After a long time I found some time to get through a book. I took a book that had been chosen by my current company's CTO as a recommended book for reading - "DEC is dead, Long live DEC". The book consists of three major sections taking about DEC's culture, its decline and then the lessons learned.
I have just started with the second section. The first one was interesting. I suppose many of today's top high-tech companies inherit a lot of legacy from DEC. I suppose what Ken Olsen would have done in today's high growth, high fluctuating environment. Possibly creating a DEC out in today's rapidly changing world would be really difficult.
Personally, I felt that this book gives a lot of insight into how a technically-oriented company led by a techie would span out into. I suppose management takes a bit of back seat in these type of companies and attitude comes to the forefront. I have seen a lot of MBAs in the HR departments of many IT companies. I strongly recommend them to read this section to understand how a techie culture would be. It is more towards getting things done, solving problems, fixing issues rather than a "do this in this manner", " come through this channel", etc.
Tracy Gibbons writes a chapter on DEC's other legacy - about how DEC influenced the society as a whole. It's an interesting read. Access the full chapter online at Tracy's consultancy site.
Showing posts with label leadership. Show all posts
Showing posts with label leadership. Show all posts
Exemplary Leadership
One of the company VP's visited our site yesterday. I report into his group. He is a veteran in the industry and switched his career to this present one about three years before but after what he calls "a blessed" 25 years.
Even as a VP, he is very technical about what his group is doing. Being in the semiconductor space, understanding technical stuff is itself a big effort for anyone at the Executive level. Inspite of him, coming into this role only about three years back, he had amassed a wealth of information and it was like an engineer talking to an engineer - not the regular managerial stuff.
Apart from his visit, what I like is the weekly mails he sends out. This is quite a different mail - he updates everyone under his umbrella with what is going on - this gives a better picture of where our company is headed, how our products progress, what each group does, what are the major tasks that were addressed over the week, what are the plans ahead, etc. Sending out a mail like this one serves a lot of purpose - you get to know what is happening at the high level, how the various teams interact, how your specific work affects the company, what is your importance and responsibility in the company, etc. Communications like these boost the morale of the people and also bring in a lot of enthusiasm and drive from each person.
Rather than getting a job done without details, if there is lucid communication on what is going on and where you fit in - it really helps you to understand your work and get more out of you. There you go - a great example of the importance of communication that eventually grades how good you are as a leader.
On the other hand, I have an immediate manager who is totally opposite - more on that later !!!
Even as a VP, he is very technical about what his group is doing. Being in the semiconductor space, understanding technical stuff is itself a big effort for anyone at the Executive level. Inspite of him, coming into this role only about three years back, he had amassed a wealth of information and it was like an engineer talking to an engineer - not the regular managerial stuff.
Apart from his visit, what I like is the weekly mails he sends out. This is quite a different mail - he updates everyone under his umbrella with what is going on - this gives a better picture of where our company is headed, how our products progress, what each group does, what are the major tasks that were addressed over the week, what are the plans ahead, etc. Sending out a mail like this one serves a lot of purpose - you get to know what is happening at the high level, how the various teams interact, how your specific work affects the company, what is your importance and responsibility in the company, etc. Communications like these boost the morale of the people and also bring in a lot of enthusiasm and drive from each person.
Rather than getting a job done without details, if there is lucid communication on what is going on and where you fit in - it really helps you to understand your work and get more out of you. There you go - a great example of the importance of communication that eventually grades how good you are as a leader.
On the other hand, I have an immediate manager who is totally opposite - more on that later !!!
Back to India ...
Finally, after a long wait, I watched 'Sivaji - The Boss'. First, I was happy that I need not spend more money to get a ticket in black. Second, I found the film to be a good entertainer. Inspite of being on the run for over a month, the moview was spinning money at the box office - a reality that I could see from the show which I attended - tickets had been booked very early and the show was full house.
Being a good entertainer, I liked the gist of the movie. Thalaivar returns from US after a long time, working there as a Software architect. His only thoughts - to put all his hard earned money to good use. But, resistance from well settled dons and 'industrialists' peak up when someone new enters the arena. - and thus goes the movie.
Hats off to the director, Shankar, for bringing in the thought of NRIs returning back to India and making India actually grow. - But apart from this, he had failed in his department. I wish, that many people atleast take this message from the film and invest for a better India.
As the Prez hopes, that India will become a developed nation far earlier that 2020, I am certain that money invested in proper circles by returning NRIs will certainly pull that target more earlier.
Being a good entertainer, I liked the gist of the movie. Thalaivar returns from US after a long time, working there as a Software architect. His only thoughts - to put all his hard earned money to good use. But, resistance from well settled dons and 'industrialists' peak up when someone new enters the arena. - and thus goes the movie.
Hats off to the director, Shankar, for bringing in the thought of NRIs returning back to India and making India actually grow. - But apart from this, he had failed in his department. I wish, that many people atleast take this message from the film and invest for a better India.
As the Prez hopes, that India will become a developed nation far earlier that 2020, I am certain that money invested in proper circles by returning NRIs will certainly pull that target more earlier.
Citizen No.1
Citizen No.1 is on for a change at India. When five years ago, when there was a change of guard for the post, there was an easy consensus on who would occupy the huge 350+ rooms. The choice was very optimal - a technocrat who put India onto the nuclear map - Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam.
Dr. APJ was a choice that no one would refute or oppose - a person who had no black mark, a person who had a great education, a person who would glorify the post of Citizen No. 1, etc, etc. A person who well deserved the post, or rather a post which deserved a person like Dr. APJ. Even after being, welcomed to the post and appointed as the President of India, he added more feathers to the post - amazing speeches, still a very accessible President, etc. A few things that are outstanding during his tenure are the opposition to the OoP bill, the speech at the EU, visit to the Siachen , etc.
Now, out of the billion others in the country, there goes the call for the new occupant of the house. With so many able people out there and a person who had glorified the house and the post, now comes a person comes who has not been in known political circles for long. Along with it she brings a lot of allegations. Now, does a country like India need a person with allegations to take up the post? Can't some one start thinking about where we are going? Just because the current occupant of the house rejected the OoP bill and did not co-ordinate with the current ruling party, we have to throw the person out and get someone who would nod her head for the ruling party? Kids play! Someone please save India.
Dr. APJ was a choice that no one would refute or oppose - a person who had no black mark, a person who had a great education, a person who would glorify the post of Citizen No. 1, etc, etc. A person who well deserved the post, or rather a post which deserved a person like Dr. APJ. Even after being, welcomed to the post and appointed as the President of India, he added more feathers to the post - amazing speeches, still a very accessible President, etc. A few things that are outstanding during his tenure are the opposition to the OoP bill, the speech at the EU, visit to the Siachen , etc.
Now, out of the billion others in the country, there goes the call for the new occupant of the house. With so many able people out there and a person who had glorified the house and the post, now comes a person comes who has not been in known political circles for long. Along with it she brings a lot of allegations. Now, does a country like India need a person with allegations to take up the post? Can't some one start thinking about where we are going? Just because the current occupant of the house rejected the OoP bill and did not co-ordinate with the current ruling party, we have to throw the person out and get someone who would nod her head for the ruling party? Kids play! Someone please save India.
A different weekend...
Busy over the weekends still avoid me from contributing regularly to my blog.
A couple of weeks ago, it was a different weekend for from the normal cooking, TV and some odd professional work.
I had been to Parikrama to get introduced to what they do. First, they are a NGO working towards providing better education to children from the slums in India. I took a first had look at the working of one of their schools. They are far better than the lot of Government schools, where most of these kids could, if they can.
These kids have decent classroom facility and dedicated teachers who train them to come to better understanding of education and the society. From the personal interaction we had with the kids in their classrooms, I was amazed at the English fluency some of these kids had, their inquisitiveness to know things more, their confidence in communicating, etc.
It was different way of spending time and I hope that I might spend more time with these kids in the future.
To wind off the weekend, I also attended the Frames of Mind hosted by the Bangalore Photography club.
A couple of weeks ago, it was a different weekend for from the normal cooking, TV and some odd professional work.
I had been to Parikrama to get introduced to what they do. First, they are a NGO working towards providing better education to children from the slums in India. I took a first had look at the working of one of their schools. They are far better than the lot of Government schools, where most of these kids could, if they can.
These kids have decent classroom facility and dedicated teachers who train them to come to better understanding of education and the society. From the personal interaction we had with the kids in their classrooms, I was amazed at the English fluency some of these kids had, their inquisitiveness to know things more, their confidence in communicating, etc.
It was different way of spending time and I hope that I might spend more time with these kids in the future.
To wind off the weekend, I also attended the Frames of Mind hosted by the Bangalore Photography club.
Travel and Travel more
After some continuous hectic weekends, I was able to take a bit of back seat and relax this weekend. My friend, Prasanna, introduced me to the nice film , The Motorcycle Diaries. - A great film!!!
I liked the way, 'Che' had taken the motorcycle trip with his friend Granado in his early life. This is really a classic of its own, especially when you want to explore the "Who am I" within you. Sittting inside a cubicle or four walls will not teach much except that you have to compete with your colleagues to gain better place. Coming out into the open world, puts you across real life problems - problems that need solutions, solutions that will last long, solutions that will make up the future, solutions that intertwine with our life, solutions that pose more questions and more solutions.
Everyone who thinks that he/she is a leader ought to take a journey in his/her own county, understand what the people really need and then put yourself as a tool and as a solution to solve the problem. Life is tough, many want to be leaders just by being in the circumstance only for a very little time. Time is a great teacher and with travel, there would be no book/ university education that would teach more.
In parallel, to the same travel by Che, in India also, Gandhi travelled a lot - literally making inroads into the country. In his early stages of travel, he used to wear western/formal dresses and address the gatherings. On one occassion, while during his address, and further interactions, one woman asked him, why after speaking so much about India, poverty, etc, he still wears a formal dress and this is where he understands that to be a person among others and fight for independence together with them, he should also be in their same standards. This is when, he relinquishes his formal wearing and gets in to the dothi.
Travel really makes a person wise and a wiser person a leader.
I liked the way, 'Che' had taken the motorcycle trip with his friend Granado in his early life. This is really a classic of its own, especially when you want to explore the "Who am I" within you. Sittting inside a cubicle or four walls will not teach much except that you have to compete with your colleagues to gain better place. Coming out into the open world, puts you across real life problems - problems that need solutions, solutions that will last long, solutions that will make up the future, solutions that intertwine with our life, solutions that pose more questions and more solutions.
Everyone who thinks that he/she is a leader ought to take a journey in his/her own county, understand what the people really need and then put yourself as a tool and as a solution to solve the problem. Life is tough, many want to be leaders just by being in the circumstance only for a very little time. Time is a great teacher and with travel, there would be no book/ university education that would teach more.
In parallel, to the same travel by Che, in India also, Gandhi travelled a lot - literally making inroads into the country. In his early stages of travel, he used to wear western/formal dresses and address the gatherings. On one occassion, while during his address, and further interactions, one woman asked him, why after speaking so much about India, poverty, etc, he still wears a formal dress and this is where he understands that to be a person among others and fight for independence together with them, he should also be in their same standards. This is when, he relinquishes his formal wearing and gets in to the dothi.
Travel really makes a person wise and a wiser person a leader.
Learning Lessons
Came across this link on the lessons of an MIT education.
A few of the lessons, especially Lesson 6, really made me think. Personally, I feel that I might have made a mistake. After completing my high school, I got a place in a very prestigious college but not in an engineering course - but an allied engineering course. But not being comfortable getting a degree in an allied engineering course, I switched to a very new college but an Engineering course. I'm still not very certain that this had been a definitive advantage/ disadvantage over the years. But like what Dr. Rota states, an education at a more competitive centre would certainly boost the confidence as well as would help us measure to a high performance. At times during my undergraduate course, I have felt that the faculty or the research level was not upto what the student needed at that time. But, well, you go into an institution in India - you have to come out of it - there is no easy way to transfer and move to be a better institution during the course of education.
Being at a well established educational institution gives a lot of opportunities to the students as well as the faculty. Being a centre of excellence, better performers congregate and this leads to higher levels of education, research and learning. Having more better minds, gives opportunity to explore more new fields, more intersecting/ overlapping arenas, etc. Better industry collaboration would be definitely on the cards.
Seeing this article, still makes me wonder how many of the institutions in India measure upto this level. IITs and IISc are a very few. But even at IITs I have been told that "Undergraduates are the products of IIT, Graduates the by-products and Ph.Ds the waste products" - I'm not trying to be critical - but how many great doctoral dissertations have we got from IITs? - how many break through technologies have we seen from students in research at IITs? - I still wonder if we have the numbers to compare with other well known institutions world wide.
Hope that India puts her best foot forward to tune up the level of education at the educational institutions so that one day, we would still be able to write an article on "Lessons from an Indian Education".
A few of the lessons, especially Lesson 6, really made me think. Personally, I feel that I might have made a mistake. After completing my high school, I got a place in a very prestigious college but not in an engineering course - but an allied engineering course. But not being comfortable getting a degree in an allied engineering course, I switched to a very new college but an Engineering course. I'm still not very certain that this had been a definitive advantage/ disadvantage over the years. But like what Dr. Rota states, an education at a more competitive centre would certainly boost the confidence as well as would help us measure to a high performance. At times during my undergraduate course, I have felt that the faculty or the research level was not upto what the student needed at that time. But, well, you go into an institution in India - you have to come out of it - there is no easy way to transfer and move to be a better institution during the course of education.
Being at a well established educational institution gives a lot of opportunities to the students as well as the faculty. Being a centre of excellence, better performers congregate and this leads to higher levels of education, research and learning. Having more better minds, gives opportunity to explore more new fields, more intersecting/ overlapping arenas, etc. Better industry collaboration would be definitely on the cards.
Seeing this article, still makes me wonder how many of the institutions in India measure upto this level. IITs and IISc are a very few. But even at IITs I have been told that "Undergraduates are the products of IIT, Graduates the by-products and Ph.Ds the waste products" - I'm not trying to be critical - but how many great doctoral dissertations have we got from IITs? - how many break through technologies have we seen from students in research at IITs? - I still wonder if we have the numbers to compare with other well known institutions world wide.
Hope that India puts her best foot forward to tune up the level of education at the educational institutions so that one day, we would still be able to write an article on "Lessons from an Indian Education".
Applying Thought
After a hectic day of work, I got chance to peep over the hardcopy of the day's Times of India (Apr. 12, 2007). Fortunately, for a change, the paper added some extra info to my brain. It carried a mail from Azim Premji written to his employees. I'm not able to get a link for the same from the TOI site, but thanks to TOI for sharing the same. Managed to get the contents from their epaper ...a nice article, well written. Azim Premji once again demonstrates his leadership and communication skills on paper. A good read....
Applying thought, the Azim way
Over 60,000 Wiproites have received some powerful advice from their big boss, Azim Premji, chairman, Wipro Ltd. In an e-mail sent on April 9, the software czar shared his successes, setbacks and the lessons he learnt during his corporate journey. TOI brings you some excerpts from that as we believe Premji’s message can cut across multiple business domains to benefit millions of employees and employers, and not just Wiproites
Azim Premji
Dear Wiproite,
My own successes and setbacks along the way have taught me some lessons. I wish to share them with you and hope you will find them useful.
Lesson #1: Be careful to ask what you want. You may get it.
What this means is that do not ask too little either of yourself or the others around you. What you ask is what you get. When I look back at the time when I joined Wipro, I was 21. If you ask me whether I thought that Wipro would grow so by someday, the honest answer is that I did not. But neither did I think it would not. We constantly stretched ourselves to higher and higher targets. Sometimes, it seemed possible, sometimes fanciful and sometimes plain insane. But we never stopped raising limits. And we got a lot more than what we bargained for.
Lesson # 2: Respond, don’t react
Always be aware of your emotions and learn to manage them. There is a huge difference between people who react impulsively and those who can disengage themselves and then respond at will. By choosing to respond differently, we can prevent another person from controlling our behaviour. I remember a small story that illustrates this well. There was once a newspaper vendor who had a rude customer. Every morning, the customer would walk by, refuse to return the greeting, grab the paper off the shelf and throw the money at the vendor. The vendor would pick up the money, smile politely and say, Thank you, Sir. One day, the vendor’s assistant asked him, Why are you always so polite with him when he is so rude to you? Why don’t you throw the newspaper at him when he comes back tomorrow? The vendor smiled and replied, “He can’t help being rude and I can’t help being polite. Why should I let his rude behaviour dictate mine?’’
Lesson # 3: Intuitions are important for making decisions
It is important to realise that our intuition is a very important part of decision making. Many things are recorded by our subconscious. Use both sides of the brain. Even that is not enough. Some decisions need the use of the heart as well. When you use your mind and heart together, you may get a completely new and creative answer.
Lesson # 4: Learn to work in teams
The challenges ahead are so complex that no individual will be able to face them alone. While most of our education is focused in individual strength, teaming with others is equally important. You cannot fire a missile from a canoe. Unless you build a strong network of people with complimentary skills, you will be restricted by your own limitations. Globalisation has brought people of different origins, different upbringing and different cultures together. Ability to become an integral part of a cross-cultural team will be a must for your success.
Lesson #5: Never lose your zest and curiosity
All the available knowledge in the world is accelerating at a phenomenal rate. The whole world’s codified knowledge base (all documented information in library books and electronic files) doubled every 30 years in the early 20th century. By the 1970s, the world’s knowledge base doubled every seven years. Information researchers predict that by the year 2010, the world’s codified knowledge will double every 11 hours. Remaining on top of what you need to know will become one of the greatest challenges for you.
The natural zest and curiosity for learning is one of the greatest drivers for keeping updated on knowledge. A child’s curiosity is insatiable because every new object is a thing of wonder and mystery. The same zest is needed to keep learning new things. I personally spend at least 10 hours every week on reading. If I do not do that, I will find myself quickly outdated.
Lesson # 6: Put yourself first
This does not mean being selfish. Nor does it mean that you must become so full of yourself that that you become vain or arrogant.
It means developing your self-confidence. It means, developing an inner faith in yourself that is not shaken by external events. It requires perseverance. It shows up in the ability to rebound from a setback with double enthusiasm and energy. I came across a recent Harvard Business Review which describes this very effectively: No one can truly define success and failure for us. Only we can define that for ourselves. No one can take away our dignity unless we surrender it. No one can take away our hope and pride unless we relinquish them. No one can steal our creativity, imagination and skills unless we stop thinking. No one can stop us from rebounding unless we give up. And there is no way we can take care of others, unless we take care of ourselves.
Lesson # 7: Have a broader social vision
While there is every reason to be excited about the future, we must not forget that we will face many challenges as well. By 2015, we will have 829 million strong workforce. That will make India home to 18% of global working-age population. The key challenge is to transform that into a globally competitive work-force.
This will not be an easy task. Despite all the rapid economic expansion seen in recent years, job growth in India still trails the rise in workingage population. It is important that gains are spread across this spectrum, so that the divide between the employed and the under-employed, is minimised. Education is a crucial enabler that can make this growth as equitable as possible.
Lesson # 8: Play to win
Playing to win is not the same as playing dirty. It is not about winning all the time or winning at any cost. Playing to win is having the intensity to stretch to the maximum and bringing our best foot forward. Winning means focusing on the game. The score board tells you where you are going, but don’t concentrate too much on it. If you can focus on the ball, the scores will move by themselves. I recently came across this story that I thought I would share with you. A group of alumni, highly established in their careers, got together to visit their old university professor. Conversation soon turned into complaints about stress in work and life. Offering his guests coffee, the professor went into the kitchen. He returned with a large pot of coffee and an assortment of cups: porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal-some plain looking, some expensive, some exquisite and asked them to help themselves to coffee.
When all the students had a cup of coffee in hand, the professor said: “If you noticed, all the nice looking expensive cups were taken up, leaving behind the plain and cheap ones. While it is normal for you to want only the best for yourselves, you were more concerned about comparing your cups but what you really wanted was coffee. Yet you spent all your time eying each other’s cups.
Now if life is coffee, then the jobs, money and position in society are the cups. They are just tools to contain life, but cannot really change the quality of life. Sometimes, by over concentrating on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee.”
I wish you all every success in your career and your life.
Leading from Below
A short read this week ... "Leading from Below" available online at WSJ. This focusses on mid and lower management people coming into the corporate responsibility circle. I have heard from my many of my engineering friends that their bosses are just there to fill the places and they would perform better if they were left their own way. I suppose, this article is aimed at such bosses.
Like how the article points out, many bosses are comfortable in their service and governance role - leading their teams, giving update on what is happening to their product, how their product interacts with other products, etc. But there are few, who look more that what is required of their role. They step up to see how they can define new things in the corporate and the technology world. One aspect that the paper pointed out is very relevant nowadays ... "In an age when job cuts are common at even the most successful companies, being a good manager who doesn't make waves is increasingly risky." I hope that each and every 'comfortable' boss tries to shirk of his/her cosy environment and start to take risks and start to lead - not manage.
Like how the article points out, many bosses are comfortable in their service and governance role - leading their teams, giving update on what is happening to their product, how their product interacts with other products, etc. But there are few, who look more that what is required of their role. They step up to see how they can define new things in the corporate and the technology world. One aspect that the paper pointed out is very relevant nowadays ... "In an age when job cuts are common at even the most successful companies, being a good manager who doesn't make waves is increasingly risky." I hope that each and every 'comfortable' boss tries to shirk of his/her cosy environment and start to take risks and start to lead - not manage.
Better employee ...
After a long time, I met with a couple of my friends who had been my course/lab mates during my MS program(s). It was a nice time having a chat about many thoughts that traversed our mind. During the chat, one of my friends pointed towards why you should not employ many people in a project. I liked it very much. ....
1. Employees become productive.
2. Employees get to be more responsible.
3. Employees get to recognised and be given due importance.
4. Profit can be shared among lesser number of employees.
... Net, the employee turns to understand the importance of a project, does challenging things, learns more and is also being rewarded more.
I see this in contrast to many companies who tend to bloat their presence just by increasing the headcount. I hope these companies don't start off a race and contribute towards a Bubble 2.0!!!
1. Employees become productive.
2. Employees get to be more responsible.
3. Employees get to recognised and be given due importance.
4. Profit can be shared among lesser number of employees.
... Net, the employee turns to understand the importance of a project, does challenging things, learns more and is also being rewarded more.
I see this in contrast to many companies who tend to bloat their presence just by increasing the headcount. I hope these companies don't start off a race and contribute towards a Bubble 2.0!!!
Leadership styles
Leadership is an art as well as a science. Leadership is inborn for some, but can also be developed over time and experience. Leadership has various facets. Recently, I came across 'The Personal Work styles of Leaders' at Life2.0 Like the 12 signs of the zodiac, each of the leaders mentioned have their own style of leadership.
The article discusses various features of a leader, how he/she co-ordinates the activities in their own environment. A few points that I liked about the article are that it shows that leadership characteristics are not hard and fast - they vary from person to person, time to time, environment to environment. But, certain features are not avoidable - hardwork, lucid communication, knowledge and co-ordination.
The article talks about each leader in how they schedule their day, their mode of communication, their stressbuster, their principles - putting the concept of work style in a more vivid picture. A few things I like the most of each leader ....
1. Time to spend on physical exercises / stressbusters.
2. Early to rise.
3. Prompt communication.
The article discusses various features of a leader, how he/she co-ordinates the activities in their own environment. A few points that I liked about the article are that it shows that leadership characteristics are not hard and fast - they vary from person to person, time to time, environment to environment. But, certain features are not avoidable - hardwork, lucid communication, knowledge and co-ordination.
The article talks about each leader in how they schedule their day, their mode of communication, their stressbuster, their principles - putting the concept of work style in a more vivid picture. A few things I like the most of each leader ....
1. Time to spend on physical exercises / stressbusters.
2. Early to rise.
3. Prompt communication.
I'm bored ....
I'm bored ... I usually here this from people of all ages - especially from the teens to the office goers ... why do we get bored?
1. We don't find things interesting.
2. We have been like machines - doing the same things on and on.
3. We lack enthusiasm to go explore new things.
On a weekend, you start to have your breakfast, clean your house, prepare lunch, have it and then ... you start to whine "I'm bored' sitting before the same TV every week. How can you get rid of the boredom? - Try a few things ....
Let us go with the same example ...
1. It's a weekend - plan something different - break out from your daily routine and go to some place different.
2. Go out on the streets (atleast that, please!!!) and enjoy seeing people - learn from what they do, interact with other people.
3. Get hold of some puzzles or crosswords and solve them.
4. Visit your friends.
5. Take a hobby and try experimenting with it.
6. Take a refreshing walk.
7. Do some exercises to get brisk.
8. Read something totally different - engage in new fields of thought.
1. We don't find things interesting.
2. We have been like machines - doing the same things on and on.
3. We lack enthusiasm to go explore new things.
On a weekend, you start to have your breakfast, clean your house, prepare lunch, have it and then ... you start to whine "I'm bored' sitting before the same TV every week. How can you get rid of the boredom? - Try a few things ....
Let us go with the same example ...
1. It's a weekend - plan something different - break out from your daily routine and go to some place different.
2. Go out on the streets (atleast that, please!!!) and enjoy seeing people - learn from what they do, interact with other people.
3. Get hold of some puzzles or crosswords and solve them.
4. Visit your friends.
5. Take a hobby and try experimenting with it.
6. Take a refreshing walk.
7. Do some exercises to get brisk.
8. Read something totally different - engage in new fields of thought.
11C + R ...
This week, I was quite busy but just found time to go through a few articles - from various quarters....
First, through one of my blogfeeds, I visited the Ivey Business Journal and took to read "What engages employees the most or, The Ten C's of employee engagement" - A very short read - it was nice and summarised that the employee engagement depends on the following ten C's ... Connect, Career, Clarity, Convey, Congratulate, Contribute, Control, Collaborate, Credibility and Confidence.
I had seen that one or the other factors had personally been a factor of influence or disapproval when I had discussions with my bosses at lot of times. I'm not certain if the authors are missing any other C's - but I give preference to Confidence, Connect, Clarity and Career when a boss has to have the support of his employee - many companies lose out on this and I have heard 'People do not leave companies, but leave their managers' - hope managers realize this - it is the people of the lower rung who make or break the company - not the top elite!!!
Next, once again through another blogfeed, I went through Reactive and Creative - Although the post article was tuned towards the Budhahood, I really liked the logical reasoning behind a creative and a reactive mind. Especially these ones, from the article are noteworthy...
First, through one of my blogfeeds, I visited the Ivey Business Journal and took to read "What engages employees the most or, The Ten C's of employee engagement" - A very short read - it was nice and summarised that the employee engagement depends on the following ten C's ... Connect, Career, Clarity, Convey, Congratulate, Contribute, Control, Collaborate, Credibility and Confidence.
I had seen that one or the other factors had personally been a factor of influence or disapproval when I had discussions with my bosses at lot of times. I'm not certain if the authors are missing any other C's - but I give preference to Confidence, Connect, Clarity and Career when a boss has to have the support of his employee - many companies lose out on this and I have heard 'People do not leave companies, but leave their managers' - hope managers realize this - it is the people of the lower rung who make or break the company - not the top elite!!!
Next, once again through another blogfeed, I went through Reactive and Creative - Although the post article was tuned towards the Budhahood, I really liked the logical reasoning behind a creative and a reactive mind. Especially these ones, from the article are noteworthy...
In the first place, the reactive mind is a re-active mind. It does not really act, but only re-acts.Finally, after a long time, this makes up my 50th post!!!
The creative mind loves where there is no reason to love, is happy where there is no reason for happiness, creates where there is no possibility of creativity, and in this way "builds a heaven in hell’s despair".
Working from home
As I had been WFH in the morning, due to some personal errands, I decided to continue the same in the afternoon and avoided the huge rush of Bangalore traffic. I really appreciate the concept -as it gave me few great advantages ...
1. No tension due to traffic.
2. Time wasted on traffic is avoided.
3. Free from pollution.
4. Helps to calm the mind due to the above.
But obviously the disadvantage is that not much of face-to-face interaction. But if have forwarded your extension/ got a messenger to connect to your colleagues at work, you can almost have the communication link on.
Thinking of trying this option once every week to help me avoid the unwanted stress and time waste due to the nonsensical traffic.
Also, this saving of time, gave me an option to go through two nice articles ....
First, a short one by Steve jobs on opening up DRM. I liked the stats that he gave - and asking the "big four" to come up and open up the DRM model.
Second, was a Sunday morning conversation between the two Indian IT Titans - Premji and NRN - big minds, but humble ones that brought in a lot of unanswered questions into picture.
... Will try to pen up a couple of more articles on what I liked about the two readings in future entries ....
1. No tension due to traffic.
2. Time wasted on traffic is avoided.
3. Free from pollution.
4. Helps to calm the mind due to the above.
But obviously the disadvantage is that not much of face-to-face interaction. But if have forwarded your extension/ got a messenger to connect to your colleagues at work, you can almost have the communication link on.
Thinking of trying this option once every week to help me avoid the unwanted stress and time waste due to the nonsensical traffic.
Also, this saving of time, gave me an option to go through two nice articles ....
First, a short one by Steve jobs on opening up DRM. I liked the stats that he gave - and asking the "big four" to come up and open up the DRM model.
Second, was a Sunday morning conversation between the two Indian IT Titans - Premji and NRN - big minds, but humble ones that brought in a lot of unanswered questions into picture.
... Will try to pen up a couple of more articles on what I liked about the two readings in future entries ....
Devil's Advocate
Recently had a chance to see Karan Thapar on CNN-IBN conducting Devil's Advocate - I liked the concept of the program - questioning incumbent people about their acts vs. their responsibilities and duties. But the way the host behaved was really intimidating - should Indian press go to the extent of harassing the guest by cross-questioning to get the answers? - Do we need hosts who shut their mouth when they are attacked by the guest - do we need hosts who wrinkle their faces when they don't get a proper answer?
We don't want channels churning out their news and interpreting news according to them - say what is happening and show what is there - we don't want your views and your ideas -we want to see what happens in reality and we do not need interpretations. Do not try to change the
perception by binning the answers into your views. No ticker messages please!!! No comments on the screen please!!! Let us get an undivided opinion from the guest - you can have your opinions in another program / section.
If you want to cross question anyone, you are welcome - but why do you want to show unprofessional facial expressions and try to corner the guest on a question which does not have a large impact on the daily life of the people?
Mr. Thapar, a suggestion ... Thanks for the nice program - but try not be unprofessional - because a great host is one who tries to get the best out of the interview in a very prefessional and dignified manner - do not harass - but try to get answers in a more amicable way.
We don't want channels churning out their news and interpreting news according to them - say what is happening and show what is there - we don't want your views and your ideas -we want to see what happens in reality and we do not need interpretations. Do not try to change the
perception by binning the answers into your views. No ticker messages please!!! No comments on the screen please!!! Let us get an undivided opinion from the guest - you can have your opinions in another program / section.
If you want to cross question anyone, you are welcome - but why do you want to show unprofessional facial expressions and try to corner the guest on a question which does not have a large impact on the daily life of the people?
Mr. Thapar, a suggestion ... Thanks for the nice program - but try not be unprofessional - because a great host is one who tries to get the best out of the interview in a very prefessional and dignified manner - do not harass - but try to get answers in a more amicable way.
Finishing touches ...
In my earlier post, I had mentioned about the half-baked work on Residency Road - but today, the half-baked stuff was nearing completion, with the BDA working on filling the rest of the 50% of the road. - IS BDA so proactive reading my blog? - just kidding - I think the BDA had to go a long way to peep into others blogs and get what the people wonder and think about. - Think just a mere coincidence of when I put down my thoughts and when the BDA had started working on the rest of it....
I wish the Indian organisations - either private / public, when in the service sector, should start to inculcate what their customers want and what their customers think - this would be a very asset to the organisation - see how the private companies who are very proactive - consider how important blogs are and how important their organisations can be directed from the voices of their employees, their customers - and the stake holders of the company / organisation.
I wish the Indian organisations - either private / public, when in the service sector, should start to inculcate what their customers want and what their customers think - this would be a very asset to the organisation - see how the private companies who are very proactive - consider how important blogs are and how important their organisations can be directed from the voices of their employees, their customers - and the stake holders of the company / organisation.
Solitude
Recently came across the article "The Call for Solitude" - I appreciate the importance of having a solitude once at regular intervals - this gives me an oppurtunity to spend some time in a calm and serene environment sans any distrubance to think and introspect more. Getting time for oneself is becoming very difficult in this wired and weird world.
Getting the lone time is only in our hands ....When we decide to make certain that we need time to introspect and improve ourselves, we should consider this zero hour as time well spent in getting us to the next level. A few factors that we can do to get this time .....
1. Get out from the regular commotion.
2. Alienate yourself from any electronic gadgets.
3. Get a few sheets of paper and pencil/pen.
4. Have some nice music flowing in the background - something that is smooth and enhances the brain activity.
5. Try to spend atleast 30-45 mins trying to question on what you are doing and how you can go forward.
I had been practising this type of solitude till a few years back. It was really great. I generally used to listen to a music cd with water flowing / go near a lake / fountain and I would get some nice time to be near nature for some time. Once in a while, I also take some long walks, so that I have time to get to know more about myself.
With increasing responsibilties - personal & professional-wise, I hope I can get some more of this solitude in the near future to more forward ahead.
Getting the lone time is only in our hands ....When we decide to make certain that we need time to introspect and improve ourselves, we should consider this zero hour as time well spent in getting us to the next level. A few factors that we can do to get this time .....
1. Get out from the regular commotion.
2. Alienate yourself from any electronic gadgets.
3. Get a few sheets of paper and pencil/pen.
4. Have some nice music flowing in the background - something that is smooth and enhances the brain activity.
5. Try to spend atleast 30-45 mins trying to question on what you are doing and how you can go forward.
I had been practising this type of solitude till a few years back. It was really great. I generally used to listen to a music cd with water flowing / go near a lake / fountain and I would get some nice time to be near nature for some time. Once in a while, I also take some long walks, so that I have time to get to know more about myself.
With increasing responsibilties - personal & professional-wise, I hope I can get some more of this solitude in the near future to more forward ahead.
Another one?
With me out of my earlier company and into another Tech major, I am feeling the miss of being part of a regular Toastmasters Club.
Specially, for me, the club at my company was a great one. Particularly for a few specific reasons....
1. Starting the club from scratch was challenging - think about selling the idea of public speaking and communication to engineers who are comfortable sitting before a system in their own cubicle.
2. Setting the standards needed for proper meetings and speeches.
3. Motivating members to attend meetings and persuading them to give speeches.
4. Keeping the club open - like most say, 'Opening a Toastmasters Club is not difficult, but keeping it open is!!!'
Inspite of the challenges, it was really a encouraging result for me, seen from my perspective.
- Improved my communication skills, especially tried to overcome the ahs and ums to a large extent, got a better understanding of how the administrative tasks in TM hierarchy go on, and finally more visibility in my company, better networking, etc.
Now, I have choice to repeat the same in my new work place or be a part of a community club.
Starting a new club would be great, but getting members would be challenge, given the fact that it might be a corporate club with restricted membership. In my earlier company, I had only about 2-3% of the total strength being part of the TM club. If I apply the same ratio, I can count the strength of the club at my new place using the fingers of one hand!!!
Being part of a community club would be nice given the general perspective that community clubs perform better than corporate clubs. But if I need to improve my skills, I must certainly be part of a club that has a strength around 30. Else, I might just be attending the meetings, but not improving my active communication skills.
I'm still keeping my fingers crossed till I take a decision!!!
Specially, for me, the club at my company was a great one. Particularly for a few specific reasons....
1. Starting the club from scratch was challenging - think about selling the idea of public speaking and communication to engineers who are comfortable sitting before a system in their own cubicle.
2. Setting the standards needed for proper meetings and speeches.
3. Motivating members to attend meetings and persuading them to give speeches.
4. Keeping the club open - like most say, 'Opening a Toastmasters Club is not difficult, but keeping it open is!!!'
Inspite of the challenges, it was really a encouraging result for me, seen from my perspective.
- Improved my communication skills, especially tried to overcome the ahs and ums to a large extent, got a better understanding of how the administrative tasks in TM hierarchy go on, and finally more visibility in my company, better networking, etc.
Now, I have choice to repeat the same in my new work place or be a part of a community club.
Starting a new club would be great, but getting members would be challenge, given the fact that it might be a corporate club with restricted membership. In my earlier company, I had only about 2-3% of the total strength being part of the TM club. If I apply the same ratio, I can count the strength of the club at my new place using the fingers of one hand!!!
Being part of a community club would be nice given the general perspective that community clubs perform better than corporate clubs. But if I need to improve my skills, I must certainly be part of a club that has a strength around 30. Else, I might just be attending the meetings, but not improving my active communication skills.
I'm still keeping my fingers crossed till I take a decision!!!
Book Reading
After a long time, I had enough patience to complete a whole book - nowadays, I have been more attracted to reading books, if time permits, on leadership, philosophy and my curiosity always takes me to reading books on occult studies - palmistry, astrology, numerology, tarot, etc.
Recently, I found ample time to complete the Autobiography of a Yogi by Shri Parahansa Yogananda. I had been delibrating on going through this book for a long time. Inspite of the online version being available, I found more pleasure in getting a hardcopy for myself and spending time to read it.
This book was primarily written with the western audience in mind and happens to be one of a kind to open up the window on the Indian yogic science to the western world. Most of the chapters had been about the experiences the author had with many great yogis of his time. From yogis who can be at multiple places at the same time, who can cure great diseases, who can foretell the future, who do not eat (but still live), etc.
Reading the book, we come to feel the importance the concept and practise of yoga has upon the person. A dedicated, pure and committed yogi seems to achieve what an ordinary man can just dream about.
Nice book - would prefer to read it once again :)
Recently, I found ample time to complete the Autobiography of a Yogi by Shri Parahansa Yogananda. I had been delibrating on going through this book for a long time. Inspite of the online version being available, I found more pleasure in getting a hardcopy for myself and spending time to read it.
This book was primarily written with the western audience in mind and happens to be one of a kind to open up the window on the Indian yogic science to the western world. Most of the chapters had been about the experiences the author had with many great yogis of his time. From yogis who can be at multiple places at the same time, who can cure great diseases, who can foretell the future, who do not eat (but still live), etc.
Reading the book, we come to feel the importance the concept and practise of yoga has upon the person. A dedicated, pure and committed yogi seems to achieve what an ordinary man can just dream about.
Nice book - would prefer to read it once again :)
Lifelogging
Came across the article in FastCompany about the novel and innovative method in which Gordon Bell of Microsoft is focusing on to record each and every possible moment in his day-to-day activities. Digitizing each of these information - whether from the SenseCam, mails, written communication, discussions, etc. - and storing this itself a huge task. Add sorting these and searching for relevant information, then the complexity starts to increase. Data warehousing at the personal level!!!
Analysing what this concept could bring if everyone had it is a nice talk to fill in over a cup of tea.
First, for me, this can help me log all the thought process that my mind tends to undergo. Sometimes, very rarely, I get a new idea and ponder over it. Then I forget about this, when I have no relevant storage recording my thoughts. I suppose this will be a welcome tool for a lot of inventors and innovators. - Yes, you have notes and scrap books, but sometimes, you can't record everything your mind everything in words as it thinks - speaking out into a mic or seeing it through a camera, correlating things together make up a lot of sense and brings in a new perspective to understanding things and exploring them more.
Second, this will be helpful for students as it can allow them to recall lectures and discussions. This might give a chance to improve upon their memory, trying to recall what the Professor actually meant and what is needed out of it.
Next for a layman, most of the time, we fumble upon a face and then, our mind goes into the hunting spree of trying to figure out where we actually crossed that face in our past. Trying to have a sample of all the encounters we had, this would give us more choice to recollect the face, and the surrounding in which the person had come in contact with us.
This might seem a total recall, but inspite of Gordon and his colleagues working it out as a prototype, I still have a few thoughts on how this could be improved more - possibly they have something on these lines already ...
1. Face recognition - or some image search not by words, but by the content of the image would be helpful.
2. Tagging the information will be helpful for sorting.
3. Trying to have distributed storage of the information will be great.
4. Ability to log in the information using wireless and also retrieving the info wirelessly would improve the accessibility to a great extent.
These are the small things that come to my mind - wish I can have this technology at the earliest at the consumer level - this will benefit the community at large.
And here is the article from Atlantic Journal mentioned in the FastCompany article.
Analysing what this concept could bring if everyone had it is a nice talk to fill in over a cup of tea.
First, for me, this can help me log all the thought process that my mind tends to undergo. Sometimes, very rarely, I get a new idea and ponder over it. Then I forget about this, when I have no relevant storage recording my thoughts. I suppose this will be a welcome tool for a lot of inventors and innovators. - Yes, you have notes and scrap books, but sometimes, you can't record everything your mind everything in words as it thinks - speaking out into a mic or seeing it through a camera, correlating things together make up a lot of sense and brings in a new perspective to understanding things and exploring them more.
Second, this will be helpful for students as it can allow them to recall lectures and discussions. This might give a chance to improve upon their memory, trying to recall what the Professor actually meant and what is needed out of it.
Next for a layman, most of the time, we fumble upon a face and then, our mind goes into the hunting spree of trying to figure out where we actually crossed that face in our past. Trying to have a sample of all the encounters we had, this would give us more choice to recollect the face, and the surrounding in which the person had come in contact with us.
This might seem a total recall, but inspite of Gordon and his colleagues working it out as a prototype, I still have a few thoughts on how this could be improved more - possibly they have something on these lines already ...
1. Face recognition - or some image search not by words, but by the content of the image would be helpful.
2. Tagging the information will be helpful for sorting.
3. Trying to have distributed storage of the information will be great.
4. Ability to log in the information using wireless and also retrieving the info wirelessly would improve the accessibility to a great extent.
These are the small things that come to my mind - wish I can have this technology at the earliest at the consumer level - this will benefit the community at large.
And here is the article from Atlantic Journal mentioned in the FastCompany article.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
