Don’t Quit

Wish you and your family a great year ahead

Today is the start of a new year.

Though birth of a new year is nothing more than dawn of another day in the life of all those living, it still is looked at with lots of expectation. Why is that?

The new year gives us a chance to start afresh. It helps us to restart things. You can think of starting on a clean slate. Make a better beginning. Make a fresh attempt at rectifying things. Make a fresh attempt at better achievements.

I would like to start the new year by looking at this poem which I saw pasted on the wall at the office of my very first employer. The poem made an immediate impact on me. The meaning of the poem got etched in my heart forever.

Read it, even if you have read it before. It will make an impact in your life. And it is nice to start the new year with this motivating thought.

DONT QUIT

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but do not quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow–
You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor’s cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out–
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit–
It’s when things seem worst that you must not quit.

What they don’t teach you in B-Schools

You don’t have to study in B-Schools or turn to the B-School experts to know how to save your money, earn better returns and enjoy your life.

Good advice comes from people who have lived their life in a disciplined way and have followed simple but effective rules.

I was watching today on Television an interview of Mrs. Raja Sulochana one of the famous actresses of South Indian cinema who is now retired.

She said that she leads a happy life and is comfortable following what her father told. Here is what her father told her:

a) Set aside a per centage of your earnings for your old age. Think that you never earned it.

b) Set aside a per centage of your earnings for paying your taxes to Government. It is what you contribute to the society.

c) Then don’t think twice about spending the balance. Spend that amount to get the fullest happiness that you can afford with that money

Mrs. Raja Sulochana is not and her father was not B-School graduates. But, they seemed to know what is good and what is bad.

How simple and easy our life will be, if we followed these simple rules.

Live with passion

These simple steps will take you on a path to honoring your uniqueness every day. Use them as a way to see how you are doing. Celebrate what is working, and choose to make adjustments where there is adjustment necessary.

1. Take time for quiet daily. Yes, there is much that needs to get done. Once you maintain a habit of being quiet either to contemplate, pray, meditate you will be amazed how much more efficiently you will perform your tasks, duties and projects.

2. Treat yourself with as much care, if not more, than you treat others. Love and nurture yourself as you love and nurture those around you OR as you would LIKE to nurture those around you. Once you master caring for yourself, caring for others will become effortless and spring from the heart instead of from duty.

3. Accept compliments from others with grace. Never, ever disrespect the person you are complimenting by disregarding or negating their compliment. Instead, accept it as you would a treasure box or a long awaited gift. Be grateful they can see something extra special about you!
4. Spend time investing in and cultivating close friendships. Incorporate friend building activities into your daily routine. Exercise with a friend, share meals together, keep in touch with a brief email or 10 minute daily phone call (and time the call and KEEP the appointment.)

5. Surround yourself with beauty. Honor your home by decorating as a way to express who you are at your core. If you are bold, use bold colors and accessories. Light scented candles, listen to music you love, use soaps that are lathery and smell great. Go for the multi sensory approach.

6. Give joyfully and receive with open arms. Recognize that giving and receiving are on the same continuum and not separate at all! Learning to give completely translates into receiving more than you could ever plan or expect to receive. The results take care of themselves.

7. Become a part of a larger community. This may mean a mastermind group or it may be a circle of friends or a book discussion group. Connect yourself with people who share your interests, goals and vision for the world. Synergy will empower you incredibly when you join in a community where you can equally give and receive on a very regular basis.

8. Mentor someone simply for the pleasure of observing and becoming involved in their growth. Invite someone who does not have the same level as skills as you do along for the ride with you. Listen to their input and see what you can create together. Chances are you will learn a lot from them (and vice versa!) creating both a Win/Win situation as well as learning about your own strengths and weaknesses in the process.

9. Live a purposeful, vision, values, cause oriented life. Recognize and embrace that you are creating your life as a masterful artist each and every day. You can choose each day whether you want to simply let life happen each day or if you want to create it fully. Choose the latter.

10. Love yourself with all your heart, soul, and strength without attachment to what you are achieving in your life today. Be compassionate and understanding while also standing firm in the knowledge that you are both incredibly unique and incredibly capable. When you can master this balance, being attached to your outcomes is not an issue because you will be achieving outcomes beyond your own imagination. You will be so magnetic you will wonder where YOU have been all this time! The answer? You are RIGHT there, ready and waiting to follow these simple principles.

Live with Passion. Start today.