another innovation

Cross stock market with meditation and intuition

Another example of medici effect :)

http://www.samuraitrader.com/

Kuchh Khaas hai Hum Sabhee Mein

Remember these lines from the old ad of Cadburys dairy milk.

This is the same thing that Amir Khan propagates in his new movie - Taare Zameen Par - A MUST watch :)

For the first time I was speechless after watching a movie. What I felt I could not speak, I could not express only my throat and my eyes were able to express my feelings. My heart didn't know to cry or to smile. I had my own childhood doing rounds in front of me. I am thankful for many people to have understood me and made me what I am today.

The movie is special in its own sense, it captures the feelings of a child and also lets us know the meaning of being a child.

Amir Khan has not portrayed only himself in this movie as happens in most of the blockbusters today (Be is shahrukh or amir's movies). He has shown a child and his thoughts. I guess the best descrition of the movie can be done by the portrait (drawsn by Amir Khan in the movie) of Ishaan Aawasthee (Darsheel). I tried a lot but could not get the pic on the net but shall try and get from somewhere soon and post :)

One more thing the movie points is when we say that we care then we should give the other person the confidence that we are there. In case there has been some mistakes then also we are there. Its not good to get angry at the mistake but to give a helping hand to say that we are there.

A MUST watch indeed

Mind Game

Don't let them climb on top of your mind

Don't let them effecting your mind

Its a mind game and you need to win it for certain

Back to form

sarabhai vs sarabhai....... People don't like the personality of each other

and they want them to change

like maya doesnot like monisha

but when she changes to how she wants

she starts missing old monisha

and then wants her to be back in form

Same has happened with indravadan, Rohsesh, Maya and Sahil

:)  I don't want to give an understanding from this as it is better felt than told

Instincts

Believe on your instincts

I know it is hard to believe and it is hard to focus but believe in INSTINCTS.  Know one thing and that is when you are in the system or very near to the system then you can't see the problems.  You get governed by the problem and this does not let instincts to grow rather instincts to be surfaced.

Hence when in doubt then just step a bit back and see the problem and then your instincts tell you what is right and what is wrong and then listen to your instincts

nityn

Two places to look

There are only two places to look things, ideas etc for

THE UNIMAGINABLE

&

THE OBVIOUS

nityn

isenhover

Everyone THINKS from their own perspectives (unfinished)

Sometimes I get angry as to why don't people think the way I do.  This is a big thought.  Many times I become pushy and want to give my thought to them and then get angry on the same.

Yes I might know more and I might be giving the right solution but when there are others they don't think in the same manner.  Now I have left believing that they will do.  People only listen and understand things when they get HURT.  In case they do what is right and has been said by me then

Mahindra Scorpio mhawk - Hummer's Indian Kin

Wish list :)

Mahindra Scorpio mhawk

Hummer

nityn

Even I want to retire Early

Even I want to retire early and that too in 10 years from now. There is lot to do, that I have not done and would want to do.

Don't make anyone so important in live

Don't make anyone so important in life that you cannot live without them :)

Sad yes but true.  Many times you would not even know that you are falling in this trap :)  BUT know it before it is toooo late :)

 

nityn

Beyond Numbers

Life  is beyond numbers

Business is beyond numbers

World in beyond numbers

With all due respect to CAs and financial whiz kids

Even the share market is beyond numbers -- its emotions and perception and psychology

Each deal is not only numbers its minds, its images, its perception, its synergies

Each business is not numbers its the understanding of other things by numbers.  The ability to see these numbers in today's sense and project it for tomorrows growth.  Its the ability to see these numbers and understand the energies, the minds, the emotions, the business sense

nityn

keep persisting

Keep persisting and keep the faith

If you desire and desire from heart you will get:)

Be Objective in your views

You can never know the other persons grief hence you have NO right to comment on his / her stature or state of affairs. 

Know that there are many things behind the curtain which cannot be seen and are not meant to be seen

Be objective in your opinion and views

Another thought reminded

They judge me even before they know me :)

some nice dialogues

From DAS KAHANIYAN ( hind movie )

main khud koi faisala nahin karta
har lamha jo lekar aata hai jee leta hoon

coffee bhee ajeeb cheez hai woh dekhtee hai use peene waala kaun hai :)

Pyar nahin takdeer

Pyaar nahin Takdeer.  Yes they are opposites (I guess)

Thats what KONKANA SEN says in AAJA NACHLE (starring madhuri dixit)

Staying in LOVE is more important than falling in LOVE

ADRE ... Act of Deliberate Relationship Enhancement

Tom Peters says .....

"Investment" Plan/New Year's Resolution

During his days as Goldman Sachs boss, Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson had an invariant habit. He would call "60 CEOs in the first week [of the year] to wish them happy New Year." During my brief White House stint in the mid-seventies, I spent eight or nine straight hours one New Year's Eve on my office phone. I called close to 100 people I worked with—in agencies all over Washington and in embassies around the world—to thank them for their help in the prior year. In addition to enjoying the chats, which I did (I suspect Paulson did, too), I admit that I was purposefully engaging in an ADRE ... Act of Deliberate Relationship Enhancement.


While I fully buy "If you aren't sincere, it won't work," I nonetheless urge you to develop some similar ritual. Moreover, I urge you to do it in the next couple of weeks!
Think ADRE. Twelve months a year!

Alone

With > 500 people's number in the phone book

With thousands of people in the email list

With umpteen people added in the chats

With TV, internet, telephone, vehicle all in place

One is still alone ......  Pretty alone .......

Within India, within the reach but still ALONE

 

Get a LIFE.  Get a HOBBY.  Create your own niche

nityn

No one will understand and hence no one needs to know

 

Life is not a bed of roses.......if there is softness of petals, thorns prick at times tooo. Everyone gets their share of ups and downs, high and lows, smiles and blues. But sometimes its nice to share those laughter moments with others than sharing your blues. Its difficult to make someone realize what your going through. The pain, the frustration, the mood swings whatever maybe the feelings its hard to let someone know. There are times when even our own parents and beloved friends who know us in and out find  it hard to relate to our feelings. To who should we went what we are going through. Is there somebody listening??? Can someone peak inside and know where the pain is?

Whatever might be the reason for pain, no one will ever be able to understand.....Its yours...better learn to handle it yourself. They say, it is from adversity that strength is born.....make those moments of blues your companion. Dig for answers inside you than trying for solution from others. Face those moments of pain and do not turn your back or succumb. Try to handle the situation..make time for it....be simple yet firm in your thoughts. Then things will fall in place and you may be able to find solutions to all your worries. It won’t matter whether someone understands or not.

No one will understand hence no one needs to know

No one will understand and hence no one needs to know.

What wrong is happening or what you are feeling. No one will ever be able to understand and hence your own things (specially moods and lows) keep them to yourself and try to make them your companion.  They themselves will give you company and make you feel better

Couple of more random thoughts

1.  Try and minimize your lows and highs - take them as just events so don't get hassled at the lows and don't get too excited at the highs

2.  Find a solution in the problem itself.

3.  Try and be simple........  Its so difficult to be so simple

Adapt Indravadhan from sarabhai vs sarabhai

Just Wish

I just wish I could have been like INDRAVADAN SARABHAI of Sarabhai V/S Sarabhai. I just love this character.

He actually knows how to LIVE life !!!!

Everyone Sees things in a different way !!!

I agree as to what my friend says (here) but then the reality of life is each individual thinks in his/her own way and thus will not listen to your thoughts blindly.

I guess one should always respect the individuality of others and also the way they think and thus donot react if things are not understood or done in that manner, rather respond with an understanding of the other persons POV - this is maturity.

If some one doesnot agree with your thought then don't shout louder and repeat it but be mature and understand that at this point of orientation he is right in thinking and viewing things this way.

Man Nahin Karta (मन नहीं करता। )

Man Nahin Karta

मन नहीं करता।

Ever felt this way? when you wanted to do something for a long time and when the time has come to do it, then u feel like......Man Nahin Karta Karneko!!!! ..."I dont feel like doing anything"...you must be nodding your head isn't it??

This is the worst of the enemies for any individual.

Many a times we have loads to do and we make huge lists of "to do's" in our free time and when that "free time" is just there, we are just in no mood to do it...Reason 'Man nahin karta'

This is what happens when you are relatively free (have less work). At that time one should try and complete the pending tasks what ever they are but then 'Man nahin karta'.

I have been busy for quite some time and was not able to make time to do my kind of things, be it blogging, making time for my beloved ones, cooking, catching my fav movie of star movies.......well i had promised myself that I will do all this when I am out of my busy schedule. Well, the time did come. But then somehow my "Mann" did not give in when I wanted to do it.

But....is mann nahin karta ki chakkar mein .....I have left many things behind undone. There goes that line again.....Mann nahin Karta........Another simple example for the fellow bloggers is that blog when you are busy also as when you are not that busy then you may not blog as 'Man nahin karta'.

But we need to understand that its important for us to do things which we want tasks whether Mann nahin karta or Mann Karta hai.....karna zaroori. If we keep postponing, then we may end up missing many of those things we wanted to do. And most importantly , we need to make time to do "my kinda stuff" before it just withers away with time simply coz we could not make time for ourselves.....as one of my friend says .......a large mug of hot piping coffee.....sitting on a his fav comfortable chair beside his room window....and lost in his kinda thoughts or just sitting there is what he calls his stuff....

Lets try and honestly put efforts in reducing 'Man nahin karta' and start DOING :) right away and right now

Lets Work to LIVE not LIVE to WORK !!!!

hogannekal falls

Hogannekal Falls 18th Nov 2007

nityn

Chaupat Consults

Chaupat Consults

ready--> Fire--> aim

In entrepreneurship this is the Mantra

For Heaven's Sake, Try It!

Keep Bidding Keep Winning

Hee heee heeeee

This is the order of the day right.  Tune in any channel and you will hear only this SMS SMS SMS ............  Your favorite star, your favorite song, singer, dancer.  

Bid for winning is the best one ..

Something we can take away from this one too

This actually instigates you to keep putting efforts on and on and on.  Krishna also said "Karm Kiye ja"

and you can make your own fortune this way.  I also am a firm believer of "DEEDS ARE SUPREME".

So keep working, keep bidding

Entrepreneur breeds Entrepreneur

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/2430267.cms

ET Entrepreneur of the year: Grandhi Mallikarjun Rao, chairman, GMR Group. Lets congratulate him.

I like the way he conducts business and would like to follow him. And now that the world has recognized the same, by crowning him the Entrepreneur of the year, my belief in him as someone who has set a winning trend is further strengthened. But my question is: Does the buck stop here? For him to move on from this established position to another, he needs to start a new trend....that of breeding new entrepreneurs. The intent should be to make "Entrepreneurship" as coveted and as "Hot" as the dot com was in 2000 so as it attracts the right kind of people with attitude and panache.

I am not trying to give him advice when I said the above `coz I am no proven strategist neither a career guru nor a coveted Mckinsey consultant. But being a follower of trends and being ALIVE, I believe it is difficult but more important to "Breed more of your own types".

Wish him all the best

nityn

Need for a miracle

Now is the need for a miracle.

God has to show some presence in order to show that he is there and he is there for GOOD

People need that and so do the economy.

Have Faith

Another market

Having seen the stock market and seen it enough I guess... As a new entrant I used to follow everything that I could.  I used to understand the market mood and the market sentiment.  I used to try and understand the Technical Analysis and the Macro Economics fundamentals.

I tried to understand the real and estimated valuation too.  I have understood only one thing and that is NOTHING IS RIGHT and NOTHING IS WRONG.  People change the opinion / rating about companies, about general economics, about everything in no time.  Only thing they do is that they change their statements. 

I don't understand can't anyone tell with clarity.  Are there too many factors.  Cant people read what is expected and what is the direction things are going. 

I just get reminded of an OLD ADAGE which said : SUNIYE SABKEE KARIYE MANKEE.

As it is only I who can tell how much PINK I see in PINK.  Hence know the facts, know the opinions but decide yourself.

Its like this Have the Data --> Get the Information --> Get the knowledge and then convert that to WISDOM yourself.  The opinions should be taken but have faith in yourself.

How much PINK

How much PINK I see in this PINK ?

How much is my PINK, PINK for me ?

Best Companies to work for

Technorati Tags: Career, Entrepreneur

I recall few years back when I was preparing for my MBA I had a discussion with some one who was conducting the survey regarding the best companies to work for.  He was doing it for Business Today and was an IIM chap.  He just said that the report will be out next month and " Read it and laugh "

I did not understand what he meant at that time but today I can say that I can laugh :)

Being in corporate world and seen some companies, knowing how these surveys are conducted and what happens in an organization participating in the survey I can say that we can Laugh

Always the best companies to work for comes out to be the top names and the names too keep on changing from year to year.  The company which was in top 10 does not find its name in the next year or in the other ranking.  This is mesmerizing.

The point to see here is most of the companies are Large companies with huge work force and m cap and revenues.  What happens to the small companies.

I feel that working in a small company is far more challenging and entrepreneurial.  This is what drives satisfaction and this is what should be measured.  These surveys should measure all the needs as per the Maslow's need theory.

The other thing is that these Business Magazines should cover the Best small companies to work for also and yes they cover in US (here)

Tom also talks about the importance of Mittelstand and the competencies that these people have (here)

I just want to give a Thumb Rule

You excel only when you have to earn each days bread and butter yourself.  This is an extension of the theory which says Tie organization's goals to a persons personal Goals and then see

If the ground doesn't guide you then other things will !!!!

Technorati Tags: Strategy, Business, Career

Life teaches you important lessons at the weirdest occasions and when you least expect (and then these becomes experiences and learning that you cherish and LIVE for) ….. My trekking trip forced me to sit back and think and reach the following conclusion:

Normally a trek requires you to follow a certain trail on the ground. This not only prevents you from losing your way but also leads you on the path that is most often used and hence tried and tested. (This also reminds me what I once spoke on Burn the grass below the ground that you walk on --- A feed for another post)

But an interesting thing that I noticed this time around was that if the ground doesn't guide you, i.e. you cannot find a trail then certain other elements will definitely guide you....

For example: you can take guidance from the electricity poles that would have been put up the whole way (I call this the POLE to POLE approach).  All you have to do is to move along the laid down electricity lines and that will make sure that you will not lose your way (But yes you may need to face the resistance offered by the shrubs, stones and boulders).  And you will be able to lead your way to the TOP of the mountain/hill :). This can also prove to be the best / shortest way too.

Taking the above example as an analogy, I would say the same applies to Strategy, Business and Career. All one has to do is the following:

~ Always look for clues.  Keep your senses and mind alert, open and receptive to anything new and unusual.

~ Look at everything with Business Acumen

~ Be confident of yourself and have faith

~ Always aim to reach the SUMMIT. Keep your goals high and your aspirations higher.

nityn

Anthragange - Trek III

New friends made during the Trek.

A bunch of kids who guided us from base camp to the top and back - helping us on each step
A kid working in the Chilli fields -- Plucking ready chillies. Was awesomely excited on knowing I am gonna click his snap

Antharagange - Trek II

Part II

Opening of a new world :)

Antharagange 0 Trek

My trek to Antharagange. Was complete fun. Nature !! and the best was the Vineyard on the way back. The guy was sweet enought to let me in.

By car to Kolar and foot hills of Antaragange --> By stairs to Devasthanam -- > Rocky hilly trek --> Green Chilli, Ragee, Tomato etc farms --> Masjid, Dargah --> Trek Back --> By car to the hill till end of road --> Back to Bangalore 29September2007

West is captured now time to capture east

India and Indi Inc brand has a presence in the US and also in Europe.

Now is the time to catch on EAST.  Japs are the next bet.  Though conservative and careful breed they are too methodical and smart.

They bring a UNIQUE management style - of being thorough, hard working and team work

Lets imbibe the good points of them and grow higher

DHONI style

Dhoni style -- Fearless , Natural and SMART play

This is what should be done in Business and in career too :)

nityn

Here comes another one

As I had said that there will be a cyclical effect and first decoupling from us will happen and then recoupling will happen.  In this recoupling Indian economy will govern the US economy.

They will follow our markets and change accordingly.  We will also increase there consumption levels and investment levels

Here is the first step in the same.

RBI norms paving way for HNIs to buy property abroad?

With the RBI raising the cap for remittances abroad, high net worth individuals will now be raring to buy property abroad. They might look to suburban London, South East Asia and West Asia.

Looking to diversify your property investment portfolio? You can now look beyond the obvious tier-I and tier-2 cities in India. With the Reserve Bank of India doubling the limit for individuals to remit, to USD 200,000, investors will look to buy property abroad. Experts say, while markets like New York and London might still be out of reach, Thailand, Singapore and the UAE might be attractive.

One can get a 2BHK apartment for 180,000 pounds or about Rs 1.5 crore in Enfield in suburban London. You can buy a villa in Patong Bay, Phuket, Thailand for Rs 2 crore and 2-bedroom villas in Bali for as little as Rs 1 crore.

Consultants say it's not yet clear whether the entitlement can be applied in meeting mortgage commitments.

Pranay Vakil, Chairman, Knight Frank said, “Suppose the house is for a million dollars and it's to be paid over a 10-year period. Can we pay USD 200,000 in meeting the mortgage liability like an EMI. If that is possible then the window is even bigger and the ability of Indians to invest abroad will also go up. “

If this comes through, HNIs will be able to hold property in their own names instead of through their companies. And since in many foreign countries, down payments are just 10% of the cost of the property, they will also be able to pay up their mortgages faster.

 

Here comes India to the rescue of US' economy.  We will also buy arms from them so another way to rescue their economy :)

How much more ground do we have for grazing

 

This shows we have enough ground to graze.  Only the understanding that the margins are going to settle down a bit has to sink in.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Power_Sixes_Six_Indian_cos_up_global_IT_share_4-fold/articleshow/2406258.cms

Market Share Global Ranking

The top 10 IT services players globally in 2006 were IBM, EDS, Fujitsu, Accenture, Hewlett Packard, Computer Sciences Corp, Lockheed Martin, Capgemini, ADP and Northrop Grumman, according to the report. The global IT services market itself has grown from $554 billion in 2001 to $672 million in 2006.
IBM, with the global number one IT services ranking, had a 7.2% market share. In comparison, the global ranking of the number one India-centric player, TCS, was at 35. TCS’ stated goal is to be among top 10 IT services firms globally by 2010 with $10 billion in revenues.

Invest in Youngsters

Congratulations Indian cricket team and all fellow Indians for a SPECTACULAR victory for the T20 world cup today.

One thing this victory teaches us is INVEST IN YOUNGSTERS who are full of dreams and enthusiasm

Smiles smiles

Hey

Strategy - Unification

 

This was what I had thought of writing on.  But then could not come up with things

Here comes John Hagel's think on the same.

Shall write what I also thought soon

http://edgeperspectives.typepad.com/edge_perspectives/2007/09/convergence-or-.html

PE : a primer

Private Equity

PPP

Private Public Partnership

In this Private parties are acting like PE companies.  They PUSH and they put Capital and brings Experience and Expertise and Confidence.

Thus the growth happens

PUSH

 

I was said that the best Pusher used to be Your MUM (that is what moms are for) -  from TED talks

Private Equity companies are like moms - They PUSH you to perform higher and higher and also give the confidence that they are their with you.

Private Equity

 

Private Equity

Hedge Funds

Venture Capitalist

Strategy Consulting

I Banking

Hmm interesting ...........  Even I am finding them interesting these days.  This is my next thing to learn ...

Assumed Leadership

Leaders are not nominated.  They take the role of leaders in the situations demanding so.  Leaders assume leadership role and take charge and take command.

Best example

Movie: Bunty and Bubbly

Abhishek Bachchan steals the government gold from airport where Amitabh Bachhan is in-charge of the gold transit.  Amitabh Bachhan reacts taking control of the situation and giving instructions (as if he was the commander in chief in a battlefield) to the subordinates and says that the complete control of the airport is under him.  The officer argues that why will the airport authorities give the control and the required information.  He snaps that everything on the airport is under him until the GOLD is not recovered.

This is called TRUE ASSUMED LEADERSHIP

Hope you recall the scene.  I loved it and learnt from it

If you want a work to be done put a restriction to it.

 

Try telling a kid not to open the fridge and then see.

Works in corporate too.  Works in strategy too. :)

Another strategy lesson learnt

One of my friends said this --  share market se girte hue bhi paisa kamaya jaata hai aur uthte hue bhi..  It depends ..ki are you investing in share...  or just watching the moves ...

This gave me a new lesson for strategy.  As we always say and know that the Raison d'etre of any business is to earn money.  So it translates to Business level Strategy as

In Business money is made, both in the time of rising economy and in the times of declining economy.... It depend (matters)... Are you doing business or just watching the economy.

This comes fit in context of today's scenario in which the US economy is slowing down or may be better put, in a saturation level and Indian economy is on the uphill.  This is leading to strengthening of Rupee and also is giving more shivers for the service industry who are based ( tightly coupled ) on the Dollar price and US economies.

A detailed strategy should be made and I guess should have been made also thus far....  I will also give my views on the same ....

To learn from this thought I think all the service companies ( I am referring to our dear IT and ITES sectors ) whose scene has suddenly changed in the eyes of investors and the employees should also start understand and focusing that they have to do BUSINESS and not only watch the economy.

A detailed strategical analysis to follow soon ...... featuring ....

• What levers to pull
• What buttons to push
• What outlook to carry
• What mood to be set in the market
• Who to lead and who to follow.

This will not be gyaan but also action ( Karma )

Bangalore Traffic Problems

 

I am sure in case you are living in Bangalore or have stayed in Bangalore in the past one year for any number of hours, you will be aware of the biggest problem of Bangalore and that is TRAFFIC.

In Radio City when the traffic scene is depicted every morning .. Vasanti Hariprakash (the RJ) proudly announces that such and such places have slow moving traffic and to add some humor says that these places don't disappoint these days.

From this itself you can understand that what is expected from Bangalore roads and what is always received.

Anyway its not like other places have not grown or other places have had a better infrastructure -- Things always evolve.  Situation was similar in many places but things have improved there and will improve here also.

Lets try and learn from their experience.  Nothing can be done in improving the infrastructure over night nor anything can be done to teach people patience.  What can be done is manage it properly.  I strongly feel that things can be managed better in case there is a POLITICAL WILL.

So here I propose some points that should be done in order to manage Bangalore's traffic.

 

1.  Problem of Lorry's breaking down - Ban lorries from entering the city during the day - This is done in Delhi

2.  Buses - Put a lane on the left hand of the road for buses to travel.  This lane will be used by all the buses and no buses can change the lanes.  School buses are an exception and can go in other lanes.  In case there is an issue then in prime time the company buses can be allowed in other lanes - This happens in Delhi

3.  Traffic policeman to be given a stick - In order to create an authority and fear in the people he is given a stick which he very nicely uses to control the two wheeler traffic.  In case two wheeler guys are jumping red lights or are traveling on footpaths they get a hit on their back  - Believe me this works

4.  The traffic policeman should be trained - yes he needs to be trained to give priority to the main road traffic than the by lanes traffic.

Besides this their is lot that people can do in controlling themselves in taking their vehicles from wrong sides and being patient

I am sure that we start this there will be an improvement and believe me once there is a start and there is some improvement people will follow

 

Nitin

Heights by great men

 

The heights by great men reached and kept were not attained by sudden flight, but they while their companions slept, were toiling upward in the night.

 

Henry Wordsworth Longfellow

(unfinished) Management to have B@lls

 

This is a though that I keep getting reminded in this Business World.  I have written earlier also on this (don't know where).

This was the thought that was incubated when I was in SRF. CD, a very good friend and an unofficial mentor used to tell me this.  This was also reiterated when Masilamani (one of our visiting faculty members) used to say this time and again. 

(unfinished) Spread Happiness

This is a post that I wanted to write since long time.  

Ok!!!!  

I strongly believe that one thing that gives happiness to all is spreading happiness.  This I have seen as well as I have felt :)  Think when you see your parents happy and smiling, when you see your dear ones happy and smiling how do you feel.  Don't you forget your ownself and be happy. 

I also believe that girls are the strongest agents for making a family happy.  A girl child laughs and shouts and becomes angry and does all kinds of pulling and drooling.  The tantrums, the emotions,

(unfinished) Faith --> Efforts

Yes this I have believed in a lot.  One thing that I have never left and never would like to leave is putting EFFORTS.  I strongly believe that KARM SARVOPAR HAI !!! -- ( EFFORTS ARE SUPREME)

What am I doing these days

 

What am I doing these days?

This is the question that not many people are asking me but I am also asking myself.

I also ask people Where are they investing their times these days...

Let me then write down what all I am doing these days and from here write about my activities regularly. :)

The time that I get after commuting for two hours in the morning and two hours in the evening and that I spend on work I invest in the following manner (not priority based but mood based)

Reading -- Apart from blogs, I am reading couple of books and newspaper as a daily thing

Blogging -- I want to do that but too lazy to write

Driving Car -- Yes I like driving so these days I drive to places on the weekends

Traveling / Sight Seeing -- This is in conjunction with my driving spree ... I have in the recent past covered -- Kullu - Manali ,  Tirupati - Tirumala - Kanipakkam, Mysore - Brindavan Gardens,  Bheemeshwari - Kavery fishing Camp.......

Strategising - I have been trying to make strategies which I think can solve some issues at hand. Be it traffic / Companies / Management by graphs /

Networking

Career Management

Trends Spotting - In business , In world , In systems , In processes

Entrepreneuring

Running / Jogging - I go for a 30 - 40 min run everyday in the evening - This gives me a nice feeling after that sweat

Trading - Ya I have learnt how to invest - day trade - concepts of Futures and Options , IPO , Mutual funds -  This also I do these days

Studying for PMP

Preparing my wish-list

Watch TV and Talk to friends is another thing that I do daily

 

Remember to put things in PARALLEL than putting them in series.  When you show dependencies things get slotted, when you keep in Parallel something or the other keeps getting done and enthusiasm is high

nityn

Evolve

Things don't happen.  They don't occur.  They are created and then they EVOLVE !!!

This means that they are dynamic in nature.  The needs change, the requirements changes, the wants changes.  You evolve and grow.

So evolve with the system.

Its the markovian law in which the next state of the molecule is dependent on its previous state.

EVOLVE !!!

Forge Things

 

Forge the things hard this time...so that you never have to forge it again

So it comes to India

I was asking in my blog (here) when will it come to India.  A TV program which is looking for budding film makers.  Here it comes. www.filmaka.in

And this is what I foresee.  Slowly the things the are happening in the developed nations will come to India also and there lies the potential to grow!!!

Be it TITLE insurance or problems like Sub Prime Lending :)  Realize the potential and make hay

nityn

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Being Good should not be taken to Being Stupid

 

Its good to be Nice and Good.  But in case you are being taken for a ride and taken to be Stupid because you are nice then --> Open your eyes and come out of it. 

No one can take your goodness to be your stupidity.  You are good but you are not stupid to get exploited or rather fooled. 

Stop getting fooled by the world.  Stop being that good that they take you for a ride and take it for granted with you.

STOP STOP !!!!  RISE RISE RISE !!!!

The moment you decide that you are not going to be stupid / fool anymore that moment world moves behind you and you are winning !!!!

On a Harley

When you are lost and are to be found.

When you are away and want to be near.

When things are up and you want them down

Then some one will come ON A HARLEY for you. !!!!!!!!!

Help, Support, Think, l@

No one helps you, No one Supports you, No one THINKS about you.

If this is the case then KNOW that no one is lucky enough to help you, support you, think about you, love you, know you. It is their BAD luck

You are the lucky one.. You need to find yourself

Change !!! Shift Happens

Yes that's what it is all about.  Any one can speak for ages on change although she herself would not want a CHANGE.

Here is the best presentation I liked about change and for the records I am writing the script of the same in my blog to remember and to refer back.

http://www.slideshare.net/jbrenman/shift-happens-33834

Shift Happens

Did You Know?

Sometimes size does matter

If you are one in a million in China

There are 1300 people just like you

In India there are 1100 people just like you

The 25% of the population in China with the highest IQ's

Is greater than the total population of North America

In India it's the top 28 %

Translation:  They have more honors kids than we (Americans) have kids

Did you know?

China will soon become the NUMBER ONE English speaking country in the world

If you took every single job in the US today and shipped it to CHINA

China would still have a labor surplus

During the course of this presentation

60 Babies will be born in the US

244 babies will be born in China

351 babies will be born in India

The US department of labor estimated that today's learner will have 10 - 1r4 jobs...

...by the age of 38

1 out of every 4 workers today is working for a company they have been employed by for less that one year.

 More than 1 out of 2 are working for a company they have worked for less than FIVE years

According to former Secretary of Education Richard Riley ...

... the top 10 in-demand jobs in 2010 did not exist in 2004

We are currently preparing students for jobs that don't exist ....

using technologies that haven't been invented....

in order to solve problems we don't even know are problems yet.

POP QUIZ Name this country...

Richest in the world

Largest Military

Center of world business and finance

Strongest education system

World center of innovation and invention

Currency the world standard of value

Highest standard of living

England .... in 1900

Did you know ?

The US ranks 20th in the world in broadband Internet penetration

In 2002 Nintendo invested more than $ 410 Mn in research and development

The US Federal Government spent less than half as much on Research and Innovation in Education

1 out of 8 couples married in the US last year met online

There are over 106 Mn registered users of MySpace (as of September 2006)

If MySpace were a country it would be the 11th-largest in the world

The average MySpace page is visited 30 times per day

Did you Know ?

We are living in exponential times

There are over 2.7 Bn searches performed on Google each month

 To whom were these questions addressed before GOOGLE ?

The number of text messages sent and received every day exceeds the total population of the planet

There are 540,000 words in the English language ...

about 5X as many as during Shakespeare's time.

More than 3,000 new books are published every day

It is estimated that a week's worth of New York Times ...

.... contains more information than a person was likely to come across in a lifetime in the 18th century

The amount of new technical information is doubling every 2 years

For students starting a four-year technical or college degree this means that ...

half of what they learn in their first year of study will be outdated by their third year of study

By 2010 it is predicted to double every 72 hours

Third generation fiber optics have recently been separately tested by NEC and Alcatel...

... that carry 10 trillion bits per second down a single strand of fiber.

That is 1,900 CDs of 150 Mn phone calls every second

It is currently tripling every 6 months and is expected to do so for the next 20 years

e-paper will eventually be cheaper than real paper

47 Mn laptops were shipped worldwide last year

The $ 100 laptop project is expecting to ship between 50 and 100 Mn laptops a year to children in underdeveloped countries

Predictions are that by 2013 a supercomputer will be built that exceeds the computation capability if the human brain

 And while technical predictions further out that about 15 years are hard to do...

predictions are that by 2049 a $1,000 computer will exceed the computational capabilities of the entire human species

So, what does it all mean?

SHIFT HAPPENS
Now you know

http://thefischbowl.blogspot.com/

http://www.apolloideas.com

Rate of rapid change

Adaptation in a world of more rapid change implies running faster just to stay in same place

Why are people EMPTY? (MT)

Have been seeing this for a long time now.  The generation that is coming fears something.  They are not confident.  I am talking about some 99% of the people.  They fear something.  They are not ready to express what is right.  They are not ready to tell the world that the thing that is happening is not right.  They are not ready to challenge !!!!!

When I joined my first job in 2001, we were a bunch of MTs taken.  Why were we taken?  To challenge the status quo.   Young blood with young ideas, amazing amount of enthusiasm, burning desire to do something and a high amount of confidence.  We were taken in the organization as a breakthrough step and were supposed to bring about a Huge change in the organization and take it ahead with a greater speed. 

The organization was not prepared for our arrival.  As I understand GE prepared its organization in order to use the might of the MTs -- to drive the organizations growth in an exponential manner.  But here it was not prepared.  What happened then ????  We all faced challenges of our own.  Things were not right.  we were not being used properly and the whole thing started becoming a waste.  But the irony of the situation is that none of us stood up and told the management what was going on wrong.  That means there was a lack of feeling for the benefit of the organization, we were all more concerned about ourselves only.  What happened Slowly and Slowly everyone moved out of the organization.  

The company hired a fresh bunch of MTs but then same thing happened and thus they discontinued hiring MTs.  Same things is being repeated today.  Companies don't have the set objective for the MTs.  Either they have the objective but that is neither communicated to the employees nor to the newly joining MTs

Whose fault was it?  The organizations -- That they did not take the right people or they did not manage us in a right manner.  Ours -- As we were not able to bring about a change.  We did not even bring about to the notice of the management that what was happening was wrong.  ???????

 

• Some say HIRE for Passion
• Some say HIRE for Enthusiasm -- Tom Pete
• Some say HIRE for Attitude

Had heard long time back -- I can hire the hand and the mind but how can I hire the heart. Also heard that I would pay anything to someone who does this thing in a manner I would do it, at least with that much Passion.

Hence they say that HIRE for the heart which can be translated into Passion / Enthusiasm / Attitude which can also be termed as Conviction and Grit in working.  Passion intersecting with work is rare to find.  But if you have the attitude and the Enthusiasm then you may work with Passion for all the assignments gives to you.  Covey gives a concept of PROACTIVENESS.  That is what you do when you have these three (which are basically saying the same thing in different ways)  Yes that is also in sync with this. 

But do we HIRE for subdue-ness?  Do we want people who are less confident, are less capable and thus are less Ravana?  Don't we normally hire such people as we have our own fear.  We have our own job insecurity.  We ourselves are not Ravana (people manager or leader) hence cannot breed Ravanas (managers or leaders)

But in this aren't we sacrificing the growth of the organization?  Aren't we changing the whole objective of having MTs.  Aren't we compromising and managing with MEDIOCRITY.

Was this the attitude shown by the most successful people in the world?  Was this done by all the successful school drop outs ?  I bet that if this is what was done by them then they would have been somewhere and somebody.  But to make a difference what needs to be done is to have the ability to manage Smart People.

Lets try challenging things and not sit in our comfort zones.

Why School drop outs succeed

Hi P NC series

Bill Gates - Microsoft

Steve Jobs - Apple

Michael Dell - Dell

Larry Ellison - Oracle

Mike Lazaridis - Blackberry
Shawn Fanning - Napster

Jerry Yang - Yahoo

etc etc

And it is no coincidence all of these college drop outs are boys. And what about India???  Is this happening in India or Is this going to happen in India.

 

It seems that these people are the ones who are most successful.  Is it that it was the times that made them successful?  Is there no value of education?

 

They were driven to the corner.  They did not have anything to fall back on.  Dire straits as they say and some character to bounce back and some grit to really do something.  They were ready to move out of their comfort zones

 

They are high performers -- constantly re-creating themselves. That's what Tiger Woods does -- Says HIGH PERFORMANC research from Accenture.

 

They were SMART enough to be in good school (even Harvard and smarter enough to do something better in that school).  As Roger Schank  says if you want innovation then Hire the Bottom 10 % of Harvard. 

 

Tsu Zu - Art of war also says -- Don't surround the army from all four sides.  Do it from only 3 sides.  Don't let them be in Dire Straits.  If they will be in Dire Straits, they will fight for their lives and then they will fight to their might.  Same thing happens when you drop out from college.  But mind you that you should have the anger in your belly plus the conviction and the grit to do something.

 

I read an answer in Linkedin once on the same issue.  As to what should be done in case your career is in the Valley.

 

http://www.linkedin.com/answers/career-education/career-development/CAR_CRD/32518-451888?searchIdx=0&sik=1182503433252&goback=%2Easr_1_1182503433252

There's an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation where Captain Picard gets to re-live an incident in his youth where he goads some Klingons into stabbing him in the heart. Picard regrets the event which he believes has killed him as his artificial heart fails. However, when Q lets him re-live the event without it, he finds that his elder self is not a Captain but a Lieutenant in the Science division, never having taken any bold chance that would have caused him to stand out as fit for a command post. When Picard eventually comes around, having not actually died, he has a huge smile on his face. He made the correct life choices all along.
This doesn't tell you if your own career is in the valley, but it does tell you what to do about it: take chances. Be the one to challenge assumptions openly that make no sense to you. Be the one to take on the tough jobs. Be the one to give the bad news to the boss, and admit you have no good solution, but will listen carefully to everyone and see if you can come up with one. Be the one to ask the boss if he wants to shift jobs - so you can take his. Be the one who isn't all that concerned if he gets fired, since "I can find another job easily." And knows it's true, because he talks to the recruiters all the time, and has his resume up to date all tlhe time, and has let it be known that he expects to do bigger things, or will soon be out the door in search of them elsewhere.
None of this is to say take foolish risks that have no good payoff, nor cross people or try to show them up as incompetent (unless they really are and drag everyone down, not just you, and you can be hero to all by taking down a pointy-haired boss). It's just to say, be more like yourself.
Everyone has to decide for themselves if they are "in the valley". If you've got no ambitions to do management work, for instance, don't want to take responsibility for others' failures, then, you won't think of a top technical job as "in the valley". But if you are tired of technical work and believe you can do a far better job of coordinating others, you'd see the same situation differently. So you have to judge by your own satisfaction and happiness.
There's no other guide. We're all different. We all have different attitudes to risk, too. Your colleagues may really like it when you step forward to take a risky task on. Or, they may resent it and ask for the job themselves. Feel them out. Get a sense of what they want you to do - not what the boss wants, what your colleagues want. You'll be surprised how able they think you are. Ask others what they'd like you to do that they don't want to do. Take on extra tasks and earn some gratitude so that you have political support if you fail at something very difficult later.
Finally, don't be afraid of randomness. If you don't know whether to say something or not, flip a coin, and flip it in front of everyone. Heads speak up, tails shrug and say nothing. If asked why, say that you want to speak half as much and do twice as much. If they hand you the dirty job after tails come up, fine. Take it. Do it. Show results without objection or any comment. Demonstrate willingness to trust fate. Put tough jobs in a jar and draw one out every day. Make it an event. Ask others to put jobs in.
Just get creative. You know what to do. If they fire you, tell the recruiter why. After s/he stops laughing they'll find you a far better job, somewhere they like courage and creativity. And you'll wake up like Picard, smiling, even after heart surgery.
If you don't do this, five years from now, you'll be the same five years older.

 

May be this is what these people also did.  They tried to do anything and everything to survive.  You only give your best and your full when you run for your survival. 

I Want More

This happens with everyone. Wanting more. This is the truth of life. Some one call it " Neenyanvein ( ninety nine in hindi ) ka pher " i.e The vicious circle of 99.

It was also heard in "Pretty Woman" when Julia Roberts says that now she wants more. Richard Gere smilingly says that yes he knows what wanting more means as he was the one who had coined it.

Once you reach the place that you wanted to reach there opens a whole new world ahead thus more to achieve and more to conquer, hence WANT MORE.

Jessica Hagy also shows this in a smart vicious circle. She also brings in the new point of getting tired / bored of what you are doing. I am adding to the point that as soon as you reach your goal there opens new vistas and new pastures that you start aiming at.

(from indexed.blogspot.com)

Some mention this as an orbital change. Orbital change gives you a larger orbit to revolve in as well as changes your speed of revolving and rotating.

I also WANT MORE. I want to put my career on STEROIDS

nityn

The THEORY of DEKKHEE JAYEGEE

This is the most addictive and the most contagious attitude that can be carried ... The DEKKHEE JAYEGEE attitude. This means: “We will see when it happens” :) No need to worry. This flows from the thought that we should not sacrifice today’s happiness in pursuit of "perceived happiness" of tomorrow. Any happiness that may come tomorrow is perceived only as of now.

The RAVANA initiative (Hirdu) also resonates with this theory. This theory shows an ultimate confidence in a person and also clearly shows how much in control of thing he/she is and even in case of anything he is ready to make sure that it will be handled as it needs to be handled.

KAL KE LIYE AAJ KYON MAREIN, AAJ YE NA KAL AAYEGA.

Let’s go and do what we think is correct at this time and at this moment and we will see when we have to see. I will see you when I will see you. “Ocean’s 13” also says the same…. Be in control, have confidence and don’t prepare too much for the things to come. Execute it in Style and Win it in Style.

Instability or Ease

Here is what I want to understand a bit more. There are a few people whom I have seen and met who don’t seem to be worried or moved by anything. They are not worried and have a KOI FARAK NAHIN PADTA attitude or that MAIN KUCH NAHIN KAR SAKTA attitude.

Is this a real Quality they have and then they can manage situations better or is that they have the capability to not show their uneasiness? Is that these people are actually very perturbed and that uneasiness is hidden behind that calmness?

Are these people, the kind who don’t do anything or are these people the kind who have got things easily or are these kinds who are very optimistic and have a lot of faith and thus they win?

But then what happens to the understanding that I had got from Tom Peters views which said more unstable you are more will you think and more will be the efforts thus better will be the result. The same is what I could understand from the History (WW II) and by Eisenhower’s strategies. In strategy you need to think what the opponent is thinking and out think him or her. But don’t keep the opponent thinking too much so that he is on his toes of thinking and ultimately out think you. Is stability the key or uneasiness the key? Is hunger the key or contentment the key? Is anger the key or adjustment the key? ACCHAA hai bahut ACCHAA hai. Anger or the adjustment (theek hai koi nahin)

Coming back to the topic are these people the ones who have got things easily and thus this attitude developed. Has their growth stopped? No! actually no, intellectually their growth has not stopped but may be there contentment has stopped their thinking ahead and wanting more.

Let’s think a bit more and get to know what is that the Americans are made of. They are the ones who are most successful today or may be in the past so far. And they are the ones who have moved out of their homes (comfort zones) and challenged the things. They are the ones who have had the best of the hunger – hunger of MORE, BETTER etc etc. They are the ones who have been by far the most aggressive ones and who have not slept at ease and challenged the unchallenged and dreamt the undreamt. They are the ones who have been at unease always and thus they are the ones who have succeeded.

Tom peters mentions another anecdote and this time it is from the S&P instability ratings. The data proves it and proves it over the years that the sectors and the companies who have been more unstable have given more returns. Then FARAK PADTA HAI KYA? Isn’t it important to get perturbed and DO something? As they say the best strategy is doing something :)

Be Creative:

There are no answers to this.

But yes I can mention one thing that our dear blogger friend Hugh Mcleod wrote -- when you do something for yourself it is ART and the pyramid goes like this -- OBLIVION --> MONEY --> ART.

First you are in Oblivion, and then you work for others and get paid for it (you get Money) and then you find something that you want to do and that is Art. You get maximum satisfaction when you do what you want to do (that is ART) but it is very seldom that you get Money for Art. But you should not stop performing ART rather keep doing what you like to do and what gives you happiness but to pay the bills keep the day job also.

So be creative is what he says and also gives some ways of “How to be creative” (one of the very few HOW to books that you should read and are effective)This is what he describes as Cash and Sex theory. Cash is the thing that you do to pay the bills and sex refers to something that you do for yourself, that you like doing, which you get happiness from. (Nice SIMILIE) This is what my friend Ady also used to use. Whenever he would like something, he use to call it SEX :)

People are trying to cash on anything and everything

People are trying to cash on anything and everything

Disclaimer: The below mention thoughts are mine and only mine and are mere thoughts. Any resemblance to any person living or dead is purely coincidental. The thoughts are based on some things seen and observed and are not made to ridicule, belittle or make fun of anyone and of any sort.

Yes people are trying to cash on anything and everything.

* In films people are trying to cash on the name, the story, the success of anything and anybody. They are trying to relate to something or the other which has been successful and ride on that glory and be successful. The remakes, the sequels and the “same names” are the examples of the same.

* In advertisements people are trying to cash on some image of someone and be successful.* In movies again they are trying to blow out of proportion and sensationalize anything and get noticed and hence trying to be successful.

* Some one is trying to cash on people’s emotions on cricket (Lagaan) and now on Hockey (Chakde India).

* Some people are trying to cash on some one else’s emotions and feelings for him/her.* Some writers are trying to dwell on the names or writings of other writers. Some are trying to bring out a sequel of the book saying that they have added some new points and thoughts to it but in actual, they have not said something new in this. They are just trying to cash on again on the old success.

* Even in the professional life while in search of a new assignment we try to relate the earlier assignment, somehow, with the coming one and try to ride on the success of the old one. We some how try to fit things and put them in the same perspective.

In Hindi, they say SAB APNA ULLOO SEEDHA KAR RAHEIN HAIN …. :)

But, are they successful?

Are they really successful?

Are the people chasing false success?

Are they trying to give what is wanted to be given to success?

Aren’t we supposed to do what we want to do, give what we want to give, prosper on our capabilities and brains?

Isn’t that the best thing to do?

Isn’t that going to bring out the best in us?When we are trying to dwell on success of others then isn’t that false?

Aren’t we less capable and competent if we are trying to dwell on success of others or on old things?Aren’t the people or things that were successful in the past and successful on their own capabilities and competence more successful? Isn’t that real success?

Why do people forget?

Why do people forget?

Why do people forget that when they are doing something to others, the same thing can happen to them also? Why do they stop fearing that some day something similar can happen with them also?

Why the fear of getting into the similar situation is does not exist? Why people forget their own times, when they were in similar situations and they felt bad at being treated like this.

Why? Why ? Why?

SMILE is the answer :)

SMILE is the answer to many QUESTIONS that you either don’t want to answer or you can’t answer.

Yes this is SMILE :)
Let’s see what can this little curve do in many difficult situations and in situation we find ourselves often. These are the situation which make us feel most awkward and we don’t know what to do or how to react. These are the situations in which we feel stranded and try to avoid them like plague. The only thing that we end up doing is either blushing or getting angry and loosing it out yet again…..

Imagine yourself in a situation in which some one has asked you the most difficult and embarrassing question and that too in front of some unwanted people, you don’t want to answer anything but you can’t yell either. Hasn’t it happened in the past often. More realistically someone has asked you your age or your salary. Now can you relate? Yes most of us have been in such situations before. Now think what you did in this situation. You either asked the person how was she concerned or got angry, though didn’t show that as much.

Now try this try smiling. Yes just imagine SMILING in the situation and hey you have perfectly dodged the question and not been rude either.

Let’s go a bit more into this and think that if the person who has asked this embarrassing question goes a little too much and asks you again saying that you didn’t answer the question. Yes this may happen. But answer is SMILE again. And yes you are out of it with minimum damage :)

So just SMILE.

Let’s see another situation now. In this situation you are at an embarrassing position. In case you have climbed up the stage to receive some award and you stumble at the step. Yes you stumble and fall. What do you do? You can ignore it or you can come out with something witty to defend yourself. But how many can come out with some thing witty and then execute that wittiness in perfection. Now do what I say. Just SMILE and shrug your shoulder (I mean raise your shoulder and open your arms) and SMILE again. Yes you have conquered it.

So many times this SMILE saves us. So just SMILE as much as you can and SMILE in difficult times and see that you are a winner again :)

Here I would like to mention one of my oldest signature lines (yes the signature used below an email) and that said
“Let’s make each others day… Let’s SMILE :) ”

Soon to come language of lips :)

Dont ASK work, ATTRACT work

Long time nothing in the Hi P N C series.

Dont ASK work attract WORK.

Yes I believe in this. If you ASK for work you get whatever is available and that can be quite useless. Many times when you ask work then the next question is what kind of work do you want to do. And then you have two options

1. To say something that some one is already doing

In this case you become a secondary resource and keep doing the DOGs work and don't get any credit too. You certainly don't want this to happen untill the assignment is so interesting that you eventually gain and learn. Or you are SMART enough to make use of all the things in a way good for youy.

2. To suggest doing something new and UNIQUE

Now this is a good way but man you need to very SMART as what will happen is either the other person will pass your idea as his/her own and gain good browny points or what will happen is that you will be asked to do the same and without any support and inputs. Moreover you will be asked to DRIVE that too and believe me DRIVING something without support is not that easy.

Then what should be done. You can't sit idle.

So I say ATTRACT WORK

Now what is this ???

Yes in order to get good work and also good support for that work you need to give your inputs at the right place and at the right time. Be SMART and read as much as you can and get to know what all is happening. Then when you are discussing with people the issue give some suggestions but be sure to give in a sweet manner and as if it has come from both of you. Slowly you start getting noticed and you start getting good work.

You have to be very Diplomatic in this approach. Many times your ideas will go waste but soon they will realize that your potential can be used and they will give you the work.

You also make sure that you are there when some new and good work comes. The funda of BEING IN LINE OF SIGHT works here also (remember old funda of OUT OF SIGHT OUT OF MIND :) ) If you know the work is good and you want to do that work then you can even volunteer and then they will have to give it to you and your enthusiasm as well as earlier reputation will come to use.

Here I again remind " NOTHING IS AS CONTAGIOUS AS ENTHUSIASM" and read what Tom Peters has to say in that. So the Mantra is ATTRACT WORK :)

Nitz

HR carnival ( this weeks )

And yes the HR carnival is ON.

With Gautam Ghosh, one of my favourite bloggers assimilating the best HR blogs at one place it gives an awesome reading :) and yes I am also there :)

Great Ideas and Execution

Great ideas are like BABIES.
Easy to concieve but difficult to deliver.

I liked this quote a lot and who would agree more to me that EXECUTION :) I believe in execution and the excellence has to be EXECUTION

Says Tom Peters too

"We have a ‘strategic plan,’ it’s called doing things."—Herb Kelleher.

"Execution is a systematic process of rigorously discussing hows and whats, tenaciously following through, and ensuring accountability."—Larry Bossidy & Ram Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done. Action has its own logic—ask Genghis Khan, Rommel, COL John Boyd, U.S. Grant, Patton, W.T. Sherman.

Doing things brings out results. Doing things brings out issues. Doing things brings out problems. And when there are issues and problems there are opportunities ( also said by my friend Robby )to solve them and thus grow. These opportunities gives you some thing to work on, something to improve and something to contribute to.

So execute execute execute. Its better to be a buller which has been shot and has caused the damage rather than the one that is only kept in the belt.

Nitz

Aren't we Sacrificing Happiness to get Happiness ??

Aren't we Sacrificing Happiness to get Happiness ??

What is the cost that we are paying in order to achive Happiness?
Aren't we sacrificing a part of Happiness to get Happiness? Rather aren't we sactificing Happiness in search of Happiness ?

Aren't we caught in the maze / conundrum / vicious circle of wanting something that we don't have ? For that we are sacrificing something that we wanted to get rather something that we thoght we wanted.

Ultimately we keep sacrificing the same thing that we are seeking again and again :)

How to come out of this :)

thelot.com

Last night when I was idly browsing through channels (with eyes half closed) I bumped into this on Star World. ON THE LOT

This is a program which searches for talented film makers . Yes it is a kind of a contest. Similar to American Idol or Indian Idol and its version on various channels on Indian television

Now the contest goes like this.

First the award … The winner gets a million dollars to make a movie.. Sponsored by FOX and Verizon, this is interesting.
Now what you have to do is -- to make a movie of 1 minute yes 1 minute duration and the theme has to be laughter (at least for the one I saw the theme was laughter)
And then there are judges and there is voting ( but this time VOTING is free – a toll free number ;) unlike INDIA )


Go browse more and for me my date with this program is fixed …..

The site is really cool.. AND THE BONUS IS u can see some good movies absolutely free. I am game.. ha haa haaa haaaa

I am waiting when this hits INDIA and someone starts something on these lines for Indian TV..

Another favourite -- Blog book site

http://www.changethis.com/

This is another of my favourite place. I like reading this one. I particularly enjoyed the one by Hugh MacLeod -- "How to be Creative".

I think reading the more contemporary stuff keeps you abreast. The blogosphere allows you to do the same. The classics are always there to read and follow but the latest thinking and the latest trends are there on the blogosphere :)

Check this one also by TOM PETERS. http://www.bizsum.com/trial/2006/111ObviousThoughtsOnSelling.pdf

WHY???

Why do they want US to understand them?
Do they understand US?

Why do they give excuses to everything when REAL is something else...
WHY?? WHY ???

nityn

The best way to tackle attrition is to listen to the individual

The best way to tackle attrition is to listen to the individual.

http://timesascent.in/index.aspx?page=article§id=2&contentid=200705212019024842644dc48

I said the same thing :) See here and here.....

Amazing forward FW: Toast to the Jams of Bangalore - Another creative work from a jobless s/w engineer... :)

Awesome !!!!

Over these last few years of living in Bangalore, I have slowly grown to like the jams, which this city provides in abundance.

These jams do build your patience and character.

Is it a coincidence that India's most patient cricketers, Dravid and Kumble, hail from this city of jams? (Dravid is even nicknamed "Jammy").

Does it tell you something? Sri Sri Ravishankar; does he get his daily dose of spiritual inspiration while in a jam??
And will I also get a halo after a few more years of this "character building"??

There are, I am sure, thousands of future Anands stuck in the Adugodis and Anand Rao circles, who are plotting their moves against future Kramniks those poor little Kramniks stand no chance.

And if you see a professor-like guy prancing around the Palace road jam, you can deduce that a postulate in Physics has just been proved.

A few days back, I had a thought - If we can have reviews of movies,
which occupy only a few hours of our life in a month, why not reviews
of traffic jams, which takes up significant hours of our day?? So here
is my review of some of Bangalore's famous and not-so-famous jams(in
no particular order).

But before that, a general comment - As they say, the taste of food
in a restaurant is dependent on the ambience ; similarly, the way I
see jams, cozy inside the office shuttle or public transport, is
different from the way the owner of the swank new SUV sees it. (btw,
if you are the owner of the swank new SUV, don't run me down).

1. The Hosur Road Jam - Unarguably, the mother of all jams. We (ex-)
Infoscions are proud of being associated with a great company.
We are equally proud of contributing in no small extent to this jam.
This jam gives a great glimpse of the Other India - colorful
music-blaring interstate buses, garment factory workers, highway
trucks, smoke spewing lorries and such. Provides ample food for
thought for socialist minds. (Rating: ***1/2)

2. The jams around K'mangala/Forum mall - Definitely the best jams in
town. PYTs (Pretty young things), fancy cars, and fancy restaurants;
this has it all. But you can't afford any of those. Never mind!! Your
sadistic brain can take pleasure in the fact that the guy in the fancy
car next to you is cruising around for a parking space, feasting his
eyes on the PYTs , while his family is having dinner in one of the
fancy restaurants. (Rating: ****1/2)

3. The KG Road jam - To be experienced in the evenings before a long
weekend. Every auto/taxi in town seems to be stuck while going towards
the City railway station - your hair stands on end, you start
sweating, the heart beats faster, and you get the rush that a Michael
Schumachaer gets on his last lap. And just as the auto moves, a movie
show ends and a few hundred more vehicles pour out. Which was the
train that hooted just now?? (Rating: ***1/2)

4. The Jayanagar jam - The puzzle-lovers jam; Jayanagar is maze of
bylanes, one-way streets, no right-turns, no left-turns, traffic
signals and whatnot. It is an establised fact that Point A to point B,
in Jayanagar, can be reached in 6436 distinct ways. But whichever way
you take, you are left with a hollow feeling that another route had a
better and bigger jam? (Rating: **1/2)

5. The jams around Marathahalli/Whitefield - The IT professional's
dream jam; As she sits in the office shuttle looking at other office
buses, she can make her career plans. A typical evening in this jam
goes thus:

Voice from Company A bus : "Any J2EE developers in your bus?". Three
guys from Company B bus respond "Yeah" and get down. By the time, the
bus crosses the Marathahalli bridge, the first guy is hired as a J2EE
developer. The second guy, who didn't know what J2EE meant, is hired
as a project manager and the third guy is rejected as he realised late
that he has already worked for Company A last year.

(Rating: ****)

6. The Airport Road jam - Similar in taste and character like the
Koramangala jam but has socialist twist. This jam treats the rich
businessman, who will later travel business class on Jet, the same as
a poor programmer, who had unusually come to office early in the
morning, 3 months back, to buy one of those cheap airline tickets.
(Rating ***)

7. The BTM 7th Main x 7 Cross jam - Close to my home, so close to my
heart. But alas, the spoilsports at BDA finished the flyover at the
Jayadeva circle and brought an end to this jam. But for a couple of
years, this jam used to give me pure joy as vehicles of all types
created a tangle in the small bylanes of BTM layout. The BDA is now
planning a new flyover at the Udupi Garden junction; so there is still
hope (Rating ***1/2).

We jam lovers - currently this club consists of only me - have
petitioned the government to protect and preserve traffic jams as a
cultural asset of Bangalore. Just so that traffic jams are not
endangered in the future, we have these suggestions:

1. Build more flyovers - Flyovers do not reduce jams. They just
transfer it to the next junction. And in the 2 years that it takes to
build them, you are assured of some joyous jams. I am drooling...

2. No public buses - If everybody goes by buses, where will our culture go?

3. Make Tata's 1-Lakh car cheaper by making it tax free - Imagine
every two wheeler replaced by a car...The prospects are
mouth-watering.

Strategy for IT and ITEs companies

The dollar is soaring, thus the margins for IT and ITeS companies are reducing. They (Indian Companies) have a habit of profit margins of 20 %. The share prices are also based on similar expectations.

So what are the alternatives to maintain these margins

1. Increase rates -- less likely as there is more competetion and companies like Infosys are already enjoying premium rates
2. Increase productivity -- Redcuce attrition and reduce bench strength
3. Increase Business -- Capture newer markets and businesses
4. Capture Indian companies -- Indian non IT companies can be captured
5. Reduce costs -- reduce over heads, reduce variable costs, reduce fixed costs -- But for how long and till when? You can stop transport, tissue paper or free coffee but will that solve or open some other issues :)
6. Practice Lean Servicing
7. Increase the value add ( Do higher end job )
8. Climb up the value chain
More focus on consulting. Use your connections and start with freelance consulting. Once they are accustomed then you can start charging
9. Productise your services -- Now this is a new one... I think that the services that you provide to one kind of customer that you can provide to similar kind of other customer also. Hence make your services as a product and start selling it. Takes time. But can think of the same. This is the same model as the news agencies use to sell the news to various channels and news papers. Similarly try and sell similar researches to various clients :) INTERESTING ISN'T IT ? :)
10. Automate your services -- Let smart IT do more of your job
11. Collaborate with Captive IT companies and take their businesses


Anything else you suggest

Think Beyond. Next strategy for Service Companies :)

Think Beyond. Next strategy for Service Companies :)

Lean manufacturing to Lean servicing

Main advantages for IT in India

The IT industry growth has been the highest in the last few years. India has been serving the growing IT needs of almost all parts of the world. The US, EU, Middle East Asia, Far East Asia or Pacific regions, all have seen IT services given by India. India has been able to do the same due to various advantages that it has. The advantages that it has due to its geographical location or has grown and developed in the past. Now these advantages have been harnessed in terms of IT revolution.

The main advantages as we can all see and know are

1. Great technical know how
2. Large availability of talent pool
3. Cost advantage – low cost work force
4. Largely English speaking population
5. 12 hour advantage over US. When US sleeps India works
6. Political will and an willingness to open the economy

These factors paved a way to the development of necessary infrastructure and were also captured by the visionaries of India which ultimately led to the development of IT industry. Hence India’s face was plastered in the growing business demands for IT solutions.

But today, after 25 years of this exponential growth these advantages are fading away. A lot is being done in order to keep the USPs in place.

There has already been a scarcity of good technically sound people and the organizations are trying to groom the available talent. Simultaneously the country is also gearing up to produce more technical people by setting up better education facilities and training grounds.
English advantage is being challenged by other languages coming in for IT solutions and also the developing nations are getting proficient in English. Though India’s English speaking population is also increasing at a phenomenal rate.

The cost advantage is reducing as the cost of manpower is increasing due to high demand and less supply. This is becoming a major reason for the reduction in the profit margins of IT organization. The gross profit has not grown in the same proportion as the sales figures or the total income. See attached graph.

This scene is going to continue until some thing is done that brings back the USP of cost advantage.

What can be done? What was done in other industry?

In manufacturing Toyota led the way to move to Lean manufacturing and it can be said that days are not far away when we start following Lean servicing. Now who is going to be the pioneer in doing the same?

Lean manufacturing to Lean servicing

Lean manufacturing (from wikipedia.org) is a management philosophy focusing on reduction of the seven wastes

• Over-production
  
• Waiting time
  
• Transportation
  
• Processing
  
• Inventory
  
• Motion
  
• Scrap in manufactured products or any type of business.

Lean servicing

A management philosophy focusing on reducing various types of wasteful activities in a service industry

• Wrong designs (not understanding the user requirements completely and redoing the job)


• Reinventing the wheel (doing what has already been done by some one else in the organization for some other customer)


• Finding of right knowledge


• Reducing wastage of talent of human capital


• Time spent in coordinating activities

There will be more definitely. There are many methods and many models. But on the ground level how to do this is a thought to ponder

Knowledge Kinematics

This is what is needed. To be able to leverage the existing knowledge and to be able to build more knowledge and build capabilities is what is required. Take each one of the waste and you will find that Knowledge kinematics can be leveraged to actually have a unique way of reducing the wastes and thus a Lean Servicing