Solitary Soul

THE POWER OF WORDS Mario D’Couto             Human beings are perhaps the most complicating beings on this planet. While there is no doubt that there are other forms of life, given our complex nature, free will and our ability to communicate, these are things that have taken the human race far and beyond.             Of these three aspects, the ability to communicate is what is most important as it encapsulates the other two. Knowing what to say, when to say and how to say, makes a difference both for you as well as for the others around you. There is a quotation that I came across sometime back which goes thus, “Taste your words before you spit them out”. Knowing how to act in a particular situation comes with prudence. Frankly, I think that had it not been for this unique ability, humans would not have progressed so far.       A...

FAILURE IS A MINDSET Mario D’Couto             If you don’t believe in yourself, who will? When you say, “I cannot do it” or “ It is impossible” you are already putting a mental block in your head. DON’T! Remember to always BELIEVE IN YOURSELF! According to Dr. Joseph Murphy, the infinite intelligence within your subconscious mind can reveal to you everything you need to know at every moment of time and point of space provided you are open – minded and receptive. You can receive new thoughts and ideas enabling you to bring forth new inventions, make new discoveries or write books and plays. Moreover, the infinite intelligence in your subconscious can impart to you, wonderful kinds of knowledge of an original nature. It can reveal to you and open the way for perfect expression and true peace in your life.             The law of your mind is the law of belief. This ...

THE HIDDEN LOGIC OF SUCCESS Mario D’Couto             We are always baffled at the extra-ordinary feats achieved by great people; things that are deemed to be a product of special ‘genes’. The truth, however, is that success is about effort which in a sense is based on that famous phrase, “Practice makes perfect” although I have heard some people paraphrasing this statement saying, “Practice makes permanent” . Both statements are valid and there is truth present. However, in as much as many self – help gurus may keep harping over the fact of not giving up on your hopes and dreams, this would not be possible if a talented person was not at the right place and at the right time. Success is a combination of both.             Allow me to illustrate this point by citing a few examples. As a soccer fan, the skill of Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Neymar Jr. and other ...

THE HIDDEN LOGIC OF SUCCESS – PART 2 MARIO D’COUTO Another aspect to the hidden logic of success is what psychologists call ‘ chunking’ . This is a word that has also been used by Roger Dawson, author of the book, “MAKE THE RIGHT DECISION EVERY TIME”. According to Dawson, chunking is connected with rapid reasoning. But what is rapid reasoning? To understand this, let us first understand what Alexander Hamilton has to say, who was one of the founding fathers of the United States of America. Whenever he faced a problem, this was how he would handle a problem as he says, “Men give me some credit of genius. All the genius I have lies in this: when I have a subject in hand, I study it profoundly. Day and night, it is before me. I explore it in all its bearings. My mind becomes pervaded with it. Then the efforts that I made are what people are pleased to call the fruits of genius. It is the fruit of labour and thought.” Rapid reasoning is your ability to pull together unrelated...

THE HIDDEN LOGIC OF SUCCESS – PART 3 Mario D’Couto             In the first and second parts to the hidden logic of success, we seen that success comprises of regular practice besides placing yourself in the right setting which will help you become what you desire to be and also to achieve your goals. There is, however, a third dimension to it and that is ADAPTABILITY.             Among all the living species on planet earth, humans have far succeeded because of their unique ability to adapt to changing circumstances. When we compare ourselves to the rest of creation in terms of physical strength, speed or other such phenomenon, we may not be able to compete. But we do have this one unique quality that has helped us overcome all odds and that is our ability to think. Because of this feature, we have gone to the far ends of the earth, colonised new territories, inv...

CONCUSSION – A REFLECTION Mario D’Couto             For those of you who have not watched this movie, in brief, this movie is about what the game of football (not soccer) can do to those who play the game. It is a contact sport because of which it involves a lot of collision and banging heads. The interesting thing is with all the gear that a player has, he still faces severe damages especially to the head. Although I am not a follower of this sport (since I am more into soccer), even though this game could be a spectator sport, the truth has to be confronted which could hurt. This is portrayed very well in the movie as Dr. Bennet Omalu (played by Will Smith) becomes the moral conscience for the NFL. This article is a reflection based on the ongoing struggle between Dr. Omalu and the NFL which I would like to share in 2 points, a) Wisdom can come from anywhere. All we need is an open mind to make the best of it and abs...

Don’t ‘GO’ through life, ‘GROW’ through life Mario D’Couto             Abraham Maslow once said, “He that is good with a hammer tends to think everything is a nail.” Sometimes we drag through life thinking that there is no way out of our problems and because of our problems our lives become a routine and there is no way out. But, as William James would put it. “Our very infirmities help us unexpectedly,” learn to make your problems your allies in your personal development. If you think it is impossible, here are a few examples, 1)       John Milton wrote better poetry because he was blind. 2)       Beethoven composed better music because he was deaf. 3)       Helen Keller’s brilliant career was inspired and made possible because of her blindness and deafness. 4)     If Tchaikovsky had not been frustrated and driven almost to ...

SAVE ME FROM MYSELF Mario D’Couto             Every person in this world is a world in himself or herself, with one’s temperament, hopes, dreams, and the list can go on. There can never be another you and this article which is based on the book “Save Me From Myself!” which is kind of an autobiography of Brian ‘HEAD’ Welch (the lead guitarist of Korn) is basically the ‘golden nugget’ or the ‘cream’ of the content of the book which I have tried to understand and express. Hence, without further ado, although tastes can be subjective, allow me to share the following insights and reflections that I have found useful from this book, A)     When Welch was going through his conversion experience, he felt guilty about not going to Church and so he goes to one of his friends who was a Christian asking him for advice. This was the advice given to him, “Going to Church does not make you a Christian any more than...