Category: Life Gyan

Posted in Life Gyan

Put a Shark In Your Tank

Posted on by Anand Surana

The Japanese have always loved fresh fish. But the waters close to Japan have not held many fish for decades. So to feed the Japanese population, fishing boats got bigger and went farther than ever. The farther the fishermen went, the longer it took to bring in the fish. If the return trip took more than a few days, the fish were not fresh. The Japanese did not like the taste. 

To solve this problem, fishing companies installed freezers on their boats. They would catch the fish and freeze them at sea. Freezers allowed the boats to go farther and stay longer. However, the Japanese could taste the difference between fresh and frozen and they did not like frozen fish. The frozen fish brought a lower price. 

So fishing companies installed fish tanks. They would catch the fish and stuff them in the tanks, fin to fin. After a little thrashing around, the fish stopped moving. They were tired and dull, but alive. Unfortunately, the Japanese could still taste the difference. Because the fish did not move for days, they lost their fresh-fish taste. The Japanese preferred the lively taste of fresh fish, not sluggish fish. 

So how did Japanese fishing companies solve this problem? How do they get fresh-tasting fish to Japan? If you were consulting the fish industry, what would you recommend? 

Too Much Money 
As soon as you reach your goals, such as finding a wonderful mate, starting a successful company, paying off your debts or whatever, you might lose your passion. You don’t need to work so hard so you relax. 

You experience the same problem as lottery winners who waste their money, wealthy heirs who never grow up and bored homemakers who get addicted to prescription drugs. 

Like the Japanese fish problem, the best solution is simple. It was observed by L. Ron Hubbard in the early 1950’s. 

“Man thrives, oddly enough, only in the presence of a challenging environment.“- L. Ron Hubbard 

The Benefits of a Challenge 
The more intelligent, persistent and competent you are, the more you enjoy a good problem. If your challenges are the correct size, and if you are steadily conquering those challenges, you are happy. You think of your challenges and get energized. You are excited to try new solutions. You have fun.
You are alive! 

How Japanese Fish Stay Fresh 
To keep the fish tasting fresh, the Japanese fishing companies still put the fish in the tanks. But now they add a small shark to each tank. The shark eats a few fish, but most of the fish arrive in a very lively state. The fish are challenged. 

Recommendations 
Instead of avoiding challenges, jump into them. Beat the heck out of them. Enjoy the game. If your challenges are too large or too numerous, do not give up. Failing makes you tired. Instead, reorganize. Find more determination, more knowledge, more help. 

If you have met your goals, set some bigger goals. Once you meet your personal or family needs, move onto goals for your group, the society, even mankind. 

Don’t create success and lie in it. You have resources, skills and abilities to make a difference. 

Put a shark in your tank and see how far you can really go!

Posted in Life Gyan

“ME” Time

Posted on by Anand Surana

Our lives have become so hectic that by the time we are done dealing with the routine stuff of life, our day job, daily chores, social commitments and not to forget the endless notifications on the ubiquitous “smartphone”,  we realize that one more day has passed by. And the next day it is the same grind all over again. In all this madness we all need some “ME” time daily.

So what is this “ME” time?

Simply put, it is the time you spend talking with yourself, sifting through your thoughts, looking back on the events of the day and planning for the future. This is the time where you have an honest conversation with yourself, debate about issues, fine tune your perception and sometimes make resolutions. 

You sift and churn your thoughts and un-clutter your mind in the process. The “ME” time is important because it helps us to recalibrate our focus on the most important goals and reconnect with ourselves and our purpose in life. In this age of information overload, the “ME” time is required to maintain sanity.

Swami Vivekanand once said, ” Talk to yourself once in a day otherwise you may miss meeting an Excellent person in this world.” 

Sometimes people fail to recognize the importance of this time spent with the self. Most of the great stuff, your Eureka moments happen during this time. This is the time when your sub-conscious presents the solutions to the problems it has been working in the background. Your personal growth happens during this time.

The famous motivational speaker Robin Sharma states that “The science behind the rewards of solitude are pretty phenomenal… making time to be alone actually shuts down the part of the brain responsible for self-criticism, firing up the part of your brain that contains your natural state of genius. “

He states that when you spend time with self – whether it is during your morning walk or in the quite room of your home your brain waves slow down from beta to alpha. When this happens–amid solitude–the part of your brain responsible for self-criticism, mental chatter and constant worry shuts down. With your monkey mind on a little vacation, you enter the Flow State. Elite athletes know this as “the zone” and it’s the place where all great performance begins. It is in this state that you get your best ideas. Your creativity makes explosive gains. You begin to see around corners.

And guess what – this is your natural state that God has given to everyone. Available to you daily. Most people don’t know they have it. And not many create the conditions to experience it. You too can experience it… by going into solitude. Consistently.

Posted in Life Gyan

The New 10 Commandments of Life

Posted on by Anand Surana

How we lead our lives depends a lot on perspective. Two people looking at the same situation interpret it differently depending on their outlook for life. Read the below 10 Commandments and reflect back on your life and you outlook. These may give you a different perspective.

1) Heavy rains remind us of challenges in life. Never ask for a lighter rain. Just pray for a better umbrella. That is attitude.

2) When flood comes, fish eat ants & when flood recedes, ants eat fish. Only time matters. Just hold on, God gives opportunity to everyone!

3) Life is not about finding the right person, but creating the right relationship, it’s not how we care in the beginning, but how much we care till ending.

4) Some people always throw stones in your path. It depends on you what you make with them, Wall or Bridge?  Remember you are the architect of your life.

5) Every problem has (n+1) solutions, where n is the number of solutions that you have tried and 1 is that you have not tried. That’s life.

6) It is not important to hold all the good cards in life. But it’s important how well you play with the cards which you hold.

7) Often when we lose all hope & think this is the end, God smiles from above and says, `Relax dear it’s just a bend. Not the end’. Have Faith and have a successful life.

8) When you are sad, try to cheer up – just go to the mirror and say, `Damn I am really so cute` and you will overcome your sadness. But don’t make this a habit b’coz liars go to hell.

9) One of the basic  differences between God and human is, God gives, gives and forgives. But human gets, gets, gets and forgets. Be thankful in life!

10) Only two types of persons are happy in this world. First is Mad and second is Child. Be Mad to achieve what you desire and be a Child to enjoy what you have achieved.

Posted in Life Gyan

Run Your Own Race

Posted on by Anand Surana

I was cycling and noticed a person in front of me, about 1/4 of Km. I could tell he was cycling a little slower than me and decided to try to catch him. I had about a km to go on the road before turning off.

So I started cycling faster and faster and every block, I was gaining on him just a little bit. After just a few minutes I was only about 100 yards behind him, so I really picked up the pace and pushed myself. You would have thought I was cycling in the last leg of London Olympic triathlon.

Finally,I caught up with him and passed him by. On the inside I felt so good. “I beat him” of course, but he didn’t even know we were racing.

After I passed him, I realized that I had been so focused on competing against him that I had missed my turn, had gone nearly six blocks past it and had to turn around and go all back.

Isn’t that what happens in life when we focus on competing with co-workers, neighbours, friends, family, trying to outdo them or trying to prove that we are more successful or more important? We spend our time and energy running after them and we miss out on our own paths to our destinies.

Moral : The problem with unhealthy competition is that it’s a never ending cycle. There will always be somebody ahead of you, someone with better job, nicer car, more money in the bank, more education, a prettier wife, a more handsome husband, better behaved children, etc.

In the obsession to beat the competition, you often forget to enjoy the little joys of everyday life which make life so meaningful. It is the journey that makes up a life, not the destination.

Take what Life has given you, the height, weight & personality. Dress well & wear it proudly! You’ll be blessed by it. Stay focused and live a healthy life. There’s no competition in DESTINY.

Run your own RACE and wish others WELL!!!

Posted in Life Gyan

Really Really Short Stories

Posted on by Anand Surana

Some time ago I came across this concept of writing very very short stories in just a couple of sentences. Yes you read it right. The story is just a couple of lines in length, yet it conveys a meaningful story. It is a sort of innovation in story telling. When I read it first, I was amazed by each one of them. I am sharing a few of the shortest stories I have read for you to decide. To really appreciate the stories, pause on each one for a moment before you move to the next one.

Those who had coins, enjoyed in the rain.
Those who had notes, were busy looking for shelter.

Man and God both met somewhere,
Both exclaimed – “My Creator”

He asked are you-“Hindu or Muslim”
Response came- I am hungry

The fool didn’t know it was impossible-
So he did it.

“Wrong number”, Said a familiar voice.

What if God asks you after you die-
“So how was heaven??”

“They told me that to make her fall in love I had to make her laugh.
But every time she laughs, I am the one who falls in love.”

We don’t make friends anymore,
We add them.

It rained heavily last night,
Said the pillow.

Hope you enjoyed reading them. If you think you can also come up with some brilliant ones, please do share.

Posted in Life Gyan

Why Have a Mentor?

Posted on by Anand Surana

Consider a drop of pure water falling from the sky. If it lands on flowers or leaves, it becomes a dew drop.If it falls on a hot surface, then it loses it’s identity and vanishes.If the same drop lands in an oyster, it gets converted into a pearl…

That is the power of a good mentor. The literal meaning of a mentor is someone who imparts wisdom to and shares knowledge with a less experienced colleague. A mentor is like a navigator who helps you steer your ship in the right direction even on uncharted waters and help you reach your destination. The true importance of a mentor is understood by those who have experienced it.

Apart from choosing the right mentor, to build a working mentor – mentee relationship, the primary ingredient required is mutual trust. And mutual trust is built by maintaining an environment of confidentiality. The relationship will be beneficial if both the mentor and the mentee are able to speak their mind and both feel that their view point is heard and respected.

A mentor plays an important role in your success. However, having a mentor does not mean that he will build a ladder for your growth. Instead, he will help you build on your strengths and overcome your weakness. You will still have to do all the hard work but instead of running around in circles and not reaching anywhere, the mentor will point you towards the direction you need to focus your efforts so that they yield results.

Posted in Life Gyan

My Children, My Universe

Posted on by Anand Surana
mother_and_child
Sharing this immensely practical advice given by Mrs. Chithra Vishwanathan, who’s a famous Cooking expert. And I can vouch, I have seen the same story unfold among relatives and families of friends and neighbours – especially if the lady is a homemaker. The vacuum in the mother’s life after the kids leave home can push her into depression. Maybe you can relate to the below story and learn from it.

When my daughter, the elder one of my two children got married & left the house, I felt as if I could not let her leave me. Having a daughter & a son, I know what both mean, but differently .
Once my daughter reached her teens I had started feeling as if my daughter was a “physical extension” of me ! So when she was leaving home to set up her own nest, it was as though I was losing a limb .
The next time she came for a short stay with us, I was astonished how her priorities had changed. (of course we must have given the same shocks to our own parents ! ). When she said Amma, she meant her MIL & not me! I imagined that she was always in a hurry to go back to her house & not stay with me for a few more days. That was the first time, it dawned on me that I have to start practising detachment in attachment.
Two years after my daughter’s marriage, my son left for higher studies to U S. Having experienced a child’s separation once, I was better equipped emotionally. I plunged head long into various classes held in the city starting from vedanta to healing to ikebana – I just wanted to be away from home since my husband was a 7-7 worker & a workaholic. My son used to write how he was missing my home cooked food, how he was waiting to come back to live in Chennai with us etc.
After a few years, he did come back & we got him married. He started living separately with his wife & we were also happy that they wanted to be independent from the beginning.
But now, it was all changed ! When in the U S, he missed my cooking, now if I called him to come over with his wife for a meal, it was always some excuse like “Oh, Amma, we have other plans for the day, please don’t mistake us if we don’t drop in today” ! I could see that his priorities had also changed completely.
We talk in theory so many things & give advice to others etc but when it comes to your own children, acceptance comes very late & next step is just leaving them undisturbed in every way, mainly without advice from our end.

It was at that time, I made the following lines as my “new profile”:

In all my relationships, rather interactions, I give my best. I work hard to mature & cherish them. My attachment with them is complete. However, I remain detached in the sense that I do not expect them to reciprocate my affection. Most importantly, I make a conscious effort, not to interfere or pass judgements on the lives they choose to lead. My concern for my near & dear ones will not fade with my detachment. If you let go of the ones you love, they will never go away – this is the beauty of attachment with detachment !

I have learnt to love & let go.This dictum has developed tolerance in me. When I let the people live the way they want to, I learn to accept them for what they are. Most importantly, I learn to tolerate the world around me & this tolerance brings in me a sense of peace & contentment. I ask God to guide me in being loving, compassionate, tolerant & understanding when I interact with others. If a person wants to share a thought or concern with me I want that person to feel comfortable to do so. I want to remain peaceful & approachable to others. Before I speak , I pray to God to give me the right words so that I express myself clearly & with consideration to others.

Since both my children live in Chennai, I follow this very strictly, you know why ! Now I have realised that we start growing mentally much more only after the children leave the house & we have to tackle the emotional vacuum, that arises, along with age-related problems like menopause which set in simultaneously. I find this is the most testing period for a woman, as well & emerging successfully is a slow process.

I specially dedicate this post to my friends, who are totally dependent on their children’s lives, to nurture their own selves emotionally. Please develop your own interests, hobbies etc, however mundane they may seem to be.