The Power of Imagination

Imagination is a word which is often misunderstood as something related to utopia. You may often hear people making expressions like "Don't live in the world of imagination", "This is just your imagination, which has nothing to do with the reality" etc etc. In all such expressions, the term 'Imagination' connotes a negative implication or something not desirable.

But, the truth is far different. The fact is that it is often imagination which is the base for acquiring knowledge about something. Hundreds of inventions and discoveries have been possible because of imagination. Since time immemorial, imagination has made human beings curious about the various phenomena around them and consequently they have been trying to know their 'Why' and 'How'.

Whether it is Newton's "Laws of Gravitation" or  Einstein's "Theory of Relativity"or Wright Brothers' Aerodynamics or James Watt's Steam engine or Archimedes' Principle - they all were conceptualised through imagination. Imagination made humans do experiments and experiments led to new learnings. Of course, there have been trials and errors. So, it can be undoubtedly said that evolution of knowledge has its roots in human imagination. Knowledge is, no doubt, power but this power is often activated by imagination. Sometimes, imagination of young children, who may not be very knowledgeable, produces amazing results, which are really hard to believe. Most of the creative work is the outcome of someone's imagination. "The better the imagination, the more effective the acting" is the mantra for those in the film industry. Imagination often helps development of Life Skills like Creativity, Critical thinking, Empathy etc. It also leads to the need for planning. Dubai in the UAE  is a dreamland on the earth today because of the imagination and planning of Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum. All in all, the developmet of the entire world owes a lot to the imagination of human beings.

Don't you now think that imagination plays a great role in our life ?  Will you accept the 'Power of Imagination' now, won't you ?😊

Manoj

Faith, Optimism and Hope

These three things keep us going even when we have lost everything else. Things happening in our life are mostly uncertain. We can't always predict what will happen next. As long as life is going the way we want it to and we are comfortable with it, everything seems to be  fine but the moment it takes a bad turn we start losing things, one by one. It is here, in such a situation, that faith, optimism and hope work wonders.

Not only during abnormal times do we need to have them but also in our day-to-day life, they are indispensable for our success. It is said that the journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step and faith gives us that courage to raise the first step; hope and optimism keep us going till the end. There are hundreds of occasions in history when wars/battles have been won by a comparatively small and less equipped army against an immensely large and highly equipped army just by virtue of faith, optimism and hope. Many a time, in our personal life too, we encounter a situation when our faith results in miracles. A young baby tossed in the air is not afraid but smiles and laughs because it has faith that the person tossing him won't let him fall on the ground. So, faith also gives us a sense of security, which enlivens our hope and optimism. Prayers done from the heart are said have magical effects sometimes and the basic thing at work there also is faith. Alexander the great wouldn't have been able to conquer the world if he hadn't had faith in himself and his army. Even after losing her leg, Arunima Sinha decided and scaled the heights of the Himalayas just because of her unshaken faith that she could do it. So, faith in our ability and our mission is an essential requirement for breaking the ice and hope and optimism ensure that our faith is never shaken amid challenges and difficulties. The entire fabric of our personal, social and professional life is woven with the yarn of faith; if it is not there, the fabric will lose its existence. Neither any system can work nor can there be peaceful co-existence for lack of faith. So, take care of it.

Let's have complete faith in our ability and support of the invisible power, stay optimistic and hope for the best,  shall we ? 🙏😊

Manoj

Relationship

Apart from air, water and food, which are essential to our survival, there are certain other things that facilitate this survival and add value to it. Relationship is one of the most important among them.

Everything in this universe is in direct or indirect relationship with some other things. Here, I'll be talking of human relationship. This relationship starts even before our birth. A mother has relationship with her baby still in the womb. Modern research has established that in case of a baby girl this relationship is even older, going by the fact that the related chromosome is already received by the mother from her mother. When we come into this world, we start having relationship with others, apart from our parents. This relationship keeps evolving, growing and undergoing different levels and shapes with the passage of time and the changes in the circumstances and, undoubtedly, affecting our life and achievements in some way or the other.

Broadly speaking, we  have Personal, Social and Professional relationships. Each one of them plays a vital role in shaping what we are or what we shall be like in future. The strength of bonding in our personal relationships determines how positively and strongly we are growing and facing the challenges of life. The stronger this bond, the more positive and morally strong we happen to be. Then comes our social relationship i.e. how we are getting on with the members of society. A good level of social relationship creates more opportunities for us to grow and prosper. It also enables us to get people's co-operation for a cause and lets us serve our society/nation better. Whether personal or social,  our relationship is often influenced by how much we care and share and involves varying amount of sentiments and emotions. Professional relationship, though important, is somewhat different from the other two. In this relationship, our emotions and centiments often take a back seat, though their importance can't be ignored. I've seen hundreds of teachers and thousands of students having a strong emotional bond between them. Our professional relationship determines how far we are able to make our strategy work for the organisation/institution. Howsoever good at planning things we may be, we'll be able to let the plan work smoothly only when our professional relationship is good; otherwise, there will always be an atmosphere of doubt, criticism and even backbiting. It goes without saying that honesty, truthfulness, understanding, devotion and chivalry are the traits that always pay when it comes to maintaining good relationship of any kind.

So, to sum up, I'd like to say that we must keep striving for cordial relationship wherever we are, with whomsoever we are and in whatsoever condition we are so that overall possibility of progress and prosperity may be maximized.

Looking forward to strengthening our relationship........🙏😊

Manoj

Responsibility

This fourteen-letter word contains the essence of every bit of progress happening in any society and any nation.Whatever happens and wherever it happens, one thing is certain that something or someone is responsible for the happening. So, responsibility is a fact that can't be ignored when it comes to analysing any development.

The progress of a family or a society or a nation largely depends on what level of responsibility its people reflect. By and large, the more responsible the people, the more the progress. Even the best of the programmes and policies can't give the desired result if people don't understand their responsibility.

This responsibility may be either self acquired or bestowed. You naturally take up the responsibility of looking after your children as parents.This is self acquired responsibility. During difficult times, many people come forward/take the initiative out of their own sweet will to help the needy; there is no compulsion. This is self acquired responsibility, which goes a long way, in any society/nation, in solving the problems or ensuring progress. As a citizen of the nation, you have a number of rights to enjoy. At the same time, you have also been given some duties to perform. Whether to enjoy your rights or to perform your duties, you need to reflect the best sense of responsibility. While performing your duties, you may largely be reflecting the responsibilities bestowed upon you, but while enjoying your rights, it is your self acquired responsibilities that matter more to ensure that others' rights are not violated. There may be mechanisms to govern the carrying out of responsibilities bestowed/imposed, but there may hardly be any deliberate mechanism to govern the self acquired responsibilities. So, it is more important and interesting to look into the magnitude of self acquired responsibility, which is actually a better determinant of progress and prosperity of any nation.

Your sense of responsibility, whether bestowed or self acquired, determines how far you'll be impacting people and things around you, thereby,  also setting your own position in society. The more responsible you are, the better it is for all. Won't you ask yourself, "How responsible am I ?" ? 😊😊

Patience, Tolerance and Perseverance

There goes a story that a man expecting gold under the ground started digging it. He kept trying for some days and then lost his patience. He couldn't tolerate any further exertions and so gave up trying to look for that underground gold. A young boy used to watch the man dig the ground every day in search of gold. So, when the man stopped the digging to look for that gold, the boy started trying to find it. He kept digging the ground for some days but only to find no gold. He also started doubting the availability of gold in that area but continued digging, thinking that if he stopped, all his efforts by then would go waste. Again, there was no gold.One night, he started getting a little more doubtful about the existence of gold there but he decided that he'd try one more day. So, next morning, he again started digging the ground again and just after a few minutes, to his utter surprise, he found  lots of gold ornaments there. Would it have been possible for him to find the gold if he had also lost his patience, if he had stopped tolerating further pains of digging, and if he had given up his efforts like that man ? Obviously, not. 

The majority of highly successful persons have had  patience, tolerance and perseverance in their personality. Talk of the mountaineers, players, researchers, actors, writers, social activists - they all become successful and attain their goals because they have these traits; otherwise the stiff competition and challenges may thrust them away from their path. It is these traits that enable them to gather courage for one more attempt even after a series of failures. History is replete with examples where attempts have been made again and again for realisation of the goal. 

There are a number of occasions when your patience and tolerance can avert an impending danger, prevent a situation from aggravation and save you from difficult times; your perseverance keeps you going. Howsoever embarrassing or challenging the condition may be, it can be handled most tactfully with patience, tolerance and perseverance. These three qualities impact your personal and professional life both. They affect your family and social life positively.

So, remember that if you wish to come out with flying colours in your life, apart from other things, you also need to have patience, tolerance and perseverance. Wish you a rewarding life ahead !👍😊

How to achieve OMG moments of Happiness

 

"O My God" in short OMG,  is the expression often made when something unexpected or beyond imagination happens. The stimulus causing this expression could be either pleasant or unpleasant. Though often unexpected or sudden in nature, OMG is often a by-product of our own action. Now the  question here is " How can we  maximize the frequency of OMG expression for our Happiness ?"

Well,  there are countless ways of ensuring  OMG feelings of happiness - different  ways for different persons.You may be a person with kind heart, helping the needy frequently without  expecting anything in return. You may have empathetic and altruistic  outlook  and keep serving people just for the sake of humanity. You may be highly popular with the people and they may love you for your philanthropy. It is quite possible that you may have frequent OMG situations of happiness. So, the rule number one is that the more happiness you share with others the more the chances of OMG situations for you.

You may be trying hard to get something but failing again and again just not to give up your effort; you may start having a feeling of some disappointment but decide to continue your endeavour and not give in. Some day your assiduity and perseverance pays and just when you are about to start feeling broken,  you get what you've been toiling for. That is an OMG situation of happiness for you,  isn't that ? So, the rule number two is that you must keep trying and chasing your passion assiduously and perseverently until you get those OMG moments of happiness.

You may be giving your best to better the condition of the place where you are, of the people with whom you are and the circumstances in which you are, not necessarily because of expectations of your personal gain but because of your nature and mindset and it just gives you pleasure to be the reason for improvement and betterment everywhere. You don't know when and how the cosmos will have you stand in an OMG situation of happiness. So, the third rule for ensuring maximization of OMG feelings of happiness is that you must be the carrier of improvement and betterment everywhere, for everyone,  in every condition. 

Wish you lots of OMG situations. 👍😊

You and your Attitude

It is said that your attitude determines your altitude in life. Actually, you live and act the way you think. The way you act in life determines how far you go or what height of achievements you scale or how you find things in your life. Your attitude must be positive. A person with positive attitude will find a hundred ways out of all limitations whereas the one with negative attitude will see a hundred problems in every way. During my journey as an educationist, I have encountered hundreds of students, many being average or even below average, who are excelling in some way or the other and are now befitting examples of attaining, through positive frame of mind,  what initially seemed to be impossible or too difficult for them. You must have seen that some people get discouraged, disheartened, disappointed and broken just because of initial failures or small troubles whereas there are others who don't lose their equanimity and are mentally prepared to face and overcome the challenges; sooner or later, such people gain what they have been striving for. It is their positive attitude that keeps them going in every situation. Once, years back, a student of mine shared a line with me and that line was "In your most trying hours, say to yourself that they will also pass away." This line reflects positivity of her attitude. Today, she is the CEO of a company. A positive attitude not only shields you against all odds but also paves your way to success.If you think that you aren't getting what you want, you must want it at the cost of your thinking i.e. change your thinking. Remember, if you wish to pull your socks up, you'll have to turn over a new leaf and make an all-out effort, leaving no stone unturned. Until you change your attitude, your level of achievement won't change. So, it is your attitude that makes all the difference in your life. Stay positive in your attitude and keep going ! 👍😊

Life under Lockdown

The outbreak and fast spread of the pandemic Covid-19 has forced more than half the world to go under Lockdown at different scales in different regions. Life has undergone a sea change almost everywhere.

Activities have largely shrunken. Thousands of production centres are closed and millions have turned jobless, not knowing at all when they are back on the track. Primary and secondary sectors of the economies throughout the world are worst affected. Means of transport have come to standstill. The condition of people engaged in the unorganised sectors and living on daily earning is miserable. Educational institutions and training centres are closed, thereby, adversely affecting the formation of human capital. All in all, there is, by and large, an atmosphere of uncertainty,disappointment,frustration and helplessness. But, this is only one face of the coin.

Amid these drastically changed circumstances, there are lots of things happening to prevent us from getting discouraged or losing hope. Just with one stroke of corona virus and consequent lockdown, the quality of environment has improved beyond imagination, which was probably not possible otherwise. Water bodies have got purified and become more conducive to the growth of aquatic creaturs. One of my friends from the medical profession told me that there has been a sharp decline in the cases of diseases, especially those caused by contaminated water e.g.typhyod. The exploitation of patients by those with vested interests in the medical fraternity has drastically dropped - no need for unnecessary tests, no costly medicine, no fearful exaggeration of the problem. This lockdown has made us realise that we can very well survive with fewer necessities and much less consumption of resources. Under this changed scenario, we are forced to explore possibilities amidst limitations; people are trying their best to find out new ways of tackling the issues. Teachers are learning new ways to transfer learning to the students. Human centiments and emotions  have started getting reset  naturally. Nature is again getting closer to our heart and mind. Ecosystem is again getting balanced. The best in us is automatically coming out in many ways and our passion and aptitude are coming into their own. Various life skills are being learnt automatically. The entire world, undergoing a new experience, is really learning something it kept evading i.e. 'living in harmony' with all that Nature has created.

So, it won't be wrong to say that just as every cloud has a silver lining, this Lockdown is also a blessing in disguise. One day, this lockdown will come to an end and life will continue but, hopefully, with new learning and in a new set-up.

International Book Day

On the occasion of International Book Day, I would like to urge everybody to cultivate the habit of reading books extensively. Books are not only the store house of knowledge but they also provide an insight into dealing with the challenges of life and planning the future. Books are your best friends. They accompany you even when no one is around. They let you know about the past, help you face the present and guide you through shaping the future. There are many different types of books intended for serving different purposes and they all may be important in their own ways, but I would emphasize on reading two types of books especially; the first being those related to history and culture and the second category being related to motivation and inspiration. A love for dictionaries and encyclopaedia goes a long way in enriching your language and equipping you with ideas. They broaden your horizon of thinking and make you serve humanity better. It is also advisable that the gist of a book read be noted down and got published for helping others get the basic idea about their contents and purpose. I wish you all very happy book reading - printed or digital - today and always.