CaliBridge

Most of us today struggle to be present in the moment, and to enjoy and cherish it. We scroll through our phones when we are at a dinner. We watch Netflix when we should be sleeping. We feel sleepy when we are at work. And we rush to complete our work when we should be relaxing and watching a movie. So how do we escape this Chakravyuha, this trap? Here are some ideas to help us be in the present and cherish the moment.   First, next time you feel like consuming content online, read and enjoy a book instead. Second, next time you feel like talking to a friend, meet him or her over coffee instead of talking over the phone. Third, next time you feel like wolfing down a takeaway lunch, opt for a freshly cooked meal instead. And fourth, during your next vacation, enjoy the scenery instead of rushing to capture it on your phone. Try these, and let me know how it goes!    #calibridge #unlockyourpotential #personalgrowth #professionalgrowth #financialgrowth #enjoythemoment

Swami Chinmayananda once shared an anecdote. Apparently, as a young seeker, he was seated next to the great philosopher J.Krishnamurti during lunch. Seeing an opportunity, the young Swami Chinmayananda started asking J.Krishnamurti some questions. Krishnamurti-ji looked at him quietly and said, “Young man, when I eat, I eat.” There is a lesson in there for us. We are rarely able to stay with one thing. When we at a work meeting, we are checking the cricket score on our phones. When we are watching cricket on TV, we think about work deadlines. We watch Netflix while eating, eat when we should be sleeping, and feel sleepy when we should be working. So, next time you struggle to focus on what you are doing, remind yourself of J.Krishnamurti’s words – “When I eat, I eat.”   #calibridge #unlockyourpotential #personalgrowth #professionalgrowth #financialgrowth #focus #WhenIeatIeat

“To a man with a hammer, everything looks like a nail” said the famous psychologist Abraham Maslow. When we feel exhausted, everything seems like an ordeal. When we feel diffident, every obstacle seems insurmountable. When we feel happy, we find joy even in small things. And when we feel irritable, we tend to find fault with everything. We often approach situations from the tinted lens of our own worldview or frame of mind. This bias plays itself out across our personal and professional life. As the saying goes, “To a man with a hammer, everything looks like a nail”. For instance, if you’ve spent your entire career in process roles, you are likely to view every business challenge as a process issue. If you’ve spent your career in human resources, you are likely to view every business challenge as a people issue. But the truth is often somewhere in between. So, the next time you look at a situation, ask yourself whether you are looking at it from the lens of a person with a hammer.   #calibridge #unlockyourpotential #personalgrowth #professionalgrowth #financialgrowth #holdingahammer 

Many of us dread speaking in public. It sets off all kinds of nervous short circuits in our brain. So here are a few tips to handle the anxiety on the day of your event. First, acclimatize. Get comfortable with the venue and the format. If required, reach a bit early to do this. Second, familiarize. Get to know the audience. Maybe even mingle a bit before you speak, so that you no longer feel you are speaking to a bunch of daunting, judging monsters. Third, immerse yourself in the content of your talk rather than in the anxious chatter in your mind. Fourth, don’t try to eliminate the anxiety. Instead, make peace with functioning despite the anxiety. And lastly, there is no substitute for practice. So, practice, practice, practice! Next time you are asked to speak in public, try these and let me know how it goes.   #calibridge #unlockyourpotential #personalgrowth #professionalgrowth #financialgrowth #publicspeaking

  Anybody who has written anything, from a school essay to a work report to a social media post to a bestselling book, would be familiar with Writer’s Block. It’s that feeling when you try to put pen to paper, or finger to keyboard, and your mind seems to freeze. As an author, I am no stranger to writer’s block. I share here a few tips to handle it. First, remove the pressure to achieve results. Tell yourself that it’s ok if you don’t end up producing any creative output. Second, switch off the censor or inner critic in your mind that keeps judging the quality of your work. Third, switch off filters from your mind. Is my work too bold? What will people think? And so on. Fourth, allow yourself to go in the direction that your mind takes you. Be OK to have vulnerable parts of you emerge into the open. So try these the next time you have Writer’s Block, and let me know how it goes!    #calibridge #unlockyourpotential #personalgrowth #professionalgrowth #financialgrowth #writersblock

Do you struggle to complete tasks? Then you need to hear this. When I was writing my first book KAALKOOT, I had trouble being regular with my writing. I would write infrequently, and would often end up procrastinating. It took me some time to realize that this was happening because of my perfectionist streak. Whenever I wrote, I would judge that piece of writing and it would fall short of my expectations. With the result that I would end up procrastinating. It took me some time to realize that procrastination and perfectionism are often actually manifestations of our fear of failure. Once I began to accept that I am imperfect, and gave myself the freedom to fail, my creativity flowed far more freely. That’s how KAALKOOT got written and went on to become a bestseller. So, the next time you work on a task or initiative, a personal or professional initiative that you struggle to finish, give yourself the freedom to fail and watch your creativity flower.   #calibridge #unlockyourpotential #personalgrowth #professionalgrowth #financialgrowth #perfectionism 

Legendary investor Warren Buffett was once asked what are the main traits he looks for in a person. He said, “You’re looking for three things. Intelligence, Energy and Integrity. And if they don’t have the last one, don’t even bother with the first two.” The first trait – Intelligence; doesn’t actually mean your IQ, It means the ability to approach life with curiosity and the desire to learn and achieve excellence. The second trait – Energy; is about your ability to commit to things, and to go at it with all the drive and grit that you have. The most underrated trait is the third one – Integrity. Today, we see society valuing success at all costs, and wonder whether we should ‘fake it till we make it’. Integrity not only builds reputation; it also helps you achieve mastery. And that is its own reward. So, ask yourself – how can I manifest Intelligence, Energy and Integrity in my life?    #calibridge #unlockyourpotential #personalgrowth #professionalgrowth #financialgrowth #WarrenBuffett #traitsforsuccess #intelligence #energy #integrity

Is your day filled with drainers rather than energizers? Drainers are things which deplete your energy. Things which have to be done, but which you don’t particularly enjoy doing. Work deadlines, pointless meetings, meaningless social engagements, and so on. Author Stephen King used the word ‘haftas’ to describe these. Energizers are things which give you energy. Things that you love doing, which connect you to your soul. Passions like music or writing, hobbies like gardening or trekking, or doing deep work on a dream project. Stephen King called these ‘wantas’. Most of us inadvertently fill our day with drainers, or haftas, rather than energizers, or wantas. But our batteries need to be recharged in order to function. And that’s why wantas are important. They make life worthwhile. So, as you go about your day, observe how much of it is filled with haftas, and how much with wantas, and see if you want to change the proportion.    #calibridge #unlockyourpotential #personalgrowth #professionalgrowth #financialgrowth #drainers #haftas #energizers #wantas

We spend large parts of our day in Consumption Mode. We binge watch on Netflix and other OTT platforms. We call ourselves ‘foodies’ and eat at restaurants, bars and cafes. We listen to podcasts recorded by others. We put on our playlist and hear songs sung by others. And often at work, we do work for an agenda which has been set by others.   But a life of consumption is a life which is only half-lived. There is this whole reservoir of potential that exists within each one of us, that is untapped. This reservoir is our Creative Potential. We could write. Or take up photography. Or sing a song. Or cook. Or take up gardening. Or teach. Or set up a company, or start a social initiative. Yet, all this potential lies dormant in us because we are so busy consuming. So, ask yourself today if you can make a beginning with a creative pursuit of your own, however small it might be.   #calibridge #unlockyourpotential #personalgrowth #professionalgrowth #financialgrowth #consumermode #creatormode

Our founder S. Venkatesh's article for Forbes as a member of the Forbes Coaches Council: where he talks about five key mindset shifts that leaders need to make as they transition to the C-Suite. (Link to the article in the first comment). As high-performing functional leaders transition to CXO roles, they often feel the urge to stick to familiar approaches and behaviors that have worked for them in the past. But many of these strategies would need to be "unlearned”. Read the article for more details. #leadership #CaliBridge #Forbes #Coaching