Personal Values Development Plan - Essay Example

My life is my message” – these words have left an indelible impression on my mind since childhood. Each individual is unique and so is their way of learning. Everyone has to go through the process of the development of the self. We generally derive inspiration from people around us – could be the family, parents, friends or teachers or even some institution. We find role models in people and identify ourselves as that. We place ourselves in the character of a movie or a play and find meaning in our own life. These words of the great nobleman Mohandas Gandhi or more commonly known as Mahatma Gandhi, the promoter of human rights and the most influential man in this era has changed my life, has helped me inculcate values and has made me what I am today. I draw inspiration from him every moment and at every step that I start to falter. The hardships in his life did not deter Mahatma Gandhi. I have drawn great messages from this and believe that the situation or circumstances will not always be as we wish them to be. Our maturity and education directs us to accept what we have and use it to our advantage. Introspection and reflection made me see through my strengths and weaknesses. I was not disturbed at my weaknesses. I analyzed and realized that I get easily distracted. This is where Mahatma Gandhi’s determination to fight against non-violence gave me the strength. His unbending commitment was his greatest strength and I decided that if I made a commitment to myself to increase my concentration I would be able to achieve it. His philosophy of non-violence has the power to change the destinies of people and even nations. I have realized that through violence we can achieve nothing and on the other had through silence we get the unexpected. This has helped me develop the quality of patience. I used to revolt at restrictions and once again found myself contemplating on what I really wanted. I have come to accept that if we deserve something or if something is meant for us, nobody can stop it. If we hanker and fight for something which we are not destined to have, no amount of struggle can help us achieve that. He was strong and daring and fought for truth till the end. I have made many friends in life but have always been happiest when I discuss or share a secret with my innermost self. I draw inspiration from Mahatma’s words that true friendship can only with one’s innermost self. He attempted unsuccessfully to reform a friend despite warnings by his family. He ignored the warnings only to realize that worthy and enduring friendship can only be between like natures. I have realized that exclusive intimacy can only be with the inner self. Mahatma’s determination itself has so many things to teach us. It made me determined to understand and accept my weakness and then take corrective steps. I lacked concentration in every activity. Recognizing the weakness itself was the first step and then the decision to change. It was then that I decided to set my goals. We can make mistakes in our life but mistakes and failures should be the stepping stones to success. We become what we think is what we have all heard so often and I decide to implement it in my life. To improve upon my concentration, initially I allowed myself to believe that my concentration had increased and very soon I found that indeed it had increased. I could prove to myself what determination could do to an individual. In the process I realized that mind cannot and need not be controlled; mind has to be conditioned. We can condition the mind to think and act the way we want. We should not be under the control of the mind; we should be in a position to direct the mind. I decided to focus my mind on only one thing at a time. I practiced it by focusing on good events or re-living happy moments in my life. When I could do this I was thrilled. If I can concentrate on this and achieve results, why can I not concentrate on what I am doing at this moment? This gave me great encouragement and I started a daily practice of spending fifteen minutes every morning keeping the mind focused on some event or book. Within three weeks I could see the transformation in myself!!! It did not come easily and there were many moments of frustration. I almost gave up but each time I reminded myself of the struggles that Mahatma underwent not for himself but for the nation. I was only attempting to do something for myself. Immediately I got back to where I had left. It did not deter him from his path so why should I allow such trivialities to affect me? All these increased my determination and helped me achieve my goals. For instance on the first day when I decide to sit down quietly for five minutes, I realized I could not go beyond one minute. Then I allowed the mind to wander wherever it wanted to travel without imposing restrictions. Gradually I found that the mind does not want to travel anymore. This led to the realization that when we get freedom to do what we want, we get fed up. We come back to the right path. Slowly things improved and I found I could concentrate on a particular subject. As confidence grew, I increased the time spent on this exercise. I started concentrating on one thing at a time – the first two days I concentrated on the breath, then on the head, the eyes and the nose. I tried to feel all the sensations at that point; I concentrated on all the sounds around me, on the silence around me. I attempted to understand the silence. I tried to figure out the essence of pin-drop silence. This led me to contemplate upon what Mahatma Gandhi really meant by freedom? All he was fighting for was independence of India from foreign domination. I applied this principle to my own life. We too seek freedom but freedom from what? Even during my youth and now at workplace, I often ponder over this. We look at it in terms of authority and we do not like it. I went a little deeper. Will we really be happy if we did not have someone direct us? We struggle to be liberated from one point only to entangle with another. We are never really free. Freedom does not give us the liberty to do what we want but it gives us the power of discrimination. It teaches us to understand the difference between good and bad and decide on the right. The bad should not rule us; we should get independence from the negative thoughts and ideas. A matured and educated person would understand the difference between the two and invariably opt for the right. True freedom is to be liberated from bindings, from foreign domination, those that keep us attached to the material world. Another most striking value that I have adopted from the Mahatma is that all human beings are equal. His fight against race and color especially in South Africa teaches us to treat everyone as equal. We mat adorn any colorful clothing, we may style her hair in different ways each day but that does not change the person that we are. Similarly, whether we originate from America or Africa, we all have the same consciousness, the same conscience, and the same blood flowing within us. Yes, we do adopt different culture because of the environment we grow up in, but this should not allow us to discriminate on grounds of race and color. This attitude has helped me immensely at my workplace as we have people from different nationalities working together under one roof. I have learnt to reflect on every aspect of my life, on each happening that takes place. I apply the teachings and principles of the Mahatma at every stage. I realized that we place limitations on our thinking and activities. These are often self imposed when we try to behave as others want. We want to impress them so we try to limit our acts and thoughts. We need to impress ourselves and derive contentment in life. I derived immense pleasure, an enduring interest and feel enriched with experience. Reflection has certainly increased my capacity to work and realize my own potential. Personal development is a very important part of growth. What matters ultimately is how we are able to steer ahead in the ocean of life. It depends to a great extent on how we allow the hardships and circumstances to impress upon us. The Mahatma has certainly been a positive influence in my life. I realize how true his words are – my life is my message. Each one of us should be an example for others to follow; our life should leave an impression on the minds of others. Mahatma Gandhi struggled for truth and non-violence and encourages us to pursue the same!!! Read More