Why Discipline Is The Key To Be Successful

Over the last couple of weeks I have observed that some of the most successful people, be it in sports or in the corporate world have been sabotaging their success. The one glaring common feature I have noticed with people who are striving to be successful and with those who are more than  successful, but thrown it away, is the lack of discipline. I was wondering how one could go about achieving this quality even if you belong to either end of the spectrum……

Discipline is an illusion: It is true that for most of the things we do, discipline is the key component but when you look at it discipline doesn’t actually exist. It’s not a thing which you can actually do. It is something which you cannot feel & the irony is that it is one of  the most important aspects which I see missing in most of the people I come across as a Life Coach.

Distraction: With so many things around us and a deluge of choices, it is just a matter of time before some of  us fall into the all familiar trap which makes us move away from our course. It does take a lot of self discipline to persevere a-midst the various distractions around us and assert one’s will power over casual desires and instincts. It is imperative to channel one’s emotions, behaviors & desires towards obtaining the rewards of success. I have always believed that living a life of self –discipline is that much less painful in the long run than regretting “what could have been”.Somewhere this has been hardwired to me now & i have began to operate at this state more in the sub conscious level.

Being dishonest:  Most people are succumbing to dishonesty. The temptation to lie, exaggerate and deceive in order to move ahead at any cost is what is happening around us. However as we all know dishonesty has an uncanny tendency to sneak back upon us. Over the years I have seen that, True success comes to a person who stands by his/her word and does work with a pure conscience.With things happening around us, we do know that being dishonest can make one successful in a short span of time,but eventually it will make no difference in the end, when dishonesty nullifies  everything else.

Ingratitude: More often than not, most people tend to forget about the contributions of others who have gone out of the way to help us  in our respective journeys. I always advocate the words that “No man is an island”. Many people would have contributed to making us what we are. I always believe that if one can’t experience gratitude then he/she would have stayed exactly where they would have started.We need each other to support us in our journey and by not acknowledging the contribution of family & friends will at some point of time stop us in our track.

Working on being disciplined is not a one way street. It does have many components which I have discussed briefly above. It is next to impossible to be extremely successful and not follow some or all of the above mentioned areas. Being successful is not a trait all of us are born with, However by taking the right steps one can move in the right direction for sure. I do hope that this Blog article has made some of you realise how important discipline is to improve some of the most important areas of your own life. I would be mighty happy to hear from you as to how you have managed to develop a system which involves absolute discipline in most of the areas of your life on my Facebook page or at mail Id coach@satishrao.in

Meditation:The Key To Emotional Well-Being

I am a big advocate of the meditation habit. Most of my clients and readers would have realized by now that I believe that meditation is a great way to begin & end one’s day. In fact, I would even go one step further & write that meditation is the most important habit if you want to change your life.

What got me thinking about this topic, was a discussion yesterday with a good friend of mine who was extremely anxious because he was living in the past and his thoughts determined his way of life to the last detail. I am aware that more than 90% of one’s thoughts are repetitive and unfortunately 80% of these thoughts are negative. Somewhere down the line, I personally feel that these thoughts come from our own survival instinct. Human thoughts are the most powerful of emotions. It is these thoughts, which can make or break a person. I have seen over the years, that thoughts have the power of making one do the things you know you shouldn’t do – like over eating, lack of sleep or even thinking logically. Over the years these thoughts have been planted in our mind through our environment, upbringing and also largely due to the kind of exposure each one of us have had over the years. Hence meditation is the practice of observing these particular thoughts and in the process being more mindful of them through the day. Once you are conscious of these thoughts then it is that much easier to work on the same.

 Over the years by practicing meditation, I have worked on many things which would not have been possible if I didn’t learn to watch and be mindful of my own urges and negative thoughts. I strongly believe that by practicing meditation you are bringing your focus to clear all the unwanted thoughts in the mind, which will eventually leave you with your positive thoughts at all times.

 What surprises me when I talk about meditation with my clients and at group seminars, is that most of the people believe that this skill is extremely difficult to learn, requiring years of disciplined practice something akin to training in Martial Arts. However this is not true. Forming a meditation habit is pretty simple. However doing is everything and given below are the ways you can begin -

Begin small and pick a time: I am a big believer of beginning small and ending it big. Start simple, if you want the habit to stick in the long run. One can begin to do it for about even 5 minutes a day and gradually increase it as the days/weeks progress. To make this more regular, it makes sense to pick a regular time to practice this on a daily basis. I personally recommend it to be the first and the last thing of the day. The reason is that by focusing on your own mind at these two crucial junctures of the day you are ensuring that your day at the conscious level and at the sub conscious level goes exactly the way you would want it to be.

Find a quite place and focus on your breath: To begin with, it makes sense to sit in a quiet place to focus on one’s thoughts. The place can be anywhere \as long as you are comfortable. It can be your balcony, terrace, office or if not driving even your car. I have many of my clients who practice meditation in some of the weirdest places,which according to them works wonderfully well. Focusing on your own breath while breathing in and breathing out, will help in regulating one’s breathing, which within no time calms the mind. I advocate people during this time to think that all the negative energy is going out while breathing out and the positive energy is coming in while breathing in.

Focus on the internal world and feel more: Once you are focused on your breath, then within no time you will be oblivious of your surroundings. This is the internal world which is as serene as the ocean floor. Once in this zone, you can begin to focus on your most important thoughts and work on how exactly you would want it to happen. I would personally recommend visualizing at this precise moment,see yourself like in a movie you doing some of your biggest challenges at this point of time, since you are operating at the sub conscious level at this state. This is a great opportunity to expand one’s thinking and live in these positive thoughts for some time, before one comes back to the real world.

 I have experienced  some amazing transformations in myself and seen it with my own clients  by just working on meditation. I would love to hear from each one of you, if you could work on this one empowering habit and completely transform your emotional environment. As always I would feel great to hear from you on these thoughts, on my Face Book Fan Page  or at mail idcoach@satishrao.in

How Do You Create A Lasting Change In Your Life

One of the most important things people want to do is, to change their life and make it last. Change as I Know, can be different to different people. Some of the people I work with would love to change their career, sleep pattern or even their emotional response to the external as well as the internal situations.

Over the last couple of years working with people in helping them make some of the biggest changes in their life and most importantly make it last, is what I am going to write about in the next few paragraphs. Remember change is good and if one needs to evolve, then we need to change. Some of the things which each one of you can look at, for creating the lasting change in your own life would be

Identify what you do want to change:I always remember the words by Author Lewis Carroll – “If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there”.Unless you know what exactly you intend to change, then it is mostly likely that you will get there. Some of the questions which can definitely put you in the right direction is, What do you want to change about yourself? What do you want to do differently etc… Once the thoughts get aligned and you begin to work towards identifying the change you are looking at then, it is much easier to move on to the next milestone which is -

Commit, educate & set goals: Commitment is the biggest thing,which most of us shy away from, in some form or the other. However focus on commitment will help one  move with blinders towards your goals. Work on gaining momentum by seeking internal & external resources to augment the change process. Be honest about your past,so that you can use your own set of experiences to break patterns that no longer serve you. Make the change process tangible and measurable to an extent. What can you do each day, to get yourself closer to who you want to be? Work on written goals which play a critical role in helping you move towards the lasting change.I have personally seen a huge shift in focus and determination when one works with clear written goals.

Take Action & Visualize: There are no moments without Action.A few months back, talking to one of my friends who was not taking Action made me tell him the following words – “ If you don’t like where you are, then change it. you are not a tree”. This spurred him from the inside and he took massive action which resulted  in him doing, so much in two weeks which he had not done for the last couple of years. Another critical aspect which so many of the people miss out on is “visualizing the things which you would want to change “This according to me is the most important link which connects the conscious to the subconscious mind. I can write on this particular point forever, but would just say that without visualizing, the biggest change does not take place. The level of importance, I would personally give to visualization is incomparable. I have personally experienced some of the biggest shifts in my own life through visualization.when this process begins to happen in the journey of everlasting change,you need to ride the wave and go with the momentum to make it a permanent fixture.

Hire a Life Coach: Finally when all the above points do not give you the desired results, then you can look at  working with a Life coach(which incidentally I am).The reason I love & am so passionate with what I am doing right now is, that i can help most of the people who would have definitely worked on the first few steps but somewhere would have missed out on reaching their final destination. Hence working with an non judgemental Professional Life coach can make a huge  difference in the long run of hitting the change highway. Do check my website, in the about and Life coaching process section where you will get a fair idea in terms of how I operate with people in working on their biggest changes. I look forward to many more people working on the biggest changes in your own life by using some or all the steps I have mentioned. I also look forward to hearing  from some of you, on how you have managed to overcome your biggest change on my Facebook Page  or at mail ID coach@satishrao.in Remember lasting change is a step by step approach and it is very much possible when you do take the most important first step.

How Is Your Relationship With Food?

What I have seen over the years with most people I have come in contact with, is that most of them relate any problem in life to food. I see a trend of emotional eating highly prevalent especially with the women folks. Somehow people depend on food, because it is easily available and there is not much of a social stigma attached to over eating compared to other.

When consumption of food goes beyond control and becomes loaded with sugars and Trans fat, then the problem begins to creep in. With more people moving on to an extremely sedentary lifestyle, the problem gets compounded. Just like any relationship with your spouse, partner or boss needs to be worked on, so it is with food. This is what I am going to do in the next few paragraphs

Recognize what & when you eat: Keeping a track of what & when you eat is the key. I know many people who give too much of a gap in the morning before they begin their day and this plays a critical role, in how the whole day does go by with respect to their food intake. The first thing  according to me,is to recognize what is it you are eating wrong and regulate the timings as far as possible.The key factor is,food does play a big role on our emotions.

Eat how much you need: I was guilty of eating more than necessary at one point of time and paid a huge price for it. However I began to realize that the key in eating well is to satisfy how much we need and not more just because food is available. This requires a major shift from the inside, as there will be tremendous pressure from your family & friends when you work on this. The Thumb rule I follow & advocate it to my own clients, is not to eat more than the size of one’s fist @ any point of time. The Logic is that, one’s stomach is as big as one’s fist size. I would go one step further, in saying that keep your food quantity intake to 75-80 % of the size of your fist. This will be hard initially, but over a period of time you will begin to feel light and this will help you keep the metabolism high and peppy.

Work on being addicted to certain food: All of us do have some kind of addiction to certain kinds of food. Once in a while it is fine, but going overboard on certain food is definitely asking for trouble. For example foods rich in sugar & Trans fat are what most people are addicted to because somewhere they have internalized the pleasure of these kinds of food to some kind of comfort. The only way in overcoming this is to consciously work on this and replace this kind of food with some kind of healthy replacement.To begin with, work on the theory  “out of sight is out of mind”.This simple strategy works wonderfully well for most.

Stay hydrated: Most of the time I have realized, that one is usually thirsty and not hungry. Good consumption of water is what is required when you have moved into some kind of discipline with your eating patterns. If at any point of time, you feel hungry try drinking a glass full of water and usually the hunger pangs will disappear. What is Important over here is to keep the water consumption to recommended level of 8-10 glasses per day and gradually increase it based on your overall fitness levels.

In the end, let’s teach ourselves some simple things: food is just fuel. Most of us need to eat less. Food isn’t love or entertainment or anything else like that. It’s just fuel.

At the end of the day what I have realised is that to keep things simple and consider food as a fuel. We should not connect food with our emotions, relationship or anything else. Just be aware that our body does need the right quantity & quality of food and nothing more than this. By working on keeping it simple, you are ensuring that you do not Anchor yourself and become too dependent on food. I have realised this long time ago and work with my clients on the same principal to help them move away from unhealthy food habits. I would love to hear from you on your thoughts on food and how much of an importance you would like to give to food going forward on my Facebook fan page or at my mail ID coach@satishrao.in

Are You Living Up To Your Potential?

When I ask the people I work with this question, I usually get a vague answer. This is because Potential is something which cannot be measured or quantified. However when you realize your own strength can  change your belief structure, then the opportunities or challenges one can create and overcome are mind-blowing.

The last couple of weeks, have been very exciting for me because I have just about finished working with a couple of my clients,who have inspired me so much in terms of living up to their potential.When I look back to see how much they have lived up to their potential, It was magical.when I revisited their journey with me during the last couple of months, I realized that there was a clear vision of developing new habits, which helped each one of them to live to the best of their potential. Therefore i  figured out and found a set pattern, over the last few months which can help each one of you to live to your own potential  -

Have an open mind: The first step in working to your potential is having an open mind and being flexible.I see many people letting go of huge opportunities in their own life, by not having an open mind and having an aversion to taking risk. A ship was never meant to be in the harbor, even though it is the safest place to be in. Therefore taking calculated risks by moving out of one’s comfort zone is what follows by opening one’s mind to opportunities.

Ask and you shall be given: I have come across many people who do not ask for what they deserve. The fear of rejection and embarrassment, holds most of them from asking what they really want. The universe  wants each one of us to succeed. The only thing it wants of you,  is to ask and work towards it. Asking also means that you need to develop a courage to ask others. No man is an island and we can collectively do a lot more things together instead of working alone.So somewhere working with others and helping each other is an important aspect when one needs to work to one’s potential.

Think differently: Some of the biggest achievers are the one who thought differently and stepped out of their comfort zone. Have the courage to express your own individuality and work on your strengths to reach your own true potential. Once you think differently and look at the situation from a different perception, that is when the answers which were elusive at one time will begin to appear. A coach does something similar to this. He/she will make you look at things differently and help you find your own answers.So what was once an insurmountable mountain, will be seen among-st it a clear doable Road map.

Work smarter: There is no sense in reinventing the wheel. It is by working smart one can look at reaching the destination in the least amount of time. As a coach, I help my own clients in working smart, be it at their health, career or any other challenges they are facing. Reaching the destination in the least possible time is the key. Smart work pays in more than one way and eventually makes you work on using this pattern in other areas of your life,which is what makes a huge difference in the long run.

Over the years whilst working with people across geographic boundaries, I have seen that each one of us have been bestowed with immense potential, which we just need to en-cash upon. Unfortunately most of the people do not realize this and end up living a very compromised life. The few who realize this and work hard are the ones you see as the shining stars in front of us. I personally believe that working to one’s potential is a habit just like any other  and over a period of time it can be mastered. I hope that these thoughts have indeed inspired you to work to your potential in a few areas of your life,which can be at a later stage replicated to most areas of your life. I would love to hear from you on the challenges you are facing in working to your potential, on my Face book page or email ID coach@satishrao.in

Work On The Change Muscle

Our physical muscle tends to become stronger with repeated use and this is as you know is a “No brainer”. However when I talk of the change muscle, I tend to get people’s attention because this is something which not all possess but need to develop by working both at the physical & the Emotional level.

I have noticed over the years that  that people do step up to make the shifts internally for change, be it their thought process, physical habits or sometimes even their deepest Emotional baggage. However many of them falter, to go back to where they began. Just like how building muscles or endurance for a sport requires a step by step approach, working on the change muscle calls for the same. I would venture to say that working out regularly in the gym, can in fact help you develop the muscle which you would want to change the most, the physical as well as the change muscle. Over the years working on my own muscles, both physical and the change muscle, has made me that much more convinced that there is lot more similarity in both and somehow, each one complements the other. The principles for growing your change muscle are similar to growing regular muscles and some of the ways which I could relate from the gym are -

Start small: Just like anything in life, it is prudent to start small and I am a big advocate of beginning small and ending big. just like how we lose out on form and injure ourselves in the gym, by trying to lift heavy and more than what we can handle, the same logic needs to be applied in developing the change muscle. I see many newbie’s in the gym who try to do more in exuberance, but run out of steam in no time. You will want to do more, but if you do more, you’re much more likely to fail in the long run.The key is to start small  - say standing for ten minutes for every one hour of sitting or even drinking one glass of water for every hour.In this case it might be thinking more positive during the day.

Train regularly: I have been training for many years now and it has become a part of my life. I plan my schedule in and around my workouts which my friends & family  understand. Just like regular workouts are imperative for being in top notch shape so does working on your own change muscle. Being regular and disciplined is the key. Some of my clients who were extremely irregular and undisciplined before they begin to work with me have over the weeks seen their own change muscle develop from strength to strength by just keeping at it. This is not Rocket science, but the art of developing set patterns @ the sub conscious level which is the key. In simple terms “you have to do it regularly and “train regularly”  to see the progress”

Follow progressive loading: Just like in the gym, one needs to increase the weights gradually.Without increasing the weight, there will be no growth, because muscles grow or tone up only through resistance training. Work on developing your own change muscle through the simple strategy of progressive loading and you will be amazed with the results in no time.

Fuel is the key: Working out in the gym is just one of the factor for building muscles. Feeding your muscles, the right combination of Carbs, protein & fats is the key. The same can be applied to developing the change muscle. The only difference here is that you need to fuel the change process by working on its most important intake say like motivating yourself, overcoming negative thoughts and being persistent.Work on finding as many ways and means as possible to keep yourself motivated & self propelled. Try to make the whole process enjoyable. What I have over the years noticed in the gym as well as in life is that most of the people under fuel their muscles, be it the physical or the change. The trick is to work on ensuring you do keep the muscle fueled optimally and allow it never to run low on fuel.

You will be amazed at how much of progress you can make over time by working on your change muscle by incorporating the principles of the gym rat. In no time you can work on your past failures, lack of discipline or even years of under training by using these simple lessons I have learnt in the gym. I do hope that this has inspired some of you to work on your most important muscle in the human body which according to me  is the change muscle. I would love to hear from each one of you in terms of how impactful this was on my Facebook Page  or at my mail ID coach@satishrao.in

Learning’s From Writing My 100th Blog Article

It’s been slightly more than a year since I began writing on Self development and health related topics. When I look back, I cannot imagine that I am actually writing my 100^th Blog article today. There have been some invaluable lessons learnt during this incredible journey.

The common situation where people find themselves in is the honest and fervent desire for self improvement, followed by inaction or giving in to temptations and eventually they are consumed by guilt & give up. Some of the learning’s through the year has made me re look at why so many find it challenging to keep the inertia and fall by the wayside.  This is primarily due to the basic human trait of giving in to desire despite our best of the intentions.Some of the ways I did manage to overcome this is

 Motivate yourself: If you are not motivated then how can you motivate others to take those first few steps. It is imperative that one needs to walk the talk especially when it comes to being a Coach and working with people to help them overcome their biggest challenges. Work on looking at the bigger picture and find different ways to motivate yourself. Incorporate workable plans in your daily activities and always ensure that you do stay motivated to be on course.For me this is the key and i begun my day working on motivating myself.

One step at a time: The Only way to gather momentum is by moving forward. The Key is always to get started and take the first few but steady steps. I began small and moved on to commit myself to working on bigger things. All big things begin small and there is immense gratification in taking small steps in a steady pace. Once you get going the momentum builds up and inertia is no longer a factor.I have gone through the learning curve of taking  first step which is always the most difficult and this usually happens in the mind  according to me.

Set small achievable goals: I remember writing just a paragraph everyday for couple of months and then increased it to two gradually. If you are not used to doing certain things, then it’s hard to get started. Work on conquering something small say even ten minutes of exercise to begin with. Work on being realistic and once you do achieve small goals you can build on the momentum.

Just keep doing it, no matter what: Writing for the last one year has put me through some immense challenges. There were times when I did not know what to write and just focused on things around me, through which I might be able to relate to my readers. The challenge is to keep going no matter what obstacles one faces as long as you are walking towards the goal. My focus was, writing two Blogs a week – “one on self development and one on health” I have worked on this week after week and not missed a single post yet. The reason is because I was accountable to myself. I had promised myself that even if there was no response to my blogs, I would keep posting till such time that I could engage with my readers and followers.

Looking back as a Blogger & writer, the last one year has made me realize, that by walking in the direction of your dreams you will eventually meet people who will help you in your respective journeys. I am so blessed that there are a close group of friends who have helped me reach this small milestone. It would have never been possible alone and i am ever grateful to each one of them, Off course the inspiring words and feedback from each one of the readers who took time to go through my blog inspired me to write better and most importantly, keep on going.

Last but not the least, my writing this 100^th Blog is just a beginning and I have many mountains to climb yet. The immense pleasure one gets when you have climbed the first mountain and look back with satisfaction that the other mountains will be more challenging and fulfilling is what inspires me. I do hope that this Blog will inspire lot of you there, who have not yet taken the first few steps in the direction of your dreams and are contemplating to find the right time. My only advice is to not wait but just get going and find the magic in momentum. I hope that you could relate to my thoughts through this blog. I would like to hear from you as to what are some of the challenges you had to face when you decided to work on something out of your comfort zone on myFace book page or at mail Id coach@satishrao.in

How Do You Re Energize Yourself

Working with people over the years has made me realize that our energy levels are not constant and tend to waver as the day progresses. Therefore how would it be, if you could ensure that your energy levels are constant through the day?

I have seen days where I have been at my absolute best and some days where I have been down in the dumps with no energy whatsoever to even do the menial of jobs. Working with people closely, I have realized that there has to be something that each one of us can do, irrespective of our environment, to be totally energized and ready to take on the world. Given below are some of the pointers which I have used to change my own life and that of my clients. These have worked out wonderfully well over the years to help one stay energized –

Regulate your sleep pattern:Humans are not nocturnal by nature and we need our regular sleep. This gets synchronized with our own body clock. The Easiest thing to do is to ensure that you sleep and wake up at the same time every day, including the weekend. This regular cycle plays a critical role in ensuring that you have sustained energy through the day. It might take couple of days to reset your internal clock but mind you, the long term benefits are worth the effort in gold.

Stay well hydrated:I notice that most people are dehydrated through the day without realizing that Dehydration is a sinister cause of fatigue. It can have a crippling effect on your energy levels. As a thumb rule go for at the least 8-10 cups of water a day. I generally have a lot more than 8 cups in a day, especially now in the summer. Try this for a week and you will notice that your energy levels will increase drastically within no time.

Consume more fiber: Soluble fiber is the kind that slows down the rate of sugar absorption in the system. This eventually plays a direct role in preventing a sugar high and crash. Include more fresh fruits and vegetables in your diet which will also drastically increase your antioxidants. This plays a vital role in eliminating the free radicals in the body. Stick as close to the recommended 5 servings of fruits & vegetable in a day and you will be on the way towards a more energetic you.

Eat smaller, more frequent meals: Smaller meals through the day will maintain a steady dose of energy through the day instead of a couple of large meals. This will not only help you sustain energy but also burn more calories. This will work for those people who are also planning to lose some weight. I had moved to this particular eating pattern even when I was working out of a cubicle. If you are little bit creative you will figure out ways and means to make this a reality irrespective of your work schedule.

Breathe more deeply: Most of the people are surprised when I bring up this topic, when I am coaching or in my Wellness  Seminars. Most of the people are not consciously aware of their breathing patterns and breathe faster due to stress. The thumb rule is to make time a couple of times during the day to take in deep breaths, hold and breathe again .I usually call this the 121 approach. Which is, say if you breathe in for 4 seconds then you need to hold your breath for 8 seconds and then breathe out for another 4 seconds. Yes for those familiar with Yoga this is nothing but what you do during pranayama. The key is holding your breath for twice the time you breathe in. This will ensure that you get energized within minutes. I practice this for a large part of my Yoga routine early in the morning. It is magical and completely blows me away.

Be active: By being on your feet, you are stimulating your circulatory system which incidentally delivers much needed oxygen through the body. Physiology plays a critical role in how we feel from the inside. By walking straight and confidently you are working on both the kegs which are critical for sustained energy levels. Body language is most important factor here. The moment you drop your shoulders then you tend to go low on energy.

Being energetic is a sustained effort which is not Rocket science. However being aware that it takes some effort and practice will make a rather ordinary day into an eventful one. I Would Love to hear about how you do manage to be energetic and pull your socks up when your own energy level drops during the day on my Facebook page or at my mail coach@satishrao.in

Let Go Of The Past And Focus On The Future

My recent post on Letting go of the past on my Facebook Page got some amazing response & got me thinking why not write a Blog on the same. Working with people in Redesigning their lives, has made me aware that this is always the most painful area to improve on. For a long time, i  used to live in the past and miss out on living in the present. Life can bring about many unpleasant & unbearable experiences, leaving  most of us with intrusive memories. Well the feeling of being incapacitated by not letting go of the past cannot be learnt but only experienced.The only doable and practical action one can take is activating the “Power of letting go” which can turn around the scenario completely and free you from the shackles of misery.

However letting go of the past memories is not a walk in the park,  but a step by step approach which one can take to ensure that it does not come back to torment us in the present and the future. Some of my own memories were disempowering me and not allowing me to move forward. When I realise that some of my own clients are going through the same experience, then I waste no time in working on the past  which unfortunately would have planted itself deep at the subconscious level.  some of the ways each one of you can do to work on the past painful memories are

Come to terms with the memories: What I have seen and experienced over the years is that most of the people  try to suppress the memories. This can be in many different ways and varies from individual to individual. Suppression is never the solution. The more you suppress an emotion, it begins to work like a coiled spring waiting for an opportunity to hit back at you with more force. The best thing to do under the circumstances is to come to terms with your memories. Talking to somebody(especially a coach or a professional) is considered the most effective strategy in overcoming emotional baggage. By doing this, you are not only coming to terms with it but also ensuring that it is getting out of your system which is the first critical step. An experienced person can make out how Associated you are with the past and can work with you to disassociate yourself. Sometimes writing about your painful memories also helps, in case you do not want to talk about this to anybody(which I will never recommend by the way)

Begin to work on letting it go: Most of the memories are communicated as images. Our sub conscious, communicates through pictures and with most of the people, these past memories or incidents will be like pictures or images. Generally these images are very close to us and extremely vivid. Letting go is nothing but making these images go away from you by making them  hazy and less impactful. I did work on a client a couple of months ago who visualized his painful memories like gas balloons and just left it to fly away. He did see it moving away from him into the galaxy and these memories have never bothered him again. Therefore working on letting go is the next step you can take. Remember all these are within your absolute control and no one can stop you from doing these steps.

Forgive yourself and them: In my own experience, I have noticed that most of the painful memories hover around relations. Therefore it is imperative that however painful the memory is, to first forgive yourself and also the person or the persons involved. By forgiving you are actually allowing it to let go out of your sub conscious and most importantly making a place for  positive thoughts and actions to take its place. Remember both positive and negative cannot be in our mind at the same time.

Meditate and visualize: The only way you can work on reconditioning your mind is by working on cultivating a habit of meditating, which will open the doors of the sub conscious mind. Once you are working at the subconscious level, then it is easier to visualize and  pace yourself to overcoming these thoughts.. There is magic in Visualization and I can’t stop writing more on its amazing benefits. Visualize and see things clearly in the mind’s eye  the things you always wanted to do.

I have just scraped the surface of emotional area in each one of us.Remember that emotions is just like any other muscle and each one of us can strengthen it to make it  the most powerful arsenal within us. I have tried this to keep it as simple as possible,  but  I have walked the talk  myself and with some amazing people who have made huge strides in their personal lives by working on their past emotional baggage by using some or all of the above mentioned steps.I  would love to hear from you on my Facebook Page  or at my mail Id coach@satishrao.in as to how you have managed your own journey by overcoming past Emotional baggage if any.

The Art Of Sound Sleep

I have been coming across more and more people who have a major issue in this one area, compared to all other areas put together. Once there is a disturbance in the sleep pattern, there is a cascading effect on all the other areas which causes more damage in the long run.

I have always believed that one need not make much of an effort to sleep but as the saying goes “It is easier said than done”. I have worked with people over the years who have averaged just a couple of hours of sleep at a given time. By diligently working at the conscious and most importantly the sub-conscious level they have managed to rework their sleep pattern and have major improvements in this one department. For most it is not a struggle to switch off once you wind up, but for some people around it is a daily struggle to catch up on a few winks. I am aghast when people upgrade their electronic gizmos, change their wardrobe and other materialistic things but hardly work on taking positive steps towards getting a good restful sleep of 7-8 hours. Some of the things one can do from this moment onwards without altering too much, is what I will be discussing in the remaining few paragraphs

Everyone is different: No two people are the same and it holds well with respect to the sleep pattern of two individuals too. Everyone has different sleep environments. This ranges from the light and noise levels, to the type of mattress and the room temperature. Any changes in these will alter the patterns. I need the room to be absolutely dark and any light from the outside will awaken the conscious mind within no time.  First work on the factors that affect you and you can use that knowledge to help optimize your sleep quality.

Set it up: I have noticed that people actually think of going to sleep only when they switch off the light and lie down on the bed. Somehow it does not seems to work like this anymore and only a lucky few can afford to do this. The rest need to work on simple things at least 2-3 hours before the snooze time to condition the mind. This could be something like reading a positive book for an hour before bedtime. The reading preferably needs to be from a book and not from a smart phone or Tab. The reason is a No brainer- with any electronic device gives out more light which acts as a deterrent to the mind and the eyes just before switching off.

Work on a moderate exercise: I have noticed that when some of my own clients work on some kind of moderate exercise say about 40 minutes of cardio or weight training sessions, it pumps the brain with the feel good hormone which is the key in developing a good sleep pattern.  By working out, you are ensuring that your metabolism is taken care of and not very high as bed time comes that much closer. There is no one particular exercise which I can recommend but anything to make the necessary shifts will work for sure.I did an intense weight session & a quick post run yesterday and by 2230 hrs I was fast asleep yesterday.

Dinner like a pauper: Yes this old world saying still makes sense and is the need of the hour. By having the bare minimum at the dinner table you are ensuring that the mind will focus on going to the sleep mode rather than trying to burn the calories. Include lots of fresh fruits and vegetables which have a magical effect on the calmness of the mind. A glass of warm milk with a pinch of Saffron will work wonders in regulating the sleep cycle. There is a science behind this and you can figure this out with a click of a mouse.I have  personally stopped dinner altogether now and my last meal is usually some fruits post workout and a glass of milk once i reach home.

Regulate your breathing & Meditate: Practicing deep breathing exercise just about ten minutes before you sleep will help in setting you up for meditation which is the key. By meditating, you are helping the mind to focus and you can eventually program the mind to ensure it gets a well deserved rest. For those of you who are new to meditation do read my previous blogs on the same and in no time you will be sleeping like a baby.

I am aware that most of the people with whom I interact compromise on their sleep and think they can get away. However they cannot be more wrong in this aspect. A good sleep is the key which helps to bridge most of the areas of our life and it is worth all the effort to invest on the things I have discussed above. I would love to hear from you as to what is bothering you in general with respect to inculcating a good sleep pattern. You can reach me through my Facebook Page  or my mail  id coach@satishrao.in

How To Get Unstuck In Life?

Achievement is always a steady surge and Rome was not built in a day. These were my words to a caller,who had called me saying that she felt stuck in life  and incapacitated to do just about anything. I come across many people who more or less are in the similar position be it with their personal or professional lives.

What I have seen over the years is that most of the people go through extreme anxiety and emotional surges during these times. My plea to you is that – why surrender to the unseen forces when so many people have worked their way through insurmountable obstacles and created wonderful success stories for others to emulate. Some of the things which you as a person can begin to work on to overcome this state of helplessness are given below -

Step back and look at the challenge objectively: I have realized that the issue with some of the people with whom i have worked  is that they are too close to the problem and see the challenge as a ogre. All one  need to do is to step back in their  own mind and see the whole issue from a distance. We need to observe the things which we would have never seen before. What this technique does is it gives you an amazing insight about what lies around it  and  helps you figure out ways to deal with it.

Assess your position & Limitation: When faced with life threatening situations in the high altitudes of the mountains, I usually used to step back and assess my own position as well as that of my partners to see things with more clarity. This has become a part of my thinking process in the present and has worked for me wonderfully well. First get a grip on your limitation and then work around it to ensure that you do not get deeper into the hole. Some of Life’s lessons are only learnt the hard way but by cushioning the fall a little bit will do no harm whatsoever is what i have picked up over the years.

Look outside for some insights: Most of the time our ego stops us from looking out for help or answers, I see this more in the men rather than in women, who generally reach out and look for external resources. Therefore it’s a no brain er that“majority of my clients are women”.  Look at external resources like trusted and non judgmental friends who can encourage you by questioning you and challenge your actions and thinking. Be open, humble and most importantly ready to learn and unlearn. It will be painful initially to move out of the comfort zone but these people can help you abandon your thought process and step up. In case you feel you do not have the people around you then work with a “Life coach” who can work with you on these issues.

Work on creating a road map: Working with a coach or a friend will ensure you look at things through an entirely different perspective. I can guarantee you, that you will start looking at approaches you would have never thought of. More importantly I  feel that it helps you to analyze the situation with none of the previous history, baggage or legacy that was weighing you down. This will help you commit to discover the path to success which you might  have missed in the previous narrow sighted approach. This will condition your sub-conscious mind to find the objective path to success that’s worthy of your newly committed time and effort.

Once the shifts begin to happen from the inside, then the magic begins to unfold from the outside. Lasting permanent changes happen when there is a clear path for the brain to follow, which would have been poorly conditioned over the years. As the challenges get bigger, only hard work and perseverance may not be enough. it is the mindset for the long haul which is what separates the wheat from the chaff. Your long term approach and reconditioning, will ultimately help you win in the long run. I  am sure some of you would have already seen the other side, if you have read till now. It is time to take the next step forward and step into the area where you need to thrive. I Would love to hear about, how you might have managed to get unstuck in life by working on any particular strategy in your own life on my Face book page or even on my mail ID coach@satishrao.in

Can We As Women Be Healthy?

I do receive more calls from women, who intend to get healthy and lead a stress free life off late and the last call I had this week was from a young working mother with an extremely stressful life who believed that Indian women in general are predisposed to putting on weight and had this question “can we as women be healthy”. Even though I did not agree with her, I did make her realize that it is a difficult task for any person to lose weight if they do not get into an exercise regime sooner rather than later.

These questions made me to think as to how many women might have this mindset and do not even make an attempt to get fit. I deeply believe that all women deserve a stress free and healthy lifestyle. Due to multitasking, somewhere down the line, they tend to ignore the fact that they also need to take care of themselves in midst of juggling a full time career, raising kids, hormonal imbalances and running a full fledged house . This got me thinking and hence I am trying to write a Blog specifically for the Women who intends to be healthy. Over the years I have figured out that there is no one size fits all plan but something which I feel, most of the women folks can do irrespective of their daily activities. To begin with try focusing on

Watch what you eat: It is critical and important that what you eat is what you will eventually become and it is no less true with women. Since most of the women are also in charge of the kitchen, it is imperative that they make sure that the food is healthy and fresh. Make it a point that most of the meals include fresh vegetables and fruits. It is also important to start your day with a hearty breakfast and ensure that you eat something within 2 hours of waking up. Ideally if you wake up by 6Am then ensure that you have breakfast or at least some wheat bread and coffee to kick-start your metabolism within 8Am. What this does is that it will make sure that your system does not run empty and go into a panic mode. Another important factor is to eat small meals, every 2-3 hours rather than 3 big meals a day. For working women professionals, you need to be creative and fit in some fruits, nuts or even some all grain biscuits at the workplace. By eating every 2-3 hours small quantity(not more than your fist size) you will ensure your metabolism is always high and you end up burning more calories. Last but not the least is to ensure that you have your last meal of the day at least 2-3 hours before you sleep and this meal has to be the smallest in comparison to all other meals.

Stay well hydrated: Ensure that at the very least, you drink 2-3 Its of water every day. This will remove all the toxins from your body and also make the glow on your face more prominent. The thumb rule for any women is to keep sipping water from the bottle or their sipper every half an hour. It is always better for the working folks to walk up to the cooler and in the process move around. This I have realized will make sure that the office Air- con does not dehydrate you.

Keep walking: The secret in managing weight is in not staying grounded in one place for more time. The idea is to keep walking every 60 to 90 minutes. I generally take a break every 60 minutes when I am working and now stand & work for almost 40-50% of my time at work. I always come back to my desk with more vigour and energy. The key point here is to fit in a healthy walking habit within the kind of work each one of you is doing. Try and make it to about Ten thousand steps a day. It’s not as difficult as it sounds as one can manage this in about 60-80 minutes of brisk walking. If you space this within a 8-10 hour work day, it then becomes very doable.

Have a regular sleep pattern: Sleeping for 7-8 hours is essential for women and this, irrespective of the kind of lifestyle one leads. Ensure that at the very least, 7 hours of good sleep is logged in after hitting the snooze button. The body also burns calories while in the sleep mode and do make sure that all the smart phones and ipads are kept well away from the bed. Recent research has proved that women need more sleep than men.

These are some of the simple things any women can do irrespective of whether she has time to hit the gym or wear her running shoes. By incorporating these small habits in their everyday life, I do not see any reason what more can stop women from being healthy.

The idea behind this article is to ensure that every woman can manage their health with simple changes in their daily activities, be it in office or home; one does not need sophisticated gyms to become healthy.I do hope that this article has made all the women readers realize that being healthy is in the mind and nothing should, stop you from leading an active healthy lifestyle irrespective of the environment or the circumstances you are in. 

For all the guys reading, share this with the women in your life who matters the most to you. It is equally important for them to be healthy as much as it is to you. Ultimately it is not whether you are driving the biggest car or staying in the biggest house that matters. What really matters is how healthy and content you are in your life. At the end of the day, It’s all about feeling good about yourself from within.

Would love to hear how this article has impacted you and especially from the women readers in terms of what is stopping them to work on small changes which will make them healthy and eventually the family. Would love to hear from some of you on myFace Book Page or on my email coach@satishrao.in