2013
saw the birth of a royal child, the future king of England by
inheritance and demise of Nelson Mandela an uncrowned King of South
Africa. One born with a status which will be hard to maintain and other
who earned his through hard work and selfless behavior.
Back home, We also saw powers of 3 great individuals namely Anna Hazare , a simple social worker, Narendra Modi who started his life journey as a tea vendor and Arvind Kejriwal , a name not known before couple of years.
So what makes Nelson Mandela so respected and more importantly what are the lessons we can learn from his life and that of others such as Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Junior, Anna Hazare, Narendra modi and Arvind Kejriwal , and apply to our daily lives? There are countless books and articles on this subject. Many interpretations of what these men did to have such big impact on the lives of other. But for me they achieved huge success in their respective causes by acting on some very simple beliefs and principles.
To pick up from Pareto’s 80:20 rule, Simple acts can have BIG impact as seen through the lives of these great leaders. Look at what they achieved in their respective causes and how. A simple act of Non Violence helped Gandhiji bring down the British Empire, Martin Luther King gain major civil rights for the blacks in America and Nelson Mandela see the end of Apartheid and gain freedom for South Africans. Narendra Modi and Arvind Kejriwal’s self less service, commitment and integrity brought down the powers of the mighty Congress party.
Back home, We also saw powers of 3 great individuals namely Anna Hazare , a simple social worker, Narendra Modi who started his life journey as a tea vendor and Arvind Kejriwal , a name not known before couple of years.
So what makes Nelson Mandela so respected and more importantly what are the lessons we can learn from his life and that of others such as Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Junior, Anna Hazare, Narendra modi and Arvind Kejriwal , and apply to our daily lives? There are countless books and articles on this subject. Many interpretations of what these men did to have such big impact on the lives of other. But for me they achieved huge success in their respective causes by acting on some very simple beliefs and principles.
To pick up from Pareto’s 80:20 rule, Simple acts can have BIG impact as seen through the lives of these great leaders. Look at what they achieved in their respective causes and how. A simple act of Non Violence helped Gandhiji bring down the British Empire, Martin Luther King gain major civil rights for the blacks in America and Nelson Mandela see the end of Apartheid and gain freedom for South Africans. Narendra Modi and Arvind Kejriwal’s self less service, commitment and integrity brought down the powers of the mighty Congress party.
KISS: Keep it Simple Stupid, they did and you will be surprised at what
you can achieve.
As we move into the New Year, we should also intend to follow the principle of KISS in our Personal and Professional life. From my personal experiences of the past, I know it works. It is easy to look for complicated solutions for our challenges but answers are almost always found in simplicity. So whatever your high impact or focused goals for 2014 are in terms of job priorities , new skills, relationships, weight control, quit smoking, health etc, the answers is most probably simple. For next 12 months , here are 12 thoughts that may inspire simplicity-
1. It always seems impossible until its done. “Nelson Mandela”
2. First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win. “Mahatma Gandhi”
3. Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase. “Martin Luther King, Jr.”
4. Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. ~Leonardo DaVinci”
5. We don't need to increase our goods nearly as much as we need to scale down our wants. Not wanting something is as good as possessing it. ~Donald Horban”
6. I go about looking at horses and cattle. They eat grass, make love, work when they have to, bear their young. I envy them. ~Sherwood Anderson”
7. Life is amazingly good when it's simple and amazingly simple when it's good. ~Terri Guillemets”
8. The greatest step towards a life of simplicity is to learn to let go. ~Steve Maraboli”
9. The sculptor produces the beautiful statue by chipping away such parts of the marble block as are not needed — it is a process of elimination. ~Elbert Hubbard”
10. The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak. ~Hans Hofmann”
11. Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction. ~E.F. Schumacher”
12. Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated. ~Confucius”
So in 2014 let us learn from these great leaders. Best Wishes for a great year.
As we move into the New Year, we should also intend to follow the principle of KISS in our Personal and Professional life. From my personal experiences of the past, I know it works. It is easy to look for complicated solutions for our challenges but answers are almost always found in simplicity. So whatever your high impact or focused goals for 2014 are in terms of job priorities , new skills, relationships, weight control, quit smoking, health etc, the answers is most probably simple. For next 12 months , here are 12 thoughts that may inspire simplicity-
1. It always seems impossible until its done. “Nelson Mandela”
2. First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win. “Mahatma Gandhi”
3. Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase. “Martin Luther King, Jr.”
4. Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. ~Leonardo DaVinci”
5. We don't need to increase our goods nearly as much as we need to scale down our wants. Not wanting something is as good as possessing it. ~Donald Horban”
6. I go about looking at horses and cattle. They eat grass, make love, work when they have to, bear their young. I envy them. ~Sherwood Anderson”
7. Life is amazingly good when it's simple and amazingly simple when it's good. ~Terri Guillemets”
8. The greatest step towards a life of simplicity is to learn to let go. ~Steve Maraboli”
9. The sculptor produces the beautiful statue by chipping away such parts of the marble block as are not needed — it is a process of elimination. ~Elbert Hubbard”
10. The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak. ~Hans Hofmann”
11. Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction. ~E.F. Schumacher”
12. Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated. ~Confucius”
So in 2014 let us learn from these great leaders. Best Wishes for a great year.
