Lies

Pedro trudged in tired and slumped in his arm chair. He told his three-year-old daughter, ‘if someone calls, say I am not at home!’ She had begun to pick up the phone every time it rang and he wanted to ensure that he is not disturbed.

Within a few minutes, the ringing phone drew the little one. She said, ‘This is Sanya speaking… Who are you?’ The voice on the other side was cheerful, ‘Hi Sanya! This is Uncle Pavan… is your father home?’

The child was confused… she knew Uncle Pavan was a close friend of her father. To clarify, she asked her father, ‘It is Uncle Pavan! Should I say you are at home or not?’ Pedro was aghast as he knew Pavan would have heard her question.

He rushed to the phone and was reprimanded by his friend, ‘how can you teach an innocent child to lie?’ Pedro tried to explain, ‘I was tired’… Pavan was livid, ‘you could have told her to say that you are tired and that you will call back later!’

We lie because we don’t see the larger benefit of telling the truth. When we choose truth, we choose ease. Pedro never realised that not only was he choosing greater complications by lying… he was setting a bad example to the one he wanted to influence and inspire.  

The lure of lies is deceptive. It creates a false sense of complacency that may make us tell a second lie to prop up the first and follow it with an unending sequence. The truth saves from deviating from our values. It saves us from falling from trust in minds, when they know that we are lying.

From the lure of lies, keep away

From the truth, do not go astray!

~ Pravin K. Sabnis

Minimalism

The sudden passing away of Wendell Rodricks, last Wednesday, has left his friends and fans in a state of shock and grief. An acclaimed fashion designer, Wendell was hailed for pioneering minimalistic designs. Not just in his creations, Wendell’s simplicity of behaviour and lifestyle was truly inspirational.

A minimalist is one who keeps things simple. Minimalism is about getting rid of excess stuff and living with less. Surely, we don’t need all our stuff. While getting rid of it is an option, a better way is to quit the unnecessary urge to pick up more stuff. The opposite of minimalist is profligate – one who is wildly extravagant or self-indulgent.

Wendell moved from his large home to a smaller house nearby to convert the larger one into a museum of Goan fashion. Moving into a smaller home is easy only if one is convinced of the benefits of minimalism. It requires strong conviction to take the tough choice to let go of possessions and the urge to acquire more.

Minimalism is a philosophy of living life based on experiences rather than material possessions. It is a commitment to owning less rather than decluttering more often. For every possession or new acquisition, we must ask ourselves, ‘is it really required?’ If we do such, we can experience the joy of simplicity that Wendell lived. 

 
The minimalism choice is to bring in less

Learn from Wendell to shed the excess!

~ Pravin K. Sabnis

No time

A common refrain to avoid commitment: ‘I don’t have the time!’ However, it is necessary to examine the real reason. It could be a genuine case of having other priorities. But, more often than not it is about attitude, belief or plain skill.

Some of us have an attitudinal issue. We are reluctant to take on additional responsibilities. We may be disinterested or plain lazy. The rationale behind the approach has to be identified and tackled appropriately.

Some of us may have a belief burden that we actually don’t have the time. We may be thinking that we are less privileged compared to others. Surely, this is not true. Everyone has the same amount of time to a day. Not a second less or more.

Eventually it is about recognising that managing time is a skill. We have to plan and schedule priorities in terms of importance as well as urgency. We must estimate and budget time and use it as required.

But the key is to lead a full life involving in varied interests: self, family, career, community… in fact, those who involve in a good work-life balance find the time to do maximum tasks on their list. But those who needlessly complain that, ‘I have no time’ avoid measuring up to their full potential.

No time? Surely, this is not true…

Living a full life is not only for few!

~ Pravin K. Sabnis

Profess

B R Sachidanand was National Treasurer of JCI India in 1993 when I joined the organisation as a new member. I did not have the benefit of associating with the highly effective and efficient personality. But, over the last few years I meet him often for the ARALU student training program of the Jaycee School at Gadag.

Sachi Sir is a Muse who triggers introspection as well as action. Every time he speaks, he ends up sharing meaningful phrases and enlightening lines. (Monday Muse has featured him before) Recently when we met for the faculty meeting of ARALU, he spoke about the three Ps: profess, practise and propagate!

The concept was familiar as I had read it in Article 25(1) of the Constitution of India. However, Sachi Sir was showing fresh dimensions to ‘practise what you preach’. The new insight included three steps to ensure full connect with walking the talk.

The first step is to affirm one’s belief and ensure thorough allegiance to that belief. The second step is to align actions and behaviour to the declared belief, repeatedly and regularly in order to acquire proficiency in it. Only then we can take the third step of recommending it to others.

Sachi Sir had underlined the importance of affirmation as the first step. While, it is said that ‘practise makes perfect’, if we practise the wrong thing, then obviously, we are going to be perfect in the wrong way. Hence we must focus on the belief. We must ensure full immersion in it. The next two steps will follow easily.

Profess before you practise or propagate

Belief makes for a sound footing ultimate!

~ Pravin K. Sabnis