10 things to learn from Japan

1. THE CALM
Not a single visual of chest-beating or wild grief. Sorrow itself has been elevated.

2. THE DIGNITY
Disciplined queues for water and groceries. Not a rough word or a crude gesture. Their patience is admirable and praiseworthy.

3. THE ABILITY
The incredible architects, for instance. Buildings swayed but didnt fall.

4. THE GRACE (Selflessness)
People bought only what they needed for the present, so everybody could get something.

5. THE ORDER
No looting in shops. No honking and no overtaking on the roads. Just understanding.

6. THE SACRIFICE
Fifty workers stayed back to pump sea water in the N-reactors. How will they ever be repaid?

7. THE TENDERNESS
Restaurants cut prices. An unguarded ATM is left alone. The strong cared for the weak.

8. THE TRAINING
The old and the children, everyone knew exactly what to do. And they did just that.

9. THE MEDIA
They showed magnificent restraint in the bulletins. No silly reporters. Only calm reportage. Most of all NO POLITICIANS TRYING TO GET CHEAP MILEAGE.

10. THE CONSCIENCE
When the power went off in a store, people put things back on the shelves and left quietly.

With their country in the midst of a colossal disaster – The Japanese citizens can teach plenty of lessons to the world.

Love, Like, Passion

‘True love begins when nothing is looked for in return‘
– Antoine De Saint Exupery

Ask yourself a question: do you love what you are doing or do you like what you are doing? There is a difference between loving and liking. When you love something, you are willing to sacrifice anything to have it. When you like something, it gives you a pleasant feeling. Love means more intense liking.

What is a ‘passion’. When you have a passion for something, you love it. For example, if you have passion for music, you will love it and you will be willing to sacrifice anything for the sake of music. When you have passion for teaching, you will love your profession and you will sacrifice all your comfort to teach, whether or not you are rewarded.

When you love your job, you do not expect anything in return. You may want to be rewarded and you may even feel happy if you are rewarded more than you expected. But you may not feel upset or irritated if the reward is less than your expectation. This is the result of your loving what you do.

If you study the life of great people who have walked this planet, they loved what they did. Be it Mother Teresa, Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela or Martin Luther King. They loved what they did and they were willing to sacrifice all their comfort and were even willing to die. Their love of their calling gave them the stamina and willpower to withstand all the difficulties they faced in their life.

List three things you do every day and rate how intensely you love to do the same. The intensity of your love will decide the degree of your commitment and this will reflect in the quality of your work.