living

There are 3 posts tagged living.

Start, even if it is just YOU

There is life, and there is death,
Lets make the most of every breath!
One moment you live, next you die,
Laugh often, but never you cry!!

When you feel alone,
Just look into the sky!
Enjoy life in the unknown,
And aim for a new high!!

When you face a challenge,
You can give up, or you can try!
Be brave and take the plunge,
Who knows, maybe you can fly!!

Each day you meet new people,
Some will say Hi, and some Bye!!
As life plays itself in a circle,
Enjoy it fully, no need to ask why??

The grass is green, the sky blue,
And the road is always nearby!
Each dream you must pursue,
Start, even if it is just YOU!!

10 Things I am glad I had done (or do) in my life

Below are the 10 things that I had done, or do in my life which I am really glad for. I am not saying I am perfect at these things, but I am getting better every passing day, and that is what matters. Read on…

1. Accepting mistakes of others
We all are human beings, and we do make mistakes. As important it is to accept our own mistakes, it is also important to accept others mistakes too. Anybody who does not make a mistake does not exist at all. So it is only wise to see other’s mistakes as just natural and move on with life. It has made my life much more joyful and easy whenever I have not passed my judgement on someone due to a past mistake. And it has helped whenever I treat a person positively irrespective of past experiences. Do to others what you expect them to do with you!

2. Build and maintain self-discipline
Before trying to manage others or to make a difference in the world, it is very important that we are able to manage ourselves. Whether deciding how much (and what) to eat, how much to party, or when to get up in the morning are all acts of self-discipline. If you want to get up early in the morning, you can’t delay sleeping in the night. It is as simple as that. It just boils down to resisting the temptation of that late night show on TV, or a few drinks with friends which will run late into the night. No doubt socialising with friends is important, but sometimes you need to learn to say “NO” (which is not easy, believe me) to focus on other important things which you have decided. Either you don’t decide to do a task (like morning exercise), but if you do decide, then self-discipline decides whether you do it or not.

3. Started this blog
Putting your thoughts to pen and paper (or keyboard and laptop) has helped me a lot. We all are social creatures, and discuss about sports, politics, religion, etc whenever we meet or talk. By putting my thoughts / views in writing, I really know what my thoughts are, and others can also come up and comment / participate in the discussion, regardless of geographical limitations. Apart from this, my writing skills has improved, and now I have new dream. A Dream of Writing a Book someday.

4. Running SaleRaja for 2.5 years
Starting a business of your own can help see the world as it is, free from the illusions which we don’t know (or choose to ignore) in our lives. In my experience of over 2.5 years of running SaleRaja, which were not very successful in terms of revenues and profits, but the learnings have been immense. It has made me even more resolved to come back to entrepreneurship, but now better prepared. Anyways, I only have one life and I don’t take it too seriously. I don’t want to save anything for my next life and want to experience everything in this life itself!! So, anybody looking for fun and adventure, I would surely recommend starting a business of your own, at least once in your lifetime.

5. Learning French
For those who don’t know, I know a little bit of French. I learned it for 18 months at the L’AF Delhi, and totally by accident. But I got more than I expected. Interacting with people from different backgrounds made my outlook towards life much more mature. There were businessmen, students, police officers, housewives and professionals in my batch, all learning about French and France. And learning a language is a channel to discover new worlds and improve your life skills. Moreover, learning a new language is always a challenge, and challenges and I go together.

6. Reading Books
Having started reading books regularly only in Jan 2010 (after college), I can say it is changing my views and thoughts on a lot of things. I would like to put an hour of reading daily an activity as important it is to exercise daily. Reading a book (I mostly read self-help, autobiographies, and business books) is like viewing a life from somebody else’s eyes. It gives you a perspective about life and people from another person’s point of view. I am going to continue with this habit forever, and in some 3-4 years, I am going to have my own library with a good collection of books.

7. Making my own rules
Most of the people live their life according to what is the norm, what everybody else is doing. It is assumed that you need to follow the so called rules, or “conventions” to get what you desire, be it your job, family or whatever it you may be wanting. But I beg to differ. Who says that I have to do what everybody else does? Intact, if I know the outcome of a task I am doing, what is the fun in doing it. I only have one life and I don’t want to live it the way other people want me to. I might encounter some failures or setbacks along the way, but that be it. The fun of not knowing where you are going only can get you what you normally can’t get. That is why I studied computers too much during my school days that other subjects suffered. That is why I started SaleRaja… And read “The Fountainhead” by Ayn Ryand if you need more.

8. Helping others
Helping other people, either those for whom I am responsible for, or somebody a total stranger, has always given me so much satisfaction that has never been matched by doing something for myself. I totally experienced a different kind of satisfaction (like I have never experienced before) when I was leading the 99acres team in Noida. It was a responsibility which I didn’t took seriously when I started, but it showed me shades of my character even I wasn’t aware of. Helping / Mentoring a new bunch of engineers right out of college changed me as a professional, and as a human being. I feel more connected with myself after that experience. I don’t think if there is a better feeling than knowing that somebody is smiling or sleeping peacefully because of you.

9. Moving to Bangalore
Bangalore has taught me a lot. In fact, I think moving to any new city will give some experiences and learning that can’t be attained otherwise. You get to interact with new people of different culture and language. A lot of my misconceptions of how things happen in life have cleared after moving to Bangalore. New places to travel and explore also add to your to-do list after relocating to a new city. In Bangalore, I have come to believe that honesty and integrity still exist in this world and you don’t have to be cruel or selfish to survive. It is often said that judge a society by how it treats its weaker sections. How the locals in Bangalore treat and respect women and elders is totally heart warming. I want to wander along the globe, moving to a new city every few years and keep on learning to be a better human being. Bangalore, your time is getting over soon 😉

10. Living in today
“The reason people find it so hard to be happy is because they always see the past better than it was, the present worse than it is, and the future less resolved than it will be.” Most people are either worried about their past or the future, missing the present in the process. It is important to understand that we can’t change anything what has happened in the past. Neither can we second guess the future. At best, we can make a plan and work for the best outcome. But if it does not, it is wise to learn the lessons from failures and move on. Love life. Love yourself. Living for today while having fun and making everybody involved in your life happier is what should be our goal for the day. Watch the movie “The Groundhog Day” to realize how we should live our lives. We all have only 24 hours in a day, and it is important to make them count.

Is it for real??

How many times have you experienced something so amazing that it is hard to believe if it is real? I guess there are not many moments. There might be a few unbelievable moments while you are on some vacation, or when you get some unexpected result, but overall our lives kind of “suck“… I just had an amazing time this weekend that I was asking myself “Is it for real?” And let me assure you, none of your “unreal, unbelievable” moments can match up to what I experienced!!

What I saw this past weekend was how life should be, and how it can be. It was the ideal life which our parents told us about when we were kids or the kind of life you find in books. A life full of joy, honesty, love and compassion for others and free of hatred, boredom or any kind of negative emotion. And I bet you can’t imagine what can it be like being amongst 96 like minded people over the last three days from 10 in the morning to midnight. There were people from 15 years of age to 70 years in the group, and at the end of it, all of us were jumping and dancing like kindergarden kids.

Now you might be confused. What am I talking about? No, I am not drunk!! But certainly there is a “nashaa“, a nashaa of life, of the new possibilities that exist in life now. Now to clear all doubts, what I did over the weekend was to attend the “Landmark Advanced Course”… Now for those who don’t know about Landmark Education and its “Curriculum of Living“, it is a collection of three events/programs/trainings (whatever you might want to call them) that will alter your life in a way that you have never imagined before. Its flagship program “Landmark Forum” has benefited millions of people worldwide. And anybody can do it, from college going kids to young professionals (like me 🙂 ) to 70-80 year olds. CEO of big companies have done it, world class athletes and sport persons have done it (including the Indian cricket team) and it has allowed people to grow in their relationships, business and career.. In short, it has given a new life to its participants.

The “Advanced Course” which I did is the second program in the Curriculum of Living. Like the Landmark Forum, it is held over Fri-Sun and Tuesday evening. While Landmark Forum was the experience of a lifetime for me, the Advanced Course is about realizing what is possible for in the future. Although I am trying my best, I think it is something to be experienced and not to be described. The best things in life are always felt and experienced, and no description can do justice to the task, and this is one of them. I have already registered for the last program in the Curriculum of Living which is the “Self Expression and Leadership Program” and can’t wait for it to start (in November)

As I said before, the Advanced Course is held over a weekend (Fri-Sun) and Tuesday evening. And tomorrow is the Tuesday evening, the last day of our Advanced Course. And guess what, on Tuesday evenings, participants are allowed to bring in guests who can first hand see what Landmark education is all about and the kind of results people produce after doing the “Curriculum of Living“. So all of you who are reading this are INVITED as my guest for the evening session on Tuesday, 21 September. It is free, and will give you a chance to register for the “Landmark Forum” on the spot (which I seriously recommend to one and all) . You can know more about the program at http://www.landmarkeducation.com/landmark_forum.jsp

The logistics for the evening are as follows –

Venue – St. Joseph European Boys School, Opp Post Office, Museum Road, Bangalore

Date – Sep 21 2010 (Tuesday)

Time – 7:30 to 10:45 PM (You have to reach there by 7PM)

I really want to all readers to come take a peek into the wonderful program (and register too) this Tuesday. If you are coming or need any other details, feel free to call me at 9916532966 and let me know. Also, feel free to invite any of your friends and family members.