Shailendra Tiwari_BLP055_Self Leadership_September 2012

Today we had an enlightening session on Self-leadership taken by Anil Sachdev Sir. He walked us through the importance of Emotional intelligence and Appreciative enquiry. He started with a video shared by his daughter that depicted “What is that one thing one wants to do in his/her life before She/he die’s”, the thing you wanted to do before you die and it could be anything like- I want to do bungee jumping before I die, I want to be the best son before I die, etc.
Then, we were asked to write and share some learning we got from Rahul’s and Gaurav’s sad demise.

Therefore, I wrote, “Life is highly unpredictable and you cannot plan your things in advance. So, whatever you want to do in your life just do it, rather than planning it. I also think we should enjoy each and every moment of life and say thanks to god for giving us such a wonderful life, rather than cribbing and fighting for petty things, because the moments gone will never come back. God has sent us for a sole purpose and a Noble cause to contribute to the society and spread happiness all around”.

There was one more session in between in which he talked about the basic difference between Empathy and Sympathy by a Vivid example of pair of shoes, In which he told us that just like you cannot wear anybody’s shoes without removing yours, same thing happens when you try to understand one’s emotion without adhering his way of understanding things, means the way of looking at things.
Then, we were asked to do the appreciative enquiry of each other, which according to me, was the most effective exercise to bring out the strengths from within, which we did not know about. We told each other about the special qualities we are having, which are not explored by us, and, then we shared about “When you think the SOIL at its best” and “When you think you are at your best”. Therefore, everybody shared different experiences they felt after joining SOIL For Example-When we had Charlie’s session, Leadership series by great leaders of the industries, working at NGO’s for social cause, Admission process, Mentorship by inspired leaders of the industries and induction program, etc.

We also had a session on happiness, in that he talked about different obstacles, which pulls us away from the path to happiness.

– Things that deprive us of happiness are following:
-        Unstated emotional expectations of those I care
-        Regrets about the past
-        Guilt that I carry with me

 

He also talked about the ways by which we can palliate those obstacles .He said think of a Bag full of heavy stones and assumes that you are on your way to happiness; now think of those heavy stones as reasons or relations who are dragging you back as they don’t want you to go ahead in life. So, throwing away those stones one by one, we can get rid of such forces that are dragging us back permanently.

In the End, we appreciated sir for enriching us about the holistic picture of Emotional intelligence and appreciative inquiry that completely changed our way of perceiving things. In addition, the session opened avenues for thoughts on enhancing one’s self understanding & self-leadership.

Shailendra Tiwari_BLP055_Self Leadership_September 2012

Today we had an enlightening session on Self-leadership taken by Anil Sachdev Sir. He walked us through the importance of Emotional intelligence and Appreciative enquiry. He started with a video shared by his daughter that depicted “What is that one thing one wants to do in his/her life before She/he die’s”, the thing you wanted to do before you die and it could be anything like- I want to do bungee jumping before I die, I want to be the best son before I die, etc.
Then, we were asked to write and share some learning we got from Rahul’s and Gaurav’s sad demise.

Therefore, I wrote, “Life is highly unpredictable and you cannot plan your things in advance. So, whatever you want to do in your life just do it, rather than planning it. I also think we should enjoy each and every moment of life and say thanks to god for giving us such a wonderful life, rather than cribbing and fighting for petty things, because the moments gone will never come back. God has sent us for a sole purpose and a Noble cause to contribute to the society and spread happiness all around”.

There was one more session in between in which he talked about the basic difference between Empathy and Sympathy by a Vivid example of pair of shoes, In which he told us that just like you cannot wear anybody’s shoes without removing yours, same thing happens when you try to understand one’s emotion without adhering his way of understanding things, means the way of looking at things.
Then, we were asked to do the appreciative enquiry of each other, which according to me, was the most effective exercise to bring out the strengths from within, which we did not know about. We told each other about the special qualities we are having, which are not explored by us, and, then we shared about “When you think the SOIL at its best” and “When you think you are at your best”. Therefore, everybody shared different experiences they felt after joining SOIL For Example-When we had Charlie’s session, Leadership series by great leaders of the industries, working at NGO’s for social cause, Admission process, Mentorship by inspired leaders of the industries and induction program, etc.

We also had a session on happiness, in that he talked about different obstacles, which pulls us away from the path to happiness.

– Things that deprive us of happiness are following:
-        Unstated emotional expectations of those I care
-        Regrets about the past
-        Guilt that I carry with me

 

He also talked about the ways by which we can palliate those obstacles .He said think of a Bag full of heavy stones and assumes that you are on your way to happiness; now think of those heavy stones as reasons or relations who are dragging you back as they don’t want you to go ahead in life. So, throwing away those stones one by one, we can get rid of such forces that are dragging us back permanently.

In the End, we appreciated sir for enriching us about the holistic picture of Emotional intelligence and appreciative inquiry that completely changed our way of perceiving things. In addition, the session opened avenues for thoughts on enhancing one’s self understanding & self-leadership.

Shailendra Tiwari_BLP055_Happiness_September 2012

One day, a friend of mine asked me, “What is the Arcanum of your happiness? All the time you are full of energy, and I have never seen you get down”.  With a smiling face, I said that I will tell you everything, but you have to promise me that you will share this Arcanum with others. Then, told him that I just believe in one thing, God has given us everything to feel happy about, it is up to us that how we take these gifts. I also know that God is always with me for all my needs and most of the time, I know I do not need half of what I think I do. He has never let me down.

And Since I learned this secret, I am happy”.

Some other insights for Human beings:

“A human action is the type of action that separates human beings from animals, because it involves the use of reason and intelligence. An action may be performed for a limited goal, but that goal is a means to larger goal which is a means to another even larger goal, and so on, until one reaches the final goal, to which one is destined”

Everyone wants to be joyful. Many people spend large sum of money to get happiness through various mediums like shopping, eating, travelling and other unnecessary expenses, which give them satisfaction, but temporary.

Sometimes, I wonder what gives a person real joy, then a lot of twinning thoughts start running through my mind. Money? Good Health?  Friends? Beauty? A good figure? Power? Greed?. This often cue’s me of some lines, “Oh, if I could have a million dollar, I would be the happiest person in this world”. However, these are just materialistic things, which can never satisfy you for a long time.

On the contrary, they would give you only temporary satisfaction and, that too just because you create an image of a different world full of imaginations and illusions in your mind, that these things entail to happiness.

The English word "happy" is simply defined as, "Fortunate, lucky, cheerful, contented, characterized by or indicative of pleasure, etc.”  True happiness is not shallow and is not based on external stimuli. True happiness is not material; it is not inherited, and cannot be acquired through any recipe of human origin.

 According to me, happiness is “The holistic experience you would get after doing something for the society, selflessly, for which God has sent all of us. Therefore, together we can make this world a better place to live where we help each other to attain a certain level, where everyone of us respects the humanity, rather than giving any place to things like hatred, fighting for petty issues and pulling down each other.
This way we can help ourselves by giving back to the society what it gives us. This  would certainly lead to  happiness which we can’t get following the way where there are certain forces  , that are attracting us towards itself and , would give us utmost gratification , but , for a cumbered  period. That, too just because we have a certain imaginative image in our mind which is ravishing but would lead nowhere. “

I am also going through a holistic experience as, I got an opportunity to contribute to the society selflessly by connecting with the people in an NGO .This NGO is also doing a splendid job by raising the level of all the people who are below a certain level. They are struggling for their basic needs. So, I got a chance to serve for this social cause and I am very happy and grateful to God for giving me such an enriching opportunity that filled my heart with all the good things. I feel obliged that  I am doing something in my life, for these people who are in need, which I could have never done if, I would have followed the same tempting path which leads nowhere, and that most of us are following.

Happiness in different religion talks about infinite wisdom, Your karma, Dharma, Bliss/Nirwana and Virtues, as most of it is related to the spirituality and almighty god.

According to Bible – “Happiness is related to Jesus who wants to give all his people gift of joy, No matter what is happening in your life presently, He is offering all of us joy to the fullest. Maybe you have lost all your possessions in some natural disaster, or perhaps you have broken up with your family. Or maybe you have lost your job and thereby all mediums of support are cut off. Whatever be the circumstance, you can still feel happy as you can feel the joy of his all the time. In addition, when you have Jesus you have everything in this world. Such joy and peace comes to us because we completely trust the One who is in control of all the circumstances of life, and He has promised to supply all of our needs”

Bible laws for happiness-

The Bible says that those who fear the Lord are happy, Happy are those who keep God's laws, Happy are those who have children, Happy are those who do not condemn self, Those who trust in the Lord and those who require wisdom.

Buddhism- There is no limit to joy. Happiness has no end. When you are standing in the love of God, every cell in your body jumps for joy. You breathe in and out with the entire universe. In this state, your life is fulfilled. This is how God means us to live, intoxicated in love and joy. And through our joy, God receives his joy. The joy of man is the joy of God; and the joy of God is the joy of man.

Hinduism “Bhagwat Gita”- It is said: ‘He who is unattached to the external world and its objects, and is attached to the inner Self, will attain supreme happiness, which is everlasting. That is, happiness is subjective and not objective. The same person, place or thing that brought happiness at one time, may bring misery at another. Why does this happen? This happens because we are responsible for our happiness or sorrow, and not the external objects of the world. We think that somebody brings joy; this person brings misery, etc. All this is not true. The external persons, places, and things are only stimuli. These stimuli affect the brain and bring joy or sorrow in us, depending upon our state of mind.

Looking at different aspects of the life with a different horizon all the religion have a common definition of Happiness which states that” Almighty has given us everything .And, we should not look for happiness in external it is within us and related with the virtues of life. The Holy Spirit rests on him only who has a joyous heart. This so-called happiness is only a faint reflection, a little spark of the brilliant sun of bliss, which is hidden within. This is only a shadow of that eternal bliss that is waiting to be exposed. Our so-called happiness and misery now, are nothing but different states of mind. Happiness also means attaining a state of self-actualization that is pertained to the almighty.