learnings

  This morning in a social media group I had congratulated a young lady who has taken up an honorary position.. Congratulatory wishes poured in.. Till one person deemed such messages as 'spam'. It jolted everyone out of those brief moment of happiness.  English language has a name for such people- wet blankets.  It is often noted how people can be reluctant in wishing heartily or being genuinely happy for another.  I wonder of course what could have triggered the person in question. It gave me perspective of being more empathetic. We are work in constant progress. Self awareness literally can take a lifetime.. Why not begin with small steps? What is triggering me- is a fantastic question to ask oneself and get on to the path of self reflection.  My GSE(Rotary)trip to USA in 2000 made me awaken to a fresh perspective- of reaching out to others genuinely. It set me free. 

  My new domestic help walks in cheerily with a hibiscus stuck in her bun! She announces her arrival with a loud greeting and a naive smile. I am often amused.. This childlike behaviour has evaded me. Have I become stuck up?  Today I was playing RD Burman playlist on my Alexa. Icould not help singing with abandon. She was watching me. She shared that she loved listening to the songs.. Her childlike enthusiasm encouraged me to  dance to a few of the peppy tunes..  She giggled and mentioned it was good to seem away from my computer. Ah it felt good to just let go.. Thank you to this angel who goes around the house cheerfully doing the chores..

  This morning I had this question asked- why is it that some people who are smart/talented aren't high achievers? I narrated the tale of young Lincoln felling trees. It is a much quoted tale citing smart work vs hard work. So if we scratch the surface, we unravel layers.. Finally we act based on our thoughts. And if the thoughts stem from a superiority mindset, rather 'fixed mindset' then we get the answer for the question- why do we 'do' or 'don't do'!  The fixed mindset inhibits being proactive and productive. As a favourite superstar mentioned once,' once I say I KNOW, it is the end...'

  The West is seriously considering comfort wear for the coming Hybrid Workplace. I think we ought to seriously consider this comfort quotient especially for men. When I think of Africa- Nelson Mandela, the bright African printed shirts come to mind. We have a rich tradition of colours, textures and print. We need not do away with 'western' formals or semi formals. we could still have a few sets when we have to talk to foreign clients or for other official purpose.Rest of the year why not wear materials and designs that are very local and ethnic. That our Indian wear does not look 'smart' --- still looms large.. The reason why the word 'local' is unappetising or mentioned derogatorily is the hangover of the colonial mindset.. So many years and the British snobbery continues. when we scratch our backyard we realise how much it has seeped into our consciousness. it is ridiculous to still have school uniforms, office wear totally western. Even more ridiculous are t...

  I fell in love with this image.Thank you @jangand fox. A lot of young parents are experiencing anxiety in these times as they have to entertain their wards, play multiple roles of being parent, teacher and friend. Go easy on yourselves, dear parents, allowing your child to day dream, laze, think and play for themselves too.. In simple pleasures lie great investment of time...

  My battle with drinking water is easing only now.  I have had several reasons for not drinking water: 1. I hardly sweat. 2. I will 'know' when to drink. ( even after a walk/gym I would hardly drink) 3. I drink other fluids 4. Articles based on confirmation bias. 5. There are 'harmless' herbal medicines- so easy to have... I had a wakeup call about two years ago. I was getting dependent on the alternate medication. A young friend remarked,'you have very dry feet'. (yes I have always had). So cumulatively I had known but not taken care to be aware and mindful of this. Then began my journey of having attractive bottles, tumblers etc all to remind me to drink water.  I did not want to be dependent on any sort of medication. Even herbal or alternative medication will have its side effects built up gradually. What helped me was when my body so beautifully responded to my water intake.. My metabolism began to work better. I rejoiced. I love my body and myself. I shal...

  This may sound very weird to many of you.. My landline phone rang! The call was for me.. I was surprised because only my spouse makes a call if my cell phone chooses not to respond due to weak signal. So hearing a female voice asking for me sounded incredulous. It was my classmate from Delhi. I hooted with joy at the unexpectedness of her calling me and that too on my landline.. I was actually thrilled.. Brought back nostalgia.. Of course she wasn't aware that she had this number stored under my name..  This number was chosen with care by my father. We were privileged to have the first landline phone with STD and ISD in our street. Neighbours would come to make or receive calls. As with any technology, this phone was not available easily; it took months to get one and calls were expensive. One particular neighbour would make STD calls without informing us. It was annoying and embarrassing because the calls were expensive. We could actually use physical locks or use a number ...

  We internalise our learnings.. why do we do so?? how do we do so? Read  here