Daan Utsav

India’s festival of giving began in 2009. The ‘Joy of Giving Week’ is celebrated across India for seven days starting 2 October – the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. To take the initiative from urban centres to across India, a name that would be understood by all, was coined - ‘Daan Utsav’. The ‘joy’ and celebration, inherent in a festival are captured in the name. 

In Goa, Amey Hegde initiated a discussion on a trainers group about being part of the Daan Utsav. Many trainers offered to train for free. People came up to support two free learning events. The one in Margao – called Udaan – is taking place today. The one in Panaji – called Rainbow – takes place today. Senior trainers like Les Menezes, Vaman Gaitonde, Atul Shah are part of the 15 trainers who will facilitate free learning.

As organisers, we experienced the real joy that comes from seeing generous support for propping up the event. In fact, big sponsorship was easily coming in. But we chose to ask for smaller contributions in terms of money. The need was to reach out to those who need the learning event most. To identify deserving participants, we needed many volunteers. And it was so easy to get enthusiastic support from social organisations as well as individuals.

The Daan Utsav confirms that people can generously give the gift of their time, only if they come together! The trainers, volunteers, social organisations as well as institutions have so easily joined hands. The united efforts have ensured the impact. This year, it is two free learning events. Next year we will reach out further across more communities on all seven days. For we have discovered the joy of giving that comes from coming together for a cause.

It is easy to experience the purpose of our living...
every time we ‘unite to impact’ the Joy of Giving!

                              

- Pravin K. Sabnis

Goa, India.

Waste

A municipal councillor and her team were inspecting the underground drains near the Panjim market. They opened up the lid of a manhole, surrounded the area with safety markers and went to the next manhole in that line. In less than five minutes when they returned, they found the open chamber filled with all sorts of trash. Somebody must have started it and the rest followed.

The next incident happened during an outbound training program conducted on a beach. Despite our pleas to dump the garbage in the bins, the beach was littered with water bottles and paper napkins. My team was cleaning up the waste, when their CEO joined us. Immediately, all senior managers joined and eventually everyone tagged along. The CEO started and the rest followed.

Two different occasions... One common lesson... We have it in our genes to ape the influencer. If many influencers unite to involve in positive proactive initiatives, the impact will be wider and deeper on the predicament we find ourselves in. We have to embrace the powerful possibilities of a united impact on the stakeholders of the situation.

In trekking, we learnt the rule of not just carrying our own garbage to the bin, but also the rubbish we found on the way. The newcomers would tend to say ‘that’s not my waste.’ One of the seniors would calmly pick up the piece of rubbish and confide, ‘but it is our path’. The circle of influence is widened when the preachers practise what they preach.

Hence we need to ask ourselves whether we are aligned to the expected behaviour we wish of others. We need to rededicate ourselves to not only doing the right things but to joining the positive projects that others initiate to further common good. There are many who want to the right stuff. If we all unite, the impact will never go to waste!

It won’t go to waste when right things happen together...
‘unite to impact’ the influencers to make it even better!

                              

- Pravin K. Sabnis

Goa, India.

BAI’S KISMOOR

My sister’s mother-in-law, who we called ‘Bai’, passed away ten days ago. Amidst many lingering memories of her extroverted nature were her culinary skills. But what remains strong in my musing is the excellent ‘kismoor’ that Bai served. Kismoor is a Konkani delicacy which is a mixture of ingredients like onions, chillies, coconut oil, chopped coconut and other garnishing with dried and fried mackerels or prawns or shrimps or even pappads.

While the mixture of Kismoor is always very tasty, the overall flavour is diminished if the onions and mackerels (or shrimps or prawns) are not crisp. Bai’s Kismoor was coveted as it was not ever premixed. Only when the person started to have the meal, Bai would open her many covered containers, each having the ingredients separately prepared. The mixture was served immediately with its aroma and taste intact.

So often, so many of us are in the method of the premix that takes away the freshness of each ingredient that makes the mix. It is important for them to unite to impact by coming together at the right time, appropriate context and in justifiable portions arising from the needs and wants of the situation.

Let’s look at an analogy. If you want to give a good speech, it is best to go prepared with a bunch of crisp quotations, a set of properly edited anecdotes or wit; well focussed main points, etc. Impact orators will mix the ready ingredients only a few minutes before making a judgement based on the audience, time, etc. Orators who come with premix speeches end up being longwinded and often oblivious of the impact on the audience.

It is said so well that well begun is half done. Well begun is to be well prepared with all sub-tasks and necessary arrangements. However, even if well begun, premixing before time can result in the undoing of the impact. Whether it is putting together kismoor, a speech or many a plan, the tolerance, to wait for the right time to mix, is crucial to the impact of the union of various elements.

Be it Kismoor, speech or plan that combines elements...
ensure that they ‘unite to impact’ at the right moment!

                              

- Pravin K. Sabnis

Goa, India.

PRAVIN SABNIS conducts UNLEARNING UNLIMITED workshops for corporate & other teams. Since 2004, he has been writing MONDAY MUSE. He can be contacted on unlearning.unlimited@gmail.com and 91-9422640141 or 91-8698672080

Carpe Diem

In wake of the tragic news of the demise of actor Robin Williams, a movie that comes to mind is 1989's ‘Dead Poets Society’. Williams plays maverick English teacher John Keating who gets his class of male students to step close to a photograph of achievers from a previous generation... and whispers in the background:

‘You've walked past them many times. I don't think you've really looked at them. They're not that different from you, are they? Invincible, just like you feel. The world is their oyster. They believe they're destined for great things, just like many of you. Their eyes are full of hope, just like you.

Did they wait until it was too late to make from their lives even one iota of what they were capable? Because you see gentlemen, these boys are now fertilizing daffodils. But if you listen real close, you can hear them whisper their legacy to you. Go on, lean in. Listen. Do you hear it? Carpe. Hear it? Carpe. Carpe Diem. Seize the day boys. Make your lives extraordinary.’

‘Carpe diem’ is a Latin maxim from a poem in Odes by Horace. The phrase ‘carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero’ is translated as ‘Seize the day, put very little trust in tomorrow (the future)’. The verse says that the upcoming is unforeseen and that one should not leave future happenings to chance, but rather one should do all one can today to make one's future better.

The phrase is used by some to justify reckless behaviour. However the gist of ‘carpe diem’ as used by Horace is not to ignore the future, but rather to skip procrastination and do things on time. In the film, Keating urges his students to follow their heart and break free from indecision. He inspires them to unite passion with timely actions related to a set of purposeful goals. This Muse is dedicated to that inspirational union of Horace, Keating and Williams.

Carpe Diem... do not get caught in procrastination...
 ‘unite to impact’ passion, purpose and timely actions!

                              

- Pravin K. Sabnis

Goa, India.

ENDOWMENT

What really is endowment? Can a girl with flair for dance be described as endowed with talent? Surely not until an audience applauds her act! When we speak about somebody’s endowment we are obviously talking about a proven performance, not about a covert value. And hence a positive attitude along with skill-development will determine what can be endorsed as endowment.

Among young children, it is easy to notice an inherent flair for singing, drawing, story-telling and dancing. With inspirational nurturing, natural flairs can be developed into skills. But competitive comparisons with the performances of other children often results in a lack of belief. And hence adults often declare that they cannot sing or draw or dance!

Endowment is often buried under the minefields of low self esteem and lack of belief in one’s own potential. Many of us give up on our own passion and the possibilities that lie aligned to the actualisation of that passion. Endowment is like a seed that germinates when nurtured as needed. It is pertinent to note that endowment is synonymous with self-confidence that comes from various factors that unite to impact promise and translate into performance.

Earlier 'endowment' referred to expertise or achievement of a pre-determined objective. Today 'endowment' denotes broader nuances of leadership potential, abilities to straddle varied functional areas, cultures and geographic boundaries - all in a seamless manner. Real endowment needs the development of soft skills, steadfast values, the ability to work in teams, to think out of the box, and importantly, the willingness to learn and share.

Endowment oft is distant from detection
 ‘unite to impact’ the nurturing actions!

                              

- Pravin K. Sabnis

Goa, India.

FAILURE

Thomas Edison tried thousand different materials in search of a filament for the light bulb. When none worked satisfactorily, his assistant complained, ‘All our work is in vain. We have learned nothing.’

Edison replied very confidently, ‘Oh, we have come a long way and we have learned a lot. We know that there are two thousand elements which we cannot use to make a good light bulb.’

The acumen of learning from failure is unassailable, yet it is extraordinarily rare. This gap is not due to a lack of commitment to learning. The real reason is thinking that failure is bad and that learning from it is pretty straightforward: reflect on what we did wrong and avoid similar mistakes in the future. These widely held beliefs are misguided.

First, failure is not always bad. It is sometimes inevitable, and sometimes even good. Second, learning from failures is anything but straightforward. Once we learn from failure, we can persist and come back stronger, more tolerant and disciplined, more successful, more flexible, more willing to take risks and be open-minded, and happier as a result of these experiences!

Rather than be a perfectionist, we must opt to be an optimalist. A perfectionist focuses on the outcome with goals that may be overly grand and unattainable. He is afraid of failure, less of a risk taker, assumes an all-or-nothing approach. The optimalist focuses on both journey and outcome, accepts failure. He sees it as feedback; tends to take risks and steps outside the comfort zone.

We must unite the experiences we learn from various failures and find value or a lesson and satisfaction in a less than perfect performance. It is said that ‘it is only a failure if we don’t learn something.’ We must forget the shame that comes with failure. It is the journey and not just the end result that matters.

The feedback, the challenge, the risk and the resolve
 ‘unite to impact’ lessons that from failure evolve!

                              

- Pravin K. Sabnis

Goa, India.

UBUNTU

The term appears in the epilogue of the Interim Constitution of South Africa (1993): ‘there is a need for understanding but not for vengeance, a need for reparation but not for retaliation, a need for ubuntu but not for victimization’.

Nelson Mandela would explain Ubuntu with an analogy: A traveller through a country would stop at a village and he didn't have to ask for food or for water. Once he stops, the people give him food and attend him. That is one aspect of Ubuntu, but it will have various aspects. Ubuntu does not mean that people should not enrich themselves. The question therefore is: Are you going to do so in order to enable the community around you to be able to improve?

Ubuntu is an idea from the Southern African region which literally means ‘humanness’ and is often used to mean ‘the belief in a universal bond of sharing that connects all humanity’. Ubuntu induces an ideal of shared human subjectivity that promotes a community's good through an unconditional recognition and appreciation of individual uniqueness and difference.

We think of ourselves far too frequently as individuals separated from one another, whereas we are connected and what we do affects the whole World. When we do well, it spreads out. Ubuntu speaks particularly about the fact that we can't exist as a human being in isolation. We can't be human all by yourself, and when we have Ubuntu, we are known for our generosity.

 A person with Ubuntu is open and does not feel threatened that others are able and good, based from a proper self-assurance that comes from knowing that he or she belongs in a greater whole and is diminished when others are humiliated or diminished, when others are tortured or oppressed. When appropriated by many, Ubuntu will unite to impact attitudes and actions towards a responsive and responsible world where spontaneous communities will involve in collaboration for the common good.

Indeed, we are bound together in an interconnected way
let’s ‘unite to impact’ the attitude of Ubuntu, each day!

                              

- Pravin K. Sabnis

Goa, India.