Often the difference
Between mediocrity
And excellence
Is in the ability
In reaching beyond
To go the extra mile
For a cause, a passion
In dedicated perseverance
Towards a larger purpose
That is where life feels most alive.
Savvy
Tag Archives: # Holistic Education # Life &Living #story
Expression
In these times of uncertainty
While you are making ends meet
Have you looked up at all.
Acknowledge to ones around you.
Yes they are each unique
Choose to communicate better.
Listen actively
Show empathy share a laugh.
Indulge their words & build connection
Between hearts in your home
Stay humble not busy all the times
Just to escape making a connection.
Your cellphones can wait
It doesn’t need your time
Your book can wait
They can be read later.
But your loved ones
Cant wait as their time is limited
They need your expression
They need to feel loved.
They need your attention.
Express yourself
While you can!
And you certainly can!
Savvy
The Potential of Silence
WHO ARE YOU?
Here is a beautiful story from India…
During one of his travels, Kalidasa (the Great Poet) felt very thirsty and looked around for water. He saw a woman drawing water from a well.
He went up to her and asked her for water. She agreed to give him water, but asked him, “Who are you? Introduce yourself.”
Now Kalidasa thought that an ordinary village woman was not worthy of knowing who Kalidasa was. So he said, “I am a traveller.”
But his lady replied, “In this world there are only 2 travellers – the Sun and the Moon. Both Rise and Set every day and keep travelling perpetually.”
Then Kalidasa said, “Alright then, I am a guest.” The lady promptly replied, “In this world there are only 2 guests – Youth and Wealth … both are temporary and hence can only be called as guests.”
Intrigued Kalidasa said, “I am a Tolerant person (sahansheel vyakti).” Now the lady replied, “In this world only 2 truly know the meaning of Tolerance – Bhoomi (Earth) and Tree. How much ever you stamp the earth or throw stones at the tree (for the fruits), both continue to nurture us.”
Now Kalidasa was completely perplexed. He said, “Fine. I am a stubborn person (hatavaadi).” The lady smiled and said, “There are only 2 truly stubborn personalities – our nails and our hair. We keep cutting them non-stop, but they continue to grow.”
Kalidasa had been patient so far, but now in anger he said, “I am a fool”. Now the lady gave a wide smile and said, “There are only 2 kinds of fools in this world – a King who rules without having any capability or knowledge & a Minister who is a sycophant to such a King and lavishes praises on such a useless king.”
Kalidasa realised that he had been outsmarted. He fell at the feet of the lady and when he touched her feet and then got up, whom did he see?
Mother Saraswati – the Goddess of Learning and Wisdom. She said, “Kalidasa, you are wise. But only if you know yourself do you become a Manushya (human being). A person without any awareness of self has not reached the pinnacle of being a Human.
Note:
The Guru who recounted this story in His Teachings said, “Children should become a Manushya & know themselves. More than teaching them how to earn more money and become rich, parents should teach them to become aware of themselves and become better Human beings.
Wouldn’t you agree?
What do you think of this ancient story and its relevance to our education today?
How far have we really come with the so called knowledge?
What legacy will we really be leaving behind for our children tomorrow?
When can we bridge this growing gap between learning for knowledge and learning for understanding?
How can we transform our methods of education where we educate not just the mind but also the human heart?
For the truth is that…
Humanity needs us all to be humane more than ever before to survive!
Savvy
Art of Storytelling.
Stories telling is an art
Not just the story
But the way you say it
When you say it
How you say it
To whom and why
Stories have much depth
Than what’s apparent to us.
Here is one such story worth a study!😀
Enjoy the humour…
Finest example of presence of mind!.
A Professor started his class on a very serious Topic. The moment he turned towards the blackboard, one of the students whistled. He turned, looked at the class and asked the Whistler’s name. No one answered.
The Professor peacefully kept the Pen in his pocket saying: “Lecture ends here. I’ll tell you a story to utilise the remaining time”.
Everyone became interested.
“Yesterday night I tried hard to sleep, but it was miles away from my eyes, so I thought I’d better get petrol in my car, which will save my time next morning and might induce sleep. After having my tank full, I started roaming in that area, enjoying the peace of a traffic free ride.
Suddenly, on the corner I saw a girl who was as young and beautiful as the clothes she was wearing. Must have been returning from a party. Out of courtesy, I turned my car towards her and asked if I may be of any help. She asked me if I could drop her to her home, she’ll be very obliged, to which I agreed.
She sat in the front seat with me. We started talking, and to my amazement she was very intelligent, had control on many topics which many youngsters don’t.
When we reached her address, she admitted my courteous nature and behavior and accepted that she would love to meet again.
I also admitted her intelligence and beauty and that I’ve also started liking her. I told her about my job as a professor in the university.
The girl asked my number, which I gave her willingly. Then she asked me a favor, to which i couldn’t have denied naturally.
She said that her brother is a student in the same university, and asked me to take care of him, since we’ll meeting each other more now.
I asked the name of the student. She said that I’ll recognise him with one of his very prominent quality, *He whistles a lot!*
All eyes in the classroom turned towards the boy who had whistled.
The professor said: “I didn’t buy my Ph. D in Psychology.. I earned it”.
Unbox & Connect the dots.
Buyer seller: A partnership plan.
Subscription model successes and failures are a well-known story in the leading business enterprises ranging from entertainment to e-commerce & healthcare sectors. But often companies are flummoxed when it comes to retaining their existing subscription box model in time . It is certainly a challenge to keep it going!
Why they work in the first place?
They may work if there is perceived value and convenience to the customers. And for the company, if there is revenue generation through repeat sales.
Here is where intelligent pricing matters. ( ensure it feels like a good and worthy bundle for the price of one from the Customers perspective.)
Here are a few suggestions from a company perspective on reworking the Box model.
Work on building a long term relationship with existing customers.
Chalk a customer-centric approach.
At times the surprise element can backfire.
Call and build awareness of the products and its USP beforehand.
Use the Customers who are satisfied for referrals socially.
Innovations in service and delivery can help.
Let the Customers know the products are service-oriented and not sales oriented. It charges their emotions towards a sale.
Companies perhaps offer treats tickets offline events and give some coupons freebies or opportunities for them to be brand loyal.
Work on building a community of people who get a product to try at a discount or offer a discounted first-month price. Will be a great chance to understand market demand.
Increase the customers’ perception of the utility of the products by creating greater awareness.
When an online purchase is done
Offer a subscription box at the point of sale with an offer and an explanation of how the company is doing good for the world at large.
But remember
User growth may eventually decline in the case of predictive products.
Keep it fresh and interesting.
Make sure to check complacency from employees once the monthly boxes are shipped. As a company be genuinely interested to know if the box is making a positive difference to the customer. Insert a survey link or feedback suggestions for improving the service.
Initially, Customers often start off wanting to exact the full value of the price paid in terms of the products or services. Like fitness subscriptions and then there is a waning interest unless the customer is kept engaged.
One of the proven flaws of the model is that it is suitable for certain Business and not for others. Like it may work where there is a service or product that is needed continuously but not for once in a while kind of demand products.
With too many entrants and the overkill that is visibly overwhelming to customers
Business models often need to keep improving their presentation, content, services and products and try exceeding the expectations of their registered clients for retention. In an extremely competitive market scenario, this is can be a double-edged sword.
There may also be waning interest of existing subscribers due to a perceived lack of control over the products delivered to them.
Financially is it viable?
This is a necessary question that a business must consider from time to time.
As in time, the user may prefer to choose between models that offer other likewise or similar category products.
And prefer only one among many such models after evaluating the benefits.
While every individual is different,
Customers may find the company idea of piecemealing or compiling all together redundant and may prefer to buy a one-off product that they actually need.
As simply sending something to a person continuously may make the product less wanted or needed in time.
With too many subscription models in the market, Customers cannot be conned as they are aware of the gameplan due to existing and already functional models
So the ‘why the model is good to buy’ is important to a seller to know and convey to the client always.
Time to rethink and unbox to connect the dots.
Savvy
Secrets of Living Well!
Secrets of living life well are no secrets at all.
Healthy mind, heart and body is about thinking well, eating well and being active in life.
Good health is all also about being able to live happy with cheer enthusiasm and zest for life.
A life lived lovingly without feeling shackled, exhausted and fearful is well lived.
A life is best lived that feels every now matters enough to help make a positive difference.
Savvy
On Education
In continuation to my earlier post on Holistic education. I came across this poignant post and I heartfully share this wonderful initiative and reflections.
ATTENTION ALL TEACHERS AND PARENTS
Every Friday afternoon Chase’s teacher asks her students to take out a piece of paper and write down the names of four children with whom they’d like to sit the following week. The children know that these requests may or may not be honored. She also asks the students to nominate one student whom they believe has been an exceptional classroom citizen that week. All ballots are privately submitted to her.
And every single Friday afternoon, after the students go home, Chase’s teacher takes out those slips of paper, places them in front of her and studies them. She looks for patterns.
Who is not getting requested by anyone else?
Who doesn’t even know who to request?
Who never gets noticed enough to be nominated?
Who had a million friends last week and none this week?
You see, Chase’s teacher is not looking for a new seating chart or “exceptional citizens.” Chase’s teacher is looking for lonely children. She’s looking for children who are struggling to connect with other children. She’s identifying the little ones who are falling through the cracks of the class’s social life. She is discovering whose gifts are going unnoticed by their peers. And she’s pinning down- right away- who’s being bullied and who is doing the bullying.
As a teacher, parent, and lover of all children – I think that this is the most brilliant Love Ninja strategy I have ever encountered. It’s like taking an X-ray of a classroom to see beneath the surface of things and into the hearts of students. It is like mining for gold – the gold being those little ones who need a little help – who need adults to step in and TEACH them how to make friends, how to ask others to play, how to join a group, or how to share their gifts with others. And it’s a bully deterrent because every teacher knows that bullying usually happens outside of her eyeshot – and that often kids being bullied are too intimidated to share. But as she said – the truth comes out on those safe, private, little sheets of paper.
As Chase’s teacher explained this simple, ingenious idea – I stared at her with my mouth hanging open. “How long have you been using this system?” I said.
Ever since Columbine, she said. Every single Friday afternoon since Columbine.
Good Lord.
This brilliant woman watched Columbine knowing that ALL VIOLENCE BEGINS WITH DISCONNECTION. All outward violence begins as inner loneliness. She watched that tragedy KNOWING that children who aren’t being noticed will eventually resort to being noticed by any means necessary.
And so she decided to start fighting violence early and often, and with the world within her reach. What Chase’s teacher is doing when she sits in her empty classroom studying those lists written with shaky 11 year old hands – is SAVING LIVES. I am convinced of it. She is saving lives.
And what this mathematician has learned while using this system is something she really already knew: that everything – even love, even belonging – has a pattern to it. And she finds those patterns through those lists – she breaks the codes of disconnection. And then she gets lonely kids the help they need. It’s math to her. It’s MATH.
All is love- even math. Amazing.
Chase’s teacher retires this year – after decades of saving lives. What a way to spend a life: looking for patterns of love and loneliness. Stepping in, every single day- and altering the trajectory of our world.
TEACH ON, WARRIORS. You are the first responders, the front line, the disconnection detectives, and the best and ONLY hope we’ve got for a better world. What you do in those classrooms when no one is watching- it’s our best hope. http://momastery.com/blog/2014/01/30/share-schools/
A poignant tale
Sharing this is very poignant piece of writing that I came across. Although it is truly touching it does leave us with a valuable learning on living life…
Do care to read.
ONE BEDROOM FLAT…
Written by an Indian Engineer.
A Bitter Reality
As the dream of most parents I had acquired a degree in Engineering and joined a company based in USA, the land of braves and opportunity. When I arrived in the USA, it was as if a dream had come true.
Here at last I was in the place where I want to be. I decided I would be staying in this country for about Five years in which time I would have earned enough money to settle down in India.
My father was a government employee and after his retirement, the only asset he could acquire was a decent one bedroom flat.
I wanted to do something more than him. I started feeling homesick and lonely as the time passed. I used to call home and speak to my parents every week using cheap international phone cards. Two years passed, two years of Burgers at McDonald’s and pizzas and discos and 2 years watching the foreign exchange rate getting happy whenever the Rupee value went down.
Finally I decided to get married. Told my parents that I have only 10 days of holidays and everything must be done within these 10 days. I got my ticket booked in the cheapest flight. Was jubilant and was actually enjoying hopping for gifts for all my friends back home. If I miss anyone then there will be talks. After reaching home I went through all the photographs of girls and as the time was getting shorter I was forced to select one candidate.
In-laws told me, to my surprise, that I would have to get married in 2-3 days, as I will not get anymore holidays. After the marriage, it was time to return to USA, after giving some money to my parents and telling the neighbours to look after them, we returned to USA.
My wife enjoyed this country for about two months and then she started feeling lonely. The frequency of calling India increased to twice in a week sometimes 3 times a week. Our savings started diminishing.
After two more years we started to have kids. Two lovely kids, a boy and a girl, were gifted to us by the almighty. Every time I spoke to my parents, they asked me to come to India so that they can see their grand-children.
Every year I decide to go to India But part work part monetary conditions prevented it. Years went by and visiting India was a distant dream. Then suddenly one day I got a message that my parents were seriously sick. I tried but I couldn’t get any holidays and thus could not go to India … The next message I got was my parents had passed away and as there was no one to do the last rites the society members had done whatever they could. I was depressed. My parents had passed away without seeing their grand children.
After couple more years passed away, much to my children’s dislike and my wife’s joy we returned to India to settle down. I started to look for a suitable property, but to my dismay my savings were short and the property prices had gone up during all these years. I had to return to the USA…
My children refused to stay in India… So I returned to USA with my family.
Time passed by, my daughter decided to get married to an American and my son was happy living in USA… I decided that had enough and wound-up everything and returned to India… I had just enough money to buy a decent 02 bedroom flat in a well-developed locality.
Now I am 60 years old and the only time I go out of the flat is for the routine visit to the nearby temple. My faithful wife has also left me and gone to the holy abode.
Sometimes I wondered was it worth all this?
My father, even after staying in India,had a house to his name and I too have the same nothing more.
I lost my parents and children for just ONE EXTRA BEDROOM.
Looking out from the window I see my childhood and the beautiful moments that I missed. I get occasional cards from my children asking I am alright. Well at least they remember me.
Now perhaps after I die it will be the neighbours again who will be performing my last rights, God Bless them.
But the question still remains ‘was all this worth it?’
I am still searching for an answer!
START THINKING
IS IT JUST FOR ONE EXTRA BEDROOM???
LIFE IS BEYOND THIS …. .DON’T JUST LEAVE YOUR LIFE ..
LEAD YOUR LIFE HAPPILY WITH YOUR LOVED ONES AROUND.
Enjoy it with your near and dear ones
Money does not make you happy,
love of parents, children and all close to us does.
“So much pressure in today’s world to succeed at all costs, to attain materialistic desires, somewhere loses its way and all seems to go back the start.
Such is the irony of life and living”
Savvy
Savvy Raj 
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