Saturday, December 31, 2011

Stress Management Workshop for GMR, Chennai

 When I agreed to do facilitate this workshop, I was not sure of the suitability of the space as is it meant for the Chennai Outer Ring Road project team. It was fortunate for me that I met Mr. Reddy, GM the earlier evening at Dinner. In fact, he was my host at the Guest House and it was great that he was willing to share some of the stress factors the team was facing. He assured me that the facilities were quite good. But, I was not expecting great facilities at the conference room at the site office and was very pleasantly surprised at the excellent conference room. The LCD screen and projection system were just great!
It was also not sure whether the two day workshop can be condensed into one day but I was willing to try because I understood that they cant have  a two day workshop due to their on-site commitments. I was glad that I willing when I understood the daily work situations they are facing.
The workshop was very interactive , very free-flowing and was one of my best experiences. I am grateful to all the participants for their cooperation in keeping the mobiles off and giving their undivided attention to the workshop.

I feel blessed to share with such willing participants. I really enjoyed the event and would like to know how they are managing their stress after some time.

Friday, December 30, 2011

Good Health Workshop at Pragthi Resort, Hyderbad

In the movie "Gandhi", Kasturba tells Mohandas (in South Africa)
"The others may follow you. But, I knew you you when you were a boy"
I relate to  this very strongly. We know provers in Hindi and Telugu which convey this ( Ghar ka murgi da bara bar; Poruginti pulla koora ruchi ...).

So, I was quite elated, excited and also apprehensive when my dear freinds DSR Raju, M Subbarao, Rama Raju and Chakram asked me to do a workshop on 18th December at Pragathi Resorts. Apart from the listening of the people who knew me as an adolescent (of not a boy), the timing was also added to my apprehension. The occasion was the annual get together of  my engineering batch of Andhra University ( named as AU Ever Green by Trinadh). The gala evening was on 17th December and the workshop is on the morning of 18th December. I suppose you get the very legitimate reason for my apprehension.

I was pleasantly surprised that everybody (or almost every body) assembled at the appointed time of 10AM and a few of the rest joined very soon. I am excited about all vents as each event is an opportunity to fulfill my vision and an opportunity for (passionate) self express. What the listeners are my college friends - my extended family- I don't know how to express my excitement that I felt. With the excitement and apprehension, I started rather slowly and haltingly, but soon the event started flowing. And what a flow it was! It is one of the most fulfilling and satisfying events that I enjoyed s much that it is difficult for me to describe it as my vocabulary limits me.
I am grateful to all my friends  for their listening, participation, time and attention. I am grateful to teh organizer organizers Rama Raju, Chakram and Veerabhadra Rao.  My thanks to  DSR Raju and M Subbaraowho organized the earlier workshop and seeded this event.
This post would be incomplete with out the very inspiring work being done by AU Ever Green. led by Trinadh, Someswara Rao, Rama Raju, Rama Rao and support from many others, a Government Elementary School has been adopted and the education and facilities there have been transformed. I am proud to belong to this group!

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Well Being Workshop at Savitri Bhavan

 This is another of the foundation workshops and this time I was experimenting with two aspects.
First, reducing the number of days to 5 from seven.. This entails leaving out some of my favorite parts like introduction to inner harmony.
Secondly, exploring the lower lobby of Savitri Bhavan for this workshop. This space is great and I like the light, ventilation and the sparkling granite floor, maintained to perfection by the staff of Savitri Bhavan. This is a relatively unused space, especially at 7AM (my preferred time for this workshop) and hence scheduling is easy. My main concern was about the number of people as I would like this to be a n open workshop with out any registration and other formalities. I thought that if we run out of the lobby space, we can use the upper lobby , inner lobby and the entrance to the lecture hall. This could not be checked out in this workshop.
On both counts, this was a successful experiment. I would now offer it as 5 day workshop rather than 7 days and this space is the best space I experienced so far. I feel happy and grateful for the opportunity to offer it in this serene surroundings and unimaginably wonedrful energy.

Boost Your Personal Productivity Workshop at Pondicherry Engineering College

This a second opportunity for me to at PEC with a large group. It was an exciting event and the topic is also somewhat new for me: just the second workshop and certainly first for such a large group.
I am very happy with the framework I came up for this workshop - productivity is a function of Health Quotient, Intelligence Quotient and Emotional Quotient. Meditation is the best practice to enhance all of them to boost your personal productivity.
I wish I had chosen a less demanding meditation than  stillness. The group being large, I started feeling uncertain about the people being quiet and still and I was unaware that it became a fear to an extent that I asked two students who were talking to leave the hall.This is a huge learning for me in being present.
I liked the questions and I really enjoyed the event. I am grateful to Prof. Prithviraj for the opportunity and the faculty members for organizing it and the students for their participation. I am looking forward to a day when the curriculum in schools and colleges becomes integral and students experience the dimensions other than exams, marks, ranks and jobs.