The Calmness Quotient

The Calmness Quotient With a sudden rise in the quantity of stressful conditions worldover, what can help an individual to maintain his/her mental balance is calmness Modern times are a phase of sheer adversities. Right from economic upheavals to an ever-simmering extremism and from a sudden upsurge of people unrest to domestic violence – everything seems to cast the most negative effect ever over human minds. To add more, what our teenage siblings are watching are videos that should have been banned a decade back. All this coupled with the rising corporate pressure to perform well requires a bizarre onus to stay calm. To put it simply, anything to everything that is either capable of deviating us from our daily routines or can make us disoriented must be tackled with great caution. But, the method of tackling such disturbances greatly depends upon an individual. Some people are so strong that no mishap irrespective of its impact can disturb them whereas to some others, even a slight shift like a personal injury may appear like the end of the world. Similarly, exam results also cause some students to loose interest in life, which is wrong. Although each exam has a certain importance in our life yet just not being able to clear it, does not mean that you are worth nothing. Do not feel frustrated at all. It was just an exam and better things are yet to cross your way. During our lifespan, new responsibilities are entrusted upon us by the Supreme from time to time. Some of these are quite welcomed by us however some others include those we never wanted to deal with and make our brain to boil. But in all such situations, what matters the most is to maintain your calm as much as possible because in moments of anxiety or during fits of anger, human bodies undergo a lot of stress. This mounting stress results in hampering the ability to think clearly whereas a calm person can control every situation due to clear thinking. However, it is easier said than done yet the odds of not being able to crack an entrance test are certainly not larger than life. It is quite true that an entrance exam is taken with a certain aim and flunking it may leave one little disoriented and confused; yet if one maintains his/her calm, a heads up on the situation can soon be achieved, which can impart more clarity of action. Why is clarity needed? Clarity hence is the key to effective shouldering of new responsibilities. Although it may not be very easy in test situations as everyone around you starts finding faults with your method of study and starts blaming you for not being attentive, serious and intelligent. Complaints start piling up and parents, friends, siblings and relatives all start playing foe yet kindly allow me to reiterate that mental calm can be the only rescue for it would lead to clarity of mind that would engender inner peace resulting in sure success next time. Moreover, it is a universal fact that some of the best decisions in one’s life are taken while they were calm and not while they were hot headed. Thus a calm state of mind leads to greater efficacy. And now that you have belled the dreaded CAT, what most of you must be preparing for would be your upcoming GD and PIs. So remember, staying calm under this pressure of clearing the GD/PI is quite important, as it would help in making that ‘good impression.’ Furthermore, clearing a PI is not the hardest task in the world but it is just that we are not wired that way. And by the way, may I ask you a simple question here – what does it anyway take to stay calm? Almost nothing right? But if I ask you what would be the benefits of staying calm – the list would be long, really long. And if we talk particularly in a test context, the following methods can help maintaining the calm - Devise strategies to fight stress as it leads to better preparation. Almost every candidate seems to feel stressed at some or the other stage of a GD/PI, yet keeping an arsenal of self-calming strategies handy can help greatly. Taking a deep breath also helps greatly. Trust me, it’s not a joke, it is rather a scientific fact. Every individual’s breath becomes shallow in a stressful condition. As a result, his/her body starts releasing stress hormones. In such a case, if one takes a slow deep belly breath, the anti-stress nerves get stimulated that cause secretion of calming hormones, resulting in instant calm and total control of a situation irrespective of its level of difficulty. Try taking a little time off the situation. If you are feeling stressed out at home, try playing your favorite sport or chat with a close friend. In case you feel nervous at an interview venue just take a stroll outside the waiting lounge or take a flight of stairs on the pretext of visiting the washroom. This getting away for a brief moment will surely help by clearing your head and offering the desired strength to face the situation. Search some positive traits in the situation and focus on them. But what would you focus over directly depends upon the situation you are in like either one can focus the preferred outcome of the situation or any positive aspect of the total scenario. Try to concentrate over one thing at a time. If you are taking a test, just mull over one question at a time moving from easy to difficult. However, in an argument, take time out. You can even abide by the principle of late Roger Mellott that states, "lose the battle and win the fight." Proper energy investment needed In a nutshell, if one has to understand the principle of staying calm, quantum physics can come handy. One of its cutting edge principle dictates that – ‘energy evokes a response from energy’ – meaning my energy getting exchanged with or from yours and vice versa. Thus, if all the human beings come to understand the importance of staying calm, not only would they solve their problems effectively but also the world would become a better place to live and mind you, it’s not some fancy fairytale or a mere wishful thinking. It is only that most of us tend to invest our energy wrongly by taking stress. We should rather strive hard to maintain our calm and follow the Munna Bhai mantra – Tension lene ka nahi, dene ka re! In our materialistic world, everyone measures success by material wealth only. But have you ever considered the prospects of a good mental health versus material wealth? Just imagine having ample time for doing what really turns you on. Would helping people around you selflessly not fill you with sheer ecstasy and satisfaction? If yes, it’s high time that you start prioritising quality life over material things and start investing your energies in the right directions – rest all will fall in place - even the wealth part. Therefore, nurture your inherent aptitude to stay calm along with setting calmness as your topmost priority and what will come, as return would be great exponential returns.