The power of gratitude

One of my comforts as a child was reading and one of my favorite sources was a magazine that used to come every month or so to my auntie, but it ended at my house, so I used to get to it first.

It came from a Japanese religion, Seicho-no-ie, and the stories were inspiring! But one topic was always present: be grateful.

I confess as the years passed by, I simply forgot about that, until many and many years ago, and since then, I started to practice the simple act of gratitude.

It can be a conscious act, like saying thank you, smiling in a cheerful way or send a message to a person.

It can also be unconscious. As I moved from Sao Paulo, the land of please and thank you – we say that all the time to anyone – I realized people used to look at me differently in situations when my thank you was not really clear, like thanking a bus driver. Slowly, I learned to express the gratitude I was taught in a more subtle way through a small gesture of the head or a different smile. Well, with some friends even a joke can work as an expression of gratitude…

Gratitude turns into a power when, besides the act, it is felt within in a deep way, generating a wonderful healing sensation that life opened its arms to me through this person or situation.

That power can break down obstacles, elevate a person so that they are higher than bad situations and even rebuild bridges with other people.

Be grateful.

Be powerfully grateful.

Don’t underestimate your own power

When big walls come up in front of you, the only thing you think is a) how to avoid it, b) how to climb it, or c) how to destroy it.

But there are more alternatives to that. Look within and you will find a reservoir of power that has been taking you in this long journey called life.

It is time to use that power to deconstruct the walls, recreating the impact they have on your life, and not avoiding it. Try to face it instead and ask yourself: What newness can I bring on myself to cope with this obstacle?

It is time to use your power to overcome the walls of your life. To climb may be exhausting, but if you are able to fly… Let your mind fly over the obstacle, visualize the end and start developing the qualifications you will need to reach there.

It is time to empower the self and just pass through the wall. If you destroy it, rubbles may prevent you to move forward. So, transform yourself and you will see how much you can go forward.

How does that work? Let’s give 3 examples related to each of the situations:

• I have a very bad sickness and that will change my life to worse. Accept the situation in your heart, talk and promote dialogue with people who can help you and other people with the same sickness. Look at it as an opportunity to try new things in your life and cooperate with others too; that is the most powerful thing you can do, and you really can do it.
• Oh, no, another crisis? In the last one I was working ten hours a day, wonder how many hours I will be working this time… Meditate and recharge the self. Yes, it is a crisis and you can’t just ignore it, but let your mind fly over the situation and see beyond it. By using this technique you will possibly identify some new skills you can develop that will give you an advantage over the crisis, but most important thing is that you will feel empowered.
• I am sure I can destroy this obstacle, I will fight through it and I will defeat this, instead of being defeated. Go and meditate again; more than meditating start a journey of reflection and transformation. Instead of fighting against this wall – which is invisible – connect yourself to that invisible power you have and see how you start to realize better ways of dealing with it. Success comes from empowerment, not fight.

So, I hope this will help you to work with the walls in your life.

To meditate is very productive

Many people nowadays talk about the benefits of meditation in terms of productivity and several companies are investing in creating spaces for this practice. But much before all of that, I was already meditating…

To meditate gives me three important things that I think closely are related to productivity:

• Concentration. I will be clear and confess that my concentration power if very poor… but meditation helps in terms of increasing it. When I meditate, I develop a powerful habit of thinking of one thing only, or very few ones, which is useful when I am working or any other situation that implies productivity.
• Detachment. It is not a Zen attitude, it is something fundamental to have a good work life and yet, keep the balance with the rest of your life. But, if you like philosophy, it is said in the Gita: All the time your hands are doing, your mind should be on God.
• Power. If you go beyond the relaxation that meditation provides and the sense of abstract, you will find that to meditate is an excellent recharger. The reason is that connects you with some more powerful source, giving you power just like when you think of someone you admire, you feel stronger.

Now, you may ask which type of meditation is the best. I do raja yoga, and I love it, but I am aware people are different and it is important you do the type of meditation with which you get more benefit.

I hope this helps you to be more productive! Check my post on productivity too.

https://lookingformorethanjob.blogspot.com/2019/06/tips-of-productivity.html

You are an explorer of your own self! - Reason 35

At any time, a leader has always a place to go.  It is a place to which she or he wouldn’t need to take a flight or even a car ride, because it is there, within themselves.

Then, he or she can explore all that is inside a human being: virtues, values, powers, talents, dreams, feelings, and can learn to use all of these treasures with more confidence.

The motto of a leader who is this type of explorer is: Look inside where both power and protection can be found.  It is particularly useful during stressful situations or crisis, as the leader uses that mental and spiritual space to reflect and to make decisions, instead of just looking outwardly and reacting.

It also serves when the leader is going through a period and everything is alright; it is a time the leader takes in which to further enjoy these inner resources that are abundant and everlasting.

Others who haven’t developed the ability to go as deep as a leader will find their internal resources are not ready and available a time of need.  But leaders will go so deep they even will be able to help others in their own exploration.

(Excerpt from the book 82 Reasons to be a Leader)

When you reflect on a decision before you make it, you then give it power - Reason 1

Normal people go and do whatever they want, and because of that the results are ‘whatever’.

A leader thinks first, then acts.  As a consequence, the action is far more effective and the result will be many times more effective.  The reason is that reflection has the power to turn actions into a magic that makes dreams come true.

Not only that: all actions cause a reaction – a consequence.  This means a person can easily get wrapped up and trapped into a cycle of actions and reactions.  A leader will create a relationship between action and reaction that will be just like a seed and a fruit. 

With awareness a leader realises every performed action is a seed that bears fruit. And that fruit then goes on to produce many more seeds and fruit of the same.  One action will go on to produce not just one result, but will inspire many more actions and results

That action, after reflection, becomes much more than an ordinary action. It is special, valuable and extraordinary, and its creator is that too.

(Excerpt from the book 82 Reasons to be a Leader)

The power of reflection

Reflecting is a powerful tool. Before taking over his first term, President Obama talked about in relation to leadership and I guess from time to time all of us start to think on things we have to think about… Clear?

However, the power does not come by thinking or speaking. Reflection is something much more complex and at the same time, very simple to do: you let your thoughts go deep and deep into the roots and branches of any situation.

Still, that concept is not enough. After all, people who are used to brood onto something do that all the time and yet, they don’t look so powerful.

For instance, let’s say your company is starting to cut jobs and yours is in risk. A normal person would probably think something like this:

Oh no, they are going to fire me! What can I do, I don’t have any qualifications!! They can’t do that, can they?

Now consider an optimistic person:

Nah… they are not going to fire anyone. It is just another rumor. How can they fire us, who else are going to do the job? In fact, I think I am about to get promoted…

A reflection process would start like this:

They are firing people… let me understand the owners’ point of view. Of course, they have to save their investment and by cutting some people out, they will save money. However, if they save money like that, the remaining people will get more tired and productivity in the middle term will decrease, causing customers to go for another place.

The three samples are based on real thinking process. The main difference between reflection and other ways is that the person goes into a Detached Observer stage.

It is like playing chess: your strategy only works because you are out of the chessboard. Maybe if you were part of the game, you wouldn’t sacrifice that horse… Reflection means detaching from reality, without ignoring it, and then let your own thoughts go for its solution or conclusion.

Maybe your lifestyle does not allow you to stop and reflect, but at least once a week you just should do exactly that: just reflect about life, understand its process and find the best way to deal with it.

About dreams... Can you still chase after fireflies?

What is the difference between a dream and imagination?

Many things in the world today used to be just someone's dream: an airplane, this device you're using to read this blog, and this blog itself. Nowadays, we don't even look at it twice; it is common, a part of day-to-day life.

Which other things would we have if those who imagined them were able to make them into a dream? You see, there is a difference between imagination and a dream.

Everyone imagines things: your spouse imagines where you have been last night, your friend tries to imagine why you didn't call him or her back and your boss imagines perfect teamwork.

From that point, you need power and courage to consolidate it into your mind, to give it shape: your spouse reaches the conclusion you were working late and decides to buy you a small token on the way home; your friend, as any good friend, makes the decision of calling you instead of waiting, and your boss starts to see in his mind how a perfect teamwork would do its work.

Until it is not a dream, it cannot become a reality. Until it is not clear in your mind, you won't see it in practical life.

But, what about those wild dreams we have of being an astronaut or the next president? They are of course "fireflies", imagination; it comes and goes.

Is it worthwhile to make it real? When you look at the world today, the most incredible things came from these "fireflies". It is like someone was able to chase them, hold them and make them into something useful in life.

Do you have "fireflies" surrounding you? Get hold of them; the world probably needs some of these wild ideas to change the situations we live or watch everyday.

The Indian Dream

The Economist has always been my favorite magazine, even though they call it a newspaper. I enjoy reading so much that I make a point to read it through, even though it takes a month. Or two.

However, sometimes they make mistakes, as possibly anyone and any magazine. I feel their article on the Indian dream is probably one of these big mistakes.

No mistakes of course in the data - none I could put a finger on, at least. And the serious analysis is also OK. But they do miss the point about the dream...

Because dreams are not an object of analysis. Dreams, in the sense of a pure desire, an objective in life or a vision of the future, are a powerful motivator that can transform lives.

I go to India about twice a year and I have seen with my own eyes the progress of the country and that dream people have. They don't revere poverty as the magazine says, but they accept it. That acceptance acts positively in the society: it is not uncommon that someone who is very poor is able to put at least one of his children to school, and that child one day is able to send one of her own to the college, until many years later, the cycle of poverty is broken. Comparing with other places with high rates of poverty, Indians live generally happy.

What Indians revere is life in itself. What they revere is a sense of honor you hardly find in the West anymore. What they revere is God, with a deep respect and tolerance towards any way of worshiping.

And because of that, I feel the real dream in India is not so much to have a car, a proper house or a restore its original. Its real dream is to keep that energy we in the world need so much, that natural spirituality someone just called soft power.

Whilst religions have divided, split and created wars, India's spirituality is a reason to join, get together and share. Yes, there has been conflicts but they have been provoked by politicians or old-school members of clergy; Indians enjoy the diversity and they are perhaps the only people in the world that can find unity among that diversity.

It is a dream the whole world can use. Right now, and I welcome that dream.