The magical world of gratitude: Mindful eating

The magical world of gratitude: Mindful eating: Have you ever eaten a meal where you were conscious of every morsel entering your mouth? How did it feel? Here is what happened to me when...

Mindful eating

Have you ever eaten a meal where you were conscious of every morsel entering your mouth? How did it feel?
Here is what happened to me when I had breakfast in a completely mindful state.
The menu was idlis, coconut chutney and mulaga podi (idli podi). Simple, nutritious and easy to make, i presume, some women may disagree.

As I took my first mouthful I relished the texture, the coarseness, the flavours, and the taste while I chewed and then swallowed the food. The next mouthful was dedicated to the person who made this for me and I mentally thanked and blessed her for making it for me. The next mouthful evoked images of the traders who had handled the rice, urad dhal, salt, coconuts, chillies, other dhals and spices that went into this dish and I mentally thanked each of them for being responsible for bringing me this food.
Then I went on a mental journey up the supply chain to dwell on each of those responsible for putting this food on my table - the farmers, their helpers, the drought animals that work on those farms, and all those beings (birds, insects, animals, etc. etc.) who have contributed to the growth of the grains, spices, nuts, etc.
The next mouthful gave thanks to the sun, the rains, the weather, the soil, wind, sky, water and all other elements of nature that have worked together to bring to life the grains, spices and nuts that were in this dish.
I suddenly felt humbled at the number of things that have come together to help me have this so-called-simple meal and I raised thanks to all those nameless souls and elements that have toiled for such a long time to help me get his meal.

As I relished the sense of smell, touch and taste of each mouthful and as I dwelt on each person, thing and place that has helped produce this meal and bring it to my table, it dawned on me that we are all interconnected and I am living, breathing, eating and drinking because of each of these people and things. I've been living life so superficially that I was completely unaware of the roles that people play in my life - the ones who are really contributing to my well-being and growth.
My mindspace has been occupied by thinking of people who are so insignificant to my well-being while ignoring the people who are really contributing to my daily life.
The choice of foods I eat can really change when I am fully aware of what I'm putting into my mouth. As I think of how each of these are produced, I would know whether it is aligned with my values and my image of who I am.
I would be in total harmony with myself and the universe because I will be taking only those foods that will contribute to my life the way I dream it to be.

The magical world of gratitude: Foundation of a highly effective team - TRUST

The magical world of gratitude: Foundation of a highly effective team - TRUST: Patrick Lencioni describes five ways a team becomes dysfunctional in the form of a pyramid. The five functions in order of causality a...

Foundation of a highly effective team - TRUST

Patrick Lencioni describes five ways a team becomes dysfunctional in the form of a pyramid.

The five functions in order of causality are:

1. Absence of Trust: People do not trust the intention of their team mates. They feel the need to protect themselves from each other and tread carefully around others on the team. This leads to the next dysfunction.
2. Fear of conflict: Without trust, people are unwilling to involve themselves in productive debates and conflicts, the type of good conflict that focuses entirely on resolving issues without involving character attacks or hidden personal agendas. Without such healthy conflicts, issues stay unresolved or are unsatisfactorily resolved. People feel they have not been properly involved in decisions. This leads to the next dysfunction.
3. Lack of commitment: When people feel their input has not been properly considered and that they have not been properly involved in decisions, they have no buy in. They do not commit to the final decision. Ambiguity about priorities and directions festers and uncertainties linger. This leads to the next dysfunction.
4. Avoidance of accountability: When people have no buy in about decisions, they avoid accepting accountability. Worse still, they do not hold their teammates accountable to high standards. Resentment festers and mediocrity spreads. This leads to the final dysfunction.
5. Inattention to results: The ultimate dysfunction of a team. People care about something other than the collective goals of the team. Goals are not met, results are not achieved and you lose your best people to your competition.

The best teams are those where team members trust the intentions of each other enough that they are willing to expose their vulnerabilities because they are confident that it will not be used against them. Hence they are willing to admit deficiencies and ask for help.

In other words, they are able to concentrate their energies on achieving the team's goals rather than wasting time trying to defend their egos and look good to their team-mates