“Every time you are tempted to react
in the same old way, ask yourself if you want to be a prisoner of the past or a
pioneer of the future.” ― Deepak Chopra
There are some people who brood over
their unpleasant past. They get into negative zone and get depressed finally.
Instead, they must look at the future with optimism. Research shows that people
waste 30 percent of their precious time by thinking about their unpleasant past
that cannot be changed. Hence, people must explore solutions for their
problems. Their future solely depends on their mindset and the way they look at
the world. They must start a new course on a clean slate. They must always
think of ‘what next’ rather than ‘what went wrong’. They must find out why and
where things went wrong to learn lessons to become smarter and wiser. They must
pioneer their future instead of becoming prisoners of their past.
When you observe all successful
leaders including Abraham Lincoln, Mahatma Gandhi, and Nelson Mandela, they
underwent lots of trials and tribulations. They did not look where they fell
but they looked where they slipped and bounced back from their failures.
Tools
to Avoid Becoming a Prisoner of the Past
Steve Jobs once remarked, “Your time
is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by
dogma-which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let
the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most
important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow
already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” Here
are some tools and techniques to avoid becoming a prisoner of the past:
- Let go off your unpleasant past. Focus on what you can do, not what you cannot do.
- Embrace uncertainty. Don’t react, but act to the circumstances.
- Learn when to hold and when to fold. There is a thin line separating the both. It requires immense judgment and intuition to decide when to hold and when to fold.
- When things go wrong repeatedly, lie low for a while and wait an appropriate opportunity to make things fall into place.
- Ensure that you reorganize your body and brain constantly with your new experiences.
- Try meditation or yoga or go for regular physical exercises to energize your mind and body.
- Network with the right people.
- Have an attitude of gratitude.
- Look at the door that is opened.
- Fight for pretty things, not petty things.
- Look for possibilities, not impossibilities.
- Learn to make choices and commitments. Take action keeping tomorrow in mind.
Remember, every dog its own day. God
throws challenges and offers opportunities to everybody. In fact, challenges
test your abilities and enlarge your capabilities. Challenges unlock the leader
in you. Hence, be bold to face the challenges. At the same time, be prepared
all the time to explore opportunities.
Be
an Architect of Your Future!
"The empires of the future are
empires of the mind." — Winston Churchill
Life is a circus with ups and downs.
Nobody can predict the future. However, you can pioneer your future with proper
planning, preparation and execution. Be mentally prepared for distractions and
surprises. Align yourself whenever you are thrown out of gear with patience and
perseverance to accomplish your goals and ambitions.
Fate is something happens
automatically whereas destiny is something you create. Precisely, destiny is in
your hands.
To summarize, let bygones be bygones.
Don’t think about the unpleasant past that cannot be changed, don’t worry too
much about the future that cannot be predicted. Instead, think about today
which is in your hands. To conclude, don’t be a prisoner of the past but be a
pioneer of your future to make your life exciting. Life is great!
"The secret of change is to focus
all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new." —
Socrates
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Life is great!
Professor M.S.Rao, India
Founder of MSR
Leadership Consultants India
Recipient
of 10th International Prestigious Sardar Patel Award―2015
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