Applying an eagle's lens

...has been a favourite phrase of mine for years now. In my own personal experiences I have seen how we can get glued to petty, little things, that we tend to ignore the bigger picture. What happens in a bubble might so not be relevant if the incoming wave is going to break it. However, not to forget the housing bubble that grew into a catastrophe a decade ago. Is this a subjective thing then? Of late multiple experiences have got me thinking about this phrase and time and again the conclusion I come to is - that is the way to go, at least I would prefer that route.

The growth of the housing bubble could have been spotted by the eagle. May be it even did, but hesitated to divulge, given the risk? There is surely a great amount of risk involved specially because the eagle is susceptible to getting targeted by arrows and shots from almost anywhere on the ground. But that doesn't conceal the fact that it knows what's on the cards. On the other hand, it can decide to stay safe and quiet in its cosy nest, but it doesn't. It tries to leverage on its strengths - keen eyesight and ability to fly high to get what it needs. A slight addition here for me would be - not only what I need but also what everyone in the world would need.

Having a deep insight into things is a specialist skill and surely required to maintain harmony and calmness in the current environment. Having a complete oversight of things is a generalist ability and is much needed to prevent forces from disrupting the harmony and calmness that is being maintained. 

Prosopopoeia conveys time and again to me to surely rise above the situation and not struggle hard to fight out the little details that often crowd our day. And....I can also see the clearing skies! 

Don't live in the past, but never forget it

....for you will not be able to appreciate the present moment. I have always heard people say - don't live in the past, don't worry about the future, rather live in the present. I have a slightly different take to it. Agree that one should not live in the past, but one must never forget ones past. If I look back and think of times that have passed, I feel more confident and energetic in handling my present. Not that those were primarily bad times, but they have taught me life's lessons, patience and endurance, helped me gain experience and become mature at dealing things, without which handling today might have been difficult. If the past was bad, then there is always something to appreciate in the present and if the present is not so good, let's wait for the time to pass. After all bad phases don't last long.

Reflecting on the situation right now versus the situation a few months or years ago, makes us realise that little things in life are to be appreciated and not complained about. Sitting amidst trickling waters on one side and a silent valley on the other, prosopopoeia conveys that when things go bad, believe that good times are not too far away and when that good time comes, enjoy it and appreciate the fact that things have indeed changed.

Knitting it closely with our daily life, we have a tendency to live in the laurels of our past, bask in its glory and leverage that feeling to make or at least to convince ourselves  to be comfortable in the present. But we often tend to lose sight of what we are after and what we dream to be. If that thought arises often, then the need to change and adapt in the present will dawn. It does take courage to answer the question -' Do I want to change?' If the answer is no, then may be we have to start asking ourselves - 'Where am I headed?', for the path ahead might change. If the answer is yes, then you will be creating a fresh past to remember going forward that you will feel confident about.

Hooked onto my next read 'Pilgrimage' by my favourite author, I have started to think about how my 'future past' should be, for that will be 'my history'. Have you?

An enthusing expedition to the core!

My previous post talked about how change is inevitable in life and sustained change is a privilege. The past year saw me placed in a totally different context and setting than that I was accustomed to since very many years. It also opened up opportunities for me to place myself in the centre of the sphere and see the world revolve around me rather than being a point on a plane that covered multiple spheres. First time the feeling of being closer to myself evolved and has been growing further, going deep into a journey of introspection and self-exploration. This is not about being self-centered rather seeing the world through my own eyes rather than others'.

This process has had a positive impact on me in many ways - the extra outer layers are now being withered off and the core is coming to light. One might think that extra layers give extra shielding, but it is time we realised that one doesn't need a shield against oneself. The way I perceive things, my thought process, my approach to problems and my interactions have gone up an extra mile, is my feeling and I have a positive vibe about it. In this state I feel more connected with people around me than I used to think I was in my previous state.

My recent reading of Manuscript found in Accra by Paulo Coelho, Mountains beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder and a daily dose of some philosophical and spiritual readings have also been vital in pushing me to dig deep down. Now the next question that I ask myself is what is there deep down? Well a straight forward answer that comes to me is 'what I want out of life?' But thinking beyond, it reveals a lot other things besides what I want for myself. What can I do for others? What makes me tick? What is it that I want to be known for? What are those random little things that I should continue doing, which create a positive wave in others and unfortunately which I don't realise? Similarly what are those actions that I should be wary off? And it is eternal bliss and joy when I sit answering these questions for myself.

Prosopopoeia conveys that self-awareness is a journey that should start with you at the epicentre and this journey will help build a better you for yourself and for the world. Happy introspecting in 2018!

Privilege of sustained change

It is a matter of fact that change takes time, adapting to change is a process and happens slowly. But what if change happens in a jiffy? In some cases change and adaptation happen parallelly, but in certain instances a change happens and one has no option rather than to adapt to it. Some people also take the privilege to quit adapting to the change, but what if there isn't any quit button at all! Adding to these perspectives are also interesting insights from my current reading 'Hare Brain and Tortoise Mind' by Guy Claxton. 

In my professional experience, I have seen changes, transitions and transformations that people say is hard to adapt to or hard to accept and live with. But personal experiences also teach that transitions just happen and there is no choice but to accept it. So if we are all getting time to adapt to a change then we must surely be privileged.

My blog post The Clearing Skies ended with me being patient and waiting for the skies to get cleared. Now that things are getting clear, you suddenly also witness that you are at a new level altogether and have to adapt to the 'changed' atmosphere. On a funny note, the privilege to hide behind the clouds is now lost. On a factual note, you can literally spot the stars once the skies are cleared.

Prosopopoeia conveys that changes are of course inevitable but in most cases everyone is privileged because the change gets induced slowly. But in some cases it just is instant. So prosopopoeia hints to stay open for experiences, complain less and live the moment.

Connecting vs Consuming

     Penning down after a while - well definitely not one of those resolutions that mark the beginning of the year. But some interesting stuff and thoughts of late that is kind of helping me rethink how things can be perceived. We come across many situations and people in different contexts and I have observed there is a slight sense of the self-gain attitude that is evident in these interactions. Well, that is common, I think about it too. But the extent to which it may occupy the table is key - a little is fine, but too much is unhealthy.

      At least, I have grown up hearing and preparing for the 'competitive world' and I am sure that would have been the case and is still is for many. And with the global integration and countries becoming more easily accessible, the word is taking dominance. I have heard mentions about healthy competition. Well in my view and given the current world's state, competition in itself is unhealthy. Leave aside appending a healthy adjective to it. In every sphere, be it politics, education, art, science, law, industry there is competition among parties, students, economies, countries, professionals and many more. It is apparently a magic word to get the best out of everyone at the expense of keeping many things at stake, which is often ignored.
 

      Well think about it - nations competing, parties competing, students competing, professionals competing - for what? What is the main goal in life for everyone? - to make it more nicer, happier and healthier, isn't it? Competition will lead to success and success in a field leads to success in life? If you think it will - then it probably will, but not what I would call sustainable success. 

     I often observe these days, that people are taking keen interest in nation building topics and the term - 'greater good' happens to be recurring in many discussions. While everyone wants to contribute to greater good, they think, that would be at the expense of foregoing personal benefits. That is exactly where we have to bring in change. Greater good is definitely going to contribute to sustainable success, especially in a world where resources are diminishing and demand is ascending. Think about it - a first rank holder in school competing with the second ranker vs both of them collaborating to come up with the next big innovation that would fuel the country's growth. Now blow it up at every level in the society. Rings a positive movement isn't it? It does, at least for me. 

      Every country, organization, person in the world wants to improve living conditions, improve human society, solve world's major problems in their own capacities. And prosopopoeia conveys that to achieve this think about 'Connecting' with any entity possible rather than 'Consuming' things yourself for self-good.

Happy new year. Let 2016 add new perspectives to your thinking and mine as well! :)

Network is Networth! Truly!

Off late, I have been extensively trying hard to get to something and have been putting in great effort and sweat to achieve it. While skills, hard work, experience and expertise do play a crucial role in addressing the prerequisites, it is ones network that pitches in to shape and align things in place.

While it is very essential to build a robust and vibrant network, it is also important to nourish and nurture it. A network is not just about having the numbers increasing on your social profile page, but it is also about how well you can engage and tap the potential of your network in your daily activities. Also, it is very important to stay connected frequently and not just jump in at times of dire need and buzz.

Connections well nourished and maintained can be very helpful in the long run and can prove to be valuable. Here are top 6 tips according to me to help convert your network into net worth.

1. Follow your network and learn from it. Tap the potential that it has to offer
2. Explore and expand your network in your areas of interest
3. Engage the people in your network by inviting them to a discussion or event
4. Take advice or suggestions and leverage their expertise
5. Create a sense of importance by inviting them or notifying them of an opportunity or a thing of mutual interest.
6. Make it a point to greet your network once in a while at least with a tag

Feel free to add more to these points. I’m sure everyone has their own interpretation. But the ABC’s remain the same. A well connected and maintained network is your key to opportunities, expanded scope, heightened visibility and increased knowledge. It also helps develop ones personality and helps think and look beyond horizons. Network is truly your net worth. While I go and build mine, I encourage you to get busy doing the same.

The Relentless Vigor

       It has been an awesome time span for a few months now. Wow! Continuous and persistent inflows of instances that literally intensify the adrenaline rush have been on the list. The drive to achieve, to react, to take action and to live the moment, result out of incredible and irresistible happenings, people and events. And if the bell is already ringing then you are definitely there, utilizing the opportunities and getting the right inspiration to get it going strong.

 The Relentless Vigor, literally steady and non-stop motivational activities to keep you intensely enthusiastic and action-oriented. Such moments do give birth to intricate and detailed ideas, innovative thoughts and keep your creative mind busy and thinking. People do complain that there should be time for the gray matter to relax and refresh, but the grey matter is actually over rejuvenated at times and needs to expel and explode. And such ‘high threshold’ conditions as I would call it are just enough to get you totally satisfied and happy at least for a short period if not forever.

So, people out there do capture the phase when the little guy up there is oozing too much creative gray matter, make complete use of the threshold phase and the outcome may not seem appealing to you, but it will create an everlasting impact to the audience. Tried & tested! Just back from an awesome inspirational evening at Ignite Hyderabad and while I keep my thoughts on and get back to doing cool stuff, I leave you with this little quick post on how to tune and utilize the relentless vigor when one happens!