FACILITATING EXCELLENCE

 Emotional Resilience is a big word, but if we were to simplify it would come down to simply developing skills that help us master our emotions better. In times of uncertainty, it will not leave us second-guessing ourselves or our way of life.  There are a lot of people navigating through this time in their own way, some are reaching out to others and others are just ensuring that survival is managed. There are some others who continue to live with their heads buried in the sand.  Each of these people has a lot at stake, their personal well being, their families, their lifestyle and their environment as they know it and they react as they know best. However, how our reactions are has a lot to do with how we manage our environment.  More often than not the two converge at a point. That point though is different for different people. For some external management takes precedence over internal management.  Mental Health Advocate and Psychiatrist, Dr Ruhi Satija, in discussion with our Dir

Leadership is difficult, especially when the leadership is bigger than life, a person who can hold themselves together can sail through a crisis when everyone is falling apart and can navigate in the most difficult circumstances.  Leaders are born not made, this phrase almost makes everyone feel, they are not cut out for it.  However, if we look at life closely, we are all leaders in our short film- or as I always like to reiterate, we are all the heroes in our own story.   It is very important to start learning the concept of Servant Leadership from that perspective. To put it simply, it is all about putting others first or putting the need of others first.  As a Parent we put the need of our children first, as a spouse, we put the need of our better half first, as a responsible citizen, we put the need of our country or fellow citizens first. All this while taking into cognizance that it is not out of any 'sacrifice syndrome' which itself can be damaging quality for a leader.

 Know Your Core is all about knowing your inner self and strengthening the same. It should not come as a surprise when we claim to know ourselves. In her book about introversion, Susan Cain talks about a shift that was brought about in the early nineteenth century as industrialization became rampant in America. With Industrialization, a young boy named Dale Carnegie saw an opportunity to redefine people as they see themselves.  She mentions in her book the shift from a culture of  character, to a culture of personality, i.e. to mean we moved from inward to the outward view of ourselves. With the advance in technology and the easy access to the world at our fingertips, this took another turn. From a set of a few immediate circles validating us, our need increased to the entire world. There was a positive impact as well. We started caring about how others thought of us. Now we have what they call influencers, social influencers, in short people who can create the most fan following.  Wha

 As part of the reading group, I started on with a book called Critical Conversation for Dummies. This is a book by Dr Christina Schlacter. It talks about the importance of holding critical or difficult conversations in the workplace and gives a detailed guide on how to nail it.  As I whizzed through the book, I realised it is a reminder of the training I had at the beginning of my career. My 15 plus years of experience in the field have made me sit down for several critical conversations. Performance management, Redundancy, Layoffs, Project deadlines, I  have led all types of conversations, therefore this book was a trip down the memory lane.  However, now when I read it my perspectives have changed. I am a mother first and then a professional which made me realize the importance of having critical conversations beyond the workplace. Thinking of what all places critical conversation hold value- Relationships - with Parents, Children, Partner, and of course extended families Social- Fr

 When you head on a journey, more often than you often have a destination in mind. or a purpose. A friend recently announced she will be travelling 29 states in order to mobilize volunteers for her cause of working on Genetic Disorders.  Another person updated on Facebook recently about a solo ride they are going to take covering several states.  As part of various travel groups (and ardent travel dreamer), I often seek insights that will enrich my experience whenever I embark on my own journey. So by that definition, I have a lot of borrowed expectations, not just from the journey but also from myself. I know when I set for the journey, I will be prepared or Will I? Let us take a step backwards and start from the beginning!! Preparation Zone - I am set. I know my destination. I know the way and I have my GPS. I have seen photographs and heard experiences of my counterparts who will tell me what it is like to take a similar journey. I am Set. My tick marks are complete.  Anxiety Zone

We are now Self Aware- Know about our emotions, our triggers and are more in tune with our environment. All that is good but what do we do with that information.  Self Awareness generates a lot of information. A few days back there was a message shared in the group which enlisted a couple of cognitive distortions ranging from overgeneralization, catastrophizing, over- personalizing, etc etc. Each of these words had an equally valid explanation to it which explained various patterns of behaviours that we as individuals resort to at different times.  Self Awareness shows us the mirror- it tells us that we have a pattern to our behaviour.  Some common example-  Someone criticizes our work- Our thought process- They don't like US Something conflicting happens at work- We start binge eating. A tiff at the office- Children at home bear the brunt.  No matter how unfortunate the truth is, it is always a pattern. Once we are aware we start to detach incidences with make-believe consequences