Think it right, get it right..

Like the two sides of a coin, which may be symbolizing two different things but they both are an integral part of the coin nonetheless.  No matter how different they are, but the presence of both is necessary to constitute the legitimacy of the coin or else it loses its own value. The same analogy applies to our lives where we are stuck with very different situations; one filled with melancholy and in the other situation when we are riding the horse of merriment. Most of us don’t realize our potential unless we are struck with adversity. When it hits hard, we either flee or face it with our full strength. Most of the people, who might share the ride of merriment with us, run equally faster when the adversity strikes. What we are left with is our determination and optimism. These are the only two weapons that that sees us through that rough patch.

Optimism is a very rare weapon carried by very rare person. A person’s want for optimism is mainly checked when he is into adversity and most of the time people cower and fall prey to the pessimistic beast and succumb to the unpleasant situation. One who carries the optimistic sword, if not win over the bad situation, they at least fight it with a smile and a cool head making way for better ideas to hover around in head.

I remember when I had just completed my twelfth standard and was in quandary as to what should I do next. My results were not so skyrocketing which would allow me to get admitted into some high profile colleges of engineering. It was then that I started to panic and blind myself of opportunities which were just around the corner. I then heard about one of my friends who in a same position the previous year but gotten himself admitted to some very prestigious institute.

This news filled me with optimism as he was my schoolmate I the past and I had always been a better student than him academically. I was thrilled with a new wave of energy showing me a ray of hope that I could nail it as well . I learned that he had joined a certain institute for tuition for which I got nominated too. I went to put in maximum of my effort to prove myself my worth. Whenever I felt low, I tried to figure my friend’s face in my mind repeating the optimistic phrase that if could, then I can too.

Not very long after he was admitted, I started scoring decent marks in mock exams which later converted into one of the best marks among the group. Then came  the D-day when I was in a position to secure a seat in a better college than he was in. I was filled with joy and enthusiasm. A similar example was reiterated when I saw an ad about Housing, which also spoke about enthusiasm and positivity.

One lesson was learnt the hard way that no matter what hard work intertwined with optimism and positivity bears its fruit at last. 

Sailing Against the Wind

Going against the convention is always challenging. It takes a real big courage to defy the existing norm and raise voice against the crowd. Any ship can sail along with the tide but the actual test is observed when the tide is against your motion. It is when no one including your shadow is standing beside you to support your views and action, your true nature of defiant for a cause comes to the fore. There comes a situation when you have to make decisions which may not go well down the throats of many but you have to make a decision that is for the best and not a very plural one.

My life has not been spent in a rosy past but I have rather come across many rough patches including taking decisions which were against my family norms and I could well be a subject of mass contempt. I have learnt certain set of principles in my formative years which have made me a person who I am today. It has been impacted by everyone who came across me and showered me with wisdom or bullshit. I pick the better part of everything and left the remaining.

I remember one day when I was on a field visit in a coal mines and I had to travel about a hundred kilo meters from my base location with my team of 5 members.  We were just passing by and were almost half the way in a jungle area where w would no one but trees and wild creatures. All of a sudden we saw a car a little ahead. We grew suspicious and our suspicion turned into fear when we saw a man bleeding to death. Someone had beaten him very badly and left him there to die. None in group came forward to support my proposition of helping the guy to the nearest police station. They were all afraid of getting involved into an uncalled trouble.

This was a crucial moment. I hadn’t done anything that was extraordinary in my life till then. I used to be among first persons to run away from any sort of trouble. But, that day was different. I was seeing a binary situation. Either we help him to live or leave him to die. The vote count t carry the man along with us was one to five. No one supported my plan initially.  I then started to cajole them extremely hard insisting up on the idea that we might be able to save a man’s life after all. I made him realize the tons of gratitude we would receive form the family members and kin.

Finally after so much of cajoling, we finally took the bleeding, unconscious man with us. He was treated very carefully and got his life back. I had never felt that sort of happiness ever before in my life. That moment change my outlook towards life. I have since then become more compassionate and more helpful. I must say that the moment I made my decision to save a man’s life, I saved m life from an embarrassed one to a content man.

There is one thing that comes to mind related to that incident is the Housing ad in which they talk about taking bold steps. Following a set path may lead you a place nice and cozy but it will be very crowded. To reach an equally admirable destination, you will have to toil hard on the way. 

Being together..

In the hectic world that we live in today’s time, it becomes so difficult for us to keep up with everyone we are close with. All we cry about is the rocket speed lifestyle with hardly a breath to catch. It takes days, sometimes months or years that we meet our close friends with whom we once made promises of never leaving each other’s shadow. How does that happen? Why do we become so careless about the closeness with the ones we love? Is professional life all for one to survive? Where will the society be if we forget the basic tenets of human existence – being social?

I too have had an adventurous life so far travelling places either for studies, work or for fun. Wherever I have been, making friends has been my favorite hobby. I have always tried to accumulate as many friends as possible because all that is left after you are gone are the memories that remind them of your existence. Gods have been kind to me in fulfilling my wishes of granting some nice friends who I will remember throughout my life and hopefully the vice-versa.

I was in Pune for my career adventures where I met this friend of mine – Amit. A guy who was calm and composed most of the time but the moment you mentioned a shred about Hollywood movies, you could see his different avatar. I admired him because of his knowledge which was sharp and accurate and varied his attitude towards life which was undemanding yet ambitious. We got quite close after that and made promises of purchasing a house next to each other so that we could be friends forever.

But life is never pleasant. We had to move away for different reasons of company’s requirements. He had to shift to Mumbai while I was shipped to Raipur. All our dreams got shattered gradually. What was regular call on phone became less and less frequent and we both started getting away in the process.

It was very recently that I saw this Housing ad where one talks about togetherness with loved ones and making them your first priority. So, I called him and asked him to watch it which he certainly did and was touched too. We had been away from each other for good 4 years and never met in that duration. But, I think it was time to plunge that time period into the sea and meet with my best friend ever. I asked him to come over to Pune where I would come as well and move about places where we chilled around in our good old days.

We did come and revisited the past smiling at those pleasant reminiscences that had made our formative professional days in Pune. We had so much of fun that we decided to make at least two trips together very year no matter how much stuck we are in our busy life. Thanks to the almighty that has been kind enough to make time for us to keep up our promises

Life is short. Fill it with memories that you will take with you when you travelling to heaven/hell.

The Choice to sleep well

I have been born and raised in a middle class family where ethical values are sown and instituted into us right from childhood. Never lie to anyone, respect your elders and love your younger, be polite, never hurt anyone etc is taught every day. Schools teach us not to cheat, to be honest and helpful.

 Ethics are the most important ingredients that constitute our core values by which we survive. According to me, ethics are very important tool to lead a life where you can be content with your action and sleep peacefully in the night. Once we imbibe correct ethics and practice them, we can be assured of improving ourselves as well as the society at large. There can be many ways to execute an action, some of which may be malicious and harmful to the general masses. The path that is morally and ethically correct may seems difficult to tread upon, but that ultimately leads us in the most promised manner without any glitches in mind and heart.

Even when we enter into an organization, we are taught to be ethical in what we do. The reputed firms perform their entire task that are so executed that such actions are ethically correct. Some may choose the other path, but if one has to stay for longer duration in the market, then it has to be ethically correct in its actions. Not only the consumers or the customers but also the investors, prospect employee judge one company based on their ethical values. This ultimately affect the right investments, right recruits and of course the loyalty in consumers.

Not paying bribery, sticking to the law of the, not keeping customers in the dark etc and providing the promised products are some of the ethical values that corporate have. Sticking to such ethics is difficult but is equally important. And I believe strongly that one that follows it flourishes. The rest just survive or rather perishes.

I have had a few years of spending my life in corporate world and I find myself fortunate enough to have associated myself with a Tata group firm. As part of the Tata group, I must say, with proud, that there have been many instances where decisions were to be made in which profit clashed with ethical issues and the group chose to stick to its core ethical values. Working in TCE, I too came across situations where bidders, in order to get their quotes approved tried to bribe the authorities. Being part of the team I witnessed that bid cancelled out rightly. It is this trust of being ethical is what drives the emotion of customer, investors and suppliers stuck to the brand name of Tata.

It is in a situation of choosing for an option between personal gain and sticking to core ethical values of honesty, integrity and loyalty to the organization, a person’s fealty is measured. Not many survive the lucrative flood of illegal incentives, but those who do go for a sound sleep at night without a fear of implication. 

The best Friend

Very often I have come across this saying that books are your best friends which can never leave your side and will always entertain you when you have no one to take care of your entertainment. It is with a noble help of books that you enrich your knowledge so much that you may personally don’t have to witness the situation. It is by the means of books that teaches you be good, to fly, to reach atop Mount Everest, to conquer the fiercest battle, to converse in different languages, to dive in the deepest ocean, to be a detective or a criminal, to cook the most exotic dish and what not.

I have always been fond of reading books and continue to do so whenever I sneak away with sometime. It enriches my mind and freshens me. Reading books as much as possible is the only action that I have always advised my friends or keens. One of the best book that I have come across and would recommend everyone to read, especially who would want to make a career in corporate world is “Ten commandments of Business Failure”  by Donald Keugh, ex CEO of the Coca Cola company.

There are many reasons why this book required a recommendation. Firstly, though the book is related to business world, it is so lucid that even a person who is not related to business world even remotely would enjoy the journey of reading

Secondly as Mr. Keugh who spent more than three decades in Coca Cola shares his insights and experience as how he saw better times as well as challenging moments. He explains very profoundly about the mistakes people do when they are in to a business, be it large or small.

Thirdly, all the commandments with examples that he shares are so precise and accurate that the moment we read those anecdotes gives a clear pictures as to what reason brought catastrophe for one company and success to the other. For eg. “don’t take risk” approach , “playing close to foul line” mindset, “putting all the faith in external consultant” behavior  all results in to the doom of companies. In order to succeed one has to be bold enough to take risks in business. Xerox once took risk of hiring a scientist whose idea was discarded by others, it succeeded. It then stopped taking risk, and now it is just an another photocopying company. Many companies try fiddling with law. They may get initial successes but in the long run they cannot befool others.

Fourthly, not only can his insights be applied to the industries and business but also to our day to day way of life. For e.g. in one of the commandments he speaks about being inflexible. This brought many established companies in USA (Republican steel, Allavista)  to bite the dust and some to face dire situations like Ford and IBM. Being inflexible harms even a common man. Assuming infallibility, isolating oneself, being afraid of future  are some other commandments that he shares that basically relates to business failure but it has effect on our personal life too if we follow these principles.  

I have always admired this book and whenever I find myself lost in my professional dilemmas I refer this books and imagine what Donald must have done now. Even if I don’t get the answer, I just get the positive feeling about the task enshrined upon me.

 

Tumse na ho paega!

The oxford dictionary defines ‘lead’ as ‘to show (someone/something) the way to a destination by going in front of or beside them’. The object/person who executes this action is termed as a ‘Leader’. We must observe the vitality of going in front of or beside the masses, as it distinguishes them from a self-proclaimed leader, who misses the very nuance of leading. Every person has admirers who may position them to the stature f a leader irrespective of his quality to actually take the baton and walk in the front row or alongside others. We must not confuse ourselves between popularity and leadership. A leader is always popular but reverse is not always true.

When it comes to the origin of leaders, different schools of thought point out different explanations. Some opine that leaders are child prodigies while others say that leaders can be manufactured. While no one trained Mahatma Gandhi to lead Indians on the path of non-violence, Chanakya was supposed to play the pivotal role in shaping Chandragupta Maurya’s career in being a commoner to a great ruler in ancient India.

My concern is not about any of the above said categories. I am more vexed about the third one, which claims that leadership quality constitutes a major portion of their blood and flows along with it and that their genes carry this quality to lead the other lesser mortal souls who were not fortunate enough to have been born with a silver spoon in their mouth. They still believe in the older version of monarchy in which reins passed on to their heirs unless the quality became unbearable. But the sad part is that this system is followed in democracy as well, with a twisted game plan. This democratic monarchy is a monster which can gobble even the most prosperous nation.

India is no different in suffering dorm this pandemic. Move to any part of this country, which took away freedom from an imperialistic British regime, you can come across the dynastic politics being spread like water in the floods. Some of them may turn out to be a good leader but the majority has simply put their Daddy’s shoes, whether it fits them or not. My heart is coercing my fingers to type as many names as possible but the mind suddenly commands my little finger to delete ‘names’. They are not be blamed. We Indians have not yet come out of the dynastic rule that has been ruling us for centuries and millenniums.

I will narrate a simple story which shall relate to somebody but it will just be coincidental. There is this man whose father died when he was young; he left him an enormous empire to rule; he has been struggling to cope up; when the situation demands the most, he goes for a hibernation leaving others to tackle. He is not batman but one of a very influential person in India. Holding a post of second-in command of the glorious and oldest political wing, he still thinks he can do whatever he wishes to and no one will give a damn. The parliament session was round the corner and he decided to go on a holiday. According to PRS India, a research organization presents a dismal view of his performance in the parliament. While the national average of attendance is 81%, he attended only 49%; when national average on debate is 13.2, he held just one; while average question being asked is 56, he asked none. There are many other accounts which clearly mention his disenchantment from this job. Rightly so – he is Rahul Gandhi.

When most of your supporters are looking for a spark in you which you have yet not been able to demonstrate, you give away the chance to shine by shunning away from an important session. You took a charge for UP election in 2012, and lost badly. The 2014 national election was conducted to coronate you the prime-minister of India, but your performance was so pathetic that your party achieved the worst failure till date. Kudos! The way Mr. Gandhi alienated himself from the crucial budget session by taking a self-announced break from god-knows-what important work and went to God-knows-what place, it paints a picture of him stuck in a wrong job. Your sycophants leave no stone unturned to put you on top of every success and take the blame for all the failure, that it actually make you believe that you had no role in Congress’s defeat and non but only you took the party to the zenith.

Mr. Gandhi, a very simple advice to you. You are 44 years old and you can actually go after the career of your choice and you can still make a respectable future. Politics is not you cup of tea. The slight beard and folded sleeve neither makes you a macho, nor a seasoned orator. Neither does the drama of having a glass of water in poor man’s house make you a representative of a common man.

 Enough of this drama. Okay, you really want to make it big in politics; then start doing things right. Take commands in your hand instead of running away. Mother won’t be there forever. Sycophants may start pinching you slowly (slowly few words of resentment have already been heard). In words of Ramadhir singh of GOW “Apne khetra me jao, karyakartao ko motivation do”. Otherwise “Tumse na ho paega”

The fourth pillar..

In countries which claim to have stability in functioning, have various departments working in tandem and taking good corrective measures, if one of the pillars falters. In India we have independent legislative, executives and judiciary vested with their respective power. These three pillars have always successfully been performing their duty with one of these intervening in other’s affair when it feel that the decisions are not taken in public’s interest. Even then there is a safety watch handed over to a vigil team to protect the interest of common people. This is supposed protector and act as a watchdog, is supposed to look after the mischief the other three pillars. But what is this fourth invisible pillar goes berserk? What if it just goes on to perform every task other than the prime objective?

There have been many instances when the invisible pillar i.e. the media fraternity has brought down governments like the alleged involvement of Washington Post in bringing down Nixon’s government. Not very long, we have witnessed the enormous opposition of past government of India which was blamed to have been involved in numerous corruptions. The job of media was commendable in bringing out these black deeds which was ruining India’s reputation worldwide and diminishing the national exchequer. One must admire such efforts which I constructive and helping the cause of nation’s progress and a common man’s benefits.  Coverage on situation risking lives like the one on wars, or sting operations are nothing short of appreciative work and it garners huge respect.

So, when is the hero playing the role of a villain? Or why is it doing so?  It has always performed its duty will be a prevarication from the truth. Media is mainly a private sector industry in which it does all sort of things to amass revenue. The biggest revenue source is advertisement and it receives advertisements based on its TRP that is generates. To achieve higher TRPs it tries to present news which is received by most of the masses. In order to do that it sometimes sensationalizes the news. Many a times, an important but less glamorous news is put on hold to give priority to less important but more glamorous news.

I just want task a question to national new channels and it is directed to all the houses – what is the use of showing “sas bahu revisions’ on your channels? Aren't they polluting the entertainment channels already? You miss out rape cases in distant villages, graft cases at lower level but you never miss a kiss of an actor or a six hit in a gully cricket. Where does your sports oriented time slot vanish when India plays S. Korea in Ajlan Shah Hockey championship or national kabaddi team goes out to win the world cup? It is high time to introspect and revamp the strategy that makes you present the right blend of news which is actually beneficial.

Another problem that I consider is the sensationalizing the new. Just a couple of days back, Gen V.K. Singh sarcastically commented that his visit to Pakistan High Commission the other day was more important that visiting Yemen to save Indian expatriates. The statement was reported as on a serious note by a very popular Indian news reader. My question is – doesn’t he understand the difference between sarcasm and a factual statement. Had V.K Singh not been serious about the rescue operation, he would not have visited in person. I have no recollection about any of the previous ministers going on a mission like that. Another question is – if you are given a mike and a satellite power, it does not give you a right to take out your personal vendetta against somebody. Mr, Aranab Goswami, a sincere request. If you are good for nothing then it is more suited to glue your lips and never speak a word which will more harm than good. You are nothing but trying to demoralize the constructive work.

In my opinion, the media must have a proper regulation, but without the involvement of the government. The media house should revamp their strategy which churns out quality news and not any action thriller movie. Your file photos or videos don’t even seem relent to audio sometimes. Try to look within and compare yourselves with international media houses like BBC, CNN, Al Jazira etc.

The time will not be far when you will disenchant your viewers who in turn will stop believing your precarious lies. It high time that I quote my marketing professor JK - “Sudahr jao warna Udhar jao”.