“I’ve realized that somebody who is tired and needs rest, and goes on working all the same”, is a fool” - Carl Jung.
We live in a highly competitive world where employees have high material and professional aspirations. Many work at jobs that demand global business interactions, which keep them up at unearthly hours. To them any leisure activity may only seem at best like a dream, or worst, an unproductive use of time. Not just that, but any mention or suggestion to spend time on them, is likely to elicit a response such as the one below
Carl Jung's words notwithstanding.
But what if they knew that leisure activities could teach them valuable skills which could be assets to them in other their work, as well as other dimensions of their lives? What if they realized that the returns on them could be disproportionate to the amount of time invested? Would it then make it a worthwhile investment for them?
Well, 'show me the ROIers', (and also others) read on and decide for yourself:
1. ROI: Leadership and Negotiations Skills
Activity: Essaji Vahanavati, son of former Attorney General of India is a young partner at a reputed law firm. He is passionate about wildlife photography. Benefits: His leisure activity has ingrained in him the virtues of patience; given him an eye for detail; and taught him to stay cool in critical situations. During transactions, he can patiently wait for others to put their point on the table and at the same time quickly grasp the matter and come out with solutions. This has earned him the respect of senior partners at the law firm.
2. ROI: Importance of Making the Journey the Destination
But what if they knew that leisure activities could teach them valuable skills which could be assets to them in other their work, as well as other dimensions of their lives? What if they realized that the returns on them could be disproportionate to the amount of time invested? Would it then make it a worthwhile investment for them?
Well, 'show me the ROIers', (and also others) read on and decide for yourself:
1. ROI: Leadership and Negotiations Skills
Activity: Essaji Vahanavati, son of former Attorney General of India is a young partner at a reputed law firm. He is passionate about wildlife photography. Benefits: His leisure activity has ingrained in him the virtues of patience; given him an eye for detail; and taught him to stay cool in critical situations. During transactions, he can patiently wait for others to put their point on the table and at the same time quickly grasp the matter and come out with solutions. This has earned him the respect of senior partners at the law firm.
2. ROI: Importance of Making the Journey the Destination
Activity: World Bank economist Kaushik Basu spent his leisure time working on a longer method to prove what Pythagoras proved 2600 years ago. In a right angle triangle, the sum of the square of two sides equals the square of the hypotenuse.
Benefits: To justify the new and longer proof, he invokes the Greek poem Ithaca, which describes the long journey to Odysseus' home island. The island, the poet Cavafy says, is disappointing, but Ithaca's charm is in the journey itself.
Benefits: To justify the new and longer proof, he invokes the Greek poem Ithaca, which describes the long journey to Odysseus' home island. The island, the poet Cavafy says, is disappointing, but Ithaca's charm is in the journey itself.
3. ROI: Patience
Activity: Stock market man Ramesh Damani has a thing for dough which made him seek out baking and attend a week's bakery course in Paris.
Benefit: Asked for the similarity between brokers and bakers, Damani's reply is, "Both like the feel of dough....and both (investment and baking) need a lot of patience."
Activity: Stock market man Ramesh Damani has a thing for dough which made him seek out baking and attend a week's bakery course in Paris.
Benefit: Asked for the similarity between brokers and bakers, Damani's reply is, "Both like the feel of dough....and both (investment and baking) need a lot of patience."
4. ROI: Inspiration
Activity: For geniuses, a routine was more than a luxury - it was essential for their work. Charles Dickens took three hour walks every afternoon, while Beethoven took lengthy strolls after lunch.
Benefits: For Charles Dickens what he observed on his walks, fed directly into his writing, while Beethoven carried a paper and pencil with him in case inspiration struck.
Call to Action
Leisure activities can be both both satisfying and capable of building and honing useful skills and virtues. Discovering the parts between your profession and your hobbies which are similar, or support the other can help you get satisfying returns.
Leisure activities can be both both satisfying and capable of building and honing useful skills and virtues. Discovering the parts between your profession and your hobbies which are similar, or support the other can help you get satisfying returns.
No comments:
Post a Comment