Hi All, Does anybody attended ISABS' Basic Human Lab? It would be great if someone can share their experience in the lab, its benefits, etc. Thanks a lot in advance! Manish
From India, Nagpur
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17From India, Nagpur
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Hi manish ,
Like many other like minded people , I have attended the barkha event of ISABS at Karjat . I must admit , that it was not a very nice feeling . Especially , because , be the Advanced Lab people or the Basic Lab people , we all were royally fooled that , we wld be given a feedback after the session .
We still are awaiting for that . The organisers at one point , had been true to their purpose of having such a Human Lab , which has managed to lure many , but now the entire picture is so miffed and bleek , that it is thoroughly commercialized .
The facilitators , try their level bestt o show their expertise with behavioral skills and understanding human psyche , but in vain . They are very very rude , curt and blunt to an extent that most of the participants of the lab who are in touch with one another , are facing worser issues and they are in an identitiy crisis .
I ardently wish , that this wjole concept becomes more serious and the facillitators like , Shreedhar , Sanjeev , Rashmi , Vignesh and the like understand , the pain that others undergo becoz of their so called social cause .
Rather than , spending money collected from the participants and spending the same on booze and getting drunk on such an event , it would have been better , if a little bit cld have been done in the understanding of issues .
If you are mature enough to gauge , intensity of ur own problems and sort them by urself , then u seriously do not need a ISABS . Rest .... u know better .
Aabha .
From India, Mumbai
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Like many other like minded people , I have attended the barkha event of ISABS at Karjat . I must admit , that it was not a very nice feeling . Especially , because , be the Advanced Lab people or the Basic Lab people , we all were royally fooled that , we wld be given a feedback after the session .
We still are awaiting for that . The organisers at one point , had been true to their purpose of having such a Human Lab , which has managed to lure many , but now the entire picture is so miffed and bleek , that it is thoroughly commercialized .
The facilitators , try their level bestt o show their expertise with behavioral skills and understanding human psyche , but in vain . They are very very rude , curt and blunt to an extent that most of the participants of the lab who are in touch with one another , are facing worser issues and they are in an identitiy crisis .
I ardently wish , that this wjole concept becomes more serious and the facillitators like , Shreedhar , Sanjeev , Rashmi , Vignesh and the like understand , the pain that others undergo becoz of their so called social cause .
Rather than , spending money collected from the participants and spending the same on booze and getting drunk on such an event , it would have been better , if a little bit cld have been done in the understanding of issues .
If you are mature enough to gauge , intensity of ur own problems and sort them by urself , then u seriously do not need a ISABS . Rest .... u know better .
Aabha .
From India, Mumbai
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hi Aabha, WOuld you recommend ny other similar course... I’m new to OB but would like to get some certification or some degree. Vishant.
From India, Delhi
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From India, Delhi
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This is one year late, but I have just returned from the National Event 2011, and it was the most amazing experience I have gone through. Following are some points on why:
1. I didn't go looking for solutions to my problems. If I can't solve them, nobody else can. In my own life, if I can't bring about a change, then nobody can. So one needs to take that perspective.
2. Although I had met a few people in the past who had shared that they had an earth-shattering experience, I didn't go with that kind of expectation.
3. I considered the facilitators as human. All of us are unique. Each of us is free to live our life as we want. If we keep the facilitators on a pedestal, it makes them inhuman. So we forget that they have emotions like anger, partiality, emotional attachment. If I can feel all these emotions, then so can the facilitators. If I can be angry (much like Aabha above), they too can.
4. Taking feedback in its totality. When you have a lot of judgments, a lot of hang-ups, then it is quite likely that we throw the baby with the bathwater. So when others give me feedback, then I took it objectively. They have a right to think both positively and negatively about me. It depends on me how I take it. And anyways, knowing how your actions impact other people is always good. Rest up to each one of us.
Nisha
From India, New Delhi
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1. I didn't go looking for solutions to my problems. If I can't solve them, nobody else can. In my own life, if I can't bring about a change, then nobody can. So one needs to take that perspective.
2. Although I had met a few people in the past who had shared that they had an earth-shattering experience, I didn't go with that kind of expectation.
3. I considered the facilitators as human. All of us are unique. Each of us is free to live our life as we want. If we keep the facilitators on a pedestal, it makes them inhuman. So we forget that they have emotions like anger, partiality, emotional attachment. If I can feel all these emotions, then so can the facilitators. If I can be angry (much like Aabha above), they too can.
4. Taking feedback in its totality. When you have a lot of judgments, a lot of hang-ups, then it is quite likely that we throw the baby with the bathwater. So when others give me feedback, then I took it objectively. They have a right to think both positively and negatively about me. It depends on me how I take it. And anyways, knowing how your actions impact other people is always good. Rest up to each one of us.
Nisha
From India, New Delhi
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Dear Nisha,
Thanks a lot for your encouraging reply! If we do not go with any purpose or intention, then how do we make a decision to participate in Human Lab? And why? Could you please elaborate on your experience to know more about what EXACTLY Human Labs are?
Regards, Manish
From India, Nagpur
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Thanks a lot for your encouraging reply! If we do not go with any purpose or intention, then how do we make a decision to participate in Human Lab? And why? Could you please elaborate on your experience to know more about what EXACTLY Human Labs are?
Regards, Manish
From India, Nagpur
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Dear Manish,
I understand where you are coming from. How does one decide on ISABS, since there are so many similar organizations out there who focus on similar aspects. One of the key reasons informing my decision to do the ISABS basic lab was my preparedness for change. This may be a tricky thing to do, especially when we are constantly bombarded with information that we do need to change, but I asked myself, do I want to change, and change may be a really difficult process. I am still struggling, even though I had an extremely positive experience. Another aspect that is unique about ISABS labs is that there is no remuneration for the facilitators; they do it absolutely free. I think only their travel costs are reimbursed. The fee is modest, and ISABS events happen in beautiful locations, most of which are expensive. The one that I attended was in South Goa, in a beach resort, staying there is quite expensive but we were given the best facilities that were possible. So there is no profit-making.
There is no answer possible for how to take a decision; you just take it. You do not think how to blink, you just blink. As for the why part, you can consider asking yourself, why am I asking for other people's reactions and experiences. We do not ask if anyone has experienced eating a chocolate. They cannot describe it; we have to experience it ourselves, only then we can get to know the complex taste of chocolate. Still, I would share my experience below.
To describe my experience, I would say that during the ISABS lab, we all lived in the present moment. There is a tendency to talk about the past. You know, what a bad/good/fantastic/abusive childhood/adolescence we had. How we are self-made, and blah - blah - blah, but we do not focus on what is happening with us in the present. ISABS helps us in focusing on the present. For instance, I am responding to your query because I feel the need to share and to obviously show that I had a good experience. There is a need to prove a point - in this case that ISABS is about a good experience if you go through it with the right attitude. Now before ISABS, I would have said lofty things like - I am writing because I want to contribute to the general good, that I want to help people in living their life better, and that there is a higher objective which is involved. I would have hidden my own feelings of sharing, of inclusion, of proving something. You see, after ISABS, we feel courageous enough to share our own feelings. We become prepared for the consequences also. So I know that after this long reply, there is an inherent danger that you will be so put off that you may think 'To hell with ISABS, and to hell with change. How can people think in such complicated ways?' and I may think 'Oh Gosh!! I have lost a reader and a person with whom there was a possibility of a dialogue.' But these are the consequences I am prepared to face.
Another thing that I changed in myself was the following. Before ISABS, I used to react a lot. You know, like a friend/family member has been publicly rude to me, I will reply back, I will shout, or I will not talk to him/her for a long long time. After ISABS, I realized that people have a right to feel/do what they do. What matters most is how I change the situation. I can be more observant of my feelings and behavior. Also, how can I express my feelings rather than reacting. So if my friend is rude and I shout back or not talk to him/her forever, I am reacting rather than expressing my feeling. What I do now is - I tell my friend, you are behaving rudely, that makes me sad and I am hurt. The immediate effect is that my friend comes in touch with my feelings rather than my reaction of shouting back or going into a shell. S/he is able to empathize more and hence deal with it. Mostly now it happens that my friends first get a jolt, then an awe, and then comes a sorry. The reaction is not exceptional, but neither does it happen most of the time. But I feel good after sharing what I feel. I know it is difficult. I took some time to make this demarcation and do these kinds of things, but I have started. And believe me starting is good than not starting at all.
Like Abha had shared, I haven't received feedback even after a month from ISABS. We were told that it would be sent in 15 days. But I do not complain because the feedback is what other people saw in me. What I have seen in myself is much more valid and important. The facilitators also are extremely busy people. Most of them head their organizations or are even working for many at the same time. Plus, each of them has their personal lives also. I have been in touch with my facilitator, and he was extremely busy to even respond to calls. If you have any other questions, do drop in an email on my Gmail ID since I am not very regular on this site. It's the same as the username here.
Nisha
From India, New Delhi
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
I understand where you are coming from. How does one decide on ISABS, since there are so many similar organizations out there who focus on similar aspects. One of the key reasons informing my decision to do the ISABS basic lab was my preparedness for change. This may be a tricky thing to do, especially when we are constantly bombarded with information that we do need to change, but I asked myself, do I want to change, and change may be a really difficult process. I am still struggling, even though I had an extremely positive experience. Another aspect that is unique about ISABS labs is that there is no remuneration for the facilitators; they do it absolutely free. I think only their travel costs are reimbursed. The fee is modest, and ISABS events happen in beautiful locations, most of which are expensive. The one that I attended was in South Goa, in a beach resort, staying there is quite expensive but we were given the best facilities that were possible. So there is no profit-making.
There is no answer possible for how to take a decision; you just take it. You do not think how to blink, you just blink. As for the why part, you can consider asking yourself, why am I asking for other people's reactions and experiences. We do not ask if anyone has experienced eating a chocolate. They cannot describe it; we have to experience it ourselves, only then we can get to know the complex taste of chocolate. Still, I would share my experience below.
To describe my experience, I would say that during the ISABS lab, we all lived in the present moment. There is a tendency to talk about the past. You know, what a bad/good/fantastic/abusive childhood/adolescence we had. How we are self-made, and blah - blah - blah, but we do not focus on what is happening with us in the present. ISABS helps us in focusing on the present. For instance, I am responding to your query because I feel the need to share and to obviously show that I had a good experience. There is a need to prove a point - in this case that ISABS is about a good experience if you go through it with the right attitude. Now before ISABS, I would have said lofty things like - I am writing because I want to contribute to the general good, that I want to help people in living their life better, and that there is a higher objective which is involved. I would have hidden my own feelings of sharing, of inclusion, of proving something. You see, after ISABS, we feel courageous enough to share our own feelings. We become prepared for the consequences also. So I know that after this long reply, there is an inherent danger that you will be so put off that you may think 'To hell with ISABS, and to hell with change. How can people think in such complicated ways?' and I may think 'Oh Gosh!! I have lost a reader and a person with whom there was a possibility of a dialogue.' But these are the consequences I am prepared to face.
Another thing that I changed in myself was the following. Before ISABS, I used to react a lot. You know, like a friend/family member has been publicly rude to me, I will reply back, I will shout, or I will not talk to him/her for a long long time. After ISABS, I realized that people have a right to feel/do what they do. What matters most is how I change the situation. I can be more observant of my feelings and behavior. Also, how can I express my feelings rather than reacting. So if my friend is rude and I shout back or not talk to him/her forever, I am reacting rather than expressing my feeling. What I do now is - I tell my friend, you are behaving rudely, that makes me sad and I am hurt. The immediate effect is that my friend comes in touch with my feelings rather than my reaction of shouting back or going into a shell. S/he is able to empathize more and hence deal with it. Mostly now it happens that my friends first get a jolt, then an awe, and then comes a sorry. The reaction is not exceptional, but neither does it happen most of the time. But I feel good after sharing what I feel. I know it is difficult. I took some time to make this demarcation and do these kinds of things, but I have started. And believe me starting is good than not starting at all.
Like Abha had shared, I haven't received feedback even after a month from ISABS. We were told that it would be sent in 15 days. But I do not complain because the feedback is what other people saw in me. What I have seen in myself is much more valid and important. The facilitators also are extremely busy people. Most of them head their organizations or are even working for many at the same time. Plus, each of them has their personal lives also. I have been in touch with my facilitator, and he was extremely busy to even respond to calls. If you have any other questions, do drop in an email on my Gmail ID since I am not very regular on this site. It's the same as the username here.
Nisha
From India, New Delhi
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If I had to give you a few reasons as to why you should not consider going to ISABS, here they are:
1. Facilitators are not well-trained to handle people with appreciative inquiry; instead, they are rude in the name of being authentic or straightforward.
2. ISABS is a place where you will find people yelling at each other, and facilitators seem to enjoy this process.
3. Facilitators use derogatory language, such as "tumhara demag kharab hai kya," "tum kitne dikhawa karte ho," "what the fuck," "You are dumb," etc., and some sentences that are too inappropriate to mention here.
4. The facilitators are either not paid or are paid peanuts, so the seriousness is lacking.
For any transformation to happen, people need a change in safe spaces. Instead of spending your money at ISABS, consider hiring a good coach or participating in a transformation program in group settings.
From India, Pune
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1. Facilitators are not well-trained to handle people with appreciative inquiry; instead, they are rude in the name of being authentic or straightforward.
2. ISABS is a place where you will find people yelling at each other, and facilitators seem to enjoy this process.
3. Facilitators use derogatory language, such as "tumhara demag kharab hai kya," "tum kitne dikhawa karte ho," "what the fuck," "You are dumb," etc., and some sentences that are too inappropriate to mention here.
4. The facilitators are either not paid or are paid peanuts, so the seriousness is lacking.
For any transformation to happen, people need a change in safe spaces. Instead of spending your money at ISABS, consider hiring a good coach or participating in a transformation program in group settings.
From India, Pune
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