Can you imagine doing a business with a Cost of Capital of 1500%!!!!
Sounds absurd isn't it! But this is precisely what is happening in rural India.
Let me elaborate...
You must have seen the lady vegetable vendor who comes to your house everyday carrying a basket full of vegetables every day. She gets up at 4 am in the morning, goes to the local market and asks the money lender for a small capital to buy one basket of vegetables. The money lender gives her, let us say Rs 500. He, in fact, gives her only Rs 475 after deducting his interest of Rs 25. The lady, then buys vegetables for Rs 475, and goes around her beat selling vegetables at a nominal profit. At the end of the day, she has to return Rs 500 to the money lender. The same scene is repeated the next day. This means that she is paying Rs 25 as interest per day for Rs 500, i.e 5% per day. Assuming she works 300 days in an year, excluding Sundays, the cost of capital works out to 1500%. This is the plight of 60% of the population indulged in small scale sales in India.
All the Government has to do is to implement a micro financing scheme to help these people, a la Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank of Bangladesh. But the successive governments have never cared. They are more worried about the cost of capital to major industrialists, who anyway are the major defaulters. It remains a mystery as to why the money allocated to many poverty alleviation schemes cannot be used to establish a viable micro credit facility. This will be a big relief to millions of poor people and shall encourage entrepreneurship at the grass root level.
Was Gandhiji right when he propounded his Gandhian economics that stressed on the need to develop rural communities? The bottom up approach to economic development. We have never had a chance to find out the efficacy of that model.
If our Economist Prime Minister were ever to be asked to evaluate a business venture where the cost of capital is 1500%, he will not touche it with a 1000 feet barge pole. But millions of his countrymen continue to be under the evil influence of the money lenders , wallow in poverty and do trading by incurring such ridiculous costs. And no one cares.
"But I, being poor, have only my dreams. I have spread my dreams under your feet; tread softly, because you tread on my dreams" - William Butler Yeats
The successive governments have not just tread on the poor mans dreams, but they have trampled on them. There in lies the tragedy
Thursday 29 November 2007
Wednesday 21 November 2007
Thanks for your time!.....a beautiful story
It had been some time since Jack had seen the old man. College, girls, career, and life itself got in the way. In fact, Jack moved clear across the country in pursuit of his dreams. There, in the rush of his busy life, Jack had little time to think about the past and often no time to spend with his wife and son. He was working on his future, and nothing could stop him.
Over the phone, his mother told him, "Mr. Belser died last night. The funeral is Wednesday."
Memories flashed through his mind like an old newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days.
"Jack, did you hear me?"
"Oh, sorry, Mom. Yes, I heard you. It's been so long since I thought of him.. I'm sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago," Jack said.
"Well, he didn't forget you. Every time I saw him he'd ask how you were doing.. He'd reminisce about the many days you spent over 'his side of the fence' as he put it," Mom told him.
"I loved that old house he lived in," Jack said.
"You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr Belser stepped in to make sure you had a man's influence in your life," she said
"He's the one who taught me carpentry," he said. "I wouldn't be in this business if it weren't for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me things he thought were important...Mom, I'll be there for the funeral," Jack said.
As busy as he was, he kept his word. Jack caught the next flight to his hometown. Mr. Belser's funeral was small and uneventful. He had no children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away. The night before he had to return home, Jack and his Mom stopped by to see the old house next door one more time. Standing in the doorway, Jack paused for a moment. It was like crossing over into another dimension, a leap through space and time The house was exactly as he remembered. Every step held memories. Every picture, every piece of furniture....Jack stopped suddenly.
"What's wrong, Jack?" his Mom asked.
"The box is gone," he said "What box?" Mom asked.
"There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk. I must have asked him a thousand times what was inside. All he'd ever tell me was 'the thing I value most,'" Jack said.
It was gone. Everything about the house was exactly how Jack remembered it, except for the box. He figured someone from the Belser family had taken it.
"Now I'll never know what was so valuable to him," Jack said.
"I better get some sleep. I have an early flight home, Mom."
It had been about two weeks since Mr. Belser died. Returning home from work one day Jack discovered a note in his mailbox.
"Signature required on a package. No one at home. Please stop by the main post office within the next three days," the note read.
Early the next day Jack retrieved the package. The small box was old and looked like it had been mailed a hundred years ago. The handwriting was difficult to read, but the return address caught his attention. "Mr. Harold Belser" it read.
Jack took the box out to his car and ripped open the package. There inside was the gold box and an envelope. Jack's hands shook as he read the note inside. "Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents to Jack Bennett. It's the thing I valued most in my life." A small key was taped to the letter. His heart racing, as tears filling his eyes, Jack carefully unlocked the box. There inside he found a beautiful gold pocket watch. Running his fingers slowly over the finely etched casing, he unlatched the cover.
Inside he found these words engraved: "Jack, Thanks for your time! -Harold Belser."
"The thing he valued most...was...my time" Jack held the watch for a few minutes, then called his office and cleared his appointments for the next two days.
"Why?" Janet, his assistant asked.
"I need some time to spend with my son," he said. "Oh, by the way, Janet...thanks for your time!"
(This wonderful story was e-mailed to me by one of my students Sharon Philips. My heartfelt thanks to him)
Over the phone, his mother told him, "Mr. Belser died last night. The funeral is Wednesday."
Memories flashed through his mind like an old newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days.
"Jack, did you hear me?"
"Oh, sorry, Mom. Yes, I heard you. It's been so long since I thought of him.. I'm sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago," Jack said.
"Well, he didn't forget you. Every time I saw him he'd ask how you were doing.. He'd reminisce about the many days you spent over 'his side of the fence' as he put it," Mom told him.
"I loved that old house he lived in," Jack said.
"You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr Belser stepped in to make sure you had a man's influence in your life," she said
"He's the one who taught me carpentry," he said. "I wouldn't be in this business if it weren't for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me things he thought were important...Mom, I'll be there for the funeral," Jack said.
As busy as he was, he kept his word. Jack caught the next flight to his hometown. Mr. Belser's funeral was small and uneventful. He had no children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away. The night before he had to return home, Jack and his Mom stopped by to see the old house next door one more time. Standing in the doorway, Jack paused for a moment. It was like crossing over into another dimension, a leap through space and time The house was exactly as he remembered. Every step held memories. Every picture, every piece of furniture....Jack stopped suddenly.
"What's wrong, Jack?" his Mom asked.
"The box is gone," he said "What box?" Mom asked.
"There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk. I must have asked him a thousand times what was inside. All he'd ever tell me was 'the thing I value most,'" Jack said.
It was gone. Everything about the house was exactly how Jack remembered it, except for the box. He figured someone from the Belser family had taken it.
"Now I'll never know what was so valuable to him," Jack said.
"I better get some sleep. I have an early flight home, Mom."
It had been about two weeks since Mr. Belser died. Returning home from work one day Jack discovered a note in his mailbox.
"Signature required on a package. No one at home. Please stop by the main post office within the next three days," the note read.
Early the next day Jack retrieved the package. The small box was old and looked like it had been mailed a hundred years ago. The handwriting was difficult to read, but the return address caught his attention. "Mr. Harold Belser" it read.
Jack took the box out to his car and ripped open the package. There inside was the gold box and an envelope. Jack's hands shook as he read the note inside. "Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents to Jack Bennett. It's the thing I valued most in my life." A small key was taped to the letter. His heart racing, as tears filling his eyes, Jack carefully unlocked the box. There inside he found a beautiful gold pocket watch. Running his fingers slowly over the finely etched casing, he unlatched the cover.
Inside he found these words engraved: "Jack, Thanks for your time! -Harold Belser."
"The thing he valued most...was...my time" Jack held the watch for a few minutes, then called his office and cleared his appointments for the next two days.
"Why?" Janet, his assistant asked.
"I need some time to spend with my son," he said. "Oh, by the way, Janet...thanks for your time!"
(This wonderful story was e-mailed to me by one of my students Sharon Philips. My heartfelt thanks to him)
Tuesday 20 November 2007
Future of School Education?
This is the last and concluding part of the series of articles on School Education.
Let us to some crystal ball gazing and see what the future holds for our children?
Sounds absurd? Mark my words. This is going to happen sooner rather than later.
This model however does not take into account the development of Inter personal and group behaviours. This, dear parents, is your responsibility.
Buy him the latest computer with Intel 25 processor with 100 GHz clock speed, 10000 GB HDD and 1000GB RAM (remember we are in the future) and load Windows Omega operating system (Microsoft and Intel will still be there making our life more and more complicated in the guise of making them simpler)
But also spend some quality time with your children
Hug them
Treat them like your friend
Take them out
Share their joy and grief
Give them freedom
Give them space to move about
Stand apart and watch them grow into responsible human beings
Identify role models in the society and amongst your friends
Encourage them to share their thoughts with your children and their friends
Do not miss a single opportunity to spend time with children whether they are yours or not
Share your knowledge
Gently prod your children to spend time with others of his/her age group
Make them play any team game on a regular basis
Allow them to take decisions concerning their life
Encourage them to accept criticism
Identify their areas of interests and push them gently to excel in what they do best
You can start doing it even now
“ When your children are young, give them Roots
When they are old enough to fly, give them Wings”
Let us to some crystal ball gazing and see what the future holds for our children?
- Home learning through computers and Internet
- Technology based training
- Instructor less training
- Access to live audio – visual lectures through video conferencing
- International syllabus
- Global Virtual School and students of different nationalities attending the same class and interacting through net
- International certification
- Flexible class timings
- Online assessment
Sounds absurd? Mark my words. This is going to happen sooner rather than later.
This model however does not take into account the development of Inter personal and group behaviours. This, dear parents, is your responsibility.
Buy him the latest computer with Intel 25 processor with 100 GHz clock speed, 10000 GB HDD and 1000GB RAM (remember we are in the future) and load Windows Omega operating system (Microsoft and Intel will still be there making our life more and more complicated in the guise of making them simpler)
But also spend some quality time with your children
Hug them
Treat them like your friend
Take them out
Share their joy and grief
Give them freedom
Give them space to move about
Stand apart and watch them grow into responsible human beings
Identify role models in the society and amongst your friends
Encourage them to share their thoughts with your children and their friends
Do not miss a single opportunity to spend time with children whether they are yours or not
Share your knowledge
Gently prod your children to spend time with others of his/her age group
Make them play any team game on a regular basis
Allow them to take decisions concerning their life
Encourage them to accept criticism
Identify their areas of interests and push them gently to excel in what they do best
You can start doing it even now
“ When your children are young, give them Roots
When they are old enough to fly, give them Wings”
Monday 19 November 2007
10/20/30 Rule of Power Point
Ever heard of the 10/20/30 Rule of PowerPoint.
It’s quite simple: a PowerPoint presentation should have ten slides, last no more than twenty minutes, and contain no font smaller than thirty points. This rule is applicable for any presentation to reach agreement: for example, raising capital, making a sale, forming a partnership, selling a business idea etc.
Ten is the optimal number of slides in a PowerPoint presentation because a normal human being cannot comprehend more than ten concepts in a meeting. If you must use more than ten slides to explain your business or idea, you probably don’t have a business or a worthwhile idea. The ten topics that people normally care are:
Problem
Your solution
Business model / proposed working structure
Underlying magic/technology
Marketing and sales / how do you plan to go about it
Competition / constraints
Team
Projections and milestones
Status and timeline
Summary and call to action
You should give your ten slides in twenty minutes. Normally, you have an hour time slot for any presentation, but you’re using a Windows laptop, so it will take forty minutes to make it work with the projector. Even if setup goes perfectly, people will arrive late and have to leave early. In a perfect world, you give your pitch in twenty minutes, and you have forty minutes left for discussion.
The majority of the presentations normally have text in a 10/12/14 point font. As much text as possible is jammed into the slide, and then the presenter reads it. However, as soon as the audience figures out that you’re reading the text, it reads ahead of you because it can read faster than you can speak. The result is that you and the audience are out of sync. The reason people use a small font is twofold: first, that they don’t know their material well enough; second, they think that more text is more convincing. This pitfall has to be avoided. Force yourself to use no font smaller than thirty points and you are guaranteed that it will make your presentations better because it requires you to find the most salient points and to know how to explain them well.
Observe the 10/20/30 Rule of PowerPoint and be a success.
(this is not my original idea. I read it on web about 2 years back and have found it to be quite useful)
It’s quite simple: a PowerPoint presentation should have ten slides, last no more than twenty minutes, and contain no font smaller than thirty points. This rule is applicable for any presentation to reach agreement: for example, raising capital, making a sale, forming a partnership, selling a business idea etc.
Ten is the optimal number of slides in a PowerPoint presentation because a normal human being cannot comprehend more than ten concepts in a meeting. If you must use more than ten slides to explain your business or idea, you probably don’t have a business or a worthwhile idea. The ten topics that people normally care are:
Problem
Your solution
Business model / proposed working structure
Underlying magic/technology
Marketing and sales / how do you plan to go about it
Competition / constraints
Team
Projections and milestones
Status and timeline
Summary and call to action
You should give your ten slides in twenty minutes. Normally, you have an hour time slot for any presentation, but you’re using a Windows laptop, so it will take forty minutes to make it work with the projector. Even if setup goes perfectly, people will arrive late and have to leave early. In a perfect world, you give your pitch in twenty minutes, and you have forty minutes left for discussion.
The majority of the presentations normally have text in a 10/12/14 point font. As much text as possible is jammed into the slide, and then the presenter reads it. However, as soon as the audience figures out that you’re reading the text, it reads ahead of you because it can read faster than you can speak. The result is that you and the audience are out of sync. The reason people use a small font is twofold: first, that they don’t know their material well enough; second, they think that more text is more convincing. This pitfall has to be avoided. Force yourself to use no font smaller than thirty points and you are guaranteed that it will make your presentations better because it requires you to find the most salient points and to know how to explain them well.
Observe the 10/20/30 Rule of PowerPoint and be a success.
(this is not my original idea. I read it on web about 2 years back and have found it to be quite useful)
Sunday 18 November 2007
Adhithi Devo Bhava!!
The other day, I wanted to meet a friend (!) of mine in Kuwait and didn't think twice before starting the car and reaching his place in 10 minutes. I have not been to his house for more than a year. It was around 10 a.m on a Friday morning. He opened the door himself and with a scowl on his face said, "Oh! you. But you didn't call me up and tell me you were coming". I was taken aback. This was the same guy who barged into my house two months ago at 10.30 in the night when he wanted my help. This was the guy who used to sit in my house from morning till night on weekends when he needed my skills on editing written materials or when he wanted to pick my brain.
Anyway, I am made of sterner stuff. Though hurt, I went inside. He started complaining about how busy he was at work and how little time he has for himself. I was able to get a word in after 10 minutes. Mind you, no coffee or tea was offered. Nor did any of his family come out to say 'hi' to me though we are family friends. As if on cue, in the 11th minute, his 12 year old daughter walked in and asked her father "Papa, We are supposed to go out in 5 minutes". Believe me, neither my friend nor his daughter had even taken a bath nor were they dressed to go out. I have had enough. It was clear that I was not welcome. I left the place as quickly as possible.
One of the trends I have noticed of late is peoples reluctance to invite someone to their house.
Why are we like this? What happened to the old world courtesy? I have told you before that I had my childhood in a rural area. The nearest bus stop was 10 minutes walk away. Since I started driving at the age of 14, it was my duty to drop whoever has come to our house in the bus stop either in a scooter or in a car. We used to have regular traffic from Bombay by way of relatives from my mothers side. The railway station was 30 kms away and the incoming Bombay train normally comes at 2 'o' clock in the night. The relatives would tell my father not to bother to send a young boy at 2 am but rather they will stay in the railway station till a decent hour. My father used to insist that I be present to bring them home at 2 am telling me that these people have travelled for 40 hours and the least we can do is to ensure that they are home early and dry.
Just a couple of years before his death, I was outside when I got a call from my father. He was ailing and a coronary patient by then. All he said was "Come over". No explanations. As is my wont, I reached home in 30 minutes. It was 8.30 in the night. He was dressed, holding a flask of coffee and a tiffin carrier. He rarely travelled during those days. Before I could ask him where the hell he was going, he asked me to turn the car around, got in and brusquely said 'Railway station, Trivandrum Mail'. On the way he explained that his friend was travelling from Cochin to Chennai and the train will stop for 5 minutes in Palghat Junction. I asked him,'but what will you talk to him in 5 minutes and why does he want coffee and food at 9.45 in the night?'. His reply,"it is not the coffee, but the fact that I made it a point to meet him that is important. Both of us are old, and we may not meet again". I was skeptical. But the beauty of it was that his friend was anticipating him, expecting him to come and was not at all surprised to see him with a flask of coffee that he drank with relish. Standing back, watching two old friends share coffee, albeit for 3 minutes, I learned a big lesson in life. What friendship really is and that personal gestures do count. My father was tired by the time he reached home. The meeting lasted the whole of 3 minutes, the journey one hour ten minutes. Within three months I got the news that my fathers friend had passed away. I had a lump on my throat. What if I had not taken my father that day?. The picture of two old men sharing a quiet moment is etched in my memory.
Have we lost the old world courtesy? Our house was always open to anyone at any point of time. There was always food for one extra person on any given day in our house. We never turned back anyone who came to us for help, whatever our inconveniences are. We, the children, had to come out and greet the guests always. We were encouraged to interact with the guests, allowed to sit through discussions and we in turn learned a lot from them. It constituted a critical component of growing up.
Why have we changed? Why are we more self centred? How can we expect others to help us when we don't take the trouble to lend a supporting hand? Have we really progressed? People always whine that "no one is helping me". My repsonse always is "when was the last time you helped someone?". The answer is always 'i dont remember'.
I try to follow the simple principle that has ruled Indian household from time immemorial "Adhithi Devo Bhava". My doors are always open at any time of the day or night. I always have a welcome smile and a cup of coffee for my guests. And my time is at their disposal. I always find time to send a personal reply to all my incoming mails.
I cannot change others, but at least I can practice some old world courtesy.
Anyway, I am made of sterner stuff. Though hurt, I went inside. He started complaining about how busy he was at work and how little time he has for himself. I was able to get a word in after 10 minutes. Mind you, no coffee or tea was offered. Nor did any of his family come out to say 'hi' to me though we are family friends. As if on cue, in the 11th minute, his 12 year old daughter walked in and asked her father "Papa, We are supposed to go out in 5 minutes". Believe me, neither my friend nor his daughter had even taken a bath nor were they dressed to go out. I have had enough. It was clear that I was not welcome. I left the place as quickly as possible.
One of the trends I have noticed of late is peoples reluctance to invite someone to their house.
Why are we like this? What happened to the old world courtesy? I have told you before that I had my childhood in a rural area. The nearest bus stop was 10 minutes walk away. Since I started driving at the age of 14, it was my duty to drop whoever has come to our house in the bus stop either in a scooter or in a car. We used to have regular traffic from Bombay by way of relatives from my mothers side. The railway station was 30 kms away and the incoming Bombay train normally comes at 2 'o' clock in the night. The relatives would tell my father not to bother to send a young boy at 2 am but rather they will stay in the railway station till a decent hour. My father used to insist that I be present to bring them home at 2 am telling me that these people have travelled for 40 hours and the least we can do is to ensure that they are home early and dry.
Just a couple of years before his death, I was outside when I got a call from my father. He was ailing and a coronary patient by then. All he said was "Come over". No explanations. As is my wont, I reached home in 30 minutes. It was 8.30 in the night. He was dressed, holding a flask of coffee and a tiffin carrier. He rarely travelled during those days. Before I could ask him where the hell he was going, he asked me to turn the car around, got in and brusquely said 'Railway station, Trivandrum Mail'. On the way he explained that his friend was travelling from Cochin to Chennai and the train will stop for 5 minutes in Palghat Junction. I asked him,'but what will you talk to him in 5 minutes and why does he want coffee and food at 9.45 in the night?'. His reply,"it is not the coffee, but the fact that I made it a point to meet him that is important. Both of us are old, and we may not meet again". I was skeptical. But the beauty of it was that his friend was anticipating him, expecting him to come and was not at all surprised to see him with a flask of coffee that he drank with relish. Standing back, watching two old friends share coffee, albeit for 3 minutes, I learned a big lesson in life. What friendship really is and that personal gestures do count. My father was tired by the time he reached home. The meeting lasted the whole of 3 minutes, the journey one hour ten minutes. Within three months I got the news that my fathers friend had passed away. I had a lump on my throat. What if I had not taken my father that day?. The picture of two old men sharing a quiet moment is etched in my memory.
Have we lost the old world courtesy? Our house was always open to anyone at any point of time. There was always food for one extra person on any given day in our house. We never turned back anyone who came to us for help, whatever our inconveniences are. We, the children, had to come out and greet the guests always. We were encouraged to interact with the guests, allowed to sit through discussions and we in turn learned a lot from them. It constituted a critical component of growing up.
Why have we changed? Why are we more self centred? How can we expect others to help us when we don't take the trouble to lend a supporting hand? Have we really progressed? People always whine that "no one is helping me". My repsonse always is "when was the last time you helped someone?". The answer is always 'i dont remember'.
I try to follow the simple principle that has ruled Indian household from time immemorial "Adhithi Devo Bhava". My doors are always open at any time of the day or night. I always have a welcome smile and a cup of coffee for my guests. And my time is at their disposal. I always find time to send a personal reply to all my incoming mails.
I cannot change others, but at least I can practice some old world courtesy.
Saturday 17 November 2007
Should you follow tips on shares?
You are bombarded with tips and advices everyday on which stock to buy and sell. What should you do?
“In March 2001, financial astrologer Christeen Skinner, professional investor Mark Goodson, and one other participant took part in a week-long investing experiment hosted by the British Association for the Advancement of Science to mark National Science Week. Each contestant was given a fictional £5,000 to spend on any four FTSE stocks.
Skinner, using planetary movements to select her stocks, lost £266.46. Goodson, using more traditional metrics, lost £130.32. The winner? Tia Laverne Roberts - a four-year-old girl from south-east London who chose her stocks by throwing numbers papers into the air.[Tia's shares included the Bank of Scotland, Sainsbury's, Diageo and Old Mutual; Skinner chose BOC Group, BAE Systems, Unilever and Pearson, which she said had "a good planetary wind behind them"; Goodson chose Vodafone, Marconi, Cable & Wireless and Prudential.]”
Human behaviour cannot be predicted. Distrust anyone who claims to know the future, however dimly (Zurich Axiom 4). Don't go blindly on other’s advice. Research on your own and trust your own judgement.
Nobody has the foggiest notion of what will happen in the future.
“On October 20th, 1929, the noted Yale University economist Irving Fisher declared that "stock prices have reached what looks like a permanently high plateau." Nine days later (October 29th, 1929) "Black Tuesday" arrived; the stock market crashed and America and the world were plunged into the worst recession in history”
Remember, the easiest thing in the world is to give advice. It doesn’t cost anything.
“In March 2001, financial astrologer Christeen Skinner, professional investor Mark Goodson, and one other participant took part in a week-long investing experiment hosted by the British Association for the Advancement of Science to mark National Science Week. Each contestant was given a fictional £5,000 to spend on any four FTSE stocks.
Skinner, using planetary movements to select her stocks, lost £266.46. Goodson, using more traditional metrics, lost £130.32. The winner? Tia Laverne Roberts - a four-year-old girl from south-east London who chose her stocks by throwing numbers papers into the air.[Tia's shares included the Bank of Scotland, Sainsbury's, Diageo and Old Mutual; Skinner chose BOC Group, BAE Systems, Unilever and Pearson, which she said had "a good planetary wind behind them"; Goodson chose Vodafone, Marconi, Cable & Wireless and Prudential.]”
Human behaviour cannot be predicted. Distrust anyone who claims to know the future, however dimly (Zurich Axiom 4). Don't go blindly on other’s advice. Research on your own and trust your own judgement.
Nobody has the foggiest notion of what will happen in the future.
“On October 20th, 1929, the noted Yale University economist Irving Fisher declared that "stock prices have reached what looks like a permanently high plateau." Nine days later (October 29th, 1929) "Black Tuesday" arrived; the stock market crashed and America and the world were plunged into the worst recession in history”
Remember, the easiest thing in the world is to give advice. It doesn’t cost anything.
Thursday 15 November 2007
The more things change, the more they remain the same
The essence of Customer Relationship Management is to segment your customers as high value customers and low value customers, develop systems and procedures to take good care of the high value customers. The belief is that 20% of the customers give 80% of the business and hence need to be nurtured.
Now where have I seen this philosophy being applied?
Let me roll the years back. I lived in a rural area. My father, being the local Executive Engineer in Electricity Board, was considered to be a mini VIP and in turn a high value customer.
We had near us a tailor, by the name Aruchami. This guy had a small tailoring shop with a single sewing machine. He will make personal visit to 10 or 15 important clients in the area, take measurements at our houses, collect the materials and deliver the finished dresses in person. A kind of customized personal service. Our work used to get precedence over the other relatively non affluent working class people, whom he used to run around in circles to the extend of positively discouraging them. When asked, he will say, "they take so much of my time, are never satisfied and don't pay on time"...............
Next in the line was our family jeweller Chakkappan. Managed a core clientele list comprising of around 10 families who were totally dependant on him as a solution provider to their Gold needs. Remember, those days it was rare for someone to do retail shopping for gold. I remember him coming to the house, setting up his workplace, melting the old gold in front of our eyes, weighing it, showing the box containing the designs, taking the order and delivering the finished ornaments after a fortnight. Again highly personalized service. He didn't even have a shop till much later in his career. And he was essentially a service provider, the actual work being done by goldsmiths to whom he outsourced the work. Again, note that he was concentrating only on high value customers.
The same was true of Ramachandran mama, who ran a modest car workshop, Bhargavi - our washerwoman and Dr.Sudevan - the family doctor. There were many others.
All of them were very focused on their high value customers, ensured that they developed a personal rapport with them and the ensuing relationship was a lifelong one. They were the first to be invited for any family function and we in turn joined them in their moments of happiness and sorrow. The relationship was built on quality service, understanding the needs and absolute trust. Ultimate in relationship building and customer satisfaction, wont you say.
Most of them are no more. But their spirit and philosophy has survived, and has made a comeback as CRM.
"The more things change, the more they remain the same"
Now where have I seen this philosophy being applied?
Let me roll the years back. I lived in a rural area. My father, being the local Executive Engineer in Electricity Board, was considered to be a mini VIP and in turn a high value customer.
We had near us a tailor, by the name Aruchami. This guy had a small tailoring shop with a single sewing machine. He will make personal visit to 10 or 15 important clients in the area, take measurements at our houses, collect the materials and deliver the finished dresses in person. A kind of customized personal service. Our work used to get precedence over the other relatively non affluent working class people, whom he used to run around in circles to the extend of positively discouraging them. When asked, he will say, "they take so much of my time, are never satisfied and don't pay on time"...............
Next in the line was our family jeweller Chakkappan. Managed a core clientele list comprising of around 10 families who were totally dependant on him as a solution provider to their Gold needs. Remember, those days it was rare for someone to do retail shopping for gold. I remember him coming to the house, setting up his workplace, melting the old gold in front of our eyes, weighing it, showing the box containing the designs, taking the order and delivering the finished ornaments after a fortnight. Again highly personalized service. He didn't even have a shop till much later in his career. And he was essentially a service provider, the actual work being done by goldsmiths to whom he outsourced the work. Again, note that he was concentrating only on high value customers.
The same was true of Ramachandran mama, who ran a modest car workshop, Bhargavi - our washerwoman and Dr.Sudevan - the family doctor. There were many others.
All of them were very focused on their high value customers, ensured that they developed a personal rapport with them and the ensuing relationship was a lifelong one. They were the first to be invited for any family function and we in turn joined them in their moments of happiness and sorrow. The relationship was built on quality service, understanding the needs and absolute trust. Ultimate in relationship building and customer satisfaction, wont you say.
Most of them are no more. But their spirit and philosophy has survived, and has made a comeback as CRM.
"The more things change, the more they remain the same"
Wednesday 14 November 2007
Education System - Innovate or Perish
Continuing the series of posts on Education system, it is my strong opinion that this business has done the cardinal sin of not identifying the Customer.The customer has to be the Child, not the parents.
Let us look at the whole system of Education from a Management perspective.
The objective of any Education system should be to develop the necessary skills of the student, hard and soft, so essential to make him/her a success in his/her life and in his/her job. Hard skills pertain to the subject knowledge and the soft skills are those behavioural skills required by the student to be productive in his/her job.
Our current education system does take care of the hard skills aspect to some extent (this also is debatable), but has totally ignored the soft skills, which any Employer worth his salt will say is much more important. The popular saying is that ‘ you can always fine tune the technical skills of an employee, but if his/her attitude is bad, then nothing can be done’.
Every year we are churning out people who are technically adequate but attitudinally handicapped. This results in a mismatch between the requirements of the employer and the skills of the employee.The current system hence has failed in meeting its primary objective. The objective should be to provide the necessary soft and hard skills to the student so as to increase his employability.
What should constitute the core product in any educational system?
Relevant Course Content (both hard and soft skills related)
Teaching Methodology
Batch Strength
Quality of Teachers
Evaluation System
It is interesting to note that Listening(45%) and Speaking(30%) is used most in work place but taught the least in the Schools and Colleges, while Reading(16%) and Writing(9%) is used least in the work place, but taught the most. This anomaly has to be corrected.
There are no arguments even from the die-hard fans of the education system that the current syllabus (the core product) at all levels has lost its relevance. This is especially true of the higher education.
For example let us take the parameters – teaching methodology and the Evaluation system together. The most prevalent teaching methodology is the Lecturing mode. Researches have shown that only 20 % of the lecture is retained even by the most attentive of listeners. This is assuming that the lecture is of the highest quality. It is astounding that our teachers are not prepared to use technology. Is'nt it time that we switched over to Computers, Internet, Over Head Projectors,Multimedia Projectors and Interactive visual media tools. Why can’t we use them extensively in teaching? Whenever I mention this I hear howls of protests and excuses saying that Schools and Colleges don’t have the necessary funds. I don’t believe this. Schools and Colleges are always finding it easy to raise funds for building more classrooms, but how come they are unable to find resources for upgrading their teaching aids. Most of the schools and colleges take hefty sums as donations and fees. Even the smallest computer centre in your neighbourhood has these teaching aids. So the protest does not hold water. Teaching methodology has to undergo a sea change.
Our current methodology does not encourage the student to explore. The focus is on learning things from an examination viewpoint. The current evaluation system checks the memory of the student and not his analytical skills or the student’s ability to apply what he has learned. All a smart student has to do is to learn by heart and spit it out at the examination hall. I have always told my students that they have to be downright stupid to fail in an Indian University Examination. With the advent of Internet, the student should be allowed to explore.
I am not sure how many of our teachers or parents have understood the importance using the World Wide Web to turn your child into a wonderful person. It is the ultimate source for obtaining knowledge. The objective of the education should be to acquire long term knowledge that will stand the student in good stead through his life.
The student currently is focused only on individual goals represented by his marks and his rank. There is immense pressure on the student from his parents to perform well in an individual capacity and he is driven by the parents to believe that unless he gets a first rank, he is worthless. The student, over a period of time, starts viewing his classmates as adversaries rather than friends who would supplement his knowledge. This attitude is carried forward to his job, where he finds to his dismay that it just does not pay to have only individual goals. More often than not, being the only child, the student has to contend with parents who are very possessive and over bearing. This makes the student very dependant on his parents. How often have we seen a student doing well academically but found to be incapable of making even the smallest decision in life on his own. The parents have to take the blame for this. In their eagerness to make their Child's life smooth and hassle free, they are inadvertently turning the child into someone who gets everything easily in life and who is inept at handling any sort of problems.
An often looked aspect of our education is the batch strength which is currently in the region of 40-60. The Batch Strength should not be more than 15. It is proven through researches that the ideal student: teacher ratio is 15:1. This will ensure that the teacher will be in a position to pay individual attention to the each of his student.
The Final Parameter is the Quality of Teachers. Our system does not encourage the best talent to become the teachers. The Teaching profession has lost its sheen. A person takes up teaching as a last resort. Most of them take up the assignment for the wrong reasons. Many become teachers because they can’t get any other job, some because their husbands are working in the same area and they have nothing else to do, for some this is a time pass. Very few become teachers because they love teaching. I have interviewed so many people who have applied for the post of teachers and can count on my fingers the number of people who said that they want the job because they like teaching. The teaching job is not lucrative and in a vast majority of the cases, the teacher has to pay a hefty sum as Donation to get the job. The first priority of the teacher is to take back the money he/she has invested. The end result is the ultimate curse of today’s education system – Tuition. Parents too become an active party to this by forcing their wards to take tuition whether the student requires it or not. I had a Professor in Physics whom I admired a lot. He used to steadfastly refuse to take tuition. He says with lot of feeling “ If it is found that my student has to take a tuition to do well in his examination, I will resign that day. I take this as the ultimate insult and it is a reflection of the quality of my teaching” – Need I say more?
WIIFM – What Is In It For Me? Every customer asks this question and unless he is assured that there is some benefit for him, he will never buy a product. There is no WIIFM for the child and to go to the school. The child goes to the school because he has to, not because he sees a benefit. He does not enjoy going to school. This in the long run will spell doom for our Schools and Colleges.
The Educational Institutions are complacent. But they have to wake up. Otherwise they, in their present form, will cease to exist. Don’t tell me they wont. Who thought that our countryside would be full of private schools? They sprang up like mushrooms because the Government Schools refused to innovate. Our Schools and Colleges have already lost out on a big opportunity – the IT revolution. The phenomenal success of the IT Training Institutes should serve as a warning to the Formal Educational Institutions. Our higher education system is in a mess. We do not have a single university in the amongst the world's top 200 and the best young brains migrate to western countries that offer a chance for them to pursue a mentally stimulating higher order academic degrees. This needs to be seriously addressed.
The Formal Educational System has to innovate or perish, else posterity will not forgive us
Let us look at the whole system of Education from a Management perspective.
The objective of any Education system should be to develop the necessary skills of the student, hard and soft, so essential to make him/her a success in his/her life and in his/her job. Hard skills pertain to the subject knowledge and the soft skills are those behavioural skills required by the student to be productive in his/her job.
Our current education system does take care of the hard skills aspect to some extent (this also is debatable), but has totally ignored the soft skills, which any Employer worth his salt will say is much more important. The popular saying is that ‘ you can always fine tune the technical skills of an employee, but if his/her attitude is bad, then nothing can be done’.
Every year we are churning out people who are technically adequate but attitudinally handicapped. This results in a mismatch between the requirements of the employer and the skills of the employee.The current system hence has failed in meeting its primary objective. The objective should be to provide the necessary soft and hard skills to the student so as to increase his employability.
What should constitute the core product in any educational system?
Relevant Course Content (both hard and soft skills related)
Teaching Methodology
Batch Strength
Quality of Teachers
Evaluation System
It is interesting to note that Listening(45%) and Speaking(30%) is used most in work place but taught the least in the Schools and Colleges, while Reading(16%) and Writing(9%) is used least in the work place, but taught the most. This anomaly has to be corrected.
There are no arguments even from the die-hard fans of the education system that the current syllabus (the core product) at all levels has lost its relevance. This is especially true of the higher education.
For example let us take the parameters – teaching methodology and the Evaluation system together. The most prevalent teaching methodology is the Lecturing mode. Researches have shown that only 20 % of the lecture is retained even by the most attentive of listeners. This is assuming that the lecture is of the highest quality. It is astounding that our teachers are not prepared to use technology. Is'nt it time that we switched over to Computers, Internet, Over Head Projectors,Multimedia Projectors and Interactive visual media tools. Why can’t we use them extensively in teaching? Whenever I mention this I hear howls of protests and excuses saying that Schools and Colleges don’t have the necessary funds. I don’t believe this. Schools and Colleges are always finding it easy to raise funds for building more classrooms, but how come they are unable to find resources for upgrading their teaching aids. Most of the schools and colleges take hefty sums as donations and fees. Even the smallest computer centre in your neighbourhood has these teaching aids. So the protest does not hold water. Teaching methodology has to undergo a sea change.
Our current methodology does not encourage the student to explore. The focus is on learning things from an examination viewpoint. The current evaluation system checks the memory of the student and not his analytical skills or the student’s ability to apply what he has learned. All a smart student has to do is to learn by heart and spit it out at the examination hall. I have always told my students that they have to be downright stupid to fail in an Indian University Examination. With the advent of Internet, the student should be allowed to explore.
I am not sure how many of our teachers or parents have understood the importance using the World Wide Web to turn your child into a wonderful person. It is the ultimate source for obtaining knowledge. The objective of the education should be to acquire long term knowledge that will stand the student in good stead through his life.
The student currently is focused only on individual goals represented by his marks and his rank. There is immense pressure on the student from his parents to perform well in an individual capacity and he is driven by the parents to believe that unless he gets a first rank, he is worthless. The student, over a period of time, starts viewing his classmates as adversaries rather than friends who would supplement his knowledge. This attitude is carried forward to his job, where he finds to his dismay that it just does not pay to have only individual goals. More often than not, being the only child, the student has to contend with parents who are very possessive and over bearing. This makes the student very dependant on his parents. How often have we seen a student doing well academically but found to be incapable of making even the smallest decision in life on his own. The parents have to take the blame for this. In their eagerness to make their Child's life smooth and hassle free, they are inadvertently turning the child into someone who gets everything easily in life and who is inept at handling any sort of problems.
An often looked aspect of our education is the batch strength which is currently in the region of 40-60. The Batch Strength should not be more than 15. It is proven through researches that the ideal student: teacher ratio is 15:1. This will ensure that the teacher will be in a position to pay individual attention to the each of his student.
The Final Parameter is the Quality of Teachers. Our system does not encourage the best talent to become the teachers. The Teaching profession has lost its sheen. A person takes up teaching as a last resort. Most of them take up the assignment for the wrong reasons. Many become teachers because they can’t get any other job, some because their husbands are working in the same area and they have nothing else to do, for some this is a time pass. Very few become teachers because they love teaching. I have interviewed so many people who have applied for the post of teachers and can count on my fingers the number of people who said that they want the job because they like teaching. The teaching job is not lucrative and in a vast majority of the cases, the teacher has to pay a hefty sum as Donation to get the job. The first priority of the teacher is to take back the money he/she has invested. The end result is the ultimate curse of today’s education system – Tuition. Parents too become an active party to this by forcing their wards to take tuition whether the student requires it or not. I had a Professor in Physics whom I admired a lot. He used to steadfastly refuse to take tuition. He says with lot of feeling “ If it is found that my student has to take a tuition to do well in his examination, I will resign that day. I take this as the ultimate insult and it is a reflection of the quality of my teaching” – Need I say more?
WIIFM – What Is In It For Me? Every customer asks this question and unless he is assured that there is some benefit for him, he will never buy a product. There is no WIIFM for the child and to go to the school. The child goes to the school because he has to, not because he sees a benefit. He does not enjoy going to school. This in the long run will spell doom for our Schools and Colleges.
The Educational Institutions are complacent. But they have to wake up. Otherwise they, in their present form, will cease to exist. Don’t tell me they wont. Who thought that our countryside would be full of private schools? They sprang up like mushrooms because the Government Schools refused to innovate. Our Schools and Colleges have already lost out on a big opportunity – the IT revolution. The phenomenal success of the IT Training Institutes should serve as a warning to the Formal Educational Institutions. Our higher education system is in a mess. We do not have a single university in the amongst the world's top 200 and the best young brains migrate to western countries that offer a chance for them to pursue a mentally stimulating higher order academic degrees. This needs to be seriously addressed.
The Formal Educational System has to innovate or perish, else posterity will not forgive us
Tuesday 13 November 2007
Consumers - Kings or Idiots?
The year was 1990. I was just a few years into a marketing career. The place was Coimbatore in South India, where I was working as a Sales Officer for the oil giant, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited. Remember, this was before the ubiquitous Internet and e-mail. I had to depend on snail mail to correspond with the office and people around the world. I went to one of the main post offices in Coimbatore, in R S Puram, to post some letters. Instead of the familiar single red letter box, I was confronted with five boxes in different colours - one for overseas letters, one for letters to other states of India, one for letters within the state, one for greeting cards and one for local posts. There was a written request to put the letters in the appropriate box to ensure speedy delivery. As a young professional, I was thrilled at the innovation and painstakingly did as was required.
Next day, I visited an old relative of mine who was a retired post master and told him excitedly about this innovation, thinking that he will be interested as he had worked 35 years in the postal department. He dismissed the idea with a curt remark, "What is so great about it? Now you are doing the job of sorting which was hitherto being done by the postal department". It dawned on me, a rookie management professional, how I have been now asked to take additional workload for no additional benefit. Postal department has quietly shifted a major part of their job to the customer.
Since then, I have noticed with concern the increasing number of instances where the burden of work has been quietly shifted to the customer.
In earlier days, petrol delivery boys took the key from you, opened the petrol tank, filled the petrol, collected the money and gave you the receipt. Now!!! in the name of self service WE have to do all these. More work for the hapless customer.
We were welcomed with open hands in the banks. With the advent of ATM, the work pertaining to withdrawal of cash has fallen on us. Now WE have to check the balance, insert the card, punch in numbers, take the card and cash out, wait for the receipt and to boot, the bank charges us extra for this. Some of the banks in Kuwait positively discourages us to do personal banking by charging 1KD for any transactions done in person up to 300KD. Now we have ATM machines accepting cheques. What next?
Another classic case is the way we purchase provisions for the house. Again, we used to make a list, hand it over to the Mom and Pop shop where we buy regularly and we can either wait or attend to other work till he packs all the items as per the list and loads it in the car. All we had to do was to make the payment. Today? WE go to a supermarket, WE walk around picking things, WE go to the counter, WE make the payment, WE push the trolley, WE load it to our car,and WE pay extra.
Consumers the kings!! or Consumers the idiots!!.......you judge for yourself
Next day, I visited an old relative of mine who was a retired post master and told him excitedly about this innovation, thinking that he will be interested as he had worked 35 years in the postal department. He dismissed the idea with a curt remark, "What is so great about it? Now you are doing the job of sorting which was hitherto being done by the postal department". It dawned on me, a rookie management professional, how I have been now asked to take additional workload for no additional benefit. Postal department has quietly shifted a major part of their job to the customer.
Since then, I have noticed with concern the increasing number of instances where the burden of work has been quietly shifted to the customer.
In earlier days, petrol delivery boys took the key from you, opened the petrol tank, filled the petrol, collected the money and gave you the receipt. Now!!! in the name of self service WE have to do all these. More work for the hapless customer.
We were welcomed with open hands in the banks. With the advent of ATM, the work pertaining to withdrawal of cash has fallen on us. Now WE have to check the balance, insert the card, punch in numbers, take the card and cash out, wait for the receipt and to boot, the bank charges us extra for this. Some of the banks in Kuwait positively discourages us to do personal banking by charging 1KD for any transactions done in person up to 300KD. Now we have ATM machines accepting cheques. What next?
Another classic case is the way we purchase provisions for the house. Again, we used to make a list, hand it over to the Mom and Pop shop where we buy regularly and we can either wait or attend to other work till he packs all the items as per the list and loads it in the car. All we had to do was to make the payment. Today? WE go to a supermarket, WE walk around picking things, WE go to the counter, WE make the payment, WE push the trolley, WE load it to our car,and WE pay extra.
Consumers the kings!! or Consumers the idiots!!.......you judge for yourself
Monday 12 November 2007
Branding Yourself
Branding, in olden days, was associated with hot iron, burnt flesh and cattle. Though we tend to brand everything under the sun, when it comes to branding oneself, people find the concept nauseating and unpleasant. The idea that one can be construed as a product does not sit comfortably for many, and thus the idea that people should be treated as “brands” seems too commercial a way of thinking to be relevant to most individuals.
There are many reasons for branding yourself, 1) you set yourself apart from the crowd, 2)you can position your focused message in the hearts and minds of your family, society and workplace, 3) you will ensure top of the mind recall in your audience's minds, 4) it creases your authority and will result in better acceptance of your decisions, 5) places you in a leadership role, 6) it enhances your standing amongst peers and friends, 7) attracts the right people and right opportunities, 8) adds perceived value to what you are selling, mostly ideas and 9) earns you recognition.
The goal of personal branding is to take the best aspects of branding theory and apply them to the marketing of individuals. The idea is simply to ensure a match between the goals of the individual and the market place needs. Personal branding deals with how the individual is represented in the marketplace, the level of awareness held and the things (feelings, images, perceptions, expectations) people associate with that individual. You have to constantly monitor awareness levels and control the way in which you are perceived by the marketplace, and maintain strong associations with desirable aspects and other events. It also calls for you to be consistent in the way you present yourself to the public and family.
Like any successful brand, you, as an individual, should possess a clear differentiator, the absence of which will result in you being treated as a commodity.
A personal brand can be defined as “a personal identity that stimulates precise, meaningful perceptions in its audience about the values and qualities that person stands for”
There are some crucial elements to creating a successful brand 'you'
1. Specialisation – Concentrating on a core strength. One thing that sets you apart from others and not replicable.
2. Leadership – Desirable. You need to be perceived as a leader by others. But remember, if you do not possess leadership qualities, but are a good number 2, ensure that you have the leadership status in the number 2 slot - in short, you are a damn good number 2
3. Personality – You have a unique personality with flaws. Leverage it.
4. Visibility – repetition is the key to developing a broad number of associations in the mind of the audience, and making yourself memorable. Seeing a brand continuously reinforces that the brand is good or powerful. For many people awareness equates to perceived quality, that is, they think it is good because they know it.
5. Consistency– The person must adhere to the brand at all times. People look for consistency that in turn leads to reliability
6. Nurturing – Any brand takes time to grow and must be nurtured. Developing a personal brand will take time, nurturing and consistency. Don’t change the brand abruptly
but be patient.
7.Augmentation - The brand needs to be augmented over a period of time and this has to be consistent with the original brand as otherwise repositioning will cause an erosion of brand equity. Upgrade your skill sets, behavioural patters over time.
8. Positive Energy - Ensure that you are being viewed as a positive person
You as a brand must be distinctive, consistent, based on strengths which are not easy to
copy, visible, unique, and seen positively.
Go on and brand yourself.
There are many reasons for branding yourself, 1) you set yourself apart from the crowd, 2)you can position your focused message in the hearts and minds of your family, society and workplace, 3) you will ensure top of the mind recall in your audience's minds, 4) it creases your authority and will result in better acceptance of your decisions, 5) places you in a leadership role, 6) it enhances your standing amongst peers and friends, 7) attracts the right people and right opportunities, 8) adds perceived value to what you are selling, mostly ideas and 9) earns you recognition.
The goal of personal branding is to take the best aspects of branding theory and apply them to the marketing of individuals. The idea is simply to ensure a match between the goals of the individual and the market place needs. Personal branding deals with how the individual is represented in the marketplace, the level of awareness held and the things (feelings, images, perceptions, expectations) people associate with that individual. You have to constantly monitor awareness levels and control the way in which you are perceived by the marketplace, and maintain strong associations with desirable aspects and other events. It also calls for you to be consistent in the way you present yourself to the public and family.
Like any successful brand, you, as an individual, should possess a clear differentiator, the absence of which will result in you being treated as a commodity.
A personal brand can be defined as “a personal identity that stimulates precise, meaningful perceptions in its audience about the values and qualities that person stands for”
There are some crucial elements to creating a successful brand 'you'
1. Specialisation – Concentrating on a core strength. One thing that sets you apart from others and not replicable.
2. Leadership – Desirable. You need to be perceived as a leader by others. But remember, if you do not possess leadership qualities, but are a good number 2, ensure that you have the leadership status in the number 2 slot - in short, you are a damn good number 2
3. Personality – You have a unique personality with flaws. Leverage it.
4. Visibility – repetition is the key to developing a broad number of associations in the mind of the audience, and making yourself memorable. Seeing a brand continuously reinforces that the brand is good or powerful. For many people awareness equates to perceived quality, that is, they think it is good because they know it.
5. Consistency– The person must adhere to the brand at all times. People look for consistency that in turn leads to reliability
6. Nurturing – Any brand takes time to grow and must be nurtured. Developing a personal brand will take time, nurturing and consistency. Don’t change the brand abruptly
but be patient.
7.Augmentation - The brand needs to be augmented over a period of time and this has to be consistent with the original brand as otherwise repositioning will cause an erosion of brand equity. Upgrade your skill sets, behavioural patters over time.
8. Positive Energy - Ensure that you are being viewed as a positive person
You as a brand must be distinctive, consistent, based on strengths which are not easy to
copy, visible, unique, and seen positively.
Go on and brand yourself.
Sunday 11 November 2007
More on Investment
“Give a man a fish and he’ll have a meal. Teach him to fish and he’ll never go hungry” – This ancient Chinese proverb, like all wise sayings, is timeless, just as valid today as it was a thousand year ago.
Ask anyone who has gone fishing. He will tell you that it is very complex. It is an art as well as a science. Learning to do it well does not happen overnight. A top fisherman draws on his technique, experience and more important on patience. An amateur meanwhile relies on luck alone. He may be successful once in a while, but in the long run the top fisherman always succeeds.
Fishing closely mirrors the business of investment.
For many, investing is shrouded in mystery and fraught with danger. A hard nut to crack. They feel it is the preserve of a gifted few.
It is not. Like everything else, sound investing can also be taught and learned. It is a myth that only financial professionals can understand the nuances of the stock market. You too can do it. All it requires is sound fundamentals, common sense and perseverance. Experience helps, but that will come automatically. What is more important is the willingness to learn from the mistakes. Remember when you were a child. What did you do when you fell down as a toddler while attempting to walk? You just got up and tried again making minor adjustments. So it is in the stock market.
I shall elaborate on a FAQ mode:
Q: What if I get hurt?
A: Play for meaningful stakes. Do not expect to invest a few dollars and hope for a fortune in return. It happens only in lottery and gambling. But then you know the odds in favour of it. Million to one?
If an amount is so small that its loss won't make any significant difference, then it isn't likely to bring any significant gains either.
Put your money at risk. The degree of risk you will be taking will not normally make your insurance company run for cover. Do not be afraid to get hurt a little.
Q: Should I worry?
A: Of course. Worry is not a sickness while investing. It is rather a sign of health. If you are not worried, you are not risking enough. (Zurich Axiom 1)
Q: Should I invest spread my investments?
A:Do not put your eggs in many baskets. Ever seen the juggler in the circus who performs with balls. He has with him few balls. If he increases the number of balls, he loses control and his entire act falls flat.
Same is true of investment. Remember KISS, an acronym for Keep It Short and Simple. KISS your portfolio. Have a limited number of companies in your portfolio. Do not subject to the allurement of extensive diversification. If you have a wide portfolio, the losses and gains tend to cancel each other. It is best to put all the eggs in 3-4 baskets and watch them closely.
Q: When should I sell ?
A:Sell too soon. Don’t hope for winning streaks to go on and on. Don’t stretch your luck. Expect winning streaks to be short. When you reach a previously decided-upon ending position, cash out and walk away. Do this even when everything looks rosy, when everyone else is saying the boom will keep roaring along. (Zurich Axiom 2)
The only reason for not doing it would be that some new situation has arisen, and this situation makes you all but certain that you can go on winning for a while. Except in such usual circumstances, get in the habit of selling too soon. And when you have sold, don’t torment yourself if the winning continues without you. It is better to take your profit too soon. Decide in advance what gain you want from a venture, and when you get it, get out. Do not be a greedy monkey. Remember what happened to Isaac Newton.
Q: When the ship starts sinking, do I hold on?
A: For heaven’s sake don’t become a martyr. You are not the captain of the ship. So jump. Don’t pray. (Zurich Axiom 3).
Accept small losses cheerfully as a fact of life. Expect to experience several while awaiting a large gain. Learning to take losses is an essential speculative technique. MOST never learn it. Take losses at once and move on. Take small losses to protect yourself from the big ones.
Beware of the three common demons,
Post bail out dissonance – fear that the stock might turn around once you quit.
Unwillingness to divorce - you have emotional attachment to certain stocks. You may not want to relinquish them.
Vanity – bailing out most often means that admitting you have made a mistake in the first place in acquiring them. Do not be obstinate. You are in the business of investing to make money, not to assuage your ego.
Ask anyone who has gone fishing. He will tell you that it is very complex. It is an art as well as a science. Learning to do it well does not happen overnight. A top fisherman draws on his technique, experience and more important on patience. An amateur meanwhile relies on luck alone. He may be successful once in a while, but in the long run the top fisherman always succeeds.
Fishing closely mirrors the business of investment.
For many, investing is shrouded in mystery and fraught with danger. A hard nut to crack. They feel it is the preserve of a gifted few.
It is not. Like everything else, sound investing can also be taught and learned. It is a myth that only financial professionals can understand the nuances of the stock market. You too can do it. All it requires is sound fundamentals, common sense and perseverance. Experience helps, but that will come automatically. What is more important is the willingness to learn from the mistakes. Remember when you were a child. What did you do when you fell down as a toddler while attempting to walk? You just got up and tried again making minor adjustments. So it is in the stock market.
I shall elaborate on a FAQ mode:
Q: What if I get hurt?
A: Play for meaningful stakes. Do not expect to invest a few dollars and hope for a fortune in return. It happens only in lottery and gambling. But then you know the odds in favour of it. Million to one?
If an amount is so small that its loss won't make any significant difference, then it isn't likely to bring any significant gains either.
Put your money at risk. The degree of risk you will be taking will not normally make your insurance company run for cover. Do not be afraid to get hurt a little.
Q: Should I worry?
A: Of course. Worry is not a sickness while investing. It is rather a sign of health. If you are not worried, you are not risking enough. (Zurich Axiom 1)
Q: Should I invest spread my investments?
A:Do not put your eggs in many baskets. Ever seen the juggler in the circus who performs with balls. He has with him few balls. If he increases the number of balls, he loses control and his entire act falls flat.
Same is true of investment. Remember KISS, an acronym for Keep It Short and Simple. KISS your portfolio. Have a limited number of companies in your portfolio. Do not subject to the allurement of extensive diversification. If you have a wide portfolio, the losses and gains tend to cancel each other. It is best to put all the eggs in 3-4 baskets and watch them closely.
Q: When should I sell ?
A:Sell too soon. Don’t hope for winning streaks to go on and on. Don’t stretch your luck. Expect winning streaks to be short. When you reach a previously decided-upon ending position, cash out and walk away. Do this even when everything looks rosy, when everyone else is saying the boom will keep roaring along. (Zurich Axiom 2)
The only reason for not doing it would be that some new situation has arisen, and this situation makes you all but certain that you can go on winning for a while. Except in such usual circumstances, get in the habit of selling too soon. And when you have sold, don’t torment yourself if the winning continues without you. It is better to take your profit too soon. Decide in advance what gain you want from a venture, and when you get it, get out. Do not be a greedy monkey. Remember what happened to Isaac Newton.
Q: When the ship starts sinking, do I hold on?
A: For heaven’s sake don’t become a martyr. You are not the captain of the ship. So jump. Don’t pray. (Zurich Axiom 3).
Accept small losses cheerfully as a fact of life. Expect to experience several while awaiting a large gain. Learning to take losses is an essential speculative technique. MOST never learn it. Take losses at once and move on. Take small losses to protect yourself from the big ones.
Beware of the three common demons,
Post bail out dissonance – fear that the stock might turn around once you quit.
Unwillingness to divorce - you have emotional attachment to certain stocks. You may not want to relinquish them.
Vanity – bailing out most often means that admitting you have made a mistake in the first place in acquiring them. Do not be obstinate. You are in the business of investing to make money, not to assuage your ego.
Thursday 8 November 2007
Conversational Marketing
With advertising costs spiralling, customer loyalty becoming fickle, reduction in attention spans and product life cycle getting shorter, Organizations are scurrying to find out cost effective methods of communicating. And they are resorting to something from the past -Conversational Marketing. Believe me, in olden days people used this to great effect. In fact this was the only tool that was available before the advent of newspapers, radio and the ubiquitous television. In a sense the wheel has come the full circle.
In the years to come, Conversational Marketing is likely to be used as a major tool in changing the negative perception of the customers or more importantly in developing a lasting brand image. Organizations will strive to engineer brand interventions and create new products that generate controllable, predictable, positive third party endorsement and word-of-mouth marketing.
Consumers are getting more powerful. With the advent of Internet and the consequent information explosion, there has been a perceptible shift from a sellers market to a buyers market. To remain competitive Organizations are forced to offer quality, inexpensive and innovative products which has a negative influence on their bottom line. With the world moving away from a services economy to an experience economy, the race is on to create value by transforming the mere consumption of products and services to meaningful consumer experiences.
Storytelling is a powerful currency that transforms the relationship between brand experiences and the consumers. Satisfied customers are requested to talk about their consumption experience in return for incentives, both monetary and non-monetary. This, called Conversational Capital, shall ensure enhanced brand equity.
Let us have a look at how Conversational Capital can be generated and maintained in the long run. There are numerous avenues available,
Icons: Since Consumers notice icons, products that exemplify the Corporate identity should be highlighted as icons
Rituals: Encourage active involvement of prospective customers and stakeholders in select events, organized periodically, to develop a sense of ownership
Endorsement: Celebrity endorsement acts as a risk reducer for the consumer and aids in associating products with an image. This helps in the positioning of products in the minds of the customer
Myths: Over a period of time, create and circulate traditional narratives or myths regarding the organization's products, services and customer experiences. Allow the legends to grow.
Personal Testimonials: Testimonials should be obtained from satisfied customers that shall serve as a marketing tool to generate word of mouth and to reassure new customers or fence sitters.
Creating conversational capital is a tedious process with hardly any tangible returns in the short term. But in the long run it will be well worth it.
In the years to come, Conversational Marketing is likely to be used as a major tool in changing the negative perception of the customers or more importantly in developing a lasting brand image. Organizations will strive to engineer brand interventions and create new products that generate controllable, predictable, positive third party endorsement and word-of-mouth marketing.
Consumers are getting more powerful. With the advent of Internet and the consequent information explosion, there has been a perceptible shift from a sellers market to a buyers market. To remain competitive Organizations are forced to offer quality, inexpensive and innovative products which has a negative influence on their bottom line. With the world moving away from a services economy to an experience economy, the race is on to create value by transforming the mere consumption of products and services to meaningful consumer experiences.
Storytelling is a powerful currency that transforms the relationship between brand experiences and the consumers. Satisfied customers are requested to talk about their consumption experience in return for incentives, both monetary and non-monetary. This, called Conversational Capital, shall ensure enhanced brand equity.
Let us have a look at how Conversational Capital can be generated and maintained in the long run. There are numerous avenues available,
Icons: Since Consumers notice icons, products that exemplify the Corporate identity should be highlighted as icons
Rituals: Encourage active involvement of prospective customers and stakeholders in select events, organized periodically, to develop a sense of ownership
Endorsement: Celebrity endorsement acts as a risk reducer for the consumer and aids in associating products with an image. This helps in the positioning of products in the minds of the customer
Myths: Over a period of time, create and circulate traditional narratives or myths regarding the organization's products, services and customer experiences. Allow the legends to grow.
Personal Testimonials: Testimonials should be obtained from satisfied customers that shall serve as a marketing tool to generate word of mouth and to reassure new customers or fence sitters.
Creating conversational capital is a tedious process with hardly any tangible returns in the short term. But in the long run it will be well worth it.
Wednesday 7 November 2007
Education's cardinal sin
With the joint family system disintegrating by late 70’s, the era of the nucleus family began.
Families became smaller and smaller. By 90’s,couples were forced to have only one child, especially in India. There were compulsions from the society to reduce the population growth. With the joint family system breaking up, young couple found it economically non viable to support more than two children. The 80’s and 90’s also saw more and more women taking up jobs in order to make both ends meet as also to improve the standard of living in a world, which has become more and more materialistic.
The parents were unable to spend enough time with their toddlers as they struggled to cope up with the twin demands of work and the family.This necessitated in the child having to start the schooling at the tender age of 2 ½ as against 5, which is preferable.
The period 2 ½ - 5 is crucial as this is the time when the Child's basic value system is crystallized. Parents constraints on time forced them to leave the child either at day care centres, play schools or with maids who were illiterate. This has turned out to be a major catastrophe.
Sensing an opportunity the educational system in the private sector swung into action. Countless schools sprang up in every nook and corner of the country. The respective governments turned a blind eye to this, as education was no longer a priority for the powers that be. Shifting the responsibility to private sector, in fact, suited them, as primary education was never a vote-catching issue in India. The fly by night operators started schools and colleges with hardly any facility, without any prescribed syllabus and qualified teachers. The Teachers Training Programs conducted by the Government, which is a pre -requisite for getting a Teachers Job, were so outdated that it has no relevance in today’s world. Quality of education suffered in the bargain.
Education became a Business. And the bottom line became Profitability.
There is nothing wrong in this. As a Management Professional, I whole-heartily support the view that any business has to run at a profit, or at least it should not run at a loss.But where the current education system has failed is in developing the right product. And it has failed miserably.
And this business has done the cardinal sin of not identifying the Customer.
The customer has to be the Child, not the parents.
(to be continued)
Families became smaller and smaller. By 90’s,couples were forced to have only one child, especially in India. There were compulsions from the society to reduce the population growth. With the joint family system breaking up, young couple found it economically non viable to support more than two children. The 80’s and 90’s also saw more and more women taking up jobs in order to make both ends meet as also to improve the standard of living in a world, which has become more and more materialistic.
The parents were unable to spend enough time with their toddlers as they struggled to cope up with the twin demands of work and the family.This necessitated in the child having to start the schooling at the tender age of 2 ½ as against 5, which is preferable.
The period 2 ½ - 5 is crucial as this is the time when the Child's basic value system is crystallized. Parents constraints on time forced them to leave the child either at day care centres, play schools or with maids who were illiterate. This has turned out to be a major catastrophe.
Sensing an opportunity the educational system in the private sector swung into action. Countless schools sprang up in every nook and corner of the country. The respective governments turned a blind eye to this, as education was no longer a priority for the powers that be. Shifting the responsibility to private sector, in fact, suited them, as primary education was never a vote-catching issue in India. The fly by night operators started schools and colleges with hardly any facility, without any prescribed syllabus and qualified teachers. The Teachers Training Programs conducted by the Government, which is a pre -requisite for getting a Teachers Job, were so outdated that it has no relevance in today’s world. Quality of education suffered in the bargain.
Education became a Business. And the bottom line became Profitability.
There is nothing wrong in this. As a Management Professional, I whole-heartily support the view that any business has to run at a profit, or at least it should not run at a loss.But where the current education system has failed is in developing the right product. And it has failed miserably.
And this business has done the cardinal sin of not identifying the Customer.
The customer has to be the Child, not the parents.
(to be continued)
Tuesday 6 November 2007
Stages of life and my favourite Sportsperson
I am a certified sports nut. I follow most of the major sports. It has been an obsession with me since childhood. Maybe it has got something to do with my not being endowed with natural athleticism, though I play most of the racquet sports decently and has had limited success in Age group Cricket tournaments as a teenager.
The other day, I was looking back at my favourite sportsmen during the last three decades and it stuck me that my choice has a lot to do with my development as a person.
As a young boy, brought up in a conservative environment and taught to be obedient, I had gone in for the more orthodox and traditional Sunil Gavaskar rather than the artistic G R Viswanath. The trend continued in my teens with my following the deeds of the Iceman Bjorn Borg and the traditional Chris Evert than the mercurial, brash but brilliant John McEnroe or the unconventional Martina Navratilova. I was never taken in by the charms of the wild Ian Botham but rather liked the clinical Richard Hadlee. Preferred the conventional Gordon Greenidge over the flamboyant Viv Richards
As I flew away from the nest and started exploring the world first as a MBA student and later as a young professional, I had a different perspective of the world. I started becoming more daring, liberal and unconventional but the streak of conservatism remained. I took the middle path. Though I was not ready yet for the non conformist Boris Becker or the dull drab Lendl or Wilander, I still went in for the graceful but traditional Stefan Edberg and the pretty, talented Gabriela Sabatini. Liked the lazy elegance of Mark Waugh over the scrapping of his twin Steve and followed the trail of the the artistic and straight Alan Prost rather than the rebellious Ayrton Senna, who died tragically in the racetrack.
Post mid thirties, my personality had undergone a sea change. I had become much more liberal, very very unconventional and a rebel at heart. I also found out that being conventional and correct will take you only this far and no further. One need to have the streak of a rebel and non conformist to succeed. Inborn talent coupled with hard work, a tinge of nonconfirmism and a ferocious will to win is what it takes to be a winner. Fortunately for me there were two outstanding sportsmen during this period who fitted in beautifully to my personality. The brilliant Michael Schumacher and the genius Roger Federer. I admired Michael for his commitment, ability to take calculated risks, win at all costs philosophy and his sheer brilliance in driving. And Roger!! Genius is a much abused word in the world of sports. But no other word can be appropriate while describing Roger. What amazing talent!. The guy is a magician. True artist. It is when you see Roger Federer that one believes in God. To have created a sportsman and a gentleman like him, he must have been in one of his rare good moods. It is so unfair for one man to be endowed with so much talent and skill. More importantly, each of Rogers match and even each of his shot is a lesson in strategic management. He has 6 different shots at any given point of time and he chooses the right one every single time. His opponents have tried so many different strategies while playing him but he has a counter to every single one of them, the French open against Nadal excluding. The beauty lies in his ability to execute the strategy to perfection day in and day out. And though renowned as an attacking player, many don't realise how good he is while defending. A strategic managers dream. In my book, the greatest sportsperson of all time and my all time favourite.
On reflecting again, I find that even while being a traditionalist as a youngster I did have a soft corner for the maverick chess player Bobby Fischer, the graceful Nadia Comenchi, the firebrand Dennis Lille, the touch artist Prakash Padukkone, the crazy but immensely talented Ille Nastase, the unconventional Doug Walters and the brilliant Jack Nicklaus. And of course I have always liked the poetry of the Brazilian Football team and the magic of Diego Maradonna.
Is it likely that the rebel and the aesthetic existed inside me dormant even as a youngster??... I wonder...
The other day, I was looking back at my favourite sportsmen during the last three decades and it stuck me that my choice has a lot to do with my development as a person.
As a young boy, brought up in a conservative environment and taught to be obedient, I had gone in for the more orthodox and traditional Sunil Gavaskar rather than the artistic G R Viswanath. The trend continued in my teens with my following the deeds of the Iceman Bjorn Borg and the traditional Chris Evert than the mercurial, brash but brilliant John McEnroe or the unconventional Martina Navratilova. I was never taken in by the charms of the wild Ian Botham but rather liked the clinical Richard Hadlee. Preferred the conventional Gordon Greenidge over the flamboyant Viv Richards
As I flew away from the nest and started exploring the world first as a MBA student and later as a young professional, I had a different perspective of the world. I started becoming more daring, liberal and unconventional but the streak of conservatism remained. I took the middle path. Though I was not ready yet for the non conformist Boris Becker or the dull drab Lendl or Wilander, I still went in for the graceful but traditional Stefan Edberg and the pretty, talented Gabriela Sabatini. Liked the lazy elegance of Mark Waugh over the scrapping of his twin Steve and followed the trail of the the artistic and straight Alan Prost rather than the rebellious Ayrton Senna, who died tragically in the racetrack.
Post mid thirties, my personality had undergone a sea change. I had become much more liberal, very very unconventional and a rebel at heart. I also found out that being conventional and correct will take you only this far and no further. One need to have the streak of a rebel and non conformist to succeed. Inborn talent coupled with hard work, a tinge of nonconfirmism and a ferocious will to win is what it takes to be a winner. Fortunately for me there were two outstanding sportsmen during this period who fitted in beautifully to my personality. The brilliant Michael Schumacher and the genius Roger Federer. I admired Michael for his commitment, ability to take calculated risks, win at all costs philosophy and his sheer brilliance in driving. And Roger!! Genius is a much abused word in the world of sports. But no other word can be appropriate while describing Roger. What amazing talent!. The guy is a magician. True artist. It is when you see Roger Federer that one believes in God. To have created a sportsman and a gentleman like him, he must have been in one of his rare good moods. It is so unfair for one man to be endowed with so much talent and skill. More importantly, each of Rogers match and even each of his shot is a lesson in strategic management. He has 6 different shots at any given point of time and he chooses the right one every single time. His opponents have tried so many different strategies while playing him but he has a counter to every single one of them, the French open against Nadal excluding. The beauty lies in his ability to execute the strategy to perfection day in and day out. And though renowned as an attacking player, many don't realise how good he is while defending. A strategic managers dream. In my book, the greatest sportsperson of all time and my all time favourite.
On reflecting again, I find that even while being a traditionalist as a youngster I did have a soft corner for the maverick chess player Bobby Fischer, the graceful Nadia Comenchi, the firebrand Dennis Lille, the touch artist Prakash Padukkone, the crazy but immensely talented Ille Nastase, the unconventional Doug Walters and the brilliant Jack Nicklaus. And of course I have always liked the poetry of the Brazilian Football team and the magic of Diego Maradonna.
Is it likely that the rebel and the aesthetic existed inside me dormant even as a youngster??... I wonder...
Monday 5 November 2007
Joint family system and Character building
The joint family system, that was in vogue till the 70’s had many virtues as far as a child was concerned. The elders in the family took care of developing the character of the younger generation. The virtues of good value system and the need to be truthful were drilled strongly in the minds of the children.
Invariably the child, more often than not, had many brothers and sisters. This developed a sense of responsibility on the older children while the younger ones had ready made role models in either their brothers or sisters or the innumerable cousins. They had children of their age group to play with in the family. This led to the development of their group and inter personal behaviour.
Also, the influence of the society was strong. The children were taught to respect elders, engage in village activities, given specific responsibilities during functions in the villages and encouraged to work as a team. There was no place for children who could not adapt as they were ruthlessly ostracized by the society and the family.
Thus the joint family system played an important part in creating a society of ethical, value oriented people and the family compensated for the lack of Soft Skills development curricula in the schools.
Can the fall in the overall value system in the society be attributed to the disintegration of joint family??
Invariably the child, more often than not, had many brothers and sisters. This developed a sense of responsibility on the older children while the younger ones had ready made role models in either their brothers or sisters or the innumerable cousins. They had children of their age group to play with in the family. This led to the development of their group and inter personal behaviour.
Also, the influence of the society was strong. The children were taught to respect elders, engage in village activities, given specific responsibilities during functions in the villages and encouraged to work as a team. There was no place for children who could not adapt as they were ruthlessly ostracized by the society and the family.
Thus the joint family system played an important part in creating a society of ethical, value oriented people and the family compensated for the lack of Soft Skills development curricula in the schools.
Can the fall in the overall value system in the society be attributed to the disintegration of joint family??
Sunday 4 November 2007
Zurich Axioms
I happen to come across Zurich Axioms sometime in the 1990's and I want to share with you the wisdom of The Zurich Axioms, which were originally given to the world by Max Gunther in his book of the same title in 1985.
Immediately after World War II, a group of Swiss bankers and businessmen set out to make money by investing in everything from stocks to real estate, commodities to currency. They did make money. A great deal of money. And are still doing it. They are considered to be the cleverest investors and bankers. Max Gunther put their investment philosophy as a collection of Axioms or Rules. You can be a winner at the money game if you play by the Zurich Axioms.
Axiom 1
ON RISK : Worry is not a sickness but a sign of health. If you are not worried, you are not risking enough.
Axiom 2
ON GREED: Always take your profit too soon
Axiom 3
ON HOPE: When the ship starts to sink, don't pray. Jump.
Axiom 4
ON FORECASTS: Human behavior cannot be predicted. Distrust anyone who claims to know the future, however dimly.
Axiom 5
ON PATTERNS: Chaos is not dangerous until it begins to look orderly.
Axiom 6
ON MOBILITY: Avoid putting down roots. They impede motion
Axiom 7
ON INTUITION: A hunch can be trusted if it can be explained
Axiom 8
ON RELIGION AND THE OCCULT : It is unlikely that God's plan for the universe includes making you rich.
Axiom 9
ON OPTIMISM AND PESSIMISM : Optimism means expecting the best, but confidence means knowing how you will handle the worst.. Never make a move if you are merely optimistic.
Axiom 10
ON CONSENSUS: Disregard the majority opinion. It is probably wrong.
Axiom 11
ON STUBBORNNESS: If it doesn't pay off the first time, forget it.
Axiom 12
ON PLANNING: Long-range plans engender the dangerous belief that the future is under control. It is important never to take your own long-range plans,or other people's, seriously.
Read this blog for detailed interpretation of each of the above in the days to come
Immediately after World War II, a group of Swiss bankers and businessmen set out to make money by investing in everything from stocks to real estate, commodities to currency. They did make money. A great deal of money. And are still doing it. They are considered to be the cleverest investors and bankers. Max Gunther put their investment philosophy as a collection of Axioms or Rules. You can be a winner at the money game if you play by the Zurich Axioms.
Axiom 1
ON RISK : Worry is not a sickness but a sign of health. If you are not worried, you are not risking enough.
Axiom 2
ON GREED: Always take your profit too soon
Axiom 3
ON HOPE: When the ship starts to sink, don't pray. Jump.
Axiom 4
ON FORECASTS: Human behavior cannot be predicted. Distrust anyone who claims to know the future, however dimly.
Axiom 5
ON PATTERNS: Chaos is not dangerous until it begins to look orderly.
Axiom 6
ON MOBILITY: Avoid putting down roots. They impede motion
Axiom 7
ON INTUITION: A hunch can be trusted if it can be explained
Axiom 8
ON RELIGION AND THE OCCULT : It is unlikely that God's plan for the universe includes making you rich.
Axiom 9
ON OPTIMISM AND PESSIMISM : Optimism means expecting the best, but confidence means knowing how you will handle the worst.. Never make a move if you are merely optimistic.
Axiom 10
ON CONSENSUS: Disregard the majority opinion. It is probably wrong.
Axiom 11
ON STUBBORNNESS: If it doesn't pay off the first time, forget it.
Axiom 12
ON PLANNING: Long-range plans engender the dangerous belief that the future is under control. It is important never to take your own long-range plans,or other people's, seriously.
Read this blog for detailed interpretation of each of the above in the days to come
Dasavatharam and Evolution of Mankind
I have heard many ridicule the past and the scriptures. While I am not fully taken in by what is in scriptures, sometimes I am stunned as to the wisdom of our forefathers.........here is one example.....
Those who have followed the hindu faith or are familiar with hinduism know about the 10 avatharams of Mahavishnu called the 'Dasavatharam'.
For those who don't know, they are,
Matsya, Koorma, Varaha, Narasimha, Vamana, Parasurama, Sreerama, Balarama, Sreekrishna , Kalki
Recently, I happened to read a take on the Dasavatharam by Sri Aurobindo.
"Avatarhood would have little meaning if it were not connected with the evolution. The Hindu procession of the ten Avatars is itself, as it were, a parable of evolution. First the Fish Avatar, then the amphibious animal between land and water, then the land animal, then the Man-Lion Avatar, bridging man and animal, then man as dwarf, small and undeveloped and physical but containing in himself the godhead and taking possession of existence, then the rajasic, sattwic, nirguna Avatars, leading the human development from the vital rajasic to the sattwic mental man and again the overmental superman. Krishna, Buddha and Kalki depict the last three stages, the stages of the spiritual development – Krishna opens the possibility of overmind, Buddha tries to shoot beyond to the supreme liberation but that liberation is still negative, not returning upon earth to complete positively the evolution; Kalki is to correct this by bringing the Kingdom of the Divine upon earth, destroying the opposing Asura forces. The progression is striking and unmistakable."Letters on Yoga; SABCL; 400; ( I sincerely thank an Anonymous friend for giving me the original source through the comment section and correcting me. I thought my friend would reveal who he or she is. Maybe an avatharam of vishnu??)
Though exactly not what Aurobindo implied, someone else interpreted Dasavatharam as "Matsya (life in water), Koorma (amphibian), Varaha(land animal) , Narasimha (half man half animal denoting man evolving from his animal instincts), Vamana (the dwarf indicating the incompleteness of the development of man), Parasurama (uses axe so necessary to survive in forest), Sreerama (kingdom, use of bow and arrow meaning fighting from a distance rather than fighting at a close range using the axe), Balarama ( the agriculturist- man moving on to become a food producer) , Sreekrishna ( the advanced version of man - more intellectual - maybe the first known Consultant and Service provider) and yet to come saviour Kalki" .....Even this interpretation is something to be contemplated............
We may agree or disagree, but I thought this interpretation a little different as I certainly had not looked at Dasavatharam from that angle before ..........
Just passing on an information I found interesting......It was thought provoking
Those who have followed the hindu faith or are familiar with hinduism know about the 10 avatharams of Mahavishnu called the 'Dasavatharam'.
For those who don't know, they are,
Matsya, Koorma, Varaha, Narasimha, Vamana, Parasurama, Sreerama, Balarama, Sreekrishna , Kalki
Recently, I happened to read a take on the Dasavatharam by Sri Aurobindo.
"Avatarhood would have little meaning if it were not connected with the evolution. The Hindu procession of the ten Avatars is itself, as it were, a parable of evolution. First the Fish Avatar, then the amphibious animal between land and water, then the land animal, then the Man-Lion Avatar, bridging man and animal, then man as dwarf, small and undeveloped and physical but containing in himself the godhead and taking possession of existence, then the rajasic, sattwic, nirguna Avatars, leading the human development from the vital rajasic to the sattwic mental man and again the overmental superman. Krishna, Buddha and Kalki depict the last three stages, the stages of the spiritual development – Krishna opens the possibility of overmind, Buddha tries to shoot beyond to the supreme liberation but that liberation is still negative, not returning upon earth to complete positively the evolution; Kalki is to correct this by bringing the Kingdom of the Divine upon earth, destroying the opposing Asura forces. The progression is striking and unmistakable."Letters on Yoga; SABCL; 400; ( I sincerely thank an Anonymous friend for giving me the original source through the comment section and correcting me. I thought my friend would reveal who he or she is. Maybe an avatharam of vishnu??)
Though exactly not what Aurobindo implied, someone else interpreted Dasavatharam as "Matsya (life in water), Koorma (amphibian), Varaha(land animal) , Narasimha (half man half animal denoting man evolving from his animal instincts), Vamana (the dwarf indicating the incompleteness of the development of man), Parasurama (uses axe so necessary to survive in forest), Sreerama (kingdom, use of bow and arrow meaning fighting from a distance rather than fighting at a close range using the axe), Balarama ( the agriculturist- man moving on to become a food producer) , Sreekrishna ( the advanced version of man - more intellectual - maybe the first known Consultant and Service provider) and yet to come saviour Kalki" .....Even this interpretation is something to be contemplated............
We may agree or disagree, but I thought this interpretation a little different as I certainly had not looked at Dasavatharam from that angle before ..........
Just passing on an information I found interesting......It was thought provoking
The logic behind starting Investing early in life.
This is a sequel to my earlier post on Investment behaviour,
In the world of investment, the critical component is time.
One can have apprehensions over the fickleness of the financial markets. But surprisingly, they are very reliable over long-term.
We can illustrate the importance of time through a real-life example.
"Anu and Anil are twins.
Anu invests Rs 20,000 a year for 20 years. Then she leaves her money in the fund and doesn’t add a Rupee for the next five years. She then plans her retirement and checks her balance. It is Rs 2,029,323 – nearly 20 lakhs rupees for an outlay of Rs 4 lakhs (@ 10% per annum net return on investment).
Anil, was always a little slow to take off. He invests the same Rs 20000 per annum for 20 years. But, he starts his investment a full 5 years after Anu started hers. He retires the same time as Anu.
Remember both have invested the same amount per annum over the same number of years. It is logical to expect that they would have achieved the same results.
Far from it. Five years of procrastination had cost Anil dearly – well over 5 lakhs rupees – he took home Rs 1,260,049.
Why? Because for five years Anu earned money in her sleep, reaping the benefits of compound interest on her initial 20 years worth of investing.
Unfortunately for Anil, he missed out on those five crucial years of build-up and the only benefit he ended up with was that of hindsight".
Make your money work for you today. Tomorrow may be too late.
In the world of investment, the critical component is time.
One can have apprehensions over the fickleness of the financial markets. But surprisingly, they are very reliable over long-term.
We can illustrate the importance of time through a real-life example.
"Anu and Anil are twins.
Anu invests Rs 20,000 a year for 20 years. Then she leaves her money in the fund and doesn’t add a Rupee for the next five years. She then plans her retirement and checks her balance. It is Rs 2,029,323 – nearly 20 lakhs rupees for an outlay of Rs 4 lakhs (@ 10% per annum net return on investment).
Anil, was always a little slow to take off. He invests the same Rs 20000 per annum for 20 years. But, he starts his investment a full 5 years after Anu started hers. He retires the same time as Anu.
Remember both have invested the same amount per annum over the same number of years. It is logical to expect that they would have achieved the same results.
Far from it. Five years of procrastination had cost Anil dearly – well over 5 lakhs rupees – he took home Rs 1,260,049.
Why? Because for five years Anu earned money in her sleep, reaping the benefits of compound interest on her initial 20 years worth of investing.
Unfortunately for Anil, he missed out on those five crucial years of build-up and the only benefit he ended up with was that of hindsight".
Make your money work for you today. Tomorrow may be too late.
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Hugely impressed by ROOTS, Alex Haley's landmark book in 1977, that traced the ancestry of an Afro American to Africa that spanned ov... -
Onam is special to Malayalis not because it is just a harvest festival from a bygone Agrarian era. Those days harvest denoted the end of the...