I wish...

Complex yet clear, I've always had my life's motive in mind, although things do deviate my focus, my passion brings me back to my heart's roots.

When I had asked my dad what he wanted me to become when I was 9, he told me that all he wanted was for me to be a good person.
Since then I've tried looking for answers to what a 'good' person could be like, and so far my journey has been enlightening, and I might just know what I exactly want to be!
My professional aim is to be a non-fiction author, but my ultimate goal is to be someone that always carries a positive vibe and can disarm it with just a smile.
I wish to be someone who has answers to all possible questions due to the fact that I love learning and coming across new things every other day. Be it symbolism, music or technology, I love catching up with most aspects of every subject.
I wish to keep learning till the very last neuron I have can't store more memory.
I wish to have good people skills and be able to understand emotions and phases of life in grave detail and crisp clarity.
I wish to be of use to people who suffer mental ailments and be able to use my knowledge and experience to spread happiness and satisfaction in all situations.
I wish to learn the ability to let go of things to move on for better options and develop a positive approach towards everything in order to not be scared or nervous of trying my hand at whatever knocks my door.
I wish to be sufficient enough to satisfy my emotional and materialistic needs at all times.
I wish to always have enough, but never more than what I need.
I wish to learn the art of presenting my thoughts with bizarre magnetic captivity and profound translucency.
I wish to surround myself with an aura that makes all people positive.
I wish to surround myself with real, loving and lively people.
I wish to be known for my deeds and not be part of nasty rumors.
I wish to spread kindness and love all over.
I wish to have the power to always choose happy.
I've designed 3i's for myself:

• Instill
• Invoke and
• Inspire

This is what I wish to do for all the days of the rest of my life; motivate people and play a part in many lives to awaken humanity.

Free yourself!

It's a turbulent and changing world for most of us and many a times it makes us insecure about our own image, and judge ourselves wrongly.
We might become over critical or too conscious about ourselves and stop being what we are.
Giving way to maladaptive day dreaming and being lost most of the time. Don't be your own Debbie Downer!

Here are ways to stop complaining and start living:

1. Never give anyone the license to change what you feel about yourself: The moment you allow somebody to make you feel under-confident or incapable, you make yourself more vulnerable to insecurity and negative energy. 
2. Be around positive people: by positive people, I'm hinting at happy, enthusiastic individuals, who will support you during your bad times but not let you feel worse. These people like to be happy and complain very less in life. Go for their company.
3. Don't tell yourself stories: Don't tell yourself that you aren't good enough or you want to be like someone else. Be grateful that you have something rather than saying that you're not lucky because you don't have something like so and so.
4. Do not live in denial: Accept yourself, embrace your originality and be it all the time. Don't fear.
5. Don't focus on weakness: You can always work on your weak areas for 30 minutes every day and you'll gradually be good at them. But dwelling in your weaknesses will make you weaker at heart.
6. Don't put others down to make yourself feel better: accept others like you want them to accept you, comparisons will show your own insecurity.
7. Question yourself: Ask yourself if you would really want to push yourself in a bad space, or feel any less and then work towards helping yourself.
8. Don't be with people that drain you out: People who are constantly nagging, discouraging and sucking out your positive energy should have no place in your life.
9. See the same reality from a different, positive angle: Embrace your flaws and love them, be proud of them!

   

   Pic courtesy-TEDex

10. Keep your head high and smile: A little self-kick of confidence daily never hurts right? Keep yourself impressed and don't worry about impressing others, it'll make you more confident than ever! <3

Open your eyes and heart!

There are so many people we come across daily; so many that just pass by us, see us in the train or bus regularly, walk with us, cross the road with us; and they all have something to offer, and no place is The Right Place to look for it.

Inspiration; can be found in the most unexpected of places, from the most unexpected of people  and on the most unexpected of days!

I was having a rough time and was in the worst of my moods when I left for college, unwillingly. And to add to my irritation, I got rejected by around 15 auto drivers and still wasn't successful in getting one to go to the station; but I had to keep trying. I ran for this one lone auto(which I had no hopes to get), which was being harrowed by people as they too wanted to reach somewhere; but by the time I asked, the auto driver had already chosen a passenger, but unconsciously, I still blurted out my destination to him and turned away.

He called out to me saying  'Madam, aap aaiye', and for the first time on that day I smiled, feeling accomplished in at least one simple way. 

As I sat inside, I started to arrange the things in my bag and pulled my earphones out, but I could sense that the driver was trying to talk; so I looked at him through the rear view mirror and he was ready with what he had to say, as I had perceived. 

He said "Madam, jis tarah se aap puchti ho, aapko toh koi mana nahi karega" (Madam, Your manner of requesting is too difficult to decline). And I felt as if I had been pretty rude due to my bad mood, but he went on to say that my request had actually been very polite and proper for anybody to be able to decline. And the rest of my conversation with him, changed my mood forever!

He was a young child when he didn't feel at home with his parents and thus had chosen his own path. At the young age of 9, he ran away from his home in Allahabad, to come to Mumbai and live his life his own way. With the little money he had, he managed to spend a few days at Malad station, trying to figure out what to do, when his uncle found him and took him back home.

His parents scolded him for his behaviour and put additional restrictions on him, which forced him to run away from home once again after a month.

After getting back to the City of Dreams, he started to sell women's accessories and handkerchiefs in trains.

Then, 5-6 years later, he saw an advertisement which required job applications from people without any educational background, and delighted to see it, he called on their number.

The fact that he was educated till the Fourth Grade got him a slightly better salary than most other applicants and they also gave him a small house. As he had no social ties, he could save a lot of money, which he used for subscribing to a tiffin service to fill his stomach. He was more than overwhelmed and worked as hard as he could to keep growing there.

At the end of 5 years, he had managed to save around 2 lakhs and purchased his own room in a place like Mumbai, which is famous for it's exceptionally high property rates!

He then decided to quit his job and rent an auto to become an auto driver because he loved to drive.

Being the kind of man he was, he never felt like allowing rude passengers to ride with him; because being an auto driver doesn't mean you can't have self-respect, does it? One day he got so irritated that he returned the auto to his boss to quit, but after hearing him out, the union head gave him the auto for himself.

He was overjoyed that he didn't have to pay auto rent anymore and could also keep his self-respect!

He registered the auto in his brother's name and went on to search for the rest of his family.

He gradually got back in touch with his family through his brother and was happy to know that his brothers had completed education from Allahabad University and worked with the Tata Steel Company in Kolkata! His parents had passed away but he never failed in maintaining the most natural of relations with his brothers and they all had mutual respect for one another.

His story had a deep impact on me as I had learnt three things:1. Satisfaction is true happiness; 2. Self-respect and dignity should remain, no matter what you do, in order to succeed; and3.You can do anything, as long as you feed your will power!

His story keeps me going for days and never fails to help me push myself out of my comfort zone and overcome every day challenges. 

And to get inspired; all I had to do was keep my eyes and heart open!