Failure should not be taken into your heart and success should not be taken into your head !

Baby Steps !!!!!!!

2011-11-13T22:37:00.000-08:00

It's a WoW factor again..with Akshath has started to crawl very well now at 10months..he is also trying to stand up a bit....that's been a pleasure to watch & a battle won...Soon i am sure he will start to walk...am waiting to see this...

I still remember the day July 28th 2010 - 5th month scan of Lasya, which was a shocker to us - the baby has a physical bilateral deformity of both his legs and cannot walk after birth...

It's been a long,tough and emotionally overwhelming joureny to this point...still way to go towards the final milestone...

My thanks to Arjuun - he has displayed tremendous maturity far higher than his age, to be so much accomodative and flexible.Without his support, we couldn't have given the needed attention to Akshath's treatment...thanks Arjuun for all your love,affection and scarifice...without you this would not have been possible..you are such a wonderful brother & son...

Salute Anna Hazare

2011-08-08T00:02:00.000-07:00

Valuable weekend, something worthy for our country. Actively participated in the peaceful protest march on Aug 6th - for the Jan Lokpal Anna Hazare movement; against corruption. Gave me a sense of immense satisfaction & pride. Good set of people also turned out to support us.

Now we need to support the fast that Anna Hazare will begin on Aug 16th. Will definitely provide my support to this wonderful cause to do something for India.

If not now, When? If not us, Who? lets do our bit.....Join www.iacchennai.org and support this noble cause......

Eye Opener!

2011-05-06T01:48:00.000-07:00

One young academically excellent person went to apply for a managerial position in a big company. He passed the first interview, the director did the last interview, madethe last decision.The director discovered from the CV that the youth's academic achievements were excellent all the way, from the secondary school until the postgraduate research, never had a year when he did not score.
The director asked, "Did you obtain any scholarships in school?" the youth answered "none".The director asked, " Was it your father who paid for your school fees?"The youth answered, "My father passed away when I was one year old, it was my mother who paid for my school fees."
The director asked, " Where did your mother work?" The youth answered, "My mother worked as clothes cleaner.
At this, the director requested the youth to show his hands. The youth showed a pair of hands that were smooth and perfect.
The director asked, " Have you ever helped your mother wash the clothes before?" The youth answered, "Never, my mother always wanted me to study and read more books. Furthermore, my mother can wash clothes faster than me."
The director said, "I have a request. When you go back today, go and clean your mother's hands, and then see me tomorrow morning."
The youth felt that his chance of landing the job was high.
When he went back, he happily requested his mother to let him clean her hands. His mother felt strange, happy but with mixed feelings, she showed her hands to the kid.The youth cleaned his mother's hands slowly. His tear fell as he did that. It was the first time he noticed that his mother's hands were so wrinkled, and there were so many bruises in her hands. Some bruises were so painful that his mother shivered when they were cleaned with water.
This was the first time the youth realized that it was this pair of hands that washed the clothes everyday to enable him to pay the school fee. The bruises in the mother's hands were the price that the mother had to pay for his graduation, academic excellence and his future. After finishing the cleaning of his mother hands, the youth quietly washed all the remaining clothes for his mother. That night, mother and son talked for a very long time.
Next morning, the youth went to the director's office.The Director noticed the tears in the youth's eyes, asked: "Can you tell me what have you done and learned yesterday in your house?"The youth answered," I cleaned my mother's hand, and also finished cleaning all the remaining clothes"
The Director asked, "Please tell me your feelings."The youth said," Number 1, I know now what is appreciation. Without my mother, there would not the successful me today.Number 2, by working together and helping my mother, only I now realize how difficult and tough it is to get something done.Number 3, I have come to appreciate the importance and value of family relationship."
The director said, "This is what I am looking for to be my manager. I want to recruit a person who can appreciate the help of others, a person who knows the sufferings of others to get things done, and a person who would not put money as his only goal in life. You are hired!"
Later on, this young person worked very hard, and received the respect of his subordinates. Every employee worked diligently and as a team. The company's performance improved tremendously.....
A child, who has been protected and habitually given whatever he wanted, would develop "entitlement mentality" and would always put himself first. He would be ignorant of his parent's efforts.
When he starts work, he assumes that every person must listen to him, and when he becomes a manager, he would never know the sufferings of his employees and would always blame others. For this kind of people, who may be good academically, may be successful for a while, but eventually would not feel sense of achievement. He will grumble and be full of hatred and fight for more. If we are this kind of protective parents, are we really showing love or are we destroying the kid instead?
You can let your kid live in a big house, eat a good meal, learn piano, watch a big screen TV. But when you are cutting grass, please let them experience it. After a meal, let them wash their plates and bowls together with their brothers and sisters. It is not because you do not have money to hire a maid, but it is because you want to love them in a right way. You want them to understand, no matter how rich their parents are, one day their hair will grow gray, same as the mother of that young person. The most important thing is your kid learns how to appreciate the effort and experience the difficulty and learns the ability to work with others to get things done.

The Hug !

2011-03-23T22:11:00.000-07:00

One of the most simple, yet powerful way of reassurance & support is the bear hug. I am very much convinced about this and I practice this to the T with people close to me, especially with my 2 cute brats at home. Raju Kumar Hirani brought this to the lime light via Munnabhai and Kamal Sir reiterated this with the remake in Tamil.

The HUG can say..........
- Don't worry everything is going to be well!
The HUG can say...........
- I hate to see you go!
The HUG can say...............
- I am there for you!
The HUG can say..............
- You will bounce back stronger!
The HUG can say..............
- You mean so much to me!
The HUG can say...............
- You are my everything!
The HUG can say..................
- I will always support you!
The HUG can say............
- Honey, I love you!
The HUG can say.................
- Lets forgive & forget everything!
The HUG can say..................
- You are the most re-assuring!
So many relationship could have been saved if we had used this HUG in the right way & at the right time.

We hesitate or rather don't HUG people, especially when they need it the most........... May be it's for a reason why god gave us arms! Lets use it in the right way.A warm hug to you my dear friend.....take good care!

Women's Day

2011-03-02T20:05:00.000-08:00

To all the Women whom I came across in my life - Happy Women's Day, you guys just deserve this and many more. Life will always be miserable without you - thanks for all the sacrifices that you have made, pains that you have endured,support that you have given,burden that you have carried,the smile that you always wear(even in distress),support that you have rendered,care that you have given,progeny that you have constructed , never quit attitude that you have and what not - above all being what you are!

Have a great day !

The Fight Continues.......

2011-02-27T20:28:00.000-08:00

The battle continues, with small victories and defeats on the way....but intention is to win the war and not every single battle in it..so if I am defeated, I will rise and come back with more energy.

To win it does not matter how hard you punch, but what matters is how hard a punch you can take and still continue the fight..same with life.

We continue to fight Akshath's deformity of his legs - a condition named "Bilateral Clubfoot" - where both his foot are bent 90 degrees inward and downward - a congenital deformity that prevents him from walking. Having diagnosed this when he was in his womb, there was all the medical reasons that asked us to quit the pregnancy - but we didn't and persisted. Did all the medical procedures and amniotic fluid test to re-confirm is here is any chromosomal abnormality. The tests strengthened our belief and we continued. We wanted to give the guys all the chances to fight this out and that was the reason why we didn't want to quit in between.

Once he was born, after examination - it was said that the severity of the deformity is quite on the higher side and it would be a tough,painful and tedious way to get it cured. But the only positive aspect was that it was curable and that's what we wanted...these pains,scars can be faced with. Then the process started immediately after Akshath's birth. Every week his legs were manipulated and a thick paster of paris casts were put on from the top of his thigh to the toes, his entire bottom was covered with just enough space for him to pass his 1 and 2. Every thursday we need to go to the hospital, his casts were removed, his legs were again manipulated and a fresh set of casts were applied. This continued for 8weeks. These period of time was extremely difficult for Akshath, since due to the pain and discomfort he was always be crying and it was even more difficult for us since there were lot of practical issues on the way. We can't give hime bath, had to put him only on diapers since urine should not react with the plaster of paris casts, as it might caused irritation and blisters. It would be quite difficult to lift him with the heavy casts and due to the heavy casts he was in some kind of distress and so on.....
No parent can stand to see their progeny in pain and discomfort for such a long period. But no other choice, we need to continue and move along with the right treatment. During each week, his legs were progressively manipulated and slowly turned outward and finally after 8wks, the doc told that he is now ready for the surgery. The difficult part was that we need to stop feeding him 4hrs before the surgery, since they would give him GA.Somehow we passed this and fortunately his surgery started early in the morning at 7am.It lasted for 1.5hrs and the next week was extremely difficult since he was in great pain and was not taking any feed. Then he slowly settled and we were told that his casts should be in for the another 4wks. After this painful period, last Thursday his casts were removed and the doc told that he next line of treatment was to put Akshath's legs on a special brace that would told his legs in a desired outward angle. We need to keep this brace 23hrs/day for the next 3-4 months and after that 12hrs/day until he is 3yrs old at least. Though we have now crossed at least 50% of the hurdle, each stage seems to be more difficult that the previous one. With this boots and bar, we need to turn the position and the legs&foot and put the brace very tightly and it is very difficult to see Akshath crying in pain during this procedure on a daily basis. Doc told us that it would take a week or so for him to get settled and until that time, we need to do whatever we can from our side.We are at least happy that we can now give him a bath daily- this is a luxury now, since we were not able to do this in the previous stages of the treatment.

So the battle still continues to make Akshath better; during these personal adversity there were periods of emotional upheavals and the situation was just overwhelming.But we learned to be there and the most important lesson we learnt - was not to quit and give up. I am sure having crossed 50% , we can face the remaining and come of victorious. Who says life is easy - Life is difficult, once we understood this - we got the energy to tackle the issues. Giving your progeny all the chances to walk is of paramount importance that anything else. As long as life is there - there will be struggle!

The art of Boxing

2011-02-18T10:01:00.000-08:00

In boxing - to win, it does not matter how hard you punch. What matters is how hard a punch you acn take and still continue fighting. Same is very true with life

Real Winner - Muralitharan

2010-08-04T22:20:00.000-07:00

What's the meaning of 'Real Winner'? Really winning is something different than winning on a day. That's what Muralitharan has shown this world. Recently we saw the last test match of a great fighter in Muralitharan; a down to earth, multi-talented personality. Time & again, when everybody has written him off(by their unprofessional criticisms, he always bounced back & showed what he is capable of. He let is ball do the talking, 800 wickets is no mean achievement - nobody can even come near him. Remember, he took these wickets in such a low number of matches, that another landmark. Murali is Murali and can never be displaced.

He was unduly criticised in a very unprofessional way by a lot of umpires & guys for his action. Harper & Emerson call for no-balls during a number of matches & I still remember this match - it was against England, in Adelaide that Emerson call Murali for no-ball continuously. Arjuna Ranatunga, then captain of SL team, walked out signalling a protest. After things were sorted out, ENG scored around 302 runs. Ranatunga before starting their innings, said that they will win this match for Murali. Then when SL batted - they attacked from all quarters, starting with Jayasuriya,scoring a 56 of mere 30 odd balls & Mahela Jayawerdene scoring a century; SL won the match - with Murali scoring the last few runs. That was one of the finest example to show how a positive leader like Ranatunga, motivated & supported Murali during all these allegations. He was a great source of strength to Murali & kudos to him. Also in 1998, the 1 off test match against ENG in Oval, Murali single handedly destroyed ENG and won the match for SL.

Whatever is said & done; people need to have an open mindset to accept the fact that - Murali is a genius & legend. His skills & competency are truly natural that should be respected. Above all his feats, he is a wonderful human being, true winner & someone who respects fellow cricketers.

I really feel sad that people like Bishen Singh Bedi still keep criticising Murali, by calling him a chucker. It only shows his immaturity, lack of character & unprofessionalism. By the way, nobody know what credentials does he have to criticise Murali? If he would played in this era, he was less than very ordinary bowler, who can be easliy thrashed (consistently) out of the ground even by a number 11 batsman..............

Is India Incredible?

2010-07-08T22:22:00.000-07:00

"Incredible India" looks great when written on paper, but we need to think; if every individual is really working on this. This is not yet imbibed into our thoughts, intentions, feelings & system. India Incredible still has a long way to go, but a few baby steps can take us to that place in some years:

1) 1st priority - let's strive to keep India clean, this should be on the top of our mind.
2) No more spitting, pissing,shitting on the roads.
3) Don't dump garbage on the roads & outside the houses. Put it into the dustbin.
4) People with pets - wear a rubber glouse & collect the pit shits in a cover & throw into the dustbin.
5) Neet Metal Fanalca - Please collect & all the garbage on the daily basis from the street corners, your service needs rapid improvement.
6) Don't dump all heavy garbage materials like - beds, wooden items etc into the bins. Store it in a seperate place & hand it over directly to the Neel Metal guys when they come for garbage collection.
7) Segregate the garbage - plastic, vergetable waste, papers etc. This makes it more environment friendly.
8) At home - everybody please follow the simple rules & keep the house & the neibhourhood neat & clean.
9) Be a veggie - stop eating non-veg,eggs. Break the demand & supply cycle. Because of this a lot of innocent birds,animals are being killed daily resulting in a unclean environment. Go green & be a vegetarian - you will do a lot of good to you, others & the widelife will bless you.
10) Create the awareness & change the mindset - it's our responsibility to keep our neibhourhood neat&clean.

Let's not make India Incredible - First let's work to make India Clean.

Father's Time

2010-06-29T02:22:00.000-07:00

(Source : From JM, thanks to my uncle for sharing this)

Why always Mummy............ Daddy dis time

HOW A SON THINKS ABOUT HIS FATHER AT DIFFERENT AGES:
At 4 Years
My daddy is great.

At 6 Years
My daddy knows everybody.

At 10 Years
My daddy is good but is short tempered

At 12 Years
My daddy was very nice to me when I was young.

At 14 Years
My daddy is getting fastidious.

At 16 Years
My daddy is not in line with the current times.

At 18 Years
My daddy is becoming increasingly cranky.

At 20 Years
Oh! Its becoming difficult to tolerate daddy. Wonder how Mother puts up
With him.

At 25 Years
Daddy is objecting to everything.

At 30 Years
It's becoming difficult to manage my son. I was so scared of my father
When I was young.

At 40 Years
Daddy brought me up with so much discipline. Even I should do the same.

At 45 Years
I am baffled as to how my daddy brought us up.

At 50 Years
My daddy faced so many hardships to bring us up. I am unable to manage
A Single son.

At 55 Years
My daddy was so far sighted and planned so many things for us. He is
One Of his kind and unique.

At 60 Years
My daddy is great.

Thus, it took 56 years to complete the cycle and come back to the 1st. Stage. Realize the true value of your parents before it’s too late.

Collaborative Parenting

2010-06-27T04:13:00.000-07:00

The most difficult thing in the world is ' Being a good father'; I somewhere heard, that Barack Obama said this in one of his conversation. At the outside it looks very simple, but extremely difficult to implement. It calls for a lot of dedication,time,innovation,being one with the kid & getting into the skin. But it's an experience that provides an immense satisfaction, happiness & an opportunity that provides you the lead to influence the generations to come.

I have heard many people saying that they provide (little) quality time with their children. I don't subscribe to this view & theory. Unless you spend lot of time with your kids, you cannot create a quality time. Remeber kids are more intelligent than us & they can easily read out body language & mine. So the fundamental principle is to create a baseline - by spending a large quantity of time ; so that you can connect with them emotionally, because building this emotional infrastructure with your kids is the most difficult task.Once this is done, the other values can top up.

To all fathers & mothers - thanks for being there for your kids & we all owe the moral responsibility to co-create a society without any fragmentation.

An experience called Paa

2009-12-18T03:35:00.000-08:00

I watched Paa last week with Arjuun and Lasya. After having watched it, I booked 2 more tickets and asked my parents to see the movie. They came back and told me that after a long time, they enjoyed a neat and clean movie.

1) Its a true Balki’s golden touch straight from his heart.

2) The special thing about this film, is its simplicity. You can see this approach being adopted in many key areas like screenplay, dialogues (simple & pleasing), casting, expressions and the costumes.

3) Hats off to Balki for deviating from the main stream and adopting simplicity in his thoughts, vision, story, characters and the final end product. This simplicity was the greatest asset of Paa and that’s the reason why it was able to achieve such a high penetration rate into the market in such a short span of time.

4) An outstanding performance by Abhishek may be his best so far. Nobody could have played the character of Amol, so well. He lived and breathed as Amol throughout the film. Abhishek ensured that, the audiences see only Amol on screen and not himself. My kudos to him, so getting into the skin of the character so well and he carried himself so well with his simple costumes (white kurta) and powerful expressions.

5) What can you say about Vidya? All credit to her, for playing such a wonderful mother and for projecting her motherly instinct spontaneously. It would not have been easy for her to come through with such feelings & emotions, especially when you know that you are playing the mother of such a 67 year old legend, and not a small boy. But she did it with great ease. Balki also ensured that her costumes also added a lot of colour to Vidya’s character. There we times, when she loses her cool to her mother (Auro’s Granny) and to Amol, she was simply brilliant in those packed performances.

6) Raja Sir’s music is just unparalleled; such is the effect. Re-recording is a special skill and only a genius like Raja sir can create such an impact.

7) With Paa, Raja Sir has proved to himself and his critics that he is NOT a music director; but a TRUE CREATOR of quality music. His tunes just keep ringing and ringing. Raja sir has created such an impact in a lot of films in Tamil(e.g. Many films of Mani Ratnam like Nayagan, Mouna Ragam, Agni Natchathiram, Anjali, Thalapathi, Punnagai Mannan, Aboorva Sagodharargal etc) and I was very happy that he renewed his magic with Paa.

8) All the songs just jelled with the theme of the movie and did not stand out at all. You can never feel that the songs in this film are for commercial reasons. You will be so glued to the movie that you will feel; that the song is part of the movie and never an add on.

9) Picturization of the songs was done in a very lively way and you can see the richness in each song. Great team work by Balki and PC sir, for giving a visual treat.

10) Especially I was disappointed when the songs “Gumm Summ” and “Meri Paa” did not feature in the main film. These were some excellent numbers, but we could hear only a few lines of “ Gumm Summ” in the background(during the hospital scene) and the “ Meri Paa” song by Amitji, came only at the last after the film had finished(when the credits where given after the film).

I really want to know from Balki or Amitji, why these 2 value adding songs were chopped from the main picture!

11) The work of 3 genius Balki, Raja sir and PC sir is very much evident when you see this film. It’s an experience by itself, short, sweet and value adding.

12) Finally the energy and passion with which Amtiji has carried off Auro is simply phenomenal !

4 hrs of make up, waking up at 2:30am, 2hrs to remove the make up, all at the age of 67, can somebody do this! Yes, only Amitji….His energy and passion for this film has created further positive energy into the entire chain and this has given the film such a divine blessing; that it cannot fall back.

With this film Amitji has proved to the entire world that you can still given simple, intelligent and value based films to this society and the people will support it; if you give the message it in the right way. There was absolutely not even 1% of masala element in this film. I sincerely hope that our south Indian leading actors should take a leaf out of this experience and provide such quality films.

To sum it up :

Paa is NOT a movie, but an experience that Balki has shared to this world and has proved that you do not need long lead time, high budget, tech-funda graphics, sexy numbers by the heroines, masala scenes to make it a success. All you need is simplicity in story and thinking; with a belief that the script is the real hero of the film and not vice versa.

It’s a real tribute to a simple human being (with a lot of energy, positive attitude, passion and commitment) named Amitabh Bachchan! It’s a one of those rare film, which will make you feel at the end – why did Balki restrict this movie to 2hr and 10mins! That’s the real success of how well audience has embraced Paa.

2 States

2009-11-28T23:55:00.000-08:00

Last week, I read ' 2 States' by Chetan Bhagat. I would say it's typical Chetan's expression & he didn't dissapoint. Guess, it's inspired from certain facets of his marriage life. In that way, hats off to Chetan to bring them into this book. I have read all his books(Five Point Someone, 3 Mistakes of My Life & 2 States) except One Night At Call Centre. But Five Point Someone is definitely my pick.

2 States is definitely a very good read. I was especially moved by the father & son relationship that was potrayed in the book. Though Krish & his father never had a good relationship, finally it was his father who played the major role to help him come out of his discomfort & marry Ananya. Especially in the final chapter, when his father expresses his love to Krish and his confession that " Though I am imperfect father, still your father". It was very good of Chetan , to bring out this aspect of father son relationship in this book. This is something, that needs to be nurtured properly by every father & son, to make it beautiful.

Yes, we definitely need to acknowledge the actual importance of Father's Day. It need more awareness & priority,since it plays a vital part in every individual's life.

Love you my Dad! Thanks for being there for me. You are great and I am so small infront of your greatness!

Paa

2009-11-24T20:48:00.000-08:00

Finally the audio cd of 'paa' is out and I liked it very much. As usual, what can you say about Amitji and Balki combination. An out of box concept, real life role reversals(Amitji plays Abhishek's son), refreshing music, the natural beauty of Vidya Balan and offcourse PC Sriram and Abhishek to add colour to the silver lining. Last but never the least - produced by AB Corp(Abhishek leading it), AA is out to give the world one of the best films that has ever come. This will be one in a century film, it will atleast take another 100 years for such a film to appear again.

I wake up to Amitji's blog on a daily basis; it's been a great source of inspiration for me. Not a single day, passes without reading his view & expressions. It looks as though, he talks to you directly - what a connect !. Even at this age, he wakes up at 2:30am to sit for a 4hr prosthetic session, 2hrs to remove it and do the acting in between. PAA is really a tribute to the dedication,commitment,persistence of this wonderful human being called Amitji.

Hearing the music of PAA it's so refreshing, and it goes again and again to prove why 'Rajaa' sir is such a genius and can never be replaced by the modern music. It takes a genius to keep things simple and that's what 'Rajaa' sir has done to PAA.The tunes will keep hitting you and it will talk to you, especially ' Gumm Summ' and the theme music. In the theme music, 'Rajaa'sir has used a stream of voilins to bring out some break taking score, like he did for Maniratnam in Thalapathy(remember the start of Rakamma song). PAA's music is very soothing and was an experience by itself. The song in which Amitji, renders his voice as a AURO(13 year old boy) has come out very good and the sentences that he read in between looks so natural(e.g Full light on,Just take your head know). Amitji is just breathing as AURO.

So there is no doubt that Amitji & his team hard work had already paid very rich dividends and for sure PAA will rock the world on Dec 4.Waiting to see cute little AURO, also know an Amitji.

· Dr. Kalam: "Waves are my inspiration, not because they rise and fall, but each time they fall, they RISE AGAIN.
· The most beautiful thing is to see a person smiling & even more beautiful is to know that you are the person behind it
· The plus symbols were made with a pair of minus symbols. All negative things can be shaped as positive. So let's be positive in life.
· Life never leaves you empty. It always replaces everything that you have lost. If it asks you to put something down it is because it wants you to pickup something greater.
· Having GOD in our boat doesn't mean that we will not face any storm but it means that no storm can sink our boat.
· Confidence comes naturally with success but success can comes only to those who are confident. So begin every day with great confidence.
· Old friends are gold and new friends are diamonds. If we get diamonds we shouldn't forget the gold because to hold a diamond we always need a base of gold
· Never design your character like a garden where no one walk, But try to design it like the sky where everyone aspire to reach
· What is the basic difference between God and Human? GOD Gives and Forgives but HUMAN Get's and Forgets
· Great people talk about ideas, average people talk about things and small people talk about others. LEGENDS never talk
· Giving up is the easiest thing in the world to do but holding everything together when everything seems to be falling apart is true strength

If Better Is Possible?

2009-07-12T20:51:00.000-07:00

This weekend, I got the book " If Better Is Possible" from Odyssey. It's written by John Buchanan, the former coach of the Australian Team. Gives immense insight into the leadership, qualities of a leader, what a leader should do, how he should create a vision for his team, motivate his members to take them to a place where they have not been before.

Just started with the 1st chapter and it was very simple to understand. The book is designed in such a way that, you can pick up any chapter, spend some 20mins and take back a lot of learning. It's not that you need to read chapter by chapter to understand this book. In that way, it's a real value add.

In addition to this, spent lots of time with Arjuun and didn't even move an inch away from him. Went out to a couple of good places, that he enjoys and it's good to see him happy,smiling and cheerful. What else do we need in life, other than enjoying a child's happiness!

What's up?

2009-05-31T08:22:00.000-07:00

It's been very construcitve and productive week, both professionally and personally.Lot of funfilled activities with Arjuun and learning from Arjuun during the weekend. It went on quite well and satisfing.

Today after a loooooong time, went against my diet protocols and had 2 ice creams at Freez Zone. So need to be up early tomorrow to workout more!

Never Give Up !

2009-05-07T08:34:00.000-07:00

I got this wonderful lesson from Amitji's Blog. It's a must read and share.

THE FERN AND THE BAMBOO

ONE DAY I DECIDED TO QUIT… I QUIT MY JOB, MY RELATIONSHIP, MY SPIRITUALITY….

I WANTED TO QUIT MY LIFE. I WENT TO THE WOODS TO HAVE ONE LAST TALK WITH GOD.

“God”, I said. ”Can you give me one good reason not to quit?”

His answer surprised me.

“Look around”, He said. “Do you see the fern and the bamboo?”

“Yes”, I replied.

“When I planted the fern and the bamboo seeds, I took very good care of
them. I gave them light. I gave them water. The fern quickly grew from the earth. Its brilliant green covered the floor.

Yet nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did NOT quit on the bamboo.

“In the second year the fern grew more vibrant and plentiful. And again,
nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did NOT quit on the bamboo.

“In year three there was still nothing from the bamboo seed. But I would NOT quit. The same in year four.

“Then in the fifth year, a tiny sprout emerged from the earth.

Compared to the fern, it was seemingly small and insignificant.

“But just six months later, the bamboo rose to over 100 feet tall.

“It had spent the five years growing roots. Those roots made it strong and gave it what it needed to survive.

I would not give any of my creations a challenge it could not handle.

Did you know, my child, that all this time you have been struggling, you

have actually been growing roots? I would NOT quit on the bamboo.. I will NEVER quit on you.

“Don’t compare yourself to others.” He said. “The bamboo had a different
purpose than the fern. Yet they both make the forest beautiful.

“Your time will come”, God said to me.. ”You will rise high”

“How high should I rise?” I asked.
“How high will the bamboo rise?” He asked in return.

“As high as it can?” I questioned

“Yes.” He said,

“Give me glory by rising as high as you can.”

I left the forest, realizing that God will NEVER give up on me.

And He will NEVER give up on you.

NEVER REGRET A DAY IN YOUR LIFE.

GOOD DAYS GIVE YOU HAPPINESS; BAD DAYS GIVE YOU EXPERIENCES.

BOTH ARE ESSENTIAL TO LIFE.

SO ENJOY EVERY MOMENT OF LIFE……………

Being a Good Father !

2009-03-09T00:47:00.000-07:00

Every day I strive to be a good father. I am not perfect, but at the same time I keeping learning from Arjuun and try to improve. In this sense, Arjuun has been a great source of confidence to me. At times, when he throws tantrums, I have lost my cool - which was a very WRONG attitude of mine. But Arjuun helps me to get over that. I make a very careful attempt to ensure that my reactions should not impact him. At times, I try to be too perfect - which is totally meaningless.

I always keep the communication channels with Arjuun very candid and honest. Whenever I make a mistake, I sincerely get down and apologize to him and tell him that what I did was wrong. In that way, Arjuun accepts me as I am and we both embrace each other's mistake. But we create a colloborative learning space and move forward.

Some lessons that I learnt:

a) Break that " One answer is correct " attitude. There is no ONE correct answer to anything. So allow childern to expand and explore their thinking. If they call a circle as a square, they are 100% correct. They have their own logical ways of interpreting a circle as a square. Listen to them and accept their thinking patterns.

b) Do not enforce conformance at all times. Let them try,experiment different things.Allow them to fail and embrace their failures. This gives them a lot of confidence. Let them know that rules that are held sacred by conventional wisdom needs to broken and you will be there to support and nurture them.

c) Books,Books and Lot of books for them. This helps in the developing the creative and imaginative process within the child.

d) Allow them to draw,paint and scribble anything. Don't restrict them by saying- Please colour inside the square,circle etc. Let them go outside those boundaries.

e) Help them to take risks and allow free play. If they want to play in rain,sand,mud etc - allow them to do so. Just monitor them, so that they don't get hurt. Even if they get hurt, don't tell them - " See I told you, that you will get hurt". Never ever interrogate them.

f) Encourage role plays and be a part of them. Play the role that they ask you to play. This could be their teacher,classmate etc. Play them to the fullest.

g) Allow them to find solutions to the problems, by giving clues. e.g This could be as simple as, hiding some pictures and providing them clues to find it.

h) Explore them to different kinds of music - especially instrumental music and music of their choice and not yours.

i) Take them daily for a walk or a short cycling round near your house.

h) Sit down and listen to what they have to say. This means active listening and not just hearing. Look them straight into their eyes and actively get involved in their speech. Repeat what they told you and validate with them, if you have understood it in the right way. Repeating and validating - gives the children the assurance, that you have been listening them seriously and you value their thoughts,words and emotions.

Do not hear to them, by reading a book or concentrating on other topics.

j) When they throw tantrums, first do not lose your cool. Keep your cool and 1st calm them by stroking their chest,arm,head or back depending on their comfort zone.

k) Listening to the child and giving them eye contact will ease out a lot of problems.Make time to spend time with them. It helps to learn a lot from them.

Finally,understand that they are small children who do not know what they are doing.They are unable to express themselves properly. So keep that in mind and always stay calm and don't shout back when they throw tantrums.

Finally, My dear Arjuun :

I am sorry, if I had hurt your feelings in one way or the other.
It is purely un-intentional and you can be rest assured that everyday,I learn and improve in my journey to be a good father.

Thanks for being such a wonderful son and I love you so much!

Slumdog Millionare - Sucks!

2009-01-29T04:06:00.000-08:00

Does SlumDog Millionare(SDM) - needs so much celebration? It has shown India in a very poor light and people seems to celebrate the awards that we get for that. Oh my god !

Bollywood has produced far better films than this - Films like Black,Swades,Lagaan...

When we did not celebrate the experience that these films created, I feel that the awards,rewards for SDM is just overrated and blown out of propotion. Are we celebrating for mocking India, showing us in poor light.

Black - What an extradinary performance by Amtiji and Rani. It will touch your heart.

In Swades - you can never see SRK there, only Mohan Bhargav.It creates a long lasting impact on me, every time I see that film.

Lagaan- What a film that engulfs Teamwork,Motivation,Inspiration,Facing the challenge,Perseverance,Leadership etc.

Compared to all these films, SDM just sucks and only sucks! Nothing more and nothing less.

Back 2 My Roots !

2008-12-05T06:24:00.000-08:00

I was holding this thoughts for quite sometime, but with a definite purpose. Next week, I am joining back my home organization - getting back to my roots! The organization that has had a positive significance on me, The organization where I started my 1st job, The organization that has a long lasting emotional bond on me, The organization where I learnt, The organization where I grew up, The organization that has made me what I am today, The organization that's more like my second home, The organization that gave me some wonderful set of friends,peers and supervisors.

The prime reason for this move; is the kind of emotional bondage that still pulled me back into the organization. Rather I should say that, it was a kind of feeling that I was not able to come out of it. I understood that having spent close to 9yrs in an organization, that too your very first organization - its was extremely difficult for me to come out of that relationship. After changing my job, I realized that the emotional ties within me dominated my actions to a very large extent and I had very minimal control over it. In fact, at the end of the 2nd month I lost my humour,at the end of the 4th, I started getting depressed and then I felt as if I had left one half of me in my previous organization. Think this was the breaking point for me and I got in touch with my well wishers there to see if there are any good opportunities for me. I was just driven by my instinct and purely followed my heart. Nothing more and nothing less!

Finally a good opportunity came in my way and I decided to take it up with an open mind. I also understood that the kind of passion and attachment that you have towards your organization, is the key factor that determines the depth and breadth of your learning and contribution towards your organization. If you miss that attachment towards your organization, then you can only be an outer winner and not an inner winner. You might successful, but not satisfied. Having worked so long with an organization, I missed it very badly.

When I sit back,reflect and contemplate the series of events - I think somewhere I messed it up due to the vulnerability of my age, lack of maturity and certain other support systems I did not have.Emotionally it was very difficult accept the disconnect. Every step I took,every move I made, every method I implemented,- I realized that my home organization has dominated my thoughts,actions,feelings and emotions. It's been hard for me to come in terms with the reality- that I have joined another organization.

Though the time I spent in my new organization helped me to learn and deploy aspects of Agile and Scrum, interact with some high profile customers,doing my bit of presales,but still I was missing something. So, I am now going back to get that satisfaction back into my stream and thoughts.

Couple of people know to me, told me that probably I am making an emotional decision of going back to my previous organization. But to me, I am just following my heart and I just want to learn from my mistakes and keep improving. That's it!
But I definitely enjoyed this process and it's a been a different kind of learning experience for me.

To be or not to be Saurav Ganguly!

2008-10-18T05:01:00.000-07:00

One of the recent events that has caused me a certain level of discomfort is - Saurav Ganguly's decision to retire from the International Cricket Space. His outbursts and emotions are very much warranted and understandable. Though, I am not a lover of Saurav as a player, I really respect him for all his leadership capabilities. He is a tremendous leader with a sense of vision and an excellent motivator. After Kapil, Saurav is someone who stood for his mates and who gets down with his views upright. He is NOT just a captain, but a true LEADER. He is the one and probably the only one, who brought in that aggresive spirit into the Indian Team. He is the one, who made others to stop for a moment and take a look into the spirit of the Indan team. If the youngsters in the team today are performing well, it definitely has a great bearing on Saurav.

He really backed the youngsters,embraced failures,encouraged them to take risks,stood by them and helped them to evolve as an individual. He continuously helped the team to build their physical and emotional infrastructure. If the youngsters like Shewag,Harbhajan,Yuvraj,Kaif,Zaheer,Nehra etc are dominating the game today - it is ONLY due to the tremendous backing and support they got from Saurav. He was a real leader who gave the sense of freedom and motivation to his mates. He even backed Rahul and Sachin during their difficult times.
Another aspect, that I admire about Saurav - is that he gave back something to the opposition, whenever they rubbed India in the wrong way. Be it Flintoff,Ponting - they had to be given a taste of their own medicine and Saurav had the guts to do it.

But it was disappointing to see him, being treated shabily due to the board politics - starting with the Greg Chappell's episode. What was more disgusting was the fact that - they guys who were there in the team today(due credit to Saurav), didn't come to support his cause. That's the way, people are in today's world(or in today's India?). Definitely Saurav will be remembered as one of the greatest captain's of this era and he also displayed his resilience to the entire world- by making the greatest comeback in the history of cricket. If the other cricketing nations, fear India today - it's largely due to Saurav's leadership abilities and the aggressive spirit that he has instilled into every cell of the Indian Team.

Rise Above The Ashes !!!

2008-09-06T23:05:00.000-07:00

Sep 6th is a very important day in my life. That was the day, I joined Alcatel and took up my 1st job. But this sep 6th 2008; I was not a part of Alcatel anymore. Yes; definitely feeling nostalgic, but that's how life is. I have understood that I had to move on and raise above my discomfort and uncertanity.

If you are now living in the lowest status of life, a life that always has a storm, great disappointments and failures, don't be discouraged and worry my friend. You can rise, Rise Above the Ashes!

Yes, you can rise above the ashes for you are destined to be a conqueror of this world.The Loving God gave you the power of choice to choose and to live the ideal life that you want. Therefore, stop wasting your time living a mediocre life. Learn to stand once again and prove to the world that you are a "dare to fail" individual who cannot be easily swayed and cannot be easily discouraged by the challenges of life.Beginning today, tag yourself with a higher price. Dream a big dream. Think a big plan for your life and make a firm resolution to dare mighty things to make your plan into reality.To achieve your dreams, always work hard with definite purpose and don't ever think of backsliding because the world cannot be won with a doubtful spirit.So, move on and don't ever give up!Always motivate your mind to have faith and believe in yourself. Remember, the larger your faith, the smaller your fears. The great your trust, the lesser your doubts. The stronger your beliefs, the weaker your worries. Therefore, keep your faith and believe in yourself for it will guide, help and bring you to the door of success!

If the time comes and the sparks tempt you to give up and go back to the life of mediocrity, remind yourself with these words... My Loving God balances my life by giving me enough blessings to keep me happy, enough failures to keep me humble and enough trials to keep me strong in the challenges of life. Therefore, I will face these tests of life with an open-mind, enthusiasm, persistence, and determination that once again, I can rise! Rise Above the Ashes!

Finally, remember my friend, that the Loving God helps those who help themselves! Good Luck to your Journey in Life!
(PS: This message is extracted from www.Motivateus.com)

Friendship Day !

2008-08-02T23:18:00.000-07:00

August 3rd is celebrated as Friendship day. My thanks to all my friends, I have come across. Thanks for being such a good friend and extending your support,help and wishes. It's been great to have you into my life. Have a great friendship day.
Wishing you and your family lot of good health,happiness and luck in the years to come!

One info that I would like to share at this moment :

August 1st 2008 marked - 100 days of continuous communication(on a daily basis) by Amitabh to his readers via his blog. There was so much to learn from him.

Inspite of his gruelling schedules,illhealth,travelling,shooting,recording,promos,meeting,acting,discussing,time with family...his sense of commitment to reflect his thoughts on a daily basis for 100 days non-stop is something amazing. This is a true reflection of his time management and loads of energy that he has in store. From him - the best lessons that I learnt is : There is always time in a day to do everything; if you are attached to it!

To top all of it; he finds time not to just write his own blog, but also reads the invidual comments from the readers and replies to them. True sense of commitment, isn't it?

Happy Friendship Day!

Enroute to hell !

2008-07-26T23:13:00.000-07:00

Time and again; I see a very bad sight of leghorn chickens, carried upside down- tied(in a large numbers) to the handlebars of the cycle and the rear parts of the scooter/bike. It's a very sorry sight to see how animals are treated in the most cruel fashion in our country.
It's clear that these chickens are taken to be killed; but let's treat them with some respect on their way to hell!

Most of chickens, get burn from the heat that gets generated from the 2 wheeler silencer and worst, they passively inhale the harmful gases like CO as well. Some of them even hit the ground when the 2 wheeler guy takes a heroic turn and some chicken heads and legs gets damaged in the cycle spokes and tyres.

The only way to stop such cruelty to animals is to practice vegetarianism. Break the deman and supply chain - when there is no demand for these chickens/animals, atleast then will we treat them as a fellow being - with due respect which they deserve?

The Art of Parenting !

2008-07-24T00:58:00.000-07:00

Today I was at myself, dropping and bringing back Arjuun from his playschool(Seeds at Adyar). Whenever I go to his school to drop him in the morning; I feel a bit uncomfortable to leave him and come back. At times; when I am about to enter the school gate - I feel like taking him back home. Then I shake my head and watch Arjuun for sometime(without his notice, until he gets settled) and then I come back home. Watching the kids play,connect , interact and communicate really provides me a lot of inputs on how develop the art of parenting.

1) As a parent we should help the kids to add life to their years; rather than adding years to life.

2) Adding life to years is Growing ; adding years to your life is Ageing. We should help them to grow and be open to learn new dimensions from them.

3) We should also help the kids to understand - Whenever they make a choice; they also choose the consequences that come with that choice. If we are able to get this message to the kids in the right way - then it will help them to make their independent decision.

4) Every man needs a good female friend and every female needs a good male friend. I am not talking about the spouse here! So often this aspect is missed and neglected. This generation kids should be sensitive to this fact and should build on this.

I havee read in many books that for a female - it is very difficult to get a true friend(male or female) and if they are able to get hold of a true male friend, they are extremely blessed and it helps them to a great extent in their life. Females who have true male friends have achieved a lot in their life and they are extremely satisfied and content.
It makes them a real inner winner.

5) As a parent, another important attribute that we must exhibit to the kids is acceptance. They should be willing to accept the fact that life is always not fair and they will have to face the downs. Once they learn this acceptance - they can generate intelligence and creativity from this acceptance to help them overcome adverse situations.

6) Subroto has stated in his book Go kiss the world that ' The job of real leaders is to continuously build infrastructures - Physical,Intellectual and Emotional '.

I think the job of a parent is to continuously build that emotional infrastructure. What do you think?

Lessons Learnt from Go KISS THE WORLD !

2008-07-21T07:05:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I completed the book written by Subroto and today I registered my feedback and wishes to Subroto(in his blog site) for coming out with such a book that adds a lot of value to the life of every professional(IT or non-IT).

Some key take aways for me are the following:

1) Open your mind before you open your mouth - Many times I have never done this in my personal and professional life. Life will be so much better and happy we are able to practice this.
2) When you make a choice; you also choose the consequences that come with the choice.
3) To get; you must first give.
4) Self doubt is positive.
5) Frustration is always a function of your ambition and your capability.

Frustration = f(Ambition - Capability).

High performance achievers set very high standards for themselves and for others. The also expect others to follow that - which will not happen in many cases. Hence they get frustrated easily, because of their inability to change the system. So to reduce our frustration levels, we have only 2 choices - Reduce your ambition or enhance your capability levels.

6) Practice humility and simplicity.
7) Great leaders do not emerge out of brilliance; but out of resilience.
8) Connect with people.
9) Passion always takes you higher.
10) Give importance to small people down the line - Pleasing your boss is not important, but making your team member comfortable and happy is very important.
11) Life is all about constant negotiation in every sphere and there is nothing to feel bad about this.
12) Money is not the source of happiness.
13) Look beyond yourself - try to see the pain of others.
14) Forgive yourself and others for the mistakes.
Finally,
15) It's all in the mind and mind only !

Thank you Subroto for this book and more for the lessons that I learnt from your priceless masterpiece.

Go Kiss the World !

2008-07-19T05:25:00.000-07:00

The above words are not mine; but I am able to relate to them very easily. These were the last words of Subroto Bagchi's Mother - so motivating and powerful; that it made him to discover a great company called "Mind Tree". Infact I am now reading this book written by Subroto Bagchi. Half way through this book; I find myself at a bit of crossroads. I recently did come out of Alcatel( organization that I was working for the last 8.5yrs) and joined another organization.

But at this point of time; I am finding it very difficult to disconnect from Alcatel.Every step I take, every move I make, every method I implement, every individual I interact - I have realized that Alcatel has dominated my thoughts,actions,feelings and emotions. It's been hard for me to come interms with the reality- that I have now joined another organization. Even when I am exchanging greetings with others; I still tell them I work for Alcatel. Then somewhere my mind rings a bell to ask - " Are you still with Alcatel"?

I don't know why this is going through my mind- May be Alcatel was my 1st job, was with the organization for the last 8.5yrs, was more like a 2nd home,excellent mix of people,great teams to work with,wonderful leaders who had a great vision to see the invisible,great friends,positive culture and motivating environment. I also started my career there and progressively evolved with the organization.

After I started reading the book written by Subroto; the question that comes to my mind is the following :

Did I make a mistake by coming out of Alcatel? May be yes, may be not? Could be due to the vulnerability of my age, my maturity(or the lack of it) and certain other support systems I did not have when I made the decision. Should I have been talked into by somebody?
I really don't know and don't have an answer to these questions that keeps coming back at me in a hard way. But if I had make a mistake - I don't feel bad to accept that and learn from my mistake. Emotionally- it's been a down for me( I wouldn't say an up); I take these lessons as part of my learning curve and move forward.
Do I have a choice? For whatever decision I have made - I can blame nobody else, but me and me only.

When I left Alcatel; I wanted to learn six sigma? This was the core reason. I am very much doing that and infact more learning interms of Agile,Scrum etc. But at the same time, I have very much understood that there is another angle that enhances the breadth of your learning - which is the attachment,respect and passion that you have towards your organization? Did I miss this angle somewhere? Is it a irreversible miss?

Though workwise,I do not see an issue - emotionally yes, I am finding it hard to seperate myself from Alcatel. It's a continuous battle between my mind and heart. I will have to wait and see who wins the battle?

Back after a long time!

2008-07-14T08:17:00.001-07:00

I am back into this after a long time and this time it's special - bcos Arjuun is just sitting on my lap and giving me instructions on how I shud go thro with this post. Special thanks to Shiva for helping me to come terms with my blog. I very well know that my blog was almost dead for the last couple of months; due to certain variety of reasons. I will be more frequent from now on. Not in a position to complete my write up today;since Arjuun is not allowing me to proceed further.

Want to post some thoughts on change management aspects; will do so tomorrow. Until then take care and have fun. Arjuun says a big HI to all of you !

No Time 2 Blog !

2008-05-05T06:19:00.000-07:00

I am back to this space after a very looooooooooong time,more than 2 months infact. Honestly speaking,I was just on my toes for the last couple of months due to a variety of changes. Yes,change - The change so far has been good,tough and has pumped in a lot of learning. Overall it was constructive and has my opened my risk taking abilities.

- Change in my job.
- Change in my work culture.
- Change of environment.
- Change of people.
- Change in work location.
- Change in my mode of travelling.
- Change in the distance that I need to commute(daily).
- Change in my attitude.
- Change in my thinking.
- Change in my daily routines.
- Change in my health patterns.
- Change in my weight.
- Change in my hobbies.
- Change in my work life balance.
- Change in my working methods.
- Change in my learning rate.
- Change in my communication management.
- Change in my blogging patterns.

In my new company, there are certain policies which prevents the individual from blogging using IDs that has extensions like yahoo,gmail etc.Since I also do not have a net connection at home,I really cudn't accomodate a specific time slot for my blog.Hence it just went out off track.
So it's time for me to get a net connection at home.

One aspect that I have realized after changing my job, is that the change process helps an individual to come in terms with new opportunities and challenges. It just enhances an individual's risk taking possibilities and makes him/her more confident,competetive and aggressive in the market. This is what I have experienced.

I still do not know,if the change is good or bad - I am just going through it at the moment. But I should say it is definitely constructive and opens up a new dimension. You now get a feeling that you are no longer swimming inside a tumbler and the whole world is open for you to explore,learn and contribute.

I would say that even if you are contemplating for a challenging change, go for it - it is only a temporary feeling/phase.As an individual it helps you to learn,experience and appreciate the change management process that life has in store for you. At the end it helps you to accept and come out of the challenge with more zeal,enthusiasm and diverse experience/learning.

Love that has broken all the Boundaries !!!

2008-03-03T00:37:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, in the news paper I read the article about the return of the Indian Prisoner named Kashmir Singh from Pakistan, after a looooong 35yrs in jail. Kashmir Singh was arrested by the pakistan authorities on the charges of spying 35 years back(He was 30yrs at the time of his arrest). His wife Paramjit Kaur, was just 25yrs when he was arrested and until today she is eagerly waiting for him. 35yrs gruelling years has passed away and Paramjit Kaur is now 60 and her husband is 65.

Parmajit Kaur has taken care of her mother-in-law till her last moment, until she passed away in december 2007. Paramjit Kaur is now waiting on the border to have her husband after 35yrs. She has expressed that she is very much apprehensive of the emotions that she will go through since she was just 25yrs and her husband was just 30yrs, when he was arrested.

I was really moved when I read this. What a sense of true sacrifice from Paramjit Kaur. She has lived a life that has broken all the boundary's of true love.

Her love is truely unconditional that was full of hope,patience,optimism,strength,
lonliness,trust,caring,attitude and what not..... I just don't have the words to express.

But definitely she has shown to the world what LOVE is all about.Her love is just spontaneous and
real that is beyond sex,comfort,money,expectations,luxury,property,security,
sharing,togetherness,relationship and opportunities.

I pray to god to give Paramjit Kaur and her husband all the good health,wealth,happiness and prosperity in the years to come. Finally, true love will always create a WIN - WIN !!!

IPL : High Profile Cash Cow !

2008-02-22T02:56:00.000-08:00

Indian Premier League(IPL) auctions that were held couple of days back, really saw some big names being auctioned for heavy cash. IPL was launched by BCCI, as an opposition to the ICL but I am not sure if it is doing good to the spirit of cricket.

International Cricket League(ICL) was promoted by Kapil Dev to develop and nurture the talent of the players who were not provided opportunities by BCCI. Then it was backed up by many senior players like Sandip Patil,Madan Lal etc whose skills and talents were not utilized by BCCI. ICL atleast provided a good platform for these players and coaches to contribute back something to cricket and at the same time earn some money. But it did not spoil the spirit of cricket and the value of the players.

IPL was then launched with the sole intention of hitting back at the ICL and they found a very good means of making more money by involving the business men and cinema stars. By this way BCCI has made huge sum of profits and has opened a new door for rich people to become richer and richer.

- High profile film stars and business men has used this as a good avenue to invest their black money and buy out the teams.
- They very well know that they can make huge profits here without too many risks from marketing,ads,sponsorships,selling the coverage rights and having some star players in their team.
- Also for the players it's a good money making proposition.

But finally is IPL really helping the spirit of cricket? or is it all out to attack ICL
and confirm it's monopoly in India. This is a huge question mark? But
only the common man and cricket fans are bothered about this -Neither BCCI/IPL nor the players/stars?

It's time for a Change !

2008-01-09T02:41:00.000-08:00

I was always interested in the dynamics of change management, bcos I firmly believe that any change is always good. It opens you up to a completely different environment, learning,development, perspective,people and thought process. After 8 yrs of my association with Alcatel -Lucent, I have put down my papers inorder to pursue new career opportunities. It was a very difficult decision for me to take, but I had to take it at this point of time inorder to enhance my learning curve. This will take me out of my comfort zone and will expose me to a new positive environment.

- In that way, 2008 has given me a good start to move forward.
- 2007 was a stabilization period for me, with lots of fun and love with Arjuun.
- 2006 was bad, bcos I went through a personal crisis. I came out of it only in the year end and it took yr 2007 to stabilize and come back in control.
- 2005 was the best of all, with my son Arjuun coming into my life.

From my learning, I now believe that we should be able to embrace any change with a lot of positive energy and this will help us to move forward successfully in life.

Five Point Someone !

2007-12-11T03:06:00.000-08:00

During this weekend, I read this book named 'Five Point Someone' by Chetan Bhagat. It's all about "What NOT to do at IIT". The book depicts how 3 friends - Hari,Ryan and Alok messed it up@IIT.. All the 3 were doing their Mechanical Engg course. This book will not teach you how to get into IIT.

1. They screwed up their surprise quizzes and exams.
2. Ryan and Alot are always head-on with each other.
3. Hari fell in love with Neha, who is the daughter of their HOD.
4. They try to steal the semester question papers and in turn get caught red-handed.
5. They had to face a severe disciplinary action and was banned for 1 semester.
6. Alok attempts a suicide and is in hospital for a month.
7. They end up with some 5 point grades out of 10.
8. Finally, they somehow manage to finish their course on time, via some hard work in the last legs of their semester.

In total, this books also looks into the entire system of IIT. While many people are so mad about getting into IIT, I feel that IIT kills the individual spirit and creativity of the students by applying too much pressure.

It's a good book(with some non-veg here and there) to read !

Show Someone You Care !

2007-12-03T20:29:00.000-08:00

This story is extracted from Motivate Us.com.

I was sitting at the bar of a local restaurant having lunch and taking a break from the daily grind, sitting there thinking about how tough I had it lately and how I was sick of what I was doing. I own a landscape company and never felt I made a difference in people's lives.

As I sat there feeling sorry for myself, a girl who looked about 25 walked in and sat down in a booth waiting for her friend. She was tall, a bit dark and it didn't take long before I saw she was trying to stay hidden in a way from other people's gazes and my heart sank. You could see her hair was falling out and, at such a young age, she was receiving chemo.

I sat there watching her trying to remain composed and she was having a tough time of it. I ached for her, imagining what it must be like to go through this and yet I know some of her pain.

You see I buried my lover, the love of my life just a few short years ago and watched her slowly go away from me.

I needed to get a message of hope to this girl but how? What could I do?

Then it hit me! I called over her waitress and explained that I wanted to buy the girl and her friend's lunch but I also told her you can't tell her it was me, it had to remain anonymous. In doing so, I handed her a note to give to the girl when she told her that her tab was paid.

The note read as follows:
"Someone today thought you were beautiful, someone today thought your smile glowed with excitement, someone today thought your eyes lit up the world, someone today cared and wanted you to know this. Enjoy the rest of your day, pretty young lady".

About 15 minutes later the young girl asked for her check and I watched as she was told it was paid for. She asked why? Who? What for? The waitress simply handed her the note and informed her that the gentleman who did it left, as to keep me anonymous.

I watched as she slowly read the note. Her eyes teared up, for only a moment, and then came the smile! A huge, beautiful, hopeful smile! She lit up the room and then sat up straight, not caring who saw her. Her friend also beamed, not for what was done but because her friend was feeling beautiful again.

It's not how we look or what we have, it's not our houses or how many cars we have, nor is it how much money we can earn. No, it isn't. You see it's all about how much we care and what we do, even if it's making someone feel pretty only for a moment.

Yes, lunch cost only a few dollars but you see the wonderful part, the magic of making somebody feel happy,beautiful and important was free.

Make a difference today in just one life; it's free.

Passion to Manage and Lead Changes !

2007-11-25T22:12:00.000-08:00

I attended a workshop on 'Change Management' for 2 days. It was an experience by itself. The trainer Uday(from Core Mind) was just too good. The design of the workshop was such that it was filled with case clinics,experiential learning, role plays and process themes. The focus was clearly on value addition to learning and development on change initiation,implementation and management.

I was very much impressed by the way in which the entire program was designed and executed. The idea of giving the people stickers to reflect their personality created a very informal atmosphere at the start. To top all of it the books were offered(Our Iceberg Is Melting, Tuesdays With Moorie) to all the participants as a gift . This was a clear positive indication that Uday was more focused to add value to the participant's learning and development curve, rather than delivering a training program just for the sake of money. In my view, this optimistic experience was lacking in many of the other training programs that I have attended until now. At the end of 2 days, I really felt energized and motivated.

If any of you are interested, I would request you to attend the repeat workshop, that will held in Bangalore on 7th and 8th of December'07. You will feel the impact of this , only if you attend this. I can assure you of the quality of the workshop and Uday will be there to facilitate it in a unique way.
You can reach Uday @ 99406 11230

Thanks a lot Uday, you and your team were rocking!!!

All Good Deeds have a Natural End!

2007-11-06T21:29:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, my cousin sister's Father In Law passed away suddenly. He was a good man, know for his good deeds. His only motive in life was to help and serve others. He was quite close to me for the last 6 yrs. Whenever, I was in a state of confusion on making a decision - I always counted on his support. Many a times, when I went out of track - he was always there to pull me on the right course of action. He was a perfect guide and mentor for me and for sure his death was a personal loss to me. For the last few weeks, I wanted to see him and I didn't. Suddenly yesterday when I learnt that he has passed away, I couldn't take it. I still have the guilty feeling of not visiting him during the last few weeks of his life. A lot of people whom he has helped came over to see him and they were unable to take his death. He was such a great man know for his humility. Even his family members do not know how he goes out of the way to understand others problems and help them just in the hour of need.

Yesterday after his cremation, I was able see him reduced to just a box of ashes. That's the real meaning of life! Finally we all fit into a small box of ashes.

In between all this - why are we competing for power,money,wealth,assets,fame,name etc.

Let's all love each other...Love,Love and Love only.

May his soul rest in peace.

Our Iceberg is Melting!!!

2007-10-28T21:29:00.000-07:00

This weekend, I had the opportunity to read the book 'Our Iceberg is Melting" by John Kotter. The main crux of the book was on - How to suceed under constantly changing conditions. It was all about change management, which was narrated in the form of a fable based on a colony of penguins living on the icebergs of Antartica. It helped me to realize that changes are good and healthy signs of stable progression. A penguin named 'Fred' discovers that their iceberg is showing the signs of dis-integration. How he analyzes his findings,support his facts, takes this message to the other penguins,makes others understand the situation,communicates the new vision,forms a core group to guide the changes and succeeds in totally a different way of life forms the rest of the story. It was a great eye-opener for me.

8 important steps for managing the change :

1) Create a sense of urgency.
2) Pull together a guiding team.
3) Create a change vision and strategy.
4) Communicate to others and get the buy-in.
5) Empower others to act and make the new vision a reality.
6) Produce short-terms wins.
7) Don't let up
8) Create the new culture.

This can be applied to all spheres of life inorder to guide the change management smoothly. Personally, I felt that I got hold of the book at the right time,since I am seriously planning a couple of changes. I have decided to use this book as platform to guide my change management process.

After reading this book, I started the following self-introspection:

- Is my iceberg melting?
- Is my iceberg showing an indication that it could melt in the near future?
- Do I have my new vision?
- Should I take the help of others to conceritize my new vision?
- What changes should I make to envisage my new vision?
- What's my new strategy?
- Am I complacent?

Yes, It's time to come out of my comfort zone,rock the boat and enjoy the changes!!!

Happy B'Day JUJU : 24-10-2007

2007-10-22T21:44:00.000-07:00

Arjuun turns 2 on 24-10-2007.

Thanks to God and my wife for giving me such a adorable son, who has added more colour to my life. Life has changed a lot after Arjuun's birth since interms of priority he tops my list. All my thinking,activities and changes are centered around Arjuun's happiness.

Happy Birthday Arjuun!!!

True Measure of Customer Satisfaction

2007-10-03T05:51:00.000-07:00

Last sunday, I went to the Rain Forest Restaurant for dinner. It's a theme restaurant located at Adyar near my house. The entire set up of this restaurant is like an amazon forest with caves, water falls, animals like deer,python,lion,tiger,crocodile and ducks. It was a very good experience. This is my 6th visit to this restaurant and this time Arjuun really enjoyed the entire forest like set-up inside the cave. I also had a great time with him.

The restaurant crew consisted of group of people along with a Manager. This time I also noticed a new lady in the crew and she was constantly monitoring the way the entire crew was functioning. A number of times, I also saw the crew members collecting the feedback feedback from the customers and handing over the same to the lady. After some time, I went up to the lady and asked her if she is working in the restaurant? She informed me that she is responsible for Customer Satisfaction and her objective is to exceed the cutomer expectations. She also monitors the way the crew members work,serve,talk with customers, ask for the requirements. She informed that she provides a feedback about the performance of the entire team inorder to improve the overall performance of the sytem to enhance customer satisfaction.

I was able to related this directly to the Producer Gap : Minimize the gap between 'What the customer has requested' and 'What the customer actually got'.Hotel industry is one where we can get an immediate measure of product quality and customer satisfaction.

Kandaswamy : Vikram proves like capabilities once again

2007-09-24T23:58:00.000-07:00

Nice innovation!!!

Vikram looks like Madhuri Dixit!!!

MSQM 3rd sem results

2007-09-24T23:48:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, my MSQM 3rd sem mid-semester results were declared. I should say, the marks were a disaster : which was mainly attributed to my lack of preparation and focus. The mi-sem accounts for 40%. My comprehensive exams will be on sep 29th and 30th and this will count for the remaining 60 percentile.

Hopefully, I am looking forward to do better this time. Let's see how it goes!!!

The Power of Focus!

2007-08-14T05:13:00.000-07:00

Today I wanted to write something, but I am unable to proceed further. I just do not have the focus to concentrate and build something better. The same happenned during my MSQM closed book exams a week back. This time,I just made a very ordinary performance because my strategy totally lacked planning and preparation. So ultimately it resulted in a poor performance. I did not live up to my strength,instead my strategy lacked focus and dedication. I just did not have the motivation to read for the exams and believed in my fire fighting capabilities. Out of the 4 exams, 2 were just out of sorts. I have to wait and see the results.

It was a clear indication to me, that I did not play to my strength(Planning,Preparation and Hardwork) for my 3rd sem MSQM exams. May be time for me to do some self-introspection,break the rules and re-allign my objectives,goals and balance.

Mr Kalam : Being Humble!

2007-07-27T05:28:00.000-07:00

2 days back I was watching the interview of Mr. Abdul Kalam on CNN IBN and I personally felt, it was a great loss to our country that he was not given a second term. Thanks to our politicians who are still focussing on personal gains. During the interview Mr. Kalam showed how he transformed the Rastrapathi Bhavan into 'People's Bhavan'. His love for nature and his concern for birds/animals was very much evident in his character. He also said that music should be an essential part of every human being. He motivated people to cultuivate the habit of listening to good music. I also learnt that when his relatives came to see him during the year of 2004, Mr Kalam had asked the controller of Rastrapathi Bhavan to keep track of every single rupee that was spent on his relatives. Not once was his office car used for his relatives. Finally he paid from his own pocket for all the expenses incurred by his relatives for their food,transportation,sight seeing and stay at Rastrapathi Bhavan etc. By his act, Mr Kalam has become a source of inspiration for everybody and what I like most about him is that - he is a positive energy centre! His greatest success was the way in which he conceived and transpired his vision of making India a developed country in 2020. This shows that he is a true leader who can clearly see the invisible and shape strategies to achieve his vision.

Another greatest asset(s) of Mr Kalam is his sense of modesty and humility. Inspite of being such a great person, he is just down to earth and so humble. People who are looking for the real all round development of our country will definitely miss Mr Kalam and indeed our politicians will never miss him!

I once read in a book by Robin Sharma that : Mahatma Gandhi,Mother Teresa,Thomas Edison and Abraham Lincon were neither smart,beautiful nor gifted. But there all had the following traits in common :

a) Courage b) Persevearance c) Modesty and d) Humility.

Thanks to Mr Kalam for bringing in a mindset change and awareness into the country. Let's wish and work to get his vision concretized!

Long Pending Tag!

2007-07-16T01:46:00.000-07:00

I am back with a long pending tag from my side. I did not know about these tag protocols until Shiva shared the essence of it.

The tag requires me to share the 5th paragraph in the 123rd page of the book I am presently reading.

1) I was tagged by Shiva : To know more about Shiva,take a look into

http://kodaihills.blogspot.com

2) The book that I am currently reading is "Happiness Now" by Andrew Matthews.

3) The book does not have a direct reference to 123rd page.Hence I am sharing the content of the last para in the 121st page(which is the last page).

Everything is Connected!!!

Have you noticed that whenever you exercise regularly,you feel like eating healthier food? Have you noticed that when you eat healthier food,you have more energy-so you feel like exercising more?

Everything in life is connected.Effort you put into one part of life affects all the other parts.When you are happy at home,you are happier at work.When you are happier at work,you are happier at home.

So what does all this mean?

1. That to improve your life you can start on ANY positive path.You might start with a savings plan,a goal list, a fitness program or a commitment to spend more time with your children.That positive path will lead to other positive results because everything is connected.

2. It doesn't matter WHERE you start to put more effort into your life.It matters THAT you start.

3. It works both ways!If you let one part of your life collapse,everything will begin to spiral downward.This keeps us paying attention!

In a nutshell :

Everything you do matters! Happiness is a daily decision.

Express yourself - Don't wait for looong!

2007-07-10T06:43:00.000-07:00

Today,I was reading the blog of Abrachan and I found something that was very much needed at this point in time. The crux of Aby's post was this :

Kiss me now . You may not get another chance!!!

Don't wait for too long to express yourself and your feelings. Often in the middle of hectic schedules, I often tend to get into the groove of holding my feelings and thinking that there is still time for me to take care of my near and dear ones. But at times, I don't realize that the time is running out and the people who are present today, may not be present tomorrow.Even the situations might change. So whether it's good or bad - it's always the best to express yourself today, at this very moment.

This is a powerful self-realization that has to happen. So whether it's :

- Taking care of your parents,Hugging your friends,Kissing you child,Expressing your love,Saying thank you,Motivating others,Complimenting your friends,Making a change in your lifestyle .......

DO it this moment.

Thanks Aby.

Sivaji - Is it worth the hype?

2007-06-25T01:54:00.000-07:00

Having watched Sivaji, two times and spending Rs 800/-(only for 1 ticket) - the question that comes to my mind : Is Sivaji really worth the hype?

1) Honestly,the film just rides on the strength of only one man named 'Rajinikanth'. In this way, Rajini has once again proved that he is still the 'Badshah' of the Indian Cinema. Success just falls at his feet. This film will not run with such packed houses for any other actor. It's only for Rajini,Rajini and Rajini all over.

2) Weak story line coupled with fragile screenplay.
3) Too much of makeup for Rajini, makes him unnatural.
4) Vivek has dominated every scene from the start,as Rajini's side-kick and he takes care of delivering the punch dialogues.
5) Thota Tharani's settings and K V Anand's camera has created a wonderful visual treat for the viewers.
6) Suman has played his role very well.
7) Since, the basis of the story is very weak - Shankar has taken enough care not to bring the story to the frontline. Instead, he has polished it well with Rajini's style and gimmicks.
8) Picturization of the songs are majestic and sexy.
9) Shreya is the real highlight of the film. She has added the needed richness, to the songs with her simple expressions.
10) Shankar has well displayed Shreya's assests to capture audience attention.
11) Rajini rocks throughout - but I felt he could have avoided using doop(s) especially for simple fight sequence like running....
12) With Sivaji - Please don't expect an Indian or Anniyan. I think, only Kamal and Vikram have that unique capability to ride through such roller coasters.

13) Watch Sivaji without any expectations, you will enjoy it for sure.

Shankar has once again proved that he is only a director and NOT a CREATOR like Manirathnam or K Balachander. He needs that high budget,long lead-time,tech-funda graphics, and big actors(like Kamal,Vikram,Rajini etc) to provide his share of (hyped) hits.

To sum it up :

"Sivaji" is a rich and flourishing design that has been constructed by Shankar, for a super-natural actor named "Rajinikanth".

Principles of SCRUM

2007-06-19T06:21:00.000-07:00

Today, I was reading the 'SCRUM Development Process' by Ken Schwaber. A lot of these principles could be related to any kind of development. In today's fast paced world where the requirements are constantly changing,customer's are constantly evolving,priorities keep changing,new scope keeps coming in,each project being unique in its own way - Agile and SCRUM could be the ideal fit(may be not the best!).

The word SCRUM is basically derived from the game RUGBY. Scrum is a group of 8 individuals in Rugby, who move together closely inorder to move the ball down the field. This close integration and interaction is the fundamental principle of SCRUM.

Teams work as a tight integarted units, with each team member performing his/her well defined role for that increment to achieve the goal of the team. The entire team must have a single focus and goal and everybody works towards this. This team focus is the platform for the success of SCRUM.

The primary difference between the defined (waterfall, spiral and iterative) and empirical SCRUM) approach is that the SCRUM approach assumes that the analysis, design, and development processes in the Sprint phase are unpredictable. A control mechanism is used to manage the unpredictability and control the risk. Flexibility, responsiveness, and reliability are the results.

Characteristics of SCRUM methodology are :

· The first and last phases (Planning and Closure) consist of defined processes, where all processes, inputs and outputs are well defined. The knowledge of how to do these processes is explicit. The flow is linear, with some iterations in the planning phase.
· The Sprint phase is an empirical process. Many of the processes in the sprint phase are unidentified or uncontrolled. It is treated as a black box that requires external controls. Accordingly, controls, including risk management, are put on each iteration of the Sprint phase to avoid chaos while maximizing flexibility.
· Sprints are nonlinear and flexible. Where available, explicit process knowledge is used; otherwise tacit knowledge and trial and error is used to build process
knowledge. Sprints are used to evolve the final product.
· The project is open to the environment until the Closure phase. The deliverable can be changed at any time during the Planning and Sprint phases of the project. The
project remains open to environmental complexity, including competitive, time,
quality, and financial pressures, throughout these phases.
· The deliverable is determined during the project based on the environment.

Who will cry when you die!

2007-06-06T22:11:00.001-07:00

Last saturday, I was at Odyssey - browsing a number of books on leadership,motivation,relationship,men,women etc. I was lucky to get hold of one of Robin Sharma's best ever book - "Who will cry when you die". I looked into some of the chapters and decided to buy that book immediately.The beauty of the book lies in the simplicity of the content and the abundant wealth of information that it carries through. Each chapter is like a sugar coated tablet and just 1-1.5 pages long. It has a total of 101 chapters and the book is defined in such a way that, one need not read it in a sequence. You can pick up any chapter at any point of time and read it. It adds a lot of meaning to your life. Some of the lessons that I read :

1) Discover you calling.
2) Be kind to strangers.
3) Maintain your perspective.
4) Practice tough love.
5) Live life.
6) Learn to say no gracefully.
7) Get up early.
8) Maintain a journal.
9) Spend a day without your watch.
10) Learn to be silent.
11) Talk to yourself.
12) Take a weekly sabbatical.
13) Honor your past.
14) Take troubles as your blessings.
15) Learn from a good movie.
16) Model a child.
17) Think of an ideal neibhourhood.
18) Focus on the worthy.
19) Take more risks.
20) Develop a honesty philosophy.
21) Write thank you notes.
........

Ever since I started reading this book - I have made some changes to my living pattern and started implementing some of the lessons. I find it really very benefical and it has a positive impact on me. As an individual I have alerady started realizing the benefits. Some of them are :

1) I feel more inspired.
2) Monotonity has reduced.
3) My energy levels have increased.
4) Able to focus better.
5) Commitment level has increased.
6) Self - realization that any change take time,effort,discipline and patience.

This book is one of the best gift that you can give to people whom you like and love.Sure it will make everybody's life better!

Women are always special!

2007-05-31T21:41:00.000-07:00

Today morning as I was travelling to my office, I got a call from my associate saying that her baby had expired. She was in her 8th month of pregnancy. I was really shaken and didn't have any words to express my feelings. But after sometime I managed to regain my composure and gave her some pep up and told her that I will come to the hospital to meet her. There were quite some complications in the operation. I do not have the courage yet to meet her personally.It's a dreadful feeling especially for mothers and this single attribute of bearing a child for 9 months always makes women special and takes them higher than anybody in this world!.

A simple Gesture!

2007-05-29T22:26:00.000-07:00

Everybody can be great... because anybody can serve.You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve.
You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.

(Source:Chicken Soup for the Soul,by Jack Canfield and Mark Hansen).

Mark was walking home from school one day when he noticed the boy ahead of him had tripped and dropped all of the books he was carrying,along with two sweaters,a baseball bat,a glove and a small tape recorder.Mark knelt down and helped the boy pick up the scattered articles. Since they were going the same way,he helped to carry part of the burden.As they walked Mark discovered the boy's name was Bill,that he loved video games, baseball and history,that he was having a lot of trouble with his other subjects and that he had just broken up with his girlfriend.

They arrived at Bill's home first and Mark was invited in for a Coke and to watch some television.The afternoon passed pleasantly with a few laughs and some shared small talk, then Mark went home.They continued to see each other around school,had lunch together once or twice,then both graduated from junior high school.They ended up in the same high school where they had brief contacts over the years.Finally the long awaited senior year came, and three weeks before graduation,Bill asked Mark if they could talk.

Bill reminded him of the day years ago when they had first met. "Do you ever wonder why I was carrying so many things home that day?"asked Bill. "You see, I cleaned out my locker because I didn't want to leave a mess for anyone else. I had stored away some of my mother's sleeping pills and I was going home to commit suicide. But after we spent some time together talking and laughing, I realized that if I had killed myself,I would have missed that time and so many others that might follow.
So you see, Mark, when you picked up my books that day, you did a lot more.
You saved my life."

You can WIN!

2007-05-24T21:34:00.000-07:00

When I was reading Shiv Khera's 'YOU CAN WIN', the following messages always had a positive effect on me. I prefer to start my day, after reading these messages. I always felt better and it helps me when I am confused.

WINNERS VERSUS LOSERS

¨ The Winner is always part of the answer;
The Loser is always part of the problem.
¨ The Winner always has a program;
The Loser always has an excuse.
¨ The Winner says, "Let me do it for you";
The Loser says, "That is not my job."
¨ The Winner sees an answer for every problem;
The Loser sees a problem for every answer.
¨ The Winner says, "It may be difficult but it is possible";
The Loser says, "It may be possible but it is too difficult."
¨ When a Winner makes a mistake, he says, "I was wrong";
When a Loser makes a mistake, he says, "It wasn't my fault."
¨ A Winner makes commitments;
A Loser makes promises.
¨ Winners have dreams;
Losers have schemes.
¨ Winners say, "I must do something";
Losers say, "Something must be done."
¨ Winners are a part of the team;
Losers are apart from the team.
¨ Winners see the gain;
Losers see the pain.
¨ Winners see possibilities;
Losers see problems.
¨ Winners believe in win-win;
Losers believe for them to win someone has to lose.
Winners see the potential;
Losers see the past.
¨ Winners are like a thermostat;
Losers are like thermometers.
¨ Winners choose what they say;
Losers say what they choose.
¨ Winners use hard arguments but soft words;
Losers use soft arguments but hard words.
¨ Winners stand firm on values but compromise on petty things;
Losers stand firm on petty things but compromise on values.
¨ Winners follow the philosophy of empathy: "Don't do to others what you would not
want them to do to you";
Losers follow the philosophy, "Do it to others before they do it to you."
¨ Winners make it happen;
Losers let it happen.
¨ Winners plan and prepare to win.
The key word is preparation.

Legacy of Love!

2007-05-20T23:48:00.000-07:00

Source : Chicken Soup for the Soul,by Jack Canfield and Mark Hansen

As a young man,Al was a skilled artist,a potter.He had a wife and two
fine sons.One night, his oldest son developed a severe stomachache.Thinking it was only some common intestinal disorder, neither Al nor his wife took the condition very seriously.But the malady was actually acute appendicitis, and the boy died suddenly that night.Knowing the death could have been prevented if he had only realized the seriousness of the situation,Al's emotional health deteriorated under the enormous burden of his guilt.To make matters worse his wife left him a short time later, leaving him alone with his six-year-old younger son.The hurt and pain of the two situations were more than Al could handle, and he turned to alcohol to help him cope.In time Al became an alcoholic.

As the alcoholism progressed, Al began to lose everything he possessed—his home, his land, his art objects, everything.Eventually Al died alone in a San Francisco motel room.When I heard of Al's death, I reacted with the same disdain the world shows for one who ends his life with nothing material to show for it.

"What a complete failure!" I thought. "What a totally wasted life!"As time went by, I began to re-evaluate my earlier harsh judgment.Yousee, I knew Al's now adult son, Ernie. He is one of the kindest, most caring, most loving men I have ever known. I watched Ernie with his children and saw the free flow of love between them. I knew that kindness and caring had to come from somewhere.I hadn't heard Ernie talk much about his father. It is so hard to defend an alcoholic. One day I worked up my courage to ask him."I'm really puzzled by something," I said. "I know your father was basically the only one to raise you. What on earth did he do that you became such a special person?".

Ernie sat quietly and reflected for a few moments. Then he said, "From my earliest memories as a child until I left home at 18, Al came into my room every night,gave me a kiss and said, 'I love you, son.'"

Tears came to my eyes as I realized what a fool I had been to judge Al as a failure. He had not left any material possessions behind.But he had been a kind loving father, and he left behind one of the finest,most giving men I have ever known.

PMBOK : An bird's eye view!

2007-05-14T05:28:00.000-07:00

If you are preparing for PMP or have the idea to go for this - I recommend you to look into the following sites :

www.pmpdistilled.com
www.pmpmentor.com

Abrachan provides a great insight for all the participants on how to take this credential and come out successfully.

DABBAWALLAS – Self Organizing Teams

2007-05-14T00:29:00.000-07:00

The below information is extracted from the detailed presentation about 'Advanced Scrum V 1.2.1'- made by Abrachan Puduserry.

Information Source :
1) www.abrachan.org
2) www.scrumnet.org

Email : abrachan@pmriglobal.com

What is NMTBSA?
(Nutan Mumbai Tiffin Box Suppliers Association)
History : Started in 1880
Charitable trust : Registered in 1956
Avg. Literacy Rate : 8th Grade Schooling
Total area coverage : 60 Kms
Employee Strength : 5000
Number of Tiffin's : 2,00,000 Tiffin Boxes
i.e 4,00,000 transactions every day.
Time taken : 3 hrs

Error Rate : 1 in 16 million transactions
Six Sigma performance (99.999999)
Technological Backup : Nil.
Cost of service - Rs. 200/month ($ 4.00/month)
Standard price for all (Weight, Distance, Space)
Rs. 50 Cr. Turnover approx.
[200,000*200=400,000,00 p.m. i.e 48 crore p.a.]
“No strike” record as each one a share holder
Earnings -5000 to 6000 p.m.

APPROACH

DISCIPLINE :
No Alcohol Drinking during business hours
Wearing White Cap during business hours
Carry Identity Cards

Some Achievements
World record in best time management.
Name in “GUINESS BOOK of World Records”.
Registered with Ripley's “ believe it or not”.

LOGISTICS LOGISTICS
Logistics is happening 24 hrs a day,7 days a week
and 52 weeks a year.
Logistical competency is achieved by coordinating
the following:
- Network Design
- Information
- Transportation
- Inventory
- Warehousing

Motivation from Aby!

2007-05-06T20:48:00.000-07:00

Today,I got some comments about my blog from ABY(Abrachan).Abrachan has always been a source of inspiration for me. He has a great sense of vision and direction. I have learnt a lot from him about project management,quality management and about life too!

(Visit his website : www.abrachan.org)

These were his comments :
"Today I reached your blog accidentally, and I am really glad to see the grooming of a great blog. I am really honoured to see links to www.pmpdistilled.com and to www.abrachan.org. Keep up the good work. Best wishes, Abrachan".

Thanks a lot ABY for everything!!!

SCRUM - Is slowly catching up!

2007-05-03T23:52:00.000-07:00

SCRUM development process is slowly catching up. It's an agile way of working that lays stress on people and interaction over processes and documents. An attitude change is the baseline for the success of SCRUM.

The word SCRUM is derived from rugby.A scrum is a team of eight individuals in Rugby. Everyone in the pack acts together with everyone else to move the ball down the field.Teams work as tight, integrated units with each team member playing a well defined role and the whole team focusing on a single goal. In development teams, each team member must understand his or her role and the tasks for each increment. The entire team must have a single focus. The priorities must be clear. As we now describe, the Scrum development process facilitates this team focus.

Rewind - Love only!

2007-05-03T05:02:00.000-07:00

Today, I had the opportunity to discuss with one of my close friend his experiences with 'Love'. This created a sort of a flashback and I was able to reflect the same on me.

Every person in this world would have fallen in love. Love has personally given me some majestic highs and depressing lows.Love is something that has no words to describe and yet it is the most powerful feeling that human beings can relate to.

I was infact IN and OUT of it, a lot of times with different people at different times.On a lot of occassions,it was from the other side and hence it gave me the confidence to travel that extra mile.

As an institution, I do not believe in marriage.I strongly feel that marriage puts that extra bit of pressure on women.To me it's an old framework with crumbling edifice.But the only reason why I entered into it, was that I did not want to hurt the feelings&emotions of the girl with whom I had a relationship.

I appreciate live-in relation: since it assures women's liberation.It gives that extra impetus to women,that marriage cannot provide.

1) No person in this world can say that he has fallen in love only once.It's just a matter of whether the love has been expressed or not.

2) Love cannot happen after marriage. Really..Why not? When you can fall in love before marriage, why not after marriage?

3) Love need not be expressed only in words...Even before you express it in words, the other person will uncover it.

How to build Self Confidence?

2007-04-29T21:48:00.000-07:00

"What makes you weep,my friend? In you is all power.Summon up
your all-powerful nature mighty one and this whole universe will lie at
your feet.It is the Self alone that predominates and not matter."

- Swami Vivekanananda.

Though the potential strength is hidden within us,we are not able to
utilise it.Right attitude, positive thinking,and firm faith alone can
help us to manifest this hidden strength within.

How do great people achieve success in life?They cultivate certain qualities in order to awaken the hidden confidence within themselves.Why not we also
give a try if we wish to be great and successful in life?

The qualities needed to be cultivated to build self-confidence are:
1) Conviction
2) Hard Work
3) Will-Power
4) Self-respect
5) Long preparation
6) Communication
7) Commitment
8) Discrimination
9) Definite Goal
10) Love
11) Concentration
12) Strength

Difficult 2 Express !

2007-04-26T06:48:00.000-07:00

For the last few days, I wasn't able to spend much time on my blog. At times,I was finding it difficult to express certain things to certain people.I don't know why, but it's happenning.

Just at the right time, I was reading Shiv Khera's 'You Can Win'. One chapter highlights the importance of attitude. I will definitely have some take aways from this and something to share tomorrow.

Until then, Take care.

Coming Together

2007-04-13T05:09:00.000-07:00

Over the last few days,my office has become a very happenning place. Lot of initiatives and activities are going on for the Family Day 21/4/07. People are grouped into 4 teams and it's throwing out quite some talents,innovations and competition. Most important point is that a lot of NETWORKING is happenning among the people.

We basically have 4 teams - Red,Blue,Yellow and Green.Every day, the teams are coming out with novel ideas to promote their culture,thinking and character.

It's very nice to see such competition, but as professionals we also have the responsibility to ensure that the spirit of enjoyment and fun does not die. This is more important than winning.

Sea Gulls Did Not Come Near That Day!

2007-04-04T02:26:00.000-07:00

There was an old sage who was known for his love,affection,serenity,compassion and silence.He had the power to cure anything and anybody with his sheer optimisim.Everyday he used to meditate on the sea shore. During his meditation, the sea gulls would just climb up and down over his body and will play over all him. They would love his presence and the bright aura that emanated from his body.

Seeing this wonderful sight, one day a fisherman came to the sage.He told the sage that he was unable to get a good catch for the last few days and his family is starving. He told the sage to catch one or two sea gulls so that he can cook them to feed his family. At first the sage was very hesitant, but after seeing the plight of the poor fisherman, the sage agreed. He told the fisherman that he will catch a seagull on the next day.

The next day morning, the sage and the fisherman came to the seashore. As usual the sage sat down and started his meditation. The fisherman was watching the sage. Surprisingly, not a single seagull came near the sage. They didn't even come into the direction where the sage was sitting.The sage waited for quite some time and the seagulls clearly avoided his boundary.

The sage got up and started walking. The fisherman came to the sage and asked

'What happenned? Not a single seagull came near you today?

The sage replied

'Everyday I came here to meditate.Hence I was full of positive energy and the seagulls were attracted towards those positive vibrations. But today, when I came here - my intention was to catch hold of a seagull. This clearly created a negative energy field within me. The seagulls were able to sense my negative vibrations and hence they did not come near me'

If you are negative, people around you will be able to clearly sense it and they will avoid you.
So be POSITIVE and create a WIN WIN!!!

Winners Never Quit!

2007-04-02T04:18:00.000-07:00

MSQM : End of 2nd Sem

2007-04-02T02:50:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I completed my 2nd semester exams in Quality Management. Writing 2 exams a day,for 2 continuous days in a very poor environment was a challenge by itself. The infrastructure at the exam centre was so bad that I had a severe neck sprain at the end of the 1st day. Though I was frustrated, I wanted to finish off the exams,since postponment will cause a great deal of distress.

2 more semesters to go. This time at the end of 2 days of exams - my confidence level is better(compared to the 1st sem) due to the fact that, this time - I spent quite some time in planning and preparation.

IIQM/BITS boasts so much about their achievements and every year their rates for the distance learning programmes are just on the increasing trend. It's time that they also give some due attention and effort to provide the candidates a good environment and infrastructure to learn. It is their basic responsibility to ensure this. At this moment, they need a rapid improvement in this area.

May be they also need to do a bit of handholding with their customers(students,service providers) and apply the principles of TQM to ensure a true customer satisfaction!
Practice what you preach!

Bcoz I still Love You!

2007-03-26T05:41:00.000-07:00

I found this beautiful expression on love,when I was browsing the blogs(cish.rediffiland.com) on the net.

Clearly proves that love is natural and spontaneous!

You’re moving away

I know but can’t stop

My silence cries

But no one can hear

My eyes are shouting my pain

Your ears are so deaf

My heart shows you’re still there

Your eyes are so blind

I’m nothing for you hereafter

You have your love and

All the happiness

I’m not the reason

You still have that sparkling smile

But not for me

Is it a sin to love you anymore?

I don’t know

If it is so

I love to be a sinner

‘coz I still love you'

Being Positive!

2007-03-19T23:29:00.000-07:00

If A=1,B=2,C=3,...... and Z=26, then

a) HARDWORK = 98.
b) ATTITUDE = 100.
c) POSITIVE = 115.
d) EFFORT = 70.
e) INTELLIGENCE = 115.
f) MONEY = 72.
g) FAME = 25.
h) HAPPINESS = 107.

Combining c and b,
POSITIVE ATTITUDE = 115+100 = 215

Conclusion:

POSITIVE ATTITUDE scores higher than INTELLIGENCE(115),MONEY(72) and FAME(25).

Having a POSITIVE ATTITUDE makes a lot of difference in your life and helps every individual to be a winner.
All materialistic pleasures like MONEY,FAME score very less.

Tribute to a great individual - Bob Woolmer!

2007-03-18T22:11:00.000-07:00

I was shell shocked, when I heard about the tragic death of Bob Woolmer.Personally I love Bob Woolmer a lot.My thoughts are scatterred and disturbed after hearing this news.Bob has given away his live for the spirit and passion of cricket.What a noble person!!!

Bob brought about a lot of inventions and simplicity to the game with his unique ways of coaching. His combination with Hansie took South Africa to new heights.He is a kind of person who underplays his success and works for the overall benefit of the team.

He created a sense of direction,purpose,belonging and strong networking within the pakistan team - something the other coaches didn't bother to do! This was his true success and he always took the criticisms as an opportunity to improve.

I am bit more disturbed about the timing of his death-immediately after the PAK's elimination from WC'07. This clearly shows how much he would have been hurt for all the hard effort he has put in for the last 3 years to revive Pakistan cricket.
I think nobody would love the game as strong as Bob.

I sincerley pray to GOD that his sudden death is natural and not due to dirty cricketing politics.

May BOB's soul rest in peace and my condolonces to his family.

BOB- You had a strong influence on people like me.We will miss you and your POSITIVE ATTITUDE!.

When I finished writing this post, I observed that there were a lot of typing mistakes.An example of the impact that a loss like this can have on people like us.

True cricket can never exist without BOB WOOLMER!!!

EPGL Seminar - India 2007

2007-03-15T21:33:00.000-07:00

On March 14th and 15th- we had the Alcatel-Lucent EPGL India seminar 2007. It was a wonderful experience. We had a bunch of bubbly and vibrant participants from Delhi,Noida,B'lore and Chennai. It was great learning experience and this platform promoted a lot of networking and interaction among all the participants.

For me this was the most important take away from this seminar! It really helped to de-stress a lot and know each other well.Another promising event that created a lot of positive vibrations and energy!

Will upload the photos in another 2 days.

The method of blogging

2007-03-12T00:21:00.000-07:00

I had the opportunity to visit Shiva's blog. It was wonderful,poetic with a lot of expressions and reflections about life.

When I analyzed shiva's blog,I was able to relate the following :

Shiva's blog had a method to go about it,whereas mine does not follow any structured methods.

Have a look into

http://kodaihills.blogspot.com/

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend.

Greatest Battle!

2007-03-09T02:49:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I read an article from the news paper on women's liberation.There it was mentioned that a lot of women now prefer to live alone and they do not want to get into marriage.In a way that's good and bad.

I think - it's more to do with how you see marriage.As an institution,I do not believe in marriage.It puts that extra bit of pressure especially on women.

The conventional rules needs to be broken.Commitment,Trust and Love should take the lead for a happy relationship. I guess quite soon live-in relationship would be the call of the day. This will keep the relationship healthy without putting any pressure on the individuals.

But this is not easy in our environment and the greatest battles will be with our own minds!

Women's Day-March 8th 2007

2007-03-07T05:21:00.000-08:00

To all the women whom I came across-My Kudos to U for being:

W-Wonderful,O-Optimistic,M-Magnanimous,
E-Enchanting,N-Not so good(at times!).

Have a stunning women's day!

The hero of the day!!!

2007-03-07T04:45:00.000-08:00

Today, DS published the BDay snaps of Pranav.
It was a wonderful and funfilled party.
The comments were too cute and it takes some
special effort and focus from DS to bring it to such perfection.

DS - I guess it's a perfect gift for the women's day.

For enjoying those special moments:

http://picasaweb.google.com/
pranavsiva/Pranav_1stbirthday

The lesson learnt from ANTS!

2007-03-06T05:03:00.000-08:00

Today, I was reading a chapter out of Oh! Mind Relax Please. There was a story describing how human beings can learn a lot from the ants.

Ants have some great inherent qualities:

1) Ants always proactive. During summer they plan for winter and during winter they plan for summer.
2) Ants posses a great deal of flexibility. They always have the capability to cross the obstacles on their way.
3) Ants have a great deal of patience during tough periods.
4) Ants always follow a common discipline and pattern during their course of travel.
5) They have a wonderful networking capabilities - the leader in the front pass the signals through the network if they face a hurdle on their way and they very quickly change their course of direction.They manage the critical path very well!
6) The group always follow the leader and the leader leads their way through the network. Humility is a great strength of the ants.
7) Last but not the least - they synergize as a team and work towards a common objective.

Analyzing the above qualities of the ants - I think it is directly applicable to the project management scenario.Indeed,we have a lot to learn from the ants.

It's a great lesson.

7 rules to guarantee project failure!

2007-03-05T05:20:00.000-08:00

A must read from www.spmn.com

http://www.iceincusa.com/Content/7Rules.pdf

Sean Covey's 7 habits of highly effective teens!

2007-03-04T19:53:00.000-08:00

These 7 habits are the synopsis of sean covey's message to youngsters :

1) Be Proactive.
2) Begin with an end in the mind.
3) Put first things first.
4) Seek first to understand and then to be understood.
5) Think WIN WIN.
6) Synergize.
7) Sharpen your saw!

I am trying hard to follow this and these 7 habits makes me stronger whenever I fail.

MSQM 2nd Semester

2007-03-02T03:33:00.000-08:00

Just now, I received my closed book exam marks for MS Quality Management 2nd semester.

TQM - 28.5/30
EMS -27.5/30
QTM -26/30
TC -21/30

Lot of scope for improvement especially in Technical Communication.

Also this time,the assignments were quite tough - Calibration and Technical Communication was a very big challenge for me! It did put me out of track for a while,but I somehow managed the assignments. Kudos to IIQM for setting such high standards.

So quite some preparation needs to be done for the comprehensive exams on March 31,April 1 2007.

Such positive challenges always helps me to pursue my goals better!

Have a great weekend...

What's up this weekend?

2007-03-02T02:24:00.000-08:00

Some reading,Lot of playing with Arjuun,Outing with friends,Some recharging....and some unknowns!

The power of positive energy!

2007-03-02T01:25:00.000-08:00

This week, I was in a finance training for non-finance executives. There were quite a lot of take aways from this training. In addition to learning some basics about finance - I got the opportunity to meet 'Munish Agarwal'.

Personally Munish left a great impact on me! After a long time - I met a person who had loads of positive energy.He was an expert in the field of finance,operation and every word from his mouth was so meaningful.

I learnt a lot from his values - optimism,self confidence,self respect,respect for others,open mind and his commitment levels.

In addition to this-my self confidence grew up in size(for a different personal reason)after seeing Munish.

I felt extremely motivated after the 2 days of fruitful interactions with Munish.

Thanks a lot Munish - You were rocking!!!