The First Step on the Bridge
Kiran Aidhi, ACC - ICF
Founder-CEO I Author I Paul Harris Fellow - Proud Rotarian I Coach I Facilitator I Ex-Chief People Officer I Top LinkedIn Voice on Executive Coaching and Thought Leadership I HR Transformation Expert I
In the last edition, I wrote about choosing joy and didn’t it sound like “and they lived happily ever after!". But that was not the case.?Choosing joy or making a choice was probably the easier thing to do.?Later, I realized that living that choice every day, every minute was far more difficult.?
My commitment to live my choice took me on many different journeys of rediscovery.?One such journey was about facing the people I did not relate to or to be more precise, “I did not like” or “I did not resonate with” or “we did not share the same intellectual bandwidth.” I was ok avoiding them, avoiding having conversations with them or evolving to Avoidance 2.0, i.e., indifference. I was being indifferent to them. Being indifferent to them gave me a false sense of pride in myself and my work. I was being recognized as a great executioner, someone who can make things happen but never seen as a go-to person in time of personal / emotional distress. My humane side was deteriorating.
I took the first step on the bridge where I had been walking without noticing others, and I faced the biggest fear of “them avoiding me!”?I decided to change that.?I was prepared to be at the receiving end.?I started acknowledging people, stopping by for a quick hello, waiting for a longer duration on the bridge wherever people felt to be listened, shaking hands and smiling all the way. Soon my sphere of influence expanded and I had so many more people to talk to, bounce off my ideas with and listen to their thoughts. More I opened my mind and heart to others, the more joy I experienced in my life. I felt light hearted and at ease. Icing on the cake was my experience of others behavior towards me.?As I opened up, they did too!?As I acknowledged them, they did too!
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I took the first step on the bridge, towards my being, and now I walk with joy, not alone but with many more.
Have a great week ahead!!!?
P.S. Would share more about what happened when few people did not smile back at me.
Sales Leader | LinkedIn Top Voice | GlantorX 50 under 50 | CXO Incubator Member | Katalyst Mentor | Deloitte SheXO Member | Speaker | Growth Mindset Advocate | Transformational Leader Awardee (Views are personal)
2 年A very meaningful article Kiran! Breaking perceptions by making a genuine effort to communicate & cross that bridge?? ?? I too believe it is so important to self audit frequently.Growth & Joy come easy when one accepts their flaws & is willing to make the shifts necessary for the same ??
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2 年Love your narrative skills! Looking forward to your next post!
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2 年May be it is depend on mind set......, But it is nice article.
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2 年The world is divided amongst three kind of personalities. a. Successful - people who are able to achieve everything either through favorable circumstances or through hard work. b. Unsuccessful - Some of these people are giving their best but fate doesn't favor and they start defining their decisions as " wrong " c. Happy - They have nothing to do with success or failure, They don't fall into lucky/ unlucky thing. They are able to stand confidently with those " Successful" people and they are very humble with people who have chosen to stay away finding themselves " Unsuccessful " When one chooses to be in a state of "Joy ", people interpret them as complacent. People who move to metro often find that people in small cities have learnt to be in " comfort zone ". But this really needs a deep thought " shall we term, opting for family/joy over professional growth as comfort? "
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2 年Too good ??