7 Keys of Charisma by Joanna Kozubska

This work sets out to find what makes a good leader, and what makes a leader remarkable and charismatic. Joanna Kozubska examines the theories and concepts of charisma before taking the reader on a journey of self-discovery to find out how charismatic they are and how to become more charismatic.

Joanna Kozubska identifies seven key traits which make up a charismatic personality - 

• Confidence
• Vision
• Communication
• Bags of style
• Visibility
• The ability to get things done
• Mystery & Enigma

First Key - THE CONFIDENCE KEY

Daniel Goleman, in his book Emotional Intelligence quotes a report by Dr. T Berry Brazelton, an eminent Harvard paediatrician, in which confidence is listed as one of the ingredients of a child's crucial capacity to learn. - "Confidence - A sense of control and mastery of one's body, behavior and world; the child's sense that he is more likely than not to succeed at what he undertakes and that adults will be helpful."

Confidence comes from belief in oneself, from knowledge, experience and expertise. If we have confidence we can behave confidently!

The core of confidence is Self-esteem and what we believe about ourselves - the Believing and Knowing Oneself.

Building Self -Esteem

1. THE VISIONING TECHNIQUE -


The majority of athletes use visionary techniques to help them achieve their goals. They run through the event in question, imagining the actual physical experience of the competition and finally "feeling" what it would be like to win, experiencing the roar of the crowd and the excitement of the medal ceremony. This programmes the brain positively, maximizing the potential for success.

In his book, In Pursuit of Excellence - David Hemery describes a series of interviews with achievers from all walks of life - "Visualization was considered to be the most important aspect these achievers had in common. They sensed with the greatest possible clarity the successful performance of their ambition. At times this involved using all their senses; they would imagine the sound, sight, touch, taste and smell of the coming challenge and its successful outcome. It is important that the action is as close to perfection as one's mind can perceive."

Hemery believes that this approach has a number of advantages. It allows the individual to have "been there" before the event and therefore, some of the element of fear of the unknown can be resolved and perhaps most importantly, the individual is convincing him or herself that successful action is possible. This means that one is working on an improved self-image which can increase one's self confidence; and confidence is all important in performing well under stressful conditions. He believes that visualization is the mind's way of rehearsing personal control of successful actions.

2. ACHIEVEMENT BANKS -

Another way of building self-esteem is to create a visual bank for achievements. Collect the records of your achievements and keep it in one place and keep going through them to inspire and  motivate you when low.

3. FEAR OF FAILURE OR LEARNING FROM MISTAKES?

"Half the failures in life arise from pulling in one's horse as he is leaping."

Having a go, not being frightened to get it wrong or to be refused, together with the ability to continuously learn from mistakes - these are characteristics of truly charismatic individuals.

"IF YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL VISION THEN YOU WILL HAVE EXTRAORDINARY ENERGY ABOUT IT."

"NO ONE CAN MAKE YOU FEEL INFERIOR WITHOUT YOUR OWN CONSENT" - ELEANOR ROOSEVOLT.

"RECOGNIZING AND ACKNOWLEDGING OUR OWN ABILITY IS VERY IMPORTANT WHEN IT COMES TO BUILDING OUR OWN CONFIDENCE."

Jeffrey Archer's explanation as to why there are more "paupers in the world than princess" -

"If you have talent and energy you can become a KING.
 If you have no talent but you have energy you can become a PRINCE.
 If you have talent but no energy you will be a PAUPER."


So therefore, it is very important for you to take of your HEALTH and SPIRIT.

• Accept and Believe honest feedback - positive or negative.
• Visualize Success.
• Find the courage to "have a go".
• Learn from mistakes.
• Gain EXPERIENCE and EXPERTISE.
• Recognize personal CAPABILITIES and LIMITATIONS.
• Set achievable GOALS but strive to exceed these.
• Behave Confidently.
• Above all, "KNOW WHO YOU ARE".
• The secret ingredients are - ENERGY, MOTIVATION & DRIVE.

Second Key - THE VISION KEY

Visualize what you want to be and get the picture clear in your mind.

• Set out on the journey of SELF AWARENESS.
• Identify personal values and beliefs.
• Assess these against natural principles.
• Write your own obituary to give you guidance on what you want to achieve in your life.
• Draw up a personal mission statement.

Third Key - THE COMMUNICATION KEY 

It is extremely important to have the right communication skills to express your self completely and confidently.

• Communicate with passion, feelings, enthusiasm and emotion.
• Develop the ability to use your sixth sense - your instinct.
• Recognize and project your chosen image.
• Use humor with care.
• Develop excellent presentation skills.

Fourth Key - THE STYLE KEY

To be true to others it is first important to be true to your self and BE YOURSELF.

• Develop curiosity.
• Learn to play again.
• Become a "superbaby".
• Observe style and excellence and learn from examples.
• Develop a passion for learning.
• Feel and visualize.
• Love What You Do.
• Be Courageous.
• Develop your own style with pride.

Fifth Key - THE MOVING AND SHAKING KEY 

• Work at what you want to.
• Verbalize and share your dream and vision.
• Develop and sustain focus.
• Sharpen your team skills.
• Develop the ability to move along the leadership - management continuum with ease.
• Develop planning and control skills.
• Always set excellent examples.

Sixth Key - THE VISIBILITY KEY

• Stand up and be counted.
• Express your views assertively.
• Seek visibility and manage the consequences.
• Always treat others with respect, courtesy and care.

Seventh Key - THE MYSTERIOUS AND ENIGMATIC KEY

• Identify the source of your charisma.
• Listen twice as much as you speak.
• Recognize & avoid threats to your mysterious and enigmatic aura.

Here are  the Seven Keys of Charisma laid by Joanna Kozubska.

A very interesting and helpful book that guides you well on how to unleash your full potential and be successful.  

Confusion de Confusiones by Joseph de la Vega

 

STOCK MARKET

A place of paradoxes.

The most fairest & the most deceitful.

The finest & the most vulgar on earth.

Quintessence of academic learning & a paragon of fraudulence

A touchstone for the intelligent & a tombstone for the audacious.

A treasury of usefulness & a source of disaster.

This is how Joseph de la Vega describes the most enigmatic & dynamic business of stocks in his book Confusion de Confusiones.This seventeenth century masterpiece is the oldest book ever written on the stock exchange business. Taking the form of a dialogue between a philosopher, a merchant and a shareholder, it describes the workings, the mechanisms and the participants of the Amsterdam Stock Exchange, the first stock exchange ever created in the world. The book is based on the dealings in a single security, the stock of the Dutch East India Company and its crash of 1688 and the furore created by the false rumors of war and a tax hike to fund an increased defense budget.

The author describes the three classes of people associated with the stock exchange business -

1st Class - The Princes of business, 2nd - Merchants and 3rd - Speculators which translated in today's modern times means - 1st - Investors, 2nd - Short - term traders and 3rd Speculators, the definition of which remains the same be it any century, the people who eat, drink, sleep, breathe shares and are the main contributors to the dynamic nature of stock markets. He has further divided the speculators into two classes who are always colliding with each other - Bulls and Bears. Bulls or liefhebberen (the later meaning "lovers" in Flemish) start their operations by purchases, and Bears or the Contremine ( a name which is explained by the fact that India is considered to be a mine and that this faction strives to exhaust this mine) start their operations by sales. He has mentioned about call and put options, forwards contract and many other things which existed then and are pretty much prevalent today as well. He has mentioned about the three main factors that influenced the rise and fall of prices - the conditions in India, European politics and opinion on the stock exchange itself. Well same applies today as well - global factors, Indian economy and politics and opinion on the stock exchange and you can add up the influence of media, mainly business channels which greatly influence the retail investors i.e., the lay public. It is interesting to note when you read the book that nothing much has changed in terms of the basic nature of the business, nature and type of people associated and the rationale behind their workings over the years but instead has been an improvement and a build up from then to now in terms of technology and a few more things added that makes it more refined and sophisticated based on the foundation laid then.

The Author shares his perceptions based on his experiences and observations, which you can easily term them as his golden principles -

          In his words,

• The first principle [in speculation] - Never give anyone the advice to buy or sell shares, because, where perspicacity is weakened, the most benevolent piece of advice can turn out badly.

• The second principle - Take every gain without showing remorse about missed profits, because an eel may escape sooner than you think. It is wise to enjoy that which is possible without hoping for the continuance of a favorable conjuncture and the persistence of good luck.

• The third principle - Profits on the exchange are the treasures of goblins. At one time they may be carbuncle stones, then coals, then diamonds, then flint-stones, then morning dew, then tears.

• The fourth principle - Whoever wishes to win in this game must have patience and money, since the values are so little constant and the rumors so little founded on truth. He who knows how to endure blows without being terrified by the misfortune resembles the lion who answers the thunder with a roar, and is unlike the hind who, stunned by the thunder tries to flee. It is certain that he who does not give up hope will win, and will secure money adequate for the operations that he envisaged at the start. Owing to the vicissitudes, many people make themselves ridiculous because some speculators are guided by dreams, others by prophecies, these by illusions, those by moods, and innumerable men by chimeras.  

Era's change, way of dressing and doing things change, there are changes in technology but emotions which govern human behavior and influence their decisions will always remain the same and therefore his advice is still applicable to a T even in today's times. 

A must read for anyone and everyone connected to the stock market business.

Message In A Bottle by Nicholas Sparks

Do you believe in Love?

If you believe in God, you will definitely believe in love. He has made someone special for everyone and will show his presence through that someone.

If you believe in true love, you will get it. There will be a day in your life when someone will make you understand the meaning of "WE".... Its not about you and I....Its about "WE" that makes all the difference.

LOVE is a sacred bond between two people, the most purest and sweetest emotion which has the power to heal the deepest wound, wash away all your pain and make you feel alive once again.

Message in a bottle is the tragic story of a journalist Theresa Obsorne who works for Boston Times and writes columns on parenting. Deeply hurt by her ex-husband who shattered her trust, she is wary of true love, trailing through life shuttling between her work and her 12 year old son, who take up all her time and keep her occupied with barely any time left for herself. She is persuaded by her boss who is also her best friend to take a trip with her to Cape Cod so that she gets a chance to discover herself once again and come out of the grief and pick up life once again while her son is vacationing with his father and his new wife.

While strolling on the beach, she stumbles upon a bottle which has a letter rolled in it. She removes the letter from the bottle and is deeply moved by the desperate message that a man has written for his wife. She publishes this letter and comes across two more letters written by the same man for his wife. She gets very curious and wants to know more about this man Garrett and Catherine and wants to know what pulled them apart. Her quest to know more about him leads her in search of him and from this begins an episode which changes her life completely. Garrett and she fall for each other but their love is hindered by many confrontations with real life difficulties setting in like they being from completely different backgrounds and the distance but the main conflict was Garrett still being unable to overcome his dead wife Catherine whom he loved very deeply. Garrett wondered if one could be in love with two people at the same time. This was one of the main dilemma that their relationship faced. All this while he was unaware about his letters with Theresa and when he came across them accidentally, he was furious and left Theresa hurt and accused her of setting up all this and calling their relationship a sham but when Theresa explains him everything, he feels sorry but by then Theresa leaves him and a year later she gets a call from his father and gets to know about Garrett's death. One week later she receives a letter from him where he tells her that his biggest mistake was not letting go of Catherine and that he realized that they were fated to meet and now wants to spend all his life with her and is going to be with her soon but.... destiny had other plans.....

Very touching....

We suffer when we don't accept reality and see only what we want to see and trap ourself in our own perceptions and restrain ourself from receiving what life has to offer.....

Emma by Jane Austen

I just love reading classics. The plot, the characters, the backdrop is almost always so amazing, there is so much substance that when you finish reading the novel, you end up craving for more and wish the story never ended. Jane Austen's Emma is no exception in this regard. Very entertaining, Emma is the story of Emma Woodhouse, a rich girl, who is very imaginative, loves doing match making of her friends but herself is not interested in matrimony. Her passion for match making proves to be fatal at one point and she ends up making so many blunders and messes up herself and the people around her in this process. Funny and full of rich irony, Emma was refreshing, after reading some heavy stuff. Just loved it.