Lessons learned in 2016 shall help you in 2017

We all know how crucial part learning is for every human being. It is quite strange that we often think that we perform same tasks every day; we wake up in the morning, go to office, college or school depending upon what age group we are in) spend entire day as usual but still when we look back we notice how drastically our life has changed. Not only our life, but we too constantly change our thoughts, our perspectives, our behavior and so on. So what is that which bring that change in our lives and in our personalities? It is the experiences we get in life! Every experience; good or bad, brings an opportunity for us to learn something new and grow. Ignoring the lessons of those experiences or denying to them is like brushing off the pearls of wisdom that are lying all around us. Every failure or success, no matter how big or small; gives us a lesson, whether in personal or at professional front. The people who are able to embrace those failures, take learnings and use those lessons in the next chapters of life ultimately catapult themselves to success and happiness.

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Therefore, knowing how to examine your mistakes and wins to get better learnings is the most powerful source to attain growth in each sphere of life; whether personal, professional, or social. This process which is known as debriefing is crucial to keep growing and keep walking on the path which ultimately leads you to your divine destination.

We always make resolutions for the New Year; where these resolutions come from in our mind? From our experiences, we had in the past. For instance; because you threw tantrums and showed anger to your subordinates at workplace; due to which you faced problems and got learning that you should control your anger; so now you may make a resolution that you will change your temperament. Or because you trust so easily, many people took advantage and hurt your feeling, so you will make a resolution that you will work on your emotions and will become smart enough to know whom should you trust and whom not. Therefore, the learning we get in our past make us bring positive changes in our future and this is how we grow and become wiser in life.

Now, once you are familiar with the concept, I would suggest you to evaluate your year 2016 and take a look back to identify what you learned from both good and bad experiences you had in all fronts of life and what are the lessons you need to take that will enable you to take wiser decisions and actions in 2017.

Factors to identify how your relationships can benefit through this debrief process: Amount of time you spend with your family, friends or loved ones, how well you communicated your thoughts to others, how well you kept your commitments and promises, how honest and trustworthy you have been throughout the year, how do you find the surroundings or social circle you have, how trustworthy people are around you, how well you should mingle up with others and where do you need to give a shut up call.

Factors to identify how your professional life can benefit through this debrief process: How productive you were throughout the year, how profitable you were for the business, how did you present yourself to others; do you need any improvisation? How well you socialized with others, how well ou managed your work or the team under you, in what areas you need to bring changes

Your wealth: How you managed your financial matters, how much did you save, Is there anything in your mind through which you can gain more health and pursue you passion? Then go for it!

Choose one area of your life and begin evaluating;

1. This about a specific event or an event you still could not forget; whichever comes to your mind.
2. What do you feel while recalling that specific event? Sometimes when things go horribly wrong and the little voice in your mind tries to convince you that the entire event was just a nightmare, and you try hard to forget it. Think about it once again, there was some learning behind that incident, a lesson for you. Did you identify a new strength in you? Did someone unexpectedly extend you support? What learnings did you receive from that incident?

Remember, you can't learn less. Experiments, trials or goof ups are our inherent learning mechanism for development. Setting aside some time to go through and critically analyse your experiments and the outcomes you faced help you make a foundation to a better and brighter year ahead. Wish a very Happy New Year!

Take Charge of your life with AK Mishra's Art of Success

Every individual is an extraordinary creation of the universe, we must discover our uniqueness by paying attention to our deep inherent self. AK Mishra's Art of Success training sessions encourage participants to spend quality time in solitude in order to understand our inner voice and recognize our deep inherent potential to achieve extraordinary success in all spheres of life.

Letting go of that ego before it gets hold on you

Ego is a state of mind which is nothing more than a self-proclaimed or self-constructed pseudo identity. It's a mindset which prevents a human's inner conscious to accept things in their natural entity. It can also be termed as self-concept or “Ahankara” as enshrined in the Indian Vedas of Ancient times which sometimes also disables the receptiveness of thoughts and ideas from the other sources.

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In terms of human relationship, ego debars an individual to accept and pay regard to others individuality.  Relationships are a two-way process and in most of the cases, ego acts as a dead end on the road to a healthy relationship. If communication can act as a catalyst in a relationship, ego works all together in a different way. It acts as a slow poison and has venomous effects on the nerves of any relation.

Ego and ethics are also very closely related. The best example can be cited from our heritage Indian Epic of ‘The Ramayana'. In my personal opinion, if there would have been no Ego, there would not have been ‘The Ramayana’ or ‘The Mahabharata’.

When The Ravana, the most dedicated disciple of Lord Shiva gained control over his ego he was blessed with divine powers which were beyond the reach of a normal human being. But the same Ravana, when was taken over by his own ego; his defeat at the hands of Lord Rama entered the pages of Mythological History which will be enshrined in the minds of generations to come till infinity.

However, even Ravana showed some signs of ‘controlled ego’ as he had a very strong conviction of not forcing himself onto Sita until her own will. Such an exceptional control of seduction, lust and ego probably go missing nowadays when women; can rightly be termed as the largest minority of our country are subject to indecent and unexpected exploitation in a country like India where idols of women are worshiped as Goddess.

Therefore, at some instances, inheriting ego is also recommended. But where an individual has to get mild with his ego or where a human being has to be stringent on his/her stand subject to self-respect, understanding the correct timing of such switching is an art in itself.

There also exists a very fine distinguishing line between ego and self-esteem or self-realization and its interpretation also depends on the perspective of the viewer. For example, Medieval Indian History is observed as a dark age of bloodshed and ignorance which pushed India towards slavery at the dawn of the modern era according to the viewpoint and perspective of the British Historians.

However, the same age was glorified by the Indian Historians which witnessed a sea of Hindus ruled by able Muslim Rulers like Akbar. This era gave the human civilization hoards of world heritage sites like the Qutub Minar of New Delhi to Taj Mahal of Agra.

As it is rightly said by the Prime Minister of India Shri. Narendra Modi, “Mind is never a problem…Mindset it”, it’s the mindset behind these two opposite interpretation and perspective of viewing the same patch on the timeline. One engulfed with egoistic tendency of the Britons and the other enlightening thoughts of self-realization and actualization by the Indians.

With reference to the same context mentioned above, the Britons have started lagging behind on the world forum as well on many fronts just because of a conservative society and an egoistic tendency of being racially superior.  If we compare it to its former colony, the United States of America, the US, because of their liberal and progressive society have showcased tremendous progress within 300 years of their independence just because they weeded off the shrubs of conservatism and egoism way before the world could even realize it. It clearly shows that anything which embraces change at the earliest is far away from the evil of ego.

The same seesaw of Ego and Self Esteem is omnipresent when we talk about generation gap. Anyone tumbling off the balance is witnessed by collapse of the whole fabric of the relationship model.     

Like Happiness and sorrows, Love and hatred, Anger and revenge; even Ego is a part of complex human mindset which is clearly visible everyday around us in conflicts between individuals, for example, in the case of institution of marriage and divorce which we study in sociology to wars between Nations which forms the basis for contemporary International Relations and alignment, For example, Iran-Iraq war.

As the ups and downs of a tide self-realization and ego are indispensable. Therefore it is not at all possible for us to completely eliminate this human tendency from our society but it is always advisable “Letting Go of That Ego Before It Gets Hold of You"

Ways to raise your self-esteem and its significance in your life

High self-esteem is extremely important in every aspect of our life, be it personal, professional or social. Yet, many of us struggle to find it. But here are a few simple ways which can certainly help you develop good self-esteem and experience a profound shift in your life.

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Accept the fact that you are unique and special    

Every Human being is born unique with some extraordinary traits; you just need to recognize those special gifts you are blessed with. And to recognize those gifts, you will have to accept the fact that you are unique and cannot be compared with anyone else in the world because there is no one else in the world who is quite like you. Not only our DNA and fingerprints are different from everyone else, but our mind, our looks, our way of thinking and our approach towards life is unique too. Wherever we cast our glance we will find diversity which attests to the fact that our belief, thinking process and perception towards life will also differ. So if nature has made you so unique and special, shouldn’t you accept this uniqueness and embrace it as much as you can? Love yourself, because you are unique. When you’ll respect yourself and show the world your true self, the world will love you. And if someone doesn’t, let it be; everyone has their own opinions and choices.

Cut off all detrimental thoughts and beliefs    

Many people with low self-esteem are not expressive. In other words, they find their beliefs, opinions, and thoughts insignificant and try to conceal or suppress them. They fail to realize that their one thought and opinion can bring about profound changes in a situation or sometimes even in someone’s life. So it is wise to do away with toxic thoughts and beliefs and air your views, voice, and opinions which might not provide the solution all the time but sometimes can create a difference in somebody’s life or circumstances. The best way to enhance your self-esteem is to consider yourself equally significant as others and love yourself for the way you are.

Put your behavior in perspective

Generally, people with low self-esteem beat themselves up when they make an error of judgment or a mistake. They feel that they are good for nothing because they failed, lost a job or because they have been dumped in a relationship. But in fact, these events are a major part our lives which occur to bring out our hidden and true personality, to teach us lessons and to help us grow in life. How we perceive those failures and how we react to them is what shows our true characteristics. Hence, if you are likely to encounter such agonies in life, always remind yourself that it’s just a tiny particle of the multiple components and layers that make up the real you.

Positive outlook towards life and confidence in you and your abilities will help you sail through all the problems of life and you will learn how to ginger up and live your every day with unfathomable vigor and vitality.

Embrace the power of POSITIVITY

There are two types of individuals -  positive thinkers and negative thinkers. Negative thinkers are known to suffer more from health issues as compared to positive thinkers, as positive thoughts not only makes you healthier but it can also certainly help you lead a healthier and accomplished life. Hence, it is best to avoid negativity and adopt positivity as the brain easily catches negative thoughts and once the negative thoughts appear, they continue to multiply. Negative thinking thus not only affects your health but also hampers the other phases of life. Hence, it is imperative to know what negative thinking can do to your overall wellbeing.

Negativity Causes Depression

                                   

According to a research, it has been found that even if you try to suppress your negative thoughts, they always return. Hence, replacing negative thoughts with positive ones, ultimately

helps to dispel negative thoughts quickly and efficiently. It is the best solution to do away with the negative thoughts every time they trigger your mind. The study also discovered that negative thoughts worsen the condition of depression as these thoughts sabotage your endeavors to overcome depression.

                                                                                                       

Negativity Increases the Sensation on Pain

It is a well-known fact that negative thoughts worsen your skills to handle a situation and has a negative impact on your overall life, but apart from this, negativity also increases the sensation of pain in your body. Hence, individuals suffering from arthritis, sickle cell anemia and chronic pain tend to be affected more easily by their negative thoughts. So, negative thinkers experience more pain and also face many psychological disorders.

Transform Negative thoughts into positive ones

Negative thinking and stress can certainly worsen your health. While on the other hand, positive thinking boosts your immunity, makes you more competitive to handle the challenges of life, helps you fight pain and diseases and to recover faster. It paves the way for you to manifest more positive situation in your life. So it’s time to make a shift in your mind set and replace your negative thoughts with positive ones. Here’s how;

Smile often

It is a scientifically proven fact that a smile enhances your thought patterns and mood. The muscles of your forehead are directly linked to the emotional centre of your brain, which during an unwanted situation can make you depressed and moody. While, on the other hand, a smile transmits happy and positive thoughts to your mind. Hence, make a habit to smile more and experience more happy moments.

Devote few minutes to Yoga and Meditation

Yoga and meditation connect you with your deeper self and help you assess your deep inherent desires, flaws and promotes self-talk. These activities also help you assess your positive side and make you more powerful to consciously replace your negative thoughts with positive ones. It also helps you to develop a habit of thinking positively and practicing gratitude.

Take Charge of your Life

Instead of complaining in negative situations, learn to take charge of not only your emotions, actions but situations as well. And rather than being or feeling like a victim of situations in your own life, make a conscious choice whether you want it or not, if not, try to realize what choices will help you eliminate these unwanted situations in your life. So, learn to make the right choices, rather than leaving things to luck.

Surround yourself with positive people

Make sure the people around you with whom you socialize and spend most of your time, are positive people and positively encourage you to achieve your goals. Because the more positivity you have around you, the better the world around you will become!

Read only positive content

Just as you need positive people to be around you to help you stay positive, similarly, many positive books help in keeping you enthusiastic and motivated. Read quotes, books, positive articles and such other material available online, in print books, and even in podcast, TED talks, etc. Find positive quotes and paste them around you, in your rooms, workspace, etc.

Sing often to give yourself a positive boost

It has been scientifically proven that music boosts your mood and fights depression, so start tuning to your favorite songs. It’s a great activity to de-stress, along with having fun. The more you adopt the habit of singing, the happier you will become. Undoubtedly, it’s not easy to shift your state of mind and start thinking positively in an instant, but practice making a habit of replacing your negative thoughts with positive ones, whenever anything negative pops into your mind.

AK Mishra's Art of Success wishes all Happy Navratri

Navratri is a nine-day festival wherein devotees keep rigorous fast for 9 days while welcoming and worshipping various forms of Goddess Shakti to their homes. On this such an auspicious festival, AK Mishra's Art of Success wishes you all a very happy Navratri.  May the various forms of Goddess Shakti/Durga empower you with her nine blessings of name, fame, health, wealth, happiness, peace, humanity, knowledge and spirituality

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Ways to overcome sadness in dark times

Happiness lies in our attitude

At some or other point of our life, we all face dark moments, sorrows, sadness and pain. Life is always full of ups and downs and cannot always give you joy, laughter, happiness and sweetness. Even a straight line in ECG machine declares a person dead. Through these dark experiences, we evolve, learn, grow and unlock newer dimensions of life. But our happiness, however, depends largely upon our attitude, if we look at the brighter side of the problems; we begin to understand that everything in life happens for a reason.

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Accept and embrace the present situations

Whenever anger, sadness and anxiety are incited by a difficult situation, it simply means that you are attached to the situation and your over thinking about the cause triggering your suffering. Let go of what according to you should have happened and embrace the fact you are living and what has happened. Try to figure out the master plan of God and the reason behind whatever has happened.  Remember the answer is inside you, which can transform your attitude and your thoughts. Although yes, we all have the power to take charge of our life, but before all, we need to learn the art of taking charge of our emotions, ourselves; which comes through acceptance of present situations. Have the courage to make right choices for your life and embrace the reality.

Do not judge the situations over and over again

Let go of your judgmental thoughts of why it happened this way and not the way you expected. Don’t blame others or yourself for what has happened, if you’ll do; you’ll keep thinking about the situation and keep letting the situation overpower you positive thoughts and happiness. In order to free your mind, let go of negative judgments.

Thank God for the present moments, rather crying for the adversities

Gratitude helps you find happiness. Although happiness does not always make one grateful, but being grateful surely helps one to bring a smile. Gratitude begins with mindfulness and by embracing the present. We often make present moments unhappy while replaying past situations in our mind. Be grateful for the present situation and let the positive things enter into your life by accepting what has happened and by letting go the miserable thoughts.  

 

Try to make other smile and shift your focus from your own worries

During the hours of crises or adversities, we often think about our worries and make our situations even worse. When you find yourself lost in your worries, try to help someone else and try to make someone else smile. This will help you smile and release out your worries.

Revive the kid in you

Undoubtedly, keeping oneself optimistic in a difficult situation is not easy; still just try to take at least 15 to 20 minutes to enjoy the calm and stillness within you. Shut out the chatter which is going inside you and around you and spend time with the little kid inside you, hug that kid and begin loving yourself.

Be open to happiness

Just because you’ve experienced a difficult situation, do not shut yourself away from manifesting more reasons to smile and find happiness. Try to be in a company of positive people, look out for humour, be around with people who make you laugh, and try to smile and be present at the situation, and you’ll soon bounce back to a happy go lucky zone.

Pros and Cons of Corporate Politics

One often hears statements like “I had a bad day at work today as there were too many politics!” or “I am fed up of these petty corporate politics”.

So, what exactly are these ‘corporate politics’?

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There is no exact definition of ‘corporate politics’ given in the Oxford or the Collins dictionary. It is a term which has come into use very extensively over the last few decades due to the emergence of a number of MNCs and large corporates and the competition amongst the members of these organizations for personal or professional interests.

Just like the way there are two sides to every coin, each and everything in this world has its plus points and its negative points or as we say its pros and cons. One always tends to focus on relating to only the negative aspect of corporate politics. The term ‘corporate politics’ tends to make people cringe. But, corporate politics has a number of advantages as well. Let us have a look at both the sides of this coin.

The Pros:

Let us start on a positive note by looking at the pros of corporate politics which are as follows:

1.      It has rightly been said, “Success is not a destination, it is a journey”. So, to make this journey in the corporate world a success, one has to learn to follow the policy of ‘live and let live’. Corporate politics makes one understand and learn the art of not being ruffled by unnecessary petty politics and focusing single-mindedly on the task at hand.

2.   Strength is a very strong attribute to the development of one’s character. This strength cannot be achieved if one tends to run away from situations in life. Corporate politics definitely makes an individual stronger as these large organizations follow the policy of ‘survival of the fittest’ and in order to ‘survive’ in a corporate, one automatically learns to become strong.

3.      A positive attitude in life is a must to grow as an individual. One often has to ignore the politics going around and overcome all negativity by adopting a positive approach and having a positive outlook. So, corporate politics teach us to be positive at all times, no matter what the situation is.

4.      In order to obtain a shining precious jewel, a gem has to be mined, has to be polished and has to go through a lot of hardships to finally attain its form as an invaluable precious gem. Similarly, in order to become successful and thereafter enjoy the taste of success, one has to go through a number of hardships in work life, corporate politics being one of them.

The Cons:

Now, let us explore the negative aspects of this ‘unnecessary evil’ of the corporate world.

1.     ‘Time and tide wait for none', especially not for petty politics. Corporate politics lead to a lot of time wastage. Things like plotting, planning and scheming for all the wrong things like how to let down someone or how to promote selfish interests, gossiping, insulting people around due to personal grudges etc. are all a waste of time which results in non-fulfillment of targets and inability to meet deadlines at work.

2.      The ability and capacity to work of those who engage in office politics or those who become a victim of those politics drop down drastically. If one is continuously engaging in office politics or being a victim of those politics, then from where would the energy or concentration to work come from? Hence, in order to enhance the capacity and potential of all employees which eventually enhances productivity, it is important to have a healthy office environment which is free from politics.

3.     Stress acts as a major obstacle in the path of progress. Corporate politics gives thousand times more stress than what regular office work does. It also leads to an unfriendly atmosphere at the workplace and causes ill will amongst colleagues. These petty politics spoil relationships and friendships which could bloom into beautiful flowers are nipped in the bud due to these politics.

4.     Most importantly, the growth of the organization is adversely affected by corporate politics. Corporate politics are often backed up by personal motives and selfish interests rather than interests of the company. So, instead of focusing on the growth of the company and individual professional growth, those who create politics focus only on those politics. For the organization to grow, it is important to have diligent workers who focus single-mindedly on work.

Thus, we can see that like everything else, corporate politics too has both its good and bad points. Ironically, if at one hand, it hampers the growth of an individual, then, on the other hand, it gives the strength, the confidence and the wisdom to grow. By focusing on the pros of corporate politics while being a victim and by avoiding any engagement in politics, one can indeed create a love towards the work and ease down unwanted stress level. 

How working professionals can utilize their time well while traveling long distance from home to office

The regular commute from home to work and vice-versa has been commonly experienced by most of the working professionals. Although the decision to do so is in itself a challenge as it often hampers our personal life and makes it more challenging for us to bring healthy work-life balance. Many of us place the emphasis on prestige, better holidays, working profile, money, prestige and other material goods and we tend to neglect other factors of key importance, such as time for self, hobbies, personal relationships, social connections, etc. 

However, there are many working professionals who travel unbelievably long distance every day by driving for almost 2 hours or by using public transport to reach home from office. This travel is stress-inducing and drains all their energy and by the time they reach home; they just look for food and a bed to sleep. So where are we landing at the end? Is this the ideal life we chose to live? We are earning, working well at the workplace for what? Just to go home and sleep? No!

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We can utilize our traveling time well not to drain our remaining energy but to charge us to spend quality time with family, and to spend some time on the things we love to pursue.  The people who drive themselves while traveling can listen relaxation music, which not only keeps you focused but gives a soothing effect to your mind and helps you do away with all the stress. But remember, not to put earphones as it can distract your mind while driving, but play a soothing relaxation, stress releasing music on background (music player). Such music has incredible power to help you release your stress and is easily accessible in music stores. Music also helps us think deeply and strategize the things well and makes us more focused and calm while driving.

Having a healthy breakfast in morning and calmly having dinner with family after reaching home from office and spending quality time with them, going out for a walk then helps release the remaining stress and makes you more enthusiastic and competent to take up the challenges for next day.

While on the other hand, when one has a personal driver to help commute, nothing can be great than this. One can read a book they love, reading helps release most of the stress, one can maintain healthy social connection by calling a friend or loved ones to talk, to laugh, to share their experiences. One can also mediate well while traveling through relaxation music, or just by closing their eyes and focusing on breathe to connect deeply with self.

For the people who use public transport while traveling are not less lucky. They can also utilize their time well in reading books, Newspapers, or listening to a relaxation music using ear phones which give thousands time better impact to let quickly release unwanted stress. One can also think well while listening to music; are they going well? What are the things they are lacking in? What can they do to improve their personal relationships and professional life? We can utilize this time very well to bring out our refined and a better personality.

The people who travel less don’t have this luxury of time to spend with themselves, so do not consider yourself less lucky than the ones who don’t have to travel long from home to work. Instead of cribbing in traffic, watching and judging other people in public transport, we can utilize the time very well to release our stress, beat our targets at workplace and met our family in evening with a refreshed mind.  

Wonderful ways to turn your endings into new beginnings

When you cannot find a reason to continue anymore, you must begin searching for a reason to start over. There is a huge difference between giving up and making courage to start over in a right direction. And surprisingly, there are three beautiful words that can indeed help you release from your past regrets and show you a way forwards towards the positive beginnings. Those three words are “From now onwards”.

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Hence, from now onwards,

Let go the things you have no control upon

Most of the things have forcefully become a part of your life because you keep thinking about them. Positive things happen in our life when we distance ourselves from the negative things. So stop holding on the grudges, regrets and create space to breathe in positive feelings and positive things. Shift your focus from the things which are out of your control to the things you can well control and create a beautiful transformation.

Learn to accept and embrace the truth

To acknowledge the true beauty of life, one must understand that everything in life happens for you, not to you. And everything happens at the right moments, neither earlier not late. For all that you lose; you gain something new; if nothing than an experience a new learning. So pay attention to your outlook towards life, your thoughts. Remember, the choice is all yours, either regret for the things you do not have or rejoice for the things you have and for the abilities you have to get what you do not have.

Recondition your mind

Change is not a part of the process, it is indeed a process. In fact, the only thing in life we can count upon is “change”. And the first step to embrace the change is to break the shackles of your old conditioning which limit your thoughts and recondition your mind with unconditional possibilities. Change your outlook towards yourself and life. Allow the universe to take you to the unforeseen areas of life, allow the unexpected turns in life open new ways for you. Sometimes all you need it to change and broaden your perspective to see the master plan of God behind the changes ou encounter in life.

Dare to Take Chance

Rolling out a major change in life or trying something beyond your conventional boundaries can be challenging and scary, but what’s even scarier is regretting not taking a chance. In truth, most of your fears are much greater in your mind than they actually are. Don’t let these fears stop you, because your potential is much greater than you’ve ever imagined. Carry on with your life, live it so that you never need to lament the chances you never took, the adoration you never let in, and the blessings you never gave out.

Appreciate your learning and experiences

Nothing is more powerful and beautiful than a smile that has battled through the tears and sorrows. Do not let go this learning experience while regretting for the past mistakes, even the moments that were filled with hurt can give you greater experiences and learnings in life to lead you towards a better tomorrow. Smile because you have gained strength and rise above your failures and past mistakes. Ultimately, it’s not what you’ve been through that characterises who you are; but it’s the way you got through your past regrets that have made you the person you are today and the person you are capable of being tomorrow.

Every steps in life in significant

Nothing is insignificant in life, and nothing is wrong. Each step in our life brings a new learning. Whatever step you took yesterday was important to step ahead and to reach where you are today. So be proud of yourself that you’ve been battling all the hurdles to grow and to reach your desired destination in life.

Celebrating the Eternal bond of Radha and Krishna – happy Janamashtmi

Lord Krishna’s worship is believed to be incomplete without Radha, who was Krishna’s childhood friend, soul mate and supreme beloved. Radha’s devotion and love overcame all barriers and became eternal. Radha and Krishna were inseparable lovers despite the fact that Radha was married to Ayana. But their love could not stand the test of the duty that Lord Krishna had to face. Lord Krishna had to leave Radha and Vrindavan to ensure that the ideals of justice and truth were established, and had to let down the ideal of his own love.

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Later, Lord Krishna defeated his enemies numerous times, became a kind and even married number of times. But Radha’s love is believed to be so divine and pure that she kept waiting for Lord Krishna to come back to her and she herself obtained the status of a deity with her name, inseparably linked to Krishna.

Although Lord Krishna was adored by numerous Gopis in Vrindavan, Radha’s ocean of love and devotion for Krishna was incomparable. ‘Krishna enchants the whole world, but Srimati Radhika enchants even Him. Therefore, Radha is the Supreme Goddess.’ 

Krishna is the God, whereas Radha is the soul. Krishna is the possessor of energy and Radha is his energy (Shakti). She is the personification of the higher form of love and by her mercy; her soul is connected with the love of Krishna. The bond between Radha and Krishna has become an example of the pure and highest form of love, an enduring union of the higher completion. 

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The image of Radha and Krishna which has always seen together, always reminds us to keep our soul pure and to spread love. Love has broader definition; love yourself, love your parents, love your friends, love your life partners; and when you truly love, you never look for the outcome, and when you freed yourself from the shackles of expectation, you become a free loving soul who manifests love, purity, truth, and contentment to your way.

Wonderful Quotes that will help you find happiness all around

We often get depressed due to some setbacks we face in our life. The life gives us thousands of reasons to smile, on the other hand, this same life makes us fall hard, breaks our dreams, brings chaos and setbacks. But we all fail to understand the reasons behind those setbacks, the falls until and unless we get up once again and rise even higher than before. Whatever happens in our life always makes us wiser person and help us grow as human being.

Let’s have a look at some quotes written by those who have faced drastic setbacks and falls in life, and made the courage to get up, learnt and finally have succeeded in searching the deserved paths of their lives.

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Use these beautiful quotes as a way to start your day with positivity and refer them every time you feel low or lost in life.

"For every minute you are angry, you lose 60 seconds of happiness"

                                                                                                            – Ralph Waldo Emerson

True that one cannot feel happiness while encountering end number of setbacks and sorrows in life. One cannot shift his emotion from anger to happiness suddenly. But what one can do is to let the emotions peacefully flow out and shift the focus on other positive things around to slowly get into the happy state of mind. It may take some time, but as long as you are trying to head yourself towards more positive direction and shifting your focus more on positive sides, you’ll be attracting more reasons to be happy and keep a smile on your face.

"Happiness is when what you think, what you say and what you do are in harmony"

                                                                                                                     – Mahatma Gandhi

When your emotions, your actions and words are in sync, you can easily sum up the feeling of happiness. Whereas any part of this equation breaks down, you begin to lose your grab on your happy thoughts and feelings. Hence, one should always express true feelings and must make actions as per his/her will. Going against your internal system for guidance will surely keep your desired happiness away from you.

"Folks are usually about as happy as they make their minds up to be"

                                                                                                                     – Abraham Lincoln

Life is like a buffet and we encounter all sorts of emotions, situations and people in life. Some will make you happy, while others may make your feel bad, but it’s you who decide what is important for you to focus upon. All you need is to make up your mind to be happy, and then lock all the ways to look back. By realising the fact that you hold the key to your happiness, which is just a decision away can be proved to be a real breakthrough in your life.

"Count you age by friends, not years. Count your life by smiles, not tears"  

                                                                                                                             – John Lennon

One can indeed find a lot of harmony and peace in this quote, and it can really help you boost up your state of mind during the low moments. If you feel you are leaving behind some good friends or relationships in life while running to make your professional life stronger, it’s time to get back in touch with those old friends and relationships and be open to make new ones. And if you feel you have more sad moments which are becoming reasons of your tears, time to introspect and have a look deeply, you have much more things around to be thankful for and which can instantly bring a smile on your face.

                                                                                                                

"Be a whole brain thinker. Use your reason and emotion always together. Yes, it's challenging. But only this practice can bring success and happiness in your life"

                                                                                                        – Success Guru AK Mishra

AK Mishra's Life Lovers Club - Revealing the secrets of successful life

AK Misha's Life Lovers Club counts on recreating an optimized working environment and fostering human values that are the cornerstones of leading a happy and successful life. Human Beings are social animals and most evolved species. At AK Mishra's Life Lovers Club, we not only encourage people to outperform, but also make them realize the significance of bringing about substantial changes in the lives of others, thus we also lay the foundation of a healthy and growth oriented environment. Explore the nature, traverse the spontaneity of Life with our AK Mishra’s Life Lover Club.



Club.

Rakshabandhan – A day to remind us the significance of Human Relations

Every festival In India is celebrated with love and joy, and each festival has its unique story or history behind, that represent Indian civilization. Amongst all these Indian festival, there is one of the most special festivals that show a warm love and bond of brother and sisters, i.e., Rakhsha Bandhan. Rakhsha Bandhan observes every year to chase bond of brother and sister.

Courtesy: AK Mishra Library

As per the beliefs of Indian Civilization and culture, Raksha Bandhan is an auspicious Day when Sister ties Rakhi or sacred thread on her Brother’s wrist while praying to God for his wellbeing, where the brother takes a pledge to save his sister from all the evil and asperities of life. The festival helps us recall enduring love of siblings. Though the festival has several historical values; one of them is quite famous. During the time when Rajputs were fighting Muslim Invasion, Rakhi was meant to be a spiritual thread to recall the brothers that they have to protect their sisters in every situation. Once the widowed queen of Chittor, Rani Karnavati realized that she cannot protect the Sultan of Gujarat, Bahadur Shah anyhow, so she sent a Rakhi to Emperor Humayun. When Humayun received the Rakhi, he immediately understood that Rani Karnavati needs his help and without wasting a minute, he took a pledge to save her emperor from the enemy and finally succeed.

The festival shows the faithful bond of sisters and brother and reminds us every year that nothing is bigger than human bonds and relationships in life. While, we run to earn money, do well in our professional life, we often forget to give deserving time to such relationships, and unknowingly these relationships often take a backseat in our life. The relationships, bonding has been the true source of joy for centuries. And hence such festivals came into existence which still are being celebrated with by each and every person in India regardless of their cast, culture, race, and color that truly signifies that the essence of relationships, bond, and love will never fade away. These festivals are just a reminder, but for us humans, every day should be a day to cherish and celebrate the pleasure of having beautiful relationships; between couples, kids and parents, friends, siblings, and we must stand by each other in the hours of crises.

How new age parenting should focus on building patriotism in their children

Parents are the major aspect behind what values children learn while growing up. In order to raise a versatile child, one of the most important factors is to make your children grow as responsible citizens and building patriotism in them. The behavior of children largely depends upon the parents’ attitude. Children follow everything their parents do and form the same attitude. Thus, it is very important for the parents to set the right examples for their kids. Hence, Parents should keep showing the feeling of belongingness and love for the country. 

Courtesy: AK Mishra Library

Since, Independence Day is near, AK Mishra’s Art of Success, while wishing you all a very happy Independence Day, suggest each and every parent to keep your kids abreast about the sacrifices of our national leaders, freedom fighters and how our country achieved independence in 1947, before which we were under the rule of Britain. Just as parents teach children to tie their shoes, to talk in a positive manner, to study, understand science concepts and events in history, so they must be taught to develop the qualities of character that are valued by their families and by the communities in which they live. It is only through the right guidance of parents or caring adults through which children accustom the qualities of being honest, truthful, to stand up for their principles, to be responsible towards the country and to make sound moral decisions. 

Although all the schools celebrate Independence day & Republic Day and encourage students’ participation. But at the end, it depends upon the parents how they encourage students to make their participation in the republic day or Independence day contests organized by schools and housing Co-operative societies.

Catechize children about honor and respect

Children must be taught to honor and respect the national emblem, national flag and other national symbols. Along with this, they should also be taught to keep their country clean as a mark of respect for the country. 

Sharing stories of freedom fighters 

Grand parents or parents should narrate the stories of the freedom struggle to the children. Along with organizing various functions or programs on Independence Day and Republic Day, schools should also initiate interaction session between the defense personnel (Such as army members, air force and others) and children, where they share stories of war, and other vital issues.

Patriotic Activities

Although schools teach students about the patriotic songs such as National Anthem and so forth, parents should also keep taking their kids out to visit historic places which hold patriotic significance.

Television

Parents should make their children watch the parade to let them witness the rich culture and diversity of various states of India. Parents should also educate them about the significance of the parade, which every year telecasts on television on Republic Day and Independence Day.

Children are the future of our nation and we must strike to make our country’s future bright. Hence, Patriotism should be instilled in the children in order to raise them as better citizens.

Why Self-Esteem matters

Whether it’s personal, professional or social, high self-esteem is extremely important in every aspect of life. Yet, many struggle to find it. Not only is your DNA and fingerprints different from everyone else; your mind, your looks, your way of thinking and your approach towards life is unique too! Many with low self-esteem are not expressive. In other words, they find their beliefs, opinions, and thoughts insignificant and try to conceal or suppress them. So here are a few simple ways to help you develop good self-esteem and experience a profound shift in your life.

Courtesy: AK Mishra Library

·         Know That you are Unique

Accept the fact that you are unique and special. Every human being is unique and born with some extraordinary traits; you just need to recognize those special gifts you are blessed with. However, to recognize these gifts, you will have to accept the fact that you are unique and cannot be compared with anyone else in the world, because there is no one else in the world who is quite like you.

Wherever you cast your glance, you will find diversity which attests to the fact that your belief, thinking process and perception towards life also differs. So, if nature has made you so unique and special, shouldn’t you accept this uniqueness and embrace it as much as you can? Love yourself, because you are unique. When you respect yourself and show the world your true self, the world will love you. And if they don’t, just let it be, because everyone has their own opinions and choices.

·         Consider yourself to be equally Significant

Many people fail to realize that their thoughts and opinions can bring about profound changes in a situation or sometimes even in someone’s life. Hence it is imperative to do away with toxic thoughts and beliefs and air your views and voice your opinion, which may not provide a solution all the time, but can sometimes create a difference in somebody’s life or circumstances. And the best way to enhance your self-esteem is to consider yourself to be equally significant as others and love yourself for the way you are.

·         Learn From Failures

Generally, people with low self-esteem beat themselves up when they make a mistake or an error of judgment. A feeling of “being good for nothing” takes over, because they either failed in something, lost a job or may have been dumped in a relationship. But it should be realized, that these events play a major role in life and occurs to bring out your hidden and true personality, to teach you lessons and to help you grow in life. So how you perceive these failures and you react to them, is what reveals your true character. Hence, if you are likely to encounter such agonies in life, always remind yourself that it’s just a tiny particle of the multiple components and layers that make up the real you.

A Positive outlook towards life and confidence in yourself and your abilities will help you sail through all the problems of life and you will learn how to soldier on and live every day with unfathomable vigor and vitality.

Advantages of High Self-Esteem

•  Life will be lighter, simpler and more meaningful
• You will experience a deeper sense of stability
• Less self-criticism
• More happening and nurturing relationships
• A happier person

Tips to raise self-esteem

•  Fire your internal critic
•  Adopt healthy habits to stay motivated
• Practice a little self-appreciation each day
• Pen down the three traits or things you like about yourself every evening
• Do what is right and not what is easy
• Allow yourself to make mistakes and skip the perfectionism
• Learn from failures, mistakes and setbacks and deal with such situations more positively
• Treat others with kindness
• Experiment with new stuff or things
• Don’t give into the comparison bully
• Spend quality time with people who help you grow and avoid the negative kind, who drain your energy
• Remind yourself why you are doing what you are doing