Sunday, August 30, 2020

Personal charisma – Internal force needed for external strength

 Every individual is unique to have different likes, dislikes, taste, etc. The same way their behaviours and actions differ and having their way of expressions. It may be liked or followed or disliked and unnoticed by others. In general, an individual survives in society by gaining social acceptance. Every individual is having his or her charisma. ‘Charisma’ is the ability of an individual to influence others and rarely discussed concept in general. 

It is necessary to mention about charismatic leadership before discussing individual charisma for easy understanding. Some leaders have more charismatic power, in otherwise they have the ability of high influence on others which made many to accept and follow them. Religious and political leaders are falling the list. Success depends on the level of charisma what they possess. It is always misunderstood that only the leaders and managers have the charismatic ability. But the truth is that everyone is having the personal charisma.

 

Personal charisma is a constellation of complex and sophisticated social and emotional skills. Charismatic individuals affect and influence others at a deep emotional level, to communicate effectively with them, and to make strong interpersonal connections. It is more powerful since the emotion is involved. As we all know emotional aspect always acts like an essence for our actions. 

 

Components of personal charisma:

Expression of emotions: There is a spontaneous expression of feelings in charismatic individuals. They genuinely express. This allows them to affect the moods and emotions of others unconsciously. A charismatic person typically expresses positive affect and can make a difference while entering into or joining with a group.

Sensitivity: This is the ability to read others' emotions and allows the charismatic person to make an emotional connection by responding to their feelings. A person who is interested in human interactions and understands the feelings of others go into the stage of sensitiveness. It is a normal human tendency to follow someone who reflects sensitivity towards our sensitive feelings.

Control on emotions: Charismatic individuals can control and regulate their emotional displays. There is no acting or underacting in their expressions. They have good command in their emotions and project the exactly needed emotions required. 

Social interaction: Charismatic people are skilled and entertaining conversationalists. They certainly affect us with their emotional expressiveness. It is not just entertaining but there is also power in their words. Nearly all charismatic leaders are effective public speakers to pull the crowd.

 

Six measuring units of individual charisma:

Based on the following 6 points an individual’s charisma can be measured.

1.      Level of influencing others

2.      Confidence in eye contact and smile even with strangers

3.      Ability to take leadership in a group

4.      Readiness to establish relations 

5.      Respect the fellow humans

6.      Make others feel his or her presence in a group

 

Suggestions for developing personal charisma:   

  • Be attentive and focus your presence: Physical presence is not enough but mental presence is much needed. People around us must feel our involvement in conversations and observations. All of our senses are expected to be more active.
  • Personal physical comfort: You need to have a high level of comfort. This state can be achieved by well dressed, well-groomed and have a pleasant appearance.
  • Turn off or keep away your devices: it is a human tendency to check with our mobile or tablet or other devices while communicating with the group. Turn off or keep it in the silence of our devices are the best way of making ourselves to be attentive and concentrate much on the group activity. 
  • Maintain eye contact: Eye contact is the basic requirement for better communication. Eye to eye contact reflects the warmth, competency, confidence, sincerity, honesty and emotional stability. It enhances our charisma.
  • Show active signs of listening: Active listening means not just listening to someone by our hearing sense. Nodding of head, smiling and appropriate facial expressions make others to feel that you are active and have the interest to listen.
  • Be practical and reality-oriented as much as possible: There is no need for hiding and hyping anything. Accept your failures and be genuine in all of your efforts. That is the real influencing factor.

 

Every one of us is having the ability to influence others, that is called ‘personal charisma’. Those who are identifying their charisma and channelizing it becomes leaders and achievers. We should not stop with admiring the charisma of others but to internalise those traits within us. Identify your strengths and try to be genuine. Gain your charisma and get to be identified.

 

Sunday, August 23, 2020

Body Image – Self-belief for confidence

Every person has a self-value or a sense of self-worth. In a psychological form, it is called ‘Self-esteem’. It includes the self-belief on our abilities, our appearance and worth. Personal appearance is an important component in self-esteem which has close connectivity with mental health. Concept of body image is not very often discussed openly. But every individual aware of their physical image and reflects in their actions.

‘Body image’ is an individual perception of one’s appearance. It is not just seeing ourselves in the mirror or looking at our picture. It is a mental picture what we have about ourselves. There is no doubt that all want to have a good appearance. It enhances the self-confidence of an individual. Youngsters have more concern than middle and old aged. Some of them are so obsessed. Excessive attachment and attractiveness towards fashion and bodybuilding makes the youngsters to overly obsessed and generate stress among them.

 

Four components of body image:

1.        The way we perceive ourselves: It is an individual’s perception or how one individual sees himself. There is a possibility that the perception is wrong. Thin body built person may perceive he or she is fat. It may be a right or wrong perception.

2.        The way we feel in actual: There are some ways of our feelings towards our appearance. Means, we like or dislike our look. The amount of like or dislike towards our body shape, size, weight, height and other features.

3.        Our thoughts and beliefs: It is a cognitive body image. Some people think if they have more muscle then looks good, some others believe they look good if they become thinner. 

4.        Our action with relation to our look: When someone is dissatisfied by his looks he may be involved with some strenuous harmful acts like vigorous exercises or skipping the food. Some may go into isolation since they conclude that he or she does not look good and no one likes him or her.

 

Facts related to negative body image:

•      Age: Crucial time for developing body image disturbance is late childhood and adolescence. Most of the eating disorders cases are falling in this age group.  

•      Gender: Adolescent girls are more prone to body image dissatisfaction than boys, but still the rates of body dissatisfaction in males are rapidly approaching that of females nowadays.  

•      Perfect personality traits – People with perfectionist personality traits develop more dissatisfaction than others and never compromise with what they have.

•      Bullied children – Children or young adolescents who are teased for their appearance, especially weight, regardless of actual appearance or weight, are at a greater risk of developing body dissatisfaction than those who are not. 

•      Peer pressure - When a person is in an environment in which people express body image concerns and model weight loss behaviours are more likely to develop body dissatisfaction regardless of actual appearance or weight.  

•      Body size - In our weight-conscious society, larger body size or thin increases risk of body dissatisfaction. Anything disproportionate with the height and weight leads to dissatisfaction.

•      Sexual orientation in males - Research shows that homosexual men are more vulnerable to body dissatisfaction and results in eating disorders. 

 

Suggestions to overcome body image issues:

·            Eat and move in a way that makes our brain and our body happy – not as a way to control our body shape. 

·            Focus on our positive qualities, skills and talents. They are more important than our looks.

·            Choose to be surrounded by positive people. Avoid or unfollow the one who is involving with body-shaming activities in social media.

·            Find out the reasons for the negative thoughts related to body image. Analysing the reasons helps to find the solution.

·            Set positive and realistic goals related to weight reduction. Unattainable goals increase the pressure and lead to stress.

·            Avoid unnecessary comparisons. Understand the fact that every individual is unique and every individual is having some capacity

 

 

Positive body image brings individual harmony and contributes a lot to self-confidence. A pleasant appearance and attitude are always needed to maintain our mental equilibrium. Over expectation and false comparisons about our appearance results in unwanted stress leads to eating disorders and body image disturbance. Be thankful for what we have and take efforts to maintain. Remember, personal appearance alone is not enough to achieve or prove ourselves.

 

Sunday, August 16, 2020

Sibling rivalry – A big fight inside the home

 Modern familial system adopting the small family norm. The number of children is less compared to the previous generation. Many factors force the couple to have small families like social and economical. Having more than three children in a family make raising the eyebrows of many. ‘One child syndrome’ is the major issue associated with modern families. Having a sibling is always a blessing for another child for entire life. 

 

Children are the driving force in a family. It is always a human tendency to compare and compete. There are some common areas of competition between the children like getting more attention from parents, complete the task first and more appreciation from the elders. These common reasons force them to develop a sense of getting jealous with another. ‘Sibling jealousy’ is the first move before entering into the state of ‘Sibling rivalry’. 

 

Factors contributing to Sibling Rivalry

 

Birth Order of a Child: First born children tend to more participative in decision making along with parents results in having more power than the younger ones. The younger one is more emotional and tries to be more closed with parents. Whenever the younger one’s suggestions are considered more and elder one develops more attachment towards parents, the sibling jealousy starts and leads to rivalry.

Close spacing among siblings: Age gap between the siblings is a major factor. As the age gap increases there are less competition and difference in interests. 

Gender preferences by parents: Some parents express their gender preferences. They openly say to the daughter ‘we wish you were a boy’. Statements like this badly affect the girl child and develop rivalry towards her male sibling. 

Physical closeness: Intensity of sibling rivalry is more among the siblings who share a small room or small house. Here they always physically so close and always there is a chance of quarrels and conflicts.

Parenting skills: Overly strict and rigid parents make the children more submissive. But when they leave the children expresses the frustration among each other and results even in violent behaviours. Permissive parents offer more freedom results in uncontrollable behaviours among children. Both scenario there is a chance of developing unhealthy relationships among children.

 

Tactics reflected by the children due to sibling rivalry

Siblings provoke each other by some of the following actions. They may be more creative in this.

  • Calling by names
  • Stealing the things belong to another
  • Blaming another for own mistakes
  • Lying
  • Arguing with another
  • Spoiling or breaking the play materials of another
  • Hitting 
  • Hiding something important to another

These actions are more upsetting the parents and make them worry much. Some times it is so challenging and forced them to get the help of external resources.

 

Suggestions for parents to prevent and manage sibling rivalry 

  • Encourage the elder child to help the younger
  • Do not compare one child with another and avoid praising one and tease another
  • Keep always out of the arguments among children
  • Never encourage the violent attitude of any child inside the home
  • Try to spend some with each child as much as possible
  • Promote the spirit of unity by involving and sharing the household responsibilities equally at their level

 

 

Adult sibling rivalry

Quarrels and fights are common among siblings in a family. It is a day to day affair during childhood. Unfortunately, sibling jealousy, which is a hidden affair among the adult siblings, reflected as a sibling rivalry at some stage of life. Adult sibling rivalry badly affects familial health and equilibrium. There are so many reasons behind this. The pitiable fact is that the parents are in between their adult children and face emotional hardship. It is mainly witnessed among siblings by developing disputes and conflicts related to taking over the familial possessions and wealth. Overall, adult sibling rivalry no way contributing anything positively towards themselves, the younger generation, parents and other family members and society. 

 

Overall, sibling rivalry is a common unhealthy affair among the siblings. Parents are playing a vital role to identify and treat the sibling jealousy among the children so that there is a chance of preventing sibling rivalry in adulthood. Every one of us has a role in it. Many occasions knowingly or unknowingly we praise one sibling and never bother about the inner feelings of another. Every child is having their potentials, it is the responsibility of the parents, teachers, elders and society to help them to identify their strengths and get success. 

Monday, August 10, 2020

Make your passion as profession

 Life goes through the various process. Every stage of life demands certain progress. Progress is witnessed by achievements. When achievements are matched with the expectations or nearing the expected level, life seems like heading towards the positive direction. Choosing a career is a critical point in life. So many factors are closely associated with choosing the best options in life-related to our career. Selecting a suitable profession is the best ever decision in life because a major part of ‘life success’ comes out of professional achievements.

 

It is quite normal of getting anxious about the career point during the stage of a middle or late adolescent. There are a lot of options that make the youngster get confused. Moreover, the pressure from parents or the elders in the family adds more tension with regard to choosing the best option for a career. Many occasions the individual preferences and personality are completely forgotten while the important options are made and resulted in great challenges and difficulties in future.

 

Factors responsible for selecting the career for an individual:

·           Family members mainly parents and elders: Parents and elders in the family are so concerned about their children. Especially in the Indian scenario, major decisions in children’s life is made by them.

·           Social status: Choosing a profession is considered as a symbol of social status. Hence some are forced to opt with imitations.

·           Economic provisions: Economical factor is a major concern. Without economical security, no solid decisions can be taken.

·           Individual preferences: Individual preferences include self-interests and goals. When a person has a high level of self-interest the rate of achievement is positively correlated.

·           Available resources: Limited availability of resources forced an individual to satisfy with the options lower than his or her aspirations. 

 

The profession is closely associated with the social life of an individual. Always finding the right profession is a blessing. Professional options should be made based on the individual factors not by comparing anyone else or forced by someone. Self-interest is the personalized factor which is closely associated with the individual to make the right choice. Mostly the professions are chosen based on the economical advantage in the later stage of life. All should know the fact that not all professions may suit for everyone. More than the economical advantage or security there are other factors involved being successful in a profession.

 

Scientific advancements and Technology brings a lot of career options. But the over information makes confusing too. Previous generations were having limited options and it was quite easy for them to choose their career and stick on with that. Nowadays the overly available options make the individual to choose the best option without 100% acceptance. There is always a second thought whether the option is right or another could have been better. This attitude even results in changing the career in between.

 

Passion and Profession:

Every one of us has our own passion. Unfortunately, we are forced to sacrifice our passion for the sake of professional life. The profession always demands our mental and physical skills and a lot of time needs to be spent on that. Hence the passion may not be able to get the importance. The fact is whoever blessed with the passion as their profession may reach a peak in terms of achievement. Not all got the chance of turning their passion into profession. Others should learn the technique of balance their passion with profession. 

It is a fact that not all get an opportunity to turn their passion into a profession. There is no need of going into a negative mode. Try to practice your professional obligations wholeheartedly. Any point of time there will be a chance to express your passion and build your career. When the chance comes across to grab it. Try to develop a ‘never give up’ attitude. One day there will be a possibility of getting noticed for your passion. 

 

How to choose your career?

·           Identify your interests and strengths. Analyze the skills needed for the profession you aimed for. In case of having the required skills then that profession can be selected. 

·           Not only make the economical security in the future as a criterion to choose the profession. Maybe in the initial stages of professional life, one may get success but in the mid-age or later stage, it is difficult to sustain.

·           Try to gather and gain maximum knowledge about the professions in your options. Maximum knowledge minimizes the chances of wrongly selecting the career.

·           Be strong in your decisions. It is always a human tendency to look back or look into other options and get confused with we already made decisions.

·           Never compare or consider another person’s options. In fact, he or she is a completely different person than you. 

 

There is a common phrase: “Right person in a Right place”. Making the right choices always get us joy and satisfaction in life. When the right option is made to choose the profession the success follows. Otherwise, professional life would be more challengeable. Of course, all professions are demanding and challenging. Right options always make you overcome the challenges with success. 

 

“Love your Profession, Profession loves you back”

 

 

 

 

 


 

Sunday, August 2, 2020

Artificial Intelligence – Time to think another way around

Emotional intelligence is a common topic of discussion that falls under the category of human psychology. Artificial intelligence is a newly emerging concept in the field of science. History of AI started the way back of the 1940s. Right now, AI has grabbed so much attention from all sectors in the public. Everyone is the beneficiary of AI by knowingly or unknowingly. Lifestyle practices got more sophisticated because of AI. The time has come to think about much about the negative effects of AI. That shows the influence of AI in human life and creating an eagerness to know the direction and rate of growth of AI. 

 

Humans are the most intelligent species on the planet earth. They always tend to found a way to adapt to their dynamic environment for better survival. The human race made tremendous progress evolving from living in small caves to large bustling cities. This journey is not so easy. In between challenges like pandemics, diseases and calamities act like breaks in the evolution process. AI is a result of utilizing human intelligence effectively to minimize physical efforts in a cost-effective manner. It is an attempt at making machines or technological devices to work like the human brain.

 

Involvement of AI has been ranging from simple and complicated tasks. Google search, self-driving cars, Alexa are examples of simple task performers based on AI. Robots are the sophisticated version of AI which is involving in manufacturing units and even in the field of medicine. Robotic surgeries are the latest addition to medical advancements. All these products of AI make our life so much sophisticated and make an easier life. It is not necessary to learn driving in future days when the self-driving cars are on roads. AI almost bring all needs into the home in our day to day life.

 

Advantages of AI:

  • Accuracy in results:Humans make mistakes from time to time. In AI, machines or computers are set with the pre-planned programming. No chance of an error and accurate in all of its functions.
  • Best choice for risk-taking:Humans can not risk themselves with potentially dangerous situations. Situations like bomb defusing, mining are the best areas where AI is considered to be the best choice.
  • Any time availability:Machines can work for 24 X 7. Humans need to break in between the long spell of work. In an average human can effectively work for 6 – 8 hours per day. Machines and computers can work beyond that.
  • No chance of boredom: It is a human tendency to get bored when the same tasks are repeated again and again. An instance like sending a thanking note in a mail may be a repeated task for customer care professionals. AI helps to form a thanking template and send it to any number of persons. 
  • Quick decisions: AI helps to program the machine or computer based on the input given by the external source. Humans may take time to decide due to various reasons. Whereas the computer makes the decisions in seconds and saves time.
  • New inventions and technology: AI is powering many new inventions based on the emerging needs of the society in day to day life and the need for productive units. All are aiming to improve the quality and standard of life.

 

Disadvantages of AI:

  • High cost: AI-based machines or computers cost high. It consists of sophisticated software and hardware technology. Designing and programing them requires more investments. Maintenance is another challenge.
  • Develop laziness among humans: Automated ways of work by the machines make humans lazier since there is no actual requirement of their active involvement. 
  • Promotes unemployment: Machines and computers can perform repeated works to minimize the need for humans. Machines have more perfection and accuracy than humans. Hence all companies looking to replace the human s with AI-supported robots or machines.
  • No emotions: Machines can perform better than humans. But they are limited to be mechanical, not emotional. Emotions also require while performing teamwork and group tasks to boost up individual morale.
  • Lack of logical reasoning: AI-based machines perform the tasks which are already programmed. They can not analyze or do anything further. They can’t think and act.

 

Artificial intelligence has massive potentials and advantages. No one can deny the facts regarding the benefits of AI. But another side of AI is scary and threatening. It has got the first rank among the three options while analyzing the reasons for the end of this planet by Stephen Hawking, the famous theoretical Physicist. AI can destroy human civilization if it goes to the wrong hands. The current generation must think about the effective and safe usage of AI to remain the human race peacefully on the planet forever.