PRIDE MAKES US ARTIFICAL AND HUMILITY REAL, PRACTICE HUMILITY

Humility and inner peace go hand in hand. The less we try to prove ourselves to others, the easier it is to feel peaceful inside. People who practice humility are optimistic and cheerful. They have a habit of ignoring the wrong things, be it about the environment, the office they are working at, the boss with whom they are working, or the family they have. They always focus on looking at the strengths around them and concentrate only on the positives. Humble people always think, if not this time, maybe next time. They believe everything that happens happens for good and does have God’s signature. Humble people don’t expect good things to come to them without any effort, but they believe that good things will happen if they work hard enough. “Next time, keep them alive.”

Humble people do not spend time and energy proving themselves. Instead, they spend this energy looking at how I can contribute. Humble people do not get disappointed by any external factors; disappointment is always attributed to self and thinking about how I can improve and how I can do better. Humble people know they are not the best at everything. While others see a lot of merit in them, they always think there is always someone more knowledgeable than them and can learn from them. While they know what needs improvement, they also understand what they cannot change about themselves. Therefore, they consciously do not put effort into changing those characteristics as it will change their fabric. Humble people, at times, are taken for granted, and others feel it is easy to get over them, but the fact is that it is the humble person who gives them the way and allows them to be happy.

Humble people have a sense of gratitude, and they always thank God for what they have. They find beauty in the world around them. Humble people never leave their base, nor do they leave the ground. They know how many hardships and difficulties they have faced with being where they are and the person they are today. They do not compare themselves with the materialistic world but do compare within. A humble person knows they will recognize their accomplishments. If they are an impressive person, people around them will get a sense of it without being talked loudly. Humble people always appreciate other people rather than talking all the time about self-accomplishments.

I remember I had purchased the shoe with lights glowing for my son when he was three. The lights would illuminate whenever he wore it, and I thought he would be happy. However, after wearing it two times, he refused to wear it. When I asked him why he would not wear it, he said that when I play in the park with my friends, all my friends look at my shoe and I do not like it. It seems like I am doing a show-off and driving attraction. So I understood it and felt sorry too that it was not required.

Practice humility; listen to your inner self. Hold yourself from talking about yourself. “Humility is not thinking less of yours, but thinking of yourself less.”

FOLLOW YOUR BELIEF, NOT SOMEONES PERCEPTION

It is not essential to follow someone's perception; following your own beliefs does not matter if they are true or false. Over time, we made them out of trust, faith, and experiences.

In life, we come across many people who carry some perception about us. As humans, we spend a lot of time living through that perception. Is that important. Others' perception of us changes concerning time, situation, and mood. Since we follow that perception, we keep revising our course of Journey and work hard to live up to that perception. But, look what happens to our inner self, we lose our individuality, and we forget our fabric and our core strength.

I have many examples in my life where I saw people changing my perception of me in different situations. Therefore, I ensure my beliefs are intact and try not to get shaken by any external factors.

Incorporate life, we follow the appraisal process, which defines a career for you in the organization. I remember a few such incidents. I was sitting in one of the appraisal cycles a few years back, and my supervisor rated me low for that cycle and said I needed to improve. During the 2008- 2009 timeframe (US recession), the economic conditions were not favorable and severely impacted Indian firms, and so was ours. I respected his decision and walked off from the room. However, my belief and inner conscious said, "this is perception and not the truth ."I continued my job the way I had been doing it for years, with absolutely no change.

After six months, I got a chance to sit through the next appraisal cycle with the same supervisor. This time my rating was in the Top 20. He commented, "YOU SHOULD WALK AS PROUD LADY," from the room. You have improved your performance from the last appraisal cycle. The statement was not convincing to me. I stopped by and asked what makes you think like this. Trust me. I changed nothing in the last six months. My way of working has not changed in the previous 15 years. The only change I bring every day is adding my experience while working. I have accumulated experience with every step. This experience has turned into my beliefs. As I moved on with life, my thoughts got stronger. I know where I stand, how much I know, and how much knowledge gap I have. Situations keep on changing, corporates make decisions based on the external market, but should they affect your beliefs.

Do not get me wrong that I do not respect the feedback, had my boss given me the feedback on the gaps with facts, I might have thought it through. However, my performance was rated basis the supervisor's perception and industry influence.

Make sure our belief does not shake by others' perception and does not fluctuate with the market condition. If our thought process gets surprised with time and with the situation, we unknowingly follow someone's belief, behave as per others' perceptions, and follow someone else's path.

It's always good to learn from others' experiences. However, one should know the difference between the beliefs from the incident and thoughts from the past.

 "Standing up for your beliefs builds self-confidence and self-esteem."