December 2019 — Page 2 of 2 — NIMBLE FOUNDATION BLOG

Why Humour is important in life?

What is Humour ? People ask, ‘How important is sense of humour in our life?’

Humour these days is a vanishing talent. It’s just right that everyone should like to develop a good sense of humour. Benefits are immense; some of these are listed below: Humour drives away tension. It enables humans to remain cool in adsense situations. It is a good motivator to maintain right perspective. It creates openness and gives you the power and patience to listen to the opposite view.

Benefits of Humour

1. Humour generates respect. When you say something with a good sense of humour, audience doesn’t give their casual attention but tend to listen to you wholeheartedly. Because it is interesting and it lightens their mood. There would be umpteen reasons why laughter is good for you. People also ask, “Does laughter help you live longer?” The answer is “Yes” laughter indeed is the best medicine.

2. Humour appeals to the listeners and whatever may be the subject if the same is interspersed with light hearted examples, it is appreciated. Even if the audience is not very receptive for the speech which is being made, the moment humour is introduced effectively the scene changes.

3. During a speech there could be many references to obscure things. Things which can be difficult to understand. Humour makes these very simple and the complicated issues are resolved. Serious issues may sometimes be interspersed with humorous one-liners. After all we know that even Shakespeare while writing his great tragedies introduced the character known as ‘Shakespearean fool’ who provided the comic relief.

4. Humour helps audience to remember the points you have made in your speech. These may be arranged in manners which depict a natural flow.

5. When the tension is running high humour helps to release the tension. It changes the mood and the atmosphere and the issues can be discussed at length without heated arguments.

6. Humour is also very helpful in defusing the opponent’s ammunition. But humour is not everybody’s cup of tea. People who come to the negotiating table are often induced by their strong desire to win. They expect you to be as hard heating as themselves. Humour surprises them.

7. Funny though it may seem, humour motivates and it can also inspire the team members. However humour has to be used in a masterly fashion.

8. Last but not the least humour is helpful in getting you the desire results. While projecting your arguments in a light hearted manner, you are able to keep your objective in view. Discussion takes place in good humour.

Therefore, we must do all we can to develop a good sense of humour. I am giving below 6 simple steps which can help you to develop sense of good humour. Often time’s people think is very difficult; they don’t even try. If the attitude is negative no doubt the problem becomes difficult. In such a situation once you fail, the negativity in your mind is reinforced. So while making efforts to develop a good sense of humour you must be prepared to deal with it as an important project. This should be pursued till completion and surprising there won’t be any end. Like any other talent humour unfolds and evolves.

How to develop a good sense of humour?

6 Steps to developing a good sense of humour.

The following are the six simple steps. I have enumerated these as answers to your possible expression of inability to handle humour.

Step 1. You might say that you can’t do comedy. But you can definitely do if you so desire. In any case you are not carrying out the comedy show. Just as golf is difficult humour appears to be difficult.

Step 2. You may also say that ‘you can’t tell a joke’. Such a feeling in fact lowers your self esteem. Because you find there are, within your circle, lots of people who can tell a joke effectively. You are not telling only jokes but you are using relevant joke to reinforce the points which you have propounded.

Step 3. Further, you might come with an argument that ‘you never remember jokes’. So what? You don’t practice to remember arguments in any negotiation. All that you do is to go through the points relevant to the issues which you want to resolve. Your mind works and you are able to make convincing arguments. Likewise whenever the situation demands your mind will work and put the light on the lighter site of the situation. And that is significant that you know.

Step 4. You might also say that every time you try to be funny you miserably fail. If you have failed during your earlier attempts, no one can change the history. However if you decide not to fail you won’t. The great pianist Victor Borge was once asked by an interviewer if he had played piano all his life. Quick answer was, “certainly not. I am not dead yet.”

Step 5. Humour is powerful. Electricity is also powerful and so is fire or any other source of energy. They all can do harm. Humour in speech when used to bring down the opponent can also be extremely dangerous. About the tongue, it is said that God has made it so strong that it never falls ill. And if it does, it heals itself very fast. But the wounds the tongue creates in the minds of people attacked may not heal in the lifetime. So, one has to be extremely careful in using humour.

Step 6. Lastly, one must accept that humour is not easy. It has to be developed and practiced bit by bit. You have to practice to such an extent that humour starts flowing naturally, and entertains the audience. Regarding the difficulties I might say that if you have to write 10 comic one liners; you may have to first write 200 to bring out the really 10 good ones.
Thanks for reading.

How to be a Great Leader?

6 Steps to pursue leadership excellence

What is leadership excellence? What are the important features? How is it supposed to be pursued? These are the questions that we will consider. There are 6 steps, which I think, that a leader needs to take in order to pursue excellence. These are:

The leader’s attitude is very important. Self awareness too is very significant. But more importantly, proper implementation of any idea in great detail is critical. Other 3 important aspects are- accepting responsibility, realizing that pursuing excellence is your own choice and determination, and finally the leader must be must ensure that the team members are in a position to live up to the leader’s expectations. Having said that, let us now deal with each of these 6 steps one by one.

Step 1. Planning & Implementation

Any idea or plan must be executed/implemented with great precision. In fact the quality of implementation of an idea is even more important than the idea itself. Leading management Gurus advocate that ‘A’ quality implementation of ‘B’ quality plan is more productive then ‘B’ quality implementation of ‘A’ quality plan. When we look through the finer details of any task, we are able to follow its original objectives. But it doesn’t happen if we overlook the details. Excellence is a continuous process. It is not just an event. It is not just an accident. But it is your choice which you follow step by step, always. This becomes easier if you love every moment of your life and therefore if you love everything that your do from moment to moment.

Step 2. Positive Attitude

Your attitude is extremely important. Excellence is not just a skill like those skills you require for doing anything correctly and nicely. Excellence is your attitude to do every job with at most care and while enjoy at the same time. Precision and enjoyment may appear to be incompatible but they are not. There is no doubt that you have to follow this practice of using eye for detail and getting satisfaction for following the finer details at the same time.

Step 3. Make excellence your Habit

The good news is that there is no preparation required to pursue excellence for the leader. It depends entirely on their choice- decision and determination to follow the decision. One may decide just now that henceforth from the next moment onwards he/she will do everything while pursuing excellence. Sometimes there may be time constraints and other such difficulties. But the pursuit of excellence teaches you make best use of the available resources. Some people talk of discipline. Excellence is not discipline. It does not ensure quality of work which can be classified in the required category. Discipline is defined as that you must do something at a time when it needs to be done even when you don’t like to do. In a way it cages you while the ‘excellence’ knows no such restrictions. It emerges from the application of your mind and the joy that your draw out of doing something that you like to do.

Step 4. Accountability & Responsibility

The 4^th important step that leader must take is to accept responsibility for excellence in a group life. The leader does not teach his follower to achieve perfection. Perfection is unattainable. But when you chase perfection you catch up with excellence. The leader ensures that his/her followers understand it very well. Such leaders have the ability to motivate the followers to such an extent that the commitment of the followers becomes as strong as that of their leader. This is particularly true in respect of the political leaders. Dr. Martin Luther King is one such example. But for him Barak Obama would not have become the President of USA.

Step 5. Self awareness is the key

Self awareness is something that the leader must practice. It trains him/her to observe their actions from moment to moment. They develop the ability to change their action as per the requirement of changed circumstances. Their decision making process does not suffer a jolt even if most unexpected event take place. In our sacred book, ‘The Bhagwat Gita’ such a person is known as ‘Stith Pragya Purush’. It depicts not only the alertness of the mind but also the coordination between the mind and the reaction which lead to necessary speech and or action.

Step 6. Leader Needs to be Realistic

Last but not the least the leader has to be realistic. They can pursue excellence only if their expectations are reasonable. Any unachievable task if set before the team is bound to de-motivate them. This does not mean that the team member can take things easy. Life is such that for achieving any significant result you have to stretch yourself. It’s the leaders job that he practices not only himself but also ensures that the team member follow suit.
When the leader undertakes their journey as per the steps enumerated above, it is then that the leadership excellence is pursued.

Thanks for reading.

How to strengthen your Emotional Intelligence?

8 Incredible Ways to Increase your Self- awareness and Develop Courage!

Self awareness helps you understand your personality, values, and deepest desires. Additionally, learning more about yourself helps you create your best life and make positive changes to improve your weaknesses. Being self aware boosts your emotional intelligence, so it’s a valuable trait that might help you relate to others. Raise yourself awareness and develop Emotional Intelligence by learning about yourself, building and getting feedback from others

1. Rank your top 5-10 priorities so you know what’s important to you.

Make a list of the things you most value in life, such as your family. Then, choose 5-10 items on your list that are most valuable to you. Rank them in order of importance, with 1 being your top priority. This helps you understand what’s truly important to you. The process gives you a confidence that nothing important will be missed out by you. In turn it increases your courage.

2. Identify your strengths and weaknesses.

Knowing your strengths and weaknesses helps you understand yourself so you can live your best life. Discover your strengths by assessing your knowledge, skills, and traits. Additionally, think of 3-5 times when you felt most successful in life. Then, make a list of areas where you want to improve to find your weaknesses. Start working on mitigating or eradicating your weaknesses. This is another step which will make you strong.

3. Write about your feelings and experiences in a journal.

Journaling helps you better understand your thoughts and emotions. Set a goal to write in your journal every day, even if you just write a little. Discuss what’s happening in your life and how you feel. Then, review what you’ve written to help you self-reflect. No daily experiences will surely help you to understand that how you should go about improving yourself in dealing with the day today problems. Understandably this develops your courage.

4. Allow yourself to feel your emotions so they pass.

Part of self awareness is being able to understand your emotions. Acknowledge how you’re feeling and give yourself permission to experience the emotion. This allows your feelings to pass. Don’t ever press any emotions. This is particularly so for feeling of sadness and remorse. You must remind yourself that these unwanted feelings are not going to help you in anyway. If you’re not going to hell why let them remain with you. Threw them out.

5. Determine what triggers you emotionally to understand yourself.

Think about the times you’ve gotten really upset in the past. Then, identify what was happening in that moment. This is an emotional trigger that you have. Knowing your triggers helps you better manage your emotional reactions to them. It’s important for you to understand your emotional characteristics. Do you have fear of failures? Or that of criticism. Remember failure is a part of success. No criticism is valid. Don’t worry what other people say but keep on improving yourself day after day.

6. Meditate for at least 10 minutes a day for a clear mind.

Daily meditation helps you calm your mind so you can think better. Additionally, it helps you stay relaxed so you’re better able to control your emotions. For a simple meditation, sit in a comfortable position and close your eyes. Then, focus on your breath. It has been scientifically proved that meditation has helped many people to overcome even the depressions. What meditation does this to cleans your mind and remove the clutter. The problems are resolved easier. Meditation surely gives you internal strength.

7. Ask people whose opinions you value to give you feedback.

Identify people in your life who you think will give you an honest, constructive evaluation of yourself. Then, ask them to tell you how they perceive you, what they think your strengths are, and how you can improve. Collect their feedback and review it to better understand yourself. Getting feedback from people whom you can trust is very helpful in developing your personality and enhancing your courage. While never depend on unsolicited advice because a free advice is often more expensive. But when you are asking feedback and also requesting them to be frank in their assessment, it’s going to be very helpful as this is other people’s perception about you. This process also makes you emotionally strong.

8. Pay attention to how others react to you.

Watch other people’s body language when they’re around you. Notice if they appear comfortable and approach you with ease or if they keep their distance or close them self off. Look for trends in how people act around you to get an idea about how you’re perceived. This is an effort to continuously improve yourself. You keep on noticing how people react to your conduct, to your speech, to your body language in to your actions; the process is enlightening and gives you immense knowledge to enhance your personality and become more courageous.

Thanks for reading.

How to be a good learner?

One needs to be a learner throughout his or her life. I suggest the following to be a good learner:

1. Always be curious to know things.

Always be curious to know things, to understand as well as assimilate. This is helpful in your wanting to know more. Curiosity, or the strong desire to learn or know something, originates from the Latin word ‘curious’ – eager to know, inquisitive. As children, we are born with an almost insatiable curiosity which, according to famous psychologist Jean Piaget, is critical for our cognitive development – for as children almost everything we encounter is a new experience. It is children’s need to make sense of the world that results in their incessant questioning – “why is the sky blue?”, “what makes it rain?” – And it’s their lack of self-consciousness that enables them to admit to their lack of knowledge or understanding.

2. Be focused.

In order that you enjoy the process of learning, be focused. If you focus you get the best out of your efforts of learning. Focus can help you accomplish a variety of professional and personal tasks, from studying for a test to finishing your work an hour early. There are various practical steps you can take to help yourself focus better and to stop checking your Facebook or phone every fifteen minutes. To stay focused on the task ahead of you, resist the impulse to give in to distractions, make a to-do list (which has built-in breaks) and resist the temptation to multi-task.

3. Never be afraid of failure. Never be afraid of criticism. It is only this fear that does not allow you to use your mind and soul into what you do. As a learner you have to be totally dedicated to what you want to learn and therefore be fearless. Fear is something we all experience, especially when setting out on any new undertaking. Failure is one of the most common and most damaging fears that many people struggle with. However, failure is often the first step toward success: highly successful people such as Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling and billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson are very vocal about how often they have failed and how that has shaped their success.

4. Learning is a serious matter. Learning is not fun. It’s a serious matter. Give the attention and the required time that the learning deserves. Be patient and try to look for the final details of any process or anything about the subject that you are learning. One of the best things about life is that we never have to stop learning. There are always new skills to learn and techniques for us to adopt. The best entrepreneurs in the world don’t act like they know everything. They all understand the fact that they have to continuously learn to be successful.

5. Whatever you learn you should make it your own.

Whatever you learn you should make it your own. You should not learn only with a short time goal like to pass the exam, the interview et cetera. You should learn with a view to imbibe you’re learning into your personality. What you learn, you must use. When you use what you have learnt. You reinforce your learning. It you have a chance you teach someone what you have learnt .In the process this knowledge becomes your own and you can use it when needed.

6. Question everything for thorough learning. A good learner questions everything. Simple because these are written words or somebody has said it; don’t just accept. Questions that come to your mind need to be answered. Consult your mentor, teacher or your colleague. Questioning is a revered teaching technique from the days of Socrates, but there are ways, some traditional and some a bit more radical, to increase its impact and better prepare students to move beyond school in a way that provides deeper meaning and encourages greater contribution. Asking a variety of questions and question types is key to student achievement, along with increasing the amount of time allotted for students to think about the questions, but it is also vital that we move away from teachers asking questions as a solution to student learning.

7. Share whatever you have learnt.

You should share whatever you have learnt. If anybody has some different opinion just don’t override with your assumptions. Listen to him or her and check out if they know better. Sharing knowledge, while it is a noble cause, helps you to identify if you have left any missing links. Besides, you may learn more from the person you share with. However, you need to share with the right people or group. For example, if you share any learning about HR on LinkedIn, your connections will very happy.

8. Listen to experts on the subject.

Listen to experts on the subject. Attend a lecture if it is possible or simple go to the YouTube where videos are available on all possible thinkable subjects. Today, we are fortunate. We have Google. We have Quora and a number of other platforms that provide great information on any subject. Above all, we have YouTube. YouTube in the second biggest search en give on the net. It you don’t like to read, you just listen. There are many classroom lectures ever.

9. Don’t multitask, for better learning.

Always follow the dictum of one thing at a time. Don’t ever do multitasking. That’s not the way a good learner should learn. Always follow the dictum of one thing at a time. Don’t ever do multitasking. That is not a way, a good learner should learn. You may have heard that multitask is bad for you, but new studies show that it kills your performance and may even damage your brain. Every time you multitask you aren’t just harming your performance in the moment; you may very well be damaging an area of your brain that’s critical to your future success at work.

10. Don’t expect too much for your efforts.

Don’t expect too much of your efforts. Real learning requires persistent efforts and sometimes you need to persevere. Be prepared for that. Why do we expect great things and end up crying over it, people tend to exert too much effort in some things that’s impossible and expect it to turn out in their favor. We must learn that a person can’t have all the things in the world.

11. Develop emotional intelligence.

Develop your emotional intelligence under guidance of a teacher or a mentor. Emotional intelligence (EQ) is the ability to tap into your emotions and use them to make your life better. Being in touch with your feelings allows you to manage stress levels and communicate effectively with other people, two skills that enhance your life both personally and professionally. Unlike IQ, which remains constant throughout your life, EQ can be developed and honed over time. Do all that you can to strengthen your emotional intelligence. It in an investment that will help you throughout your life. Daniel Goleman has made a yeoman’s service to the development of the society with his work on emotional intelligence.

If you follow above there is nothing that you can’t learn and you will really enjoy learning and be proud of it.

Thanks for reading!

Time Management

What are the effective time management techniques?

The major difference between successful people and mediocre ones is how they manage time in the daily life. What are the effective time management techniques? It’s a question that baffles many people .Time is the best resource of human beings, so the critical question is: how do you manage your time wisely? Daily, we have to perform many tasks. Some of these are routine, but others are very important. So, one needs to know how to prioritize one’s time. There are some, who question the very idea of time management and ask, “Should time be managed”?

While thoughts may vary but one thing on which we all agree is that we must get the very best out of our time .There are a number of popular strategies which management gurus have propounded on this very critical subject. One may evolve his or her system of time management by understanding the various elements of time management.

We run a very effective time management programme with proven techniques of prioritizing your daily tasks and maximizing the utility at time.

The details are as follows:

Analyzing the use of time

Accessing your typical day to costing your time, per hour per minute, making a time log with 30 minute intervals.

Estimating time taken on routine task, review of action and think in time, estimating efficiency.

Allocating time

Routine work 15 %

Ongoing project 25 %

Planning and development 60 %

We offer an effective training program that will take you through all aspects of Time Management and enable you to become a truly effective and productive Manager.

How you will benefit?

• Develop your personal effectiveness to get more done in the same amount of time.
• Develop your personal initiative and beat procrastination.
• Develop a positive mental attitude and use ambition as the motivator rather than fear.
• Understanding right perspective to reorganize your goals through time management
• Manage priorities without losing out on the important ongoing projects.
• Set up your group goals and priorities.
• Discover the time wasters and to eradicate and minimizing.
• Learning to improve your focus and concentration for increased efficiency.

Contents

• How to recognize key components of effective goal setting.
• How to create clearly defined goals for your position.
• How to distribute time on urgent and important task without compromising on important ongoing project
• Learn the difference between being “busy” and “productive”
• How to plan ahead
• How to handle interruptions
• How to maximize your personal effectiveness
• How to say “no” to time wasters
• How to delegate in the right way for the right reasons
• How to recognize key components of effective goal setting.
• How to create clearly defined goals for your position.
• How to distribute time on urgent and important task without compromising on important ongoing projects.

Who Should Attend

Management Trainees, Senior Managers and other Company Executives

Thanks for reading

How to control your negative emotions?

10 Steps to control your negative emotions and change your negative attitude

Feeling emotion is part of being human. Although you have to feel negative emotions sometimes, you don’t have to allow them control of your life. Learn how to cope with negative emotions in the moment by refocusing your attention and getting out of your head. Train yourself to break negative thinking patterns to improve your mood long-term. Finally, learn a few techniques to help you accept and understand negative emotions when they occur.

1. Do an intense physical activity.

Releasing negative emotions can be done just as effectively with your body as with your mind. If you are hung up on bad vibes, take a timeout and get active. Exercise is naturally good for you at any time. Right now, however, it can provide an outlet for negative feelings and promote a more positive mood state through the generation of feel-good chemicals, called endorphins.

2. Take a nap.

Being chronically stressed by negative emotions can place your body in “fight or flight” mode, in which you are primed for action around-the-clock. If you have been fighting negative feelings for some time, you may be racking your brain about what to do or thinking nonstop about what is going wrong. Doing this for a prolonged period of time can cause mental fatigue. Fatigue can worsen negative emotions or hinder your ability to cope with them in a positive way. Taking a nap can reduce stress by allowing your brain and body to rest and reset.

3. Use creativity.

Another way to release negative emotions is through artistic pursuits. With art, you can get out of your head temporarily and channel those feelings into a positive activity. Make a sculpture. Develop a fictional story. Grab some paints, crayons, or markers and create a picture. Direct your feelings into the lyrics of a new song. Turn on some music and express your feelings through dance.

4. Spend time with close family or friends.

A great way to get out of your head when you’re bothered by negative emotions is to hang with people who care about you. Friends and family who are understanding and supportive can help you to cope with and resolve painful feelings. Negative emotions are a necessary part of life, and they often allow us to grow and become stronger. Still, that doesn’t mean you have to carry the burden on your own.

5. Avoid dwelling on your problems.

Sometimes, when you feel bad, you may think about an upsetting situation over and over again, a concept referred to as rumination. Perhaps you tell yourself that you are trying to understand it better. Nevertheless, all this does is make you feel worse. Try not to blow things out of proportion by constantly dwelling on your negative feelings. If you find yourself ruminating, try one of the following techniques.

6. Challenge negative and irrational thinking.

The way you view certain circumstances can have a huge impact on your emotional state. It’s easy to fall into the trap of irrational or catastrophic thinking. Take a moment to think about how you are reacting to a situation, and try to identify and challenge irrational thoughts or beliefs that may be affecting your mood.

7. Replace negative thoughts with more realistic ones.

Frequently, you may feel trapped in negative mood states due to the words you are repeating in your head. Changing your self-talk, therefore, can also change the way you feel. The next time you notice one of those negative self-talk “tapes” playing in your head, make a conscious effort to replace the negative thought with something more realistic and hopeful.

8. Explore your feelings through mindful meditation.

Mindful meditation is a technique that allows you to focus on the moment and become more aware of what you are feeling. Take a few minutes to sit in a quiet, comfortable place. Close your eyes and breathe deeply, allowing yourself to feel and acknowledge your emotions and bodily sensations. Don’t judge or analyze what you feel—simply make note of it and let it be.

9. Tune in to your physical feelings and their relation to your emotions.

Learning to identify your emotions is central to gaining acceptance of them. When you are experiencing an emotion, physical and mental responses may come along with it. For example, fear may come with heightened sensations in your face and arms, in addition to shortness of breath and clenched muscles. Happiness may come with electric tingles that radiate throughout the body in addition to a feeling of lightness or buoyancy. You can learn how to identify these emotions by tuning in to your body through meditation.

10. Perform a letting go ritual.

It can be incredibly therapeutic to release negative emotions by engaging in symbolic rituals. Such actions give a tangible, physical presence to intangible, emotional experiences. There are many ways you can release emotion through ritual.