A message of happy new year

Today is the last day of 2016, everyone is talking about their plans to celebrate 31st and their plans for the new year. Why not write a short letter to the new year??

"Dear 2017,

We welcome you with new hopes and aspirations. One more year has passed and though 2016 was not an easy year for me, I survived. At times during the year, I thought I wouldn't make it at work or health or some other areas of my life till today. But here I am - standing tall and strong and still smiling. 2016 taught me something about myself - that despite the challenges I faced, my willpower to keep fighting through the struggle really helped me grow.

The situations where I thought "I can't do this" or "I don't know what to do", I was able to find a way. I made mistakes, maybe hurt some people, felt unappreciated at times, and very angry too. But through all this clutter I heard my inner voice that kept saying to me "you are stronger than this problem, you got to keep the fight on".

There were also some wonderful things that happened to me this year, I finally started my blog. I want to really thank all of my readers who supported me through my first year of writing this blog, who helped me inspire people and to inspire myself. I express my heartfelt gratitude to everyone of you who liked my page, read my posts, shared my posts for being part of this journey.

I hope 2017 will be a positive year with no accidents, no wars, more smiles and fun and lots of love for all. I pray that this journey of inspiration will continue to grow and more people will join our mission to spread positivity, joy and enthusiasm.

Thank you 2016, I am grateful for everything I achieved this year and I welcome you -2017 with a new zeal and new aspirations."

I wish you all a very happy, healthy and inspiring new year. I request my readers to write their own short notes or letters to 2017 in the comments box. Let's inspire and be inspired.

My Cousin Dennis

I had a cousin whose name was Dennis,

He was so sweet and never a menace,

He stayed far away from me, in a different country,

Yet when we met, I felt so great,

When he shifted to the city few blocks away from me,

We were too busy to meet to have a cup of tea,

Years have passed since I saw him last,

Time seems to have passed too fast,

Today I got a message from my mom about his sudden death,

She said your cousin Dennis breathed his last breath,

I could not believe that I would never see him again,

Nor hear him call out my name or pass by my lane,

I wish I had called him earlier, 

I wish we had met when our houses were so near,

Life is so short and we often don’t realize,

Now he is gone and I didn’t even get to say goodbye,

He was a nice guy always greeted me with a smile,

I admired him a lot for his willpower and drive,

He was in the hospital for quite a while,

But he fought till the end with persistence and tenacity,

Although he is not present with us today physically,

He will always be remembered for his determination and simplicity!!

I wanna be ME!!

The thing that I want more than anything else today is to just be ME!! We are always playing some roles in life - like being a mom, a dad, a husband, a wife, a friend, an employee, a boss, a writer, a reader, a filmmaker, an actor, a lawyer, etc. Since we spend most of our day hours in playing one or more of these roles, we often forget to be ourselves. Have you ever paused for a second and thought about what you really want in life? I was thinking about this question and my thoughts took me to a point where I began to think what have I become? Is being a lawyer or a writer or a wife or all of these what makes ME or am I more than just these roles that I play for most of my waking hours?

As we are engaged in the rat race of life everyday trying to meet ends or to excel in our chosen fields, we tend to forget about the things we enjoyed when we were young and carefree, about the things which made us happy. Every once in a while, one should pause and look back at those things and maybe do one of those things - like play a sport you loved or listen to the music that made you forget all your worries and dance or the silly jokes that made you laugh till you cry!! The people who made you so happy once may now just be your facebook or what'sapp friends, but why not, every once in a while, get off the internet and go for a walk with those people or give the, a call. These people may remind you of things you forgot about yourself, things you loved once, the person you used to be. Once you know what makes you truly happy, the just go and do it. Don't wait for retirement or a future date to be able to do what you can do today. No one knows what the future holds, so NOW IS THE TIME FOR YOU TO DO WHAT IS BEST FOR YOU AS THERE MAY NOT BE A TOMORROW. Stop for a second and do what makes you happiest every once in a while.

The story of transformation

Today I am going to write about a dear friend of mine (who I consider like my little sister). Urvashi - the girl in the photos in this post had an amazing breakthrough recently, which I would like to share with you all. This story is not about how much weight one can lose in X months and how to do it. This is a story of a girl who transformed her life with sheer willpower and dedication.

Urvi (short for Urvashi)was always a 'fat kid' just like me and many of us. Although she was very good at academics and is a fashion designer now, the weight was a constant struggle. I know her from the time she was born, but to me she was always my cute lil sis!!

One fine day this lil girl decided she had enough bullshit from people who think a person's body determines her personality. It took a while  and a lot of dedication to go through the journey of losing 33-34 kgs in 18 months. Most people who know her may never believe she did this without some kind of surgery or treatment, but SHE DID..

Urvi transformed her life with a single minded focused approach and by changing her lifestyle and choosing healthier food options rather than binging on junk food. She didn't spend thousands of rupees to achieve this phenomenal success, all she did was to remind herself every day that "I CAN".

By telling you this story, I just want all my friends and readers to know that Nothing is Impossible, We are what we think we can and not what others say about us. Don't give up on your desires and dreams just because someone called you a fat kid or a loser. You have the power to be what you want to be and never give this power to anyone else. It's your life and just like my lil sis Urvashi decided to take control of her destiny despite people telling her they don't think she can do it, we all can transform our lives too.

Fake it till you make it!!

“You must be the person you have never had the courage to be. Gradually, you will discover that you are that person, but until you can see this clearly, you must pretend and invent.” - Paulo Coelho.

In simple terms, the above quote means why not fake it till you make it? Our minds can be tricked and trained to believe or to disbelieve and this is why we easily slip into a zone of negativity when things aren’t going our way. During tough times, instead of looking gloomy, sad and apprehensive, why not  try to look happy, cheerful and confident?? You may think that this is a silly theory coz how can you feel something but pretend to be something else!! The good news is that you can. Think about your difficult situation as a theatre. You have been given the role of playing a positive and cheerful person though you don’t feel this way in reality. As an actor your job is to act. When you are nervous and you pretend to be confident or when you are tired and act like you are energetic, your mind is tricked into believing that your pretence is your reality!!

When the going gets tough, pretend that it is easy;
When the seas are rough, act like you are in the midst of calm oceans;
When the money is tight, stand upright;
When your confidence is low, buoyancy you must show;
When your body aches, fake wellness;
Although you are feeling blue, you must look fresh and new;
Rather than changing from the inside out, you can bring the outside in!!

On days when you don’t feel like exercising, just put on your walking shoes and go out for a walk and keep faking this till you start to feel like you want to exercise. This also applies to our nervousness before an important meeting. When I feel nervous to even enter a meeting room, I simply enter the room pretending to be confident and within few minutes I actually start feeling confident.

So all you guys out there, stop making excuses of “not feeling well” or “not being a confident speaker”, and just fake the feeling of good health and confidence till you make it to feeling positive and happy in reality.

Finding motivation in demotivation

We go through various phases of life, sometime we are fully charged up and sometimes we have zero battery. At times we find ourselves in a stage of a never-ending demotivation, which can lead to depression if one stays in it for too long. So how do we find motivation when we find ourselves in that phase of never-ending demotivation?

1.    Prayer – In times like these, we can find peace in prayer. When we find a connection to the God we pray to, we find solutions. Get yourself in a quiet zone and simply pray or listen to your favourite prayer song. You may not find an immediate solution, but you will find peace of mind, which will eventually lead to a solution.

2.    Get out of the couch – This is not about weight loss!! You got to get out of the couch or your office desk and go for a walk or a swim or run or gym. Exercise opens your mind, reduces stress and can be a great way to motivate yourself when you feel low.

3.    Movies – This is my favourite. Watch your favourite film and find motivation. Reel life is inspired from real life. When you watch a movie about how the hero fights the problems in his life and still does not quit and at the end he wins, it can be very motivating!! My favourite movie is the Rocky series – it is simple, funny and inspiring.

4.   Travel – Travelling to different places and meeting new people is very inspiring and relaxing. It opens your mind to new avenues and new environment and it gives your mind a change from the mundane stuff. Plus, you may find a story during your travel which will give you a purpose to get out of your never-ending demotivated phase.

5.    Action – The most important thing a person can do to get out of the demotivation phase is to find what is pulling him down? Find the reason of your demotivation and kill it. We all have just one life, so why waste it by feeling depressed?? Do something about it, change your mood and inspire yourself. Look around you and you will find people in much tougher situations than yours. That should be your motivation to get through the situation. Act and don’t get depressed if you fail, at least you tried. All that really matters is the Attempt and not the Result, as it is the journey that matters in the end!!

 

The magic of healing

It's been long since I wrote about an inspiring story. Like everyone else, I just got busy in the daily grind. I am sure you all have read or heard about different types of healing. Today I am going to share with you a story about three gentlemen - Mr. Vijay Mahajan, Mr. Nitin Choksi and Mr. Jitubhai.

I met these three gentlemen in an acupressure healing clinic in Mumbai, where they provide free healing through acupressure to anyone who is in pain. What I found most amazing about these three guys was that they themselves are all above 60 years of age, one of them is 85 years old, yet they have so much enthusiasm in healing others.

This was inspiring to me not only because they are serving humanity but because of the sheer joy they get by doing what they are doing. Despite having good jobs and high salaries do we are always stressed about different aspects of our lives. At very young age we develop various physical pains, back pain being the most common one. And then we spend all our earnings on doctors and meds. And when you look at these three men tirelessly healing others via acupressure,it is so inspiring. It makes me want to do more with the time at hand. 

I have spent so much money in physiotherapy sessions and medicines, but the relief that I got by just 5 minutes of acupressure was amazing. These men are so good at their job because of their love for healing others. We all must strive to be like them at whatever jobs we do. Let's inspire and be inspired!!!

A true inspiration

I like the feeling of finding it difficult to say goodbye to someone because it only means that I have found a true friend!!

We all find our inspirations sometimes by reading an inspiring story or watching a movie or simply by spending some time with nature and it's beautiful creations. However, there are times in life when we meet some people who inspire us deeply and who help us discover our true potential.

In this article, I will tell you all about my Gora boss, the man who inspired me to survive in the legal field in Muscat (Oman).

After 3 wonderful years of working with my boss, it is finally time to say goodbye. I have always found it very hard to say goodbye, I am sure we all feel that way at some point in our life. This handsome British man has been my boss for the last 3 years, ever since I came to Oman. He has finally decided to explore other opportunities, move on to better places and we all wish he achieves all that he desires.

He inspired me to work, to do things I thought I couldn’t do and here I am two weeks away from saying goodbye!!!

The world is a tough place where you seldom find people who help you grow and prosper while they are growing and prospering. My boss is one such man, who not only cares about his growth but takes the whole team up with him and also makes sure that if there is slow worker he would take two steps back to help him climb the ladder. He makes endless efforts to ensure that the whole team is always on the same page.

Thanks Mr. James Harbridge for being a wonderful boss and for giving me the opportunity to work with you. I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart, but for you my heart has no bottom. I wish you all the best for a great future.

Nature finds its way, so can you

It was raining in Muscat last week and when my husband was driving the car, I noticed a small drop of water on the windscreen of the car. The drop of water found its way from the windscreen to the bonnet of the car. As you may have noticed, water finds its own direction and then flows, it does not require someone to tell it where to flow.

Nature has its own way of doing things, which makes me wonder that though we (humans) are a part of the nature, yet we always seek directions and advise from others!! The question is Why??

I am not sure about the answer to this question, but I wonder, if we listen to our inner voice (in hindi we call it - dil ki aawaz) and trust our instincts, would we still need directions??

Wouldn't we also flow in the direction we are destined to and achieve our true life purpose??

There are so many articles on the internet with titles such as "How to find your destiny", "How to find your passion".. But how can an article on the internet know what YOU are good at?? At most, it can be a guide or an aptitude test based on questionnaires, etc.

No other person can tell you what is your destiny or what will ultimately make you happy.

If you really want to know what your destiny is, what drives you, what makes you happy, then, my friend "Trust your instincts - your inner voice!! Coz as the drop of water knows where to flow, you will also know your passions by listening to your inner voice and that will help you to ultimately reach your destiny"

The Goal

Hi guys, hope you will make optimum use of the extra day that we get every four years.

This year is a leap year, as we all know, which means we get one extra day to reach our goals. Wow!! Isn't that amazing!!

Well, I have finally made up my mind (after so many months of trying and failing!!) on what my first goal should be for this wonderful leap year.

My goal is to lose 25 Kilos (i.e. 55.11 lbs) in 7 months!!! That may sound tough to some and easy to some. For me, I believe it is achievable.

So guys, the important thing here is to BELIEVE and to have FAITH IN YOUR ABILITY to get what you want.

I have being exercising and following a healthy diet for the last two months (including many cheat days) but the last two months were a preparation stage to get me to where I am today - To resolve that I CAN DO THIS.

As John Locke said in the famous TV Show LOST - "Don't tell me what I can't do!" Let us all be Believers in our inherent abilities and let us all strive to reach our destiny by not only doing what we think we can, but also by doing what we think we can't.

I just told you all what is my first goal, what abour you? Do you have any goals or dreams that you want to achieve?? I believe by inspiring each other, we all can achieve our aspirations.

SHURUVAT - The Beginning 

I don't know how to start or what to write about.. I guess that is the case with all new beginnings in life.
This blog will help anybody who has a dream but no direction, SHURUVAT will help them take that first step because I believe the most difficult thing in life is to take that first step and then begins the journey... Life is indeed like a flowing river of opportunities, its upto you to stand up with a bucket or a spoon...

I believe that money or background is not the deciding factor in life. What decides a person's destiny is FAITH and BELIEF. I have observed through my experiences of life and through experiences of others, that when there is belief in a dream and the will to say that no matter what the consequences are, I will do what it takes to reach where I want to reach, things fall in place automatically.

I am going to start by writing some posts about one of the most challenging goals of my life - Getting to a point where I feel fit and healthy. By now you must have guessed that I am a fat girl trying to lose weight and trying to get rid of the medical conditions related to the extra weight!!!

So I have finally made a new beginning this new year and have decided to reach my goal weight. This topic will be my first series of posts on new beginnings in life, hope it inspires my readers.