Countdown to countdown - Day 12

We begin yet another new week, with positivism of course. Social Media week starts at Bangalore tomorrow, 18th February 2014. Dayala is the speaker on the 18th. If you are in Bangalore, you may attend his talk at Fawa, UB City at 5.30 pm. He shall present Dream Live. Wish I was there too! Dream Live is going to use social media as the platform for its launch, we shall remain connected through the media itself Facebook, Twitter etc.

Whatever you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.

~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

On the series of pepping ourselves up, today wish to share with you the power of 'I believe' .... by the way this sounds so Apple Inc. I wanted to add an app on my iPhone, it asked me for my apple id, I couldn't remember as usual, so it prompted me to reset the id. I was directed to the page that read, iforgot.apple.com. It made me burst out laughing. Aren't they genius? On that note lets talk about the power of Believe.

Believe

I remember having read about Shiamak Davar a long while ago in a newspaper interview. It won't be wrong if I say Shiamak is the father of modern dance in India. I belong to the generation that saw a lot of changes in all genre of art, music and even lifestyle. We have been witness to many great things, the blog happens to be one of them, it gives us the freedom to reach out to the world. 

Excerpts from Shiamak's interview. When he wanted to start his career as an artist about 25 years ago, he was asked why he wanted to become a dancer? It was not respectable.If he wanted to be creative there were other options like advertising. He received a lot of flak for his endeavour, people told him why was he teaching Western vulgar dances, was there a dearth of dance forms in India? India could very well be the cultural capital of the world!

All this feedback created doubts in his mind, he felt insecure. It hurt him when people laughed at his dreams of being a performer.He started doubting his own dreams and he started feeling like a victim as he stopped trusting himself, ofcourse influenced by others opinion. He thought his kind of dance may not work in India. When he was really low on self confidence and doubted his dreams big time, he came across a lady named Khorshed Bhavnagri. That was the turning point for him. She taught him to become the giver, how not to hurt himself and others. Also how he could turn all the negativity into positivism. He always had that belief but it was shaken, she reconfirmed his faith and belief. She asked him to become a dance teacher. This came as a surprise as Shiamak had never visualised himself being one. She asked him what was wrong in being a dance teacher? that way he could become an eternal student or a learner.

He became a dance teacher and now almost all modern contemporary dancers and teachers have been either his students or have been inspired by him. He made dancing look beautiful even when men performed. He made others look upto him and follow their own passions. Check out the reality dance programmes on Indian television, there are always a couple of performances showcasing his dance styles. He has been an icon, a game changer made dance even the sensual one look graceful and respectable. All age groups follow his dances and appreciate them. Even Bollywood has followed and used his dance forms. He has some of the best back up dancers, who themselves are star performers in their own right.

Had he given up on his dream, didn't trust his belief, the dancing may not have been the way it is in India now. Ofcourse this is my personal opinion but my generation will agree with me. We can all learn some lessons from his life, whatever your passion is it needs perseverance!

Would love to hear your dream stories. A lot of us believe in the magic of that secret. 

Tell us your stories too and will share them with others, you never know when someone gets inspired and your story changes a life.

Follow #DreamLive to witness how dreams become reality. Bharadwaj Dayala, the first Indian to go around the world on a motorcycle, will show us how to live our own dreams by realising his dream of riding from Russia to South Africa in just 100 days from 1st March 2014,starting with nothing.  He'll then help 12 to 24 passionate bikers to live their dream of riding in a foreign country by getting sponsors for them.

DreamLive: Dare to dream and care to achieve it.

https://www.facebook.com/BJsDreamLive
@letsdreamlive

posters taken from google.

Countdown to countdown - Day 13

The great Sunday is here again, the day to do what you love doing.... yes nothing is also doing something! Dayala has reported sick bay, its 3 days and he continues to nurse the fever and a sore throat. Hopefully our man should be fit and fine today. He has another round of running around waiting for him.

If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.

~Henry David Thoreau

Today let’s talk about self worth.  My motto has always been, “Be your own cheer leader” and I have done that. If you can’t cheer yourself, who can? If you can’t value yourself who will? Find the best friend in yourself and standby that person, no matter what! Spend some time with him, try to understand him. It’s your responsibility to make that person happy.

The confidence was always ingrained, it came from my parents as they valued us so much, they taught us what self worth really meant. I found that at an early age. Before even participating in an event I practised the winning speech. Even before embarking on Dream Live I have thought of the speech that we’d give in the interview. This might sound funny but that’s the vision we have and have been going along. Whether that happens or not we are prepared. The castle is built and now let’s put the foundation under it. We all can achieve that.

When, I first interacted with Bharadwaj Dayala he spoke in the same language and I connected with it.  I knew what he meant. He said that 100 days from 1^st March, he would start off on his second world tour. This is the castle and now building the foundation is on. I have noticed with a lot of Gemini, they think of the result first and work backwards. In fact I read the newspaper and magazines back to front, subconsciously. Even while reading a book, it’s the first few pages, a couple of them in the centre and then to the last page. If it interests may be read the whole book otherwise we are done. For Dayala, there was no plan, no money but the tour had to start on the 100^th day! Can there be a bigger example of self worth?  This is what is meant by being your own cheerleader and staying inspired.

I have conducted many soft skills training programmes for various groups of individuals, be it college students, hotel staff, bank employees, call center or the government staff dealing with customers. But what has remained etched in my memory is an elderly gentleman who worked as a porter at the Dadar Railway station, (in Maharashtra, India). As a part of the government’s Capacity building programme where training had to be provided to the people who worked in the service sector and dealt with tourists. These people had no formal training so this programme was an initiative by the government to help such individuals. It was a well structured programme the candidates attending the full day classes were given wage for the day and also a certificate validating and acknowledging their training. I used to conduct the soft skills training consisting of the basic conversation, for the porters on the weekends. Believe me, that experience made me continue working as a teacher. I was on a two years teaching assignment but I decided not to return back to the corporate world. 

The incident

I started by class at 9.30 am and it went on till 5.30 pm. There were about 40 of them in a batch. I found this gentleman to not even blink his eyes. He looked at me throughout, I couldn't read his thoughts; I was about 25 years old then, on my first teaching assignment. I was also learning, it made me a bit uneasy but I carried on. The class was very participative, it was a nice mixed group. I learnt a lot about their job. Then was the time for the distribution of certificates. My HOD was present at the function but he asked me to give away the certificates while he assisted by handing them to me. Then it was the turn of this elderly gentleman. He had tears in his eyes and he touched my feet. He said that he was glad to have been able to sit in a class and listen to Goddess Saraswati,  he did not go to any school, didn't know how it felt sitting in a classroom. It humbled me I too was reduced to tears. That face and that gesture I can never forget. It made me understand the role of a teacher and what self worth was all about. I am nowhere close to what he said but it was his greatness and I am thankful to him for inspiring me.

When you meet Dayala, he inspires people with his passion for the things that he loves doing. The bikers simply adore him.

Would love to hear your dream stories. A lot of us believe in the magic of that secret. 

Tell us your stories too and will share them with others, you never know when someone gets inspired and your story changes a life.

Follow #DreamLive to witness how dreams become reality. Bharadwaj Dayala, the first Indian to go around the world on a motorcycle, will show us how to live our own dreams by realising his dream of riding from Russia to South Africa in just 100 days from 1st March 2014,starting with nothing.  He'll then help 12 to 24 passionate bikers to live their dream of riding in a foreign country by getting sponsors for them.

DreamLive: Dare to dream and care to achieve it.

https://www.facebook.com/BJsDreamLive
@letsdreamlive

Countdown to countdown day -14

Count down is getting closer and Dream Live is basking with your appreciation and support. We are 500+ and have new dreamers joining us everyday. Last few days have been very busy both for Dayala and me and we haven't even managed to exchange the customary two messages a day. But got a message from him this morning saying that Dream Live was 500 strong. Certainly this is a milestone for us, small one though. We also believe that it is these little steps that lead to the big leap. I was at my younger son's appreciation day yesterday. My kindergartner did me proud. The moment was all glory when he came up on the stage for receiving his prize and then for his performance. From there we headed to my college sports day, where football matches were on. I am glad to have caught at least the semis and the final match. The final was a very close one between the first years and the second year boys. The first years eventually won and we got to see some good football. I had both my kids in the stadium cheering the teams. Making them a part of the sport is one step towards making them take up a sport with passion. The reason why I speak about this, is also the topic for today.

Having the courage to break away

Let me ask everyone reading this? Are you doing what you love doing? Do you call this your true calling? Do you come to work very happy and return back home equally happy, saying that you had an eventful day and would retire to a good night's sleep. If not, probably there's something amiss somewhere. The parents play a very important role in helping their children grow into great individuals by ensuring their holistic overall development during the formative years. I have worked with teenagers, college students and parents for over 14 years now and what I have learnt is that parents have certain aspirations which they want to fulfill through their children. They might say things like if  both parents are doctors "it'd great if you keep up the family tradition". Or that "the men in the family have been engineers so son you got to be one too"! "We are a family of hoteliers, so it'll support the business if you take up the profession too" " You can't be a sportsman! what do they make?"

The child may have some interests of his own but gives them up to do what parents want to him to. I am not supporting the fact that the child has to be rebellious but that the family needs to sit together and understand each other. Help the child making his decision. These days even counselors are there to help in the process. Why not avail of their services? 

I get to see maximum engineering dropouts joining hospitality studies. They are a classic example of being pushed into taking up something they didn't want in the first place. Engineering is somehow considered a great profession in this country.They join the course anyway and then are not able to cope with the studies, they fail the exam and lose a year or so. Then they do some introspection! Parents too see the results and are then forced to consider other courses. What is the gain here? Gain is probably the child gets to do what he wants to but the loss is that of an entire year at times it could be two. Also loss of self esteem, even money is lost as the fee is quite a significant amount for such courses.

So to break away needs courage, that courage can come only with confidence and self belief. Confidence comes from knowledge and being the best in what you want to do, to have or to be. Are dreams anywhere in the vicinity? Ofcourse they are, if you don't have a dream, don't have that mission, what'll you stand up for? and what would you break away from?

Dreams  also need you to break away at times, but important is your preparations. Preparations lead to perfection, there's no shortcut to success.  Dreams don't have a short either. Hang in there, hold on and be an achiever. This is what dreams are made of! Don't be afraid to dream.

Here, I wish to mention the Hindi movie, Three Idiots,  it beautifully carried this message.

Bharadwaj Dayala,  of what I know of him has broken away from the stereotype, has had great dreams and has lived them. He's here again having another big dream and wants to realise it with all the people who join him in this mission. Be it, being with him on the road or supporting him in spirit.

Would love to hear your dream stories. A lot of us believe in the magic of that secret. 

Tell us your stories too and will share them with others, you never know when someone gets inspired and your story changes a life.

Follow #DreamLive to witness how dreams become reality. Bharadwaj Dayala, the first Indian to go around the world on a motorcycle, will show us how to live our own dreams by realising his dream of riding from Russia to South Africa in just 100 days from 1st March 2014,starting with nothing.  He'll then help 12 to 24 passionate bikers to live their dream of riding in a foreign country by getting sponsors for them.

DreamLive: Dare to dream and care to achieve it.

https://www.facebook.com/BJsDreamLive
@letsdreamlive

posters taken from google

Countdown to Countdown - Day 15

Its 14th Feb already, Yes St. Valentine's birthday. The day has different meaning to different people. To me it has been a day to celebrate love, all forms of it. Its  not about roses, hearts or the gifts but letting the people you love know what they mean to you. Now, some people say that everyday is the V day for them. That's fine too but whats the harm in picking up one day and celebrating it in a special way. For me its a day when my sons give roses to their grand parents and we then have nice dinner and a cake for dessert. This is the ritual followed in my home since I came into my married home. So even my in laws and the boys look forward to the day. I was touched by the little gesture of my boys, both of them had something in their hands, hidden in their closed palms, they came to me and told me that they had got something for me, I open their palms to find so many little heart... that came with Cadburys silk chocolate... the hearts were purple. This moment is certainly priceless... Their father is an amazing man and the son's are taking over him I guess. It hurts me when there's so much protests around, breaking shops and harassing innocent people celebrating their love. We are a country of love and peace and we celebrate numerous festivals, this is just another of them isn't it?

Wishing all of you a very happy V day!

Dreams are the language of God.~Paulo Coelho

Dreams that you get while you are sleeping, some believers think that its the message from the power up there. Telling you something, communicating with you. Whether you believe in this theory or not I am sure the dream does have an impact on you, you try to remember what all events you have seen and then try to correlate it with the real life! Some of you may even swear by what you see and how close it is to your life, at times the dream is an indication to what is to come. This can be uncanny!

The dreams that you see with open eyes can't anyway be less than the indications from UP there! In fact they are fired by the person's passion, determination or willpower, whatever you want to call it. That hunger to succeed in the mission is all that it takes to reach there.

Today, lets say No to Negativity

I share inspirational stories with my students and they have always liked them. Infact sometimes the stories attract them more than the course lesson itself. Stories are real things happening, around them, they take a cue from them. At times the path taken by the individual is debated and becomes a part of the healthy discussion. I always talk about the celebrities and the kind of pressures that they deal with. At a young age they achieve so much, they handle their life, their profession and also the public adulation. Some sports personalities could be just in their teens but the way they manage their life is amazing. Being in the public eye is stressful, a success may bring applauds, but the defeat or a bad performance will be accompanied by brick bats. A good performance has the entire media going gaga and a setback has the person ripped completely. Stories are sensationalized to make them sellable.

If you start concentrating on the negatives, that'll be the end of the road. The stress it creates is too much for them afterall they are human beings too. So celebrities need to take such criticism with a pinch of salt and continue with their art, try to outperform themselves. Try to be better than what they did the last time. All that is possible only if you take the negativity out of your system, home and surroundings.  You are that celebrity! Learn to manage your life the best that you can.

When a person really desires something all the universe conspires to help that person to realise his dream. I loved this quote by Paulo Coelho and I feel its so powerful. If the desire is so strong and the person leaves no stone unturned, is confident about the preparations then everything around him starts so support, guide and motivate him. Finally the dream is achieved! Voila!!

Would love to hear your dream stories. A lot of us believe in the magic of that secret. 

Tell us your stories too and will share them with others, you never know when someone gets inspired and your story changes a life.

Follow #DreamLive to witness how dreams become reality. Bharadwaj Dayala, the first Indian to go around the world on a motorcycle, will show us how to live our own dreams by realising his dream of riding from Russia to South Africa in just 100 days from 1st March 2014,starting with nothing.  He'll then help 12 to 24 passionate bikers to live their dream of riding in a foreign country by getting sponsors for them.

DreamLive: Dare to dream and care to achieve it.

https://www.facebook.com/BJsDreamLive
@letsdreamlive
Posters taken from google