Tillitonse - A Transformational Journey Together

"NOW THAT I AM WISER...." LESSONS IN THE TRANSFORMATIVE PROCESS Last week I began a wonderful new journey. I thought I had signed up to become a leadership coach, but as it turns out, the most important step is simply to become a better me. I had known the above saying for a while, but the past week this sunk in more so. The program I have signed up for is called ‘Coaching for Transformation.’ I loved the discussion on how we, the ‘coaches,’ need to embody the appropriate values first and foremost. Only then can we emanate and create a positive and nurturing environment for our clients to undergo a transformation. What a wonderfully empowering sentiment – to be wise is to focus on changing oneself. Gratitude!

WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDS…… Change is hard…..even when we want to. Yesterday, I was once again reminded about the value of surrounding oneself with like minded people while on this transformational journey. Sanskrit has a lovely word ‘Satsang’ which captures this sentiment ever so beautifully. ‘Sat’ means truth and ‘sang’ (pronounced ‘sung’) means association. In other words, the ‘association with truth (like minded people)’ is strongly recommended as an importance ingredient for any personal transformation. Two beautiful instances yesterday. First, I was invited to interact with a group of   very successful women entrepreneurs. These eight women from very diverse fields have on their own formed a group with one single objective – to create an enabling and conducive environment where they are able to have open conversations with each other on their work related challenges and explore solutions together. They meet every month at a fixed time and venue. ...

DRAUPADI BOOM….suddenly she was there…out of the blue….DRAUPADI……the name hit me, nay shook me! And in that instant, I knew I had to change…. (IF YOU ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE ‘MAHABHARATHA,’   THEN THIS POST MIGHT NOT RESONATE) On the occasion of International Women’s Day earlier this week, I was holding an open interactive session on ‘Infusing Positivity.’ I had an outline of the structure of the session, and although I have given many talks on this subject, this time it felt different. I felt unsettled. Overall, I was not happy with the flow. Something was missing. After trying to find this missing piece the previous night, I gave up. Went to sleep hoping that I would have clarity the next morning. No luck. But then, barely 75 minutes before the session, I was jolted. Draupadi! This was the closest of a ‘Eureka’ moment I have ever had. And in the flash, I had found the anchor of my presentation. In fact, a lot more than the anchor, it was almost as if the ess...

A few months ago I completed a psychometric assessment that included people giving feedback about me. One particular feedback struck a chord – “Sanjay tends to quickly create an image of a person and then does not change it over the years even though the person might have changed.” My first reaction was one that came from a self-preservation mindset….but then it slowly sank in. Could this be true? I just let it lie until now….Over the past few weeks, as I have has more of a chance to observe myself (and others), I realized this was indeed the case. The image of people created either early in life or strong negative reactions upon the first few meetings with anyone seem to have created dvery strong images. Not surprisingly, given the nature of the mind, these images are mainly negative. For instance, there is a particular person who most of those close to me did not like much. Lets call this person Rao. Now Rao in the 1980s exhibited a miserly trait on quite a few occas...

“It’s nice, but…..” It’s a hard habit to change – but I am trying. For years, starting from the dominant personalities around me and subsequently through high school and then work, the trait of being critical has been deeply entrenched. The measure of my worth seemed to be dependent upon how quickly and how many faults I could find in anything. So, when someone asked – “how was the movie?,” the typical default response (even what I like the movie) is …..”Quite good, but the music was too loud, the popcorn too salty, the fight sequence too long, one too many songs…..” The list goes on. This trait extended into all aspects of my life. Slowly this became the dominant paradigm. When someone made a presentation at work, the fastest person to criticize (after the obligatory and perfunctory “nice work”) came across as being the most intelligent. When a new idea was presented, the first one to find flaws…..the same. And when someway is being praised, the habit of pulling him/...

A LONG AND PASSIONATE LOVE AFFAIR TAKES A BREAK Before you get too excited.....today marks my last day as an employee of Population Services International (PSI). I am filled with immense gratitude for this wonderful journey spanning over 22 years– that provided a magnificent opportunity of following my passion and getting paid for it, helping improve the lives of the poor and vulnerable, taking me to amazing far flung places around the world and finally, cultivating some war m and meaningful relationships. 2016 – PAUSE, REFLECT, RE-BOOT AND REFRESH! And a new journey begins. In two weeks, I begin a nine-month program to become a Leadership Coach. Further, I look forward to diving further into the philosophies and practices of integrated yoga. And yes, of course to continue the various workshops centred around Emotional Intelligence that have brought me so much joy and connected me to some really wonderful people! Looking forward to the next chapter of…....