Pratima Shah

All of us have this problem in varying intensities: Either you are a person who can let go easily and refuse to stay in there, or you are a person who holds on and feels incapable of letting go. We are accustomed to holding on to situations, relationships, resentment and dreams. Many of us face situations wherein we require to make a decision - of staying where you are or letting go. Should I stay in this relation or get out of it? Should I look for a new job or remain stuck in the current job? Should I move on from someone / something or should I give it another chance? These are the questions that pop in our minds and trouble us until we make a decision. Life gives you signals to take charge of the situation. Say for example - it is expected of you to sacrifice your personal beliefs or become someone you are really not. You are unable to recall the time this made you smile. The situation / person made you feel depressed, broken and frustrated. When your trust is continuously broken; ...

 Forgiving a person who has hurt you is a very challenging task. One needs to forgive others for personal freedom, for releasing oneself from the burden of the emotions and live a happy life. But these statements are sugar coated. Forgiving someone is a mammoth task like every other challenging task that a person undertakes. There must be one reason why you want to seek freedom from these toxic emotions. One must comprehend what is at stake and why forgiveness is important for you, your peace of mind and for a happy life. Have we ever paid heed to the consequences of not forgiving? Most of the time people feel a resistance that keeps them from being willing to forgive. They have a misperception about the idea of forgiving and because of this they hold themselves back.  What Forgiveness is not - Forgiveness is not reconciliation with the one who hurt you. It is not living in denial of the actions of the person. It is not allowing the person to repeat the same behaviour over and...

 There is a huge population which is under the impression that surrendering at the feet of a guruji / a baba / a mataji or attending self - coaching classes would turn them into self - realized humans. An important aspect is to be awake internally and become conscious of every thought and action of yours. The key word is 'internal' because without 'internal will' nothing can make you realize the power within you.  Any success that you achieved in life always began by fighting the internal demons. After conquering these you took up the humongous task of conquering the external demons to achieve success. The internal demons include - fears, lack of confidence / self esteem/ worries / temptations / failures and your past experiences. The list could go on depending on what internal demons one possesses.  Have you ever taken into account the preponderance of '-ins' on the path of self - realization?  Why do we say in - trospect and not outer -rospect, in - tuition ...

   We all are born different and have a variety of idiosyncrasies. Due to these idiosyncrasies we have different perspectives. The difference in perspectives leads to clashes between people when they are with one another - at home / at the workplace / any situation where there are 2 or more than 2 persons. Things can get horrendously chaotic when there is a clash of perspectives. At the home front there is no peace and harmony between the family members. At the workplace it is highly stressful to work with colleagues / bosses who do not empathise and try to understand your perspective.    Perspective is what one individual feels about something. My perspective is my reality because I have programmed myself to believe a particular thing in a particular way / situation. It is my personal way of thinking which has been ingrained in me due to the kind of life experiences I have had. My values, my state of mind and the assumptions that I have for a certain issue / s...

   In the professional world one comes across people who are into the habit of projecting themselves as more successful and competent than their peers. This is the driving force behind the public relations business that is omnipresent in every field. The sad truth is that most of us are driven by sadistic instincts wherein we derive sadistic pleasure by belittling others / projecting others as nothing / playing the dirty games of the trade.     Like every other field there is a rat race here too. Everyone wants to show off and make others envious. People talk about luxuries / foreign trips / expensive accessories / jewelry but no one really "TALKS" to one another. Those living in the family are not aware what the members of the family feel / go through. All the years since I began working I never engaged in this race of creating my PR business. Whenever I meet the so called stalwarts of my field and notice their frivolity I make it a point to stand before that p...

   After the release of lockdown there are still many who feel low. This low feeling is the side effect of the enforced isolation. Hope this feeling vanishes once everyone starts picking up the threads in the external universe. The greatest fear as of now is about the 'new normal' where in you see people around you with masks over the face, sanitisers and protective gears. All life we were taught to hold our dear ones closer and now everything seems different. The new normal is like setting a new mindscape.     The age group of 20 to 70 ( that comprises the major population) has been stamped with the memories of lockdown. This lockdown - where we lived in isolation, the way we changed and how we see others after it. This reminds me of those soldiers who were a part of war - how they would narrate stories of the war to their near and dear ones. The stories of Partition told by its sufferers. All those who were saved from the war / partition were never the same be...

      The indomitable and vivacious characters portrayed by Sushant Singh Rajput (SSR) would never have given an iota of doubt to the world of what this sagacious and sanguine gentleman was going through. As always the loquacious ones are out for gaining more publicity by making a statement in the media. The hypocrites of the society are in for preaching to the world and proclaiming on camaradiere and human values like kindness, empathy, fortitude etc. No one is worried as to where the world is heading, what kind of lives are we living, why is the society and family becoming a meaningless unit when it comes to taking care of its members. I believe he tried hard and even insinuated his co-stars but in vain and we lost him too early to the horrifying claws of depression.    The way a person loses control over the self and hands over the self to suicide is really petrifying. Whenever such incidents have occured the so called preachers start preaching and ...