One evening a Swami of Sri Ramakrishna Mutt was addressing the participants on the concept of work culture.
One of the participants asked the following question to the Swami: "I am a senior manager of Materials Department and I joined this organization 25 years ago as an Engineer Trainee and over the last 25 years I have gone through every experience in the organization and I am now the senior manager looking after the material function independently.
During the initial part of my career, the job was very challenging and interesting. Every day was exciting and I looked forward to each day with lot of interest. However, all those exciting days are gone since I do not find my job any more interesting because there is nothing new in my job. As I have seen and handled every conceivable situation there is no more challenges in my work.
I am now feeling bored because I am doing a routine job. However, Swami, I am living in the same house for over forty years, I am the son for the same parents for over forty-five years; I am the father for the same children for the past ten years and the husband for the same lady for the past twenty years. In these personal roles I do not feel bored and the passage of time has not taken away the zeal from me.
Please tell me why I am bored of the routine in the office and not in the house?" This was a very interesting question and we were all very anxious and curious to know what the Swami had to say!! The response from him was very interesting and convincing. He asked the executive the question: "Please tell me for whom does your Mother cook?"
The executive replied that obviously the mother cooks for others. Then the Swami said that the mother "Serves" others and because of this service mindedness, she is not feeling tired or bored. But in an office, we "Work" and not "Serve". Anything we consider, as service will not make us feel bored. That is difference between Serving and Working.
He asked the executive to consider his work as service and not merely a work!! This was a very interesting analysis!! Whenever you put a larger context around your work and see a broader meaning for your work, you will take interest in your work. An awareness of larger purpose of your job and an appreciation of its importance will make a very big difference in your internal energy.
You should believe that you are here for a purpose and should believe in the spiritual context of your role.
Never settle for less than your dreams, somewhere sometime you will find them.
When Henry Ward Beecher was a young boy in school, he learned a lesson in self-confidence, which he never forgot.
He was called upon to recite in front of the class. He had hardly begun when the teacher interrupted with an emphatic, "No!" He started over and again the teacher thundered, "No!" Humiliated, Henry sat down.
The next boy rose to recite and had just begun when the teacher shouted, "No!" This student, however, kept on with the recitation until he completed it. As he sat down, the teacher responded, "Very good!" Henry was irritated. "I recited just as he did," he complained to the teacher.
But the instructor replied, "It is not enough to know your lesson, you must be sure. When you allowed me to stop you, it meant that you were uncertain. If all the world says, 'No!' it is your business to say, 'Yes!' and prove it."
The world says, "No!" in a thousand ways:
"No! You can't do that."
"No! You are wrong."
"No! You are too old."
"No! You are too young."
"No! You are too weak."
"No! It will never work."
"No! You don't have the education."
"No! You don't have the background."
"No! You don't have the money."
"No! It can't be done."
And each "No!" you hear has the potential to erode your confidence bit by
bit until you quit altogether. Though the world says, "No!" to you today,
will you determine to say, "Yes!" and prove it?
Next time you come across failure, you need not feel bad about it but take it as a challenge, because this is what failure means....
Failure doesn't mean - You are a failure, It means - You have not succeeded.
Failure doesn't mean - You accomplished nothing, It means - You have learned something.
Failure doesn't mean - That you have been a fool, It means - You had a lot of faith.
Failure doesn't mean - You've been disgraced, It means -You were willing to try.
Failure doesn't mean - You don't have it, It means - You have to do something in a different way.
Failure doesn't mean - You are inferior, It means - You are not perfect.
Failure doesn't mean - You've wasted your life, It means - You have a reason to start afresh.
Failure doesn't mean - You should give up, It means - You must try harder.
Failure doesn't mean - You'll never make it, It means - It will take a little longer.
People will respect you. When you say that there are no excuses, that you blew it, and that you take full responsibility to make the situation right, people will be astounded (since very few people make no excuses) and they will come to a greater respect of you.
You will find yourself taking greater responsibility. When you know that your policy is to have no excuses, there will be less room for error because you will be doing everything that you can to make sure the JOB gets done! You will become the "go to" person. When someone wants something done, they will turn to you because they know that they can count on you to perform. And they know they won't get any excuses! This will improve your level of success, and that is exactly what you are aiming for, right?
Practice up: "You're right. There is no excuse for that. I will fix it immediately."
Lessons on Life:
There was a man who had four sons. He wanted his sons to learn not to judge
things too quickly. So he sent them each on a quest, in turn, to go and look
at a pear tree that was a great distance away.
The first son went in the winter, the second in the spring, the third in
summer, and the youngest son in the fall.
When they had all gone and come back, he called them together to describe
what they had seen.
The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and twisted. The second son
said no it was covered with green buds and full of promise.
The third son disagreed; he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so
sweet and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had ever seen.
The last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping
with fruit, full of life and fulfillment.
The man then explained to his sons that they were all right, because they
had each seen but only one season in the tree's life.
He told them that you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one season,
and that the essence of who they are and the pleasure, joy, and love that come
from that life can only be measured at the end, when all the seasons are up.
If you give up when it's winter, you will miss the promise of your spring,
the beauty of your summer, fulfillment of your fall.
Don't let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest.
Don't judge life by one difficult season.
Persevere through the difficult patches
and better times are sure to come some time or later
One of the participants asked the following question to the Swami: "I am a senior manager of Materials Department and I joined this organization 25 years ago as an Engineer Trainee and over the last 25 years I have gone through every experience in the organization and I am now the senior manager looking after the material function independently.
During the initial part of my career, the job was very challenging and interesting. Every day was exciting and I looked forward to each day with lot of interest. However, all those exciting days are gone since I do not find my job any more interesting because there is nothing new in my job. As I have seen and handled every conceivable situation there is no more challenges in my work.
I am now feeling bored because I am doing a routine job. However, Swami, I am living in the same house for over forty years, I am the son for the same parents for over forty-five years; I am the father for the same children for the past ten years and the husband for the same lady for the past twenty years. In these personal roles I do not feel bored and the passage of time has not taken away the zeal from me.
Please tell me why I am bored of the routine in the office and not in the house?" This was a very interesting question and we were all very anxious and curious to know what the Swami had to say!! The response from him was very interesting and convincing. He asked the executive the question: "Please tell me for whom does your Mother cook?"
The executive replied that obviously the mother cooks for others. Then the Swami said that the mother "Serves" others and because of this service mindedness, she is not feeling tired or bored. But in an office, we "Work" and not "Serve". Anything we consider, as service will not make us feel bored. That is difference between Serving and Working.
He asked the executive to consider his work as service and not merely a work!! This was a very interesting analysis!! Whenever you put a larger context around your work and see a broader meaning for your work, you will take interest in your work. An awareness of larger purpose of your job and an appreciation of its importance will make a very big difference in your internal energy.
You should believe that you are here for a purpose and should believe in the spiritual context of your role.
Attitude Matters!!!
Never settle for less than your dreams, somewhere sometime you will find them.
WHEN THE WORLD SAYS, "NO!"
From "One Minute Can Change a Life" by Steve Goodier When Henry Ward Beecher was a young boy in school, he learned a lesson in self-confidence, which he never forgot.
He was called upon to recite in front of the class. He had hardly begun when the teacher interrupted with an emphatic, "No!" He started over and again the teacher thundered, "No!" Humiliated, Henry sat down.
The next boy rose to recite and had just begun when the teacher shouted, "No!" This student, however, kept on with the recitation until he completed it. As he sat down, the teacher responded, "Very good!" Henry was irritated. "I recited just as he did," he complained to the teacher.
But the instructor replied, "It is not enough to know your lesson, you must be sure. When you allowed me to stop you, it meant that you were uncertain. If all the world says, 'No!' it is your business to say, 'Yes!' and prove it."
The world says, "No!" in a thousand ways:
"No! You can't do that."
"No! You are wrong."
"No! You are too old."
"No! You are too young."
"No! You are too weak."
"No! It will never work."
"No! You don't have the education."
"No! You don't have the background."
"No! You don't have the money."
"No! It can't be done."
And each "No!" you hear has the potential to erode your confidence bit by
bit until you quit altogether. Though the world says, "No!" to you today,
will you determine to say, "Yes!" and prove it?
FAILURE
Next time you come across failure, you need not feel bad about it but take it as a challenge, because this is what failure means....
Failure doesn't mean - You are a failure, It means - You have not succeeded.
Failure doesn't mean - You accomplished nothing, It means - You have learned something.
Failure doesn't mean - That you have been a fool, It means - You had a lot of faith.
Failure doesn't mean - You've been disgraced, It means -You were willing to try.
Failure doesn't mean - You don't have it, It means - You have to do something in a different way.
Failure doesn't mean - You are inferior, It means - You are not perfect.
Failure doesn't mean - You've wasted your life, It means - You have a reason to start afresh.
Failure doesn't mean - You should give up, It means - You must try harder.
Failure doesn't mean - You'll never make it, It means - It will take a little longer.
NO EXCUSES
Don't you just hate it when people make excuses for their failures? So do I. But do you know what I hate even more? Finding myself making excuses for my failures! I have a policy that I try to live by: No excuses. Here are some thoughts on a "No Excuses" policy. People will respect you. When you say that there are no excuses, that you blew it, and that you take full responsibility to make the situation right, people will be astounded (since very few people make no excuses) and they will come to a greater respect of you.
You will find yourself taking greater responsibility. When you know that your policy is to have no excuses, there will be less room for error because you will be doing everything that you can to make sure the JOB gets done! You will become the "go to" person. When someone wants something done, they will turn to you because they know that they can count on you to perform. And they know they won't get any excuses! This will improve your level of success, and that is exactly what you are aiming for, right?
Practice up: "You're right. There is no excuse for that. I will fix it immediately."
Lessons on Life:
There was a man who had four sons. He wanted his sons to learn not to judge
things too quickly. So he sent them each on a quest, in turn, to go and look
at a pear tree that was a great distance away.
The first son went in the winter, the second in the spring, the third in
summer, and the youngest son in the fall.
When they had all gone and come back, he called them together to describe
what they had seen.
The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and twisted. The second son
said no it was covered with green buds and full of promise.
The third son disagreed; he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so
sweet and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had ever seen.
The last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping
with fruit, full of life and fulfillment.
The man then explained to his sons that they were all right, because they
had each seen but only one season in the tree's life.
He told them that you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one season,
and that the essence of who they are and the pleasure, joy, and love that come
from that life can only be measured at the end, when all the seasons are up.
If you give up when it's winter, you will miss the promise of your spring,
the beauty of your summer, fulfillment of your fall.
Moral:
Don't let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest.
Don't judge life by one difficult season.
Persevere through the difficult patches
and better times are sure to come some time or later
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