Happy Republic Day

These are the pictures of special children who cannot hear or speak. They are singing the National Anthem in their own beautiful way.

I feel it's time for us to look beyond ourselves and come forward to make a difference.

Wishing You A Very Happy Republic Day!

Recognise even the smallest of contribution

Another example from the epic Ramayan to illustrate the recognition of even the tiniest of contribution, specially at work.
When the army of monkies was laying down the bridge to reach Lanka, a squirrel noticed the same and thought of being a part of the work. She laid in the sand and twisted herself up and down, right and left so that she could accumulate as much of sand and gravel as possible. Then she would go to the spot where the bridge was being made, twist herself and unload the matter collected. This loading and unloading of the construction material by her went on and on till Lord Ram noticed. Then he gently lifted the tiny squirrel in his hands and lovingly moved his fingers over her furs. It is said that the squirrel attained immortality and that the lines this species has over its furs occurred ever since Ram patted that squirrel.

Coming to the moral of the story as applicable at workplace:

1. Recognise and encourage every genuine effort.

2. Understand that every task has it's own importance.

3. Every person in the organization has an important role to play and contributes to the topline as well as the bottomline.

4. Always be a part of the solution.

5. Do not take anyone for granted.

6. Never ever under-estimate yourself.

7. Give your best to everything you do.

8. When you work for a noble cause, mother nature takes care of you in every manner.

Please send in your views and comments.

Trust - another intrinsic motivator

The other day I was reading an incident that happened while Sita was in the custody of Ravan. Ram asked Hanuman if he could get Sita back and Hanuman readily agreed. Then Ram asked him these questions-

Question by Ram , Answer by Hanuman
1. Have you ever seen Sita? No
2. Do you know where she is? No
3. Do you knowhow to get her back? No

Then Ram finally asked, then why did you say yes when I asked you if you could get her back?

To this, Hanuman replied-My dear Lord, when you trusted me so much by asking if I could do your work, I trust that you will make me do the work. And we all know the final result.

Trust is such a big motivator that it makes one achieve the most difficult task too.

Next time, if you are being asked to take up a challenging task, don't feel jittery, just understand that your boss or the organizations trusts your capabilities. I remember one incident that happened while I was working with one of the new generation banks. During an appraisal exercise, one of my colleagues complained to the business head that- things are just too difficult on the workfront and there are so many problems on a daily basis. To this, the business head said- because work is so difficult and there are so many problems, that is why you have been chosen to do it, else any average person could have done it; and we all are here to help you out. These words were more than enough for him to come back into full swing.

So, let's create an environment of mutual trust where everyone can give his best fearlessly.

For subordinates-be so trustworthy that you are the first one of whom your boss can think of in the best and worst of situations;

For superiors-live upto the trust of your subordinates and make them feel that they can look upto you in every situation.

Happy Youth Day

Heartiest wishes to all of you on the occassion of National Youth Day which happens to be Swami Vivekanand's birth anniversary. Here are a few inspirational messages by Swami Vivekanand.

1. We become what our thoughts make us. So be careful about what you think.

2. Take one good thought and make it your life.

3. Let your brain, muscles and nerves be immersed in that thought.

4. Every work is divine and every duty is worship.

5. While doing a work, think of nothing else.

6. So, awake and arise, and get into action.

7. Keep going till you reach your destination.

8. Leave your mark behind.

So always stay youthful.

Please keep sending your comments and suggestions.

Ray of hope

While feeling the the winter chill this morning, I felt so relieved to see the sun rays and then a thought just occurred to me that no matter how dark or tough days are, a ray of hope can do great wonders. Then I remembered a friend saying that down in London the winters are so extreme that there is no sunrise for days together and some people survive on anti-depressants during that season. I was taken aback to know this and then realised that we take a lot of things for granted and forget the abundant blessings we have been bestowed upon with.

Coming back to hope, yes it is a wonder drug; it gives the courage to fight the oddest of odds, it gives a reason to look forward to a better season and stay calm in the rough season. It strengthens one's auto immune system and helps one emerge as a winner.

So, find and cling on to that ray of hope, it'll bring a bundle of opportunities and means of getting there too.

Stay hopeful and keep giving your ideas:)

Corporate Social Responsibility-an instrinsic motivator

We have been reading a lot about corporates undertaking various CSR initiatives like creating education funds, medical facilities, educating villagers, creating a green environment so on and so forth. Companies like Tatas & Birlas have always been doing a lot for humanitarian cause, nowadays a lot of other companies have taken seriously to the act of giving. Wives of biz wizards Narayan Murthy, Nandan Nilekani and many more are doing a lot of good work for social cause.

I was pleasantly surprised to read about a dedicated stock exchange being set up in London by an Indian & his friend for listing companies that work largely for a social cause like social housing, education, health, public transport, greentech etc. Interestingly the newspaper also reports about The Act of Giving as the theme of The Economic Times Awards for Corporate Excellence. The value of philanthropy being the central idea of a business award- captivating, is'nt it?

On a much serious note, I find these acts to be motivators for the people actually doing all this. I am referring to the employees who are involved in carrying out various philanthropic activities. It acts as a great intrinsic motivator in the following ways:

• Gives a meaningful purpose
• Increases trust between employer & employee
• Increases self-worth
• Motivates to do better
• Gives a sense of fulfilment
• Increases credibility

I urge each one of you to make use of such motivators. Those of you who are at the helm of affairs, please engage your employees in some philanthropic work apart from their routine duties; and others, take up some such activity on your own. You'll feel a new zest for life altogether. Whenever I am engaged in such activities, I get a different high and sense of accomplishment; and am sure you'll experience the same. Please try it out.

Do write in and share your ideas.

Let's welcome the dawn of 2011

Let's welcome the dawn of a wonderful year ahead with a lot of positive energy.

May it drive us towards the path of serenity, humility & noble achievements.

Let's make it a splendid year for ourselves and those around us:)

Wish you a Very Happy New Year!

Time to review & set new goals

As the year comes to an end, let's take a while and sit for a review. I am not talking about the monthly/ quarterly/ annual review at work. I'm sure our organizations have done that or are in the process. I am talking about reviewing ourselves, holistically. Like any other review exercise let's sit down and check how far have we reached. Those of us who had set holistic goals earlier can review the progress easily, check for deviations and take corrective actions; but those who did'nt, need to ask a few basic questions in relation to personal and professional lives-

1. Am I happy doing what I am doing?

2. Have I reached where I wanted to reach by this time?
3. Am I on the right track?
4. Have I done things that I should have done?
5. Have I done things that I should not have done?

The answers are self explanatory and shall give us an insight into the growth trajectory of life. Next, we need to set goals for the coming year- goals for life to be achieved over the coming year. So let's take a break and ask ourselves the above mentioned questions and set new goals in relation to our:

• Health
• Relationships
• Work
• Self help, Self love
• Attitude towards oneself, others & events in life
• Selfless service

And now a few resolutions:

• We'll not carry whatever we do not need to carry (baggages of grudges and negativity).
• We'll take a few steps backwards if they can take us farther in the journey of life.
• We'll not make unjust comparisons.
• We'll give ourselves and our loved ones time and effort.
• We'll leave no stone unturned to make our lives better and happier.

Let's be full of energy to welcome the new year and hold the same energy levels throughout the year. Let the new year take us to heights of wholesome achievements and happiness.

Wishing all of you a Merry Christmas & a Lovely New Year! May His grace fill our lives with everlasting hope and happiness.

Softer Techniques for Employee Management

With the ever rising competition, companies are using various softer ways of managing and motivating workforce. Let's have a look at two such methods.

1. Office Buddy

A new joinee is introduced to an existing employee, who now happens to be his collegue and is formally made his office buddy. This buddy not just helps him to come in sync with the prevalent systems and processes in the organisation, but also aids him on the personal fron by helping him fetch an accomodation, vehicle etc if required. This buddy becomes the first point of contact for the new joinee if he has any problem in settling down in work. A few MNCs and large corporates are trying this concept are are finding it successful in making the freshers smoothly sail through the teething troubles that crop up on joining a new organization.

2. Mentoring

The concept of mentoring has been in the corporate world since quite some time.

In general parlance, mentor means a friend, philosopher & guide. When we talk in context of a corporate organization, the same meaning holds true when an emplyee needs to undergo the process of learning on the job. Usually his boss or a senior (in terms of knowledge or experience) plays the role of a mentor. He is responsible for grooming the employee for his job.

Whether it's a mentor or office buddy, the concept helps the organization and the people concerned in the following ways:

• Saves resources
• Reduces errors
• Provides role clarity
• Checks deviation from goals
• Improves communication
• Keeps employee morale high
• Enhances learning
• Yields better results
• Helps in self-development of both the parties
• Strengthens relationships
• Reduces attrition

I am sure we all must have had and still have buddies and mentors in our lives- both professional and personal. I will always remember those peers who helped me not only understand the customized softwares and cumbersome operations, but also in getting things like getting an identity card, canteen coupon etc. which seemed as humungous tasks in a new organization in a new city. Yes they were informal office buddies. I will always be thankful to those seniors who gave their time and effort in making me understand every item of a project report, a balance sheet and its implications, along-with a lot of other work relating things.

We have buddies, philosophers and guides in the forms of friends, cousins, parents and other close ones who play significant and positive roles in our lives. Similar concepts when replicated at work place, shall prove to be highly effective.

I shall get a sense of completion for this post only when I add that, the ultimate mentor & buddy in our lives is God Almighty. When we realise this and act accordingly, sucess shall be all ours.

Please give your views and throw some light on the innovations being made for boosting employee morale and productivity.

Unusual qualities of the accomplished

While reading the interviews of a few famous and accomplished personalities from various fields, I could note a few generally uncommon qualities that all of them have and those that have always impressed me.
Be it the great scientist and ex-president Abdul Kalam, the great philanthropist whose company has a rich history of over a century JRD Tata, our hero from the world of cricket Sachin Tendulkar, certain remarkable traits in them are:
Staying connected to roots- While Abdul Kalam (an ardent devotee of Bhagawan Sathya Sai Baba) was the President of India, he visited Baba and gave his first month's salary to Him praying that in India we give our first month's income to our mother and since Kalam had lost both his parents and Baba was everything to him, he should accept the same.
Unwavering faith in Almighty- I read that whenever Sachin hits a six or four he looks up with his hands facing the sky and eyes closed, he prays to the Lord and thanks Him and his father.
Down to earth- Quite often those who've achieved certain amount of monetary wealth seem to have stopped talking or behaving at the ground level. On the other hand, be it a Sachin, Kalam or Tata or a few others too, they all are so humble that they do not seem to possess even an iota of air.
Dedication- Sincere hard work and toil, not just smart work carves a successful person apart from other things. There are really no short cuts, and those that are tempting, take only into pits.
Working for a noble cause- The Tata Memorial Hospital, a state of the art temple for fighting cancer is a live example of true service to mankind. Cancer patients of every income group from all over the world are being provided the best of treatment at very nominal rates there.
The amount of charitable work done by Sachin Tendulkar, Narayan Murthy, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet (the list will be endless) is truly exemplary.

So let's yearn for imbibing and living these qualities, I'm sure success will follow.

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