The seemingly identical ideas of solitude and loneliness often create confusion in many. This confusion is because we often consider both qualities as one and the same. However, the truth is quite different- as different as the meanings of the two words.
Solitude & Loneliness- Contrasting shades of being on your own
Solitude is what you feel when you are completely content with your own self. Loneliness, on the other hand is what you experience when you feel isolated in your self, as if the self has become a prison in which you are entrapped, cut away from the rest of the world- a beautiful world made of flowers in bloom and gentle breeze and the soothing sound of waves crashing on an ocean shore.
While solitude could be rejuvenating- conducive to generating new ideas and thoughts, loneliness could be toxic for the soul. It could effectively crush any new thought or idea even before it has a chance to sprout. In other words, the thorny coldness of loneliness doesn’t really help you progress.
While you could master your self in solitude, loneliness just crushes it
Getting comfortable with solitude
Solitude- the warm, fuzzy feeling of comfort in your own self- should be nurtured. However, this sense of comfort couldn’t be produced at will. (If only it were that simple, there wouldn’t be so much hate and violence in this world.)
One key component necessary for the said comfort is if you are sure of your forward trajectory in life or profession. When you feel like you are swaying in the waves of life, unsure of a destination or the direction of the voyage, it’s really hard to feel content in your own self.
So, how do you chart this missing trajectory when you feel like you’re lost in the dark? The answer is by finding your True Personal Vision.
Vision as a centrality of self
Your vision is to be found in yourself and nowhere else. This vision is as inspiring as it is compelling, the pursuit of which gives the direction you seek in life.
So, if this vision- so profound and unique- is within you, how come you haven’t discovered it yet? Well, the answer is simple. For one thing, the kind of world we live in is not exactly conducive to the self-reflection necessary for such a discovery. With too many distractions, and often too many things to do, we develop a psychological blindness to our own selves- making us incapable to discover our True Personal Vision.
Well, not completely incapable.
For with the right kind of tools, with the right kind of people and at the right place, you could find your way to the vision that glows bright in the darkness created by distractions in the soul. Where, then, could you find this set of circumstances?
Temenos Vision Lab- where vision is realized
Temenos Vision Lab or TVL is a unique session developed by Temenos+Agility that fits the bill. Developed based on 25 years of business consultancy experience and psychological insights, TVL helps you discover your True Personal Vision.
To enable this, a unique set of tools and sessions are employed, each with a clear objective and methodology to it.
To give you an example, Clean Slate is a session included in TVL.
The session helps you weed out the mental negativities which pull you back as a change agent. These could be misapprehensions born from poor past experiences that blocks your professional evolution. By encouraging self-reflection, Clean Slate helps you identify these and eliminate them, so that you could progress as a more confident change agent, with less mental baggage.
Influence Maps is another proprietary tool used in TVL. A significant tool, it incorporates the steps of Personal Mythology, Clean Slate, Personal Vision and Compelling Shared Vision.
Reverting to the idea of being comfortable in your solitude- and your vision- the Personal Mythology step is particularly important. It helps you frame a narrative of your own self, incorporating your past and future aspirations.
This gives you a clear view of the abilities and mental assets which helped you progress thus far. Also, the clarity regarding your forward path gives you more confidence in yourself, helping you be deeply rooted in the self, committed to the journey you are on, so that you enjoy the solitude you share with your own beautiful self.
Temenos Effect Gathering 2018- Bengaluru, India(Dec 29, 2018)
An event dedicated to the idea of personal mastery, for nurturing your beautiful self, for change agents and leaders to become their true selves.
For more details, visit our website: https://www.visiontemenos.com/events
