Speak Your Mind is not an albatross around your neck

One of the winning habit

The winning habit that one needs to develop is to confidently, without getting intimidated by people, circumstances and consequences be able to speak one’s mind. In the current environment, we need to set boundaries. By setting clear boundaries of our values, we are enabling ourselves to find the balance it will actually provide energy to each aspect of our lives. Setting boundaries in our heart and mind will enable us to speak our mind and get the important things done.

The wonderful thing about character and integrity is that they are intimately related and also one of the few things in life that no one will ever be able to forcefully take away from you. Your good choices are your own. Even though someone can take your life, they cannot force you to make a choice that you believe is wrong. Look at the choices you have made in your past and observe how much you have or have not lived by those principles. Be conscious every day of the decisions you make, however big or small and how close they bring you to be the person you really want to become. Remember ‘...until a person can say deeply and honestly, I am what I am today because of the choices I made yesterday, that person cannot say, I choose otherwise.’ Stephen R. Covey.

Without offending others, it may seem practically difficult to exercise your right to be able to speak your mind under certain circumstances. Therefore, one tends to maintain silence or keep mum even though you feel deeply about the situation, about expressing your perspective, which you believe can definitely improve or help the said situation, circumstances and problems. However, for fear of sounding outrageous or expressing a practically impossible solution, advise and perspective, considering those around have chosen to express in contradiction of your own thoughts and beliefs, in order to please others, you would rather allow a popular belief to decide the outcome of a situation or a given problem at hand. Good leaders elucidate their opinions even when in those hardest moments of life and they will not go all around Robin Hood’s barn.

M K Gandhi wrote a letter to the new Governor of Bengal, with respect to releasing the political prisoners. ‘Nature cure clinic, 6, Todiwala Road, Poona 10th March’1946.

Dear friend,

Your predecessors Mr. Casey left for you a legacy and told me that you would have to deal yourself with remaining political prisoners or detenus of Bengal. I have no desire to worry you in the beginning stage of your career but the letter I have just received from important prisoners or detenus in Dum Dum jail encourages me to do so. The letter speaks for itself. I simply say by the way of comment that it is a tragedy or, may I say, even a disgrace to keep these people in jail without trial, even on suspicion however strong that may be. I plead for courageous wholesale release.

Yours sincerely,

M K Gandhi.

This is one of the best examples of those that stand their ground without offending others and winning.