Mission Accomplished

One year back, I embarked upon a mission to write 52 articles in 52 weeks and today that mission is accomplished.

Yes, I am feeling very happy about it. Completing this mission has helped me satisfy 2 of my driving forces viz., Challenge & Achievement and Respect and Awe. Coincidentally, ‘Driving Forces’ was the topic of my first article 1 year back.

I thoroughly enjoyed this journey.

This mission gave me a sense of purpose, something to look forward to every week. I was missing this in my personal life since leaving IPCL Township in 2004 where I was engaged in so many socio-cultural activities. Since then, life has revolved largely around work.

I always believed that I have good understanding about various aspects and dimensions of life. Be it work, leadership, management, personal effectiveness, people skills, I had learnt something useful everywhere. This mission gave me a chance to really compose my learnings in a transferable form.

I also got a chance to convey my messages to a larger audience, some intended and some incidental. It allowed me to provided pertinent inputs to my colleagues as per the need of the hour. Sometimes, I advised some colleagues to read a specific article when they sought my suggestions in that area. I strongly felt that if I share my experience and learnings, it might impact some one’s life positively. This was a great motivator.

Many people used to ask me how I got time to write every week. Actually, that was the easiest part. Every Saturday evening, my wife and daughter go for their dance class and I used to be alone at home. Most of the articles were written in that period. Sometimes, for some reasons, if I missed that slot, I utilized Saturday late night or Sunday early morning slots.

What helped the most was the fact that very early; I had declared that I will be writing 52 blogs in 52 weeks. It then became a prestige issue. Once declared, missing the target was no more an option. Over time, it kind of became a habit. From, Friday evening itself I started thinking about the topic and contents.

There we many friends, colleagues and seniors who regularly encouraged me by way of feedback, comments and many times, open appreciation. Some of them were open enough to express their difference of opinion also. All this made it very exciting.

There weren’t too many hurdles. The biggest one was to think of a topic on which I have enough material to write 2 - 3 pages about. Now I understand the purpose we were made to write essays / composition in school days. One requires some depth of knowledge about a topic to think, compose and communicate meaningful information and ideas.

Thinking of first 10 odd topics was easy. After that it became a challenge. Since I had to avoid specific topics or incidents related to work, religion and politics, the options became limited. Many times I would ask my wife or daughter to suggest some topic. On few occasions they did suggest but then they also ran out of ideas. Sometimes, the ideas came from some incident that happened around that day as it happened last week. Sometimes, some friends suggested specific topics related to something I wrote. Somehow I could manage to think of 52 topics.

Another challenge was not to hurt anyone’s sentiments. Most of the topics and content therein were related to my information, opinions & impressions formed from experience and learning. There was all probability that some readers will have a different opinion or impressions. I tried my best to avoid hurting any one’s sentiments but still if that happened inadvertently, I take this opportunity to apologize.

Besides posting on the blog site, facebook and linkedin, I used to share the link with all my friends, relatives, colleagues and acquaintances either through whatsapp or email. I must accept that I had not asked their permission before doing so. I felt guilty of intruding in to their space and a few times asked them if I should stop sending these messages. Luckily, no one asked me to stop so I considered that as permission granted.

Only 2 people had asked me not to send the link to them in the beginning itself.

Honestly speaking, I do not know how many people actually read those articles. I know many people who did since they gave feedback. The number of views as visible is blog site data also indicated that there was fair amount of interest being shown. One of the articles got 700+ views while most clocked from 400 – 500.

I am not very sure about the quality of the content and composition of these blogs. I tried to honestly share whatever I knew or thought. I would really like to get a feedback from the readers across sections. Some friends did suggest that I must someday write a book but I am not sure if I am that good. Though the idea seems exciting and interesting.

With this mission accomplished, I now have to think of some new activity. Something exciting and challenging enough that will make me think and learn more. Something that will be beneficial for me and hopefully useful to others also. Let’s see what idea do I come across.

Does it mean I will stop writing now? No. I will still write but not so regularly.

Think

Today morning, I received a very nice message from a childhood friend. “Nurture great thoughts as you can never go higher than your thoughts”. How true!!!

Everything in this world is created twice, once in our thoughts and then in reality.

Our thoughts form our opinion about everything. They determine what we like or don’t, consider right or wrong, good or bad, acceptable or unacceptable, moral or immoral, to do or not to and so on.

Our thoughts have huge influence on our self image, our assessment of our strengths or weaknesses, our conception about our capabilities or limitations, what we can or should aspire, our roles, responsibilities and duties etc. They are the sources of our driving force and our dreams. They largely influence how much we can believe on our selves.

Our thoughts determine our priorities and preferences, what we would do ourselves, what we will delegate and what we will not attempt or care about. They determine how we will allocate our time and other resources. Our thoughts influence our strategies, action plans and their implementation.

Our thoughts determine our behaviour with self and others. They influence how we treat people, whether with respect or contempt, as equals or inferiors, as important or useless etc. They determine who we consider as ‘ours’ who as ‘others’ or even ‘enemies’. In an unknown or new land, how a person from our Alma Matter, city, state or country become our own inspite of being a perfect stranger just a while ago.

Our thoughts determine our interpretation about others’ image & opinion about and attitude & behaviour towards us. Same act from two different people or from same person under different circumstances has different effect on us which in turn influences our response or reaction to it.

It is our thoughts that determine our whole concept of what we are and about our whole being.

No one is genetically programmed to think in a particular way. Our thinking is influenced by many factors, external as well as internal.

The first influencers are the parents. They have high impact on what we consider right or wrong and acceptable or unacceptable. They form our initial self image through their positive or negative strokes. They groom us as competitive or collaborative. They influence our interests through various exposures and encouragement. They help us taste our first successes and overcome first failures. They teach us whether to acquire through own effort or be spoon fed. They influence our sense of dependence, independence, self dependence and interdependence. They become our first role models. We do as they do and not only as they say.

Various people in parenting authority in our social circle can also have some influence, especially negative. If the messages they give are in contradiction to our parents’, it can confuse us a lot.

Our teachers have huge impact in our way of thinking, sometimes, even more than the parents. I remember an incident from my daughter’s childhood. We had taught her ‘A for apple, aeroplane, axe, arrow and ankle’. But in the school, the teacher told her that A for apple is right while A for aeroplane is wrong. On inquiring, she explained that while my daughter is smart enough to understand that A can be for many things, there are many children in the class who will get confused. Her duty is to take care of the last person in the line. Thus instead of encouraging others to learn more, she discouraged my daughter so that she learns less.

What kind of limiting influence she would have put on the thinking of so many children?

At the same time, I remember some teachers from my childhood who had huge impact on the way I learnt, behaved, aspired and stood for my beliefs.

The teachers influence the way we learn. Whether we mug up or we try to understand and apply. Whether we accept as it is or do we learn to challenge & question. Whether we own up responsibility or look up for excuses.

The kind of institute we study in and the general culture therein can have high impact on many. Although, all institutes affiliated to a board or university teach the same syllabus and conduct the same exams, the personality, behaviour and success rate of premier institutes’ students is remarkably different from the average ones.

As we grow, our friends start influencing our thought process. A man is known by the company he keeps. In fact, he becomes a lot like it. I got a chance to befriend some really fantastic people and my personality was moulded substantially by observing and emulating them.

Another influencing factor is the kind of organizations we work for, their performance and the culture therein. We spend maximum waking time there. The leaders, managers and peers form the culture and code of conduct. Prolonged behaviour bound by those guidelines can have deep rooted impact on the way we think. Whether we are result oriented or activity oriented, whether we are transparent or secretive, whether we share or hide, whether we collaborate or fight, whether we are progressive or conservative, whether we look at possibilities or constraints is all learnt there..

The spouse has the second highest impact on our thinking. Depending upon the quality of relationship, we either align with or oppose the new thoughts and ideas. This relation can either unshackle us or constrain us. Coincidentally, both harmony and discord can have either of these effects.

The highest impact on our thinking is by us. Each one of us analyses and interprets the same data in a different manner. So many people experience the same environment and receive the same inputs or impulses. However, the impact on each person and their reaction or response is different. Even for one person, same experience or input can evoke different response at different stages of life. Some years back, I enjoyed smoking but not anymore. I used to like some non vegetarian dishes but now I detest the very idea.

Our interpretation of external inputs depends largely on our self image and self worth. Most of the times, we either over estimate our self or under estimate. Many of us have a lopsided understanding of our capabilities and what we deserve.

I recently read a book on leadership. It stated that a leader’s biggest responsibility and contribution are to make people think. Think big, think differently and think beyond limitations. Thinking is a skill and thus can be learnt and then improved through guidance and practice.

In my opinion, since leadership starts from self, it is our prime responsibility to train and coach our own self to think.

To help us do that, we must all read lots of good books (not novels), interact freely with people we consider better than us in any way and have collaborative discussion with peers who also aspire to achieve more than what they already have. We can even copy or emulate the people we admire. Why reinvent the wheel, always?

Thinking deeply, widely and ahead improves our analytical skill. It also improves our sense and communication. We should fearlessly express our thoughts. This will help us get more opinions about that topic.

Ultimately, it is the quality of our thoughts that will determine the quality of our life. So to live a better life, THINK.

I Wish

Each one of us has a wish list. Many, like me, have a long one while some have smaller. Some of these wishes become goals and propel us in to persistent action. Some remain mere wishes and mostly unfulfilled. Some become expectations from others.

Some people have a clear idea of their wishes while some are often confused. Often the clarity is more about what we wish from others and lesser about what we wish from or for ourselves. Many times, I find people hesitating, to the extent of considering it selfish or mean, to have a wish for self.

I too have my own wish list. They are for and from self, family, relatives, friends, colleagues, society, polity, government and occasionally the world too. Many have got fulfilled, for some the progress is on track, for some I am yet to make any sincere effort while some seem impossible to be fulfilled.

Though the words wish and want are often interpreted differently but here I am using them interchangeably.

So what do I wish for and from myself?

First thought that comes to my mind is lots of money, for sure. I want to be able to fulfill all my responsibilities towards my parents, spouse and child. In fact, I would love to indulge and spoil them. I want to be taken care of. Actually, would prefer to be pampered.

I want professional success in terms of responsibilities, performance, contribution, position, recognition, reward and fame. I want to become and also be acknowledged as the Champion of Physical Asset Management.

I want to spend lot of time in the company of good friends, current and future ones. I want to have lots and lots of friends. I want to meet lot of talented people having proficiency in a variety of fields. They can be from industry, business, academics, government, politics, social work, media, films, TV, theatre, music, creative arts, fine arts, sports, adventure, literature, philosophy, religion, spirituality and what not. Each field is unique with so much to know about and learn from.

I want to pursue my hobbies and interests. I want to read a large variety of books, journals and magazines. I want to capture my experience and imagination by writing articles and books. I wish to explore my creative self by writing, directing and acting in dramas. I want to watch lots of interesting movies with amazing story lines and fabulous performances.

I want to learn to play some musical instrument amongst synthesizer, guitar, drums or octopad. I want to learn to play golf and lawn tennis. I want to learn at least 2 more languages, viz. German and Marathi. I come across people speaking these languages regularly in the course of my work and living.

I want to travel the world. See the nature’s bounty, admire human creativity, meet different people, enjoy the varied cultures and collect lot of fond memories.

I, somewhere, also want to be fully healthy free from any dietary restrictions or physical constraints.

I want to be more sensible. I should be able to differentiate more clearly between what is beneficial or harmful and act accordingly. I want to be more sensitive while dealing with people. In no case should I be a reason for discomfort, insult or hurt to people no matter how weak or poor they might be. I want to be more patient so that I can think through properly before speaking or doing anything. I want to be more careful so that I do not goof while working or handling people.

I want to be a better communicator. I want to be a great listener. I want to understand correctly people’s ideas, intentions, purpose and requirements better without the limitation of vocabulary, grammar or diction. I want to be effective while conveying to other what I want to.

I want to be more disciplined when it comes to time, health and money. It is so easy to be imprudent in these 3 areas. One of my favourite jokes since many years has been that, “whatever we like in life is either costly, wastes time, is bad for health or is married to someone else”. That should remain a joke only and not become a reality.

I want to add value to every life that I come across. I wish to be the most loved, trusted, respected and sought after person in the close & extended family, relatives and friends. I want to be more compassionate. I want to increase the zone of my benevolence to the society at large going beyond family, relatives & friends.

I wish a good a career for my daughter in the field of her choice. She should get best possible education and then a satisfying & rewarding work life. She should stay away from harm, evil influence and bad company. She should get a good life partner with whom she can lead a mutually fulfilling, enriching and blissful life. She should realize her duties and responsibilities and fulfill them. She should get loved and respected. She should lead a life of choice and abundance.

I wish good health and care for parents and wife. I want to contribute in fulfilling their wishes. I want to take care of them. I want them to lead a peaceful and happy life. In fact, I wish good health, peace and happiness for all.

When I look at the above list, I do not find any wish that can be ignored, neglected or given lower priority. Each one has a role in making my life complete and fulfilling. It is now up to me to have a balanced approach and do justice with all of them concurrently, congruently and coherently.

While I have a long wish list for and from myself, I also have a smaller list of what I wish from others.

First, I want people to have a wish list. That list should have a mix of short term requirements and long term goals. This will give them a sense of purpose and their life a direction. We can achieve something only if we know that we want to achieve it. They must understand what they need to add, enhance, correct or eliminate in themselves to fulfill these wishes. They must then relentlessly pursue those goals and keep adding more goals as the earlier ones get accomplished.

They must look at the big picture. Follow the cycle of plan, do, check and act. Live consciously and not as driven by circumstances. Live by choice and not by chance.

I want people to be much more disciplined in the areas of safety. They must remember that every time they take risks, they endanger several lives, besides their own. If they die while violating traffic and safety rules, it is least painful. If they end up crippled for life or in a vegetate state, the misery for themselves and family increases multifold. If they end up killing or maiming someone, there can’t be a bigger crime.

I want people to be honest, have integrity and honour their word. Don’t say yes if you want to say no. Don’t play blame games. Solve the problem at hand conclusively. Don’t hide your mistakes. Accept and learn from them. It’s ok to be wrong or to fail. None of us is born perfect. We all learn and evolve.

I want people to understand their roles and associated responsibilities & deliverables. Please do what you are supposed to do and not hide behind excuses and flimsy procedural lapses.

I want people to contribute first before expecting a reward. Be more polite & considerate and less selfish or self centered. Do what is right for the society, organization or family and not only what is beneficial for your short term interest.

I want people to value their own time and others’ too. Come to meetings at time, finish the work within timeline and in case of slippage, inform the other stakeholders.

I want this world to be a safer place to live in. I want to be surrounded by people whom I can trust. I want peace around me.

I do not know how many of my wishes, wants or goals will get fulfilled in my lifetime. What I know for sure is that I will consistently and persistently pursue them till the last breath. 

Let's Talk

Yes, this is the title of the series of my blogs. But why? Let me take you to the origin of this thought.

My first training programme, in the area of personal effectiveness, was for some teenagers of our township in 2003. Having no prior experience in this work, I decided to consult a few knowledgeable friends interested in similar activities.  

We had a common impression that most youngsters are unable to convey properly what they think and know. They find it difficult to think, visualize and learn. Somewhere on the way, they lose self esteem & self confidence and end up with poor self image.

Exposure to structured and meaningful communication, in a comfortable company, appeared to be a good tool to help them start their journey towards self fulfillment and unleashing their potential. We felt that, conversation will be the best form of communication to start with. That’s how ‘Let’s Talk’ was born.

We invited 15 children, from the township, studying in class VII – IX to attend the programme spanning over 3 evenings for 3 hours each. The success of the first programme encouraged us to conduct many more.

The structure of the programme was very simple. They were given the following conversational tasks, which they had to execute one by one. Others were to listen quietly and attentively. No one was to object or criticize whatever anyone says.

1.    Please introduce yourself and also tell us about your family, hobbies, interest etc.

2.    Whom do you love the most and why? (the answer was never I)

3.    What all do you like about yourself?

4.    What were your first thoughts when you heard about this programme and what are your expectations?

5.    What do you like about each of your co-participants that either your already knew or noticed during this programme?

6.    Assuming you are in presence of God, who can give and do everything, which one wish you will like him to fulfill?

Some kids were extrovert and spoke freely. Some took time to open up. But by the second evening, all of them were participating actively. Their discomfort was very evident when they were asked to praise themselves. We all get so much negative feedback from the environment that we find it difficult to believe that we are the best creation of God. However, one girl mentioned 28 things that she liked about herself. All of them could share at least 5.  They were less uncomfortable while praising others but very uncomfortable in accepting their own praise from others. I think most of us find it difficult it is to listen, acknowledge and accept our praise from others.

One thing I like about children is that they do what you ask them to. They didn’t ask how can God be here, what’s the use, will God really give them what they ask for? They just asked Him whatever they wanted.

Most of the participants have now completed their studies and become engineers, doctors etc. as per their choice. I wish I knew if that programme helped them in this.

What I know is that I personally learned some key lessons from that programme. The biggest is that communication is our lifeline. Right communication can have profound impact is shaping and improving the quality of our life.

Communication is not only what we tell others. It includes what we read, absorb and implement. It includes what we listen, understand and accept. It includes what, how and when we think and share. It also includes the messages that we give to our self. It is how we carry, conduct and present ourselves. It is also what we observe, conclude and learn. It can be verbal or non verbal. It can be oral, written or a combination. It is even though our actions.

Communication tells others about our capability and intentions. We can communicate largely without any aids though sometimes they can help enhance the effect. Interestingly, most important messages don’t need or can’t be done through words.

One big benefit of communication is learning. To communicate properly, we must know or learn the subject. If we are engaged in a conversation, we have to think, compose and speak quite fast. Good communication develops a person’s intelligence as well which is nothing but the speed of learning and thinking. Also, what we hear, read or observe improves our information and knowledge.

Good communicators are often popular. Good communication does not mean talking more. It means talking right, as per the situation. They understand when they have to be serious, humorous, intense or funny. They know when to be soft and if absolutely necessary, when to be hard. They can listen with empathy. They are able to initiate, establish and sustain relationships.

In fact, communication is nowhere as important as in relationships. Trust, compassion, consideration and respect are conveyed best through communication.

So what is a good communication?

Good communication is purposeful. It has an intention to fulfill or a goal to achieve. It is crisp. It uses minimal words or actions to convey the intended message. It moves forward on the track and not in circles or tangents. It flows freely. Too much, hmms and haws, long pauses and fidgeting obstruct it. Good communication is respectful unless embarrassing someone is the actual intention. It makes the listeners or readers comfortable and excited. They want it to continue.

If the communication happening is verbal, vocabulary and grammar are very important. In non verbal, the choice of gestures and action has to be culture and context appropriate. It should put forth the facts correctly and logically based on proper analysis.

In my opinion, the most interesting form of communication is a conversation. Also this is the most commonly used form. It is a two way dialogue and not a monologue. We get immediate feedback whether verbally or through expressions and gestures. We can be questioned, challenged or objected to. We do not completely control the other person’s response and thus need to continuously maneuver the interaction to keep the discussion on track.

There is no chance of rethinking, editing, correcting or rephrasing. A word is spoken only once and is forever. We can back up our vocabulary with diction, expressions, gestures and postures to increase the effectiveness. Same word or sentence can mean so many different things.

A good conversation can be very stimulating and though provoking. But done improperly, it can lead to disputes, altercation and souring of relations as well.

Unless discussing something very grave, wit and humour, used judiciously, lighten up any communication. The type of humour, however, depends upon the mutual comfort level of the participants. Being humorous does not mean being obnoxious or insulting. One should avoid criticizing others, especially those not present. Then it becomes a gossip and is nothing but waste of time. Positive or constructive criticism is welcome but with due permission of the person being criticized.

Brevity and crispness of messages make a conversation more effective. The listeners are more likely to stay in the conversation that way.

Many people are visibly uncomfortable with conversation, especially with people from opposite gender or higher position. They fear that they will be rejected or ridiculed. They fear that they do not have enough substance or linguistic capability to communicate the available substance. Thus they will get exposed or misunderstood. So many capable people under achieve in life because of this.

They must appreciate that God has not blessed any one with the ability to read others’ minds but has enabled almost everyone to hear and understand.

The most important conversation we have is the one with our self. What we tell us about our purpose, our vision, our capabilities, significance of various factors, others’ relation to us etc. greatly influences our self love, esteem and image. Knowingly or unknowingly, we start living our self image. If I were to get the powers to change one thing about any person, it would be their self image.

Conversation, or any form of communication, is a skill. It can be learned and then improved by practice. Knowledge might be the engine but communication is the wheel on which the society or business runs. A creaky wheel retards the progress.

Communication is less about words and more about effect we have on others and how we get affected by them. Effectiveness of communication hugely impacts the success and quality of life of a person. It is in every one’s earnest interest to continuously improve this skill.

Look at the Big Picture

A manager frequently needs to guide & advise his team on ways to accomplish a task or achieve a result. This is more vital if the team members are new to the task at hand or the complexity is more than previously encountered.

If the success of the task is more critical, then regular monitoring of progress vis a vis mile stones is also important. Otherwise, it may be too late to change the outcome or a lot of rework and time may be required to rectify the lapses.

By manager, I am not referring to any designation. It means any one in a role, position or function responsible for getting a task accomplished through a team. Some members of the team may be under his direct control and some may be associated for supporting his task sitting in some other block of the organization or sometimes even in other organizations.

Is being in a managerial position enough for a person to discharge that responsibility? Many times yes and sometimes not.

What does it require for a manager to be really able to do what is expected from him? How can he surely accomplish the tasks entrusted to him? How can he appropriately guide the people depending upon him?

In my opinion, the first thing a manager should clearly understand is the result expected from him. A manager is responsible for results and not for processes or activities. A path is right or wrong depending upon the destination. It is the result that determines the applicable strategy and requisite resources.

It also helps to know why that result is required, how does it fit in to the overall organizational goals and how the non achievement of that particular result adversely affects other units in the organization. In other words, what is the effect of achieving or not achieving the result or completing the task.

Next comes the ability to understand all the factors affecting or affected by the achievement of the result. These can be the inputs or resources needed. These can be the enablers and obstructions. These can be the processes involved. These can be the stake holders and contributors. This can be the interrelationship and interdependence of various factors. These can be the various steps involved in a process, the inputs & outputs of each step, intermediate results and effect of various variables on these results.

The above 3 paragraphs answer the quintessential questions of Why, What and How?

I consider the answers to the above 3 questions as the ‘big picture’.

 It is a manager’s ability to see this big picture that greatly influences his effectiveness. Coincidentally, this ability to see picture is not so common among managers. Let us see at some reasons behind this shortcoming.

In most of the organizations, seniority and / or excellence in current role becomes the basis for elevation to the higher role with enhanced responsibilities and authority. We must appreciate that each role, function or position requires a different set of competence.

Let us divide a typical organization in to 4 layers viz., Execution, Supervision, Management and Leadership. All the layers require 4 types of competence in differing composition viz., Technical (including cross functional), Analytical, Organizing and Human (including Communication).

At execution level, technical competence is most critical for a person to succeed. More often than not, he is given clearly defined task by his superiors and he is just expected to do the activity utilizing his technical competence. His knowledge about the processes and procedures and ability to apply them defines their proficiency. Ability to understand instructions and give feedback is enough on communication front. On human front, obedience, discipline and willingness to work in teams are the only expectations.

A supervisor is expected to have similar technical competence but be better in organizing and communicating. He also needs to understand how to utilize his human resources more effectively and efficiently.

However, a manager has to better at analytical, organizing and human competences. In fact, it is the analytical ability which the most critical. This is necessary to understand the Why, What and How of any situation. This capability helps him to understand the influencing factors, stake holders, processes involved and how to break them in to sub-processes and activities.

This ability also helps him to understand the remaining 3 quintessential questions of when, where and who. When helps him understand the sequencing which is important for planning and scheduling. An activity can be executed at various locations. The choice of location affects the resources required and available resources can influence the choice of location.

On human front, a manager’s key role is to decide the person whom a specific task can be assigned based on his competence. Thus he should not only know the competence needed to accomplish a task, he should also be able to evaluate the competence of the people at his disposal. Sometimes complete set of competence will be available within him and sometimes it has to arranged from outside. More often than not, there will be either a continuous or an express need to enhance the competence of the team members.

In my opinion, competence management and motivating the people are the two important aspects of human competence of a manager.

For motivating others, understanding human needs, sensitivity to their concerns, genuine interest in their well being, ability to bond and effective communication are required. Clarity and timing are vital factors in effective communication. Actually, communication by itself is such vast and interesting topic that it deserves a complete session.

Organizations must install a formal process to train people from execution and supervision levels to develop their managerial capabilities. It is also important for individuals to systematically put efforts to acquire the abilities necessary to discharge higher responsibilities.

But how to improve this ability to see the big picture? I do not think there are any academic courses that can teach this. This is more of a skill and can be learned & improved only by doing it again and again.

Creative visualization is a very good tool to enhance this ability. This helps one to run through the whole process from start to finish in his mind. One can imagine and change the course, sequence, factors and stake holders as per the outcome. This can be easily done alone and at any place or time.

Writing essays exceeding 1500 words on various topics in a structured manner is a very good way of practicing creative visualization. It will also often require acquisition of additional knowledge.

This essay should then be converted in to at least 60 minutes’ lecture or presentation. Use of power point is not necessary. Any media can be used to convey the message. Care should be taken not to put the entire text on display.

Organizing small functions and events is also a good way of improving the analyzing and organizing capabilities. In fact, my observation is that people who were and / or are quite active in extracurricular activities like elocution, debates, quizzes and organizing events eventually make better managers.

Another good tool is ‘mind mapping’ wherein all the aspects related to a situation or goal are mentioned on a big sheet of paper, at least A2 size, and various interconnections are clearly marked. This map can be extended to as many layers one wants to enumerate processes, sub processes and activities. This is a formal & pictorial representation of a brainstorming exercise. This exercise needs to be done by a team so as to get as many inputs & diverse views as possible. Everyone can contribute utilizing his skills and experience.

Whatever method is used, it is vital that a manager learns to see the big picture. Then only he will be able to strategize, prioritize, plan, guide, monitor and control. Because these actions will decide his personal and his team’s performance.

Give Me That One Thing

If I were given a chance to seek one thing that I want more, it will be the much enhanced ability to learn and apply the learnings. This is one thing that I wish for everyone in my life and perhaps even in the whole world.

The differential ability to learn and apply the learning is what determines the performance, happiness, success and growth of every individual, organization, society and country. This learning has to be commensurate with the desires, aspirations, goals and vision of that person or entity. That can be in the area of love, relationships, happiness, peace, health, hobbies, money, material pleasures, progress, growth, success and so on.  It has to be aligned with the environment, culture, circumstances and need of the hour.

The learning has to be continuous. We are living in a highly dynamic and hyper connected world. More people are travelling & migrating to new lands. Developments in one end of the world and ensuing benefits get communicated to the rest of the world at a rapid pace. The expectations of the users are increasing day by day. What was an acceptable competence, behaviour and performance some time back is considered below par now. There is more and more clarity about responsibilities, performance indicators and behaviour expected from various roles and positions. Newer technologies and better processes also demand continuous learning.

I recall from my younger days when seniority and ‘not being bad’ in current position used to be enough to get promotions. In those days, after every promotion, one had to again go through a probation period to prove his eligibility through performance in new & higher role and position. Most of the people used to grow only in the same vertical where they started their career. This chosen career was also, mostly, in direct continuation of the education one got in graduation.

System today has changed. People are expected to shoulder higher responsibilities associated with the aspired position while in the current position itself. They are expected to contribute in areas beyond and beside their normal role. They are expected to irrefutably demonstrate the capabilities distinctly needed for the next position. Promotion now is more of a legitimization of increased responsibilities and contribution.

More and more people are changing the verticals and functions. Lateral growth is as exciting as vertical one. Every change requires advance and continuous learning. Naturally, no one wants to give a different assignment to a rookie. The decision making authorities want to be sure that the candidate has the required competence and frame of mind to deliver the desired performance.

I myself started from production, went to teaching for short time, then to materials management followed by a very long stint in maintenance. While in maintenance I got involved in technical and soft skills training. Next stop was conformity assessment / quality assurance. From there moved to business management of maintenance services. Started with electrical maintenance, added instrumentation & automation and finally added mechanical. Over a period of time, the fields of energy optimization and then condition monitoring & reliability improvement got added. Later with change of job, operations management got added to my portfolio besides spares business. In these 8.5 years, got a chance to serve & learn about at least 10 more verticals in industry, infrastructure & energy sectors besides my longest served sector of petrochemicals.

The need for continuous learning is not only in professional world. We need to continuously learn in personal arena also. Expectations from and requirements in childhood, youth, post education phase, pre marriage days, post married life and after parenthood are totally different. As our children grow, we need to know about and learn about many more things.

Another important area needed continuous learning and evolution is relationships. At work we have to learn to consciously manage relations with superiors, peers, team members and inter related functions. We need to learn networking. In personal life, the relations with parents, siblings and friends keep changing. Introduction of spouse and children brings forth a whole lot of new relationships. Each relation is unique yet dynamic.

The need for continuous learning also comes with change of location or travelling. We need to learn different languages, practices, customs and cultures. We need to learn about the infrastructure and facilities there. We automatically get lots of information which becomes part of our database and might prove useful in some other context.

Whether we want it or not, try or not, we are continuous receiving lot of information from the environment. Television, news papers, social media, discussions at work & in personal space keeps exposing us to a large quantum of new or different information and messages.

Still, my own observation is that very few people are aware of the quantum and variety of learning they need to do in order to achieve the quality of life they aspire. Many people still believe that being good at the present requirement is enough to ensure their growth.

Why is it so?

One factor is lack of feed forward. Most of the times we give and receive feedback retrospectively. Where were we good or bad? What could we have done more or differently? But very rarely we give or receive advance and explicit intimation or information about the requirements or expectations. In school and college we study against a prescribed and published syllabus. Whereas in professional and personal life, we rarely come across a well defined or documented curriculum.

I have rarely come across a person who wants to perform badly, act wrongly and be a failure. In most of the cases, they are not aware of the expectations from them.

Second factor is the absence of objective evaluation of competence, attitude or behaviour. Most organizations still follow subjective evaluation methods. Personality assessment is still not widely prevalent and in fact not even accessible.

Third factor is laziness, inertia and short sightedness. Conscious learning requires effort. It requires sacrificing certain immediate pleasures.  Some short sighted believe that once they have secured a job, the need for learning is over. Some start to learn new or more things but are not able to sustain the interest.

Fourth factor is fatalism. Some people wrongly believe that whatever is in their fate will come to them automatically. This is not true. Even if everything is pre-ordained, that too can come only with the help of right effort. And right effort requires right competence, attitude and behaviour.

Many believe that it is someone else’s responsibility to teach them. They forget that the world and every one in it can only provide learning opportunities. It is an individual’s responsibility to learn. That is why in a class taught by the same teacher, all students score different marks. Same situation has different impact on various individuals.

Some people are not able to differentiate between information and knowledge. They keep reading, hearing & assimilating lots of things. However, anything is knowledge or competence only is it is applicable in course of our living.

Some people do want to learn but do not get sufficient support. While there are enough institutes available for formal education, very few proper institutes are available for continuous learning and development. Whatever is available is so costly that most people can’t afford it.

I also feel that there is a dearth of good teachers, coaches and leaders. The quality of learning opportunities being generated is not enough. A good coach can help individual realize and unlock their true potential. A coach can help people improve their learning ability. A leader is able to inspire people to aspire more and stretch to realize that higher aspiration.

I strongly believe that if we have to continually improve the quality of life available to each one of us, we must collectively create an atmosphere that demands, encourages and facilitates higher and accelerated learning. At the same time, each one of us has to wake to the need of continually enhancing our competence, behaviour and application.

Strict or Lenient: Where is the balance?

As a father, a husband and a team leader, I frequently come across this dilemma. How much strict or lenient should I be while dealing with people towards whom I am responsible or have some form of control. Same may be the case with every one.

Feminists may object to my mentioning ‘as a husband’ in the above statement but my conventional role of ‘head of the family’ warrants that I take vital decisions which can sometimes be unpleasant in short term.

Being strict is nothing but using one’s veto power to enforce ideas, decisions or actions in line with own judgment. The basic intention is to ensure desired beneficial results or control deviations or under performance.

One natural query that comes to mind is what is the need of being strict? At least in the case of spouse and team members, who are supposed to be mature adults, ideally there should be no need for being strict. Even in case of children, they should be coached well to be able to take right decisions and actions.

Let us see the areas where one feels the need to be strict.

In case of children, it can be about acceptable behaviour, manners & courtesy, time spent on leisure activities or wasted, type and number of friends, type of dresses, involvement in religious activities, type of books to read & movies to watch, type of extra-curricular activities & hobbies, health & fitness, studies, choice of career, affairs, choice of life partner, time of marriage and so on.

In case of spouse, it can be about expenses, handling extended family and relatives, general upkeep of the house, health & fitness, grooming and care of children, children’s career etc.

In case of team members, it is generally about quality & timeliness of work, conduct & discipline, in some cases dress code, communication protocols and business critical decisions.

Almost all people live and work with a positive intention. They mean to be good and to do what is right. They want to have a balanced life fulfilling all responsibilities associated with the multiple roles they play. Almost no one wants to deliberately do anything that is wrong or harmful.

So why is there a need for someone to be strict with others? The affected person, more often than not, finds the strictness as unfair, unjust and restrictive. This is natural since the decision enforced is not in sync with his judgment.

We hear so many children, spouses and team members complaining about the parent, partner or the boss for being unduly strict. I too have felt that way many times. I am also fully aware that my daughter, wife and team feel the same about me on some occasions.

Before going deeper in to this, I want to reiterate that the choice of being strict or lenient is ultimately determined by about our judgment on the probability of getting desired results.

Based on information, knowledge, past experience and upbringing, we all create an image or expectations about a role or position. How should a person in that role or position think, talk, act, decide, behave and interact. We also form an idea about the process and activities that will lead to a particular result. Some of these expectations or ideas are generally accepted by the society at large thus forming the part of ethics, morals, principles and culture.

As a basic instinct, we trust our own judgment the most. We all consider our self as the custodian of generally accepted ethics, morals, principles and culture. I have interacted with and overheard people from the lowest rung to far above. Everyone has a distinct idea about how everyone else should behave and why his own judgment of the situation is the most accurate. We are able to trust very few people’s judgment that too after evaluating them for consistently coming up to our expectation over a prolonged period.

Rightly or wrongly, this belief in own judgment and doubt in others’ is the reason one wants to be strict.

We fear that the other person, out of immaturity, wrong prioritization or insufficient information / competence will take incorrect, less beneficial or harmful decisions. We fear that the person will give more importance to their other roles not related to us at the cost of those where we are the stake holders. We believe that it is our moral, social or official responsibility to restrain them from straying on the wrong path. We believe that consistent strictness will help the other persons change or improve their judgment and thus decisions. Or at least, it will not allow them to act in a detrimental manner till that change of heart happens.

So, what is way to ensure achievement of desired results without being unduly strict? Excess in strictness can be real or perceived also. But truth is rarely the truth. More often than not, it is the perception that is the truth. Thus we have to look at both the reality and the perception.

One initial step that can reduce the need of being strict is to distinctly spell out and clearly communicate our expectations to others. It may also be helpful to explain the reason or logic behind that particular expectation. If the person comes up with a counter idea, we should not hesitate to accept it or explain the short coming therein. Sometimes, we expect more than the usual or the norm and this has also to be clearly communicated with the compulsions forcing this over expectation. This clear communication may help enroll the person in to the idea and thus not require much monitoring or control in future.

Second step can be to regularly monitor and review the progress or behaviour. Right inputs and feedback at required time can eliminate the need for being strict at a later stage. It is difficult for a person to change or retract at advanced stages. Ego also prohibits from making major changes.

Even if we have to strictly enforce the change, it is best to explain the logic behind the difference of judgment. Many times, the other person will get convinced.

Sometimes the situations will be urgent with little opportunity to enroll or convince people. At times, the other person will be adamant and unwilling to accept other ideas and the adverse impact of his idea or action is action will be too high. In such cases, taking strict decisions becomes mandatory in the greater interest. However, it might be a better idea to interact with the affected person later and explain the logic and reason. At that time, both persons will interact in a much cooler frame of mind and thus will be more receptive. Even we may find, after cool deliberations that our strictness was unwarranted and could have been avoided. It may be too late to undo the decision or action but it can be a lesson for future.

In any case, one thing we must carefully distinguish between is the person and the decision / act. When being strict and overruling the other person’s choice, we are merely objecting to that choice, decision or act and not to the person per se.

We must strongly believe that all people are sensible, mature & respectable in their own right and have the right intentions. It is the lack of information, knowledge or competence that has made them think or act the way they did. However, if the person is defaulting repeatedly, the intention also needs to be investigated.

Taking right decisions is a skill that can be learnt and improved. It should be our continuous endeavour to support them in improving their decision making capability by providing better information, increasing their competence, coaching and letting them take minor or less consequential decisions.

In my opinion, we can be a bit stricter with our children, owing to their limited knowledge and experience while also being friendly and accessible to them. They should be encouraged to approach us with their thoughts and preferences before putting them in action.

In case of team members, we have to be only moderately strict, owing to their age and experience and thus higher sensitivities. Also there is no social or emotional bonding to absorb minor excesses. But since, professional decisions are liable to scrutinized & audited and can have major financial or legal impact, a fair amount of monitoring and control is mandatory.

At the same time, we have to be sensitive about their work life balance and personal compulsions. At the end of the day, for most people, personal commitments supersede professional ones.

Trickiest is the spouse. Today, more & more women are educated and employed. They have higher belief on their judgment. They want to have bigger say and freedom in decision making. Both husband and wife are more aware about health and finances. At the same time, with disintegration of joint family system, lesser support, advice and social pressure is available to preserve the marital bond.

This relationship needs friendship, mutual respect for each other’s capability & interests, and appreciation of each other’s extended responsibilities to thrive. Open communication and adaptability are more critical than strictness.

In human interactions, nothing is absolutely right or wrong. In this dynamic world, what is right today or in a given situation may prove to be wrong tomorrow or in a different situation.

Ultimately, improving the probability of the desired result should be most critical factor in deciding our behaviour but always backed up by open and clear communication.

Fulfilling Mutual Expectations - Key to Organization Employee Synergy

An organization is but a vector sum of its employees. It is their collective contribution that determines the organization’s performance. Strategy, technology, processes and infrastructure are enablers for their performance. But it is the employees who unlock the real value of these enablers.

Simultaneously, an employee also needs the organization to realize, enhance and utilize his full potential and fulfill his dreams. A capable and committed employee working in an enabling atmosphere produces best results for self and also for the organization.

To fulfill its vision, mission and objectives, an organization expects its employees to think and act in a particular way. Likewise, an employee also has his own list of expectations from the organization.

Let us first look at the employees’ expectations from the organization.

The first requirement, naturally, is money. That is the basic reason why almost all of us work except for very few driven by some greater cause. But, how much money is right money? The remuneration must commensurate with the contribution an employee makes to the organization’s overall performance.

Second requirement would thus be a fair opportunity to make contribution irrespective of age, gender, physique, colour, religion, caste, creed or political beliefs. Personal proximity to people in authority or sycophancy should not decide the opportunities, responsibilities or challenges.

The contribution must be duly recognized and rewarded. It can be in form of open verbal appreciation, commendation letter, certificate or citation, monetary benefit, additional facilities, more challenging assignments, higher responsibility, promotion etc.

It is an employee’s right to have clear communication about his exact role, responsibility, authority and expectations from him. Only then he can correctly plan how to deliver his performance. In case he is found lacking on that front, it is a logical expectation that he will be given timely feedback. If the under-performance is due to his attitude or competence, the employee and the organization must jointly work to overcome the lacunae.

Growth is one of the important requirements of any individual. Growth in competence, responsibility, authority and benefits is what drives most of the employees. I have read one statement in many novels, “There is more where this comes from”. A future more exciting than the present is what keeps an employee attached & committed to the organization.

Every employee wants to be respected as an individual and as a professional. Dignity and pride is a prized possession of every individual. People offer their time and talent in lieu of employment and not their self respect. Any direct or indirect assault on that can be extremely de-motivating or can create unrest and rebellion.

Most people derive their social status and self esteem from their work and position held therein. I am yet to see anyone having a visiting card mentioning his family, interests, contribution to society, wealth etc. It is always one’s work & position that is mentioned therein. I have seen many people rejecting a job offer, in spite of better salary and role because of the less attractive designation. Some organizations use this by giving fancy designations to very junior people and thus creating an exit barrier. Seating arrangement, size of cubicle or cabin, access to executive dining halls, perks and entitlements etc. contribute to this status.

For people who love travel, having a job that involves national or international travel is a great opportunity to fulfill this interest. In last 10 years or so, I have visited so many places in India and some abroad which I could have never even imagined in my earlier job. It is definitely difficult, if not impossible, to see so many places on own accord. Seeing new places, meeting new people and understanding new cultures has its own excitement. It also adds a lot to self confidence.

One more expectation that employees have from the organization is care and support during emergencies. Accidents, illness, bereavements, calamities etc. are occasions when a person feels distraught and finds it difficult to handle on his own, alone. With more and more people taking up jobs far away from home town, they are frequently dependent upon the organizational support to meet these challenges at least till their personal reinforcements arrive. Sometimes the troubles extend over a period of time and the employees are not able to concentrate or contribute to the fullest extent. During this period, the organization has to be understanding and accommodative.

I have been lucky to work in a few organizations that take good care of their employees and take keen interest in their complete development.

It is quite natural that organizations also have a similar list of expectations from the employees.

An organization expects the employee to take complete ownership of the organizational goals and contribute with full commitment & diligence in his assigned area of responsibility.

An employee having ownership is expected to demonstrate a vision for self and for the organization. Their thinking and actions must be aligned with the organization’s mission and objectives. The employee is expected to be result oriented and not merely process or activity driven.

The employees must have smart trust based relationships and collaborate among themselves. They should be proactive in their actions to fulfill their roles and responsibilities and not always depend upon instructions and guidance.

An organization grows when its employees contribute innovative and creative ideas to break new grounds, increase productivity and improve efficiency. An employee should not impose self inflicted limits. They should be willing and able to contribute ideas and extend support in areas beyond their assigned responsibility.

An organization expects the employees to dream big and expect more but in return of real contribution. The employee should be willing to consciously explore areas of enhancement and improvement and learn continuously. People can not expect better results and growth for the same performance as earlier. In the fiercely competitive market, the organizations and in turn its employees, must continuously and relentlessly reinvent themselves. It involves de-learning, relearning and new learning.

An organization expects its employees to have high pride in self, his work and the organization. It is the pride that enables employees to tap in to internal reserves and stretch beyond imagination to create miracles.

The organization and employees, both must continuously strive to express, understand and fulfill the expectations. It is the consistent and sustained fulfillment of mutual expectations that creates the synergy between them. This synergy in turn produces excellent results.