Understanding Human Psychology

What has this year brought to me? I asked myself today. It's a whirlwind of emotions of joy and tears, it's a plethora of events which are wins and losses, it's a bag full of memories of laughter and cries, and stories which I remember to take to the coming year. After ending the year 2023 with my PhD thesis submission, I start this year with preparation for my viva, in anticipation of the feedback from my examiners. In the meantime, I dealt with a loss, which will always remain very personal, my dear aunt Dr. Katy Gandevia who was not just my aunt, but in my mind she was equal to my mother. This year also brought many family members to rekindle lost relationships, and many who served relations without a thought. This year in May, after I received the thesis feedback from my examiners, I have defended my thesis and given viva on 16th May, and achieved the highest education and title of Dr.  During the same time I received my NLP Master Practitioner Certification, which I wo...

Have you ever felt the weight of social expectations? The invisible force pushing you to conform, to fit a mold that wasn’t quite yours? This is the subtle, yet powerful influence of peer and social pressure. It’s a common experience, regardless of age. When I came across this in one of my conversations, it made me think, don't we all feel the same regardless of age, gender, stage of life we are. As teenagers, we often feel the need to belong to a certain group, to be accepted. We tend to follow celebrities who we may not idolise, just because that is a hot topic discussed in our peer group, we may land up watching a tv series to talk about it with friends, we may adopt some habits which do not fit in our routine, just to be with a group. But the question is to what extent is this healthy? This can lead to compromising our values or doing things we wouldn’t normally do. But it’s important to remember that true friends will accept you for who you are, not who they want you to be. Ev...

  Yesterday, I had the immense honor of receiving the GEN AI Jam Team award for the third time. It was a truly surreal moment, made even more special by the fact that I was wearing the same dress I wore for the previous two wins at ITAD in 2017 and ES in 2021. It was a hat trick, not just in terms of the award, but also in the attire! This experience has reinforced my belief in the power of convictions and the incredible things we can achieve when we work together as a team. I'm incredibly grateful for the opportunity to be a part of such an innovative and inspiring community.

  My leader often keeps saying this, "A good coaching session is like therapy." Coaching is a space where we, as coaches, hold many emotions for the client.  At times what we can see the client's low spiral emotions are coming from irrational beliefs about the world, which the client is unable to perceive. In the course of the session I have come across times when the client goes into a vulnerable zone and starts to shed of the old belief and attempts to form a new belief. This process, not easy definitely, makes clients face a tsunami of emotions. Overwhelmed the client may also break down and cry. How as a coach we hold the space for the person to just be? Usually I have seen the period of new belief formation come after a strong realisation the client feels about a situation, in the course of the coaching conversation. This is generally followed by hmmm and aha and loads of pauses. Silence plays a beutiful role here for allowing the client to absorb and adopt the new b...

  Recently I was designing a workshop on problem solving, when I included the concept of design thinking as one of the topics. I understood it as one of the most effective ways to approach any business problem. I delved into it deeper for understanding and realised that it can act as a guiding tool in any situation. Design Thinking isn’t just for designers of a product or a service—it’s a way of solving problems that fits right into our daily lives. At its heart is the stage of Empathize. The first step towards this approach. This step reminds us to pause and truly understand others’ needs, feelings, and perspectives before jumping to solutions.   Imagine you’re planning a surprise party for a friend. Instead of guessing what they might enjoy, you take a moment to step into their shoes. What do they love? A quiet dinner with close friends or a lively gathering? By empathizing, you ensure the party is a heartfelt success, not just a ticked-off task.   In life coa...