Broadening Your Horizons = Stretching Self

                                                                                                        

                                                                                                              - Ms. Manisha Varma

Ms. Manisha Varma is a Counselling Psychologist with over two decades of rich experience working with youth across the spectrum of psychological and well-being concerns.

Stretching..... A concept that brings vivid visuals of exercises and Yoga practices. Those are essential and add value to one's being. Yet, taking charge of one's mindset stretches is what could make one feel more alive. 

So what are some steps that one can incorporate in daily stretches?

1. Look into your Thought process:-

Are you accepting your life path? Do you feel you need to be and stay a certain way?

"Be like water" - is an often quoted caption. Water is fluid, transparent, and on the go. It interacts with Nature in different ways - gushing forth when amongst rocks while gentle in a pond. Water changes its speed and flows dynamics based on how it gets treated. The crux of this is to be in a state of flow while not stopping movement.

While you are in movement, do you thrive or survive? We are not looking at accumulation here, but changes to self through conscious practices and actions. 

So that when one looks back, it's not to do with how far one has reached but how one has grown. Gratitude gets included there which furthers efforts in a genuine flow of growth.

2. Finding connections:- 

Everything gets connected to everything else. Your past, present, and future are all so intricately connected. And yet there are instances when you are busy shunning or getting held up with the past or the future. Either there is comfort in sadness about your past or in the fear about your future.

On careful reflection, one is able to make out that it is your thinking that rules your doing. E.g:- If you prefer to stay in the sadness of the past, you are carrying that experience in the present. The result is low motivation, self-doubt, and limiting your potentiality.

So, potentiality is not about refining skills. Well, that could appear like a major chunk. But, getting out of your own way is also a large part of it.

As a mentor, what would you suggest to a younger and hurt version of yourself? You may say, "How is it possible to be your own mentor when you have already committed a mistake?" It seems ridiculous to start with since if you had a mentoring mindset, the mistake wouldn't have happened in the first place. But is mentoring about coming from a perfect place?

No!!Absolutely not.

It means coming from an experiential space...a space with processing all the ups and downs, whether you like it or not. Moving ahead in time, you have captured the essence of an untoward incident. Yes, you got it right. Making the most out of something unpleasant adds value to your life; it isn't a waste.

Living Life would mean Broadening your vision - becoming the Best Version of yourself. Perspectives matter. You need to look at what matters the most to your growth. That orientation itself has provided the necessary stretch that you would accommodate.

Be like water - Adapt with Flow. Look back and Look forward to understanding where you need the actual Recalibration.

Growth Orientation Pays Off. Keep Evolving to your Best Version.