Little Things That Matter

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Five Reasons Why CARE Matters

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We went to one of our favorite French Restaurants, over the weekend. The chef who runs this restaurant is someone who cares consistently about the quality of his food and his customers.

We have been going to his restaurant, which has travelled many places within the city due to the ever rising rents, for more than 10 years. His current restaurant is small and can probably seat about 30 people. I would normally not go to a street where his restaurant resides currently. Yet, I went, only because of the care this chef has shown to his clients over the years in terms of the quality of the food and the service……

A friend of mine remarked in one of my conversations with her that a colleague of hers seems to have gone quiet. Somebody who was enthusiastic and trying to find ways to improve on things had suddenly lost her energy……

You don’t send me messages as often as you used to. What happened? This was one of my friends who asked me this? I got away by saying I was busy. Whilst I was busy, that definitely was not the real reason for not sending her messages as often as I used to. Fact is, I was tired of having a one way communication and decided I shouldn’t and probably somewhere I decided to change the care in that relationship……..

I was in a coaching supervision discussion two weeks back and one of the participants remarked that my client probably doesn’t care. That struck a chord in my mind…..

Care is so important and yet the most underestimated feeling in the business and corporate world.

I deliver sales training and conduct workshops related to sales amongst many other trainings and workshops and it is evident from the various stories that I hear that care, which is imperative in continuing a customer relationship, is one of the most ignored feeling.

Think about it, would you continue to do something with your heart, if you didn’t care.

A #mother’s #love is the true form of #care and it is imperative in the #Business and #Corporate world. #life

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⇒If you didn’t care for something, you lose interest.

⇒If you didn’t care, you will take everything for granted and become indifferent.

⇒If you didn’t care for a customer, you would not attend to every detail in that relationship and the latter comes from understanding the client.

⇒If you didn’t care, you would probably not try to resolve or suggest solutions to every inefficiency within the organization that you work with.

How many restaurants and businesses do you know which open with enthusiasm and as the business progresses, the attention to detail and little things that matter are taken for granted. In short they stop caring.

#Care matters in #influencing and maintaining a #relationship. #peopleskills #CSR #life

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As a leader how can you make sure that you continue to care ?

1. Care for the complaints

Complaints are irritating and can trigger a negative vicious cycle. But you need to distinguish between a complaint which is condemnation from one that is genuine and made with the intention of taking the business or company forward. Better still see if you can take care of those little things that matter that no complaints come up.

2. Care for your team and employees

Engaged employees are those who are recognized, respected and cared for by their manager and their organization. Get to know your team because it is the inner view that enables you to determine what is each of their interests and their strengths.

3. Care for them as a person

No matter who you are, be kind.

#Kindness makes a difference to someone’s day. #peopleskills #care #relationships #leadfromwithin

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4. Care for your customers

Customers are the backbone of any business. Without customers your business is non-existent. How would you like to be treated as a customer or as a person? 

Don’t forget to #care for your #customers. #CSR #peopleskills

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5. Care because it Matters

Would you like to be treated with care? Would you do anything consistently, if you didn’t care? Would you deal with someone, as a customer, as an employee or as a person, if the “care” aspect was missing?

You, as a #leader can #leadbyexample by showing you #care in who you are, what you do and what you say.

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Care because we all need Compassion, Appreciation, Reinforcement and Empathy.

How are you bringing “care” in everything you are and everything you do ?

How are you spreading the positivity in care?

For one-on-one coaching, workshops, training, speaking let’s connect

The Essence Of A Simple Life

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Photo Credits : Lalita Raman

Photo Credits : Lalita Raman

The sun shines brightly, the sky is blue, the wind blows gently on your face and November – March is the best time to have several dates with nature. I enjoy hiking and being up, close and personal with nature.

I went on a hike on Sunday and it was up one of the shortest but steepest peaks in Hong Kong. The path was gravelly with the downhill more challenging than the uphill.

With each of these hikes along a gravelly downhill path, I can’t help but think about life and the challenging moments she throws at us.

I tread the path downhill with care, caution yet overcoming the fear that I will go tumbling down. That is where focus, mindfulness and believing in myself helps a lot. How similar is this to life in the down and out moments?

I have also observed that people whom I meet in these hikes are friendly, smiling, willing to help and appear more relaxed and filled with eagerness to reach the top of the hill and explore their own fitness or new routes or adventures. You’ll most likely have an exactly opposite experience in the hum drum of the city if you were to bump into the same person on a week day near the office.

How can we bring this human touch to a manic day ?
How do we live life and enjoy the moments that she blesses us with ?
What has each reconnection with nature taught me ?

  1. Saying “please”, “thank you”, “sorry” honestly, sincerely and spontaneously. Smile because you don’t need a reason.
  2. Give honest and sincere appreciation to people whom you work with and to your near and dear ones.
  3. Replying to emails or returning phone calls because you care and you can show you care.
  4. Walking away when a negative emotion arises and not falling prey to that vulnerable moment.
  5. Forgive even when someone has hurt you not for them but for you to heal.
  6. Challenge yourself, step out of your comfort zone, grow and develop but learn to be compassionate with yourself.
  7. When you are alone watch your thoughts and when you are with others watch your words.
  8. Being committed to your word to others because you care for your character.
  9. Recognizing your ideal self and invoking essence of hope and compassion.
  10. Doing a random act of kindness to another human being or creature.
  11. Reading a good book as a regular habit.
  12. Spending time with Nature in the form of hikes, treks, swimming, rafting, sky diving and various other outdoor activities.
  13. Spending quality time with family and friends and doing it often.
  14. Lighting aromatic candles in your home and decorating your home with bright colors.
  15. Listening to understand and not to respond.

Each downturn or challenging moment in work or life although similar to the gravelly narrow path downhill seems to be more stressful. Whilst what life throws at us is not entirely within our control the attitude we take is entirely within our control.

I remind myself of some of the 15 points that I have mentioned, in my down and vulnerable moments.

→Resonant leaders are those who are emotionally self-aware, socially intelligent and have the cognitive intelligence.
→What do you do to not fall a victim to your moment of stress ?
→How are you becoming resonant leaders?

For Coaching, Facilitating and Speaking Connect. About Lalita Raman

What Michael Jackson Teaches Us About Leadership and Life?

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On Sunday, I watched the Michael Jackson THE IMMORTAL World Tour show by Cirque Du Soleil. I’ve always been a big fan of Cirque Du Soleil. There is a lot to be learnt about life and leadership from their shows, which I shall cover in a later post.

Watching the show, I couldn’t help think about the impact that Michael Jackson made through his music and his songs. His songs had and have a lot to offer on love, life, leadership, humanity, team spirit, togetherness, leaning in, and every little things that matters in life.  Despite several criticisms, if you look at the legend that this man was, you will realize that Michael Jackson expressed his charisma, hope, humanity, compassion, sincerity and love through his music.

Some of my favorite Michael Jackson quotes are:

“Hope is such a beautiful word, but it often seems very fragile. Life is still being needlessly hurt and destroyed.” ― Michael Jackson

In a world filled with hate, we must still dare to hope. In a world filled with anger, we must still dare to comfort. In a world filled with despair, we must still dare to dream. And in a world filled with distrust, we must still dare to believe.” ― Michael Jackson

“If you enter this world knowing you are loved and you leave this world knowing the same, then everything that happens in between can be dealt with.” ― Michael Jackson

What can you learn from MJ’s music?

1. **The Earth**

Extract of the lyrics

What about sunrise
What about rain
What about all the things
That you said we were to gain…
What about killing fields
Is there a time
What about all the things….
Did you ever stop to notice
All the blood we’ve shed before
Did you ever stop to notice
This crying Earth
This weeping shores?
……What have we’ve done to the world
Look what we’ve done
What about all the peace
That you pledge your only son…
What about flowering fields….

In 1995,  he raised awareness about the destruction that our acts are causing to Mother Nature and our Planet Earth.  The lyrics in his music not only asked relevant questions but also made an appeal to save our Planet Earth.

♣Don’t we as human beings need to take notice of our actions in all we are and all we do?♣

 2. **We are the world**

Extract of the lyrics 

There comes a time when we heed a certain call When the world must come together as one There are people dying And it’s time to lend a hand to life The greatest gift of all…

We can’t go on pretending day by day

That someone, somewhere will soon make a change We all are a part of God’s great big family And the truth, you know, Love is all we need We are the world, we are the children We are the ones who make a brighter day So let’s start giving There’s a choice we’re making We’re saving our own lives It’s true we’ll make a better day Just you and me….

This is a song of hope, love and one that asks us to think, are we not all part of God’s larger family and if so why the hate, conflict, selfishness and war?

 ♣Don’t we need to be mindful of our actions?♣

♣Don’t we need to be aware in our moments of choice?♣

♣Are we thinking about the consequences of each of our choices and resultant action or inaction?♣

3. **Heal the World**

Extract of the lyrics 

There’s A Place In
Your Heart
And I Know That It Is Love
And This Place Could
Be Much
Brighter Than Tomorrow
And If You Really Try
You’ll Find There’s No Need
To Cry…..
There Are Ways
To Get There
If You Care Enough
For The Living
Make A Little Space
Make A Better Place…
Heal The World
Make It A Better Place
For You And For Me
And The Entire Human Race…

♣At every moment of choice let us ask yourself, are we being mindful?♣

♣Are we being human?♣

♣Are we making the world a better place?♣

♣How are we caring?♣

4. **The Man In The Mirror**

Extract of the lyrics 

I’m gonna make a change
For once in my life
It’s gonna feel real good
Gonna make a difference
Gonna make it right….
I’m starting with the man in the mirror
I’m asking him to change his ways
And no message could have been any clearer If you want to make the world a better place
Take a look at yourself, and then make a change……

♠Change begins with me and each of us and there is no point in pointing fingers and engaging in the blame game.♠

 ♣How are you holding yourself accountable?♣

♣How are you being a responsible person?♣

5. **Keep The Faith**

Extract of the lyrics

If You Call Out Loud
Will It Get Inside
Through The Heart Of Your Surrender
To Your Alibis
And You Can Say The Words
Like You Understand
But The Power’s In Believing
So Give Yourself A Chance
‘Cause You Can
Climb The Highest Mountain
Swim The Deepest Sea, Hee
All You Need Is The Will To Want It
And Uhh, Little Self-Esteem
So Keep The Faith
Don’t Let Nobody Turn You ‘Round
You Gotta Know When It’s Good To Go
To Get Your Dreams Up Off The Ground

♠Believing and trusting in yourself is imperative. Keep the hope up and never give up on yourself. Surround yourself with positivity and people who encourage and support you.♠

 ♣How are you boosting your confidence?♣

♣How do you help yourself feel it till you make it?♣

♣What is your support infrastructure?♣

♣How are you benefiting from it?♣

Each of these songs and the lyrics is applicable in daily life, in situations of leadership in life and within organizations, in despair, in hope, in believing in others and yourself and in spreading love and peace. A message of hope, love, care, and giving is what he left with each of us in his music.

Reflective Questions 

♦How are you going to be who you want to be?♦

♦How are you going to leave your impact on this world?♦

 

Life Is Beautiful : Love it, Cherish It, Admire it and Be Gratuitous

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I love flowers, they cheer me up, bring brightness to my day, add the spruce to an otherwise dull day and flowers remind me to be humble yet beautiful in my approach to life.  I click flowers from a garden, bouquet, flower shop, park whilst walking. The Country and place does not matter because no matter where you see a flower, the beauty is immense.

Nature is so beautiful, yet she is humble and shares her love with each of us. She shows no hatred and always showers us with her kindness, love and gratitude.

Flowers gives inspiration from all walks of life, no matter you are a florist, a gardener, a painter, a photographer or a writer.

Earth laughs in flowers.  Ralph Waldo Emerson 

Be like the flower, turn your faces to the sun. Kahlil Gibran

Flowers… are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty outvalues all the utilities of the world.  Ralph Waldo Emerson 

Where flowers bloom so does hope. – Lady Bird Johnson

There are always flowers for those who want to see them. Henri Matisse

We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature – trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence… We need silence to be able to touch souls.  Mother Teresa 

Forests, lakes, and rivers, clouds and winds, stars and flowers, stupendous glaciers and crystal snowflakes – every form of animate or inanimate existence, leaves its impress upon the soul of man.
Orison Swett Marden

Flowers are restful to look at. They have neither emotions nor conflicts. Sigmund Freud

No man can taste the fruits of autumn while he is delighting his scent with the flowers of spring. Samuel Johnson 

The sun does not shine for a few trees and flowers, but for the wide world’s joy.  Henry Ward Beecher 

Flowers grow out of dark moments. Corita Kent 

I will be the gladdest thing
Under the sun!
I will touch a hundred flowers
And not pick one. ~Edna St. Vincent Millay, “Afternoon on a Hill

Flowers… are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty outvalues all the utilities of the world.  ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Bread feeds the body, indeed, but flowers also feed the soul. – The Koran

Photography : Lalita Raman

Copyrights :Lalita Raman

Colors : The Essence of A Happier Life

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Nature has her own hues & tints her own shades of colors during the day, day-to-day and season to season. Our days are controlled by our feelings, our thoughts, emotions and our behaviors as an action or reaction. Thus a day can go through a multitude of shades and intonations with each passing moment and can consist of different colors.

Colors form an essence of life. For me, colors can brighten my otherwise dull or sombre day, it can add spruce to my day or just make it more lively. Bright Colors definitely uplift my mood. Each color is an expression of the various emotions that you may go through in a day. Though most of us may not have the time to express ourselves in different colors during the day, you may want to try this exercise of wearing a bright color or brightening your room with a bunch of colorful flowers and making a note of how you feel.

With my love for colors I want to share some of my favorite colors with photographs of nature that I have clicked either during hikes, or a walk whilst in my home city or whilst I’m traveling. Hope you like it and brightens up your day

Colors, like features, follow the changes of the emotions – Pablo Picasso

Any ground subtracts its own hue from the colors which it carries and therefore influences – Josef Albers

Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky – Rabindranath Tagore, Stray Birds

Music gives color to the air of the moment – Karl Lagerfeld

Mere color, unspoiled by meaning, and unallied with definite form, can speak to the soul in a thousand different ways – Oscar Wilde

The purest and most thoughtful minds are those which love color the most -John Ruskin

Each day has a color, a smell – Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, The Mistress of Spices

White is not a mere absence of color; it is a shining and affirmative thing, as fierce as red, as definite as black.  G.K. Chesterton

We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value no matter what their color – Maya Angelou

Road to Nowhere

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“We’re on a road to nowhere
Come on inside
Takin’ that ride to nowhere
We’ll take that ride……..”

Don’t we all feel, many a time, that we are on A Road to Nowhere.

….But with enthusiasm, courage, love & passion each of us can take the unknown journey & Make this World A Better Place.

Let’s Strive to Make this World Slightly Better Each Day………

“We’re on a road to nowhere
Come on inside
Takin’ that ride to nowhere
We’ll take that ride……..”

Don’t we all feel, many a time, that we are on A Road to Nowhere But with enthusiasm, courage & passion each of us can take the unknown journey & Make this World A Better Place.

Let’s Strive to Make this World Slightly Better Each Day………

Top 5 Reasons to Hike

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I. A Good Workout– If you are a fitness maniac like me, treks and/or hikes provides one of the best forms of workout. Climbing up hills and any steep slope increases the heart rate and I believe there is sense of fulfillment  at the end of a trek up a mountain. Calories burnt and a fitter you, is the ultimate result. 

II. Serenity of Nature-Treks provide an opportunity to be up, close and personal with nature. I have always admired nature’s beauty-the greenery, the mountains standing tall in all their grandeur, the beautiful shapes of different rocks, and waterfalls gushing with full force. Every walk or trek clears my mind and some of my best ideas have emerged whilst walking amidst the greenery and waterfalls.

III. Teaches you about life–“Life is full of ups and downs. The trick is to enjoy the ups and have courage during the downs.”

Yes, a trek up a hill is exactly the same, climb up a hill seems more difficult than  running downhill.  However, to me, I enjoy climbing up a mountain, it is difficult but the fruits of that hard work is immense.  I don’t enjoy downhill as much since it is a challenge to my bad back. Recently, I fractured my left foot and just about on the recovery path. Over the weekend, I ventured to do a relatively easy walk since I was eager to get back to my normal fitness routine.  Downhill was indeed a challenge on my foot, my back and my calf.  However, downhill teaches me to be cautious and take each stride carefully.

In Life as well, we all like uphills and hate downhill. Climb uphill comes from consistent effort towards one vision. However the various challenges that life poses on each of us makes us stronger.  It teaches us to balance and appreciate life.


IV. Connect – Yes hikes are the best time to connect with a friend, with a sweetheart, with your spouse or even form a new relationship. I have met some wonderful people during my hikes organized either by common friends or some community drive event.


V. Support a charity – I have done several hikes where I have joined an event organized by a Non Profit Organization. These organizations organize a trek and the participants have to collect money from their friends and well wishers. The money that is raised is used for several good causes which includes for the aged, for cancer, for the Blind , etc.

The best example I can think of here is the Trek being organized by @paul_steele where Tweeters from around the World will climb a mountain for charity, to raise funds for charity water .

No better way to unite  in doing what one loves to do the most.

I hope this post has inspired you try a hike and discover a new you and be with nature.

Water..

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“Water has no taste, no color, no odor; it cannot be defined, art relished while ever mysterious. Not necessary to life, but rather life itself. It fills us with a gratification that exceeds the delight of the senses.”ANTOINE DE SAINT-EXUPERY

Recently published data reports that some one billion people are chronically undernourished and 100,000 people die of starvation every day, 16,000 of whom are children.  Unfortunately, it’s only going to get worse! With a projected 50% increase in our global population within the next 40 years, 80% of whom will be living in or near urban areas, we must take steps now to plan for future generations.  As a result, increasing global awareness of land and water use has become front page news & something which each of us need to address and take steps

I have grown up in India, having lived most of my years in Bombay. I lived 2 years in Madras (Chennai) where there is a perennial water shortage.  When water  is available  24*7  we rarely realize the value of water and take it for granted.

In my two years in Madras, I realized the importance of saving water, and the pain of storing water and rationing its use.  In many parts of India, including Bombay, there are houses and condominiums that get water from a water truck (tankers as they are called in Bombay) on a daily basis since there is no regular supply of water. Clearly there is a huge water shortage & with the growing population things can only get worse.

It is a common site  in India to watch people fighting in the streets and/or queuing for access to fresh water, which is in limited supply.  Conservation of water is of utmost importance and More so for countries like India, which battles with ever-growing population and faces the fear of drought with lack of monsoons.

What the Water Crisis Really Means for You & The Planet

We know we’re using too much water and depleting our ground water sources. But by how much? And exactly where is it going? And which steps improve water use? In these ways, accounting for water consumption is much like trying to account for carbon emissions—we ask the same questions about how we account for it, so that we can know how to measure it, so that we can know how to cut back and if the cut-back measures are effective. While the accounting may seem difficult, we know we have to do it because—as we noted when we discussed sustainability earlier this month—we know we aren’t being sustainable with our water consumption and we know we have to change. For full article please read Planet Green.

For, How can each of us make a difference, please read my Article on Earth Hour.

Earth Hour.. What does it Mean, What Can each of us do?

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“There must be a reason why some people can afford to live well. They must have worked for it. I only feel angry when I see waste. When I see people throwing away things that we could use.” Mother Theresa

I have had some interesting discussions in office as well on Twitter re: Earth Hour, after the Earth Hour , Power Shutdown voluntarily, on Mar 27. Most of these discussions were with people who thought Earth Hour was a waste of time, it achieved nothing & the whole thing was a farce. Bottom-line message from most of these discussions was that 1 hour of Earth Hour is not going to achieve anything nor save this planet. Some others in India had a grouse that there is a daily power cut for several hours and they have an automatic & forced Earth Hour… so what is the big deal of this 1 hour “show” annually??

To all these discussions my response was a simple message. ” Rome was not built in a day” and ” Every drop in the Ocean counts”.  Here are some simple things which we all can do. This list is by no means exhaustive and most of these are based on what  I try to do on a daily basis. I am still trying to add to this list as each day progresses….

1. Close the tap when you are brushing your teeth. There is no necessity to keep the tap open and let the water run till one finishes brushing their teeth. The same applies to whilst one is having a shower or washing dishes or  food.

2. Put off the light or fan or air-conditioner or TV and music system if you step out of the room, even if you intend to return within couple of minutes.

3. Do not order food more than you need and if you happen to make that mistake or sometimes unable to judge each one’s eating capacity amongst colleagues or friends, doggy bag the left over and make use of it.  This applies to cooking food at home as well.

4. Don’t  leave the engine of your car on, whilst waiting for somebody.

5. Wherever and whenever possible make it a point to walk or take the public transport rather than use one’s car.

It is not possible to feed every mouth, or donate to every charity or cause that seeks to bring food to the hungry, clean water to every village in India or to every affected part in Haiti.  But what we can seek to do is to conserve resources while using the same. Unfortunately nature’s resources is not a bottomless pit.

In my view all that Earth Hour tries to do every year, for the past 3 years or so is to create awareness re: nature’s resources, and how every person’s effort counts. Imagine if each of us conserved resources in our own small ways, and saved 1 hour’s worth of water, energy and food on a daily basis…. millions of people could be saved from the lack of these basic necessities.

Think!! and Please Act. Every effort, no matter how small counts and we can save our Earth and our Planet.

Is Mother Nature revolting… there have been one too many natural calamities this year ??? High time I, you and us started doing something…

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