mandhyan on creative thinking
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Monday, December 13, 2010
the power of desire, selflessness and true belief
So, last weekend, Boom San Agustin, my friend, was running a seminar on Entrepreneurship and he invited me to offer my books and audio books, The Heart of Public Speaking and The Heart of Humor, for sales in the back of the room. He also suggested that I talk for 12 minutes at the end of the workshop to plug my books. Now I am always happy to talk and I am always happy to support but...I am horribly, terrible at plugging myself and my work for money. A part of me shrivels up and dies inside of me whenever I have to talk about how wonderful my work is and then charge for it.
Anyway, at the end of Boom’s workshop there I was in the back of room waiting to be called. A few minutes before the afternoon coffee break he announced me to a class of 40 or so young entrepreneurs-to-be. As is usual of him he made me out to be a granddaddy of motivational speaking and success.
I was still blushing from his compliments when I was handed the mike to speak. Well, I managed to mutter out a few ideas about how a tree is like a person and how a person is like an organization and how an organization should be nurtured like a tree and coaxed towards the sun. Of the given 12 minutes, I used 9 minutes. I must have said something good enough for the crowd cause’ they applauded and several of them rose to buy my stuff. I wasn’t too sure that I had added any value to the event in those 9 minutes. I ran straight for a glass of water for my mouth which was fast drying up.
An hour later, minutes before closing his workshop, Boom was back at complimenting me and he added how sometimes he “borrows” my ideas and models of discussion. At that very minute he was reviewing his 5D approach to Business Disciplines and comparing it to my 5I approach to Interactive Listening. Though I was blushing from his adulation, something inside of me rebelled against his self-deprecating attitude. I stood up, begged for the 3 of the 12 minutes I hadn't yet used earlier, to speak up.
Here’s the gist of what I think I said in the rush and the passion of the moment,
“Boom, ladies and gentlemen, is lying!
That 5D model on the screen is nothing compared to any of my work. It is totally his and, besides, what in heaven’s name is anybody’s original knowledge ever? Whatever I have put out into the world is not mine either because I, as I am doing here, am standing on the shoulders of thousands of thought leaders and giants before me. There is hardly such a thing as original knowledge! Boom applauds me often because in me he sees a reflection of his own self. But I tell you, he is a giant by his own rights and, someday, thousands will stand on his shoulders and reach higher. And...let me tell you what sets him apart, and what makes him a giant. It is represented in the last and the sixth “D” which he Boom forgot to add to his 5D model of Business Disciplines.”
Here I took a longer pause and raised my voice to add, “The sixth D, ladies and gentlemen is the D for...”
At this moment, a delicate, female voice from the audience shouted out, “the D for Desire — deep, burning desire!”
“Yeah!” I went on, “Right! The power of raw, authentic, burning desire also known as intention, dreams, wants or vision. It doesn’t matter what you call it. It is the driving force behind everything you want and everything you will ever succeed at! Boom stands apart because through his talks, through all his work and all his efforts, it is his deep, burning desire that becomes an example, a benchmark and source of inspiration to the world around him!"
"Boom reminds me of a man, from a poem I’d read when I was a kid. In the poem the man is sitting by a river, on a moonlit night, telling his dreams to his own reflection, in the water. When from the skies, quietly but loudly, the moon speaks up. “Man,” he says, “you are crazy to be sitting by the water and dreaming of things you will never realize. Your dreams are cheap. They are nothing but air trapped in fickle water. Weak bubbles and mist is what they are. Blah!”"
"The man by the lake stands up and speaks up. With a tightened chin raised towards the moon he claims, “My dreams, my friend, may be like soft, water bubbles now but believe me you, Mr. Moon, one day they will explode through the water and fly. They will soar through fire and storm to forge into balls of steel and, those balls of steel, my friend, will reach and conquer even you Mr. Moon!”"
"Now, of course, we all know that back in 1969, a man’s dreams did turn into balls of steel, flew and conquered the moon. That ladies and gentlemen is the power of dreams! The power of the last “D” of desire -deep burning desire, which rages in the heart of my friend, Mr. Boom San Agustin! That deep, burning and raging desire will win him his dreams!”
Now you folks probably want to know, “Raju, what the heck is your point. Those are good stories but you haven’t told us anything we didn’t already know? C’mon Dude, tell us something we don’t know!”
Well, folks, let me spell out three things for you while you read my lips.
The number one thing is that before anything else, before doing anything in life and before having all that you want to have... you must want to have it! You must ragingly desire and lust for it so that all the red seas of challenges will rip themselves apart to let you pass. That’s one!
The second thing is when Boom compliments and applauds me he becomes that man sitting by the lake and talking to his own reflection. In the water, Boom sees my face and wants to be like me but what Boom forgets, is that what he sees is a reflection of his own endearing and appealing self. That face in the water he sees is his very own! I am and will always be as fickle as the water in the lake. I will move on and he will remain. He will stand up, reach out and conquer the moons of his dream. The truth is that all the strengths which we seek, admire and adore, usually, lay inside of us. Our heroes are always a reflection of ourselves. Our desires and dreams are, always, the manifestations of the heroes we are!
Now, there is a third thing, a hidden lesson, in this story. I’ll spell it out for you, even as I am sure being the heroes you are, you may have figured it out for yourself.
Remember the two times that I stood up and spoke in Boom’s seminar? The first time my performance, therefore the quality of my success, wasn’t up to par for myself even though I took 9 minutes. The second time, inspite of the fact that I just had 3 minutes, I roared, raged and drove a beautiful message right into the hearts of my listeners. The difference was that during the first attempt I was promoting myself and, trying to sell my books. The second time around my purpose was higher. It was to acknowledge and lift the spirits of another human being. This time my focus was outwards and towards helping another giant of a human being. And that, ladies and gentleman, is the essential difference between success and excellence, between good and great!
Many people, including me, know about these things but it is the walk, not the talk, which counts. When we, gracefully, combine the power of desire, the power of selflessness with a true belief in our own capacities, then all our efforts catapult us straight, beyond the moon, into the foothills of our own heavens!
Raju Mandhyan
www.mandhyan.com
A World of Clear, Creative and Conscientious Thinkers!
Anyway, at the end of Boom’s workshop there I was in the back of room waiting to be called. A few minutes before the afternoon coffee break he announced me to a class of 40 or so young entrepreneurs-to-be. As is usual of him he made me out to be a granddaddy of motivational speaking and success.
I was still blushing from his compliments when I was handed the mike to speak. Well, I managed to mutter out a few ideas about how a tree is like a person and how a person is like an organization and how an organization should be nurtured like a tree and coaxed towards the sun. Of the given 12 minutes, I used 9 minutes. I must have said something good enough for the crowd cause’ they applauded and several of them rose to buy my stuff. I wasn’t too sure that I had added any value to the event in those 9 minutes. I ran straight for a glass of water for my mouth which was fast drying up. An hour later, minutes before closing his workshop, Boom was back at complimenting me and he added how sometimes he “borrows” my ideas and models of discussion. At that very minute he was reviewing his 5D approach to Business Disciplines and comparing it to my 5I approach to Interactive Listening. Though I was blushing from his adulation, something inside of me rebelled against his self-deprecating attitude. I stood up, begged for the 3 of the 12 minutes I hadn't yet used earlier, to speak up.
Here’s the gist of what I think I said in the rush and the passion of the moment,
“Boom, ladies and gentlemen, is lying!
That 5D model on the screen is nothing compared to any of my work. It is totally his and, besides, what in heaven’s name is anybody’s original knowledge ever? Whatever I have put out into the world is not mine either because I, as I am doing here, am standing on the shoulders of thousands of thought leaders and giants before me. There is hardly such a thing as original knowledge! Boom applauds me often because in me he sees a reflection of his own self. But I tell you, he is a giant by his own rights and, someday, thousands will stand on his shoulders and reach higher. And...let me tell you what sets him apart, and what makes him a giant. It is represented in the last and the sixth “D” which he Boom forgot to add to his 5D model of Business Disciplines.”
Here I took a longer pause and raised my voice to add, “The sixth D, ladies and gentlemen is the D for...”
At this moment, a delicate, female voice from the audience shouted out, “the D for Desire — deep, burning desire!”
“Yeah!” I went on, “Right! The power of raw, authentic, burning desire also known as intention, dreams, wants or vision. It doesn’t matter what you call it. It is the driving force behind everything you want and everything you will ever succeed at! Boom stands apart because through his talks, through all his work and all his efforts, it is his deep, burning desire that becomes an example, a benchmark and source of inspiration to the world around him!"
"Boom reminds me of a man, from a poem I’d read when I was a kid. In the poem the man is sitting by a river, on a moonlit night, telling his dreams to his own reflection, in the water. When from the skies, quietly but loudly, the moon speaks up. “Man,” he says, “you are crazy to be sitting by the water and dreaming of things you will never realize. Your dreams are cheap. They are nothing but air trapped in fickle water. Weak bubbles and mist is what they are. Blah!”"
"The man by the lake stands up and speaks up. With a tightened chin raised towards the moon he claims, “My dreams, my friend, may be like soft, water bubbles now but believe me you, Mr. Moon, one day they will explode through the water and fly. They will soar through fire and storm to forge into balls of steel and, those balls of steel, my friend, will reach and conquer even you Mr. Moon!”"
"Now, of course, we all know that back in 1969, a man’s dreams did turn into balls of steel, flew and conquered the moon. That ladies and gentlemen is the power of dreams! The power of the last “D” of desire -deep burning desire, which rages in the heart of my friend, Mr. Boom San Agustin! That deep, burning and raging desire will win him his dreams!”
Now you folks probably want to know, “Raju, what the heck is your point. Those are good stories but you haven’t told us anything we didn’t already know? C’mon Dude, tell us something we don’t know!”
Well, folks, let me spell out three things for you while you read my lips.
The number one thing is that before anything else, before doing anything in life and before having all that you want to have... you must want to have it! You must ragingly desire and lust for it so that all the red seas of challenges will rip themselves apart to let you pass. That’s one!
The second thing is when Boom compliments and applauds me he becomes that man sitting by the lake and talking to his own reflection. In the water, Boom sees my face and wants to be like me but what Boom forgets, is that what he sees is a reflection of his own endearing and appealing self. That face in the water he sees is his very own! I am and will always be as fickle as the water in the lake. I will move on and he will remain. He will stand up, reach out and conquer the moons of his dream. The truth is that all the strengths which we seek, admire and adore, usually, lay inside of us. Our heroes are always a reflection of ourselves. Our desires and dreams are, always, the manifestations of the heroes we are!
Now, there is a third thing, a hidden lesson, in this story. I’ll spell it out for you, even as I am sure being the heroes you are, you may have figured it out for yourself.
Remember the two times that I stood up and spoke in Boom’s seminar? The first time my performance, therefore the quality of my success, wasn’t up to par for myself even though I took 9 minutes. The second time, inspite of the fact that I just had 3 minutes, I roared, raged and drove a beautiful message right into the hearts of my listeners. The difference was that during the first attempt I was promoting myself and, trying to sell my books. The second time around my purpose was higher. It was to acknowledge and lift the spirits of another human being. This time my focus was outwards and towards helping another giant of a human being. And that, ladies and gentleman, is the essential difference between success and excellence, between good and great!
Many people, including me, know about these things but it is the walk, not the talk, which counts. When we, gracefully, combine the power of desire, the power of selflessness with a true belief in our own capacities, then all our efforts catapult us straight, beyond the moon, into the foothills of our own heavens!
Raju Mandhyan
www.mandhyan.com
A World of Clear, Creative and Conscientious Thinkers!
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