's magical...
Found it exciting and said,
1, 2, 3, 4, 5...
These things followed...
- Live the life you want.
- Live a live which doesn’t
need a vacation.
- Don't do the hustle.
- Stop things that don't
exhaust you.
- Declutter.
I paused and looked at the magical things that happened and
repeated it
1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Then this followed...
- Be more with less.
- Less is more
- Make time for things tgat
matter.
- If you don't have the time
for doing things
that
matter, then stop
doing
things that matter.
- Permit yourself to rest
I paused and said to myself, I have discovered something
electrifying and
I did it yet again...
1, 2, 3, 4, 5..
This came out...
- Find your simple.
- Less doing is more being.
- Love the simple life.
- Enjoy the simple things
- Simplify to amplify
Without any prompt...
1, 2, 3, 4, 5,
This flowed
- Reject stress.
- Slow down.
- Get out of the rat-race
- Ditch busy.
- Say "no" to "yes."
I began to realize it is a good thing to continue doing so
you list things down in the 1, 2, 3, 4, 5...format as affirmations to practice
for the day...
This isn't exaggeration...this is what kept me engaged for
more than 90 minutes now... I thought it's worth sharing so you may try it out
too with things you can think off. Do arrest your thought, let it flow, capture
all that you can. After a while you'll find your mind fresh to receive only new
thoughts.
It is all in our Mind.
Guiding Quote:
Toil to make yourself remarkable by some talent or other.
~ Seneca
Ponder over this story:
After winning many contests, a boastful champion archer
challenged an old master who was renowned for his skills. Th e young man
flawlessly hit a distant bull’s eye, and then split that arrow with his second
shot. “There,” he said to the old man, “see if you can match that!” The master
motioned the young archer to follow him up a mountain. When they reached a deep
chasm spanned by a rather flimsy and shaky log, the old master stepped onto the
middle of the perilous bridge, picked a far away target, drew his bow, and fi
red a clean, direct hit. “Now, you,” he said, as he stepped back onto the safe
ground. The young man was frozen with fear. “You have much skill with your
bow,” the master said, “but you have little skill with the mind that releases
the shot.”
Action:
Let's consider our talents and their purposefulness. How
can we improve?
How can we make our talents gratifying to ourselves and to
others?
Scripted exclusively for the members of this group
R3 - Raman's Random Ramblings
by
Raman
Be the difference.
Guiding Quote:
Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a
trail.
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Point to Ponder:
Even though it is easy to follow the examples of others, it
is better to use their actions as a source of inspiration to develop in our own
way. Th ere are infinite roads to explore, and there are countless approaches
to explore those roads. If life has taught us anything, it is that, just when
we think there is nothing new possible, another option appears. So why
shouldn’t we become the trendsetters of our day? We can create new paths at our
work, in our industry, in our area of expertise, as a result of our knowledge,
experience, and self-reflection. Our talents have been waiting too long to come
out. Now is the time to bring them out.
Action:
Today, let's outshine ourselves. Let's refrain from taking
the easy road of followership. Let's become the difference we want to see in
the world.
Scripted exclusively for the members of this group
R3 - Raman's Random Ramblings
by
Raman
Attitude is Infectious...
Enjoy and Love What You Do...
Guiding Quote:
Those who can’t dance say the music is no good.
~ Jamaican proverb
Point to Ponder:
Let me narrate a story I read long ago...
In a tollbooth in San Francisco, there was a man dancing to
loud music. One driver asked him what he was doing. The man said he was having
a party. When the driver pointed to the other quiet booths, the man said,
“They’re not invited!” Months later, the intrigued driver passed the
music-filled tollbooth again. The dancing operator smiled and said, “Still
having a party!” The driver asked, “What about the other sixteen operators?”
“They die every morning when they come to work, and resurrect every evening to
go home.” “Why are you having such a
good time?” asked the driver. “I’m going to be a dancer
someday, and my bosses are paying for my training. I have a corner office with
a great view. I’m having a party!” Dancing through life is up to us.
Action:
No one is to blame for our shortcomings, and now, let's
convert our shortcomings
to strengths. We can create opportunities by working toward
them. We can dance.
Scripted exclusively for the members of this group
R3 Raman's Random Ramblings
by
Raman
Mr. S. V. Nathan, Partner and Chief Talent Officer,
Delloitte wrote this morning on LinkedIn.
"My mentor once said, Just when you want to give up,
just take one step more, and another step more. Persistence isn't easy, giving
up is."
I loved it and responded as follows, "The recent
example of what you said was visible in the effort of the recently concluded
Border-Gavaskar Series. After the crushing defeat in the series at Adelaide in
which India was bowled out for their lowest ever in Test cricket and with the
star skipper Virat Kohli - world's number one batsman returning back to India.
Every cricket pundit, expert, follower wrote off the Indian team.
Fast forward Brisbane - a home team advantage, a fortress
not breached for 32 years. Last day of the series. India set to score a near
impossible 327 runs in 90 overs. (Most expected a repeat of the Adelaide story,
or a repeat of the earlier test at Sydney in which India thwarted Australia’s
bid to win the test. India churned out a glorious draw, through not highly
rated frontline batsmen). India's
approach for the final day was one of
stunning persistence, take it - ball by ball, over by over, session by session.
They executed it very well. They created a sensation went into history as
Heroes - more than one. It was the team that emerged as "Men of the
Series."
Take Challenges on...without ducking.
Guiding Quote:
A smooth sea never made a skilled mariner.
~ English proverb
Point to Ponder:
It isn’t pleasant when complications surface, but in
retrospect, every complication is an opportunity to enhance our creativity and
make us more valuable. Besides, every challenge sharpens our awareness of the
value of our goal. If there were no challenges, what would we have to
contemplate on and teach to upcoming generations? We would take our
achievements for granted and forget their value. A rough sea is no pleasant
experience while it lasts, but it makes for great sailors.
Action:
Let's face our problems with courage and see them as
opportunities to develop our skills. Let obstacles and hurdles inspire us to
use our full dexterity as we rediscover our goals and
the strength we have to reach.
Scripted exclusively for the members of this group
R3 - Raman's Random Ramblings
by
Raman
Inside of Expert Secrets I will be sharing with
you 19 secrets to help you convert your online visitors into
lifelong customers.
Here's a sneak peek at what you'll discover inside of your
free copy of this new book:
Section #1: Creating Your Movement
Secret #1: How To Find Your VOICE, And Move Away From
Just Selling A Product Or Service... And Toward Creating Offers, And Finally
Leading A Movement That Changes The Lives Of Your Customers!
Secret #2: The FRAMEWORK For Teaching
Your Frameworks… (The Process For Delivering Your Knowledge And Skills In A Way
That Helps Your Dream Customers Learn, And Guides Them STRAIGHT To The
Result They Want!)
Secret #3: How To Create Your Own
“Blue Ocean” In A “Red Market”, That Sets You Up As The Category King Of
Your Niche... And Leave All Your Competitors Fighting Over The Scraps In
Your Category.
Secret #4: The ONLY Thing That Causes
Your Dream Customers To Move Toward Your Offer (Or Not Move At All)...
Understand This ONE Concept, And It Will Forever Change How You Communicate
With Your Customers
Secret #5: How To Re-Package The SAME
Content You’ve Been Selling In A Different Way, That Adds NEW Value For Your
Customer That They’re Willing To Pay A Higher Price For!
Secret #6: Give Your Followers HOPE
Of Something Better That’s Coming... So They Build Excitement and Anticipation
For The CHANGE You’re About To Offer Them! (This Is The THIRD Stage Of Becoming
The Expert)
Section #2: Creating Belief
Secret #7: How To Create A Powerful “A Ha” Moment For
Your Customers That Gives Them Clarity On How To Solve Their Problem... So
That They’ve Already Pre-Sold Themselves On Your Solution Before
You’ve Even Made The Offer!
Secret #8: The Two-Part “Journey”
Framework That SIMPLIFIES Story Structuring, And The Key To Making Sure
Your Message Has MAXIMUM Emotional Impact As A Great StoryTeller!
Secret #9: The Script That Turns
A Quick Engaging Story Or Experience Into A Pivotal Light-Bulb Moment For
Your Dream Customers That Leaves Them Already Sold On The Solution You’re About
To Offer!
Secret #10: The 4 Stories You Can Use
Together To REWRITE The Stories That Are In Your Dream Customer’s
Head That Aren’t Serving Them, Or Telling Them They CAN’T...
Section #3: One-to-Many Selling
Secret #11: The detailed step-by-step FRAMEWORK that
builds massive value for your customers, PRE-SELLS them on your offer (so you
don’t have to do any actual selling), and motivates them to buy RIGHT NOW!
(I use this every single time I go on stage (or a webinar) to deliver a
presentation where I make an offer.)
Secret #12: How To Knock Down Your
Customer's MAIN False Belief That Is Keeping Your Customer From Saying “YES!”
To Your Offer... (Once This Happens, All Of Their Other False Beliefs Will
Come Crashing Down!)
Secret #13: Use This 3-Part
Story-Selling Framework To Squash Your Customers’ False Beliefs BEFORE
They Even Have A Chance To Think Of Them... And Rebuild Belief Patterns That
Inspires Them To Take ACTION And Change Their Lives!
Secret #14: The Exact Script To Use
To Easily Transition You From The “Content” Part Of Your Presentation, To
Making An “Offer” And Closing The Sale (Here’s A Detailed Break-Down Of What To
Say Slide-By-Slide!)
Secret #15: My 16 FAVORITE
Mini-Closes That You Can Layer And Plug Into Your Presentation To Help
Persuade Customers to Buy Your Offer (I combine these closes almost anytime I’m
going to ask somebody to make an investment with me!)
Section #4: Becoming Your Dream Customer's Guide
Secret #16: The 7-Day schedule you should follow
EVERY week for an entire year to “test and tweak” your presentation...or until
you hit the Two Comma Club (whichever comes sooner!)
Secret #17: Use This Perfect
Webinar SHORTCUT, And Get Your FULL Presentation Created In Just 10-15
Minutes... (This Works GREAT For When You Need To Get An Offer Out To Your
Audience FAST, And Don’t Have Weeks Or Days To Plan Out A Traditional Perfect
Webinar!)
Secret #18: This Script Chops
Your Perfect Webinar Down To Just 5 Minutes... without cutting the value
of your offer! (Use This For FB Lives, Sales Pages, And When The Product You’re
Selling Is Under $100!)
Secret #19: ...AND, How To Weave
ALL Of These Stories, Scripts, And Frameworks Inside This Book Into
Different LEVELS In Your Funnel (And Even Outside Your Funnel), So You Can
Guide Your Dream Customers Straight Toward The Result They Really
Want!
Wellbeing
Top 10 Tips To Improve Empathy In The Workplace
9th June marks Empathy Day. According to the Cambridge
Dictionary, empathy is: “the ability to share someone else’s feelings or
experiences by imagining what it would be like to be in that person’s
situation.” Put simply, it’s a way to understand and feel another person’s
emotions.
Empathy in the workplace is particularly important. It
helps us to connect with our colleagues and help them through the day-to-day.
As a manager, empathising with your team is key to getting the best results
from your people. We all like to feel listened to and understood, after all.
A compassionate workplace is good for business, too. For
example, 77% of workers would be more likely to work more hours in an
empathic workplace, with many employees leaving their current job for a more
compassionate environment.
To mark this year’s Empathy Day, here are our top tips on
improving empathy within the workplace.
1. Listen
This one sounds simple, but it can often take practice to
listen 100% to another person’s side of the conversation. Your mind might be on
another work task, or on what you’re going to make for lunch. Try to put your
own tasks, problems and thoughts aside and focus totally on what the other
person is saying. Put yourself in their position and imagine how you would
feel.
If your team feels they can talk openly, this will lead to
a more positive workplace culture too.
2. Train Your Brain
You can’t learn to empathise with others overnight, but you
can try to train your brain to think empathetically. Reading books or
travelling to a new place is a great way to train your brain to walk a mile in
someone else’s shoes. You can also read articles online and practice
mindfulness yourself to ensure you’re in the best possible place personally to
open your heart and mind to others.
3. Really Work With Your Team
This means shadowing the people you work with,
understanding their workload and listening to their frustrations. If you work
with teams across other offices, spend a day in the different location so you are
able to empathise with their individual challenges too.
4. Learn To Recognise Bias
Unconscious bias means we react without thinking.
Unfortunately, bias is difficult to unlearn, but you can be aware of your own
bias and ensure this doesn’t impact your decision making or your ability to
empathise. You should never ignore or dismiss how someone is feeling simply
because you view them a certain way or have a preconceived opinion of how they
think or may behave.
5. Don’t Take Advantage Of Empathy
Often the more empathetic coworkers end up being taken
advantage of, as they are viewed as helpful and understanding. This can lead to
burn-out. Being compassionate should be rewarded with returned empathy, not
additional tasks and unwanted responsibilities.
6. Don’t Assume The Worst
An employee may be struggling with a particular task,
policy or workplace rule. They might be having “an off day” or even a bad week.
Don’t make assumptions that they’re not putting in enough effort, or they’re
not equipped to do their job. Perhaps that member of staff is struggling with
circumstances outside of work. Be patient, talk openly to your colleagues and
try to explore the issue empathetically.
7. Take Team Building Seriously
A good relationship with coworkers is one of the main
aspects to enjoying a job. Spending time to really get to know colleagues is
key. Whether that’s having a chat while the kettle boils, or embracing
team-building days as a chance to bond, prioritising strengthening those
workplace relationships is a good way to improve empathy in the workplace.
8. Little Actions Make A Big Difference
Smiling at your colleagues, offering to make a cup of tea
for someone in a different department, remembering people’s names even if you
don’t work with them often… small demonstrations of empathy and compassion go a
long way. Give people your full attention and make a mental note of things they
say, so you can form meaningful conversations with them in the future. You’ll
develop a reputation for being caring and trustworthy if you take an interest
in other people’s lives and feelings.
9. Try Not To ‘Fix’ People
Your colleagues may open up to you, but it’s not always
your responsibility to find a solution (unless it’s work-related and they’ve
specifically turned to you for guidance). Often a listening ear and an
understanding conversation is enough. In fact, constantly trying to fix a
problem can leave the other person feeling unheard. Remember, another person’s
issue isn’t your issue.
10. Open Up
You can’t expect co-workers to show vulnerability if you
don’t open up yourself. Show your human side and share your own worries,
stories and emotions with your team. People will feel empathy towards you, and
will therefore be more likely to talk themselves when the time comes.
Do you need a helping hand to improve workplace empathy? We
Are Wellbeing delivers a range of seminars and training sessions on key
wellbeing topics designed to improve your workplace culture. For more
information, get in touch with the team.
Lacking Empathy in the Workplace?
Here’s How to Fix It
Posted by Seraine Page on Wed, Aug, 05, 2020
How empathetic are you toward your employees?
If you struggle to showcase empathy in the workplace,
you’re not the only one.
While the pandemic environment has brought to light the
need for company leadership to better understand workplace empathy, many are
finding it a struggle to implement empathetic practices.
In fact, 68% of CEOs think companies are empathetic. Yet
only 48% of employees believe the same, according to The Businessolver®
State of Workplace Empathy Study.
It’s a big enough deal to employees that one out of
three employees would opt for a job switch to a more empathetic company
culture. In an era where there needs to be more flexibility than ever, a focus
on empathy from leadership can turn workplace harmony around.
Are you missing the key ingredient of empathy in your
workplace?
Read on to learn about the importance of empathy at work
and easy yet practical ways to incorporate it into the daily grind.
What is Empathy?
Empathy is “the ability to understand and share the
feelings of another.” It’s essentially the idea of putting yourself in someone
else’s shoes.
It’s not the same as sympathy, which empathy often gets
confused with at times. Both do deal with emotion, but sympathy is
defined as having “feelings of pity and sorrow for someone else’s misfortune.”
Why Workplace Empathy Matters
When you consider one in three employees would leave their
jobs for a more empathetic workplace, there’s no doubt the incentive is high to
figure out empathy practices. Empathy, it turns out, has a big impact on the
workplace.
Showcasing empathy leads to:
Happier employees
Increased productivity
Increase loyalty and retention
When leaders consider how they feel when they aren’t
listened to, it’s easy to flip the script and realize how it might make
employees feel. Research shows that empathetic behavior indicates to
individuals they’re being heard and their feedback is valued and appreciated.
Additionally, The Bussinessolver study showed those
individuals will stay and work harder if they feel like their opinions and
thoughts matter to leadership. Forty percent of workers said they
would work longer hours for an empathetic employer. Fifty-six
percent surveyed said they’d stay in their current jobs if they felt valued.
When leadership and employees alike take the time to learn
the best empathy practices, everyone benefits.
Empathy Can Be Learned
Luckily, empathy is a learned behavior.
It may take time and a little training, but you can rewire
your brain to be more empathetic.
By nature, empathy is a close emotional experience. In
workplaces where being emotionally invested in one another may be frowned upon,
this can be especially difficult to move beyond. You can still maintain
professional relationships and be empathetic, though.
Empathy does come more naturally to some people.
Not a natural empath? Here are a few exercises recommended
from a 2018 Psychology Today article titled Learn Empathy in
Just 5 Steps:
Think about your significant other or a friend, family
member, or co-worker.
What has their mood been like in recent days?
What’s going on in this person’s life that might be making
them happy or sad, anxious, or angry?
How are you contributing?
What could you do or say to improve this person’s situation?
When you take a moment to put yourself in that person’s
shoes, it provides comfort and reassurance to that other person when you
respond with thoughtful statements or gestures. Even before the pandemic,
individuals wanted to see more empathy in the workplace. Now more than ever,
empathy can go a long way.
Practical Examples of Empathy in the Workplace
You may be wondering where to start. Aside from the
activity above, there are some short-and long-term strategies to consider.
Employees generally look at CEOs to pilot empathy conversations and practices.
This then trickles down to management who can then actively practice it within
individual departments.
There’s no better time than now while remote
work is at an all-time high to start communicating in a more empathetic,
compassionate way. Below are some ways to do so.
Ways leaders can show empathy in the workplace include:
Listen - Perhaps the most overlooked aspect of empathy
is just listening. Allow for your colleagues and employees to vent. Actively
listen during these conversations.
Validate emotions - As you actively listen, make sure
to validate the person’s emotions. While you may not fully agree with their
opinion or view, you can acknowledge their feelings in a neutral way. You can
use reflective language like, “That must be tough. Is there anything I can do
to help?”
Show compassion - If you know an employee is battling
an illness or balancing work and home-schooling thanks to the pandemic, show
that you care. Send a card to let them know you think they’re doing an amazing
job. Ask if you could help in some way.
Have an open-door policy - Your employees have
feelings. Even if your workplace is generally business-like and non-emotional,
your employees still have emotions to deal with daily. In Gallup’s State of the
American Workplace report, only 40% of employees felt as though a fellow co-worker
cared about them. Open your door and let them see you care to talk and connect.
Connect on a regular basis - In an era where our
social calendars and in-person workplace interactions have been abruptly
halted, social health and connection are more important than ever.
Connect and have informal chats and empathetically listen to colleagues who may
be struggling in this new normal.
Discuss mental health - Don’t shy away from mental
health concerns, either. It’s not easy dealing with anxiety or depression.
Given that those two conditions have spiked across the U.S. since the start of
the pandemic, consider giving your employees some leeway to ease those health
concerns. Offering flexible work schedules, remote working, and encouraging
the use of mental health resources all indicate empathy even if you personally
don’t struggle with mental health issues.
Watch for signs of burnout & address it - Gallup
recently reported that of 7,500 full-time employees, 23% felt burned out most
of the time. Watch for employee burnout and address it promptly.
Encourage self-care, vacation time, and using wellness benefits before the
end of the year.
Gauging your own behaviour — including watching your body
language in conversations — is another way to monitor your empathy. Using
direct eye contact, shutting down your computer and putting your phone away
(for in-person conversations), and scheduling time for one-on-one check-in
meetings are all starting points for showcasing empathy.
Encourage Empathy in the Workplace Daily
Change starts from the top down.
If leadership shows empathy matters, it can catch like
wildfire in the workplace. Offering empathy training, showcasing empathetic
practices, and engaging in conversations around empathy are great engagement
opportunities.
Showcasing empathy at work doesn’t have to be a multi-step
process. Plus, it can be tough to measure how well it’s working. But once
leadership starts actively practicing it, send out a survey to gauge the
empathy practices of your workplace. Make it anonymous for the best and most
honest feedback. Even implementing the survey feedback can show that your
company is interested in becoming more connected and open.
One important note: Building empathetic practices is not an
overnight change. But with some patience and time put into active listening,
patience, thoughtful questioning, and open-door policies, you will eventually
see change.
Connect over shared challenges — like common pandemic
concerns — and then go from there. Emotional connection and empathy has to
start somewhere. Common ground is just one way to start.
How well does your company display empathy in the
workplace? What are some of your favourite strategies to showcase it?
Look Ahead and Progress.
Guiding Quote:
One who does not look ahead remains behind. ~ Brazilian
proverb
Point to Ponder:
Remaining stationary is equal to regress in our work
environment. It is important for us to
continue developing ourselves, learn inside and outside our immediate sphere of
expertise, and find new ways to stay active. Creativity is one of the wonderful
gifts of human beings. Creativity can be nurtured so that it grows. It is only
when we become passive that our creativity diminishes. Getting ahead has
everything to do with being creative. We should remember that.
Action:
Let's review where we currently are, and where we are going
with our lives. Let's set out a plan toward this future goal, and examine what
we need to do to make it happen.
Let's not waste time, and
enjoy the journey towards our future.
Scripted exclusively for the members of this group
R3 - Raman's Random Ramblings,
by
Raman
“DON'T WE ALL"
?
I parked in front of the mall sitting inside my car waiting
for my son to get few items from the supermarket.
Coming my way from across the parking lot was what the
society would consider a Tramp.
From his looks, he had no car, no home, no clean clothes,
and no money.
There are times when you feel generous but there are other
times that you are just not in the mood and don't want to be bothered.
This was one of those "don't want to be bothered
times."
"I hope he doesn't ask me for any money," I thought.
He didn't.
He came and sat on the curb nearby but he didn't look like
he could have enough money to even get a good meal.
After a few minutes, he spoke.
"That's a very nice
car, you got there" he said.
He was ragged but he had an air of dignity around him.
I said, "thanks," and continued listening to the
car radio.
He sat there quietly, and the expected plea for money never
came.
As the silence between us widened something inside me said,
"ask him if he needs any help."
I was sure that he would say "yes" but I held
true to the inner voice.
"Do You Need Any Help?" I asked.
He answered in three simple but profound words that I shall
never forget.
We often look for wisdom in great men and women and we
expect it from those of higher learning and accomplishments.
I expected nothing but an outstretched grimmy hands.
He spoke the three words that shook me.
“Don't we all" ? he said.
I was feeling high and mighty, successful and important,
until those three words hit me like a twelve gauge shotgun.
DON'T WE ALL ?
I needed help.
Maybe not for bus fare or a place to sleep, but I needed
help.
I reached in my wallet and gave him not only enough for bus
fare, but enough to get a warm meal and few other things for the day.
Those three little words still ring in my ears till today.
No matter How Much You Have, no matter How Much You Have
Accomplished, even then You Need Some Help.
No matter How Little You Have, No Matter How Loaded You Are
With Your Problems, You Can always give Some Help.
Even if it's just a compliment, you can give that.
You never know when you may see someone that appears to
have it all.
They are waiting on you to give them what they don't have -
A Different Perspective on Life,
A Glimpse at something Beautiful,
A Respite from Daily Chaos, that only you through a torn
world can see.
Maybe the man was just a homeless stranger wandering the streets.
Maybe he was more than that.
Maybe he was sent by a power that is great and wise, to
minister to a soul too comfortable in themselves.
Maybe God looked down, called an Angel, dressed him like a
tramp, then said, "go minister to that man inside the car, that man needs
help."
DON'T WE ALL?
Help Somebody, You are only a Custodian of Whatever You
Possess.
We Come, We Go; The In Between defines Who We Truly Are.
Remain Blessed.
This 2-Minute
Morning Practice
Will Make Your Day Better...For Sure... Start Your Day with This Simple
Practice...
Nearly a year into the pandemic, it can be hard to muster
the positive outlook that fuels motivation and creativity.
When we lose that positivity, burnout and fatigue can
quickly follow.
How can you inject some optimism into your day?
This 2-minute exercise can help.
Each morning, finish the following three sentences (either
on paper, out loud, or even in your head) before you turn on your computer or
start your commute:
Today, I will focus on .
Today, I am grateful for .
Today, I will let go of .
Make sure to be specific with your answers; writing that
you’re grateful for your mom every day won’t help.
Ultimately, we’re only awake for an average of 1,000
minutes each day.
If we can invest just two of them to prime our brains for
positivity, then we’ll be helping ensure the quality of other 998 minutes.
The Law of Wasted Efforts
“Every morning in a jungle a deer wakes up. It knows it has to run faster than
the fastest lion so as not to be killed .
Every morning in the same jungle , a lion wakes up. It runs
to be faster than the slowest of the deer
so that it don’t starve to death .
NO MATTER YOU ARE LION OR DEER , WHAT MATTERS IS RUNNING
with the rising of Sun.
However, do you know that lions only succeed in a quarter
of their hunting attempts — which means they fail in 75% of their attempts and
succeed in only 25% of them.
Despite this small percentage shared by most predators,
they don't despair in their pursuit and hunting attempts.
The main reason for this is not because of hunger as some
might think but it is the understanding of the “Law of Wasted Efforts” that has
been instinctively built into animals, a law by which nature is governed.
Half of the eggs of fish are eaten... half of the baby
bears die before puberty... most of the world's rain falls in oceans... and
most of the seeds of trees are eaten by birds.
Scientists have found that animals, trees, and other forces
of nature are more receptive to the law of "wasted efforts".
Only humans think that the lack of success in a few
attempts is failure... but the truth is that: we only fail when we "stop
trying".
Success is not to have a life free of pitfalls and falls...
but success is to walk over your mistakes and go beyond every stage where your
efforts were wasted, looking forward to the next stage.
If there is a phrase that summarizes this world, it will
simply be: continue all over again.
“DON'T WE ALL" ?
I parked in front of the mall sitting inside my car waiting
for my son to get few items from the supermarket.
Coming my way from across the parking lot was what the
society would consider a Tramp.
From his looks, he had no car, no home, no clean clothes,
and no money.
There are times when you feel generous but there are other
times that you are just not in the mood and don't want to be bothered.
This was one of those "don't want to be bothered
times."
"I hope he doesn't ask me for any money," I thought.
He didn't.
He came and sat on the curb nearby but he didn't look like
he could have enough money to even get a good meal.
After a few minutes, he spoke.
"That's a very nice
car, you got there" he said.
He was ragged but he had an air of dignity around him.
I said, "thanks," and continued listening to the
car radio.
He sat there quietly, and the expected plea for money never
came.
As the silence between us widened something inside me said,
"ask him if he needs any help."
I was sure that he would say "yes" but I held
true to the inner voice.
"Do You Need Any Help?" I asked.
He answered in three simple but profound words that I shall
never forget.
We often look for wisdom in great men and women and we
expect it from those of higher learning and accomplishments.
I expected nothing but an outstretched grimmy hands.
He spoke the three words that shook me.
“Don't we all" ? he said.
I was feeling high and mighty, successful and important,
until those three words hit me like a twelve gauge shotgun.
DON'T WE ALL ?
I needed help. Maybe not for bus fare or a place to sleep,
but I needed help. I reached in my wallet and gave him not only enough for bus
fare, but enough to get a warm meal and few other things for the day.
Those three little words still ring in my ears till today.
No matter How Much You Have, no matter How Much You Have
Accomplished, even then You Need Some Help.
No matter How Little You Have, No Matter How Loaded You Are
With Your Problems, You Can always give Some Help.
Even if it's just a compliment, you can give that.
You never know when you may see someone that appears to
have it all.
They are waiting on you to give them what they don't have -
A Different Perspective on Life,
A Glimpse at something Beautiful,
A Respite from Daily Chaos, that only you through a torn
world can see.
Maybe the man was just a homeless stranger wandering the
streets.
Maybe he was more than that.
Maybe he was sent by a power that is great and wise, to
minister to a soul too comfortable in themselves.
Maybe God looked down, called an Angel, dressed him like a
tramp, then said, "go minister to that man inside the car, that man needs
help."
DON'T WE ALL?
Help Somebody, You are only a Custodian of Whatever You
Possess.
We Come, We Go; The In Between defines Who We Truly Are.
Remain Blessed.
This is a beautiful story indeed which I read it long ago.
As I was reading it yet again when it came to me as a share
forwarded, my memory went back a long time. A time when I realized people need
help.
Some ask, some don't. Some express, some don't. Some take
the challenge, some lament their inability, some are courageous, some are weak.
Not to assume, not to take a chance I resorted to writing
out my mind. It began with small pieces from me, then thoughts from other
shared and authors. Thus this grew and even to this day it continues with the
same feeling same spirit. It gives me immense pleasure and delight. It's nice
to hear someone appreciating it, someone smiling after reading it, someone
pausing in thought for a minute, someone who feels good and refreshed after
reading it. All good vibes that reach me even if it isn't acknowledged.
I do today what I should do more often: show my
appreciation to my friends and neighbours, with all whom I encounter daily. A
compliment or a little gift does not make me poor, but rich, so I give from the
heart.
People often see giving as diminishing what they have. Is
that really true?
No, I don't subscribe to that.
I believe, when we give, especially when it comes from our
heart, we feel warm inside.
What kind of loss is that? How about giving something small
to those we care about today—not for the value of the gift, but for the message
behind it?
Let us show that we realize the value of these people in
our lives.
Let us give from the heart.
Thanks Almighty for all that you've given me. I can't lift
my hands to ask the Almighty for more.
Be Blessed.
In times of crisis, be aggressive and agile
2018: Wandering is an essential counterbalance to efficiency
2017: Build high standards into company culture
2016: Move fast and focus on outcomes
2015: Don’t deliberate over easily reversible decisions
2014: Bet on ideas that have unlimited upside
2013: Decentralize decision-making to generate innovation
2012: Surprise and delight your customers to build
long-term trust
2011: Self-service platforms unlock innovation
2010: R&D should pervade every department
2009: Focus on inputs — the outputs will take care of
themselves
2008: Work backwards from customer needs to know what to
build next
2007: Missionaries build better products
2006: Nurture your seedlings to build big lines of business
2005: Don’t get fixated on short-term numbers
2004: Free cash flow enables more innovation
2003: Long-term thinking is rooted in ownership
2002: Build your business on your fixed costs
2001: Measure your company by your free cash flow
2000: In lean times, build a cash moat
1999: Build on top of infrastructure that’s improving on
its own
1998: Stay terrified of your customers
1997: Bring on shareholders who align with your values
Links to Jeff Bezos’ Shareholder Letters (1997-2018)
Interdependence and Learning.
Guiding Quote:
In critical moments even the very powerful have need of the
weakest. ~ Aesop
Point to Ponder:
The powerful have a tendency to only use the weak in
critical moments, and then forget the support they received as soon as they are
where they wanted to be. Rich and powerful individuals, companies, and
countries often use weaker ones for their own advancement and then forget to
share the rewards fairly.
Hate and war will persist in the world along with this
short-sighted ignorance of empathy. Changing this condition is in the hands of
each and every one of us. It is important to know that companies, countries,
and continents are increasingly becoming interrelated. Th e reliance of all
parties on one another becomes more obvious every day. This can be a beautiful
reality, when abuse and neglect are consigned to the history books!
Action:
Let's consider the reality of interdependence. We ought to
know we all need others if we hope to perform better and learn more. If we have
this intent, we will surely learn from everyone.
Scripted exclusively for the members of this group
R3 - Raman's Random Ramblings,
by
Raman
Good Leadership Is About Asking Good Questions
by John Hagel January 08, 2021
HBR Staff/uncoveredlens/Pexels
Summary.
Especially when they find themselves in the midst of crisis
and uncertainty, leaders should ask powerful and inspiring questions. Asking
questions well can put you on the path to solving intractable problems and will
also help you connect with others and, counterintuitively, to earn their trust.
Those questions should be big in scope: What new opportunities have emerged
that we don’t want to miss? How might we use new technologies to change our
business model? And you should involve others in answering those questions
—employees, stakeholders, and even customers. Doing so can not only help you
generate better answers, it can also help you to change your organization’s
culture.
Leaders today need to revisit an overlooked skill: asking
questions. In my 40 years as an executive and advisor in Silicon Valley, I’ve
often seen leaders assume that people look to them for answers — bold
assertions that build people’s confidence in their competence. But in reality,
that kind of approach erodes trust, especially at a time when so much is
manifestly uncertain. You think you have the answers to all important
questions? That suggests that you are either clueless — you have no idea how
rapidly the world is changing — or that you are lying. In either case, you
won’t find that trust that you’ve been looking for.
Instead, leaders should ask powerful and inspiring
questions, convey that they don’t have the answers, and solicit others’ help to
find them. The leaders I talk to tend to be nervous about this approach: Won’t
it look like they don’t know what they’re doing? On the contrary, however, research has
shown that expressing vulnerability and asking for help is a strong signal to
others that you are trusting, and you’re more likely to be trusted in return.
In fact, if you can learn to ask questions well, it can help you connect with
others. Thinking together can put you on the path to solving intractable
problems and sparking innovative thinking.
Drucker Forum 2020
This article is one in a series related to the
12th Global Peter Drucker Forum, with the theme “Leadership
Everywhere.” See the program here.
Ask Big Questions
To be clear: I’m not saying you should ask pointed
questions that put others on the spot, like “How can you deliver 10% higher
productivity?” or “Are you missing anything here?” The kind of questions
leaders need to ask are those that invite people to come together to explore
major new opportunities that your organization hasn’t identified yet. Here are
some examples:
What is a game-changing opportunity that could create much
more value than we have delivered in the past?
What are emerging unmet needs of our customers that could
provide the foundation for an entirely new business?
How could we leverage the resources of third parties to
address a broader range of the needs of our customers?
How can we move from standardized, mass-market products and
services to personalizing our products and services to the specific needs of
each customer?
How can we develop supply networks that would be more
flexible in responding to unanticipated disruptions in production or logistics?
How could we harness sensor technology to create more
visibility into how our customers are using our products and use this
information to deliver more value and deepen trust with our customers?
Focusing your questions on these kinds of new and big
opportunities rather than on the existing activities of the organization can
also help you to sidestep your fear that questioning will be seen as a sign of
weakness, since there’s no way you could be expected to know the answers.
These broader questions also communicate that you have a
sense of ambition, that you want to take the organization way beyond where it
is today. And you can bolster your credibility by providing evidence of those
long-term trends that underlie your question – for example, emerging
technologies that are likely to offer new opportunities, or demographic shifts
that will create some significant unmet needs among your customers.
Involve Others
These questions also invite collaboration. To make the most
of them, don’t ask them in closed leadership meetings. Instead, broadcast them
throughout your organization and even beyond it. It’s not just you posing a
question to your people, it’s your brand reaching out to learn from its
consumers. Reaching out beyond the institution to connect with expertise and
perspectives from a broader set of more diverse sources will help your company
learn faster.
For example, take Domino’s Pizza. About 10 years ago,
Domino’s was hearing from customers that they did not like the company’s pizza.
Many organizations might have tried to hide this information or work behind the
scenes to correct the problem. Domino’s Pizza did something different. They
made public the feedback they were receiving and asked for suggestions on how
they could improve the quality of their pies. This open question generated an
avalanche of suggestions that proved very helpful in improving the pizzas.
But beyond an open innovation success, the impact was even
more fundamental: by expressing vulnerability, I believe that the company built
trust with customers. Here was a company that was willing to acknowledge they
had a problem and to ask for help in addressing the problem. If more
organizations were willing to ask for help from their customers and other
stakeholders when experiencing a problem, they would likely have much greater
success in re-building trust.
Change Your Culture
Anxiety can run high in volatile times, and by asking
these kinds of questions you can help people overcome some of their fears. It’s
well established in the psychology field that coming together with others can
reduce anxiety — that’s the idea behind group therapy. And achieving real
impact can also help overcome feelings of being overwhelmed. Thus by helping
people to focus on short-term actions they can take together, your questions
can provide a focusing and calming effect during a crisis. .
By asking questions as a leader, you also communicate that
questioning is important. You’ll inspire people to identify new opportunities
and to ask for help when they need it. These behaviors lead to a culture of
learning, which is critical, since the institutions that will thrive in the
future are those that encourage everyone to learn faster and more rapidly
expand the value that they deliver to their stakeholders.
This will be especially true if you encourage exploration
that can generate new insights into potential answers to your questions, rather
than simply expecting complete answers and nothing less. This will encourage
people to make small moves initially that can quickly help to increase
excitement about the question since participants can quickly begin to see
progress. As early answers to your question begin to emerge (as a result of
experiments or research, for example), share them, even if they are not ground-breaking.
They’ll contribute to your culture of learning and show your stakeholders that
your questioning is generating new insights, increasing their confidence in
your methods.
Leaders who ask powerful questions have the greatest
success in both seizing new opportunities and addressing unexpected challenges
— and they build cultures that will carry these benefits into the future.
John Hagel III recently retired from Deloitte, where
he founded and led the Center for the Edge, a research center based in Silicon
Valley. A long-time resident of Silicon Valley, he is also a compulsive writer,
having published seven books. His eighth, The Journey Beyond Fear, will be
coming out this spring.
7 Strategies to Build a More Resilient Team
by Keith Ferrazzi, Mary-Clare Race, and Alex
Vincent
January 21, 2021
Summary.
The coronavirus pandemic revealed the necessity of
resilient teams — as well as which teams didn’t have the necessary skills.
Resilience requires a level of self-awareness and empathy that may not come
naturally to all team members. Leaders must assess the state of their teams,
identify weak spots and then deliver strategies that will help team members
break down barriers and build foundations of trust, transparency and
self-awareness. The article offers seven practices to help foster team
resiliency.
Announcing Q4 results that exceeded Wall Street’s
expectations, Apple CEO Tim Cook identified resilient, high-functioning
teams as a key element that fortified the company in the midst of the
pandemic’s unprecedented challenges.
“Even though we’re apart, it’s been obvious this year that
around the company, teams and colleagues have been leaning on and counting on
each other more than in normal times,” Cook said. “I think that instinct, that
resilience has been an essential part of how we have navigated this year.”
The pressure for teams to be resilient is more urgent than
ever as we’re entering a new year with new quarterly targets and
milestones. Unfortunately, for every Apple there are just as many — if not
more — examples of organizations that discovered, after the pandemic struck,
that their teams did not have the necessary skills. That has left many business
leaders wondering what they can do now to build resilience.
To start, leaders need to ask some tough questions to
determine whether their teams have what it takes to qualify as truly resilient.
Through our research and experience coaching leading
executive teams, LHH and Ferrazzi Greenlight have identified four critical
characteristics of resilient teams: candor, resourcefulness, compassion, and
humility.
Candor: Is your team able to have open, honest dialogue and
feedback with each other? Resilient teams are able to speak truth to each
other in order to collectively identify and solve for the challenges they face.
Resourcefulness: When faced with challenges or problems,
can your team pull together to build creative and effective
solutions? Resilient teams rebound from setbacks and welcome new
challenges. They devote their energy to solutions and remain focused on
outcomes regardless of external conditions.
Compassion and Empathy: Do your team members truly care for
each other and share both success and failure? Resilient teams consist of
individuals who deeply and genuinely care about each other. Resilience is often
expressed in deep commitment to “co-elevating” the team rather than seeking
individual recognition or success.
Humility: Can your team ask for and accept help from other
team members? Resilient teams are willing to admit when a problem has
become intractable and ask for help, either from someone else on the team or
someone else in the organization. They do not hide their struggles but lean into
the group responsibility for facing challenges and finding solutions.
If these are some of the core qualities and values of a
resilient team, that still leaves open the question about what to do if your
team is suffering from a resilience deficit.
Resilience requires a level of self-awareness and empathy
that may not come naturally to all team members. Leaders must assess the state
of their teams, identify weak spots and then deliver strategies that will help
team members break down barriers and build foundations of trust, transparency
and self-awareness.
Our GoForwardToWork.com initiative, for which we
spoke to hundreds of executives, identified a set of interventions leaders can
use to build resilient teams that we call High-Return Practices™.
While there are many practices that may foster your team’s
resilience, here are some that we recommend:
Candor Breaks: Psychological safety — the belief
that any team member can speak out without consequences — is crucial to
creating resilient teams. When it feels like there’s an elephant in the room,
leaders of high-performing teams create what we call “candor breaks” to
encourage team members to share their thoughts and feelings.
At Ferrazzi Greenlight, we also refer to these as “Yoda in
the room” moments. Any team member can call one and if necessary, we break into
smaller groups (using breakout rooms if the meeting is virtual) to further
encourage frank and honest discussion.
Independent Observers: To help team members embrace frank
assessments of their work, resilient leaders invite outside experts to offer an
objective perspective on issues/team dynamics.
Story Sharing: To foster participation, trust, and
engagement, leaders of resilient teams often encourage team members to map out
their life’s journey, including highs and lows, and share highlights with the
rest of the team. In being vulnerable, the team creates an environment where
compassion and humility are welcomed.
Owning Challenges: Resilient teams express their fears and
concerns with each other. To build trust and honesty, leaders must facilitate
this process and encourage people to admit fears or relationship challenges and
canvass the team for solutions.
For example, a facilitator can ask each team member to
express their feelings about the state of the team, and what problems exist.
The facilitator should encourage team members to “own” their part in any
existing problems and not resort to blaming other teammates.
Show That You Care: Leaders have to regularly demonstrate
that they are genuinely interested in the progress the team is making, asking
probing questions to understand underlying issues.
But asking is only half the equation: Resilient leaders
must also listen carefully to the answers they get from team members. This is
where a resilience deficit will be revealed.
Temperature Checks: At the beginning of every meeting, ask
everyone to state their energy levels on a scale of one (low) to five
(high). This simple and fast exercise that will quickly determine whether
there is someone who needs attention or is outside their normal range of
fatigue and frustration.
Commit to Building Each Other’s Resilience: We call this
“co-elevation.” It’s essential to establish clear and unambiguous expectations
around team unity and peer-to-peer support. Any hesitation or reluctance to
help a struggling colleague is a sign that deeper interventions may be needed.
Ultimately, team resilience is similar to a battery. It
needs to be restored and recharged regularly. Teams that put in place measures
to do that will find that they are better equipped and – more importantly –
willing to undertake any challenge throughout the pandemic and beyond.
KF
Keith Ferrazzi is founder and chairman of Ferrazzi
Greenlight, which coaches teams and boards on increasing adaptability and
collaboration to capture unexpected growth opportunities and avoid unsuspected
risk. He is also a bestselling author on the subject of leadership and teams,
and his latest book Leading Without Authority was recently published.
MR
Mary-Clare Race is chief innovation and product
officer at LHH, a global leadership training firm.
AV
Alex Vincent is senior vice president for global
leadership solutions at LHH, a global leadership training firm.
How to Use Leadership Pictures to Foster Creative
Conversations
What do military generals, engineers, scientists, and
Type-A professionals all have in common? A reputation for being serious-minded,
taking a no-nonsense approach to their work, and an affinity for visual thinking.
Visual thinking uses pictures and images to evoke ideas,
thoughts, and feelings and to foster powerful conversations.
At CCL, we are firm believers in visual thinking processes,
and we use them often with our faculty, facilitators, and clients.
But we’ve found that in a typical workplace, the most
verbal people or the person “in charge” often dominates discussions.
Using pictures can help change the conversation, shifting
typical patterns, diffusing tension, and engaging everyone — because getting
people to talk isn’t hard, but getting people to talk in depth and with
reflection, honesty, and clarity can be. There must be an environment of
psychological safety for truly candid conversations.
If you’re facilitating a group discussion, workshop, or
leadership training, and want to help move the discussion from the current
challenge to a better future, our practice of “putting something in the middle”
can be helpful. Also called mediated dialogue, it’s a way of facilitating
important, typically difficult conversations in a way that’s safe, creative,
and very effective.
When we first started with this practice, we were concerned
that using pictures to facilitate conversations might be viewed as frivolous or
a waste of time by highly analytical or no-nonsense people.
But after using pictures to facilitate leadership
discussions with people from all walks of life and around the world, we’ve
actually found the opposite: this practice is generally understood by even the
most linear, logical, and pragmatic personalities as an effective way to cut to
the heart of issue and to uncover multiple solutions. It can be the starting
point for talking about complex or difficult things, enabling understanding
from a variety of perspectives. Using pictures can even help with leading
people through change.
How can you jump-start visual thinking in your own team or
group? Here’s how to use pictures to lead effective conversations in group
discussions or at leadership trainings or workshops.
How to Facilitate Effective Leadership Conversations Using
Pictures
First, you’ll need a selection of images. Focus less
on having the “right” images, and more on having a wide range of choices. You
can use our Visual Explorer® cards if you like — a pack of diverse
and interesting images and a guide for how to use them as a facilitation tool
— or postcards, photos, clippings from magazines, or images from other
sources.
When facilitating a discussion in person, the leadership
pictures should be arranged around a room, on tables, or in decks of “cards” to
sort through. For virtual discussions, you can send out a link to a shared set
of images than people can scroll through.
Then, ask a “framing” question. Decide in advance how
to frame the discussion. Think about the challenge, situation, or complex idea
you need to address in your team or organization, and consider the context of
the session. You’ll want to frame the topic for participants in terms of a
question, or a pair of questions, such as:
What are our strengths? What are our weaknesses?
What do you see as our biggest challenge? What will it look
like to solve this challenge?
What does leadership look like now in our organization?
What will leadership need to look like for greater success?
What behaviours will help drive the business strategy?
What is getting in our way?
What stands out in the data we just reviewed?
What are the possibilities we see in this situation?
How do you feel about this at a gut level?
What are we missing, neglecting, or underestimating?
Where have we been? Where are we going? To what do we
aspire?
What problem are we trying to solve? What will our
organization look like if we solve it?
What if one of our key assumptions is wrong, or backwards?
How would we do this if we had unlimited resources? If we
had no resources?
Next, write about it. Ask participants to take a few
minutes to think about the question. Invite them to reflect on their
perspective on the issue or challenge. They can jot down some initial thoughts
and reactions — bullet points, journaling, or whatever works.
Then, turn to the images. Without speaking (though
some background music can be nice), have everyone browse though the available
images and choose the one that depicts the problem or issue for them. Ask
people to choose a picture that reflects or relates to what they are thinking
and feeling about the question or challenge. If you’re doing a comparison or
paired question, instruct everyone to pick a leadership picture for each
question.
You may want to offer a guideline like, “Pick as many cards
as you like, and as few as you need.” Let them know they don’t need overthink
it; if they’re drawn to an image and aren’t sure why, that’s okay. They should
just go with it.
Tell them to look closely. Once they’ve selected an
image, ask them to pay close attention to the details. What’s there? Ask them
to write down as much as they can to describe the leadership picture and
connect it to the framing question.
Talk about it. The discussion begins with group members
taking turns sharing what they see in their picture and why they chose it.
People can do this in pairs with a partner, or with the larger team or group.
Ask someone to describe the image they selected. First, they should explain
what they see, then talk about why they chose that picture. At first, the
others need simply to listen. After a few minutes, ask others
what they see in the picture. Each person will then repeat the
process.
Consider So what? and What if? The
conversation then shifts to finding commonalities and differences, sharing
insights and offering ideas. The group can discuss questions like: What
did you learn from the images and the process of talking about them? How was it
helpful? What was surprising? What was commonly shared? What were key
differences? And what if you used these insights as you addressed the problem
or challenge? What will you do now?
We expect you’ll find this process of using pictures in
trainings or workshops to give people tools to show effective leadership and hold
more candid conversations will be very helpful. We’ve used this facilitation
method with CEOs and senior leadership teams, generals and State Department
officials, nonprofit leaders and entrepreneurs, young people and educators, and
consistently find that the practice of “putting something in the middle” is a
way of facilitating important, typically difficult conversations in a way
that’s safe, creative, and very effective.
Make Mistakes - Learn
Guiding Quote: Be not ashamed of mistakes and thus make
them crimes. ~ Confucius
Point to Ponder:
At times we all make mistakes. The trick is to refrain from
making the same mistake all the time, and that boils down again to the crucial
art of life: learning. It is good to remember that behind every flawless
appearance there hides a person with as many or more flaws than you. Those who
are officially labeled to be fools are often not the biggest fools in town.
People are masters in disguising their faults, but that does not mean that they
do not have them. This should be a point of encouragement for all of us to
continue working toward our goals.
Action:
Let's be happy being high-achievers. Let's do our best with
all our activities, and let's not be embarrassed by our mistakes. Mistakes are
steps on the ladder toward future success.
Scripted exclusively for the members of this group
R3 - Raman's Random Ramblings
by
Raman
Be in the "Comfort Zone" or Be Outside it, choice
is yours to make...
Being in the "comfort zone," is being static.
It is like a "sitting duck, " sending out an
invitation to be shot.
"Comfort Zone," is status quo is non-progressive.
We have the choices in our hands to remain in the
"comfort-zone," or step out of it and stick our necks out in the
race.
In photo-finish races the athletes who win races are mostly
the one's who lunge forward and thrust their neck out, like cranes do, are the
ones who win the race.
In the proverbial "Hare and the Tortoise," story
we all know the tortoise won the race. Modern theorists say it won because it
thrusts its neck out.
R3 - Content
o Let
me begin with this thought
o Confidence
o Barriers
o Cross
The Line
o
Mirroring An Experience
o
Leadership is either "Build or Crush"
o Learning
for the day
o Ten
Commandments from the Leadership Bible.
o Learning
for the day.
o Thought for today
o A
Thought on Self-Awareness
o Learning
Lessons for today.
o Mind
this always.
o SUCCESS
doesn't come easily.
o Lessons
I Draw From Hima Das' Success
o Thought
for the day
o Learning's
from Guru's
o The
Inner Core, and the Attitude
o Fundamental
Focus
o Ultimate
Utilization of Resources
o From
The Womb To The Tomb....
o A
lesson…
o It
all begins...and ends...
o Friendship...
o What
makes an employee stay?
o From
Concept to Sale…
o Meditation
is to be "focussed, in the "moment."
o To
Do or Not To Do...
o Life
and Time
o Tossed
Up
o Have
a Game Plan To Succeed
o The
Hunter Becomes The Hunted
o Just
Think...
o The
Ocean and Us
o The
Journey of Life
o We
are humans
o We all have emotions with
Two Sides
o A
little bit, everyday..
o What’s
Life Really?
o Invisible
Labels
o How
Many Times Do You Pass "HIS" Test
o Personal
Branding
o Intent
o Intelligence
and Wisdom
o Keep
Your Eye On The Ball
o A
Nut called Self Belief
o The
Value of YOU
o Do
You Sell?
o It
is all about Potential
o Be
Yourself, Be You
o Money
is Sweeter, than Honey.
o The
Paradox of Choices
o Just
Because You Can
o Who
Is Happy?
o Master
Chef
o What Comes Out is What's Inside...
o Who
Gets The Credit
o Give...Give...
o Being
Seen, Heard and Remembered.
o What's
Your Failure Strategy?
o The
Power of Self
o Missed
Opportunities
o Comparisons
don't take you forward.
o Nothing
Grows by itself.
o Make
Smart Moves
o Management
vs. Leadership
o Get
Your Priorities Right
o Pressure
and the Mind
o Change
Your Beliefs and Perceptions
o Stop
- Start
o If
you have this, you will go places.
o IQ
- EQ - DQ - RQ
o Majority
vs Minority
o The
Inspiring Storytelling of Jim Thorpe...
o Asking
Questions
o It
is time to wake up..
o The
Best Shine from Within
o Humility
o Strive
- be the best
o The
Way You Ask, Changes Perspective.
o Subtraction
Too Adds Value
o MORE
LISTENING
o 2
Cases 2 Lessons
o SUCCESS
IS AN ICEBERG
o Focus
o Let's
Look Around
o The
Power of Because..
o Anticipating
the next move
o Seeing
and Hearing
o Soft
Skills Are Really The Hard Skills.
o Switch
Off.. Switch On..
o Busy-Ness
o Getting
There
o Change
and Choices
o Content
isn't enough
o A
Flawless Story
o Confidence
vs Overconfidence
o C's
of C
o Learn
To...Mathematics
o Change
Your Thinking
o Extraordinary
is..
o Fear
less
o Purpose
o The
Power of Actionable Feedback.
o Succeed
You Must.
o Experiments
and Experiences
o Keep
Upgrading
o Who
Likes …
o You
Are What You Feel Inside You...
o Reality
Check
o Celebrate
You
o Be
Happy, Be Content
o You
are You, Always Be You
o Journey
of Transformation
o I
U V X Y are interesting alphabets.
o You
are You, Always Be You
o What
does Efficiency… look like really?"
o Resolve
o
Story of a Shark
o
Value is
everywhere
o Ask…Ask.. Ask..
o
Beyond the
Ordinary Syndrome
o
Pencils, the First
Known Keyboard In Life
o
We know too much
o
Shy of Asking for help!
o We Are Enrolled In A School Called Life
o
Being “Me”
Let me begin with this thought
Never ever regret,
especially doing the right thing even to the
wrong people,
because being good is more important than
just being.
Not everyone will
appreciate you,
but, the right people always will,
and remember you for that.
As long as
you nourish desires. You are alive
As long as
you chase your desires. You are
young
The day you
start suppressing your desires
You will start feeling old
You will start getting old
The day you free
yourself from your desires
You are like dead, because
Everyone, EVERYTIME,
everywhere desires
-
to achieve
-
to accomplish
-
to acquire
-
to give
-
to be
free
- to be comfortable
- to this...to that...
of one or the other kind, and
this
keeps moving..
So why not you desire that
everyone around you succeeds and is happy..
The more you give the more
you get...
Happy living...
“Thousands of candles can be lighted from a
single candle, and the life of the candle will not be
shortened.
“Happiness is
the art of never holding in your mind the memory of any unpleasant thing that
has passed.”
“To be happy,
we must not be too concerned with others.”
“If you
want happiness for an hour — take a nap.'
Confidence
Some have it in abundance;
some think they don't have it at all. For such who don't, it's not lack of
ability, inability, or lack of skill. It is just barriers placed on themselves,
knowingly or unknowingly. It's arrogance, or ignorance, nothing in between.
Barriers
01. Self-Defeating - assumptions thinking can't, even without attempting, so they
just don't even start. If they do, it's filled with doubts.
02. Setting "big or high or distant
goals" - mostly false prestige
for covering inferior feeling.
03. Declaring "victory" or
"loss," too soon. Assuming one
were to exercise for reducing weight, just when a few kilos have been lost,
they indulge in chocolates, pastries, cakes, cheese and fats, instead of
waiting for the whole course. They lose the battle. Using the same experience,
after working out for a good time, though not completely, and when results are
seen, they give up a little too soon.
04. Do it yourself(ism) has no confidence in others, wants to do it by self, forgetting best results
come working together on common goals in a team.
05. Blaming someone else - perennials of
perfection, who think they can't,
just can't go wrong, and when they do they think it isn't because of them.
06. Defensiveness - unwanted protectionism by
others, which makes them assume
they are being attacked always, even when being advised.
07. Neglecting to anticipate set-backs is an extension of perfectionism, forgetting set
back is a reality. There's no point trying to be positive meaning "blind
optimism."
08. Over-Confidence a false mask one wears to hide weakness. It is a sweet spot
between "despair" and arrogance.
Beauty has so many forms,
and the most beautiful thing is confidence and loving yourself. ...
To have Confidence
Believe in yourself!
You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every
experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face.
Cross The Line
Everything is within a "boundary," which means
it is a "line."
On the one
side there's a greater chance to make good things and become "big."
(Crossing this means
risk-taking and that's confidence which courageous do).
And on the other side "there's
less or little or no chance."
(Weak minded, comfort zone
players don't risk at all)
It's all about the choices
we make, to be where we want to be.
Choosing
-
to commit
-
to be determined
-
to work hard
-
to focus
-
to anticipate set backs
-
to bounce back
When things go tough, increase confidence.
When the going gets tough, the tough get going.
Knowing these few things
be at your confident best always.
Three Rules if observed, can help a great deal.
i.
Sometimes the best
response is not to offer one.
ii.
Not all opportunities are
meant to be taken, some may be a trap.
iii.
Someone's eagerness and
greed may be so much that they can you
to partner them. It destroys them and if you fall to their temptation, you fall
as well.
As a materialistic
society, in which we live today, we have fixed metrics for success that is
based on external indicators which aren't a true indicator of real success or
happiness.
Don't be impressed by
- Money
- Degrees
- Job Title
- Connections
Things that really matter
in life doesn't come with a price tag.
FOCUS ON THESE … For instance
… Be impressed by
-
Kindness
-
Integrity
-
Humility
- Generosity
Mirroring An Experience
1.
Forming and influencing opinions - In every relationship, we get into be it business
or personal, we need to go with our eyes open and willing to see people for who
they are, not who what others say they are or who we are or what others say we
are. Forming our own opinions, can be judgmental, and most are guilty of this.
2.
Not encourage commitment, but seeking compliance - Any management can achieve compliance from those
they employ, which means it is merely getting people to do what they’ve been
hired for. But when leaders lead their people to truly commit to their work,
they get more out of them because they want to, not because they have
to. When lead in this fashion naturally more will be committed to the
cause, and so get engaged fully.
3.
Fond of the position and the chair - At
some point in their career most seek positions, get fond of the chair in their
cabins and because of the power given to them, they would want others to come
to them for almost everything, approvals and sanctions are just small
components of the responsibility. On the contrary best leaders and managers are
those who mostly MBWA (Manage By Wandering Around). In fact, in the armed
forces it is said the best officer is one who is with the soldiers in the
trench.
4.
Not getting to know the people we are working with - There can be many reasons for this including our
“ego” or assumptions about ourselves (created or cultivate), hence would be
mostly self-centred. This doesn’t help the cause for any leader, because
staying close to the people who are serving for a cause or work in the
organization, are the one’s who we need to get to know more intimately
5.
Taking decisions without knowing it’s impact or keeping people’s feelings in
mind - Most failures of well-conceived plans get
poorly implemented because of the arm-chair decision making process.
6.
Not acknowledging others success nor celebrate - A true leader is one who may be the author of
the entire content of the plan or the strategy. Gaining the right commitment
and a consensus buy-in, with everyone participating in the process and feeling
consulted. Projects of this nature will definitely meet success, and they need
to be celebrated.
7.
Feedback not asked - Most people would
tend to be diplomatic naturally wanting to avoid conflict, so most won’t tell
the leadership and the management what they really think, unless they are asked
for an honest free feedback, and that which will not be taken on them or
misconstrued.
8.
Expecting people will do the right thing always
- Having systems,
processes, procedures in place is one thing, which majority of businesses will
claim on paper, but hardly prevalent on the ground. Should everything go fine,
it’ll seem great, but when things go wrong the “blame game,” starts. I’m right,
you are wrong.
9.
Not inspiring enough, leave aside greatness - Organizations can demand the backs and hands of
employees because they have been hired, and perhaps the employees feel secure
because they have a job which helps them and their family, but they will
volunteer their hearts and minds only when inspired. Great leaders have the
ability to tap into the latent talents and energies of people in a
way that unleashes discretionary effort. In this way, organizations can move
past mediocrity and towards greatness.
10.
Not aligning passion with purpose - Not
many of us can claim to have a job that we are passionate about. Passion in one
thing and doing something for a living is another altogether. If one can align
his/her passion with his/her purpose, you will find fulfilment in whatever they
choose to do in life. When a job starts to feel like a ‘job’ one ought to
evaluate whether or not they feel they’ve aligned with their ‘purpose’ in life.
Not having alignment with our purpose affects who we are as a person and
a professional.”
11.
Not embracing discomfort - At some time or
the other we all will have to undertake activities or encounter situations that
we don’t enjoy. And because we don’t like that we tend to avoid as we’re scared
or feel uncomfortable. Real growth however, is to take on those activities
first, or encounter such situation with gusto. The sooner we embraced is
comfort the more we will triumph and gain in confidence.”
12.
Not being real - There’s a lot of
make belief in our life. Very few express themselves exactly the way they are.
Being authentic and to be accessible would be a phenomenal advertisement of a
great leader.
13.
Not be yourself - We have all been
made to be natural and what we are meant to be, but most people tend to copy
other people by their style, their appearance, by their mannerisms, their
thoughts, their sayings, their ideology. Honestly we can’t really copy anyone
else’s style effectively, no matter how much we look up to him or her, instead,
we need to be trendy and make others want to follow us or be like us, though it
isn’t really recommended. We need to be
unique.
14.
Being rigid, inflexible and not knowing when change is needed - It’s very common for people to have a mind-set,
or come with an ideology that has had an impression upon them, which can go as
far as their childhood. Such people may also believe, what they say or do is
the right thing. They may even begin to preach their learning, without even
realizing they may be wrong or they need to change. Extreme step would be,
‘sometimes the only way to change people is to change the people.’
15.
Not being honest - One important
aspect of a genuine leader is to be honest. If the leader has to deliver a
tough message, it is best to be honest and truthful. This is understood,
leaders will be highly trusted and appreciated
16.
Not showing enough gratitude - Most
bosses fail here. One ought to never underestimate the importance of the words
‘please’ and ‘thank you’. By using them good leaders demonstrate a level of
respect that people desire and appreciate, and that too can help build trust.”
17.
Not being sensitivity - Being honest and
candid is one thing, but what is very important is to still maintaining the
others’ self-esteem.
18.
Not conquering enough. - Everyone around
us has their experiences too. Good leaders are one’s who take others’
experiences too. They add good one’s to their experience, and learn from the
other’s mistakes as to how not to repeat them or make them.
19.
Not planning for future prosperity of either their or the others - The best way to turn any leadership example into
action is to make it official.
A
Bird In The Hand
Many years ago,
in ancient China, the disciples of a wise master decided to play a trick on
him. They selected one of their number to pose an unanswerable question.
The youth
approached the master. “Wise master, in my hand I have a bird. Can you tell me
if it is alive or dead?”
The master
thought for a moment. If he replied “alive”, the youth would crush the bird and
prove him wrong. If he said “dead”, then he would release the bird and let
it fly away.
Clearly, the
apprentices couldn’t lose and the master couldn’t win.
“Certainly,” the
master replied after barely a moment’s thought. “The life of the bird is in
your hands.”
Moral:
When you manage others, you can always do one of two things: "grind them
to death or inspire them to life."
Leadership
is either "Build or Crush"
Leadership is a
rich subject. Google and you’ll get countless sites opening to leadership of
all sorts from concepts and techniques to the way leaders are and the way they
have shaped themselves. All of it available at our fingertips.
We all tend to
have fundamental ideas about leadership we learned from what we read and from
others who are leaders in our lives. We often unwittingly generalize
leadership fundamentals from our experiences and behavior we learned from other
leaders. From these ideas we build our unique mental model of leadership.
Eventually, all
leaders find situations where their mental model of leadership fails. I
submit such times should invoke in us careful inspection of our leadership
model. But who has time for that, and how does one do that anyway?
Unfortunately,
doing so isn’t naturally intuitive so we may have to think a little deeper and
be a little more persistent in the process.
You
the Person
The
first leadership fundamentals are about you, the person. We all can argue to any length, but, all
other leadership fundamentals hinge on how well leaders master this category.
There are three
of you to be concerned with:
1. The you that is within you – whom you feel you ought to
be.
2. The other you is who you actually are and you are aware
of. These two of you aren’t always the same.
3. The third you, which is who others see and whom you might
not be aware of. The third you can differ significantly from the first two
because the third you is what others interpret from your behavior and
words
Getting the first
two of you in sync with each other is probably your most important and ongoing
objective, and it starts with being honest with yourself. This is contrary
to one tendency in our nature, which is to rationalize away criticism from the
most important critic, you. When we rationalize we tend to blame others
and/or the situation to cast off accountability and responsibility for change.
When we look at
leaders from successful businesses as well as successful societies, those who
demonstrate the best leadership skills are those who bring the best out of
others. They get people to realize their potential. They make others think they
are great. They build the most precious resource of all: the people they lead.
Here are 3 ways of building people.
1.
Building People by Sowing Good Habits
The Greek
philosopher Aristotle said that excellence wasn't something you arrived at
after a long period of preparation but a habit. Excellence is the result of
doing things in an outstanding way repeatedly. In poorly-led organizations,
excellence is rare because there is nobody to set the habit example and
encourage regular acts of outstanding performance. In well-led organizations,
leaders coach people through regular, unremitting, and positive attention to
good habits.
2.
Building People by Your Expectations of Them
A team does as
well as you and the team think they will. In an experiment at a British school,
teachers were given assorted ratings about a new set of intakes, ranging from
"excellent prospect" to "unlikely to do well". These
ratings were arbitrary and bore no relation to the pupils' true abilities. In
tests at the end of the year, there was an astonishing degree of correlation
between how pupils performed and the random ratings given to the teachers.
3.
Building People to Create the Vision
One popular image
of the successful leader is the person who, by force of willpower and
personality takes over an ailing enterprise and magically turns it around,
transforming failure into success, loss into profit and disaster into triumph.
The reality is that there are very few examples of such leadership. And yet
there are many examples of leaders who come into an enterprise, set themselves
and their teams a vision of what is possible and then bit by bit, through hard
times and good, build towards the vision.
The one thing
that distinguishes leaders from managers is that leaders know that people
cannot be measured like a raw material on the balance sheet. Great leaders know
that, when called upon, people will respond to the needs of the enterprise. And
they do that by building people.
Let me close this
narrating a small tale to emphasize the fact that Leaders will either “crush” or “build” people
around them. It all depends on how they are nurtured and grown to be what
they become.
Learning for the day
Leadership - what it
means, and what does it take to become one great leader.
Everyone wants to become a
leader in whichever role they play, isn't it?
However to being or to become
a leader isn't as easy as peeling an orange or a banana and consuming it. And
to being or becoming a great leader is all the more tougher, difficult and
challenging.
Whoever wants to lead,
motivate or support his/her tribe, always falls short. That doesn't mean one
can't ever. It just means one needs to put in some more extra effort
persistently and very sincerely too.
Here below, I share some
tips based on my own empherical evidences in various contexts having worked
almost all my life with leaders in various capacities.
Ten Commandments from the Leadership Bible.
A. Self-Awareness
B. Having a very clear and well-articulated vision/purpose.
C. Aspiration to inspire.
D. Never give up.
E. Share appreciation and credits with others.
F. Make others win.
G. Shift from demand, command to persuasion.
H. Humility
and authenticity
to build
healthy and lasting relationships.
I. Honesty, purity, unselfishness, love and integrity.
J. Build genuine trust and togetherness morally/ethically.
Just remember this :
Encouragement and
appreciation from a leader has the potential to inspire anyone to reach
their potential.
Learning for the day.
There's nothing called
"good," or "bad," it's an individual’s perception and
definition.
We all have strengths,
which far outweigh our weaknesses.
Let's explore Strengths
- Physical strengths.
Most of us are endowed
with this. Helps us keep our energy levels and keep us sustained, high because
of stamina and better because of endurance.
- Economic Strength
If anyone said,
"money," isn't important in life, he'd be a fool or a reckless
"billionaire."
Most of us have enough to
basically make a decent living - Food, Clothing, Shelter, Fun, Savings,
Investments, Essential affordables. We need to make the best of all our resources
by adding or reducing depending upon the situation in life.
- Mental Strength
This is vital because it
helps us overcome our shortcomings and setbacks. Bruce Lee for instance was
known to have one leg shorter than the other. Apart from building his martial
arts ability he practiced lethal kick shots at the rate of 5000 shots a day to
become a master of his game.
- Emotional Strength
It means to love and build
trust. Else how can we explain how couple these days make adjustments in their careers
with their schedules, travel, meetings, deadlines etc., that explains love. Why
we would go to meet our doctor if we are unwell, that explains trust.
-Spiritual Strength
Anything that helps you
lift your spirits. For instance never letting your Integrity, down or being
Honest, in thought, word, or deed and
that too consistently.
Having these strengths
will serve well in life. What with several survey's saying more than 50% of the
jobs that exist today will be gone, if not reduced. What one would need to do
is to anticipate "changes," for survival, remembering that
"changes are constant".
To facilitate growth,
we need to
-
master a few
skills
-
master the
changes
-
master the content
-
master the constant.
- People Skills
No one will disagree that
for any organization to be profitable and to succeed people are the assets
while other things are vulnerable to be liable. Most of the leading companies
invest huge amounts of money not just in growing business but they also do enough
to build trust, empowering them and placing accountability on their people.
Several research studies
conclude that doing so builds engaged and committed people in organizations.
Some studies go on to add that organizations do not suffer because of business
problems, they suffer because of people problems, both inside and outside the
organization.
Persuading Skills
To do anything worthwhile,
be it in business or life, we have to have the ability to persuade, so we need
to develop the art of influencing and the art of selling our thoughts for
action.
Prioritizing Skills
In very simple, plain terms this
means our ability to distinguish the difference between "URGENT," and "IMPORTANT," things.
Isn't it true that it is
always RESULTS, that are awarded, not EFFORTS, which is a default expectation
that best may be appreciated at best.
Interpersonal Skills
The people with whom you work reflect your own
attitude.
The art of being
yourself at your best is the art of unfolding your personality into the man you
want to be. Be gentle with yourself, learn to love yourself, to forgive
yourself, for only as we have the right attitude toward ourselves can we have
the right attitude toward others. It is amazing what can be accomplished when
nobody cares about who gets the credit.
Constant kindness
can accomplish much. As the sun makes ice melt, kindness causes
misunderstanding, mistrust and hostility to evaporate. Extend them all the
care, kindness and understanding you can muster. Your life will never be the same again. Constant kindness can
accomplish much. As the sun makes ice melt, kindness causes misunderstanding,
mistrust and hostility to evaporate.
Thought for today
There are 3C's
which play a big role in our life.
They are CHOICES,
CHANCES, and CHANGES.
The world we live today offers us a variety of CHOICES, that can confuse us.
Be wise and evaluate the CHOICES weighing all the pros and cons. Then take your CHANCES take risks, challenging your
cocooned comfort zones, so that you can make the CHANGES that are needed, for there's no progress without a CHANGE. Remember to be flexible and open-minded, for what you CHANGE to will have to undergo
a CHANGE sooner or later.
Yet another learning...
CHANGE, being an INEVITABLE CONSTANT, you will be
well advised to TAILOR, your future
accordingly.
See here
below what TAILOR, means when
expanded.
Train for new skills
constantly.
Acknowledge emergence
of laser sharp technologies, new thoughts,
appreciate
and accept, realities, and be
Interested
in
learning new things outside your areas of expertise,
industry, domains and interest.
Learn, unlearn,
relearn continuously and learn to apply learning putting
it to practice.
Organize your
thoughts, words, deeds, action so that it enhances both
professional
and personal life. Just ensure you maintain a
balance between both.
Recall, reinforce
everything you learn. Respect people around you as
you can't
succeed being a loner. Re-engineer your life. Acquire
as much Emotional Intelligence,
as you can.
Your
future revolves, around these factors.
As for
progressing, in your future, be it your career or your life, develop
ANALYTICAL EXCELLENCE and PEOPLE EXCELLENCE, it will serve you well in
every environment you'll prevail in.
A Thought on Self-Awareness
As for me
I love where I stand today
in life...
01. Old enough to learn more about
Things
I can control
i.
My behaviour,
ii.
My goals
iii.
My efforts
iv.
My learning from mistakes
(mine and others)
v.
Taking care of myself and
my emotions
vi.
Choosing who my friends
ougt to be
vii.
Things outside my Control
viii.
What others say
ix.
What others think
x.
What others say about
themselves and others
xi.
What others say about me
xii.
Others being kind
xiii.
My past mistakes
xiv.
The weather
02. Young enough to be curious
No matter how many ever
times the teeth bites the tongue, the remain together, work together, because
they know the purpose of their creation. They show us a simple principle of
life - the spirit of forgiveness and relationship.
03. Experienced enough to share, accept, appreciate
and wanting to be the change, as all changes in life start with us.
The most precious
"gift," we can offer anyone is our "attention."
When mindfulness embraces
those we love, they will all blossom into flowers.
i.
Be
Organized
ii.
Be
Assertive
iii.
Mix
Aggression with Defence
iv.
Make Good
Use of Limited Opportunities
v.
Don't be
Nervous or too Anxious
vi.
Keep
Persisting
vii.
Create
Openings
viii.
Be
Excited, but let it be subdued
ix.
Take
things moment by moment, don't rush and end in chaos
x.
Get
Results
Learning Lessons for today.
These are lessons I drew
watching the FIFA World Cup Semi-finals last night between France and Belgium @
St. Pietersburg, Russia.
To begin with no one gave
France a chance against this strong and emerging Belgium, because of their
strategy, speed and firepower in the striking positions.
France on the other hand
came into this match after they demolished Uruguay with their well-organized
efforts of passes, defence and attack. They had nothing to lose being labelled
underdogs.
After the kick-off, if one
were to sum up the game overall -
Statistics
a. Ball possession
- Belgium 64% - France
36%.
b. Passes
Completed - Belgium 593 - France
374.
c. Shots on Goals
- Belgium 6 - France 16
d. Goals Scored -
Belgium 0 - France 1
e. Final Result -
France beat Belgium in the
semi-finals to enter the
final for the first time after 2006.
France was a more
organized team which showed character and temperament, never getting too
anxious, persisted enough, never lost either confidence or patience when
defending, asserted itself with fine sustained aggression, created more
opportunities of fewer resources (percentage of ball possession), yet made the
best use of it and got the result they wanted, a victory over Belgium to claim
a berth in the finals.
It was just a one degree
difference between France being the champion side as compared to Belgium.
Self-doubt
can be a troubling and persuasive voice that holds you back.
It holds
you back from seizing your opportunities. It makes getting started or finishing
things harder than they need to be. Sure, it can sometimes be useful as it
helps you to soberly see your current limitations or simply recognize a
half-baked or bad idea. But mostly, it holds you back in life.
It is like this favourite analogy of mine...
At 211° water begins to
boil. At 212° boiling water becomes steam which powers a locomotive. It is just
that 1° that makes all the difference.
Most people in the world
work hard till 211° and give up. That's when they end up being mediocre. The
212° are the champions like the many we know in every field.
Mind this always.
We must keep our eyes and
ears open and be open to continuous learning.
We enter a career with a
set of learning, which, if it has to be practical and applicable, one will have
to unlearn and the relearn.
To be up the curve, to remain competitive, to
remain relevant, this thing of - Learn - Unlearn - Relearn, should become a
life-long habit and goal.
SUCCESS doesn't come easily.
See the future, and you there
Understand
the challenges completely
Create a visual path
Clear your mind from self-doubt
Stay on track
Show the world you can do it.
i.
AIRBNB didn't kill BLOCKBUSTER
o
Ridiculous late fee did.
ii.
UBER didn't kill TAXI business
o
Limited access and fare
control did.
iii.
APPLE didn't kill the MUSIC industry
o
Being forced to buy full
length albums did.
iv.
AMAZON didn't kill the RETAILERS
o
Poor customer service and
experience did.
v.
AIRBNB isn't killing the HOTEL industry
o
Limited availability and
pricing options are.
TECHNOLOGY by itself isn't
the disruptor, but, not being customers centric is the biggest threat to any
business.
Mind this...
Lessons I Draw From Hima Das' Success
01. Your past doesn't
matter, your background doesn't matter. Don't make it an excuse even to try,
leave alone not winning.
02. Everything is possible
with determination, discipline, dedication and focussed hard-work.
03. Dream things that are
way beyond your reach, and make it possible keeping the "big
picture," in mind always.
04. Don't run after glory
or gold, just run after time.
05. Be humble and remain
humble always.
Thought for the day
Let's be honest and let's
agree, we as humans are vulnerable and that all of us have some FEAR or the other that grips us and
holds us back from going forward.
If you want to conquer
fear, don't sit home and think about it. ...
Don't let fear or
insecurity stop you from trying new things. ...
I've learned that fear
limits you and your vision.
The FEAR most are gripped with are
- FEAR of being JUDGED
- FEAR of being RIDICULED
- FEAR of being CRITICIZED
- FEAR of being EVAULATED
- FEAR of INSECURITY (economic,
mental or physical)
- FEAR of LONELINESS
- FEAR of UNDER PERFORMANCE
...the list can go on
endlessly.
Running away from FEAR, is
lack of confidence and belief in self. It just doesn't take us anywhere.
To get rid of FEAR is to
take it head on and encounter it.
FAILURE or SUCCESS, doesn't matter.
You gain strength,
courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look
fear in the face. ...
Your taking an action to overcome your
FEAR, is what gets APPRECIATED.
Sun Tzu, the author of THE ART OF WAR says,
"One
has won or lost a battle in the mind, much before it began."
You must know what you
want from life. There is just one thing that makes your dream become
impossible: the fear of failure.
Now that you
know FEAR is with you and that too in
your MIND, make up your MIND, by committing
yourself completely with all the will and determination
you can summon. FEAR, will melt.
Learning's from Guru's
Dedicated to all Guru's,
Coaches, Mentors Teachers, Advisers and Counsellors... See a mistake, as a
mistake not as yours or mine, for mine brings guilt and yours brings anger only
realization brings improvement.
What's POISON?
Anything which is more than
our need, could be anything power, wealth, hunger, greed, laziness, pride,
anger, ambition, love or hate...!
As said by Hippocrates, “everything
in excess is opposed to nature” and there is a lot of truth in
his saying. Nothing in excess is good. For example, if you
have money in excess then you turn into a spendthrift and
never understand the struggle of a pauper.
What's FEAR?
Non-acceptance of uncertainty, which is truly,
inevitable...
When we accept this reality, life becomes an adventure.
Success comes not from
having certainty, but being able to live with uncertainty. Fear is
caused by the uncertainty of the future.
What's ANGER?
Non-acceptance of things
beyond our control. When we accept this truth, it becomes tolerance. For every minute you remain angry,
you give up sixty seconds of peace of mind. Every day we have plenty of
opportunities to get angry, stressed or offended. Speak when you are angry - and
you'll make the best speech you'll ever regret.
You will not be punished
for your anger, you will be punished by your anger.
What's HATRED?
Non-acceptance of a person
or thing, for who he/she is or it is.
When we accept people or things unconditionally, it becomes love. Our lack of forgiveness makes us hate, and our lack of
compassion makes us hard-hearted. Pride in our hearts makes us resentful and
keeps our memory in a constant whirlwind of passion and self-pity. We may not
know what each day has in store for us. We could be gone tomorrow. Any minute could
truly be our goodbye. But we do have this moment. This time. Today. Right now.
It takes way more effort to shell out hate then it does to allow love to flow
freely in our lives. After all, it's what we were born to do.
The Inner Core, and the Attitude
Cheers!
The world has many
qualified, smart, skilful people who made it big, real big in life, so big that
they head positions of CEO's of large organizations, hold positions in world
organizations, governments etc., and some even go to become great business
people.
There will be articles,
news, books on them, and or books they've authored.
Their accomplishments,
their achievements, their wealth, their stature are there for all to see. All
of this will give us great lessons on how to become successful, and indeed
these will be the lessons taught in "B Schools," too.
Business will award them,
governments would award them, praises will be sung on them and they can easily
become role-models for young to follow and perhaps emulate.
All of this is fine
indeed, but, the biggest and the truest learning for us would come, if ever any
one were to be asked "Which is the biggest failure you met, or encountered
in life, how did you overcome it and what's the lesson you learnt, from
it?"
We all know how to carry
ourselves when we succeed, but, very few will have the capacity of falling from
their glory, failing in what they do, and then rise, to gain everything the
lost.
That is the one question
that can spell out their "inner strengths," their "inner
core," and their character. Just a very few people during
their lifetime come anywhere near exhausting the resources dwelling within
them.
There
are deep wells of strength that are never used. A truly strong
person does not need the approval of others any more than a lion needs the
approval of sheep.”
Above
all these characteristics what will be revealing of that person is what their
"attitude," of self and how they dealt with other, in good times and
also in those troubled times. No matter what
kind of challenges or difficulties or painful situations you go through in your
life, we all have something deep within us that we can reach down and find the
inner strength to get through them. Attitude is a little thing that makes a
big difference. People may hear your words, but they feel your attitude. Adopting the
right attitude can convert a negative stress into a
positive one. A
positive attitude can really make dreams come true. Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass. It’s
about learning how to dance in
the rain.
Fundamental Focus
Technologies are advancing at the speed of light and to keep pace we all are hastening to learn new skills.
We can get ahead, in all
aspects of life because, the belief is our fundamentals are built
of universal,
pragmatic, logical and timeless principles.
From
Accounting to Astrophysics,
Blooms to Bombs,
Computer Programming to Construction,
Education to Engineering,
Fishing to Fire Fighting,
Rock Climbing to Rocket Science
Raising Kids to Raising Capital,
all of this consist of fundamental
principles of which
each and every
fundamental counts.
Succeeding therefore is a natural consequence of consistently applying the basics - they are fundamentals.
As much as foundations
anchor a house or a multi-storey to the earth, or the roots of a tree going
deep down into the earth holding it up to stand tall and grow as much as
holding it down to stay rooted.
A well-constructed rock
solid foundation will last not just one life time but several life times, whereas
a poor one is always unstable and threatening.
These firm foundation
principles applies to every aspect of our lives too.
Like everything of quality
is used for durability, constructed carefully, patiently, lovingly to ensure a
proper end result, so it is in real life too.
There's nothing new under
the sun.
Fundamentals are the same
for all.
The fundamentals of
investing in,
accounting,
raising
kids,
science,
mathematics,
physics,
chemistry,
biology,
zoology,
sociology,
are still the same.
How we take care to build them fundamentally to
make it count makes the difference.
How some get ahead of others is the amount of time
spent and care given to build it.
No point comparing, best thing to do would be to see how others do it
and learn.
1. Fundamentals come first
2. Fundamentals are simple
3. Fundamentals require patience
4. Fundamentals must be mastered
5. Fundamentals require patience
6. Fundamentals are universal
7. Fundamentals never change.
In times of high
uncertainty, professionals should understand they must be focussed on the key
fundamentals, which shape their careers and business landscapes at large.
The same applies to us
individuals too, hence one must never choose fad over fundamentals.
Fundamentals are really
basic, and may not seem all that important, are because of the proven fact that
everything else can be built on strong foundations - Fundamentals.
I repeat, never choose fad
over fundamentals.
Life become so much good when we have
our fundamentals built on
CHIPS -
Character
Honesty
Integrity
Purpose, and
Sincerity.
Developing a true and solid character and finding unique traits that
belong to only you is a foundational thing. Humility is the fundamental
principle that builds up greatness. Arrogance on the other hand never brings
anything good. When you are humble, you’ll learn to become better.
The fundamental tragedy about life is that those who possess it often
are not aware of its value.
Ultimate Utilization of Resources
This is a story from
Buddha.
One day a young man came
to Buddha and told him "My robes have become old, I need a new one."
Buddha saw it was very old
so he asked one of his disciple to give him a new one.
The young man got it, wore
and went to Buddha to show it to him.
Buddha said "Good.
And ok, tell me what did you do with the old one?"
Young Man : "I used
it as a bed spread!"
Buddha : "Then what
did you do with the old bed sheet?"
Young Man : "I used
it as a window curtain!"
Buddha : "Then what
did you do with the old window curtain?"
Young Man : "I used
it for wiping the floor!"
Buddha : "Then what
did you use the old floor wiping cloth?"
Young Man : "I used
it for wiping the kitchen table top!"
Buddha : "Then what
did you do with the old kitchen table wiping cloth?"
Young Man, "I used
them as wigs for burning my oil lamp at night!"
Buddha was very happy
hearing what the young man and said, "You've taught all of us a great
lesson on how to use resources well, thank you."
This indeed is a great
lesson for all of us too as to how we can use and reuse resources, especially
in a world we live today where many resources are getting scarce.
It also offers a great
lesson to employers too as to how they can use resources well as there's value
in everything.
From The Womb To The Tomb....
...it is a long journey.
The arrival of a child is
heard by the loud shrieks of cry...perhaps the only time the mother laughs with
joy...after that her all her attention, love and care is to make that little
being, a human.
It is the same story from
Biblical times to now, and will be the same,
I guess, in the far future
too. Fathers play the role of the provider, pouring his love too. Some who go
with all the goodness fed by the mother for the body and the mind, grow to
become humans with love, care, values and earn the respect of every one they
meet up with.
There are the other some
grow up and just let their life pass through, minding their own business to
finally end up as just human beings.
The world has large
numbers of such people.
Some more just go a stray from
the beginning being rigid, not caring for anyone, falling into bad company and
so their life goes, into some much dark days, that no one would want to even
remember they too were a life on the planet.
What is not uncommon is
circumstances in everyone one’s life that makes all human beings.
Some despite all odds
become valuable, majority others become tolerable, and a minority absolutely
intolerable. So, it takes a lot many people to make this world. What remains
constant is the love, care and kindness of the mother, be it a queen or even a
poor refugee.
Our earth is much like the
mothers. She keeps giving her bountiful goodness to everyone alike, despite the
mauling she is subjected to. She takes them all patiently, with the hope that
her children will realize their mistakes, else someday she will show us what
she is, after which none of us will live to breath even to say, "Once upon
a time...this was. A..."
That's the story of this
world, Womb to Tomb.
It's for us to live life
in a way that our parents will feel proud. After them let our tombstones be
inscribed with sparkling words about the human who lived honourably. Let it
remind our children, grandchildren and the generations to come know what it
means to be a good loving and caring human.
A lesson…
…I
was taught very early.
Be decisive - right or
wrong doesn't matter. In any moment of decision, the best thing you can
do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst
thing you can do is nothing.
If it is right, it can be
passed off and you may not be even appreciated. However, some decisions may
really be hailed to the skies.
On the other hand, if your
decision is wrong, you can be criticized by not just one but many. It can
agitate us and can be demoralizing too. The gain will be it is a great
learning, a gain in experience and also helps build the inner you with resolve.
The other aspect would be you go trace back a review how you made that decision
and why it went wrong. Doing this will help your analytical skills too. Good decisions come from experience. Experience
comes from making bad decisions.
Decisiveness is a characteristic
of high-performing men and women. Almost any decision is better than no
decision at all. Being decisive helps build your confidence.
Next learning do not say
"Yes," always or for everything, nor say "No," to
everything. Saying "Yes," you surrender
your self-esteem and saying "No," you present a negative image.
Let me take this as an
example.
A plastic bag is made
without it's permission.
Gets sold and used and it
has no decision power too.
Has to go wherever it is
offered.
Gets used, gets thrown.
Lies on the road, flies
when wind blows, or when a car or some vehicle passes by.
It just gets tossed, and
tossed.
I have seen many
"plastic bags," (in context with my narration), in both my
professional and "personal" live too.
Taking this analogy back
here, just sit down and ponder within yourself - Are you a plastic bag?
If you are not, then become more
decisive ! Decision is the spark that ignites action. Until a decision is
made, nothing happens…. Decision is the courageous facing of issues, knowing
that if they are not faced, problems will remain forever unanswered.
It all begins...and ends...
…with
self and ends with self.
Ever wondered, why some
people seem to have made it all, while some drift away?
What's the difference
between such people, leaders and the rest of us, who lead mundane, routine and
ordinary lives?
There's no secret.
Such people learn early in
life to be curious, learn to be knowledgeable, realizing they are vulnerable,
work towards working on their weaknesses, have no limiting beliefs to hold them
back, adopt positive behaviour and habits that help them become productive, get
promoted in their work.
Such people invest in :
Self-discipline
is THE starting point of all great achievements. It has been referenced time and time
again by those who have accomplished much and have achieved great success.
Self-discipline, is one of the keys to living to your full
potential. If you can be disciplined with your daily actions you can achieve
anything that you set your mind to.
Self-discipline; the real ‘secret’ to success. If ever there
were a true magical ingredient to
achieve success, self-discipline would be it.
Self-Discipline that helps
them gain greater self-esteem, self-respect, and power.
Self-Discipline is the key
to stronger self-confidence, that leads to higher and greater achievements in various walks of
life.
Discipline is
- Clear thinking
- Daily Goal Setting
- Daily Time Management
- Excellent health habits
- Regular Savings and Investment
- Hard Work
- Continues Learning
- Continuous Improvement
- Persistence.
All this observed, one
must be consistently authentic in whatever they say or do.
Friendship...
…and
we are networked..
“The strong bond of friendship is
not always a balanced equation; friendship is not always about giving and
taking in equal shares. Instead, friendship is grounded in a feeling that you
know exactly who will be there for you when you need something, no matter what
or when”.
Simon Sinek.
It is ECLAIR time.
Express engaging
Collect and collate
Learn without limits
Accept and adapt
Ignite an interest
Respect each other and to relearn
Knowledge may come in
small packets, but, the wisdom that gets aggregated is beyond words to explain.
So ENGAGE purposefully...
Explore
Navigate
Gravitate
Articulate
Gratify
Emerge
larger than you ever
were.
It is up to each of us to
become what we want.
You'll benefit
from needs more than your desire.
·
A desire is whatever you want
at the present time. Desire is the starting point of all achievement, not
a hope, not a wish, but a keen pulsating desire which transcends
everything. In order to succeed, your desire for success
should be greater than your fear of failure. The most basic human desire is
to feel like you belong.
A need is something that serves
your long-term being. After nourishment, shelter and companionship, The world says:
"You have other needs satisfy them, too.
You have as much right as the rich and the mighty. Don't hesitate to
satisfy your needs; indeed, expand your needs and demand more." This is
the worldly doctrine of today.
What makes an employee stay?
If you don't know what you want, you'll never find it.
If you don't know what you deserve, you'll always settle for less. You
will wander aimlessly, uncomfortably numb in your comfort zone, wondering how
life has ended up here. One thing many would say
is pay, benefits and perks.
Understandable. They'll
feel comfortable with, given the pressures, be it at work, home or in the
society.
Being an environment that
"micromanages, scrutinizes or judges," giving them more or less will
just not help save the environment from toxicity.
So, while money is needed
and is important, it is equally important that they work in a very encouraging
and congenial environment.
If it makes them feel
wanted, secured, heard, cared for, made to feel comfortable, offer them enough
peace of mind, then half the battle for retaining them is won.
This done to engage them
fruitfully for a longer period then planning to and training them adequately
enough to handle future responsibilities will do well.
With good mangers to
mentor and guide them, things begin you blossom.
The employee not just
grows professionally capable but also gains more confidence to accept more
responsibilities as an understudy.
With a little experience
their self-belief increases and so does their trust on the company, it's
leadership, management style, policy, relationship with colleagues, etc., begin to make them stay to become more
accountable to all stakeholders, not just for their development, but, also of
others thereby adding value to the company's intellectual base.
At this stage pay, perks
and benefits, are a given, but people don't get stuck nor get bogged down
because of pay, benefits, perks, etc.
Company's flourish if only
all these things are made to happen. It isn't a one time effort it is an on-going
process. This is how companies succeed and this how people get recognized by
the world outside.
A bit of advise to those who leave : Burning bridges behind you is understandable. It's
the bridges before us that we burn, not realizing we may need to cross, that
brings regret.
From Concept to Sale…
…Everything starts with
Don't watch the clock; do
what it does.
IT -> I Think
01. Think IT
02. Dream IT
03. Ideate IT
04. Search IT
05. Create IT
06. Find IT
07. Explore IT
08. Live IT
09. Own IT
10. Love IT
11. Plan IT
12. Act IT
13. Drive IT
14. Work IT
15. Make IT
16. Apply IT
17. Realize IT
18. Adopt IT
19. Tell IT
20. Sell IT
What we
dwell on is who we become. Always do your best. Beware of monotony though as
it's the mother of all deadly sins. Become the person who would attract the
results you seek. We humans have
an innate inner drive to be autonomous, self-determined, and connected to one
another. And when that drive is liberated, people achieve more and live richer
lives.
When you complete the
process go back to the board, and start all over again.
Our
greatest weakness lies in giving up. It isn't necessary that you have only one
thing to work on. There are multiple things you can think about at the same
time and can work parallelly on. The more you take up and the more you
accomplish, the more you'll gain in experience and in confidence too. We learn
from the mistakes of others too. The secret of getting ahead is getting started. Quality performance
starts with a positive attitude. The most difficult thing is the decision
to act, the rest is merely tenacity. The fears are paper tigers. You can do
anything you decide to do. You can act to change and control your life; and the
procedure, the process is its own reward.
Meditation is
to be "focussed, in the "moment."
We are all aware of the
Indian tradition of leaving our footwear at the door, whenever, we enter a
house, as an inmate, or as a guest don't we?
It is a ritual, some still
practice; some may have given this up long ago.
The point am trying to
make isn't that at all.
You can always tell the
level of consciousness, by the way people leave their shoes at the doorstep.
You may argue, heaven is
not gained or lost, by dramatic deeds, but, by the little acts of daily living.
I can recall a Zen maxim
that states, "If you can serve a cup of tea correctly, you can do
anything," meaning that we can use any mundane act as a meditation to
create harmony and beauty. This is just an example.
Here are some more, for
instance,
-
depositing the keys in a
marked place,
-
a pencil and paper to
write down messages
or
-
post-it's to remind us of
what to buy when we are out to the store next time,
-
the way we peel an orange
or the banana,
-
the way we eat an apple,
-
the way we eat our food,
and
-
the many routine things we
do during the course of a day, even if it is by a habit, we can make our life a
work of art by being 100% present in the moment paying attention to all those
little details of daily living.
You might laugh at what I
am saying, and be it so, but, these small acts are for me are tiny acts of
"meditation."
Let everything be a dance
in which we create a poise and grace.
It is the highest game
there is.
We've all heard and know
that tiny drops of water make a mighty ocean. Our life is built one moment
after another to make it a life story - yours, mine and everyone's. It has been
the same from "old stone age," to now, there's been no change at all,
it is "moments, moments, moments..."
So to make our life more
meaningful and purposeful, all that we need to do is to learn to become the
"master of the moment," nothing more nothing less. It is as simple as
that.
To Do or Not To Do...
"To be or not to
be.." is the opening phrase of a sol quay spoken by Prince Hamlet in the
so called "Nunnery Scene" of William Shakespeare's Play Hamlet. He
was talking about "death," and "deep sleep," being the
same.
You can get the context
reading the script here below, because "Shakespeare's Prince Hamlet,"
is not the focus of my script this morning.
To Do or Not To Do.
That's the question, or if
you may choose, that's not the question.
We wake up every morning
full of hope, solid ideas, and may be perfect plans or may be not so perfect
plans.
And, we stall them.
Our "to-do," list gains
priority.
We start giving "Excuses,"
"Justify," or we pamper our "Lack of Seriousness,"
or whatever..
- We blame time, or lack of it.
- We await readiness or motivation, or
both.
- We immediately promise to do it some
other time, hence
postpone, what we can.
- We rationalize about tomorrow being
better.
- We make assumptions about what it
takes to be good
enough.
- We accommodate doubts, uncertainty
to gain control.
- We wait. As if we know what's our
time on the planet.
- We forget every opportunity
unrealized hinged on a thing
we decided not to do.
This takes me back to
"Prince Hamlet"
- To Be or Not To Be
("dead or deep sleep). To Do or Not To Do is just the same.
If we are alive and
awake.. We must commit to take action when we can, while we can, because we
can.
Pause for a moment think
about what you are putting off, what you are postponing, and how it can affect
your future. You will get your answers. Acting or not is left to you. The
result will be Joy, or Regret, all of it is in your hands.
Life and Time
Life and Time, are the
best Teachers.
Life teaches us the way to
Value Time, and Time, teaches us the Value of Life.
All that all of us have
equally are Time, and Life, how good we get them to work together is what makes
the difference, not just for us, but, even for those we are connected with.
Travel, And You Will Be In
Love With People And Life. Travel
makes one modest, you see what a tiny place you occupy in the world.
Once you have travelled, the voyage
never ends, but is played out over and over again in the quietest chambers. The
mind can never break off from the journey.
Continents, we know
AFRICA -> is for "SOUL"
ASIA -> is for "SPIRIT"
AMERICA -> is for "MIND"
EUROPE -> is for "CULTURE"
AUSTRALIA
(NEW ZEALAND, OCEANIA included) ->
is for "ADVENTURE"
Let me elaborate....
01. AFRICA -> SOUL
We all believe
that we
have "Souls," but, we hardly ever do any Soul Searching. It is believed to be Dark but has
"Light," within, and will Live, forever.
Africa, is called a "Dark Continent,"
(wondering really why it is called so, except that it could be a racial bias
skin colour), not many go there. At least, not on their travel plan as
choice No. 1.
The fact is, there's more "Life," because of nature's bountiful gifts
of all sorts. That’s something, for every living being on the
planet, to be proud of.
The "Soul," in whomever
it resides is "Simple and Loveable."
02. ASIA -> is Spirited
and Spiritual, in its own unique way, " distinctly
different," but,
not too "dissimilar," because of all it's "emotional
people." Very competitive, to the extent that each pulls the other down.
Individually capable, collectively unmanageable on all accounts.
03. AMERICA -> is all
"Mind." Starts from dominance
"Mind Your Own Business."
"Mind," as such of a human is so very difficult to fathom.
Different
Definitions
Different
Thoughts
Different
Practices,
which are all "Distinctively Different from
all," good or bad is anyone's guess.
04. EUROPE ->
fascinates everyone with it's "Culture."
Ranges from
Traditional to Unconventional
Historical to Modern and Happening.
Geography say's it is the
playground of the world,
may be because it played ground for
World War I and World War II.
05. AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND, OCEANIA -> far away from most, freer than most, endowed with
mountains, seas, forests, deserts, with hot and cold seasons, makes them an
"ADEVENTEROUS" which manifests in their fondness for sports.
From "Womb to Tomb, we all HUMANS, are the same, mostly eat the same though - we
have the "SOUL, SPIRIT, MIND, CULTURE," and we are "ADVENTEROUS," too.
Pity is that we
have "Dehumanized," now
more than ever before to the extent that
Malthusian Theory may become applicable, "If
man doesn't know ways of controlling the population, nature will find it's ways
of balancing the resources." Global
warming, typhoons, hurricanes, cyclones, flash floods, tsunami's, earthquakes,
landslides etc., may all be early warning signs.
If you
can travel well and good, if you can't then please at least let your mind
travel all the distances towards "humanizing, humans."
When we get out of the glass bottle of
our ego and when we escape like the squirrels in the cage of our personality
and get into the forest again, we shall shiver with cold and fright. But things
will happen to us so that we don't know ourselves. Twenty years from now you
will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did
do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade
winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.
Tossed Up
When driving this morning,
I saw a light plastic bag rolling from the left to the right across the road.
Just as it was about to cross the road, another car passing by tossed it back
this side, and as my car passed by the plastic bag was tossed to the other
side.
It set me think..Poor
plastic, is being tossed this side to that side and back and so in.
Is it the plastics fault that it is
being tossed back and forth..
- Is it fault of the wind..?
- Is it the fault one who discarded...?
- Is it the fault of the one who gave it...?
- Is it the fault of the one who sold it...?
- Is it the fault of the one who made it...?
No one's fault I guess. It
was made for a purpose. Once that was done it was discarded, and will be till
another finds it to serve another purpose and then discard. It is a curse
though that it is indestructible being a pollutant. It just has to languishes.
My thoughts get serious...
I start to think how many
humans get tossed like this in their professional career and real life.
Questions that come to me are....
- Are we in
control of anything happening out there?
-
Can we control anyone's temper or behaviour out there?
-
Are we in complete control of events and situations out there?
-
Are we in control of all the inputs that need to go into all tasks out
there?
-
Are we responsible for all the outputs out there?
-
Are we taking the flak for someone else?
-
Are we cowards that we can't stand up for ourselves?
-
What are the compulsions, drawback, the pressures?
-
Why are we so submissive?
-
Why do we succumb?
Lot many like things these
which can bother us about which we can't speak to anyone or share to lighten
our feelings.
Sit down relaxed
somewhere, and ponder deeply within, asking questions to yourself and search
for uncompromisingly hard truths. All answers are with you.
You will find things that
annoy you, people who irritate you, obstacles you might encounter blocking your
process, things that you lack, things you are ducking, things that you fear..
All these are plastics and
you are being tossed actually like plastic too, but, you don't think so.
You may be the boss, the
assistant, or even the CEO, there's no escape.
Some get tossed by words
on the face, on a call, by a video chat, by a mail, by a letter or whatever. It
can cause you a worry because it punctures your ego, questions your ability...
The "truth," is
there's no difference in the "tossing up."
Have A Game Plan To Succeed
To really SUCCEED, you must
HAVE a GAME PLAN.
And the traits are :
H -> HUMILITY
A -> ATTITUDE
V -> VERSATILITY
E -> ENTHUSIASM
A -> AMBITION
P -> PURPOSE
L -> LEARNABILITY
A -> AUTHENTICITY
N -> NOVELTY
T -> TRAINABILITY
O -> ORGANIZATION
S -> SIMPLICITY
U -> UNIQUENESS
C -> CLARITY
C -> CURIOSITY
E -> ENERGY
S -> STRUCTURE
S -> SINCERITY
All these are a must and
really speaking not difficult at all.
The Hunter Becomes The Hunted
People stay focussed,
you'll reach your goals.
Stay focussed till your
reach your goals.
An absolutely undisputed
fact...
But...
You'll see why?
Somewhere in the deep
jungles of Africa, a Lion, The King of the Forest, was chasing a Gazzle.
The Lion was running to fulfil
its hunger, the Gazzle running for its life ran into a river, and the focused
Lion followed.
Hiding underwater were hungry
Crocodiles, they spotted a hunt and moved swiftly.
One managed the clasp the
Lion's neck, the other got it's legs.
Together they dragged the
mighty Lion underwater and in less than a minute, the Lion was dead.
The Hunter became the
hunted, because it was focussed.
The point I am trying to
drive is not in the least that you shouldn't focussed.
That you definitely must,
in the organization jungle or the social jungle,
but, in the process, check,
recheck, being on the job and that too 100% focussed.,
Be aware of things
happening around you and your environment, you will also be aware of the focus of
others focus running into your focus area.
Anticipate danger,
conflict, collision!
Foresee what could be the
events that unfold, so that you do not succumb and fall.
Being so
"Focussed," what are the things you are missing out on.
What are the real
opportunities you are missing out on?
Just think for a moment.
Just Think...
Have you ever felt
betrayed?
Chances are you might ask
what?
Or you might say
"no."
But, I might say we do get
"betrayed," very often.
Let's take that you are at a restaurant.
You are voraciously
hungry.
A waiter comes over greets
you and serves you water to drink, and hands the menu card.
You gulp some water, and
you look into the menu card.
Attractive pictures of the
food, with description of ingredients,
tempt you a great deal.
Pointing at the picture
you order what you want, how much you want.
You ask the waiter,
"How long will it take to bring the food.
Waiter replies, "20
minutes Sir/Madam"
You respond, "Ok,
please make it quick am very hungry."
Another customer comes.
The waiter wishes the guess, serves water and hands the menu card.
The guest runs through it
and quickly orders the food.
The waiter goes inside.
Comes with plates to lay
your table and that of the other guest.
Appears after 10 minutes
with the other guests order.
You look surprised as you
are fuming inside you.
You are actually
experiencing a betrayal.
You feel betrayed, that
you came earlier than the other guest, but, that order comes ahead of yours.
You ask the waiter,
"What's happened with mine, it's already so long, even more than the time
you told me."
Waiter replies, "Am
getting yours next Sir/Madam, sorry for the delay."
Goes into the kitchen.
The waiter arrives with
your ordered dishes.
Serves you.
You have your first bite.
You may find it spicy, or salty, you may find it not exactly to your taste, you
grumble, with the waiter.
What's the point, the
waiter brought you your order.
What can he do if your
imagination betrayed you, your expectation betrayed you.
Now you see, you and I can
be betrayed by even small things in life.
In real life, imagine how much you can get
betrayed.
- By good impressions
- By good looks
- By manners
- By sweet talk
- By respect given
- By being assured
These are just but a few
examples. There can be more serious ones too.
Feelings of those
betrayals, can even break relationships, end up as court cases and what not.
All these in many so many
ways, by so many people.
Some betrayals are because
you are gullible.
Your weakness for something’s
can lead to that.
But, some are because of
your imagination, assumptions, calculations, estimation and expectation.....
There's no way you can
blame anyone for that.
To live free of betrayal, a few things that are
important,
-
Stop expecting
things to happen your way,
-
Stop
expecting, anything from anyone,
-
Stop expecting
all people are like you.
When you adopt
the viewpoint that there is nothing that exists that is not part of you, that
there is no one who exists who is not part of you, that any judgment you make
is self-judgment, that any criticism you level is
self-criticism,
you will wisely extend to yourself an unconditional love that will be the light
of the world. Once the realization is accepted that even between the closest human
beings infinite distances continue, a wonderful living side by side can grow,
if they succeed in loving the distance between them which makes it possible for
each to see the other whole against the sky. Just keep an open mind, be
patient.
Take
everything that comes your way as a bonus. Don't complain, grumble or carry any
grudge.
Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that.
Hate cannot drive out hate. All these will hurt you more than it hurts others.
Only love can do that. And in the end, the love
you take, is equal to the love you make.
You’re always with yourself, so you might as well enjoy the company.
The Ocean and Us
The havoc in God's Own
Country, prompted this script, and it is dedicated to humanity.
Oceans are mighty deep, so
vast that they occupy 70% of the planet space. It is forever active, and so the
ocean keeps coming, wave after wave towards the shore as if it wants to capture
more ground.
This thought spills greed.
The ocean is
emotion incarnate. It loves, hates, and weeps. It defies all attempts to
capture it with words and rejects all shackles. Oceans are of
great value to life. It keeps giving and giving many things in various forms. It has been and it will be the same, nothing
will change. Because there's nothing more beautiful than the way the ocean refuses to
stop kissing the shoreline, no matter how many times it's sent away, so the
sea comes to the shores, tossing, dancing, wave after wave, as if to hug. This
thought oozes abundance
Coming to think about this
and closer to us. It is said there's 70% water in the human body. The balance
of which keeps us going. . If the ocean can calm itself, so can you. we are
both salt water mixed with air. No matter what you say about it, there is
always that which you can't.
The world is full of
people who don't know about the gifts they have with the and keep wanting more
and more, that's the greed, in them.
The same world also has a
lot of people who are knowledgeable, wise, contented with all they have, happy
to share with the others, oozes abundance.
Keeping aside the
similarities, that, even if were true, the intent of sharing this was to
highlight the fact about our thoughts, and actions, both of which are in our
control.
We can't ever control the
powerful waves, but, we can use the power it releases.
We can't control anything
outside us, so the best thing is to use the power we have within us for negotiating
through life.
We can be greedy, or we
can choose abundance, it is in our hands.
Praying to see the world
to be in peace and prosperity with abundance.
The Journey of Life
We are all
travellers on the highway
of like.
Each in our own vehicle can be
-
a cycle,
-
a two wheeler
-
a three
wheeler
-
a four
wheeler,
-
and/or something even
bigger.
It is not the vehicle that
matters, as much as the journey to the destination.
We go at different
speeds, in different lanes, each to
their
destination.
Some ahead of us are
slow, and come in our way (causing
us irritation).
Some behind us speeding
and honking crazily, wanting to overtake us (causes irritation).
We change lanes, they
change lanes, some go along side us, some overtake us (it's their choice, which we can't control, to
become irritated or choose to be unmindful, is in our hands).
Now, let's see what we should learn.
01. You are not in competition with anyone, including
yourself.
02. Come what may do not be dictated by anyone or
anything, think
and rationalize.
03. You are at liberty to practice your principles.
Expecting others to
follow you is not
appropriate. Passing comments or delivering judgments about others, is not your
business, who are you?
04. Expecting others to change is too much, why should
we again, who
are we to even suggest that.
05. Lastly but not the
least, the ignition, the gears, the accelerator
pedal, the brake pedal, the clutch pedal
are all the aids that you can
control to regulate the speed, move or
change direction, reduce or
increase power.
You have a rear-view
mirror to enable you see the space you have covered, and to remind you how long you have come.
You have the windscreen that shows you, your road ahead, so just chug
along.
Move at the pace you want,
increase or decrease it as you want, do not come in others way,
-
do not push
others to give way,
-
be patient,
-
be judicious,
-
maintain a
lane,
-
maintain a
path,
-
avoid
accidents,
-
reach your
destination (you may not know how far, you may not know which is it too)
-
just enjoy the
drive.
You may have co-passengers
who all have their destinations too to reach like all of us, they may be our co-passengers for some part of
the journey,
-
can be near
and dear, can be our relatives,
-
can be
friends,
-
can be
colleagues, can be strangers too,
-
just love them
all and enjoy their company.
Life is a journey that must be
travelled no matter how bad the roads and
accommodations. The journey is
never ending. Fear limits you and your
vision. It serves as
blinders to what may be just a few steps down the road for
you. The journey is
valuable, but believing in your talents, your abilities, and
your self-worth can
empower you to walk down an even brighter path.
Transforming fear
into freedom - how great is that? The journey of
a
thousand
miles begins with one step. Every day is a journey, and
the journey itself
is home.
You’ll learn, as
you get older, that rules are made to be broken. Be bold enough to live life on
your terms, and never, ever apologize for it. Go against the grain, refuse to
conform, take the road less travelled instead of the well-beaten path. Laugh in
the face of adversity, and leap before you look. Dance as though EVERYBODY is
watching. March to the beat of your own drummer. And stubbornly refuse to fit
in. Dance. Smile. Giggle. Marvel. TRUST. HOPE. LOVE. WISH. BELIEVE. Most of
all, enjoy every moment of the journey, and appreciate where you are at this
moment instead of always focusing on how far you have to go.
Let the journey be a pleasant one about which
everyone will talk about long after
too with joy.
We are humans
We all have emotions with
Two Sides
Debit Side
-
Anger
-
Anxiety
-
Depression
-
Disappointment
-
Enmity
-
Impulsiveness
-
Jealousy
-
Meanness
-
Selfishness
-
Vulnerability
Credit Side
- Affection
- Affiliation
- Companionship
- Excitement
- Friendship
- Joy
- Jubilation
- Love
- Positivism
- Togetherness
- Uniqueness
- Warmth
To maintain a good balance
sheet, of these two sides,
we need to strive hard with an
- Achievement strife
- Competence
- Dedication
- Desire
- Deliberation
- Determination
- Drive
- Dutifulness
- Initiative
- Interest
And the support of all our stakeholders.
A little bit, everyday..
Communication, is our life line for relationships, be it
professionally
@ work,
or be it
personally
out of work
@ home, society, social media public, or
wherever.
Silence
just doesn't help anyone.
- If you are busy, say it, say so...
- If you are upset, then express
it."
- If you are running late, which can
happen at times, let
someone
know that..
- If you are asked to do something
that you don't like, say so,
be
straightforward.."
- If you are unsure, ask even if
others think you to be an
ignorant fool, it can
be worse assuming, experimenting,
failing, and falling,
making you look stupid.."
If you want to drive something, you have to have that skill in you and be able to
communicate it.
If you have to, then learn and imbibe both the skill and the ability to communicate.
By doing so you'll be able
to lend credibility to its merits, because you are an example for others to follow.
Break the silence and
communicate, that's what I do,
"Hello! How are You?”
“How has the day been so
far?”
The two words 'information' and 'communication' are
often used interchangeably, but they signify quite different things. Information
is giving out; communication is getting through.
You can talk
with someone for years, every day, and still, it won't mean as much as what you
can have when you sit in front of someone, not saying a word, yet you feel that
person with your heart, you feel like you have known the person for forever....
connections are made with the heart, not the tongue. Don't use words too big for the subject. Don't say infinitely when you
mean very; otherwise you'll have no word left when you want to talk about
something really infinite.
What’s Life Really?
Life, we have two, the
second begins, when you realize you have just one life to live.. I counted the
years, and realized, I have less than the number I have lived.
Have I said it
right...lived..
Yes, but how many of us
truly live...meaning,
doing what they like
doing...
enjoying the moments...
with passion and
purpose...
not pushing themselves to
the limits of breaking down...
Sometimes when you look
back you'll realize most are like children,
with packs of candy...
eating it off a hurry...
and when it is getting
over, the kid starts to taste them and takes its time...
Life is somewhat like
that...
all hurry and push when
young...
wanting more...
getting more get more...
but,
having little or no time
to enjoy everything they have...
and when they grow and
want to enjoy life...they realize they have no energy left...
Second life starts
here...but, sadly if you realize, it's only one life we have... rushing all
over in the early years...and running in the later knowing not where to go,
what to do...
This life is what you make it. No matter what,
you're going to mess up sometimes, it's a universal truth. But the good part is
you get to decide how you're going to mess it up. The ones that stay with you
through everything - they're your true best friends. Don't let go of them.
You'll never find that half who makes you whole
and that goes for everything. Just because you fail once, doesn't mean you're
going to fail at everything.
Keep trying, hold on, and always, always, always
believe in yourself, because if you don't, then who will?
So keep your head high, keep your chin up, and
most importantly, keep smiling, because life's a beautiful thing and there's so
much to smile about
Invisible Labels
An incident.
A car ahead, was moving
slowly, at turtle pace, in the busy traffic time of office goers.
Impatient drivers, in a
hurry to get to their workplace, were honking like mad, till one noticed, a
small sign scripted, "Driver with disability, please have patience."
Reading that, the entire
outlook changed from one of anger and animosity to peace, patience and
protectionism.
That's a true story.
Let's get to real life.
We get angry, we lose cool
at so many people at work, on the streets, in the society, at home.
Have we ever tried to
understand them as much.
Among them might be
someone who has
o
Lost a job
o
Has been burgled
o
Has lost a close relative
o
Has lost a valuable thing
o
Is going through a bad
relationship
o
Has been abused
o
Is going through emotional
stress because of a separation
o
Someone is in the midst of
a victimized court case
o
Someone has been cheated
by one most trusted..
Like this you find all
sorts of people on a daily basis in all walks of life, with Invisible Labels.
Would we react in anger or
show animosity, if people had a label stuck on their forehead.
Think it over, and deeply
too, especially when you lose your cool next time.
This is one of the biggest
lessons the teacher called life gives us.
This thinking wouldn't
have been possible, but, for our teachers...
How Many Times Do You Pass "HIS" Test
Prof. C. V. Raman, post
retirement settling down in Bangalore, wanted to start a Research Institute, so
advertised in the newspaper wanted three scientists.
Several qualified
aspirants applied, with the hope that they'll at least meet the great
scientist, getting the job or not is another matter.
Applications processed, filtration
done, tests conducted, interviews taken, finally 5 were shortlisted for the
next round.
That evening when he was
packing to go home he saw a young in the veranda.
The professor could
recognize the young man as one who was rejected, anyway, asked him what the
matter was.
The young man said,
"Sir, I have received ₹
7/- more in my settlement than my claim, I wanted to return it, but, there's no
one in the office."
The professor said,
"Oh, ok, is that the issue, then give it to me, I'll send it to them tomorrow."
He took it and saying this
he began to walk. After a few steps he stopped and called out the young man and
said, "Please come and meet me at 10.30 AM, tomorrow."
Next morning, the young
man reported sharp at the appointed time to meet the great man.
Prof. C. V. Raman met him,
and said, "Young man, it's a pity you failed in physics, but, you've
passed HIS test, so you are appointed."
Curious this young man
asked "HIS test, who is this, or what is this Sir?"
Prof. C. V. Raman smiled
and said, HONESTY INTEGRITY SINCERITY, test, which very few pass.
The young man was none
other than
Prof. Chandrasekhar, who
also went on to win the Noble Prize, like his Guru Prof. C. V. Raman.
Lesson : It needs vision to spot a diamond in a
hard piece of coal.
Personal Branding
You must be hearing this
word very often. You would have also noticed several who claim themselves to be
Masters of Personal Branding.
For me Personal
Branding,
comes in a CHIP
->
CREDIBILITY
HONESTY
INTEGRITY
POSITIVITY
you need to carry this
everywhere and Walk Your Talk, that spells out your true PERSONALITY,
that which
projects your CHARACTER.
One doesn't go to sell
one's Personal Band, it comes by
people TRUSTING and ACEPTING,
your
USP -> UNIQUE SELF PROJECTION, that can't be faked.
The SPACE, you create by your
SINCERITY,
PURPOSE,
AUTHENTICITY,
CONSISTENCY
EFFORTS
being
ACTIVE
ACCOUNTABLE
COMPETENT
TRUSTWORTHY
INVOLVED
VISIBLE
ENTHUISATIC.
Your brand is a gateway to
your true work You know you are here to do something to create some true work
or top help someone.in some way. The question is how?
How can you set up your
life and work so as to do it. The answer lies in your brand. When you create
your compelling brand you attract people who want the promise of the brand you
deliver.
That's PERSONAL
BRANDING, if I can simplify it.
Intent
Yes, it starts from within
and is a very powerful stimulator, that leads to act as desired.
Thought inspired from a book by Alan Davidson "15 Paces," which
I read in the early '70's.
A Prelude
I recall reading a book of
a famous Australian All Rounder Alan Davidson, who was among the first to
complete the double - more than a thousand Test Runs and more than a hundred
wickets. Some more famous cricketers of the likes of Sir Garfield Sobers, Sir Richard Hadlee, Imran Khan, Ian Botham, Kapil
Dev, Jacques Kallis, Wasim Akram are
the other famous stars in this league.
Davidson (88 years now), played 44
test matches for Australia.
Batted in 61 innings (there’s no count of the number of runs he
ran in between the wickets).
Bowled in 81 innings
delivering 11587 deliveries in all
(15 paces up and down
those many times means about 197+ miles in all he covered to knit his illustrious career).
The opening lines of his book, is a
beauty which says it all.
It's the last ball he is
about to deliver in his career to draw curtains.
He reminisces, "I have trudged this path thousands of
times, my legs, seem to drag, not because am tired, I'll never do this again on
a stage like this."
On his way up to his run up he thinks about the
dressing room the smell of leather balls and wooden bats dabbed with linseed
oil for seasoning, and the massages on the table to keep him fit. Thanks
everyone who were a part of those memorable moments.
In the last six strides, he begins to focus on the
delivery of his last ball.
He wishes, how nice it would be if it was wicket
taking and the record books entered it as.. caught Grout, bowled Davidson.
(Thanks my mate Grout, I'll miss you very much
because you've helped me a great deal with a lot many wickets against my name,
with the stupendous catches behind the stumps, with those big gloves). He
reaches the top of his mark, visualizes and focuses as to where the ball should
land, with the right pace.
He does exactly that, delivers a fast ball on a good length,
drifts a shade because of the wind from behind his right shoulder, draws the
batsman into a defensive shot, beats him, but takes a faint edge and sails at a
comfortable waist height to Grout's right, who completes the catch. Davidson
kneels down looks at the heaves in tears and says "Thank you, My
Lord."
It wasn’t the batsman’s “error of judgement,” but,
this “master-craftsman’s skill, that
earned him the prize he wished for, hoped for
The entire team gives their hero an emotional send
off and is given the honour of leading the side back into the pavilion, with
the match ball as a memorabilia.
That drew curtains on a famous player.
As you would have seen this
narration shows the passion and the intent of a man committed to his job. It
didn't matter even if the last delivery was crap worth being clobbered, but,
the intent and the desire, to never give up is the most noteworthy lesson I
picked up reading the book.
It's been so many years, but, yes it's
embedded deeply in my mind and heart. I recalled every word as I
scripted this here.
Here are some parting thoughts on Intent.
You've got to know what you want. This is central to acting
on your intentions. When you know what you want, you realize that all there is
left then is time management. You'll manage your time to achieve your goals
because you clearly know what you're trying to achieve in your life.
Dare to dream!
If you did not have the capability to make your wildest
wishes come true, your mind would not have the capacity to conjure such ideas
in the first place. There is no limitation on what you can potentially achieve,
except for the limitation you choose to impose on your own imagination.
What you believe to be possible will always come to pass - to
the extent that you deem it possible. It is by
translating your fine sense of aspiration into actual lofty deeds that you grow
toward your ideal.
Link your lofty thoughts to earnest, active effort, and good
results will inevitably follow.
The great things you intend to do some time must have a
beginning if they are ever to be done, so begin something worthwhile today It really is as simple as that.
Intention is one of the most powerful forces there is. What
you mean when you do a thing will always determine the outcome. The law creates
the world!
Intelligence and Wisdom
Are they connected?
For most in the world
there are distinct differences.
Intelligence argues. Wisdom is sedate.
Intelligence is power of will. Wisdom is power over will.
Intelligence is heat, it
burns. Wisdom is warmth, it comforts.
Intelligence is pursuit of
Wisdom is pursuit of
truth
knowledge, tires the
seeker. that inspires the seeker.
Intelligence is holding
on. Wisdom is letting go.
Intelligence leads you. Wisdom guides you.
Intelligence thinks it Wisdom knows there's a lot
knows a lot.
still to learn.
Intelligence tries Wisdom really knows
to prove a point. there's no point.
Intelligence is eager Wisdom keeps it's counsel until all
to give ideas, options are explored completely.
even unsolicited.
Intelligence thinks it Wisdom understands
understands all that's even
things unsaid.
said or being said.
Intelligence feels it Wisdom says only when there's
has to say something
always. something to
say.
Intelligence sees Wisdom see everything related.
everything relatively.
Intelligence tries to
control Wisdom navigates with the flow
the flow.
Intelligence preaches Wisdom reaches.
That being the
distinctions let's try being modest.
Keep Your Eye On The Ball
It was hard not to get
swept away by the Serena Williams, of a US Open Final story. It was difficult
to avoid joining the debate about how it could all have played out differently,
had this been done or that had been done.
The time spent on thinking
about what should have been done, meant, we spent less time working on things
we could have done.
We took our eye of the
ball for just a second, and that's exactly what Serena did too.
Just around the same time,
in the week that went by, there was a news about how a pilots mindfulness
avoided a mid-air collision.
It happened on Kenyan
Airspace. A chartered Italian flight moving in from Ethiopian airspace flying at
an altitude of 37,000' was on its way to South Africa, and an Ethiopian Airways
Flight moving in from Tanzanian airspace cruising at the same altitude of
37,000'.
The aircrafts were about
15 miles apart, when the pilot of the Ethiopian Airways noticed this and
quickly ascended a 1,000' and averted an imminent disaster. Alertness presence
of mind some would say, but, I would say, the pilot had his eye on the ball.
Our progress on any front,
in any arena depends on our taking the opportunities to fix things we can
control, instead of the one thing we can't.
We all know
these situations in which we’re simply unable to pay attention. We give our
very best, but it’s simply not possible to stop the mind from wandering off.
Some of us start having vivid daydreams, while others diligently think about
all the things they need to do. We engage in all kinds of exciting thoughts,
but we don’t do what we’re actually supposed to do: Paying attention. We cannot
help but lose focus, often without even realizing it. It prevents us from ever
paying attention, which makes it incredibly difficult to focus on the task at
hand. No one likes to admit it, but we all lose focus more often than we
actually like to. Even the most ambitious among us know how incredibly
difficult it is to maintain a high level of concentration, especially when
tired or bored. A lack of focus can be quite a problem The key to living a focused life is direction. When you have a clear
goal, you can steer all your actions in one direction. But if you are unsure
where to go, you will mindlessly wander around. At the same time, it is often
not so important how long we work, but how effectively we use our working
hours. If we pay the closest attention to maintaining a high level of focus, we
can use the available hours of the day more effectively. However, if we allow
distractions to draw away our attention, we are less likely to accomplish much
in the time available..
A Nut called Self Belief
Has it ever crossed your
mind as to who would have planted so many trees in the forests of the world.
Yes, some could be by
humans, but, all the other has been the products of squirrels.
These creatures are
forever busy. They are curious, they are always looking for something or the
other and have the habit of depositing it somewhere for future use. This seems
to be their every moment act day.
The nut that the squirrel
saved is forgotten. It slowly gets buried into the darkness of the soil. Bears
with all the pain and discomfort to finally break away and sprout into a plant.
It grows with the support of all the other trees and eventually grows to become
a tall oak.
In fact, every tall oak
that stands high in the forests aiming for the sky is a testimony to this fact
self-belief.
Man with all his greed may
chop the oaks, but, mankind still will survive, thanks to the squirrel, they'll
keep doing what they are known to be doing for ages - hide the nuts, and
forget. Forests will flourish with this natural process.
Let's be like the
squirrel, and plant some good thoughts and forget. Let it grow and flourish
too, mankind certainly will benefit.
Be either a squirrel or a
nut, both will do good anyway.
There has never been a time in the history of humanity when there was a
greater need to understand who we are and what we are capable of experiencing.
With no effort on your part you were born to be something very special and set
apart. What you are going to do in appreciation of that gift is a decision only
you can make. Your beliefs about yourself often translate into your convictions
about yourself. It is difficult to achieve what you believe is beyond your
power. If you don't intend to spend the whole life as a person "hammered
into a corner," but want to perform serious deeds, to solve important
tasks and to be able to achieve the real heights in life, then, first of all,
you need to learn to believe in yourself. Your beliefs about yourself often
translate into your convictions about yourself. It is difficult to achieve what
you believe is beyond your power.
It is necessary for us to believe in ourselves in order to become the
best person that we can be.
The Value of YOU
How many of us really know
this?
It becomes even more
significant in the VUCA World. (VUCA -> VOLATILE, UNCERTAIN, COMPLEX,
AMBITIOUS).
Where were you?
Where are you NOW?
Where are you going?
As you think of these
question, I encourage you to make a move to reclaim the life you dream out.
It's yours if really wants it.
Then..
VUCA -> VISUALIZE,
UNDERSTAND, CONSTRUCT, and ADAPT, being open to new thoughts and by being
flexible. To do this you'll need more than just a burning desire. You'll need a
game plan that's built on a rock-solid-foundation of core values.
Our generation has lost
its way. In a fast-paced instant gratification world we live in, we've lost our
direction. It is values anchoring us that provide us the direction and purpose
on the journey to living a life of our dreams. Values like confidence, courage,
faith, hard work, honesty, humility, integrity, sincerity, that drives our
abilities, builds our curiosity, which are the keys to living life on our
terms. If everyone realizes this for each of themselves, together we can
collaboratively take strides to meet the end goals not of just self but as a
team. It's the journey that we all take to get there, because it's the journey
that defines all of us in the end.
The Value of YOU, is the
journey into the core values that give light to human experience.
Values lead us to internal
freedom, peace of mind, success and happiness.
There are some values that
you should never compromise on to stay true to yourself; you should be brave to
stand up for what you truly believe in even if you stand alone.
Modern Man is the victim of the
very instruments he values most. Every gain in power, every mastery of natural
forces, every scientific addition to knowledge, has proved potentially
dangerous, because it has not been accompanied by equal gains in
self-understanding and self-discipline.
Values are the way of life. Start your journey, today...now...
Do You Sell?
"Are you a salesman?"
If you aren't one, you'll
say, "No!," and probably add "I hate selling!"
People have made their
life and career in selling, but, your
answer is fair enough.
But, all of us forget one
thing, because we don't know about it, we don't think about it. That is,
whether we like it or not, knows it or not, we are all into selling...
In an interview, you are
there selling your profile through your degree and experience...
In a job you are selling
your skills, your ideas for acceptance...
You sell your services
freelancing...
You sell expertize
advising...
You selling learning
through facilitation...
You write to express and
gain attention of your readers...
You speak to inspire
thoughts for action...
You sell your attention to
listen...
As Willy Loman said,
(Quoting from Aurther Miller's, "Death of a Salesman), " The funny
thing is that you are and do not know about that."
So now that we know we
sell, let's take care not to sell our integrity, dignity, self-respect, honesty
and sincerity at any cost to anyone. Love yourself, respect yourself.
It is so
easy to settle for the sheep life, enslaved to a life of another individuals
making, many people sell themselves short on what they can truly accomplish,
most people do not even try that hard, but they think within their mind that
where they are is all that they can do and be. So many people just settle for a
garbage low-level life, struggling to live because they have not self-educated
themselves on how to live a better quality of life. If you want better, you
must do better. Learn about success so that you may become successful. You get
what you settle for, if you settle for mediocrity you will get misery.
Are you
doing your best?
Are you
focused?
Are you
really giving it your all?
Do you
have a whatever it takes mentality?
Are you
really about success?
Do not
just settle for making a living, design a life that you are proud to live, the
choice is yours to get started on new path, the path of something greater, the
path of personal development, the path of fearlessness, ambition, drive,
determination, adventure, focus, hunger, grit, action, and greatness.
If you
don’t shape your world the way you want it to be it will just unfold into a
life of mediocrity most probably, if you don’t make a plan for your life, no
one else will, don’t expect others to make success a priority for you, that is
up to you. Life will end up being not much. Look around, that is how most
people are living, trapped in someone else’s life, resigned to a life of
someone else’s dream, unaware that they have betrayed themselves and they just
float by making excuses about why they do not take action, excuses are used to
justify laziness and fear.
Strive for
what you want, you can do and be whatever you want to be, the choice is yours,
you can shape your life in whatever way you want it to be, we all have the
choice to create our world, but most people seem to remain asleep to this fact
and settle for the conformists life. It is easy being like everyone else, it
takes nothing to join the crowd, it takes courage to stand alone and be who you
truly want to be.
It is in
the grind that you will discover your strength, your fearlessness, and your
true greatness that resides within you. Go confidently in the direction you
truly want to go, get on the road of success and keep on pushing forward, keep
on building, and keep on keeping on.
Do not
ever give up on yourself, do not be idle with your days, daily consistent
action on the right tasks will elevate your life to a whole new level. Put in
the work now and the results will show, hard work does pay off, you shall reap
what you sow, so do not expect to be living at a higher level if you do not take
action. Let your actions be a reflection of your hunger for a better life. Action is what makes all the difference between
successful people and the rest who just sit around assuming disaster. Action is
what helps you to conquer your fears, action is what reveals the truth about
who you can be, action is what helps you make progress, action is the key, the
key to getting anywhere is to take some action, if it does not work out, take
some more action, and the more you do the more you succeed or learn. It is so
common for people to just drift on the current of mediocrity to their demise,
sitting back on the boat of conformity. Be action orientated rather than talk
orientated
Never sell yourself short.
Believe in yourself regardless of what other people think. You can accomplish
anything, absolutely anything, if you set your mind to it.
No matter who you are,
what you do, be a Great One!
It is all about Potential
Am sure you've heard Jack
Ma saying he suffered rejections including even a waiters job at KFC, and goes
on to become the trail blazer e-Commerce giant with Alibaba.
Then Late Sri. A. P. J.
Abdul Kalam rejected by the Airforce going on to becoming the Missile King of
India and also the President.
Amitabh Bachan was turned
dome by AIR for an announcer going on to become the undisputed star of the
century.
WhatsApp founder Brian
Aston was rejected by FB and Twitter and one day FB buys WhatsApp as it appeared
threatening the existence of FB in business.
Lambhorgini cars were a
result of an insult by the owner of a tractor company and Ferrari's founder.
What's the inference?
In the case of Jack Ma,
APJAK, and Amitabh, they worked seriously to explore and expand their potential
to reach the levels they did.
In the case of Brian Aston
and the creator of Lambhorgini, it was a clear case of under estimating, their
talent and their potential.
What's the lesson?
Never underestimate
-> Yourself
-> Your Competitors
-> Your Colleagues
-> Your Employers
-> Newcomers in your
domain...
In short never
underestimate anyone, because every human has immense potential within.
Those who work hard, exercise
patience, consciously exploring, expanding their potential, and channelizing it
in the right direction for the right purpose go on to become great achievers
and create "break through," that are impactful. Else like most the
others know about it, sit on it, do nothing a go through life in routines being
in their comfort zones living life as "been through."
Be Yourself, Be You
We stay in a world that's
busy, yet, has all the time in the world to mind others' business too...despite
all the chaos that prevails..
People will judge you. Have
opinions about you.
Call you names. Criticize
your actions.
Call your ideas silly. Label
you as a failure.
Question your decisions. Laugh
at you.
Insult you. Ridicule you. Not
appreciate your strengths.
Want you to change, to be
someone else you are not..
All this happens at
various times in life.. to everyone.
There's surprisingly, one
solution to overcome all this in one go,
never the less..
Be fearless, keep saying
"SO WHAT...?" and just be yourself.
We all have 4 systems
programs that are running in our mind..
VIRUS Program : When this
runs it will lead to self destruction. System will hang, we will need
reformatting.
ANTIVIRUS Program : This
inoculates the system helps move forward keeping viruses away.. this should be
running even when system isn't in use.
FIREWALL Program This
offers general protection against threats and helps us avoid treading further.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Program : Senses the surroundings and keeps the system abreast so as to become
better and better each day.
Keep at it...
Evolve...
Grow...
Persist...
Be fearless, just be you.
In the walk of your life,
if you keep getting disturbed by stray dogs barking all the time, and you keep
throwing stones at it, you'll be standing just there and not walking.
Money is Sweeter, than Honey.
Whoever said this isn't
known to me.
Am not going to delve into
the merits or demerits of that statement.
Anyway the truth is man is
very busy making money, while bees are very busy making honey.
For a moment my thoughts
go to the bees, who only know one thing and that is to make honey.
Millions and millions,
every moment of their limited life span, keep doing what they are best at, and
doing the only thing they know and that is making honey.
They do it methodically
following a process that can put our modern corporations to shame, as there's
no stoppage either of work or in the production of honey for the world's health
and prosperity.
Man steals it because bees
do not deliver it at our doorstep.
Bees are unmoved, they
still go about their job, producing more and more. Hardworking and selfless
these bees are, but, when we think of bees, we hardly think honey, we only
think of their sting. Mind you they don't come searching for you to sting, you
come in their path and so they do.
Coming back to where we
started, money is important for our living, our survival, our future and for
many other things.
We ought
not to be slaved by money, on the contrary we should learn to control it and
put it to productive purposes. No matter how right
or how beautiful your path is, never try to impose your path on others!
Remember that flowers by no means pull bees by force to their world! Your path
is your poem; if people like your poem, they will fondly join you in your path!
Think of the bee, it does
only things for the others, so if the money you put to use serves that purpose,
do it unhesitatingly.
You'll feel good you did.
To be successful,
one has to be one of three bees - the
queen bee, the hardest working bee, or the bee that does not fit in..
Be the Bee, and be the
best at what you can be the best at.
The Paradox of Choices
We are all where we are
today, is because of the choices we made in the past. Some we made, some we
were told, this is what you have to do.
From a time we didn't have
choices, we are now living in times with multiple choices.
With that comes the paradox.
With more choices we have,
we fantasize about a better option out there, that despite thinking we regret
we didn't choose.
This is primarily because
we begin with something in mind, look at many, get influenced we choose. After
closing in and deciding we see some other thing better and get upset.
With innumerable choices
we have, with enough time we have to make our choices, we rush as if we do not
have the time to make the right choice and make our choice with the time we
think we do not have the time in today's times.
Flirt around, look around,
take your time, don't push yourself, as if it is now or never.
The emotional cost of a
bad choice leave us with a regret that lingers in us for a long time.
When we want to buy
something we justify a need even if it is artificial. We make our choice and
pay for it, then realize it doesn't offer the "value for money,"
causing regret and disgust.
Then comes the paralysis
in decision making because no one wants to make a bad choice.
We keep playing around with
our thought and make choices this and that, that and this. It goes on back and
forth, causing a confusion, till a point you don't take a decision and remain
where you are.
Remain status quo, and
regret, I should have...
What choices are you
toying with.
Take a call..
What the gain making a
choice?
Then choose
Alternatively ask
"What's the pain, if I don't make the choice?
Then choose.
Just Because You Can
Was wondering if you knew
how challenging the role of a hotel concierge can be?
To begin with the
concierge has to earn the trust of the guest in the shortest possible time,
think on his/her feet, solve problems on the fly and must have solutions to
earn the tag of being credible.
A gifted and a good
concierge knows the answers to the questions
that are likely to come by. They will have answers even for questions
that guests haven't thought to ask. He/she will empathize, anticipate, and
delight the customer going out of his/her way to be creative and do the work
he/she is proud of, just because he/she can. These transform a good experience
to great ones.
It is possible in every
job for us to learn the lines, stick to the script, be on time, put in the
required number of hours, make little or no mistakes, to show competence and
offer solutions on the fly. No one will ever question your competence, but, the
work that's most appreciated and valued now isn't simply being compliant or
competent, it is the creative work you do, not because it is required, but, it
is just because you can.
The best way to find
yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.
Everyone has a purpose in
life and a unique talent to give to others.
To give real service you
must add something which cannot be bought or measured with money, and that is
sincerity and integrity.
When your dreams include service to others - accomplishing
something that contributes to others - it also accelerates the accomplishment
of that goal. People want to be part of something that contributes and makes a
difference.
P is positive emotion
R is relationships
E is engagement,
M is meaning and
A is accomplishment.
Those are the five elements of what free people chose to do.
Pretty much everything else is in service of one of or more of these goals.
That's the human dashboard.
Who Is Happy?
There was a crow, which
was quite disgusted with its colour, appearance and life overall. It met an
elegant, beautiful white swan, paddling in the pond, and said, "How I wish
I were a swan?"
The swan replied,
"You don't know how much I have to paddle below to keep a float, and when
I am a float, am not sure who'll hunt me for my beauty, who for my meat. I felt
the parrot had a better life than me."
The crow me the parrot and
told him, "How I wish I were like you?"
The parrot said, "Am
just a pale green colour bird with a red beak. Am not a multi-coloured package
like the peacock, nor am I like the eagle which can flying high and fly
distances. I'd have loved being a peacock."
The crow went to the
peacock and was about to say, "How..."
The peacock stopped the
crow and said, "I know what you are going to say. Am a helpless caged
captive, held for beauty for the visitors delight. You are a free bird, no one
ever thinks of caging you. How I wish I were like you?"
Who is happy?
Actually it is the crow,
and poor thing doesn't know. The others with whom the crow was comparing were
feeling far more miserable.
It happens in real life.
People are constantly comparing themselves with others, looking at their life
and style, their living and feeling sorry they didn't have a life like that,
when actually someone else has to show them what all they have and how they can
be happy.
Stop comparing. Enhance
your self-esteem, for if you don't like the way you look at yourself, how will
you expect others to like you.
Inspiring true
story Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
A SOLDIER’S SUPRISE
by Gail
Litrenti-Benedetto, Park Ridge, Illinois
It is spring of 1943 during World War II. Standing
among hundreds of new soldiers at Camp Grant, in Illinois, my father, Sam, just
18 years old, waits as a truck slowly drives by. A full field pack is randomly
tossed to each soldier. “How strange,” my father thinks, as he sees his last
name, Litrenti, marked on each item in his pack. “How did they know it was me
when they tossed the pack?” He was impressed! Beating all odds, my father was
tossed a field pack from World War I—his own father’s.
Master Chef
Am not assuming you are or
aren't, but, let's imagine this for a moment...
We all are given the same
ingredients including time to make dishes out of our choice.
We begin.
Some may quickly use what
they see, and what they know. They look here and there, set off wanting to be
ahead of the others in the fray.
Some may look at
everything, plan which all to use when, how, and how much. They take their own
time, use their own time, for what they have in mind is a very special dish,
that tastes good. They take care, doing everything measured, observing
everything like the temperature, use of vital ingredients that go to give the
dish the right look, the right colour, the right flavour and the right taste
and give the right final touches of dressing what they have made, that gets
appreciated by one and all wanting more and more of it. The dish that you dole
out is remembered for a long long time.
Are you this kind of a
Master Chef
who knows about the
ingredients you possess, you know the way to use them,
you know the process, you
use your skills,
you are patient,
you are passionate,
you have in mind those who
you serve and do all things deligently without pushing yourself despite the
others around you who are going through the motions in a hurry?
Pause and think this over.
Always cook love and serve delight.
Inspiring true story Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
SMOKE SIGNALS
by Dan
Rolince, Golden, Colorado
On a cool night lit only by the orange glow of fire,
we rushed to my grandfather’s home as his decades-old barn burned to the
ground. The firemen let us stand nearby as they pumped water from the creek a
quarter mile away. We watched the barn go up in flames, which stirred memories
of jumping off foot-wide wooden beams into the hay below. The real sadness came
as my elderly grandfather, who did not get out of bed, quietly asked if his
cows were safe. He hadn’t had dairy cows in a dozen years.
What Comes Out is What's Inside...
A motivational speaker to
begin a talk used an orange as a prop.
Holding it the speaker
looked at a bright kid in the front row and asked,
"What will you get,
when this is squeezed?"
"Juice," said
the boy.
"Will we get apple
juice?"
"No," the boy said
laughingly.
"Will we get grape
juice?"
"No, no...," the
boy said getting a little annoyed.
"Will we get
pineapple juice?"
"Are you crazy? What
comes out is what's inside! Squeeze an orange, it'll get be orange juice. What else?" the boy said angrily losing
all the patience he had.
The speaker, then turned
to the audience and said, "Let's imagine ourselves to be the orange. When
someone squeezes us, when someone applies pressure on us! Can be anyone mother,
father, brother, sister, spouse, children, colleagues, boss, whoever. Like the
young boy said, what comes out is what's inside. Applying the same logic here,
what comes out is what's inside us - anger, desperation, hate, disappointment
etc."
There are things outside
us about which we have no control of, but, there are things within our control
such as moods, thoughts, words, temper, love, patience, empathy, kindness etc.
Don't judge each day by
the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant. The
season of failure is the best time for sowing the seeds of
success.
You were designed for
accomplishment, engineered for success, and endowed with the seeds of
greatness
The seeds we sow and
nurture are what become plants and trees that give us flowers and fruits.
Nurturing good thoughts is
the key.
Sit back, think it over
and see what are those seeds you are sowing?
Who Gets The Credit
A fruit appears on the
tree, and you eat it.
Who gets the credit - the
farmer who is the owner of the tree, or the tree that bears the fruit from
flower to bud to fruit, or the earth that holds the tree firmly to it's roots
or the seed that hung its ground to become the tree that bears the fruit.
This came to mind because,
most times at work we are so bothered about who gets the credit. Some do all
the work and some others take away the due credit.
Don't we know it is the
horse that does the pulling of the coach, but, at the end of the journey the coachman
gets tipped.
How nice it would be if we
enjoy just the fruit and just never worried about anything else.
Just think it over.
Inspiring true
story Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
A MOTHER’S
WISDOM
by Lori
Armstrong, Kelseyville, California
I have always worn my children’s birthstones around
my neck. One morning, when I was late for work, my infant son Larry’s topaz
birthstone fell from my gold chain. I frantically searched for it, whispering
to myself, “I lost my Larry, but I will get him back.”
That day, Larry’s cardiologist called with test
results from one of his first check-ups. He would need emergency heart surgery.
Happily, the operation was a success, and I whispered in Larry’s ear, “I
thought I lost you, but I knew I’d get you back.”
Accomplish
"He who is not courageous enough to take
risks will accomplish nothing in life." - Muhammad Ali
“You can have anything you want if you want
it badly enough. You can be anything you want to be, do anything you set out to
accomplish if you hold to that desire with singleness of purpose.” - Abraham
Lincoln
“Here I am... wanting to accomplish something
and completely forgetting it must all end—that there is such a thing as
death.” - Leo Tolstoy
Give...Give...
More than you take.
Let's admit we are humans,
we all have a tendency to take, more than we give.
Let's understand this
more...
G -> Gratitude and Generosity.
Let's be grateful for all
the gifts given to us. Let's be grateful to all those who helped us realize these
gifts, and let's be generous, in showing gratitude.
I -> Intensity and Interest
Let's have the intensity
to do some good to the others. This
happens only when we show we are interested, in the welfare of others as well.
V -> Versatile and Vibrant
It is said that it isn't
good to be a jack of all trades, but,
master of none. This is true, so let's master something's that we can build
them in a way that we become versatile and by being enthusiastic we can help
others with our vibrancy.
E -> Energy and Excitement
All of us are endowed with
abundant energy, which only some exhibit a lot more than others. It is not any big rocket science to show up
the energy we have. All it needs is that
we need to be excited, about the life we have been given, and share the same
feeling with others liberally.
So that's it. Give...Give...Give...
I have given what I have
for today.
Sit back and think it
over, when is the last time you have given something, and recall what you felt.
Now, see what you can over the next few hours to
give before you dash off for the first weekend of October.
Keep it going. You'll enjoy an unbelievable bliss
by giving. You truly will.
Being Seen, Heard and Remembered.
Isn't it the endeavour of
every marketing effort to be seen, heard and remembered, so that it converts to
creating a favourable customer.
All this to be done
through a commercial in 5 seconds flat. The irony though. is no one sees the
hard 5 years of work that preceded this moment of decision.
Let's take our case.
For every tens of things
we do over a day, we might do one thing or two to be worthy of being
remembered.
The irony is of course
what we want to do deep down is to do work that's remembered - not just
noticed.
We can achieve that goal
by addressing the imbalance - forsaking the desire for attention today, and to
do something worthwhile, so that it still matters tomorrow.
Our goal ought not to be
seen and heard, but to do work that matters, that is seen, is heard, and is
remembered.
While you relax over the
weekend, think about the work you do.
Is it something that
mattered yesterday, seen and heard today, but will be remembered tomorrow and
the day after.
Inspiring true
story Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
THE GOOD DOCTOR
by
Danica Helfin, Tifton, Georgia
Toto was a
white dog with a small red tongue, and his stuffing was red as well. When his
seams began to come apart beneath his knitted collar, it looked to my
six-year-old eyes as though he were bleeding. That night, my father left for
his shift in the emergency room with Toto wrapped in a blanket. The next day,
Dad showed me the X-rays and Polaroid photographs of the surgery. Beneath the
bandage on Toto’s neck was a clean row of stitches. I still have the injury
report! I love you, Dad.
What's Your Failure Strategy?
Now what is this you may
wonder.
(Excuse me for it is a bit
long, but, am sure it'll hold your interest).
Read on.
Everything runs like
clockwork precision when all staff members show up and all other resources
aligned.
A little deviation, the
whole plan gets upset.
Let's take a typical
scenario of a very popular "breakfast joint."
It is a Sunday morning.
Customers arrive in loads with family. They are greeted at the door. Some have
to wait for a table and have to wait. They are served a complimentary drink,
while they wait for the table.
A staff member calls in
reports sick.
The whole system begins to
creak, if not crumble. Staff doubles up as greeters and coffee runners.
People forget priorities,
service is compromised and customers are disgruntled.
Every business has a
success strategy. Targets are set and plans for execution created meticulously,
to achieve them. We imagine how we will perform on our best days, when
everything goes according to plan, with everyone serving, in.
We unfortunately, do not
devote the same time, energy and resources to imagine our next move for those
times when we have to take a diversion from our original plan.
We are found woefully
unprepared for failure because we do not always think about what could go wrong
and what will we do when it does.
For instance :
Server might crash...
Package may be lost...
Email might offend...
Sales person could have a
bad day...
Plan laid out for a
project may not go as hoped...
What then?
The difference between an
exceptional performer and a mediocre is that the exceptional ones prepare for
off-colour days too.
It turns out that we do
our best work when we plan for both success and failure, in equal measure.
So you'll do good if you
can charter out What will be your Failure Strategy, along with your Success
Strategy.
The Power of Self
A TV interviewer asked
Martina Navratilova, "How is it that you are able to focus so well on the ball,
even at this age of 43."
Her suave response was,
"The ball doesn't know how old I am," and smiled.
In his excellent book, Still
power, sports psychologist Garret Kramer says the key factor to perform in
sports (and on life), is your ability to control both, the quality and the
quantity of your internal dialogue, the constant chatter that happens in all of
us all the time.
Performance = Potential - Internal Interference.
In other words, you need
to stop yourself from stopping yourself. You need to shun your limiting
beliefs.
Business, Sports, Careers,
Fitness and indeed Life, all plays out
in the 9" space between your two ears called Mind-Space.
If you know how to mind
that space, you are the master, of yourself.
When you can't control
what's happening, challenge the way in which you respond to what's happening
around you.
That is the Power of Self.
Inspiring true
story Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
MY MASTERPIECE
by
Angela Bradley-Autrey, Deer Park, Washington
I was four, playing outside in the humid Kentucky air. I saw my
grandfather’s truck and thought, Granddad shouldn’t have to drive such an ugly
truck. Then I spied a gallon of paint. Idea! I got a brush and painted white
polka dots all over the truck. I was on the roof finishing the job when he
walked up, looking as if he were in a trance.
“Angela, that’s the prettiest truck I’ve ever seen!” Sometimes I think adults
don’t stop to see things through a child’s eyes. He could have crushed me.
Instead, he lifted my little soul.
Action
"Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing
is not enough; we must do."
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“Do you want to know who you are? Don’t ask. Act!
Action will delineate and define you.” - Thomas Jefferson
“The path to success is to take massive, determined
actions.”
- Tony Robbins
Missed Opportunities
A young man wanted to
marry the beautiful daughter of a rich farmer, and sought her hand.
The farmer agreed but on
the condition that he would catch a bull by its tail.
On a fixed day, the young
man was there for the challenge of his life.
The farmer released a
large bull. It came running fast towards the young man. Feeling threatened, he
let it go by, wanting to take a chance on the second one.
The second which was
released was much more powerfully built and more menacing than the first. The
young man was broken between risking and taking yet another chance. In the
meanwhile, the speeding bull passed by thereby the young missed the second
chance too. While he was praying he should succeed in the next one chance which
was his last, also hoping it would be a weak one, the third was released. Much
to the delight of the young man it was a puny skinny one. It came towards him
slowly. The young man steadied himself and tried to grab it's tail. To his
shock this bull had no tail at all.
Taking the story into our
life, am wondering as to how many opportunities we let go for various reasons
of comfort, laziness, procrastination, assuming more better ones will
come...and so many other reasons.
Pause for a while, take
stock and rework to develop new strategies to grab opportunities coming.
Inspiring true
story Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
A SMALL FORTUNE
by
Ron Fleming, Fort Drum, New York
While walking
across an open, grassy field, I became excited as my hand swooped toward the ground
like an eagle attacking its prey. I picked up half of a $5 bill. I continued to
walk around looking for the other half but thought to myself it would be
impossible to find it on such a windy day. As I lifted my head, I spotted the
other half of the bill tangled in crabgrass. Somehow, finding two halves of a
ripped $5 bill felt better than working for a twenty.
Ambition
"Ambition is the path to success. Persistence
is the vehicle you arrive in."
- Bill Bradley
“Ambition is enthusiasm with a purpose.” - Frank
Tyger
“A man’s worth is no greater than his ambitions.” -
Marcus Aurelius
Comparisons don't take you forward.
Output and Results, do.
Let me begin with a story
The emperor's personal stylist,
despite all his efforts of making the emperor look smart, he was upset that he
neither enjoyed the influence, status nor got the price equal to the emperor's
personal secretary.
He gathered courage and
one day poured his woes to the emperor, who listened to him patiently. He said,
"Ok, we will test it out. There's something very special happening in our
capital today. Tell me about it?"
The personal stylist was
baffled, didn't have the answer, but, asked for a little time and dashed off
into the streets.
He asked everyone what's
special that's happening in our capital today.
After meeting many, he
found a big new ship had berthed in the harbour.
Feeling elated about the
finding he rushed to the emperor and told him, "Your majesty, a big new ship
has arrived to our port today."
The emperor said,
"Good. Where is it from?"
The stylist didn't know
the answer and dashed off again this time to the port, and found it has come
from Hong Kong. Delighted he rushed to tell the emperor about his finding.
The emperor was happy, and
said "Good, what did it bring?"
The stylist had no answer
he rushed back to the port, found out and came to report.
The emperor acknowledged
and kept asking more and more information that the stylist had to make almost
twenty trips back and forth to the port and got tired.
The emperor calmed him
down with sweet words and said relax.
The emperor sent for his
personal secretary, who came in almost in a flash. "Your highness you
wanted me." The emperor said, "Yes. Can you tell me what's happening
in our capital today?"
The personal secretary
said "Your highness there's a buzz today because a big ship built in 1949
of teak from Burma, owned by a Chinese Business tycoon, with a capacity of
carrying 250 elephants, has come from Hong Kong carrying silk, spices, herbs, scents,
rice and tea, captained by Ching Lee, with 65 other sailors has been berthed
here. It is believed that after a week
of selling some of its wares and refilling essential stocks it leaves for its
long journey to Jamaica."
The emperor was mighty impressed,
and glanced at his stylist, who gracefully bowed both to the emperor and his
personal secretary and said, "Pardon me your highness for my stupidity and
for being such a loud mouth. I understand where I belong. Thank you, your highness
for exposing my ignorance, naivety and for opening eyes to reality."
Just sit down and think
about yourself and see how your are performing. Are you like the personal stylist
or the personal secretary. Chalk out what are things you can do to personally
shape yourself for meaningful roles in your career.
Inspiring true
story Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
THE LONG LIFE OF ROOM 1108
by
Laurie Olson, Dayton, Nevada
A long flight of weathered steps led to a hollow wooden door with rusty
numbers beckoning us into room 1108. Inside, we barely noticed the lumpy bed,
faded wood paneling, and thin, tacky carpet.
We could see the seashore from our perch and easily wander down to feel the
sand between our toes. We returned again and again until the burgeoning resort
tore down our orange-shingled eyesore. Forty years later, my husband
periodically sends me short e-mails that declare the time: 11:08. “I love you,
too,” I write back.
Clarity
"Clarity precedes success." - Robin
Sharma
“A lack of clarity could put the brakes on any
journey to success.” - Steve Maraboli
“Clarity affords focus.” - Thomas Leonard
Nothing Grows by itself.
Biologists often talk
about the "ecology" of an organism: the tallest oak in the forest is
the tallest not just because it grew from the hardiest acorn. It grew to become
the tallest because no other tree blocked it's due sunlight, the soil around it
was deep and rich, no squirrel dug out the acorn, nor did any rabbit chew
through its bark as a sapling, no lumberjack cut it down before it matured.
Let's get to real life
now..
What is the question we
always ask about successful people?
We want to know them, we
want them to know us,
we want to know what they
are like,
what kind of personality
they have,
how intelligent they are
or
what kind of life styles
they have,
what special talents they
may have or
be born with,
in short, we want to
become what they are, because we assume that it is those personal qualities
that explain how they reached the top.
We believe they certainly
from hardy seeds, but, we do not know the sunlight that warmed them, they soil
in which they were able to put down their roots, and the rabbits and
lumberjacks they were lucky to avoid?
Believe me no one will
ever tell you the entire truth, but, what is certain is that they had the right
people in the right places at the right time for the right purpose, providing
the in-puts, clearing the path, urging them, eeking the, nurturing them,
tutoring them, mentoring them, coaching them. There's another truth to this,
all this either happened or the individual made it happen. All the same, there
was a process a method and the individuals hardwork too. Indeed, there are no
short-cuts to any progress in your career.
Seek the right people even
if on teams at a price, because you are sure to derive value out of it.
Commitment
"Once you have commitment, you need the
discipline and hard work to get you there." - Haile Gebrselassie
“Commitment is an act, not a word.”-
Jean-Paul Sartre
“Commitment is what transforms a promise into
a reality.”
- Abraham Lincoln
Make SMART MOVES.
Three Important Questions
to ask yourself..
Yes, be it in business,
career, sports or life, there are three important questions to ask yourself for
all your money's worth.
01. Why do you want to
achieve and become, what you want?
If you know the answer for
your "why" your "what" becomes easily visible, and your
"how," will invariably find a way to get it.
02. "What" do
you stand to believe - your principles, your values, your ethics, your
priorities?
You achieve what you
believe about your abilities and your skills. You beliefs, your values and
principles help provide the energy and discipline that drive you towards your
goals. Beliefs and values are what roots are to trees, because trees will get
uprooted if the roots aren't deep and widespread. Just like strong winds test
the strength of trees to withstand force
Even we, can be tested on
values and beliefs as performance can take a beating in the face of competition
and pressure.
03. What is your action
plan?
How will you prepare,
organize yourself to execute actions to reach places you want to get to.
Your answers to these
three questions could be the platform on which you build your performance.
You increase your chances
of doing well when you plan properly, prepare carefully, when you execute your
tasks well, and when you respond sensibly and positively to results.
Good preparation requires
clarity, simplicity, attention to details and superior execution calls based on
solid decision making, which comes from mastery of basics, mastery of self,
pure clear thinking, good concentration and calmness, both of mind and body.
Debriefing of performance
in the end is a powerful weapon that is often neglected. It allows you to
monitor standards, correct mistakes, make better plans and do better next time.
Zeal
"Zeal will do more than knowledge." -
William Hazlitt
"Zeal without knowledge is fire without light."
- Thomas Fuller
"Zeal is a volcano, the peak of which the
grass of indecisiveness does not grow." - Khalil Gibran
MANAGEMENT vs LEADERSHIP
There's a difference
between management and leadership.
Management is about doing
stuff - the daily operations for the tactical things to get done.
Leadership, on the other
hand, is about people. Itis less about what you are doing and more about you're
being. It is how you show up for your people. It is about being available to
handle the human side of things.
When we are constantly at
tactical things like
- what milestones to hit,
- what metrics to reach,
- what products to ship,
- what project deadlines
to meet... what have wry little time to care for the people who make these
critical tactical things happen.
On the other hand leaders
aren't responsible for results as much as they are responsible for those people
who get the results. And without the support of our people, it is us leaders
who have to feel and take more responsibilities for even those tactical things
because we know ultimately it is our butt that's on the line.
What if we focused more of
our energy on leading and building relationships with our people so that we can
trust them, and they can trust us?
Then we can empower them
to take accountability for the tactical, which would open us up to do what we
do best as leaders - look to plan for long term future.
If you are in a leadership
position in your organisation, consider asking yourself this question,
"What percentage of my time do I spend MANAGING vs LEADING?" If
leading percentage is smaller imagine what would be possible if the numbers
were reversed.
Mindfulness
"With mindfulness, you can establish yourself
in the present in order to touch the wonders of life that are available in that
moment." - Nhat Hanh
"Mindfulness helps you go home to the present.
And every time you go there and recognize a condition of happiness that you
have, happiness comes."
- Nhat Hanh
"Mindfulness is about love and loving life.
When you cultivate this love, it gives you clarity and compassion for life, and
your actions happen in accordance with that." - Jon Kabat-Zinn
Get Your Priorities Right
We live in an age of
information overload and excessive pressure, which often plays tricks with our
minds and our perceptions.
They destroy our sense of
priorities and make the line between what is really important and what is not,
blurry.
We often give trivial
things importance they do not deserve and make make mountains of mole hills.
Concentrating on the important
priorities first is the key to good performance.
The story below about big
and small apples illustrates effects of high and low priorities on
concentration and performance.
An apple farmer once asked
his two sons to sort out the stack of
apples into piles of big apples and small apples weeding out bad apples.
His sons worked hard all
day long and when they finished the job they called their father to show him
their work.
The impressed father
congratulated them and asked them to mix the the two piles - the big and the
small ones again.
The boys were furious
because they thought their time was wasted. Anyway, they did as he said.
The father then asked
about the other small apples piled up near by. They said, those were bad and
rotten apples which they discarded.
"Very good,"
said the father and added, "If I told you to remove the bad and rotten
apples from the entire pile, you'd have missed some of them, but, now because
you looked at each apple carefully you
were able to check if was big or small
apple, and in the process you didn'tiss out on the bad ones and we're able weed
out the unwanted.
Prioritise first,
performance will improve by itself with the clarity that prompts action.
The point is High Priority
items are the ones that determine action, and Low Priority items, however, shouldn't be ignored, they
must be taken into account too.
Enjoy the festival. May
the Almighty Bless all of You and Everyone Yours -ABUNDANTLY, GENEROUSLY, and
INFINITELY.
Pressure and the Mind
Pressure can either be a
friend or a foe. In the right proportion it can lift performance to great
heights, but, if it gets out of hands it can mess up everything including
health and a career.
The ability to cope up
with pressure usually separately great professionals from the others. It is
also true that even great professionals sometime succumb and fall victims to
chronic pressure.
In life, we constantly
play two different, but, interrelated games - a public one (outer game) and a
private one (inner game).
The outer game is played
in a way everyone can see. It needn't be only against opponents.
The inner game is played
in our minds, it is against us. An unseen game in which there is constant
interaction between our thoughts and feelings, our goals and fears, our
confidence and our doubts, our strengths and our weakness. Many of us fail to
either recognise or acknowledge our vulnerabilities. We play this game all the
time without being too aware of it.
Formal instructions,
mentoring, training, or education usually do not address the inner game as
such, hence playing the outter game becomes difficult.
Coaching helps get a
"mastery," of our inner game.
Champion professionals,
play both these games well, therefore they are Champions.
This is not to say it is
difficult, it calls for a high amount of Discipline, Dedication, Hard work,
Integrity, Practice and Zeal.
It is Within You
We are ruled by our
limiting beliefs
Too often we believe we
are not good enough; something is not working for us and it needs to be fixed;
something is missing; and something special needs to be added to make it
worthwhile. These limiting beliefs often hide the wealth within.
This story will explain...
A young man inherited a
statue of clay, which was in the possession of his family for ages. He was
feeling ashamed to show it up proudly to anyone. Wished it was of gold, so when
he did earn some wealth, he had the statue gold plated, as it was made to look
the way he wanted.
Over a period of time
flakes of gold started peeling off from the statue. He began to spend more and
more time and money on maintaining it. Was growing very frustrated.
One day his grandfather
him, the young man showed him the statue, feeling rather embarrassed and
ashamed because of it dishevelled appearance, of clay somewhere flakes of gold
somewhere.
The grandfather who knew
the statue well, recognised the statue
and started to rub it with aoist cloth. After roving the clay, he said,
"Many many years ago, this statue must have fallen in mud and clay, to
cover it up completely and they must have forgotten to wipe or wash it, and so
it must have become covered. You wouldn't know."
Saying this he began to
rub the statue even more vigorously and as he did so he began to remove the
stuck clay and the bright yellow metal started to appear.
"The grandfather then
told the grandson, "Underneath the clay statue has been one of solid gold
from the beginning. You didn't have to put more gold on it. From now on all you
have to do to show up gold is to remove any clay or dust that settles on
it."
Like the clay on the gold
statue, poor vision, limiting beliefs, negative thoughts, self doubts, poor
excuses and habits hide the wealth within which undermines our desire and
ability to perform well, to succeed. These obstacles are like the anchor at the
bottom of the sea, holding up everyove we make. Removing them sets our inner
resources free.
Performance is better more
often by understanding ourselves well from within, and from constantly - learning,
unlearning, relearning, being curious, creative, innovative, being interested
and by being present 100% every moment.
What are you waiting for
them, start unearthing the gold lying hidden inside each of you.
Opportunity
"Failure is simply the opportunity to begin
again, this time more intelligently." - Henry Ford
"Success is where preparation and opportunity
meet." - Bobby Unser
"If opportunity doesn't knock, build a
door." - Milton Berle
Change Your Beliefs and Perceptions and you will
change your Performance
Good morning folks. It's a
relaxing Sunday morning, a cool gentle breeze brushes my face, while
I sit to script this
message after enjoying my cuppa steaming aromatic coffee, a little while ago.
Henry Ford said "If
you believe you can or if you believe you can't, your right."
I was on a call last night
with a friend, who has tonnes of self belief and loves taking on odds,
especially things that others say she can't do. She thrives in proving them
wrong. She has on her own steam come a fair distance in life battling several
odds, overcoming several obstacles. She is really a "powerhouse of
energy," carries a lot joy and is adventurous by nature. She is in terms
of sport a very "talented" and a "gifted athelete," in the
race of life she runs wanting to better her own timing, as she isn't in
competition with anyone. This script of
today is dedicated to that friend Very Special friend VS...
She reminded me of
Roger Bannister, the
English Athelete who created history by breaking four-minute barrier for the
mile. Until then no one believed that it was possible to run a mile in less
than four minutes. Once Bannister smashed the limiting belief, the task became
easier because everyone knew it could be done. Within a year, the race was run
under four minutes by forty atheletes and with ten years 296 times.
What's the lesson here?
If you want to achieve
something really worthy, change the limiting beliefs that are holding you back
and the negative self-talk that is sabotaging your performance, your career,
your life.
Beliefs, perceptions,
thoughts and self-talk control our emotions and behaviour.
If you change your belief,
you'll change your perception,
if you change your
perception, you'll change your thinking and your self-talk,
and
if you change your
thinking and self-talk, you will change your feelings, action and performance.
If a plant grows in a
bottle it will take on the shape of the bottle and will be confined to it even
though it has the potential to become a large and beautiful tree. This is
exactly what happened to my friend who was bottled up.
To get that plant to grow
one would have to break the bottle to set it free. The plant will grow mature,
bear fruits and propagate.
Like the bottle, limiting
beliefs inhibits growth. Unmindful of all these she has earned enough laurels
and has set her mind on much bigger things with which she wants to impact
several young life’s by empowering them and enable them reach the potential as
quickly as possible.
Inspiring true
story Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
A Date With Fate
by
Emily Page Hatch, Wilmington, North Carolina
In a kitschy bar in Cambridge, he asked to sit at my table, though later
he would insist that I made the first move. I was intrigued by his tattoos. He
thought I went to Harvard. All we had in common was that we’d both almost
stayed home. Friends had dragged us out on a frigid February evening. We still
never agree on anything, except that it’s a darn good thing we sucked it up
that snowy night. Our wild blue-eyed son always stops us in our tracks,
reminding us that fate is just as fragile as our memory.
Believe
"Believe it can be done. When you believe
something can be done, really believe, your mind will find the ways to do it.
Believing a solution paves the way to solution." - David Joseph Schwartz
“Be brave to stand for what you believe in even if
you stand alone.”
- Roy T. Bennett
"Believing in yourself is not for you; it's
for every person who has touched your life in a significant way and for every
person your life will touch the same way five minutes from now, or five
centuries from now." - Jaye Miller
Envision
"The mind is the limit. As long as the mind
can envision the fact that you can do something, you can do it, as long as you
really believe 100%."
- Arnold Schwartzenegger
“Envisioning the end is enough to put the means in
motion.”
- Dorthea Brande
"I am an artist, and I have the ability and
the free will to choose the way the world will envision me." - Lady Gaga
Stop - Start
In any mechanical vehicle
- motorized or mechanical. One uses the brake to stop and the accelerator pedal
to start.
You thought it was only
for vehicles, but, no you too have to use the start and stop to make progress.
Let's see how :
Stop worrying about how to
get attention.
Start paying attention.
Stop obsessing about
creating awareness.
Start becoming more aware.
Stop making people want
things.
Start making things people
want.
Stop analysing data
Start seeing people it
represents.
Stop trying to be more
interesting.
Start becoming more
interested.
Stop keeping score
Start forgetting the past
incidents.
Stop hoarding.
Start sharing.
Stop competing.
Start collaborating.
Stop comparing.
Start noticing.
Stop doubting.
Start doing.
Stop striving.
Start caring.
Stop wondering about
what's next, start from here and right now.
If you have this, you will go places.
In a fast paced world that
we preside over now, we can't be blamed for looking at instant gratification,
speedy growth, quick buck, fast food, and lightning quick answers to whatever
we want to know or solutions for whatever we seek, because there's Google to
our rescue which provides us all answers, muchore that we want or have bargained
for.
We want to become
information rich because we wanted to show off that we are intelligent, and our
IQ is high.
There's one driving force
which fuels all of this that makes us explore for new things, new thoughts and
new ideas.
You may be wondering
what's all this.
Yes!
You guessed it right, it
is just one thing that drives all of us from "the cradle to the
grave," and that is CURIOISITY. The impulse to seek new information, the
craving for new experiences and to explore new possibilities is a basic human
trait, and that is called CURIOUSITY.
CURIOUSITY drives us to
view critical aspects more creatively. History is a witness to all of this and
bears a testimony to it for most
breakthrough discoveries and remarkable inventions of mankind - from
flint stone for fire to wheels, right down to the much talked about and awaited
driverless cars.
This when it comes to an
organisation, it seems so paradoxical as both leaders and employees receive an
implicit, message that asking questions is an unwanted challenge to the
authority.
People are trained to
focus on process and process alone, for guaranteed performance results that
lead to the milestones, goals and vision of the organization.
On the other hand it is
the same management of organization's that urges it's people to maintain a
sense of wonder, which is
crucial to creativity and innovation.
The most effective
organizations of the world and their leaders look for ways to nurture their
employees' CURIOUSITY to fuel leaning and discovery.
See where you are and see
where is your CURIUOSITY, leading you to in every step you take.
IQ - EQ - DQ - RQ
Brian Herbert said,
"The capacity to
learn is a gift; the ability to learn is a skill; the willingness to learn is a
choice.
People are definitely the
greatest asset of any organization. It is only as good as the people who
make it. It is not going to make a
difference whether the company makes cars, cosmetics, capsules, writes codes or
makes rockets.
That which makes these
things happen is
IQ (INTELLIGENCE QUOTIENT)
-> Building Knowledge.
The ultimate source of
happiness, is our mental attitude, which comes from wisdom, and that is built
on knowledge.
EQ (EMOTIONAL QUOTIENT) ->
Having Emotions
Once in a lifetime, you
meet someone, who changes everything in your life.
Emotional Intelligence
will say, "No matter what age you are or what your circumstances might be,
you are special, and you have setting unique to offer. It's your life, because
of who you are, and that to me has meaning.
Trust and long lasting
relationships are built by Emotional Intelligence.
DQ (DECENCY QUOTIENT)->
Having Decency Greeting and treatinng people following etiquettes.
RQ (RELEVANCE QUOTIENT)
-> Being Relevant.
While you are waiting
someone else is already doing it.
It all comes down to employee
engagement.
It all comes down to
recognition.
It all comes down to
leadership, which leads to everyone feeling ownership and accountability for
the results.
You can ask a team to
achieve targets or even accomplish a mission, but you never can order
excellence.
People do not buy the
product, they buy the experience. It can be Apple, Mercedes, IKEA etc., - it's
thoughts and products you have bought for sheer experience.
Majority vs Minority
If you were to cook 3
glasses of rice, would you be adding 3 glasses of salt to it?
Certainly not!
So in every rice thing you
cook, the quantity of rice always outnumbers the salt, but, a little salt
added, enhances the taste of the rice.
Look at the ceiling of
room that you are right now in. You'll see the bulb is 1:5000 of the room, but,
when it gets dark after sunset, one flip of the switch turns on the bulb which
makes darkness flee.
If you and I are the
"salt" of the earth that adds taste and the bulb the light of the
world, then that "little you and I," has the ability to make things
happen.
Sometimes we feel
overawed, outnumbered, and overwhelmed by sheer magnitude of evil or wrong
doers, so we choose powerlessness and decide to go with the flow instead of
standing up for what is right and opposing the vast majority.
Little doesn't mean
"insignificant." Our presence should make a difference because youou
and I are certainly significant. Let's stop being on the side of the majority,
for it is a trivial majority, whereas we are an impactful minority.
They could be the rice, we
are the salt, they could be the room, we could be the bulb, let's make our
influence felt.
Remember, this always.
Inspiring true
story Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
PERFECT DAY
by
Marybob Straub, Smyrna, Georgia
We went looking for a wedding dress on Sunday. Laughing, we made for the
door of a bridal shop. This would surely be the first of many stores before we
found the perfect gown. Having witnessed other brides and their mothers, we
vowed to be happy in these moments. Unexpectedly, my mind went back to the day
we brought her home some 27 years ago. I said a silent thank-you to the young
mother who, by letting her go, allowed her to be mine at this precious time.
Two hours later, there she stood, in the dress of her dreams. My beautiful
girl.
The Inspiring Storytelling of Jim Thorpe...
Jim Thorpe, an American
Indian from Oklahoma, was chosen to represent US in the 1912 Stockholm
Olympics, in the track and field event.
On the morning of the
final competition, his shoes were stolen.
Fortunate that he was he
found two shoes in the garbage bin, which were different from each other in
every aspect of colour, size, spikes etc.
He decided he will try
them anyway.
He had one major problem
that the shoe of the left leg was bigger. He chose to wear extra socks to fill
that gap, and two extra filled it to fit his legs.
Wearing them that day, he
went on to win two gold medals.
That feat of Jim is a
perfect reminder to all of us that we do not have to resign ourselves to the
excuses that keep us holding back.
So what, if life hasn't
been fair, or so we might believe.
Whatever feelings,
thoughts or happenings, it was that we woke up in the morning with - stolen
shoes, ill-health, headache, disappointing news, slip and fall or a broken
relationship, let that not stop us from running our race for the day.
Let's remind ourselves
when the sun is up and out, let's get on to our feet and go for our hunt.
We can experience more in life,
if we can get over the excuses we give and get on with life.
Determination
"Failure will never overtake me if my
determination to succeed is strong enough." - Og Mandino
“A vow is fixed and unalterable determination to do
a thing when such a determination is related to something noble which can only
uplift the man who makes the resolve.” - Mahatma Gandhi
“Desire is the key to motivation, but it’s the
determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal—a
commitment to excellence—that will enable you to attain the success you seek.”
- Mario Andretti
Asking Questions
In the words of Rudyard
Kipling, "I kept six honest serving men near always, and it is they who
taught me all I got to know, their names are : Why? What? Where? When? Who? and
How?
To keep a healthy
curiosity, we need to ask questions so that we understand things and people
around us be they relatives, friends, peers colleagues, team mates,
stakeholders, customers or whoever else.
It's not the quantity but,
the quality and the value of the questions that is important.
Asking the right
questions, at the right time, in the right place, to the right people, gets you
the right answers to go places.
Good questions are a
worthy investment always.
Do you believe in this?
Inspiring true
story Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
ALWAYS GROWING
by
Julie Liska, Seward, Nebraksa
Dad auctioned off his faithful red tractor, rented out the land, and
retired from farming in 1982. He and Mom moved to town. But they reserved a
small plot of land for a garden and returned each week of summer to tend it.
Winter brought new challenges. Dad had his hips replaced, bypass and cataract
surgeries, and a stroke. Yet each spring the garden was planted, watered, lovingly
tended—the bounty shared with all. Now Dad is 93; his pale blue eyes dodge the
sun as he gingerly plucks red tomatoes from the vine. “What will you remember
about me?”
Dare
"Failures are made only by those who fail to
dare, not by those who dare to fail." - Lester B. Pearson
"Far better is it to dare mighty things, to
win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure than to take rank with
those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much because they live in
the grey twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat." - Theodore
Roosevelt
"Dare to dream, but even more importantly,
dare to put action behind your dreams." - Josh Hinds
It is time to wake up..
I walked into a mall early
morning wanting to buy a pair of socks.
As I walked in I saw a
sweater with a price of $3000 a pair of jeans $6000 and $8000 for a pair of
socks.
It fused the daylight out
of me as this seemed outrageous.
I went searching for a
Salesman, and found one at last in the jewelry section. She was selling someone
a Rolex for $7 and looking through the glass case I saw a 24 carat diamond with
a price tag of $4. And this was a shock.
I asked her how could it
be that something as expensive as the 24 carat diamond is so cheaply priced and
that for a socks so ridiculously high.
She said, someone snugged
into the store last night and changed the price tags of everything. It's making
all of us are confused, like having lost our senses and is driving us mental.
They are all willing to pay enormous prices for utility and very little for
those things that have great value. It's like they don't know what is the real
value of valuable things and what's not.
I hope we will get the
price tags back and right soon because it's going to be painful to see people
pay far too little for expensive things and too much for things of little
value.
(This is a story I read in
the internet, and liked it).
Whoever wrote this was a
super realist for imagining something like this.
May be life is a dream.
May be life is showing us through scripts like this as to how lopsided things
are now.
I was thinking about this
and was hoping, how nice if someone snugged into us and changed the price tags
in everything and show us the true value of things.
May be people have a
marked up value of status, position, money, possessions, power, fame,
popularity etc., and have put a huge discount on real values - truth, honesty,
integrity, love, care, kindness, family and friends.
May be we are all in deep
sleep and are dreaming.
I hope we wake up.
Hope
"Hope is being able to see that there is light
despite all of the darkness."
- Desmond Tutu
"We must accept finite disappointment but
never lose infinite hope."
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
"What oxygen is to the lungs, such is hope to
the meaning of life."
- Emil Brunner
The Best Shine from Within
There's an old Aesop's
Fable of The Man, The Wind and The Sun.
On a certain day, the wind
and the sun were in a friendly conversation talking a whole lot of things and
landed on the topic strengths, which became hot, and in that heat the wind
challenged the sun saying let's see who among us is strong. The sun laughed,
but the wind looking down saw a man walking with an overcoat on said,
"Let's see who among us can get the man to remove the coat.
The sun said, "Go
ahead," so the wind began to blow and blow fiercely too. The more it blew
the tighter the man hugged to his coat."
It was now the turn of the
sun. It shone, shone brightly and it started becoming warmer and warmer. The
man began unbuttoning his overcoat and in a little while more he took off his
coat and went under a tree, to rest."
The wind furious by now,
asked the sun, "How did you make the man remove his coat without any force
whatsoever?"
The sun replied, "I
did it through brightness and gently."
It may on the surface seem
this being just another fable, but, this fable has a lot to do with good people
- they may be professionals, leaders or just ordinary ones.
Such people operate like
the Sun.
- They shine when they
help others weather the storm.
-They shine when they
respect the others, whatever their status.
- They shine best when
they encourage.
-They shine when they show
they care.
-They shine when they
listen intently to show their interest for the others.
-They shine when they
acknowledge others.
When the sun is shining
warmly on us we feel we can accomplish almost anything - no mountain is too
high, no ocean is too deep, no wind is too strong, no obstacle is difficult to
surmount.
The best people have the
same effect - they shine from within, they're gentle, kind, warm and accessible
always.
Fulfilment
"Only those who have learned the power of
sincere and selfless contribution experience life's deepest joy: true fulfilment."
- Tony Robbins
“If you devote yourself entirely to a noble
pursuit, there is no way you cannot find beauty and fulfilment.” - Daniel
Gillies
“True happiness is a state of fulfilment.”- Ashish
Sophat
Humility
A trait everyone has, but,
just that only a few display it continuously.
Humility is the hallmark
of wise people, great people and inspirational leaders.
It takes a great deal for
anyone not to get blinded by their position and accomplishments and to walk
into the dark alleys of arrogance.
Being
"humble" being "firm,"
are not contradictory, as much as being "humble," and being
"confident" aren't contradictory."
However, being
"humble," and being "respected," are not complimentary.'
Being "humble,"
doesn't mean
- Being Weak
- Being less Assertive
- Being less Ambitious
- Being less Passionate
Humble people
- bring out the best out
of those who work for them.
- make it easy for having
difficult conversations with them, at ease, by empowering them to share their
feelings, thoughts, ideas, without any reservations, without interrupting and without being judgemental.
- they minimise whatever
gaps that might exist.
Keys To Remain Humble.
Respect others by Admiring
Diversity.
Being at ease with Self by
not competing with anyone, but self
Focussing in Excelling
through self awareness, self exploration, and confronting insecurities
addressing vulnerabilities, of self.
Reflect, learn, unlearn,
relearn continuously and evolving every moment.
Let's all be as humble, as
we can and make our lives together better and better.
Gratitude
“Thankfulness is the beginning of gratitude.
Gratitude is the completion of thankfulness. Thankfulness may consist merely of
words. Gratitude is shown in acts.” - Henri Frederic Amiel
“I would maintain that thanks are the highest form
of thought and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.”- Gilbert K.
Chesterton
“Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions.
The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have
even more to express gratitude for.” - Zig Ziglar
Strive - be the best
There's hardly anyone
I know who doesn't want to
be the best.
Those who want to, try
their very best always.
Even if one tried hard
it's sometimes not always possible to be on the top, but, surely would be close
to it.
On the other hand, if one
thinks that he/she can't do it, that he/she doesn't have the capabilities, then
he/she will never accomplish anything.
Of course whatever one
does is important, but, it is not as important as how one goes about it.
Ones attitude should be
one of becoming the best on whatever one is doing.
Whether one was to be a
businessman or business woman, an artist, scholar, sports person or an
engineer, doctor, lawyer, management professional or whatever one has to strive
hard to be on the top and to be the best.
Try and try your best
continuously and you'll be rewarded.
Just sit down for a while
to list out what you are good at and go out to do everything that's possible to
become the best, of course with a time line.
When you get there the
others will acknowledge you, that's when you know you are the best.
Wishing you all the best
to become the very best.
Inspiring true story Originally Published in the
Readers Digest.
EXCESS BAGGAGE
by
Eileen Dougharty, Chicago, Illinois
“Ticket is $287. But all of that is a problem.” She’s
referring to my luggage cart, stacked with suitcases, boxes, and a bag full of
shoes. “One bag is free. Everything else is $100 each.” I tell her I packed my
Volkswagen after discovering my boyfriend was cheating. Fried the engine.
Hitchhiked to the airport in flip‑flops. She left her cheating husband
recently, hardest decision she ever made. She checks it all, charges me
nothing. As I leave, I don’t feel the crush of having no plan, only the
weightlessness of being free.
The Way You Ask, Changes Perspective.
Yes, I mean it, the way
you ask the question changes the perspective completely.
Let's see how :
- Why isn't it working for
me?
This question shifts focus
on to searching for a solution.
- Facing challenges in
your workplace, your start-up or new venture?
Don't ask, "What will
it not work for me? (Problem Centric).
Ask, "Why isn't it
working for me?"
(Solution Centric).
- Started as a free
lancer, not getting clients?"
Don't ask, "Why am I
not getting clients?" (Problem Centric)
Ask, "Why isn't it
working fore?"
(Solution Centric).
- Not able to change a bad
habit?"
Don't ask, "Why am I
not able to break the bad habit?"
(Problem Centric).
Ask, "Why isn't it
working for me?"
(Solution Centric).
- Not growing in the
career, having a difficulty learning new skills?"
Don't as "Why am I
not growing?"
(Problem Centric).
Instead ask, "Why
isn't it working for me?"
Problem Centric,
- You imagine, you are
very good or not so very good. Hence your focus is on you.
Solution Centric
The focus is on the
challenge, and what is the obstacle you wish to overcome the issue.
It is just one question
always, Why isn't it working?"
Ask the right question, in
a solution seeking mould.
Subtraction Too Adds Value
You may be wondering what
am I saying.
Yes, you heard it right, subtraction,
too can add value.
When we are innovating a
product or iterating a service, we look to add value by introducing features
and benefits.
Sometimes improvement and
progress can be made by removing things that people wouldn't miss.
- It could be an age old
process..
- It could be a reporting
pattern..
- It could be a structure..
It could be anything.
Just sit down and think it
over. See what could you subtraction or stop doing to improve your product,
service or anything..
Inspiring true
story Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
SHATTERED
by
Pat Guthrie, Pulaski, Virginia
My elderly sister decided for the first time to stay up until midnight
on New Year’s Eve in New York City to watch the ball drop. The next morning,
she reported that she was disappointed. When I asked her why, she said that on
the news the day before, the reporters had talked
about the crystals inside the ball and what a piece would be
worth if someone got a hold of one. But then the ball descended very slowly.
She’d expected it to crash and that people would scramble for the pieces. She’d
wanted to see that!
Outstanding
"Outstanding people have one thing in common:
an absolute sense of mission." - Zig Ziglar
"Human beings are infinitely worth studying,
especially the peculiarities that often go along with outstanding gifts." -
Paul Johnson
"The higher your energy level, the more
efficient your body. The more efficient your body, the better you feel and the
more you will use your talent to produce outstanding results." - Tony
Robbins
More Listening
Have you ever considered
how bad it is to talk over someone?
We do it.
We all do it at some time
or the other.
May be it is our habit!
May be it is our
excitement, we feel we know something more about something being discussed.
Ever cut off someone
mid-sentence with...
"I don't mean to
interrupt, but..."
"Sorry to
interrupt..."
"Wait..."
Ever skip the lead-in and
finish someone's sentence with your own "paragraph?"
May be it is because of
poor listening, may be it is because you are trying to show off, or may be
because of your ego too (Let me show you what I know, instead of learning from
what you don't know!), or may be it is plain outright rudeness, too.
Here's a way to set that
right...
Commit yourself to
dropping a small gap of silence between what someone says...
and your response...
just an extra heart beat
or two.
You'll be amazed at what
else you learn and also the number of more interesting connections you add to
your network.
If/When you catch yourself
forgetting not to interrupt...stop and apologize...
"I'm sorry. I cut you
off. What were you saying?" See and enjoy how it reinforces your future
self-awareness.
MORE LISTENING. A LEADING
SIMPLY HABIT, WORTH ACQUIRING.
Listen
"We have two ears and one mouth so that we can
listen twice as much as we speak." - Epictetus
"Listen with the intent to understand, not the
intent to reply."
- Stephen Covey
"There is only one role for being a good
talker—learn to listen."
- Christopher Morley
2 Cases 2 Lessons
Case 1 - BLACKBERRY
About a decade ago, the
apple of the corporate eyes as the safest securely mobile device.
Why did it fall so
precipitously?
- Sense of invincibility
(Like the fable Hare & The Tortoise)
- Inability to move
forward
- Inward group-think (sycophancy)
and arrogance
- Failing to anticipate
changing preferences for look and feel of iPhones and Androids
- Taking customer for
granted
Result :
Chasing the market with sub-par versions of
competitors models.
The fall of KODAK, NOKIA
etc., are similar.
Lesson 1
Making change as much as a
part of your life as breathing, starting zero each day, carrying everyone with
you.
Case 2 - JW Marriott
It is said Bill Marriott
feet didn't touch the ground.
He never was at his desk.
He was busy visiting properties, listening to guests, managers, chefs, waiters...
learning what was or wasn't working, and changing all the time.
His was a culture of
change, owned, run and driven forward by trusted, empowered employees.
Result :
JWM continuing to be the
world's premier luxury hotel chain in 35 years.
The case of several traditional
companies like Tata, Birla, Amalgamations Group, Murgugappa Group, TVS, Kasturi
& Sons etc., are similar..
Lesson 2
Being on the spot, feeling
the pulse of the market (with a peripheral vision), and the people working for
the organization, being next to them, seeing the future and riding on it all
the way to the top.
This was inspired by a
friend Soumya Kanti Roy and improvised. Trust it was a nice read.
Success Is An Iceberg
When we succeed, what
people see is success and the result of it.
What nobody gets to see,
or what no one will know or bother to find out is what goes into succeeding.
The strong will of
dedication.
Several hours of hard work
burring the mid-night oil and the amount of sweat.
The strict discipline of
following a process continuously.
The amount of
disappointments one has to face and deal with.
The selfless sacrifices
one makes in the journey - discomfort, distance from family, friends, time for
self, money, food sleep. What not?
The number of failures and
the persistence, to keep going on despite the set back by rising again after a
fall.
People are used to
analysing failures only. Best advise would be analyse successes too and examine
what more can be done to improve the process to ensure we succeed again and
again, until some other new challenge makes us re-examine our process. This is
what the best champion sportsmen and women do.
Be assured, you are no
less than a champ yourself.
Inspiring true story Originally Published
in the Readers Digest.
DARK
WATERS
by
Daryl Eigen, Portland, Oregon
Night wreck diving in Micronesia is
scary. One hundred feet down, the water is the blackest. Two of us dived toward
a sunken ship that soon loomed large in the dark water. We felt the ghosts of
the Japanese sailors who had died with this WWII freighter. Swimming deeper
into the ship’s bowels, my buddy suddenly hit a layer of reflective silt,
blinding us. Together we groped through the ship, breaking through the
uninterrupted, silent blackness of the sea. Watching our bubbles, we rose to
the surface, where I ripped off my mask to breathe the tropical air.
Focus
Chess Masters don't
evaluate all the possible moves.
They know how to discard
98% of the moves they can possibly make, but, then they FOCUS, on the potential
2% of the remaining.
That's exactly the way
experience and excellent expertise, works in every other area, professionally
and personally too.
2% suggests
Expect less ... Prepare
more...
- Avoid disappointments.
Judge less...
Respect more...
- Build relationships,
connections and network
Accept less...
Reject more...
- Maintain quality
standards.
Criticize less...
Appreciate more...
Earn more friends.
Complain less...
Thank more...
Be grateful.
Regret less...
Cheer more...
Be happy..
Inspiring true story Originally Published in the
Readers Digest.
MONSTER PATROL
Aaron
Hampton, Seattle, Washington
As a child, I had awful night terrors—at one point, I
stopped sleeping. Then my dad’s younger brother lost his job and had to move in
with us. Uncle Dave slept in the room next to mine. From then on, he was there
to comfort me, sometimes even sleeping on the floor beside my bed “to keep the
monsters away.”
After he landed a job, he could have moved into a
nice apartment, but I begged him not to go. When my parents asked why he was
staying, he smiled and replied, “Monsters.”
Let's Look Around
From our birth, through
school and higher education we keep thinking of ourselves only as our attention
is only to be ahead of the rest. In short we become great "I" specialists.
We get to work and we are
there with a lot of "I" specialists, and the institution,
organization or company wants us to work together because the want the
"I's" become "We's."
This can be possible if we
stop looking at just
our progress
our excellence
our win etc.
And
other's mistakes
other's errors etc.,
We are guilty of such acts
consciously and unconsciously, instead of looking at the many things around
that are amazing and beautiful.
This day and all the other
days that follow, let's make it a habit and make a conscious efforts every
morning that we will only look for amazing things.
An object
An observation
A service taken
A friendly chat
Someone's performance
Alone time
Observations @ work
Good things in work
A kind gesture
The list can go on
endlessly...
Let's
- Observe it
- Acknowledge it
- Recognise it
- Appreciate it
- Express gratitude
And feel a amazing.
Patience
"Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is
patience." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
"The two most powerful warriors are patience
and time."- Leo Tolstoy
"Have patience. All things are difficult before
they become easy."- Saadi
The Power of Because..
Over centuries our culture
and traditions have taught us that everything we do is about finding an angle
and our communication being creative with truth as the underlying necessity -
the "master of spin."
It doesn't have to be this
way, at least when marketing or selling our services or while doing business.
We can choose to do things
we are proud of.
What instead of trying to
come up with an angle, we mastered truth telling instead.
We rediscover truth about
our value proposition revisiting the reasons we originally showed up for people
at this time.
...Our company exists,
because...
...We make this, we do
this because...
... People need this,
because...
...We want to appeal to the
customer, because...
...The right thing to do,
because...
Truth is the most powerful
personal and professional strategy of all. We become better people, by being
honest with ourselves, first and foremost.
It is reasonable to
consider yourself as an evolving person, if you haven't changed.
Inspiring true story Originally Published in the
Readers Digest.
PRAYER QUILT
Jennifer
Thornburg, San Tan Valley, Arizona
I started quilting so I could spend time with my
aunt. I didn’t accomplish much until my little sister was put into the
hospital. She lived 13 hours away, which meant I couldn’t be at her side, but I
could pray, and I could make her a blanket. Every stitch was sewn with prayer
and tears, memories woven in between layers of cotton and polyester. Doctors
said she was going to die at least three times. I sewed faster. By God’s good
grace, I delivered that blanket two years ago, and my sister still sleeps under
it today.
Anticipating the next move
Every successful business
strategy is dependent upon making good decisions about the next move.
In a commercial world, we
spend a lot of time planning to create growth. Often those plans rely on
getting the customer to do what we want them to do - so we make our next move.
The businesses that not
only survive but thrive are the ones that anticipate and obsess about the
customer's next move.
They intentionally create
products and services that take the customer where he/she wants to go. The
brands like Netflix, Airbnb, Amazon and so on are masters of planning for our
next move.
When our future is
dependent on our customers, it's their likely next move that should prompt our
next strategy.
Being in HR and your customers (internal) redefining business what
is your strategy - planning seeing their next move, or devising their moves
that you want them to take.
Inspiring true
story Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
EMERGENCY
CONTACT
by
James Gates, Watertown, South Dakota
We’d divorced three years earlier and hadn’t seen
each other since, but for whatever reason, I never took her off my emergency
contact list at the nearest hospital. After my accident, I was put in a
medically induced coma, and when I woke, she was the only person in the room.
She sat in a hospital recliner, watching The View, looking
unshowered. She turned her head casually as I slowly came to. “It’s just like
you to have something like this happen,” she said. “I’m here, so I figure I’ll
get us something to eat. What do you want?”
Nurture
·
"Nurture your mind with great thoughts. To believe in the heroic
makes heroes." - Benjamin Disraeli
·
"The glory of gardening: hands in the dirt, head in the sun, heart
with nature. To nurture a garden is to feed not just the body, but the
soul."
- Alfred Austin
·
"If you nurture your mind, body, and spirit, your time will expand.
You will gain a new perspective that will allow you to accomplish much
more."
- Brian Koslow
Seeing and Hearing
vs
Being Seen and Being Heard.
We learnt as children what
motivates people around us, is the shortcut to gain attention.
As we grew we seem to have
unlearnt this art, this ability to be emphatic communicators when being seen
and being heard becomes our main driver.
We have a better chance of
being heard when we understand what the people we're speaking to are open to
hearing.
We do that by asking
ourselves better questions.
Four Important Messaging
Questions
01. Who is this
information for?
02. What do we want them
to know?
03. Why do they need to
know this?
04. What do we want to
know next?
Communication is not only
about finding the right words but also the right reasons to say them.
Inspiring true story
Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
THE YELLOW
HOUSE
by Rose
McMills, Woodridge, Illinois
I’ve lived in my condo 15 years now—long enough that
I don’t even see it anymore. I started dreaming about moving into a house,
where I was bound to be happier. I fixated on little yellow houses somewhere in
the suburbs of Chicago and watched for them from the train on my commute. “Oh,
look—there’s one!” I’d say as it slid by. Then one day, sitting in the sun on
my patio, I looked up and realized the outside of my condo was done in yellow
siding. I already had a yellow house. And I was home!
Soft Skills Are Really The Hard Skills.
How have a few mastered
them.
When we think about what
gets in the way of great results, great relationships and more enjoyable days,
it really boils down to soft skills. Our attitude towards work and the people
around us. Imagine how much better things would be if everyone on your team
could be described as someone and someone who is...
- Approachable
- Attentive
- Encouraging
- Humble
- Kind
- Resilient
- Resourceful
- Objective
When you are ready to push
things and go beyond the common level of meeting expectations, inspire better
attitudes and better action from everyone (not just yourself) with SMOVE - SMILE & MOVE as a reminder
to happily serve.
SMILE
would mean
- Wake Up
- Be Thankful
- Be Approachable
- Complain Less
- Smile more
MOVE
would mean
- Start early and go along
- Go beyond expectations
- Have a sense of urgency
- Be resourceful and resilient.
SMOVE
on through everyday.
Inspiring true story
Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
SS SERENDIPITY
by
Vernon Magnesen, Elmhurst, Illinois
In July 1915, Henry and his eight-year-old daughter,
Pearl, were excited for the company outing the next day. That evening, Henry
had a violent argument with his landlord, ending with the landlord spitting on
a painting of the Virgin Mary. Henry was so upset, he fell ill and canceled
their trip. He and Pearl missed the cruise on the SS Eastland, which sank with
over 800 people on board—but not my future grandfather and mother. Thanks to
that miracle argument 100 years ago, 22 descendants are alive today.
Switch Off.. Switch On..
Imagine this. You are in a
terrific mood this day because of a great piece of news, you received. You're
excited about it and tell it to your friend with joy. However, he/she listens
to you disinterested as you gush away. And, before you know it, your happy
feeling evaporates, to make you feel discouraged and dumped.
It happens, often for
some, there's no surprise.
May be you, I AND everyone
without exception, has faced a situation like this somewhere, sometime.
Here's an insightful
story, I heard very long ago. I love it. Am never ever tired reading it, or
listening to it.
Buddha, was well known for
his ability to respond to evil with good.
There was a man who knew
about this reputation and travelled several thousand miles to test Buddha.
When he arrived, he stood
before Buddha abused him verbally, heaped unbearable insults and challenged him
to the extent of getting physical. He did everything possible to offend Buddha,
but, Buddha being Buddha, was absolutely unmoved.
He simply turned to the
man and said, "May I ask you a question?"
The man replied,
"Well what?
Buddha said, "If someone gives you gifts
and you refuse to accept them, then to whom does the gifts belong?"
The man replied,
"Naturally to the one who offered it."
Buddha smiled,
"That's correct! So when I decline to accept your abuse and insults, do
they not belong to you?"
The man apologized and
walked away silently.
All of have an MCB (Main
Circuit Board) embedded in our system, we ought to know when to Switch Off, and
when to Switch On.
Prioritize
"The key is not to prioritize what's on your
schedule, but to schedule your priorities." - Stephen Covey
"Pursuit of perfection is futile. Instead, I
prioritize and often realize goals or tasks I've been aiming for just aren't
that important." - Aisha Tyler
"The best we can do is prioritize our needs
and make choices accordingly."
- Janet Evanovich
Busy-Ness
We are all in a state of
Busy-Ness isn't it?
Meet anyone anywhere,
anytime these days and when you ask, "How are you?"
Reply would be,
"Good, but I don't have any time, I'm very busy with work, client calls,
etc., etc.,"
Oh ok, I can understand,
but, let's make a deal, and a real one too.
Just imagine, someone (not
me...surely), came up to you and said I'll give you a Million $ will you do
what you'd like, (not what I would like ok), yeah you heard it right, what
you'd like to do!!!
I bet you'll first go
numb, then become flooded with joy, and when you start thinking back several
fantasies and shelved ideas begging to flower in your mind.
Your perspective will
change.
Suddenly you'll begin to
find time for yourself, your near and dear, your ideas etc.
You'll stop flipping your
mobile for WhatsApp, Twitter, Instagram, FB and other Social Media, then
watching Amazon/Netflix, and you may even stop going to parties.
These are all things that
rob away your time during a waking day. In fact, it's not the actual work that
keeps us busy, it's these gadgets and connections.
You begin to realize how
your valuable time gets chewed away by these rodent distractions.
The point is it is not
about time, (all of us have the same 24 hours a day, not a minute extra, and in
the same space several greats have made life), it is about priorities.
Chalk up your priorities
and attend to them the way you sequence them. Observe, to see how your
Busy-Ness, melts and you begin to have a lotore time for better things in life.
Getting There
In our growing years,
being with our parents, "getting there," meant completing education,
getting a job, settling down, then alliances are entertained, suitable match
found, settled down, having a home if our own and raising a family which we can
afford to feed and look after.
Now, "there" is
a now the exclusive place where accomplishments are built ever higher, boxes are ticked and
accolades rain down.
A transient state of
worthiness, we achieve when we have proof that we've already done enough,
achieved enough, been enough, have enough.
There is a metric that
quickly loses its shining allure once it is met.
A journey we are
encouraged we should be on and a destination which many of us feel we've never
quite arrived.
The "truth," is
we are "there," in the moment every moment when we live without
comparison, or without competition, spending our time wisely. When we give off
ourselves generously, we create ourselves intentionally. It is not some distant
or better horizon, but, a grounded state we can give ourselves permission to
inhabit.
You're already
"there," only if you choose to be.
Are you there?"
Inspiring true story
Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
CLEAR EYES,
FULL HEARTS
by
Stephanie Adair, Metairie, Louisiana
Every day, upon picking up my 11-year-old son from
school, I would ask, “How was your day?”
For years, I got the same response—“Fine, fine”—with
no eye contact.
His autism, it seemed, was going to deprive me of the
normal chitchat parents unconsciously relish.
One early spring afternoon, I asked the question,
expecting the same answer. “How was your day?”
My son replied, “Good, good.”
Then he looked at me and said, “How was your day,
Mom?”
With tears streaming down my face, I said, “It’s
really good—the best day ever.”
Change and Choices
Am sure no one will argue
that change is a constant, and is as inevitable as death is.
We have choices though,
that we can make.
How can we make choices?
Let's appreciate the fact
that when choosing actions there are some things within and some outside our
control.
Of those we can't control
we can keep resisting and keep fighting, at the cost of time, money, energy and
mental strength, or accept things as they are and work out means of going
around them.
That leaves us with things
we can change - those in our control - we can either change them determinedly
by leveraging our capabilities or give up to them.
Then there are
alternatives that come our way at a time and stage we aren't looking for, or
those that don't fit into the scheme of things - the options left for us then
is either reject or keep 'em open.
The wisdom while making
choices, lies in:
- Knowing what we can or
cannot change and then taking action.
- Knowing it can make a
difference, make the choice, when you know that acted upon, it'll make an
impact.
- Being open to
alternative choices too, though they may not have been on our originally
chalked list of wants to change, but may prove to be better when executed.
Finally, once the choice/s
are made, we need to stretch ourselves to the max and toil hard in executing
them with rigour with smarts and with smartness.
Happy Changes to all with
a variety of Choices.
Self-Control
·
"By constant self-discipline and self-control you can develop
greatness of character." - Grenville Kleiser
·
"Emotional self-control is the result of hard work, not an inherent
skill."
- Travis Bradberry
·
"Self-control means wanting to be effective at some random point in
the infinite radiations of my spiritual existence." - Franz Kafka
Content isn't enough,
Confidence is essential too.
A teacher called one of
her students to stand up and recite a poem in front of the class.
The boy started. No sooner
he did she shouted "NO."
Boy became nervous. Looked
at the teacher sheepishly, but, gathering a little courage he began his
recitation again. This time too she yelled "NO.
The boy was confused. He
gave up recitation and sat down.
The teacher asked another
boy to recite.
He began and this time too
she shouted "NO." This boy just went on to finish his recitation
despite all the shouts of "NO, from the teacher.
When he finished, the
reached appreciated it and praised him to the skies while everyone applauded.
At the same time the boy
who started reciting first got miffed and asked the teacher why was he stopped
when he was reciting the poem in the same manner.
The teacher responded son,
"It's not enough if you have a content, you must wear confidence, too.
There are people out there
in the world who will invent a thousand way of interfering, intervening or
interrupting you while doing a particular thing. If you buckle under them,
you'll never be able to complete anything you start. When the do that, you must
have the confidence to translate the interrupting "NO's" with
"YES." Those who test you, tease you, rag you, bully you or pull you
down must become your supporters, your cheerleaders."
Just think it over. How
many of us face things like this in our daily life, be it at work, family or
society.
Our perception has to be
to respond with stronger confidence with an aim which should enable us complete
and showcase, the results.
"YES!!!"
"JUST DO IT."
IT SHOULD BE YES I CAN,
ALWAYS.
A Flawless Story
A fisherman netted a
beautiful pearl with his day's catch.
He looked at it and though
there was a tiny flaw in it, he was proud of his possession.
That very moment his
thoughts transformed to what it might turn his life into if he could eliminate
the tiny flaw, because of the price it could command being big and rare.
He began to scrape it and
peeled one layer. The flaw remained. He went on vigorously scraping and peeling
layer after layer, till the flaw was gone and so was the pearl gone too.
I'm real life too,
everyone we know or meet has some flaw or the other. No one is perfect. And if
we go scraping or peeling them to correct the flaw, we will end up losing every
one of them completely.
Let's therefore learn to
change our mental make up and accept people with flaws irrespective of the
size, mass, colour, creed, background etc., and be happy to see everything and
everyone around you as beautiful only.
Inspiring true story
Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
TINY TREE
Monte
Unger, Colorado Springs, Colorado
A neighbourhood kid with branches and leaves sticking
out of his pockets and a headband came into our front yard.
He looked like a little soldier in camouflage.
“I’m acting like a tree so butterflies will come,” he
said.
As he waited on the grass, I brought out a huge blue
preserved butterfly I’d purchased in Malaysia and hid it behind my back. I
walked over, kneeled, pulled out the butterfly, and said, “A butterfly has come
to see you.” He gasped, and his eyes widened.
His wishes won’t always come true, but one did that
day.
Confidence
vs Overconfidence
I'll call Confidence C" and Over Confidence
"OC."
READ ON...
C: "I can do
it."
OC "Only I can do
it."
C "I know this
subject well."
OC "I know this
subject better than everyone else."
C "I'll strive to
give my best shot."
OC "I'll always beat
everyone every time."
C "My hard work will
help me reach my goals."
OC "I'll reach my
goals regardless of my efforts."
These are not things
people will speak out loudly, there may be some instances, though. These can be
made out by the body language people display.
A fine line divides the
two. While confidence is associated with success, on the other hand
over-confident, is associated can cause or lead
to a downfall
Understanding the
difference is like a ship sailing and another sinking.
Things that can help :
01.
Self-Awareness
-> Emotional Self Awareness.
02.
Emotional Self-Management
->
Emotional Self Control
-> Attitude
-> Adaptability
-> Achievement Orientation
-> Humility
03.
Social Awareness
-> Empathy
-> Environment
Awareness - meaning organization, societal, home etc.
We seriously have no idea
of what people are going through in their personal lives and what all are the
challenges they've got to deal with. The least we can do is to be simple, kind,
nice and helpful.
04.
Relationship Management
-> Influence
-> Conflict Management
When it hurts, just ask
them to observe and remember to tell them life is trying to impart them a
lesson. But before you do that remember this lesson is for you too.
C's of C
Credibility - Context -
Content are very important aspects of any Communication.
Whenever we communicate to
convince people to either support us, who we service or outside them to buy a
product or any idea, we often provide information with context and conviction.
While we do this we assume that people would need a lot of information to help
take a decision that they will need willing to act on.
We don't realize how false
can this assumption be?
Facts and figures alone
aren't enough to pursuade us to take action.
Gifted communicators are
powerful storytellers know that people
need more than just be convincing arguments, endless details of facts and
figures in order to help them decide.
Three things your audience
would want to know.
01. Can I trust the
message and the messenger. (CREDIBILITY)
02. Does the message make
sense? (CONTEXT)
03. Does the message and
the values of the messenger align with values.
(CONTENT)
Persuasion is both an
"art," and a "science."
A compelling argument,
communicated with emotion by a source we can trust and believe in.
Always remember
COMMUNICATION
should be CREDIBLE,
and has to be in CONTEXT,
with the right CONTENT
that has to have CLARITY,
be CARESSED
with the right words
that is delivered with
CONFIDENCE and CONVICTION
to CONVINCE people to take
action.
E
Among all the alphabet’s
of the English Language the alphabet E
is the most Eminent of them all.
With E - everything is possible,
everywhere, every time with anyone and everyone.
E comes from our emergence
in this world and presided over many aspects of whatever the life we live till
we exit.
We have choices to escape
and rue or to experience and grow.
E has emotions in all men
and women, not in plants and animals though. We have it in brothers, sisters,
father, mother, uncle, friends and foes too.
E is there in peace, not
in wars. E gives us life and love.
E is in homes, houses,
clothes, bread, butter, life, spouse and colleagues.
E is in our senses - eyes,
nose, tongue, taste. E is in our important organs - heart, liver, kidney.
E is energy.
E is in organizations -
estimation, evaluation, creation, design, testing, interviewing, hiring, engaging,
exciting, developing, compensating,
remuneration, appreciating, rewarding, retention, retirement, enjoyment. It is
sadly there in retrenchment, and exiting too. If we run into trouble we can
escalate issue to seniors, supervisors up to the Directors or CEO's.
E in our times now in all
exchanges are by
E-mails, E-money,
E-transfer, E-recharge,
E-ticket, E-governance not
to forget Emoji's.
So you see how much
eminent the alphabet E is in our life.
It fits in positively well
in most places where we go, except in the negative call Ego. Let of off the E and go on with life, erasing
hate and memories of the past, embrace everything in the present, and look
forward to the future with hope and excitement.
Learn To...Mathematics
The best mathematics you
can ever learn is to calculate is the cost of your current decisions.
Language
The best language you can
ever learn to speak, read and to write, is the one that can aggregate how your
thoughts and feelings, pan out when it leaves you.
Science
The best science you can
ever learn is the one that keeps your curiosity, alive to invent things in
places far beyond your expectations.
History,
The best history, you can ever learn, is to recall
things that you went through without filters and convert them to learning
experiences not just for today in this moment and the future. Remember, to
erase, the past stories, and create new history.
Geography
The best geography, you
can ever learn, is the world that resides inside you without boundaries, and remove all the limiting beliefs, that are
cramping you from achieving you true potential.
Practice
"Practice does not make perfect. Only perfect
practice makes perfect." -
Vince Lombardi
"Everything is practice." - Pele
"An ounce of practice is worth more than tons
of preaching."
- Mahatma Gandhi
Question
"A wise man can learn more from a foolish
question than a fool can learn from a wise answer." - Bruce Lee
"Question everything. Learn something. Answer
nothing." - Euripides
"By doubting we are led to question, by
questioning we arrive at the truth." - Peter Abelard
Skill
"It is possible to fly without motors, but not
without knowledge and skill."
- Wilbur Wright
"When love and skill work together, expect a
masterpiece." - John Ruskin
"Learning how to learn is life's most
important skill." - Tony Buzan
Change Your Thinking
Business is changing
rapidly, more with disruptions with
technology which is going to shape the future.
Being what it is, it is
time to rethink the traditional pyramid too, with all working from the base and
trying to get to the top.
Invert the pyramid, put
the point at the bottom where you are now (imagine you are starting a new
career, which is because of disruptions), conceive the future for an expending
opportunity horizon where you can move laterally across the spectrum in search
of an ever-widening set of career opportunities. Reinvent yourself regularly.
See the world as an ever-increasing set of realities.
Henry Ford said it
rightly, "Whether you think you can or cannot, you are right."
Scripted especially for
the members of this group in R3 - Raman's Random Ramblings
by
Raman
22/12/2018, 00:58 - Practice the Pause.
It just takes a moment to
change
your thought,
your perception,
your feeling,
your belief,
your intent and
your action,
which can change not just
that moment, but, the day or an entire life
which in turn can change
the world, if only you can practice the pause.
Pause! Pause! Pause!
Pause
before accusing
before judging
before sparking
before assuming
before criticizing.
Pause whenever you are
about to react harshly, then you'll avoid doing and saying things you'll regret
later. You'll never have to feel guilty ever.
Beyond the walls of
belief, there lies a whole different world.
Pause, and Explore.
Extraordinary is..
Really speaking there’s nothing
to be extraordinary.
Being extraordinary is
hardly ever the extravagant gesture, it is the ordinary thing remembered and
done well, like..
Being human
Being present
Care taken
Handcrafted
Eye-contact
Face-to-face
Heart-to-heart
The intangibles
Genuine interest
A timely response
The feeling of belonging
Thinking of someone in person
Executing on the small details
A handwritten note of appreciation
Choosing the best ingredients even if they are expensive
Treating people the way you would want to be treated
These are some that
crossed my mind.
You may add yours to the
list to become extraordinary.
Succeed
"Failure will never overtake me if my
determination to succeed is strong enough."
- Og Mandino
"In order to succeed, we must first believe
that we can." - Nikos Kazantzakis
"However difficult life may seem, there is
always something you can do and succeed at." - Stephen Hawking
Think
"Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to
fail. Failure is another stepping stone to greatness." - Oprah Winfrey
"When you think positive, good things
happen." - Matt Kemp
"Think in the morning. Act in the noon. Eat in
the evening. Sleep in the night."
- William Blake
Fear less
Strange but true our life
is governed by fear. It is instilled in us from the time we are children..
Eat you food, otherwise...
It's sleep time now,
sleep, otherwise..
Study well, otherwise..
This factor called fear
manifests in us so much that we begin to generate our own fears...
Fear of ridicule
Fear of failure
Fear of non-performance
Fear of being cheated
Fear of being alone
Fear of being judged
Fear of being hurt
The list of fear can go on
endlessly and we labour hard to get rid of those fears, all of which are
imaginary.
What we forgot is the
lessons and the values that our parents gave us, and what we gained as
knowledge that we got from school, higher education, our teachers, our friends
etc., which actually equips us to take on life challenges and overcome every
obstacle that comes in the path of our goals.
However, there are things
that most miss out on :
01. Fix realistic goals
02. Have the determination
to chase them down.
03. Maintain focus on the
goals, without being distracted.
04. Think, Think, Think..
05. Fear nothing (the
worst is the fear of dying, yes, so what that will happen anyway and for all
without exception, so why fear anything at all).
Self-Control
"By constant self-discipline and self-control
you can develop greatness of character." - Grenville Kleiser
"Emotional self-control is the result of hard
work, not an inherent skill."
- Travis Bradberry
"Self-control means wanting to be effective at
some random point in the infinite radiations of my spiritual existence." -
Franz Kafka
Perseverance
"Perseverance is the hard work you do after
you get tired of doing the hard work you already did." - Newt Gingrich
"Perseverance is failing 19 times and
succeeding the 20th." - Julie Andrews
"No one succeeds without effort... Those who
succeed owe their success to perseverance." - Ramana Maharshi
Purpose
It's a relaxing winter
morning, the sun warm enough to give you some comfort of warming up. Newspaper
reading done, breakfast over, it may just be some idle time. Thought this would
the apt time to script my message. Here it goes.
You have to have a purpose
in life is what everyone will say.
Yes, it is true. We all
need it. How then do we know our purpose.
Am attempting to simplify
it.
PURPOSE
The First Pillar :
Doing that which you love.
To enable this you need a
PASSION for doing that
which you like and that should become your MISSION, only then you'll enjoy.
The Second Pillar
Doing that which the world
wants from you.
To do this your MISSION
will support you immensely and all that you'll need is to bring your VOCATION,
trained skills upon which you have enough command.
The Third Pillar
Doing that which you can
be paid for.
It is natural that you get
employed for the skills for which there's someone willing to engage you. So
your VOCATION, helps you gets into a PROFESSION.
The Fourth Pillar
Doing that which you are
good at.
You gain experience being
in a PROFESSION, and little by little you begin to carve a nice. To get even
better, you'll need to fall back on your PASSION, which says Doing that which
you love.
So PURPOSE =
doing..
That which you love + That
which the world needs + That which you can be paid for + That which you are
good at.
The Power of Actionable Feedback.
How many times do you politely
leave a restaurant after a bad experience, vowing never to return back, without
letting the manager know what you think?
How often have you stopped
buying from a brand you once trusted?
How valuable would your
feedback be, if only companies were in the habit of asking for it?
It is hard to ask
questions that elicit useful feedback.
Fear about the responses
we might get hold us back because suggestions invariably and inevitably, make
more work for us.
Feedback is a deliberately
cultivated art through observation, learning, practicing, making mistakes
subsequently Learning applying them right, review result and improvise if
necessary, else standardise.
The trick to making
feedback actionable is to ask specific questions of the right people at the
right time.
Final thought.
We do not need everyone's
opinion about everything to improve ourselves, or our products, or our business
or our services, but, it is important to ask the people who matter questions
about things you are willing to change.
Kindness
"Kindness is the language which the deaf can
hear and the blind can see."
- Mark Twain
"One who knows how to show and to accept
kindness will be a friend better than any possession." - Sophocles
"There’s no such thing as a small act of kindness.
Every act creates a ripple with no logical end." - Scott Adams
Improve
"What you do today can improve all your
tomorrows." - Ralph Marston
“There is nothing noble in being superior to your
fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.” - Ernest
Hemmingway
“Become addicted to constant and never-ending
self-improvement.”
- Anthony J. D'Angelo
Succeed You Must.
One must admit that
everyone wants to succeed in whatever they do. But, just thinking will not help
as most live with regrets:
- Worrying too much
- Hide feelings without
expressing themselves even to the ones who care.
- Caring too much about
what others might think.
- Living in the past,
forgetting the present ignoring the future.
- Not daring to risk
...this list can go on
endlessly...
When we focus on problems
we can be sure we will have a lot of them.
When we focus on
possibilities we begin to find several opportunities.
When we focus on
solutions, we do not just get many, but, we could even innovate.
Succeed You Must, and How?
The arrow is pulled back
to the best of the archer's strength and released to hit the target. That's the
only way, it can be, as per rules of physics.
Similarly, we need to pull
ourselves back, leaving us with no other choice, but, succeed. We need to let
the chances of failure become so dire, so unthinkable that we will have no
other choice but to do whatever it takes to succeed.
Someone who lives after
he/she was about to drown, will tell, how he/she beat every odd to reach the
shore safely. He/she will vouch what it
means to have no other choice but to save his/her life and live.
So that's it, do
everything you can because Succeed You Must.
Knowledge
"An investment in
knowledge pays the best interest." - Benjamin Franklin
"Knowledge is power.
Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every
society, in every family." - Kofi Annan
"True friendship can
afford true knowledge. It does not depend on darkness and ignorance." -
Henry David Thoreau
Experiments and Experiences
There are no wrong
decisions.
The decisions are always
right.
If everything goes right
we gain good experience.
If everything goes wrong
we will get a good story.
~ Simon Senek
A Fact and a Story
The forests were shrinking
thick and fast, yet the trees were surrendering themselves to the axe
unconditionally, because it's handle was
made of wood, and the trees thought it was one of them, and didn't suspect anything
would go wrong.
Moral:
Make sure you don't start
seeing yourself through the eyes of those who don't value you. Know your worth
if others don't.
How sad we get betrayed by
our own thoughts.
Making mistakes is our
nature.
Accepting our mistakes reflects our culture.
Correcting our mistakes
defines our stature.
Outstanding
"Outstanding people have one thing in common:
an absolute sense of mission."v - Zig Ziglar
"Human beings are infinitely worth studying,
especially the peculiarities that often go along with outstanding gifts." -
Paul Johnson
"The higher your energy level, the more
efficient your body. The more efficient your body, the better you feel and the
more you will use your talent to produce outstanding results." - Tony
Robbins
Understand
"One of the most beautiful qualities of true
friendship is to understand and to be understood." - Lucius Annaeus Seneca
"Mystery creates wonder, and wonder is the
basis of man's desire to understand." - Neil Armstrong
"If you can't explain it simply, you don't
understand it well enough."
- Albert Einstein
Keep Upgrading
Iron left unused for a
while rusts. Wood left unattended gets eaten by white ants. Edibles if not
consumed a gets decayed. Even if it is a brand new one it'll spoil and decay.
Don't you think the same
applies to our life as well.
Unused God given talent
and natural abilities remaining unutilized, new things unexplored, available
resources unexploited. In addition we ignore the need for skills that we need
for tomorrow that is never learned. All that we have withers away and decays.
We forget that each of us
are a masterpiece creation which should unfold for the world to see. It is time
for us to rewrite the chapters of our story book of life. We need to upgrade
our software regularly and share stories - both of success and those learning’s
which resulted by not succeeding.
This doesn't need to be
done for ego sake, popularity sake or for encashment of any kind.
We need to understand we
are a part of a big
jig-saw puzzle of the
world that makes humanity great.
Every morning remind
yourself that you are still in the game and play your part to perfection, by
being on the move, both mentally and physically. Gain intellect, become wise.
Don't ask how.
Just do it.
Ten years ago we had Steve
Jobs, Bob Hope and Johnny Cash. Today is the time to start again. Don't ever
have to say, "We have no jobs, no hope no cash."
Succeed
"Failure will never overtake me if my
determination to succeed is strong enough." - Og Mandino
"In order to succeed, we must first believe
that we can." - Nikos Kazantzakis
"However difficult life may seem, there is
always something you can do and succeed at." - Stephen Hawking
Smile
"Share your smile with the world. It's a
symbol of friendship and peace."
- Christie Brinkley
"Beauty is power; a smile is its sword." -
John Ray
"Nothing you wear is more important than your
smile."
- Connie Stevens
Who Likes …
Who Likes You Work?
Who loves what you do?
Who tells others proudly
about what you do?
Who wants to meet you, to share
thoughts with you and to be with you?
Who buys your thoughts and
what you say, discussing things threadbare, agrees to disagree, to get the best
of you?
Who makes you care?
Who is the reason for your
being?
Who has the problem you
can solve?
When you get the right
answers to all these questions, be assured, you'll be a step closer to being
your best and you'll also realize you a a lot closer to reaching your highest
potential being human.
Trust
"Love all, trust a few, do wrong to
none."
- William Shakespeare
"Trust yourself, you know more than you think
you do."
- Benjamin Spock
"Trust in dreams, for in them is hidden the
gate to eternity."
- Khalil Gibran
Winner
"You were born to win, but to be a winner, you
must plan to win, prepare to win, and expect to win."
- Zig Ziglar
"Self-praise is for losers. Be a winner. Stand
for something. Always have class, and be humble."
- John Madden
"A winner never stops trying."
- Tom Landry
You Are What You Feel Inside You...
A TV anchor once asked
Martina Navratilova, "How do you manage to keep your focus and how do you
keep yourself fit and manage to play at the age of 43 years to be still at the
peak of your game?"
Her suave response was,
"The ball doesn't know how old I am?"
In his book, "Still
power" Sports Psychologist Garret
Kramer says that, "The key factor to perform and excel, either in sports
or life, is the quality and the quantity of you internal dialogue."
Performance = Potential -
Interference (external and internal).
In other words what this
equation suggests is that you need to stop things that stop you from getting
things you want.
Sports, Fitness, Business,
Life are all games we play on the 6" ground between your two ears.
Reality Check
"A journey of a
thousand miles begins with the first step." ~ Anon.
In life we do so many
things. Some things we wish we had never done, some we wish to replay a million
to.es in our mind. It's all these that makes us what we are today and where we
stand. And today we think to shape our thoughts and details to put us where we
want to be tomorrow and the day after that. We are constantly thinking and
evolving, so is the belief. If we were to reverse any of them in the past,
there's no guarantee we will be the person we are now.
"We judge ourselves
by what we feel capable of doing, others judge us by what we have done."
- Henry Wadsworth
Longfellow.
So, just live making moves
making mistakes, learning from them, garner experience, carve memories, but,
never second guess, even for a second, who you are, where are you and more
importantly where it is going. It will go where it should with you driving it.
The mind gets heated,
continue your marching ahead. Things
that actually counts is not what we can do but what we actually do. Men move
mountains beginning to move stones.
"If you can fly, run.
If you can't run walk. If you can't walk crawl, but, whatever you do keep
moving." - Dr. Martin Luther King.
Celebrate You
It's this time of the year
that everyone reviews what happened in the last few months. Am not going to ask
you to do anything more than
"CELEBRATE YOU"
C - Connect with your
accomplishments, achievements and successes. List out all of it.
E - Everything! List all
things that made you proud (big or all),
from all areas of life - Professional, Personal, Social.
L - Learn from
experiences, (remember that there are mistakes, it's all learning’s), so
include them in your achievements list.
E - Enjoy your
achievements, accomplishments and successes. Review the list. to recall,
relive, enjoy, absorb and appreciate, how far you've come.
B - Boost your
celebration. It's fun to be with others. Who all can you include in your
celebration?
R - Reward yourself. Buy
yourself a useful or a beautiful gift to symbolise your achievements,
accomplishments and successes.
A - Activities can also be
rewards. What activity could be most rewarding to you? What could put a smile
on your face?
T - The 4 W's. Plan your
celebration! Decide - What, When, Where and Who you'll celebrate with? And just
go ahead!
E - Express gratitude.
Spread the celebration! Tell people who helped you along the way, that, you
appreciate them and why?
Y - You are awesome! Round
yourself about this knowing it is your inner strength, hard work, focus and
energy that made all these things happen for you.
O - Observe who you are.
Review your achievements, accomplishments, successes list to
see what are the common themes?
U - Upcoming opportunities
and challenges. Know that you are capable of both achieving opportunities and
overcoming challenges in the future too.
CELEBRATE YOU and have
fun.
Be Happy, Be Content
A Story:
An elderly sage was
walking through a city and found a lot of joyous people and felt happy. And as
he was walking he saw a small gold coin on the path. He picked it up, looked at
it and kept it in his hand, thinking he would give it to the next needy one he
finds. He went street after street, covering the entire city, but found none
that he could give the golden coin.
In the evening on the
outskirts of the city, as he was about to lie down on the slab in front of the
granary, he heard the nose of horse hoofs and some men. He got up to see and
saw it was the King's troop. The King too saw the elderly sage and asked him to
Bless him and his troops as they were marching to wage a war and conquer the
neighbouring country.
The sage looked at the
sky, closed his eyes as if in prayers and immediately handed over the gold coin
to the King.
The King took it in his
hand and was surprised and angry. Surprised because of the offering and angry
as to how dare the sage give him a small piece of gold coin.
He asked the sage,
"What do you mean by giving me this gold coin, when you know I am the king
and I am already so wealthy."
The sage aplogized and
narrated the story of how he found the small piece of gold coin and his intent
of giving it to a needy person.
"Your highness,
throughout the day walking through all the streets of your kingdom I didn't
meet a single needy. Every one was happy joyous and looked contented with what
they had in your beautiful kingdom. Despite everything you have with you and
going for a war to conquer your neighbour to annexe more wealth, I felt you to
be the most needy, hence I gave you the gold coin."
The wise King got the
message and felt ashamed. He immediately called a halt to his troops and asked
his men to return to the palace, saying, "We have enough!"
Moral : When we have
enough we need to be content with what we have. Looking for more may get us
what we want, but, that might be at the cost of someone else too by making them
miserable.
You are You, Always Be You
It's natural that
the Eagle soars so high,
the spirit of the
Butterfly is to flit
the Bee has a buzz about
it
and the Rock stays put,
solid at all times.
We are like the Eagle, the
Butterfly, the Bee or the Rock and many other natural things of the world, at
some time or the other.
We are the pace-setter at
times and the peace-sitter at times. Life may just amble in routines, in
chaotic times we live in, given the speed at which the earth rotates. This norm
isn't for You.
Try not to take things
that others say about you personally, because what they say is a reflection of
them, and not YOU.
It's time to get rid of
the dogmas and work
to create our own norms,
too create our own path, that make the rest of our life, by changing our
outlook, thinking and mentality.
Take appropriate steps to
realize the YOU in YOU and become the real YOU know YOU are and want to be.
Journey of Transformation
In a world of transactions
this might sound like Latin or Greek.
Transformation journey is
often lost between two sets of assumedly intelligent, voices within.
(I don't want to sound
harsh calling them fools.
One keeps asserting that
"this is old and therefore it is good! The other keeps reiterating,
"this is new, therefore better.
Transformation journey's
succeed when someone wise is on hand to guide.
Trying to enlighten
assumedly intelligent is like trying to soften bamboo by pouring milk over it.
Pour as much as you like to your hearts content, the bamboo will never soften,
never bend either.
The journey is lost
between an old thought and the new thought.
The old wanting to retain
everything merely because it is old.
The other wanting to usher
in things merely because it is new.
The disruptions and chaos
that we prevail in is because of the old vs new.
I leave you with an
intriguing thought though....
Imagine the plight of a
poor new born baby in a bath-tub.
Doesn't know whether it will remain or be thrown out?
I U V X Y are interesting alphabets.
Let's explore.
A ... of course is the start
B ... there and C
C ... seeing they say is
believing,
and our
D ... dee...ds are always
counted.
Let's move on.. and go to
I the most self centred alphabet
and word, that is filled with ego and pride.
To know what we really are
we need to have Self-Awareness.
Next comes
U and this is YOU. I
assume U are self-aware, but, if I need to know U then I be Emotionally
Intelligent to know you through your (I's)eyes the way you (C) yourself.
I need to surrender
to U
and with that the bond becomes V (We).
We become a TEAM.
S (YES) now we straight
away (T) tee off to
X which is every mathematician’s delight
but
(Y) do we need to worry
about all these.
If we can remove the
I and it's blood brothers Me and Mine
meaning shunning our ego then all U's and
V's become pure Humans.
This wasn't meant to be a
tongue twister.
The soul is about
Self Awareness,
Understanding, Emotional Intelligence, Togetherness, by removing Ego totally
from the equation.
Love and care for the
others as much as you do yourself. That's joy and happiness assured for all
seasons - more so in the Festive Season.
You are You, Always Be You
It's natural that
the Eagle soars so high,
the spirit of the
Butterfly is to flit
the Bee has a buzz about
it
and the Rock stays put,
solid at all times.
We are like the Eagle, the
Butterfly, the Bee or the Rock and many other natural things of the world, at
some time or the other.
We are the pace-setter at
times and the peace-sitter at times. Life may just amble in routines, in
chaotic times we live in, given the speed at which the earth rotates. This norm
isn't for You.
Try not to take things
that others say about you personally, because what they say is a reflection of
them, and not YOU.
It's time to get rid of
the dogmas and work
to create our own norms,
too create our own path, that make the rest of our life, by changing our
outlook, thinking and mentality.
Take appropriate steps to
realize the YOU in YOU and become the real YOU know YOU are and want to be.
Journey of Transformation
In a world of transactions
this might sound like Latin or Greek.
Transformation journey is
often lost between two sets of assumedly intelligent, voices within.(I don't
want to sound harsh calling them fools).
One keeps asserting that
"this is old and therefore it is good! The other keeps reiterating,
"this is new, therefore better.
Transformation journey's
succeed when someone wise is on hand to guide.
Trying to enlighten
assumedly intelligent is like trying to soften bamboo by pouring milk over it.
Pour as much as you like to your hearts content, the bamboo will never soften,
never bend either.
The journey is lost
between an old thought and the new thought.
The old wanting to retain
everything merely because it is old.
The other wanting to usher
in things merely because it is new.
The disruptions and chaos
that we prevail in is because of the old vs new.
Imagine the plight of a
poor new born baby in a bath-tub.
Doesn't know whether it will remain or be thrown out?
What does Efficiency, Improvement, Change, look
like really?"
Till not so long ago say
from the 90's till recently, if you wanted a passport, you'd have to go near
the passport office, and meet one of the agents who would do all the
documentation submit it in the passport office.
They brought changes
computerising process and eliminated agents, yet, the system never came to settle
down.
Later then it was
announced by the MoEA (Ministry of External Affairs),
announced new measures to
cut waiting time. This was great news for all including me, for one because I
had to always rejig and juggle around with so many other activities to make
this one. The need came for renewing my passport, I arrived for my appointment
and handed over my appointment reference to the helpdesk. The assistant
acknowledged my arrival on time and asked me to take a seat, among scores of
others who were waiting too.
Unbelievably the office
was not working just on time, but, ahead of a schedule too. Someone took me
inside asked for my application, old passport, passport size photographs,
address proof etc., which I handed over. Again someone else came and too me to
another hall and asked to wait saying the Passport Officer is due to arrive. By
the time we met the passport officer it took us another 3 hours.
On the outside it looked
things changed, but, honestly, no much had changed.
I began to say to myself :
01. It is easy to design a
system that looks efficient on paper.
02. It is easy go reply to
an email with a generic reply without even responding to the issue.
03. It is easy to show up
at a meeting without being present while
you're there.
04. It is easy to treat
symptoms than it is to get to the heart of the problem.
Getting to the heart of
the problem and caring enough to fix is way harder. But, ticking boxes or
peering over the cracks doesn't meet our customers desire to feel seen and heard. And it doesn't fulfil our
need to do meaningful work either.
That's why the energy we
devote to getting better at the hard part is worth it.
How do we define and
measure, "Efficiency, Improvement and Changes" will shape the world.
Really speaking this
doesn't need any policy or process, it just calls for an
"attitude," an
"intent," and a "desire," to do it and all of us have that
power, except that it may be in a "coma."
Resolve
As we are nearing the end
of another year being signed off into history, I just want you to resolve some
issues which hangs on almost all of us.
A. 99% isn't good enough.
If you can imagine what 1%
would mean. On any given day Indian Railways runs about 12,620 trains daily.
And assume it runs on a 99% accident free record daily, then there would be at
least 126 accidents reported every day.
This means, be
relentlessly dissatisfied. This surely doesn't mean being unhappy.
Compete against yourself
challenging your own status quo.
Celebrate successes and
gains, do not be complacent.
B. Be Strategic
Let's take "Time
Management," for an example.
We need to learn to
utilize our time and effort strategically and balance many a thing to extract
the maximum out of every second we have for ourselves each day. Remember time
is the most precious thing in life, which we can't buy back however rich we
are.
The art to develop and
practice is how can we multiply it.
C. Sacrifice
"Oh yea - what's
new?" You may ask.
True nothing is new really
- but it is also true you need to give something to get something.
Getting to the
"top" will take a he'll of a lot out of you. Be sure you learn to
make sacrifices of something you were used to. You need to do this consciously
and most importantly never repent.
D. Be Ready To Be
Ridiculed.
The might sound like the
most ridiculous thing you've ever heard, but, you would encounter many of those
who would ridicule your uncanny nature that separates you from them, they will
leave no stone unturned to pull you down. These could be friends, relatives,
peers or whoever else, but, what's important for you is to achieve what you've
set for yourself.
Do not let their cacophony
overpower your will power. Such people are not worth your time to be spent on.
It is not the best and the
smartest who always get to the top. It is just that they are masters of what
has been listed above.
I dare say, you too can,
but, you need to work for that.
Do not just dream, act
too.
Story of a Shark
During a research experiment a marine
biologist placed a shark into a large holding tank and then released several
small bait fish into the tank.
As you would expect, the shark quickly swam
around the tank, attacked and ate the smaller fish.
The marine biologist then inserted a strong
piece of clear fiberglass into the tank, creating two separate partitions.
She then put the shark on one side of the
fiberglass and a new set of bait fish on the other. Again, the shark quickly
attacked.
This time, however, the shark slammed into the
fiberglass divider and bounced off.
Undeterred, the shark kept repeating this
behaviour every few minutes to no avail.
Meanwhile, the bait fish swam around unharmed
in the second partition.
Eventually, about an hour into the experiment,
the shark gave up.
This experiment was repeated several dozen
times over the next few weeks.
Each time, the shark got less aggressive and
made fewer attempts to attack the bait fish, until eventually the shark got
tired of hitting the fiberglass divider and simply stopped attacking
altogether.
The marine biologist then removed the
fiberglass divider, but the shark didn’t attack.
The shark was trained to believe a barrier
existed between it and the bait fish, so the bait fish swam wherever they
wished, free from harm. ~~~
The moral:
Many of us, after experiencing setbacks and failures, emotionally give
up and stop trying. Like the shark in the story, we believe that because we
were unsuccessful in the past, we will always be unsuccessful. In other words,
we continue to see a barrier in our heads, even when no ‘real’ barrier exists
between where we are and where we want to go.
Value is everywhere
When we learn
how to look for it, we can find value almost anywhere, in just about any
situation.
There are situations
all around we that contain potential value. All we have to do is learn to
recognize this value, and then determine how to extract it and convert it into
wealth. It is similar to crude oil beneath the ground. We know it’s down there
somewhere -- the trick is to find it, get it out, and make something useful
(like gasoline) out of it.
Where do we
look for hidden value?
We can begin
with ourselves. Think of all the skills and knowledge we possess. Sit down and
make a list of all the things we do well. Now, let’s look at our list and ask
ourselves this question: “Who could benefit from the skills and the knowledge
that we possess?”
Open our mind
and consider the possibilities. Then figure out a way to sell our skills and
our knowledge to those people. It could be in the form of a “how to” report.
Perhaps we’ve figured out a unique way that saves costs in business, in a
service. People will pay we for that technique.
We can also
find hidden value in other people and other businesses.
The trick is
to look at every situation and try to find value in it. When we start doing
this, unlimited possibilities open up, not only for material gain but for
personal development as well. Take a look around we. What hidden values can we
detect?
We’re worth more than we think
We probably
have some idea of our current net worth. Do we?
Chances are,
we know approximately what our house is worth, how much money we have in the
bank, the value of our investments, and how much debt to subtract from all
that.
However,
those tangible assets are trivial compared to the hidden, intangible assets
that we possess. No matter what we’ve managed to accumulate to date in material
wealth, it cannot compare to the wealth that lies hidden within us.
One of the
most powerful things we can do is to become aware of this wealth, and start
using it to our best advantage. Once we understand all the treasures that we
already possess, unlimited possibilities open up for us.
Ask....Ask....Ask...
A way to Make It
EASIER For Others To DO, What We Want-Than NOT To!
Until we learn
and use the methods of ASKING, as learnt from the early stages of life, we will
find it difficult to realize how easy it is to get what we want just by
properly ASKING for it!
The proper method
is for us to make it easier for others to do what we reasonably ASK-than not to
do it.
Here's how:
Why People Will
Do What We WANT.
All of us have
been taught, trained, and "attitude-conditioned" to do what we are
ASKED. This "doing what is ASKED" is a form of "learned
response" which is begun in early childhood, and continues throughout
life. Without it, civilization could not have functioned smoothly and the
result would be chaos, total conflict and the ultimate destruction of organized
society. Not only must we ASK but we need be reasonable, it must sound
reasonable. The more reasonable our request is and the more readily it will be
granted.
We ought to ASK
persuasively.
The method of
ASKING depends upon using the Personal Influence which is the Psychology of
influence-by-persuasion. Never DEMAND! Never even sound demanding.
We ought to ASK
pleasantly-without pressure.
We ought not to
let our voice or manner imply pressure. Pressure creates resistance-and
resistance is the exact opposite of what you want. What we want is agreement,
cooperation and friendly compliance.
We ought to ASK
positively.
We need to let
our voice and manner, in every way, imply that, of course, the other person
will be agreeable and cooperative by gladly doing what we ASK for.
We ought to ASK
firmly.
This is the most
difficult (and probably the most important) technique of ASKING
successfully-because we must give the firm impression that what we ASK for is
so reasonable, logical and just - that we should pleasantly persist until we
get it!
The needed skill
is to ASK firmly - with the implication of continuing persistence - BUT we need
to do it courteously, reasonably, persuasively, pleasantly, without any
offensive pressure and without threatening argument. We need to develop the
skill of implying persistence-without pressure. When we master this skill, we
will make it easier for others to do what you want-than not to do it! And our
success is thereby assured! This applies to our dealings with everybody -
individuals, groups, businesses.
Let's use businesses as an example:
The most
successful businesses have learned that it simply requires too much valuable
time to argue with a customer or a prospect. At today's high wage-rates,
executive and employee time probably will cost much more than whatever could be
gained or saved by arguing.
The most
expensive element in business is time! Time is too costly to waste in arguing.
The usual
business policy now is: If what a customer or prospect ASKS is reasonable and
if the cost of doing it does not greatly exceed the cost of arguing about why
the business may not do it-then best is to do it pleasantly, agreeably, and
promptly - without wasting any time arguing!
This policy began
many years ago, when the more intelligent businesses started using the now
famous slogan: "The customer is always right!"
Their sales
skyrocketed - and so did their profits!
Now almost all
businesses have adopted this policy, even though they may no longer visibly
display the slogan: "The customer is always right!" Arguing costs too
much. Arguing with customers and prospects not only wastes costly employee and
company time, but it loses sales and it incurs ill will. Every cost-conscious,
customer relations-minded business acts on the proven principle that it is less
costly, as well as good business, to agree with its customers and prospects,
and promptly comply with their reasonable requests.
Businesses have
learned the high cost of not doing what people reasonably ASK! So we can be
sure that most businesses will respond favorably to what we ASK. In fact,
almost all people will do what we reasonably ASK - for the very practical
reason that it probably will be easier to do what we ASK, than to risk the
time-consuming explanations, discussions and possible argument ~ which might
result from refusing your reasonable, logical, courteous request. Also,
agreeably doing what we ASK will win our goodwill which is preferable to
incurring our ill will by refusing to do what we pleasantly and expectantly
ASK.
ASKING ~
positively persuasively, firmly, pleasantly-without pressure or demand, will
get us things we want.
Always Soliciting
Kindly, is the way to go.
Beyond the Ordinary Syndrome
People who try
their best at whatever they are doing will not waste time, and they do not
manifest any of the symptoms of this suitability syndrome.
“Good enough”,
just isn’t good enough for people who try. No matter what we do. We should like
to do it thoroughly. That is the key to success. And we have to instill
this principle of doing things thoroughly, in all those people who are
associated with us. That is a principle that people should apply to everything,
not just products. Doing your very best until the very end is not only
important it is also essential. So it's a hope today’ young will immerse
themselves in creative, distinctive activities rather than just studying
“enough” and following the crowd. Picking what is right for us and depending
on our capabilities, and ensuring that we give our everything, is the way to
go.
Only then will
the sweat of our effort yesterday for today carry on to tomorrow. Whether one
is studying or making a living, “good enough”, should not be good enough for
any of us. The crux is look beyond the ordinary.
Just some little
hints as to how you would want to do it..
There are many
good ways to demonstrate value to our employers, but there are also some things
we need to avoid:
IF
WE WOULD WANT TO GET AHEAD - WE SHOULD NEVER SAY……
We
should NEVER SAY, "They didn't get back to me” or “they are getting back
to me.” Leaving the ball
in someone else’s court, for all intents and purposes, stops the action. Take
the initiative.
We
should NEVER SAY, "I thought someone else was taking care of
that." An excuse like
that is a roadblock to action. Instead, we need to look into what is going on
in order to keep things moving.
We
should NEVER SAY, "No one told me." When we let our manager hear us talk this way,
we make a very clear statement about how we work. In other words, we are
oblivious to what is going on around us.
We
should NEVER SAY, "I just assumed….” Making assumptions is the best way to make
ourselves obsolete.
We
should NEVER SAY, "I left him/her a message." This doesn’t absolve us of your responsibilities
and in real terms it means we have really accomplished anything.
We
should NEVER SAY, "I didn't know you wanted me to do
that." Teflon is passé
in today’s business world. Statements such as this suggest that we are capable
of doing only what we are told and not much more.
We
should NEVER SAY, "I didn't have time,” or "I was too
busy." If we find
ourselves saying those things, we need be aware that we are probably writing
our employment obituary and that our job tombstone will read, "Here lies
Jack... , Jill... , XYZ..., who couldn't handle the job."
We
should NEVER SAY, "But it wasn't due until….". Last minute performance is out. Managers know
that what's done at the last minute doesn't leave enough time for proper
evaluation, revision, and refinement. Second-rate performance just isn’t good
enough.
We
should NEVER SAY, "It's scheduled for….." The schedule is only important if completion
will be on time. Schedules must be actively verified as many times as
necessary.
We
should NEVER SAY, "As I understand it….” We should stop playing games at work, which is
near to "politics," or at least the way it is said, we're hedging and
that spells trouble for us. Using words like this indicates that we're a spectator,
not an active participant. Spectators don't play the game and they don't get to
share in the rewards.
We
should NEVER SAY, "I'll do it as soon as I get it from….” This is not good enough. If we think we’re just
a cog in the process, we’ll soon be out of a job. Even though it may not be our
fault that it’s late, we need to make it our goal, nay, our purpose to deliver
on time, every time.
We
should NEVER SAY, "I'm going to get on that right away." Sure we will, but only after someone had to
remind us about it! Doing this we're sending the message that we are
disorganized and that we deal with things only when someone else brings them to
our attention. If that’s the case, let's be assured our days are numbered.
We
should NEVER SAY, "I've been trying to get everyone together, but…” This just doesn't wash these days. Such a
statement makes it appear that we can't handle responsibility, or that our
associates and colleagues don't even respond to our requests. Either way, we’re
in trouble.
We
should NEVER SAY, "I haven't been able to get through to
him/her…” Surely, despite
mobiles getting people is still a mighty big issue these days, it ranges from
being switched off, to any number of reasons including they would not want to
speak to us. The communication barriers are higher than ever before. Getting
creative, and doing what it takes to get the response we were looking for, is
the key. Sitting back and making excuses is only a sign that we can't cut the
mustard!
The
message in business today is very clear. The only measure for success is
performance - our performance, company performance, industry performance... and
the chain moves on. Whatever
roadblocks we may face, its our job to remove them. Otherwise, we'll be
perceived as just another one of the barriers and something to be eliminated.
Let's go beyond
the "ordinary syndrome," and become one who accomplishes, not one who
is "perfectionist," who struggles to accomplish many things.
Pencils, the First Known Keyboard In Life
It's been the same
then and now, the first alphabets we learn to write are with a pencil, and later move on to other writing devices
like the pen to such a thing like I am doing write now penning this to you all
through the laptop's keyboard. And when we go back in time, every learned
person, every scientist, every inventor used the same device to write, the "pencil." It
plays an enormous role in our life, yet very humble, very modest, very
unassuming, to such an extent that it goes virtually unnoticed. Very hard
to imagine what our life would have been without the "pencil."
There's also a
small anecdote as to how the "pencil" was found useful when man was
exploring space. We need just to Google to get the entire list of
cosmonauts, but one thing that is common to all but that which has never been
mentioned at all is the "pencil."
There was a
massive problem about objects moving when the space craft is out of the earth's
gravity. Everything inside would be floating. And a writing device like a pen
had a few more problems, ink wouldn't flow down the barrel to the pen's nib, or
ball point pens would freeze. Therefore taking down any note became an issue.
Several learned heads, engineers, technologists put their heads together, spent
hours, and millions of dollars, without any concrete result, till one find day,
someone felt and asked, "What do the Russians do?" They went
back to them posed the problem and asked them, as to what do they do. Their
reply was simple, "What happened to the pencil?" That sounded a
brilliant idea which was flashed back to NASA, and it is said, it was from that
time that they too began using the "pencil." So you can now see that
the "pencil" has made several trips to outer space too.
Sometimes you and
I are also like the "pencil," and
in many ways.
You can get to
understand a lot more, please read this ....
"THE
PARABLE OF THE PENCIL"
The Pencil Maker
took the pencil aside, just before putting him into the box.
“There are 5 things you need to know,” he told the pencil, “Before I send you out into the world.
Always remember them and never forget,
and you will become the best pencil you can be.”
One: “You will be able to do many great things, but
only if you allow yourself to be held in someone’s hand.”
Two: “You will experience a painful sharpening
from time to time, but you’ll need it to become a better pencil.”
Three: “You will be able to correct any mistakes
you might make.”
Four: “The most important part of you will always be what's inside. What
is in the you is greater than what is around it. The core in you are
greater than the environment surrounding you. Your potentials will change your
environment.”
And Five: “On every surface you are used on, you must
leave your mark. No matter what the condition, you must continue to write.”
The pencil
understood and promised to remember, and went into the box with purpose in its
heart.
Now replacing the
place of the pencil with us - you and me. Let's always remember them and
never forget, and we can become the best person we can be.
One: “We will be able to do many great things,
but only if we allow yourself to be held by our hand in our early years.
And allow other human beings to access us for the many gifts
we possess.”
Two: “We will experience a painful sharpening
from time to time, by going through various problems in life, but we’ll
need it to become stronger persons.”
Three: “We will be able to correct any mistakes
we might make. We just need an eraser for accompaniment”
Four: “The most important part of we will always
be what’s on the inside.”
And Five: “On
every surface we walk through, we must leave your mark. No matter
what the situation, we must continue to do our duties.”
Let's allow this
parable on the pencil to encourage us to know that we are a special person
and only each of us can fulfill the purpose for which we were born to
accomplish. Let's realize our "purpose." Let's never allow
ourselves to get discouraged to even imagine that our life is
insignificant and cannot make a difference.
So many people
spend years (and money) studying to become doctors, lawyers, actors, dancers,
business executives and scientists - any of us, you, me any one can can be any
of these things, and we will not need a degree or certificate for our imagine
with an open mind, a dream to realized, which we can, and so let's keep a "pencil" to keep our company, so we would want
to "pencil" our thoughts, when mind-jogging,
We know too much… feel too little
Let me begin with
a story:
“A telephone
operator, in a small town would receive a call from a man who would ask the
exact time. Finally curiosity getting the better of him one day, he asked the
caller why he did every day.
“Because,” he
said, “I’m the one responsible for blowing the whistle at noon each day.”
“Well that’s strange,”
the operator replied, “everyday exactly at noon I set my clock, hearing your
whistle.”
It’s unknown
inter-dependence. Individuals can’t be compartmentalized. Through our actions,
direct/indirect, we impact each other more that we can imagine or realize. It
follows that we have all been created to preside over a certain period on this
planet by inter-dependence and intra-dependence, so it is vital that we
understand one another better.
One way to learn
about emotions, a key to understand human behavior and relationships. Pity that
some people live under the illusion that they are independent.
Expressing
‘emotions,’ is a part of life, unlike words, which we can use to express
ourselves. Emotions are rarely put in words. Individuals may or may not choose
to express disappointments or failures, but their tone or voice, becomes
critical, which is not what is said, but how it is.
Our emotions can
either energize or sap our physical body. What lies between ‘ease’ and
‘disease,’ is the invisible world of ‘emotion.’ Grief, anger, fear and negative
emotions tend to stay with us more longer, much after the provocation dies
down. Sad feelings last indefinitely and that is why we constantly remember the
beloved one’s lost. Happy feeling on the contrary, come in a hurry and go in a
hurry. This fleeting style of happiness is hardly ever remembered too long in
life.
Being anxious about the ‘future’ or regretful about the ‘past’ we let
the fullness of the ‘present,’ slip into nothing. Confronting this vast reservoir of unprocessed
‘emotion,’ is most challenging.
Reflection provides direction. Expression is
the bridge to the emotional world, but emotional well-being lies beyond mere
expressions. We need to care for emotions and develop professional practices to
integrate our physical and emotional well-being, not unconsciously,
incidentally by fumbling, or accidentally by stumbling, but by a determined,
deliberate and a conscious effort, otherwise, even the best of intent, we will
end up being caught in old habits, which it is said dies hard.
I sign off with this story of blending and
bondage, we are all so used to:
"The tea
leaves fall into boiling water knowing very well that it will be thrown away as
waste after use. Sugar jumps into the hot tea decoction fully aware that it
will dissolve and lose its identity. Milk willingly unites with the black tea
with the full knowledge that it will lose its fair complexion and become brown.
The outcome of the sacrifice on the part of the tea leaves, sugar and milk is
that a delicious cup of tea is born !"
You’ll find the
idea fanciful, yet, quite thought provoking. How many sacrifices, compromises,
adjustments, letting go of egoistic attitudes
etc., is required in order to achieve something wonderful in life, be it
family, community, society, nation or the world!
However, there's
a catch here : The ingredients have to be in the right proportion, but doesn’t
that 'right' proportion vary from person to person?
Each to his/her
cup of tea, his/her lot in life!
Shy
of Asking for help!
Asking for help
is universally dreaded--but it's a skill that we can learn.
The first
question I have to ask is do we resist asking for help--until it's our last
resort?
If the answer is
yes, then you’ve already joined the crowd.
The fierce
independence we all enjoy these days is creating a culture of live disconnected
and connect only if you want to is giving rise to unprecedented isolation.
Attendance @ social meetings is down, involvement in community activities has
dropped, and to simply having friends over to the house has decreased too.
Meanwhile, one in three people say they have no one to confide in -- and most
everyone reports overwhelming levels of stress at home and on the job.
The good news?
We can learn to
ask for help.
But first, we've
got to figure why you don't, why we should, and how we can.
Why we don't ask for help
Asking for help
is so frightening that, even when faced with death, some of us will still not
ask for that helping hand. To overcome this dread, you've got to debunk some
common cultural myths--and face your fears:
Myth
: Asking for help makes us look weak or needy.
Reality
: There's no shame in turning to others in times
of need. In fact, it's a sign of strength.
Myth
: Asking for help signals incompetence--especially
at work.
Reality
: Seeking help at work shows others that you want
to do the job right-
-and to develop and learn.
Myth
: Asking for help can harm relationships.
Reality
: Healthy relationships are about
give-and-take--not just give.
Myth
: Asking for help puts others in an awkward
position.
Reality
: It's human nature to offer help when you see
someone in need--and
it's no different when others see
us in need.
Myth
: Asking for help might lead to rejection.
Reality
: Even a "no" response offers the
opportunity to learn more about
yourself--and your relationships.
Myth
: Asking for help means the job might not get done
right.
Reality
: Refusing to ask for fear of losing control
maintains the status quo.
Let go and give our helpmate a
chance to shine.
Myth
: Asking for help means we'll have to return the
favor.
Reality
: Help freely given comes with no strings
attached--other than a
simple and sincere thank-you.
Myth: Asking for help just isn't our way of living.
Reality
: Independence and self-sufficiency are admirable
qualities that lead
to success. Still, all great
enterprises--including our nation--were
built on mutual support and
teamwork.
Why we should ask for help
Mastering this
art can ease and enhance our life and career in a variety of ways.
Asking
for help:
-
Deepens connections : When someone
answers our call for help, it strengthens the bond between us--or creates the
potential for a new relationship.
- Reduces stress and restores energy : Getting help can save you time and energy,
simplify our life, and improve our work-life balance.
-
Reminds us that you're not alone : Everyone
needs help at times. If you're the type who endures hardships with grim
determination, you'll discover you don't have to go it alone.
- Gives happiness to others : Don't we feel good when we help someone else?
Letting others help us gives them that same opportunity.
- Leads to personal growth : Taking risks, learning to trust, and finding out
that others have got our back are just a few of the lessons we'll learn.
- Allows the pleasure of surrender : Being out of control can actually feel great.
Once asking for help gets a little easier, we'll relish the experience of
letting go.
- Reminds
you that we're worthy of support : We deserve a hand as much as
anyone else. When someone comes to our aid, it reinforces that message.
- Lets others shine : Seeking help gives others the opportunity to
reach out, contribute, and try something new.
-
Clarifies relationships : Mayday calls
reveal the strengths and limitations of relationships--and provide important
"aha" moments.
-
Solves problems : Don't overlook the original reason for the
Mayday call: We're in trouble and need help--help that could potentially
change, or even save, your life.
How
we can ask for help
Too many of us
would rather go it alone when help is right there--just for the asking.
Here are ways to
reach out with comfort and confidence:
-
Practice : Like building our
muscles requires regular exercise.
Challenge ourselves to ask for help three
times a day--every day.
- Go easy on ourselves : Self-care is the
new self-help. Be compassionate
with our self--and remember that we, too,
are deserving of help.
- Cast a wider net : Expand our list of
helpmates. Look beyond the obvious—
family and friends, and colleagues -- and
add some new names to the list,
starting with someone who's been in our
shoes.
-
Plan the time--and place : Talk to our
potential helpmate as soon as
possible. Pick a convenient time for him or
her, and do it in person--and in
private.
-
Be specific : Articulate our
needs. Clarify what we're looking for--from
terms to timelines--though be careful not to
micromanage.
-
Listen differently : Be attentive to
the subtle cues behind a general "yes" or
"no" response. Is your potential
helpmate willing--or reluctant?
- Use the
"three thanks" rule : Don't flub the thanks. Express
our gratitude
three times--when the agreement is struck,
when the need has been met,
and when we next see your helpmate.
Ask
early, ask often - No one is immune
from needing help, even in today's go-it-alone culture. So, take a risk and
"make the ask"--early and often. It just may change our life!
I need help.
I really need it,
as
I want to know
each of you all even more than I know you now.
I want to enhance
my stature as a human being, so I want to get even closer to you all.
I want cheer to
prevail on me, and I can do it only when I can see we all
cheerful.
Am not being
selfish, but I have asked for these three helps for this day, please offer it
to me.
Inspiring true
story Originally Published in the Readers Digest.
BACKUP
BAND-AID
Babette
Lazarus, New York, New York
I was riding the subway and happened to be seated
between two young guys. The one on the right eyed the slightly grungy Band‑Aid
on my thumb and said, “You should really change that, you know. You have to
keep it clean.” Then the one on my left said, “Here, I have one,” and pulled a
fresh Band‑Aid out of his knapsack. “I keep them on me because I’m always
hurting myself.” Incredulous, I thanked him, changed my bandage, and got off at
my stop feeling pretty good about people, life, and New York City.
Mission
"To succeed in your mission, you must have
single-minded devotion to your goal." - A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
"Outstanding people have one thing in common:
an absolute sense of mission." - Zig Ziglar
"My measure of success is whether I'm fulfilling
my mission."
- Robert Kiyosaki
We Are Enrolled In A School Called Life
Name of the school - LIFE.
Class of Standard - 40
Average age of students - 40
Class Strength - 62
Scene early in the morning
Teacher taking attendance calls out the names of
students
01. Affection -
Absent sir 02. Anger - Present sir
03. Anxiety - Present sir 04.
Animosity - Present sir
05. Arrogance - Present sir 06.
Aggression - Present sir
07. Boredom - Present sir 08.
Callousness - Present sir
9. Complacency - Present sir 10.
Contentment - Absent sir
11. Curiosity - Absent sir 12.
Deceit - Present sir
13. Desires - Present sir 14.
Disappointments - Present sir
15. Excitement - Present sir 16.
EMI - Present sir
17. Falsehood - Present sir 18.
Frustration - Present sir
19. Greed - Present sir 20.
Gratitude - Absent sir
21. Happiness (No sound) -
Happiness (No sound again)
Happiness
- Absent sir 22.
Hi-handedness - Present sir
23. Hot-headedness - Present Sir 24.
Insomnia - Present sir
25. Intelligence - Present sir 26.
Inquisitiveness - Present sir
27. Jealousy - Present sir 28.
Kindness - Absent sir
29. Knowledge - Absent sir 30.
Keen-ness - Absent sir
31. Laziness - Present sir 32.
Love - Absent sir
33. Lust - Present sir 34.
Madness - Present sir
35. Methodical - Absent sir 36.
Nuisance - Present sir
37. Obedience - Absent sir 38.
Obesity - Present sir
39. Orderliness - Absent sir 40.
Organization - Absent sir
41. Pain - Present sir 42. Peace of
mind - Absent sir
43. Pleasure - Present sir 44.
Pressure - Present sir
45. Pride - Present sir 46.
Quirky - Present sir
47. Relationship - Absent sir 48.
Respect - Absent sir
49. Regards - Absent sir 50.
Sadness - Present sir
51. Sickness - Present sir 52.
Stupidity - Present sir
53. Tension - Present sir 54.
Uncertainties - Present sir
55. Uneasiness - Present sir 56.
Usefulness - Absent sir
57. Values - Absent sir 58.
Vulnerability - Present sir
59. Weakness - Present sir 60.
Weekends - Absent sir
61. Worries - Present sir 62.
Zeal - Present sir
Class Teacher - "It's sad that
simple people are absent today.
School LIFE IS SIMPLE, it has no syllabus, but just subjects to learn, and
knowledge to gain. There are no exams, marks or grades, only experiences to
gain. Let's begin today's class, MAKE
LIFE SIMPLE."
Being
“Me”
You hear this
almost every second, “Times
Are Changing.” And
it is true, because everything
is changing at a hectic pace all around us. It’s good to be
trendy and fashionable, but it is also good to be comfortable with what we wear in line with our age. What matters most is we should look and feel comfortable with what
we wear and not that we wear outfits according to
set pattern or parameters set by others. This is also true of the
“attitude” we choose to wear. Somewhere within us we need to hear
this in us.
Competition
has become the order of the day, and so it has become an integral part of today’s
life, be it launching our career or changing it mid-way. In fact, competition
sets into our lives much earlier than it ever was. Let’s
not be surprised, there is a competition of the yet-to-be-born’s while in
the womb itself, that’s the biological truth too, and every adult understands
this thoroughly.
Get a job, be in
it till retirement is like a story from the “epics.” Young people will
not subscribe to this thought at all. They may not even believe it(remember reading
Ripley’s Believe It Or Not Stories).
Changing
jobs is the ‘thing,’ for growth by way of experience in different domains, along with hefty
compensation packages and by status beyond ordinary. Perhaps it is the version
of the generation which is mid-way now defining the new way of life. The
generation following this thinks it’s got to be faster than it is now.
Absolutely nothing wrong in this sort of thinking.
“Times
Are Changing.” With more
education and with more and more parents educated too, parents refuse to make
high percentages the be-it-all-end-all if their children. There’s more time
being spent by parent’s on the development of the child, now than even before.
The types of talents we come across these days on TV reality shows testify this
trend more than ever before.
The huge
participation in the myriad of the TV reality shows be it music, dance, quiz or
comedy etc’, is about celebrating talent in people like us. The feeling that we could have been there, by speaking within us
in words that might sound like “had it been for…..,” “but for….,” is what keeps
us in the game and hooked to watching these shows. We believe in this, as we
tell ourselves and the others “I can do that too.” The
difference is between the thought and the reality.
Truly
being ourselves and celebrating life for what it is, has got to be the
“attitude.” For a long time
now we’ve been used to letting others telling us what’s good, what’s bad, as we
have surrendered the powers within us and letting everyone else decide what’s
good or bad for us.
Let’s make the
whole of this year about regaining the inherent power within us to decide about
our standard for life.
We are already
sharing many things, like never before, with so many others, seen/unseen,
known/unknown, thanks to, ‘the internet, the technology and the social media
including a professional one like LinkedIn.’ We become not only informed, we do
come across like minded people strung across the globe. We are certainly moving
away from being ‘dominated,’ by a set of notions and thoughts, all the time,
and once we unconsciously are respecting ourselves and our originality.
It’s about honouring
and cherishing our life. It’s got to be, it’s of and about “BEING ME.” Getting
in touch with our emotions is a way of life that we will see more of “BEING ME,” which is also finding relationships that
reflect our ‘values.”
It’s about
recognizing that our life doesn’t happen to us, but we make it happen. In doing
so we look at some of the things we have forgotten for a while now, for eg.,
the theatre, the music, the symphony, adventure, arts and crafts etc., just to
see how we can bring back their magic into our life.
To do such a
thing, we need to get into the driver’s seat. We need to decide what we need to
do with our time and money, our emotions, our work-life balance, and live life
the way we want to in spite of the frenzy pace be it in a metropolis of
otherwise.
If we valued
ourselves, we would be more at peace with ourselves. We would see more things
clearly, as a result, take better decisions.
To do everything
without a hurry or scurry.
‘The rushing
around that takes us now where,’ which unfortunately has become the trademark
of our lives, and in the process make space for more meaningful
experiences in life.
We
just need to remind ourselves that we need to value not only our life but those
of everyone around us. Let us value others for who they are rather than not
what we would like them to be.
I
will close this to let you know that you all would say to yourselves, it’s all
about “BEING ME.”
Put
life into focus...
Why nobody cares for you? Because
they're living their own life.
You may get depressed by thinking that you're alone in this world. You don't
have any partner to share all your in-depth thoughts & emotions. Even your
life partner misunderstands you at times. Nothing is going according to your
choice. People don't understand what you want to make them & so on...
What are you thinking! "Oh my gosh! I feel likewise most of the
time!" Have you ever asked yourself why your thinking pattern is going to
be so self centric? I believe you didn't or you did but got no clue.
Reality is we all are alone in this world. We only have some emotional &
biological engagements that make us social creatures. But always there are some
feelings you can't share. In childhood there were some secrets you never told
parents. In family life there are something you hide from your partner. During
old age you'll have some secrets not to be shared with children. All those
secrets make the identity which we utter as "I". Otherwise, rest are
common.
Problem arises when you either try to please everyone or try to be good to
everyone. Just impossible! We're not clones! There must be some deep level
difference which you're trying to provide a make shift balance on surface
level.
Put
life into focus...
Want to be a champ? Work hardest.
Want to retain championship? What to do for that? Any clue?
Want to sit on boss's chair? Yes or No?
You'll definitely answer affirmative. Do you understand what promotion means?
It's positive result is you'll get monetary benefit as well as portfolio
prestige. But it's negative result is your employment opportunity will decrease
in numbers. The higher you'll climb on corporate ladder, lesser will be your
options to change organization. Isn't it scary?
Of course it's scary for many, but not for all. Those who are bold enough to
take long term decisions by sacrificing negligible blocks & short term
benefits can have proportionately better chance to survive in a leadership
role.
Same ideology applies for all heading a family to heading a nation. There will
always be something objectionable or disagreeable. But leader must be
courageous enough to continue withought taking a step backward for collective
gain.
Put
life into focus...
Healthy relationship is never perfect.
It's not like a romantic love story that contains feel good ambience everytime
& all the time. It's full of differences, flaws, emotional tussles,
arguments, romance, good times, night outs, etc.
It's a complete package of odds and evens.
Looks pretty identical with yours? What are you thinking? " Awe... we've
all these things in our life. What special you're saying!!"
Do you think you're not in healthy relation? If yes, why?
Because you get affected with ongoing events. Be it loving or quarreling, your
thinking gets fully occupied with that flowing emotion & the moment you
experience something contradictory, you fail to hold emotional outburst.
Don't you feel that you're missing something?!
Yes, you're. And that's a small space in your heart. Take it under consideration
whenever your thinking feels a tremor. Don't go all through with brain. Take
your heart also & feel how enthusiastic the journey is!
Because heart can trust & can't conspire.
Put
life into focus...
Irony of life. That's why we are not
happy with own life. Everytime we think others are in far better situation.
It's a problem of our distant vision. Not ophthalmic, but psychological.
A sense of pure social competition is responsible for vision disorder. Process
to overcome is also very easy.
You've to concentrate on yourself. Compare & compete with yourself. You
very well can have one or more idol, but to reach their status you need to
improve yourself inch by inch. If you're not aware about own base, how can you
measure growth!
Better to accept yourself as it is. Know the true self. Determine how long
you've to go to reach the ideal self & what you need to do for that. Once
you're confident, just start. Don't think of failures, that's inevitable.
Until & unless you aren't experiencing darker phases, you can't land on
bright spot. So, want to shine like Sun? Be ready to burn like it frst. Don't
look at the grass on other side. It'll always look greener.
Put
life into focus...
Once Radio was society symbol. Owner
used to be considered as a rich man. As population was not very dense, antenna
of radio on rooftop was seen from long distances. Even owner had to spend Rs 15
per year as license fees.
Wrist watch & bicycle were prestigious gift for son in law.
Landline telephone was symbol of aristocracy & that too without long
distance call facility. We needed to book trunks for that. Knock from postal
peon used to ignite our excitement.
Two wheelers were rare in small localities.
After 82'Asiad TV started to get spread with robust antenna & booster. Only
channel available was DD.
Major source of entertainment was cinema halls.
Kids used to play outdoor games, neighbours used to exchange domestic
preparation of delicious foods, used to sit in a group to talk, even used to
look one another in crunch moments.
Situation started to change after introduction of computer & cable
channels. We got some new things to explore & all were amazing in the
beginning. Slowly we started to attain daily soaps religiously & started
getting disconnected from next door neighbours.
Computer upgraded from java to windows. Laptop came thereafter.
Then came cell phone & we started to expand our virtual world thick &
fast.
How many of us knock neighbours nowadays!
Put
life into focus...
Have you ever faced any reality which
you know inevitable but don't want to experience? Believe most of us had such
time in life.
Most common happening is your near & dear one on deathbed. You know very
well that however critical the situation is, you need to continue treatment
knowing the fact that you're playing a game you can never win. Still we all
play with a hope that some miracle can happen. Despite making mind, we can't
accept the ultimate.
Say, there is a trust issue between you & your partner. Both of you know
but never tried to sort it out through discussion. As a result, your
relationship is getting worse day by day.
Your boss has some ego problem with you for some indefinite reason. You know
but never dare to ask directly because of red-flag possibility.
All these are common stories in daily life. Do we handle it smartly. Mostly no.
We don't take risk of making bosses more annoyed, never ask partners directly
to know the ground reality, never try to accept the universal truth "man
is mortal" for own periphery.
All these issues are as real as sunlight. Still we try to keep as it is to
avoid any further aggravation. Actually somewhere we feel very unconfident
about own integrity which affects our confidence lebel badly. And we feel safer
to compromise.
Just be the real YOU.
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