A Course in Personal Transformation by Dilip Sahajpal
When Dilip told me about a new course he was developing, I knew immediately I’d be in.
I’ve known Dilip for some 25 years but got to know him better when he lead an intensive 6-month leadership programme I took in about 1993. I remember this time fondly, as it was one of the most productive times of my life in terms of achievement and professional success. But more than that, it was also a time of great personal growth.
When making the professional transition into Executive Coaching a few years later, I needed an experienced Executive Coach to consult and interview for an MBA assignment. I approached Dilip, and the work I turned in as a result earned me one of my highest grades of that year.
My over-riding recollection of Dilip from that time was of an amazing listener; generous in his perceptions and with his time and acknowledgements; creating a safe, loving and supportive space in which we were free to move through our various stages of growth, success and failure, all with the equal assurance that we were already loved, appreciated and respected as we were: flawed and perfect and gloriously human.
As time went by, Dilip felt drawn to work once again with individuals outside the corporate arena and created a new programme centred around the topics of Consciousness, Nature & Purpose. This is when we reconnected and so in May 2016 I was privileged to have taken part when Dilip ran the new course for the first time.
Scroll down to read about my personal experience of the seminar.
About the Programme
Below is a summary Dilip’s put together to describe his programme.
The link between self-awareness, contentment and spectacular results is compelling.
According to extensive research and data collected from a range of people – visionary entrepreneurs, business leaders, sports stars, symphony orchestras and neuroscientists – self-awareness is the key to transcending old patterns of thinking that hold us back from achieving what we really want.
Understanding our intrinsic nature is the starting point.
We have evolved and achieved so much, more than could have been imagined. We have remarkable intellect, exceptional talents, limitless potential, yet, we wrestle with ourselves, despite success, and always seem one step away from peace & fulfilment.
Joy is fleeting.
Most of us live in a someday state of mind. Someday, everything will fall into place. The penny will drop like never before and we will be at the point we always wanted to be – free, comfortable from within, deeply fulfilled in every moment of every day, rooted in our exquisite divine nature – to be blissful and to express goodness towards others.
The ‘Someday Life’ feels so close yet so far away, in the ‘somewhere over the rainbow’ realm of dreams. We are determined, nevertheless, to translate our deepest intentions into reality. Sustaining happiness in all areas of our lives, over a lifetime, however, is another thing.
Time passes. Our thoughts get the better of us. Eventually, we adjust our expectations. We focus on excelling in our careers, increasing productivity and establishing financial security, As a result, materially, we are reasonably successful, but we remain unfulfilled.
It is always about the next thing.
The objective of this course is to achieve what matters most to us – peace of mind, contentment.
Peace of mind is the foundation for fulfilment. Without it, we do well on one level but, at another level, we are imbalanced, hankering after the next thing, lamenting over what we do not have.
The foundation is built through: Awareness, Context, Relationships.
Awareness
Beyond intellect & emotional intelligence, lies a deep awareness and consciousness within us, at a subtle level. Thoughts flicker constantly in our minds. We get entangled & agitated, making it hard to connect to wisdom and inspiration that come from consciousness.
In this part, new perspectives and practical tools will be introduced to transcend thoughts and intensify our awareness and consciousness.
When we intensify awareness of our nature, values, unique talents and special qualities, Shadow Side, Achilles Heel, the story of our life and the limiting beliefs that hold it together – the way we see the world – transforms.
Context
With greater awareness, we have the opportunity to create deeper context, meaning, purpose. With greater awareness, we have the opportunity to create deeper context, meaning, purpose.
Exceptional individuals, visionary leaders and pioneers challenge mainstream thinking and never settle for ordinariness. These individuals inspire greatness. They are able to sustain inspiration over an extended period of time and have one thing in common:
Powerful context, which gives meaning, a sense of purpose.
This part is about creating our own context not only for work, but for every aspect of our life.
We know when we are grounded in a powerful context. It just feels right. Our thinking is illuminated. We stop pushing against the tide. We move forward with grace and total focus, the world at our feet.
Relationships
With awareness, context and sense of purpose, we move to the final piece of the jigsaw, which completes the foundation for lasting contentment – Relationships.
Relationships – our families, friends, colleagues and communities – are everything. Our relationships make life meaningful. It is through our relationships that we are able to translate purpose & vision into reality.
When our relationships are thriving, we feel unstoppable.
Equally, when there is discord in our relationships, we are unsettled.
The focus of this part is on reconciling differences, understanding others at an entirely new level and deepening our connection with people. When we take care of our relationships in this way, we know we are doing our best. As a result, our minds become more peaceful.
Approach
At its core, the programme is interactive and dynamic. Unlike a philosophical debate or a traditional presentation, the approach is to stay away from abstract thinking and focus instead on real life situations offered by participants. By discussing concrete examples and areas of importance to each participant, discussions are more compelling, worthwhile and impactful.
The objective at each stage of the course is to offer insights that lead to inspired action, practical results and lasting value.
Outcomes
- Create context, meaning purpose
- Appreciate unique talents, special qualities
- Address weaknesses, blind spots, Achilles Heel
- Listen like you have never listened before
- Increase confidence, productivity, effectiveness
- Establish greater equilibrium, emotional resilience
- Develop extraordinary relationships.
My Experience
To begin with, I was already excited about the course and its content. But I was even more excited about what might occur in the space of the weekend.
I wondered what might arise given the level of commitment that was bound to be present in the room, the environment of safety and self-discovery that I knew Dilip would create, the enquiries and explorations we’d be engaged in. I wondered what might occur in the space of that group consciousness (or the “soup of the group” as one participant put it). I wasn’t disappointed.
Dilip had told me he was intending to facilitate an experience that brought us close to our hearts and that sustained us, lingering and continuing far beyond the weekend. Again, the course delivered.
In the weeks leading up to the programme I became aware of just how much I was living in the ‘Someday Life’ that Dilip describes above. I became conscious of just how much time I spent thinking that once I’d got a certain result THEN I could do this or that; once I’d got some more evidence or had completed more research, THEN I’d be confident enough to start my book… and so on…
This might not sound like much, but awareness is key. Since Dilip’s course, I’ve genuinely been living in that ‘Someday Life’ less. And when I notice it again, I it disappears itself automatically, pretty quickly. It’s like waiting for the right time and realising there’s never going to be a right time. Jonty, another of the participants, expressed it very well when he said, “We’re always a cappuccino, a car, a house, a yacht, away from happiness…. and none of it results in happiness. There’s always something more.” That section alone had quite an impact for me.
And as we worked through other exercises together, I found myself expressing things that surprised even me. Things I couldn’t have predicted and would never have expected… all serving to bring to my conscious attention a mission and purpose I hadn’t explicitly acknowledged before. All resulting in a greater sense of peace, fulfilment and purpose.
The big question I’d taken into the weekend was how to get started on my book: when would I ever find the time, when would be the right time, how would I go about it, how would I deal with the criticism I’d likely get… While exploring these questions over the weekend I realised I could start small with a simple blog, and allow things to unfold organically from there. It wasn’t a business issue at all I was exploring – more one of self-expression and contribution. But nevertheless the soup of the group generated some ideas for ways I could build this in to my business activities, thereby engaging with my Higher Purpose on a daily basis.
Two months on, I can now say the impact of this in my life is greater stillness, peace and contentment, every day. My husband observes that I’m happier. Overall, I find myself more at peace, operating closer to my heart on a consistent basis, having more compassion for myself and others, living in the present moment more of the time, experiencing love and appreciation of life more consistently, more aware of my purpose. And – I find this one hard to articulate – having a greater understanding or acceptance of my place (and participation in) a larger whole which even extends to an altered relationship to life and death.
In devising the programme, Dilip draws on his own faith, and incorporates some of the teaching of Krishna, yet it is respectful of all faiths, and none. This is a programme I’d recommend to anyone who’s curious, or naturally interested in exploring the sorts of topics covered here. And also to anyone who’s grappling with some sort of question – as I was – about a particular project, of life purpose or direction, career, faith or identity.
Update, one year on
I spoke to Dilip again this week, and am pleased to hear he’s running another seminar later this month. It prompted me to reflect on how I felt the seminar had impacted my life during the past year.
Purely in terms of results, I’m now actively engaged in writing the book I was thinking about. There’s also a blog and some social media accounts associated with the project.
I’m volunteering with a charity operating in the same field, supporting people with health challenges. A published author heard about my blog through a friend, and is now supporting me with my own book. I’ve rearranged my business to clear the time I need, set myself a daily word count target, and so am making good progress. Things are moving.
Yet, in addition, the weekend still stands out for me as an experience with significance beyond these visible results. It seems to me something took place that I find hard to express. Something about my understanding of myself and my place in the world went ‘clunk’. And this means a greater sense of peace and fulfilment in my every day life.
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About Dilip
Dilip Sahajpal has been working in large-scale transformational change and personal development for 25 years with blue chip companies, start-ups & charities, including Johnson & Johnson and ABN AMRO Bank.
In 2001, Dilip played an instrumental role in the successful merger integration of the world’s largest property company, JLL. The work contributed to spectacular revenue growth and a significant improvement in the firm’s share performance. This success led to groundbreaking projects including the Department of Health UK, where Dilip was awarded the first large-scale government backed leadership programme to train senior social workers.
Following his work with thousands of people from all walks of life – film producers, CEOs to spiritual masters – and looking to work on further projects that have a positive impact in society, Dilip is now embarking on his dream project to deliver courses in personal transformation to individuals from different backgrounds, disciplines and organisations.