From challenges to charisma : Building the best version of yourself
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Samchetsabam Ratankumar Singh
Well ! We just can’t afford to wait for things that are beyond our control. Instead, we need to move forward and take charge of what is within our hands. As we know, there is a significant gap and will continue to have this gap for at least a decade between professional and academic streams. Bridging this gap isn’t something that can be achieved in an hour, a week, or even a month. It requires time, effort, and perseverance. If you aim to succeed as a leader in any domain, it is crucial to start working on narrowing this gap immediately. The sooner you act, the better your chances of leveraging the advantages. Everything revolves around perseverance, focus, practice, observation, and self-improvement. The key lies in taking responsibility for your growth—analyzing your actions, asking yourself the right questions, and honestly evaluating your answers without bias.
One vital step is to stop engaging in activities that add no value to your personal or professional growth. Research says 60% of the people waste their time in unproductive ways, surfing the net, screen scrolling, hours of talk, unproductive meetings, self- talk etc. Often, we conform to societal norms without questioning their relevance. This conformity—blindly following others without understanding the reasons—is a significant reason many fail. Instead of listening to our internal voice, we rely on external directions which is why only a few person success in life. But remember, we all have a land of abundance—our mindset. It’s up to us to cultivate this land and plant the seeds we desire. Whether good, bad, beneficial, or harmful, what we plant will determine what we harvest. The choice is ours, and our outcomes are a reflection of our efforts.
Adopting a positive mindset is essential, but it should not be mistaken for toxic positivity. A positive mindset involves understanding that talents and abilities can be developed through hard work, effective strategies, and constructive input from others. It shifts our perspective from “I can’t do it” to “yet.” It involves taking accountability, learning from failures and mistakes, cultivating curiosity, embracing change as an opportunity, seeking support from growth-oriented individuals, viewing a career as a journey, and valuing feedback. For example, instead of saying, “I didn’t perform well in the interview; I’ll never get a job,” a positive mindset reframes this as, “I didn’t get the job yet, but I’ve learned what went wrong and will improve to succeed next time.”
On the other hand, toxic positivity is about showing external optimism without genuine internal belief. This can be dangerous as it creates a disconnect between reality and perception.
To succeed in any field, cultivating a growth mindset is non-negotiable. As Nelson Mandela rightly said, “I never lose; I either win or learn.” Like Mandela, we need to focus on what we can control and work on improving ourselves instead of wasting energy on things beyond our control.
Let’s honestly ask ourselves: What sets us apart from the crowd ? If you find yourself in a group of people driven by conformity, remember that the problem might lie within. Success comes from cultivating qualities and honing skills. Intuition alone is not enough; deliberate effort is required.
Standing out requires choosing the road less travelled. From my experiences with people worldwide, one thing is clear—we often lack curiosity and self-awareness. We waste time on unproductive activities and focus on uncontrollable factors. While everyone knows the need for change, the extent of transformation required is often underestimated. From communi- cation skills, presentation, and listening to self-awareness and focus, there’s much to work on.
The good news is that we all possess inherent leadership qualities. However, these qualities need the right level of competence. Let’s break this down:
Warmth Characteristics:
· Sweet but not smart
· Compassionate but not competent
· Relatable but not impressive
Competence Characteristics:
· Smart but not approachable
· Efficient but not collaborative
· Important but not kind
To truly succeed, we need a balance between warmth and competence, creating charisma. Charismatic individuals are memorable, relatable, and influential. They inspire people to listen, collaborate, and grow together. Most successful people master this balance, adapting their charisma to fit different situations.
While we may not completely bridge the gap between professional and academic streams, we can drastically narrow it. With focus and determination, we have the power to make it happen. Cultivate mental strength by POWER:
· Present in the moment
· Onlyself-comparisons
· What you can control (your attitude, effort, self-talk, and actions)
· Establish your own definition of success
· Release the past and committing to a forward-focused mindset
You have the potential to be the best version of yourself. Success is within your reach—all it takes is belief, effort, and action.
The writer is Associate Director – Marketing Operations, Certified in 100+ Skillsets, AIR Speaker, LinkedIn Contributor, Worked with 10+ reputed global firms, Columnist and can be reached at https://www.ratansingh.in/
Well ! We just can’t afford to wait for things that are beyond our control. Instead, we need to move forward and take charge of what is within our hands. As we know, there is a significant gap and will continue to have this gap for at least a decade between professional and academic streams. Bridging this gap isn’t something that can be achieved in an hour, a week, or even a month. It requires time, effort, and perseverance. If you aim to succeed as a leader in any domain, it is crucial to start working on narrowing this gap immediately. The sooner you act, the better your chances of leveraging the advantages. Everything revolves around perseverance, focus, practice, observation, and self-improvement. The key lies in taking responsibility for your growth—analyzing your actions, asking yourself the right questions, and honestly evaluating your answers without bias.
One vital step is to stop engaging in activities that add no value to your personal or professional growth. Research says 60% of the people waste their time in unproductive ways, surfing the net, screen scrolling, hours of talk, unproductive meetings, self- talk etc. Often, we conform to societal norms without questioning their relevance. This conformity—blindly following others without understanding the reasons—is a significant reason many fail. Instead of listening to our internal voice, we rely on external directions which is why only a few person success in life. But remember, we all have a land of abundance—our mindset. It’s up to us to cultivate this land and plant the seeds we desire. Whether good, bad, beneficial, or harmful, what we plant will determine what we harvest. The choice is ours, and our outcomes are a reflection of our efforts.
Adopting a positive mindset is essential, but it should not be mistaken for toxic positivity. A positive mindset involves understanding that talents and abilities can be developed through hard work, effective strategies, and constructive input from others. It shifts our perspective from “I can’t do it” to “yet.” It involves taking accountability, learning from failures and mistakes, cultivating curiosity, embracing change as an opportunity, seeking support from growth-oriented individuals, viewing a career as a journey, and valuing feedback. For example, instead of saying, “I didn’t perform well in the interview; I’ll never get a job,” a positive mindset reframes this as, “I didn’t get the job yet, but I’ve learned what went wrong and will improve to succeed next time.”
On the other hand, toxic positivity is about showing external optimism without genuine internal belief. This can be dangerous as it creates a disconnect between reality and perception.
To succeed in any field, cultivating a growth mindset is non-negotiable. As Nelson Mandela rightly said, “I never lose; I either win or learn.” Like Mandela, we need to focus on what we can control and work on improving ourselves instead of wasting energy on things beyond our control.
Let’s honestly ask ourselves: What sets us apart from the crowd ? If you find yourself in a group of people driven by conformity, remember that the problem might lie within. Success comes from cultivating qualities and honing skills. Intuition alone is not enough; deliberate effort is required.
Standing out requires choosing the road less travelled. From my experiences with people worldwide, one thing is clear—we often lack curiosity and self-awareness. We waste time on unproductive activities and focus on uncontrollable factors. While everyone knows the need for change, the extent of transformation required is often underestimated. From communi- cation skills, presentation, and listening to self-awareness and focus, there’s much to work on.
The good news is that we all possess inherent leadership qualities. However, these qualities need the right level of competence. Let’s break this down:
Warmth Characteristics:
· Sweet but not smart
· Compassionate but not competent
· Relatable but not impressive
Competence Characteristics:
· Smart but not approachable
· Efficient but not collaborative
· Important but not kind
To truly succeed, we need a balance between warmth and competence, creating charisma. Charismatic individuals are memorable, relatable, and influential. They inspire people to listen, collaborate, and grow together. Most successful people master this balance, adapting their charisma to fit different situations.
While we may not completely bridge the gap between professional and academic streams, we can drastically narrow it. With focus and determination, we have the power to make it happen. Cultivate mental strength by POWER:
· Present in the moment
· Onlyself-comparisons
· What you can control (your attitude, effort, self-talk, and actions)
· Establish your own definition of success
· Release the past and committing to a forward-focused mindset
You have the potential to be the best version of yourself. Success is within your reach—all it takes is belief, effort, and action.
The writer is Associate Director – Marketing Operations, Certified in 100+ Skillsets, AIR Speaker, LinkedIn Contributor, Worked with 10+ reputed global firms, Columnist and can be reached at https://www.ratansingh.in/