cannyben

Do you know people who start to tell you all their troubles just as soon as you meet them ? They are constantly lamenting about their problems. They never seem to get out of their dilemma. One unpleasant experience after another seems to befall them. If you happen to be one of these unfortunates, stop telling the world your troubles. People have their own problems. It is always desirable to talk about your new goals and aspirations. The repetition will firmly implant these ideas both in conscious and subconscious mind. Besides, there must always be a positive action, and your action must reflect your new thinking. If you follow this plan, ideas and solutions to your problems will automatically come to you. It is a well known fact that inventors and creative people agree that many of their ideas just seem to come to them without conscious effort at all times. Once an idea is set into motion, the subconscious mind will come up with the solution.

Every new idea, somewhere down the line, will be met with either indifference or skepticism. There is an ingrained reluctance on the part of most people to accept new things. Thomas Edition found a great deal of resistance in having his electric light bulb accepted because he had neither formal education nor scientific reputation. People were being criticized for being able to talk through a hollow wire, as the telephone was called in its early days. These men, these inventors, had something in common and that was a resourcefulness, an ingenuity, and a deep faith in their own ability to reproduce their dream. They had hope and enthusiasm. They had to struggle long and hard but they never considered giving up.

Its bad enough to blame our parents, peers or circumstances for our wrong doing. There was a person on a weight loss programme who bought some donuts. When asked why, he replied that it was not his fault, because someone had opened a bakery in front of a parking place and while driving out from the parking lot, he had no option, but to buy some donuts, as he was heading home. When we do something wrong, we should take the blame, and not look for scapegoats.

All of us need a word of encouragement from time to time, and especially when we are facing a major new challenge. But we also need words of appreciation and commendation as we carry our daily responsibilities, whether at home or at work. When a student in a prestigious school committed suicide, an effort was made to find out the reason. The student’s belongings were examined, but nothing conclusive was found. Nothing could be uncovered that gave any clue as to why he took his life, that is, until a note was discovered. It simply said “In the last five years, I have never had one word of encouragement. I’m fed up.” Many people crave for small sign of approval. They need a word of recognition, a caring smile, a warm handshake and an honest expression of appreciation for the good we see in them or in their work..

Two mistakes are commonly made in setting goals. One is putting them very high that they can never be realized. When a not-too-bright young man was asked what he aspired to be, he replied, “A genius”. That’s an example of an unattainable goal. The other mistake is setting our sights too low. Psychologists tell us that the people who come from poor families often do this. They work hard and attain a better standard of living than their parents, but they may actually be capable of going much higher.

We ask our students, “Why do you study”? The immediate replies from the students include: for grades, admissions, ranks, bright future, happy parents. Surprisingly, no one thinks of knowledge. We explain to our students that it is very important to be knowledge-motivated and not grade-motivated. Not that grades are of no importance, but grades follow knowledge. Grades are merely scales by which we measure knowledge. Grades do not constitute knowledge. This distinction is vitally important. There are two negative aspects to grade-motivated learning. One is ego, and the other hostility. We always acclaim the toppers. Our actions boost the child’s ego. A child whose ego is thus inflated refuses to accept failure. Thus, the joy of learning is slaughtered systematically. The second aspect is hostility. Grade-motivated studies make a child hostile. All teachers must have noticed a certain unwillingness among the students to discuss their grades when answer scripts are returned after evalu...

School heads should ensure the smooth operation of their schools – now and in future – by developing at least one understudy. Ask yourself : Who would be capable of taking over my job tomorrow if something happened to me ? Rarely, if ever, do good school heads allow themselves to get caught in a situation where their people are left without a leader. They make sure a capable backup is always available – whether they’re away on a trip, out sick, or given the opportunity to move to a better job. Nor do good school heads wait until the last minute – when it may be too late – to train a qualified backup. They pick possible successors early in the game and delegate different parts of the job to them – significant parts, not trivial ones. Weak school heads view subordinates as threats and keep everything close to the rest. Strong ones do just the opposite – they familiarize key people with their duties and give them a feeling for what its like to do their job. People who are given added resp...