You Are Blessed

Many a times we start comparing ourselves with others which brings a feeling of scarcity into our life. We start counting our wants and forgetting our blessings. And with this we start attracting scarcity into our life. If we continue to live in the same scarcity zone, sooner than later we would loose whatever we possess. And then we curse our fate that brought all this on us. The fact is we are the carrier of scarcity or abundance in our life. The more you think about your blessings, the more you will attract it. Moreover, we should understand that each one of us is blessed; though in different ways. 

People Vs Things

Its quite tragic that we forget our role as human being. We also forget who we are- Human beings or Human doings? In our quest to be the best we forget that being best doesn't mean to be no 1. It only means to live our life in such a way that we touch each soul in a positive manner, not doing anything which violates the basic principles of life viz. to live, to love & to leave a legacy. We should understand that people are not things & things are only things. We use people & get attached to things. We don't mind loosing people to gain things. So much for the understanding of a successful man !

Tragedy of Life

Death is as real as life. But another reality is we let much of 'us' die before the physical death. Our love for ourselves & others, our hobbies, our zeal & zest for life die much before our death. That is the real tragedy. Our age denotes the length of our life, while our thoughts, our love for life denotes the depth of our life. We worry a lot about the length, forgetting the depth. While we can not do much about the length of our life, we can do a lot about its depth. In fact, that should be our only worry. 

Light, Camera, Action

Best thing about the movie called life is that you are the director, actor & writer of this movie. No doubt, you were given a set beginning & you can not change it, but on the flip side, you can always alter the way the movie is going to end. One way to do that is to start afresh- no back flash, no past scenes, no old grudges. And another way is to continue the movie from where you were given the charge. If it turns out to be an average movie, you will be held responsible. And if it is a box-office hit, you take the full credit. Make sure it turns out to be the movie to remember for the generation to follow.    

Gardener of the Soul

We have a garden to take care of- The garden of the Soul. We can either waste it by ignoring it, not hedging it against stray animals like anger, doubt, greed and selfishness or we can decorate it by planting beautiful flowers like trust, loyalty, sympathy and love. Not only that, we should also know how to weed our garden from time to time so that weeds like negative thinking doesn't make a permanent stay there. It is unfortunate that we cast aspersions on others garden but never pay attention to our own. Don't forget that not only we visit this garden daily, but other people also visit it frequently. Rub such fragrance on them that they don't forget you for whole of their life. Only then you will be true gardener of your soul.   

Choose Your Life

Life is a series of accidents (some of which never take place in our outer world). These accidents or events are not important. How we react to these events is of paramount importance. So, in a way we choose every moment, every day of our life by choosing our reactions to these events. Sometimes we choose to pass the day happily & sometimes we make it very forgettable. But ironically, we blame the circumstances for the state of our life. The fact of the matter is that we don't become what happens to us. We become what we choose to be. So, choose your life carefully!

Laughing Matters

How many times did you laugh today ?  Lost the count or hard pressed to recall? Frequency of your laughter will tell the mood of your day, irrespective of your circumstances. I agree that it is pretty tough to laugh in adverse circumstances, but believe me it is much easier to smile than to whine. It takes many more muscles to frown than to smile. One smile lifts your mood & soothes your soul. It sends you on instant vacation. An all paid trip ! What else can you ask for? Smile please !

Don't Worry,Be Happy

One of the worst maladies afflicting human race is its obsession with worry. We seem to be in awe of it. We start our day by worrying about the current day, pending work & about the problems to be faced. We pass our day brooding over deadlines to meet, people to handle & about the high calorie food that we eat. We end the day by worrying about child's education, bills to be paid & about ever increasing inflation. The secret of living a worry-free life is to live the moment, not the hour or the day. So, get those monkeys off your chest & seize this moment. This is the only time you have. Rest is only a mirage.   

Man Vs Machine

What does a child do when he falls. Simple. He gets onto his feet & tries again. And if he falls again? No rocket science ; he does the same again. He repeats the action until he learns how to walk. But when we grow up we forget the process & shun our love for failures. We detest making mistakes. And precisely for that reason, we transform into a machine. A machine which (God knows why we use 'who' for a machine) gets up, gets ready, refuels itself, shows some oft-repeated uncontrolled emotions (to prove that it is not a machine), goes to work, earns money to spend it for refueling in future, repeats the process for few years & one day it is permanently conked out. Do you call it living? Living is doing something new each day;  failing in it & still trying to get the way out. Make mistakes so that you can make a life.  

Learn To Relax

Life is quite simple. We make it hard by pushing it to get things done in our favor at our own convenience. The secret of living a stress free life is to do your Karma & leave everything to God. Not only we should trust his selection of gifts, but also the timing of handing over the gifts to us. Don't try to snatch it from Him. He has the blueprint of a perfect plan for you. He will guide you at the right moment. Just listen to the soft whispering of your conscience & follow it. This is God talking to you. If you follow it, you will surely get your gifts at the right moment. For now, just relax !

Change Your Way, Change Your Day

Pause for a minute. Empty your mind of all the muddle & think- how have you lived your day today? Is it the same old routine or you have done something different? If you lived your today the same way as you lived your yesterday & the day before, the result must have been the same. Most of the people don't want to break the monotony of sameness because it is comforting & convenient. Doing something differently is challenging. But it is rewarding as well. Not only in terms of results but also in terms of learning. Make sure that you do something different each day, even if it is as simple & weird as dancing in the rain or saying hello to ten strangers. Change your way, change your day ! 

Thought Factory

Our mind is a thought factory. The quality of the goods it produces depends upon the quality of raw material it gets. You provide it with cheap raw material like negative thoughts, doubt, anger etc, it will give you low quality products like negative results, failure, disappointment etc. You supply it high quality raw material like positive thoughts, confidence, optimism etc, it will manufacture high quality products like success, satisfaction, happiness etc. So, what have you supplied your thought factory today? Expect the results accordingly!

Keep Walking

You might have complaints with life about how things are turning out to be. Most of the time we think that the dice is not cast in our favor. But remember, its like touring to a particular place & meeting unexpected challenges on the way. But despite these challenges you reach your destination sooner or later. The only difference is that in life we presume that there is only one way to reach our destination while there are many. Your job is to continue in the direction of your dreams. One day you will reach there. So, keep walking !  

Make a Life

Most of the time we are not sure whether we are making a living or making a life. We mix the two & pretend as if we are living our purpose. The difference between the two is quite obvious. 'Making a living' means working to remain alive.  'Making a life' means working to leave a legacy, to contribute. Another difference is while we make a living, we die slowly, unknowingly,but surely. While making a life, we live fully, purposefully & surely. Decide what you are doing !

Smile Through The Tears

Questioning or blaming our circumstances are like questioning or blaming God. You may not like your present situation but you must appreciate the fact that even behind this ugly situation there is a plan. And only He knows the plan. So you should trust him & move towards what looks like the right path. In case you have a better plan tell God & He will guide you holding your little finger like your parents did when you were a small child. Did you feel some sensation in your little finger? I just did! Thank God for guiding me again! 

Have a Big God

We don't have problems. It is only that sometimes we conveniently forget we have God. Whenever we confront a new challenge, we complain to God, why me?  By the time we realize that it was an opportunity wrapped in problem, someone else recognizes it & makes the best of it. And we whine again, this time-'why not me? Instead of complaining about the problems or about the lack of opportunities, start making your God bigger by increasing your faith in Him. After some time you will be able to say- " Bring them on. I have got a Big God." 

Logic Vs Imagination

Life can not be compartmentalized. To live, one has to come out of the box & that very moment one is born again- this time intellectually. When we live logically, we remain imprisoned. As soon as we start imagining, we are set free. 
Pablo Picasso summarized imagination best in following lines-


“There are painters who transform the sun to a yellow spot, but there are others who with the help of their art and their intelligence, transform a yellow spot into sun.” 
                                                                                                                                  ― Pablo Picasso 

Better Than Before

'I am in competition with myself', when you assert this you stop competing with others & you be in peace with yourself. The race to be the best is a mirage but the race to be better than yourself, each moment, has reality engraved on it. When you are fighting for any title, post or to be the richest man on earth, you are always concentrating on the destination. When you look inward to be better than before, you enjoy the journey. And life is not the destination. Life is a journey. Death is destination. So, where are you heading to? Scary thought....

Being Alive

You are only as alive as you pretend to be. Life is not only about getting opportunities or meeting successes but also about facing failures & encountering problems. Real measure of a person is how alive is he when he encounters challenges in life. We tend to go into a shell or pretend to be asleep when life asks us tough questions. But life knows it well that we are playing bluff. The challenge lies in being alive when hardships come in plenty. Even if you are not up to the task, pretend that you are ready to answer those tough questions. And after sometime you will be either accustomed to answer those questions or life will tire itself of asking those oft-repeated questions.

Be Yourself

People should only make their opinion. They should not make you. And this will only happen when you are in peace with yourself. Once you realize that the opinions of people are only perceptions made by them from a distance under certain circumstances, you wont get perturbed by their different viewpoint. You cannot exactly be at their place, in their state of mind. So, they have every right to differ with you. And you only reject their opinions, you don't reject them. If people are choosing your decisions, you have surrendered your right to choose & right to make decisions. And with that you have mortgaged your life to their opinion.  

Next Please

Life is a series of unplanned occurrences. It keeps throwing challenges to us at an unnerving speed. And most of the time these challenges come out of the blue. When you are about to achieve something, a new situation crops up from nowhere. And then, out of frustration, you ask a question-  Why me? And the answer is- Because God thinks you worthy of such challenge. You may not be up to the task right now, but rest assured if you continue to get these on your way, you will be strong enough to handle any situation. There is not a single occurrence which comes in your life without purpose. The occurrence is not important.  How you respond to it is very important. So next time if you meet something similar on your way to success, don't ask- Why me? Overcome it & say- Next please ! 

Accepting the Change

While we go through different stages of change, we tend to oppose it. And in doing so, we start developing a repulsive behavior towards it. And that makes the change an agonizing ordeal. If we accept it in the first place, if we welcome it with open arms, the change will become our partner in life rather than becoming an adversary. In resistance, we encounter a foe. In acceptance, we meet a friend. Choose carefully.  As your action will decide the response of the change towards you. Don't try to change the change or force the change upon you. Change yourself to the requirements of the change.  

Test of Strength

People have achieved unimaginable feats when it was the question of their survival. We have heard the story of a frail lady holding a heavy vehicle on her own to  save her child. And their have been numerous such stories. That proves that human beings have the strength many times over than they actually exhibit. This also proves that in our routine life we use only a small portion of our full capacity. And this holds true for almost all skill areas. We can produce remarkable results if we use much of our total capacity! We will come close to being super-human!          

Believing is Seeing

An old adage, 'seeing is believing' is not always true but 'believing is seeing' is true in every sense of the word. To see anything in physical form you need to first believe in its existence. To exercise any power that lies within you, you first need to believe that it exists. Just because the power has not manifested itself doesn't mean that it doesn't exist. You can not see electricity running in the wires installed in your house but you know & you believe that if you press a switch, electricity will start flowing. Same way you have to first believe that if you trigger the mechanism of belief, you will start seeing the wonderful results of that latent power.    

Born to fly

Irrespective of our colour, caste & creed, one thing is common in all of us- We are born with wings. And if that be the case, why would we crawl. We would crawl only if we decide to do so instead of flying. So ultimately it comes to making a choice. And surprisingly, many people make this choice thinking that it is easier to crawl than to fly. The fact is crawling is cumbersome & flying is effortless. No doubt, learning to fly will initially require efforts. But once you learn it, you will fly effortlessly throughout your life. Crawling needs efforts throughout the life &, most importantly, you don't enjoy it- you only suffer. Make a choice today. After all, its only a matter of choice.   

You Are The Only One

Comparing yourself with others is like questioning God. He created you with certain uniqueness so that you don't be another someone. Now, if you find some differences between yourself & someone else, accept these. Not accepting the differences means rejecting God. And that is too big a price to pay for small differences in complexion, height, intelligence, achievement etc. 'Take it or leave it' is not the option.  'Take it & enjoy it' should be the only choice. 

Live Your Passion

A child has unlimited store of passion. He never runs short of it. He wants to live every single moment of his life & his idea of living is- 'live your passion.' But the problem begins when he starts growing up. The spark in him starts dying & he becomes a mature, intelligent but unsatisfied man. The secret of living is keeping that spark alive. Don't let it go waste if you want to live a full life. Remain a child for whole of your life. Growing up should not be confused with loosing the childlike passion & living a meaningless & purposeless life.    

Live in abundance

Living is an art & living an abundant life is a blessing. One way of living abundant life is doing what you love. Quarter of our life is spent doing what we are forced to do. Another quarter is spent trying to love what we do. Next quarter is spent understanding our love & the last quarter regretting why did we lead a purposeless life. What if in the first quarter itself we are taught to live our passion. And if we do so, life will not be a vocation but a vacation. Happy holidaying!  

The meaning of life

It is ironical that we remain in an unknown world for nine months and surrender ourselves to an unknown power that nourishes & protects us, but when we come to a new world we try to take control of everything. We make our own plans & get frustrated when we don't  make it. We don't accept anything against our wish or plan. But it is important to understand that life is not what happens to us when everything is hunky-dory. Life is what happens to us when things don't go our way. Life is not about happenings in our world. Life is about our response to those happenings.

Use your wings

The only thing that others do for us is help us come to the universe ! Period.  For rest of the achievements & experiences ( called failures, ever heard the word ), we are responsible. The strength of our wings is directly proportional to the efforts we  make. And we pass our life considering the efforts are proportional to the strength. This much for the wisdom of human being ! And the so called conditioning that is done from the very childhood also depends upon whether you accept it or reject it. That precisely is the reason why we have siblings with different attitudes & achievements. So, you may not choose the wings ; but you can choose the strength. You may not choose how you come to the world ; but you can surely choose your departure. You may not choose what you got in legacy ; but you can definitely choose the legacy that you will leave behind. So, make your choices carefully. Use your wings & fly & help others fly!