Striving towards Excellence

-Karthik Gurumurthy

I was working out in the gym during the lunch time when they showed snapshots of what happened ~ 7years back (in the television) which shook America.

Lot of times, I have caught myself guilty of mulling over what is not happening, what is not right, so on and so forth. After I saw those snapshots/clips, I realized how we take things for granted; the homes we live, the country in which we live, the bodies in which we live, and the relationships in which we live. It is all a gift that can be experienced only in the moment. There is no such thing as tomorrow! When tomorrow gets here, it will be today, so we are all advised not to wait till tomorrow to appreciate the gift.

I invite you to consider each moment of every day as a gift from the almighty and to take none of it for granted. Take no relationship for granted. This doesn't mean we should live in fear of losing any part of what is near and dear to us. It simply means we can choose to be mindful of how precious the gifts are and honor the gifts with gratitude and humility. When we choose to see life this way, every day, every meal, every hug, every hello as well as good-bye..indeed every breath we take becomes a mindfulness practice that encourages us to make our grudges and resentments short-lived. Our sense of wonder and awe at the gifts make it an eternally "now" experience.

I am thankful to God for all the blessings he has been showering upon me as a result of which my mission is to be known and remembered for having devoted myself to my family,being a good human being, creating great wealth and using that wealth to help others.

I take this opportunity to thank my parents for always believing in me and my brother, for all the love and support they have poured on us unconditionally. I am thankful to my wife Shobana for always believing in me even I didn't believe in myself. Shobana exemplifies a true example of being enthusiastic, charismatic and a genuine love in everybody around her. It is hard for anyone around her not to feel the unconditional love. I am blessed to have my younger brother Aravind who has always stayed steady and one of the people I can always count on. He is extremely intelligent more specifically Emotionally Intelligent like the other Goleman says.

I am also thankful to my mentors for the support, encouragement and has always covered my blind spots. Their nurturing, guidance and mentor-ship has guided me to be a better person in every avenue of my life. I can tell most people in the world do not have any mentors. More than that, the tragedy of lot of people is not understanding the need for mentors. The layer of protection which one gets by following the right people can make the difference between average and extraordinary life.

I am thankful for the learning experience as a result of association with my friends,relatives and associates. Every opportunity has taught me a lesson about how to do things right as well as how NOT to do things.