All posts by Mallika Chopra

About Mallika Chopra

Mallika Chopra is a mom, media entrepreneur, public speaker and published author. Her most recent book, Living With Intent: My Somewhat Messy Journey to Purpose, Peace and Joy, was published in April 2015. Mallika is the founder of Intent.com, a website and app focused on personal, social and global wellness. Her intent is to harness the power of social media to connect people from around the world to improve their own lives, their communities and the planet. View all posts by Mallika Chopra →

How to Serve Nepal Today

April 27, 2015Causes, Money, Planetary Health, World NewsMallika Chopra

The devastation from the earthquake in Nepal is beginning to settle in now that the panic of the momentous quake and aftershocks, the search for loved ones, and the reality that over 4000 lives (and counting) have been lost. In my conversations with Caryl Stern, the President of the US Fund for UNICEF, and reading her book, I Believe In Zero, I began to understand more about the different phases of emergency relief, particularly the critical time frame of the first response systems, and then the long term needs to help people survive disease, hunger, and lack of resources that follow such a tragedy.

Many countries immediately offered aid and relief efforts to Nepal. Similarly, organizations like UNICEF, the Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders and other organizations are set up operationally to get into the country quickly. Here is a list from the NY Times of such organizations:

NY Times List of Organizations for Donating to Nepal Support Continue reading →

Living with Intent: 6 Steps to Living a Healthier, More Joyful & Purposeful Life

April 9, 2015Balance, Better Than Before, consciousness, Happiness, Healthy Living, Inspiration, Intent of the Day, Living Your Purpose, Meditation, Mindfulness, Relationships, Success, Work & Life, Year of Intentbook, Deepak Chopra, gabby bernstein, Gretchen Rubin, Living with Intent, Mallika Chopra, meditationMallika Chopra

About two years ago, I approached my father (Deepak Chopra) with a confession. I told him I was generally exhausted, over caffeinated and my sugar addiction was out of control. I realized I was overscheduled trying to balance my role as a wife, mom, and entrepreneur with Intent.com, my start-up social media company. I felt bloated and had a lot of body pain. I hadn’t been meditating or exercising much, and at night I was having trouble sleeping. My father looked shell shocked, and it took a few moments for him to transition from concerned father to Deepak Chopra, the person that thousands go to for health advice. Continue reading →

Preorder “Living with Intent” and bring home a thank you gift!

March 10, 2015Art, Happiness, Inspiration, Living Your Purpose, Meditation, Success, Work & Lifebook, free gift, Living with Intent, Mallika Chopra, preorderMallika Chopra

Dear Friends,

I have spent the last two years working on Living with Intent: My Somewhat Messy Journey to Purpose, Peace and Joy — so it is both exciting and nerve wracking to finally begin sharing it! If you are interested in purchasing the book, I would be so grateful if you consider pre-ordering it now, and I am offering a special bonus gift to those who do. Continue reading →

A New Intent: What Do You Ask For?

March 4, 2015Art, Balance, consciousness, Happiness, Inspiration, Intent of the Day, Meditation, Mindfulness, Spirit, Spirituality, Stress ManagementConnection, inspiration, Intent, Living with Intent, love, Mallika Chopra, meditationMallika Chopra

Intents come from our soul and represent who we aspire to be as individuals, members of our communities and citizens of Mother Earth. Continue reading →

Living With Intent: My Brother, Gotham Chopra. And My (Somewhat) Biased Review of Kobe Bryant’s Muse

February 27, 2015Inspiration, Interview, Living Your Purpose, Popular Culture, Work & Life, World NewsGotham Chopra, kobe bryant, Kobe Bryant's Muse, Living with Intent, Michael Jackson, muse, religion of sports, showtime, SportsMallika Chopra

I have a memory of a family lunch at a famous seafood restaurant in Boston. I was 14 years old and my brother, Gotham, was 11. After ordering our food, members of the Boston Celtics basketball team marched through the entrance, scattering themselves among tables near us. Larry Bird, Dennis Johnson, Kevin McHale, Danny Ainge, Robert Parish – they were all there. Gotham stopped breathing. Not because he had choked on a piece of swordfish – but because he could not contain his excitement. His eyes went wide with disbelief. He literally could not speak.

My father was appalled. “These are just kids who can throw a ball in a hoop,” he chastised Gotham. “Doctors, scientists, humanitarians, these are the heroes you should be worshipping!” Gotham ignored my dad. He was in a sacred place, and nothing could take away his joy. The fact was my brother’s Religion was Sports, and these were his gods. Continue reading →

Jack Canfield & The Success Principles Anniversary

January 27, 2015consciousness, Habits, Happiness, Living Your Purpose, Money, Success, Work & Lifebreakthrough, Business, goals, Jack Canfield, structure, The Success Principles, tony robbinsMallika Chopra

To our Intent.com friends and family:

This week, my good friend Jack Canfield — originator of the famed Chicken Soup for the Soul book series — is announcing the definitive guide for those of us who want to become more successful in our lives, careers, finances and relationships.

It’s the 10th Anniversary Edition of his classic success book, The Success Principles: How to Get From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be — and Jack has assembled a series of unique gifts when you purchase the book online during this initial launch period. Continue reading →

Aging Gracefully

January 19, 2015Balance, Better Than Before, consciousness, Happiness, Health & Fitness, Meditation, Mindfulness, Parenting & Family, Relationships, Work & LifeAging, Aging Gracefully, Intent, Living with Intent, Mallika Chopra, noticeMallika Chopra

Aging Gracefully:
Noticing and Choosing What You Want As You Grow Older

A few months ago, I did a panel, and follow-up interview with Prevention Magazine (a magazine which I love, by the way) on aging gracefully. How funny to find myself being a voice for that…

On the panel, as others talked about diet, exercise and how to look young, I found myself getting emotional as I thought about my grandfather, Nana, who had just passed away. I realized, while sitting on the stage, that aging gracefully for me meant living with dignity, being of service, and cherishing the relationships in my life. Continue reading →

Name It to Tame It

October 2, 2014consciousness, Happiness, Healthy Living, Parenting & Family, Stress Managementanxiety, Children, Dan Siegel, family, Mallika Chopra, StressMallika Chopra

A Powerful Tip I read about in “Brainstorm: The Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain” by Dr. Dan Siegel

I was dropping off my 12 year old daughter to her 7^th Grade retreat, and I could see that she was nervous. It was a 2-night trip with new classmates from her new school. She is not one who is keen on retreats – in fact, she generally doesn’t like sleep-overs and has never wanted to go to a sleep away camp. At the same time, she was excited with the discovery of independence at Middle School, and knew that the retreat was a great opportunity to make new friends.

I reminded her that when she is feeling anxious, the first step is to breathe. Pause. Take deep breaths. One. Two. Three. Let the air coming in help push the anxiety out. She didn’t smile exactly as I spoke, but I could see her slowing down with deeper breathes as she listened.

I added a new twist to the exercise – something I had just read about in Dr. Dan Siegel’s book, Brainstorm: The Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain.

“In the brain, naming an emotion can help calm it… Name it to Tame It.”

He explains:

“For all of us, as teenagers or adults, when intense emotions erupt in our minds, we need to learn to feel them and deal with them… Learning to deal with emotions means being aware of them and modifying them inside so that we can think clearly. Sometimes we can name it to tame it and help balance our brains emotional intensity by putting words to what we feel… There are even some brain studies that show how this naming process can activate the prefrontal cortex and calm the limbic amygdala!”

As Tara was away on her retreat, I found myself practicing the Name It To Tame It technique, and the effects were dramatic. When feeling stressed or upset, I would pause, breathe, recognize the sensations in my body, name the emotion (frustration, anger, anxiety), and continue. In fact, in a particularly frustrating work situation, I named my feelings through my negotiations, and felt I was much more calm, clear headed and non-emotional.

Tara returned from her trip with a big smile and lots of stories about their adventures. She noted that there were moments when she felt alone and anxious, but she reassured me she took deep breaths, recognized her feelings, and proceeded.

Dr. Dan Siegel is a prolific author and presently a clinical professor of Psychiatry at UCLA School of Medicine. Learn more about him at his website or purchase your own copy of Brainstorm: the Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain and let us know what you think!

Back To School Intents

September 9, 2014Balance, Education, Happiness, Healthy Living, Intent of the Day, Parenting & Family, Work & Lifefamily, Intent, life, meditation, SchoolMallika Chopra

Last week, after dropping Leela off to her first day of 4^th grade at school, I came home and a wave of exhaustion, relaxation, elation and depression all hit at once. My 7^th grader, Tara, started a new Middle School two weeks earlier.

Back to school bliss or back to school blues?! I couldn’t decide.

We had had an adventurous summer, with lots of friends and family visiting us. But we also truly relaxed, enjoying days with no schedules. My summer intent for my kids was to let them get bored – rather than sign up for camps, we did a few classes and they spent the days at home figuring out what to do. They read, they watched television, played video games, painted, wrote, and hung out. I let their minds wander, aimlessly, happily, with no agenda.

Yet, within hours of them back in school, I was on my calendar, scheduling after school activities, logistics of two different drop offs and pickups, work commitments. I found myself mentally scheduling time to relax with our new Fall schedule! Why does it seem inevitable that our modern life gets us busy again? I find that despite trying not to get my kids too busy, the homework/music lessons/sports/friends life balance already seems an untenable goal.

As I begin the Fall, I decided to set some Back To School intents for me and my kids.

So here goes:

My intent is to meditate regularly.
This is top priority for me. And if I can commit to it, and show my girls through my example its value, I believe they will want to do it as well. I love meditating with my girls. We sit together in our favorite spots in the living room, we cuddle a bit, talk about the day, close our eyes, meditate, and then set intents for the week or day.

My intent is to make sleep a priority in our life.
My girls are growing, and need their sleep. For the last few months, we have been able to sleep without waking up with an alarm clock. I know the health and emotional benefits of good sleep, and don’t want to compromise on this for our family. We have an early morning schedule now, so if it means compromising some activities, that’s ok. Sleep is more important.

My intent is to focus on nourishing foods.
I just completed a two week cleanse, and for the first time since I can remember am feeling good without my cookies, ice cream, brownies, and heavy carb-filled pastas, pizza’s etc.

Also, while writing my book, Living With Intent, I was more mindful of my eating habits and why I was choosing the foods I consume. I realized that I am passing on my own eating habits to my kids. Once again, if I can guide them through my own example and through the changes in our meals at home, I hope I can teach them better habits.

My intent is to be flexible.
If we need to adjust schedules, skip a dance class, drop tennis, forgo doing extra math homework, I need to let go and know that it’s ok. Together we can figure out schedules and think about “time management”, but at the end of the day our journey is about love and service. I do believe flexibility is one of the keys to finding joy, and want to embrace that idea fully this school year.

My intent is to cherish the love of learning.
My kids are learning so many incredible things in school this year. I want to celebrate the love of learning, and engage in conversations with them about new ideas and discoveries.

My intent is to express gratitude every day.
Early mornings, new schedules, lots of homework – its easy to fall into the back to school blue mode. Instead I want to focus on gratitude, and incorporate it into our daily conversation. I want us to share at least one thing daily that we are grateful for.

I’d love to hear your intents for the Fall here in the comment section.

Please do share them on www.intent.com as well, so we can keep the dialogue going!

The Inspiration of Arianna Huffington and “Thrive”

April 18, 2014Art, Inspiration, Popular CultureArianna Huffington, book, book review, Huffington Post, Mallika Chopra, thriveMallika Chopra

Arianna Huffington is at the top of my list of women who intrigue me and whom I truly admire. Having met and heard her speak many times, I am always impressed by how articulate and smart she is. (Her relationship with my father, Deepak Chopra, dates back decades to when my dad saw her mother as a patient. Both Arianna and her sister, Agape, have become family friends who we see at various events.)

HuffingtonPost was the inspiration behind the original Intentblog – I loved the idea of bringing together real voices on a platform to explore and share big ideas. I truly cheered watching HuffingtonPost become such an incredible success story, because it was entrepreneurial, original, and a venture launched by a woman! Her name on lists like Time’s 100 Most Influential People and her face on the cover of magazines was so well deserved. And every time I met Arianna at book parties she hosted or at conferences where she spoke, I found her to be authentically interested in sharing ideas and expanding the global conversation.

But in her book, Thrive, Arianna admits that while many of us who have observed her years saw the success, she was suffering in other ways. Lack of sleep, exhaustion stress from 18 hour days, seven days a week, led her to actually fall one day and break her cheekbone and get a nasty gash on her eye. And, she was forced to ask herself questions like, “Was this what success looked like? Was this the life I wanted?”

In her book, Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-being, Wisdom and Wonder, Arianna explores what it means to lead a good life. She explains how we need to go beyond defining success merely in terms of money and power – that the third metric consists of four pillars: well-being, wisdom, wonder and giving.

When I read Arianna’s book, I had many a-ha moments. In fact some of the themes like meditation, noticing coincidences, and trusting your intuition are action steps I am writing about in my upcoming book. I loved her stories about her family, as well as tapping into her heritage and the lessons learned from Greek mythology and great philosophers of our time. There is a lot of research in the book, as well as resources on how to meditate, as well as a great list of apps to help you work more efficiently and without distractions!

One big take away for me was the importance of sleep, and how as a culture, we boast about our lack of sleep when on every measure for success, good sleep seems to be a critical factor. Since hearing about the importance of sleep in Arianna’s talks and the book, I have become very strict as a mom of making sure my girls get enough sleep every night. She references a study in Science that calculates that an extra hour of sleep can do more for daily happiness that a $60,000 raise. I have also followed her tips on de-connecting from the electronic devices. Who knew it would be so hard to go to sleep without my Iphone next to me!?

What I love about the book though is that Arianna goes beyond wellbeing, and includes cherishing wisdom, celebrating wonder, and giving as the other pillars for a life well lived. She writes in the epilogue, “I wanted to share my own personal journey, how I learned the hard way to step back from being so caught up in my busy life that life’s mystery would pass me by. But it was also important to me to make it clear that this was not just one woman’s journey. There’s a collective longing to stop living in the shallows, to stop hurting our health and our relationships by striving so relentlessly after success as the world defines it – and instead tap in to the riches, joy, and amazing possibilities that our lives embody.”

Arianna’s call to live with intent and joy is inspiring, and one I hope many people, of all generations, will embrace so we strive to live fuller, more meaningful lives.