Category : General

As rightly quoted, “Today’s youth is the future of tomorrow.” Our government and society is continuously evolving with more and more western style of education and culture. The youth is exposed to this more due to technology and globalization. People generally say that it is a bad influence on our culture, but is it so?  The youth of today are a crucial segment of society. They are the social actors of change and can serve as a pressure group to governments in defining their priorities. They are not only the leaders of tomorrow, but the partners of today. The generation today is fast paced and the youth is curious to gain knowledge, experiment and bring change. Change is constant in today’s generation and the youth of today embrace it and run with it.

How can we Empower Youth?

Youth are independent. They like their freedom and want to explore and experiment. An amalgamation of traditional ideas, modern ideas and technology, they have unlimited potential.  Some people might be of the opinion that how can we put our future in the hands of teens, whose ideas span from simple to complex. The answer is simple – we simply let them “do”. We let them dream, think, explore and fulfill. We give our youth the tools to Collaborate and Problem solve, Brainstorm and Reflect. We empower them to believe that their voice matters without judging and criticizing them.

Youth of today want to serve the society. They want to give, participate and have an impact, what they need is support and faith in them. Many students of B-schools and  IIT study hard and graduate but instead of taking up the high paying corporate jobs they decide to do something different. They develop a new concept and serve people and the society. Sometimes these ideas and concepts are well received while other time they fall flat but they being the change agents do not stop trying. What I am saying here is, youth will learn by their own experience. Being the change agents they should know that not everyone will listen to them every time. Learning is a process and it takes practice to realize that even a great idea needs proper planning to attain the best results.

Thus, to Empower the them parents and teachers should believe in the youth. They should help them develop positive habits necessary to sustain and grow to make this world a better place to live. Just believe in them and let them explore, plan, prepare and experiment. Motivate them to be the change they wish to see in this world. Let them be Independent and empower them.

So, it’s the Friendship week. The world is celebrating this relation with a happy spirit. Why not, after all it’s “Friendship”. It is correctly said that Friends are relatives selected by one’s own will. They are most important people in anyone’s life because they understand your thoughts, tantrums and situations. They are with you in the good and the bad times. It is miraculous how we develop this relation called “FRIENDSHIP” with a person of different personality than us and like all the imperfections in them.

Friendship according to me is a bond of unconditional love developed between two people effortlessly. We become friends with like-minded people and share with them our joys, sorrows, memories and time. But in the process of life, not all friends last forever. We make new friends, we forget a few and we are consistent with others. What is most important is the essence of this relation and not the span. The memories that we make with one can never be compared to any other instance from our life. Every friend is unique in himself.

Generally, everyone will have these five kinds of friends:

1)       The Comedian:

I was recently having a problem being accepted in my new family after marriage and this one friend of mine helped me cop up with the situation in a humorous way. This friend with great sense of humor made my problem seemed so easy and I was able to cope up fast. Such friends have an ability to make us laugh and get through any problem smoothly. The seriousness of dealing with the problem converts into fun.

2)       The Life Coach:

Because of the busy lives that we live into, we spare less time to speak to our closest friends. But it doesn’t really matter. When we d connect, this kind of friend reinvigorates you. He will give you all the positive energy and make you feel much more confident about yourself and your future. Through his examples he will make you more eager to set goals and achieve them.

3)       The Risk Taker:

We all have or should have this one adventurous friend who takes us out of the status quo- someone who introduces us to new concepts, ideas and activities we might not have otherwise been exposed to or feared to explore on our own. I am an adventurous person myself and I have inspired many to try something fun and challenging. I have encouraged them to push their limits and not get intimidated of doing something they fear. And I can bet it is a lifetime experience.

4)       The Challenger:

One characteristic we underrate in a friend is the ability to be a revolution. The Challengers are those who take up a cause and focus on bringing up a change and transform lives. We all have this one friend who is sensitive to world’s persistent problems and makes an effort and accomplish a cause.

5)       The Loyalist:

Everyone needs a friends who does not judge you if you are in a complete mess. They are just there for you whatever may come. You can be at your worst or your best in front of them and BEWARE you can never fake a smile before them; they will recognize the sadness behind the smile. They let you get emotional when you’re at your low point and really listen to you without a question. We all have a friend who hangs in there even when we’re not at our best.