From the desk of managing editor: 21 August
"Finally, and perhaps most important, work that is devoid of play is either boring or a grind. We can get pretty far through sheer willpower, and some people have prodigious powers of perfectionism, self-denial, and suffering. Ultimately, though, people cannot succeed in rising to the highest levels of their field if they don’t enjoy what they are doing, if they don’t make time for play. Having a fierce dedication to grinding out the work is often not enough. Without some sense of fun or play, people usually can’t make themselves stick to any discipline long enough to master it.
People always say that you can reach the top by “keeping your nose to the grindstone,” but as sports performance specialist Chuck Hogan observes, this is not true. People reach the highest levels of a discipline because they are driven by love, by fun, by play. “The great performers perform as they do, and do so with such grace, because they love what they are doing,” Hogan observes. “It’s not work. It’s play.”
~ Stuart Brown from Play
It is important that when we passionately start to pursue any single goal we make space for play. It was not for nothing that we were taught “all work and no play…” Humour and fun are great allies of determination and achievement. They make the ride worthwhile and also make sure that you keep going and don’t run out of steam. They say laughing rejuvenates our souls, so in any pursuit of life, let us remember to maintain a playful spirit.
This has been an eventful week. While Indians all over the world celebrated Independence Day with great pride, there was an incident that made us hang our heads in shame. Yes, I am referring to the manhandling of the senior (in age) ex servicemen who were engaged in a peaceful demonstration for the One Rank One Pay, that the Government seems to be delaying. How do the very men who give up their entire lives for the sake of the security of the country become a security threat? Sometimes our biggest strides can be overshadowed by little mistakes. There is every confidence that Prime Minister Modi will do the right thing, but at the moment, it is about watching this space.
In what has become Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s trademark, he sets out an ambitious agenda for his overseas visits and manages to deliver beyond expectations. This has happened again with his visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) earlier this week. Modi’s visit to the UAE has once again underlined India’s continuing stakes in a region that is growing through a period of momentous change.
Next week will open with the two-day conference on the Emergence of India as a Global Power in the 21st century. Leading scholars from Singapore, India, the Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand will be taking part The conference takes place in Wellington on August 25 and 26.
Indian Weekender is proud to partner with the New Zealand India Research Institute based at Victoria University of Wellington for the conference.
Indian Weekender is equally proud also to be partnering with ANZ Bank for the upcoming Migrant Expo to be held in Auckland City on September 5. Our next issue will carry more details of this. So if you are a new or a settled migrant, do schedule this into your diary to come along for a family day which will be full of information, fun and food.Until next time, remember to keep up your playful spirit.
Giri Gupta
"Finally, and perhaps most important, work that is devoid of play is either boring or a grind. We can get pretty far through sheer willpower, and some people have prodigious powers of perfectionism, self-denial, and suffering. Ultimately, though, people cannot succeed in rising to the highest...
"Finally, and perhaps most important, work that is devoid of play is either boring or a grind. We can get pretty far through sheer willpower, and some people have prodigious powers of perfectionism, self-denial, and suffering. Ultimately, though, people cannot succeed in rising to the highest levels of their field if they don’t enjoy what they are doing, if they don’t make time for play. Having a fierce dedication to grinding out the work is often not enough. Without some sense of fun or play, people usually can’t make themselves stick to any discipline long enough to master it.
People always say that you can reach the top by “keeping your nose to the grindstone,” but as sports performance specialist Chuck Hogan observes, this is not true. People reach the highest levels of a discipline because they are driven by love, by fun, by play. “The great performers perform as they do, and do so with such grace, because they love what they are doing,” Hogan observes. “It’s not work. It’s play.”
~ Stuart Brown from Play
It is important that when we passionately start to pursue any single goal we make space for play. It was not for nothing that we were taught “all work and no play…” Humour and fun are great allies of determination and achievement. They make the ride worthwhile and also make sure that you keep going and don’t run out of steam. They say laughing rejuvenates our souls, so in any pursuit of life, let us remember to maintain a playful spirit.
This has been an eventful week. While Indians all over the world celebrated Independence Day with great pride, there was an incident that made us hang our heads in shame. Yes, I am referring to the manhandling of the senior (in age) ex servicemen who were engaged in a peaceful demonstration for the One Rank One Pay, that the Government seems to be delaying. How do the very men who give up their entire lives for the sake of the security of the country become a security threat? Sometimes our biggest strides can be overshadowed by little mistakes. There is every confidence that Prime Minister Modi will do the right thing, but at the moment, it is about watching this space.
In what has become Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s trademark, he sets out an ambitious agenda for his overseas visits and manages to deliver beyond expectations. This has happened again with his visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) earlier this week. Modi’s visit to the UAE has once again underlined India’s continuing stakes in a region that is growing through a period of momentous change.
Next week will open with the two-day conference on the Emergence of India as a Global Power in the 21st century. Leading scholars from Singapore, India, the Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand will be taking part The conference takes place in Wellington on August 25 and 26.
Indian Weekender is proud to partner with the New Zealand India Research Institute based at Victoria University of Wellington for the conference.
Indian Weekender is equally proud also to be partnering with ANZ Bank for the upcoming Migrant Expo to be held in Auckland City on September 5. Our next issue will carry more details of this. So if you are a new or a settled migrant, do schedule this into your diary to come along for a family day which will be full of information, fun and food.Until next time, remember to keep up your playful spirit.
Giri Gupta
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