After reading many of the posts, it is quite natural to feel in awe of people who’ve battled difficult circumstances to come out winners. Sometimes, along with the sense of being inspired, there’s a corner of the mind which wonders if your journey is somehow lesser than theirs because you’ve not had such hardship. Let me set your mind at rest. Just as it’s more difficult to be a gruhastha (householder) than a sanyaasi (renunciant), it’s more difficult, in some ways, to go through an ordinary life than a troubled one.
Please don’t get me wrong. I’m not belittling the struggles of those who have challenges in their life, What I’m trying to say is that when you have huge troubles, your motivation to overcome them is equally strong. That drives you ahead. For minor troubles that are not actually troubles, it isn’t so easy to stay motivated. Like for example, if your husband is facing losses in business, you will struggle to find alternate sources of income. But if your major trouble is getting irritated with your husband throwing the proverbial wet towel on the bed……you get my point, right?
Which is why it is important to pay attention to the small things we do. Make tiny changes in your life. By itself, each of these things may not be anything great. But put together, they can be a standard operating procedure to reboot the way you live.
So, here are the small little things that readers sent me as replies to my initial question on the 1st of November, 2017.
Shri. Srivatsa and Smt. Shilpa (husband’s cousin and his wife)
To ignore and let go has helped us rather than being caught in the trivial things, sulking and eventually blocking our vision of growth. This has definitely put us on the path of growth curve. This does not mean that we are shying away from responsibilities. We are there wherever required. We have been doing things by reasoning and questioning the need even more. This has helped us personally and also professionally to gain momentum in our business.
Smt. Vijayita (a friend and reader whom I’ve never met in person)
I finish my dinner latest by 7:30. Just one small change has improved our lifestyle and health a lot.
Smt. Preetha (a friend from my counseling course)
It is smile that has made a world of difference to me. I have practised it over years, positivity follows..
Smt. Ranjani ( a nutritionist I met through Shilpa, on the phone, but not yet in person) Meditation
Smt. Aparna Parinam (a good friend, college senior)
I believe in treating and respecting people as I would be treated and respected. And this has helped me.
Ms. Susan (old school friend)
Let go of anything that hurts you and move on. This is my belief and I live that way.
Smt. Mamatha (old student, now teacher)
I start my day with positive affirmations . That changed everything in me. I started to listen to Ramayana and Bhaagavatham also. These things brought changes my life.
Lakshmi Maami (mother-in-law’s sister’s sister-in-law…there’s another relation too I think but not sure) I don't have any special habit that has changed my life. But one thing that has uplifted me is the Sreevaishnavam practice and knowledge gained through attending the kalakshepams (spiritual discourses) and learning about our Granthams deeply. Definitely it has brought me to what I am today…a drastic change.
Smt. Reshma Nayak (VP of Wellthy Therapeutics for whom I write diabetes-related articles. Another of those on my want-to-meet-someday-in-person list)
As a child, I did a lot of chores at home. And whenever I dusted or cleaned, my parents would always tell me one thing that's stuck with me and become my philosophy in life. If you see dust anywhere, get rid of it. Don't keep it for later. I apply it to all spheres in my life
Shri. Sunder (acquainted through DISHA; conducts personality development workshops for schools) Listening to others especially in school setting I learnt a lot. And that has made me a better person today than last 5 decades!
Shri. Sreenivasan (husband’s cousin)
I will never forget in my life time how our uncle uplifted all our family members. If you take as a case study, he has worked tirelessly for the upliftment of sisters’ families. Without our great uncle we wouldn't have grown like this. Hats off uncle. In addition I never treated my Ranga mama as my uncle. He is more like a friend to me. Great person in my lifetime.
(The Ranga mama he refers to is my father-in-law. And I’ve promised to write an entire post on this topic as a tribute to him!)
Smt. Malini (sister-in-law’s husband’s cousin)
My habits are very normal ones-but have brought in lot of changes in my life.
Prayers in day to day life,networking with people of positive attitude
A walk for about 20 to 30 minutes
Always having an urge for learning various aspects -might be new or old
Listening to music for 1/2 an hour everyday
To put it in a nut shell -ALWAYS KEEPING MY MIND AND BODY BUSY
Ms. Shiny (previously student, now colleague, a teacher)
My personal experience is letting go off something that you can't hold is the best thing one could do to themselves. Especially when it is for something that's stealing your peace of mind royally and something which isn't worth to be wasting time on. When you move on and let go of that, you become exactly what you always wanted to be, you become a better version of yourself. It teaches a lot of patience, you get molded into a better person, you become matured. You will be able to face anything with a cool mind ,all that you need to do is trust God and believe this is a part of His divine plan to make you a better person for future.
Also love yourself unconditionally because it's the best gift you can give God. When He breathed life into you! We could be anything else a flower, a bird or an animal but he has chosen us to be humans that is so special and is a blessing!! So in life we should let go of things which are not worth holding onto and those things or people who steal your mental peace and just leave you with pain !! I guess we need to go through this and grow through this and endure this just to be a better person and to tell your own self that you are totally worth it!!
Dr Rati Santhakumar (sister’s college mate, paediatrician in Thrissur) I have cultivated a method of not looking back and delving into the past. Because that gives too much unhappiness. So keep my mind blank and live for each day.
Dr. Kalaranjani (Ayurvedic physician, friend from counseling course) Do people know the real value of life... Theirs or others...??? I think about it at least one or twice in a day...When I see people talking on phone while driving, jumping traffic signal, drinking soft drinks with heavy meal...
Ayesha (old student)
I think my strong will power and never give up attitude helped me a lot...when people said I can’t do this or that I proved them wrong in some way...I mean, some people said I won't be able to do jobs...they were like it’s not easy to do and started demotivating me...but in spite of that I tried and got it...This is just one example but there are still few other things...I tried to prove them wrong.
Shri. Sriram (husband’s cousin)
I have cultivated a habit of giving positive responses to whatever I am asked. This helps in creating an atmosphere with no friction. Suggest you write about your husband's maternal grandfather who was an incomparable human, lived like a saint. I’m slowly trying to inculcate his behaviour although it’s difficult.
Each of these tips is a nugget that can expand into life lessons. And I hope that although I haven’t written about them in detail, you, dear readers, will pay attention and adopt at least some of these in your life.
Please don’t get me wrong. I’m not belittling the struggles of those who have challenges in their life, What I’m trying to say is that when you have huge troubles, your motivation to overcome them is equally strong. That drives you ahead. For minor troubles that are not actually troubles, it isn’t so easy to stay motivated. Like for example, if your husband is facing losses in business, you will struggle to find alternate sources of income. But if your major trouble is getting irritated with your husband throwing the proverbial wet towel on the bed……you get my point, right?
Which is why it is important to pay attention to the small things we do. Make tiny changes in your life. By itself, each of these things may not be anything great. But put together, they can be a standard operating procedure to reboot the way you live.
So, here are the small little things that readers sent me as replies to my initial question on the 1st of November, 2017.
Shri. Srivatsa and Smt. Shilpa (husband’s cousin and his wife)
To ignore and let go has helped us rather than being caught in the trivial things, sulking and eventually blocking our vision of growth. This has definitely put us on the path of growth curve. This does not mean that we are shying away from responsibilities. We are there wherever required. We have been doing things by reasoning and questioning the need even more. This has helped us personally and also professionally to gain momentum in our business.
Smt. Vijayita (a friend and reader whom I’ve never met in person)
I finish my dinner latest by 7:30. Just one small change has improved our lifestyle and health a lot.
Smt. Preetha (a friend from my counseling course)
It is smile that has made a world of difference to me. I have practised it over years, positivity follows..
Smt. Ranjani ( a nutritionist I met through Shilpa, on the phone, but not yet in person) Meditation
Smt. Aparna Parinam (a good friend, college senior)
I believe in treating and respecting people as I would be treated and respected. And this has helped me.
Ms. Susan (old school friend)
Let go of anything that hurts you and move on. This is my belief and I live that way.
Smt. Mamatha (old student, now teacher)
I start my day with positive affirmations . That changed everything in me. I started to listen to Ramayana and Bhaagavatham also. These things brought changes my life.
Lakshmi Maami (mother-in-law’s sister’s sister-in-law…there’s another relation too I think but not sure) I don't have any special habit that has changed my life. But one thing that has uplifted me is the Sreevaishnavam practice and knowledge gained through attending the kalakshepams (spiritual discourses) and learning about our Granthams deeply. Definitely it has brought me to what I am today…a drastic change.
Smt. Reshma Nayak (VP of Wellthy Therapeutics for whom I write diabetes-related articles. Another of those on my want-to-meet-someday-in-person list)
As a child, I did a lot of chores at home. And whenever I dusted or cleaned, my parents would always tell me one thing that's stuck with me and become my philosophy in life. If you see dust anywhere, get rid of it. Don't keep it for later. I apply it to all spheres in my life
Shri. Sunder (acquainted through DISHA; conducts personality development workshops for schools) Listening to others especially in school setting I learnt a lot. And that has made me a better person today than last 5 decades!
Shri. Sreenivasan (husband’s cousin)
I will never forget in my life time how our uncle uplifted all our family members. If you take as a case study, he has worked tirelessly for the upliftment of sisters’ families. Without our great uncle we wouldn't have grown like this. Hats off uncle. In addition I never treated my Ranga mama as my uncle. He is more like a friend to me. Great person in my lifetime.
(The Ranga mama he refers to is my father-in-law. And I’ve promised to write an entire post on this topic as a tribute to him!)
Smt. Malini (sister-in-law’s husband’s cousin)
My habits are very normal ones-but have brought in lot of changes in my life.
Prayers in day to day life,networking with people of positive attitude
A walk for about 20 to 30 minutes
Always having an urge for learning various aspects -might be new or old
Listening to music for 1/2 an hour everyday
To put it in a nut shell -ALWAYS KEEPING MY MIND AND BODY BUSY
Ms. Shiny (previously student, now colleague, a teacher)
My personal experience is letting go off something that you can't hold is the best thing one could do to themselves. Especially when it is for something that's stealing your peace of mind royally and something which isn't worth to be wasting time on. When you move on and let go of that, you become exactly what you always wanted to be, you become a better version of yourself. It teaches a lot of patience, you get molded into a better person, you become matured. You will be able to face anything with a cool mind ,all that you need to do is trust God and believe this is a part of His divine plan to make you a better person for future.
Also love yourself unconditionally because it's the best gift you can give God. When He breathed life into you! We could be anything else a flower, a bird or an animal but he has chosen us to be humans that is so special and is a blessing!! So in life we should let go of things which are not worth holding onto and those things or people who steal your mental peace and just leave you with pain !! I guess we need to go through this and grow through this and endure this just to be a better person and to tell your own self that you are totally worth it!!
Dr Rati Santhakumar (sister’s college mate, paediatrician in Thrissur) I have cultivated a method of not looking back and delving into the past. Because that gives too much unhappiness. So keep my mind blank and live for each day.
Dr. Kalaranjani (Ayurvedic physician, friend from counseling course) Do people know the real value of life... Theirs or others...??? I think about it at least one or twice in a day...When I see people talking on phone while driving, jumping traffic signal, drinking soft drinks with heavy meal...
Ayesha (old student)
I think my strong will power and never give up attitude helped me a lot...when people said I can’t do this or that I proved them wrong in some way...I mean, some people said I won't be able to do jobs...they were like it’s not easy to do and started demotivating me...but in spite of that I tried and got it...This is just one example but there are still few other things...I tried to prove them wrong.
Shri. Sriram (husband’s cousin)
I have cultivated a habit of giving positive responses to whatever I am asked. This helps in creating an atmosphere with no friction. Suggest you write about your husband's maternal grandfather who was an incomparable human, lived like a saint. I’m slowly trying to inculcate his behaviour although it’s difficult.
Each of these tips is a nugget that can expand into life lessons. And I hope that although I haven’t written about them in detail, you, dear readers, will pay attention and adopt at least some of these in your life.
As to those who couldn't write in this time, do feel free to do so anytime you feel like....
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