I love surfing internet whenever free(though have to really strive hard to get this free me time only on the internet out of my big to-do list;)))!
Just like that while carrying out my fav hobby I hit this write up which I will love to share with my readers-
http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2014/09/be-more-successful/ 
Awesome write up which reflects how a small change in thinking can really help you in achieving your dreams.
Now the challenge comes how to keep yourself always happy, when you are surrounded by tons of reasons to worry, get angry, irritated, fidget. I tried to give a shot and focussed on ignoring everything when challenging situations came in front of me and told myself that I will be happy.
Believe me, after whole day little mindfulness regarding my goal I observed that, though I cannot say that it was a happy day for me but yes it was a great mindful day.I observed that this way I am able to hold my thoughts for few seconds(in case of distraction) and collect myself and redirect my attention to something else. And when I am mindful I am more into my present moment and giving my 100 percent to it. This leads to better quality of my work produced and that gives me real happiness:)So what requires is the constant practice of this habit, every day. Then only you can master it.
So now my new year resolution list has one more bullet to get ticked at the end of the year. I will focus to find key factors leading to happiness in whatever situations I am. Writer has very well explained the concept under these points-
- Success doesn’t bring happiness. Happiness brings success.
- See problems as challenges, not threats.
- More work means you need more social support. And giving support is better than receiving.
- Send a 2-minute “thank you” email every morning.
- Use the 20-second rule to build the habit
These points can really help people to lead a successful life filled with small success pleasures in small moments in the journey of life!
Charu Mehrotra
Promoting Excellence in Women!
Lunchbox, kids, and mummies have a sweet and sour relationship since the beginning of the school journey:)! 
As a mother, I have always tried my best to be innovative with my kids’ lunch box and provide him a variety of food options which he can enjoy in school. Being a work from home mother many times it becomes challenging to generate a new idea and I have to repeat the options which I have already given him previously. And then starts the fight, he doesn’t like to eat, or maybe he is not excited to see his tiffin box, or he wants something else.So many thoughts come to my mind to reason out his dislike to finish his tiffin box(though I wonder how I used to finish in my school days when I used to get limited options:) which I always enjoyed eating). Maybe kids are easily bored now as we as parents only give them so many options. Or we have pampered them and spoiled too.
Whatever the reason they have already been pampered and spoiled. So for mothers, there is no option besides only giving the variety of choices to their kids. Luckily over new year I came across this link which I will love to share with my readers-
Ms. Amy Locurto i is a graphic designer and DIY lifestyle blogger from Dallas, Texas who specializes in crafts, party ideas, printable designs, and recipes. Her goal is to inspire others to be more creative. In this link, she has shared numerous ideas how to be creative with kid’s lunches and how to make it more interesting.
My new year resolution now includes to follow Amy’s suggestions and make my kid’s lunch impressive and healthy. Friends wish me luck that I am able to keep my resolution and follow it;))
Readers are requested to share their suggestions and ideas if they know about other ways to make kid’s lunches interesting.Thanks in advance!:))
Charu Mehrotra
Promoting Excellence in Women!
The new year is around the corner and my thoughts are scattered here and there what exactly I am going to look forward to and prioritize incoming new year? 
It was a long break from blogging as sometimes other priorities come in between and own favorite things take a backseat. Womenlines has always strived to share those thoughts with its readers which can help them in excelling in some field of their life. Somehow as a blogger it was getting challenging for me to keep myself unaffected by the changes happening in society, media world, strange unnatural news and then I realized how difficult it is becoming for individuals to keep in touch with their natural self-residing in their bodies.
Society is getting more selfie based, looks , what you wear, what you eat, where you party are getting more important than having personal touches with friends and relatives, heart to heart communications between family members, reaching out to help each other. Even famous stars are feeling same-http://www.vanityfair.com/vf-hollywood/2014/09/kirsten-dunst-selfie-video
This anti selfie video by famous Hollywood star Kristen Dunst reflects this sad trend in a very positive way.
It is really a mad rat race and my only and only wishes for coming new year is to pray to God to save me from losing myself while running in this race!
Yes, I am a part of this race to excel in what I do, race to prove myself, not to the world but to me only, but I really cherish that warmth in relationships and bonding in relations which are important in my life. So here go my three heartfelt new year wishes-
1) I want to be mindful of whatever I am doing and enjoy it to fullest. My all prayers to God is to guide me to immerse myself in my present moment to the fullest and save myself in wasting my time from pondering about future or reasoning out past.
2) I want to teach my kids importance of positivity, mindfulness, gratitude, attitude in life to be happy and having faith in God for the right direction.
3) I want to be mindful for saving nature in whatever capacity I can (saving electricity, paper, using less aircon, saving water, using fewer polythene bags and many others like http://indianapublicmedia.org/amomentofscience/20-easy-ways/)
4) I want to be undistracted by things which lead to wastage of time(no 1 being less time on social media:)))and focus on my goal and what’s important to me. Time management is a key skill which I want to excel.
5) I want to give my full attention to my all relations and make it stronger and firmer by giving time and love.Friends, Relatives, Family members or any relation I am having I always want to be mindful of the bonding and love I share.
I wish all my blog readers a very Happy New Year and may God bless you all with an abundance of health and happiness. Women Lines promise to keep bringing interesting write-ups to you which can help you in excelling in life. Happy New Year!
Charu Mehrotra
Promoting Excellence in Women!
I am an Indian and I am proud of my cultural values and traditions!
Today morning It was disturbing to read media news by a leading newspaper reporting about a famous Bollywood star and cricketer couple going to stay together before marriage. It is their personal choice and like many other couples they also believe in live in relations but why to report in media in such a big way.
Youngsters in any country always idolize film stars and another sportsperson as they see them at a level where they have achieved some goals in life. But if their social behavior is also followed then I wonder what will happen to few cultural values and traditions which every parent wants to see in their child. I don’t want to sound like a watchdog for traditions and cultures. What my worry is this inappropriate reporting in media is slowly going to kill the traditional beliefs and values of our country.If media reports with responsibility and highlights more news which glorifies our values and traditions then it can save them from becoming extinct.
Media can really play a strong role in propagating values in any society. I am grateful to responsible media reporting during my school and college times which really helped me to gain right knowledge and follow right traditions which are helping me to exist confidently in a foreign land.
I sincerely request today’s media authority to take fully the responsibility of what type of news they are printing, with a thought in their mind that how it is going to affect the young generation of our country!
Charu Mehrotra
Promoting Excellence in Women!
As a parent, there is nothing more satisfying and fulfilling to see our kids expressing themselves openly and able to create something from personal feelings and experiences.Kids with such ability are called creative and as a parent, we always search for mediums to enhance this creative element in them. Womenlines is proud to share about Sindu Sreebhavan as the entrepreneur of the month who is the founder of kid’s edutainment magazine ‘ The Kidz Parade’ which is focussed on enhancing creativity in kids in Singapore and around the world. Read about her journey from corporate world to a popular kid’s magazine world in her own words-
- Please share with our reader’s little bit about yourself?
I am the founder of The Kidz Parade Edutainment. I am extremely passionate about spotting, encouraging and promoting creativity in others. Though everybody identifies The Kidz Parade with our Edutainment magazine, The Kidz Parade also has a suite of other products, services, and workshops that help to showcase, boost and cultivate confidence, creativity and communication skills in children. I have a wonderful family with my husband Manoj and our 10-year-old son Advaith and 9-year-old daughter Aditi. I love to put my kids to bed in the night and enjoy the little shows they put together for our birthdays and other important dates.
- So when did you venture into this venture and what inspired or motivated you to take a plunge into this venture?
During my 15 years career in management consulting, I was fortunate to have worked in 6 different countries for different industries with some of the brilliant people you can come across. If I condense my learning from these associations in a simple sentence – The three critical skills for a successful career are Creativity, Communication, and Confidence. These are the skills that should be cultivated from the young as sometimes it becomes difficult for you to pick up some of these skills in the later years. But unfortunately, these skills are overlooked in our education system. I was looking for a platform that could help my children to boost my kids’ creative confidence when they were younger. However, to my dismay what I could find was more enrichment classes than platforms where they could proudly parade their creativity. The enrichment classes are good, but that only serves you to push information to the kids but not for encouraging their unlimited creativity. During my discussions with other parents and teachers, I figured out that I was not the only person who felt this. But, none knew how to deal with the situation. But, being able to showcase one’s own creativity at a young age is important for the overall confidence building and critical thinking process. And I wanted to give that opportunity to children around the world. That is when the idea of a magazine that could promote their creativity, ignite their curiosity and provide inspirations to them came about. I spent a couple of years doing surveys of parents and teachers and discussing trends in education with researchers in those areas. Sometime during 2012, I realized that the motivation to execute this cause had overpowered every other career aspirations I had and that even without my knowledge I had the idea of the overall content of the magazine. Once that realization hit me, I started working it with Jagdeep Kaur and The Kidz Parade was born within the next few months in print and online formats. 
- Can you share with us some of the challenges you faced during your initial days?
The first and the main challenge was being a newbie in the industry. I had the passion, a good concept for a unique product and a great market to start with. However, that was not enough to start. I needed a lot of support. There I did what the corporates do. I started looking for collaborations. The first collaboration came in the form of an amazing lady named Jagdeep. She is a great partner as a writer, immensely creative person, and a great human being. Without Jagdeep, it would have been impossible for me to launch the magazine in such a short time with such great quality. The second challenge was the misconceptions people had about creativity. It was sad to observe that people still saw creativity and education as two separate entities. Many think that creativity is a hazard to educational excellence. People had the notion that creativity is all about arts. Doing arts is creativity, but that is just part of creativity. I started giving talks to parents, teachers, kids, and organizations about the importance of creativity in education. It is great to see the inclination towards incorporating creativity in education by educational agencies.
- So how do you balance your personal and professional life?
I work on a flexible schedule. So, I make time for everything my kids need. I make it a point to spend enough time with my family without compromising the quality, effort and time I need to spend for the company.
- What would you suggest to other aspiring women who want to venture out on their own?
If you have a great idea for an offering that could solve a problem faced by your potential customers, go for it. It takes a lot of effort in the beginning. Many women stop there thinking they do not have the time. But, remember, we women are amazing in multitasking. So, make use of that, you will find the time for everything. Secondly, you reach out and collaborate. Many people look at everybody else as competitors. But you are a winner when you look at your potential competitors as collaborators. Thirdly, you connect with others who have gone through the process of setting up their own enterprises. My doors are always open for people who would like to talk to me.
- Is there any person who has mentored/supported/inspired you?
As I had said before, Jagdeep was a great support, partner and creative adviser in bringing our magazine out. Organizations like National Library Board, Science Centre, Eurasian Association and many local and international schools were very supportive of this initiative. We are used to hearing from teachers that this is something they wanted to start. We take that as the testimonial for the immense academic potential the publication offers. We are quite touched by the stories of kids picking up reading and writing habits, families using The Kidz Parade contents and critical thinking activities as conversation topics on their dinner table, kids getting inspiration from other kids and experts featured in The Kidz Parade and kids acquiring the confidence to showcase their creativity. It is this support from the parents, schools, teachers and above all our young readers that motivate us to get the magazine to greater heights. I did my MBA from UCLA Anderson and the support, recommendations, and ideas I received from the alumni were very encouraging. People like Adeline Foo, the author of the famous Amos Lee series, Michelle Tessensohn, Sylvia Mackaige, Nandita Vaidya, Jennifer Loh, Hima Madhusoodan had supported me immensely with their fabulous advice while boosting my morale and keeping me motivated. Many friends supported me with their voluntary work. Above all, my husband and kids have given their wholehearted support right from Day1. That kept me going during the challenging phases.
- What do you have in the pipeline for your venture’s future development?
We have recently launched our I Speak… I Lead Public Speaking kit for children. It is a very useful product with valuable tips and framework for how to approach public speaking for both kids and adults. We are in the process of increasing the reach of our highly sought after Public Speaking and Leadership Mentoring Program for children. We are working on our audiobooks and we will be launching that in the next couple of months. We are also planning to make The Kidz Parade Worksheets that were available only for school subscriptions, to others as well, due to popular demand from the parents. Women lines wish all the best to Sindu for her future initiatives for Kidz Parade! To know more about The Kidz Parade Edutainment Magazine visit- www.thekidzparade.com www.facebook.com/TheKidzParade
Charu Mehrotra
Promoting Excellence in Women!
It is rarely you come across some book which makes you think deeply about your thought processes and just rewires you with a completely new mindset to manage the business successfully forward! 
Mind Over Business written by Ken Baum with Bob Andelman is a must-read book by every entrepreneur. Beautifully Ken has explained how to unleash your business and sales success by rewiring the Mind/Body connection. This book gives you the mental edge to overcome obstacles and take advantage of the opportunity. Various systems of breathing and relaxation techniques, goal setting, self-talk, visualization, explained in this book will certainly improve the reader’s result. This book teaches the right way to set any goal and achieve it. This book guides in a very practical way how to get more out of every busy day while following certain time management and motivation techniques.
It doesn’t matter what the goal is, a dream is, you are self-employed working, having large or small company, sell insurance or clothes, this book will teach to use your hidden talents in best of ways and inspire you to reach that goal you dream of achieving. Every chapter brings a fresh insight into creating a big vision for your business, how to come out of your comfort zone, and how to sharpens your focus. Ken Baum has shared various smart tips which if carried out practically in real life, will certainly lead you to success road.
Few small adjustments to your workday can help to maximize your career. Don’t wait, just get up and grab the book, but only when you seriously want to achieve success in your business!
Charu Mehrotra
Promoting Excellence in women!
Womenlines proudly welcomes Carlo Pandian as guest writer for womenlines. Carlo will take your kids in amazing world of Lego bricks and boost their creativity through guided tutorials-
Animals come in all shapes and sizes. This means you can either spend a lot of money trying to find rare animals for your kids or you can let them build them with some simple to find pieces. 
This gives your kids the advantage of being able to get more out of the pieces they have in their collection. It also means they have the ability to make modifications to these creations which gives them more flexibility in what they want. The following are some simple designs you and your kids can watch to start building your own menagerie
Lion
There’s nothing quite like having the king of the jungle in a display. It sits at the top of the food chain and makes an obvious centerpiece. This design comes from David Howard, the Master Model Builder from LEGOLAND Discovery Center Westchester. He covers the pieces you need along with instructions on how to build this ferocious beast.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPAY_I5fUGk
Simple Animals
If you are going to have a king, you may want some subjects. Therefore Lunazd1 provides you with a wild assortment of animals. Each is built using some very basic bricks and colors. Each is rendered in a program so that the designs are crisp and easy to see. If you have trouble with any part of the design simply pause the video and watch the model come together frame by frame. Each animal’s design is set up like standard LEGO instructions, so it shouldn’t be a foreign experience for your child.
Zoo Animals
Continuing this parade of animals is Thesmiler37. They have categorized their animals into those found in a zoo. These creations also follow the use of simple elements. This makes it possible to make with some of the most basic brick buckets. Each part is highly recognizable to any child that is familiar with their LEGO bricks. This is important since many of their loose pieces are typically these standard elements.
Turtle
It is time to slow things down. Fun Toy Den brings you their brick built turtle. Not only is this a fabulous display piece on its own, but it scales extremely well with minifigures. There are enormous turtles in real life and even bigger ones found in children’s story books. Whatever your child wants, this turtle will fit right in.
Cow
There is one creature that often needs a herd to look right. Large farms don’t survive on a single cow. The problem is, if you’re going to populate a farm, you need a simple design that looks good. Brickitect gives you this on both fronts. He tells you how to make a nice cow as well as what set he used to make it from. From here just cut, copy, and repeat. In no time you’ll need to build a bigger farm.
Author:
Carlo Pandian is an adult fan of LEGO and freelance writer, and has previously published on The Brick Blogger, Bricks of The Death, and The Rock Father. He loves babysitting his nephew and getting him to build LEGO creations!
Credits
LEGOLAND Discovery Center Westchester Lion by David Howard
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPAY_I5fUGk
How to build simple LEGO animals by Lunazd1
How to make LEGO zoo animals by The smiler37
How to build a LEGO turtle by Fun Toy Den
LEGO Cow (How to Build) by brickitect
Charu Mehrotra
Promoting Excellence in Women!
2. So when did you venture into this venture and what inspired or motivated you to take a plunge into this venture?
3. Can you share with us some of the challenges you faced during your initial days ?
4. So how do you balance your personal and professional life ?
5. What would you suggest to other aspiring women who want to venture out on their own ?
6. Is there any person who has mentored/supported/inspired you?
Charu Mehrotra
Promoting Excellence in Women!
Vacations are the most awaited period of the year by kids, whatever age they are into! 
It is time for kids to relax, to meet friends and to spend a day without any time limit Ask any kid which part of the year is his favorite and most of them will come up with vacation or festival holiday as an answer.I feel happy seeing that relaxed smile on my kid’s face during vacation time but as a working woman, and that too from home, my other part is overwhelmed with the challenges I am going to face during this period with my work. The most irritating aspect of any holiday is the frequent bombing of “What shall I do now, mummy?” periodically.How I can plan every second of my kid’s day when I am not able to do for myself, I just scorn at times. “Why can’t he think of his own ways?” or ‘I wonder how I managed my vacations without any instructions by my parents?”Such questions just hit me almost every other day of vacation.
Last year while making the to-do list for myself idea struck to me why can’t kids have their own todo list which they can depend upon whenever they are having free time.YES, WHY NOT! Literally, I really jumped with joy with the realization that my kid can plan his to-do list on his own by using his brain:). I discussed the idea with my kid and we drafted a rough chart and pasted then on wall. And every time when me or my son came across any activity idea we took a note of it.In fact, this will help them to think independently and he will understand himself better. What are their likes, what are their dislikes, what they love to do and when!
It is more than a year and I can tell you friends list is still on. As my son is growing he comes across some new activity and he wants to add it to his list. What are you waiting for?Start listing down your kids’ activities….best wishes from Womenlines:)!
Charu Mehrotra
Promoting Excellence in Women!
Womenlines is grateful to Ms Pamposh Dhar for guest write up about her experience in field of Reiki-
Sometimes when you least expect it, something utterly fabulous slips quietly into your life. This is how Reiki entered my world. My mother was very ill and someone offered to do “distance Reiki” – no-one in my family had any idea what it was, but Mum said she would like to try it. That was my introduction to Reiki – something I didn’t know about and didn’t believe in; just something Mum had agreed to try out.
But then, a week later, Mum was fully healed! Her doctors had no explanation for it and I began to wonder if there really was something to this “Reiki thing.” I know now that Reiki is a wonderful, positive energy that helps physical and emotional healing, brings mental clarity, and supports spiritual growth.
The Japanese word “Reiki” means universal life-force energy. “Ki” is the equivalent of prana in Sanskrit or qi (pronounced chi) in Chinese. It is the pure energy that pervades the universe – it is not the energy of the Reiki “giver,” as many people seem to think. The Reiki practitioner is merely a channel for universal energy.
There are two ways of doing Reiki – hands on and distance. In hands-on Reiki, the practitioner gently places his or her hands on different parts of the body and uses intention and focus to channel the energy there. The person receiving Reiki may feel powerful energy moving within them or they may just feel very subtle energy shifts. Each person experiences it differently.
In distance Reiki, the Reiki practitioner uses focus and intention to channel the energy to the recipient wherever they may be in the world. One of the most wonderful experiences I have had as a Reiki practitioner was doing distance healing for a 19-month-old boy who had fallen head first onto a concrete surface from a 2nd floor balcony. I met the boy’s aunt in the Philippines just after the boy was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) of a hospital in the United States. That night I did several bouts of Reiki for him.
In the morning I received an email from the boy’s aunt. “Somehow something amazing must have occurred last night/today because Anthony is now out of the ICU,” she wrote. “The doctors are really amazed at his recovery – it is completely beyond their expectations. He is now on the pediatric floor instead of the ICU, and will make a full recovery with time.”
Reiki is done not only to heal from illness or injury, but also for overcoming emotional hurt or supporting one’s growth as an individual. In addition, it works very quickly to release stress or relieve depression.
Reiki was established in the early part of the 20th century by Dr. Mikao Usui of Japan. Traditionally, there are three levels of Reiki learning in the Usui system: the first level enables you to do hands-on healing, the second to do distance Reiki and a Reiki Master is qualified to teach as well as practise Reiki.
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Pamposh Dhar
Pamposh Dhar is a Reiki Master, meditation teacher and counsellor. She runs the Terataii wellness centre in Singapore. Visit the website: www.terataii.com.sg or the Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/terataii.reiki.development
Links:
My Reiki journey – http://terataii.blogspot.sg/2010/10/reiki-journey-to-health-and-happiness.html
Universal energy – http://terataii.blogspot.sg/2008/09/energy-healing-whose-energy.html