Tillitonse - A Transformational Journey Together

  I FLEW.....THIS WAS MY LIFE..... ....for 12 years between 2008-2019, I flew! I constantly flew to countries on work, and away from working over Skype and emails..... I flew to connect with people, and away from my lonely office at home I flew to do 'real' work, and away from the boring backend stuff I flew to feel alive, and away from the drudgery of mundaneness BUT ALL THAT CHANGED IN 2020 and remarkably, I do not miss flying one bit! Over the past year.... I love being at home and connecting with the world through Zoom I love the quiet time that lockdowns enable I love the time with my 18 year old fully alive that she will leave soon I love studying about the managing the mind from teachers steeped in Buddhism to Neuroscientists across the world I love the stability.... and with this stability, has come a more relaxed and clear mind. Not only have I lost 9 Kgs (20 pounds), but have also shed a destructive emotional trait. Yes, the feet are more firmly planted than ever bef...

  WE ARE THEM Yesterday, I watched a documentary of strangers helping each other after a terrorist attack. I also heard about a young man risking his life to save a stranger! Very moving stories and highly commendable. As someone interested in understanding and managing the mind towards greater peace, I went searching to better understand this behaviour. This insight caught my attention. I encourage you to read it completely. https://theconversation.com/pure-altruism-the-connection-that-explains-why-we-help-strangers-120693 What stood out for me is pasted below: ______ "The question of why human beings are sometimes prepared to risk their own lives to save others has puzzled philosophers and scientists for centuries. There is a sense in which we are part of a shared network of consciousness. It is this which makes it possible for us to identify with other people, to sense their suffering and respond to it with altruistic acts. We can sense other people’s suffering because, in a se...

  THE MAGIC OF SPACE IN YOUR CALENDAR "I have a hard stop in 15 minutes, as I have back to back meetings." Do you find yourself saying this regularly? If so, you may wish to read on.... In my capacity as a leadership coach, one of the most common traits I see is the practice of folks filling out their calendars back to back. Some even allow others to have access to their calendars! ABSOLUTE INSANITY! What a sub-optimal way to work and live. I find myself constantly nudging my clients to create open spaces in their calendars that allow for magic! The magic of... ...giving your innate wisdom space to emerge ...focussing on the important and not the urgent ...personal growth rather than distracted activity Yesterday and today, this magic unfolded for me. I had an open schedule. So, when a busy CFO and a Director of a Hospital called, I was able to devote almost an hour with each of them. These calls were not just personally enriching, but have led them to sign me on as their coa...

  TEARS OF GRATITUDE A few minutes ago I was watching a celebration of this role model of mine. It's 50 years since he made his phenomenal debut. But what brought tears was what he said.... "How can I ever repay my gratitude to the unknown many who supported me when I was down.... ....through letters of support that I would receive.... ...and the only way I could repay them is to do my best in the field" ....this touched a nerve: I have been teaching 'inter-dependence' this past week. And when Sunny said what he did and the eyes moistened up, I too felt such sheer gratitude to the many many across the world who have been there for me...some overtly and many many more in the background whom I am both unaware of and may not acknowledge normally. Ah, the myth of being a self-made person! And how best can I repay the abundance I have been given? To do my best to help folks recognize the diamonds that each one of them is and help them remove the dirt and polish themsel...

Five Steps to Make this Isolation Meaningful and Beneficial To You Remember Pascal’s Law in Physics??? This morning as India is in the midst of a voluntary day curfew, my thoughts went to Pascal. For those who knew me in school, this would be a surprise. I barely managed to pass the damn subject. But I was introduced to another aspect of this wise soul a few years ago….An astute student of the human mind. This is what he wrote about 400 years ago: “When I have occasionally set myself to consider the different distractions of men, the pains and perils to which they expose themselves at court or in war, whence arise so many quarrels, passions, bold and often bad ventures, etc.,  I have discovered that all the unhappiness of men arises from one single fact, that they cannot stay quietly in their own chamber.” Imagine that: Even four hundred years ago, a key challenge for humans was our addition to activity . Fast forward to the world we have created and li...

DON'T BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU THINK Maya* (name changed) is a hard working, dedicated and systematic senior director. Very early on in our coaching journey, it became evident to me that one of key challenges is her tendency to imagine the worst case scenario when she feels that she does not have all the facts. When I pointed this to her, she agreed without hesitation. Kudos to her self-awareness. We now moved to the next tricky part - for her to catch herself when she actually does this in real life. In one of our coaching sessions, this phrase, strongly resonated with her - "It's real (for me), but not true." In other words, we might sincerely believe something, but we can also be aware that this might not be true. A rainbow is a classic metaphor for this insight. Does it look real? You bet. But does it truly exist? Nope!!! So too are many of the 'facts' clouded by emotions that we hold in our heads. For Maya, it often revolves around the what...

  The Quiet Mechanics -  @ Home @ Work   This piece focuses on the quiet warriors in our families and work-places. The ones who keep at the ‘unsexy’ tasks that add immense value, but are not often noticed…. The Quiet Mechanics Look around your families….We have so many types there the ‘glory boys/girls – these win awards, impress us with their passion, typically are at the top of their careers. We celebrate their clear ‘wins’ and look at them with a combination of pride/envy. They seem to always know what needs to be done and seem at ease making decisions. One thing is certain – you can’t ignore these race car drivers Then there are the connectors/the influencers – through their open enthusiasm, they bring us together. They are typically the life of the party and are the creative ones. Again, the spotlight seems to follow them….the cheer-leaders And then they are the silent and dependable sorts. They are patient and see ta...