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Born Optimist, authored by Ramprasad Ramaswamy, was both inspired by his friends and is an accumulation of thoughts turned into a creative and productive manuscript. The book is an expression of his perspective of self-reliance, built on his experiences while being able to inspire the community on being optimistic. It talks about accepting life’s many situations as is, focusing on using time productively, and involving oneself in a purposeful life by being useful to others through any means.
What inspired you to write this book?
The fact that a few of my friends were motivated/inspired by some of the articles, and encouragement from them to write more made me write this book. It was not a planned one though and happened with the purpose of inspiring many people.
What was your rationale behind finalizing “Born Optimist” as the title for your book?
I was able to express my thoughts/perspective of self-improvement based on my own experience. This book in itself is a liberation for me in the sense I was able to able to communicate and express myself to the external world thru this medium. It was a ‘coming out of shell’ moment, a hidden potential was ‘Born’, and The contents resonate full of ‘Optimism’ amidst the world undergoing a scary life-threatening situation. Hence Born Optimist is a fitting one.
In your book, you state that “A major quality that makes a leader stand out from the rest is his clear thinking.” We would like you to elaborate on this.
All of the time, everyone is in a position that requires either a response or a reaction. Hence one’s emotional state before someone responds or reacts may or may not be in alignment with what one wants to convey. With the emotions in play, the thinking gets influenced. Hence having or working towards clear thinking is important. Being able to put facts and objectively thinking and conveying is important.
What would your advice be for people to remain positive amidst the pandemic?
Accepting the situation as is, follow what is safe – think of the society and environment, divert the focus to doing something constructive, and involve yourself in a purposeful by being useful to others thru any means.
Do you see writing as a kind of spiritual practice?
No, I don’t. Personally, it was liberating to express my thoughts and perspective.
In your book, ‘Born Optimist’ have you tried to be original or write what your readers want?
All contents are documented as and when a thought arises expanded. An event or situation or response or quote could have triggered the initiation of each section of the book.
While writing this book, was there anything particularly challenging for you?
Initially, the thought of a book was not there. It was only a weekly accumulation of thoughts with some analogical reference. When the idea of a book came, these abstract, unstructured contents later were assimilated as a book. There was no pressure at any stage.
What is the one message that you would like to give your readers?
Take yourself easy, enjoy every moment of life, and express yourselves to uncover your talents.
