YES to things .....

Mr. Waris Ahluwalia has currently been in the news across the international media. Ahluwalia is a jewelry designer, a retailer, an actor and a model (which is quiet a varied mix…)! According to The New York Times, Ahluwalia is one of the most photographed men on New York Social Circuit, with more than 1,500 appearances on the Billy Farrell Agency photo website. That’s more than Lady Gaga, Salman Rushdie, Harvey Weinstein and Lindsay Lohan combined.

He has tried everything from writing for The Paris Review to designing a pop-up restaurant in London. Although Ahluwalia is not a technically trained jeweler, his latest diamond-encrusted collection is with Forevermark, a De Beers brand. Although he has no retail experience, he is starting a chain of boutiques called ‘House of Waris Rare’, with the first opening in the Gritti Palace in Venice. Although he is not a professional model, he is featured in Gap’s current ad campaign, along with Cyndi Lauper, Adam Driver and Tony Bennett. And while he has never taken an acting class, he has been cast in films by Wes Anderson, including “The Darjeeling Limited” and his coming “The Grand Hotel Budapest,” and he appeared in the 2010 Italian film “I Am Love” with Tilda Swinton, whom he counts as a friend. 

As all of us would be thinking, Ahluwalia comments, “I’m as surprised as anyone about where I’ve ended up!”

Then he says something, which has caught my attention. He continues, “MAYBE IT’S BECAUSE I SAY YES TO THINGS!”

It set me thinking – Do I say YES to things, or is my response a spontaneous negative? Does my mind trick me by giving excuses in situations I am not comfortable in and escape? If I have decided to do something and it doesn’t go the way I thought it should go, do I tend to shed away the responsibility on someone else?

     When I see someone needing help on the road, do I keep driving thinking I can’t afford to wait even for a minute?
     When an opportunity knocks my door, do I shy away convincing myself that it’s not my cup of tea?
     When I see a fellow Indian walking past me in a foreign country, do my eyes invariably catch something more interesting other than his face?
     When I see that someone is working hard in the house, do I overlook the scene as if I haven’t seen anything at all?
     When I don’t get the desired results, there is someone or the other who can be blamed for it, isn’t it?

I have learnt a great lesson from Ahluwalia. I have decided to say YES TO THINGS! There will be enough instances where it will demand me to go out of my comfort zones. There will be enough situations, which would be totally new and I will have to learn new things! There would be times when my potential would be challenged. Yet, I have decided to be conscious and will say YES TO THINGS!

Thanks & Regards,

Amit Kothari

Lets do the GREAT THING ....

I was waiting to get back to India, after a hectic but wonderful trip to USA. The trip made me travel quite a bit of America from South to Centre to West and finally back to South! All this in 20 days, including a family marriage! Gosh ...... (feel tired even as I write ;-) )

We had chosen to fly DELTA Airlines (ofcourse because it was the cheapest!) from Mumbai-Tampa-Mumbai, halting at Amsterdam. We took a cruising flight to Amsterdam from Tampa. As we reached the gate to board the flight for Mumbai, the TV screen greeted us, reading - "FLIGHT DELAYED BY ONE HOUR"

There was option but to wait. As I was standing at the counter to talk to the Customer Service Assistant, a gentleman about 55 year old, bearing white hair and mustache, dressed in a black trousers and a spotless white shirt with cuffs over shoulder seemed to be enquiring with the other Customer Service Assistant -

"What's the scene?"

The lady in a little jittery voice replied, "Sir, the flight is delayed by atleast an hour!"

With an astonishment on his face, he looked around! He observed, "But there seems to be no place to sit!"

"Yes Sir. There aren't enough seats at the gate for passengers to sit," replied the lady.

Within fraction of a second, the gentleman (who I now understood was the pilot of our flight to Mumbai) enquired, "Should we start boarding now so that people can get a place to sit?"

In a hopeful voice she said, "It will be GREAT if we can do that!"

"Well, LET'S DO THE GREAT THING THEN ......" came a confident answer from the pilot.

Within 10 minutes the pilot got his crew and started to board the flight. He could have easily sat in the DELTA lounge, sipped juices, had sandwiches and waited until the flight was ready. But he chose to look for passengers comfort and boarded early!

I learnt a huge lesson that moment. Since then, my mantra has become - "LET ME DO THE GREAT THING ...." The question that I keep asking myself now is - AM I DOING THIS IN A GREAT WAY? It can be at work, while relating with family/ friends, while exercising, while sitting as a student in satsang, while meditating, while listening to someone, and every other single thing I do.

I can carry this on in any and every moment of my life! I have pledged to do that. There are instances when I don't do it the GREAT WAY. But, immediately the pilot's face pops up and I stand corrected the next moment!

Thanks to the Pilot, my attitude has made a permanent shift. Did reading about this change something about you too?


Thanks & Regards,
Amit Kothari