Hi all
Your weekly dose of Good Vibes is here.
This week I loved reading
Startup’s ‘Return Packaging’ Solution Helps you Save the Planet and Your Money!
https://www.thebetterindia.com/282783/ecovia-online-marketplace-reduces-plastic-packaging-reuse-recycle/
How to become a better listener, according to science
https://www.fastcompany.com/90749446/how-to-become-a-better-listener-according-to-science?position=8&utm_medium=email&utm_source=pocket_hits&utm_campaign=POCKET_HITS-EN-DAILY-RECS-2022_05_08
A road surface not to be sniffed at: the highway made of used nappies
Podcast I listened to this week
Dr Joe Dispenza is a New York Times best-selling author, speaker and researcher who has spent decades studying neuroscience, meditation and the effect our thoughts have on our health and wellbeing.
Twitter features I’m learning more about
This week I am pondering about the words from Katherine Russell
Every problem and difficult situation is embedded with a solution
Making things positive doesn’t mean a sunny outlook; it means making the choice to see problems as opportunities. Every problem or difficult situation is embedded with a solution – the adventure lies in finding the solution. This week’s toolkit is on Process to solve any problem.
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Have a great week
Sandeep Mall
Archimedes, the greatest scientist and mathematician of ancient Greece, famously posited, “Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world.” Our brains, too, operate according to the Archimedean formula. Take, for example, a seesaw. On a seesaw, the fulcrum is set at the exact center between the two seats. If two boys, each weighing 70 kgs, sit at the same distance from the fulcrum on opposing seesaw seats, they will balance each other. Now, imagine two boys, one weighing 60 kgs and the other 100 kgs, in the same situation. The smaller boy is going to hang in the air until the larger one either pushes off the ground with his feet or (as boys sometimes do) jumps off and lets his smaller companion crash earthward. But what if we move the fulcrum? The closer we move the center point, the fulcrum, toward the heavier boy, the easier he is to lift. If we keep moving the fulcrum in that direction, eventually the lighter boy will effectively weigh more than his big buddy. Move the fulcrum close enough to the heavier boy, and the lighter boy can climb off his seat and use the seesaw lever to move his heavier friend up. In other words, by shifting this point around which energy is applied, we can effectively turn the seesaw from a balancing scale into a powerful lever. That was exactly Archimedes’ point. If we have a long enough lever and a good place to stand—a fulcrum point—we can move the entire world. What I realized is that our brains work in precisely the same way. Our power to maximize our potential is based on two important things: (1) the length of our lever—how much potential power and possibility we believe we have, and (2) the position of our fulcrum—the mindset with which we generate the power to change. What this means in practical terms is that whether you are a student aiming for better grades, a junior executive striving for higher pay, or a teacher hoping to better inspire his/her students, you don’t need to try so hard to generate power and produce results. Our potential is not fixed. The more we move our fulcrum (or mindset), the more our lever lengthens and more power we generate. Move the fulcrum so that all the advantage goes to a negative mindset, and we never rise off the ground. Move the fulcrum to a positive mindset, and the lever’s power is magnified—ready to move everything up. Simply put, by changing the fulcrum of our mindset and lengthening our lever of possibility, we change what is possible. It’s not the weight of the world that determines what we can accomplish. It is our fulcrum and lever.
I would recommend to read the book The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor.
by Dr. Neha Das
Mental Hygiene is a science of maintaining mental health and preventing disorders to help people function at their full mental potential. It includes all measures taken to promote and preserve mental health: rehabilitation of the mentally disturbed, prevention of mental illness, and aid in coping with worldly stress. Even simple self-care activities can be part of an effective mental hygiene routine: listening to calming or upbeat music, talking about your feelings with friends or family, and keeping your mind busy by doing small tasks.
Hygiene is nothing but a set of rules for health. It is the science of healthy living. No one would like to be ignorant of health and its rules. Thus Health and hygiene are very important subjects and a proper knowledge of the rules of health and hygiene shall help us a great deal in our lives. In the field of education, where we wish to have healthy pupils in educational institutions, it is very significant that from the very beginning healthy habits must be formed.
Mental hygiene helps to know the causes of mental disorder or disturbances. It helps to know the preventive measures to overcome mental problems.
Mental hygiene begins with the individual and we all need to look after our emotions, as the WHO recommends. For this, mental health experts agree on the need to adopt a series of habits for emotional self-care:
Listen to yourself The very step to deal with good mental hygiene is your own self. Listen to what your own self actually needs for better mental hygiene. It can be clearly understood in terms of sleep, food and fulfilling of basic needs. Carefully listening to one’s own actual needs, can prove helpful to keep check on excess or deficiency of anything. Ask yourself who am I? Do not answer in terms of your name, designation, family role or any identity.
Clearing self doubt There is great importance of high self-esteem. One may get affected by the environmental factors in term of nurturing self-esteem. It is necessary that we should know what amazing things we are capable of doing. Do not set limits for betterment. By working on self esteem, you can clear all self doubt.
Remove mental blockages Mental blockages are different for one person to another. The basic identity of mental blockage is something that won’t let your mind work at full potential. Instead of suppressing negative thoughts or beliefs, try to learn it. The best way to manage multiple blockages is to deal with it one by one consciously.
Realistic approach towards life A purposeful life lived is a virtuous life. If you are not aware about your purpose or your passion, you can try Ikigai, a Japanese technique to find purpose. Life becomes better when we have realistic approach to work life. This approach includes set of cost, awareness, sensibility, tracking your progress, learning from failures and always keep moving ahead in life. You can’t cross the sea merely by standing and staring at water.
Behaviour patterns in challenging times The way you act or think, when the life becomes tough or challenging, has greater impact on long-term mental health. Look at the pattern of your behaviour when you face challenging times. The vice charges are always proved helpful for maintaining mental hygiene.
Time to time detoxification of mind No matter how hard we try, sometimes our mind becomes toxic. Toxic thoughts, feelings and behaviour will come out when you act. Whatever is inside us that same will reflect outside. That’s why it is necessary to detoxify mind. There are few helpful techniques for mental detoxification such as meditation, connect to nature, counselling, spirituality, forgiveness, gratitude and mindfulness.
Stay active Active lifestyle and hence mental hygiene. The routine can be pre-planned, according to short-term and long-term goals. The task is more fruitful when it is productive and content. Exercise also proves helpful for staying active.
Strong bonds The strong bonds of any relationship help to maintain good mental hygiene. Emotional balance can be achieved by spending time with dear ones. Human being is a social being. There are few essential social needs such as care, love, affection, presence of each other, emotional validation etc. These needs can be fulfilled by a strong bond with each other.
Dr. Neha Das is a counselling psychologist. She has done Ph.D in Psychology & is a certified counselor. She has published numerous research papers in national and international journals. Presently she is working as School Child Care Counselor at Sri Aurobindo Centre of New Education, Jodhpur and is founder of Serene Psychology Clinic where she does private practice of counselling. She was thrice awarded as best academic head at state level. You can find her on Twitter at @drnehadas
When you are faced with a problem, how do you go about solving it? Do you let it overwhelm you, or do you flex your problem-solving muscles and figure out the best solution?
Begin With A Positive Approach When a problem arises, it’s easy to enter panic mode or envision worst-case scenarios. Before you let your mind go there, take a step back and address every problem as simply another situation. It is a challenge that, with the right approach, you can handle. Part of that approach is thinking positively and creatively about the situation.
Define The Problem What exactly is the challenge you are facing? What about this particular situation is causing you stress and anxiety? You must clearly define the problem to resolve it. Not only should you clarify what the problem is, but you should also see what caused the problem.
Address The Situation From Different Directions Geniuses solve issues with out-of-the-box thinking. You need to see the problem from every angle before you begin offering solutions. You should think: Are there other problems that are affecting this obstacle? If so, you need to address it first.
Brainstorm Solutions To The Problem Part of addressing the situation from different directions is to come up with not just one but several solutions. There are likely to be multiple solutions to any single problem. The first conclusion that comes to mind may not be the best one, but the more you focus, the more solutions you will find. That’s why brainstorming all possible resolutions is an essential step to problem-solving.
Find The Best Solution To Solve Your Challenge Now, not every possible solution you outlined will be a good fit. You should be able to narrow down each method and analyse which could be the most effective solution for your issue. Do this by comparing each of the possible results with the one you believe to be the most ideal.
Prepare For The Worst Before you jump at the chance to solve your problem with the best-fit solution, consider the repercussions of the solution. Now is the time to jump to worst-case scenarios–What will happen if the solution fails? Knowing the answer to this will allow you to prepare if it doesn’t resolve your dilemma.
It’s unnecessary to feel overwhelmed and confused when a problem arises. Stress and unhappiness come from how you respond to those situations. When you enhance your problem-solving skills, you will experience determination when the next difficult situation arises.
While you may not know how to resolve most issues right away, you will know the problem-solving steps to take to uncover the best response: Define the problem, determine the cause, discover the best solution, take action, and analyze the outcome.
When and how you plan for retirement can make a huge difference in when you can ditch your job and how enjoyable life will be when you do. Of course, the ideal route is to start saving as soon as you start working. If you land up with your first job in your early 20s, it can be very helpful to start stashing away cash. Proper retirement planning must be tailored to your current financial situation, as well as your future goals and dreams. Here’s how you can get them both in alignment, no matter what age you are today.
In your 20s
As young adults, we’re often told to start saving for retirement. But with the pressure of making ends meet and the allure of instant gratification, many of us find it difficult to think about our future selves. Although it may be difficult to understand at the time, there are many benefits of early retirement planning that can positively impact the employment and retirement choices you have later in life. Pay off your debts, student/education loan as soon as possible. Work on your emergency savings (three to six months of living expenses) at the same time that you pay off these debts. Save at least 15% of your pre-tax income each year for retirement, which includes any contributions you may get from your employer if you have an EPF account. Try to increase the employer match.
In your 30s
At this age, you may already feel the burden of taking care of aging parents or young dependents. Student loans may linger, but your income is probably reaching new heights. Dump as much money as possible into your EPF account. Remember you get tax benefits also when you save in EPF. The next 1.5 Lacs pa you should plan for opening a PPF account. Beyond this, look at the stock market. You can afford to be riskier—consider medium to high-risk options that can skyrocket your gains over the next 10 to 20 years. Invest in the right portfolio. Sure, Bitcoin sounds sexy, but with a 20-year time horizon, you have to be careful about risks. Big bets can result in big losses that could delay retirement by years. Consider medium-risk investment portfolios: 50 percent to 60 percent as large-cap stocks, and the rest in lesser risky assets like bonds, gold, and other stable commodities.
In your 40s
Track your spending. Your 40s is when keeping up with the Joneses really kicks in. Family vacations ramp up, kids’ expenses double or triple, and you start to feel like you’ve worked hard for the good things in life. The truth is that inflation is making the cost of basic needs very expensive, so you’ll need to be careful about excess spending today that could rob you of your carefree future. Make sure you’re properly insured. As you age, health risks and the cost of health insurance increase. No matter how much you have saved, it can easily be wiped out by a medical expense that isn’t properly covered.
In your 50s
It’s usually the time when the nest becomes empty. Kids are off to college. You may not need the large house/apartment you might have built.Over time, homes can have accumulated a lot of equity that could be better leveraged to move to an appropriately located or better-sized home that wouldn’t cost as much to maintain. Think of how you can use your home to fund your future. Maybe lease out the existing house to have a recurring income. Get your accounts all sorted. Make sure nominees are all in place.
Everyone can retire with dignity. All you have to do is consistently invest 10 percent of whatever you make and forget that it exists until you actually retire.
The bottom line: Start now.
The recording and transcript of the previous space we had on Diabetes, Strength training, Skin care are uploaded here.
Breathe work – Pran(bio energy) Ayam( circulation of bio energy with @Kilo_Bravo13 – 21st May
Conquer your mind to achieve any goal with @IamShajanSamuel – 4th June
Yoga and animal flow with Komal_42– 18th June
5 PM. Block your calendar.
Here are the Top 50 of the 100 day challenge 2.0 Congratulation to all winners and the 1000 participants. You all are rockstars!
Under 40
40 and above
