Solitary Soul

DEALING WITH FAILURE Mario D’Couto             I sometimes think to myself that there is so much of cry and hue over the topic called ‘positivity’ or ‘thinking positively’ that the essence of it is lost as it has become cliché. Besides, just the mere effort of a positive thought is not going to bring about a change magically. Yet, on further introspection, I have come to realize that thinking positively or being positive has its place. In order to understand it more in depth, we need to understand why a negative attitude is destructive. A negative attitude is destructive because it assumes defeat. It sort of ‘kills’ you even before the battle has begun. In this regard, I am reminded of a boxing match. The fight does not stop until you give up and surrender. A person who is pessimistic has already killed his/her chances which could have led him/her to a potential victory. Don’t let that happen! Hence to counter it, a posit...

GRATITUDE IS THE BEST ATTITUDE – PART 2 Mario D’Couto             I have heard so many people say this statement that it has become some kind of cliché. But sometime back while I was reading Fr. Sajith Cyriac’s book “Celebrate your failures” , I came across a reflection on gratitude which I thought I should share.             It’s too easy to focus on what you don’t have and that can lead to self – depreciation rather than a feeling of self – empowerment. One of the reasons for failure is to dwell on the things we don’t have rather than on the things we have. Appreciating what you have in your life can empower you because you can focus on all of the things you’ve done to get as far as you want to.             If you do not stop and appreciate what you have already done or have, you may end up feeling like ...

SUCCESS IS NEVER ENDING, FAILURE IS NEVER FINAL Mario D’Couto             Talent or effort? What makes the best stand out from the rest? Based on the research done by Carol Dweck, Matthew Syed in his book, “Bounce” distinguishes between a ‘fixed mindset’ and a ‘growth mindset’ . According to him, people with a ‘fixed mindset’ would find it difficult to adapt and cannot take failure in their stride. On the other hand, people with a ‘growth mindset’ are a total opposite of the ‘fixed mindset’ . They are able to adapt, are not afraid of failures and are open.             Nick Bollettieri’s tennis Academy in Western Florida which was responsible in producing such illustrious champions as Andre Agassi, Jim Courrier, Martina Hingis, Maria Sharapova, Anna Kournikova and Jelena Jankovic has this creed that must be signed by all who are part of the institute, “Every en...