Mental
The word “Mental” – was a 15th century derivation from the latin word mentalis – “of the mind” and was simply meant to mean – relating to the mind. As ingenious our human mind is, by the 19th century, it started being used as a slang that meant “crazy or deranged”. This slang usage was considered offensive underwent a technical correction into the word – psychiatric. Thus “Mental” got restored back to its original glory of being the word that means “of the mind”. Hence, please do politely mind if you come across any ignorant soul casually referring to anyone as “Mental” in a derogatory sense. Educate them mindfully!
Wealth
The word “Wealth” – on the other hand, is an earlier 13th century derivation that means – abundance of prosperity. Coincidentally the word “Money” too happens to be a 13th century derivation. It’s worthwhile to note that while “Mental” refers to something intrinsic to everyone, “Wealth” generally refers to something extrinsic that everyone acquires in their lifetimes or a few inherit at birth.
Mining
From mining of earth systems for coal and gold, to mining of computer systems for bitcoins, the human pursuit of mining has always been associated with the pursuit of extrinsic wealth accumulation – a rat race of sorts. What gets lost in the process is the fact that there is an intrinsic mental wealth, literally hidden behind our eyes, that we forget to mine through our lifetime. This can rob us of the opportunity to unearth from its immense potential, savour its abundance and enjoy from its prosperity.
Bottomline – Mine Your Mental Wealth since YOLO – in the present! Wondering how? Here are 5C’s to start mining. They are drawn from my own experiences over several decades of working with the young and curious, often lost amidst a mean environment that is fast and furious! The 5C’s are:
Cognize
Chapter 6, Verse 5 of the respectfully revered Bhagavad Gita, enlightens us with its articulation to “Elevate yourself through the power of your mind, and not degrade yourself, for the mind can be the friend and also the enemy of the self.” It is this power that has imaginatively opened up possibilities – be it to explore tiny objects that are billions of light years away to exploring the corona virus that is approximately 60-140 nanometre in size. We are all better off unlocking the power of human cognition and know how. This requires us to exercise and sharpen the wide range of our cognitive abilities across a variety of knowledge dimensions as shown here.
Cubing
Get your mind and muscles to brainstorm any topic of interest using the six perspectives of cubing namely – description, comparison, association, analysis, application and argument. Or simply mine through solving the complexity posed by the Rubik cube puzzle with permutations equivalent to a standard sized cube covering the earth’s surface, 275 times over! Asides the sense of accomplishment, it will be an opportunity for you to sharpen critical mental skills valued in the world grappling with quantum computing, artificial intelligence, machine learning and blockchain. Skills such as:
- Critical Thinking
- Analytical Thinking
- Reasoning and Problem Solving
- Systems Analysis and Evaluation
- Technology Design and Programming
- Judgement and Decision Making
Create
Get your mind and muscles to mine through the millions of imaginative possibilities to create and animate characters and actions. It could begin with something as simple as a YOYO or stretch further into beautiful scenes or memes that animatedly bring to life characters imaginatively. This will hone six creative skills of value in the present century of innovation and creativity:
- Creativity and Innovation
- Originality and Initiative
- Curiosity and Imagination
- Cognitive Flexibility
- Ideation
- Productivity and Accountability
Collaborate
Get your mind and muscles to communicate and network with other minds to exchange the treasures that other minds will have mined. The easiest way to begin is by sharing one of your own treasures – there is power in giving. It truly feels awesome when the sum is greater than the parts – the value of collaboration. The explosive power of collaboration has left its mark in the 21st century in the form of happenings on the multitude of social media platforms. Collaboration has perhaps crafted the entire history of human civilization’s connected growth – Silk Route to the Internet of Things, and is certainly an effort that will stand you in good stead in sharpening skills in demand such as:
- Collaboration and Communication
- Coordinating with others
- Emotional Intelligence
- Service Orientation
- Negotiation
- Leadership and Social Influence
Characterize
Autobiographies of men and women often reveals aspects of their character we can draw from. Be it the grit of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in realizing the dream of “Swa-Rajya”, or the “Can do, Will do” attitude of Dr. Vikram Sarabhai in envisioning and nurturing India’s Space program successfully in the 1960’s, or the unwavering trust in non-violence adopted by Mahatma Gandhi, or the strength of relationships nurtured by Lord Krishna – be it with Sudama – a commoner or Arjuna – a royal, or the values of Swami Vivekananda when he began his historic speech in 1893 with “Sisters and Brothers of America…”. Character defines you and drives your actions, especially amidst adversities. Build and strengthen it enough to help you set, set and score your goals successfully.
Conclusion
Aristotle had espoused around 350BC – “The more we know, the more we know we don’t know!” At the end of the 20th century, Dunning and Kruger espoused the effect between wisdom and confidence as shown in the diagram here. The three growth categories of mental wealth most valued in the world today happen to be – Technological, Socio-Emotional and Higher Cognitive. The human mind weighs a miniscule 2% of the total human body weight but utilizes 20% of the body’s energy! Clinching information nuggets that should be enough to inspire you to mine your mental wealth. Your time starts now!
About Writer
Mr. Sunil Tatkar – Founder and Managing Partner, Valurevolution, is a military boarding school alumnus and a mechanical engineer graduate from VJTI. Sunil as over 30+ years of experience as a professional and entrepreneur in varied functional roles across several business and technology enterprises. Sunil is also a content writer, an art enthusiast, a marathoner and an educator who can engage learners of all ages with his flair for participative training and workshops. He has created a self-development program for everyone namely “Human Cognition and Know How”. The program is in sync with the guidance and recommendations of several national policy initiatives and global research recommendations. These include the NEP 2020, Delors Report, WHO Life Skills, OECD, P21, ACS, UNESCO Working Paper, World Economic Forum and CBSE 21st Century Skills Handbook. Sunil’s profile at https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunil-tatkar-81b7528/. Sunil is reachable at suniltatkar@valurevolution.com
