YOTA - Creating the Future

In October 9-14th Yota (Youth Opportunity Trust Asia) held a conference at Asia Plateau, Maharastra, entitled ‘Creating the Future – A Global Vision for Young Tibetans’, which was attended by around 100 delegates from around India (including Dharamsala, Ladakh, Sikkhim, Karnataka, Delhi) and Nepal. YOTA’s central aims are to create employment, self-employment and training opportunities for youth across Asia. In addition they aim to assist with individuals’ personal and professional development and other needs such as health and education. The initiative is organised by Tibet Relief Fund of the UK and, in India, YOTA an independent trust with His Holiness the Dalai Lama acting as patron. This annual conference is part of their activities that include Self Directed Career Tests, Career Focus Magazine (an educational and professional reference guide), organization of Business Planning Workshops and the appointment of two delegates to MRA-IC (Moral Re-Armament-Iniatives of Change) where the conference was held. Founded in 1961, it is a conference centre for those who wish to find a meaningful purpose, change their lives and explore potential initiatives The conference took place over four days with two half-days of introduction and conclusion. The daily sessions were divided into two sections of a Quiet Time followed by morning lectures while the afternoons were given over to workshops, group & panel discussions and debriefings. The four days’ themes were 1) Attitude, Belief and Commitment, 2) Inspiration and Motivation, 3) Motivation and Entrepreneurship and 4) Career and Goal Setting for Success.

The Introduction was a general welcoming session, where people got to know one another and received general information about the conference and venue. The opening address was given by Alan Clements, founder of YOTA, who explained YOTA’s purpose and described the problems of Tibetan refugees in India under health, education and employment and described the difficulties facing rural communities in Tibet based on his experiences with Tibetan Relief Fund. Other speakers gave further details while emphasizing that young Tibetans must have a Global Vision.

On Day Two the themes of Attitude, Belief and Commitment started with a Quiet Time. It was explained that this Time is extremely important as it allows us to relax, analyze what we are doing in our lives, think about out problems and relationships as well as plan the future. The first lecture was called the ABC of Moral Re- Armament – Initiatives of Change where the lecturer discussed the four moral standards: Purity, Honesty, Unselfishness and Love. Love is different from love of family and friends (not to be confused with attachment) since it covers our activities in business and careers since we may be selfish or dishonest about our products, services, or CVs (mine are the best!) for fear of failure. By practicing these four qualities, no matter how difficult, we create a positive environment for our businesses, customers, employees and communities and contribute to global development through a positive moral stance. The second lecture called ABC of Successful Life began with the quote “At any given moment, you can choose a different path, the choice is yours” discussed the importance of making core values a matter of habit. The afternoon workshops covered personal development with topics such as ‘What kind of person am I and would like to be?’ and ‘What I can do now that will prepare me for a better tomorrow?’ In the evening there was an Ice-Breaking Games Session.

On Day Three the lecture’s theme was Inspiration and Motivation. The lecturers were successful businessmen who gave personal examples of how to be successful. They explained the necessary qualities of patience, empowerment, skill, personality, vision, dedication, determination, knowledge, networking connections, focus, clarity and purpose. They emphasized the importance of planning ahead, creative thinking, taking risks and career development; all were essential to succeed in business. In the afternoon there were group discussions on employment issues, the difficulties of getting jobs in India, and the skills, tools, qualities and attributes required to compete in job markets. In the evening the delegates had an opportunity to meet with the lecturers to discuss the issues raised in the afternoon.

On Day Four the theme was Motivation and Entrepreneurship with two lectures covering ‘Motivation through Buddhist Spiritual and Religious Techniques’ and ‘Entrepreneurship Development’. The first lecturer discussed the fundamental Buddhism philosophy of impermanence and reminded us that all activities must be within this context since we must die eventually. It is therefore important to live life to its full potential by building on our positive qualities while dealing with our negative traits. The second lecturer, a Nagaland native, described how local people had become dependant on Government handouts and had lost their spirit. Against his family’s wishes he set up a small garment shop in Kohima in 1998 but two years later when on the brink of success a fire destroyed his enterprise leaving him with major debts at 5% interest p.a. By selling products door to door over the following year he managed to become almost debt free, before restarting. As high interest rates were a major deterrent to business development he, with others, set up an Entrepreneurs Association that provides micro-credit to aspiring entrepreneurs and this has resulted in wealth and job creation. Over time he learnt that honesty pays and that an entrepreneur is responsible to society as well as himself and family. In the afternoon there were SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) analysis workshops on personal development with a break in the afternoon to visit Mahabelashwar markets. In the evening there were group discussions on the SWOT results.

On Day Five the Quiet Time was set-aside for instruction of two Buddhist Meditation techniques: Single Point (following breathing and then focusing the mind on an object like a Buddha drawing or statue) and Analyzing. The lecturer used examples from the poems of the 6th Dalai Lama and explained the importance of comfortable and correct posture. The day’s theme was Career and Goal Setting for Success and the lecture covered Career Choices and Awareness plus Goal Setting. =He explained the importance of motivation, making informed choices, especially by choosing careers where there were new job possibilities. Goal Setting was important because it focused on what we want from life in the short and long-term. Financial issues such as money management and regular savings were also discussed. In the afternoon the workshops focused on what each individual’s goals were, analyzing whether one was on the correct path and what further steps were needed to achieve these goals. In the evening there was a Dinner Party and Cultural Evening.
On Day Six the Closing Ceremony started with Tibetan prayers and continued with final feedbacks, votes of thanks from the delegates, delegate’s commitments about their future, circulation of addresses and ended with the award of Certificates.

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