Success - Success

by Parveen Chopra

YOU ARE RICH

By Parveen Chopra

An American millionaire who was asked how much was enough, replied: "Just a little bit more." This implies lack, which has become an inseparable part of our lives. But rather than how much you have, it is your attitude to what you have that determines your level of abundance. And the lack in one area of life disallows success and fulfillment in all the other areas.

These insights are getting a hearing with the focus on abundance. But what is abundance? And what are the ways to let it flow into our lives? Abundance is certainly not something we can acquire, it is something we tune into. It is a state of being. Of feeling that "I have enough"—time, energy, well-being, loving relationships, wisdom, everything. Enough money too.

Delhi-based reiki master Sukhdeepak Malvai says we should mind our self-talk. Seeing a fancy car or a bungalow, do you say with a sigh: "No, I cannot afford it", or, "Only people with black money earned by dubious means can enjoy these luxuries"? Replace such thoughts with statements such as "Yes, I might have a house better than that."

Closing money matters, literally, also helps: therefore, settle old debts, update your bank books and so on.

Declare for yourself what you want. Be specific in setting your goals. Focusing on what is already there in your life and not on what you don't have may sound like good old positive thinking, but it is an important principle. It relates to the Biblical promise: "To him that hath, shall more be given."

Also, believe in the abundance of the universe. Think of the things we need to survive: air, sunlight, food. Is there any shortage? Once Maharishi Mahesh Yogi was talking enthusiastically about a project costing a few million dollars. In those early years, the TM movement wasn't flush with cash. Naturally, his associates asked: "Where is the money going to come from?" "From wherever it is now," was his simple, confident answer.

Truly, all things material circulate and recirculate—nobody can own them.

December 1996
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TEN SUTRAS FOR CORPORATE SUCCESS

By Anil Bhatnagar

Modern thinkers and scientists are now convinced that the world is not made up of things, but of consciousness or an energy field that is experiencing itself. The shift has been from man seeing the world as an ocean of matter to be exploited for improving the quality of his material existence to seeing it as an ocean of intelligent energy of which he too is only a part.

Some timeless principles highlighted by New Age leaders underlie this paradigm shift and can be applied for building successful business organizations.

Understand your place in the sun
The universe is one big jigsaw puzzle and each business organization and individual has a unique slot in it. Each person should be fitted into the right slot in relation to the organizational plan while fulfilling his own role in harmony with the Big Plan.

Every organization should realize that intent and natural talent are assets more important than specialization or technical qualification on its own. A person with a burning desire to learn more about a subject can do wonders irrespective of his background.

Practice the economics of abundance
In a perfect scenario everything is available in abundance to meet one's needs. In any real-life situation, however, this is not true as people's acquisitive tendencies are driven by reasons other than genuine needs.

The first verse of Isha Upanishad says: All that we see around us belongs to God and has been given to us only for our use. Hence we should not hoard things unnecessarily.

Many problems crop up in an organization because people operate from a scarcity consciousness. Organizations with a culture where people circulate rather than keep things they do not need, provide an environment of abundance; people always have what they need at the right time and place.

Be rooted in the reality of 'oneness'
Every organization should function cohesively. It is important that organizations and individuals ensure right from the recruitment stage that they share common values, concerns, visions, challenges, goals and dreams.

The more the employees work from the perspective of "It is not I but the Unmanifest working through me", the more they achieve.

Use the power of positive thinking
People and organizations think and feel low not because of the dismal circumstances they are in; but because they think and feel low. The most powerful but least understood tool we possess is positive thinking. Don't work against anything. For example, don't fight against violence. Work for peace instead.

Let the Unmanifest work for you

Just as the whole banyan tree unfolds from the tiny seed, the world comes into being from the Unmanifest. Individuals and organizations must realize that money, material benefits and all that makes Man happy flows only from the Unmanifest; hence they should not sacrifice their link with the latter for the sake of the former.

Abundance, the very nature of the Unmanifest, shall enter and continue to pervade the lives of people and organizations provided they work in the interests of the common good and in harmony with the Unmanifest.

Recognize and trust change

Individuals and organizations should not doubt or resist the inevitable changes encountered while they are working for the Big Plan. Many organizations at some juncture feel they cannot afford to go on paying their workers because of adverse market conditions. Driven by scarcity consciousness they start driving people out of jobs.

An organization with abundance consciousness, on the other hand, values people more than its assets and may take such adverse circumstances as the Unmanifest's signal to change lanes and perhaps start a parallel or new venture utilizing the experience of surplus employees.

Success requires that organizations remain open to the opportunities and be sensitive to the world around them. A Shell Group study of 27 companies revealed that each one had changed their 'business lanes' at least once after inception.

Attune yourself to the Unmanifest

Perfect quality comes from a perfect source: our inner self. Unless the employee is in harmony with his inner self, he will continue to fail in channeling the perfect quality of the Unmanifest into his performance. We can work at various levels to call upon the power of the Unmanifest so that it seeps into the organization:

Meditating helps in transcending both inner as well as external noise that keeps the Unmanifest from us.

Make the best use of the present moment

Life is not a destination to be arrived at. What counts is the present moment. For employees to make best use of the present moment, organizations should:
• Train people in time management. Prioritizing jobs helps.
• Ensure a workplace with a minimum of distractions.
• Encourage people to talk to each other in low-pitched voices-that too only when necessary.

Develop quality people Personal transformation programs help in the development of highly effective, quality people. Reiki, vipassana, yoga, sudarshan kriya, TM, hypnotherapy and NLP are some of the systems gaining popularity in corporate circles.

Interpersonal communication skills are the backbone of success for any organization. Employees should develop listening skills, understand the basics of body language and learn memory-enhancing techniques.

Grow motivation muscle

For employees to display loyalty, organizations must show a similar concern for them. Most organizations grossly underestimate the human need for appreciation. This erodes employee motivation and creativity. A good way of motivating people to work for the organization and not merely for themselves is to equitably distribute a good percentage of profits (say 10 per cent) as a bonus for employees. In organizations where benefits are meant only for the top few, all others become outsiders.

Finally, don't wait for others to change first. Be an active participant in this inevitable change.

December 1997
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SUCCESS—UP, UP AND ABOVE

By Anupama Bhattacharya and Saurabh Bhattacharya

"Success," says Promod Batra, former general manager of Escorts and seminar leader, "is basically about how you can turn adverse situations in your favor." Consider this. Thomas Edison failed approximately 10,000 times before he finally invented the light bulb. Henry Ford was broke at the age of 40. Beethoven, as a young child, was told he had no talent for music. Walt Disney, as a young cartoonist, was told that he wasn't good at cartooning. In his struggling years at Bollywood, Amitabh Bachchan could not get a suitable role because he was 'too tall and thin' and was rejected in an All India Radio audition because of a 'heavy voice'!

Or take Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. "Few people face as much failure and humiliation in one life as Gandhi did," continues Batra. "But he didn't give up. He was there, at the right time, still struggling, when his fate changed." The issues may not have been big enough. But the dreams were. And each step was taken in that direction.

"You don't have to want to be successful," writes psychologist and motivation teacher Edward de Bono in his book, Tactics: The Art and Science of Success. "You don't have to value success. But if you do want to be successful, then there are two attitudes. The first is the passive attitude, which tells you that there is nothing you can do except wait for luck or pray for the right temperature and talent. The second is the positive attitude, which tells you that there are things you can do that will make a difference."

As Abraham Lincoln said: "Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle."

April 1999
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THE ABC OF SUCCESS

By Parveen Chopra

Vikas Malkani has developed a model for lasting and fulfilling success. He calls it the hand of success, because there are five principles involved here. You can also call it the 'ABCDE' of success.

Awareness

The first thing before you embark on action is awareness. It is real knowledge, special wisdom that there is only One. You and the universe are one. Whatever you wish is also the wish of the universe. If so, then the universe will always support you and you will realize your dreams. It works like a self-fulfilling prophecy. But you've got to believe it.

Next, you have to follow it up with the necessary action. It is not enough to wish. You must take responsibility to make it happen. Dreams are sent by God, they are not in your control. Everything starts within and then manifests outside. Make sure that your vision is large.
v Belief

This relates to attitudes. Henry Ford said: "If you believe you can, or believe you can't, you are right." So it is all up to you. You have to believe that you deserve success and you can do it.

Choice

You can never win, if you don't begin. After having begun, put in 110 per cent. It means persistence and perseverance through setbacks. Success is never achieved in the absence of problems, but despite problems.

Never be fatalistic. Many people who fail, blame luck. But let me tell you what LUCK means, it is Labor Under Correct Knowledge. The harder you work, the luckier you get.

Detachment

In other words, surrender. Let the action go to the universe or God.

What you can do instead is to pray. There is power in prayer, faith. Make God a partner in all your endeavors; keep him by your side. Remember how before the Mahabharata war, both Duryodhana and Arjun go to Krishna beseeching him to be their ally. Krishna gives them a choice: one side can have his entire army and the other side him alone. Duryodhana chooses the army and Arjun him. And we know the outcome of the war.

Enjoyment

Bliss or contentment must come. The usual pattern is that we act, then expect results and complain if results fall short of our expectations. Even if you succeed, the thrill of achieving it doesn't last. As they say, a Mercedes is enjoyable as long as you are hoping to get it. So western motivational speakers advise people at this stage to start working on another project. In this model, struggle is ceaseless. But what we want is lasting success. Sri Aurobindo said: "All life is yoga." All life should be success also.

March 2000
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FINDING YOUR LIFE'S WORK

By Suma Varughese

There's more to work than just the monthly pay check. Work as a form of self-expression, a medium of joy and self-satisfaction, an instrument of growth, is not a quaint, impractical notion, it is a reality.

Today, we can take charge of our work not only because human potential is infinite but because the very forces of life are conspiring to push us in the direction of our dreams and desires.

For starters, 50 years of independence have freed us from insecurity. The urge to dive and nestle into the ostensible safety of a government or bank job is no longer so compulsive. Says Rekha, a government clerk who trained to become a computer teacher at Mumbai's Somaiya College: "I knew it was time for me to leave when I finished knitting my second sweater at work!"

Moreover, there are more opportunities today. We can opt to be a disc jockey, a TV anchor, scriptwriter, pop singer, hairstylist, photographer, novelist, deep-sea diver, teacher, trainer, self-employed businessperson, sportsperson and innumerable other vocations. In fact, the satellite revolution, liberalization, globalization and the hothouses of information technology have each placed our destiny in our own hands.

But if today's environment is brewing up the opportunities for a more individual and satisfying livelihood, the context for the change is largely spiritual.

Searching for the right work is either the offshoot or the beginning of a larger search towards wholeness or happiness. Karma yoga is one of the three classic paths to liberation prescribed by the Bhagavad Gita. "Therefore without attachment ever perform action that should be done; for by doing action without attachment a man attains the Supreme."

In the New Age, such advice coalesces well with the overall pursuit of universal harmony, happiness and realization of human potential. Books such as The Celestine Prophecy and The Tenth Insight dwell on the mission each of us is expected to fulfill during our earthly sojourn.

Even for those without an overt spiritual agenda, growth is almost the inevitable spin-off of finding the perfect job. Says Dilip D'Souza, a US-based computer scientist turned activist-journalist: "I feel I've grown more in the past five years since returning from the USA and moving into journalism and activism, than in the last 10 years."

In almost all cases, the change of work has also positively impacted their lifestyle. Rupa Vyas, a production executive at Merind Ltd, chose to be a personal growth trainer. She attributes the intimacy she was able to build with her in-laws and husband to her more unstructured work.

Clearly, when you work for yourself, it becomes possible to build your work around your life rather than the usual tendency to wrap your life around your work.

However, if finding the perfect job is possible, the task isn't always easy. For many people, pursuit of their dreams has often meant the confrontation with hard choices. Deepa Krishnan, who took a one-year sabbatical from her lucrative job as a computer graphics designer to pursue her interest in the Mother Goddess and tribal society, says that the one year of frantic growth has strained her marriage: "Though I value my marriage, I don't know if I'm willing to sacrifice my dreams for it."

People like Deepa seem to have plugged into a path that keeps unfolding new opportunities. In other words, the perfect work is a landscape that is capable of radical flexibility and is attuned to any change in our internal perspectives, priorities and interests as well as changes in the world outside.

The harvest is munificent. Rupa Vyas, who moved into personal growth, finds her life more in balance. What matters, above all, is the joy they experience. In realizing our perfect work, we are realizing ourselves.

To identify your life's work, ask yourself what it is that you wish to do. If undecided, identify what is the most important thing at work for you. What are the things that make you most happy? What dreams do you have of what you want to do? Now, assess the following four factors:

1. Harvest your gifts: What are your unique talents? If unaware, look to see what people most compliment you on. Is it your ability to get on with people, or your organizing ability? All these have possibilities.

2. Passion: What drives you? Look within for your best-loved activities. Make sure it pays too.

3. Mission: Do you feel called upon to do something? This is a powerful motivator if you are lucky enough.

4. Assets: What is the sum total of your experience, academic qualifications and contacts? Examine the opportunities these factors collectively present. Check them for practicality, for your personal attunement to them. Gauge their monetary potential. Then make your choice.

June 1997
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