J o u r n e y t o s e l f D e v e l o p m e n t

Based onT h e B h a g a v a d - G i t a

Basic Truths About Life

Life is hard. It has always been & it always will be

Every thing you are or ever will be is up to you

You are where you are today because that iswhere you have chosen to be there

You can learn any thing that you need to learn to achieve anything you want to achieve

Your main task is taking control of your life & future to be master of your own destiny

Self Concept

There is a direct relationship between

how well you do anything and your

self-concept.

You perform as wellas you believe yourself capable of performing

You are as effective as you believe

yourself to be in whatever you do

You can never be better or different on the outside than you believe yourself to

be on the inside.

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Man is born with six unique properties:

Physical Intel lectual Emoti onal

Social DreamsSpir itual

These properties form his potential

Human Potential

Self Development

Self development is a comprehensive process.It addresses & relates to

Setting vision

Improving self concept

Sharpening potential

Self development means that a person sees an opportunity to grow & choose to develop.

At what pace, left to himself !!

Socrates says, “Let him who would move the world first move himself.”

Why this Presentation

Professional career need broadly two types of skills:

Technical skills Supporting skills

Both types of skills are required for a successful career.In many cases supporting skills play a catalyst role

There are many sources to tap supporting skills.One such source may be Epic Books

Bhagavad-Gita is one such book that may guide in journey to Self-Development

Radical changes & highly competitive environment

have drastically changed the present scenario

& posed serious challenges.

In this presentation

an attempt is made to examine how

Bhagavad-Gita

Facilitate in Self Development.

Self Development & Bhagavadgeeta

Bhagavad-Gita synthesizes prosperity & divine values

Relevance of Bhagavad-GitaGita is an outcome of lessons offered to Arjun by his

friend & mentor Lord Krishna

Arjun got psychologically confused & depresses just before the war was to begin

He declared not to fight the war

Task before his mentor was to heal Arjun’s conflicts & create a new comprehensive personality that

motivate him to fight the war & win

In present era many persons face uncertainty, fear & diminishing confidence similar to Arjun

Approaches Adopted in Bhagavad-Gita

Lord Krishna did not reply to Arjun’s questions directly.Instead he took holistic view of the situation .

He talks about three approaches:

Path of Action Path of Knowledge Path of Devotion

He explained all the three approaches in detail.At the end he left it to Arjun which path would be

suitable to him

Ideas are picked up from all the three approaches .Assess on your own, how useful they are for career

development & happy life

How to Begin?Journey to Self-development begins with SWOT analysis

Strength

Opportunities

Weaknesses

Threats

SWOT Matrix

SWOT analysis is a structured method of Understanding self-evaluation

Do SWOT Analysis now & repeat every six-month. This helps to plan & determine actions needed in self development.

Induction to Self-Development

Faith plays a significant role in human life.

A man is what his faith is.

First step in self-development process is to build up

inspiring faith to acquire sagely attributes.

Does it mean you have to renounce the world?

Let us see for our purpose who is sage?

Who is Sage?It is not necessary to renounce the

world to be a sage

Sage is one who has study wisdom

He casts off all selfish desires of mind

His mind is not shaken by adversity

He is free from attachment, fear & anger

He neither rejoices nor hates

He is satisfied in his own self

Sagely Attributes that can be Adopted

Let Nobel soul be your role model

Avoid bodily tortureFood that promote life, vitality, health, joy, cheerfulness

Sacrifice without expectations

Speak that cause no offence, which is truthful, pleasant

Exercise serenity of mind, gentleness, self control

Offer gifts to worthy persons without any expectations

Adhere to duty without bothering about discomforts

Freedom from lust, anger, malice, pride

Build up vigor, forgiveness, purity

Analysis of own attributesBenign Malignant

Purity of mind ViolenceFearlessness Anger

Concentration ArroganceKindness Feeble mind

Self content PretensionCompassion LustUprightness Selfishness

Patience GreedTolerance Uncontrolled desires

Sense of service HatredLove Rivalry

People believe in ownership of actions & results

This perception needs to be changed

Commit actions with divine inspirations & purposes

Let actions be free from selfish desire

Distinguish between right action, wrong actions & inactions Actions to be governed by sense of duty & sacrifice

Do not perform actions with evil interest, jealousy

Work is worship.

Path of Actions

Guidelines for Actions

Perform actions as demanded by position

Do not opt for inaction for fear of failure or discomfort

Discriminate between good & bad actions

Be free from illogical assumption

Let wisdom control body, senses, intellect & mind

Do regular introspection

Guidelines for Actions

Avoid self criticism & condemnation

Perform work without attachment or aversion

Learn to endure gain & loss, victory & defeat, pain & pleasure, hot & cold

Sense of righteousness will save from fear of failure & uncertainty

Conquer anger, sensitiveness & pride

Accept challenges. Be an example

There is no purifier in the world like knowledge Person who is devoted to wisdom obtain knowledge True learner commits to be free from self desires Knowledge liberates from emotional bonds Basic constituent of mind is acquired knowledge Mind’s activities are influenced by knowledge Source of knowledge are observing, listening, studying, experiencing, coping, discoveries, invention Potential of knowledge knows no limits Knowledge is double edge sword Knowledge distinguishes human beings from others

Path of Knowledge

Acquire knowledge for purpose of:

Know thyself

Destroy clouds born out of ignorance

Recognize & understand own limitations

To be free from I-ness & My-ness

Restrain mind to be wavering & unsteady

Guidelines for obtaining knowledge

EfficiencyUtility to others

UnderstandingJoy to self

Inner PeaceConcentration

Equal mindedness to desirable & undesirable happenings

Compassion to all beings

Be submissive in acquiring knowledge

Raise doubts before knowledgeable persons

Let knowledge burn negative traits of personality

Be free from pride & delusion

Review own potential & develop competency

Guidelines for obtaining knowledge

Devotion is dedication for defined purpose. Devotee maintains constant focus on the purpose. He is endowed with supreme faith. He is determined, single-minded, unflinching,

unfaltering, unwavering, enduring & preserving. He restrains all the senses, being even-minded in all

conditions, rejoice in the welfare of all creatures. He nurtures no ill will against anyone, shows friendly

gestures to all, maintains compassionate posture,

and sets himself free from egoism

Path of Devotion

Guidelines for Devotion

Be alike to friends & foes

Rejoice in welfare of all creatures

No ill will to any being

Compassionate, Endurance

Free from egoism

Unshakable in determination

No source of grief to others

Guidelines for Devotion

Free from anger & agitation

Rejoice in welfare of all creatures

Practice concentration

Devotion help in developing competencies such as:

Adaptability

Result Orientation

Teamwork

Concentration

Building Relationship

Developing Others

Benefits of Meditation

Purification of mind, body & life

Intelligence firmly sets in wisdom

Clarity of thoughts

Stress relaxation

Clear up confusion

Disciplined mind

Awake sub-conscious & supper conscious, intuitive flashes

Benefits of Meditation

Freedom from selfish desires

Free from fear

Positive attitude

Self confidence

Mediation Help in developing competencies:

Analytical Analysis Problem solving

Creativity / Innovation Decision making

Facts About Present EconomyManagement Guru Peter F Drucker emphasizes:

More & more people in the workplace will have to Manage Themselves.

They will have to place themselves where they can make the greatest contribution.

They will have to learn to develop themselves.They will have to learn to stay young & mentally active.

They will have to learn to change what they do, how they do it & when they do it

They have to ask:Who am I? What are my strength? How do I work?

They have to ask what is my contribution?

Human Potential

Throughout history of mankind if any motive

power has been more potent than another in

the lives of all great men & women, it is that of

FAITH IN THEMSELVES .

Born with the consciousness that they were

great, they became great

Swami Vivekananda

Jungle LawSpeed & agility are outstanding features of present

world order

Consequences to ignore them are well explained in an African proverb

Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up knowing

it must run faster than the fastest lion or be killed Every morning a lion awakens knowing it must

outrun the slowest gazelle or strive to death

Synchronization

Combination of all the three approaches: Path of Action Path of Knowledge

Path of Devotionmay pave way to self-development

Let knowledge, action, intellect, emotions,

motives, wisdom, & mindbe harmonized

with divine purpose & outlook

Link management practices with spirituality.

Guidelines discussed are mostly from Bhagavad-Gita

Epilogue

Journey to self development is not an easy task.Choice is limited:

Leave it to destiny or design own destiny.In ancient Greece, a traveler met an old man on the

road & asked him how to get Olympus.The old man happened to be Socrates, replied by saying,

“If you really want to go to Mount Olympus, just make sure that every step you take is in that direction .”

References1. SHREEMADBHAGVADGITA GITA PRESS, GORAKHPUR2. THE HOLY GEETA COMMENTARY BY SWAMI CHINMAYANANDA3. THE BHAGAVADGITA S RADHAKRISHNAN4. ANCIENT INDIAN WISDOM FOR SELF

DEVELOPMENT AHMEDABAD MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION & SANKARA VIDYA KENDRA5. THE BHAGAVAD GITA PENGUIN CLASSICS, ADVISORY EDITOR: BETTY RADICE