A few words.......

Responsibility

2006-11-19T20:33:00.000+05:30

Uncle told me this short story....

A Santa,and his followers were discussing. A man come over there,

Man:Guruji, I bought this costly shoes from my hard earned money for you only,its my pleasure, you must wear this one...

Guruji:Yes.... but now already I`m wearing this shoes,and they are in good condition....

Man: No..No.. You must take this shoes... otherwise that will hurts me....

Guruji: ok..ok..

Man went out with a great satisfaction and happy.

And the next day Guruji and his followers went to a temple... and after coming from temple, everyone shocked and the followers starts discussing among themselves... and everyone searching for the Thief. Guruji came back....and everyone over there were very much curious for Guruji`s reply as the shoes are Costly ones....

Guruji: Stop discussing... I`m RESPONSIBLE for this coz I selected those shoes which are provoking a simple man !!!

Now, We are spending our most valuable life by blaming others. We never ready to take responsibility.... rather spending life with only blaming others.

A Friend of Sensual Pleasure

2006-09-02T21:25:00.000+05:30

"Do not be the friend of sensual pleasures".There are many ways to be a "friend"of sensual pleasure;indulgence,thought,speech,and deliberate proximity as well as association with other "friends"of sensuality.Why go into detailed explanation of these?Anyone with good sense and right intention can do it for himself.
There is one form of "friendship"that should be mentioned: the friendship of pretended enmity. Many addicts to sensuality ( As well as other toxicities) often express their affinities and desires through "hating","feeling disgust",and fulminations against what they secretely desire. A friend keeps company with his friends;he seeks them out.Many people keep company with sensuality under the guise of denunciation and opposition. They constantly think about "sin" and "sinners" and even seek them out for titillation of confrontation and conflict. One of the dirtiest-minded men I ever met specialized in reforming prostitutes.Atleast he said he did.Many seek out the various tentacles of sensuslity and sensual expression "to know the enemy" and be up on what they have to fight against.So they say.In this as in other matters,behind a big front there is always a big back.

(from a book).

Zen Story

2006-07-06T20:01:00.000+05:30

My Heart Burns Like Fire

Soyen Shaku, the first Zen teacher to come to America, said: "My heart burns like fire but my eyes are as cold as dead ashes." He made the following rules which he practiced every day of his life.
* In the morning before dressing, light incense and meditate.

* Retire at a regular hour. Partake of food at regular intervals. Eat with moderation and never to the point of satisfaction.

* Receive a guest with the same attitude you have when alone. When alone, maintain the same attitude you have in receiving guests.

* Watch what you say, and whatever you say, practice it.

* When an opportunity comes do not let it pass you by, yet always think twice before acting.

* Do not regret the past. Look to the future.

* Have the fearless attitude of a hero and the loving heart of a child.

* Upon retiring, sleep as if you had entered your last sleep. Upon awakening, leave your bed behind you instantly as if you had cast away a pair of old shoes.

Source:Internet.

From the Tao Te Ching.

2006-05-27T23:44:00.000+05:30

Cultivate Harmony

Cultivate harmony within yourself, and harmony becomes real;
Cultivate harmony within your family, and harmony becomes fertile;
Cultivate harmony within your community, and harmony becomes abundant;
Cultivate harmony within your culture, and harmony becomes enduring;
Cultivate harmony within the world, and harmony becomes ubiquitous.

Live with a person to understand that person;
Live with a family to understand that family;
Live with a community to understand that community;
Live with a culture to understand that culture;
Live with the world to understand the world.

How can I live with the world?
By accepting.

Source: Internet.

Happy Mother`s Day!!!

2006-05-14T23:16:00.000+05:30

M - O - T - H - E - R
space "M" is for the million things she gave me,
space "O" means only that she's growing old,
space "T" is for the tears she shed to save me,
space "H" is for her heart of purest gold;
space "E" is for her eyes, with love-light shining,
space "R" means right, and right she'll always be,
Put them all together, they spell "MOTHER,"
A word that means the world to me.

Howard Johnson (c. 1915)

Happy Mother`s Day!

17 Ways of Learning in the D.I.Y. World

2006-05-08T08:28:00.000+05:30

Contributed by
Ganesh Chella is the founder & CEO of totus consulting (www.totusconsulting.com), a strategic HR Consulting firm that partners with organisations by designing HR solutions that meet their business needs.

We live in a D.I.Y. (do it yourself) world. Modern technology, increasing labour costs and shorter shelf-life have all contributed to consumers having to help themselves. Self-service restaurants, ATMs, snap-fit furniture, shrink-wrap computers bought on-line, IVR (Interactive Voice Response), ready to serve meals... The list goes on...

What does that have to do with learning? Are we not supposed to be taught? Are organisations not supposed to help employees' with their training and development? Well, not exactly.

If you want to succeed in the modern world of work, you must be comfortable learning the D.I.Y. way!!!

Ask any Manager or HR Head and he will tell you that the responsibility for learning now rests squarely and surely with the employee. He will also tell you that the organisation will provide you with the tools, infrastructure and support to facilitate this learning. The organisation will also give you feedback about where you stand so that you can chalk out your own road map to learning. The rest is completely up to you.

This is the reality of today and tomorrow. If tenure is fast reducing and employee costs are fast increasing, it is only natural for organisations to become far more realistic about what they can and cannot do for your learning.

You might be a fresh entrant to the world of work or you might be a CEO. Here is a quick guide to surviving in the D.I.Y. world of learning!

Before we get firing on ideas, let us get familiar with a few basic concepts.

Learning & Teaching

Learning is what you do to yourself all the time - 24/7.

Teaching is what others do to you, once in a while. So the first rule is to focus on learning and not teaching.

Learning is a life-long process and is not restricted to what happens in a seminar or classroom. In fact, in today's world, intelligence is defined as the ability to learn. Adapting to the constant changes around is directly a function of our ability to learn.

Levels of Learning

Learning takes place typically at four levels: -

Learning at the level of self: This is the first and most important level of learning. Awareness of self, impact of ones behaviour on others and so on is most important.

Learning skills: Skills help us do things and cover a very wide array. This is also called know-how.

Learning techniques: Techniques are methods or approaches that are time-tested and help us solve life problems. From managing stress to learning math to driving a car to making a presentation, the world is full of techniques to be mastered.

Learning theories: This is the foundation of all learning. Finally, everything in the world is explained through a theoretical construct. Theories explain why and how things work.

The 17 ways in which you can do it

Against this backdrop, we will now look at 17 simple and interesting ways in which you can learn. What is interesting about these 17 ways is that it puts you in charge. Many of them do not cost money and are very rich in results!

1. Welcome 360-degree feedback: Your organisation might have a 360-degree feedback process or it may not. Develop your own 360-degree process by asking your customers, your colleagues and team members for honest feedback. Obviously, they need to trust you when you tell them that you are serious about receiving feedback without becoming defensive!

2. Welcome performance reviews: Remembers that your boss, like most others hates doing performance reviews for fear of how you will take feedback and how it will adversely affect your performance after the review session!

You can make it easy for him by welcoming these sessions. You can assure him that you are keen on knowing about yourself. You may not accept what he says, but let him say it honestly.

3. Seek a coach: All of us can learn by partnering with another person who is inspirational, who challenges us and asks us the right questions. A coach can help bring about significant personal change in your life.

4. Work with your Manager: If you do not know how to do something, ask your Manager to show you how. Even better, ask to observe your Manager as he does a task that you are not able to do. It could be making a sales call or preparing for a presentation or chairing a meeting. Contract with your manager and you can learn a lot.

5. Work on a project: Many tasks today are time bound. Managing projects is a very critical skill. Ask to be assigned a project that you can work on. It could be a small improvement project. Use all your skills of conceptualising, planning, scheduling, monitoring and reviewing in this project.

6. Work on a cross-functional assignment: Participate in an assignment that calls for cross-functional interactions. You will learn to empathise, understand how other functions work and also improve your team working skills.

7. Seek peer reviews: One sure way of learning is to submit your work for review by your peers. Peers have a good understanding of your work and are on the same wavelength, and therefore, in a good position to give you honest feedback. Once you develop the comfort, you can use peer reviews even before submitting your work to your manager.

8. Build relationships: Building relationships is a very critical capability. Try and develop relationships with at least three people from professions completely different from yours. Try and understand what they do and what they like and dislike. Grappling with diversity is an excellent teacher. It will help you in building business relationships quickly.

9. Field Visits: One of the most forgotten ways of learning dates back to what we did in school. Go on field trips! Visiting other facilities, factories or places is a very rich source of learning in addition to being most refreshing.

10. Write a concept paper: One of the most crucial and often missing ability is the ability to conceptualize. While many are able to jump in and solve a problem, few are able to present their actions in the form of a framework of a generalized occurrence. Far fewer are able to build a theory around what they do. Writing concept papers on seemingly abstract subjects helps in this process.

11. Undertake a research project: Is there a question that keeps begging you for answer? Undertake a quick research project - qualitative or quantitative. It need not be something grand and complex but can teach you the skill and the spirit of inquiry.

12. Teach in a local college or in in-house programs: Teaching is often the best form of learning. Teaching forces you to conceptualise, develop a teachable point of view and also helps you question and reexamine your ideas.

13. Enroll for an on-line course or doing web research: Learning things on-line is going to be a skill we all will need in the days to come. More and more content based learning will be available on-line. More and more universities are planning to place their content in public domain. Are you ready to make use of it?

14. Write a journal or dairy: When was the last time you wrote a personal journal or diary? Many did it as children and the habit faded away. A journal is one of the few occasions when you can be honest and candid. In the private world of your journal, you can honestly review what you did, what you said and what you did not. This is an extremely powerful form of learning.

15. Participate in interviewing prospective candidates: Most Manager dread the chore of having to participate in selection interviewing. Yet, interviewing can be a rich source of learning. You get to meet different people, get to understand what their motives and needs are and also get to check how good your judgment is.

16. Volunteer for at least one social cause: Extending ourselves to work for a cause outside our work lives can be truly educative and fulfilling. More importantly, it is a great opportunity to discover that part of ourselves that we most often neglect - our compassion, sensitivity, empathy, sharing and so on.

17. What else: by the time you have come to item 16, I am sure you are ready to add a few more to the list. Please keep doing that. That is learning!

Once you have begun to learn how to learn, the feeling of empowerment is terrific and you will enjoy being in that state.

So, get set to wear the learner's cap. Take charge of your learning and also your life and destiny!

Words....

2006-04-23T18:41:00.000+05:30

*No one can predict to what heights you can soar....Even you will not know until you spread your wings.

*Success is a Journey....NOT a destination.

*Dont create a barrier with the people by the way you talk and walk.

Zen story

2006-03-20T10:32:00.000+05:30

Finding a Diamond on a Muddy Road

Gudo was the emperor's teacher of his time. Nevertheless, he used to travel alone as a wandering mendicant. Once when he was on his was to Edo, the cultural and political center of the shogunate, he approached a little village named Takenaka. It was evening and a heavy rain was falling. Gudo was thoroughly wet. His straw sandals were in pieces. At a farmhouse near the village he noticed four or five pairs of sandals in the window and decided to buy some dry ones.

The woman who offered him the sandals, seeing how wet he was, invited him in to remain for the night at her home. Gudo accepted, thanking her. He entered and recited a sutra before the family shrine. He then was introduced to the woman's mother, and to her children. Observing that the entire family was depressed, Gudo asked what was wrong.

"My husband is a gambler and a drunkard," the housewife told him. "When he happens to win he drinks and becomes abusive. When he loses he borrows money from others. Sometimes when he becomes thoroughly drunk he does not come home at all. What can I do?"

I will help him," said Gudo. "Here is some money. Get me a gallon of fine wine and something good to eat. Then you may retire. I will meditate before the shrine."

When the man of the house returned about midnight, quite drunk, he bellowed: "Hey, wife, I am home. Have you something for me to eat?"

"I have something for you," said Gudo. "I happened to get caught in the rain and your wife kindly asked me to remain here for the night. In return I have bought some wine and fish, so you might as well have them."

The man was delighted. He drank the wine at once and laid himself down on the floor. Gudo sat in meditation beside him.

In the morning when the husband awoke he had forgotten about the previous night. "Who are you? Where do you come from?" he asked Gudo, who still was meditating.

"I am Gudo of Kyoto and I am going on to Edo," replied the Zen master.

The man was utterly ashamed. He apologized profusely to the teacher of his emperor.

Gudo smiled. "Everything in this life is impermanent," he explained. "Life is very brief. If you keep on gambling and drinking, you will have no time left to accomplish anything else, and you will cause your family to suffer too."

The perception of the husband awoke as if from a dream. "You are right," he declared. "How can I ever repay you for this wonderful teaching! Let me see you off and carry your things a little way."

"If you wish," assented Gudo.

The two started out. After they had gone three miles Gudo told him to return. "Just another five miles," he begged Gudo. They continued on.

"You may return now," suggested Gudo.

"After another ten miles," the man replied.

"Return now," said Gudo, when the ten miles had been passed.

"I am going to follow you all the rest of my life," declared the man.

Modern Zen teachers in Japan spring from the lineage of a famous master who was the successor of Gudo. His name was Mu-nan, the man who never turned back.

Living a Life

2006-03-08T23:54:00.000+05:30

In trying to give, you see that you have nothing;
Seeing you have nothing, you try to give of yourself;
Trying to give of yourself, you see that you are nothing;
Seeing you are nothing, you desire to become;
In desiring to become, you begin to live.

RENÉ DAUMA

A silver lining

2006-03-01T16:12:00.000+05:30

Always have a dream

" Forget about the days
when it's been cloudy,
but don't forget your hours in the sun.

Forget about the times
you've been defeated,
but don't forget the victories you've won.

Forget about the mistakes
that you can't change now,
but don't forget the lessons.

Forget about the misfortunes
you've encountered,
but don't forget the times your luck has turned.

Forget about the days
when you've been lonely,
but don't forget the friendly
smiles you've seen......

Forget about the plans
that didn't seem to work out right,
but don't forget to always have a dream."

Some true words........

2006-02-25T12:18:00.000+05:30

This is a new world to me, Really amazing. Thanks to technology. I am a learner in this blogworld.
Just one word can bring many changes.......may end up in war or inspire sombody. I really thank Kumar Chetan and Vanathi for the inspiring words.

I came across these lines today and I am not much into philosophy but found it worth sharing.

True words are not fancy.
Fancy words are not true.
The good do not debate.
Debaters are not good.
The one who really knows is not broadly learned.
The extensively learned do not really know.
The sage does not hoard, She gives people her surplus.
Giving her surplus to others she is enriched.
The way of Heaven is to help and not harm.

-Tao Te Ching

Its my first post

2006-02-17T10:08:00.000+05:30

- Life always gives you back what you give out.............
Your life is not a coincidence,
but a mirror of your own doings.