Mumbai Massacre

The anger of Indians after the Mumbai massacre is fully justified as they have seen the face of terror. So far if there were bomb blasts killing similar number of people the impact on the minds was similar to the death of people in a natural disaster. They saw the pains but did not see the enemy in action. But this time it was different. This explains the height of anger which is also rooted on higher sense of helplessness. If a handful of rowdies who were brainwashed and paid for family to be taken care can hold a country of billion to ransom while the whole world is watching-what other sense will behold except helplessness.
While the response of political leaders have been as usual-looking for scapegoats, blaming lapses and empty promises the public emotion is much more emphatic. The leaders are hoping that as usual this will die down as Indians forget bad events faster than good. But this time they are underestimating the sentiments. War mongering, revenge etc are bad words for sure in a country that won Independence through Non-violence. But the attack has left a positive impact-regionalism, sceptism of being a great country have given off to patriotism. Everyone feels the need to unity-not partisan feelings but as a civilization how we have been always great. This is reinforced by the millions of NRI's who have responded with much more louder voices and countries like France have organized public rallies to empathize with Indians.
Some of my friends who know very little of the Indo-Pak conflict ask me if India gives up Kashmir will terrorism stop. The answer is NO. It is clear elements who want to foment trouble want some other parts of India too-like Hyderabad. So it is not about giving up some territory or claims. It is about creating trouble for a secular country dividing it on religious lines. This is of course reinforced by politicians who seek vote on religious lines. China claims that they have effective control over terrorism and most obvious reason is there is no religion in China. However India derives a lot of its character and respect from its spiritual roots and its culture is appreciated for this. There is no question that this will be given up on threat of these barbarians.
So what is the answer to this? Speak the language barbarians understand. But also make it politically correct. Maturity will define how we act but for sure we should act beyond words. If we can orbit the moon we can surely encircle the terrorist camps with accuracy. Super powers do this with ease-China occupied Tibet, US went into Afganisthan/Iraq, Russia does a side step to its neighbours on and off-so is it bad for an almost superpower to do this. Yes-some will say as it reduces focus on Talibans. So what? There will always be critics to anything a country does...but if it is convinced this is in its long term interest of safety there is nothing which should stop action. Next 60 days will show if India has the courage to do this limited attacks. But the choice and time is limited for the politicians.

Is ignorance a form of Poverty?

"Dearth of wisdom is dire destitution. Other forms of poverty the world deems are less impoverishing." So said a great thinker 2000 years ago. This led me think if Ignorance is indeed a form of poverty as is being thought. Defining to start ignorance itself maybe a first step to address this issue I thought. Contrary to popular myth "Ignorance is bliss" I start with a simple definition "Ignorance is diminished learning of mind due to sheer laziness to seek knowledge".
What can be the consequence of ignorance...suffering of different degrees for sure. The bad part of ignorance will be self inflicted suffering.
Comfort of ignorance is quite compelling as for example if we see people moving out of conversations they think is too high level for them-it is because they think this is not a topic for some small talk. The best part is half knowledge people are the ones who are most verbose which makes another problem-is half knowledge also a form a ignorance. Answer is maybe but it is better than who have no clue. I think the amount of non prescription drugs sold over the counter is maximum in countries like India and there is 20% chance that there are some unwanted side effects as the buyers act as though they are doctors. But there is 80% chance they avoided a visit to doctors and saved both money/time. Though some doctors will sternly object I don't see a big problem here, if ethically the half knowledgeable Pharmacist is having no problems dispensing the medicines to the self styled doctor customers.
Internet gives a good opportunity to learn...however most of us get diverted to trivial non related topics as we search. How much to learn, what to learn is entirely upto motivation of individuals but if we are not making a conscious effort to learn we are feeding ignorance is something we should recognize. With elections in India everyone knows there will be a multiparty government but this does not change behaviours of voters...therefore if Politicians believe that stable, one party is a strong point they are living in a world of ignorance.
If someone believes that after killing of Prabhakaran Srilanka will become nice to Tamils and Tamils will accept their second class citizen status to live on-they also live in ignorance.
Ignorance does ofcourse help to reduce stress in several cases but this is a temporary relief as I think Ignorance is Sin and will catch up with the sinners following the circle of life.

The dangers of YES MEN!

Career path of leaders always has a phase where there are tough decisions to be made. One of the decision is between Loyalty and Quality. Not very explicit in several cases as a lot of time personal attachment to followers do happen to leaders. Similar attachment happens with co-leaders.
This attachment is very important in a lot of ways as it helps to build trust and communicate consistently across different strata of organization. However a leader does face the dilemma at sometime-to make a decision to axe a loyal follower as his performance is not shaping up to current requirements or he is the bottleneck in change without he realizing it.
There are some people who ask me "This maybe true long time ago when people had their job from college to retirement and loyalty with companies was a valued asset. Today people move across so many jobs within career. So this dilemma does not occur as personal attachment rarely develops. Most of it is professional attachment". For sure this is true. However when a Leader after reaching a particular level starts to move around will also try to take his loyal followers from other companies with him with a promise of better career, taking care etc. This creates more responsibility on the leaders and this is a form of attachment which still thrives.
To be clearer it is not bad to have some people who are adapted to your style and with right competence with you. But the danger is if after a few years they are able to predict you exactly and become YES MEN. When two people think alike then one of them is redundant is an aggressive posture in driving innovation. Thinking alike is just one part of the problem. The bigger problem is when others start to perceive the special treatment to the follower whom they implicitly start to think is the successor...then there is a negative halo effect happens. There are usually three aspects of any job-routine, tactical and strategic. Depending on the quality of YES MEN they completely say (even if they don't complete believe) whatever leader thinks is right in strategic and tactical aspects. In fact they praise his vision more often than others. The smiling face of the leader (as everybody likes praise) encourages them to enforce their own controls in routine/administrative aspects which will make them indispensable. This where the leader usually is blind as he thinks overall alignment has happened and is going the right way. YES MEN are more dangerous when they start using the leaders name more often to show to the organization(some pick up the phones in a meeting and talk to the leader implicitly trying to clarify something but explicitly to send a message of closeness to the middle level managers) that there is some extra powers he has.
The dangers of YES MEN don't become apparent till there are more than 3. But even one thorn when not trimmed can hurt the leader's credibility. It surely helps to have political strength by having YES MEN but if it starts crossing the professional boundary then it is time for action.

What is Philosophy?

Paradox exists in every civilization and there are a few who try to rationalize this, a few who try to change paradoxes, a few who are not aware or don't care of these as they are busy with their own priorities. For example belief in Fate is an Eastern Philosophy (some limit it to say it is a Hindu philosophy...this is not correct). Fate rationalizes a lot of paradoxes (a cruel man lives a royal life, a good man a miserable life etc). When I was in China I met a guy who told me " Belief in fate makes people happy eventhough they have very little..you see more genuinely smiling faces in East than West though poverty is higher in East". On the very same day I met another person who said" Belief in fate is the reason for people not following rules (driving rash etc) resulting in higher deaths due to accidents etc in East". I am sure there are several other views to this. But this led to the question What is Philosophy?
Like Science does philosophy try to explain something with a logic that stands in all time, generations and cultures? Or does it evolve with time and understanding of diversities? Where does it start and where does it end? Being religious is a way to understand Philosophy or being an atheist is a better way? Trying to classify something and putting into a Pigeon hole is a very simplistic way to approach philosophy as unlike several other fields of education a true philosopher does not want a degree to pursue this field. It is in human nature to decipher the call of the soul-which occurs in different degrees to different people. I get disturbed when people use this jargon "Management Philosophy". Philosophy is about free flow of knowledge, it is about freedom to think without boundaries and looking at inclusivity in exclusivity. It is not about standardization. One of the earliest failed experiment in this happened when Emperor Akbar tried to extract the best of all religions and tried to create a new religion emcompassing all (naming it Deen-I-Lahi). Standardization was key to his drive. Innovation as it was in Management terms as it was reflecting his Management Philosophy...but alas he was the only follower of this. Therefore to look at Philosophy as a packaged item or branding solution is too naive.
Philosophy to me is an ever expanding knowledge base which may synchronize with your earlier experiences or challenge them but makes your mind able to ask the right questions. Hardening your stand towards a fixed philosophy stops you from being a student of philosophy. There are a motley of thoughts from yesterday and today. They individually and together make sense. There will be more diverse thoughts tomorrow. They should add to what we know today. If we take this approach and are able to synchronize them then we continue to be students of philosophy. A believer in God, religion or an atheist can all be philosophers of same intensity. This is part of Universal Truth and rarely do we realize that we are the stumbling blocks to learning as we blame everything else possible in a difficult situation. When we are in a happy situation where is the time to think about learning.

Puristic Capitalism !

The bail out plan for the faltering economy is passed in US. There is a hue and cry that this is against the spirit of Capitalism as it ensures Oxygen for failed species in business world.
While China and Russia dropped their socialistic/communism philosophies to have a flavor of capitalism then everyone was happy. It is an enough proof that Capitalism is the only economic model that will survive long term said a lot. India was blamed for years for taking a middle path and the real economic engine kicked off when it opened up competition a real indicator of Capitalistic philosophies. Sure there is enough proof that Capitalism stretches performance and non performers perish. But that is if Politics and country administration does not exist.
Real world is different. Language passion, belief that their own culture is different and unique (in most cases better than several other) etc drives people to make short term compromises in philosophies to tide over a short term crisis. Is this bad? Not so much as projected to be. Man takes extra effort to preserve species which are becoming extinct (while some are due to activities of man but some are not...these species have not efficient enough to survive if we look at philosophy of puristic evolution). They are protected for some years it the population becomes good enough and then they pass the natural survival path. For sure to compare the present bail out to this is a sin. As the crisis is not due to inefficiency of environment but greed of few who acted responsibly only to short term gains(personal) and blinded others into believing the future is rosy. This bail out sends a signal to such foolish risk takers to continue with their blind run risking a lot of sincere entrepreneurs.
However coming back to the point-Is a pure form of any philosophy possible in economy? My answer is no. Philosophy takes bends when confronted with practicality and it still survives in a new form. China, Russia, India, Brazil are some successful examples. Don't confuse human rights to capitalism as some tend to do. World is more complex than it was. Maybe it is time to allow this evolution than dissecting the philosophy breaches. For sure the blind runners should be treated with fire as these species spoils lives of so many across the world...why have mercy on them? Bush has started a bush fire now and sure it will be a forest fire for the next incumbent. But in the process if US becomes a lesser power isn't good for the whole world? Time for new cycle of power/politics.

Logically illogical!

Smart Students are known to win arguments using logic. This is true for brightest brains in Management schools who show their prowess in case discussions. The conviction with which the argument is presented and the contextual references with communication style will totally convince everyone that this is the argument of the day. With collars up the (covering the seemingly projecting brain from back of the head) day ends with reflection on how the whole class was directed by the statements for the young brain. This fuels more such interventions which the others tolerate accepting a Logical dominance to this brainy organism.
Coming out of the school the success rate of such specimens is not that impressive. Reason being sense of belief " I know everything" with an inbuilt arrogance "I can manage any situation with my supreme brain" creates a fantastic poison for disaster. Who is to blame for the failure-fellow classmates, professors or the system? Not really. Knowledge seeker should be worthy to seek Knowledge-else he fills the brain with emptiness which fills his ego but does not open the keys of success automatically. Pride is the first sign of Hollowness. Talking too much is the second sign. Shooting from hip is the third sign. Artificial attitude (talking from mouth not heart) is the fourth sign. Self trumpet is the fifth sign. If you see this five symptoms in someone you can safely conclude you have met the star who will be mistaken for Sun in interviews-later found as a sin of the interviewers by company. However the inherent survival instincts of Darwin do apply for these people as they jump from company to company with promotions as they indeed shine in interviews.
It is logically illogical to recommend this. Displaying high energy for a long time is deception. This only shows that a person is trying to be Super human. Therefore in interviews if someone masks their weakness as an implied strength to the job they seek... just ignore them. You will avoid a sin from being committed as usually it takes a year to find that the person you choose was worthless.

Management Styles matching to Business Cycle!

Situational Management has always been a favorite topic of a lot of successful Management people. What Situational Management tells in simple terms is " Do what the best given the situation" which makes it so open ended to commoners who feel this is as good as " Survive with your own wits" with no guidelines.
I personally believe that Management becomes an art with Situational stuff. As we know people can be categorized from different parameters in different ways (recent count says 3100 ways...maybe more) making it a complex subject. How can Management whose success is governed by people can be made simplistic...then people coined Situational Management trying to make sense to the few who can leaving others to grope interpretations in dark.
Politics in organizations, maturity of the organization, culture, networking and most importantly risk propensity will govern how right or wrong a person can be perceived. I have attended some meetings which starts quite well and then personal conflicts between two people shape the direction of discussions moving away from professional to personal situations quoting past experiences etc. Such meetings are a real waste of time. If your company culture allows you should walk out of such meetings so that there is some change in the destructive practices...if not your behaviour will be viewed as destructive practice (situational).
Now the Business Cycle is clearly turning and it is clear we can expect cost cuts, urgent actions to protect bottomlines, freeze of recruitments etc. Global economy offers fantastic opportunity to manage different phases of business cycle at the same time. Asia,East Europe, Latin America is growing with US in recession for sometime now. Western Europe is slowing down now.
For growth markets we require managers who are aggressive and have a passion to take the challenges the growth markets provide. The Management style needs to be young and bold. With high turnover issues and constant search for talents the leader should be able to manage a controlled chaos in a systematic way. Loud communicators and strong execution focussed personalities fit the bill well. To manage a recession is a different ball game. Especially when it is a continuity from growth to recession. It requires a lot of maturity to apply brakes at right places without giving an appearance of panic. Several leaders communicate with urgency but also communicate panic with a lot of employees getting stressed out. The energy lost by this will be felt for a long time as employees who got the signal of panic usually loose motivation though they still retain a lot of knowledge. They become liabilities later and the leader had played an active role in creating this though not very knowingly. Clearly Maturity differentiates leaders from Managers in a change of cycle. Let us see how many such Mature leaders exist as surely there will be some who will emerge from the fire soon in this business cycle too.

Being a Trojan Horse!

Trojan Horse signifies the innovation of strategic thinkers to win war in a prolonged deadlock situation. While the focus is on winning by exploiting the curiosity of the human nature and celebrating success prematurely I thought it will be apt to look at the situation from the point of view of Trojan Horse itself. (Today several smart Viruses enter computers using Trojans breaking the firewalls and sit in computers waiting to attack. I will not know how the those Trojans feel though).

"I felt good when I was being built as taking birth is a happy event. There were smart people around me who decorated me and said that the more smarter I look, the more certain they are to win. Then they went into their tents and came back with 20 of their bravest men and said from now you are part of this horse. I was happy as to have these brave hearts inside you is a matter of pride. They seemed very motivated and I got the same motivation having them in. What is the noble task I have to perform was the question that excited me to stay awake. Then I found all the army pack up and walk out to the boats. The whole place was empty. I wanted to shout -you have left us here. But the heart beats of the men inside me made me feel good. Maybe there is an adventure pending said my head. It was afternoon and I found the gates of the city near opening and a few men walking out to watch me. They signalled with their trumpet and soon there was a rush of young, old,women and children wanting to see me. Some people said "This was the gift for their persevarance", some said " This is a momento of their victory". I wanted to tell them as long as you praise me I am fine. I also have some people inside me. But no-one bothered to check me as they were celebrating. I liked their dances around me. Since I had wheels some men dragged me into the city. I felt happy to be inside the city rather then on the shores of the sea which made me cold. The celebration continued till late with drinking and dancing. I felt bored after sometime. But I was woken by the movement of the men inside me. One by one they got down and with swords started to run towards the gate. They killed everyone on the way and opened the gates. There was a rush of army who came in and then what I say was blood and cries. I was terrified and felt sorry. But nobody bothered about me. There was just agony and pain. I was responsible for all this. I gave them happiness to steal happiness.... this thought made me feel depressed. But next day the winners came to me and said-you made the victory possible and danced around me with happiness. I did not know if I was born for this-to alternate between happiness and sorrow. I decided I will not be depressed with such events as I am a dead wood, a toy. Why should I take the blame for being a toy of happiness to some, vengenace to some, strategy to some, victory to some and betrayal to some. I signify everyone's life and if you realize me in your life you may realize God."

Donkey and the Horse!

There lived a happy, enthusiastic donkey who enjoyed whatever he did. His enthusiasm got him a lot of friends-not just other donkeys but other animals too. He used to hum his favorite music when carrying dirty clothes-others used to smile not at the quality of his music but at his attitude. One fine day all the kings horses came to the river for having a bath. The donkey was talking non stop to his friends while one horse a rare breed was attracted to it. So it went to the donkey and proposed. The donkey was thrilled at this. He said he will think about it but was already floored. He went around to trumpet his glory and next day when the horse came again, he willingly accepted the offer. The beautiful horse had all the grace of royal but did not have friends as she thought she is much above other horses. She used to be finicky about small things and get angry with small provocations. Only when the king was around it behaved tame and ensured that it gets the royal treatment other times.
When the donkey started to live with the horse it realized it had to make compromises. First was it had restrict its laughter. The horse said "Why do you always have the toothpaste smile? Are you really genuine?" The donkey tried to look serious. Inspite when it met old friends and shared a joke it used to laugh loud on which the Horse thought "The donkey is telling something about me to his friend and laughing. Let him come back home." The horse used to push non issues on the donkey. Frustrated the donkey used to lie low and avoid friends. The horse then said " Stop carrying the dirty clothes. You smell really bad. I will look for something better after I speak to the king." It really did. Donkey was given the job of carrying army tools instead of dirty clothes. The horse used to remind the donkey that it is her power that got him a better job though donkey used to like the earlier job better. One day on old habit the donkey was humming a song..the horse said "will you please shut up. you or your family have no relation to music. Why do you create headache for me?" The donkey just shut up. The donkey used to eat anything earlier including paper. The horse asked to stop it and eat only the most healthy stuff provided by the palace. The donkey was very depressed as one by one its freedom was lost. So it decided to go alone and stand for a few hours near a low wall pushing and scratching its back. But alas the horse found him and said "Who are you waiting for? I love you so much but you are not reciprocating it". Donkey went back to the palace patiently. One day when the donkey was not really well the Horse said " I think you are becoming lazy thinking you are a horse breed like me and just because you are my husband does not deserve you a royal treatment. So better get up and wash the whole stable so that other horses know I am the boss". The donkey objected and started to fight. The horse said " Why can't you be nice to me as you have been to your friends? I know you are an egoist and I spoilt my life by marrying a donkey who knows no comfort, no character and no taste." The donkey was stunned. Afterall it did not know what ego was till it got exposed to the horse. It wanted to list the freedom it lost by agreeing to live with her but decided that it does not help anyway. So it started to clean up the stable with tears in its eyes. The Horse got a promotion when the prince chose it as his favorite and from then on the donkey lives a servant life in the stable. It tells other horses it is proud of his wife and the kids are so special. But it cries every night silently in the stable praying God to get freedom as though he wants to run off he resists the thoughts. He knows that he made the decision and he should own the consequences till the end even if it means enduring a life time of mental suffering.
There is no moral of this story but philosophically a lot can be concluded.

Chaos is order!

Everyday we face situations which are part of learning either reinforces what we already know or contradicts what we think we know. With reinforcement we are perfectly ok as we are comfortable. But when contradiction happens we behave differently-we either ignore this as a one off or try to be on justification mode. This is common to most but some try to learn from such contradictions by accepting Chaos is Order. When there is a rule and rulers are checking your behaviour with respect the rule you may turn out to be a rebel. But when Rebels start ruling you turn out to be hero. This is a fact-not a contradiction. Chaos is not a fearful event-in fact it will be needed when we stagnate. The challenge is to create this chaos is a systematic way-diplomats usually are afraid to create chaos as it is against their comfort zone. Random Chaos is waste of energy as there is no pattern to it. Impulsive Chaos is self destructive as there is no plan to it. Planned Chaos is the best as the Leader drives this with an end in mind. He challenges the equilibrium with a hope to create new equilibrium. The leader may run a risk of being thrown out due to this (like Gorbachev) but he still thinks it is required for the greater well being.
This Order in Chaos is also part of creation of Universe as God plays the role of Chaos creator.
There are people who complain about small things starting from my wife does not respect me to I feel a vacuum of why I exist....but if you want to discover yourself try to look at Order in Chaos in your own life. You can decipher the truth much better and live your life as though today you were born without looking forward to anything. This is not easy but one should strive to take lesser carry forward stresses in this fast forward world.

Karma Yoga!

There is a nice story which illustrates Karma Yoga.
There was a rich man who felt that he has proved enough in professional life. He decided to evoke renounce family/city life and moved to a forest to perform penance. He stayed in the forest for the whole day/night sitting under a tree in penance. He used to walk to a nearby village to beg food (just enough). Months passed. One day he was sitting under the tree in the morning when something fell on his shoulder. He touched it to find sticky liquid there. Angrily he looked up and he found a Crane sitting-his sight hit the Crane and it fell dead. He felt sorry for the bird but thought that he is slowly graduating in this penance and felt satified at the same time. That day he went to the nearby village as usual. Seeing him a lady asked him to wait and went inside to pick some food. As luck would have it the lady's husband walked in from the fields. Seeing her husband the lady started to take care of him (washing his legs, giving him food etc). For the next 1 hour the Sagely man was waiting impatiently for the lady to return...finally the lady come out and found him standing. She said "Oh, here I get your food" and returned with a bowl of food. The Sagely man was very upset and angry-he gave a strong angry look at her. She looked at him and casually told him" I am not a Crane to die". This surprised the man. He was pretty sure there was no one looking when the Crane died and even if someone was looking it was only a matter of 2 hours-so there is no way the lady knew about this. He asked " Madam, how do you know about the Crane? You seem to be a Yogi...accept me as your student." She laughed at said " I am not as great as you think. But there is someone in Kashi (about 1500 Kms from the place) named Vishnudatta. He may help you".
The man dropped everything the very moment and began his journey to Kashi. It was an ardous journey but nothing would stop him finding his Guru Vishnudatta. He reached Kashi after 3 years of travel and started looking for Vishnudatta in temples and other holy places. There was none by that name. Tired he was after 3 months but he did not give up. He asked every passer by if they knew anyone by name of Vishnudatta. Finally one young soldier who overheard him asking someone else said" Sir, are you asking for Vishnudatta". The man heaved a relief. "Yes, my son. I looking for this Yogi". The young man was puzzled. He said "I don't know any Yogi by this name. But I know someone else". The man was desperate. He thought" The lady we saw looked also ordinary. So let us meet this person". He said" Anyone by this name is fine." The soldier pointed towards the direction of the Slaughter house and said "The owner of the shop is named Vishnudatta...you can meet him if you go in. Or he comes out at noon".
The man was shocked. He was in double mind. To go into slaughter house is something he would never do. But having spent 3 years to meet this person he decided to wait another few hours.
At noon the Butcher closed his shop and started walking out. Our man slowly stood up and tried to walk towards him. The butcher saw him and started walking towards him and with folded arms said" So you are the man sent by Parvati Bhai from Markal. Welcome to Kashi. Come to our home for lunch". The man was shocked. How is this possible? Telepathy. Is this man really Godly. Controlling his excitement he calmy said" Then you should also know why I came to meet you?". Vishudatta replied "Yes. You are looking for a Guru and want me to be yours". The man cannot believe this. He thought" My Guru...a butcher. No way.". But he walked calmy behind him. Reaching home Vishnudatta fell on the feet of his parents. Fed them and took care of daily chores. He had lunch with our man and asked him to sleep. Getting up he said "Tell me when you are ready to accept me as Guru. I will start to teach". Our man was now convinced that he had something special. So he fell at his feet and said "Right now Guru".The butcher taught him the virtues of Karma Yoga...do your duty with full devotion-the essence of Gita. The man stood up calmly as he knew that Pride was the reason for switching from family life to supposedly yogic life, pride was behind his penance and pride was behind his search. But here he stood knowing before the butcher with pride cut into pieces. He could feel that his mind was lighter! First time in his life he smiled like a Child and felt the God in himself.

Anonymous-but tasty gossip!

Informal networks are very powerful in most organizations. In fact a lot of times we believe in an unknown reliable source than the official communication published or circulated. The reason for this is simple " Official communications are cut and dry with no room for reading between lines. Unofficial news is speculative and is free for the receiver to apply his own thinking/variations...personal choice exist in informal networks. One can decide to spread or not to. The choice is in most cases-let me do my bit".
A strong hierarcial company with an administration focus will say "Gossiping is not allowed as it is dangerous". Infact by saying this we stimulate the informal network than stop it. More we try to control more it spreads. More we formalize informal networks and acknowledge maybe we can tap some creativity in employees. Examples can be Alumni networks of people who resign from a company. A formal exit interview maybe very scientific but maybe employees don't elaborate their feelings well. But the jokes in Alumni network which come out shows the weaknesses a company needs to address. A lot of CEO's have started blogspots with a view to directly connect to employees by formalizing the informal channel. But a lot more still feel that this opens can of worms. Sure if we own a can of worms the fear is real. If we assume a can of worms better we test it. It requires courage to open this channel. Personally for those we feel lonely at top surely need to have this discipline to start the informal network working and contributing creatively.
Tasty gossip is anonymous-but it can be a fast track to change management in old style cultures as it is a culture shock. There will be a few who will be comfortable...but we are not here to make everyone comfortable all the time. We need to make the change...and if tasty gossip paves way why not use it?

The Don Quixote in me!

I went to Apollo for a routine medical check up today. When I was standing in the cash counter an old lady approached me with a request that she has Rs.100 short to buy some medicines for herself and will appreciate help. I looked at her face and recognized it was the same lady who approached me in May end when my mother was operated in Apollo. I asked her " Didn't you approach me with the same request 2 months ago?" She said " Maybe". I was very annoyed that I was cheated. So I caught hold of her and asked the security to bring to the Administration Manager who was my friend. In the room we started the enquiry. She was very stoic. On persistent questioning she said "Why are we making a fuss for nothing?" Then she came with a story that 2 years before when she fell ill her son took her here and gave some money for buying medicine. When she found she had some shortage of money she asked someone casually and got it immediately. She found it better as it was easy money from richer people. So she comes once a week to get some money and she really buys medicines for this. We still did not believe the story. So we asked her the phone no of her son. She was very reluctant to give it. We persisted. Finally she gave the number and we called. The other side was surprised at this and said he runs a old age home where his mother is assisting him. He said he did not know about this habit of her mother. He wanted to come immediately to meet her as he said she is not of the type who will beg money. My friend said " Let us stop here" but the Don Quixote in me refused to budge. I said let us find what is the truth. So I again mentioned the opinion her son has about her and why she is doing this. She gave me a stern look and asked " Boy, are you from Government Intelligence trying to crack a terrorist link. Why do you want to know why I want this money? My son also need not know about this." I made a snide remark at this reply" Ok..let that be. Anyway I never knew an old lady can have secrets that cannot be shared with even son". She broke down at these words which should have struck her ego. " If you really want to know here it is-just near our old age home lives an old man who suffers from Diabetes, Arthiritis and BP. His kids are not living with him and he does not want to leave his home to stay in the Old age home as the society will blame his children. So he projects an image that he lives on his own with his own pension money. He lost some money when the chit funds/finance companies cheated investors. After that his money has shrunk. One day I heard him telling the pharmacy guy about his inability to buy tablets as the prices were rising. The pharmacy guy showed a box where tablets are dropped by donors and he asked to pickup if his tablets were there. He opened the box and found some tablets though not all. He started to come to open the box every 3rd day with a hope he can find his tablets. I decided to help him. So I checked with the pharmacy on the names of tablets. I started to get the tablets and put in the box. I do this every week. I don't want to tell my son as he is a process person-he will tell ask the old man to join our Home and we will take care. Only an old person will know the emotions of old people. So my boy it is not a lie I say I want to buy tablets. But it is not for me...if you want to punish me for this please do". The old lady towered me like a Windmill roaring and fell down like a real Don Quixote. I fell at her feet and apologized. As his son came I visited their old age home and pledged to donate every month as a simple remedy for my sins of the day.
The belief in India is when a snake gets old it spits the precious stone for giving light as its eyes become weaker. Other young snakes make fun of the old snake as it is handicapped. But the old snake smiles to itself as it knows when the venom bag is full we have the arrogance to even fight the Mongoose. Today Mongoose respects the age and decides not to attack but our own young ones make fun of the age. This is evolution of generations. I hope I can drop my venom bag quicker than several others as the power of human will is melting me faster!

Commitment!

Ramayan another great epic of India has a great story on commitment which is not part of the main story. After Ram returns to Ayodhya,Hanuman (the monkey God-whose charm is supposedly helping Obama win the elections in US) is always with him as a loyal assistant. There is no work left for the brothers of Ram (3 of them-Laxman, Bharat, Shatrungan). The brothers are upset that there is no room for them to impress Ram with Hanuman around. So they decide to turn the tables. They approach Ram with a proposal-we will list out all activities around you and split between the brothers so that there is equal opportunity for us to serve Ram. Ram understands the motive but agrees to the proposal. The brothers painstakingly prepare a list of more than 850 activities (like of our project reports) with who will do them(ownership). Ram reads them and agrees. Next day morning Hanuman has no room as Ram tells him about the agreement he had with his brothers and he has to approach them to find if he can get something assigned to him. Hanuman is worried with this turn of events but approaches the brothers for getting some opportunity to serve Ram. The list is put up before him and said if something is left out of the list he can take that up as they will have no objections. Hanuman takes the list to Sage Vashista to help him with something he can do. The Sage reads the list and says “This is an exhaustive list. I don’t find anything except there is a practice if master yawns the servant should make a click sound with fingers before the mouth of master as it is believed to take out bad energies. This is not really a task but I don’t find anything else left out”. Hanuman is happy. So he tells the brothers and Ram that this is his task and everyone agrees. Hanuman from that time onwards is watching Ram to perform his task. But alas-from morning to night Ram has never yawned. Hanuman patiently follows Ram to his bed-but is stopped by guards as this is beyond bounds. Hanuman climbs the roof and starts chanting “ Ram” which always brings him happiness. But there is chaos in below. Ram yawned in the bedroom and has his mouth opened as it refuses to close. Doctors are called in and they are puzzled by this new form of disease. Brothers are woken up as it is considered a serious situation. 4 hours of commotion prevails with Ram in open mouth. Then suddenly someone realizes that Hanuman is missing. They start looking for him and find him on the roof. Informed of the situation Hanuman jumps down to see Ram. Seeing Ram’s mouth open he raises his hand close to Ram’s mouth and with fingers makes the “Click” sound.
Ram’s mouth closes as though waiting for this. The brothers realize the heart of Ram and the commitment both Ram and Hanuman share. They tear up the list they have made and fall on Ram’s feet with tears for they have learnt the lesson of commitment. It is not professionalism or detailing that is a sign of commitment but the power to bond. Very few realize this as administration and micro management makes us feel we are committed to something but reality will be otherwise. Therefore it is important for us to define commitment in a right way before moving ahead as commitment can overcome any hurdles!

Heart not effort!

the two posts of today are based on request from friends-as I am a known story teller to share some stories-hope you will find it interesting)
Indian Epic Mahabharat has several interesting side stories which makes it an evergreen book for several generations. One such story is about Karna and Krishna. Krishna used to always praise Karna for his greatness of charity. There is a belief that Karna’s hands were always red- eager to donate whatever he had to those who wanted it more than him. As Karna was the sworn enemy of Pandavas the praise of Karna was too much for Bhim and Arjun to bear that too from their mentor Krishna. They used to tell Krishna they are equally good in charity but Krishna is biased towards Karna. Krishna decided to put this to test. One morning he created two hills-one of silver and one of gold. He called Bhim and Arjun with instruction that if they are able to donate this before sunset today he will accept they are better than Karna. Immediately the Pandava brothers accepted the challenge and started to engage huge workforce to dig through the hill. There was an announcement that people can queue up for collecting the gold and silver. Indeed there was huge number of people wanting to have a share of the wealth queue up while the relentless mining of the metal hills was giving boulders of precious metal. Non stop the brothers were donating the proceeds. They skipped even lunch/drinks to ensure that they complete the task. At around 5.30 pm Krishna came to site. He saw about 3/4th of the hill still intact. He commented “Had it been Karna the job would be done!” This incensed Arjun who said “ This shows your bias. Everyone here have seen that we have not even taken a small break from morning. We are so committed and hard working. But you make a snide comment that Karna would have done it?” Krishna maintained” Even now if you say I can ask Karna to complete the task though there is only less than 1 hour for sunset”. Bhim was furious. He said “ If we with our army cannot do it whole day how do you think Karna can do it in 30 minutes? I want you to prove this. Else we will decide you are a cynic”. Krishna called for Karna. He arrived to site. Krishna told him the task and said he had only 10 minutes to complete as it had taken time for him to reach the site. Karna was so happy as the task was what he loved-he said ”This is my pleasure. I will complete it in 1 minute”. He called two bystanders and with folded hands said “ I donate you the silver hill, I am blessed by your acceptance”. “I donate you the gold hill, I am happy with your acceptance” Turning to Krishna he said “Anything more Lord” Krishna smiled and gave a meaningful look at the Pandava brothers. The sun had set in their faces.
I like this story because it tells us that if you have a heart to do something we are able to act in a natural way. Else we justify it by our efforts-I tried my best, this was beyond my control etc. I hear a lot say that support functions should be measured by efforts put in even if results are not visible. There is no doubt efforts should be appreciated but if you have the right motivation and mind set then results should also be visible. So stop measuring efforts, review and renew your heart for delivering results. Core competence of Karna was charity and like Pandavas found that it cannot be imitated we should develop a core competence for delivering results and not seek excuses as in Demand chain we can quote a lot of excuses starting with forecast accuracy, force majure etc!

Experience is life!

I was reading a philosophical poem written as a man conversing with God. For everything(more than 20 questions) the man asks God says " feel it, experience it etc". Finally man asks God "If experience is life what are you?" God replies "I am the experience". The power of this thinking is "Godliness is within and it is for us to bring it out". I hear people say " He is good Manager. But when there is a crisis he is different and therefore we need to be careful". To be good in normal circumstances is no big effort. And therefore if someone is good at parties, casual interactions etc is no real color of true self. True self is revealed in a situation when something (own face,belonging etc) needs to be compromised in favor of someone else. There is a lot who do it unnaturally and regret having done it. If they carry stress of a good deed then they have not matured to handle the good deed. Therefore don't fake yourself to be good as it is not sustainable. If you feel for the team, for fellow human the positive vibrations are shown in your face and in every interaction. Experience is Life-make life positive by making your every experience positive as we need several such Ions to make a difference in this world. Today I heard that a person very close to me wanted to do something stupid by breaking self's family and also breaking someone else's family for egoistic reasons. Everyone comes under black out periods in life but self reflection helps to come out of such situations. There is just one simple task we should do everyday before we go to bed-think of the experience of the day when you made someone happy by doing something out of your way. This will ensure a happy sleep everyday as soul gets energy from such acts.

Crossing the Road!

Living in Sweden gives you a high sense of confidence as when you cross the road all vehicles patiently wait. India is always different as it is a challenge for pedestrians especially if they find they have to cross over. Usual comments from a speeding vehicle will be a friendly “Did you inform home when you started?” or a more aggressive “ Brainless/headless Living thing..what is the great urgency you have?”. So when I landed in Chennai I did not take the risk to cross. Only cows have the courage to walk freely on roads but they also don’t take a chance in the Highways. In some states cows are also called as “Brake Testers” as they can give surprises to drivers.
But soon I was forced to do this - my friend called me and said he is on the other side of the road and since we have to go the same way I should cross over to save time.
I decided to risk the journey. After three attempts of putting my foot down from an elevated side road (which had some traces of a footpath) and putting it back I decided to move on like the First Zebra which crosses over the crocodile infested river in Africa.
I took three steps into the road when a Police vehicle came to halt. Looking back thankfully I moved on when the driver of the SUV got down and showed his hand to me to stop. I was wondering “Why should I?” but stopped. Vehicles behind started to honk as some of you know like in Sweden you have to have your lights on always when driving, in India you have the horn on always when driving (gives a sense of security of the drivers). The police driver approached me and said “ Inspector wants to talk to you?”
I thought this is not my day. Though my hand started to sweat a bit I kept my cool in my face (I thought so) and walked back towards the same footpath where I originated and moved closer to the vehicle. A young inspector with a Coolers on was inside with a broad smile. He asked “Ramakrishnan Sir”. Not sure if there was some sarcasm in his “Sir” I said “Ye…yaa. Yesss” with raising eyebrows. He got down and removed his hat. Then bowed down before me…I was taken aback and moved back two steps in reflex
He understood that I did not recognize him. He said “I am Sekar your student in Tuticorin”. Still I did not recollect. I said “ I am not a teacher..maybe you are mistaken”. He kept smiling and said” Sir, I know you are not a teacher. But you were a teacher for me. I am the grandson of Damu in whose mess you used to eat when you were alone working in Tuticorin. I was in 10th standard and my grandfather asked if you could help me with Maths. You agreed and taught me 3 months in evenings/weekends. But you motivated me a lot sir during this 3 months. My father died early and my mother was struggling with my grandfather. You told that I you should show the world that you are a success and make your mother proud”. I started to remember.
He continued” I studied hard but got only 75% in 10th Standard but in 12th Standard I got 85%. We did not have money to join Engineering though I got admission. I did my Degree and joined Police at early age as my family needed money. I got promoted to Inspector this year. If there is someone who inspired me it is you sir. I have written what you said in a notebook and refer back whenever I feel low”. I was astonished. Small things which I don’t even remember has such great impacts. I felt pride in my heart. He dropped me in my home and said will come again.
He was a pedestrian who wanted to cross the road..there were some options for those in vehicle. Ignore and drive on with our life. Stop to let him pass (donate some money hoping it reaches him). Get down and make him confident so that he just not passes this crossing but builds confidence to cross several more roads. Hands on social contribution is much more fulfilling than hands off…I started to feel that I should start doing something more than just writing cheques to NGOs as if there are more Sekar’s who get motivated at the right age the world will be a better place for everyone.

Time Management!

There was a good friend who Innocently asked me if I am quite free nowadays. I asked him why does he think so? He replied " you reply to emails promptly, you have time to write blogs and you meet us whenever you come here. I am always busy. I have a backlog of emails, I feel 24 hours is not enough in a day. I appreciated his honesty. A lot of people who know me may also think the same way as my friend who verbalized it. To answer his question" Yes I am never busy". One of my known weakness is " I have never said no to new challenges or refused something because I did not have time...ofcourse this does not mean I never say no. If something is done just for going through the motions I have said No will say No.
Does this show I have a professional Time Management approach? Not really. Time management is about prioritizing and keeping an eye on the watch. Introspection says I am not conscious of both. So why is that I don't say I am busy. Maybe I don't feel insecure when I say I am not busy like several others. Or it may simply be I am a better Monkey manager or time stretches for me. Whatever it is we need to enjoy what we do....when watching a great football game before we realize it is half time. Will we tell we are busy for 45 minutes? Busy is associated with a Bee which has a focussed objective to get as much honey as possible. I am not sure it can describe a professional life of someone. I am not sure how it feels to be busy but not being busy is still not risky and is more a realistic description of our life in office as if someone tells me " I have 15 years experience in this and that" I try to find out if it is 1 year * 15 (learn in year 1 and spend the learning in rest of years keeping himself busy) or 15 years*1 (constantly learned every year in 15 years by keeping himself open). There maybe someone who may get upset with me comparing busy to being closed. But a person who tells he is extremely busy is missing opportunities and that is being closed as it is the mind which is telling him he is full as his soul is not hungry enough! So much for time management!

Lean-Absolute or relative?

Today I met an interesting person-weighing about 125 kgs with fat in all wrong places. Since he was sitting next to me in the plane (imagine my plight!) to India and was obviously not able to limit his presence to within his seat boundaries he started to be friendly(my perception!) with me. After talking some general subjects (Nuclear deal-India should sign or not, Afghanistan, Iraq etc) I asked him what was his profession. He casually replied “Teaching Companies to be Lean”. Seeing my snide smile (some people tell that I always have this smile!) he asked me “Why shouldn’t I teach Lean?” Trying to be polite I said “Why not? Lean is a matter of attitude”. He told “Not at all…Lean is a matter Necessity. RFID is a lean way for Developed Countries but does not make sense to Developing countries warehouse operations for example. So are we saying if Developing countries don’t look at RFID solutions, they have an attitude problem?” I realized this was tricky but to continue the discussions I told him “Maybe you should look at process steps than technology for defining Lean. Then the difference between Economies will disappear.” He smiled. “You are right and wrong. Underlying process defines how lean we can stretch but enablers make it possible to stretch. Enablers are linked to economics. That is why Lean should always be governed/defined by Necessity”.
“How much do you weigh?” if I may know , he casually continued. “72 kgs” I replied in instinct.
He started to now talk like a Doctor “I still think you are in the top 20% weight band for Indian population which makes your BMI in border zone. Maybe you are prone to BP, Cholesterol and other health issues before the age of 50 which means it is better you loose about 10% weight.” I was quiet. He smiled and said…Don’t take it seriously. I am also in the same band as you are in my country and have the same recommendation from my doctor. So even with a difference of 50 kgs we have the same problem though by look you are very lean than me. Therefore Lean is not an absolute index like a lot think. It is relative and necessity drives it. A more mature business with a strong brand may not have the same pressure as a small business which is just trying to establish itself. If you are not in Best cost country we talk about Best Cost country sourcing/manufacturing. For companies already there the challenges are different. Both need to remove 10% waste for example but the benchmarks fcan never be same”.
Practically he made sense. Maybe absolute benchmarks are not the right way! I started to wonder. As the dinner was served he started to eat his high fat diet and I started to eat my green salads while both were thinking how to reduce 10% weight. Time to sleep!

Passive Aggression!

I recent saw an Ad of a Calcium tablet-Winners have it in their Bones. Very powerful Ad!
If Passive Aggression can be promoted in a similar way we can say "Evasive People have it in their heart". To define passive aggression is quite simple " If everyone agrees and no-one moves forward with actions then you know you have the problem of passive aggression". Evasive actions will include after 3 meetings on the same topic rear guard actions like-we can start a six sigma project on this to see why we have not moved, we should rework the plan, probably we have a communication break down, there are too many projects etc. Reality is passive aggression exists in every company in different scale. More in a veteran company, less in a young company-but it exists as survivors have found that we need not move as fast it is said, let us wait and see if top management means what it says etc. Controlled chaos and active aggression are effective antidotes for this. Controlled Chaos can be created with a challenge of a big project given to the youngest executive for example challenging hierarchy. Active aggression is not about talking loudly or taking a fight-but it is about following up so rigorously that the Passive Aggression person feels deflection is not anymore possible. Symptomatic treatments don't help in culturally laid back organizations. If you are stuck with such an organization you are likely to catch up the sickness within 4/5 years as this is infectious. Therefore when you do your introsception also check if you are already a victim of this sickness. This is the killer of Execution Energies.

Aluminium Teachings!

What can Aluminium teach us you may think. 2300 years ago since Alumimium was very costly to make it was the premium metal for Emperors plates(Alexandar the Great is rumoured to have eaten in Aluminium plate..). Aluminium signified Royalness. As everything valuable at a point of time loses its value and becomes common place with time-Aluminium did become a poor man's utility. During second world war when the Aluminium again became in demand as Planes were made of them W.Churchil requested citizens of England to donate their Alumimium vessels-immediately there was flood of vessels. In a week the admin found it was too difficult to manage this flow...Churchill modified his request saying "Thanks for this and if someone still wants to contribute donate only damaged vessels"..people who wanted to donate damaged/dented their vessels and flow did not stop until Churchill said " I am impressed with your patriotism...please stop as we have divert our attention to handling this inflow than the war itself". Aluminium signified patriotism. Recently outside a temple I found a desperate beggar crying and searching for his plate...I asked his friend what happened. He told that someone stole his lucky(his first asset)plate and he is depressed due to this. He can afford to buy a new one but is really attached to the lost plate. Aluminium signified attachment. To different people Aluminium meant different things in different context. But this is what every object of desire means to everyone-it is we, our context and our perceptions which drive the emotions. If we are able to get this view atleast once in a while we are getting closer to self realization.

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Dispensable or otherwise!

It is not unusual in an organization that a Manager objects if his key resource is being taken away by another department though it is a growth for the employee. There are some extreme cases where the Manager tries to give back by taking a key resource from the other department to prove that he can be nasty. I have received requests from some to delay indefinetly the decision till there is an alternative or someone is developed to the person's competence. My answer to them is "If something is available we think about continuity, if it is suddenly gone new options open up quicker than we would have thought. Life is about seeing self as dispensable which if one recognizes there will be more peace". Time has gone when moving around with opportunities was viewed as "Rolling stones"..we should look at such people as moving rivers gathering knowledge as they move on. The noise of the river when it is in moutains (young river) subsides as it reaches the plains and enriches the banks as it moves on. This view will give talent management a more holistic approach and get over the narrow fears of department heads.
It takes courage to develop talent...more courage to give the developed talent to others.

Switch off guys!

I look at people who climb Mount Everest not for fame but for the joy of it...I see people in dangerous sports who enjoy the moments with energy. What drives these people? Why is that some of us are risk takers while some others are extremely safe players...I personally think it is a matter of attitude. Safe players are comfortable with explicit statement of assurance, stop any new thoughts if it challenges or creates new open questions and are in plenty in organizations (aren't you experienced with a single email stopping 3 months of work with no-one able to convince in black and white this is the right initiative) whom I call "Switch off" Guys. The only effective way to deal with these SO Guys is to tell them "I take responsibility for this risk...you will not be blamed". Fighting is futile. Passive aggression (I will elaborte in my next post) can only be fought by active aggression...One requires skill to practice active aggression without being called arrogant.Have a great weekend!

Execution Power

Dream is not something you see when you sleep...it is the one that does not let you sleep. Very powerful thoughts of Abdul Kalam.When you reflect this thought it is clearly showing the execution zeal that a person should have in achieving his goal. Several individuals and companies have great plans, great thinking/strategies but where the disconnect happens is in execution. Surely Execution energies cannot be derived with a sense of false commitment or forced commitment. That is where leadership plays the role to lit fire in everyone's heart to believe that something is possible. Connecting to people is often underestimated and termed by management as Communication Gap-improve frequency, methods of communication. This action creates a false sense of satisfaction that we are addressing the issue-reality is that communication is just one part of problem of disconnect. Excellence comes when leadership is able to relate to and connect emotionally to people. Very few succeed

Chain mails!

A lot of people forward chain mails with a promise of fortune if chain is continued and a threat of danger if chain is broken. Someone asked me what is the science behind this-I think there is no science but only Human Psycho behind this. The chain letter will say forward to atleast 10 people or more. Even if one responds in this 10 the chain is alive. So with a 10% success rate the chain will spread. Some chain started in 2001 are still alive due to this reason. The belief that God exists in email photos or seeing something brings luck reflects how weak a person is as he has not found God in himself. Bringing our Godliness out is only possible when we search the truth beyond the mirage..Vedanta says that there is no sinner who should seek salvation as soul can never be impure...therefore if we are very sure of ourselves we will never forward a chain mail to start with or have courage to write to the chain mailer that he is yet to find his soul.

Friendship, Attitude

Purity of love is reflected in several ways but the noblest is friendship. A mother/father or blood relations or wife loving someone is still has a logic. But friendship is much beyond these rational. While friendship evolves at different age in different ways a true friendship is selfless. Friends tolerate your success without a feeling of jealousy, don't point out your failures unless it is required and play different roles in different situations. To have a true friend is a blessing of God and not to see a true friend is a matter of attitude. Detached attachment will not get us true friends. Smile from your heart and have an antenae for feelings-this is the first attribute to build to have true friends

Thinking consciously

Intelligence and thinking are complementary...thinking is more active and situational. Great thinkers have initially scored less in the traditional metrics of Intelligence.Street smart people will probably score less in Intelligence tests. While both Intelligence and thinking are linked to knowledge, experience, attitudes etc thinking is about not closing options, not making final conclusions too quickly before evaluating other directions etc while an intelligent person needs to be exactly opposite. He should be a quick decision maker, be logical to defend/counter arguments=all very short term success metrics. Thinking metrics are longer term and therefore the incentive to practice thinking is lesser. I strongly believe a person with average intelligence can do a better job than a person with extraordinary intelligence if the former practices thinking consciously.

Entrepreneur spirit

I meet a lot of young people aspiring to lead companies at young age...this is very good sign as it reflects confidence. However a lot them always believe Career planning by company is key. There I differ...personally to me Entrepreneur's dont plan a career. They take opportunities as it comes and move on. If someone has a soul of Entrepreneur he does not ask for career planning...he enjoys his work and takes opportunities as it comes. When this spirit is manifested then the aspiration to become CEO will be a reality sooner than latter

Insecurity Manifestations

Insecurity manifests in people in different forms...fear and depression are the lowest among them. Faked aggression, fault finding,demanding respect are a few other forms. A lot of people think creating insecurity is a way to drive performance but they forget it is the most primitive form of driving performance. Challenges when positively presented and accepted create a much more sustainable way of driving performance. Change creates insecurity if communication is weak and the leader loses connection with the roots. If you find someone who has insecurity recognize this as a disease and treat him with due respect. He can be the best friend you ever found.

Music Heals!

There is a child in everyone but the challenge is to consciously bring it out. Joy or sorrow for child is only momentary...but it stays longer for Adults as we relive it or wish to avoid/have it again. The spirit of a child is also good for learning as making mistake or face loss is not a criteria. Travel enhances this child like feeling...and so does non serious sports.Music surely heals the adult wounds. But do the busy human wanting to change the world have anytime to ponder?

Waiting Philosophically!

Waiting in the mirror life's speed is genuinely driven by soul. Truth is untruth if reflection's are not coloured by brain.
Waking up this day we think it is a great day...but we forget wishful thinking is not everything though it is part of positive attitude. Maybe we should stop thinking and take life as it comes. This way we loose less energy.
Some people think Love and Respect are mutually exclusive. Both are to be earned and when you respect someone we also love them. When we love someone with true heart why should someone think of respect...Fallacy is to assume everything as discrete as we know it is the continuity which runs energies of life.