Food for thought

The Funeral

(Contributed by Nanda Keshava)

One day all the employees reached the office and saw a big advice on the door on which was written:

'Yesterday the person who has been hindering your growth in this company passed away. We invite you to join the funeral in the room that has been prepared in the gym'.

In the beginning, they all got sad for the death of one of their colleagues, but after a while they started getting curious to know who was that man who hindered the growth of his colleagues and the company itself. The excitement in the gym was such that security agents were ordered to control the crowd within the room.

The more people reached the coffin, the more the excitement heated up. Everyone thought: 'Who is this guy who was hindering my progress? Well, at least he died!'.

One by one the thrilled employees got closer to the coffin, and when they looked inside it they suddenly became speechless. They stood nearby the coffin, shocked and in silence, as if someone had touched the deepest part of their soul.

There was a mirror inside the coffin: everyone who looked inside it could see himself.

There was also a sign next to the mirror that said: 'There is only one person who is capable to set limits to your growth: it is YOU.’

You are the only person who can revolutionize your life. You are the only person who can influence your happiness, your realization and your success. You are the only person who can help yourself. Your life does not change when your boss changes, when your friends change, when your parents change, when your partner changes, when your company changes. Your life changes when YOU change, when you go beyond your limiting beliefs, when you realize that you are the only one responsible for your life.

'The most important relationship you can have is the one you have with yourself'

Examine yourself, watch yourself. Don't be afraid of difficulties, impossibilities and losses: be a winner, build yourself and your reality.

It's the way you face Life that makes the difference

**************

Reaction

(Contributed by Anupama verma)

The train started moving. It was packed with people of all ages, mostly with working men and women and young college guys and gals. Near a window, was seated a old man with his 30 year old son. As the train started moving, the son was overwhelmed with joy as he was thrilled with the scenery outside.

"See dad, the scenery of green trees moving by is very beautiful", he said.

This behavior from a thirty year old man made the other people feel strange about him. Every one started murmuring things about the son. "This guy seems to be a crack" newly married Anup whispered to his wife.

Suddenly it started raining. Rain drops fell on the travelers through the open windows. The son was filled with joy "See dad, how beautiful the rain is"

Anup's wife got irritated with the rain drops spoiling her new suit.

Anup, "Can’t you see its raining, old man. Close the window and if your son is not feeling well, get him soon to a mental asylum. Don’t disturb the public henceforth"

The old man hesitated first, and then in a low tone replied "We are on the way back from hospital. My son got discharged today morning. He was blind by birth, he got his vision only last week, these raindrops and trees are new to his eyes. Please forgive us for the inconvenience caused."

We always tend to see things only from our perspective and react accordingly. At times, the truth could be very much different from our perspective. So try to get a complete picture of the situation before reacting.

****************

Get Your Priorities Straight

by Satyadeb

Once at a workshop, a time management expert stood in front of the group he was presenting to and said, "Okay, time for a quiz."

He pulled out a one-gallon, wide mouthed mason jar and set it on a table in front of him. Then he produced a dozen large rocks and carefully placed them, one at a time, into the jar. When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside, he asked, "Is this jar full?" Everyone in the group answered, "Yes."

He replied, "Really?"

He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel. Then he proceeded to pour the gravel into the jar. He shook the jar, causing the pieces of gravel to work themselves down into the spaces between the rocks. He continued to do this until no more gravel could fit. Then he asked once more, "Is the jar full?"

By this time, the group was onto him. "Probably not," one of them answered. "Good!" he replied.

He reached under the table, brought out a bucket of sand and started dumping the sand in. It went into all the spaces left between the rocks and the gravel. Once more, he asked the question, "Is this jar full?"

"No!" the group shouted.

Once again he said, "Good!"

Then he grabbed a pitcher of water and began to pour it in until the jar was filled to the brim. He looked up at the group and asked, "All right, what is the point of this illustration?" One business professional raised her hand and said, "The point is, no matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard, you can always fit more things into it!"

"No," the speaker replied, "that's not the point. The point is that if you don't put the big rocks in first, you'll never get them in at all."

What are the big rocks in your life? More time with your loved ones? Advancement in your education? Business growth? Greater wealth? Something else that you've always wanted to accomplish?

If you don't take the time to prioritize--put your major goals in first-- then all your time will be used up by less important things.

Make an appointment with yourself today to think about and reflect on this story. Ask yourself the question: What are the major goals in my life or business? Then, remember to put these major goals in first, or you'll never get them in at all.

************

Inner Peace

My grandfather took me to the fish pond on the farm when I was about seven, and he told me to throw a stone into the water. He told me to watch the circles created by the stone. Then he asked me to think of myself as that stone.

"You may create lots of splashes in your life but the waves that come from those splashes will disturb the peace of all your fellow creatures," he said.

"Remember that you are responsible for what you put in your circle and that circle will also touch many other circles. You will need to live in a way that allows the good that comes from your circle to send the peace of that goodness to others. The splash that comes from anger or jealousy will send those feelings to other circles. You are responsible for both."

That was the first time I realized each person creates the inner peace or discord that flows out into the world. We cannot create world peace if we are riddled with inner conflict, hatred, doubt, or anger. We radiate the feelings and thoughts that we hold inside, whether we speak them or not. Whatever is splashing around inside of us is spilling out into the world, creating beauty or discord with all other circles of life.

****************

Japanese Fish

(Contributed by Shubha Mangala)

The Japanese have always loved fresh fish. But the waters close to Japan have not held many fish for decades. So to feed the Japanese population, fishing boats got bigger and went farther than ever. The farther the fishermen went, the longer it took to bring in the fish. If the return trip took more than a few days, the fish were not fresh. The Japanese did not like the taste.

To solve this problem, fishing companies installed freezers on their boats. They would catch the fish and freeze them at sea. Freezers allowed the boats to go farther and stay longer. However, the Japanese could taste the difference between fresh and frozen and they did not like frozen fish. The frozen fish brought a lower price. So fishing companies installed fish tanks. They would catch the fish and stuff them in the tanks, fin to fin. After a little thrashing around, the fish stopped moving. They were tired and dull, but alive.

Unfortunately, the Japanese could still taste the difference. Because the fish did not move for days, they lost their fresh-fish taste. The Japanese preferred the lively taste of fresh fish, not sluggish fish.

So how did Japanese fishing companies solve this problem? How do they get fresh-tasting fish to Japan?

To keep the fish tasting fresh, the Japanese fishing companies (still) put the fish in the tanks. But now they add a small shark to each tank. The fish, in an attempt to run away from the shark, stay constantly alert and hence, fresh. The shark may eat a few fish, but most of the fish arrive in a very lively state.

Like the Japanese fish - "Man thrives, oddly enough, only in the presence of a challenging environment."- L. Ron Hubbard.

Challenges are what keep us FRESH! Instead of avoiding challenges, jump into them.

Put a shark in your tank and see how far you can really go!

*****************

Respecting Our Differences......

"You can't please everybody." Every one of us is born unique in our ways, outlook, attitudes, likes, dislikes, opinions, and perspective.

Come to think of it, even if we have a lot of things that are different from each other, we still are set by boundaries, norms and principles for socially acceptable behaviour so that we can co-exist peacefully.

Here are just basic things to remember. One is to realize and put in our hearts that we should respect other's ways, outlooks, attitudes, likes and dislikes, opinions or perspective. If we do that, there comes the acceptance that no one has to be like you or you don't need to be like the others, just so you could get along.

Do not expect others to see your way. If they don't, respect that.

Do not expect others to make the same decisions that you do. If they don't, respect that.

Conflicts are second-nature to humans. People are argumentative to a fault, in many aspects of our lives. We just have to stop and listen. We don't have to agree, but respect others ideas and opinions. If you don't want to get stumped while expressing your thoughts, then don't do that to others as well.

In this generation and age, people are accustomed to just being in a group, organization, or having friends that also have the same viewpoints as we do. By doing this, we limit our capabilities to inculcate respect. And remember, you can only be on the same wavelength with someone else to a minimal extent.

Even twins are not so much alike. Next time you would have a cross (a disagreement) with someone, remember all these. You are at an advantage because that person might go on because he doesn't know that respect is needed to ensure that we live peacefully. And if you stoop down to his level, you are the loser, not him.

"Understanding is respecting.

Respecting is not a way to please everyone but a course to ensure that you are a principled person."

ibiboo Team

************

Don't Change the World

Once upon a time, there was a king who ruled a prosperous country. One day, he went for a trip to some distant areas of his country. When he was back to his palace, he complained that his feet were very painful, because it was the first time that he went for such a long trip, and the road that he went through was very rough and stony. He then ordered his people to cover every road of the entire country with leather. Definitely, this would need thousands of cows' skin, and would cost a huge amount of money. Then one of his wise servant dared himself to tell the king, "Why do you have to spend that unnecessary amount of money? Why don't you just cut a little piece of leather to cover your feet?" The king was surprised, but he later agreed to his suggestion, to make a "shoe" for himself. There is actually a valuable lesson of life in this story : To make this world a happy place to live, you better change yourself - your heart; and not the world.

**************

Story of Geese

In the fall when you see geese heading south for the winter flying along in the "V" formation, you might be interested in knowing what science has discovered about why they fly that way. It has been learned that as each bird flaps its wings, it creates uplift for the bird immediately following. By flying in a "V" formation, the whole flock adds at least 71% greater flying range than if each bird flew on its own.

People who are part of a team and share a common direction get where they are going quicker and easier, because they are travelling on the trust of one another and lift each other up along the way.

***********************************************************

Whenever a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to go through it alone and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the power of the flock.

If we have as much sense as a goose, we will stay in formation and share information with those who are headed the same way that we are going.

***********************************************************
When the lead goose gets tired, he rotates back in the wing and another goose takes over.

It pays to share leadership and take turns doing hard jobs.

**********************************************************************
The geese honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep their speed.

Words of support and inspiration help energize those on the front line, helping them to keep pace in spite of the day-to-day pressures and fatigue. It is important that our honking be encouraging. Otherwise it’s just – well honking!

**********************************************************************
Finally, when a goose gets sick or is wounded by a gunshot and falls out, two geese fall out of the formation and follow the injured one down to help and protect him. They stay with him until he is either able to fly or until he is dead, and then they launch out with another formation to catch up with their group.

When one of us is down, it’s up to the others to stand by us in our time of trouble. If we have the sense of a goose, we will stand by each other when things get rough. We will stay in formation with those headed where we want to go.

***************************************
The next time you see a formation of geese, remember...

IT IS A REWARD, A CHALLENGE AND A PRIVILEGE to be a contributing member of a TEAM.

**********************




Success Does Not Happen In Isolation

There was a farmer who grew superior quality and award-winning corn. Each year he entered his corn in the state fair where it won honour and prizes.

One year a newspaper reporter interviewed him and learnt something interesting about how he grew it. The reporter discovered that the farmer shared his seed corn with his neighbours.

“How can you afford to share your best seed corn with your neighbours when they are entering corn in competition with yours each year?” the reporter asked.

“Why sir,” said the farmer, “didn’t you know? The wind picks up pollen from the ripening corn and swirls it from field to field. If my neighbours grow inferior, sub-standard and poor quality corn, cross-pollination will steadily degrade the quality of my corn. If I am to grow good corn, I must help my neighbours grow good corn.”

The farmer gave a superb insight into the connectedness of life. His corn cannot improve unless his neighbour’s corn also improves. So, it is in the other dimensions!

Those who choose to be at harmony must help their neighbours and colleagues to be at peace. Those who choose to live well must help others to live well. The value of a life is measured by the lives it touches.

Success does not happen in isolation. It is very often a participative and collective process.

Back to Home..