Live Life to the Fullest

Sharing an inspiring story of Mr. Rajaram Krishnaswami, a 70+ Management Consultant and a Visiting Faculty at ICFAI Business School, Pune, who is full of life and is passionate about music, travelling, playing tennis, golf and bridge. He is an inspiration to people across different generations. Do read his story in his own words and in his innovative style.

One Word can describe my Attitude: PASSION PASSION in everything I do, whether it is Work, or Play, or Travel, or Music… I have been asked to write MY STORY about Active and Productive Ageing. Honestly, I do not “FEEL” OLD, or AGEING. The Thai Beauty, SUPORNTHIP “TIPPY” CHOUNGRANGSEE says, “The secret to staying young is not to think that you are old”. She is 55 now, looks like 25.

Incidentally, her PR skills have taken her to the position of Director on the Board of Leicester City Football Club, which won the English Premier League in 2016! She also said, “For each of us, Happiness comes in different forms”. For me, a healthy mix of MENTAL and PHYSICAL Activity keeps me happy and young.

WORK: I love work. I do not want to retire. Why should I? Work keeps me happy. Teaching, Training and Consulting in my Core Competencies. Maybe not with the same intensity as in my twenties, thirties, forties, fifties, but Life after Fifty is not meant to be a stage of FADING AWAY.

PLAY: I play Tennis every day for an hour. Can’t do without my “Daily Dose”! THAT is my Fitness Regimen. I play Doubles mostly, and Tournaments too. I won a 100+ Doubles Tournament (Combined Sum of Ages of both partners) a year ago. I love the game. Besides Tennis, I go for a Round of Golf or a Rubber of Bridge when I can find the time. I enjoy watching Cricket and Tennis and Golf on TV and playing Bridge “Online”.

FOOD: I am blessed with a wonderful wife who understands my needs, and cooks healthy and tasty meals. I am diabetic and I have a sweet tooth, so that would tell you why my wife’s cooking is necessarily different!

TRAVEL: I absolutely love Travel. So does my wife. We go on Holidays abroad at least once a year, sometimes twice, and a Trip within India.

We love to explore the Cultures of different Countries, make new acquaintances, some of whom have become good friends since 2005! We make it a point to go visit them, and so do they, visit us.

I love to plan our Tours abroad meticulously. Perhaps it is the Project Manager in me! My wife and I discuss and make rough plans a year ahead, as to which places we would like to visit, and I enthusiastically carry out extensive research for over 6 months, studying every city and town, and customize our Tours in concert with our “Tried and Tested” Travel Company with whom we have a good relationship. Bouncing off ideas, routes, costs, dovetailing the dates so we can meet friends we have made on earlier trips.

Some places to visit, which we read about in History while at School, like the Mummies and Sphinx and Pyramids of Egypt, have become Reality!

Besides these trips which my wife and I did together, there are Three Specific Types of Tours I have done on my own, and will continue to make:

Passionate about Ashes Cricket, I visited Australia in December 2013 -14, to watch my favourite Team Australia play, and beat England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) and the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG). The Bonus was watching the Sydney Harbour Fireworks on New Year’s Eve!
Equally, my love for Tennis took me to Dubai to watch Roger Federer, my Idol, at close Quarters, win the Dubai Open. My Bonus was a Placard in Swiss Colours, entitled PERFECTION, that the Great signed, which adorns my Den!
I love Music. Rock Music. Music of the Sixties and Seventies. I visited the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, USA a couple of years ago, and I plan to attend Concerts of my favourite Rock Stars who play all over the world.Unfortunately,hardly a few visit India. Most of them, like Eric Clapton, Fleetwood Mac are about my age, some older, and I am “in seventh heaven” watching them on You Tube and DVD, and listening them on my Collection of Vinyl Albums, CDs,and DVDs.

REUNIONS: I take pleasure in organizing / attending Gatherings of my Schoolmates and Classmates and Work Colleagues.

Class of ’65, St.Xavier’s High School, Bombay: We, the Students celebrated 50 years since the time we passed out, in 2015! What a momentous occasion that was! Tears of Joy, Nostalgia Unlimited. We meet in small groups too, every year.

Class of ’71, IIT Bombay: “The Three Musketeers” as we called ourselves, organized the Ruby Reunion (40 years) of the Chemical Engineering Class of 1971 in Pune. This has now snowballed into a Yearly Reunion of all our Batchmates, visiting different countries, husbands and wives, all retired!

Yearly Reunion of the Water Treatment Division of Thermax: The Company I worked for, whose business we grew together. Most of us have moved on to other pastures, but we continue to keep in contact, and take pleasure in uniting once a year.

That’s about it, I guess! I would like to conclude with the following thoughts and suggestions:

Professor Michael Beer of Harvard University, drawing upon the work of another Professor Tony Athos of Harvard University too, wrote about the Seven Year Itch: Stages in a Life Cycle. He described the TASKS, NEEDS and GOALS in our Life Cycle: Up to 22, 22 to 28, 29 to 35, 36 to 42, 43 to 49, 50 to 56, 57 to 63 and beyond.
In particular, he described the TASK after 50 is to “Reflect and Rationalize”, the NEED is “A Sense of Enjoyment”, the GOAL is “Meaningful Contributions - not lasting Ones, and to find something for Old Age”.
I suggest the following Books to read:

Life After Fifty by Dr.GD Thapar : “Learn to live a vibrant, ailment-free life, full of vigour,even after 50”
Younger Next Year * by Chris Crowley & Henry S.Lodge,MD: “ Live Strong,Fit,and Sexy- Until You’re 80 and Beyond- Turn back your Biological Clock (The authors have written a separate book for Men, and Women, bearing the same Title).