Learn to develop positivities and eradicate negativities during MBA.

184655944Graduates from various streams like science, arts, commerce and engineering take up MBA course in the hope of achieving better career and greater success and happiness in life. MBA course covers subjects like marketing, finance, human resource management and international business as per its syllabus. The course includes seminars, group projects, outdoor activities etc in order to inculcate team working and enhance personality.

The knowledge and experience gained through MBA programme do not necessarily lead to achieving fabulous career and highly satisfying life full of joy and happiness. The fact is that unless basic fabric of inner thought patterns, instincts and emotions in life undergo an upward shift, the external targets of highly successful career and inner joy and happiness cannot be achieved. Let us call all the desirable traits as positivities and all the undesirable traits as negativities. Each one of us has within one-self embedded deep in personality large number of positivities and negativities in different proportions.

Typical examples of positivities are compassion, integrity, empathy, attentiveness, commitment, equanimity, generosity, discernment, gratitude, hopefulness, humility, kindness, patience, perseverance, serenity, honesty, self reliance, optimism, modesty, discipline etc.

Typical examples of negativities are aggressiveness, hatefulness, meanness, revenge, arrogance, unempathy, fanaticism, intolerance, jealousy, immorality, skepticism, conceit, irresponsibility, pessimism, mercilessness, selfishness, violence, boastfulness, rudeness, dependence, destructiveness, inattentiveness, covetousness, laziness, falsity, etc.

Positivity can be defined as the quality or state of being positive; something that is positive. Positive here means something that is desirable and leads to good of all concerned. The significance of inculcating positivities is not always fully realized by professionals. In brief we can say that the type of life a person may lead depends totally on the extent to which positivities (and also negativities) are ingrained in his psyche. These are often in the form of instincts, emotions, attitudes, habits and the thought patterns ingrained in the conscious and subconscious minds. Fortunately, it is possible to inculcate more and more positivities and eradicate more and more negativities by personal conscious effort. However, these are deeply ingrained characteristics and may require tremendous effort, patience and perseverance.

This aspect is not covered in MBA syllabus and requires personal initiatives and determination on the part of individual. There is no better time to take up the quest of self transformation than during the MBA course. However, once begun this process of self refining must continue as life-long endeavor.

Importance and benefits of inculcating positivities must be understood. Positivities help you cope with responsibilities of day to day life with comfort and ease. It leads to strengthening of interpersonal relationships and helps to reduce worry, anxiety and stress, thus leading to enhancement of physical, mental and emotional well-being. It would lead to greater joy and happiness and create more fulfilling life. One is able to inspire others and gain respect of colleagues, superiors, friends and family members. In short it gives you tremendous energy and inner strength to soar very high in life. Positivities lead to healthier people with low probability of heart disease, stroke, diabetes etc.

The key question is how can we enhance positivities and minimize negativities. There is no simple one step method though there are large number of small steps one may take, which jointly may lead to desired result. Some of the important steps are explained below:

  1. Meditate: Meditation is an extremely powerful technique. There are many techniques of meditation, the simplest being Vipassana meditation. It involves sitting in a comfortable posture, closing your eyes gently and mentally observing the breathing. As you practice meditation on a daily basis, the number of thoughts emanating in your mind would reduce progressively. You would become tranquil and calm and develop mental focus of very high level. With a calm mind, nothing is impossible for you.
  1. Practice Gratitude: Most of us ignore what life has given us and we are restless for something which we have not achieved yet. If you start writing the things for which you are grateful, you would be amazed. For example, you have good physical and mental health, you have a decent home, loving and warm interpersonal relationships, good job, opportunity of meeting people and going to fascinating locations etc. There is no need to feel jealous if someone else got the post you were hoping for.
  1. Read and reflect ideas from good books: There are large number of very good books which one can read and reflect on ideas there in. These contain wisdom and experience of authors conserved for posterity. It would be foolish not to utilize this resource.
  1. Develop habit of journal writing and note at least three positive aspect of your life each day: We gain many experiences during the course of a day. It is always helpful to jot down these experiences for future reference and introspection.
  1. Avoid highly negative people: In life we meet many people each day. Some of them carry lot of negativity which is reflected in their behavior and actions. If you stay with them for longer periods, some of those negativities you may ingrain as these are contagious. So, try to stay away from such people as far as possible.
  1. Control your thoughts: Thoughts are generated in one’s mind randomly i.e., good and bad all types of thoughts come up from nowhere. One may think we have no control over generation of such thoughts, but it is not so. Whenever a negative thought appears in the mind, consciously introduce positive thought in its place. Over a period of time you would increase the proportion of positive thoughts getting generated in your brain.
  1. Use role models and mentors for faster growth: Role models are those people whom you look with awe and would like to emulate. Observe them, read about them and try to explore their thoughts, emotions & habits. Mentors are generally senior people who are willing to help with their own knowledge and experience. It would be naive not to make use of their guidance for self development.
  1. Use affirmations to charge your subconscious: Once you have some good ideas which you want to fully ingrain in your subconscious mind, the method is simple. Make some displays in the form of pictures or written statements and put it in places which you are likely to see often. Affirmation involves statements which you tell yourself when you are in calm and relaxed state, so that these go directly in your subconscious mind. The basic principle is that of repetition. When you repeatedly get an idea, subconscious mind gets charged and your behavior gets modified.
  1. Take up yoga: Yoga has great power is well known. It provides flexibility & strength to body parts and also leads to calming down of body & mind to such a level that it becomes receptive to new ideas. A restless mind will not be fully receptive.
  1. Live in present with mindfulness: Life is lived only in the present moment. Past is gone and cannot be changed. Learn to let go the past as soon as it is gone. Do not carry past grudges, complaints etc. Live with mindfulness i.e., with total participation in the present moment.

If you want to live happier life, developing positivity should be your first motto. A happy life can be achieved by growing spiritually, emotionally and mentally. Live with tremendous energy and enthusiasm. Your self confidence would go sky rocketing.

Contributed By :  Sumit Gulati (Class of 2009, IBS Hyderabad)

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