Newsletter 012

July 2008/ 012

Editorial

There is a monkey in your mind! [An article on the benefits of meditation]

We all need inner joy. Some of us believe that it comes through the practice of meditation. However, for most of us, meditation tends to remain a distant dream and remains an art that exists in books and on the small screen. Let me tell you that meditation is the simplest form of ‘unaction’ (it isn’t an activity at all) and is as easy to practice as it is to understand. Meditation can help us all… a counselor can have more conversions, a designer can create more harmony, marketing people communicate better, HR can interact more meaningfully… and so on. For meditation to help, we need to know some vital features of this science… or is it a discipline? I leave that to you to decide. The Upanishads, illuminating our real nature, say: “From Delight we came into existence. In Delight we grow. At the end of our journey's close, Into Delight we retire.” Our instinctive reaction is to question the basis of these words. Life has its stress and moments are full of scurrying activities that make the waking hours seem less. There are deadlines to be met, chores need attention, relationships need time, and one has to consistently keep building one’s net of material security. Can delight really find itself in this chaos? Are the Upanishads correct in their analysis? What do the sages mean when they ask us to ‘peel away our layers of ignorance so we can once more bring to the fore the light of our soul?’

Peter McWilliams has said: “Some people think that meditation takes time away from physical accomplishment. Taken to extremes, of course, that's true. Most people, however, find that meditation creates more time than it takes.” Each one of us in the corporate environment needs to understand the real benefits of the discipline of meditation. This issue has an introduction to this worthy art... and it will surely help you tame the monkey in your mind! Another aspect that most of us wish we could understand is the art of using the right words for the right impact. This issue has another article that gives some insights and clues into the creation of headlines. Truth is that knowledge and meditation have a common purpose... shaping your attitude! Attitude is the way you mentally look at the world around you. It is how you view your environment and your future. It is the focus you develop toward life itself. Wishing you all excellence in focus!

The Gurus keep chanting: ‘Quieten your mind!’ Is that easy? Is it easy to detach yourself from the frenzied mainstream of living? No, it isn’t. We mortals can never completely STOP the inflow of thoughts. However, by sitting quietly, we can begin to feel more relaxed, also just focusing on our breathing helps lessen symptoms of stress. continued on page 2

“Meditation is the tongue of the soul and the language of our spirit” Jeremy Taylor

The Learner

A small newsletter that reads big!

Th ere is a monkey in your mind! (continued from Page 1)

I was once talking to Surakshit Goswami, the leading yoga and meditation expert, and he remarked that relaxation is just one of the benefits of meditation. He went on to explain that a quiet mind tends to discretely stay away from being judgmental, critical, and too analytical. Acceptance becomes an intrinsic part of such a mind. When this happens, the mind adopts a quiet stance and decision-making becomes coherent and intuitively correct. The major benefit of a quiet mind is making intuitively correct decisions! Thus meditation enables us to go beyond the intellectual mind and enter the spiritual heart. This is where our inner self resides and it is not in its inherent nature to criticize or separate through judgments. As meditative abilities evolve, this inner self develops a protective layer against inane and aimless thoughts. If there is any other way to ward off such thoughts, we will anyway discover inner peace and inner joy. The secret here is to promote a stillness of the mind and evolving through stillness. This stillness is not dependant on outer circumstances. In simpler terms, if happiness is relying on outer circumstances, the mind can only assume that it is happy. Once this reliance is done away with, happiness transcends its ‘assumptive stage’ and becomes real! Happiness is thus selfgenerated. This self generation can be won through meditation.

be as innovatively creative if he just sat down and started writing music scores? What no one ever sees is the hours of practice and riyaaz that goes behind each of his musical creation. The same is true with all of us. No good ad emerges without research, browsing, and practice. Similarly, the more you practice meditation, greater will be the benefits. The mind behaves like a monkey; flitting from one attraction to another… it takes patience and practice to evolve this monkey into a Mahatma! Practice exercises of concentration and meditation and then our mind will cease to remain a monkey and we will begin to attain greater peace of mind. Let me add here that any venture without enthusiasm and energy tends to taper and fizzle out! Therefore, meditate with zest, zing… and a smile!

d! n i m r n you i y e k mon a s i There

“True inner joy is self-created. It does not depend on outer circumstances. A river is flowing in and through you carrying the message of joy. This divine joy is the sole purpose of life.” From ‘Wings of Joy’ by Sri Chinmoy Another vital aspect is the new-age instant expectations that are so rampant these days. Meditation is not 2-minute fix that you take out of a pouch, heat, and serve! Tell me, could A R Rahman

Years back when I was a cadet at the Indian Military Academy, my PT instructor said: ‘Ek fauji ke liye meditation bahut practical hai!’ We all smiled and thought: ‘Chalo, kuch time ke liye rest karte hain!’ The instructor was seemingly clairvoyant and just said aloud: ‘When we become more aware of our inner source of peace we will also be able to easily detach ourselves from minor irritations and minor problems. The mind can be tricky and exaggerate small problems into seemingly large and unconquerable problems. You don’t want to see your enemy bigger than it actually is? Do you?’ We were convinced. Inner poise is essential for sane decisionmaking. In today’s life, it is meditation that will make me market-ready!

The ultimate goal of meditation is much beyond being marketready or being able to sight the real enemy and aim better! Nirvana is another name given to benefits beyond this… but this can happen only when we lose our sense of attachment to the individual ego and instead become aware of our real nature which is inseparably one with transcendental consciousness. All that I can say now is: Begin before your mind becomes an uncontrollable monkey! An article by Arvind Passey©

“If you want to find God, hang out in the space between your thoughts.” Alan Cohen

The Learner

A small newsletter that reads big!

Do you read a few chapters first before you decide to buy a novel? No, you probably look at the title, maybe browse the blurb, stare at the cover graphic… and then let your gut feel do the rest. When it comes to ads, do you read the full ad first and then look at the headline? Again, a big NO because you look at the copy only after you’ve fallen for the headline. So far as ads are concerned, it is believed that the first 15 words count more than the 15,000 words that (may) follow! The method that you follow while deciding to buy a novel tells us something about consumer behavior. Why some ads

The magic of HEADLINES! get noticed and some don’t is again a sequel to this hypothesis. Not all of you are going to be writing headlines for ads and probably only a handful of you (and that’s a generous estimate!) are ever going to even attempt writing a novel. So why must you be reading this article? Let me give you three good and sound reasons: 1. The net-savvy amongst you will be creating your own blogs and these rules will help you make your writings readerfriendly. 2. The mails and memos that you may be penning are meaningful only if they are read. Remember that those first few words that you start with (your headline/ the first few words of your text) are often written in haste. Yet, they count for 50% of the success of your entire project. 3. If your headline or the first few words are good enough to attract you, they will do the same to readers as well. Importantly, you will be encouraging yourself to write more and better! The lamentable part in the writing world is that besides those who play with words as a profession, it’s hard to spend 90% of your time coming up with winning words as a routine. However, it is good to learn the methods of giving a precise connection to the words that you wish to use either as a headline or some text. This article will be giving you all some vital tips on the generation of good, catchy, pithy, and attractive headlines. The same rules can be extended and adapted for longer texts as well. There is a long-held belief that there is no formula for good writing. This is absolutely true for the creative souls that may be meandering amongst us, but for most of us a formula does exist and be the right stepping stone to better writing. Begin your writing by creating headlines. Thus formulae exist that you can use to speed up your headline writing process. But it is entirely up to you to enhance your skills by writing more and more for only quantum can lead to finetuning your instincts as well as testing your efforts. The most pertinent questions in your mind must be: How do I write the best headlines? How do I start any text to make it attractive for readers?

Obviously, the surest way of reaching the most hard-hitting lines is through practice and re-drafts. Words gain maximum effectiveness if they are redone or rewritten many times over. This is a painful process and can be time-consuming as well. However, when you have at least 3 different versions in front of you, the best choice will be apparent. There are at least 10 ways to write punchlines. These methods will also give you a fair idea of extended text writing and the various ways in which to begin your first paragraph. The examples taken include some from the punchlines taken for BIFM ads. 1. The direct statement headline. Examples: a) Choose where you want to be! b) Best happens when you are with the best! 2. The question headline. Examples: a) Top career chahiye! Kya karoon? b) Why do financial companies prefer BIFM students? 3. The how-to headline. Examples: a) How to promote your website for maximum response? b) Stock market mein Lakhpati kaise banein? 4. The command headline. Examples: a) We inspire your professional fire. You command wealth! b) We teach you HOW you teach the secrets of wealth creation. 5. The implicit benefit headline. Examples: a) Be a daredevil in the stock market! b) Financial market mein dhoom machaa do! 6. The guarantee headline. Examples: a) Stand tall in the financial world! b) We convert you into a financial genius! 7. The deep discount headline. Examples: a) Say good-bye to chota profits! b) Get a career for life in just 18 months! 8. The personalized headline. Examples: a) Make it big with BIFM... before someone else does! b) Finally, here’s how you, Bob Delano, can become an expert chef in 15 days. 9. The “reasons why” headline. Examples: a) How to measure success? Success in the financial world is… b) 5 easy steps to becoming a world-class mentor in financial planning! 10. The short, punchy headline. Examples: a) Why imagine? Follow the leader! b) Tehelka! Distance Learning Education mein pehli baar! An article by Arvind Passey©

Arvind Passey Corporate Communications BIFM | 4th Floor, Gulab Bhavan, 6, Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi – 110 002 | Phone: (011) 23705854/ 855 Extn: 247 | Mobile: 09871139992 | www.blblimited.com, www.bifm.edu.in [ Truth needs words just as much as it needs silence ] [ Communication is the death of distance! ]

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