Are We Becoming Machines?

Have you ever felt that you are working like a machine? You are not a human being but a human doing! Several years back, I felt like this. I noticed I’m working in an automated mode. I was always focused on my to-do list and I didn’t care how I felt while taking care of my to-do list.

There is nothing wrong in doing things and working hard but do I pay attention my well-being part? How I want to be when I am taking care of my to-do list? Am I happy doing what I’m doing? Am I peaceful and joyful when I’m taking care of my to-do list? Or am I stressed, anxious, heavy and doing even though I don’t feel like doing?

I feel majority of us have become like machine and don’t take care of the being part. We have become human doings and not human beings. We do charge our machines – our cell phone, our laptop and if you have an electric car, you do charge that too. Now question is – even though we treat ourselves as a machine, do we charge ourselves? And we do put our laptop in a sleep mode but we don’t put our mind to sleep- we are sleeping with our to-do list and many other thoughts and we wake up with next morning to-do list.

I’m sure you will agree with me – My quality of life is based on the quality of thoughts. You all have heard- as you think, so you become. The law of attraction! When I started paying attention to my thoughts and feelings by taking one-minute pause after every hour, my life became much better. You can get more insights listening to my short video.

Tips to Become Effective and Efficient in Everything You Do

We all are challenged by corporate and business pressures of high-stress, high-impact positions. It can take a high toll to keep multiple balls in the air while new ones come at you from surprising angles and each one coming faster and faster. So how can we ease the stress load? How can we remain easy while being ever busy? 

Many leaders talk about work/life integration but most of us agree that there is no fixed boundary between work life and personal life. We take work home and at work we have to schedule doctor's appointments etc.  What is the metric, which can tell me if work/life integration is working out well for me?  We can't afford a nervous breakdown or falling into depression.  Data is showing how more and more people are taking anti-depressants. 

There is a way to strike a balance but it has to do with our internal "ecology", namely, how we process the mountains of demands placed on us.  It has to do with recognizing what we're really responsible for and what we're not responsible for.  

We treat ourselves as machines by not giving ourselves time and space to be creative. We are human beings, not human doings! There are few simple tools and tips, which can be very helpful to remain cool, calm and collected. These tips can make you more effective and efficient in your professional and personal life.

Listen to me and experiment what works for you. Experience it and then embrace it to take the full benefits!  

Types of Empowements And Method to Empower The Self

Empowerment comes in two forms, external and internal.

External empowerment happens when someone has a good title, position, receives award and recognition or makes an achievement. How many people can be empowered this way in a big corporation? I believe all of us can thrive by empowering ourselves and each other. We all have so much potential within us but we put many barriers in front of us.

Internal empowerment is about believing in, accepting, and loving yourself the way you are and having the strength to ask others for help when you need it.

Everyone needs empowerment, but women tend to need it more than men, due to unique experiences, like antenatal/prenatal depression, postpartum psychosis, postpartum depression, and menopause.  There should be no competition between men and women; rather we complete each other. Gender diversity issues can be resolved if we join forces at all the levels and engage everyone in the society.

Please listen to me speaking about the method of empowering the self.

How to unleash the power of the mind:

 

First of all, to unleash the tremendous potential of mind, we need to understand –What is the mind?

The brain is physical and a doctor can operate on it but the mind is metaphysical.

You can define mind as TEAM

T- Thoughts

E-Emotions

A-Attitude

M-Memory

When we need to make a decision, we think and sometimes overthink. Thoughts are originated in the mind. You might have noticed- generally there are two inner voices going on in your head. One voice says – do it. While other says- do not. Now intellect will choose or make a decision based on the louder/dominating voice.

We all know that we want to hear our positive inner voices, which will make us feel good. Now question is- how to filter out negative inner voices? It takes a little attention and some hard work but it is doable. This is what I do to make my positive inner voice louder.

·      I start my day with positive thoughts like I am worthy, I have abundance, I am wonderful and I accept myself.

·      Throughout the day, I take short breaks and do a one-minute meditation.

·      I take a one-minute break after every hour to check my inner world. If something is bothering me, I clear my mind by doing positive thinking.

·      If nothing is bothering me, I do positive affirmation-I value myself; I believe in myself, I am a peaceful being.

·      Before going to bed, I do pay my gratitude to the supreme father for blessing me everyday.

In my next post I will write  – Where are the negative voices coming from?

Tips to Empower the Self

All of us go through many different experiences throughout the day. I may feel empowered waking up in the morning but as day progresses I may not feel as empowered. There is a need to pay attention to my inner world and remind myself the following time and time again.

• I can build self-awareness and my inner strength to lead a stress free life.
• I will be nice to myself and talk to myself the way I talk to my good friend.
• I can’t change people or situations, but I can take responsibility for my thinking and doing.
• I will focus on myself from time to time to check what is going on within me. If I am lacking any power, I will connect with the powerhouse (God) to charge myself.
• Living a happy and healthy life is my top priority and I will make every effort to take care of my inner world.
• The way I give good food to my body and take a bath to keep it clean everyday, I will give healthy food to my mind and keep it clean everyday.
• I am just an actor playing my role. Others are also actors playing their role. Every individual has different mental, emotional and intellectual states, hence he is bound to act differently. I don’t need to get upset looking at others' role.
• I can generate happiness at the level of my thoughts.
• I will protect my self from negative thoughts.
• I will start the day with pure and powerful thoughts & appreciation.
• If there are teachings, instructions, or corrections to be given, I will give them with a lot of love, and no trace of anger or negativity.
• Peace and happiness cannot be found outside. Peace and happiness is a state of being.

Lessons from My Autobiography

I am blessed that my autobiography is published by IEEE-USA on the following link

http://shop.ieeeusa.org/usashop/product/careers/98935

Here are the lessons from the various chapters of this e-book. You can read stories behind these lessons in my e-book.

1. Have a dream and follow it through. Remind yourself from time to time that you can achieve anything you want.  
2. Always help others, because giving is truly receiving.
3. Sometimes, you simply have to accept failure, and move on. Just because you didn’t succeed in one opportunity isn’t the end of the story. Other opportunities will present themselves—and you will succeed!
4. If you are lucky enough to find a good role model, let that person’s successes inspire you to achieve more.
5. Comparing yourself to others can destroy your own self-esteem. Each of us has positive qualities that we only need to discover.
6. The ability to communicate well with others is more important than how intelligent you are.
7. Seek out positive ways to distinguish yourself from others. When you stand out from the crowd, you get noticed.
8. A new job can offer an opportunity to quickly assess where your skills may be deficient. Don’t hesitate to get the extra training you need, so you can do your very best for your employer.
9. Special assignments can be your opportunity to demonstrate your best abilities. In the process, you will learn new things and form new business relationships.
10. Professional development is a continuing process. Be open to continuing to learn new skills.
11. Develop good relationships with your colleagues. Not only can they help you shorten your learning curve on the job, but they also just might recommend you for your next one! 
12. Superwoman is a fantasy. Don’t try to do it all, and remember to pace yourself.
13. Learn to prioritize, and when to say “no.”
14. Take care of yourself: Regular physical exercise is vital, as is getting enough sleep. And don’t forget to give yourself mental pats on the back for how well you’re paying attention to your needs!
15. Don’t be afraid of new professional opportunities to learn and grow.
16. Because we all spend our days at work, our professional colleagues are our extended family. Share your joy and positivity with them.
17. None of us know when a tough situation will appear; nurture your spirit regularly, so you can stay positive and strong when you must.
18. Never hold onto stress. Whatever it takes, do something about it!
19. When you leave an organization, do it gracefully.
20. Our energy is continuously flowing, and you get what you give. When you show respect and cooperate with others, they will cooperate with you.

 

One final note: Listen to criticism, but don’t take it personally. You are and will be your own best friend—and the master of your life!

The Need to Step Away from the Familiar and Step Up to Unknown in Order to Sustain Success

I did jump the curve – the need to step away from the familiar and step up to unknown in order to sustain success.several times in my personal and professional life.

I realized, when a frog is living in a pond, the frog thinks that the pond is his world but when frog jumps out of the pond and sees the bigger picture then he realizes world is so big and same experience happened with me. To be frank, I was little nervous when I was taking up this role but I reminded myself that things will be fine because I am a sincere and fast learner. So my learning is don’t be afraid to make changes and don’t have fear of the unknown. You never know what opportunities future has to bring to you.

 

I do know many people who want to make a change but are afraid. I tell them that if a bird wants to fly up in the sky, he must leave the branches. If you keep holding a branch and keep complaining that you are not able to fly then it is not a fair complaint.

 

I am reminded of a poem, which I read in elementary school. It is a story of a raindrop. The raindrop was afraid to leave the cloud and it was thinking; what if it  fell on a fire-stone and got burnt. What if it fell on the ground and got absorbed. But finally the drop gained courage and left the cloud. And it fell into a seashell and became a pearl. So the crux of this story is to be courageous and come out of your comfort zone, as you never know you may become a precious jewel one day!

 

When someone jumps the curve, there is certainly a ramp up which needs to happen to fit in new environments and learn new things. During this ramp up, it is very important to stay focused and open-minded. Don’t just cling to your old belief system and slow down rather embrace the change. Build upon prior experiences and learn new things with an open mind. Then you will rise up for sure. Sometimes, you may fall down during the process of jumping the curve, which is perfectly fine. That fall is not a failure- rather you are building resilience so that you can jump next time with greater force and right attitude. Remember the story of King Bruce and the Spider, try try again until you climb up the curve!

 

Remember life is a journey, if one curve or path doesn’t lead you to the way you wanted to go, find another one or make your own. There are always choices. Don’t stand still and expect someone else to blaze a path for you. You must look forward and move forward. It is OK to take small steps instead of standing still. Once you have enough strength, you can jump or take big steps. One thing that I learned during this journey is, to be confident no matter what. No one will empower you and give you step-by-step instructions or a recipe for jumping the curve. It is you who needs to empower yourself and carve your own path. You are responsible for your own journey and career. You need to drive it in the direction you want. Others are there to guide you but at the end of the day you need to drive it. Be the CEO (Chief Execution Officer) of your own job role and execute it the way you want! Self-doubt and perfection can hinder your growth. Take risks and keep going.

 

When you are moving ahead, you may face challenges and criticism. Take criticism seriously but not personally. It is worth listening to but don’t knock yourself down. You need to develop skin as thick as a Rhino! People will throw darts at you or maybe bullets, but you can protect yourself by wearing bulletproof vest! Are you ready for jumping the curve?