As a digital marketing partner, Womenlines takes pleasure to share about upcoming informative health talk ‘Find Your Healthy Balance’ by Registered Dietitian in Singapore Ujjwala Baxi, founder of Poshan Cure Thru Diet at Myra’s @Stadium in Singapore, on 29th July from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm. Open to both men and women, this is a fantastic opportunity to interact with her and get your burning questions regarding food and health answered. Our venue sponsor is none other than Myra’s @stadium, famous for serving the most authentic and delectable Mexican and North Indian cuisine on the island…… You will also receive gifts good for your health and vitality in a goodie bag by our esteemed sponsors namely- Ega Juice Clinic, Energia Rev 22, South Bridge Aesthetics, Fitpro Academy, The Art of living, and Acado Oil(Avocado) Register now as your health is the most important asset in life….prioritise it:)!!!!

Ujjwala Baxi –

“Are you lost amidst all the confusing nutrition information present out there and want to know reliable answers to them? Do you have health related queries which need to be answered and reassured by a qualified professional?
Our upcoming event on ‘Find your Healthy Balance’ with the right type of foods and lifestyle will help you understand the power of nourishing foods and how you can use them in your daily regime to live a more fuller, happier, healthier and abundant life. At Poshan Cure Thru Diet, we safeguard our clients from following any fad diets and lay the correct foundations of balanced nutrition with a hint of Ayurvedic guidelines.”

Fee- $45 , Group fee -$30/pax Contact Ms Renuka @ 90627671 Info@poshancurethrudiet.com

Charu Mehrotra

Promoting Excellence in Women!

Women Icons Network (www.womenicons.com) hosted a discussion around “Access to girls education is the key to achieving gender diversity”, on July 12, 2018, at the James Cook University Singapore, to mark the UN-designated “Malala Day”. It was intended to be a get together of like-minded individuals who care and value the need to enhance access to education for the girl child across all the underdeveloped & developing countries across the world.
The initiative was part of the Women Icons Network of  BERG Singapore.

Panellists included Dr Smita Singh (Senior Lecturer at JCU) who is an experienced educator and scholar. Leza Parker, an entrepreneur who is the CEO of the firm, SC Beauty Network Pte Ltd, that scaled across 17 countries globally. Shirley Ong is the Vice President at Mutual Benefits Realty Pte Ltd Singapore. Shirley is a Real Estate and Immigration specialist, who deals in high net worth individuals and companies portfolio. Dr Caroline Wong, who is a senior lecturer in business management and has published widely in the field of knowledge management by taking a multidisciplinary approach and this field of research extends into knowledge-based cities, creative cities, and creative industries with special focus on Singapore. Her research interest also extends to the scholarship of teaching and learning. Kashmira Mehta, who is the operations and marketing associate at BERG Singapore, moderated the panel discussion very well. She is also the convener of the Women Icons Network.

On July 12, 2013, Malala Yousafzai, a sixteen-year-old Pakistani girl engaged in the promotion of women’s education, delivered an impassioned speech at the United Nations (UN) headquarters on the need for gender equality in education. The address saw several rounds of standing ovations for the teenager and the day, July 12, was soon declared by the UN as Malala Day in honour of the young activist.

Interesting points surfaced while discussion regarding how gender diversity can be achieved across all countries.-

1. At the grassroots level, girls have to come over hurdles of infrastructure as schools are located quite far away from their houses. They also have to face the challenge of overcoming parental mindset of not sending daughters to school, as they can be a help to do household work and earn money for the family. On the other hand in some places, girls have to fight the mindset of getting the education only for the low-class job and not striving to excel further. Poverty is the other major reason, which deprives girl child of the education. Different countries have different challenges.

2. Mindset plays a big role in achieving gender diversity. Leza mentioned that in Singapore mindset is changing and to support women, men are participating fully in taking care of the family. She emphasized that if a woman really wants, she can thrive. Maybe few countries giving more opportunities few less but efforts are on everywhere and that’s the good news. Leza also emphasized that women are questioned can she lead, is she aware of business jargon. Therefore women should take advantage of social media and raise their voices in order to showcase their worth.

3. Shirley stressed on the fact that to accelerate career advancement strong communication line is the need. She mentioned that if women don’t speak for themselves then it is assumed that she is happy with the position where she is. Efforts should be made by women to aspire to reach high positions at the workplace. They have to communicate openly with their colleagues and bosses to get them heard. Otherwise, their efforts will be unnoticed and everybody will assume that they are happy wherever they are.

4. Dr Smita highlighted that the challenges for women both in the field of education and workforce needs context sensitive solutions. So the challenge is to bring government-led initiatives, gender-specific and friendly policies which can provide equal opportunities for all. She also mentioned that women as mothers should give equal opportunity to both kids and should never condition them to gender-specific roles or duties in life.

5. Dr Caroline mentioned that based on capability both men and women should have an equal chance. She also highlighted the need of change in parents thinking, who can play a very important role in guiding their girls for higher education in life.

In the end, everybody envisioned a beautiful future for womenfolk with a change of perception and mindset for women playing a major role at higher positions.

Charu Mehrotra

Promoting Excellence in Women!

Womenlines welcomes Anji Hallewell as an Influencer of Positive Mindset on the Womenlines panel. Anji is a Natural Strengths Coach, Trainer, and Founder of Hidden Lava.  In her sharing for this month, Anji is talking about the importance of choosing your vibe for excellence in life-

Life has its ups and downs. One minute things are great and you are loving life, and the next you find yourself in situations where you experience the complete opposite. Sure, to have both good and bad encounters is inevitable, but who controls how you respond in those situations? Is it led purely by external factors, like circumstances or other people? Or do you have control to the override button?

Physics has taught us that everything is energy and that energy vibrates. If something has a vibration, it has a frequency that can be tuned in and out. You have two types of energy going on. The first one you will be very familiar with, as this is how you get your psychical energy to function but the other isn’t something that is widely published. Do you know what it is? The lesser known of the two is your emotional energy. Where your focus and attention is, your emotions will go. Think that something is a good experience and you will feel joy and happiness; see something as unpleasant and you will evoke feeling such as, fear, doubt and worry. You see just like a car, the fuel you put inside it will have an impact on its performance. Think of emotions as your fuel, the car as your mind and you as the driver. The fuel affects your behaviour, your actions, your well-being and your state of mind. So, get to know what is fulling you at any point in time.

So, how can take control of this intangible energy? Think of it like a volume slider that you would see on the control panel in a recording studio. The lower end represents a lower volume and the upper end is the loudest volume. You all have your own internal slider which gets triggered subconsciously by situations or other people. But what if you were in control of it? What would life look like then? Wouldn’t you like to know how you can do that?

Taking this out of the recording studio and into your body, this slider represents your emotional energy, which is your fuel, aka your vibe or your frequency, as you go through life. It will have a spectrum that can fluctuate at different levels at any given time. At the lower end resides things like hate, envy, jealousy and comparison; and at the higher end, there is love, joy, creativity, courage and integrity. You can see already how the two opposites would manifest a very different outcome to situations. Quite simply where you are on this slider will determine what you experience in life. I guess it’s a little similar to the glass half empty or half full debate. What people have failed to miss is that the glass is refillable, but you can’t see that when you are operating from a lower level of vibration. You need to shift yourself to a higher level of vibration to see a wider view and connect to a higher level of thinking. In doing so, you are connecting to a different and higher level of emotional energy that drives and creates something greater.

So, my advice is this, learn more about yourself and your emotional energy, because it’s behind every decision you make and action you take. Start to master how you can control your slider, so you can rise above it and connect to a higher level of thinking. You will always have a choice in the direction that you go, it’s just whether you can elevate yourself high enough to see it.

Anji Hallewell

Coach, Trainer & Founder

+65 8408 5042

In my 10 years of entrepreneurship journey, I have met amazing women doing incredible work in life. They are so talented, creative, and skilful that they can achieve a lot in life. One thing which I find missing in the majority of them was their attitude to take care of their own health. Women’s health in any family needs equal attention as for another member of the family.

We, as a woman, have all the reasons to mention that why we are not able to take care of ourselves. Many don’t feel like giving importance to themselves. Upbringing has taught that family comes first and rest afterwards. So with time, they are awakened about themselves only when some health challenge appears. Importance of doing exercise, mindful planning for healthy food for the full family including her, taking care of her mental physical and emotional health as she takes care of her family. This should be happening from the beginning. We should always remind ourselves that if we are fit and healthy physically and emotionally, we can take care of our family in a better way. With time everybody gets busy and when any challenge comes then only ifs and buts remain.

I want to request all males who are reading this article to make your girlfriend, mother, wife equally mindful of her own health as she takes care of you. As a family, all members have equal rights to live life beautifully. Here are my 3 tips for excellence in health which I have learnt from experts sharing, reading and listening to others experience-

1. To improve your physical health yoga is a must in present times for every living being. Take out time over the weekend if you are working, squeeze in time during daytime if you are working from home or a homemaker, whatever it takes. You have no idea what wonders yoga can do in your life. Specially Pranayama.

2. For your emotional health start journalling as the first activity in morning. Womenlines Day planner (free download on free subscription of online magazine www.womenlines.com) can be a great help to you. You can list out your affirmations, goals, to do list, list of the healthy diet for the day and anything for which you are full of gratitude. This activity if followed every day can help you to understand yourself in a better way.

3. Inner health and stamina can be balanced through mindfulness of diet. It is all about telling yourself repeatedly, ‘Think Twice before Eating Anything’. The type of food, quantity, timing, mood, atmosphere, everything has some impact on you. Less quantity of healthy food intake at the right time, with a happy mood with all mindfulness for enjoying the taste, with thankfulness to God, can do wonders friends. Just think about it!  If you like these tips then please do share further with your network.

If you like these tips then please do share further with your network. Womenlines will love to hear from you too. If you want to share any tip please mention in the comment section below!

Charu Mehrotra

Promoting Excellence in Women!

Womenlines Influencer for Yoga, Archana Amlapure is sharing  7 tips for a healthy lifestyle-

Do you want to have a healthy, happy and stress-free lifestyle to achieve your health goals?

But what are the major hurdles- our habits, sedentary lifestyle, Our eating habits, personal, professional and environmental stress, overthinking and many more. These all lead to the health issues sooner or later. When we go through the pain and managing the diseases, it’s too late to go back to the basic. But its never too late to start again as well.

Here are the 7 lifestyle habits everyone should follow, be it managing diseases or maintaining positive health-

1. Know your body better
Do regular health checkups and know your basic parameters are well within normal range e.g: BP, Sugar level, BMI, Cholesterol level, Pulse rate, Vitamin deficiency etc. Only YOU can know your body best. So, everyone should know these indicating parameters. BP, Sugar level etc. can be checked with measuring devices at home as well
2. Breathe
Prana, our basic life force. We take our breath for granted and never try to nourish and improve further. In fact, with stress, tension and anxiety we abuse it so much that our body forgets completely about Deep breathing. Deep Breathing and pranayama alone can solve most of the health issues. Read here more on Prana.

3. Yoganas
Being physically active with aerobics, gym, different kind of exercise program, running etc. is good, but if you really want the holistic healthy lifestyle, then you need to include Asanas/postures. As asanas are done on physical level also effects on pranic(breath) and mental level. Asanas help with better blood circulation to the body part involved, which means better oxygen supply. It works on muscles and strengthening them. Above all, it helps to gain energy every time you do Yoga (with relaxation techniques at the end of yoga) unlike in other exercises where you mainly loose energy. At least incorporate any form of Yoga for 2-3 days in a week

4. Meditation/Mindfulness/Pursuing passion, hobbies
Very often Meditation is related to spirituality. Not to complicate things, you can try to be mindful or meditate (concentrate, Chanting, devotional etc.) minimum 5 mins/day. This gives clarity in your mind, relaxes brain cells. If not, at minimum indulge yourself in some pleasurable activities, where you feel passionate about something like dance, singing, cooking, arts, sports etc. devoting yourself to your passion gives the effects of meditation during that period.

5. Slowing down/Pause
In order to achieve someone else’s goal or personal goal, we are constantly running, working hard, surviving competitions, but once in a while slowing down, taking pause helps and solves many issues in the life. When you stressed, PAUSE. When you are angry, PAUSE. When you are anxious, PAUSE. This will sort of many of the problems.
6. Diet
Today’s Era, too much is talked about diet. Diet changes need to be done as a preventive or curative plan for many health issues. But the key is to have balance, not too much or too less. Everyone is different, follow what your body takes and likes instead of following crazy fads.

7. Selfless activities
Spending time in Nature and if possible, alone time gives pure bliss. Spending time with loved ones, paying it forward, giving back, helping others gives unconditional happiness. Find out what would you like to do.

If you need any further for Yoga, Meditation, Healing, Contact Archana (81912862)
www.ojasyog.com
www.facebook.com/ojasyog
Insta: ojasyoga0704

Converting Womenlines blog to an online magazine in Singapore  (www.womenlines.com) where I can report about anything for promoting excellence in women was a dream come true. Six months ago I started this journey and I feel awesome today!

Reaching out to women entrepreneurs and taking their interviews under ‘Entrepreneur of the month section’. Reporting and marketing events which can help women to excel. Reporting about the products by writing reviews and sharing across. Soon women entrepreneurs can share advertorials about their products or services on Womenlines advertorial page and can get benefit from Womenlines reach out.

Womenlines, an online magazine in Singapore strongly believes that if a woman is empowered with the right knowledge she can create a beautiful life. .Womenlines subscription is free and on subscription, the subscriber receives a link of Day Planner For Excellence, which she can download and use every day to plan her day for excellence. With this vision, Womenlines magazine is reaching out to womenfolk across Singapore and India besides the organic reach out digitally across the whole world. Womenlines presence is on 7 social media platforms- Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, Google Plus, Pinterest and Linkedin. Every day success tips are shared across Womenlines social media to help womenfolk. And on youtube Womenlines Tv there are monthly episodes, Entrepreneur of the month’s interview and various other sharings.

I am so grateful to my Influencers Meenu Agarwal founder Food N Wellness, Success Coach Anji Halliwell founder Hidden Lava and Yoga expert Archana Amlapure, founder Ojas Yoga Singapore, for sharing their expert knowledge on health, yoga, nutrition, and mindset. Above all grateful to my guest contributors who in between keep sharing such amazing informative article.

If you are a women entrepreneur looking for marketing reach out for your product or service, share your ad in the advertorial category of Womenlines!

If you are dealing with a product (health, parenting, kids, green kitchen, beauty, etc), reach out to womenfolk through the product review section of Womenlines!

If you are having any event or workshop in Singapore which can help women or kids in some way reach out at contact@www.womenlines.com for your marketing campaigns!

Womenlines is by a woman and for women, with a mission of promoting excellence in women!

Cheers to womanhood!

Charu Mehrotra

Alka Verma is a media professional in Singapore having an incredible experience in the various field related to media and events. Heading the role of Company Manager for US Production Walt Disney’s LION KING (first Residential Broadway) in magnificent Marina Bay Sands and INCANTO in Resort World Sentosa. In the role of senior production coordinator (Asia Pacific) with Walt Disney Television Singapore she successfully launched 6 Channels in 6 major languages in India.

Alka has been associated with Discovery Asia and ESPN sport-star as an Associate Director. Pursuing her passion in filmmaking Alka has produced short films “Flyer” and “Regrets”. Both films have been recognized and received awards at various Film Festivals and have made their marks in International Film Market.

 Alka has been steadily working in the media industry as a producer for corporate films, TV programs and TVCs. Bringing her diverse experience in marketing and media Alka established herself as an online producer for many Bollywood productions With the diverse range of services includes producing programmes for channels, commercial, trailers, videos, radio trailers for broadcast, cooperate presentation and digital media.

 After her work experience, Alka decided to take a break to experience a unique sailing experience at Peace Boat, A Japan-Based NGO in 2017. Her adventure story with the Peace Boat in her own words-

1 mission- Nuclear free world
16 sustainable goals
24 ports
23 destinations
105 days
28,138 Nautical miles and countless support from family

What is Peace boat?

Peace Boat is a 30 years old, Japan-based, international, non-governmental and non- profit organization in special consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations. Peace Boat works to promote peace, human rights, equal and sustainable development and respect for the environment through the organization of global educational programs, cooperative projects and advocacy activities. The First cruise was organised in 1983 by a group of Japanese university students as a creative response to government censorship regarding Japan’s military aggression in the Asia- Pacific. Over thirty Years Peace boat has organised more than 90 global and regional cruises and had visited over 200 ports of call.

Mission – Sailing for a better World

Peace Boat leads and participates in a number of campaigns, advocacy efforts and projects, as part of and in addition to its global cruises, reconciliation and peace-building with partners in Asia, campaigning for the abolition of nuclear weapons in partnership with survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and training communities in resilient disaster response for a better world. By participating in Peace Boat cruise I play my part to support Peace Boat efforts to realize a more sustainable and peaceful World.
Duration – 105 days (April 12- July 2017)

Destinations Covered-

23 ports covered including Yokohama Japan, Singapore, Colombo, Sri Lanka, Passing through the Suez Canal, Piraeus, Greece, Cagliari, Italy, Valencia, Spain and many others.

16 Sustainable goals

What are the SDGs?

The SDGs consist of 17 aspirations Global Goals and 169 targets-

1. No Poverty – End poverty in all its forms everywhere

2. Zero Hunger – End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture

3. Good Health and Well-being – Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
4. Quality Education – Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
5. Gender Equality – Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
6. Clean Water and Sanitation – Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

7. Affordable and Clean Energy – Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all

8. Decent Work and Economic Growth – Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all

9. Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure – Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation
10. Reduced Inequalities – Reduce income inequality within and among countries
11. Sustainable Cities and Communities – Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
    12.  Responsible Consumption and Production – Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
12. Climate Action – Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts by regulating emissions and promoting developments in renewable energy
13. Life Below Water – Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
14. Life on Land – Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss
15. Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions – Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

The SDGs were adopted in September 2015 by the 193 countries of the UN General Assembly. The goals, their targets and indicators of achievement were drafted by a UN Working Group in consultation with hundreds of civil society organisations worldwide. Intended to address the perceived shortcomings of the Millennium Development Goals, the SDGs was designed to be more specific, attainable, inclusive and participatory than their predecessors.

Why Peace Boat?

With the intention to explore the world with a Nobel cause. Life onboard a Peace Boat means the ports of call are not the only place to discover the world around you. Guest Educator-Activists, Academics, Journalist and Artists from around the World are invited on board, music and dance workshops, performances, concerts, exhibitions make the ship a place to discover, engage and enjoy the world with a different perspective. Get closer to Japanese culture with onboard festivals, events and traditional cuisine.

What I achieved?
It’s a life-changing experience. During the voyage, I witnessed 3 Medical Emergency rescue operation including one loss of life. Enjoyed sightseeing at World Heritage Sites, Explored nature, Visited new cities and discovered the world with a global network of partner organisations with a new perspective.

Visit https://www.pbcruise.com.sg,   

Alka Verma

Womenlines Influencer for Yoga, Archana Amlapure sharing this month is about how to have a fruitful day-

Do you get overwhelmed with the everyday to-do list and get stressed and drained easily?

In this Era of instant things like instant coffee, instant noodles, instant water heater and so on, we are automatically becoming and working like a robot. With the need to do everything fast and instant, having peer pressure, we fall into competition for our self or which society puts. Hence, we become a victim of stress. The result of above is stress, anxiety and health issues. Deadlines, expectations, passions, competition etc. gives rise to stress. The constant pressure of deadlines, fear of falling behind etc. will cause anxiety.

But at the same time when you relax, you stay happy and relaxed, the Parasympathetic nervous system is active and whole nervous system is in balance.

But how can you stay happy, connected, relaxed with piles of work, to do lists, expectations from family members, colleagues, friends and society? How can you achieve more during the day?

We all have got 24 hours in a day, if you follow these just 12 tips, you will avoid stress and anxiety and you will experience healthy, happy and fruitful day-

1. Meditation, because some questions can’t be answered by Google. Start your day with Meditation

Start from 5 min and slowly increase the time to 15 min or which you can afford to give. Just close eyes and sit in silence. Initially, you might feel restless, your mind might jump to many thoughts but don’t give up, it will come with practice. You can choose to use soothing background music or do gazing or concentrate on an object or simply chant the mantra. Know what best suits you.

2. If you have time for Facebook, you have time to exercise

Just give 15 mins for simple stretching, Gym, running, walking, warm up followed by 5-10 rounds of Sun salutation to improve blood circulation and metabolism. If you can afford more time, add few postures into your daily practice

3. A long and subtle breath establishes a calm mind, A calm mind is the foundation of great things

Spend 5 mins in Pranayama or breathing techniques like Alternate nostril breathing (Inhale from left nostril, exhale from right nostril, inhale right nostril and exhale from left nostril) .5 up to 27 rounds (depends on your time). This is the Instant technique to balance Nervous system and bring down stress.

4. Nobody is too busy, it’s the matter of priorities

Make the list of things you need to do during the day. Out of that list, prioritize which ones need immediate attention and plan your actions accordingly.

5. Speak when you are angry, and you will make the best speech you will ever regret

If you get irritated and angry very easily, just practice deep breathing with counts. Deep Inhalation for 5 counts and exhale for 5 counts. Deep breaths will help you calm down and gives you time to really think about what happened and avoid any after effects.

6. The worst sleeping disorder is being awake

If you have difficulty in sleeping or have disturbed sleep, practice Brahmari half an before you go to bed (How to do: Tip of your tongue touch to upper palate behind teeth, close lips and make sound mmmmm with each exhalation- 5 to 27 rounds). It clears out all the crazy thoughts from the mind.

7. Positive and negative emotions cannot occupy the mind at the same time

During the day, watch your negative emotions. Do you get angry, irritated, feel sad, low very often? Work on culturing/balancing these emotions. Get in touch with your emotion and identify that it’s in you and you are the one who needs to change it and let it go e.g. sadness -try to find joy in the things you like. Anger with love and compassion, forgiveness etc. Just let go of expectations and ego.

8. Thinking positive isn’t about expecting the best to happen every time, but accepting that whatever happens is the best for this moment

Staying and thinking positive needs practice. Hence always look for positive and brighter side

9. A friend is one that knows you as you are, understand where you have been, accepts what you have become, and still gently allows you to grow

Have that buddy or family person to discuss your problems, fears or difficulties you are going through if any. Sharing your burdens with close one’s will is almost getting close to finding solutions.

10. Energy flows when intention goes

Have small Sankalp/Resolve, set an intention throughout the day if you really want to work and improve on the issues and repeat it throughout the day.
e.g: I am healthy – if facing health issues
I am happy – If you are going through emotional imbalance
I am confident – if working on self-esteem or confidence issues

11. The only mistake you can make is not asking for HELP

Don’t afraid to ask for help from friends, colleagues, family members or even strangers if need to be. You can’t manage thing single-handedly every time.

12. Keep selfies of your soul, keep the journal

Write your thoughts, gratitude, goals and feelings in the journal. It will help you keep accountable, can track your progress and goals and keep you motivated.

Enjoy the day as it comes. Nothing is permanent in life and hence problems.

Have a fruitful day!

-Archana Amlapure

Founder-http://Www.ojasyog.com
http://Www.facebook.com/ojasyog
Instagram: ojasyoga0704
Linkedin: Archana Amlapure

Womenlines takes pleasure to welcome Underneath the Pink Umbrella as a guest contributor on Womenlines panel. Underneath the Pink Umbrella is a student in Singapore and feels strongly about women issues. This month she is sharing the lessons about relations that she has learnt.

Underneath the Pink Umbrella: Recently, I was having a reflective moment, thinking about how my freshman year went by. I would not be able to recognise who I was a year back. Meeting so many new people and forming so many new friendships in such a short time, I saw that people may not be who they seem to be, and you can find new relations in the most unexpected of places. Therefore, I thought it to be fitting to share what I think is my perspective on all the relations in my life. I love meeting new people and keeping in touch, but this to can become burdensome sometimes. But at the same time, each person is important to me and if they came into my life, I believe they came for a reason. However, if they’d had to leave, it took me time to realise the topic of my article this week:

What does it mean to truly let go?

As, humans, and especially women, we do have more people to think about and have more relations to take care of. Being the more emotionally sensitive gender, (sorry for the generalization), we try to ensure that the feelings of our cherished ones aren’t hurt. Therefore, each one of us (not excluding men) forms an attachment of a sort with whomever we meet.

We have attachments to these people: some intense, some superficial, some cordial, some obligatory, but they exist. New relations, or the more neutral, emotionally devoid term: new connections are formed almost every day. Every person we meet forges a connection with us.

Within these connections, there can be disputes, disagreements and discord. The nature of the connection would determine how deeply the argument would have affected you. It could either be a petty one which resolves itself, or one which has left a deep and lasting impression of you. This may or may not affect your perceptions about people in general. Each fight is like a learning lesson. In the heat of the moment, we can turn into someone whom we aren’t anything like or say some things we didn’t intend to. But after all, is said and done, we have to learn how to let it go.

This is a learning process that took me a long time to comprehend. If it was something petty, it could be beneficial to just simply forgive and forget. But for the more intense ones, if you and that person aren’t able to talk to each other, remember to give space. Time does heal everything. Remember, it will get better. After calming down, it is very important to reflect and relive the fight. Just put yourself in the other person’s shoes and try to rationalize why they said what they did. Then, analyze what you said, and if you were wrong, why you did it. Doing this is crucial, because, when the time to end the fight comes, you will be able to handle it better because you know why you are apologizing, and help the other person understand why you reacted as you did.

Today, I feel people don’t take out the time to reflect and ponder over the effects of an emotionally charged interaction. And in turn, there are many of these connections that are ended because of one moment. I feel, unless the bond with that person is worthwhile, those relationships are forgotten and cut off. People treat other people like they can be discarded. But that should not be the case. You may think, ‘but I’m not like that’, however during fights, you never know what type of person you can morph into.

The key is to stop expecting. Having expectations is what causes more disputes. “I thought you would have done so…” or “I at least expected that you of all people…” etc. These lines crystallize what it means to have expectations. Obviously, this does not mean that you have to stop expecting decent human behaviour, and what certain relationships, such as romantic ones ought to have. But, it means that instead of hoping for it, ask for it. This would make life easier for everyone. There is no guesswork involved then and you can alter your expectations of that person accordingly.

When such connections of low expectations are established, those same disputes would become infrequent and easier to let go of. If you are an emotional person, and you see yourself being ill-treated, it is no point getting worked up about it. Instead, fight for yourself if you need to. Being indifferent is a skill that so many men I know possess. It is such a valuable feature which help them think pragmatically and not get so affected by people’s shortcomings. It may seem like a negative trait. However, there is a difference between being heartless and indifferent. Indifference just means you don’t take everything to heart, yet at the same time, you aren’t impervious to feelings and emotions. This quality helps one become more easy-going and less prone to succumb to life’s challenges.

Endings and beginnings. Always be open to BOTH. Believe that whatever happens, happens for a reason. If this becomes your life motto, it will help you see a rainbow after every rain. There are times when the connection can turn toxic, and even after your best efforts, there is nothing more you can do, and that connections become an emotional parasite. In such cases, be objective and try to ensure that you have done everything in your power to retain the connection. Yet, remember people can’t change overnight, so if you can’t continue it, end it on a happy note. Letting go of people is not easy. It can be traumatic as well. But remember something better might be in store for you. It is a beautiful thing to heal the relations which may have ended on a sour note. It ended for a reason, hence it may not become a part of your life again, but there should be no hard feelings in the aftermath. A positive end will show that you are capable of forming new positive connections. Never judge a person based on what you hear, rather experience it yourself and be open to the hurt or happiness that it may cause.

Every connection will make you grow, but when it has to be let go, don’t be afraid. You should feel better after doing so, because only you can ensure your own well being and truly let go of the negativity.

Underneath the Pink Umbrella:

Hey! I am currently a freshman studying business, quite boring you might think, right? But I’m passionate about it! Besides that, I’m passionate about women’s rights, which is a topic that has been debated for centuries. A historian and artist, I try to research the story behind everything and imbue creativity in whatever I do. My contributions will show you my stance on women’s issues and offer a historical background and a fresher and more relatable perspective on the world and women around you.

Womenlines takes pleasure to welcome Geetanjali Tandon as a guest writer on Womenlines panel. She has more than 15 years of experience in corporate finance specifically in Financial Planning and Analysis in various companies/ industries. Geetanjali will be sharing series of articles on financial literacy at Womenlines. In this article, Geetanjali shares about the importance of understanding investment as an investor-

In my previous blog post, I advocated for women knowing their own finances. One of the most important steps in knowing and controlling your own finances is knowing more about financial markets and understanding investment as an investor. So here is a quick introduction to some of the terms that are referred to often when listening or reading about investment and financial markets. It is important to understand what these terms mean and become familiar with them. This list is by no means exhaustive. I have also provided links to other resources if you want to learn more about this subject. The best way to learn more about investing to is to hypothetically or actually invest a certain amount of money in the stock market and then follow the companies in the market. It does not have to be a large amount of money or even real money. Just hypothetically invest a certain amount making sure you deduct money for fees, etc., and then follow your investment. Record the value in an excel sheet on a daily or even a weekly basis. This is a no-risk way to learn about the stock market and investments.

Here are brief definitions of the top 10 most important terms to know about investments and financial markets:
1. Stocks: A stock is a type of security that signifies ownership in a corporation and represents a claim on part of the corporation’s assets and earnings. There are two main types of stock: common and preferred. Common stock usually entitles the owner to vote at shareholders’ meetings and to receive dividends. Preferred stock generally does not have voting rights, but has a higher claim on assets and earnings than the common shares. For example, owners of preferred stock receive dividends before common shareholders and have priority in the event that a company goes bankrupt and is liquidated.

2. Bonds: In finance, a bond is an instrument of indebtedness of the bond issuer to the holders. The most common types of bonds include municipal bonds and corporate bonds. The bond is a debt security, under which the issuer owes the holders a debt and (depending on the terms of the bond) is obliged to pay them interest (the coupon) or to repay the principal at a later date, termed the maturity date.

3. Market Capitalization: Market capitalization refers to the total dollar market value of a company’s outstanding shares. Commonly referred to as “market cap,” it is calculated by multiplying a company’s shares outstanding by the current market price of one share. A company with 20 million shares selling at $100 a share would have a market cap of $2 billion. The terms small cap, mid cap, etc., refers to the total value of the market cap compared to the ranges in the market.

4. Ratings: A rating is an assessment tool assigned by an analyst or rating agency to a stock or bond. The rating assigned indicates the stock or bond’s level of investment opportunity. For a stock, an analyst may assign a buy, hold or sell rating and an explanation of why they recommend this action for the stock. For a bond, a rating agency will assess the bond’s relative safety based upon the issuing entity’s fundamental financial picture which scrutinizes the issuer’s ability to repay principal and make interest payments.

5. Mutual Funds: A mutual fund is a professionally managed investment fund that pools money from many investors to purchase securities. These investors may be retail or institutional in nature. Mutual funds have advantages and disadvantages compared to direct investing in individual securities. The primary advantages of mutual funds are that they provide economies of scale, a higher level of diversification, they provide liquidity, and they are managed by professional investors. On the negative side, investors in a mutual fund must pay various fees and expenses.

6. Bear & Bull Market: In stock trading and investing there are bulls and bears. You often hear of the market is bullish or bearish. So what is the definition of a bull market and what is a bear market?

A Bull Market
This is when the market is showing confidence. Indicators of confidence are prices going up, market indices like the NASDAQ go up too. The number of shares traded is also high and even the number of companies entering the stock market shows that the market is confident. Technically though a bull market is a rise in the value of the market of at least 20%. The huge rise of the Dow and NASDAQ during the tech boom is a good example of a bull market.

A Bear Market
A bear market is the opposite of a bull. If the markets fall by more than 20% then we have entered a bear market. A bear market is a market showing a lack of confidence. Prices hover at the same price then go down, indices fall too and volumes are stagnant.

7. Revenue: In accounting, revenue is the income that a business has from its normal business activities, usually from the sale of goods and services to customers. Revenue is also referred to as sales or turnover. Some companies receive revenue from interest, royalties, or other fees. Revenue may refer to business income in general, or it may refer to the amount, in a monetary unit, earned during a period of time, as in “Last year, Company X had revenue of $42 million.”

8. Net Income: The total revenue in an accounting period minus all expenses during the same period. If income taxes and interest are not deducted, it is called operating profit (or loss, as the case may be). Also called earnings, net earnings, or net profit.

9. Earnings Per Share ( EPS): A company’s profit divided by its number of common outstanding shares. If a company earning $2 million in one year had 2 million common shares of stock outstanding, its EPS would be $1 per share. The one-year (historical or trailing) EPS growth rate is calculated as the percentage change in earnings per share.

10. Free Cash Flow: Free cash flow is the cash a company produces through its operations, less the cost of expenditures on assets. In other words, free cash flow or FCF is the cash left over after a company pays for its operating expenses and capital expenditures. Free cash flow is an important measurement since it shows how efficient a company is at generating cash.

Other Resources to help to know more about these terms and other investment related terms:
https://www.nasdaq.com/investing/glossary/

Geetanjali Tandon

Global IT Finance Lead

Monsanto

Greater St.Louis Area

https://dataandfpa.blogspot.sg/