Resolutions 2018

We're 3 weeks into the new year and I have been still contemplating on my new year resolutions.

Yes, I am one of those who made resolutions every year. Most of them remained in my mind for a few days. Work on some started and faded before the first month did. The others were never compelling enough to start with. "I will loose weight this year" - "I will write a book this year" - "I will update my blog regularly this year" - "I will play a sport of choice this year regularly" etc etc were the resolutions. 

What drives us to do or refrain from doing something is tangible goals linked to material outcomes. While stretch targets are good, I for one, believe in setting up achievable short terms goals. Once you meet your short term target, it's best to re-assess and set yourself the next target. That way, we can keep ourselves motivated through small accomplishments and in the end land up achieving more. 

From this introspection I have realised:

• Make specific, definite goals and try to break them up over a period of time
• Link outcomes to what you cherish the most - this would be an added kicker of motivation to achieve the goals
• Do not bother to assess in depth the impact of what you are setting up to achieve is good enough or not - There is nothing called 'good enough' / 'important enough' - If getting it done means something to you - just do it
• Keep adding to the list - Life is not static - why should our goals be?

My Resolutions For 2018:

• Travel to at least 4 new destinations (1 per quarter)
• Read at least 12 new books (1 per month)
• 10,000 followers on Twitter (3,270 as on date)
• 20,000 connections on LinkedIn (11,975 as on date)
• 25,000 followers on LinkedIn (12,181 as on date)
• 24 blog posts on my personal Blog (This is my 2nd blog post for the year) 
• 24 blog posts on my HR Blog (This is virtually dead as we speak)
• Walk 10,000 steps daily
• Pray everyday
• Volunteer with an NGO 
• Make a customised calendar, diary with my photos and share with loved ones for 2019

I have already started work on some of the items above. Even though I may not achieve everything I set out for, I am at least glad that it is nudging me to do things I enjoy doing.

Have you listed down your 2018 Goals?

Greed & Emotion Banks

In the 1987 epic movie 'Wall Street' - The protagonist essayed famously by Michael Douglas exclaims emphatically in defence of greed the following lines -  "The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right, greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind."

Like sometimes they do, these words have figured out a way to etch themselves in my memory. 

Last year, my wife and I, took our annual vacation to the hills of Uttarakhand covering Nainital, Rishikesh, Dehradun, Mussoorie, Landour and Haridwar over 2 weeks. The places were indeed mesmerising with picture postcard beauty and some really memorable experience. One such experience for us was that of the legendary 'Ganga Aarti' performed in the evening on the banks of the holy river Ganga. 

The famous Ganga Aarti at Haridwar

The Aarti was indeed once in a lifetime experience. A heady concoction of faith, spirituality, energy and divinity. The image I captured above, stayed with me and resonated with me at a much deeper level. It made me wonder in astonishment about us as a society today. On things & experiences that are important to us and how our social interactions have changed in the age of technology. I'm fairly sure that a majority of people who would have participated in this great Aarti in times gone by would've surely chanted away the mantras with folded hands or clapping their hands with religious fervour. Not now, you will see cameras and flashes above.

This to me is the essence of greed. Now, we truly want more from our experiences. We want to not only experience them, but capture them for posterity. A step further, share it to elicit reaction of wonder, astonishment, appreciation from those whom we share it with. We want to express ourselves. Put ourselves out there for others to have views. At times, we want to codify our experiences and record them for our own memory so that we can revisit them at our fancy at a later date or pass it down along with material things of possession. Our recorded experiences & emotions are our emotional currency. They can be hoarded to inflate emotional wealth, or shared to compound it! Social Media as the emotion banks of tomorrow?