Category Archives: Mindfulness

GURU – The Real Alchemist

April 2, 2019 Dinkrit Sethi Leave a comment

GOD sent me in the world of both dark and light, it was my GURU who illuminated my soul from darkness to the light of GOD.

When the GURU( the one who takes from darkness to light), the teacher, and SHISHYA (disciple) align, the perfect conditions for the flow of Godly energy takes place.

Such is the majesterial aura of this symbiosis, a win win energy exchange, even the lights of a thousand Suns is dimmed in front of it.

There is no greater, purer, more powerful bond in this cosmos, than the one formed between the guru and his disciple.

A bond formed out of enlightenment and awakening. Initiated by something as small as the instilling of a new idea in an individual it leads to the awakening of a single consciousness followed by the cumulative consciousness of the Cosmos.

My mother and three Maternal aunts are all teachers, now my sister is also a teacher, I have had the privilege of being around all these wonderful energies of giving since birth, which has shaped me into a giver myself. It has also helped me understand that giving is the ultimate pleasure.

The joy of seeing a seed sprout, the one you nurtured in whatever little way you could, is the ultimate pleasure anyone can feel. Recognition of this is not required, the feeling is enough.

Teaching Leads to More Learning

Teaching is most humbling as when you teach, you constantly get to learn how little you know and that keeps you inquisitive for more.

Teaching is not as simple as conveying what you know , in the way you know it, to others. A guru is required to master whatever his subject is in such a way that she can communicate the information to a scientist or a Kindergartner in a way both understand. All human minds function differently, the art of being a teacher involves recognizing these subtleties and then aligning the information to be conveyed in a way, that it is best absorbed by your student.

This also leads to more learning, as not only the information, but all surrounding knowledge around it has to be gathered,

While the intelligent ones know,

The Wise know how to convey what they know so that everyone understands

Personal Notes

With my practice of being a health and lifestyle coach, I have made sure to share as much knowledge with others, for this I have ensured that I have a deep understanding and continuous learning of the subject. This enable me to create newer routes to the information based upon the person in front of me.

Teaching Helps pass on lessons beyond books

A Guru puts information in such a way that the student who knows how to read between the lines gathers much more than what the book offers. May it be education, religious or spiritual practice, or any other sort of learning, having a Guru is a gateway to unlock wisdom beyond the words in the book.

Personal Notes

I am sure you all remember your first teacher from playgroup. She couldn’t do much with books, yet she sowed the seeds of curiosity and inquisitiveness in your being. In my case, it was my mother and later on in life every time I got a chance to visit her playgroup, I saw her creating same sort of awe in the eyes of the tiny students.

GURU- THE REAL ALCHEMIST

God sent you on earth as a basic mortal, it is only through the illumination of a GURU that you become GOLD.

Imagine the power a GURU possesses, when any one of his student is capable of changing the world, imagine the GURUS behind the most iconic world changers in the world, and how there efforts contributed to the luxuries we cherish now.

Imagine if Steve Jobs didn’t have a kindergarten guru to introduce help him spell APPLE, how different the world would be ?

Imagine if Mahender Singh Dhoni didn’t have a guru to teach him how to hold a bat, there would be no helicopter shot.

I am blessed to have all my teachers from school, my masters in the field of work and all my friends who have come to teach me lessons which have led my to develop a hunger for learning more. and consequently passing on the knowledge to others around me.

Entertainment, Mindfulness, Wellness

Weekend Box Office Tips – Coping with Handicaps

November 5, 2017 Dinkrit Sethi Leave a comment

The Weekend Box Office Tip is a new segment which will include some real life tips to better the quality of your lives. In this section I will collect one single tip from significant health and lifestyle influencers and entrepreneurs around us and cover their story behind it.

In this super fast life it is difficult to find time to reflect on the quality of your life. As the weekend gives you some time to unwind, it also presents an opportunity to introspect. Making it the perfect time for the weekend box office tip.

My Weekend Box Office Tip – Coping with Handicaps

Life startles you at times, and it startles you more when you are awakened to the magic sprinkled around you. Common situations carry invaluable lessons. Learning these is the secret to an abundant and fulfilling life. One of these lessons which I learnt as a result of two different, difficult situations is the weekend box office tip I would want to give you all. Coping with handicaps.

The story behind the tip

I had a terrible injury 2 weeks back, when my left ankle twisted. The ankle was swollen like a ball and I feared the worst. Considering my health and fitness centric lifestyle it was a body blow and a big blast before Diwali. With so many caring people around me, it was impossible to even think about restarting my fitness schedule(which, as some of you might know, is like oxygen to me).

After two days I couldn’t control the urge of heading to the gym, and overlooking medical advise, did just that. But understanding the responsibilities on my head, of selling luxury properties in Navi Mumbai and being a long term health influencer, I adapted my workout so as to negate the journey altogether. (I will share how later on in this article.)

(Check my foot in the pic below)

Selling luxury properties in Navi Mumbai gets my attention to the second handicap. With so many rules and laws, demonetization, RERA, GST, applied in such a short time, the dimensions of doing business in India have changed drastically. Real Estate is one of the worst hit, because of ticket sizes and the omnipresent trust issues in the field.

Demonetization sucked out the money from the system, which was essential for businesses like real estate, at it was second nature for the business. RERA and GST added more confusion than removing it because of the complicated procedures and added tax burden to end users.

These major handicaps to the industry definitely increased the scope of excuses for people failing to sell properties, but I, just like with my sprained ankle, am learning how to adapt and cope with this handicap.

What Coping with the sprained Ankle taught me about Selling Luxury Properties?

The weekend box office tip, coping with handicap, was learnt with the sprained ankle and is coming to my assistance while selling properties.

What I understood with my sprained ankle and applied to selling properties is:

Limited but effective movement– Choosing a few effective movements was the need of the hour with my sprained ankle. Similarly choosing a few good methods for marketing property and being absolutely involved in them was what I carried to my work
More mindful movement– Attention to detail was magnified during my movements with the sprained ankle. The handicap in the business, has given me an opportunity to micro manage processes which were considered tertiary earlier.
Some time off only leads to self discovery– The cycle of pursuing passions puts you in an infinite loop of doing. Spending some time out of it not only helps you discover more about yourself but also cater to the aspects of life you haven’t been giving importance. Lesser time at the gym courtesy the sprained ankle made me rediscover my passion for reading. Similarly the handicapped nature of the market made me take more time out for family and friends.
The power of persistence– With the power of persistence all handicaps can be handled. My ankle is doing better and so is how I deal with my sales. By trying out newer exercises and methods of training I coped with my limited movement. Similarly redefining strategies and innovations have helped me come to terms with the real estate market.

Utilizing these I was able to recreate a new self image, which is both strong and resourceful. The signs of progress are noticeable in the videos below which is made to assist lazy people in working out, which I just created a few days back.

As for selling luxury properties the renewed optimism is bearing good results. Attention to details and innovations is bringing in a revolution which is leading to a more professional and organised approach to insure proper functioning and elevated sales.

You might not have a sprained ankle or selling luxury properties in a bearish market. But the above Weekend Box office Tips can be applied in every walk of life where you feel handicapped.

Have a great weekend.

Mindfulness

Mindful Habits : Taking a Breather

October 10, 2017 Dinkrit Sethi Leave a comment

You are Mindful when you to train your mind to be empty.

You occupy the moment when you meditate to relieve yourself from momentary existence.

You observe more when you train yourself to think less.

Mindful-ness makes you observe your actions while you do them. This way of life is cultivated by sitting and observing your thoughts, understanding the nature of sensory triggers and habit induced instincts and finally learning how to distinguish yourself from these actions in the heat of the moment as a separate observing entity.

Over time we engage in lot of activities, which either become our passions or profession. For me it is business, health and writing, for others it might be something else.

While pursuing any kind of work or activity, you get so engrossed in doing, that you forget observing yourself as a separate entity from the activity or work that you do. In due time you are so lost that you end up believing this activity to be a natural part of your life, your calling, passionate pursuit, objective in life.

Failing to be mindful, you get engrossed in work and observe little, as a result you make these external activities larger than your own life. This sets you on a pathway of stress and worry when expected results are not met.

Taking a breather

It is essential to temporarily detach yourself from the activities you pursue, even if you love doing them.

When you take a breather, you take your energies out of the task and exist, be it for a few moments, as an absolute singularity. This is essential as it lets you create a distance between the activity and yourself. Which might be temporal but at the same time necessary to observe your singularity.

You will observe that your singularity much more than whatever it is that you pursue. Your activities don’t define you rather you define your activities.

Ego will never let you out of the vicious cycle of work and passions but it is highly recommended to take a breather from both once in a while. It might seem impossible and irresponsible to leave work and even more with passionate work, but if you don’t give yourself breaks you will let yourself slide in an infinite loop of doing.

By taking breaks you will boost your minds capability of observing. This makes you more mindful and make better life decisions when you are moving at the speed of life. If you dare to be mindful in the modern world you will empower yourself to find the best in every situation in every dimension of life.

I DARE YOU TO BE MINDFUL

I dare you to be more mindful in this world which forces you to worry about unfinished work. In a world where every action is mandatory to produce some end product. I dare you to be more mindful in this world where we act more and observe little. Where we are countering evolution and becoming work horses.

I dare you to be more mindful in the modern world where you are being hustled into becoming an ever working hustler.

(Disclaimer: It is to be noted that a “taking a breather” is a temporary phenomenon aimed at upgrading mindfull-ness and not aimed at making you lay.)

Mindfulness

Mental Wellness-Ancient Treasure Beyond Measure

October 6, 2017 Dinkrit Sethi Leave a comment

Ancient treasure is either a valuable pot of gold or an invaluable pot of knowledge. Ancient scripture has much to learn from, if applied appropriately it opens the doors to riches beyond human perception. I came across one such ancient treasure while reading and wanted to share my riches with all of you.

Yes it might not make you instantly rich but it provides you with wealth beyond measure.

A pot of gold is insignificant in front of a pot of knowledge, the actual ancient treasure.

Weeding Your Mental Garden

While reading some scriptures I cam across certain mental traits which most of us occupying the material realm possess.

Most skip through life unaware of these mental traits, others accept them as a part of material existence and very few try to overcome them. The ancient treasure which I am going to share is about these negative traits(weed) which needed to be weeded from the garden of your thoughts.

By weeding your mental garden you not only purify your mind but also align your thought process with universal energies of goodness and positivism. By being in alignment with these cosmic energies you open the gateway of infinite possibilities, and actually become LIMITLESS.

On the contrary if you while away your life without paying heed to the quality of your thoughts you fail to maximize your full potential. You live an unfulfilled life chasing material pleasures without ever finding inner peace.

The Gateway to Hell

If mental energies go unregulated they lead to your own downfall, making your life a living hell. Mentioned in the info graph below are 5 characteristics which your mind has to guard against repetitively as they come up in your life time and again:

Matsarya (Envy, Materialistic Pleasure) is another such trait which you have to guard against.

These traits are so powerful that they take a hold of your mind and make you create a false identity for yourself. If not discovered and removed these traits cripple normal mental faculty.

Ancient Treasure Beyond Measure

I will keep sharing more ancient treasure, hoping we can understand and apply at least some of these ancient practices to make our minds look beyond instant gratification and think wholly.

The scope of learning and progress is infinite we can all make use of ancient treasures to become better people and creating a better world.

Mindfulness, Wellness

The Art of Procrastination – Sitting, Waiting, Wishing

October 3, 2017 Dinkrit Sethi Leave a comment

Sitting, Waiting, Wishing

The only way to get better at anything is by repetition. Sadly the same goes for procrastination. All experienced procrastinators, me not being an exception, have mastered this art to such an extent that nowadays excuses to delay precede plans of execution.

As a result dawn keeps turning to dusk and the procrastinator keeps sitting, waiting, wishing. The art of procrastination is the single biggest reason for unfulfilled goals, unrealized dreams and wasted potential and more than most are diagnosed with it, some still unaware.

The first step in achieving any task is knowing what to do, the second part is planning and then finally executing on your idea. As a generation we have become very good at the first two parts, but when it comes to execution we sit, wish and wait.

Inertia of rest and motion

Inertia is the state of a body to stay in its state of rest or constant motion. For achievers it implies constant activity for procrastinators, constant rest.

While the achievers keep acting constantly the ones who get used to rest seldom move. With time as procrastination becomes a habit, the inertia of rest becomes too big a force to overcome.

All of us find ourselves procrastinating sometime or the other. Some are more chronic procrastinators while others do it moderately.
Sharing Solutions

I, over the last few months, have been delaying writing an article for my website (Earlier I used to write as many as 5 of them in a week). Everyday I used to wake up with the intention and slept with no end product.

As I made my journey to turn intentions into an end product, I thought what better way to end my period of procrastination than by writing an article on the art of procrastination. By sharing my experiences in a nutshell I wish to help others struggling with similar problems of inaction.

So here are ways of combating procrastination:

Give yourself deadlines- We used to end up doing herculean homework because it had a deadline attached to it. It appears impossible to solve so many sums, write so many letters, draw so many diagrams now, but we managed as we were time bound. Similarly I gave myself a stern timeline to finish this article or delete my website.
Break down the task into smaller bits- At times we postpone acting because the amount of work involved involved seems too much. In these cases it is to be understood we should divide the same task into smaller bits. By doing this we trick our minds into action as the task appears relatively smaller. I divided the task of writing the article into topic research, headline selection, content creation, graphic creation, content editing so I had clear and simple picture of executable tasks to fulfill my ultimate aim.
Do what you love first- Once you have broken down the task into smaller portions, you can select the part that you love doing and act on it first. As I have a new found love for CANVA, I started with graphic creation and headline selection. As I executed, my interest in the task grew, and as a result I tricked myself beyond procrastination. (That has to be confirmed if I don’t find any other excuse to delay it by EOD today)
Silence your mind- You cant shut down all devices but to focus on one task you can at least silence your mind from other activities and temptations. Meditation will help you reach this state when even after being disturbed you will get back to the work at hand. Yes social media alerts, phone calls, even toilet or snack breaks are trigger points of a train of thoughts which can totally distract you from the task. But with some meditation you will be mindful of how your brain works and get back as soon as you get distracted.

So finally I made it through this article without getting up even once. Barring a few editing and posting formalities I believe I have for now won the war against the procrastination. Do share your thoughts and experiences with regards to the art of procrastination and how you combat it.

THE URBAN YOGI