Episode 1 : What is Work-Life Balance? It's all about 'Energy'!!
Balance is the essence of sustenance, and so Work-Life Balance is a state of living which is sustainable in the long run. Whether you work 8 hours a day or 12 hours a day is not relevant. What's relevant is whether you are doing it in a sustainable way or not. Work is that which takes away our energy, and life is that which gives us energy. So Work-Life Balance is essentially about ensuring that the energy we gain out of life is more than the energy we give to our work, on a daily basis. Now this implies that if you want to achieve more while maintaining a good Work-Life Balance, you have to be able to extract more energy from life, and also do more work by using less energy. This is the core concept of high efficiency, which we take up next.
Episode 2 : Efficiency : Save Time, Save Energy
Our efficiency is primarily impacted by two things : our expertise and skill in doing a certain task, and our clarity of thought. Some people are good at solving mathematical problems, some are good at taking business decisions, some are good at computer programming and so on. It is surely possible for the same person to be good at multiple tasks, but it is still a finite number. No one person can be good at everything. So first of all, it is very important for all of us to figure out our core competency. What is it that we are really good at? This requires an honest assessment of our personality and core skills, without coming under any kind of undue pressure. Once this has been figured out, the next step is to maintain a high level of clarity in our thoughts and emotions. If our mind is clear at all times, we will be able to take more effective decisions and also do our work with much higher focus, leading to exponentially higher efficiency! But how do we achieve and maintain clarity of thought?
Episode 3 : How to Improve your Clarity of Thought?
Some people are able to do a lot of tasks simultaneously with high efficiency, while others get confused and distracted even with one single task! This focus and efficiency comes from a particular principle that we hold dear to our heart. Every time our mind gets distracted, this principle helps in bringing it back on track. Mothers are able to maintain clarity of thought and high efficiency in their work mainly because they have the welfare of their children as the primary principle of life. Entrepreneurs are able to multitask with high efficiency and high clarity of thought since they have the success of their company as the primary principle of life. Similarly, if we all have a single principle which drives us from inside, we will also be able to maintain a high level of focus and clarity of thought, leading to high levels of efficiency and productivity. Now to achieve long term success, along with high efficiency, we also need to maintain high energy levels all throughout the day. Where does this energy come from?
Episode 4 : How to be highly energetic all day?
Energy is produced within our body by digestion of food. But if we are not careful, the digestion process can consume more energy than what it produces, leading to a net energy loss. This is why after eating certain foods, we feel lethargic instead of feeling energetic. And this principle can be generalised to all that we intake through our sense organs. If we are careful about what we eat, what we listen to, what we see, we can easily maintain a very high level of energy, which will keep us active all throughout the day. But of course, this has to be balanced with one’s liking also, since too much obsession with any thing can make life boring.
Episode 5 : Rest and Relaxation : The Key to Energy, Efficiency and Intelligence
There are some traffic signals where the traffic is very smooth, but there are others which are very chaotic. And the difference arises from whether the drivers are willing to rest and relax! When the lights are red, if everyone stops and patiently waits for them to turn green, everything would run smoothly. And this same analogy holds true for our lives as well! Some people are able to do so much more with the same amount of time and resources. The main reason is that they know when to rest and relax, thereby keeping their focus, attention and clarity of thought at optimal levels all throughout the day. But there are others who are always in a hurry, always busy, due to which they drain their precious energy leading to confusion and inefficiency. When you truly have work to do, do it with all your focus and attention. But when there is some free time, make sure to relax and recharge your batteries so that you can march ahead again with full energy when the need arises.
Episode 6 : The Power of Mind Observation : Simple Trick to Change your Life!
The human mind is very dynamic in nature, and so no matter how much we try to discipline it, it will keep getting de-focussed with time leading to poor decision making. Hence, it is important to keep a close watch on our mind, and bring it back to focus everytime it drifts away. Generally we use our mind to observe the world around us and take decisions. But to keep the mind on track, we have to use a part of your mind to watch itself. This may sound a bit confusing, but is easy to understand once you start practicing mind observation. Every day before going to sleep, just sit on your bed quietly, close your eyes, and try to observe the thoughts in your mind. Do not try to control the thoughts, and do not try to subjugate them. Just see what kind of thoughts are arising, and dissolving back in the mind. Slowly, try to make this mind observation a constant part of your life so that you are always aware of what your mind is trying to think and do.
Episode 7 : Core Competency : Striking the balance between Skill and Passion
Many kids want to become cricketers and film stars when they are young, but as they grow up, they begin to understand the difference between reality and fantasy. But there are some fantasies that are very subtle and deep rooted within us, and so are not easy to let go of. And frankly speaking, if you let go of all your fantasies, life would become too boring and robotic! The challenge is to strike a balance between our fantasies and our skills, and that is where our core competencies lie. But here it is important to understand which fantasies are a reflection of what we truly care about, and which ones are just due to superficial infatuations. One simple way to figure this out is to check how much effort you are willing to put into making your fantasies come true. If you are willing to work hard towards becoming a great scientist or a billionaire, then these fantasies are worth pursuing. But if you just want to dream about the end goal, without making any effort in the process, then you need to rethink!
Episode 8 : Manage your Ambitions & Expectations : Change your life in just 5 minutes!!
Humans are not isolated systems. We live in a society which influences a lot of our decisions. This influence can be in the form of societal norms, constitutional laws, and also general expectations based on our background. And a lot of conflict happens because our ambitions are not in line with societal or family expectations. Bringing about a balance between our fantasies and skills is itself a big challenge. And even if we are able to achieve it at a personal level, the next hurdle is to balance it with what the society expects from us. There is no easy solution to it, but it helps a lot to have an open conversation with ourselves and with people that truly matter to us. And irrespective of whether we are able to find a balance with society or not, it is important to be grateful to people around us. There is a famous saying in Hindi, “mann ka mile toh achha, aur na mile toh aur bhi achha”. This means that it is good to get what we want, but even better to not get what we want. This is simply because every bad experience is a great opportunity to learn about ourselves and the world around us!
Keep growing, and keep learning!
No comments:
Post a Comment