Our Journey of Restructuring Ourselves and Our Values The Start
Our Journey began as a small team of highly passionate and enthusiastic people from diverse cultural backgrounds, to form an Experiential Education Company. Primarily outbound, the transference of learning from experiences that we specialize in have always driven enthusiasm to bring a much meaningful, memorable, motivational and measurable change in the lives of who we’ve touched, throughout our journey. The Journey Like it’s often said, “It’s a small World after all.”, we believe very much in this and consider ourselves a small part of the World. But this doesn’t stop us from contributing in a bigger way to change the lives of many. Still a small team with big transformations, that’s what we really are! People have always been an integral and vital aspect of Outlife, as a company, while we deliver unparalleled experience-based learning to those in need. Which is why we always welcome newer people who can align with our ideologies well, with an open heart. This emotion perennially prevails even when a team member decides to part ways with us. Outlife has always been a platform for those who could master the skill of Experiential Learning. Well settled in most Tier-1 companies, our alumni still look up to us when it comes to how we’ve driven transformation in their lives too! Our journey from being an Experiential Learning provider to becoming grounded as a Leading provider in this space, making use of Experiential Education Principles, Adult Learning Methodologies, Outdoor and Adventure Leadership, Learning and Development Methodologies across disciplines of Experiential Education, Behavioral Psychology, Learning Experience Design, Instructional Design, Neuroscience of Learning, Technology. Above all, Continuous Innovation in delivering authentic experiential education and learning experiences catering to human potential development for corporates and schools, has been driving change in the lives of many, since the past decade. Outlife has positively impacted lives of participants by engaging them in learning experiences physically, emotionally, intellectually and socially leading to greater self-awareness, self-development, self-discovery and self-transcendence, thereby creating better citizens, better businesses, better societies and eventually a better nation. Living our values, being passionate leaders and following our life purpose in the service of others by contributing to the larger purpose of education, development and transformation of people in all spheres of life, we authentically express our talents, passion and purpose through calling ourselves “Outlife”. The Destination Driven by Our Core Values (Service, Education, Innovation, Creativity, Excellence, Action, Integrity, Care and Compassion), we envision a future where we emerge as an all-round Leader in the domain of Experiential Training, where we facilitate learning experiences that result in Learning, Change, Action and Joy for our Customers. The ‘Big Picture’, the future of what we believe our company is, has most often given clarity to clear major milestones in our day-to-day work. We consider ourselves lucky, in the sense that our ideologies are often goal driven and we value our approach to becoming a transformational work culture from a service-oriented work culture that we currently are. The destination that we set for ourselves in this life journey shall remain constantly changing, and that’s a promise we’ve made to ourselves, envisioning our overall growth. We understand that the path we wish to travel demands continuous innovation and change, and we’re furthermore elated as we believe that we are enablers in this zone. All said and done, these destinations are all halts for getting ourselves refreshed and ready for the bigger journey. There’s no true one-stop destination in our journey, as the journey itself is what we believe is our destination.
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Outdoor Learning for Children Continued from back-to-nature-part-1.html “Here is this vast, savage, howling mother of ours, Nature, lying all around, with such beauty, and such affection for her children, as the leopard; and yet we are so early weaned from her to society, to that culture which is exclusively an interaction of man on man.” – Henry David Thoreau What are all these great researchers, scientists and activists talking about? Is nature really that vital? Does it have such a magnanimous impact and influence on our children? In this article let us explore why it is important and necessary for children to spend time in the outdoors. Outdoors is the lab of life. Nature and outdoors stimulate a lifelong learner in every child. In nature, children can access elements of themselves which otherwise would be slumbering. It awakens children to life. Nature fosters, involves, nourishes and evolves children. Nature is the garden of heaven and children belong there! Some tangible benefits of spending time in the outdoors are:- Overall well being of the child Playing outside our houses takes us inside of ourselves. Fresh air and open skies is invigorating for a child. Playing in the outdoors is a phenomenal sensory stimulation for the child. Fine motor skills, gross motor skills, hand eye coordination, concentration, paying attention can be improved in children with outdoor exposure. Nature enhances functioning of the brain and increases analytical skills. Children who play in the outdoors are much stronger and have better immune systems. Their body balance is also enhanced. They are more alive and filled with enthusiasm; they are more alert and agile. Nature inspires and motivates them. It inspires children to wander and wonder. Spending time in the outdoor nourishes mind, body and spirit of the child. Develops personalities Nature is the laboratory of life. Childhood is a very impressionable age and outdoors offers all the necessary requirements needed to develop and shape children’s personalities. Outdoors have everything that could nourish the child. Children pick up behaviors, attitudes and attributes that serve the growth of children into holistic human beings. Nature is a safe place for them to try out new aspects or discover hidden aspects of themselves. These opportunities enables them to be risk takers, being open to challenges, being empathetic and cooperative, nurture their creative abilities, thinking in perspectives and build resilience. They foster their own growth and development in the outdoors. Fosters learning Outdoors provide stimulation for heart, mind and body. It provides umpteen opportunities where children learn through exploration and discovery. Children are innate scientists and love to experience the sights, scents, sounds, and textures of the outdoors. Nature provides countless opportunities for discovery, creativity, problem-solving, and finding solutions. They not only discover about nature, they also discover about themselves. Outdoors teaches learning a journey and a process and equips them to carve their own journeys. Open to uncertainty Nature is full of surprises, it open and constantly changing. Nature is very mysterious and full of wonder. It might be a sudden change in the weather or spotting a caterpillar perfectly camouflaged. Being open to uncertainty is a very vital lesson for children about life coz life is uncertain. It moves children out of their comfort zones and boredom. It teaches important lessons of cause and effect. Uncertainty opens doors to the new and unknown. It allows children to explore, fail and try again. Children are more independent and autonomous, which is very important.  Opens doors for creativity Outdoors enable children to be free flowing, flexible and open minded. Their thought flow and mind activity is not hindered but nourished. This opens their creative channels and they also find opportunities to use and express them. When children express their creativity they alter how they see themselves, their thinking abilities expand, and they are more contented with themselves and more willing to push their boundaries. Enables social development When children play in the outdoors, they seldom play alone. They are constantly interacting with other children and also adults. They mingle with different personalities and age groups, too. They connect, collaborate, help and seek help, learn and share. They learn to manage themselves and also manage other children. They alter their temperaments to suit the nature of the group. They are together in play and crisis. These experiences foster and shape their social behavior for life. They have shared experiences and shared memories together. This will deepen their mental, emotional and social well being. Cures many conditions, disorders and disabilities Several studies have proved the therapeutic benefits of being in the outdoors. It has been proved that spending time in the outdoors has reduced ADHDs, learning disabilities, helps slow learners, autistic children and several other conditions. Children with developmental delays have also shown considerable improvements after spending time in the outdoors. Opportunities for outdoor play are diminishing as a consequence of globalization, technology expansion and urban growth. A growing culture of fear about the possible accidents that might happen and overprotection of the child is affecting parent's attitude towards outdoor play, so children tend to be kept inside, occupied with structured activities, and controlled by adults. These fears are often hindering natural growth and real expression of children. This transformation is regressing the growth and development of the child. This calls for us to ensure children have sufficient time in nature and outdoors and play as much as possible. Let nature pour its goodness into the well being of our children. The question is where is this nature? Where is this outdoors? How and when do we expose children to the outdoors? When I look outside of my window, I mostly see apartments and flats and gated communities. I see some green cover that is mostly there for decorative purposes. Mostly, cemented or tar roads; no uneven paths with grass and puddles. Where will children run with traffic, vehicles and strangers on roads? What if my child touches something or eats something that will cause a cold, an allergy or an infection? How can I make sure my child is safe? Where and how do I start? Are some of the above questions that bother you as a parent? Find answers in the next article! The question again remains how do we access outdoors and provide such deep and meaningful experiences to our children? References https://www.sunsetzoo.com/DocumentCenter/View/22/Benefits-of-Nature-Play https://theecologist.org/2005/sep/23/let-our-children-roam-free http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/156482659902000103 https://www.nature.com/articles/523286a Ashwini GovindOutlife Experiential Education Isomorphic Framing - Learning Life Lessons from a Climbing WallIsomorphic Framing- When the Wall is like life Climbing a wall is like living your life , just take it one step at a time!. One might question, What has the wall got to do with real life? In our work as Experiential and Outdoor Educators, we use high ropes and adventure based challenges as metaphors for intrapersonal and interpersonal process work. When the holds, harness, helmets, carabiners are like your resources, opportunities or challenges in life! When the belayer represents all those people who extend help and support you in life. When the rope becomes the trust or relationship you have with family and friends that creates your life support system. An metaphor is an idea, object, or value that is like another different idea, object or value in the participants life. It is symbolic, denotes comparative likeness and similarity between the two. Isomorphic Framing in facilitation is used as a intervention for creating a metaphorical structure. For example, in the case of a climbing wall, The activity of climbing along with the holds, harness, ropes, safety devices, belayer create a meaningful link to other aspects of the participants real lives. Essentially Isomorphic framing creates a metaphoric relationship between two different environments (activity/experience and real life) and enhances the transfer and application of the learning from one environment to the other and enables the participants to change the way they think and behave in their real life.
Priest, S., & Gass, M. (1997) Effective Leadership in Adventure Programming. Vishwas Parchure - DEEP - Diploma in Experiential Education and Practice  |
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Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Pune, Vizag - India