Halo point. :P

I came across these quotes somewhere. They inspired me, hence saving and sharing them through this blog post.
1. Sometimes the best management is no management at all — first do no harm!
2. Indifference is as important as passion.
3. Saying smart things and giving smart answers are important. Learning to listen to others and to ask smart questions is more important.
4. You get what you expect from people. This is especially true when it comes to selfish behavior; unvarnished self-interest is a learned social norm, not an unwavering feature of human behavior.
5. Avoid pompous jerks whenever possible. They not only can make you feel bad about yourself, chances are that you will eventually start acting like them.
6. Anyone can learn to be creative, it just takes a lot of practice and little confidence
7. “Whenever people agree with me I always feel I must be wrong.”
8. Sutton’s Law: “If you think that you have a new idea, you are wrong. Someone else probably already had it. This idea isn’t original either; I stole it from someone else”
9. “Am I a success or a failure?” is not a very useful question
10. The world would be a better place if people slept more and took more naps
11. Strive for simplicity and competence, but embrace the confusion and messiness along the way.
12. Jimmy Maloney is right, work is an overrated activity.

How do you know how much is too much?

How do you know how much is too much? Too much to bear, too much to contain. How do you know when it is the right time to let go, let pieces of you fall apart.

There is never enough time in our lives to sit back and tackle issues individually. This holds true to both petty and the bigger, more impacting ones. We, or in good probability most of us, are running away from the truth all the time. We need to come across as strong individuals to people around us who may be are more screwed than us. This is how we deal with our pride. Issues, people and their feelings become impertinent to us and pride takes over. We have been taught to look at the brighter side of life, you know.

At a certain point however, the baggage becomes too heavy to carry. Your shoulders stoop under the weight of the invisible and everything is grey and pensive. What do you do then? Do you continue to turn a blind eye? Act like you are still the blithe spirited one on a cozy rose bed?

Or do you just stop running away? Stand still, breathe, and let that heavy, dense, soggy blob of pain sink into you. Let your frame of mind crush you. Put things into perspective. Subject self to rational thinking.

Face. Accept. Isn’t that the most difficult thing to do? Eventually, you’ll pick up your pieces and pull yourself together. You’ll learn. Evolve. Rise. Mature. If not anything, you’ll feel light enough to smile guilt free.

But again, how do you know when? How do you know how much is too much?

Featherbed…1

In its old age, my Toshiba Satellite series laptop has become like an elderly veteran with Schizophrenia who has just suffered a stroke. It turns on only when it feels like and at other times, it boots, like forever. It enjoys playing mind games with me. To add to the stubbornness, it doesn’t switch off, leaving me with no choice, but to drain the battery. Sometimes, I wonder if some mysterious software in the compiler went terribly wrong that led to the development of a brain of its own. Such fun it must be, to watch me do the funny slave-dance.

I had a report that needed to be sent out the following week. For a change, I was ahead of schedule. All I was left with was a detailed analysis and some seemingly original and believable insights. We research analysts are often paid for cleverly clenching away intelligent ideas of renowned and genuine analysts and calling them our ‘take-away’. I find most of the projects funny, more so because what I and a friend of mine do ends up influencing the business decisions of some of the world’s top MNCs. Oh no! Don’t get me wrong here, we do the best we can, bound by unrealistic deadlines and exceedingly inadequate resources.

Nonetheless, I settled down with my laptop to take a thorough look at the status of our research results. Turning it on was fifteen minutes of psychological agony in which I looked at things that exist outside of a computer screen. I looked at my 7 year old self-made stationary stand, stared at my purple wall and made plans to decorate it, tied my hair into a bun, dipped a tea bag into my mug, picked up tissues, and looked at the squiggly grey euglena like things that swim across my eyes. None of these stimulated my brain adequately. The laptop acted strangely, to no surprise. I pushed Ctrl+Alt+Delete and chose shut down. The screen displayed logging off, and that is when the saga began. It should have come with a subtitle- “Might take several hours, even days, in fact even eras.”

I decided to take a 20-mins power nap. In that way, the lappy wouldn’t get the attention it was craving for. It wouldn’t get to witness the havoc it was playing on my mind and might eventually act machine-like, tired of role-reversal in the game of master-slave that we play.

Driven by this motivation, I quickly slipped into a deep slumber and then saw an epic dream.

Socio-Economic background and its effect on learning patterns

The kids I have been teaching(part-time) come from families of varied Socio-Economic strata. Of course, none belong to the creame-de-la-creame.

After keen observation, I have come to notice that in spite of being subjected to similar teaching methods, these kids have differing learning patterns which are closely related to their economic background. Children from low socio-economic backgrounds acquire language skills at a slower rate and face greater difficulties in letter recognition. I tried alternative teaching methods to ensure that these kids get extra attention, but it turned out that they exhibited difficulties in phonological awareness as well.

One of the root causes could be the lack of nutrition. Most of these kids have very low attention spans, presence of mind and concentration. They never seem to mind when the other kids fare better than them, clearly indicating their low self esteem.
That said, a couple of students from such backgrounds have also performed exceptionally well in academics, sports and extra-curricular activities. This particular set of kids have one thing in common-strong familial support in the child’s progress.

A couple of approaches I am planning to adopt are:
1.) Fostering learning, motivation, equity and development of social skills.
2.) Educating about diversity of the world around us.
3.) Reading about successful persons from varied cultural/social/economic backgrounds
4.) Critical thinking
5.) Promoting mutual respect amongst all students
6.) Rigorous reading sessions
7.) Increased focus and encouragement of co-curricular activities

What I am sure of is that disadvantaged children are different, but not deficit.

Do you have any suggestions? Do let me know.

The agony of the Indian road ruler

Traveling by auto has always been an exhilarating experience for me. However, this has changed over the years. These auto-walas seem to have developed some kind of sixth sense. They stare at you for a few seconds, do some sort of mysterious calculation and then quote the price. After all these years of experience, I have concluded that the price quoted is a function of several interesting variables – what you are wearing, your complexion, presence/absence of company access cards around your necks, brand of mobile phones etc etc etc.

I couple of months ago, I had to travel from Indiranagar to Majestic. When I waved at a passing autorickshaw, little did I expect that this ride would be any different. I had to board a train to Vijaywada and had an hour get to the station before the train would depart. The driver was about 45 years old, a stout fellow. He initiated a chat with me – general, harmless stuff about the traffic and weather. I responded with the most teeny-weeny responses I could think of. But a few minutes down, I initial discomfort and ridicule diminished.

“Madam, aapko aissa lag raha hoga, ki main bahut baatein kar raha hoon. Magar madam, din bhar auto chalate chalate main bore ho jaata hoon. Isi liye, jo bhi mere auto mein baithta hai, main uss se baatein karne lagta hoon. Kuch log baat karte hain, aur kuch ko yeh lagta hai ki iss auto-waale se kyon muh lagna. Tab main chup ho jaata hoon.”

“Acchaa” I responded, trying to sound interested.

“Problem yeh hai, ki sab ko lagta hai ki hum auto-waale kharab log hain, paison ke bhookhe hain, par madam aissa nahi hai.”

Was mind reading a part of their skill set too? I felt guilty for a second.

“Main tees(30) saalon se auto chala raha hoon. Kuch saal pehle har koi auto-waale ki izzat karta tha. Saari galti in aaj kal ke ladkon ki hai jo auto chala rahe hain. Imaandaari aur mehnat ka matlab samjhte nahi hain, aur phir hum sab driver-on ko beizzati sehni padti hai.”

“Hum bure nahi hain madam. Jab road mein kisika accindent ho jaata hai, tab car ya motor waala aadmi kabhi bhi saath nahi deta hai. Chot khaye aadmi ko hum auto-waale hi hospital tak pahunchate hain. Raat mein late ho jaaye, toh ladies taxi se nahi, auto se ghar jaati hain. Par yeh sab log bhool jaaate hain madam. Aaj tak maine kisi bhi hospital jaane waale patient se paisa nahi liya hai madam.”

I had to say something now. He had struck the emotional chord after all. I felt sorry for him. Genuinely sorry.

“Sahi keh rahe ho. Saare auto-waale bure nahi hote, par problem yeh hai ki meter ka minimum fare badta hi jaa raha hai, phir bhi har koi 10-20 rupay extra maangte hi hain! Din ho ya raat, koi farq hi nahi padta hai. Government rules koi follow karta hi nahi hai!”

“Arre madam, kuch saal pehle hum ek din mein aaram se 1500 rupay kamate the. Par aaj kal, volvo buses aur baaki bus ke itne acche scheme nikale hain goverment ne, ki hum log 600 rupay bhi kama lein toh bahut hai.”

“PVR mein ek picture ke liye, log bina soche 500-600 rupay kharch kar dete hain. Doosri taraf, agar hum 10 rupay pooch lein toh humko gaali dete hain. Main yeh nahi keh raha hoon ki hum log sahi hain aur aap log galat ho, par humara business bahut kharab chal raha hai madam. Hum bhi kya karein…”

I asked him whether he does anything else and I figured that he did not have too much spare time.
He said that he goes to an old age home for women once a week or whenever he has some extra income, where he donates tooth brushes, toothpastes, soap, hair oil, and other items of daily use. He had two school-going children, and he drove from 8 in the morning till 10 at night.
No break unless he was unwell. “Madam, ghar mein baith ke T.V dekh kar kya faida? Do paisa income karega toh future mein kaam aayega.”

My journey came to an end. I disembarked, with more respect for auto-walas in my heart, and all I could do was to pay him a tip that would hardly cover a free ride to the hospital for someone ill.

…Ira 6

 

“What??!” That was the best I could come up with in that moment of disbelief. However, my tone summed up all that I was feeling.

“Ira..I am shit scared. I don’t know what to do…I feel numb…”

Nihas was a sensible guy who wouldn’t play nasty, unnecessary pranks. Even if he could, his voice told me that every word that he uttered is true. But then, who would want to accept such truth without questioning? “Not funny! I am not in the mood for crappy humor Nihas.”

“Ira yaar, please believe me.. I am serious. I was speeding way too much today…I have driven on that road so many times, but it had been dug up this time and I didn’t know…I lost control of the car and it hit the side of a tunnel. Vikram suffered terrible injuries and……Ira, an hour later..he succumbed to them…” He broke into another fit of sobs.

These things happen in the movies, or in other people lives. We are usually the person ‘X’, listening to such heart wrenching stories in which a friends’ best friend dies.  Such horrible things cannot happen to us!

Nihas was a reckless on roads. Frankly, this was the first thought that crossed my mind. I have been subjected to his rash driving skills and have always wished he would be a little cautious. Time and again, he’s been advised by family and friends to mellow down a little on the road, but never did he pay heed. I tried a couple of times too, but you know how the male ego functions!

For a moment, I tried hard to escape the truth that had been laid out for me. I didn’t know what exactly I was feeling. It was anger, denial or may be both.

As usual, I didn’t know how to react. Logically, Nihas indeed had killed Vikram. But girlfriends are supposed to console and pacify, not rub in the ugly truth.

What am I supposed to say to him – It’s alright. Death can’t be undone. Just don’t do it again??!!

Bored

13 more days in my current office and then I shall be freed from this feeling. Notice periods suck!  Zero responsibilities at work and inaccessibility to music have been making me feel like the whole point of my existence has been killed due to various constraints! I miss work. Too much whiling away time is not really enjoyable, especially when you have to pretend to be busy!

For the first time, I even entertained a tele-caller from a bank! I happily chatted away with him for 20 minutes!

What do I do next, what do I do next, what do I do next……??!!!

R.I.P Jothi Ram….

Saturday, May 28th 2011

Jothi…

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It has been months since you have been gone.. I’m sorry..Couldn’t gather the strength to see u then…

Jothi…. The news was  so dreadful that I never spoke about it with anyone…So dreadful, it turned me numb..So numb, that I sometimes wondered if I even had a heart..

Last nyt, I finally wept…. silently, in a quiet corner…wept for hours..This is terribly sad man…  I wish I knew what u were going through..I wish someone who knew about it, would have lent you a helping hand..or atleast a ear.. I wish we were more conscious of the people around us..

I wish there was some way to bring u back man..some freaking way..You could have at least given us a chance.. I hate u man..I hate u… 

Jo….. If only…. If only…

Initiating new directions with thought leadership

Tags

leader, leadership, thought leadership

Leadership in simple terms is showing the way for others either by example or by promoting a better way.

So now,how does thought leadership differ?
It is like selling the tickets for the journey, leaving it to others to get to the destination on their own.

Interestingly, in contrast to traditional leadership, thought leadership violates the top-down hierarchy. It is the basis of innovative change and is egalitarian because it can shift rapidly from one person to another. It cannot be monopolized. But thought leadership has a more competitive edge. It’s like the thought leaders are saying that they know of a better way of doing things than anyone else in the team or organization.

To be a thought leader, you have to be able to suggest innovative ideas, think ahead of others and possess excellent expertise in your domain. Thought leaders can persuade others using logic, evidence or an actual demonstration of a prototype to win support. It isn’t necessary to have inspirational influencing skills, which is necessary for senior executives because they need to win over the entire organization and beat off their internal competitors for top jobs. Basically, u don’t need to have influencing skills. rather, content is king here.
The bottom line is that leadership is about the initiation of new directions. Implementing them is a managerial undertaking.

…Ira – 5

Tiny droplets of rain trickled down the windshield. There were not many vehicles on the highway. It was a lovely drive. Atleast until I received that call.
It was Nihas on the other end.
“Hello?”, I said.
There was no answer.
“Hello?”
No answer again, but this time I could hear Nihas breathing frantically.
“Can you hear me? Hellooo?”
No response.
Paarth, looked at me several times when all of this was happening. He must have probably wondered what was going on. I couldn’t figure out what was going on either. So I decided to hang up and call back. Just when I was about to do so, I heard a faint voice.
“Ira…”
Something in the voice infused pain in me. It felt like, I was being injected with a viscous fluid that was meant to spread suffering in my body.
“Nihas?? Are you OK?”
No answer again.
“Nihas? Nihas, you are scaring me. Please speak up. Where are you? Is everything alright?”
“Ira… Baby, will you forgive me?”
Nihas sounded feeble, powerless. He was my pillar of strength and support. He always was. My pillar of strength was not supposed to sound helpless. It was too much dicomfort for me to handle.
“Pull up the car.” Paarth, for some reason, didn’t take my words seriously and continued driving although I said that line very loudly and clearly. I continued staring at him with a ‘are-you-hard-of-hearing?’ look. I don’t know what came upon me in that moment.
“Pull up the damn car!” I yelled.

Paarth was clearly taken aback at my rashness. He pulled up and obviously didn’t seem amused. I got out of the car and slammed the door behind me.

“Nihas, Nihas… What happened? Tell me.”
“Ira…..”
I could sense that he was breaking down.
“Nihas…You have to trust me. Everything’s going to be just fine. Come on…relax…”
“Ira… Vikram… Vik…Vikram is dead…Vikram died Ira..” He couldn’t hold back anymore. He sobbed like a little child at this point.
I was silenced by disbelief. I consciously attempted to muster some courage for the sake of Nihas. I tried hard to pick the best possible things to say. But before I could say a word, I was further silenced — ”It is me Ira… I killed him….He’s gone Ira..Vikrams gone and it is all my fault…”