“Live life for yourself, not for others”, ‘’Don’t make sacrifices, people for whom you made them will not need you one day”, “love yourself deeply” – I have come across several such messages in context of diversity and women empowerment.
Honestly, these statements bother me. Will ‘living life only for self’, ‘loving self too deeply’, ‘caring only for self’ not make one selfish? Totally self-centered?? – doesn’t matter whether it’s a man or woman!
On the other extreme, I have seen women who dedicate their lives to their family. Their needs and preferences – if at all considered – are always put behind everyone else’s. They practically live their lives for others. At times, I have seen them feel hurt at being taken for granted, but I have not seen them do much to alter it.
The key is about defining a middle path: ‘loving yourself, but loving others too’, ‘including others in your life, even as you live life to the fullest’, ‘willing to give and open to take’. Guess what makes it difficult is that, unlike the two extremes, there isn’t a prescribed middle path. Every woman has to carve out her own middle path based on her context, preference and needs. More importantly, be cognizant that middle path is like a meandering river, continuously changing and evolving through the journey called life.
At the outset, I would like to thank you for stopping by my Blog.
I believe that there is nothing right or wrong in this world. What’s right in this moment and context may be wrong in another moment and context. This belief has inspired me to name my blog ‘Perspectives’.
Perspectives is a platform for me to share my experiences, thoughts and perspectives on various subjects. You may have a different point of view. I look forward to hearing them, these are the triggers for rich and deep conversations.
On personal front, I live in Mumbai, India. I love to read; Somerset Maugham and Nevil Shute are my favorite authors. My favorite books are The Razor’s Edge, Mrs. Craddock, Chequer Board and Gone with the Wind. I am thankful to my father who inculcated the habit of reading in me early on.
I am also passionate about traveling, I have been to most parts of India and to several countries across the globe.
On professional front, I work in Human Resources function. Over two and half decades, I have worked across multiple industries and cultures. I focus on Leadership Development, Talent Management, Visioning and Culture, Large-scale change, Employee Listening & Engagement, Employee Well-being, Inclusive work culture, HR effectiveness, Behavior and Mind-set shifts through sustained interventions
I currently lead Organization Effectiveness Function for Aditya Birla Group, a $44.3 billion conglomerate with 120000 employees across 35 countries.
I sincerely hope that you will enjoy reading my blog. I look forward to your thoughts and suggestions.
Thank you!
View all posts by Padma Rajeswari Nandi
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2 thoughts on “Carve out the Middle Path”
Nice thoughts. I believe that living life is a great balancing act. Attitude of “Giving Back” and doing my best makes me calm and happy.
Perspectives 
Nice thoughts. I believe that living life is a great balancing act. Attitude of “Giving Back” and doing my best makes me calm and happy.
Thank you Vivek for stopping by and sharing your thoughts