Ranga is a Business Analyst, Tester and IT Consultant at the Heartfulness Institute. He loves writing and he would like to explore the various dimensions of consciousness.

Ranga-Sai-Teja-D.jpg

Ranga Sai Teja D.

<h4>
    <span style="color: #893f98"><strong>RANGA SAI TEJA D.</strong></span><strong>
        challenges our perception of teamwork by looking at it as an evolutionary
        imperative, as well as a platform for differences, independence, and sharing
        a collective vision.</strong>
</h4>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
    The moment the word “teamwork” is heard, it reminds us of colleagues working
    together in an office. However, this is a very limited perspective. I would
    like to share what I have learnt about teamwork from two different
    perspectives – from the book
    <em>The Biology of Belief</em> by Bruce H. Lipton and from the Japanese anime,
    <em>One Piece</em>.
</p>

<p>
    In <em>The Biology of Belief</em>, Dr. Lipton describes the evolution of
    single-celled organisms into multicellular organisms that arose because of the
    limitation of the cell membrane at storing information in single-celled
    beings. This limitation led to the need for collaboration and teamwork between
    cells, which helped them multiply their capacities to learn and store
    information. And so they overcame their limitation.
</p>

<p>
    This chain of integration has continued for millennia, leading to the current
    state of evolution of various organisms and species. In fact, the beauty of
    evolution has been based on collaboration among cells. Slowly, in the process,
    certain cells developed specialist expertise, leading to the creation of
    organs that would help the organism to thrive.
</p>

<p>
    Now, imagine how spectacular it is when three trillion cells work together.
    Isn’t that wonderful? Such is a human being! When seen from the perspective of
    a microbiologist, a human is a conglomeration of many millions of cells
    working together as a single being. This being uses mechanisms similar to an
    organization or a nation, with various tasks under different departments for
    the development of the organization or the nation.
</p>

<p>
    For example, just as a nation has a border-security force for protection
    against external attack, and a police force to maintain law and order within
    society, our body has white blood cells to protect us from antigens, and the
    skin works as a border security force to protect us from external influences,
    like heat, rain, and dust. Similarly, there are many cells that are experts in
    their own fields, which together form various organs that work for the body as
    a whole. To further the beauty of evolution, most of these species have also
    learned to live and move together in groups and communities, forming various
    ecosystems. And these ecosystems have come together as one world on planet
    Earth.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<div class="block-image">
    <figure>
        <img decoding="async" width="700" height="590" alt="Beauty_of_teamwork2" class="lazyload has-img-center"
            src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/Beauty_of_teamwork2_700x590_9ad193c181.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T06:30:08.322Z" />
    </figure>
</div>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h4 class="has-text-align-center">
    <span style="color: #9b643d">The most important thing is to<br />give our best as
        individuals,<br />for
        our evolution,<br />while striving together for<br />the combined higher
        cause.</span>
</h4>

<hr />

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
    The most important thing is to give our best as individuals, for our
    evolution, while striving together for the combined higher cause. Here, I
    would like to share the conversation between two characters from the Japanese
    anime, <em>One Piece</em>. Dr. Chopper, who has joined the group recently, is
    wondering whether he has boarded the wrong pirate ship, joining the wrong
    team. He asks Zoro, the first mate, the first person to join the agonists of
    the team.
</p>

<p>
    They start talking about why each one joined the crew. Chopper remarks that
    the crew seems so wild compared to him. Zoro then starts talking about how
    everyone has different goals, but their goal to be the best in what they do
    unites them.
</p>

<p>
    <span style="color: #893f98"><strong>The following conversation ensues:</strong></span>
</p>

<p>Chopper: You’re the oldest member of the crew, right?</p>

<p>
    Zoro: It’s not like there’s much difference between the older members and the
    newer ones.
</p>

<p>
    Chopper: Why did you join him [the captain]? I’ve only just joined the crew.
    And everyone looks kinda wild and independent, to me. Especially you, Zoro.
</p>

<p>
    Zoro: That’s true. In my case, things just happened to turn out like this or
    something like that anyway. The rest of the crew are like me, too. Our true
    objectives are different from his.
</p>

<p>
    Luffy [agonist]: We’re all trying to accomplish our own goals. Jeez … someone
    once said that from the outside we don’t appear to have any teamwork, since
    everyone is independent from the captain. That’s a problem.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<div class="block-image">
    <figure>
        <img decoding="async" width="700" height="590" alt="" class="lazyload has-img-center"
            src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/Beauty_of_teamwork3_700x590_37d9187b2c.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T06:31:32.639Z" />
    </figure>
</div>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>Chopper: I think so, too.</p>

<p>
    Zoro: But what does teamwork really mean anyway? Is it just about rescuing and
    protecting each other? There are people who believe that. But to me, that just
    sounds like kids playing around. Everyone should do what they can with their
    lives on the line, and then say to the next guy, “I did what I could. Now it’s
    your turn. If you don’t finish it … I’ll come and kick you!” Isn’t that how
    teamwork first comes about? When I look at it that way, I think it’s okay to
    have
    <em>nakama </em>[friends] that are wild and independent. That’s just how I
    think.
</p>

<p>
    This is the beauty of teamwork and the spectacular magnificence of
    collaboration and evolution.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h4 class="has-text-align-center">
    Original photographs by C. ANANTHA PADMANABAN
</h4>

<hr />

The beauty of teamwork

Ranjani is an educator, researcher, writer, and curriculum developer. She has a doctorate in education, is a mother of three teens, and currently teaches high school math and is the Director of Heartfulness Programs for Schools, USA, that promote social-emotional learning and holistic development of future generations.

RanjaniIyer.jpg

Ranjani Iyer

<h3 style="text-align:center;"><span style="color:#F3853D;"><strong>DEVELOPING PEACE INSIDE OUT</strong></span></h3><h4><span style="color:hsl(0, 0%, 60%);"><strong>DR. RANJANI IYER, SYLVIE BERTI-ROSSI,</strong></span><span style="color:#1155CC;"><strong> </strong></span><span style="color:hsl(0,0%,0%);"><strong>and </strong></span><span style="color:hsl(0, 0%, 60%);"><strong>SHARAT HEGDE</strong></span><span style="color:hsl(120,75%,60%);"><strong> </strong></span><span style="color:#222222;"><strong>from the Peacefulness Movement explore the need for peace with globalization and increasingly rich diversity across the world.&nbsp;</strong></span></h4><p>&nbsp;</p><p style="text-align:justify;"><span style="color:#222222;">According to the Oxford English Dictionary, “diversity” is defined as “the practice or quality of including or involving people from a range of different social and ethnic backgrounds and of different genders, sexual orientations, etc.” We see diversity as a huge strength in developing creative and critical thinking to promote excellence, efficiency, and overall well-being. This applies to corporates, educational institutions, and other organizations that work collaboratively to utilize diverse perspectives to increase engagement and robust interactions.&nbsp;</span></p><p style="text-align:justify;"><span style="color:#222222;">With diversity comes the need for conflict management due to differences in perspectives, knowledge, and points of view. One of the ways to embrace diversity is to “TAP into Peacefulness” and learn to maintain an attitude of mutual respect, open-mindedness, willingness to listen, and collaborative working in peace.&nbsp;</span></p><p style="text-align:justify;"><span style="color:#222222;">TAP into Peacefulness can build skills to connect within and with each other. By becoming peaceful, by being peace, we radiate peace and become peaceful ambassadors. Here is how to do it:</span></p><h4 style="text-align:justify;"><span style="color:#F3853D;">1. Take a moment to pause:&nbsp;</span></h4><p style="margin-left:40px;text-align:justify;"><span style="color:#222222;">Research suggests that the practice of pause helps in creating the space to relate emotions and activates the parasympathetic nervous system to induce the feeling of calmness.&nbsp;</span><a href="https://hbr.org/2015/02/5-ways-to-become-more-self-aware"><span style="color:#1155CC;"><u>Self-awareness</u></span></a><span style="color:#222222;"> lies at the root of strong character, giving us the ability to lead with a sense of purpose, authenticity, openness, and trust.&nbsp;</span></p><p style="margin-left:40px;text-align:justify;"><span style="color:#222222;">You can use a daily check-in to create self-awareness and develop an inner connection to understand your&nbsp;</span><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DNjq_k9BPlW6bh9v2Dg6w5RabuHkbJ0S/view?usp=sharing"><span style="color:#1155CC;"><u>feelings and emotions</u></span></a><span style="color:#1155CC;"><u>,</u></span><span style="color:#222222;"> use the&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.mindful.org/the-power-of-pause/"><span style="color:#1155CC;"><u>power of pause practice</u></span></a><span style="color:#222222;"> to schedule a one to two minute break in between your busy schedule, or even take an unscheduled short break to avoid mental fatigue. A calm and reflective mind leads to correct thinking and right understanding, that will help you be more efficient, avoid stress and be at peace.&nbsp;</span></p><figure class="image"><img src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/TAP_into_Peacefulness2_dfe40483c4.jpg"></figure><h4 style="text-align:justify;"><span style="color:#F3853D;">2. <strong>A</strong>dopt the attitude, be one with yourself:&nbsp;</span></h4><p style="margin-left:40px;text-align:justify;"><span style="color:#222222;">A positive mindset promotes creativity, empathy, connection, and resilience to overcome difficulties more quickly. Working toward a positive attitude and an attitude to excel, you will connect with self and others by expressing&nbsp;</span><a href="https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_gratitude_changes_you_and_your_brain"><span style="color:#1155CC;"><u>gratitude</u></span></a><span style="color:#222222;">, heartful&nbsp;</span><a href="https://6fb734da-c7da-4a3e-97f2-70aba86275fd.filesusr.com/ugd/d7a5fa_63ec707c66824868971e763876c18021.pdf"><span style="color:#1155CC;"><u>affirmations</u></span></a><span style="color:#222222;">, setting short-term and long-term goals, working towards them, and creating a community that offers a sense of belonging. Finding time to reflect, relax, and rejuvenate opens up space for reflective thinking as well as prioritizes self-care.&nbsp;</span><a href="https://www.lybrate.com/topic/heartfulness-meditation-how-it-is-beneficial/2d8cb243d75765dce2379d82fddaf777"><span style="color:#1155CC;"><u>Heartfulness practices</u></span></a><span style="color:#222222;"> take us on an inner journey, and that journey starts in the heart as we develop the 5 Cs of Contentment, Calm, Compassion, Courage, and Clarity, which are the foundation of our mental, emotional, and social intelligence.</span></p><h4 style="text-align:justify;"><span style="color:#F3853D;">3. <strong>P</strong>ractice peace, your way:&nbsp;</span></h4><p style="margin-left:40px;text-align:justify;"><span style="color:#222222;">A variety of resources and intentional ways to practice peace can be utilized to connect with the heart and think peaceful thoughts that can promote peace from the inside out.&nbsp;Peace is our true nature and, when we connect with peace within ourselves, we radiate it to others and to our environment.&nbsp;</span></p><p style="margin-left:40px;text-align:justify;"><a href="https://www.peacefulness.org/"><span style="color:#1155CC;"><u>Peaceful Intentions</u></span></a><span style="color:#222222;"> will give you time to center and ground yourself, connect to your heart, and finally choose an intention. Silently repeat the words of the intention, and go slowly enough that you can both imagine and feel its true meaning. Let it spread to everything and everyone around you.</span></p><figure class="image"><img src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/Hand_ebebb9124c.webp"></figure><p style="text-align:justify;"><span style="color:#222222;">Everyone can benefit by learning ways to tap into peace, as it promotes interconnectedness and inclusion that help us to handle conflicts and collaborate in a more empathetic and effective way. In this complex world, as new perspectives are developed, they can provide better opportunities for innovation, creativity, and problem-solving.</span></p>

TAP into Peacefulness  

Ranjani is an educator, researcher, writer, and curriculum developer. She has a doctorate in education, is a mother of three teens, and currently teaches high school math and is the Director of Heartfulness Programs for Schools, USA, that promote social-emotional learning and holistic development of future generations.

Jay is an academic hospitalist in internal medicine at Wellspan York hospital, who has published several research articles on the effect of Heartfulness Meditation on lowering stress and burnout, and improving sleep. He has received numerous awards and regularly conducts stress management workshops. He is a TEDx speaker.

Ranjani-Jay.jpg

Ranjani Iyer and Jayaram Thimmapuram

<h4 class="block-heading"
  id="h-dr-ranjani-iyer-and-dr-jay-thimmapuram-encourage-contemplative-practices-to-combat-loneliness-they-also-share-other-easy-ways-we-can-adopt-to-ensure-we-don-t-give-in-to-loneliness">
  <strong><mark style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: #e43425">DR. RANJANI
      IYER</mark>
    and
    <mark style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: #3c54a5">DR. JAY THIMMAPURAM</mark>
    encourage contemplative practices to combat loneliness. They also share
    other easy ways we can adopt to ensure we don’t give in to
    loneliness.</strong>
</h4>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  There is an innate need in all of us to be connected. But when there is a gap
  between the innate longing to be connected and the actualization, loneliness
  can result. While many of us associate loneliness with being alone, it is not
  the only cause of feeling lonely. While being alone may predispose us to
  feeling lonely, many studies show that the perception of loneliness is much
  higher in the younger generations.
</p>

<p>
  Young people are the most digitally connected. Digital connection outweighs
  personal connection. In a recent survey conducted by CIGNA, Generation Z was
  found to be one of the loneliest generations. What does this tell us? That it
  is not just about the number of people we are connected to on social media; it
  is about the meaningfulness and depth of these connections. Data point to the
  fact that even if we relate to one person and that connection is deep and
  meaningful, it can be an antidote to loneliness. Even a connection with pets
  can be helpful.&nbsp;&nbsp;
</p>

<p>
  Interestingly, even children and young adults are subjected to this perception
  of loneliness.&nbsp;Many high schoolers, while surrounded by people, still
  feel lonely. Studies suggest that chronic loneliness in generation Z has links
  to health issues such as anxiety, depression, substance abuse, self-harm, and
  even heart conditions.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h4 class="has-text-align-center block-heading">
  <mark style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: #dba329">In the meditation process,
    when we gently close our eyes <br />and connect
    to an inner sublime state within our hearts, <br />a gradual change occurs
    in the inner landscape, <br />and our relationship with ourselves becomes
    harmonious.</mark>
</h4>

<hr />

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  In 2020, a team of high schoolers created a 4-week program to engage with
  their peers and build a community focused on self-care. With quarantine and
  social isolation leading to increased perceptions of loneliness in this age
  group, a study was conducted to focus on the impact of the self-care program
  on levels of loneliness in the students. The participants received an
  E-portfolio that included daily activities for self-care and guided
  Heartfulness practices. They also participated in four webinars, focusing on
  stress-management, positivity, improving sleep quality by aligning with
  circadian rhythms, and setting goals using self-observation.&nbsp;
</p>

<p>
  This short program of self-care tools led to decreasing loneliness scores in
  the participants, and opened a new valley of possibilities to help our young
  children combat loneliness. A follow-up study, extended to three schools
  globally, has shown that this self-care program could help decrease loneliness
  and anxiety and improve life satisfaction in teens and adults, thus improving
  the health and well-being of the whole school community.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<div class="block-image">
  <figure>
    <img decoding="async" width="600" height="747" alt="loneliness2" class="has-img-center lazyload"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/loneliness2_323cd2a5aa.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T10:14:55.833Z" />
  </figure>
</div>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  While many people experience loneliness, healthcare professionals are some of
  the most prone to loneliness. In a study conducted at Well Span York hospital,
  half the healthcare professionals, including the physicians and advanced
  practice providers, felt lonely. While there are many strategies, including
  improving social connections and engaging in activities that provide
  meaningful, pleasant enjoyment, other strategies may also help. One of these
  is Heartfulness Meditation, as loneliness is not only about our connection
  with others, but also about the relationship we have with ourselves. If that
  inner connection is harmonious, it can facilitate a feeling of connection even
  in the absence of significant outer changes. In the meditation process, when
  we gently close our eyes and connect to an inner sublime state within our
  hearts, a gradual change occurs in the inner landscape, and our relationship
  with ourselves becomes harmonious. The resulting inner connection can
  facilitate a connection with the outer world.
</p>

<p>
  In this study, sleep data were also measured. Previous studies have shown that
  the practice of Heartfulness Meditation improves sleep patterns. A well-rested
  mind is better able to socialize, where as a poorly-rested mind may not be so
  willing to interact with others. If we facilitate rest for the mind, we can
  reduce the perception of loneliness. In this study, for&nbsp;the weekly
  offering of Heartfulness, an introduction was given to the participants. The
  UCLA Loneliness Scale and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index were used to measure
  loneliness and sleep.
</p>

<p>
  Four weeks of Heartfulness Meditation practice resulted in a reduction in the
  perception of loneliness and an improvement in the perception of sleep. While
  this is encouraging, loneliness may also need to be addressed in all possible
  ways.&nbsp;
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<div class="block-image">
  <figure>
    <img decoding="async" width="700" height="601" alt="infographic-loneliness" class="has-img-center lazyload"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/infographic_loneliness_afe795cb68.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T10:16:25.321Z" />
  </figure>
</div>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<h4 class="block-heading">
  <mark style="background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); color: #e43425">References:&nbsp;</mark>
</h4>

<p>
  Iyer, R.B., S. Vadlapudi, L. Iyer, V. Kumar, L. Iyer, P. Sriram, R. Tandon, Y.
  Morel, H. Kunamneni, S. Narayanan, A. Ganti, S. Sriram, R. Tandon, S.
  Sreenivasan, S. Vijayan, and P. Iyer, 2022. Impact of the Heartfulness program
  on loneliness in high schoolers: Randomized survey study.
  <em>Applied Psychology: Health and Well-being</em>, 10.1111/aphw.12360.
</p>

<p>
  Thimmapuram, J., R. Pargament, T. Bell, H. Schurk, and D.K. Madhusudhan, 2021.
  Heartfulness meditation improves loneliness and sleep in physicians and
  advance practice providers during COVID-19 pandemic.
  <em>Hospital Practice</em> (1995), 49(3), 194–202.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h4 class="has-text-align-center block-heading">
  Illustrations by ARATI SHEDDE
</h4>

<hr />

Loneliness: a silent epidemic

Rashi Agarwal

<h4 id="h-"></h4>

<h2 class="has-text-align-center">
  <span style="color: #372977"
    ><strong>How Communication Changes Lives</strong></span
  >
</h2>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  I sat in the cab on my way to the airport as the driver zoomed over Delhi’s
  wide roads. The sun was rising over the horizon as a new day dawned – quite
  literally, as election day approached the city of Delhi.
</p>

<p>
  The political environment was charged, and so was the sense of religious
  divisiveness that came along with it. Quite naturally, everyday communications
  became political conversations, and so it happened during my cab ride.
</p>

<p>
  After exchanging a few pleasantries, quite unexpectedly our conversation took
  a heated turn, and the driver began to jab hate towards a certain religious
  community. Angered, but not wanting to destroy the state of serenity in my
  heart, I paused and imagined how my spiritual guide would take this
  conversation forward.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h5 class="has-text-align-center">
  <span style="color: #74984d"
    >I learned that instead of getting charged up, <br />by trusting the
    intrinsic goodness <br />that lies within the heart of the other,
    <br />magic can happen for both.</span
  >
</h5>

<hr />

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  The pause allowed me to step into the shoes of the driver, imagining what his
  life looked like. What was his context? How could I connect to his life, and
  appeal to the best that he represented? Holding the intrinsic goodness that
  bound us both in our hearts, we walked our conversation as if on a tightrope,
  and very beautifully it transformed.
</p>

<p>
  A conversation of hatred turned into a conversation of love. Very soon, he
  began to acknowledge the close relationships and ties he shared with the
  community members. By the end of our cab ride we thanked each other. I learned
  that instead of getting charged up, by trusting the intrinsic goodness that
  lies within the heart of the other, magic can happen for both. I was taking a
  flight home to Bangalore, and we both reconnected to the home within us – our
  Heart.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h4 class="has-text-align-center">Illustration by UMA MAHESWARI G</h4>

<hr />

The cab ride

<h4><span style="color:#DB7713;"><strong>RASHI AGRAWAL</strong></span><span style="color:#dbb314;"><strong> </strong></span><span style="color:hsl(0, 0%, 0%);"><strong>explores the world of feeling through art, words, meditation, and natural imagery.&nbsp;</strong></span></h4><hr><p><i>This whole journey of meditation is like Magic. The word in itself transports us to a land of the impossible, of fairy tales.</i></p><p><i>This is a land where clouds become cotton candy</i> <i>and the petals of a rose are a gateway to heaven.</i> <i>This is the land of change.</i></p><p><i>The Heart is a very similar kind of land, except that it is not a fairy tale. It is a reality.</i></p><p><i>It is here, where thoughts are the simple words that knock on the door of the heart, and take us to someplace higher than ourselves.</i></p><p><i>We soon find ourselves engulfed in a space, sweeter than candy, lighter than the cloud.</i></p><p><i>Welcome to the land of feelings.</i></p><p style="text-align:justify;">It seemed nonsensical to me at first, but to tell you the truth it is one of the most profound dreams that I have had, simply because it taught me how to perceive what I was feeling.</p><p style="text-align:justify;">And upon sharing this dream with my mother, she asked, “Why don’t you paint it?” There. I set off on recreating those same feelings and images. These images aren’t a delight to the eye, but hopefully they may take you on a journey very similar to the one I had.</p><p style="text-align:justify;">This dream conjured up a journal for me. It was full of articles that did not seem of much interest until I came across a particular article with images that were literally devoid on any imagery. They were empty! They had no trace of life in them. All they had were a soft yellow glow and a few shades of colour here and there. The author had very interestingy titled his article ‘The True State of the Forest’. This intrigued me.</p><p><span style="color:#f2c718;"><img src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/thinking_feeling_secret_nature_forest_2_img_e9017f0b10.jpg?updated_at=2023-03-30T07:10:50.842Z">And there lies that secret door</span></p><p style="text-align:justify;">In these images, there was nothing even remotely like a forest. There was no mud, forget trees or animals. It was just empty space, like a vacuum.</p><p style="text-align:justify;">What was the author really experiencing, and why in the world would she choose to call this empty lifeless picture a forest, and that too, in its true state? The surreality of this compelled me to read the article. As I was reading it, my imagination took a u-turn, and there I was, right in the midst of the forest as described in the image.</p><p><span style="color:#f2c718;"><img src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/thinking_feeling_secret_nature_forest_img_67f7cd370c.jpg?updated_at=2023-03-30T07:11:48.919Z">Allow yourself to be taken in</span></p><p style="text-align:justify;">According to the author, the reason why the forest looked like this (this was a secret) was because the forest, as it really is, is not the plants, trees and animals there. They are the physical manifestations of something more profound. The forest in reality is a field of energy. And only he who has entered a state of communion with it will truly be able to experience the forest in its true state, in the entirety of its energy.</p><p style="text-align:justify;">And there I stood in the midst of that forest, in the middle of an epiphany, thinking in wonder and amazement how little I knew of what I thought I knew.</p><p><span style="color:#f2c718;"><img src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/thinking_feeling_secret_nature_forest_3_img_fd2ed6c508.jpg?updated_at=2023-03-30T07:11:09.479Z">So you may be one with it</span></p><p style="text-align:justify;">I was alone there, but I was not lonely. The forest’s energy was gently saying to me that there was only love. It seemed to caress me and surround me. I was humbled because the forest had let me in, and allowed me to feel her. She was all around me. I could not see her, but her harmony had taken me in, mothered me, and I knew that this was my refuge. This was the place where I truly belonged.</p><p>I wasn’t thinking all this, because I was potentially seeing nothing. The forest had allowed me to feel what it was to truly feel.</p><p style="text-align:center;"><img src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/thinking_feeling_secret_nature_forest_4_img_e52ef59ea4.jpg?updated_at=2023-03-30T07:11:26.459Z&quot;"><span style="color:#dbb314;">To feel our heart’s embrace</span></p><p style="text-align:justify;">This was the end of my dream.</p><p style="text-align:justify;">Hellen Keller once said that the most beautiful things are felt in the Heart. What could be more honest a statement than this?</p><p style="text-align:justify;">The forest was the heart’s embrace. It wasn’t my heart, or your heart. It was the Heart of the World. It was our Heart, something in which everything and everybody have comfortably manifested themselves. We are only to realize that we are all tiny, humble, yet significant parts of it, and all of us are connected by virtue of the very same embrace</p><hr><h4 style="text-align:center;"><strong>Paintings by RASHI AGRAWAL</strong></h4><hr>

From thinking to feeling: the secret nature of the forest

Rashmi is a writer, entrepreneur, and motivational speaker. An author of ten bestselling books on entrepreneurship, Rashmi is the #1 business books author in India. Her books include Stay Hungry Stay Foolish, Connect the Dots, I Have a Dream, God’s Own Kitchen, Touch the Sky, and We Are Champions.

Rashmi-Bansal.jpg

Rashmi Bansal

The road less traveled

Rathna Yaldaparast

<h4><strong>RATHNA YALDAPARAST is a Senior Consultant at Deloitte and a longtime Heartfulness practitioner. Here, she describes how a spiritual practice has helped her connect with herself and others.</strong></h4><hr><p>In a world increasingly intertwined, it is overwhelming to look out and be faced with all the issues we are yet to resolve. It is easy to lose ourselves when constantly chasing after something more, never content with what is right in front of us. It is easy to pass off issues that don’t impact us directly as “someone else’s problem,” or to convince ourselves that there are other more talented and well-qualified people to tackle the injustices in our world. Often we recede into ourselves, trying to disconnect from the rest of the world and its endless problems.</p><p>How can I, with all my imperfections and doubts, possibly make a difference?</p><p>Spirituality is a welcome escape from the pressures and the stresses of everyday life. It allows us to focus on inner growth, to develop at our own pace without the pressures of competition or deadlines. It offers a momentary escape with singular clarity and provides comfort in solitude. It is easy to lose ourselves in the “high” of the peace, the serenity of being alone without feeling lonely, and the escape from the stress and pressure of everyday life. What is not easy is coming back, finding a way to be part of this world after experiencing such profound relief.</p><p>But the point of spirituality is not to escape. It is to live a balanced life. Instead of using spirituality to seclude ourselves, we can use it to connect with the people around us. As we dive deeper, and discover that there is more to life than what is outside us, we can then balance our attention between the inner and outer. By gaining deeper clarity about ourselves, we are more capable of the compassion and acceptance required to understand those around us, even those with whom we have nothing in common.</p><hr><hr><h4>By gaining deeper clarity about ourselves,&nbsp;<br>we are more capable of the compassion and acceptance&nbsp;<br>required to understand those around us,&nbsp;<br>even those with whom we have nothing in common.&nbsp;</h4><hr><hr><p>In response to the world’s misfortune, Walt Whitman wrote, “that you are here – that life exists and identity, that the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse<i>.</i>” To live a meaningful life is to actively participate in the place and time we in habit. We achieve balance in ourselves and in our lives, and recognize that doing so cannot be accomplished by isolating our lives from the world. Peace within sustains peace on the outside. Spirituality teaches us how to live with ourselves; relationships teach us how to live with each other. Learning to live with ourselves and accept our imperfections shows us how to live with and accept each other as we are. Approaching ourselves with patience and compassion gives us the capacity to treat each other in the same manner.</p><hr><hr><h4>Peace within sustains peace on the outside.</h4><hr><hr><p>A <a href="https://heartfulness.org/magazine/the-science-behind-creating-a-daily-meditation-practice" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">spiritual practice</a> dissolves the walls we build around ourselves, and removes the barriers we use to compartmentalize problems as “someone else’s.” We learn to accept that each one of us has a responsibility to contribute to the world in a meaningful way. By choosing to be a part of this world, by living our lives in a purposeful manner, and by improving ourselves from the inside out, we create a more compassionate and accepting society.</p><p>The first step, the hardest step, is to begin. Make that choice and your life may contribute a verse.</p><hr>

How to connect with yourself and others

Rathnam Parthasarathi

<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h3 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #c9144b;">GENERATION NOW</span></h3>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: justify;">According to Google, the definition of generosity of the heart is, “One of the ways we
    come into balance and connection with each other; life is by giving from the heart. When we give to others, whether
    it’s an act of kindness, generosity, or compassion, it helps us live from the heart instead of the ego.” If you
    perform an action from the heart, whether it’s something as small as giving the last cookie to your younger sister,
    or as big as donating one million dollars to COVID-19 relief funds, it is because of generosity of the heart. If we
    take it a step further, we can even call it love.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The idea of love seems like a very twisted concept nowadays, but it is actually quite
    simple. When you really give generously from the heart, it’s because of the love you have for other human beings. It
    doesn’t matter if you just met them, or if they are a blood relative, or if you’re in a relationship with them. On a
    fundamental level, it is due to the love you have for them; that’s where the idea of generosity stems from.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">I distinctly remember a childhood memory, which is spoken about by my dad even to this
    day. At the age of three, I had been suffering from severe fever for about two days, and no amount of medicine or
    time seemed to help. It was only after my mother stayed up for two days without rest or food, sick from worry, did I
    finally begin to heal. Today, as I ruminate over this event, I feel like I was healed because of her sheer
    willpower. She refused to let anything happen to me, and her will and love healed me.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Generosity allows your heart to open up to love, compassion, and other positive emotions
    that allow humans to experience their true self. As is often said, “Generosity is a practical expression of love.”
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RATHNAM PARTHASARATHI</h4>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>

Love and generosity

<p>Ravi lives in Atlanta, Georgia, and is currently the Chief Executive Officer at Cantaloupe. He is also a regular public speaker and public speaking coach. He has been a Heartfulness meditator for over 20 years and is passionate about applying meditation lessons to improve workplace relationships and productivity.</p>

Ravi-Venkatesan.jpg

Ravi Venkatesan

<h4>In the last 4 articles, RAVI VENKATESAN has talked about the reasons public speakers fail, the 27Cs of good communication, body language and voice modulation, and the ‘power of pause’. In  part 5 he shifts from the science to the art of Heartful presenting, with a focus on ‘Presence’.</h4>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"></h5>
<p style="text-align: center;"></p>
<hr>
<h3 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #c49d00;">Presence</span></h3>
<p style="text-align: center;"></p>
<hr>
<p style="text-align: justify;">
We are evaluated and judged, even as we walk onto a stage. This happens subconsciously, before we have uttered a single word. There are simple external factors like the clothes we wear, and more subliminal factors like our thoughts and feelings as we walk in, which combine to establish our Presence.

To understand the importance of Presence and how to purposefully establish it, try the following simple exercises:</p>
<p style="text-align: center;">
<img class="has-img-center" src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/presentation1_f142c23c3e.jpg?updated_at=2023-03-30T05:05:33.907Z" /></p>
<h6 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #c49d00;">With a group of friends or co-workers, have one person walk in as if they are about to present on a topic. Before they say anything, ask the group to comment on the person by saying, “I felt that she brought a _______ presence to the room,” and filling in the blank. You will be surprised at the types of comments you receive. This will bring to light how subconscious evaluation happens.</span></h6>
<p style="text-align: center;">
<img class="has-img-center" src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/presentation2_149d043b09.jpg?updated_at=2023-03-30T05:05:56.528Z" /></p>
<h6 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #c49d00;">Ask the same person to now think about what presence they would like to bring, for example, confident, casual, somber, authoritative, serious, joyful, etc. Have them walk in again, without sharing with the group what presence they wanted to bring. Now ask the group to comment again as before. This exercise will bring to light how much the presence of a person can shift simply based on intent.</span></h6>
<p style="text-align: center;"></p>
<hr>
<p style="text-align: justify;">
There are 5 Cs that need to be mastered to establish presence in public speaking:</p>
<h4><span style="color: #c49d00;">CREDIBLE</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">It is very important to establish upfront who you are, why are you qualified to speak about your topic, and why your audience should listen to you. For example, if you are speaking about the importance of balancing exercise, nutrition and meditation for overall wellness, it would help to start with a statement like, “I have been an avid Yoga practitioner and meditation instructor for over 20 years. I have also been a nutrition consultant for the last 2 years. I am passionate about helping people create balance in their lives through better nutrition, exercise and meditation.”</p>

<h4><span style="color: #c49d00;">CONFIDENT</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Confidence arising out of preparation and self-belief is essential to elicit attention. The best way to develop confidence is to speak to a large group in the same way you would have a conversation. Simply make eye contact with one person at a time, and say whatever you have to say, as if you are having a conversation. Self-belief comes from knowing that you are the expert in whatever message you are here to deliver, irrespective of whether or not you are the expert in a particular field.</p>

<h4><span style="color: #c49d00;">CURRENT</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">
Use approaches that are in vogue with the times and the environment. For example, if you are doing a TED talk, don’t stand behind a podium. Use visual aids appropriately to highlight key points. Ask questions so that you use an ‘inquiry-based learning’ style.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #c49d00;">CHARISMATIC</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Let your natural personality shine through. This is the simplest way to develop charisma. Most of us believe that charisma is something natural, and you either have it or you don’t. The reality is that most charismatic people have worked on it. Charisma is there in all of us, but inhibitions and the fear of being judged block it. To overcome this, practice speaking and having conversations with a firm belief that you are not being judged. Deliberately go to the edge of what you are comfortable saying.</p>

<h4><span style="color: #c49d00;">COURAGEOUS</span></h4>
Be spontaneous. Don’t be afraid to go off script. Courage naturally attracts people. This is because it inspires confidence and builds interest. When you get on stage and speak, you are also leading your audience. They need to feel that you are not just there to read a script, but to share something from your heart.

<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<hr>

The heartful presenter - part 5

<figcaption>Happy Young Family Having Fun on Beach at Sunset</figcaption>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <h3 style="text-align: center">
      <span style="color: #2f90a3">Sustainable outcomes</span><br />
      <span style="color: #2f90a3"> through heartful negotiations</span>
    </h3>
    <p>&nbsp;</p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <h4>
      In part 1, <span style="color: #d15c5c">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> looked at
      how prior disposition, ideas and thoughts, as well as emotions and
      feelings, play a huge part in negotiation. In this article we’ll dive
      deeper into what makes up prior disposition, and how to best manage it.
    </h4>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p>&nbsp;</p>
    <h4 style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #cf4e4e">Prior Disposition</span>
    </h4>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Disposition is defined as the natural or prevailing aspect of one’s mind
      as shown in behavior and in relationships with others; for example, a
      happy disposition, a selfish disposition, etc.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      When we enter a negotiation, there will be emotional and intellectual
      reactions that we have to what happens as part of that interaction.
      However, even before that, we each carry a disposition into that space,
      which heavily influences how things flow. Molding this disposition is a
      key first step to optimal negotiations. We will look at four specific
      aspects of disposition – Likes and Dislikes, Worries and Concerns,
      Desires, and Guilt.
    </p>
    <h4 style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #cf4e4e">Likes and Dislikes</span>
    </h4>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Think of a part of your heart reacting to everything that happens – from
      the physical space, to the chair you sit in, to the color of the walls
      around you, to the person in front of you, etc. Some of the reactions are
      strong enough to come to your conscious mind; others don’t make it to the
      surface, but nevertheless impact how you feel. Remember, the same thing is
      happening for the person with whom you are negotiating.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      The key here is to observe carefully what reactions your heart has to
      various things, as you enter a negotiation space, and consciously bring
      yourself to a ‘neutral stance’. In other words dial down any strong likes
      as well as strong dislikes that come up.
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p>
      <img
        class="lazyload w-100 h-auto"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_negotiator_1_img_1fda52631a.jpg?updated_at=2023-03-31T06:05:00.724Z"
        alt="heartful_negotiator"
      />
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <h4 style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #2f90a3">To make this real,</span><br />
      <span style="color: #2f90a3"> try the following exercise</span>
    </h4>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Take a typical negotiation exercise that you go through on a regular
      basis. For example, if you are a manager, then take the interaction of
      providing assignments to a staff member, or if are an individual
      contributor, then take the interaction of discussing a new assignment with
      your boss. Think about things that feel pleasant or unpleasant about this
      interaction, and trace them back to your likes and dislikes. For example,
      each time you receive a new assignment you may feel anxious, and this may
      be because you like more specifics and details and your boss likes to
      provide high-level direction and empower you.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Try to approach the same interaction by setting your disposition to a
      neutral stance. To do this, consciously recall and dial down your strong
      likes and dislikes. This will lead you to being more open-minded. See if
      the interaction felt any different. A lot of times our disposition,
      especially strong likes and dislikes, will create reactions that prevent
      the best outcomes. Practicing this exercise and making it part of muscle
      memory, will go a long way to addressing this.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      In summary, prior to a negotiation, recall your strong likes and dislikes,
      reduce them consciously to bring yourself to a neutral and open-minded
      state of mind. See what shifts come out of this.
    </p>
    <h4 style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #cf4e4e">Worries and Concerns</span>
    </h4>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      We all carry a bundle of worries and concerns with us all the time. These
      are mostly career or job related and family related, but can be from other
      sources as well. When we enter negotiations, these concerns weigh on us,
      and many times prevent us from reaching optimal outcomes. We cannot wish
      these concerns away; however, we can use a powerful Heartfulness
      meditation technique to alter our disposition prior to a negotiation. When
      our worries and concerns are aggravated during a negotiation, it often
      feels like the person we are negotiating with is an adversary. So if we
      start with a feeling that they are like a family member, like a brother or
      a sister, then we will approach the conversation with more ease, and reach
      a better understanding. To develop a general feeling of this kind in our
      disposition, we can simply close our eyes and meditate with our attention
      on our heart, for five to ten minutes every night, thinking that everyone
      is our brother or sister. Try this for a week before your next high stakes
      negotiation, and notice the difference in your disposition, in how you
      look at your colleagues, and the outcomes.
    </p>
    <h4 style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #cf4e4e">Desires</span>
    </h4>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      All of us have desires and aspirations. Many times, they tend to cloud our
      judgement, especially when we enter the negotiation table. They keep us
      focused on our interest and the other person’s position versus reaching a
      place of common understanding. The simple task of writing down the top two
      or three things that we desire, resolving to be mindful of these during
      the negotiation process, will prevent them from unexpectedly influencing
      the negotiation.
    </p>
    <h4 style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #cf4e4e">Guilt</span>
    </h4>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      The worst burden we carry is guilt. It comes from both wrong action and
      inaction – not acting where we should have. Guilt creates a heaviness that
      can put a major cloud over any negotiation process, completely blocking
      open discussion and creative generation of outcomes. There are no simple
      and easy answers to deal with guilt, especially if it exists at a
      subconscious level. Here is the Heartfulness practice that helps
      tremendously:
    </p>
    <p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify">
      Spend a few minutes each night before sleep, go into your heart, review
      the day, repent for any mistakes that might have been committed, even
      unknowingly, and genuinely resolve not to repeat these.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      This clears the burden from our hearts and leaves us feeling lighter. Try
      this for a week and see if your disposition changes.
    </p>
    <p>
      In summary, practice the two Heartfulness methods suggested, along with
      dialing down strong likes and dislikes, and writing down your top two or
      three desires prior to your next negotiation. See how that shifts your
      prior disposition.
    </p>
    <p>
      In further articles we’ll explore what happens during the actual
      negotiation, and how to manage feelings and emotions in the heart as well
      as the ideas and thoughts in the mind to achieve the best outcomes.
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <hr />
    <h4 style="text-align: center">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
    <hr />

The heartful negotiator - part 2

<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ff0000;">Influence minds and win hearts</span></h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h5>Last month RAVI VENKATESAN shared his understanding of why speakers fail. In Part 2 of the series he shares the
    aspects of communication we need to explore in order to refine and improve our presentation skills, focusing on body
    language.</h5>
<p style="text-align: center;"></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Here are the 27 Cs categorized under 5 focus areas:</p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #ff0000;"><strong>BODY LANGUAGE </strong></span>– calm, comfortable,
    composed, choreographed and consistent</p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #ff0000;"><strong>VOICE <span
                style="color: #ff0000;">MODULATION</span></strong></span> – clear, crisp, controlled, civil, and charged
</p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #ff0000;"><strong>PRESENCE</strong> </span>– confident, credible,
    current, charismatic and courageous</p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #ff0000;"><strong>EMPATHY</strong></span> – caring, compassionate,
    connected, context-aware, careful and conversational</p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #ff0000;"><strong>IMPACT</strong></span> – concise, compelling,
    creative, convincing and comprehensive</p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><img class="lazyload has-img-center"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartfulpresenter3_vol7_48914f62b6.jpg">
</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Let’s dive deeper into body language. Research shows that body language accounts for 55%
    of all communication. Non-verbal expression makes a very significant difference to the impact of your presentation.
</p>
<h5 style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">CALM</span></strong></h5>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Many times even seasoned speakers have ‘nerves’. Classic symptoms are rapid heartbeat,
    shivers, a dry mouth and a shaky voice. Relax yourself and breathe deeply to get rid of this. Do a quick version of
    the Heartfulness Relaxation if needed. You can find this at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuiV395xI4I.</p>
<h5 style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">COMFORTABLE</span></strong></h5>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Take your time to get comfortable with the environment. Preferably visit the day before,
    or arrive early. Soak in the atmosphere and feel like you command the space.</p>
<h5 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff0000;"><strong>COMPOSED</strong></span></h5>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Maintain a balanced state within and a steady posture. This will reflect as your poise.
    Your feet should be shoulder width apart and point straight ahead. Men tend to keep their feet at 10 o’clock and 2
    o’clock. Women tend to lean on one leg and then shift to the other.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><img class="lazyload has-img-center"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartfulpresenter2_vol7_591517be88.jpg">
</p>
<h5 style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">CHOREOGRAPHED</span></strong></h5>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Always stand still and make eye contact with one person in the audience at a time while
    speaking, even if there are thousands of people present. Pause and shift to another person and resume speaking.
    Pause while moving, and resume eye contact and stand still before speaking again. This will make your movement on
    stage appear purposeful and impactful.</p>
<h5 style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">CONSISTENT</span></strong></h5>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Ensure that your body language supports your words. This will amplify the perception
    that you mean what you say and say what you mean. For example, if you are describing a big new idea, spreading your
    arms wide open is better than bringing them together.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In the next article, we’ll dive deeper into voice modulation. Till then have fun
    practicing these techniques to refine your body language.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p></p>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>

The heartful presenter - part 2

<hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <h3 style="text-align: center">Feelings and Emotions in the Heart</h3>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p>
      <span style="color: #b51029"
        >In the previous
        <a
          style="color: #b51029"
          href="//www.heartfulnessmagazine.com/heartful-negotiator-part-2/"
          >2 articles</a
        >
        of the series, RAVI VENKATESAN set a framework for how prior
        disposition, ideas, thoughts, emotions and feelings all play a huge part
        in negotiation. He also took a deeper look at what constitutes prior
        disposition as we walk into a negotiation. In this article he’ll take a
        look at real life negotiation scenarios and explore the role that some
        of these feelings and emotions play. He’ll also review some tips and
        tricks on how to manage feelings and emotions.</span
      >
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p>
      Feelings and emotions in the heart always come in dualities. Broadly these
      can be categorized into 5 main sets of opposites.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: center">
      <img
        alt="heartful_negotiator3c_img"
        class="has-img-center lazyload"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_negotiator3c_img_eed0583c41.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-03T03:42:13.390Z"
      />
    </p>
    <h4><span style="color: #b51029">Greed versus Contentment</span></h4>
    <p>
      This opposite forms the basis for most feelings and emotions, and so it is
      most important. Let’s take a scenario where Sam and Janet, a young couple,
      are trying to decide on where to go for their next vacation. They have
      both been saving up for this vacation for a couple of years and want to go
      someplace really nice. In many ways Sam and Janet are a great example of
      ‘opposites attract’. Sam is always looking for more. He wants to get the
      best deal and squeeze out the best advantage. Janet tends to be content
      with whatever she gets and is careful to not over reach.
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p>
      <img
        alt="heartful_negotiator3b_img"
        class="has-img-center lazyload"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_negotiator3b_img_f7944b5525.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-03T03:43:04.826Z"
      />
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p>
      <span style="color: #b51029">Sam:</span> Let’s go to Paris this time. It
      is great in the summer, and such a romantic destination.
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #339966">Janet:</span> I thought we could go to Laguna
      Beach. The tickets would be cheaper, and we could save some money for
      another trip during Christmas.
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #b51029">Sam:</span> We’ve worked so hard for this. I
      really want to make this a big one. Why not go all out?
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #339966">Janet:</span> All right. I do want you to be
      happy. Let’s do Paris then.
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #b51029">Sam:</span> Let’s go all out and fly first
      class. I can get a personal loan from work.
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #339966">Janet:</span> I don’t think that is a good
      idea. We are already going to spend all our savings on this. What if
      either of us loses our jobs?
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #b51029">Sam: </span>Now, why would you think of a
      thing like that! If you don’t want to go then let’s just not go.
    </p>
    <p>
      Let’s pause and ponder over this simple negotiation. Many of us have gone
      through similar experiences. Sam negotiated effectively making a case for
      why they should go to Paris. Janet was reluctant but agreed. However, Sam
      got greedy and this took the whole negotiation off the rails. Many times,
      when we let greed creep in, it triggers an angry response from the other
      side, and then we have to make more concessions to get back to the same
      place. This is exactly why we should carefully avoid greed in a
      negotiation.
    </p>
    <h6>
      <span style="color: #339966"
        >Tips to manage greed versus contentment:</span
      >
    </h6>
    <h6 style="padding-left: 30px">
      Whenever you articulate your position, ask yourself the question,“Do I
      really need this, or am I trying to get more just to get more?” Note, many
      times we will express a position that is more than we need, just so that
      we can leave some room to negotiate. This is fine as long as we are
      sensitive to how the other person will perceive our position.
    </h6>
    <h6 style="padding-left: 30px">
      Feel free to call out greed politely and respectfully. For example, you
      can say, “That is a stretch. Do you really need that, or would it be nice
      if you could get that?” Or you could say, “Is that a nice to have or a
      must have?” These types of questions can help rope in greed in the other
      person.
    </h6>
    <h4><span style="color: #b51029">Peace versus Restlessness </span></h4>
    <p>
      Let’s take a scenario where John and Tim, who are students, want to rent
      Mary’s apartment. Mary really needs to rent her apartment out, but she has
      been very restless about what it would be like to have students living
      there.
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #b51029">Mary:</span> I am glad you guys are
      interested in renting this apartment. Are you sure you can afford the
      rent?
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #339966">John:</span> The rent is high, but Tim and I
      can manage it by working part time. We like the place and are looking
      forward to spending time in it.
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #b51029">Mary:</span> Great, there are some rules
      though. You cannot have a lot of people over. Parties are not allowed.
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Tim:</span> That would not work for us. What
      if we promise to keep the place clean and safe, and&nbsp;assume
      responsibility for repairs if any damage occurs?
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #b51029">Mary:</span> Why should any damage occur in
      the first place? I really need to rent the place, but I feel very
      disturbed at the prospect of it getting trashed.
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #339966">John:</span> We are never going to trash the
      place, but we do want to have friends over. We will make sure nothing
      happens.
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #b51029">Mary:</span> I am not sure this is the best
      fit.
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p>
      This negotiation is a great example of restlessness or disturbance that
      spirals in one person and clouds her judgment. Mary could have potentially
      offered a discount on the rent in exchange for Tim and John doing
      maintenance on the apartment. She could have suggested limitations on the
      hours up to which they could have friends over, and so forth. However, she
      was so restless and disturbed that it impaired her ability to generate
      creative options.
    </p>
    <h6>
      <span style="color: #339966"
        >Tips to manage peace versus restlessness:
      </span>
    </h6>
    <h6 style="padding-left: 30px">
      Relax yourself prior to negotiations. Identify anything that is making you
      restless and write down your concerns. This will prevent the restlessness
      from spiraling out of control. A great way to relax can be found at
      <span style="color: #b51029"
        ><a
          style="color: #b51029"
          href="https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=HuiV395xI4I"
          >https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=HuiV395xI4I&nbsp;</a
        ></span
      >
    </h6>
    <h6 style="padding-left: 30px">
      If you spot restlessness in the other person, then politely suggest
      negotiating at a different time.
    </h6>
    <h6 style="padding-left: 30px">
      Ask the other person to look at it from your perspective. This generally
      calms them down and gets them to a more peaceful state.
    </h6>
    <p>
      In the next article, we’ll look at other feelings and emotions with
      additional scenarios. We will also understand how these opposite emotions
      are interrelated and create virtuous or vicious cycles that impact our
      negotiations. The first step to improvement is awareness. In your next
      negotiation, try becoming more aware of these two opposites – greed versus
      contentment and peace versus restlessness – in yourself and the other
      person.
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <hr />
    <h4 style="text-align: center">Article by&nbsp;RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
    <hr />

The heartful negotiator - part 3

 <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <h4>
      <span style="color: #c71e1e"
        >In the previous 3 articles of the series,
        <span style="color: #ff6600">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> set a framework for
        how prior disposition, ideas, thoughts, emotions and feelings all play a
        huge part in negotiation. He also took a deeper look at what constitutes
        prior disposition as we walk into a negotiation, and explored greed
        versus contentment and peace versus restlessness as opposites that
        constitute feelings and emotions in the heart. In this article he’ll
        explore additional emotions and feelings, and provide suggestions on how
        to manage these through real life scenarios.</span
      >
    </h4>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p>
      Feelings and emotions in the heart always come in dualities. Broadly these
      can be categorized into 5 main sets of opposites.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: center">
      <img
        alt="THN_part4b_img"
        class="has-img-center lazyload"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THN_part4b_img_ef94d072a7.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-03T06:34:29.611Z"
      />
    </p>
    <h4 style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #c71e1e">Love Versus Hate</span>
    </h4>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Love and hate are extreme ways to describe these opposing emotions. They
      can also take the forms of compassion, empathy, affection etc. on one
      side, and annoyance, anger, self-centeredness etc. on the other side.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      To explore this, let’s take a scenario where Rita is negotiating a raise
      with her boss Jim, who has direction from senior leadership not to give
      raises and reduce the staff by 10%.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #db1a1a">Rita:</span> Jim, I wasn’t happy with last
      year’s raise. It wasn’t fair based on how I performed. I hope to get at
      least a 15% raise this year to makeup for it.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Jim: </span>I don’t think you have any idea
      of what is going on around here. You definitely did a good job, but your
      aspirations are not even in the right ballpark. I am fighting to save your
      job against pressure to reduce staff.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #db1a1a">Rita:</span> That is totally unfair. I don’t
      control the company’s overall performance. I did my job really well and
      expect to be rewarded based on that. I don’t think I can stay motivated to
      do my best in this situation.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Jim:</span> I understand how you feel, but I
      have my constraints.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #db1a1a">Rita:</span> I think you are just biased. I
      am sure Gary got a pretty good raise. As a matter of fact, I know he got
      better than me last year also.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Jim:</span> Look here, I am trying to do my
      best for you, but your attitude is not helping.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #db1a1a">Rita:</span> I really don’t care anymore what
      you think of my attitude. I am leaving. I don’t want to work here even one
      more day.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      In this scenario Rita received news that she did not expect and found
      unpleasant. This put her into a downward spiral of anger, suspicion and
      eventually hate. She lost all objectivity, and not only&nbsp; did she not
      get the raise she wanted, but ended up losing her job before finding
      another one. This could have devastating consequences for her family, but
      her judgment was clouded by emotion. For his part, Jim started out
      neutral, but let Rita’s negativity impact him, and made things worse by
      calling out her poor attitude just as she was ready to explode.
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <h5 style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #c71e1e"
        >Suggestions to manage love, compassion and empathy versus hate, anger
        and self-centeredness:</span
      >
    </h5>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify">
      Take a few deep breaths and calm yourself before getting into a
      negotiation, especially when you know that the conversation is going to be
      difficult. This puts you in a neutral state, and makes you alert to your
      own emotional state.
    </h5>
    <h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify">
      If the conversation starts to become emotional and negative, immediately
      put yourself in the other person’s shoes. Try to feel what they feel.
      Articulate the issue or problem from their perspective and ask them to
      look at it from yours. For example, Jim could have said, “From your
      perspective, I totally get the expectation of a raise, especially based on
      what you got last year. However, I want to share with you the company’s
      situation, and have you look at this from my perspective.”
    </h5>
    <h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify">
      Approach the conversation with the affection that you would have when
      dealing with a family member. For example, Rita could have said, “Jim, I
      appreciate your effort in saving my job. I know that you would have looked
      out for me. I still feel strongly that my compensation does not reflect my
      performance. Is there a way to do a one-time bonus to make up for a
      raise?” This approach puts Jim in a much more positive mode to think
      creatively about other options. Negotiating as partners trying to find the
      best outcome is way better than as adversaries trying to win while making
      the other lose.
    </h5>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <h4><span style="color: #c71e1e">Fear Versus Courage</span></h4>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Fear comes in many shapes and forms. It can start as anxiety and end up as
      paranoia. Courage, while very useful, can also be dangerous when extreme.
      Fearlessness can lead people to make bad&nbsp; choices. The key is to find
      the right balance.
    </p>
    <p>
      Consider a scenario where Bob is a coach and Jason is the owner of a
      basketball team. They are discussing the replacement of their shooting
      guard and star player, Rodriguez.
    </p>
    <p>
      <span style="color: #c71e1e">Bob: </span>The losses we’ve had recently are
      because of a single reason. Rodriguez is a great individual player, but
      terrible with the team. We have to replace him to get the team to a better
      place.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Jason: </span>That’s crazy. He was the only
      scorer in the last two games and has been our top performer for the last
      two seasons. Sounds like too big a risk.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #c71e1e">Bob: </span>We have to try something new. We
      can always bench him and bring him back if this doesn’t work.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Jason:</span> I don’t like that at all. He
      might get demotivated if we do that.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #c71e1e">Bob: </span>How can I be effective at my job,
      if I can’t make these types of decisions?
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Jason:</span> This just sounds way too risky,
      let’s wait for a few more games and revisit.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      This is a classic case where fear will cause decisions to be deferred.
      Whether it is in government or business or sports, way more damage happens
      because of not making decisions than because of making bad decisions. This
      is squarely due to fear.
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <h5 style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #c71e1e"
        >Let’s consider some recommendations to manage this, specifically from a
        negotiating perspective:</span
      >
    </h5>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify">
      Before entering a negotiation, create a short list of what you are afraid
      of with respect to this conversation. Think rationally about whether these
      fears are well-founded or driven by anxiety.
    </h5>
    <h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify">
      As you get into a negotiation, if you feel very uncomfortable and anxious
      ask for time to consider the information and come back. Fear can impact
      you physically and it is difficult to recover to a neutral state without
      taking some time.
    </h5>
    <h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify">
      To address fear in a person with whom you are negotiating, use reassuring
      language and gently present facts and data points. For example, instead of
      suggesting benching Rodriguez, which Jason perceived as too risky, Bob
      could have said, “I see your point about risk. One option is to bench
      Rodriguez for a couple of games, and another is to have him play a
      different position, explaining it to him as us trying different game
      strategies. Do you think either of these would work for us to try someone
      else?”
    </h5>
    <h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify">
      Be mentally alert to either extreme fear or fearlessness in both yourself
      and others with whom you are negotiating. The key is to stay in a balanced
      zone.
    </h5>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <h4><span style="color: #c71e1e">Clarity Versus Doubt</span></h4>
    <p>
      The fifth opposite pair of feelings and emotions is clarity versus doubt.
      This is mostly a consequence of the other four opposites that we
      discussed.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      The 4 opposites we have explored – greed versus contentment, peace versus
      restlessness, love versus hate, and fear versus courage, form primary
      feelings and emotions. They are also interrelated. For example, discontent
      will usually lead to restlessness, which in turn will lead to anger and
      hate, which will lead to anxiety and fear, which will eventually lead to
      loss of clarity. On the other hand, contentment will lead to peace, which
      will lead to love and compassion, which will lead to courage, which will
      lead to clarity. So, in a sense, these opposites also represent a virtuous
      and a vicious cycle.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: center">
      <img
        alt="THN_part4c_img"
        class="has-img-center lazyload"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THN_part4c_img_94e36197be.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-03T06:35:10.399Z"
      />
    </p>
    <p>
      In subsequent articles we’ll look at the thoughts and ideas in our heads,
      and how to manage these in order to be effective negotiators.
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <hr />
    <h4 style="text-align: center">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
    <hr />

The heartful negotiator - part 4

<h4 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #85669b;">Influence minds and win hearts</span></h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4>In the last 2 articles, RAVI VENKATESAN has talked about the reasons public speakers fail, the 27 Cs of
    communication that will enable you to become an influential and effective speaker, and has taken a deeper look at
    body language. In part 3, he explores voice modulation.</h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: justify;">Research shows that 38% of your communication is based on voice modulation, independent
    of the words. There are 5 areas within voice modulation that you may want to specifically improve:</p>
<h4><span style="color: #85669b;">CLEAR</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The first requirement of being understood is to be clear. It is easier said than done.
    Many people tend to speak fast, mumble and not enunciate. They also do not project their voice. To overcome these
    issues practice speaking slowly and clearly. Two exercises that help a lot are as follows:</p>
<h5 style="padding-left: 60px;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">Voice projection</span></h5>
<p style="padding-left: 60px;">Ask a friend to stand about 6 feet from you. Say to them, “I hope you can understand me
    clearly.” Ask them to give you a thumbs up or a thumbs down, and then move 6 more feet back. Repeat the exercise
    with increasing distances. Speakers who project their voice will be heard at 200 to 300 feet. Remember not to shout
    or yell, but rather increase your volume by filling more air in your lungs, and letting your voice come all the way
    from the stomach and chest. The more you practice this, the better your voice will project.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 60px;"><img class="lazyload w-100"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/Heartfulpresenter2part3_0ebe58b4ff.jpg">
</p>
<h5 style="padding-left: 60px;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">Enunciation</span></h5>
<p style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify;">To get your enunciation right, practice with a friend. Speak slowly
    and open your mouth so that your teeth are visible. Then say a few tongue twisters. For example: “High roller, low
    roller, lower roller,” “Peter Prangle, the prickly pear picker, picked three perfectly prickly pears.” Have your
    friend confirm that your teeth were visible and that you said every word clearly.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #85669b;">CRISP</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Being crisp is all about making brief sentences with appropriate emphasis. Avoid filler
    words like “Uh,” “Um,” etc., and emphasize the right words.</p>
<h5 style="padding-left: 60px;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">Replacing fillers</span></h5>
<p style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify;">Take a small paragraph with a couple of ideas that you want to
    convey. Say it once with a friend listening to you, or record it on your phone, and play it back. Now repeat it,
    consciously replacing all filler words like “Uh,” “Um,” etc., with simple pauses. Be uncomfortable, even if your
    pauses are long. Most speakers pause far less than they should.</p>
<h5 style="padding-left: 60px;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">Emphasis</span></h5>
<p style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify;">Practice taking a sentence and emphasizing one word in it at a time.
    For example, the sentence, “I am feeling strangely sad today,” will feel completely different, based on which word
    you emphasize: ‘I’ or ‘am’ or ‘feeling’ or ‘strangely’ or ‘sad’ or ‘today’. Now decide the word you want to
    emphasize based on the meaning you want to convey, and dial up the emphasis to a point where it sounds dramatic and
    uncomfortable. Then dial it back down. This way you will become very clear in what you say.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The next three areas come to us from an article by Ram Chandra of Fatehgarh called
    ‘Principles of Conversation’:</p>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #85669b;">CONTROLLED</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Practice eliminating highs and lows from your voice to make it more controlled, and
    hence more impactful. This doesn’t mean being monotonous. Tone and pitch are two different things. Unless you are
    singing, you don’t need your pitch to go above or below a certain level. Keep it in a narrow zone, natural to your
    voice. This will make your voice more controlled.</p>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #85669b;">CIVIL</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Consider situations where you get worked up, feel frustrated or angry. Purposefully work
    on toning down your voice to show restraint, and express your feelings and reactions in a civil tone. This will have
    an incredible benefit in allowing you to be assertive without being aggressive. You will find that people listen to
    you a lot more when you apply this principle. And your anger and frustration will diminish along with the balance in
    your voice.</p>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #85669b;">CHARGED</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">To accomplish this practice, think that the ideas you are conveying are touching the
    hearts of your listeners. You will find that inculcating softness and speaking in a gentle manner, along with this
    thought, will make your voice charged.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">This is a lot to practice and master, but as Lao Tzu said, “A journey of a thousand
    miles begins with a single step.” So take that step, and good luck!</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>

The heartful presenter - part 3

<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h3 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #47b3b3;"> Mind – The Breeding Ground Of Thoughts</span></h3>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4>In the previous 6 articles of this series <span style="color: #a11a5d;">RAVI VENKATESAN </span>explored feelings and
    emotions in the heart, as well as the role played by our ego and intellect in negotiations. In this article we’ll
    learn the role our mind plays in negotiations, some of the distractions that are part of its nature, and how to
    focus it to achieve better outcomes.</h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: justify;">The mind has been a topic of study and curiosity for us since time immemorial. Wikipedia
    describes psychology as the science of behavior and mind, including conscious and unconscious phenomena, as well as
    feeling. The mind and heart are not two different things, but rather two ends of a spectrum. In the last article in
    this series, we discussed the mind as one of the non-physical or subtle things that are part of us nevertheless. The
    mind doesn’t have any kind of ‘moral compass’. This comes from the ‘heart’. For example, your mind can help you plan
    a heinous crime, including every step and scenario, just as well as it will help you plan how to build an orphanage.
    This is why heartful negotiators always use the heart to direct or lead the mind.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In modern times, the conscious portion of our minds is often in a distracted and
    non-focused state, operating at a very low rate efficiency rate. This is because of multiple causes, such as cell
    phones, televisions, desires for all kinds of things, stress levels, anxieties etc. For many of us the normal state
    of mind is one of unregulated wandering, with ad hoc ideas and thoughts coming up all the time. Many of us blame our
    minds for lack of peace and calm. I have heard many people even say, “If I could only stop my mind for a few minutes
    I would feel much better, but it keeps churning constantly.” Many can’t sleep at night because of a hyperactive
    mind, causing health issues as well.</p>
<div style="text-align: justify;">When it comes to negotiations, a negotiator with a wandering mind will receive inputs
    from inside themselves through ad hoc thoughts and ideas. These inputs cause them to miss important details, and
    also to make decisions based on thoughts that have distorted reality for them. To understand this better, consider
    the following scenario of negotiation between Chris, a young pianist, and Joseph, an artist and repertoire manager
    at CoolRecords, a well-known record company. Chris has the opportunity to record his first album with CoolRecords,
    and is negotiating the makeup of this album with Joseph.</div>
<div></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
    <hr class="vertical-space1">
</div>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #b01374;">JOSEPH:</span> That is great to hear,
    it will make the whole process easier. We have a few suggestions on the content of the album first.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;">[Chris is still distracted with thoughts about being taken advantage
    of, and misses the first part of what Joseph said. He only hears the second sentence.]</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #0fbab7;">CHRIS:</span> Suggestions – what for?
    I am pretty happy with the content as is and don’t want any creative interference.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #b01374;">JOSEPH:</span> Chris, I don’t
    appreciate your approach. We have a right to suggest changes to the content to improve marketability, keeping in
    mind that this is your first album.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">[Chris now starts getting afraid of losing his contract and thinks that he needs to
    totally change his approach.]</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #0fbab7;">CHRIS:</span> I am sorry. Just let me
    know whatever you need me to change.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #b01374;">JOSEPH:</span> There is no need for an
    apology, but just understand what we are trying to do here. You will be fine.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">What happened here is very common. Chris’s mind created several illusions within this
    simple negotiation. Joseph never even intended to discuss royalty or commercial aspects, but Chris assumed he would.
    Joseph never intended to take advantage of this being Chris’s first album, even though Chris assumed he did. Chris
    couldn’t pay enough attention to what Joseph was saying because of all these thoughts floating around in his own
    mind.</p>
<h5 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #0fbab7;">Tips to manage your mind:</span></h5>
<h5 style="padding-left: 30px;">Be alert to the ideas and thoughts that pop up. Are they real? Or are they made up?</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: justify; padding-left: 30px;">Clear your mind before any negotiation. The Heartfulness Meditation
    process can help with this tremendously. Even 15 minutes of meditation can clear your mind and put you in a very
    calm state.</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: justify; padding-left: 30px;">Focus your mind on the present. The mind has a tendency to wander
    into the past and the future. Bringing it to the present can let you absorb all the relevant information and make
    the best decisions and negotiate effectively.</h5>
<h5 style="text-align: justify; padding-left: 30px;">Refer to the heart whenever you are in doubt. The mind has no moral
    compass, but the heart will always give you the right signal, the right answer. The way to do this is simply to
    pause, go deeper into yourself, and let an answer emerge naturally.</h5>
<p style="text-align: justify;"></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p></p>
<p><a href="https://www.heartfulnessmagazine.com/heartful-negotiator-part-6/"><span style="color: #24e3b3;"><span
                style="color: #45cc9b;"><span style="color: #17b39b;">Read previous article</span></span></span></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center; padding-left: 30px;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>

The heartful negotiator - part 7

<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #33cccc;">Influence minds and win hearts</span></h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h5 style="text-align: justify;">In the last 3 articles, RAVI VENKATESAN has talked about the reasons public speakers
    fail, the 27 Cs of good communication, and he has taken a deeper look at body language and voice modulation. In this
    article, he explores the ‘power of pause’.</h5>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: justify;">The tips and tricks provided in this article of the series have consistently been rated
    as the most valuable by the hundreds who have participated in our Heartful Presenter training. Let’s look at why the
    art of pause is so important, and how to pause.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #d18e21;">PAUSE TO ENGAGE THE AUDIENCE IN CONVERSATION</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">As it turns out, we speak much slower than we can listen. The average person speaks at
    125 words per minute, and can listen to 400 words per minute or even more. So what happens with the 75% mental
    capacity that is not used in listening?</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">There is a natural tendency for the mind of your listener to wander, even if the subject
    matter is interesting. By structuring your content to have logical points of reflection, you can draw in your
    audience’s attention. For example, if you make a point, you could follow it by saying, “Consider that for a moment,”
    and pause. Now your audience is thinking about the point you made, instead of their mind wandering. You have moved
    them from ‘disengaged’ to ‘participating’; passive to active.</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4><span style="color: #d18e21;"><img decoding="async" alt="" width="604"
            class="lazyload has-img-center"
            src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_presenter_4a74dfeee1.jpg"></span></h4>
<p><span style="color: #333333;"></span></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p></p>
<h4><span style="color: #d18e21;">COMBINE PAUSE &amp; RETENTON TECHNIQUES</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The research about how much of a talk people retain varies wildly, however everyone
    agrees that a lot of what is said is forgotten. Providing spaced repetitions and context, are great ways to improve
    retention. All these rely on pause:</p>
<h4 style="padding-left: 60px;">Spaced repetition</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify; padding-left: 60px;">Here is an example: at the beginning of a talk you say, “The West
    faces a severe demographic challenge, with the average age in most countries being well in the forties.” After
    talking about a few other things, you could say, “Remember I said that most countries in the West have populations
    with an average age in the forties,” and then pause. This lets the audience connect your previous statement with the
    current one and absorb the information better.</p>
<h4 style="padding-left: 60px;"><span style="color: #000000;">Context</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify; padding-left: 60px;">Make a point, and then provide context around that point. Pause to
    let your audience understand your point in that context. For example, you might say, “Close to 2% of people in China
    live on less than two dollars a day.” Consider, however, that this number used to be almost 20% just ten years ago.”
    Pause to let them assimilate your point in the context you just provided.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #d18e21;">ELIMINATE FILLER WORDS</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Filler words such as “Uh”, “Um”, or “Like”, which is common with teenagers and young
    adults, are extremely distracting; the speaker comes across as unprepared. Fillers completely take away the
    effectiveness of the point being made. They occur because we are thinking and speaking at the same time, and
    sometimes lose our train of thought. Instead of using filler words, pause. This is a much more elegant way of
    getting back your train of thought.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #d18e21;">DEMONSTRATE CONFIDENCE AND CONTROL</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Speakers who speak fast and don’t pause come across as nervous and lacking in
    confidence. By pausing and making purposeful eye contact in silence with your audience you will demonstrate
    confidence and balance. This in turn helps them feel secure and reassured that you know what you are doing, and they
    will derive more value from your session.</p>
<p>Let’s now discuss how you can practice and develop pausing. Here are a couple of exercises:</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #33cccc;"><strong>1) <span style="color: #33cccc;">Pause based on
                punctuation</span></strong></span> – Write out a few ideas on a sheet of paper. Now record them in a
    short 5-minute talk. Listen to the recording of yourself and mark the places where you did not adequately pause
    where there was a comma, a semicolon, or a full stop. Repeat this exercise until you are satisfied that you are
    pausing adequately.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #33cccc;"><strong>2)</strong> <strong>Pause longer to
            emphasize</strong></span> – Ask a friend to listen as you go through 2 to 3 short sentences. For example,
    “Hi, I am John. I am here to discuss the importance of recycling with you.” Pick a word that you really want to
    emphasize. For example, “I am here to discuss the <strong>importance</strong> of recycling.” Pause much longer after
    this word than you consider adequate. Ask your friend if your pause felt uncomfortably long. Keep increasing the
    duration of your pause until she says “Yes,” and then dial it back just a little.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">You can also watch videos of accomplished speakers to see how effective this technique
    can be.</p>
<p>May the Pause be with you!</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>

The heartful presenter - part 4

<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h3 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #c21b85;">Intellect – Logic &amp; Reason</span></h3>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">In the previous 5 articles of this series, <span style="color: #3a51ba;">RAVI
        VENKATESAN</span> explored feelings and emotions of the heart, as well as the role played by our ego in
    negotiations. We learnt ways to observe ourselves better and manage these aspects so as to improve our heartful
    negotiation skills. In part 6, we learn the role our intellect plays in negotiations, and how to manage this
    faculty.</h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4><span style="color: #3a51ba;">Intellect – our mind’s tool for analysis and decision-making</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">To understand the functioning of our intellect better, we need a conceptual model of how
    it works with the rest of our heart-mind vibrational field. We have thoughts, feelings and emotions. These are not
    physical things, but they are part of us. Since they are not part of our body but are part of us, we say in a broad
    sense that they are part of our mind. However, as we get more granular, we realize that the mind functions when we
    are conscious, so we have something called consciousness. We also see that while our mind produces thoughts, some
    part of us evaluates people, situations, ideas etc., performs analysis, applies reasoning and makes decisions. We
    call this the intellect. We also know that we have an ego, which maintains a mental model of ourselves, which it is
    constantly updating, based on interactions with the external world and based on internal inspirations. We therefore
    end up with four main things: mind, intellect, consciousness and ego, which work together to accomplish what we may
    call mental processes.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img decoding="async" 
        class="lazyload has-img-center"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THN_5_2_1_d08f51a5f6.jpg"></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The intellect is that part of us which is most similar to a computer. It receives
    inputs, performs computations based on logic and reason, by using these inputs and a database of past knowledge and
    experience. It does not however possess a moral compass, and many times the struggle in negotiations is not when and
    how to use the intellect, but rather when and how not to use it. To understand the role played by the intellect n
    negotiation, consider a scenario where Karen, Pooja and Clark, board members of a homeowners association (HOA), are
    debating whether or not to increase the monthly fees.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #c21b85;">KAREN:</span> We have kept the monthly
    HOA fee the same for the last three years, so we have to increase it at least 10% this year.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #3a51ba;">POOJA:</span> Our fees are already
    higher than other HOAs in this area. If we are able to manage our costs, why burden our homeowners with higher fees?
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">CLARK:</span> I think Pooja’s point is
    logical. Why should we increase fees if we are already higher than most? It will only upset our residents, and we
    may not get elected next time.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #c21b85;">KAREN:</span> I agree with your logic,
    but we provide more services than other HOAs. Our landscaping is much better than others, and we provide plumbing
    services without extra cost. The cost for these vendors is going up, so is it not reasonable for us to charge more?
    Also, if we keep the fees the same, then we will have to drop some services, and this may also upset our residents.
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #3a51ba;">POOJA:</span> I still think that a
    cost increase will be difficult for our residents to accept.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">CLARK:</span> We have a lot more
    elderly residents in our neighborhood than others. They will not be able to pitch in with landscaping and plumbing
    like residents in other neighborhoods. I feel that if we explain this to them then they will probably understand the
    increase in costs. Would that not be the right thing to do?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #3a51ba;">POOJA:</span> That does feel like the
    right thing to do.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">What you see in this negotiation is that for both Pooja and Clark the intellect takes
    over early. This is also fed by Karen opening the negotiation with a fact that is naturally evaluated by both Pooja
    and Clark. Later, though, Karen blends this fact-based, logic- and reason-based intellectual approach with empathy.
    By putting herself in the shoes of older residents, she strikes a chord with the others. The key is not to avoid
    intellect-based reasoning and logic, but rather to complement it with intuition, inspiration, empathy and
    conscience. In simpler words, refer to the heart for guidance on what is the ‘right thing to do’ in any situation
    versus the convenient or the logical thing. The intellect is no doubt useful for understanding and analyzing all the
    facts, but a purely intellectual argument will seldom be as effective as one complemented with a heart-based
    decision, which also feels right.</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h5><span style="color: #c21b85;">Tips for managing the intellect:</span></h5>
<h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify;">In your next interaction or negotiation, as your intellect
    automatically kicks in, observe in order to evaluate facts, and then apply logic and reason.</h5>
<h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify;">Purposefully add empathy and put yourself in the shoes of whomever
    you are negotiating with, or key stakeholders who may not be directly part of the negotiation but will be impacted
    by the outcome.</h5>
<h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify;">Be alert to whenever you are coming across as too intellectual, too
    cold or too unfeeling.</h5>
<h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify;">Complement your intellectual reasons with a heartful approach. For
    example, “We should give in on this, in the interest of building goodwill,” “Adding this one additional benefit will
    ensure that our customers are not just satisfied but delighted,” and my favorite, “This feels like the right thing
    to do.” Observe the power of using these types of statements. Note: you have to mean them! Faking doesn’t work with
    heartful negotiating.</h5>
<p style="text-align: justify;"></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img decoding="async"
        class="lazyload has-img-center"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heart_mind_ec05ae694e.jpg"></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">There are many clever and intelligent negotiators who use their intellect to make
    excellent arguments and points, and often think that they win negotiations. In reality they leave a lot of value on
    the table and fail to build longterm relationships that can lead to longer term success with high stakes
    negotiations. They don’t balance the intellect with guidance from the heart. Practice the above suggestions and see
    how these improve our effectiveness in negotiations. In Star Trek terms, be Kirk not Spock!</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p><span style="color: #000080;"><a style="color: #000080;"
            href="//www.heartfulnessmagazine.com/heartful-negotiator-part-5/">Read previous article</a></span></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>

The heartful negotiator - part 6

 <h3 style="text-align: center">
      <span style="color: #37b38b">Clarity, Thoughts and Ideas </span
      ><span style="color: #37b38b">– Mind Games</span>
    </h3>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <h4 style="text-align: justify">
      In the previous four articles of this series
      <span style="color: #ff6600">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> reviewed a conceptual
      framework of the heart-mind vibrational field, and explored the four main
      emotional dualities that exist within the field of the heart, and how to
      manage these during negotiations. In this article he will expand on the
      fifth duality, Clarity versus Doubt, and explore thoughts and ideas in
      more depth.
    </h4>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p>&nbsp;</p>
    <h4 style="text-align: center">
      <img
        alt="THN_part5b"
        class="has-img-center lazyload"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THN_part5b_c23fcb6a93.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-04T09:51:49.339Z"
      />
    </h4>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <h4 style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #37b38b">Clarity versus Doubt</span>
    </h4>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      We often hear comments like, “His judgment was clouded,” “She wasn’t
      thinking clearly,” etc. In negotiations more than anywhere else, we
      sometimes feel a block in being able to perceive things clearly. This is
      all around clarity versus doubt or confusion. This duality is right at the
      intersection of the heart and mind and decides how effective the processes
      of the mind will be.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      To understand the dynamics of clarity versus doubt, consider a simple
      negotiation between a parent, Janet, and her son Jason’s teacher, Joshua.
      Joshua wants to retain Jason for an extra year in the 1st grade, as he
      believes he is not keeping up. Janet believes that she can provide him a
      little help and he will do fine, and that Joshua is way overreacting to
      some minor challenges with Jason’s assignments.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #37b38b">Janet:</span> Hi Joshua, I got your email
      recommending that Jason be retained an extra year in the 1st grade. I know
      he had challenges with a couple of assignments, but this sounds like an
      overreaction. I can help him keep up. Please consider letting him progress
      to the 2nd grade.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Joshua:</span> Janet, I know you have a hard
      time as a single parent in looking after your son. We have to be objective
      though; Jason will have to repeat the year.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #37b38b">Janet:</span> First of all, this has nothing
      to do with my marital status. I know what I am doing as a parent. I also
      know that when the same thing happens with other kids, they are not asked
      to repeat the year. You just seem to be biased against my son and me.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Joshua:</span> I apologize if I offended you.
      My intent wasn’t to be insensitive. I only want to support all parents the
      best way possible. My concern is that if we let Jason go to the second
      grade, in spite of the challenges he had this year, he might struggle even
      more and get demoralized. If he repeats a year now, he may become more
      confident for life.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #37b38b">Janet:</span> I am sorry I reacted that way.
      It has been hard to juggle my job, Jason’s needs and the rest of my life.
      I see your point. I am just worried about being seen as a failure as a
      parent.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Joshua:</span> I understand, but let’s put
      Jason first. I am open to him progressing, if you feel you can truly
      support him more next year. Will you please take a day to relax, and with
      a calm mind consider my recommendation.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Janet comes back the next day with the following message: “You are right.
      I wasn’t thinking clearly. I cannot let my fears about how I will be
      perceived impact my judgment in doing the best for Jason. When I calmed
      myself down and tried to listen to my heart in terms of the best decision
      to make, it was clear that your recommendation is the right one. Thank you
      very much for being patient.”
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      This short scenario is loaded with insights for us. Remember the vicious
      and virtuous cycles of opposites we discussed in the last article.
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p style="text-align: center">
      <img
        alt="THN_part4c_img"
        class="has-img-center lazyload"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THN_part4c_img_1_573ecb80e8.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-04T09:53:22.292Z"
      />
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      In this scenario, we saw both of these cycles. Initially Joshua’s comments
      about being a single parent, and seemingly hard line on having Jason
      repeat the year, threw Janet into a negative spiral. She wanted Jason to
      progress (discontent) -&gt; She became restless as the conversation wasn’t
      going how she wanted -&gt; She got angry at the “single parent” comment
      -&gt; She was afraid that she would be perceived as a bad mom -&gt; Her
      judgement was completely clouded -&gt; She lashed out!
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Later as Joshua apologized and articulated his perspective more carefully,
      she felt more content with his apology -&gt; She calmed down -&gt; She
      felt more positively towards him -&gt; She felt like she could muster
      courage to make the right decision -&gt; A timeout let her listen to her
      heart and decide with a clear vision.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      What is fascinating is that both the vicious and virtuous cycles in this
      case were each triggered by one single comment on Joshua’s part.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify"></p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p></p>
    <h5 style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Tips to manage Clarity versus Doubt:</span>
    </h5>
    <h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify">
      Frequently check internally, asking yourself, “Am I thinking and
      perceiving clearly?” Be alert to the downward spiral of discontent -&gt;
      restlessness -&gt; anger -&gt; fear -&gt; doubt.
    </h5>
    <h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify">
      If you feel emotions are clouding your judgment, or the other person’s,
      then take time out.
    </h5>
    <h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify">
      Try and listen to your heart. The best clarity comes from a clear heart.
      This voice gets stronger as you listen to it more.
    </h5>
    <p style="text-align: justify"></p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p></p>
    <h4 style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #37b38b">Thoughts and Ideas</span>
    </h4>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Now let’s explore the thoughts and ideas in the mind. Remember that
      learning how to manage feelings and emotions in the heart is foundational
      to being able to manage thoughts and ideas in the mind. Consider the
      statement that, “We feel way before we think.”
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Let’s explore the more important idea in the mind, our ego, which simply
      put is our mental model of ourselves. This model is constantly updating
      and going through micro refinements, though it has a long-term state,
      which manifests as our perception of ‘Myself versus Others’, in other
      words, the ‘Me versus We’ mode of operation. I deliberately use ‘Me versus
      We’, but let’s begin by first understanding the ‘Me versus You’ perception
      that we carry.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Almost always, we consider ourselves to be right and the other person
      wrong, ourselves to be good the other person bad. We also often consider
      ourselves weak and the other person strong, or vice versa. Thomas A.
      Harris postulates in his bestseller <em>I’m OK – You’re OK</em> that we
      stay in 4 ego states:
    </p>
    <h5 style="text-align: center">
      <span style="color: #37b38b">I’m not OK, you’re OK</span><br />
      <span style="color: #37b38b">I’m not OK, you’re not OK</span><br />
      <span style="color: #37b38b">I’m OK, you’re not OK</span><br />
      <span style="color: #37b38b">I’m OK, you’re OK</span>
    </h5>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Rarely do we stay in the 4th ego state of ‘I’m OK, you’re OK’, which is
      exactly where we need to be for Heartful negotiation.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Let’s consider a short scenario to understand the impact of ‘Me versus We’
      in negotiation.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      Colin is the founder of SmartOffers, an exciting software startup that
      presents shopping suggestions and offers to users on their mobile phones,
      based on their locations. He is meeting with Kim, who runs the merchant
      offers business for a very large multinational corporation. If the meeting
      is successful then Kim’s company could acquire Colin’s startup, which
      would provide significant financial benefit to him.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #37b38b">Kim:</span> Colin, it is exciting to meet
      with the founder of such an exciting new startup. Congratulations on the
      idea and getting this far.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Colin:</span> Kim, great to meet you as well.
      Not sure what you mean by getting this far, though. We have multiple
      pilots with real customers, and everyone likes our product.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #37b38b">Kim: </span>Of course, great work. I meant
      that you did great getting it to some free pilots, but it will take a lot
      more experience and support to get customers to pay real money for a
      product like this.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Colin: </span>I do have a lot of experience
      in this space, and two patents as well. I feel like we’re getting off on
      the wrong foot here. Let’s get something straight first, you are meeting
      with me because I have built something innovative that larger companies
      like yours struggle to build.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #37b38b">Kim: </span>That may be true, but coming up
      with a good idea and scaling it are two different things. I have decades
      of experience with taking startups and making something real out of them.
      Frankly, we get approached by dozens of companies pitching their
      innovations.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600">Colin: </span>Let’s not do business together.
      I find your approach arrogant and not appreciative of what I have
      accomplished.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #37b38b">Kim: </span>I am sorry you feel that way, but
      my time is limited, and I get a lot of these ideas coming my way.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      This is a classic case of a negotiation dying even before it has a chance
      to get started, because of ego. Not everyone in business operates this
      way, but this happens way more than any of us would like to believe.
      Arrogance and egotistic behaviors kill more deals than anything else. The
      consequences are unfathomable. A poor country doesn’t get the aid it needs
      because the Prime Minister who went to negotiate with a rich neighbor felt
      like she wasn’t treated as an equal. Millions suffer because of one
      person’s ego. Two countries go to war because one leader insults the other
      publicly. In this case thousands die because of one person’s ego. Hostages
      are killed because one negotiator wanted to be tough, and let his ego get
      in the way of continuing dialogue. A disease assumes epidemic proportions
      because the leader of the militia in control of an area will not provide
      access to humanitarian aid, as it may make him appear weak.
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: justify"></p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p></p>
    <h5 style="text-align: justify">
      <span style="color: #ff6600"
        >Tips to manage the Ego in negotiations:</span
      >
    </h5>
    <h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify">
      Leave it off the table – the other party praising you and inflating your
      ego should not be a prerequisite or a factor of negotiation.
    </h5>
    <h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify">
      Shift yourself from the ‘me’ mode to the ‘we’ mode. Don’t just think from
      the other person’s perspective, but truly approach the negotiation as a
      team trying to solve a problem collaboratively.
    </h5>
    <h5 style="padding-left: 60px; text-align: justify">
      Be alert to the mode you are in, if you find yourself slipping into ‘I’m
      OK, you’re not OK’, or ‘I’m not OK, you’re OK’, or “I’m not OK, you’re not
      OK’ ego states, gently center yourself with a pause, and come back to ‘I’m
      OK, you’re OK’ mode.
    </h5>
    <p style="text-align: justify"></p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p></p>
    <p style="text-align: justify">
      We’ll continue to refine our techniques of managing the ego in subsequent
      articles where we understand other mental processes and how to manage
      them. Till then, observe the ego state you are in, even in day-to-day
      interactions, not just high stakes negotiations.
    </p>
    <hr class="vertical-space1" />
    <p style="text-align: left">
      <a href="//www.heartfulnessmagazine.com/heartful-negotiator-part-4/"
        ><span style="color: #ff6600">Read previous article</span></a
      >
    </p>
    <p style="text-align: center"></p>
    <hr />
    <h4 style="text-align: center">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
    <p style="text-align: center"></p>
    <hr />

The heartful negotiator - part 5

<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4>In the previous articles of this series,<span style="color: #e63232;"> RAVI VENKATESAN</span> explored factors that
    influence the outcomes of our negotiations. Many times, we are not even aware of these. We discussed how prior
    disposition comes into play, coloring our approach even before we begin. We reviewed how feelings and emotions in
    the heart vacillate between opposites, making us take positions that are not in our best interest. We also looked at
    how our ego, intellect and mind create their own distractions. In this final article, we’ll bring it all together
    and evolve a simple and comprehensive checklist that you can use for your negotiations.</h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4><span style="color: #e63232;">PRIOR DISPOSITION</span></h4>
<p><img decoding="async" alt="" width="290" class="lazyload img-float-right has-img-center-in-mobile"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THN_2_2afe9434d5.jpg">Before any negotiation, take a
    snapshot of your prior disposition using the
    following steps:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Gently close your eyes.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Bring your attention to the lower left side of your chest (approximately where you feel
    your heartbeat). There is no need to pinpoint an exact location.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Ask yourself the following questions and spend a couple of minutes in introspection:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 90px;">What are my strongest likes and dislikes?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 90px;">What are my strongest desires and aspirations?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 90px;">What am I worried or concerned about?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 90px;">What do I feel guilty about or regret?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 90px;">What do I want more of?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 90px;">What is making me restless?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 90px;">What is creating anger, irritation, frustration or annoyance in me?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 90px;">What makes me feel afraid or anxious?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">It’s okay if you don’t have answers to all these questions. Just jot down whatever comes
    to your mind in a couple of minutes.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Your prior disposition will bring to your awareness what is important for you. It will
    also alert you to what may color your judgment, as you get into this negotiation. As you start working through your
    negotiation, to manage your emotions effectively, and understand and work with the emotions of your counterparts,
    keep the following brief checklist in your mind:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Am I being greedy or overreaching? Is my counterpart doing this?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Am I getting restless and distracted? Is my counterpart doing this?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Am I getting irritated, frustrated, annoyed or angry? Is my counterpart doing this?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Am I getting anxious? Is my counterpart doing this?</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"> Do I feel confused or unclear? Does my counterpart seem confused?</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Just by keeping these 5 simple things in mind, you will become more effective at
    managing emotions as you negotiate. Also, keep in mind the core concerns from <em>Beyond Reason</em> by Daniel
    Shapiro and Roger Fisher: appreciation, affiliation, autonomy, role and status. These are common concerns for
    everyone and impact negotiations at a non-rational level.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">As you move into your head, remember that your intellect is a wonderful tool at
    analyzing information and making decisions, but it has no moral compass. Make sure that you filter what your
    intellect evaluates by using your heart.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Your ego is constantly updating your mental model of yourself versus others. Ensure that
    you don’t fall into the traps of arrogance, excessive feelings of self-importance, or for that matter the opposite,
    a feeling of inferiority. Finally, be alert to the wanderings of the mind. Refocus by taking a minute if needed. You
    can also use techniques like meditation to ensure that your mind will always be focused and attentive, as it should
    be.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">As with anything else, practice makes perfect. Enjoy the journey as you incorporate
    these concepts and become a truly Heartful Negotiator, who develops trust, builds relationships and generates
    win-win outcomes. After any negotiation, reflect and see if that win-win feeling was created.</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p><span style="color: #ff0000;"><a style="color: #ff0000; text-decoration: underline;"
            href="//www.heartfulnessmagazine.com/heartful-negotiator-part-7/" target="_blank"
            rel="noopener noreferrer"><span style="color: #993300;">Read previous article</span></a></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>

The heartfulness negotiator – part 8

<h3 style="text-align: center">
  <span style="color: #ff9900"
    >Extraordinary outcomes through inspiration</span
  >
</h3>
<h4>
  In this new series,&nbsp;<span style="color: #1da8a4"
    >RAVI VENKATESAN&nbsp;</span
  >provides practical guidance on how to be a Heartful Leader. In an era
  where emotional intelligence is valued in leadership, the role of the
  heart has never been more important in the corporate and business
  sectors.
</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  There are many leadership models that have evolved over time. People
  talk about autocratic leaders, transformational leaders, servant
  leaders, situational leaders, consensus driven leaders … I can go on and
  on.
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  Broadly, I have observed only two types of leaders:
</p>
<ul style="text-align: justify">
  <li>Those who need authority and control to do anything, and</li>
  <li>
    Those who are able to get things done through inspiration and
    influence.
  </li>
</ul>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  There are several paradigm shifts in leadership that that have occurred
  over the last few decades. Some of the key shifts are:
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <img
    alt="from-to-1"
    class="has-img-center  lazyload w-100 h-auto"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/from_to_1_1ad13b2f66.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-04T11:52:11.527Z"
  />In summary, contemporary leadership has shifted from an
  authority-based model to an influence-based model, however leaders still
  struggle to achieve great results without authority and direct control.
</p>
<p>
  <img
    class="has-img-center  lazyload w-100 h-auto"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_leader12_c1781b5cb7.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-04T11:52:42.294Z"
    alt="heartful-leader12"
  />
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  The key to this puzzle is in understanding what creates ‘influence’ and
  soft power. This series of articles will outline a framework of leading
  from the heart so as to solve this puzzle. We will walk through how to
  manage behaviors, alter perceptions, build great relationships and
  generate exceptional outcomes through influence.
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  The ideas and concepts behind Heartful Leadership are grounded in the
  best of eastern and western leadership philosophies. In practice,
  however, we will take the radically new approach of managing one’s inner
  condition – the state of heart and mind – and use it to create long term
  influence and consequently great outcomes.
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  This figure shows ‘The Heartful Leader’ framework. Our inner condition
  results in outer behaviors, the perception of these behaviors results in
  good or bad relationships, as well as trust or mistrust. Relationships
  and trust result in a reputation over the medium to long term, which in
  turn leads to influence and consequently outcomes.
</p>
<p>
  <img
    class="has-img-center lazyload w-100 h-auto"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_leader3_515f5581af.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-04T11:53:39.565Z"
    alt="heartful-leader3"
  />
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  As a self-evaluation exercise take a few minutes, introspect on the
  following, and write down your observations:
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px">
  What outcomes have I generated as a leader in the last year? Do I view
  them as doing justice to my leadership potential, or do I believe I can
  achieve a lot more?
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px">
  How did I generate these outcomes? In other words, where did I need
  authority versus where did I lean on influence?
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px">
  How much could I have accomplished if I had no control or authority and
  had to lean only on influence?
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px">
  What do I believe is my reputation within the organization or
  organizations that I am associated with?
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px">
  How much trust have I built among the people with whom I am associated?
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px">
  How can I describe the relationships I have with my professional and
  personal network?
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px">How is my behavior perceived by others?</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  Over the next several articles, we will explore each part of this
  leadership framework in detail and provide a toolkit to get really good
  at using the heart to lead with inspiration and influence.
</p>
<hr />
<h4 style="text-align: center">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<hr />

The heartful leader - part 1

<h4>In previous articles <span style="color: #f89b3a;">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> introduced the Heartful Leader framework
    and explored Reputation, Trust &amp; Relationships and Outer Behavior. He then explored how we can manage our inner
    state to create specific behavior shifts, and how to consistently build trust and relationships by doing this. In
    this article he looks at leveraging the trust and relationships that we’ve built through consistent positive
    behavior shifts, which are a result of managing our inner state more effectively.</h4>
<h3 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">Extraordinary outcomes through inspiration</span></h3>
<h4 style="color: #363795; text-align: center;">LEVERAGING TRUST AND RELATIONSHIPS<br>
    TO CREATE A REPUTATION AND INFLUENCE</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Reputation and influence are where “rubber meets the road.” They give us the ability to
    generate outcomes needed for the organizations we serve.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In part 2 of this series we discussed the components of reputation and also discussed
    strategies to manage these, and how to rebuild reputations when needed. Here are the key components:</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><img  alt="the-heartful-leader-part-9"
        class="has-img-center lazyload"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/The_Heartful_Leader_part9_2_c519f1e480.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-04T12:29:03.542Z">Now
    let’s look at a scenario where inside-out Heartful Leadership can create a different kind of reputation and,
    consequently, Influence.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Jonathan worked at a medical equipment manufacturer as the General Manager over the
    Diagnostic Equipment business division. He had a reputation within the organization for being a no-nonsense hard
    driving leader, who would achieve results at all costs: a strict disciplinarian with staunch loyalists, who got rid
    of everyone else from his management team. Most of the line managers and staff seldom heard from him, except when
    something went wrong, and he was known to fire people quickly if they did not get him expected results.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Jonathan was recently assigned to run a new software division for his company. Kumar,
    the VP of Engineering at the software division candidly expressed his concerns to Sheila, the company Chief HR
    Officer. He said, “Jonathan is a great leader and has achieved wonderful results for the company, but he will be a
    disaster running the software business. He has an old school leadership approach that is suitable for manufacturing
    but not for software. Our engineers work flexible hours, expect a lot of perks, are used to taking breaks and
    playing games at the workplace, and also stay late and meet deadlines when needed. It is a different culture, and
    unfortunately Jonathan’s reputation precedes him.”</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">After much consideration and discussions with the CEO, Sheila had Jonathan go through a
    crash course on Heartful Leadership, especially “inside-out management,” to create a new reputation for himself as
    he approached his new role. Instead of straightaway bringing him on board as the GM of this business, he was brought
    on in an advisory capacity, and introduced to the team as someone who will be a consultant on improving
    profitability and market position. Kumar was taken into confidence to help rebuild Jonathan’s reputation. He
    personally empowered Kumar to provide him very candid feedback if he saw him demonstrate controlling or dictatorial
    behavior in any meeting or interaction. Jonathan spent the next 12 weeks interacting with most of the managers,
    engineers and leaders of the software business without exercising any authority or control.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><img  alt="The Heartful Leader"
        class=" has-img-center lazyload"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/The_Heartful_Leader_part9_3_1a9acaee01.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-04T12:30:13.405Z">
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">At times he caught himself feeling angry at how “democratic” and hence slow the
    decision-making process was. He was also frustrated with the work culture of remote work, which he felt led to a
    sense of entitlement. However, he managed his inner state effectively to keep coming back to neutral. He
    demonstrated extremely collaborative behavior, and quickly established a solid level of trust with most of the
    leaders. He also developed a great personal rapport with Kumar, who was actually surprised at how differently he
    felt about Jonathan after getting to know him as a person.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The combination of trust and relationships led to Jonathan’s reputation at the software
    division being that of someone who is open-minded, always listens keenly, assumes positive intent, and builds
    consensus. When his new role as GM of this division was announced, the team was completely energized, and welcomed
    the decision. He had also built enough influence with the team by this time, which made his job easier, when making
    much needed changes.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">This sort of rebuilding of a reputation is hard and takes consistent work over a period
    of time. It requires a disciplined approach of managing one’s inner state and hence outer behavior. This builds
    trust and relationships that lead to the desired reputation, and consequently influence, without even the need for
    authority.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">What sort of reputation would you like to develop over the next 60 to 90 days? Are you
    happy with your current reputation? Explore how a process of inside-out Heartful Leadership can result in a positive
    shift for you.</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<hr>

The heartful leader – part 9

<h4>In part 1 of the Heartful Strategist, <span style="color: #806f00;">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> introduced the following
  framework to map how our consciousness manifests into strategies that have consequences and interact with our
  ecosystem. In this second article, we will explore three cases of strategic choices that illustrate this framework.
</h4>
<p></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1"><br>
<p style="text-align:center;">
  <img class="lazyload has-img-center"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THS_2_2_f665de7b6e.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T04:48:17.112Z" />
</p>
<p></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Let us take three cases of strategic choices made by leaders:</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The first one is a strategic choice made by Pope Benedict XVI. He resigned in 2013,
  becoming the first pope in modern times to do so. The last pope who resigned on his own initiative was Celestine V in
  1294. Many things were surprising about his decision. He gave up one of the most powerful positions available to
  humanity. He resigned knowing that he would likely be succeeded by Pope Francis, a man who had views opposed to his
  own in many areas. He resigned knowing that the church would go through significant reforms and transformation. His
  choice had significant positive consequences for a large portion of the world’s population.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The second one is a strategic choice made by Henry Ford. In 1914 Ford decided to more
  than double the basic wage for workers. This decision was unprecedented and shocking. The trend in capitalist America
  had been the rich getting richer, and the lot of workers staying the same. Ford also reduced the price of his Model T
  car from $800 to $350, so that many of his workers could afford a car.<br>
  Ford said, “We believe in making 20,000 men prosperous and contented rather than follow the plan of making a few slave
  drivers in our establishment millionaires.”<br>
  His decision had significant positive consequences for many, and also made him a billionaire.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The third decision is a strategic choice made by Captain Hernan Cortes. He landed in
  Vera Cruz in 1519 to begin a conquest and his first order was to his crew to burn their own ships. Two years later he
  conquered the Aztec empire. His decision was not just surprising, it was one that took significant courage.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">These were all big decisions, courageous decisions, decisions that had significant
  consequences for a large number of people, consequences that led to outcomes that impacted history, outcomes that
  changed ecosystems forever. What were the levels of consciousness that allowed these men to make these decisions? Were
  they the same as the average person? They all achieved significant outcomes, but they were driven by different
  motivations, and operated with different levels of consciousness.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Pope Benedict’s choice was most noble, it reflected sacrifice, altruism and courage. The
  level of consciousness to make such a choice takes a lot of refinement.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Henry Ford was after all a businessman, and no doubt he sought ways to grow his wealth.
  However, he made a choice that combined his interests with the interest of his workers and ended up making car
  ownership in America affordable for common people, thereby changing his ecosystem forever.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Hernan Cortes was motivated by conquest. His consciousness was at a different level. His
  decision forced his troops to do or die in their battles. The consequences were again significant.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">These examples illustrate the relationship between the consciousness level of one
  individual and how it flows out in terms of strategic choice, that leads to consequences, that lead to outcomes, that
  can change a whole ecosystem. In subsequent articles we will explore how a Heartful Strategist can work on refining
  their consciousness level to make strategic choices that not only benefit them, but also deliver the best possible
  benefits to the broadest possible set of inter-related ecosystems.</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<hr>

The heartful strategist - part 2


                                <h4>In the first two articles of the series, <span style="color: #d6a136;">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> introduced the Heartful Strategist framework and explored 3 examples that illustrate how consciousness levels of individuals flowed out into choices that had consequences. We saw how these led to outcomes that impacted a broad ecosystem. Here, he starts exploring how a Heartful Strategist works on consciousness in order to make the best choices.</h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: justify;">There are many definitions of consciousness, the simplest one being “the state of being awake and aware of one’s surroundings.” Another one I like is, “the fact of awareness by the mind of itself and the world.”</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">While these definitions provide a starting point, consciousness is much more nuanced and has many states. Some of these are within the limits of awareness and some are beyond. At a simple level we use the general term “unconscious” for anything that is not conscious. Subconsciousness is the term used for states of consciousness that are below the conscious level, and superconsciousness is used for states that are above active consciousness.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Another way to present it is that the state of consciousness we are aware of is “active consciousness” and states beyond awareness are sub- and superconsciousness. Though consciousness belongs to the mental and not the physical plane, at a physical level we can measure brain activity related to states of consciousness. For example, Delta waves (0.5 to 3 Hz) are associated with subconscious functions like regulating heart rate and digestion, whereas Gamma waves (25 to 100 Hz) are associated with active consciousness and high-level cognitive tasks.</p>
<p><img  class="w-100 lazyload" src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THS_3_2_b8d54bb51e.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T06:51:47.798Z"/></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">There is also an aspect of the unconscious mind from where intuition and inspiration originate. We can think of this as super-unconsciousness or simply superconsciousness.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Swami Vivekananda, a 19th century mystic who spoke a lot about consciousness, said that active consciousness was like a thin film, sandwiched between an ocean of superconsciousness and an ocean of subconsciousness. The measurement of brainwave frequencies has now scientifically established this. More than 80% of our brain activity is associated with activities that are unconscious, not our active consciousness. You can also think of active consciousness as just the tip of the iceberg. In fact, how our active consciousness works is also influenced, to a very large extent, by what lies beneath.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">As we go through life, we continuously gather impressions through our conscious and unconscious interactions with the world, as well as the multifarious thoughts that are part of our minds. These impressions sink into our subconscious and start collecting and forming a residue. This residue creates patterns in how we think, react, analyze, and feel. It prevents our consciousness from being free and expansive.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">As an experiment, you can take a “consciousness snapshot” by answering the following questions for yourself:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px;"><span style="color: #d6a136;">What are your strongest likes and dislikes?</span><br>
What is your strongest desire?<br>
<span style="color: #d6a136;">What do you feel guilty about or regret?</span><br>
What do you want more of?<br>
<span style="color: #d6a136;">What is making you restless?</span><br>
What is creating anger in you?<br>
<span style="color: #d6a136;">What are you afraid of?</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The answers will give you insights into the effect of past impressions on your psyche. They limit our consciousness, and hence limit the choices we make. Note that the answers to these questions give you insights into what is lurking at a subconscious level.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><img  class="has-img-center lazyload" src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THS_3_3_d92c68ecaa.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T06:52:56.188Z" />
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">When we make a strategic choice, we often have a perspective that is either broad or narrow. This is based on our consciousness level. For example, we might be thinking of just ourselves, or of our team, our organization, our community, our country, or maybe the entire humanity! We saw in the previous article in this series how Pope Benedict made a choice that reflected a very broad consciousness level.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">So, what is it that limits our consciousness? The main factors are Fear, Desires, and Selfishness.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">What is it that can broaden and allow our consciousness to expand? The main factors are Contentment, Selflessness and Generosity.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In subsequent articles we’ll explore those practices that eliminate the factors that limit our consciousness and develop those factors that allow it to expand.</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<hr>

The heartful strategist - part 3

<h3 style="text-align: center">
    <span style="color: #14a6a1"
      >Extraordinary outcomes through inspiration</span
    >
  </h3>
  <h3 style="text-align: center">
    <span style="color: #ff6600">UNPACKING REPUTATION</span>
  </h3>
  <h4>
    <span style="color: #14a6a1">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> introduced the
    Heartful Leader framework shown below In part 1 of this series. He also
    established paradigm shifts that require leaders of the future to get
    more done with influence versus control. They need to navigate
    situations where they don’t have authority but rather need to
    collaborate. They develop and use ‘soft power’ to accomplish what is
    needed. He discussed how our inner state reflects in outer behavior,
    which either does or doesn’t create trust &amp; relationships, which
    over time create reputations. The combination of trust, relationships
    and reputations results in the influence that we have. In this article
    he looks at reputation more closely.
  </h4>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    The word ‘reputation’ comes from the Latin <em>reputare</em>, which
    means ‘to think over’. The thinking over happens over time. It is
    defined as “beliefs and opinions generally held about someone or
    something”. It is also defined as “a widespread belief that someone has
    a particular characteristic”. Some examples from day-to day-life are:
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    A person in your family circle who has a reputation of being helpful to
    everyone.
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    A manager at your workplace who has a reputation of getting things done
    at all costs.
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    A politician who has a reputation of not being trustworthy.
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    A neighbor who has a reputation of being a naysayer to all new ideas
    that are brought up in your Home Owner’s Association meetings.
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    The CEO of a non-profit organization who has a reputation of high
    integrity.
  </p>
  <p>
    <img
      class="has-img-center lazyload w-100 h-auto"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/TH_Lpart2a_ad723e37bc.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T11:19:36.029Z"
      alt="THLpart2a"
    />
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    Reputations can be good or bad, like being viewed as an expert in a
    certain field, or not being trustworthy. They can also be good or bad
    based on context. For example, a leader who has a great reputation for
    being a visionary may not wield enough influence to lead the execution
    of a new initiative. On the other hand, a leader who has a reputation of
    being very good at getting things done, but not at vision and strategy,
    may not be taken seriously if he tries to rally a team behind a new
    strategy.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    Most of us don’t think about our reputation. There are a couple of
    reasons for this. We rely on authority or influence through direct
    relationships to get things done. This works well up to a certain
    extent, but it doesn’t scale. Sooner or later in our leadership journey
    we arrive at a point where someone will, or will not do something based
    on our reputation, and we don’t have a direct relationship with them.
    Most people cannot have a direct meaningful relationship with more than
    a couple of hundred people, even in this hyper-connected age of social
    media. So how else will you influence beyond these people, except to
    consciously build and manage your reputation?
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    Let’s look at three components that make up a reputation and some of the
    ways to develop and manage these more consciously. Towards the end we
    will also discuss a 3-step approach to rebuilding a damaged reputation.
  </p>
  <h4 class="text-center">
    <img
      alt="THLd"
      class="has-img-center lazyload"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/TH_Ld_799a24bb2d.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T11:20:23.894Z"
    />
  </h4>
  <h4 style="text-align: justify">
    <span style="color: #ff6600">1. AWARENESS</span>
  </h4>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    If people are not aware of you, you don’t have a reputation. So the
    first step is to find ways to create awareness about yourself as a
    leader. When I became a manager at Accenture, as part of new manager
    training we were taught to develop one or two things that, over time, we
    would be known for. This can be “Very good at data analysis,” or “Great
    at developing people,” or simply “Rock solid reliable in getting things
    done.” It applies even in a family situation. Think about a girl that
    married your cousin and has a reputation for being tough to get along
    with, or the aunt who will go all out to help everyone.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">Strategies to spread awareness include:</p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    Highlight what you want to be known about yourself in a natural and
    subtle way in conversations. Keep in mind that being very explicit or
    overt with this doesn’t work and will come across as inauthentic.
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    Seek feedback when you make a presentation on some topic or express an
    opinion about what to do in a situation etc. People ‘think over’ more
    when asked for feedback.
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    Remember the word reputation comes from ‘think over’.
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    Publish blog posts, articles or white papers in whatever forums you can
    access.
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    Expressing your opinions in a structured manner is a great way to spread
    awareness.
  </p>
  <h4 style="text-align: justify">
    <span style="color: #ff6600">2. VALUES</span>
  </h4>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    What values do you embody on a day-to-day basis, and how do you express
    them? For example, if one of your key values is respect for everyone, do
    you visibly treat people that report to you the same way you treat your
    boss? The old recommendation of treat the janitor like your CEO is very
    true. Many times, how you treat people that you perceive as lower in
    socio-economic status is noticed by others consciously or subconsciously
    and forms an impression in them about you.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">Strategies to managing this:</p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    Find words and ways to express the values that you stand for, e.g.
    respect, honesty, truth, integrity, courage, or any others.
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    Keep in mind that you cannot fake this, so if you are unsure of your
    values then you will have to first do the inner work to find them within
    yourself, and then apply approaches to project and express them. For
    most people, fortunately, they have the values, and just haven’t figured
    out how to project them.
  </p>
  <p>
    <img
      class="has-img-center lazyload w-100 h-auto"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/TH_Lpart2c_105d27e2ad.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T11:21:05.020Z"
      alt="THLpart2c"
    />
  </p>
  <h4 style="text-align: justify">
    <span style="color: #ff6600">3. EXPERTISE</span>
  </h4>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    What are your areas of expertise that are relevant to the context of
    your workplace, family or circle of friends? Do your friends know you as
    a financial wizard and hence connect you with someone who needs advice
    on retirement planning? Do people in your organization recognize you as
    a big thinker and come to you for new product ideas? Does your extended
    family believe you are a great ‘fixer’ of relationship problems and
    bring you in to counsel the couple that are working through challenges?
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">Strategies to manage this:</p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    Pick only one or two things that you are really good at, and start
    finding opportunities to showcase them. Let the word spread organically
    and naturally. You cannot explicitly advertise your skills to build a
    reputation.
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    Find ways to use your expertise to help others, especially when you
    don’t have to do this. People always talk about unexpected help or out
    of the way help that they received.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    In most cases we are not starting from scratch. We have a reputation
    that unfortunately may be tarnished. We may have changed, but people
    still perceive us based on past behavior. The way to rebuild a
    reputation is through a three-step process: Acknowledge, Act and
    Reinforce.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    For example, let’s say that you are a manager in building construction
    with a reputation of not being transparent when things are going wrong,
    and telling people with little notice that deadlines will be missed.
    Over the years, you have suffered because of this reputation and haven’t
    progressed through your organization as well as you could have. You have
    recently made changes and are starting to tell people early if things
    are getting delayed, but they still have the perception of the old you.
    Your steps for rebuilding would be:
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    <span style="color: #14a6a1"><strong>1. ACKNOWLEDGE</strong></span>
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    First of all acknowledge that in the past you have not been transparent
    with delays and have made changes to correct the way you operate.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    <span style="color: #14a6a1"><strong>2. ACT</strong></span>
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    Let the actions speak for themselves. Make sure you provide information
    early and often regarding delays.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    <span style="color: #14a6a1"><strong>3. REINFORCE</strong></span>
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    Articulate the changes made to ensure that perceptions change. Find
    opportunities to create a summary of how you have changed your approach.
    Great opportunities are ‘Project reviews’, ‘Executive summary meetings’,
    ‘Transition meetings’ etc. Make sure you highlight the fact that based
    on past feedback you made a change, and here are the results.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    Rebuilding reputations can take a long time but following this 3-step
    process will help you make a big difference fairly quickly.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    In subsequent articles we’ll look at trust &amp; relationships,
    behaviors and inner state (of our hearts and minds). We’ll then work
    inside out to create the right state, behavior, trust &amp;
    relationships and bring this together with reputation to create
    influence and great leadership outcomes.
  </p>
  <hr />
  <h4 style="text-align: center">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
  <hr />

The heartful leader - part 2

<h4>In previous articles <span style="color: #f89b3a;">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> introduced the Heartful Leader framework
    and explored Reputation, Trust &amp; Relationships and Outer Behavior. He explored how to manage our inner state to
    create specific behavioral shifts, and how to consistently build trust and relationships by doing this. He also
    explored how reputations are formed through trust and relationships, and eventually create influence that lets us
    generate required outcomes. In this final article on the series we will cover some practical pointers on how to
    apply this framework and evolve with it. After all, Heartful Leadership is not a one and done thing, but rather a
    lifelong pursuit.</h4>
<h3 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">Extraordinary outcomes through inspiration</span></h3>
<h4 style="color: #363795; text-align: center;">INFLUENCE AND OUTCOMES</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Let’s remind ourselves of the framework again:</p>
<h4><span style="color: #ff9900;"><img  alt="the-heartful-leader-part-10" 
            class="lazyload has-img-center"
            src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/The_Heartful_leader_part10_1_2ac56c7138.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T16:26:26.683Z"></span>
</h4>
<h4><span style="color: #ff9900;">Dig deeper when things are tough </span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Almost anyone can be on their best behavior when things are going great. Business is
    rolling in, promotions are easy, your boss is happy with you, and your colleagues think you walk on water. The “real
    person” shows up when the going gets tough. This is when observing your inner state, making shifts that reflect in a
    positive outer behavior, become most important.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #ff9900;">Trust is earned in two ways </span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The obvious way is by doing what we say we will do. The less obvious one is by taking
    responsibility for mistakes and failures.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #ff9900;">Relationships are already there </span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">A lot of times we put significant effort in building relationships and look at the world
    as divided into people we know and those who are strangers to us. The founder of Heartfulness, Ram Chandra, says,
    “We are all connected intellectually and morally.” This is a simple sentence but loaded with meaning.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">I have often observed that when I feel someone is not a stranger, their behavior towards
    me becomes familiar, cordial, and, more often than not, amicable. Negotiations become easy, an understanding
    develops, which might usually take much longer. Next time you head into a meeting with people you think you don’t
    know, have this idea of being connected in mind and see what happens.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #ff9900;"><img  alt="the-heartful-leader-part-10" 
            class="lazyload has-img-center"
            src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/The_Heartful_leader_part10_2_f960575ffd.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T16:28:32.367Z"></span>
</h4>
<h4><span style="color: #ff9900;">Value your reputation </span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">I cannot stress enough how precious reputations are. Even the best of us will always be
    targets for criticism and slander. Sometimes our reputation can be sullied maliciously without us being at fault.
    These are things we can’t control, however, it behooves us to be alert to what we can control. Most of this is our
    conversation. Can we always be polite, civil, respectful and balanced? This is key to building and maintaining a
    reputation.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #ff9900;">Watch for the reverse effects</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Just as inner state impacts outer behavior, which impacts trust and relationships, which
    impacts reputations, which impacts influence, which leads to outcomes, there is a reverse cycle. Misuse of influence
    and creating negative outcomes can harm reputations, which can damage trust and relationships, which can create bad
    behaviors. This can penetrate and spoil our inner state creating excessive ambition, restlessness, anger, anxiety
    and lack of clarity. If we let our inner state be spoiled, then we are lost.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #ff9900;">Use feedback to review and refine </span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Pick any aspect of this framework you would like to work on. For example, you might pick
    an outer behavior, like the tendency to interrupt when someone else is speaking, or the tendency to put down ideas
    from someone else. As you go on a journey to correct this outer behavior, by adjusting your inner state, ask a
    colleague to observe you in meetings and give you candid feedback. Are you making the required shift or not? This
    can be very valuable in holding you accountable to the change you desire.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #ff9900;">It starts with contentment </span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Contentment is a rare quality in corporate life. It is almost viewed as weak and the
    opposite of ambition. Corporate leaders are now trained to develop “killer instinct” and high ambition. People give
    talks about how if it doesn’t hurt then you don’t have ambition. What are we really trying to achieve? There is a
    huge difference between aspiration and ambition. Aspiration is the desire to achieve excellence. It is beyond the
    individual self, it is noble, and it is without compromising on achievement orientation. Ambition on the other hand
    tends to be about “me and mine.” If we can shift from ambition to aspiration by sowing the seeds of contentment in
    our heart, then we will trigger the positive cycle discussed in the 7th article of this series:</p>
<div class="text-center">
    <img  alt="the-heartful-leader-part-10"  class="lazyload has-img-center"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/The_Heartful_leader_part10_4_f5ea3e5a38.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T16:30:05.508Z">
</div>
<p style="text-align: justify;">This will lead to the right behaviors, and eventually the best outcomes.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">I wish you all the best in practicing these principles of Heartful Leadership and look
    forward to times when we see more and more heartful leaders in our corporate lives.</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<hr>

The heartful leader - part 10

<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4>In the last three articles of this series, <span style="color: #bd3e22;">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> introduced the
  Heartful Strategist framework and walked through factors that limit our consciousness versus allowing it to expand. He
  explored the vicious and virtuous cycles of emotions that we struggle with, and also looked at how developing positive
  qualities of the heart and finding the right balance between opposites is the key to this expansion of consciousness.
  In this article we’ll dive deeper into how the same person at different stages in life seems to have made very
  different choices. We’ll explore what is behind the shift and what lessons we can draw from it.</h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: justify;">Let’s take an example of choices made by one person at different stages in their life.
  Bill Gates is the founder of Microsoft, and is well known as one of the best business strategists. In his younger days
  he developed the reputation for being brilliant, but ruthless. Some of his brilliant strategic decisions included
  moving aggressively to become the operating system provider for IBM in the ’80s, with a non-exclusive agreement that
  allowed Microsoft to sell the operating system to other PC manufacturers. There was a dark side, though; his
  co-founder Paul Allen describes Gates as a ruthless schemer, in his memoirs, who demeaned employees and schemed to
  reduce his co-founder’s share in the company.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">There are many other stories about how he stifled competition for Windows, to the extent
  that initially when the open source software movement came about, Gates and Microsoft were considered everything that
  this community was fighting against. So, what was the consequence? For years Microsoft Windows, and Microsoft Office
  became the default computing environment for everyone, blocking innovation that could have come from many sources.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Fast forward to recent years, Gates is one of the most renowned philanthropists and his
  foundation has tackled some of the most challenging problems in the world. He has also been an influential figure in
  convincing other billionaires to make generous contributions. It would not be an exaggeration to say that he is making
  a real difference to humanity at a global scale.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">What changed? Some might argue that he got wiser as he got older, but there are plenty
  of examples of people staying ruthless, holding on to power, chasing money, well into their later years. Some say it
  was his marriage to Melinda Gates that brought a very different perspective to him. There is some truth to this if we
  study when his approach started changing. What was the real shift though?</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In the last article we talked about opposite qualities of the heart and how they put us
  into circles of vicious and virtuous cycles. When we study an example like Bill Gates, we can see these operating. His
  early years had plenty of episodes where the drivers seemed to be Greed =&gt; Restlessness =&gt; Anger =&gt; Fear etc.
  His recent years have plenty of episodes where the drivers are the opposite. This can naturally happen when we open
  our hearts and listen to what signals we receive from within. However, is there a less abstract way to understand this
  and act on it? There is. And based on how it is applied, a seemingly negative quality can become positive and vice
  versa.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Envision your circle of influence. It includes you, your family, your friends, your
  colleagues, your community and all of humanity (See figure below).</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p><img class="lazyload w-100"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THS_2b_7c57b4c19a.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T13:00:32.837Z" />
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: justify;">Let’s now take those opposites that are qualities of the Heart. We can start with
  seemingly negative qualities like greed or desire. If you take desire, and apply it outwards – desiring more for your
  family instead of yourself, desiring more for your friends and colleagues – and you keep going till your desire is
  “wanting more for humanity,” this is now no longer a negative quality. Similarly, let’s take the other qualities one
  by one and apply the same approach:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #339966;">Restlessness </span>– be restless for
  improving the lot of humanity;<br>
  <span style="color: #ff6600;">Anger</span> – Be angry at all the unfairness and injustice in this world and use it as
  a constructive force to drive improvements; and<br>
  <span style="color: #3366ff;">Fear</span>– Use fear to be cautious to protect the interests of others.
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Try to apply these ideas consciously over the next few weeks and see if they can shift
  your consciousness, your choices, the consequences, and the outcomes for your circle of influence.</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p>

  <img class="lazyload w-100"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THS_3_08a6d33d57.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T13:02:06.573Z" />

</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>

The heartful strategist - part 4

<h3 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">Extraordinary outcomes through inspiration</span></h3>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">SUCCEED THROUGH RELATIONSHIPS</h3>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">In previous articles, <span style="color: #2eaeb8;">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> introduced the
    Heartful Leader framework and took a deeper look at Reputation and Trust. In this article he explores the topic of
    Relationships.</h4>
<p><img decoding="async" class="lazyload w-100"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/TH_Lpart3_4_236278177f.jpeg?updated_at=2023-04-05T15:04:05.692Z">
</p>
<p>Building great relationships is core to Heartful leadership. There are no doubt great things that can be accomplished
    individually, but when it comes to leadership, it is all about accomplishing great things collectively, and this
    requires building and managing relationships. Relationships are fluid and have a certain lifecycle. Awareness of
    vaccines, diseases and cures for relationships can help tremendously in managing them the right way.</p>
<p><img decoding="async" class="lazyload w-100"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_leader_part4_2_0436dabcb1.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T15:05:23.707Z">
</p>
<h4><span style="color: #ff9900;">DISEASES</span></h4>
<p>There are many diseases that erode relationships. Here are the main ones:</p>
<p><span style="color: #2eaeb8;"><strong>1. Misunderstanding:</strong></span></p>
<p>We all run stories in our minds constantly. More often than not, our minds are wired to think through negative
    scenarios. Call it our inherent survival instinct. For example, observe your thoughts before going to an important
    business meeting or even a parent teacher meeting at your child’s school. You will notice that you are thinking
    through points and counterpoints that assume the worst from the person with whom you will interact. After this,
    observe the actual meeting and check how many of the things you anticipated actually came true. Were you negatively
    biased? While there are some who train themselves to be overly optimistic and positive all the time, most of us
    suffer from this tendency to think negatively. This predisposition on the part of both parties leads to
    misunderstanding, which causes poor interactions and eventually damages relationships.</p>
<p><span style="color: #2eaeb8;"><strong>2. Lack of Responsiveness:</strong></span></p>
<p>Many times we don’t respond because we don’t have a positive response. We don’t realize that a polite and
    appropriately contextualized negative response is much better than no response. Think of the times when a friend
    approached you for donating to a cause and you just avoided her, or when a co-worker asked for some information on
    something that wasn’t a top priority for you and took a long time to collect it. How did you respond, if at all?
    Many of us take the convenient option of ignoring. Nothing damages a relationship as quickly as non-responsiveness.
</p>
<p><span style="color: #2eaeb8;"><strong>3. Contempt:</strong></span></p>
<p>The old adage “Familiarity breeds contempt” has stood the test of time. It is inevitable and happens with
    professional as well as personal relationships. It is another major cause of relationship damage.</p>
<p><span style="color: #2eaeb8;"><strong>4. Lack of Respect:</strong></span></p>
<p>Many times we inadvertently fall into the trap of thinking that as long as we like someone, and have affection for
    them, respect is optional. It is not! Nothing betrays a lack of respect more than criticism. Observe a person’s
    expressions the next time you criticize an idea or a suggestion from them. You will realize that you just dug a deep
    relationship hole that you will now have to climb out of.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #ff9900;">VACCINES</span></h4>
<p>Here are some vaccines to prevent these diseases:</p>
<p><span style="color: #2eaeb8;"><strong>1. Empathy:</strong></span></p>
<p>There is no better relationship vaccine than putting yourself in the other person’s shoes. It is one thing to feel
    empathetic and another to express it. Make sure you do both.</p>
<p><span style="color: #2eaeb8;"><strong>2. Humility:</strong></span></p>
<p>One of the founders of Heartfulness Meditation, Shri Ram Chandra of Fatehgarh, said that no concept of high and low
    should be there. Someone who treats the janitor the same as the chairman of the board will always be respectful and
    respected.</p>
<p><span style="color: #2eaeb8;"><strong>3. Interest:</strong></span></p>
<p>The power of taking genuine interest in people cannot be appreciated enough. In the human condition, we all crave for
    social connection and affection, and nothing expresses this in a genuine and natural way more than simple interest.
    Try to notice on Monday morning when someone asks you about your weekend. Mostly this is done in a perfunctory
    manner with no interest, but some leaders will give your response their full attention and demonstrate real interest
    in you as a person. This is worth emulating.</p>
<p><span style="color: #2eaeb8;"><strong>4. Engagement:</strong></span></p>
<p>Relationships are nurtured by investing time. Make it a discipline to meaningfully engage with everyone with whom you
    want to grow your relationships. Frequency matters more than duration. A 5-minute hallway chat every week is better
    than a lunch once every 6 months.</p>
<p><img decoding="async" class="lazyload w-100"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_leader_part4_3_1c2c89a757.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T15:06:35.830Z">
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4><span style="color: #ff9900;">CURES</span></h4>
<p>Relationships once damaged, are hard to mend, but not impossible. Here are some cures:</p>
<p><span style="color: #2eaeb8;"><strong>1. Sincere apology followed by action:</strong></span></p>
<p>This is self-explanatory. Often a damaged relationship carries a sense of blame with it. It doesn’t matter whose
    fault it was. Even if you don’t accept responsibility for what went wrong, you can always accept responsibility for
    letting the relationship suffer. Start there and see what magic can happen.</p>
<p><span style="color: #2eaeb8;"><strong>2. Create opportunities to collaborate:</strong></span></p>
<p>Especially when a relationship has gone cold due to lack of engagement, it can be re-energized by working together on
    something. Moving past likes and dislikes is also critical to making this fruitful.</p>
<p><span style="color: #2eaeb8;"><strong>3. Do a favor without expecting anything in return:</strong></span></p>
<p>It often just takes one little gesture of goodwill, a small favor, a token of appreciation, and the relationship
    blossoms like a plant that has been ignored for a few days and suddenly received some much-needed water.</p>
<p><span style="color: #2eaeb8;"><strong>4. Ask for help:</strong></span></p>
<p>Amazingly enough, when a relationship has been damaged, especially due to ego issues, asking the other person for
    help can often quickly mend it. Doing this automatically raises the other person and they will meet you in the
    middle.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #ff9900;">EXERCISE</span></h4>
<p>Create a list of your two most important professional and personal relationships. Are any of these suffering from the
    diseases outlined above? If not, apply the vaccines recommended, and if so, apply the cures.</p>
<p>In subsequent articles we will look at how our behaviors lead to trust and relationships. We will also explore how,
    by managing our inner state, we can work inside out to effortlessly manage the cause and effect chain that leads to
    great influence and outcomes.</p>
<p><img decoding="async" class="lazyload w-100"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_leader_part4_4_0d525effee.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T15:07:17.007Z">
</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<hr>

The heartful leader – part 4

<h4><strong>In this series, </strong><span style="color:#ac7e00;"><strong>RAVI VENKATESAN</strong></span><strong> has shared tips on how to fine tune our “inner state” to become Heartful Innovators. He has also addressed ways to overcome barriers to innovation like stress and fear, discussed enablers of innovation, like imagination and courage, and described how we can articulate ideas and influence others effectively. In this final article of the series, he summarizes the 10 key ideas introduced in this series, so that we can use them as a toolkit to innovate. You can refer back to the earlier articles for more details on each of these.</strong></h4><hr><h1>The Heartful Innovator – part 10</h1><hr><p><img src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/toolkit_infographic_700x1325_9b890be916.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-26T06:36:21.651Z" alt="toolkit-infographic"></p><hr>

A toolkit for innovation

<h3 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #189e9e;">Extraordinary outcomes through inspiration</span></h3>
<h3 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #0e5199;">INNER STATE – THE ICEBERG BENEATH</span></h3>
<h4>In previous articles<span style="color: #189e9e;"> RAVI VENKATESAN</span> introduced the Heartful Leader framework
  and explored reputation, trust, relationships and outer behavior. In this article, he explores the inner state that
  results in this outer behavior and helps us understand how to manage it.</h4>
<p><img decoding="async" class="lazyload w-100"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/thl_part7_1_6c3c598c5f.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-06T12:49:24.880Z">
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">We can broadly categorize inner state into what goes on in the heart and mind. In
  reality, they are not distinct, but rather two parts of a whole, and together they constitute the vibrational field
  within us. The state of this field is what we refer to as our inner state. It can also be understood as the
  conglomeration of all our feelings, emotions, thoughts and ideas. The above picture shows a framework for the inner
  state that was introduced in “The Heartful Negotiator”<span style="color: #333333;"><a style="color: #333333;"
      href="https://www.heartfulnessmagazine.com/heartful-negotiator-part-1/">
      [https://www.heartfulnessmagazine.com/heartful-negotiator-part-1/]</a>.</span></p>
<p>As an exercise, take a moment to write down the following. It is okay if you don’t have answers for all of these
  questions:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px;"><span style="color: #0e5199;">1. WHAT ARE YOUR STRONGEST LIKES AND DISLIKES?</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px;"><span style="color: #0e5199;">2. WHAT IS YOUR STRONGEST DESIRE?</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px;"><span style="color: #0e5199;">3. WHAT ARE YOU WORRIED OR CONCERNED ABOUT?</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px;"><span style="color: #0e5199;">4. WHAT DO YOU REGRET THE MOST OR FEEL GUILTY ABOUT?</span>
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px;"><span style="color: #0e5199;">5. WHAT DO YOU WANT MORE OF?</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px;"><span style="color: #0e5199;">6. WHAT IS MAKING YOU RESTLESS?</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px;"><span style="color: #0e5199;">7. WHAT CREATES ANGER IN YOU?</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px;"><span style="color: #0e5199;">8. WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF?</span></p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px;"><span style="color: #0e5199;">9. WHAT CONFUSES YOU OR LEADS TO INDECISIVENESS?</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">You have just taken a snapshot of your inner state.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Most of the time, we float through our days, unaware of what is going on inside us.
  After doing this snapshot, reflect on your behavior in the past 24 hours. Were you rude to someone? Did you feel
  impatient in a conversation with someone? Can you trace this back to anger inside you, or restlessness inside you?
  Outer behavior is always linked to the inner state.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Sometimes situations we encounter trigger a change in our inner state that in turn
  reflects in behaviors that we regret. I remember an email from an executive at a partner company after we had a
  failed launch of a joint solution. This executive placed the entire blame on our company without taking any
  responsibility for their mistakes, and even demanded financial compensation beyond anything covered by our
  contractual relationship. I was already not a big fan of this executive, and this email increased that personal
  dislike even more. It triggered all kinds of emotions all at once.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">I was angry at how unfair his position was, worried that we would now waste energy on
  legal proceedings, restless to get out of the situation, and fearful of the eventual consequences. I walked into a
  meeting with all these feelings and thoughts around how to respond. Needless to say, I was unable to focus on the
  issues that were discussed at the meeting and came across as lacking clarity of thought. There was a vicious cycle
  at play here:</p>
<p><img decoding="async" class="lazyload w-100"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/thl_part7_3_7817410257.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-06T12:51:18.887Z">
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">This cycle can be reversed though. It all starts with adopting a “neutral” position in
  terms of likes and dislikes. We can use our own willpower to resist the inclination to like or dislike anything,
  whether it is a person, a situation, an object, or anything else. This gives us the opportunity to adjust ourselves
  to a neutral state, irrespective of the situation. This in turn leads to peace of mind, a general feeling of love or
  compassion, courage to tackle whatever is in front of us, and clarity of mind.</p>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"><img decoding="async" class="lazyload w-100"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/thl_part7_4_97c93afb94.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-06T12:52:29.945Z">
</h5>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In subsequent articles we will look at how shifting this inner state, starting with
  bringing ourselves to a neutral position with respect to likes and dislikes. This will lead to better outer
  behaviors, and eventually to great influence and outcomes.</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<hr>

The heartful leader – part 6

<h3 style="text-align: center;">Extraordinary outcomes through inspiration</h3>
<h3 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ff6600;">BEHAVIOR – IT’S NOT WHAT YOU SAY BUT WHAT YOU DO</span>
</h3>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h4>In previous articles <span style="color: #ff6600;">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> introduced the Heartful Leader framework
    and took a deeper look at Reputation, Trust &amp; Relationships. Now he explores the behaviors that lead to all
    this, how easy it is to be unaware of our behaviors and how powerful it is to become aware.</h4>
<p><img decoding="async" class="lazyload w-100"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THL_5_1_min_4370c64ba4.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-06T13:04:43.441Z">
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Let’s look at some typical behavioral patterns of leaders.</p>
<p><img decoding="async" class="lazyload w-100"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THL_5_2_min_2647acc493.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-06T13:06:32.253Z">
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">At the simplest level, leaders fall into the trap of weighing their time, priorities and
    results as more valuable than providing direction and support to their team members. This reflects in poor outer
    behavior that damages trust and relationships.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Here are some ways that the imbalance shown above manifests in their behavior:</p>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff6600;">1. I AM MORE IMPORTANT THAN YOU</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Leaders start expressing that they are more important, without even realizing it. Call
    it a result of eons of developing hierarchies. The ironic thing is that many times we are unaware of this. Let me
    share a couple of personal examples:</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">I once received feedback that I was showing up late to meetings. I reflected on my
    recent meetings and realized that I was 3 to 5 minutes late. I considered this quite acceptable, as sometimes it
    takes a few minutes to get from one conference room to another. When I thought deeper, I realized that it wasn’t a
    matter of how late I was. By making someone wait for me, I was expressing that I valued my time more than theirs.
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In another recent example, I developed a habit of going to someone’s office if I needed
    something, and if they were in the middle of a meeting I would say, “Can I interrupt for just 30 seconds?” Sometimes
    the interruption ended up being 2 to 3 minutes. The underlying theme is the same. At some level, although
    unintentionally, I expressed that I am more important. These habits creep up on us without us being aware, and
    unless a colleague or friend is kind enough to point them out, or a moment of reflection allows them to come into
    consciousness, we can fall into the pattern for years.</p>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff6600;">2. BEING HARD ON THE PEOPLE AND SOFT ON PROBLEMS</span>
</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">A leadership maxim is to always be soft on people and hard on problems, but often we do
    the exact opposite. We end up berating people when something went wrong, and don’t put measures in place to prevent
    similar problems from repeating. This is because as leaders we always believe that we have to express passion and
    sometimes emotion to hold people accountable. However, when this ends up taking the form of disrespect, we will not
    get what we want.</p>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff6600;">3. DIRECTING VERSUS NEGOTIATING</span></h4>

<p><img decoding="async" class="lazyload has-img-center"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THL_5_4_min_f8b5cc56ac.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-06T13:08:59.422Z">
</p>

<p style="text-align: justify;">I had a boss early in my career who prided himself on a technique he used for
    prioritization: If you went to him and asked him to prioritize between two things that you had on your plate, you
    would go back with three things! You can imagine the result of this approach. He never realized the flip side
    though. Many times, leaders don’t like to go through a negotiation process to establish and rationalize priorities.
    Make goals realistic, while creating enough stretch to compete. Not doing this simply leads to reluctant compliance
    instead of enthusiastic cooperation.</p>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff6600;">4. DEFLECTING VERSUS OWNING</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Another leadership maxim is to always assume blame and pass on credit. How many leaders
    actually do this though? This also applies to peers and not just to subordinates. Many times deflecting happens
    especially with peers and breaks down relationships for the long term.</p>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff6600;">5. DEMONSTRATING NEGATIVITY</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Any time a leader starts getting anxious or fearful, it has a ripple effect on their
    team and the organization. There are 5 key emotions that bubble up into negativity at a behavioral level. These are:
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #5465b3;"><strong>a</strong>.
        <strong>Dissatisfaction</strong>:</span> Some leaders come across as always unhappy with the results. They think
    that they are setting a high bar, but this discourages people and eventually leads to what is called sandbagging,
    where people steer towards lower goals.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #5465b3;"><strong>b</strong>.
        <strong>Restlessness</strong>:</span> Leaders who appear unfocused, fidgety and unable to be calm, can create a
    downward spiral in confidence with their teams. This especially surfaces in times of higher stress.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #5465b3;"><strong>c</strong>.
        <strong>Anger</strong>:</span> There is nothing worse than a leader who is known to be prone to outbursts. There
    is a reason why emotional quotient (EQ) is now the most important leadership skill. Organizations cannot afford
    leaders who are unable to manage their own emotions.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #5465b3;"><strong>d</strong>.
        <strong>Fear</strong>:</span> Leaders often exhibit anxiety and fear, especially when stakes are high. In any
    and every situation, a leader’s role is to provide confidence. This doesn’t mean lying and not being transparent
    about problems or challenges. Rather, it means demonstrating courage under all circumstances, which can inspire
    teams to rise up to any challenges.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #5465b3;"><strong>e</strong>.
        <strong>Doubt</strong>:</span> Along with fear and uncertainty, doubt can have a totally debilitating effect on
    a team, when demonstrated by a leader. Leaders need to be especially careful to ensure that they express clarity in
    their thought process.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">These negatives don’t just show up during times of stress, many times they can also show
    up during what seem like great times.</p>
<p><img decoding="async" class="lazyload w-100"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THL_5_5_min_d93beab2d1.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-06T13:10:39.609Z">
</p>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff6600;">EXERCISE</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Reflect on your recent interactions with people with whom you work. Do you
    unintentionally exhibit behaviors of being more important than them? Can you make a shift to deal with people in a
    manner that doesn’t get in the way of sincere mutual respect?</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In subsequent articles we will look at our inner state, and how managing our inner state
    works inside out to impact behavior, and consequently builds greater influence.</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<hr>

The heartful leader – part 5

<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<h4>
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >In previous articles,
      <span style="color: #92b821">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> outlined 4 key aspects
      of the “inner state” that we want to fine tune to become Heartful
      Innovators. He explored the role of the intellect and the ego, and their
      transformation in enabling innovation. In this article he explores the
      role our awareness plays in innovation.</span
    ></span
  >
</h4>
<p></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<img
  class="has-img-center"
  srcset="
    https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THI_part4_2_ed57e4595d.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-07T03:37:20.195Z
  "
  alt="heartful innovator"
  width="300"
  height="300"
/>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p></p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >I’ve always been fascinated by how the cameras in the latest smartphones
      are able to capture videos and take pictures that are way better than even
      professional cameras from a few years ago. The “secret sauce” of course is
      the software running on these phones, and not the hardware. This software
      powered by what is called machine learning (a sub-category of artificial
      intelligence) is able to make adjustments to what is captured and improve
      it in many ways.</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >What is interesting is that we have similar processes that operate within
      the human being. Let’s take just one of our senses, for example. Our
      vision actually is much poorer than we perceive it to be. The fovea, which
      is 1% of our visual field at the very center, has high resolution and can
      resolve several thousand dots in this area. This is very high resolution,
      but the area is very small. If you hold out your thumb and stretch your
      arm, the area of your thumbnail is about your fovea. Even though this
      fovea is only 1%, our brain’s visual cortex devotes 50% to inputs from
      this area. So why don’t we see everything except this small area in a
      blurry manner?</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >What happens is that just as the software on our smartphone is enhancing
      the images in real time, based on artificial intelligence, our mind
      enhances the images coming from our peripheral vision. For example, as you
      come to a room for the first time, your eyes scan various parts of the
      room. Your mind builds a mental model rapidly. Once this is done, even
      though your eyes are seeing a very small portion of the room clearly, and
      the rest of it fuzzily through your peripheral vision, your mind creates
      the impression that you are seeing the entire room clearly. In a way what
      you see is an illusion!
    </span></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >Surprising, isn’t it! The observation that our mind is able to enhance
      our senses and perception in this manner opens up many other possibilities
      for us.
    </span></span
  >
</p>
<p></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<img
  class="w-100"
  srcset="
    https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THI_part4_3_c218a496ff.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-07T03:38:13.348Z
  "
  alt="THI-part4-3"
/>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p></p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >The concepts of consciousness and levels of consciousness often appear
      elusive and esoteric. A simple way to look at it is simply as the degree
      of awareness. In other words, the higher the consciousness level, the more
      heightened the degree of awareness. And what is this awareness really? It
      is our perception of everything internal and external. The inputs can come
      from the senses for anything external, or from within the mind for
      anything internal. The perception of this input by the mind is what we
      refer to as awareness. Remember that this perception is not exactly the
      input, but an illusion created by the mind, based on that input. The word
      illusion can feel negative, but in this case it is positive. In fact, it
      helps us navigate the world effectively. For example, if the power goes
      out and you need to walk to the next room to grab a flashlight, you can
      envision the path from where you are to the next room, and carefully walk
      in the darkness avoiding obstacles. Your mind is creating an illusion that
      lets you see without light, and helps you navigate.
    </span></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >In a similar manner if we raise our level of consciousness, and achieve
      very heightened awareness, then we are able to perceive many things in a
      natural and sometimes magical manner. We “see” things that others don’t
      see, we “hear” things that others don’t hear, we “feel” things that others
      don’t feel. This ability of “super-sensing” becomes a strategic weapon for
      an innovator. So how can we develop it?</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >Inner practices that help us raise our level of consciousness are the
      most effective way to do this. In the next article we will explore this
      link between levels of consciousness and heightened awareness further,
      along with some concrete practices to achieve this.</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />
<p></p>
<h4 style="text-align: center">
  Article By
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >RAVI VENKATESAN
    </span></span
  >
</h4>
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />

The heartful innovator – part 4

<h3 style="text-align: center">
    <span style="color: #18a195"
      >Extraordinary outcomes through inspiration</span
    >
  </h3>
  <h3 style="text-align: center">
    <span style="color: #d99c23">TRUST IS EVERYTHING</span>
  </h3>
  <h4 style="text-align: left">
    In previous articles,
    <span style="color: #18a195">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> introduced the
    Heartful Leader framework and took a deeper look at Reputation, and ways
    to manage it. Now he looks at Trust more closely.
  </h4>
  <p>
    <img
      class="has-img-center lazyload w-100 h-auto"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/TH_Lpart3_4_b736f36123.jpeg?updated_at=2023-04-07T05:13:40.077Z"
      alt="THLpart3"
    />
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    Building trust is an essential part of Heartful leadership. Many times,
    people mix being trustworthy with other things. For example, being
    liked, being popular, being smart, being humorous etc. It is entirely
    possible to like someone, enjoy conversations with them, but not trust
    them at all. It is also possible, though less common, to trust someone
    but not like them at all.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    Trust, like Reputation, takes a lot to build and very little to lose.
    Once lost, it is also extremely difficult to rebuild. There are four key
    factors that create trust. If these are managed well, they go a long way
    in creating, maintaining and enhancing trust.
  </p>
  <h4>
    <img
      class="has-img-center lazyload w-100 h-auto"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/TH_Lpart3_2_d73e4f2fae.jpeg?updated_at=2023-04-07T05:14:30.027Z"
      alt="THLpart3"
    />
  </h4>
  <h4><span style="color: #d99c23">1. AUTHENTICITY</span></h4>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    Many times leaders exaggerate or embellish what they are, or what they
    can do, or their backgrounds. Sometimes this is done without much
    thought or any kind of malicious intent. However, as soon as their
    subsequent actions don’t support how they initially came across, others
    lose trust in them, and then they struggle to get anything done.
    Authenticity also requires courage, because sometimes it means
    expressing what may not be palatable. Think about people with whom you
    interact. Is there someone you would describe as a ‘straight shooter’,
    or ‘what you see is what you get’? These are some of the ways in which
    we recognize authenticity.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    <span style="color: #18a195"
      ><strong>Tips to be authentic:</strong></span
    >
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    Many times, leaders feel vulnerable in exposing themselves
    transparently, because they feel like they have to sugar coat or hide
    bad news. Try to take that leap and share some bad news transparently,
    you will find that people who receive it, actually react better than you
    expect, and appreciate your authenticity.
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    Leaders often hesitate to admit their mistakes. Try to deliberately find
    a couple of opportunities at work or with the family to admit a mistake
    and share how you will fix it or prevent it in the future. You will be
    surprised that the reaction is not as negative as you expect, and you
    will find this extremely liberating.
  </p>
  <h4 style="text-align: justify">
    <span style="color: #d99c23">2. INTEGRITY</span>
  </h4>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    Integrity simply put is ‘always doing the right thing, no matter what
    the cost’. If there is one thing where flexibility is bad, it is in the
    area of integrity. We unfortunately see many examples of seemingly
    successful leaders who do not have integrity and consider it okay. The
    reality is that any leader who may achieve results and seem to succeed
    without integrity, sooner or later loses that success. Even if we don’t
    lose it in a material sense, this thing within us called the conscience
    ends up inflicting punishment that no external agency can.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    <span style="color: #18a195"
      ><strong>Tips for developing integrity:</strong></span
    >
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    The best tip for integrity is to stand tall and never compromise on
    ethics and morals.
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    Daaji, the Heartfulness Guide, suggests that we may think occasionally
    that everyone is developing correct thinking, right understanding and an
    honest approach to life. I find that having this thought helps
    tremendously. After all, when we wish something good for others, we
    automatically feel inclined to apply it for ourselves.
  </p>
  <p>
    <img
      class="has-img-center lazyload w-100 h-auto"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/TH_Lpart3_3_6b3baee9d9.jpeg?updated_at=2023-04-07T05:15:00.691Z"
      alt="THLpart3"
    />
  </p>
  <h4 style="text-align: justify">
    <span style="color: #d99c23">3. CAPABILITY</span>
  </h4>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    No matter how much integrity you have and how authentic you are, if you
    simply don’t have the capability for whatever role you are performing,
    you will be unable to earn trust. This applies as much to an accountant,
    as to a school teacher, as to a CEO, or a lawyer.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    <span style="color: #18a195"
      ><strong>Tip for developing capability:</strong></span
    >
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    There are times when you are thrust into a role where you do not yet
    have the capability. In such cases, being transparent about it
    (authenticity) and building the capability quickly is a great way to
    earn trust over time.
  </p>
  <h4 style="text-align: justify">
    <span style="color: #d99c23">4. RELATABILITY</span>
  </h4>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    There is a natural tendency for human beings to trust their own kind.
    Unfortunately, many times this takes the form of bias and prejudice.
    Being perceived as ‘one of us’, however, significantly enhances trust.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    <span style="color: #18a195"
      ><strong>Tips to enhance relatability:</strong></span
    >
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    We cannot change who we are in terms of our race, color, educational
    background etc., but we can find what we have in common with our circle
    of interaction and place emphasis on this. Highlighting what we share
    versus what is different about us is a great way to be relatable.
  </p>
  <p style="padding-left: 60px">
    Use language that creates the feeling of being one team or one family.
    Words are powerful in what they convey directly, but also what they
    convey subliminally. When you use words like ‘we’ and ‘us’ versus ‘you’
    and ‘me’, you create more relatability and hence trust.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    As an exercise, create a list of people you feel are supporters,
    neutrals and detractors at your workplace or even in your extended
    family. Against each name, rate on a scale of 1 (low) to 5 (high), how
    much you think each person trusts you. Do you see a correlation between
    trust and their support of you? Prioritize 2 or 3 individuals who you
    think have the most impact on your success. Write down what you can do
    to bring them from detractor to neutral, and neutral to supporter
    levels, by applying the above tips for enhancing trust.
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify">
    In subsequent articles we will look at relationships, dive into
    behaviors and our own inner state, and see how we can use Heartful
    leadership to work from the inside out to create better trust,
    relationships, reputation and, as a result, influence and outcomes.
  </p>
  <hr />
  <h4 style="text-align: center">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
  <hr />

The heartful leader - part 3

<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<h4>
  <spanundefined><span>In the previous articles,
      <span style="color: #f25e5e">RAVI VENKATESAN </span>outlined 4 key aspects
      of the “inner state” that we want to fine tune to become Heartful
      Innovators. He explored the role of the intellect, ego and awareness, and
      their transformation in enabling innovation. Here he explores the role our
      mind plays in innovation.</span></span>
</h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span><img decoding="async" alt="heartful innovator" class="lazyload mw-100"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THI_part5_2_1_0fe37f17ce.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-07T06:11:21.632Z" /></span></span>
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>I always find it interesting that whenever someone talks about their
      thoughts, they point to their head.
    </span></span>
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span><img decoding="async" alt="heartful innovator" class="lazyload mw-100"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THI_part5_3_1_3aac97e330.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-07T06:12:36.315Z" /></span></span>
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>On the other hand, when they talk about their feelings, they point to
      their heart.</span></span>
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>Is a thought really in our head (brain) and a feeling in our heart? No,
      because thought is not a physical thing. Yes, when we have certain
      thoughts and feelings, we can see their physical manifestation in brain
      activity or heart rate, but that is just a manifestation. So where are our
      thoughts and feelings?</span></span>
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>Thoughts form in what we call the mind, which is not the same as the
      brain. The mind is a non-physical vibrational field, which has two ends of
      a spectrum – what we commonly call the mind (not the brain) and what we
      commonly call the heart (not the physical heart). To understand this
      better, let’s take a couple of examples.</span></span>
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>As Sally goes to bed, she has an uncomfortable feeling that she forgot to
      do something. While falling asleep, she wakes up suddenly, remembering
      that she forgot to lock the main door after guests had left that evening.
      The feeling has generated a thought.
    </span></span>
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>Jake has an unexpected surprise when his boss tells him he will receive a
      very nice bonus and appreciates what Jake has done. As he heads
    </span></span>
    <spanundefined><span>home, the thought of the bonus is no longer in his conscious mind, but he
        still feels great through the day and carries that feeling with him. In
        this case, the thought has generated a feeling.</span></span>
</p>
<p></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<img decoding="async" alt="heartful innovator" class="lazyload has-img-center"
  src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THI_part5_4_59f233d113.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-07T06:14:11.988Z" />
&nbsp;
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p></p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>If you observe closely, you will find that when a thought slips from
      conscious levels to subconscious levels of awareness, it becomes a
      feeling. And when a feeling comes up from subconscious levels to conscious
      levels of awareness it becomes a thought. So, thoughts and feelings live
      at two ends of a spectrum that we call the mind and heart. Since it is a
      spectrum, there is no such thing as a pure thought or a pure feeling. A
      thought always carries the shadow of a feeling and vice versa.</span></span>
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>There is a level in between, which we might call sensing. The easiest way
      to understand this is when we are looking at a problem and thinking about
      various solutions. If we step back, we often “sense” the right solution.
      We can even practice this as a creative problem-solving technique. It is
      interesting that the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines sensing as “to
      have a vague awareness of ” and also “to have a clear idea of.”
    </span></span>
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />
<p></p>
<h5 style="text-align: center">
  <spanundefined style="color: #f25e5e"><span>Thoughts and feelings live at two ends of a spectrum that we call the
      mind and heart. Since it is a spectrum, there is no such thing as a pure
      thought or a pure feeling. A thought always carries the shadow of a
      feeling and vice versa.</span></span>
</h5>
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />
<p></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>For an innovator, this ability to step back, “sense” and eventually
      “feel” or intuit solutions to problems is one of the most useful
      abilities. So why utilize the “feeling” side? Consider this: According to
      Dr. Bruce Lipton in <em>The Biology of Belief</em>, the subconscious mind
      can process 20,000,000 bits of information per second, whereas the
      conscious mind can only process 40 bits of information per second. So, the
      subconscious mind can process 500,000 times more than the conscious mind.
    </span></span>
</p>
<p></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<img alt="heartful innovator" class="w-100 lazyload"
  src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THI_part5_5_59804bc120.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-07T06:15:42.234Z" />
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p></p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>Here are a few simple exercises to develop the sensing and feeling side
      of the heart-mind spectrum:</span></span>
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>1. Do 20 minutes of meditation every day.
      <a href="https://heartfulness.org/us/">Heartfulness Meditation</a> is a
      great practice to rapidly expand our awareness from the thinking to the
      feeling level.</span></span>
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>2. Practice pausing during meetings or conversations, and pay attention
      to your feelings. Try to “sense” what is going on versus thinking it
      through all the time.</span></span>
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>3. Develop the habit of paying attention to signals from your body, which
      can often take you away from the world of thoughts to the world of sensing
      and later feeling. For example, when you are about to have a conversation
      with a colleague and feel a knot in your stomach, explore that feeling a
      little more to see if there is a signal to heed.</span></span>
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined><span>In the next few articles, we will explore more practices that help make
      the shift to becoming a Heartful Innovator.</span></span>
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />
<p></p>
<h4 style="text-align: center">
  Article by
  <spanundefined><span>RAVI VENKATESAN
    </span></span>
</h4>
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />

The heartful innovator - part 5

< <h4>In previous articles <span style="color: orange;">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> has introduced the Heartful Leader
  framework and explored Reputation, Trust &amp; Relationships, and Outer Behavior. He also explored what constitutes
  our Inner State and how to manage it by reversing negative cycles and triggering positive cycles. In this article he
  dives deeper into specific shifts that we can make to our behavior, and also learn a simple 3-step process that we
  can use for this.</h4>
  <p style="text-align: justify;">One of the most important shifts we can make is to not imagine things going wrong in
    our heads. Too many times we tend to make up stories in our minds about how an upcoming meeting or interaction
    will go negatively, and our mind will exaggerate this over multiple cycles of repeating the same thoughts.</p>
  <p style="text-align: justify;">Take the example of Pooja, an accountant at a consulting company. She always dreads
    her conversations with John, the head of client services. John tends to be dismissive of Pooja’s concerns about
    how the company invoices customers. Pooja wants to ensure that everything is done by the book, so that the
    company doesn’t get into trouble with audits. John is always in the mode of being “flexible” for clients and
    believes that Pooja should handle the details later without bothering him. Pooja has an upcoming meeting to
    discuss the way invoices for one of the company’s largest clients have been pre-paid, even before services have
    been rendered. The proper way to do this would have been to bill after services were rendered. At the very least
    the revenue should be amortized over a longer period, but John always tends to want to recognize the revenue
    sooner.</p>
  <p style="text-align: justify;">Even ahead of the meeting, Pooja starts building up anger about how John will be
    dismissive of her concerns. She feels unfairly treated, and falls into the negative cycle of discontent,
    restlessness, anger, fear and lack of clarity. The anxiety of this upcoming meeting disturbs her to such an
    extent that she loses sleep over it.</p>
  <p style="text-align: justify;"><img decoding="async" alt="" class="lazyload w-100"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/TH_Lpart7_4_34d85c7f0f.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-07T10:37:07.117Z">
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify;">She mentions the situation casually to Sylvie, the HR head of the company. Sylvie
    realizes that she is falling into a trap of assuming that things will go badly without giving them a fair chance
    to go well. She suggests that Pooja try to approach the conversation very positively, with a couple of options
    and assures her that if John is dismissive of her concerns then she will address it from an HR perspective.</p>
  <p style="text-align: justify;">Pooja decides to approach the meeting with an open mind and prepares carefully. She
    creates a couple of options to deal with the situation.</p>
  <p style="text-align: justify;">Her conversation with John ends up going very positively. Initially he comes across
    defensively, because he believes she is going to raise concerns and place roadblocks before him. However, once
    he realizes that Pooja has options for him and is trying to constructively address the situation, his tone
    changes, and he starts appreciating her help. In this case an external agency, Sylvie, intervened to shift
    Pooja’s inner state, and consequently her outer behavior. Instead of feeling angry and coming across frustrated,
    she came across as calm and constructive.</p>
  <p style="text-align: justify;">This shift can also be self-triggered. All we need to do, is to follow a simple
    3-step process:</p>
  <p style="text-align: justify;"><img decoding="async" alt="" class="lazyload w-100"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/TH_Lpart7_1_ed15326119.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-07T10:37:36.671Z">
  </p>
  <p style="text-align: justify;">Taking the same example as above, with the benefit of this process, Pooja would have
    noticed that she is assuming negative outcomes. She would have purposefully shifted herself to neutral by
    relaxing herself. She would have then put herself in a positive mindset, triggering the positive cycle of
    contentment -&gt; peace -&gt; love -&gt; courage -&gt; clarity.</p>
  <p style="text-align: justify;">As an exercise, observe yourself for the next few days. Catch yourself falling into
    negative feelings and emotions and apply the above 3-step process. Over time, this will become a habit, and you
    will find your outer behavior reflects a positive inner state, which leads to positive interactions.</p>
  <hr>
  <h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
  <hr>

The heartful leader - part 7

<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<h4>
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >In the previous articles,
      <span style="color: #cf5959">RAVI VENKATESAN </span>outlined 4 key aspects
      of the “inner state” that we want to fine tune to become Heartful
      Innovators. He explored the role of the intellect, ego, mind, and
      awareness, and their transformation in enabling innovation.
    </span></span
  >
</h4>
<h4>
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >In this article, he focuses on the single biggest barrier to innovation –
      fear and it’s associates, uncertainty and doubt. Collectively known as
      FUD, these factors have prevented or killed more innovations than anything
      else.</span
    ></span
  >
</h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<h3 style="text-align: center">
  <spanundefined style="color: #cf5959"
    ><span
      >Disruptive Innovation through Inner Transformation</span
    ></span
  >
</h3>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >Almost always, innovation requires taking risk to achieve rewards. We are
      all “wired” differently and have different attitudes towards risk. There
      are two statements that have held true through the years:</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<h4 style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined style="color: #0e93cc"
    ><span
      ><span style="color: #1cabe8"
        >1. “Where some see risk, others see opportunity.”</span
      >
    </span></span
  >
</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >I’ve studied carefully the attributes of some of the most successful
      business leaders, and consistently I’ve seen them spot opportunities where
      others around them were seeing risk. A great example of this is Satya
      Nadella, CEO of Microsoft. Prior leadership at Microsoft viewed the
      open-source software movement, exemplified by the operating system Linux,
      as the biggest risk to their business. Satya, on the other hand, viewed it
      as an
    </span></span
  ><spanundefined
    ><span
      >opportunity to develop Microsoft’s Cloud business. Fast forward a few
      years and Satya ended up growing Microsoft’s cloud business to be a market
      leader, only behind Amazon. The cloud business also ended up being over a
      third of Microsoft’s revenues.</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />
<p></p>
<h5 style="text-align: center">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      ><span style="color: #cf5959"
        >We know that taking risks is essential for reward.</span
      ><br />
      <span style="color: #cf5959"
        >We also see the best innovative leaders demonstrate</span
      ><br />
      <span style="color: #cf5959"
        >the ability to take risks where others may advise against it,</span
      ><br />
      <span style="color: #cf5959"
        >or the “wisdom of crowds” may be against it.</span
      >
    </span></span
  >
</h5>
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />
<p></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<h4>
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      ><span style="color: #1cabe8"
        >2. “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.”</span
      >
    </span></span
  >
</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >This statement is actually from Alexander Pope’s 18th century poem, An
      Essay on Criticism. One of the areas I find successful entrepreneurs and
      intrapreneurs achieve great success is by betting on projects and
      initiatives that don’t pass muster based on rigorous analysis. They
      require a certain leap of faith. They require using intuition more than
      analysis and facts.
    </span></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >While most people are risk averse beyond appropriate, there is also the
      opposite case of people who are “risk perverse.” Taking liberties with the
      English language, I define people who take uninformed and unreasonable
      risks that put their personal, family and business interests at risk as
      “risk perverse.” Gamblers are a great example. The classic case of a
      gambler who believes they need just one more bet to win back all their
      losses is well known.
    </span></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >We know that taking risks is essential for reward. We also see the best
      innovative leaders demonstrate the ability to take risks where others may
      advise against it, or the “wisdom of crowds”
    </span></span
  ><spanundefined
    ><span
      >may be against it. We also know that there is a dark side to risk, and we
      have to be careful not to gamble. How do we strike that balance and how
      can the principles we have learned in the previous articles help us with
      this?</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p>
  <img
    decoding="async"
    alt="THi-part6"
    width="581"
    height="406"
    class="has-img-center lazyload"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/T_Hi_part6_2_fe0d78a3aa.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-08T09:15:39.162Z"
  />
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >The best way to understand if you are not doing something because it is
      excessive risk or because of FUD is as follows:</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >1. Ensure that you are calm and centered. A disturbed mind will create a
      complex network of negative hypothetical scenarios that will never occur.
      One of the great ways to ensure you are centered is the<span
        style="color: #1cabe8"
      >
        <a
          style="color: #1cabe8"
          href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v40yh2YpDNg"
          >Heartfulness practice of Cleaning.</a
        >&nbsp;</span
      ></span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >2. Form a positive hypothesis about what could happen. For example, let’s
      say you are in a really good job but now a new opportunity has come up.
      The new job could really take your career to the next level, but you are
      concerned about losing your current good job and landing up in a job that
      you don’t like. Start with a hypothesis that this new job will take your
      career further and you will really enjoy it. Talk to multiple people you
      trust and get opinions, and then apply your intuition. This type of
      approach will lead you to identify and counter FUD.</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >3. Make yourself a witness to your own mind’s working. This is a trick to
      raise the level of consciousness from which you operate. Of course,
      regular practice of meditation will help you do this more easily versus
      just attempting it when you need it. Doing this will provide you a clear
      view of whether you are letting yourself be a victim of FUD or getting
      ready to take the right level of risk to be innovative.</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >Over the next few weeks try to observe yourself as you encounter decision
      points. Are you taking the right risks or are you being paralyzed by FUD?
      I wish you success in applying the principles of being a Heartful
      Innovator, to identify and move past FUD, to take the right risks and
      create great outcomes.</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />
<p></p>
<h4 style="text-align: center">
  Article by
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >RAVI VENKATESAN
    </span></span
  >
</h4>
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />
<p></p>


The heartful innovator – part 6

<h4 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #10125c;">Extraordinary outcomes through inspiration</span></h4>
<h4 style="color: #008dd0; text-align: center;">BUILDING TRUST AND RELATIONSHIPS THROUGH BEHAVIOR SHIFTS</h4>
<h4>In previous articles <span style="color: orange;">RAVI VENKATESAN </span>&nbsp;introduced the Heartful Leader
    framework, and explored Reputation, Trust &amp; Relationships and Outer Behavior. He also explored what constitutes
    our Inner State and how to manage it by reversing negative cycles and triggering positive cycles. He then explored a
    3-step process to make shifts to our behavior. In this article, <span style="color: orange;">RAVI </span>looks at
    managing the Inner State and creating better long-term relationships and trust.</h4>
<h4>In part 3 of this series he discussed the components of Trust: Authenticity, Integrity, Capability and Reliability.
    Let’s dive into how management of the Inner State leads to behavioral shifts, and can address each component.</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #10125c;"><img decoding="async" alt=""
            class="lazyload w-100"
            src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/brain_night2_1_6848404905.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T04:30:17.356Z"></span>
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Take the example of Jennifer. She started as a Senior Leader with InnoComp, an HR
    consulting firm that designs compensation structures for large companies. She made some quick changes to the
    company’s go to market strategy and pricing structures in the first few months, and also laid off some of the staff
    that had been there for a long time but did not seem to have relevant skills. All these changes led to suspicion and
    mistrust. Now she feels like she is not able to get things done as effectively as she would like. She works with
    Tina, her executive coach on a strategy to address this situation.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Tina identifies Jennifer’s challenge squarely as a trust issue. She took actions that
    were necessary, but they resulted in collateral damage. She needs to quickly build trust and establish better
    relationships. Tina recommends the Heartful Leader inside-out approach. She also advises Jennifer to focus on 2 to 3
    key influencers on the team to begin with. Armed with this new knowledge, Jennifer gets to work.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">She meets with 2 of the most influential team members, Tom and Susan, and initiates a
    candid conversation about how things have gone. Susan is a little hesitant with her response, but Tom openly shares
    that most of the team, including himself, view Jennifer as a threat and don’t believe she has their best interest at
    heart. Jennifer feels an immediate rush of anger. Her instinct is to tell Tom about how much pressure she has from
    her boss and the board. But she follows the 3-step process of noticing her inner state, getting to neutral, and
    shifting positive. Instead of her behavior being defensive, she addresses Tom’s comments directly: “I realize how
    you and the team feel. It is entirely on me to communicate better, not just about what is being done, but why it is
    being done. If I were in your shoes, I would have felt the same way. Do you think it would help if I provide more
    context around the actions we took?”</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><img decoding="async" alt=""
        class="lazyload w-100"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THL_part8_3_ba36131e6e.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T04:31:43.368Z">
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">With this approach Jennifer immediately demonstrates authenticity and relatability. The
    rest of the conversation shifts to a constructive mode, and she gets a lot of great feedback from both Tom and
    Susan. She agrees to make some changes and sets expectations on some others that cannot be executed. Over time, as
    she does exactly what she says she will do, Tom and Susan become champions for her. Trust and relationships lead to
    a much more effective and enjoyable mode of working.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">As a refresher, in part 4 of this series we talked about “cures” for relationships.
    Sincere apology, creating opportunities to collaborate, doing a favor without any expectation of one, and asking for
    help. By shifting herself from a negative inner state of anger to a positive inner state of compassion, reflecting
    outer behavior of collaboration instead of defensiveness, Jennifer was able to apply all these cures.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">As an exercise, observe your inner state carefully in a work meeting where debates and
    heated discussions may occur. See if you can make a shift in your inner state and behavior when someone makes a
    negative comment or disagrees with you. Can you make this a habit? It is well worth it to build trust and great
    relationships.</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<hr>

The heartful leader - part 8

<h4><span style="color: #eb6c17;">RAVI VENKATESAN </span>starts a new series for 2020, exploring the role of
    consciousness in developing strategy, and how to actively develop this potential through the expansion of
    consciousness.</h4>
&nbsp;
<p style="text-align: justify;">As a student at business school I found Strategy to be the subject fascinating beyond
    all others. It carried the potential to provide highly transformative skills. The study of strategies and
    strategists seemed to indicate that the major shifts and changes in human civilization were, in many cases, caused
    by those men and women who advised the kings, generals and leaders of their times.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">These strategists were the best thinkers, the best analysts, the best visionaries, and
    the ones who had the highest intuitive capacity and access to inspiration. Though they came from various fields,
    most strategists were traditionally military and political advisors, like Sun Tzu, Kautilya and Machiavelli. In
    ancient traditions these strategists were thought to have mystical powers and access to sources beyond traditional
    knowledge, for example, the shamans of tribal cultures.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In modern times, strategists are also common in the business world, in addition to
    politics and the military, and the role of Chief Strategy Officer has assumed significance in the last three
    decades.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In a <em>Harvard Business Review</em> article, “What Makes a Great Chief Strategy
    Officer,” the authors describe a few archetypes of strategists. These provide a great perspective on the role:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #333399;"><strong> Architects</strong></span>
    look for industry shifts and understand their organization’s source of advantage.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #eb6c17;"><strong>Visionaries</strong></span>
    know how to forecast trends and innovate.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #333399;"><strong>Surveyors</strong> </span>look
    for trends for long-range planning and have their eyes on the horizon.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #eb6c17;"><strong>Mobilizers</strong></span>
    drive alignment across the organization.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #333399;"><strong>Fund Managers</strong></span>
    optimize the organization’s investments.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">What is common to all these archetypes is the concept of synthesizing available
    information and insights and making optimal choices.&nbsp;This raises a big question: For whom are these choices
    optimal?&nbsp;The traditional answer is: The organization or community or country that the strategist serves.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #eb6c17;">Strategy is all about synthesizing information and making
        choices. These choices have consequences that generate outcomes that impact our entire ecosystem.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">As we look deeper into the lives of top strategists from the past, we find a mix of
    success and failure. We also find patterns that indicate that each of them made choices to optimize outcomes based
    on <em>their consciousness about those whose interests they served.</em> In many cases their perception of their
    ecosystem was narrower than what it could or should have been, which led to sub-optimal outcomes. Sometimes they
    made choices that were great for the short-term but not for the long-term. At other times their choices were great
    for one set of stakeholders but not for others. In many cases, even the best strategists reflected a lack of correct
    thinking and right understanding. Sometimes they lacked integrity and made unethical or immoral choices, which over
    time came back to bite them. The mindset of these strategists was dominated by a win-lose approach, where someone
    was winning and someone was losing. This was because of a misunderstanding of what they thought was their ecosystem
    of stakeholders.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">At the end of the day, the strategist uses her mental faculties to develop strategies.
    Consciousness is the very basis of these faculties – mind, intellect and ego being the other major components.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">So how can we refine these faculties to develop better strategies?<br>
    How can we establish a consciousness level that promotes correct thinking, right understanding, and an approach that
    reflects the highest ethical and moral standards?<br>
    Can we become strategists who will always develop strategies that generate the best outcomes for <em>all</em> in a
    consistent manner?</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">We will explore these ideas in this series of articles by developing the archetype of a
    Heartful Strategist – one who uses expansion of consciousness as a way to become the best strategist she can be.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The inputs from the external world feed our consciousness. The strategies we develop
    lead to the choices we make; these lead to consequences that create outcomes. These outcomes transform the ecosystem
    that we are part of. All these become inputs that modify our consciousness, and further influence our strategies.
</p>
<div class="text-center">
    <img decoding="async" alt="the-heartful-strategist-part-1"  class="lazyload has-img-center"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THS_part1_2_9018a86578.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T06:28:08.177Z">
</div>
<p>In the next few articles we’ll explore how to understand and use consciousness as a way to develop the best
    strategies for all.</p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<hr>

The heartful strategist - part 1

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<h4>
  <strong
    >In the previous articles,
    <span style="color: #00aeef">RAVI VENKATESAN</span>
    outlined 4 key aspects of the “inner state” that we want to fine tune to
    become Heartful Innovators. He explored the roles of the Intellect, Ego,
    Mind, and Awareness, and their transformation in enabling innovation. He
    also explored ways to overcome fear, uncertainty, and doubt, collectively
    known as FUD, which form the main barriers to innovation. In this article
    we’ll explore stress, another major barrier to innovation, and methods to
    counter it.</strong
  >
</h4>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<h2>
  <span style="color: #e7556f"
    >Disruptive Innovation Through Inner Transformation</span
  >
</h2>

<p>Two key autonomic nervous systems in humans are important to understand:</p>

<ol>
  <li>
    <strong>The Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS)</strong> – This prepares the
    body for potential danger. It leads to a fight-or-flight response, and
  </li>
  <li>
    <strong>The Parasympathetic Nervous System (PNS)</strong> – This brings the
    body back to a relaxed state and calms down the mind. It leads to a
    rest-and-digest response.
  </li>
</ol>

<p>
  The process of innovation cannot even begin, let alone reach the peak of its
  potential, in an individual who is stressed out, with their SNS active.
</p>

<p>
  To understand why, let’s trace the stress response. Consider the example of
  Jake, a business executive. He was copied on a nasty complaint that went to
  his boss, right before he was about to have a 1×1 meeting with her to go over
  his strategy to enter a new market. Jake’s amygdala, the part of his brain
  that handles emotions, sends a signal to his hypothalamus (the command center
  of the brain), which results in his entire system being put on alert. In other
  words, fight-or-flight mode. As this happens there are several consequences.
  The hormone epinephrine (adrenalin) is pumped into his bloodstream. Pulse rate
  and blood pressure go up. Breathing becomes more rapid. Adrenal glands release
  cortisol. Tunnel vision and impairment of cognitive processes occurs. In this
  state, Jake cannot even “think straight,” let alone think innovatively. Jake
  goes into the meeting in a disoriented state of mind. He sounds incoherent and
  unclear and frustrates his boss even further. She asks him to calm himself
  down and come back with a clearer articulation of his strategy.
</p>

<p>
  The average adult goes through several such incidents a day, and over time
  they find themselves under chronic stress. They feel like they are running
  hard to stay in the same place, almost like a mouse on a flywheel.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<div>
  <figure>
    <img
      width="400"
      height="355"
      alt=""
      class="lazyload has-img-center"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THI_part7_2_d570c08ed2.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T11:33:09.586Z"
    />
  </figure>
</div>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  How to break out of this trap? For anyone aspiring to be an innovator, it is
  essential to find ways to activate the PNS, which puts the body in
  rest-and-digest mode instead of fight-or-flight mode, and reverses the effects
  of activating the SNS. Here are three great methods to do this:
</p>

<ol>
  <li>
    <span style="color: #00aeef"
      ><strong>Left nostril breathing.</strong></span
    >
    Pause and take 8 to 10 deep and long breaths with your left nostril by
    closing your right nostril using your thumb. Repeat this a couple of times
    if needed. You will find that it has an instant calming effect. It is a very
    simple tool; however, it is very powerful in activating the PNS.
    <a
      rel="noreferrer noopener"
      href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ol8RPO27FkI"
      target="_blank"
      >https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ol8RPO27FkI<br
    /></a>
  </li>
  <li>
    <strong
      ><span style="color: #00aeef"
        >Heartfulness Relaxation.</span
      ></strong
    >
    This technique systematically lets you calm yourself down and unwind any
    stress that is present in your body and mind. You can access this practice
    here:
    <a
      rel="noreferrer noopener"
      href="https://youtu.be/rmwqL34FCjA."
      target="_blank"
      >https://youtu.be/rmwqL34FCjA.</a
    ><br />
  </li>
  <li>
    <span style="color: #00aeef"
      ><strong>Heartfulness Meditation. </strong></span
    >This technique will put you in a much deeper state of calm and allow for
    insights and innovations to emerge naturally from within. You can access
    this practice here:
    <a
      rel="noreferrer noopener"
      href="https://youtu.be/gDClb-yjNdQ"
      target="_blank"
      >https://youtu.be/gDClb-yjNdQ</a
    >.
  </li>
</ol>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<div>
  <figure>
    <img
      width="400"
      height="355"
      alt=""
      class="lazyload has-img-center"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THI_part7_3_3d71ddfb6e.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T11:35:03.166Z"
    />
  </figure>
</div>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h5 class="has-text-align-center">
  <span style="color: #f37c7e"
    >The process of innovation cannot even begin, </span
  ><br /><span style="color: #f37c7e"
    >let alone reach the peak of its potential, </span
  ><br /><span style="color: #f37c7e"
    >in an individual who is stressed out, with their SNS active.</span
  >
</h5>

<hr />

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  Try these practices during the next week. You can use the left nostril
  breathing in any situation, at home or at work. It is essential to develop the
  ability to recognize when your SNS has been activated and to counter it by
  activating the PNS. This will not only help you become a Heartful Innovator,
  but also help with your mental and physical health by combating chronic
  stress.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />


The heartful innovator - part 7

<h4 class="py-3">In the last 5 articles, <span style="color: #668585;">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> has shared ideas about the
  reasons public speakers fail, the 26 Cs of good communication, body language and voice modulation, the ‘power of
  pause’ and the need for presence. In part 6 he focuses on empathy.</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Most of us believe that we are very empathetic, but when we are in real-life situations
  how many of us really shine in this essential human quality? In the context of public speaking, empathy can make the
  difference between good and great.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Empathy essentially involves putting yourself in the shoes of your audience: speaking
  directly to what is of interest to them, conveying what benefits them, and avoiding what is offensive to them. It is
  the heart of Heartful Presenting. Being empathetic as a speaker will ensure that you speak to the hearts of your
  audience, not just their brains.</p>
&nbsp;

<img class="has-img-center py-3"
  src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/6_Cs_92d7c0e7d6.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T12:59:02.663Z" />

Try the following exercises with a group of friends, to develop empathy while speaking to audiences:

<img class="has-img-center py-3"
  src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/exercises_738eb22504.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T12:59:15.578Z" />

In each of these cases, don’t take more than 3 minutes. Refine and repeat as many times as needed after receiving
feedback from your friends on whether you came across as empathetic or not.

<p style="text-align: center;"></p>
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<p style="text-align: center;"></p>
<hr>

The heartful presenter - part 6

<h4>
  <strong>In the previous articles,
    <span style="color: #ffd200">RAVI VENKATESAN</span>
    outlined aspects of the “inner state” that we want to fine tune to become
    Heartful Innovators. He covered ways to overcome barriers to innovation like
    stress and fear, and also enablers of innovation like imagination and
    courage. To be effective innovators, we need three skills: coming up with
    unique ideas, articulating them well, and influencing others to rally around
    the idea. In this article he looks at the best ways to articulate ideas and
    influence others to rally around the ideas.</strong>
</h4>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<h3 class="has-text-align-center">
  <span style="color: #0750b6">THE HEARTFUL INNOVATOR – PART 9</span>
</h3>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  Some of the smartest people I know struggle to express their ideas. They have
  clarity of thought, can quickly identify solutions to problems, but are poor
  at expressing themselves. Often, they are frustrated that no one seems to
  listen to them, so poorer decisions are made by people who are not as smart
  but speak with a “louder voice.” The reality is that it is not just the
  “louder voice” that is heard. Let’s revisit some of the concepts around the
  subtle bodies of Mind, Intellect, Ego and Consciousness that we have
  discussed; in this case, we will consider them collectively instead of
  individually
</p>

<p>
  How to articulate ideas to others in a way that they feel heard? Let’s go
  through the cycle of how your listener is processing what they hear from you:
  If you develop the habit of always placing your ideas in a simple and logical
  manner, you will go through the filter of their Intellect. This is the easy
  part.
</p>

<p>
  If you refer to something you heard earlier from them, or place your ideas in
  the context to conversations you’ve had with them, you will naturally go
  through their Ego filter. This is the hard part, but with practice it becomes
  second nature.
</p>

<p>
  As more of your conversations “feel” positive to them, their Consciousness
  will shift to be open to your ideas. This is not about being devious or
  manipulative. Instead, it is simply following the principle that we all
  appreciate being listened to, and when your conversation reflects that you
  have listened, then your ideas are more likely to be accepted.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<div class="block-image">
  <figure>
    <img width="600" class="lazyload has-img-center" alt="The-Heartful-Innovator-part9-2"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/The_Heartful_Innovator_part9_2_e8012b9228.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-06T10:46:06.487Z" />
  </figure>
</div>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  To encourage people to rally behind your ideas, try to create a shared vision
  of what they can accomplish. The three steps I recommend for a Heartful
  Innovator are these:
</p>

<p>
  <strong><span style="color: #496aaf">1. Tell a story</span></strong>
  to articulate the problem you are solving. For example, when pitching the idea
  for a bookmark you could tell the story of your favorite book that was ruined
  by dogears on multiple pages. This is a simple example, but it highlights the
  importance of storytelling.
</p>

<p>
  <strong><span style="color: #496aaf">2. Paint a picture</span></strong>
  of the future. For example, when pitching the benefit of a high-speed subway
  for a city with heavy traffic congestion, you might share something like,
  “Imagine if all our daily commuters went from the current average commute of
  an hour to 30 minutes. We could give them all the gift of an hour a day.” This
  is also like the habit, “Begin with the end in mind,” Stephen Covey describes
  in his famous book,
  <em>The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People</em>.
</p>

<p>
  <strong><span style="color: #0071a1">3. Express optim</span><span style="color: #496aaf"
     >ism</span></strong>
  in the possibility of what you are proposing. Most innovations would never
  happen if every idea were analyzed objectively for the probability of success.
  There is need for optimism, at times even irrational optimism. Optimism toward
  the possible achievement of challenging goals always inspires people to do
  more than they thought possible.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<div class="block-image">
  <figure>
    <img width="600" alt="The-Heartful-Innovator-part9-3" class="lazyload has-img-center" src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/The_Heartful_Innovator_part9_3_e4f9051ef5.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-06T10:47:26.236Z
    " />
  </figure>
</div>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  <strong><span class="has-luminous-vivid-amber-color">EXERCISE
    </span></strong>
</p>

<h5>
  Maintain a personal influence journal over the next few weeks. Every time you
  share an idea with anyone at work, or even with family members, observe their
  reaction and assign yourself a score as follows:
</h5>

<h5>
  1 if they immediately appreciate the idea and agree<br />
  0 if they seem neutral <br />–1 if they clearly oppose your idea
</h5>

<h5>
  Reflect on your score after a couple of weeks. You will improve your ability
  to articulate ideas and influence people if you apply the principles of
  Heartful Innovation that we’ve covered in this article. After all, what use is
  it if you come up with the best ideas but are not able to convince anyone to
  support them!
</h5>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

Engaging others

<div class="container">
    <h4>Influence minds and win hearts</h4>
    <hr class="vertical-space1">
    <h5 style="text-align: justify;">Have you ever walked out of a lecture feeling like you wish you had not attended?
        How many times have you felt bored, dissatisfied, and underwhelmed with the whole experience? Sometimes, this
        happens even with seasoned and high profile speakers. In this new series RAVI VENKATESAN starts by sharing his
        experience of why this happens. Where do the speakers fail?</h5>
</div>
<div class="row">
    <h3 style="text-align: center;"></h3>
    <div class="col-md">
        <img src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/fear_642fad0fd5.jpg" class="has-img-center">
    </div>
    <div class="col-md-8">
        <h4 style="text-align: justify;">FEAR</h4>
        <p style="text-align: justify;">Most people fear public speaking, which is known as glossophobia. In fact, it
            affects 3 out of 4 people. More people are victims of this fear than fear of death, spiders, darkness and
            claustrophobia put together. Fear is also the basis for negative emotions like anxiety, nervousness,
            despondency and even anger.</p>
        <p></p>
    </div>
</div>

<div class="row">
    <div class="col-md-8">
        <h4 style="text-align: justify;">PREPARATION</h4>
        <p style="text-align: justify;">Many times people show up without adequately preparing. This leads to a vicious
            cycle of making mistakes, trying to cover them up, talking in circles, and leaving the audience feeling
            cheated.</p>
    </div>
    <div class="col-md">
        <img src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/preperation_f61740793e.jpg"
            class="has-img-center">
    </div>
</div>
<div class="row">
    <div class="col-md">
        <img src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/connection_2403c9ce77.jpg"
            class="has-img-center">
    </div>
    <div class="col-md-8">
        <h4 style="text-align: justify;">CONNECTION</h4>
        <p style="text-align: justify;">Even the most polished, well-prepared presenters, fail to make an impact if
            they don’t connect with their audience. Intellectualism and lack of vulnerability often prevents such a
            connection.</p>
    </div>
    <div class="row">
        <div class="col-md-8">
            <h4 style="text-align: justify;">PRESENCE</h4>
            <p style="text-align: justify;">We all bring a certain presence to every situation. This is felt
                subconsciously in the form of vibrations by everyone that interacts with us. Our self-image often
                dilutes the presence that we could bring to public speaking.</p>
        </div>
        <div class="col-md">
            <img src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/presence_582fad4cd6.jpg"
                class="has-img-center">
        </div>
    </div>
</div>

<p style="text-align: justify;">The good news is that everyone can be great at public speaking. It takes
    understanding and applying the five most important aspects of presenting, and mastering them over a
    period of time with practice and diligent effort. These five are:</p>
<p><span style="color: #de6fa3;">BODY LANGUAGE</span><br>
    <span style="color: #de6fa3;">VOICE MODULATION</span><br>
    <span style="color: #de6fa3;">PRESENCE</span><br>
    <span style="color: #de6fa3;">EMPATHY</span><br>
    <span style="color: #de6fa3;">IMPACT</span>
</p>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>
<h5 style="text-align: center;">“A polished tongue<br>
    in discourse or conversation<br>
    influences humanity<br>
    and reigns supreme.”<br>
    – Ram Chandra of Fatehgarh</h5>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>
<p style="text-align: justify;">There are 27 Cs of communication under these five areas. By practicing these
    Cs you can also become a heartful presenter, so that whatever you speak will touch the hearts of your
    audience. You will win minds and influence hearts. In the next few articles we’ll dive deeper into each
    of these areas.</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<hr>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<h5 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h5>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p>
<hr>

The heartful presenter

<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<h4>
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >In his previous article,
      <span style="color: #de4747">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> introduced the concept
      of changing the “observer” or the innovator, in order to get exponential
      shifts in results. He also outlined 4 key aspects of the “inner state”
      that we want to fine-tune. In this article, he explores the role of the
      intellect and how it plays into innovation.</span
    ></span
  >
</h4>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<img
  decoding="async"
  alt="The-Heartful-Innovator-Part2-2"
  class="w-100 lazyload"
  src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/The_Heartful_Innovator_Part2_2_237858fd10.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T12:24:51.419Z"
/>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >Let’s take an example of a specific innovation: Portraying 3-dimensional
      imagery in 2-dimensional media. This is what makes amazing visual feasts
      like the Avengers movies or Star Wars come alive. If we trace the origins
      of this innovation, it leads us to the discovery and mastery of what is
      called “linear perspective” by a famous architect of the Renaissance
      period, Filippo Brunelleschi. He systematically studied exactly how and
      why objects, buildings, and landscapes change and lines appear to change
      shape when seen from a distance or from different angles. He then used
      this to develop a system of depicting them in paintings with striking
      similarity. The application of the intellect is obvious in this example.
      What is more interesting is how he came upon this idea to begin with. He
      seems to have not only applied his intellect in an intelligent manner, but
      also intuitively understood the impact his hypothesis could have.</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >Let’s take some other examples. Archimedes observed the level of water in
      a tub rising as he got in, and converted this observation to experiments
      that became the foundations of many innovations, like the Archimedes
      screw, still used for pumping liquids. Newton’s innovation of using
      reflecting mirrors rather than refracting lenses led to smaller telescopes
      and clearer images. Marie Curie’s innovation in using mobile X-ray
      machines during World War I saved many lives.</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >In all of these cases, there was a shift in the intellect, somehow
      leading it to a refined or developed state. There is no doubt that these
      were intelligent women and men, but what drove them to be able to “sense”
      something that others could not? What led to that “eureka” or “aha” moment
      for them? In some cases, many of these moments?</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >If we study some of their habits, a few clues emerge. Einstein would
      sleep for 10 hours a day (1.5 times the average person today). Newton
      would isolate himself in retreats, including one where he discovered
      gravity.
    </span></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >Somehow, allowing a state of deep relaxation to set in seems to allow the
      intellect to shift into intelligence, and open to become intuition. In
      modern times, many companies have started meditation programs to allow
      employees to combat stress and relax. An interesting side effect is that
      the companies like Google, Microsoft, Salesforce etc., which have such
      programs, seem to also be some of the most innovative companies. Is this a
      coincidence, or is there more to it?</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h5 style="text-align: center">
  <spanundefined style="color: #de4747"
    ><span
      >Allowing a state of deep relaxation to set in seems to allow the
      intellect to shift into intelligence, and open to become intuition.</span
    ></span
  >
</h5>

<hr />

<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >The proof of the pudding is always in the eating. So, let’s try this
      experiment. Over the next few days, reserve five to ten minutes every
      evening to simply relax. You can use a routine like the Heartfulness
      Relaxation, available on the
      <span style="color: #de4747"
        ><a
          style="color: #de4747"
          href="http://heartfulness.org"
          target="_blank"
          rel="noopener noreferrer"
          >heartfulness.org</a
        ></span
      >
      website to guide you through this. Recall and park any problems you have
      prior to starting this. At the end of the relaxation see if any new,
      innovative ideas emerge. You will start developing the habit of refining
      your intellect and allowing intuition to emerge more effortlessly.
    </span></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >The big prize in refining the intellect is beyond intuition. It is
      “wisdom,” which allows not just clever innovations to emerge, but
      innovations that are beneficial to humanity. This state comes through the
      repeated practice of refining the intellect through meditative practices
      like Heartfulness. The transformation of the intellect into wisdom is one
      of the natural results of such a practice. Intelligence and intuition are
      shifts that happen along the way.</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >In subsequent articles we’ll explore shifts in other key aspects of our
      inner state that contribute to innovation.
    </span></span
  >
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<img
  decoding="async"
  alt="The-Heartful-Innovator-Part2-3"
  class="has-img-center lazyload"
  src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/The_Heartful_Innovator_Part2_3_8bbabc09e1.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T12:24:51.312Z"
/>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h4 style="text-align: center">
  <spanundefined
    ><span
      >Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</span
    ></span
  >
</h4>

<hr />


The heartful innovator – part 2

<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4><span style="color: #51248c;">RAVI VENKATESAN provides practical tips on negotiation in business relationships and
    in life.</span></h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4><span style="color: #51248c;">Beyond the head</span></h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: justify;">The very word ‘negotiation’ evokes an allergic reaction in most of us. It brings up
  ideas of confrontation, argument and debate. We often fear loss while going into a negotiation, and feel anger at
  being taken advantage of while coming out of a negotiation.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Some of us are on the other side of the spectrum: we love to debate and argue. We
  believe we win every negotiation, and get the best outcomes. On both sides of this spectrum, we feel that negotiations
  are like a tug of war. There is always a winner and a loser.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">We mostly think about negotiations as high stakes exercises, like countries at war
  negotiating terms of peace or companies negotiating terms of a merger. In reality, we are all negotiating all the
  time. We may be negotiating with a co-worker on where to eat lunch, or negotiating with our spouse on what movie to
  watch, or negotiating with the kids on how much television they are allowed to watch.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">As a young executive out of business school, I used to enjoy hard negotiations. I would
  use every tactic in the book to eke out an advantage. My favorite techniques came from books like <em>The Art of
    War</em> by Sun Tzu, <em>The Prince</em> by Niccolo Machiavelli, <em>The 48 Laws of Powe</em>r by Robert Greene etc.
  These books taught me to play games, hide information, hide my real intentions, and be devious in gaining an
  advantage.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">A few years in the business world taught me that winning one-off negotiations at the
  cost of relationships was not smart. I needed to negotiate win-win outcomes for both parties. I needed a way to turn
  an adversary into a partner. I started reading a new set of books, and my favorites now came from the Harvard
  Negotiation Project: <em>Getting to Yes</em> by Roger Fisher and Willam Ury, <em>Beyond Reason</em> by Roger Fisher
  and Daniel Shapiro, and <em>Getting Together</em> by Roger Fisher and Scott Brown. These books taught me how to
  negotiate win-win outcomes while building relationships.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">As I continued my search for the ideal way to negotiate, I realized that we focus mostly
  on the <em><span style="color: #51248c;">head</span></em>, which is the seat of logic and reason, and not enough on
  the <em><span style="color: #51248c;">heart</span></em>, which is the seat of feelings and emotions. We also don’t pay
  attention to what our egos are doing in spite of ourselves. My learnings from Heartfulness led me to a different
  approach. This was to go beyond the head and use the heart. The head still plays a role with logic and reason, but the
  heart leads with what is right, ethical and sustainable. It is a natural and simple approach, and yet generates the
  best outcomes for all parties involved. It also eliminated the need to play games, indulge in deception, hide my real
  agenda, and instead let me be courageously authentic through the entire process.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">I would like to share this approach with you through this series of articles. Practicing
  these will make you a Heartful Negotiator. If you are looking for techniques that let you gain advantage at the cost
  of others, then this series is not for you, but if you would like to negotiate a win for you and others, then read on.
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The first step towards being a Heartful Negotiator is to develop 360-degree awareness of
  the subtle aspects of our heads and hearts, which are at play when two individuals negotiate. These are aspects
  beneath the ‘surface’ that influence the way negotiations flow. In later articles, we’ll expand on each of these
  aspects and how to manage them. As with learning any new skill, such as riding a bike or driving a car, you will
  initially feel that there are many things to keep track of, however, as you practice, these things will become second
  nature to you, and will come into play naturally and effortlessly.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Let us take the heart and mind as a vibrational field (see the figure) where feelings
  and emotions on one hand, and thoughts and ideas on the other hand, are constantly surfacing. Let’s look at these in
  three buckets:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span style="color: #51248c;">Prior disposition</span><br>
  <span style="color: #51248c;"> Feelings &amp; emotions in the heart</span><br>
  <span style="color: #51248c;"> Thoughts &amp; ideas in the head</span>
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p><img class="has-img-center lazyload"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_negotiator2_img_93e168ed84.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T07:50:43.076Z" />
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4><span style="color: #51248c;">Prior disposition:</span></h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">Likes and dislikes</span> – Each
  person has their set of likes and dislikes that influence the negotiation. For example, I may like pizza, and having
  pizza for lunch puts me in a more amicable frame of mind. You may dislike formal settings, so a business conference
  room full of people in suits may make you close up and be inflexible.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">Worries and concerns</span> – Each
  person has their own set of things they are concerned or worried about. Not being able to get a raise may mean that I
  lose face with my peers. Not getting the new house within our budget may leave us with no money to furnish it for a
  couple of years.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">Desires</span> – Each person’s desires
  are constantly informing and influencing their posture. I may desire the social status that a promotion brings more
  than a raise. This makes me willing to negotiate a lower raise to get a promotion.</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><img class="has-img-center lazyload"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_negotiator3_img_acd992a398.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T07:52:04.278Z" />
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4><span style="color: #51248c;">Feelings and emotions in the heart:</span></h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: justify;">There are opposing feelings and emotions at play in the heart. Throughout the
  negotiation process, the balance between these keeps shifting. Managing this can unlock a tremendous ability to
  navigate to the best outcomes. These oppositions include:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;">Greed versus Contentment<br>
  Peace and Relaxation versus Restlessness<br>
  Empathy, Love and Compassion versus Anger, Hate and Disgust<br>
  Fear, Anxiety and Nervousness versus Courage and Confidence<br>
  Feeling of clarity versus Feeling of doubt and uncertainty</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4><span style="color: #51248c;">&nbsp;Thoughts and ideas in the head:</span></h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: justify;">Just as our heart cannot stop feeling, our mind cannot stop thinking. The thoughts and
  ideas that fill it up are equally important to understand and manage.</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">Ego perception</span> – my perception
  of me versus you.<br>
  <span style="color: #ff6600;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">Intellect</span> –</span> logic and reason driven thoughts
  based on applying my intellect.<br>
  <span style="color: #ff9900;">Mind wanderings</span> – ad hoc ideas that are generated by my mind, and other mental
  distractions.
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">To understand the interplay of all these, try the following role play with a friend:</p>
<h4><span style="color: #51248c;">Scenario</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #ff9900;">You and your friend meet for lunch to discuss a joint
    family vacation. You generally like going to the mountains, and your friend always goes to the beach, so you know
    that the destination is going to be a point of debate. She also has a tendency to say, “My spouse would prefer to do
    ______,” and deflect the conversation. You intend to counter this by calling her out, and getting to a
    decision.</span></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p><img class="has-img-center lazyload"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_negotiator5_img_41cc272c0c.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T07:53:17.719Z" />
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: justify;">Before the role play, both of you should spend some time in writing down a few bullets
  about your prior disposition based on the list above. As you start discussing ideas about where you could go for a
  join family vacation, pay attention to the feelings and emotions in your heart based on the list above. Also note the
  ego perception you have about yourself versus your friend. Note any logical reasoning you adopt to make points and
  counter points. Note cases where your mind is distracted or wanders, or generates other relevant or irrelevant ideas
  as you go through this conversation.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">After the role play, share your notes and observations with each other. This will
  provide you insight into how much is happening beneath the surface, for even a simple negotiation like this. In
  subsequent articles, we will take a look at how to manage each of these aspects, and become a Heartful Negotiator. Our
  goal is to let our heart lead our head, and have both work together to generate the best outcomes.</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>
<hr>

The heartful negotiator - part 1


                                <hr class="vertical-space1">
<h4><span><span>So far in this series, <span style="color: #db3c18;">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> has introduced the Heartful Strategist framework, and explored how our consciousness results in the strategies we adopt, the choices we make, which in turn have consequences that impact the ecosystem of which we are a part. He has also explored the concept of thought patterns, and learnt how past impressions create these tendencies or thought patterns in us. He reviewed the Heartfulness technique of Cleaning, which uses the power of auto-suggestion or self-suggestion to introduce positive shifts in our subconscious and thought patterns. In the last article we specifically explored <em>Turiya</em>, the level of consciousness that we would consider the ideal for a Heartful Strategist.</span></span></h4>
<p><img class="has-img-center lazyload" src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THS_part7_1_9be337ee3d.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T12:23:55.892Z" />
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span><span>In this article we’ll spend some time on practices that can help with the development of this state of consciousness.</span></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span><span>This is a good way to understand consciousness at a basic level. However, just as physics evolved from Newtonian to Relativity to Quantum theories, our understanding of consciousness needs to go deeper. The generalizations we adopted earlier will need to be left behind.</span></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span><span>The simple <a href="https://heartfulness.org/in/">Heartfulness practices</a> of Relaxation, Meditation, Cleaning and Prayer, complemented with practices to detox anger, fear, passion and stress, can lead one to this ideal consciousness level of <em>Turiya</em> in an effective and efficient manner. You can refer to <a href="http://www.heartfulness.org">www.heartfulness.org</a> for more information on these practices. </span></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span><span>Let’s see how this happens. The practices of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmwqL34FCjA&amp;width=640&amp;height=480">Heartfulness Relaxation</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDClb-yjNdQ&amp;width=640&amp;height=480">Meditation</a> lead one to a state of deep absorption that is akin to deep sleep based on brain wave patterns. This has been proven by TerraBlue XT’s studies using a wearable medical detection device. Deep sleep brain waves are indicative of deep physical relaxation. While in this state of deep absorption, which is the <em>Turiya</em> state, an adept meditator is able to retain awareness and seek guidance and inspiration from within. The answers seem to come in a magical manner from a place within ourselves, yet a source beyond ourselves with which we are connected.</span></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span><span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v40yh2YpDNg&amp;width=640&amp;height=480">Heartfulness Cleaning</a>, when done regularly, starts to free us of the thought patterns that limit us, and opens up our hearts and minds to receive and act on the guidance that meditation can offer us. It also performs the vital function of removing the impressions gathered during our waking hours, before they sink from our active consciousness to subconsciousness when we sleep.</span></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span><span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVNB6yrriuc&amp;width=640&amp;height=480">Heartfulness Prayer</a> allows us to connect to a source beyond ourselves. Carl Jung called this the Collective Unconscious. Whatever label we ascribe to it, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. The best way to experience the power of connecting to a Source beyond us, is simply to try it!</span></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span><span>Here is an experiment to try. Over the next few weeks try these freely available practices, and observe your experiences during meditation. Hold any important questions or choices in your mind before you start meditation and see what emerges from within. Don’t throw logical reasoning and analysis out the window, but try to balance the results of analysis with the inspirations from within. This will lead to a different level of decision making and choice, and your own experience will show you the proof points for it. </span></span></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p><hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by <span><span>RAVI VENKATESAN</span></span></h4>
<p style="text-align: center;">
</p><hr>                       

The heartful strategist - part 7

<hr class="vertical-space1"><p>[distance2]</p>
<h4>In the series so far, <span style="color: #6cbf1f;">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> has introduced the Heartful Strategist
    framework, and explored how our consciousness results in the strategies we adopt and the choices we make, which in
    turn have consequences that impact our ecosystem. He has also explored the concept of thought patterns, and how past
    impressions create these patterns. He has also reviewed a number of Heartfulness methods that lead to positive
    shifts in our thought patterns, and the development of the <em>Turiya</em> level of consciousness, which he
    considers to be the ideal for a Heartful Strategist.</h4>
<h4>Here he evolves a specific set of steps to access deeper levels of consciousness, in order to adopt the best
    strategies. In everyday terms, we can consider this as ensuring that we “see the forest <em>and</em> the trees.”
</h4>

<p style="text-align: justify;">When we encounter most situations or problems, the best first step is to
    <strong>pause</strong>. This doesn’t mean that we don’t respond with urgency when needed. In our modern lives, we
    are not running away from lions and tigers in the jungle, but the primitive instincts are still present in us. In
    many cases the first step to access deeper levels of our consciousness is simply to pause.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The second step is to make a fundamental <strong>shift from a reactive to creative
        mode.</strong> By pausing and shifting to a creative mode, we naturally prevent an emotional reaction, and
    instead allow space for inspiration to emerge from deeper within.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">As we practice the methods outlined in the previous articles, we achieve two things
    simultaneously. We eliminate past impressions that have created set thought patterns. We also become more aware of
    our reactive tendencies. This awareness helps us to pause and shift to a creative mode. One way to understand
    consciousness is also as the “degree of awareness” (Daaji, 2019). With practice, our awareness becomes sharper, and
    we are able to operate from higher levels of consciousness.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The third step is to evaluate the situation or problem as objectively as possible, by
    adopting a<strong> witness attitude.</strong> This is a powerful concept. It allows you to be impartial. See part 5
    of this series for an exercise to develop this attitude.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The fourth step is to intentionally <strong>broaden the term and scope</strong> of
    impact of any strategies you might adopt and choices you might make.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">And the fifth and final step is to allow multiple choices to emerge from the
    <strong>heart space</strong> versus going with the first or the most obvious option that comes from your
    <strong>head space.</strong> When you shift your focus from mental analysis to feeling, you will balance your head
    and heart, and tap into higher levels of consciousness in a natural manner. Challenge yourself not to accept the
    most convenient choice, but rather get to the optimal one for the broadest possible set of people. In other words,
    think in terms of your ecosystem.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Let’s take an example of this approach in action. Eva, who is a consulting manager, is
    considering laying off three team members due to adverse financial circumstances. Initially, she considers the
    financial targets she needs to hit and calculates how many people to lay off to reach her target. She then pauses
    and starts thinking about these individuals and their lives. She considers the impact on their families. She thinks
    about the circle of their friends and relatives. The impact on their landlord of them not paying rent. The impact of
    their landlord not paying the mortgage.</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<hr>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #6cbf1f;">Challenge yourself not to<br>
        accept the most convenient choice,<br>
        but rather get to the optimal one<br>
        for the broadest possible set of people.</span></h5>
<hr>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: justify;">Eventually, Eva’s own retirement account that has money invested in this mortgage
    company may suffer a reduction due to many similar decisions to the one Eva is about to make. The chain goes on. Eva
    knows that there are far reaching consequences of her decision beyond the individuals she is impacting. So she
    starts considering other alternatives.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span>She looks at the option of pay cuts for a larger number of
        people to get closer to the target. She advocates assertively for this option with her boss and convinces him.
        She also brings all the impacted people to a meeting, and explains how their temporary pay cut is saving the
        jobs of some of them. Eva’s boss feels inspired and decides to apply this solution to other teams in the
        company, resulting in many jobs being saved. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span>Though the story is modified, it is inspired by what
        recently happened at a mid-sized consulting company in Atlanta that went through tough times during the COVID-19
        crisis. The employees appreciated the decision so much that they resolved to stay with the company even if they
        are paid lower than market rates. Their motivation to help the company get back to positive financial
        circumstances has risen manifold based on how they saw the partners behave and make choices.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span>The leaders took a longer term and broader view of the
        impacts of their strategy to deal with this crisis.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span>In summary, use this checklist to ensure that you develop
        strategies by accessing higher levels of consciousness. The choices made will have the best consequences and
        outcomes for your entire ecosystem.</span></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p>

    <img class="has-img-center lazyload" alt="the-heartful-strategist-part-8"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THS_part8_2_img_ddbeb35406.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T12:29:01.178Z" />
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1">
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span>Adopt this checklist for the next strategy you develop and
        see what shifts in the choices you make. The outcomes will be those of a Heartful Strategist! </span></p>
<hr class="vertical-space1">
<hr>
<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by <span>RAVI VENKATESAN<br>
        Illustrations by RAHUL SINGH PARMUR</span></h4>
<hr>

The heartful strategist - part 8

<h4
  id="h-in-his-previous-articles-ravi-venkatesan-outlined-four-key-aspects-of-the-inner-state-that-we-want-to-fine-tune-to-become-heartful-innovators-he-explored-the-role-of-the-intellect-ego-mind-and-awareness-and-their-transformation-in-enabling-innovation-he-also-covered-ways-to-overcome-barriers-to-innovation-like-stress-fear-uncertainty-and-doubt-collectively-known-as-fud-in-this-article-he-explores-the-role-of-a-couple-of-key-enablers-of-innovation-imagination-and-courage"
>
  In his previous articles,
  <span style="color: #3f3b66">RAVI VENKATESAN </span
  >outlined four key aspects of the “inner state” that we want to fine-tune to
  become Heartful Innovators. He explored the role of the Intellect, Ego, Mind,
  and Awareness, and their transformation in enabling innovation. He also
  covered ways to overcome barriers to innovation, like stress, fear,
  uncertainty, and doubt, collectively known as FUD. In this article, he
  explores the role of a couple of key enablers of innovation – imagination and
  courage.
</h4>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<h3 class="has-text-align-center">
  <span style="color: #20887a"
    ><strong>3 Ways to Overcome Mental Obstacles</strong></span
  >
</h3>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  In his series on Yogic Psychology, Daaji describes imagination as follows:
  “Imagination is a very important mental faculty with which we form and create
  new ideas, images and concepts that cannot always be verified by
  <em>pramana</em>. It is necessary for creativity, innovation and discovery,
  but it can also lead us into a spiral of delusion.”
</p>

<p>
  The Sanskrit word “<em>pramana</em>” means proof. So, in essence, imagination
  gives us access to envision something that doesn’t yet exist and cannot be
  proven or verified.
</p>

<p>
  I have always found it very interesting that many innovations seem to appear
  first in science fiction before making their appearance in real life. For
  example, an iPad-like device was shown in Star Trek decades before such
  devices became a reality. Ironically, we make it up first, and then we make it
  a reality.
</p>

<p>
  Like many of our capacities, imagination can be a double-edged sword. As a kid
  I used to have the bad habit of compulsively making up things and lying. I
  remember telling a grand-aunt an elaborate tale about a machine that would
  automatically make all kinds of food and serve it. All of it was made up. This
  caused my parents a lot of worry and they tried correcting me through various
  means. Eventually, someone advised them that I may just have a
  hyper-imaginative mind and they should encourage me to write stories to
  channel this. That idea helped a lot. Later I started composing music, and
  this was another channel.
</p>

<p>
  The point is, especially for innovation, this mental faculty of imagination
  can be very useful, however, it can also go wrong. As with most things, to use
  it effectively we need to regulate the mind so that capacities can be
  channeled in the right direction.
</p>

<p>Heartfulness Meditation is a wonderful tool to accomplish this.</p>

<p>
  Describing the importance of imagination, Einstein said, “Imagination is more
  important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination
  embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution.”
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h5 class="has-text-align-center">
  <span style="color: #3e3a76"
    >Describing the importance of imagination, <br />Einstein said, “Imagination
    is <br />more important than knowledge. <br />For knowledge is limited,
    <br />whereas imagination embraces the entire world, <br />stimulating
    progress, <br />giving birth to evolution.”</span
  >
</h5>

<hr />

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  Courage is another aspect to explore. Courage builds the bridge from idea to
  execution. If we have a sufficiently-evolved imagination, then ideas will
  come. To take the next step from idea to execution requires courage. Again,
  just like imagination, courage has a dark side, which is recklessness. When
  courage is not refined and regulated, it can lead a person to take excessive
  risks, to gamble, or worse, to do things that have negative consequences for
  society at large. Think about every dictator and conqueror in history. They
  were no doubt courageous, but their courage unchecked led to horrific actions.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<div>
  <figure>
    <img
      width="458"
      height="500"
      alt=""
      class="lazyload has-img-center"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/Heartful_Innovator_part8_2_4d1a1d64e0.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T02:25:28.462Z"
    />
  </figure>
</div>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  It would not be an exaggeration to say that almost every significant
  innovation has required a lot of courage on the part of the innovator. Think
  about Ford deciding to build the Model T in 1909, making cars commonplace.
  Think about Elon Musk wanting to send humans to Mars, creating a company that
  could lead the market for space transportation, something only large
  government-sponsored organizations had done before.
</p>

<p>
  The most important role courage plays in innovation is not overcoming the fear
  of failure, which of course it does, but overcoming the fear of criticism,
  which in many cases is a greater fear.
</p>

<p>To make this real, try the following:</p>

<div>
  <figure>
    <img
      width="400"
      height="626"
      alt=""
      class="lazyload has-img-center"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/Heartful_Innovator_part8_3_107f98efd9.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T02:27:16.840Z"
    />
  </figure>
</div>

<p>
  If you can develop this muscle, you have taken another important step toward
  becoming a Heartful Innovator!
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h5 class="has-text-align-center">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h5>

<hr />


The heartful innovator – part 8

<h4>
  <span
    >In the earlier articles of this series,<span style="color: #d42f2f">
      RAVI VENKATESAN</span
    >
    introduced the Heartful Strategist framework. He covered how consciousness
    is limited by certain vicious cycles of negative emotions. He also looked at
    examples of shifts that can be made to allow consciousness to expand through
    broadening our perspective and “thinking” for the benefit of broader and
    broader circles of influence. In this article he explores tendencies and
    thought patterns, and how specific practices can help with shifting these.
    As background, you can read parts 3 and 4 of this series again.</span
  >
</h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    >In part 3, we looked at how consciousness has an active part and an
    unconscious part, that in turn can be viewed as two parts, subconsciousness
    and superconsciousness. What is interesting is that while we focus on the
    active consciousness, a lot of what influences us is in the
    subconsciousness. To understand this better, think about the tendencies that
    we observe in ourselves, our family, our colleagues etc. Given the same
    situation and inputs, people respond very differently.
  </span>
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    >Take, for example, the current COVID-19 crisis, and the responses of world
    and regional leaders. They range from leaders who are optimistic and do not
    take extreme measures to lock things down, to leaders that are locking
    everything down for as long as they can. The decisions made by these
    leaders, given the same inputs, should not be puzzling. Whether it is the
    CEO of a company or a parent, everyone responds to situations based on their
    tendencies. These tendencies have their source in our thought patterns. Here
    is an exercise to assess your own thought patterns:</span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify">
  <span
    ><span style="color: #33cccc"><strong>At the end of the day,</strong></span>
    sit calmly in a quiet location with your eyes closed. Let the day replay in
    front of you, from morning till now. Make yourself an “outside” impartial
    witness of your own reactions and responses through the day, not in terms of
    actions you took, but in terms of the thoughts that you had, which in many
    cases would have preceded your actions.
  </span>
</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px; text-align: justify">
  <span
    ><span style="color: #d42f2f"
      ><strong>Check if these thoughts</strong></span
    >
    were driven by fear, envy, anger, compassion, altruism, ambition, love etc.
    Also assess if your mind generated a multiplicity of thoughts that built one
    on top of the other, creating stories about what might happen, and
    eventually none of those imagined events actually happened.
  </span>
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    >The more hyperactive your mind, the more complex and interwoven the network
    of such thoughts. Some are responses to external stimuli, but many come from
    within. What is the source of how we respond to external stimuli, as well as
    these thoughts and ideas that come from within? What is the source of our
    thought patterns? Why do the tendencies of one person’s mind differ from
    another?</span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p>
  <img
    class="lazyload w-100"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THS_5_2_867c4ec485.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-07T09:52:40.214Z"
    alt="THS_5_2_867c4ec485"
  />
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p></p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    >To understand the mystery of thought patterns, let’s take a day-in-the-life
    view. We wake up and start interacting with the world primarily through the
    five senses of sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. We are like a video
    camera that is recording everything all the time, except that while a camera
    only records through sight and sound, we record through smell, taste, and
    touch as well. What happens to all this information? It is stored in us as
    memories and impressions. The difference is that memories are simply factual
    information. For example, if I have a meeting with my boss to discuss a
    promotion, the facts related to this meeting are recorded as a memory. This
    initially goes into my short-term memory and later moves to long-term
    memory. If I have an argument with my boss during this meeting, then it with
    leave a strong impression on me. This emotional aspect of the interaction is
    stored in my mind, or more precisely my heart-mind vibrational field as an
    impression. You can think of these impressions literally like impressions in
    the sand. Look at the two pictures below. One shows a beach with a lot of
    impressions made on the sand, and another that has been combed clean.
  </span>
</p>
<hr />
<h5 style="text-align: center">
  <span style="color: #33cccc"
    >The more hyperactive your mind, the more complex<br />
    and interwoven the network of such thoughts.</span
  >
</h5>
<hr />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    >Over time these impressions become heavier and sink into the subconscious.
    The store of these past impressions is the source of our thought patterns,
    emotional reactions, and behavioral tendencies. So, to change our thought
    patterns, we need to eliminate these past impressions and feed positive
    suggestions to our subconscious mind that can shift these patterns.</span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p>
  <img
    class="w-100 lazyload"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THS_5_3_ac3ab43979.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-07T09:55:09.823Z"
    alt="THS_5_3_ac3ab43979"
  />
</p>
<div class="row" style="border: 2px solid #c6ecd7; border-radius: 5px">
  <p></p>
  <div class="col-md-12">
    <p style="padding-left: 40px">
      <span style="color: #f71b1b"
        >Deep within our subconscious is a store of all past impressions</span
      >
    </p>
    <p style="padding-left: 40px">
      <span style="color: #f71b1b"
        >When conducive circumstances arise, these impressions lead to thought
        patterns that precede actions
      </span>
    </p>
    <p style="padding-left: 40px">
      <span style="color: #f71b1b"
        >To make a shift in our thought patterns we can feed suggestions to our
        subconscious</span
      >
    </p>
  </div>
</div>
<p>
  &nbsp;<br />
  There is a very powerful Heartfulness meditative technique that is
  specifically geared towards removing these past impressions. It is called
  <a
    href="http://www.heartfulness.org/"
    target="_blank"
    rel="noopener noreferrer"
    >Heartfulness Cleaning</a
  >, and you can learn how to do it by listening to the guided practice and
  following along.For the next few weeks, try doing this practice every evening.
  Also, repeat the exercise in this article to observe your thought patterns
  every night. Observe any changes and note them down. In subsequent articles
  we’ll introduce a couple of other practices that are specifically geared
  towards expansion of consciousness. Over time, these practices can create a
  powerful shift in thought patterns and our overall consciousness.
</p>
<hr />
<h4 style="text-align: center">Article by <span>RAVI VENKATESAN</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />


The heartful strategist - part 5

<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<h4>
  <span
    ><span
      >In the previous five articles of this series,
      <span style="color: #008e9e">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> introduced the
      Heartful Strategist framework, how our consciousness results in the
      strategies we adopt, and the choices we make, which in turn have
      consequences that impact the ecosystem in which we exist. He also explored
      the concept of thought patterns, and in the last article how past
      impressions create these tendencies or thought patterns in us, and how to
      use the power of self-suggestion to clear past impressions and make
      positive shifts in our thought patterns. In this article he dives
      specifically into the ideal level of consciousness for a Heartful
      Strategist.</span
    ></span
  >
</h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    ><span
      >In the third article in this series we talked about active consciousness
      and subconsciousness, distinguishing between functions that are carried
      out by us through these states of consciousness. This is a good way to
      understand consciousness at a basic level. However, just as physics has
      evolved from Newtonian to Relativity to Quantum theories, our
      understanding of consciousness needs to go deeper. The generalizations
      that we adopted earlier will need to be left behind.</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p>
  <img
    class="w-100 lazyload"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THS_6_2_52a78aedf1.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T05:25:17.966Z"
    alt="THS_6_2_52a78aedf1"
  />
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p></p>
<p>
  <span
    ><span
      >We now look at consciousness from the lens of an ancient Indian scripture
      called the <em>Mandukya Upanishad</em>. It is of unknown authorship and an
      unknown timeline, but was passed on through generations, initially by
      memorizing, and later through written text.
    </span></span
  >
</p>
<p>
  <span
    ><span
      >This Upanishad describes states of consciousness in four parts: Waking,
      dreaming, deep sleep and <em>turiya</em> (which means “fourth” in
      Sanskrit). Sleep studies and medical research have made great progress in
      understanding that the dream state and deep sleep states are meaningful in
      our existence, and that vital functions related to immunity, memory etc.,
      are performed during these states. However, we find no descriptions in
      scientific literature about this fourth state. So, what is it, and how do
      we understand it, let alone reach it?</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<hr />
<h5 style="text-align: center">
  <span style="color: #008e9e"
    ><span
      >Just as physics has evolved from<br />
      Newtonian to Relativity to Quantum theories,<br />
      our understanding of consciousness needs to go deeper.</span
    ></span
  >
</h5>
<hr />
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    ><span
      >If we think of the waking state as our interactions with the physical and
      manifest world, and the dream state as our interactions with the
      non-physical, subtle world of our own creation, we can say that both these
      states have objective consciousness. In the deep sleep state, we don’t
      have this objective consciousness, however the seed of it is there, which
      is why deep sleep terminates and we go back to the dream state or the
      waking state. These three states are therefore temporary, starting and
      ending, and cannot be the foundation of whatever is
      <strong>essential consciousness</strong>. This essential consciousness is
      what we refer to as <em>turiya</em>. It can also be considered as
      transcendental consciousness, since it integrates and transcends the other
      three states. Hence, it can span the subconscious, superconscious, and
      waking conscious states, offering both inspiration and intuition, which we
      sometimes call the sixth sense.
    </span></span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    ><span
      >Gaudapada, a medieval philosopher, wrote in more specific terms that a
      state of consciousness where the mind is withdrawn from both external and
      internal objects, and also becomes one with its source is known as
      <em>turiya</em>. This state of consciousness being the essential state,
      and the underlying state, is also what illuminates all other states.</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p>
  <img
    class="w-100 lazyload"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THS_6_3_d96441c70d.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T05:26:25.330Z"
    alt="THS_6_3_d96441c70d"
  />
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    ><span
      ><em>Turiya</em> is present in all of us, but it is not developed in a
      manner where it is without defect. Ram Chandra of Fatehgarh, the first
      teacher of Heartfulness, describes some examples of how this
      <em>turiya</em> condition manifests. Children sometimes understand certain
      things that even grown-ups cannot understand after much effort.
      Unsophisticated village folk sometimes demonstrate extraordinary wisdom.
      He provides us with Heartfulness practices that can lead to permanent
      awakening of this state where it is continuous in its flow. Strategies
      that we adopt while abiding in this state of <em>turiya</em> will be the
      best, not just for us as individuals but for our entire ecosystem. In
      subsequent articles we’ll look at the practices that help us to reach this
      level of consciousness.</span
    ></span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p>
  <img
    class="w-100 lazyload"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/THS_6_4_c773773249.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-10T05:27:52.407Z"
    alt="THS_6_4_c773773249"
  />
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<hr />
<h4 style="text-align: center">
  Article by
  <span
    ><span>RAVI VENKATESAN<br /> </span
  ></span>
</h4>
<hr />


The heartful strategist - part 6

<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<h4>
  <span
    >In this new series, regular contributor
    <span style="color: #2daaed">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> helps us understand what
    innovation is, how it differs from creativity, and what we can focus upon to
    become more innovative.</span
  >
</h4>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    >There are many ways people have defined innovation. One of the most
    accepted is by Baragheh et al (2009)</span
  >¹<span
    >: “A multi-stage process whereby organizations transform ideas into
    new/improved products, service or processes, in order to advance, compete
    and differentiate themselves successfully in their marketplace.”Like many
    academic definitions, this is hard to digest. A simpler definition is, “An
    idea or set of ideas that, when implemented, are perceived as new and
    transformative.”</span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    >In modern times, startups are considered to be some of the most innovative
    organizations, especially those in the field of technology. Only a few of
    these innovative companies make it to what is called Unicorn status, the
    term coined by Aileen Lee in 2013 to describe companies that achieve a
    valuation of a billion dollars. The chances of a company achieving this
    status are 0.00006%. I lead the portfolio of Innovation for one of these
    rare companies and have spent 20 years of my career in roles leading
    Innovation of one kind or another at various organizations. I would like to
    share some of the best ideas I have collected over the years in this series
    of articles with you.
  </span>
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    >As we dive into innovation, it is important to consider how it is different
    from creativity. An artist who creates a wonderful painting is very creative
    and gives expression to her creativity, but she is not necessarily
    innovative. Whereas a person who discovers coloring glass with metallic
    oxide powders, which leads to stained glass, may not be creative, but is
    definitely innovative. Innovation leads to new ways in which things are
    done, leads to new products and services, and even leads to new aspects
    being added to our experience of this world as humans. The other distinction
    is that while creativity is an individual </span
  ><span
    >attribute, innovation usually happens as a result of collaboration and
    multiple ideas coming together.
  </span>
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p>
  <img
    alt="heartful-innovator-part1-2b"
    class="has-img-center lazyload"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_innovator_part1_2b_57ea5e1768.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T06:37:27.312Z"
  />
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    >As technology and hyper connectivity continue to disrupt the world we live
    in at an accelerated pace, being an innovator offers tremendous
    opportunities. However, the same forces of rapid change also threaten our
    ability to be innovative, by exponentially increasing stress at the
    workplace as well as at home.</span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />
<h5 style="text-align: center">
  <span
    ><span style="color: #2daaed"
      >Innovation leads to new ways in which things are done,</span
    ><br />
    <span style="color: #2daaed"> leads to new products and services,</span
    ><br />
    <span style="color: #2daaed">
      and even leads to new aspects being added to our </span
    ><br />
    <span style="color: #2daaed">experience of this world as humans.</span>
  </span>
</h5>
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    >How to be more innovative? As for many things, the answer lies
    <strong>within</strong>. The field of ontological coaching distinguishes
    between first order and second order learning. Think about the results we
    achieve as the <strong>observer</strong> (the person achieving the results,
    in this case us), the <strong>actions</strong> that are used to achieve the
    results, and the <strong>results</strong> themselves. First order learning
    involves changing the actions to change the results. This is what most of us
    normally do, and it leads to improvements, but not at extraordinary or
    exponential levels. For that we need to get into second order learning,
    which involves changing the <strong>observer</strong>. The key to changing
    the results is to change our own inner state.
  </span>
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    >The diagram below shows four key aspects that we will focus on, along with
    the states they can be in. These are our Intellect, Mind, Ego and Awareness.
    When we make shifts to all these aspects, and put our inner state into what
    Dr. Alan Watkins calls Coherence or Flow or Stable Variability, we are able
    to come up with the best ideas and collaborate with others in best ways to
    innovate.</span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  <span
    >In the next few articles, we will better understand the relevant aspects of
    our own inner state, and the shifts in this state that lead to being able to
    come up with great ideas and be innovative.
  </span>
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p>
  <img
    alt="heartful-innovator-part1-3b"
    class="w-100 lazyload"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/heartful_innovator_part1_3b_9a4973e010.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T06:37:27.490Z"
  />
</p>
<p>
  ¹
  <span style="color: #808080"
    >Baragheh, A. et al., 2009. ‘Towards a Multidisciplinary Definition of
    Innovation,’ <em>Management Decision</em>, Vol. 47, 8: pp. 1323-1339.</span
  >
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />
<h4 style="text-align: center">Article by <span>RAVI VENKATESAN</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: center"></p>
<hr />


The heartful innovator – part 1

<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<h4>
  In the previous articles,
  <span style="color: #f16667">RAVI VENKATESAN</span> shared the importance of
  innovation in current and future times. He dived into the concept of changing
  the “observer,” the innovator, to see exponential shifts in results. He also
  outlined four key aspects of the “inner state” that we want to fine-tune, and
  explored the role of the intellect and its transformation in enabling
  innovation. In this article, he explores the role the ego plays in Innovation.
</h4>
<p>
  <img
    alt="The-Heartful-Innovator-part3-2"
    class="w-100 lazyload"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/The_Heartful_Innovator_part3_2_7803a1d44b.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T16:12:32.735Z"
  />
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p style="text-align: justify">
  In the book,&nbsp;<em
    >Where Good Ideas Come From: A Natural History of Innovation</em
  >, author Steven Johnson says, “Innovation thrives in collaborative networks
  where opportunities for serendipitous connections exist.” He extensively
  describes how the best innovations are based on people from different
  disciplines meeting. He also talks about this concept of “slow hunches” that
  mature over time and connect to other ideas, leading to breakthrough
  innovations.
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  His book provides a lot of ideas on how to set up an external environment and
  a platform to accelerate innovation. For example, Google’s cafeteria is
  purposefully designed to facilitate people meeting and talking with others
  from different functional areas. As more ideas collide, innovation starts to
  happen naturally.
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  I have setup “innovation cafés” at the last three companies where I’ve worked.
  Each one was designed to facilitate people being able to hang around, have
  relaxed conversations, whiteboard ideas, and come up with innovative solutions
  to problems.
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  While this addresses the external environment, is it enough? Does it work to
  have wonderful collaborative spaces if people don’t get along with each other?
  Can an egotistic and self-centered team member collaborate effectively with
  others, even if the external environment is setup for them to do so? Certainly
  not!
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  So, we turn our focus to the internal environment and how to tune it. This is
  much more potent and powerful. When we can address our internal environment,
  then we see exponential results with these conducive external environments
  complementing it.
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  The biggest internal barrier to innovation is the “know-it-all” attitude. This
  comes from having an ego that is unrefined. It leads us to not listen to
  others, and prevents the collision of ideas and hunches that could lead to
  great innovation. To understand why this happens, and how to change it, let’s
  explore the role of the ego a little further.
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  Unlike popular perception, the ego is not our enemy. It is a mental model of
  ourselves that keeps updating dynamically as we go through our interactions in
  this world. It is our perception of ourselves – how we define our identity in
  the world. Consider the following scenarios:
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  Alice goes to an art gallery and admires a Van Gogh painting. She really likes
  it, and simultaneously her mental model of herself is updated to include, “Has
  fine taste in post-impressionist art.” Sometimes the ego is exaggerated and
  creates a self-perception that is superior to reality, and sometimes it goes
  in the other direction, creating a self-perception that is inferior to
  reality. At these extremes, these are categorized as superiority and
  inferiority complexes. However, even people who don’t suffer these extremes
  often suffer some level of distortion. Another way to say this is that most of
  us don’t see ourselves exactly as we are! Here lies the main challenge with
  the ego.
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h5 style="text-align: center">
  <span style="color: #f16667"
    >If we can shift our inner state to think about</span
  >
  <span style="color: #f16667">collective humanity as part of one family,</span>
  <span style="color: #f16667"
    >and think of other people as our brothers and sisters,</span
  >
  <span style="color: #f16667"
    >it will naturally create a softness of heart,</span
  >
  <span style="color: #f16667"
    >and that will lead to the ego’s refinement.</span
  >
</h5>

<hr />

<hr />
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<h2 class="text-center">
  <img
    alt="The-Heartful-Innovator-part3-3"
    class="has-img-center lazyload"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/The_Heartful_Innovator_part3_3_8e7a0a102a.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T16:12:32.687Z"
  />
</h2>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p style="text-align: justify">
  We cannot do away with the ego, because it is also what tells us what we are
  capable of. Without the ego, we wouldn’t be able to do anything! We couldn’t
  walk from one place to another, or lift a certain amount of weight, or solve a
  math problem. However, when the ego is exaggerated, it blocks our ability to
  collaborate and innovate. So, how can we solve this?
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify">
  If we can shift our inner state to think about collective humanity as part of
  one family, and think of other people as our brothers and sisters, it will
  naturally create a softness of heart, and that will lead to the ego’s
  refinement. We will value others without devaluing ourselves. We will respect
  their opinions without losing our self-respect. Eventually, our perception of
  ourselves, our sense of identity, will become a part of a broader whole. This
  state of ego will lead to openness and an optimal inner environment to
  accelerate Innovation.
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<h4 style="text-align: justify; padding-left: 80px">
  <span style="color: #35a9db">EXPERIMENT</span>
</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify; padding-left: 80px">
  <span style="color: #f16667"
    >Observe your interactions at work and with the family over the next week.
    Maintain notes of how you perceive yourself, and how you perceive those you
    interacted with. This will give you clues to the state of your ego.</span
  >
</p>
<p style="text-align: justify; padding-left: 80px">
  <span style="color: #f16667"
    >During the following week, try the following practice before bedtime: With
    your attention on your heart, affirm to yourself that all men and women are
    your brothers and sisters. Maintain this thought for five to ten minutes.
    See if this practice creates a shift in your interactions and the state of
    your ego.</span
  >
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />
<h2 class="text-center">
  <img
    alt="The-Heartful-Innovator-part3-4"
    class="has-img-center lazyload"
    src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/The_Heartful_Innovator_part3_4_41c9e2b24c.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-12T16:12:32.663Z"
  />
</h2>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p style="text-align: justify">
  The best part is that when the ego is truly refined it leads to sincere (not
  false) humility. This quality creates charisma in a person, as others want to
  interact with them and collaborate with them. I find this worth aspiring for,
  and wish you the best in experiencing this wonderful state.
</p>
<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h4 style="text-align: center">Article by RAVI VENKATESAN</h4>

<hr />


The heartful innovator – part 3

<h4><span style="color:hsl(240,75%,60%);"><strong>RAVI VENKATESAN</strong></span><strong> takes us on a journey through the world of Artificial Intelligence, charting its history and developments, and also exploring where we are headed.</strong></h4><p>Part of my job as the CEO of a technology company is to keep track of trends and technologies that could be incredibly transformational. This knowledge is critical to formulate strategies for our business. To use a hockey analogy from Wayne Gretzky, it is to “stake to where the puck is going.” &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>Artificial Intelligence (AI) is definitely a major trend today and has probably had more historical cycles of being sold as transformational and not living up to its promise than any technology in the last century. It all started with early neural networks in the 1940s and 50s that looked to make a computer mimic a human brain and its mental functions. In other words, the endeavor was to construct an electronic brain. The benchmark for success was established by Alan Turing in a 1950 landmark paper with what is now popularly known as the Turing test. In simple terms, if you interact (perhaps chat) with a computer, but are unable to tell the difference between this experience and chatting with a real human being, then the electronic brain has passed the Turing test.</p><p>So, what is AI? The fundamental building block of AI, or an “electronic brain,” is a neural network that mimics the kinds of neural networks our brains have, and in essence has a “learning mechanism.” I remember writing neural networks in languages like Prolog and C as a student. The fundamental difference between this type of computer program and other purely computational programs or software, was the aspect of being able to learn, potentially predict, and come to conclusions.&nbsp;</p><p>There was a lot of hype at that time about how AI would change the world and dominate fields as diverse as predicting the weather, to picking winning stocks, to automating architecture and design for buildings. However, very little of this came to pass. Funding dried up when people realized that too much expensive computing power was needed and the economics just did not work out.</p><p>The next generation of AI came in the late nineties when IBM developed Deep Blue, which beat the reigning world champion Garry Kasparov at chess. In 2005, a Stanford robot drove autonomously for 131 miles in the desert. These developments revived interest and funding again. So far, AI still needed very large-scale computing power and bespoke computing equipment – translation, a lot of money. This generation of AI can be called purpose-built AI. It was still in the domain of large companies or governments.</p><p>The next big move was Google’s DeepMind, which beat the reigning world champion at the GO game, much more complex than chess, and used “deep learning” techniques such as deep neural networks. This generation of AI can be called “deep learning general AI.”</p><p>The current generation of AI, with ChatGPT as a prominent example, is way more general purpose or multi-purpose and is called generative AI. It has the quality of not just arriving upon a result but also explaining the derivation of the result. It is thus far the closest to human intelligence that AI has reached. <strong>Carrying out a conversation with ChatGPT feels like talking to a very intelligent and articulate human being</strong>. With computing costs continuously decreasing, and “big data sets” to train the AI becoming more easily available, the improvement in AI with ChatGPT has been accelerated.&nbsp;</p><p>To summarize these generations, look at the graph below that plots Purpose and Cost:</p><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:57.49%;"><img src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/chatgpt_gamechanger3updated_4d03a5ff84.jpg"></figure><p>So, is the promise of AI finally being delivered? It is safe to say that AI has finally reached a point where many applications have become economically feasible and hence will scale. Autonomous driving, facial recognition, improved customer service by scanning knowledge bases and using chatbots, authoring marketing content, writing code for software programs, etc., are some of the applications that ChatGPT is already doing successfully. It is the only technology that has been adopted by 100 million users in just two months after launch.</p><figure class="image image-style-align-center image_resized" style="width:75%;"><img src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/chatgpt_gamechanger4_d4468f9f6b.jpg"></figure><p>However, ChatGPT still does not conclusively pass the Turing test, so there is still a long way to go. A bigger question, often raised, is if AI is conscious. To answer this, let’s look at the various mental functions of a human being:</p><ol><li><span style="color:hsl(240,75%,60%);"><strong>Intellect</strong> </span>– this is where logic and reason live. Prior to ChatGPT, AI had already developed logic, now reason has been incorporated as well.</li><li><span style="color:hsl(240,75%,60%);"><strong>Ego</strong> </span>– this is the sense of self, and while it can be programmed artificially, the way it develops in a human being has not been mimicked in AI.</li><li><span style="color:hsl(240,75%,60%);"><strong>Mind</strong> </span>– this is broader than just the brain, it includes the ability to process inputs from multiples senses (sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell) and also from internal sources (contemplation and thoughts). It includes the ability to imagine and create.&nbsp; AI is starting to mimic some of these functions. ChatGPT is the first AI that also “hallucinates” and can undertake creative processes such as authoring a poem, creating music, etc. However, the evolution of this aspect is at a very rudimentary stage.</li><li><span style="color:hsl(240,75%,60%);"><strong>Consciousness</strong> </span>– what forms the base for everything else in a human being’s mental functions can be described as consciousness. There are various levels of consciousness based on the sophistication of the being – humans, plants, or even stones, all have consciousness but of different levels. In that sense AI does have consciousness, but it is of a different kind than human beings. It is based on the programming and inputs provided to the AI and can of course evolve over time.</li></ol><p>In summary, there have been multiple generations of AI going from very specific to very generic, and very expensive to very inexpensive. ChatGPT has been a giant leap from prior generations, and in some ways is democratizing the access to this technology by making it available to millions of regular people. AI has still not passed the Turing test and is not yet close to replicating all of our human mental functions, however the technology will continue to evolve, creating both opportunities and threats for the human experience.</p><hr><h4 style="text-align:center;">Illustrations by ANANYA PATEL</h4><hr><p>&nbsp;</p>

ChatGPT – gamechanger or hype?

Ray Bradbury

The enemy of creativity

Rebecca holds degrees from Cornell (M.F.A., creative writing) and Princeton (Ph.D., philosophy) and works as a writer and researcher, with several books published, including two books on spiritual philosophy and practice: The Insights of Higher Awareness and Ego and the Spiritual Self. In addition, she has published several collections of Haiku.

rebecca-lilly.jpg

Rebecca Lilly

 <h5 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #808080;"><hr class="vertical-space1"></span></h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #808080;">Exploring untruth </span><br>
<span style="color: #808080;">Isn’t enough; in truth, it </span><br>
<span style="color: #808080;">Must be discovered</span></h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #808080;">~</span></h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #808080;">Questioning: a means </span><br>
<span style="color: #808080;">To deliver you back to </span><br>
<span style="color: #808080;">Yourself, to meaning</span></h5>
<p style="text-align: center;">~</p>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #808080;">Each thing once seen is </span><br>
<span style="color: #808080;">Itself, without split image: </span><br>
<span style="color: #808080;">That stillness perceived</span></h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #808080;">~</span></h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #808080;">Knowing, rather than </span><br>
<span style="color: #808080;">Knowing about; listening </span><br>
<span style="color: #808080;">To silence, not sound</span></h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #808080;">~</span></h5>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #808080;">The awakened moves </span><br>
<span style="color: #808080;">Towards the unawakened; light </span><br>
<span style="color: #808080;">Illumines the shade</span></h5>
<p style="text-align: center;"></p><hr class="vertical-space1"><p></p>
<hr>
<h5>Haiku poetry by REBECCA LILLY</h5>
<hr>

In Truth - Haiku

Richie is a neuroscientist, speaker, meditator and author. He is the William James and Vilas Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the founder of the Center for Healthy Minds. His work is focused on the neurobiology of emotion and the effects of meditation on the human brain. He has numerous publications in leading scientific journals and is also the author of many best-selling books including his latest, Altered Traits, which provides us with a fascinating view of our ability as humans to shape our brains.

RichardDavidson.jpg

Richard Davidson

<h4
  class="has-text-color"
  id="h-dr-richard-davidson-is-a-prolific-and-well-known-neuroscientist-speaker-meditator-and-author-in-march-2021-richie-was-interviewed-by-thangam-venkatesan-professor-of-medicine-at-the-medical-college-of-wisconsin-and-anagha-matapurkar-ph-d-mba-about-his-life-s-journey-and-latest-initiatives-to-bring-well-being-to-humanity"
  style="color: #0063a3"
>
  <strong
    ><span style="color: #00bfc7"
      >DR. RICHARD DAVIDSON</span
    >
    <span class="has-black-color"
      >is a prolific and well-known neuroscientist, speaker, meditator and
      author. In March 2021, Richie was interviewed by</span
    >
    <span style="color: #f26529"
      >THANGAM VENKATESAN</span
    ><span class="has-black-color"
      >, Professor of Medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin, and </span
    ><span style="color: #75aa3b"
      >ANAGHA MATAPURKAR</span
    ><span class="has-black-color"
      >, Ph.D. MBA, about his life’s journey and latest initiatives to bring
      well-being to humanity.</span
    ></strong
  >
</h4>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  <span style="color: #75aa3b"
    >AM: Hi Richie, it’s wonderful to meet you. I have been very inspired and
    fascinated by your journey as a meditator and author, and the astounding
    body of work that you have as a researcher.
  </span>
</p>

<p>
  <span style="color: #f26529"
    >TV: I completely echo Anagha’s sentiments, and your book
    <em>Altered Traits</em> is the first book I have read twice! It is really
    amazing. So, Richie, can you share some key aspects of your journey?
    Something that I find particularly interesting is your interaction with the
    Dalai Lama. How did you first meet him? Can you describe that inflection
    point for you as a person, a meditator and a researcher?</span
  >
</p>

<p>
  <span class="has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">RD:</span> Thank you
  for asking. I first met His Holiness in 1992 in India and he learned about my
  interest in meditation, and also that I was a neuroscientist. He was really
  interested in encouraging serious neuroscientific research on meditation,
  which at that time really didn’t exist. I met him at his residence in
  Dharamsala, and it was a pivotal meeting. Up until that point in my career, I
  had been doing a lot of research on the brain and emotions, and I was focusing
  mostly on the negative side of things. I studied the brain mechanisms
  underlying vulnerability to depression, anxiety and stress. His Holiness
  challenged me. He said, “Why can’t you use the same tools of neuroscience to
  study kindness and compassion?” I did not have a very good answer for him, and
  it was a turning point.
</p>

<p>
  At that time I had been a meditation practitioner for decades. I went on my
  first meditation retreat in 1974 with Goenka when I was a graduate student.
  That was my first visit to India. Most of my professional colleagues at that
  time did not know of my interest in meditation, as I really kept it under the
  radar. So when I met His Holiness in 1992, it was very clear to me that I
  needed to come out of the closet and be much more public about my own
  practice. It was a really pivotal time, yes.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<div>
  <figure>
    <img
      width="606"
      height="759"
      alt=""
      class="lazyload has-img-center"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/altered_traits2_103e6cf275.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-11T11:10:10.208Z"
    />
  </figure>
</div>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  <span style="color: #f26529"
    >TV: In the Gastroenterology Department they think I am a little cuckoo, as
    I am a meditator. They just kind of accept it.</span
  >
</p>

<p>
  <span class="has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">RD:</span> Keep
  cuckoo, it’s good. It’s very healthy.
</p>

<p>
  <span style="color: #f26529"
    >TV: Yes. So, talking about positive emotions, I know you are the founder of
    the Center for Healthy Minds. Can you tell us a little bit about its overall
    mission? What are the services it offers?</span
  >
</p>

<p>
  <span class="has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">RD:</span> The Center
  for Healthy Minds was founded and inaugurated by the Dalai Lama in 2010, so we
  have been in existence for a little more than ten years. The mission of our
  center is to cultivate well-being and relieve suffering through a scientific
  understanding of the mind. And our vision is a kinder, wiser and more
  compassionate world. It is primarily an interdisciplinary research center,
  with faculty from many different departments. Currently, we have around 75
  people working in the center in one capacity or another.
</p>

<p>
  About four years ago, I founded an affiliated non-profit company called
  Healthy Minds Innovations, with a mission to take the insights from the
  science and turn them into tools that can be used to cultivate and measure
  well-being. So, the non-profit is much more externally focused, and it is
  really to get the insights out into the world in one way or another. The
  non-profit is located in the same university building as the Center for
  Healthy Minds, Madison, Wisconsin. We have an agreement with the university,
  and there are about 20 people working for the non-profit.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<div>
  <figure>
    <img
      width="700"
      height="469"
      alt=""
      class="lazyload w-100 h-auto"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/altered_traits3_ec5be6038f.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-11T11:12:03.931Z"
    />
  </figure>
</div>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  <span style="color: #f26529"
    >TV: I did review your
    <a
      href="https://hminnovations.org/"
      target="_blank"
      rel="noreferrer noopener"
      >website </a
    >and there are some nice tools that peop</span
  ><span class="has-luminous-vivid-orange-color"
    >le can use.</span
  >
</p>

<p>
  <span class="has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">RD: </span>Yes, and
  we have an App that is freely available throughout the world, and it is based
  on our framework for cultivating well-being.
</p>

<p>
  <span style="color: #f26529"
    >TV: That’s great. I know we all talk about well-being, but we seem to live
    in a cocoon. When we look outside, we live in this highly polarized world.
    We seem to be caught up in these currents of social, cultural, and racial
    problems, the pandemic and so on. You have referred to innate human goodness
    several times. How do we cultivate this innate human goodness in people? How
    do we all come back together?</span
  >
</p>

<p>
  <span class="has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">RD: </span>It’s a
  great question and I like the way you’re phrasing it. So, the scientific
  evidence really does show that we all come into the world with a propensity
  for goodness. Young infants exhibit that propensity, and more than 95% of
  six-month-old babies show prosocial orientation. So, it is very clear that
  this is how we come into the world.
</p>

<p>
  The fact today we see so much conflict, difficulties between in-groups and
  out-groups, and inequalities, is really a product of learning. This happens
  through forces in our culture, which, unfortunately, promote this kind of
  conflict, dichotomy, and suffering.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h5 class="has-text-align-center">
  <span style="color: #00b3c9"
    >Our true nature is basic goodness, <br />and when people resonate with
    that, <br />when they get back in tune with that, they feel it. <br />It’s
    palpable and it is recognizable.</span
  >
</h5>

<hr />

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  The invitation in all this is that we can use the same mechanisms in our brain
  and our body, that have been hijacked by the media and the cultural artifacts
  around us, which promote these unfortunate views. We can train our mind to
  return to our true nature. Our true nature is basic goodness, and when people
  resonate with that, when they get back in tune with that, they feel it. It’s
  palpable and it is recognizable.
</p>

<p>
  It is something that is enjoyable, and they can sense that it is a very
  authentic way to be. And so, one of the things that we are trying to do is to
  promote strategies to cultivate these qualities in different sectors of
  society, in the education sector at many different levels, in the workplace,
  in the healthcare sector. All of these different sectors are ripe for this
  kind of training, and I think that one of the things the pandemic has done is
  – it has exposed this in a stark way, the fact that the trajectory that we
  were on is not a particularly healthier, sustainable one. And so, we need to
  come back to our senses, we need to come back to our nature and so we’re doing
  everything we possibly can to get this out into different sectors in the
  world.
</p>

<p>
  <span style="color: #f26529"
    >TV: That’s great. And then, alter traits, right?</span
  >
</p>

<p>
  <span class="has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">RD: </span>Exactly,
  alter traits. Through that we can change the world.
</p>

<p>
  <span style="color: #f26529"
    >TV: That’s fantastic.</span
  >
</p>

<p>
  <span style="color: #75aa3b"
    >AM: So building on this, I’m wondering if you have any thoughts on the
    power of the collective efforts of various meditation practices coming
    together for a common cause. Have you studied or plan to study this in the
    future?</span
  >
</p>

<p>
  <span class="has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">RD:</span> I think a
  lot depends on exactly what you are referring to with collective efforts.
  Certainly, I think that there is power in the collective. There’s power in
  groups of people engaging in these practices. Doing it with others can be
  enormously helpful in supporting our practice. In the Buddhist view, we have
  the <em>sangha</em>, which is the community, and it is the group that supports
  us in the practice. And so, to the extent that we can encourage groups to take
  this on, I think it can be enormously valuable.
</p>

<p>
  We are trying to do that in the systems we work with. For example, we are
  doing a lot of work in the Madison public school system, as well as in other
  school systems including those outside the USA. And when more and more people
  are committed to doing these practices, it then takes on a sense of the
  collective and the entire organization really begins to embody this change. It
  can be very, very helpful.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<div>
  <figure>
    <img
      width="700"
      height="469"
      alt=""
      class="w-100 h-auto lazyload"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/altered_traits4_e5ab1932c7.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-11T11:14:08.478Z"
    />
  </figure>
</div>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  <span style="color: #75aa3b"
    >AM: You refer to the deep and wide paths in your book,
    <em>Altered Traits</em>, and it seems like only a small minority, who are
    already invested in some form of self-improvement or self-transformation,
    seek such practices. And well-being is a skill as you say. So how do you
    propose to encourage contemplative practices in a real-world setting, like
    you just talked about?</span
  >
</p>

<p>
  <span class="has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">RD: </span>That’s a
  really important question. The way we promote it, first of all, is by
  encouraging people to take small realistic steps to do this. The second thing
  is in our App – you can engage in practices that are not formal meditation,
  but that are done during the activities of daily living. You don’t have to be
  sitting still. You can be walking, you can be commuting, you can be washing
  the dishes, or you can be doing your laundry. You can be engaged in any of
  these activities of daily living and also engage in practice in the
  background. We find this very, very valuable, and we have demonstrated that it
  doesn’t take much to begin to change.
</p>

<p>
  You can start with just five minutes a day, and that can actually produce
  discernible, measurable change after just one week. That’s a little more than
  30 minutes of practice a week. It is through this gradual step-by-step
  approach that I think people can incorporate this into their life.
</p>

<p>
  One of the things I frequently remind people is that when human beings first
  evolved none of us were brushing our teeth. Yet, today, virtually everyone on
  the planet brushes their teeth. When you reflect on that, it’s not part of our
  genome. It’s something we’ve all learned to do, because it is good for our
  physical hygiene. I think most people would agree that our minds are even more
  important than our teeth, yet most people don’t even take the small amount of
  time they spend brushing their teeth to nurture their minds. This is really a
  message that we want to convey to the world.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h5 class="has-text-align-center">
  <span style="color: #00b3c9"
    >I think that there is power in the collective. <br />There’s power in
    groups of people <br />engaging in these practices. <br />Doing it with
    others can be enormously <br />helpful in supporting our practice.</span
  >
</h5>

<hr />

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<p>
  <span style="color: #75aa3b"
    >AM: Commuting and meditating is certainly something I can relate to,
    because I live in the city and have to take the subway. That’s how I cope
    with the commuting – by meditating.</span
  >
</p>

<p>
  <span style="color: #75aa3b"
    >Our last question is regarding your personal journey and research, which we
    find remarkable to say the least. What do you envision next?</span
  >
</p>

<p>
  <span class="has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">RD:</span> Well,
  whenever we are with the Dalai Lama, he reminds us that there are seven
  billion people, and we need to do everything we can to figure out strategies
  to scale these practices to nurture the minds and hearts of everyone. This is
  one of the reasons we developed the App, and we’re making it freely available
  to remove any kind of financial barrier so that anyone, anywhere, can use it.
  We are developing different versions of this App for different communities;
  more specialized content for college students, teachers, for example.
</p>

<p>
  Second, along with this, we need to develop better measures of well-being. You
  can’t really change something unless you can measure the change that you are
  promoting and measure sensitively. And we don’t have great measures that we
  can deploy on a large scale. This is something we are working on intensively.
</p>

<p>
  Then, we’re doing a lot of work internationally. We have a large collaborative
  effort in Mexico, where we are training a group of schoolteachers and
  principals, and examining the impact of training the staff on the students. We
  have recently worked with 1100 principals and teachers in elementary schools,
  who are responsible for teaching around 250,000 students, and we’re seeing the
  benefits to the students. So, this is a very strategic and cost-efficient way
  to benefit large numbers of students without having to work with each
  individual student. This is something we are exploring in different parts of
  the world.
</p>

<p>
  <span style="color: #75aa3b"
    >AM: That’s wonderful.</span
  >
</p>

<p>
  <span style="color: #f26529"
    >TV: Thank you again for chatting with us. It was really a pleasure. We will
    send you our research on the effects of Heartfulness, and we hope to meet
    you in person soon.</span
  >
</p>

<p>
  <span class="has-vivid-cyan-blue-color">RD:</span> That would
  be great. I’d be happy to. As soon as we can easily travel again, we’d love to
  have you visit our center.
</p>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<div>
  <figure>
    <img
      width="700"
      height="469"
      alt=""
      class="has-img-center lazyload"
      src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/altered_traits5_f902e393f7.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-11T11:15:21.481Z"
    />
  </figure>
</div>

<hr class="vertical-space1" />

<hr />

<h4 class="has-text-align-center">
  Interviewed by THANGAM VENKATESAN and ANAGHA MATAPURKAR
</h4>

<hr />

<hr class="vertical-space1" />


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