Begin with gratitude

World over, there is fear, frustration and impatience with the curbs and lockdown measures that various governments have imposed on their residents, even though the intentions are noble and well known to the people. However, human beings have benefited so much from the freedom they are so used to, that any restrictions placed even if it is for the general good of all, is viewed with suspicion, disappointment and anger. The real difficulty is having a way to cope with the curb on our individual freedom that has been artificially placed on us, even if the end justifies the means.

If you look at yourself dispassionately you have much to be grateful for and for the abundance you are blessed with. Here is a look at some things that we take for granted, when we stew in our own anger, frustration and disappointments.

Being alive – I know many of you will say that the problem of lack of freedom is because you are alive. Ask yourself if you would rather be dead and have all the freedom in afterlife? Some may argue how long will we live with the fear of falling sick. Well it so happens that for the rest of our lives every individual lives with that Damocles sword hanging over our head. So just be grateful that you are alive.

Having a home, family and friends –  If you have a roof over your head and family and friends  feel blesses. Perhaps you are cut off from some of them. You can’t meet them in person. You are unable to travel to be with them. Be glad you still have them and the technology to see, hear and talk to them.

Being financially better off than most – If you are reading this, chances are that you still have the means to access technology for your own needs.  Be grateful for the financial means that is keeping you afloat, whereas around you there are millions on the brink of financial upheaval.

Enjoying reasonably good health – Despite the aches, pains that is normal in life, be grateful if you are not in quarantine for the freedom you enjoy. If in quarantine be grateful that you illness has been detected on time and that your safety is being taken care off. If suffering from more life threatening illness be grateful that you are still managing. You will realize the value of life and living.

Having an education – You are reading this because you were fortunate to get an education. It has helped you update yourself, upgrade your skills, leverage technology and even find solutions to problems. You are not at the mercy of others like those who are uneducated and illiterate.

Having the gift of discernment – If you are a free individual enjoying your liberty and the perks of freedom but more importantly having a choice between doing what is right and saying no to what is wrong, be grateful for the gift of discernment. You chose to read this; you may choose to absorb the learning; you may decide to implement the learning by noting all what you are grateful for. You are blessed with the gift of discernment; choose well.

Try these:           

1. What is your favorite line from a book/ a poem/ a movie? Have you thought about why that line or words resonate with you? Think about it.
2. What is the best thing you did with your education? How did you utilize it for a larger good of the society around you?
3. What is the one sentence told to you that you still value? How did it influence you?
4. List out, at least three things that you are grateful for, that you are able to appreciate only because of the lockdown.

This post is courtesy www.actspot.com

You are also invited to visit our Inspirational and Motivational Blog

www.poweract.blogspot.com

Happiness Diet

If you ask anyone what he/she seeks in life, you will realize that everything boils down to being happy. Hence today’s post is on a simple diet to remain happy every day, every hour, every moment. Like any specified diet for any illness there is a list of prohibited items and a list of recommended items. Also included are two tablets to be ingested morning and night. Follow it and remain happy always.

Prohibited items so as ensure you remain happy:

Complaints – Out biggest weakness is our tendency to find fault, to complaint and to crib instead of appreciating the efforts put in by others or alternatively doing our bit to set things right. Complaints may draw attention, it may help us offload our anger but invariably it affects us negatively.

Bad moods and resentment – Both these largely go hand in hand. We allow ourselves to let minor things affect our feelings and moods and thereby imbibe negativity within us. At times we simply resent certain people or situations because you are either jealous, envious or dislike the person or situation.

Living in the past– The good old days is a lament of the older people. Fact is each of us getting older by the minute and it won’t be long before each of us also lives in the past and longingly recalls the good old days. The past is gone so recalling it may be nostalgic but would not do much good for our current living. Adapt to the changes around and live life the way it is today.

Avoid negative people – The whiners, the critics, the angry and resentful people, those who are constantly finding fault. The list goes on. Avoid or atleast minimize contact with anyone and everyone who largely displays these negative traits. They will negatively influence your thinking and slowly you will be seeing the world from their perspective.  A dark, gloomy and hopeless future never helps anyone feel happy.

Compulsory items to ensure you remain happy.

Laughter – The most visible sign of happiness is laughter. Hence it is essential that we find ways and means to enjoy a good laugh. Fortunately for people of the current period, Wattsapp provides ample laughter through various forwards one receives. Unfortunately the same medium also gives much more disturbing and often unverified inputs that confuses, creates fear and gets people worried. Hence one needs to find alternatives to ensure you get a daily dose of laughter. It could be in cartoons in the newspapers, jokes in magazines or finding real life humorous situations. There are also laughter clubs mushrooming and that is another alternative to begin the day well. Learning to poke of one’s own self is also a good way to find laughter from within. However, be careful not to evoke laugher at the expense of others or by being sarcastic, making caustic comments or insensitive observations.

Hugs & Kisses – Touch is a very important aspect of life that is often underutilized largely because of cultural taboos. In the current scenarios where bad touch has gained notoriety touch as a source of happiness has to be very carefully utilized. Touch is most evident in hugs and kisses especially when people are travelling afar. However, other touch elements could include an appreciation through a pat on the back and empathy through a squeeze on the shoulders. Families bond a lot through hugs and kisses and happiness is alive and visible then.

Living the moment – being alive.- One common problem that confronts people is that they are often reminiscing about the past or making grandiose plans for the future. What they miss out on is the reality that they have to live for today and must focus on making today something special. So they need to enjoy the moment, relish the challenges, face the upheavals stoically and smile through the niggles and giggles that they will encounter each day. It is by living each moment with awareness, with passion and with integrity that one comes alive fully. End of day, there will be no tears or regrets; just contentment and a smile on the face and joy in the heart.

It also helps if each morning we begin with a broad smile that reflects a positive attitude. We can go to bed in peace if we reflect on the day and be grateful for all the wonders it has offered. These two pills taken each day at day break and sundown would ensure a perfect happiness ECG for every individual.

Try these:

1. List out 5 most invaluable items in your possession. Can you donate/ sacrifice any one or more of these items and still remain contented?
2. What positives would you see in the following situations?

• You have failed in an exam by one mark
• You have misplaced your wallet containing substantial money and your credit cards.
• You have been bitten by a stray dog.
• You have been passed over for a promotion and worse still your bitter rival at work gets a double promotion.

 This post is courtesy www.actspot.com

You are also invited to visit our Inspirational and Motivational Blog

www.poweract.blogspot.com

Focus on what you see

One of the problems many of us have is our inability to really identify something positive to focus upon. This is partly because our minds tend to stray towards what troubles us, our problems real and imagined and varied anxieties that we have made ‘much ado about nothing’. The problem becomes more acute at the start of the year for most of our plans/ resolutions tend to center around unfinished business, challenges to be met and overcoming our limitations. The grid above, however, has ample positives that stare at us and it would help if we focus on the first 3-5 positive words noticed and for the rest of the year align our goals to meet the goals those words beckon.

Honestly I would have loved to list out some of the words above, but then it would take away the fun for you.  Instead, my friends, I am using my power of identification to share my experience of using my time to focus on some goals that have helped me gain friends, popularity and happiness. While money is important, it is the fun of influencing lives that really drives me. The beauty of this is that, I can with all honesty confess, that I have a large circle of young friends and interacting with them makes me feel young at heart. By the way, you also need to use your time not just for yourself but also for others. Keeping busy would also ensure good health in mind and body. If you look carefully there is something positive in every line except for one word. It is not for me to identify it but yes if you have the lust for life, even that word would be positive although most times we use it in a negative context.

Have fun decoding the above and more importantly use those words to make this year a wonderful and productive year for you and all those whose lives you influence.

Try these:

The grid gives you enough to focus on. Break time for both you and me. Actually, it is break time for me just for this post; you have ample scope to keep busy for the rest of the year.

This post is courtesy www.actspot.com

You are also invited to visit our Inspirational and Motivational Blog

www.poweract.blogspot.com

Look again- see differently

Every one wishes to have a smooth, peaceful and happy life. However, the wonder of life is in its unpredictability, its constant change and the contrasting emotions that spice up life. Like the varied delicacies that we savor everyday, which is a mix of sweet, sour, hot, cold, spicy, bland, delicious, ugh, life helps us experience a wide variety of feelings, emotions, joys and pains. Obviously, given a choice we would prefer to experience only the emotions that appeal to us, those that we enjoy and relish. The challenge then for us is to find those hidden emotions within the moment that we experience particularly when we are distraught, hurt, pained and emotionally drained. To do that we need to look again and search for what we want to feel.

Seek the good in the bad – So you got fired from the job or your boss has just given you are earful and a warning. Hurts terribly, you become fearful, you want to erase the memory of it. Yet the hurt keeps echoing in your mind. If you pause and try to calmly relook the situation making a conscious effort to focus on what is good about the situation you could realize that there are collateral benefits in the situation. Perhaps they just nudged you to do what you always wanted to do; quit and find a new job or begin a new venture. Maybe you realized that your performance was slipping because you were bored in your job and now you are forced to find new opportunities. Maybe you were already planning alternatives but not finding the time to tie up all the loose ends and the sudden turn of events has now given you ample time to finalize your plans faster and move on.

Find something happy in the sadness you encounter – May be you lost a loved one or flunked an exam or your relationship is collapsing. Not the best of times. You are overwhelmed by the sudden turn of events that are now not just painful but the reality is a nightmare that won’t go away. Pause again and try to visualize it from a more positive angle. Perhaps the person who passed away was spared pain and agony; maybe the exam failure was expected but now you know what you did wrong and correct yourself; maybe it is best that the relationship is ending without more acrimony and ill will.

Discover some gain in your pain – Did you lose your wallet or credit cards? Maybe somebody rammed your car and damaged it? Did you hard disk crash and with it your data vanished in a jiffy. Painful no doubt but it is possible that there is some good coming from it too. Look again and search for the gain in the pain you just went through. Maybe you just spend a huge amount using the cash in your wallet so fortunately the loss of the wallet happened after that or you would have lost a lot of money. Perhaps you car need an make over and the accident has grounded you now but the insurance company would settle it now for you. Quite possible that there was a lot of junk in your hard disk and you are now spared the effort of painfully going through each file before deleting or organizing it. Yes there is some gain in every pain; look again for it.

Focus on what makes you grateful not hateful – So you got criticized at appraisal time and you hate your boss for it. Did you just get a feedback from your doctor stating that you have tested positive for some aliment and now you are constantly asking yourself ‘why me’? You find something that you desperately wanted on the online portal but just when you are about to pay you realize that the dimensions of the product is not what you want and that is the only piece available.  You hate your boss, you don’t want to meet your doctor anytime soon and you hate that website that just broke your heart. Look at the events from the filter of positivity. There would be plenty to be grateful for. Now that you have a feedback from the boss, however unflattering it may be, there could be some truth in it and you have a reference point to begin to change. If the feedback from the boss is in your view distorted and not true, maybe it is time you looked for another job opportunity. The doctor is just a messenger of the truth and perhaps he is also the savior who can suggest an appropriate course of action. Did you just save some money by not buying what you longed for or better still you may find something even better later.

When hurt/ pained/ bitter pause. Re-look the situation from a filter of ‘so what is good about the situation’ and suddenly life would be much more joyous and immense possibilities open up to you.

Try these:

• List out the 5 most painful experiences you have had in your life. Identify one good thing about each of the said experience/situation.
• List out 5 frequent criticisms that you are accused of by family/ friends / colleagues/ bosses / teachers. Is there justification for those criticisms? What are you doing to rectify / remedy the situation?
• Make a list of 5 people / personalities who you dislike/ disapprove of. Can you outline 2 points about each of them that you appreciate / respect them for.
• Name 3 adjectives that apply to your positive qualities and 3 adjectives that describe your negative qualities.  So what is your action plan to eliminate those negative adjectives?

This post is courtesy www.actspot.com

You are also invited to visit our Inspirational and Motivational Blog

www.poweract.blogspot.com

The 3 P’s that make your life better

The challenge for each of us, is in enjoying our own company. True there would be family, friends, colleagues and strangers around us for large periods of time but definitely not all the time. We also may like some, dislike others, ignore a few, enjoy the company of quite a few and yet the one person we cannot keep at bay is our own self. Therefore it stands to reason that we better make friends with our own self and keep ourselves happy. We need to accept our successes and failures, our joys and sorrows, our pleasure and pain with equanimity so that we remain in perpetual bliss. This can be best achieved by adhering to 3 principles.

Be pleasant – Nothing like starting the day with a smile and smiling as often as possible during the course of the day to feel happy and to remain pleasant.  Of course there could be unexpected crisis, some arguments and disagreements, irritation and frustration, raised voices and some sarcastic comments to deal with in everyday life. Yet, once a person has learned to find something pleasant to focus on no matter how grave the situation, that individual would always be comfortable with his/ her own self. By remaining pleasant, one also influences the surroundings and the people just like a flower that emits its fragrance at all times. The bees may take away the nectar, the human race may pluck it, the harsh weather may destroy it but it continues to share its fragrance till it gets destroyed.

Be positive – Hope is the beacon that beckons us to attempt the impossible, dare to be different and persist till we succeed. Hope is nothing but a positive outlook no matter what the situation. The fears may not completely vanish; the pain may not subside easily; there could be tears and confusion but you would always quickly regain your composure and deal with issues with poise, calmness and confidence once you master the art of finding something positive in every moment.

Be peaceful – A good sailor never fears the sea but always respects its power. No matter how rough the sea, how forceful the wind, however terrible the weather, the captain and crew know that they have the power to overcome the adversity. They don’t panic, they act decisively, they take precautions and they prepare for all eventualities. This comes from their training, their preparations and their self belief; all of which are directed towards making them master their emotions and remain calm and peaceful even when they face their greatest challenge. Each of us is the captain our ship and the master of our fate. Let us like a good sailor, imbibe the art of remaining peaceful at all times, so that we can steer our life to all the right ports, through the turbulence and challenges of life.

Try these:

1. Think of the 3 most stressful moments of your life. What caused it? How did you overcome it? Did you get worked up, annoyed and vent your feelings on others? Were you a victim of someone else’s anger and frustration when they were under tremendous stress?
2. How do you deal with the following types of individual’s?

• Some who you dislike immensely
• Someone who is a terrible bore
• A person who you know will always be having woes and complaints
• An introvert with whom you have to interact often
• A person with wild mood swings who is a genius at work.

This post is courtesy www.actspot.com

You are also invited to visit our Inspirational and Motivational Blog

www.poweract.blogspot.com

Making your life greener

So what stopping you from having a wonderful life? Ah we can list out a number of problems, obstacles, difficulties, circumstances to justify our quarrel with the life we lead. The real problem, alas, is that we focus on what others have instead of valuing and nurturing the life we are blessed with. Everyone has some issues, some challenges and certainly some complaints with their own life but notice the people who are contented, happy and carefree and you will realize that they are no different from the rest of us. However, they have made a small adjustment in their life; they have decided to make the best of what they have. They simply water the patch they have and make it greener after preparing the field for a bumper crop.

Till the soil – The ground needs to be tilled well. This will help remove the weeds. It will aerate the soil. Do this to your mind. Remove the negativity, the guilt, the fears that you have. Fill the mind with positive images of what you want, how you will design it, the little actions you need to take to achieve your dreams and experience the positive energy that seeps in through the kind into your whole being. Just focus on what you want. E.g. Think of the next holiday. Do you want to to go abroad or to a destination within the country? Would you like it to be the countryside, the beach front, mountain terrain etc. Now work out a plan and get working on it by putting it down on paper and start looking up/ reading up about the place, the travel routes, the fares, the cost of accommodation etc.

Plant the seeds – Now that you have tilled the soil it is time for you to plant the right seeds. Decide on what you want to grow. It must be suitable to the soil, the weather and your abilities to cultivate it.  E.g. Decide on a specific destination for the holiday. What makes the destination so appealing? Think of an occasion (anniversary) or time (holiday that you and your family can take) to go there.  How will you mange the budget for the holiday?

Add fertilizers and pesticides – This is critical, for it is the step that ensures you get a good bumper crop.  With fertilizers you nourish the soil and with pesticides you protect the crop. E.g. You choose the right hotels to stay; ensure you have clearly outlined your travel plans in each destination, you earmark the tourist spots to visit and also what you would want to avoid. You ensure you pack the right clothes for the season and also ensure you don’t carry an overload which would be too heavy to carry or which can be fined for excess baggage.

Water regularly – While you may have done the hard work, the produce is still a long way off from being harvested. In the interim one must regularly water the soil. This would also include pruning if required, transplanting where applicable and weeding too if there are too many weeds. E.g. Till the date of the trip you will fine tune your plans. Perhaps you may decide to skip a destination and spend more time in one of the destinations you budgeted less time for. More importantly you keep regularly saving to ensure you have the means to make the trip a memorable one.

Enjoy the labor and the produce – You harvest your bumper crop and realize that all the cynicism that you had earlier was misplaced. Your worries and doubts limited you earlier but with those impediments removed upfront, you actually have accomplished much more than what you imagined. E.g. You trip is memorable not just because it worked clockwork but also because you did what you just envied others do. When you kept working on your patch and watering it regularly your patch became greener too. The pictures and videos you bring back refresh your memory and help you relive the holidays again. Maybe you also make your neighbors and friends wee bit envious too!

Try these:

1. If you had 10 minutes to do things before you die, what are the 5 things you will do? Can you utilize some points from the above reading to water those 5 patches you just listed.
2. How would you utilize the inputs from the above to

• Add value to your current work profile
• Make your personal and family life even more fulfilling
• Plan your retirement
• Chase a dream
• Expand your personal growth
• Positively influence your family members, colleagues at work and your friends.

This post is courtesy www.actspot.com

You are also invited to visit our Inspirational and Motivational Blog

www.poweract.blogspot.com

The good, better, best way…

Are you one of those people who is frustrated that things are not going your way?  Are you getting impatient and desperate? Are you on the verge of giving up your dreams because life seems to be going nowhere? The good news is you are not alone. There are plenty of people, including highly successful people, who on the outside are an epitome of perfection but on the inside are bitter, broken and busted. However though misery loves company, that is no consolation. The reality is that you want to change your life around and do it soon. So here is how to go about visualizing, living and enjoying your future.

Believe – To begin with there must be something clearly outlined in your mind that you believe you passionately want. This is the key to solving the majority of our problems regarding our future. Most of us have a very sketchy idea of what we want to do, achieve and appropriate to feel satisfied and happy. The problem is we use sweet and nice sounding words, most of which are intangible and difficulty to identify when describing what we want from life and our future. Using words like wanting to be happy, successful, appreciated, recognized, rich etc. are adjectives that merely describe but do not clearly point out the destination. On the other hand outline what you want to achieve and then you have a tangible goal, you can outline the way to achieve it, you can put milestones to measure your progress and most importantly you can start believing in a tangible future. Your actions will then always be aligned to moving forward towards the direction of your belief which is the tangible goal you have set for yourself. Every little progress made in that direction will motivate, inspire and reinforce your confidence. You will also see and be able to measure the progress and if you falter or stagnate you will find alternatives to re-chart your course without giving up on your goal. Even changing your goal is a way forward since you have accepted the reality and are willing to change. Good things happen when you believe and work towards your goal for you will always make progress, perhaps slowly but surely.

Be patient: Patience is a virtue that one must develop for we often tend to give up quickly in frustration. Yet patience must not be mistaken as an everlasting wait; nor must an individual mistake patience to mean doing nothing and hoping things fall in place. Patience is like the farmer tilling the land, sowing the seeds, watering it and then believing he will have a good crop if the conditions are right. As he waits the farmer inspects his crop adds fertilizers, sprays insecticides, continues to water it if required or works on draining the excess water  and also plans out the steps to take care of the bumper harvest he expects. While he/ she patiently waits for the effort to bear fruit they also work towards ensuring a conducive environment to ensure the harvest is good and the fruits of the harvest are efficiently and effectively utilized. Better things will definitely happen when one is patient and works towards facilitating the attainment of the goal.

Don’t give up: This is tough because there will be numerous occasions when we realize that progress is almost at a standstill, doubts creep up and we start questioning our judgment, when critics begin to needle us with their own gloomy predictions and when we are tethering on the brink of confusion. No doubt we have to be pragmatic but that must be tempered with rational thinking, sound logic and an inbuilt self confidence. Many times we give up because we are not clear headed and we tend to exaggerate our doubts and fears; other times we give up because we cannot see ways to overcome obstacles; occasionally we give up because we succumb to criticism and barbs from others whose opinion we respect but possible they do not have the same vision as us. Find motivation to persist, seek out companions who encourage, view criticism dispassionately, learn from mistakes, keep the goal in mind and the progress attained; most of all believe, be patient and then keep persisting.  Learn from couples who want a child but are unable to conceive one of their own; they don’t give up but adopt. They believe they can be a complete family, they believe in their ability to make it a loving family and they don’t give up because they cannot have their own child but adopt one to make their belief come true. The best things surely come to those who do not give up.

Try these:

• Revisit your childhood dreams/ fantasies. List out 3-5 dreams that you haven’t realized yet but are keen to make it happen. Map out a plan to attain that within a reasonable time span.
• Outline a plan to attain any two or more of the following

1. To increase your income by 10 %
2. To increase your savings by 10%
3. To be engaged in a social service activity
4. To improve your own health/ quality of your life
5. To make family time more meaningful and fulfilling
6. To learn a new skill or trade or expand on your hobby or change your life style.

 This post is courtesy www.actspot.com

You are also invited to visit our Inspirational and Motivational Blog

www.poweract.blogspot.com

Accept then Act

We find ourselves ineffective, fearful, tardy and complaining whenever we have to engage in an activity that we dislike, loathe or despise. Most times, the same feelings also preoccupy us when we have to do repetitive, boring and menial jobs. The reality is that every individual would have to necessarily put up with a variety of tasks, that fall into one or more of the above activities that are  disenchanting and boring. Take any job; repetition and boredom are inbuilt into it because that is the very nature of life. Even in the animal kingdom, preying, hunting, procreation, protecting the young ones and survival is the cycle that is ordained for every specie.  However the human race alone, sees their life cycle as a herculean task and a challenge. Ironically, this is because we are blessed with a very high degree of imagination, thinking powers and creativity which unfortunately we do not utilize well. Instead we prefer to distort the reality imaginatively enough to merely wallow in self pity. Life would be much more engaging, interesting and fun filled if we were to first accept the reality and then proactively engage with it.

To ensure that every day is a new day filled with opportunities and hope, look at life differently. Here is how one does it

Feel blessed to be alive to enjoy the day – Every living moment is a blessing. Once you make this realization you would value each moment. Your fears and frustrations will disappear once you realize that you are here for a purpose and that you are given the opportunity to contribute and succeed by being alive. So many die young never fulfilling their promise nor experiencing the joy of fulfillment.  Others die old, yet without having made a difference in their lives or in the life of others. Each day you are alive is a blessing; each moment an opportunity and every action you take can be made meaningful.

Be happy that you have something concrete to do – Even the jobless have a task of finding a suitable employment. Those having a job have something to look forward to every day. It is possible that the vast majority of us are often disillusioned with their jobs, they are striving to do something more meaningful and rewarding. Yet the fact that there is something to engage you, is itself a blessing denied to many. Once we this realization is made, the present situation looks a lot more promising, fulfilling and rewarding. Many of those looking for a job fail to land one largely because of their own limited vision, partly because of their inability to identify and discern alternative opportunities and partly because of their inability to accept their reality that they are often striving for something  they don’t deserve. If they accept their reality they would alter their thinking and redirect their efforts to more realistic alternatives.

Be aware that no task is menial; visualize yourself as an important cog – In most work places, the clerical staff are missed most when absent. They are also the most lowly paid, Does this not look abnormal. The reality is that the clerical staff may not be doing a job that significantly influences the business but they certainly are critical to the daily functioning at the work place. However, although their influence is significant, their presence is not recognized till they are absent. Their role is  vital for smooth functioning on a day to day basis even though they do not have any long term strategically critical influence. When we analyze our own role there are times when we too will feel insignificant. Does it in anyway reduce or marginalize our role? In any committee there would be limited number of people holding office bearers position but it is the rest of the committee that gives direction and legitimacy to the office bearers. In any team there can be just one captain but each member is equally important to ensure the team does well.

Focus on doing the job well enough to make you proud – One reason we see ourselves as insignificant and unimportant is because we do not visualize ourselves as playing any significant role in life. It is important that we realize that every role that we play be it as a child, a parent, an employee or a retired individual has its own importance in influencing the world around. You set an example, you show the way, you guide by using your experience, you motivate with encouragement and you certainly are a glue to family and social ties. Once you perceive the importance of the role you play, you will accept it with open arms and then act decisively to ensure you play your part well.

Aim to improve, grow and rise in whatever your calling – Time takes a toll on every individual; it slows down reflexes, there could be health issues or it could be merely confusion about what to do next. Yet time does not take away your ability to contribute in whatever manner one can. With every passing day, we are enriched by our interactions, our experiences, our failures and our successes. We also learn each day and we can also share each day the knowledge we posses, utilize the experience we have gained and actively participate in a calling of our choice. This gets momentum once we accept the reality that we may not be as effective as we once were but there is nothing to stop us gamely contributing.

Experience the joy of a task well done – The motivation that drives individuals to contribute despite the boredom, the humdrum of everyday monotony and the repetitive nature of the work is the elation we get that we have done a good job. It is essential that we experience this joy, soak in the pleasure of doing an excellent job and seek motivation in continuing to script success daily. So age will not be a bar, health would not be an impediment, the extent of your contribution would not be a dampener for you have accepted the reality and have chosen to act to the best of your abilities. You derive pleasure from participation, contribution and

Try these:

Make a list of at least 3-5 things you want to do because you are passionate about it. It is possible that some of the items on the list seem farfetched to achieve because of your current  physical, financial or academic limitations. Perhaps they seem farfetched because you have not really sat down to think and study it at length. Pick one activity out of that list and begin earnestly to get some tangible outcome. E.g. You want to be a magician. Find out about magic schools in your city teaching the art. Go to a library and find out books that teach you magic tricks. Ask friends and relatives about magicians who could teach you the art. Begin by mastering card tricks. Look up other resources on the net to get more inputs. Practice and master a few tricks and try it on your friends and family. Learn from the feedback.

Take inspiration from the following video’s of people who Accepted their reality and then acted to make the best use of their abilities. Click on the links to view.

http://tinyurl.com/hsueztl – Inspiration from Nick Vujicic

http://tinyurl.com/bpesfbf – Last Lecture by Randy Pausch

Read the inspirational article by paraplegic M.P.Anil Kumar by clicking on the following link

http://tinyurl.com/gmr2maq   

This post is courtesy www.actspot.com

You are also invited to visit our Inspirational and Motivational Blog

www.poweract.blogspot.com

How to select your thoughts…

Every day each one of us makes a conscious decision to wear attire suitable to the day and occasion. Perhaps school children had little option but to wear the uniform prescribed but even then they would try to ensure that the uniform was clean, neat and presentable. That rule largely continues in later life except that we wear the designs, the colors, the style that we are most comfortable with and which meets the requirements of the day. The key is the fact that we select what we wear. As a result we also reflect the image that we are keen to project and we are also accepted and respected for what we are.

Since every single day we make a conscious decision to select the clothes we wear, which is only an outward expression of ourselves, would it not be a wonderful idea to also select the thoughts we carry with us during the course of the day. Our thoughts would provide us a roadmap for the day, give us the motivation to keep persisting even when things seem to be at a standstill, inspire us when we come across challenges and guide us to take courageous decisions when we hesitate or are unsure. We can and we must learn to select our thoughts each day so that it shapes our attitude, our character and our passion to achieve something significant each day.

Here are 3 rules to frame and select your thoughts so that they are inspiring, motivational and actionable

Frame thoughts positively. The difference between the words Can I? and I Can ! is not just in the sequence of the words but is also in the thoughts triggered by the sequence of the words. The former expresses doubt and so your objective is to remove the doubt. However this also poses a problem. Every time you face an obstacle or limitation you immediately question yourself and are tempted to give up. On the other hand if you frame your thought positively and state I Can you will be setting up yourself to prove your point no matter what the challenges. You are never in doubt. You seek solutions. You become determined. You are focused on success. Does this guarantee success? Not necessarily but on the rare times you fail, the failure was not because of your doubt but because you did not measure up to the challenge despite your committed best effort. Your attitude will be shaped by how you have framed your thought.

Select the thoughts that energize and motivate you. Each day brings with it new challenges and wonderful opportunities. Hence one must begin each day selecting an appropriate thought that is compelling enough for you to put all your energies into. It must motivate you sufficiently to keep pushing your limits so as to attain your objective. Procrastination is often the result of thoughts of failure, rejection, fear and confusion. Enthusiasm on the other hand is generated when thoughts of success, achievement, recognition and personal pride buzz around in the mind. The thoughts that one chooses must strike a chord in your heart. It will provide the spark that ignites the spirit and energizes and motivates one to pursue any goal with zeal and enthusiasm.

Reflect your thoughts in words and deeds – Having platitudes and positive thoughts provides you the momentum for the day. However, you have to rev up your engine, press the accelerator of your life and zoom ahead. This means that you work with a plan towards a tangible goal and at every stage you are aligning your effort with your thoughts. If you start with a positive affirmation that you will close at least 2 sales orders worth X amount today, you should target the right clients to pitch to, work out the most effective manner to make the pitch and you will be able to convey your passion effectively. Targeting the right client, aligning your pitch and conveying your passion all form an integral part of the thought you have selected. Your approach will be shaped by how you plan to reflect your thoughts and deeds in action.

Try this:

1. Make a list of your favorite quotes/ proverbs (one at least for each of the following) that relate to money / happiness / health /success /life/ future/ death.
2. Select a quote/ thought

• To overcome your greatest fear. ( first write down your greatest fear)
• To inspire a friend who is suffering from an inferiority complex
• That reflects your idea of a perfect break
• Is so off beat and different and yet very appealing to you

This post is courtesy www.actspot.com

You are also invited to visit our Inspirational and Motivational Blog

www.poweract.blogspot.com

Focus and get clarity

Clarity of thought is a quality that is essential for every individual so that he /she can progress forward in the right direction. Unfortunately for a variety of reasons, individuals have always grappled with the problem of confusion, an inability to be decisive and worse of constantly looking back and wondering if they chose their path wisely. Most of our lives we have been told to avoid problems. In school one is taught to solve problems. Most of our adult life we are anticipating problems and seeking ways to avoid it. As a result the problem overwhelms us, we are hell bent on avoiding or solving problems and we are apprehensive of moving away from the beaten path lest we encounter problems that we have never experienced. So instead of exploring and discovering we prefer to gingerly and tentatively traverse on known paths occasionally daring to venture into some shallow waters. Our horizons are limited our growth is stunted and our sense of achievement is scaled down.

Today the startups, the youngsters having dreams of alternative professions and those leapfrogging from staid professions to dynamic alternatives are tribute to mind set change from problem avoidance to solution finding. Our training of being defensive and risk averse has actually prepared us to easily reorient our thinking into seeking problems and finding solutions. Instead of letting your mind constantly worry about the problem, let it now dwell in anticipation of finding alternative solutions. With this changed orientation in our thinking we allow our creative self to take over. Problems are merely irritants, solutions are there to be found and in finding the solutions you discover your potential, create something unique and possibly even build a new paradigm of success for yourself. Man’s inability to fly was a problem since evolution. Those who saw it as a problem and did nothing about it rationalized that we really didn’t need to fly and so came up with alternative means of transportation. The Wright brothers on the other hand viewed the inability to fly as a problem deserving an appropriate solution. Their aircraft crude as it may have been pioneered the aircraft industry later. The hot air balloon and the drones are also examples of how solution centric answers can become very effective.

We need to watch out for three impediments that could take away our focus from being solution centric

Fear of the problem – It is true that every problem comes with its share of anxiety. When we let this anxiety overtake our rationality we remain problem centric. Our anxiety increases with the passing of time and no acceptable solution visible on the horizon. On the other hand if we analyze the problem dispassionately, we would be able to appreciate the varied dimensions of the problem and perhaps even see various alternative solutions peeping from some corners. Pick up a newspaper and try to solve the crosswords or Sudoku problem in it.

Distraction due to anxiety – Before you attempt the above keep a personal time limit to solve the problem. Notice how you get more tense, distracted and frustrated that the time is running out. Your attention is now drawn towards the deadline rather than the problem itself. This distraction will take away your concentration. On the other hand if you focus on finding solutions you will get at least some answers by the time the deadline approaches.

Urge to disown the problem – Very often we just want to somehow get rid of the problem. If possible we try to pass it on to others. If not we try to find excuses for the problem still being there. Very often we try to find someone to blame for the problem. This urge to get rid of the problem, to disown the problem, to pass the buck is our way of escapism. It neither helps in getting a solution nor does it ease our anxiety for the problem persists.

Watch out for the above and immediately change your thinking to finding a solution and keep seeking alternate solutions till you have ample alternatives to choose the best one. Yes problems often come with many many solutions. Keep searching for the best one.

Try this:

Click on this link to get an idea of how to FOCUS

You are given a barometer and asked to measure the height of a building. Think of 3 possible solutions to the problem. (Having a science inclination would help but oh yes every one can attempt it)

This post is courtesy www.actspot.com

You are also invited to visit our Inspirational and Motivational Blog

www.poweract.blogspot.com