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Enjoying Work

‘I don’t enjoy studying,’ said Rahul. ‘I cannot understand how people do things they do not enjoy.’ ‘Yes,’ said Rinku. ‘It would be great if we could only do things we enjoy right bhaiyya?’ ‘What you enjoy can also become boring if it becomes ‘work’,’ said Rakesh. ‘For example, you may enjoy playing basketball but if you have to practice hard every morning and evening it might not be enjoyable anymore. Or you like gaming and it becomes a job, you may not enjoy it as much. So it’s not only about what you’re doing, but knowing the secret to enjoying ‘work’, that leads to real enjoyment and success.’ ‘Are you saying we can also enjoy boring things like studying?’ asked Rahul. ‘Yes,’ smiled Rakesh. ‘In fact many things that bring you success are what you might call ‘boring’. To become an expert at your ‘work’ you have to put in conscious, regular, hard work that is always beyond your comfort zone. Doing mindless work does not bring improvement.’ ‘So what’s the secret that makes ‘boring’ th
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Theory of Multiple Intelligences

‘Rinku, did you hear that Akshay has chosen to concentrate on music as a career?’ asked Rahul. ‘I am quite amazed at his decision.’ ‘That way Zeeshan has opted for a career in tennis too,’ said Rinku. ‘It’s quite interesting to see them make such choices.’ ‘It makes me wonder what makes them make such choices,’ said Rahul. ‘For us it’s the conventional choices. Study science, work hard, build a career. What makes them decide so early? A special talent?’ ‘It is a good question,’ said Rakesh. ‘We normally look at cognitive abilities as being a sign of general intelligence. Being good at languages, math or science are somehow more valued than others.’ ‘How exactly do they define intelligence bhaiyya?’ asked Rinku. ‘Gardner’s definition of intelligence was defined broadly as the ‘potential to process information that can be used to create products or solve problems of value,’ said Rakesh. ‘Perhaps it was interpreted as the intelligence that can fetch you a ready job – like languages and sc
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How the Dots Connect When you Commit to What you Love

‘I wish I could commit fully to one thing and do it well,’ said Rinku. ‘There’s so much choice and I don’t know what to commit to.’ ‘True,’ said Rahul. ‘We wrote down our passions but I’m finding it difficult to commit and give them enough attention. There are so many things that seem to be more important.’ ‘But you identified your passions after a lot of thought and effort,’ smiled Rakesh. ‘So why are you not able to give more attention to what you are passionate about and commit to it?’ ‘Because it’s not practical bhaiyya,’ said Rinku. ‘If I study hard and attend the right courses, it will help me get more marks and qualifications. But instead, if I follow my passion of playing the guitar, learning history or literature, what will happen to my career. I’d rather choose data sciences or surgery or whatever, which are not passions of mine today, but at least I’ll end up with a good life.’ ‘Ah,’ said Rakesh. ‘So you’re not able to commit because the choices you’re passionate about are n
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How a Mentor or a Coach Can Fast track Your Growth

‘Hello Rinku,’ said Rakesh. ‘Why is Rahul so glum?’ ‘He’s worried bhaiyya,’ said Rinku. ‘His basketball selections are clashing with our exam. He’s scared if he misses practice they may drop him. He’s planning to lie to them that he was sick. I don’t think that’s the right thing to do.’ ‘But what can I do bhaiyya,’ said Rahul. ‘Our selectors are very strict.’ ‘In such situations follow basic principles,’ said Rakesh. ‘In your case, the principle you could look at is – “don’t make a decision because of the fear of losing something”. Fear messes up your thinking and you end up making wrong decisions.’ ‘What do you mean?’ asked Rahul. ‘It’s your fear of being dropped from the team that’s forcing you to lie,’ said Rakesh. ‘When you know very well that the right thing to do is to tell the truth. Let’s imagine the worst – that you get dropped anyway. If you lie and they find out you lied, you’re in deep trouble. But if you tell the truth and promise to attend practice after the exam, they’ll
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Living Your Passions – The How

‘Last week we identified our top 5 passions after doing the ‘Passion Test’,’ said Rinku. ‘My passions when living my ideal life are - I’m the greatest keyboard player in the world, I’m playing basketball for India, I’m helping people achieve their potential, I’m having fun and I’m spending quality time with family.’ ‘And my top passions are,’ said Rahul. ‘I’m a successful CEO of one of the top 5 companies in the world, I’m living a luxurious life, I’m having great relationships, I’m a celebrity and I’m having a lot of fun.’ ‘Excellent,’ said Rakesh. ‘And we made passion cards with our top 5 passions and stuck them up so we can see them often,’ said Rahul. ‘But when I look at my passions I’m getting tense. Some of them look impossible. Have I asked for too much?’ ‘No tension,’ smiled Rakesh. ‘Now that you’re clear about your top 5 passions, let the ideas sink in and firm up. The next step for you is to live it which means that every time you get an opportunity to choose between living y
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Are You Living a Passionate Life?

‘I wonder if it’s possible to live a life doing what we like doing?’ asked Rinku. ‘That would be fun.’ ‘Nope,’ said Rahul. ‘We can’t do what we like Rinku. We have to like what we do. No option.’ ‘But I don’t want to be doing something I don’t like for a living,’ said Rinku. ‘I’d rather do something I’m fully involved in, something that’s enjoyable, that grows me to my potential.’ ‘That won’t earn you a good living,’ said Rahul. ‘Right bhaiyya? You’ll have to sacrifice comfort. I’d like to play games and live a great life but that’s not possible right?’ ‘Why not?’ asked Rakesh. ‘I read this book called ‘The Passion Test’ written by Janet Bray Attwood and Chris Attwood which says that living our passions is the key to a happy, fulfilled, fun and prosperous life. And as we know, there are people making a great living while playing games and having fun.’ ‘True,’ said Rahul. ‘But how? What is ‘living our passions’?’ ‘Our passions are what we love doing the most,’ said Rakesh. ‘What are mos
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Why We Sleep

‘I’m so sleepy,’ said Rahul. ‘I stayed up all night to study for today’s test.’ ‘Same here,’ said Rinku. ‘I slept for a couple of hours and now I’m good to do an all-nighter again.’ ‘I’ve read this book called ‘Why We Sleep’ by Mathew Walker who’s researched sleep extensively,’ said Rakesh. ‘There could be certain pointers for you two. More so since Rahul enjoys his sleep a lot.’ ‘Oh no bhaiyya,’ said Rahul. ‘I’m sure the book will say I’m sleeping too much.’ ‘Not at all,’ said Rakesh. ‘In fact the author advocates a full 8 hour sleep to reap the many benefits of sleep. He says those who get less than 6-7 hours of sleep, could invite health issues like a weakened immune system, obesity, cancer, Alzheimer's, cardiovascular disease, stroke etc. So much so that World Health Organisation has declared a sleep loss epidemic in industrialised nations highlighting the effects on health from lack of sleep.’ ‘Whoa,’ said Rahul. ‘But we relate working hard to late, sleepless nights. Are y
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