“Pleasure changes you prominently, but…pain changes you permanently”
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There is something about meeting new people at new places – people you have no history with…with whom you neither go back a long way nor look forward to have any lasting association. In short, no ‘equation’, and no pressure to have one! I felt the same lightness again for a while as I had joined a morning-hours yoga camp for a week.
But, of all, this one man looked apart, sadly…for obvious reasons. He must have been in mid-40s and it was apparent that a stroke of paralysis had affected one side of his body. He looked detached, restrained and sad. On one of the days, as I saw him struggling to wear his T-shirt properly, I tried to help him; to which he reacted vehemently. I was taken aback but could see where it was coming from; and thus withdrew silently at that time and kept behaving normally with him.
On the last day, as the trainer asked us to laugh aloud before the break, I could see that he just couldn’t figure out how to laugh. And as I wished him during the break, he said “Sorry! I reacted badly that day”. Then he paused and said “You know what…I have done so much for my people…borne so much for them. And now all of them are fine and look what I have done to myself”. Well! I couldn’t say anything in return but I guess he could see from my expression that I could sense how he was feeling.
Well! That was the last time I saw him. But what he said continued to haunt me. And more than the words, it was the pain in his voice and the look on his face that simply refused to leave me for hours. And it only made me realize that possibly the most painful of the sufferings in life is when we feel ‘betrayed’…‘taken advantage of’…‘left stranded’.
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If possible…don’t let anyone dear to you feel that way.
About Sandeep Atre
Dr. Sandeep Atre:
• Counseling Psychologist and an internationally recognized ‘Emotional & Social Intelligence’ Expert, with experience of more than two decades in helping people ‘sort out’ and ‘excel in’ intrapersonal and interpersonal matters. He holds a PhD in Management and a Master’s degree in Psychology (www.dratrecounsels.com).
• Founder of Socialigence – a venture specializing in development of ‘Social & Emotional Intelligence’ and its offshoot interpersonal skills through workshops and an award-winning online course rooted in neuroscience and psychology (www.socialigence.net).
• Author of two books related to his domain, namely - “Understanding Emotions Logically” and “Observing Nonverbal Behavior”; and third book on various aspects of life, named “Two Paras of Everyday Wisdom”. Moreover, the collection of his Nazms and Ghazals is published as a book titled “Baat Jazbaat Ki”.
• Corporate Trainer, with experience of close to two decades. Has conducted 150+ workshops/sessions for 50+ organizations & institutions like CSC, Cummins, Piramal, Ranbaxy, Lupin, Bridgestone, Michelin, Eicher, Maruti, Force, Idea, Airtel, NBHC, SBI, HDFC, L&T, Zydus, Thapar University, Banasthali, Narsee Monjee, Symbiosis, IIFM Bhopal, Azim Premji University, Nirma, Welingkar & IBS Hyderabad.
• Co-Founder and Director of CH EdgeMakers – a leading ‘Coaching and Training’ organization of central India for more than 24 years. He has trained close to 100 thousand students for ‘Soft Skills’ & ‘Entrance & Recruitment Preparation’ (www.ch-india.com).
• ‘Management Speaker and Orator’. Has featured at platforms like TEDx, IIM, IIT, NIT, CII, YI, CII-IWN, TCS, IMA, ICAI, ECA, ISHRAE, NEN, Sahodaya, Aditya Birla Education Academy, Round Table, LinkedIn Local, Rotary International, MP State’s Teachers’ Training, Academic Staff College DAVV, Police University Rajasthan, Police Training Academy Indore & more than 100 institutions.
• Member of noted associations and boards. Has been an ‘Executive Committee’ member of Indore Management Association. Associate Editor of IMA publications. Governing Council Member of Banasthali University’s SBBJ Centre for Research in MSME & Promotion of Entrepreneurship in Women. Executive Member of IMS, DAVV Alumni Association. Member of Rotary International’s ‘Group Study Exchange’ team to Minnesota, USA. ESI Coach with FWSA Australia.
Note: For glimpses of work, watch YouTube Channel ‘Dr. Sandeep Atre at Socialigence’.
