I welcome you to my short series - ANIMALITY, where I present an animal a day with some of its characteristics to take away, which could be helpful for our personal and professional growth.

ANIMALITY series - Hippopotamus!

The Hippopotamus is believed to be the second largest land animal. It weighs about 3 tons, but surprisingly it can run faster than humans at 30 miles (48 kms) per hour. Now that is outstanding, especially when it weighs so much.

Our take away:

🎯 Irrespective of being the No.1, or being part of a leading team in an organisation or with a company having major market share or high market capitalisation, or even as an individual with abundant talent, etc, ‘there is no room for complacency’. We need to be nimble and quick. Get off the blocks and move with changing times.

⚡ Introspection time! - Once we fulfil our goal, do we drop our guard and probably allow complacency to creep in? - Sometimes, people work towards a fitness goal prior to their wedding or a big day and then drop all such goals thereafter. - People may strive to be No.1 and on attaining that spot, they later become lax.

Let not our weight (body weight or head weight) bring us down. Let's focus to be big, but grounded, humble and agile-enough to change and grow!

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ANIMALITY series - Rabbit!

The Rabbit, with its large protruding eyes located high on the sides of its head, has a panoramic vision which helps it see 360 degrees around itself. It can spot predators quickly from any angle in daylight or in the dark. It can easily see what's ahead, at the side or even right behind it, without turning its head too much.

Our take away:

🎯 Very often we behave as though we have a blinkered vision and we tend not to see things the way it should be seen. In the quest of competition we just look one way - which is our way. At times, we forget about being social beings, not caring for the other and sometimes even forget all about team cohesiveness.

⚡ Introspection time!

- Can we look around and extend a helping hand to someone who may be in need of our time, energy or knowledge?

- Would it be great to socialize more than be glued to our devices without any human interaction?

- Can we identify opportunities by looking back, learning from our mistakes and then moving forward? It pays to be watchful of events happening around us and avoid blind spots. After all, we are human and the general tendency is to showcase ourselves to the world.

From now, can we also showcase the world to others and others to the world, through our panoramic vision?

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ANIMALITY series - Salmon!

The Salmon is a wonderful fish and ever since I found out more on how it takes care of its next generation, I was thrilled. So here is today's fact. As a part of its reproductive cycle, the Salmon swims upstream, against all odds for miles, to spawn in fresh water rivers. Despite living most of its life in the ocean, it is resilient-enough to swim against the tide and upstream, in order to achieve its goal of giving new life in uncharted waters.

Our take away:

🎯 Many of us are challenged in current times as we see people around us or even in our family being inconvenienced or in troubled waters due to the pandemic and we are reminded to be tough and resilient to face such challenges.

⚡ Introspection time!

- Have we given up on our dreams, aspirations and big goals pertaining to our professional and personal life while facing hurdles?

- Has the pandemic dented our confidence and set us back in our thoughts, deeds and actions?

- Are we ready to bounce back with great demonstrated resilience and tenacity to pursue our dreams.

Like the Salmon...

1. Let us not waste our energy in a mighty ocean where we may not be recognised and appreciated, with a greater goal in mind.

2. Start your journey towards your goal, even if you have to wade through troubled waters. After all, keeping your goal in mind at all times is good, but always pursuing the same is great.

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ANIMALITY series - Ant!

Ants are so tiny that one would assume that there could be nothing good in the ant. The truth is that they are too big to be neglected. Ants exhibit discipline especially when they move in a line. They communicate while moving in opposite directions, smelling each other to sense whether they belong to the same colony. Lastly, they also save food for the other within their colony and transfer the same - mouth to mouth.

Our take-away:

🎯Actually there are so many take-aways - Discipline shown while waiting in a queue, trying not to jump lines and more, are big ordeals for many of us. As individuals, we forget what teamwork is all about and we tend to work in silos, forgetting to collaborate and network with our team members. Finally, it seems like the theory of the survival of the fittest is back with ruthless competition!

⚡Introspection time!

- Do we need to be trained to be disciplined in even simple aspects like forming a queue or waiting in line (with patience)?

- Are we solo performers at work or would we like to talk to our manager, team members or colleagues and network for better results?

- Do we think that we are too small for any challenge?

This is an opportunity to learn from ants by:

1] Meeting and greeting our team members, building lasting relationships and fostering healthy competition.

2] Learning to share and care for the other by sharing our ideas, knowledge and other resources.

Despite their tiny size and limited vision, ants are successful. It's time to learn and get bitten by their positivity.

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ANIMALITY series - Horse!

So let's focus on our key learning from the horse, which could be helpful in our personal and professional lives.

🐴 Horses have been around for a long time and we have been seeing them closer than many other animals, but many of us know them more for speed, races and ofcourse for transportation in earlier periods of time. But they have a very unique feature like a few other animals, which is the ability to sleep even while standing. Yes, you read right – horses can sleep due to their special feature called the Stay Apparatus, whereby they can distribute their weight on three limbs while resting a fourth in a flexed, non-weight bearing position.

Our take-away:

🎯 I am sure that all of us love to be fast, quick to adapt to change and move with times, but make no mistake that if we were to continue non stop, it would be like burning a candle from both ends. Then it would be certain that we would experience our career burnout soon. Hence, we should take time off to pause amidst our busy schedules and rejuvenate. Avail of timely breaks to reflect and most of all to set aside time for celebration.

⚡Introspection time!

- Are we in a hurry to accomplish everything at one go, at the cost of our health?

- Would it be different to sharpen our saw and upskill and reskill to be abreast with times?

- By continuously achieving ahead of the curve, would we then stop or set higher goals, thereby not finding time for our own well-being?

Let today be a new learning for us:

📌 Race, but give yourself some personal and quality space, like the horse.

📌 Gear up for your power nap and enhance your horsepower…the reins are in your hands!!

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ANIMALITY series - Lion!So let's focus on our key learning from the Lion, which could be helpful in our personal and professional lives.🦁 All of us know the Lion to be the king of the jungle more for its looks, its raw power and for its dominance. But one of its unique characteristics is that it has the loudest roar that can be probably heard from five miles away !! Now that’s quite a roar ! It announces its arrival, its presence and its powerful message. In short - it communicates far and wide loud and clear.
Our take-away:🎯The biggest foundation for great relationships is trust and trust is mainly built on meaningful communication. If people understand the other well, they are able to build a rapport which leads to trust. We should learn the art of communicating clearly, concisely and carefully as this can take us places or stall us from achieving more.
⚡Introspection time! - Do we communicate to just pass on a message or do we communicate to be understood? - Are we able to consistently communicate with friends, family and people at work? - Are our career goals and other objectives clearly defined, loud and clear, if we intend to pursue and achieve them?
⚡Learning for us could be:1️⃣ Translating clarity of thoughts into action.2️⃣ Being open and transparent with your communication.
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I hope I have added a few more gems in your knowledge crown, through my short series - ANIMALITY.
Thank you for being with me on this 7 day journey.