Sunday, November 7, 2010

Feeling back home... Again

Have never thought this small town - Riga - would be so dear to my heart. Irreplaceable...
Watching the video ( Thanks, Agnesita! ) I have walked the same roads as I did when I lived in Riga - the 21 and 41 bus routes, the silent walks on the bridge, wondering around in the Old Town with the interns, enjoying a bottle of wine in the park, catching some sun tan in Jurmala and loving the scenery behind the train window...

Latvia, Riga I miss you very much. Sometimes even more than my original home - the place where I was born and raised, where I studied and made my first independent steps, where my family lives and waits for me. I feel sparkling knowing that I have at least two homelands in my life. Will my heart stick to India that strong as Kazakhstan and Latvia do? :) ... there is some time I have, to spend in India...


The Matter of Choice

It is not a secret that our thinking is shaped due to environments we live in, the media we choose to read/listen, people we connect ourselves to, etc. The thinking of a humankind is very general, "average", "Excellent but not enough", lazy in a sense it finds itself comfortable with a current state of the world, the society, and the person it belongs to. These are just a few highlights from the recent books I have been reading. The books are globally recognised and based on real business cases, life situations, death-life decisions, somebody's expertise, investigations and their conclusions.

One of the last week's book that I have finished was all about To Do lists. Well, it is not a typical To Do or Must Do List. The book vividly describes the Why we need these lists and How much of value they bring to us. Though the real life examples are comprehensible, I was struck by one paragraph that I immediately related to experiences I have had with different organisations in my past. The author's opinion had also let me understand the behaviours of people I interact with daily.

I would like to share with you the paragraph and if you are experiencing something similar, please let me know. I am all ears as I have a strong yearning to hear how you are dealing with a described situation.

" ... No, the real lesson is that under conditions of true complexity - where the knowledge required exceeds that of any individual and unpredictability reigns - efforts to dictate every step from the centre will fail. People need room to act and adapt. Yet they cannot succeed as isolated individuals, either - that is anarchy. Instead, they require a seemingly contradictory mix of freedom and expectation to coordinate, for example, and also to measure progress toward common goals ... "

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Loud Bang!


OK, folks, if there is a will, there is a go, right?
I have a will, and I will make it happen.

Firstly, I am announcing to myself and publicly that starting from today, Nov 2, 2010 life gets easier here for me. In all senses. I myself am closing that circle of negativism and uncertainty I have been living through because of this and that. Quoting a smart girl who recently said to me, I came to enjoy and experience India, and I don't give a s*** about anything else. This is promise # 1.

Secondly, some time ago I have made a short list of 10 goals I will accomplish by Dec 30th, 2010. Thanks to my friend's link to one inspiring blog, I am competing with myself for fun and to occupy my mind with busy-ness, and to drop a few fresh thoughts into a burning pot. These goals are as diverse as possible; I was laughing when I discovered that 2-3 of them have not changed at all since autumn 2009; and believe me, I will achieve at least 80% of them. This is promise # 2.

Thirdly, I am learning again from the scratch what it is to feel happiness. Yes, it has been discovered in small portions here by me. Yes, changeable reality a
nd different standards I have witnessed and adjusted for for the past 3 months are way far from the living standards back home in Kazakhstan and Latvia. Yes, I would easily get weak and frustrated, but who said that Rome was built in a day? So, work, work and work is required from me in huge volumes. This is promise # 3.

Fourthly, back to basics. Big Thanks to my colleagues I am enjoying Toastmasters I used to do in the University; big thanks to a patient guitar teacher when I am loudly strumming the guitar that I took up classes of here, in Hyderabad; a huge respect and acknowledgment to AIESEC members that are actively in touch for any inquiry; a warm Thank you! to the Global Support Team Talent Program, to my team members and to our new value - Activating Randomness :). This is promise # 4.

Last, but not the least, rediscovering the life with its forms and angles, with its smells and touches, with its gentleness and sharpness is going on. It will never stop unless I say so to myself. Therefore, final promise # 5 dated Nov 2- Dec 31st, 2010 is all about Love.

... This maybe scary for somebody to confess publicly about his/her fears. I am eager to take another path: to publicly declare I will do everything possible and impossible to be happy. I am already happy. I did feel it yesterday. I felt it today. I will feel it tomorrow.

My HAPPYness Journey is at its inception!