Every one of us want to be novel and creative in every move of ours. But, some of us feel that we are stagnating and not creative enough in our work or lives. Why does this happen and what do we need to do to transcend from stagnation to creativity.

Let us start with our lives. Why do some of us feel, we are always at the dead end of a street while others keep moving forward. We may come from similar backgrounds and have similar resources. But, some of us thrive in chaos, while others stagnate.

I am an avid traveller. Let me share what my experience taught me, when my g p s failed. I was once driving through a ghat section in the interiors of Karnataka near Sringeri. My gps failed. I felt being stuck. It was a dense forest road and no directions or people to guide me.

In such a situation, there are multiple choices before us. One is to sit and cry and curse ourselves or people travelling with us ,for this state of affairs. The other is to consider it as an adventure, with the hope that it will lead us somewhere. If we chose the former, then we may be stuck where we were, for the rest of the day. On the other hand, if we are willing to take the risk and drive on ,with the hope that ,we may meet someone and it may lead us to the destination, it may happen.

In this situation, I moved on and drove wherever the mud path lead me to. I met a few people on the road and when enquired they gave me contradictory directions. But, I did not give up hope and continued my journey. My spouse also told me , let us enjoy this adventure of exploration.

Life is no different. We may at times feel ,that we have reached a dead end in our career or life. We have multiple choices before us. We can feel frustrated and feel low.. Alternatively, we can explore options before us. The pandemic of covid 19, was one such instance. I know people who wasted two years ,of the lock down period. I am also aware of others, who upskilled themselves and also enriched their knowledge, in their areas of interest.

In every situation, the choices are always, before us. If sometimes, we feel ,that we are not able to evaluate the options, we have resources around us. It can be our family members, friends, colleagues or relatives. Nothing prevents us from seeking advice, if we think we are not able to generate options ,for our challenges.

If we look at what differentiates the creative people vis a vis the stagnating people in life – it is their ability to create and explore options, risk taking and trying out new things ,even if they fail. Utilising resources around them when they think they cannot create enough alternatives themselves is their capability.

Let us live creatively and not stagnate in thoughts or action from today.

S Ramesh Shankar

4th April 2024

I was at Kolkota yesterday and was keen to see the new engineering marvel. So, I travelled to Espalanade to take the first under water metro in India. As I was about to board the metro, a young kid asked her grandmother at the platform “Where is the water?”. I was amazed at the “curiosity” of the child. On the other hand, a few co-passengers commented after passing through the under water stretch that it was not a big deal – that is called “judgement”.

As children, most of us are curious and are keen to know ,everything around us. We are not afraid of asking the fundamental questions of “What, How, Why or Where? However, as we turn into adults, curiosity dies within us and we tend to judge on most occasions or sometimes fail to express our curiosity ,so that we are not judged by others.

This phenomenon is true within families, organisations or societies. Parents are keen to answer the questions of children ,when they have their first child and do not consider anything silly. But, as the child grows up or gets a sibling, parents tend to shut up the child ,as they think it is obvious. We may not realise that what is obvious to us, may not be obvious to the child.

A similar phenomenon is seen in the precincts of organisations. When a young trainee arrives on the scene, the trainee is curious and wants to learn everything around. They do not mind asking the questions and more often than not, get their answers. But, as the employee matures from trainee to a mid level or senior level employee, everyone assumes that they are expected to know everything around them. If a mid level employee asks a doubt, it is frowned upon and they are judged. So, curiosity of a trainee dies as they grow in seniority.

The society around us is equally ,non-forgiving. If a child asks a fundamental question, everyone around the child is keen to answer the child. But if a teenager or adult asks a similar basic question, they are looked down upon. This attitude to life and living ,makes us less curious in life and we become like robots ,reacting to situations and environment around us.

It may be time to ask – “How do we keep the curiosity alive in us ,right through our lives ?” It may be a journey of life long learning, if we are curious rather than judgemental. Curiosity quenches our thirst for knowledge ,while judgement kills it. It may not be difficult to preach but a challenge to practise ourselves.

Let the journey begin with our family today. The extension to organisations and communities will become natural . Let us start asking “How do bots work ?” Or “Why will AI take away jobs in the future ?” And trust me ,our future generation will be a learning generation.

Let us start with ourselves today.

S Ramesh Shankar

7th April 2024

 

A question often asked by youngsters is as to “ Where to draw the line between confidence and intimidation ?”. Where does confidence end and intimidation begin. Some people think that I am intimidating although I am just confident of what I am saying or doing.

We need to realise, that just like our fundamental rights in our constitution, everything comes with a rider. A fundamental right of speech does not mean that I can stand on top of a hill and abuse all the people around me, in a park.

Similarly, when we speak or do something in life, we have to exude confidence. This confidence comes from our practise. But, this does not mean that we do it in such a way ,that it makes people around us feel uncomfortable.

It is like a sportsperson playing with confidence. If a bowler ,bowls with confidence, her ball should do the talking and not her mouth. When the mouth does the talking it is called intimidation and when the ball does the talking and she takes a lot of wickets, it is called confidence.

In a group discussion, if a participant actively listens to others and speaks only when he has to make a point, it is called confidence. When the speaker speaks even when others are speaking ,just to dominate the discussion, it is called intimidation.

Everyone says that we know the difference between confidence and intimidation ,but how do we remember, in reality. This is also very simple. If we go to the gym everyday, we know ,when to start and when to stop. The day we cross our limits, we may either sprain ourselves or injure our ligaments.

Similarly, in life, we know when we intimidate others and when we are dealing with confidence. If we have a doubt in our minds, the simplest technique ,is to ask the people around us. It could be our family members or friends or colleagues. They can easily spot the difference and guide us.

If you drive a car with confidence, you end up safely to your destination. If you intimidate others while driving, to show off your style , there is a good possibility that you could meet with an accident or injure others on the way.

Life teaches us everyday ,in every way. We refuse to listen to our inner voice or the voice of others, around us. The day we listen, we change. If people around us love us, we are confident, if they hate our presence, we are intimidating.

The line between the two ,may be thin sometimes but we need to learn from the mistakes we do. If we cannot learn by ourselves, we can learn from others around us.

Let us exude confidence from today.

S Ramesh Shankar

4th April 2024