This morning a refreshing conversation with my mother triggered a series of thoughts on different directions in Hindu Scriptures.
Usually there are eight directions depicted in any compass.
She shared how there are ten mentioned directions in the Hindu scriptures and named each of them. Besides the four cardinal and four ordinal directions it’s interesting to note the two additional directions are Urdhva the highest point symbolizes by creator (Brahma) Zenith and Adhah the opposite represented by (Vishnu) the preserver, which call the Nadir.
It was intriguing to note how these preordained guardians of our galaxies play a significant role in Astrology and Cosmology with insights on how everything connects in life and living.
I started researching further trying to understand more. I came across this interesting share…
‘It’s quite intriguing to note how much effort our ancestors put into demystifying the elements of nature & their impact on us,’
I highlighted this line in the above informative article, because the more you learn of this vast ocean of scriptures you realise there is another horizon of understanding that beckons.
But one thing leads to another…
And that’s how the path of learning grows. And everything connects….
In a group setting as a life coach it is important to balance power dynamics.
It is important to create a space of mutual respect and understanding.
Being inclusive creates an expansion of thoughts and ideas in openness tolerance and acceptance of new possibilities.
In a group setting it is important to hold space by balancing participation through inclusive ways like encouragement appreciation and rewarding contributions. This ensures the power dynamics are kept in check by empathic approach and moderation by allowing space for all to speak up, so as to prevent lopsided conversations.
Have you had any such experience as a team member ?
Do share your experiences of power dynamics at play in group setting.
She hadn’t been to school for four days because she was not feeling well.
When she went back to school, there were a lot of lessons taught.
To catch up on the lessons, she asked her best friend for her notes.
But her friend refused to give her the notes, saying she had to study them that evening.
Feeling dejected, she couldn’t get the notes copied.
Another girl came to her aid and gave her the notes, helping her out.
The girl was heartbroken that her best friend didn’t help her. She remembered all the times she had given chocolates and colored pencils to her friend.
Reflecting on this, she felt extremely sad and cried, becoming obsessed with the thought.
“Obsessed” means thinking about something repeatedly. She couldn’t stop thinking about her friend not giving her the notes.
She couldn’t eat lunch properly, came home, and sat quietly.
She couldn’t talk properly, watch TV, or laugh. She couldn’t sleep that night, thinking about it all the time. The next day was a school holiday, but she couldn’t enjoy it.
That day, her family went to a park. Her father put her on a swing and started pushing her. The swing went higher and higher, making her happy. She screamed joyfully, asking her dad not to push too hard. Her dad kept pushing, and after half an hour on the swing, she got down and played more games.
She forgot her anger and sadness towards her friend, feeling at peace.
That night, while sleeping, she reflected on the following points:
Point 1: It was wrong of her friend not to give her the notes. Why should she lose her happiness, appetite, and laughter over it?
Point 2: Maybe her friend genuinely needed to study and couldn’t give her the notes.
Point 3: Being angry at her friend made her distance herself from her loving parents.
Point 4: Constantly thinking about anger and irritation towards someone is torturous. It prevents us from doing anything else.
Point 5: Why didn’t she try to forget her anger for even five minutes? She felt excited while on the swing and forgot her anger. Why didn’t she think about getting out of the problem?
Reflecting on these points, she reached a conclusion.
Thinking negatively about anyone all the time will prevent you from being at peace. It drains our energy and makes us unable to enjoy life. Therefore, she decided to stay friendly and cheerful.
She woke up energetically, greeted her parents, took a bath and wore her uniform, ate her breakfast, packed her bag, and as she stepped out, sunlight shone on her face.
Her face looked brighter and more beautiful in the sunlight.
When our thoughts are good, our actions will be good. When our actions are good, our life will be good.
Building trust creates a rapport for greater communication. Besides listening actively, addressing any issues and finding resolutions together immediately builds trust in a team. Being authentically approachable adds to the trust. Creating a transparent process and protocols for idea sharing helps. Showing appreciation for the ideas generated brings forth confidence to share more. Most importantly, giving credit where it is due by acknowledgements fosters trustful teams. Creating a responsive, cohesive and collaborative team requires transperncy in purpose.
In seeing the sunny side of things than as partly cloudy
The way of seeing is a choice in our hands
Natural involuntary effects
An increase in dopomine
Sense of satisfaction
A boost in sertonin
Feeling of positivity
A practice of seeing all things with a positive attitude makes life more meaningful
Gratitude makes us recognize and value things we already have even more. That is how it brings a sense of abundance.
Seeing the positive side, focusing on the good in life journaling regularly and being thankful
Every day a practice of gratitude could include a variety of things that may feel right to you.
And of course you will have unexpected serendipitous moments that you can’t help feeling grateful for…
Today morning as I stepped to my terrace garden I saw a beautiful squirrel enjoying the food bowl and water bowl I have placed on the ledge there for birds. I watched with joy and happiness as this little guy munched and munched.
Feeling grateful for a great start my day… Feeling thankful the squirrel is feeding. Hope he is able to feed here every day.
Gratefulnness is a beautiful attitude with lasting effects through the day. Cultivate the attitude of Gratitude.
Take some time every day to improve your life with these self care tips…
1: Breathe fresh air and walk every day thinking good thoughts. Every time you become aware of negative self destructive talk, take a good breath to regulate your emotions.
2: Hydrate with plain water, it helps the body and mind stay healthy and balanced. To think well, the right amount of water is a necessity.
3 : Nourish yourself with wholesome food. Choose to eat more plant based food .
4: Create Art, draw, doodle, paint or sculpt or do craft work. Sing a song, hum for a while if you don’t sing, take a step and dance your heart out. Even if it is for a short while, it destresses you.
5: Write write and write some more. Journal your thoughts regularly. It takes the pressure of your mind.Write your everyday thoughts in a journal or post an article or maintain a blog about things you love…
Starting with these five tips can make way for a lighter you.
Empathic leaders find it easier to understand the challenges of their teams but they also need to be empathic to themselves to avoid burnout and manage their lives.
Stress Management for Leaders
If you are feeling stress beyond a level you can handle as a leader you need to introspect.
There could be many factors that build up the stress often without your own knowing. It can happen to anyone after all we are only human. And it would be good to acknowledge the importance of work life balance and self care.
Are you biting more than you can chew? To manage work stress as a leader, while delegating work check, if you are delegating tasks with clarity to the team.
Are you approachable and exercising patience in communication?
Are you checking if they have understood your requirements?
Are your mails, messages and your attitude, building people up?
Remember the way you chose to behave rubs off on people. While it’s only human to err and there could be good & bad days, being a leader is a responsiblity. For you have the power to influence and impact lives.
Likewise your actions beliefs and behaviour can affect your own health. Hence managing your own stressors empathically become paramount as a leader to get work done.
Every now and then tweaking your own approach, to the changing needs, being flexible and adaptable helps you and your team towards reducing work stress.
As a creative writer, I enjoy the juxtaposition of imagination and reality. For life experiences become my muse. But still it is advisable to be savvy when sharing with the world.
Savvy Raj 
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