When Chandigarh, designed by Le Corbusier, was built up in the early 1950s there was a lot of waste material left over as a result of the building activity. A road inspector had a dream of creating a beautiful fantasy out of bits and pieces, which otherwise would have been a problem to dump around the beautiful city. He created a fantasy, which he called the Rock Garden.
Passages of rock and concrete open out into spaces with human figures studded with tiles and marble. Walls are studded with broken tiles, bathroom fixtures, old crockery and switchgear. Discarded water pots form trellises. Whimsy birds fashioned of concrete sit on the roof of a little hut. A waterfall cascades over an open-air theatre paved with broken slate. Turquoise bangles are used to fashion peacocks. An upturned enamel basin serves as a soldier’s hat!
The Rock Garden illustrates that what is one man’s garbage is another man’s dream. The creator Nek Chand has been honoured by many cities around the world including Washington, New York and Baltimore. While the Indian government conferred the prestigious Padma Shri on Nek Chand, the French awarded him the Grande Medaille de Vermeil. All these achievements seem more spectacular when one is told that he had no formal training in art of sculpture.
It is said so well that beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. However, it is a greater to be able to draw out this beauty from what seems to be useless and allow others to see it as well. Thousands flock to see Nek Chand’s fantasy that teaches us that nothing is really scrap… and more importantly that everything can be turned into a piece of art… only if we back our a positive vision with proactive action.
Look again at what seems scrap to BE BETTER at art,
The world of possibilities awaits your proactive start.
- Pravin-da
Monday, June 16, 2008
Monday, June 9, 2008
TWO PEBBLES
A farmer owed a huge sum of money to a village moneylender. The ageing moneylender, who fancied the farmer's daughter offered to forgo the farmer's debt if he could marry his daughter. However, the cunning money-lender made it look like a fair deal. He told them that he would put a black and a white pebble into an empty money bag. If the girl picked the black pebble, she would have to marry him and if she picked the white pebble she need not marry him.
The moneylender picked up two pebbles from the pebble strewn path. As he picked them up, the sharp-eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick a pebble from the bag. It seemed like an impossible situation for the young girl.
The girl intentionally fumbled while drawing out a pebble from the moneybag and let it fall and be lost on the pebble-strewn path. "Sorry," she said. "But never mind, if you look at the one left in the bag, you will know which pebble I picked." Since the remaining pebble is black, it had to be assumed that she had picked the white one. And since the money-lender dared not admit his dishonesty, the girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an extremely advantageous one.
This story seeks to make us appreciate the difference between lateral and logical thinking. The girl's dilemma could not have been solved with traditional logical thinking. Most complex problems do have a solution. It is only that we don't attempt to think. To be better at handling difficult situations, we need to think out of the box.
The limited choices we see may not all that be
to BE BETTER at solutions, set your thinking free
- Pravin-da
The moneylender picked up two pebbles from the pebble strewn path. As he picked them up, the sharp-eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick a pebble from the bag. It seemed like an impossible situation for the young girl.
The girl intentionally fumbled while drawing out a pebble from the moneybag and let it fall and be lost on the pebble-strewn path. "Sorry," she said. "But never mind, if you look at the one left in the bag, you will know which pebble I picked." Since the remaining pebble is black, it had to be assumed that she had picked the white one. And since the money-lender dared not admit his dishonesty, the girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an extremely advantageous one.
This story seeks to make us appreciate the difference between lateral and logical thinking. The girl's dilemma could not have been solved with traditional logical thinking. Most complex problems do have a solution. It is only that we don't attempt to think. To be better at handling difficult situations, we need to think out of the box.
The limited choices we see may not all that be
to BE BETTER at solutions, set your thinking free
- Pravin-da
Monday, June 2, 2008
MIRROR
Some stories we hear in school make greater sense if we connect to them. One such story was about the House of 100 Mirrors.
A puppy learned of this place and decided to visit. He happily scaled the stairs and looked through the doorway with his ears lifted high and his tail wagging as fast as it could. He found himself staring at many other happy little puppies with their tails wagging just as fast as his. He smiled and was answered with many great smiles just as warm and friendly. As he left the House, he thought to himself, "This is a wonderful place. I will come back and visit it often."
In this same village, another little puppy, who was perpetually unhappy, decided to visit the house. He slowly climbed the stairs and hung his head low as he looked into the door. When he saw many unfriendly looking canines staring back at him, he barked at them and was horrified to see all the angry puppies growling back at him. As he left, he thought to himself, "That is a horrible place, and I will never go back there again."
In the real world, all the faces we encounter are mirrors. And more often than not, the immediate reflection we see on their faces is our own. We choose the kind of reflections we see on the faces of the people we meet. And hence we must choose to be better at the mood we allow ourselves to be in.
After all, hope and despair, cheer and frown are all very infectious. It is our approach and our actions that trigger an aligned response. So if we want to be surrounded by happy, positive faces, we must begin with making the right changes in our own mental makeup and behaviour. Mirrors, they say, don’t lie.
The people around mirror our own selves you see
For the world to BE BETTER, I must start with me
- Pravin-da
A puppy learned of this place and decided to visit. He happily scaled the stairs and looked through the doorway with his ears lifted high and his tail wagging as fast as it could. He found himself staring at many other happy little puppies with their tails wagging just as fast as his. He smiled and was answered with many great smiles just as warm and friendly. As he left the House, he thought to himself, "This is a wonderful place. I will come back and visit it often."
In this same village, another little puppy, who was perpetually unhappy, decided to visit the house. He slowly climbed the stairs and hung his head low as he looked into the door. When he saw many unfriendly looking canines staring back at him, he barked at them and was horrified to see all the angry puppies growling back at him. As he left, he thought to himself, "That is a horrible place, and I will never go back there again."
In the real world, all the faces we encounter are mirrors. And more often than not, the immediate reflection we see on their faces is our own. We choose the kind of reflections we see on the faces of the people we meet. And hence we must choose to be better at the mood we allow ourselves to be in.
After all, hope and despair, cheer and frown are all very infectious. It is our approach and our actions that trigger an aligned response. So if we want to be surrounded by happy, positive faces, we must begin with making the right changes in our own mental makeup and behaviour. Mirrors, they say, don’t lie.
The people around mirror our own selves you see
For the world to BE BETTER, I must start with me
- Pravin-da
Monday, May 26, 2008
MAKEOVER
Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin ("There is none like Jassi") was a popular TV show that told the story a bespectacled, ordinary girl, with braces over her teeth and an odd style of dressing. Though somewhat naive, Jassi was an intelligent woman. The show chronicled how after a makeover, she looks so different that even her friends and family cannot recognise the new attractive and confident personality.
The person who scripted the success of Jassi is Venita Coelho, writer-director-filmmaker with an impressive journey of work and accolades. Presently, Venita stays in a small, picturesque village of Goa called Moira. And it is here that she and her team are putting together the script of the collective destiny of Moira. They have started creating the Village Development Plan of Moira.
Moira has drawn inspiration from the villagers of Chandor. In 2006, while Goans were agitating against the Regional Plan 2011 that threatened the lives, livelihood and environment of Goa, the Chandor Development Forum was putting together the basic systems and mechanisms, that were found to be absent in the Government plan. The ‘Five Year People’s Plan for the Sustainable Development of Chandor (2007-2012)’ reflects the attitude, approach and action plan of community that has connected to its needs, vision and mission of community solidarity.
Chandor’s model is inspiring more and more villages of Goa to script the desired makeover – to be better as a village. For too long, too many of us only complain about the way things are. We need to learn from Chandor and Moira that our dreams will happen only if we combine our individual competencies to script the collective makeover of our villages.
If the village that we love has to BE BETTER
We must put our heads and hands together!
- Pravin-da
The person who scripted the success of Jassi is Venita Coelho, writer-director-filmmaker with an impressive journey of work and accolades. Presently, Venita stays in a small, picturesque village of Goa called Moira. And it is here that she and her team are putting together the script of the collective destiny of Moira. They have started creating the Village Development Plan of Moira.
Moira has drawn inspiration from the villagers of Chandor. In 2006, while Goans were agitating against the Regional Plan 2011 that threatened the lives, livelihood and environment of Goa, the Chandor Development Forum was putting together the basic systems and mechanisms, that were found to be absent in the Government plan. The ‘Five Year People’s Plan for the Sustainable Development of Chandor (2007-2012)’ reflects the attitude, approach and action plan of community that has connected to its needs, vision and mission of community solidarity.
Chandor’s model is inspiring more and more villages of Goa to script the desired makeover – to be better as a village. For too long, too many of us only complain about the way things are. We need to learn from Chandor and Moira that our dreams will happen only if we combine our individual competencies to script the collective makeover of our villages.
If the village that we love has to BE BETTER
We must put our heads and hands together!
- Pravin-da
Monday, May 19, 2008
RIVER PERSON
People are of two types: river people and goal people – Earl Nightingale
Goal people are individuals who write down their desires and deadlines for reaching them, and then focus on attaining them, one by one. By envisioning the roadmap of future targets, goal people give their creative minds a clear set of stimuli to work on. Their subconscious minds can then get to work incubating ideas and insights that will help them to reach their goals.
On the other hand, river people don't follow such a structured route to success. They are happiest and most fulfilled when they are wading in a rich "river" of interest -- a subject or profession about which they are very passionate. While they may not have a concrete plan with measurable goals, river people are often successful because they are so passionate about their area of interest. River people are explorers, continually seeking out learning opportunities and new experiences. For river people, joy comes from the journey, not from reaching the destination -- exactly the opposite of goal people.
Both types can experience personal gratification and success in life, but in different ways. There are situations and responsibilities that require us to be goal oriented. At the same time, we can extract the maximum "juice" out of being an explorer, learning new skills, connecting to fresh knowledge, innovation and technology. A combination of these two personality types can BE the BETTER choice to make. After all every river has its destination, too!
Enjoy your journey… now, not later
Learn from the river to BE BETTER
Regards
Pravin
Goal people are individuals who write down their desires and deadlines for reaching them, and then focus on attaining them, one by one. By envisioning the roadmap of future targets, goal people give their creative minds a clear set of stimuli to work on. Their subconscious minds can then get to work incubating ideas and insights that will help them to reach their goals.
On the other hand, river people don't follow such a structured route to success. They are happiest and most fulfilled when they are wading in a rich "river" of interest -- a subject or profession about which they are very passionate. While they may not have a concrete plan with measurable goals, river people are often successful because they are so passionate about their area of interest. River people are explorers, continually seeking out learning opportunities and new experiences. For river people, joy comes from the journey, not from reaching the destination -- exactly the opposite of goal people.
Both types can experience personal gratification and success in life, but in different ways. There are situations and responsibilities that require us to be goal oriented. At the same time, we can extract the maximum "juice" out of being an explorer, learning new skills, connecting to fresh knowledge, innovation and technology. A combination of these two personality types can BE the BETTER choice to make. After all every river has its destination, too!
Enjoy your journey… now, not later
Learn from the river to BE BETTER
Regards
Pravin
Monday, May 12, 2008
TWO SIGNS
It is many years since my favourite teacher Fr Gatti departed. But his many inspiring lessons continue to guide me. One such story of his went like this…
A blind boy was sitting with a mat by his feet. He held up a sign which said: "I am blind, please help." A sage walking by noticed that there were very few coins on the mat. He took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words. He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words.
Soon the mat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the blind boy.
That evening, the sage who had changed the sign, passed by again. The boy recognized his footsteps and asked, "Were you the one who changed my sign this morning? What did you write?" The sage replied, "I wrote the same thing as you but in a different way." He had written, "Today is a beautiful day but I cannot see it."
The two signboards while saying the same thing conveyed totally different messages. Of course both signs told people the boy was blind. But the first simply said the boy was blind. The latter one told people they were so lucky that they were not blind. Surely the second sign was better at its impact and effect!
This is an enduring lesson. How we communicate is very important. We need to be better at exploring the various ways that our message may be interpreted. And we must choose the option that conveys our message best. We must be like the wise sage who chose to express instead of trying to impress.
To BE BETTER at communicating our message
Let every word of ours hold the wisdom of a sage!
- Pravin-da
A blind boy was sitting with a mat by his feet. He held up a sign which said: "I am blind, please help." A sage walking by noticed that there were very few coins on the mat. He took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words. He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words.
Soon the mat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the blind boy.
That evening, the sage who had changed the sign, passed by again. The boy recognized his footsteps and asked, "Were you the one who changed my sign this morning? What did you write?" The sage replied, "I wrote the same thing as you but in a different way." He had written, "Today is a beautiful day but I cannot see it."
The two signboards while saying the same thing conveyed totally different messages. Of course both signs told people the boy was blind. But the first simply said the boy was blind. The latter one told people they were so lucky that they were not blind. Surely the second sign was better at its impact and effect!
This is an enduring lesson. How we communicate is very important. We need to be better at exploring the various ways that our message may be interpreted. And we must choose the option that conveys our message best. We must be like the wise sage who chose to express instead of trying to impress.
To BE BETTER at communicating our message
Let every word of ours hold the wisdom of a sage!
- Pravin-da
Monday, May 5, 2008
JIGSAW PUZZLE
This is about an incident that took place 15 years ago. On a visit to the home of my friends Ashwin and Nishta, the maid told me that they had gone on an evening walk. I chose to wait in the verandah reading the newspapers lying there. When they came back, Nishta went into the living room only to return with a query, “How did you solve it?” Seeing my quizzical expression, she pointed out to a jigsaw puzzle.
The jigsaw puzzle was one of pieces of different sizes which had to be joined to form a rectangle that could fit in the box that contained the puzzle. Nishta could not put it together and she thought that I was able to solve the puzzle. Realising that I had not even seen the puzzle, she called out to the maid to enquire whether somebody else had come visiting while they were away.
When the maid replied in the negative, a puzzled Nishta asked, “Then who did this?” and pointed to the box in her hand. The maid was immediately apologetic, “Didi, the pieces were lying around. I just put them in the box while cleaning up the room.” She had cracked the puzzle without even knowing it.
The lesson is simple. Jigsaw puzzles can be also solved without trying to solve them. Too often we look at life’s puzzles and are overwhelmed by their imagined magnitude. Most of the complications are just blocks in our own minds. To BE BETTER at solving life’s puzzles, we must take on challenges as normal interventions and not be overawed by them.
Surely the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle will fall in place …
To BE BETTER let’s every challenge at our own pace!
regards
Pravin-da
The jigsaw puzzle was one of pieces of different sizes which had to be joined to form a rectangle that could fit in the box that contained the puzzle. Nishta could not put it together and she thought that I was able to solve the puzzle. Realising that I had not even seen the puzzle, she called out to the maid to enquire whether somebody else had come visiting while they were away.
When the maid replied in the negative, a puzzled Nishta asked, “Then who did this?” and pointed to the box in her hand. The maid was immediately apologetic, “Didi, the pieces were lying around. I just put them in the box while cleaning up the room.” She had cracked the puzzle without even knowing it.
The lesson is simple. Jigsaw puzzles can be also solved without trying to solve them. Too often we look at life’s puzzles and are overwhelmed by their imagined magnitude. Most of the complications are just blocks in our own minds. To BE BETTER at solving life’s puzzles, we must take on challenges as normal interventions and not be overawed by them.
Surely the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle will fall in place …
To BE BETTER let’s every challenge at our own pace!
regards
Pravin-da
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
