A smile of satisfaction....

Hey guys...... well rite now I' am sitting for a boring 2 hour class/lecture on Business Communication on this hot n humid thursday afternoon, and so I thought I would rite this blog on something which happened to me yesterday morning, something which really made my day, something which taught me that small things usually make a huge diference and the value of small things in ones life.

Well it was like any other normal wednesday morning, I got up late after the late night tuesday movie, it was around 7 in the morning and I had just half an hour to finish my chores,that is, the dishes, cleaning, sweeping, watering the garden, washing the car, bathing, brushing etc etc, an impossible task you might think , but somehow i manage to do all this on a daily routine. This day wasnt any different, and I finished everything and managed to rush out my house by 7 45 a.m, 15 minutes behind schedule. As I was driving out of my house to the main highway, I saw a person walking on the left side of the road, he was a young boy in an uniform. Well he wasnt like any other normal person, he was handicapped and I could notice that he was waling with very much difficulty.

This wasnt the first time I was seeing him, i had seen him earlier while driving on my way to college, and also at Kalamassery HMT jn. while returning back home. So as I drove past him like always, I dunno what happened but I stoped the car and I waited for him to walk up to the car. He reached the car, and I asked him if he wanted a lift. He agreed and he got into the car with some difficulty. I asked him where he studied andsome casual talk. He told me on the way that he was also late for college that day and that he had some sort of an important exam the same day. He couldnt stop thanking me and I could really see the gratitude on his face. We drove for 20 mins with some nice music and he talked to me about his family.

He also told me about the accident he had which made him handicapped for life. I could really feel that all he wanted was just to talk to someone and someone who would really listen to him. So, I kept quite and listened to him all the while on the trip, and even though he was talkin to me for the first time, He really opened up to me which was really a heartening sight. As I reached kalamassery, he got ready to get down, on getting down he again thanked me and wishedme an amazing day ahaead. As I rolled down my windows, as I started driving I looked at my rearview mirror and I saw this boy still lookin, waving bye to me and most importantly, I saw a beautiful smile spread all over his face, a smile which spoke more than a thousand words, asmile which was much more precious than all the thank you's he gave me, A SMILE OF SATISFACTION & CONTEMPT.

Trust me friends, the feeling you have when u do this is something out of the world, something which I cant describe through words in this blog, and a feeling which u can only get when u experience this. Needless to say, I was more than happy when I walked into class, and even my friends noticed the spring in my stride. On top of that I had a wonderful day and I was really feeling very special and happy. Just a small action, made no difference to me, did not cost me anything extra, but it made such a huge difference in this kids dormant life. He reached college much before time, so he could revise for the test, and most probably he aced it. Tust me guys, small things usually make a huge difference in both ur life and that of others.

I will just conclude by saying something which I told a very close friend of mine recently, I told her, " If you manage to make at least one person smile for the day, ur purpose for the day is fulfilled and u can sleep in peace thinking you have made a difference in the world today."

So, until next time, signing off for now
Lijo Thalodil John

AD-mirers....

Hey guys.... sorry for not writing this long... was going through a patch of laziness coupled with the distressing Rajagiri Syndrome, that is too much work in too less time.... Anyways Im back and raring to write write write.... So here I go....

The story I have for you today is about a group of 5 individuals who called themselves AD-mirers... hee hee.... (dont laugh too much, the name was suggested by me). So, what do you get when you mix 5 total strangers, who are not comfortable talkin to each other, who havent worked together, who dont know head and tail about what they have got into and how they are going to do it? Yes, you get utter CHAOS.....

Well at least this is how I perceived the situation to be.... Boy I had no idea how wrong I was going to be.... it all started with Nithin (one of ma friends) coming up to me one fine morning and asking me to help him out for this ad-making competition he put himself into. Well not an everyday scenario, so I decided to enquire further, then came the real cream... he said that there were 2 other gals involved. Now thinggs were making sense as to why Nidin would give his name for an ad-making competition one fine day out of the blue. Anyways, when he kept asking, I agreed and I remember thinking, "How hard can this really be".... ha ha

So, along with Nithin I went to meet these other "TEAMMATES" of ours.... One of them was a tall, lean chick who looked kiddishly cute to me, she called herself Remya, and the other one was a sweet n trendy...hmmm u can describe her as streetsmart chick... her name was Anu. And this is where the journey of AD-mirers started. The assignment given to us was very simple... to make an promotional ad film for the college. Well, at least I thought it would be simple. hours turned to days and days turned to weeks.... still no progress... no headstart... we were still stuck on the "SCRIPT" for the ad..... oh yeah almos forgot /... we hired one of the most professional and stubborn actors available @ mathew...( juzz kiddin... hes a darlin) who wanted every detail about every shot to be canned including the camera angles and what time we were to do which shot. This wasnt a herculean task, there was just a teeny-weeny problem.. ha ha these were things even we didnt know.

So, as time went by nothing seemd to progress with the ad, but all of us started knowing each other well, we grew comfortable with each other, we started hanging out, cutting classes, making the canopy and the canteen a frequent hideout and before we realized it a beautiful bond of friendship was created. We started having so much fun, when we would get together even if it was for 10 mins a day, we would forget all the things, forget about rajagiri and just be ourselves. We could all be ourselves to each other, and this according to me is what makes friends into best friends. Before we knew what was happening, deadlines after deadlines started attacking us, somehow we managed a video cam and shot something and we submitted it. Well, needless to say we didnt win, but we managed to prove our critics wrong. We did the whole shooting on a zero rupee budget, that is, we didnt even spend a single rupee on anything, and we were really proud of ourselves cos of this.

The thing I realized from this is that it just takes a minute to break a lifetime friendship and it just takes that sinlge minute to build a lifetime friendship. A friend is one who stands by you and with you in ur time of need and distress. Like aI always say, "Friendship isnt a big thing, its a million little thiangs." I gess what made us so close was the fact that we were all going through life together at Rajagiri, and we were there for each other when we needed it the most.

At first, I was never game for ths ad making competiton but now when I look back at it, I realize it was Gods way of gifting me with new friends, people who could be trusted with anything, People whom i could call up anytime and share stupid stories ( well except remya esp b/w 11 pm and 7 am.... beauty sleep), most importantly people around whom I could truly be myself, without putting up a facade, guys u are a blessing, stay the same always... will miss ya like crazy in aussie, but remeber we will part to meet again esp in 4 yrs rems... ha ha... so to end this one i would love to quote dis favourie phrase which i picked up frm somewhere...
"The best kind of friend is the one you could sit on a porch with, never saying a word, and walk away feeling like that was the best conversation you've had."
anyways keep readin.... next one soon to folow... i promise
so till then signing off
Lijo Thalodil John

90-10 Principle...... this may be the answer.......

Hey friends......

You might all remember the orientation ceremony of Rajagiri which I was talking about in my first blog..... Well this post is somewhat connected to that...... I guess it was the second day in the induction ceremony and it was the post lunch session....... Post Lunch session generally for me and some of my friends means nice n comfy sleep time after a filling meal.... and a really boring speech or a professor can do wonders to serve the purpose.

I remember we had this wonderful HR trainer from the Hotel industry...... and most of his speech actually didnt appeal to most of us...... but yet there was somethinghe mentioned which when i gave serious thought to it really seemed to make a lot of sense to me...... and it answered a lot of unanswered questions....... He called it as the ' 90-10 PRINCIPLE'. The more thought i gave to this , the more sense it made n it really became crystal clear...... So, i thought i wud share this wid u all and i hope that this makes the same impact on u as it has started making on my life......

According to this,

We really have no control over 10% of what happens to us. We cannot stop the car from breaking down. The plane will be late arriving, which throws our whole schedule off. A driver may cut us off in traffic. We have no control over this 10%. The other 90% is different. You determine the other 90%.

How? By your reaction. You cannot control a red light. However, you can control your reaction. Do not let people fool you; YOU can control how you react.

Let us use an example: You are eating breakfast with your family. Your daughter knocks over a cup of coffee onto your business shirt. You have no control over what just happened. What happens next will be determined by how you react. You curse. You harshly scold your daughter for knocking the cup over.

She breaks down in tears. After scolding her, you turn to your spouse and criticize her for placing the cup too close to the edge of the table. A short verbal battle follows. You storm upstairs and change your shirt. Back downstairs, you find your daughter has been too busy crying to finish breakfast and get ready for school. She misses the bus. Your spouse must leave immediately for work.

You rush to the car and drive your daughter to school. Because you are late, you drive 40 miles an hour in a 30 mph speed limit zone. After a 15-minute delay and throwing $60 traffic fine away, you arrive at school. Your daughter runs into the building without saying goodbye. After arriving at the office 20 minutes late, you find you forgot your briefcase. Your day has started te rrible. As it continues, it seems to get worse and worse. You look forward to coming home, When you arrive home, you find small wedge in your relationship with your spouse and daughter.

Why? Because of how you reacted in the morning. Why did you have a bad day?
A. Did the coffee cause it?
B. Did your daughter cause it?
C. Did the policeman cause it?
D. Did you cause it?

The answer is “D”.

You had no control over what happened with the coffee. How you reacted in those 5 seconds is what caused your bad day. Here is what could have and should have happened.

Coffee splashes over you. Your daughter is about to cry. You gently say, “Its ok honey, you just need to be more careful next time”. Grabbing a towel, you rush upstairs. After grabbing a new shirt and your briefcase, you come back down in time to look through the window and see your child getting on the bus. She turns and waves. You arrive 5 minute s early and cheerfully greet the staff. Your boss comments on how good the day you are having.

Notice the difference?

Two different scenarios. Both started the same. Both ended different.

Why? Because of how you REACTED.

You really do not have any control over 10% of what happens. The other 90% was determined by your reaction.

This is the '90-10 Principle.'

After reading this, something clicked and I wondered, it really is our reaction to situations around us that determines the outcome and the consequences. Be it small issues like misunderstandings with buddies or parents or big issues like college related problems, family problems, every problem has a solution, and the solution ONLY depends on our REACTION.

So, I urge all of u.....No I challenge all of you to try this funda out maybe for a week or two n notice if there is any difference in ur life, the way people see u or talk to you.... The way I see it, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain. I was ...... oops... I am a person with a very short temper and most of my closest friends are aware of this. It is difficult to make me angry but if u are lucky and u manage to succeed, it is almost impossible for me to calm down, and for a person like me this principle has done wonders. It stuck a chord somewhere in my heart, and i started reacting positiveluy.... trust me its difficult, and very uncomfortable but once you get the hang of it... u'll truly notice a change in ur lives'''''''

So give it a shot... n lemme knw the results, I hope n pray to God that this be of help to all those who seek answers to why certain things keep happening in ones life witout cause or reason... Friends this just may be the answer you re looking for

Once again signing off for now, and awaiting your criticism, comments, love n feedback

Lijo T John

p.s : A beautiful disease called Love.... Pt- II almost ready... will publish soon.. watch this space for more....

The beautiful disease called love..............Pt-1

When you truly fall in Love, you dont need a third person to tell you,
You already know that this is it.


Love is when two people know on meeting each other,
that after that their lives would be incomplete without each other.

Well guys, this is my second blog....... and i thought about this one and decided to talk about something which most of us have experienced in this life at at least one point or the other. It doesnt matter whether the person is young, old, beautiful, not so beautiful, short, tall, thin, fat.... when one falls in love, it seems that the whole universe comes together into making everything possible for you.

I am a person who basically speaks from experience.... that is I am not a preacher.... so dont worry im not gonna be all philosphical n boring about this... so read on ahead...... If you notice the title... I have compared Love to a disease.... Now you might be wondering, what do I have against Love????? Guys I have nothing against love, in fact If its true n deserving Im totally for it. I compare Love to a disease because like any other disease or illness, there are a lot of symptoms and after-effect involved. You can usually suspect your friend or anyone you know to suffer from this ailment by looking for the following few symptoms i have listed out.....

• Loss of Hunger and appetite.
• spending unusual amount of time on the phone especially in a deserted area like the terrace or evn the bathroom in some cases.
• Spending at least 3 times the amount of time in front of the mirror than usually spend by the patient on a daily basis.
• Wearing new and trendy clothes and trying to look his best at all times, even when going for playing or the market ( hostel life co-ed campuses)
• Hvaing terrific and unbeleivable mood swings.
• Ignoring of best friends and patient prefering to spend more n more amount alone and lost in dreams.
• Loss of sleep and some days even sleeping in the wee hours of morning after night long phone talks.
• Patient who on some days would not even brush one time a day now starts brushing at least 4-5 times a day.

These are some of the symptoms which indicate that your friend/yourself are suffering from this beautful disaease called love. Like, I have mentioned in my earlier blogs, i am a person who is slow at choosing friends, but when i do make someone as a friend, i intend to keep them friends for a lifetime. So, I have this very colourful and multi-cultural friend circle, and I have found myself on a certain number of occasions sitiing down with some friends and listening to their love related problems, and offering them my support, sympathy, in some cases and most importantly advice.

If you ask me my opinion on love NOW, i would say it would be one of the most beautiful and in some cases the most tragic thing to ever happen to a person. I still remember the first time I fell in love, or at least i thought so....... I think I was in 9th standard In delhi and there was this beautiful, simple gal who used to study tuitions with me. Since i did a major part ofmy schooling in Delhi a boys only school, I was always AND I STILL AM shy in approaching gals, so when i used to go for tuitions and see this beautiful angel seated next to me, i remember thinking How God could even manage to create such a wonderful n beautiful person????? I always used to be edgy and not comfortable around her. I could talk to any of the gals in the tuition except this one girl, and no matter how much I tried I never made the courage to go upto her and speak. Days turned to weeks, eventually to months and this thing inside me eventually died down, and I realised That I had changed as an individual. Even though the first love of mine was a utter failure, it taught me a few things about this contagious and irresistable disease called love.

I have heard most of my friends and even some other people always Commenting, " dude I fell in love with her the moment i saw her" I always used to think that these people were really lucky or had something different about them but after i understood love, after i experienced love, after i experienced being in a relationship which is now in its 4th year and still going strong, I can easily say that Love at first sight is truly a very rare and remakeable phenomemon, at more times it is not love, it is a deadlier element called lust. If love is a bed of roses, then consider Lust as the thorns, some of my friends who talk to me about their problems misconstitute lust as love and this is where I feel as responsible and good friends we all can make an impact. Like I earlier said, I am never against love, I will openly support it if it is true n deserving.

Another thing which is very important and plays a deterimental role is GODS PLAN in your life. It doesnt matter if you love a person as beautiful as Aishwaya Rai, if God has a different plan in your life, his plan will be carried out no matter we like it or not. A famous quotation says ' Man plans over Life and God plans over Man.' God has a plan for everyones life, even you sitting in your room reading this blog is planned, the next breath you breathe is planned, everything in our life is planned by God, and it will take place according to his pattern or as God puts it ' in the right time.' One thing which strikes me about God is the fact that when he closes one door, he opens three others. It is upon the individual to seek and find those doors. I really want to go in depth and talk a lil bit more about my experiences in Love both personal n of sum of my frnds who dont mind their experiences being shared for the benefit of others.

So, I will be continuing this blog with a part-II very soon, rite now i have to go as I have to read a mammoth set of notes given to me on Business Communication, or else i will be in trouble tomorrow.....
so, just to leave you with a temporary parting note, I leave you with this amazing quote which has impacted my life in many ways n hopin does the same magic for you....

'Love is Patient, Love is Kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude nor self seeking, it is not easily angered ,
it does not keep a record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices in truth,
It always protects, trusts, hopes and always perseveres.
LOVE NEVER FAILS.'

In my knowledge, this is the best and exact definition for true love, it is given in the Holy Bible, I Corinthians, 13:4...... So until my next blog..... following pretty soon ......

Take Care....... and post ur comments n feedback......

Lijo

Here it goes.......

Okay guys ... this is the first time im goona start dis whole 'Bloggin' thing...... so u know forgive me if i get the etiquettes wrong....( etiquettes...????? where did i get that??)

Before I start, lemme just introduce myself in as few words as possible...... My name is Lijo.T.John, im 22 yrs old..... i was born n brought up in Delhi..... i moved to Kerala to do my +1 n +2 (still dunno why they call it like that...) thanx to my amazin grades in 10th standard... lol.... I did my UG in Kodaikanal Christian College, Kodaikanal, probably the best 3 yrs of my life.... n now at this juncture in life i find myself pursuin an international MBA degree from Rajagiri Business School, cochin.... Both my parents are setteld in London... i have a younger brother( Sijo)........ My hobbies are Reading, Gardening, COOKING, sleepin, TV, Cricket, Basket ball... etc etc.. the list doesdnt end...

So I was thinkin about what to share with you guys... n to tell you the truth i thought about it for at least an hour.... then i decided to start with this new venture in my life called Rajagiri. Like i have titled this blog, the end of one journey marks the beggining of another. Just 1 month back i finished my final university exams in kodaikanal and i already find myself enrolled in this mammoth college called Rajagiri, and i ask myself......... whoaaaaaaaa..... isnt this goin too fast...?????? The three years i spent in Kodaikanal were probably the best in my life as these years moulded me as an individual, my character, taught me about relationships, taught me how hard it is to find a good friend and at the same time, how easy it is to lose it......

These three years taught me that you could top the class if u sincerely sat down and studied the night before the exam... ha ha... i'd advice you not to try this.... it taught me to be humble for a change, these three years most imporantly taught me that there is a living God who sits up there in the heavens watching our every move, plannin even before we think of planning, making decisions for us even before we are offered a choice, laughing with us in our happy times, cryn n consolin us in our rough times..... These three years in Kodaikanal taught me and bought God in contact with me. Someone very famously said, wen u make friends, keep them for a lifetime and i truly acknowledge the author on this.

Now comin to Rajagiri, even before i cud realize what was happening i found myself at the orientation and the induction ceremony of the Rajagiri 2009-11 MBA batch... and i remember sitting ther n thinkin ..... is dis really hapenin or am i dreamin... it had always been a dream for my parents that i do an MBA from a reputed instititute like Rajagiri... so this time i decided i wud do it for them... they have sacrificed so much for me ... this is the least i can do to show my appreciaton....... so im sitting there with two of my bestest friends.... umm..... no my brothers..... jimmy n nidin...... n this dude the director of IIM kozhikode, Dr Debashish is talkin a lot of stuff about motivation, sources, resources... n to tell u guys the truth my brain just went into hibernate mode... it was savin power for later.....

It's not even been a week but i seem to understand that this stint here at rajagiri will be a helluva ride...... with its tight schedule n we mean business talks... lets wait n watch as to how long we can hang on... i was put wid my buddies in the PGDM batch after the long and immensely long induction ceremony which lasted 3 days but seemd like 30..... The class seems ok... we have a good crowd... and after the first day... i could sense .... that many bloomin friendships were gonna start.... there was this air of excitement in the atmosphere and it felt so .... a new experience.... another new beginning.... perhaps the the determining phase of my career, my life... who knows...... im still in the process of learnin everyones name..... honesly im very bad at it... hope i dont mess up... so i stop this intial blog of mine by wishing all my batch mates the very best of luck n submitting everything in the hands of the mighty lord.... let him lead as he has led till now....
Catch ya later.......