Doors open…give time, and be persistent…

There are so many variables in opening any doors that it’s almost impossible to plan for all the variables.

What can we do?

We can try our bests! keep trying, and be persistent. Some day all the variables will click together and you will get in the door.

The second problem is:- Which door to open? Because if you go down one door it might not lead you to where you are going. 

Hence it’s critical to keep trying again as soon as you know you have entered the wrong door. 

In the end, both are critical to finding the right door and getting to know how to open it.

Stop Dominating the Conversation in Your Meetings

When you’re leading a meeting, it’s tempting to hold the floor. After all, you called everyone together, right? But no one wants to go to a meeting where one person talks the whole time, and you’re unlikely to get what you need from the group if you’re delivering a monologue. 

To keep yourself in check, try three tactics. 

First, make notes and stick to them. Give yourself a time limit, and condense what you have to say into that amount of time. 

Second, send the agenda around in advance. Tell people whose opinions you respect that you are hoping they will speak up, and then call on them during the meeting. 

Third, use a round-robin format, where you go around the room and everyone has an opportunity to talk. Some people will pass, but at least they were given the chance — and didn’t have to interrupt you to get a word in.

50% or 60%…

A very close friend of mine Hitesh’s (Name changed) mother met with an accident at home because of which her right-hand elbow got broken to pieces. 

They went to a hospital and the doctor said to operate immediately. Before proceeding they went for a second opinion with an expert doctor. The expert said that if we operate, the elbow will heal 60% whereas if we don’t operate and allow self-healing your mother’s hand will be 50% healed.

So the operation will only make a difference of 10% between 50% to 60% of healing. Hence they finally decided that they will not get it operated and let it recuperate.

The moral of the story is that sometimes however hard we try in life, it may make just 10% of the difference in life, hence don’t worry if something is not happening as per plan.

Moreover, the better way is if we can figure out how much difference our hard work will make and plan ourselves accordingly.

Tension vs Stress…

Tension in life means good things; 

It is a stretch you are taking to achieve something, 

Something which is in your control.

Something which you aspire to achieve.

Something you are passionate about and would like to achieve no matter what.

The tension comes in before a presentation, before an exam, or anything you want to achieve thru merit.

If you are avoiding “Tension” you are not growing.

Stress in life means bad things;

Stress is because you cannot control things, so you might not be in the right direction.

It’s better to either convert stress to tension or change your path to more tension less stress.

Tension is good, and stress is bad.

Choose to Be Kind to Someone Who Annoys You

When someone you work with annoys you all the time, chances are you assume the worst about them — and that mindset shows up in your behavior. But it’s important to be civil, and even compassionate, to colleagues, both because so much work is collaborative and because that coworker probably isn’t annoying you on purpose. Try to short-circuit your reactions toward them by making yourself do or say something nice.

For example, you could compliment them on an idea they raised in a meeting, or offer to help out with a project. Or say your colleague arrives late — yet again — to the weekly team standup. Don’t complain or roll your eyes, and don’t be passive-aggressive with a comment like, “Nice of you to join us.” (That may be your instinct, but fight it.) Instead, say something like, “Welcome. Grab a cup of coffee and we’ll get you up to speed.” This type of generosity of spirit is good for you and your colleague.

Practice Gracious Communication

Most of us want to communicate with kindness, but it can be challenging to convey warmth and compassion under frustrating, stressful, or maddening circumstances. 

Three practices can help you in your day-to-day interactions, as well as big, difficult conversations. 

First, meet confrontation with grace. This means wearing a smile and exuding patience and courtesy when an employee brings you difficult news or challenges your decision-making. An open-minded tone will signal that you’re there to listen, process, and problem-solve—not to reprimand or enforce your own authority. 

Next, give credit whenever you can. Recognizing your employees and showing them gratitude will engender their enthusiasm, hard work, trust, and loyalty. 

Finally, give people space and clarity so you don’t catch them off guard. Schedule conversations in advance or ask them if it’s a good time to talk—and give them a quick preview of what you’d like to talk about. 

These kind, simple gestures will give your counterpart an opportunity to prepare, and make it clear that you’re interested in listening to their response.

Leadership – it’s mostly about making decisions and backing them…

At the leadership level, it’s all about finding the right decision and sticking with your choices.

Don’t get swayed because of fear and pressure if you think something is right…put all your effort into it, yes, it might fail, but at least you tried. 

If your manager is a natural leader he will definitely back you up as long as your intent is good and you have put your heart and soul into making it happen.

In the end, most of the decisions will succeed only thru hard work and commitment.