I have many interests in life. Each one of my interests/hobbies has given me an important trait or skill that has stood me in good stead in my life.
Take reading. I was blessed to have been brought up in an era and in a household that encouraged reading. I had read most of the classics by the time I was 15. There was no discrimination for I enjoyed Ivanhoe as much as I relished O V Vijayan's 'Khasakkinte Ithihasam'. The Somerset Maughm or O Henry stories juxtaposed between select stories of Thakazhi or Muttathu Varki. Odyssey and Rendamoozham both kindled my imagination in similar manner. I had equal facility in Ramayana and Mahabharatha. 1001 Arabian nights, Panchathantram, Aesops Fables, Grimms stories, Kathasarithsagaram all held me spell bound. As did the indepth novels of Arthur Hailey and Leon Uris. For an introverted boy in rural Kerala in 1970s, this was the way he understood the world beyond Palghat. The chance for interaction with the world beyond the sleepy Palghat was limited. Each novel, each story had many protagonists, many situations, how people reacted to situations, what leadership was all about and how devious people can be. It also helped to improve my language - I am fluent in both Malayalam and English. I had my initial education in Malayalam Medium and though I shifted to English Medium in Standard V, the school being a Government run one, I had to learn the English language on my own. In fact, I dare not speak in Public in English till I was well into my MBA. I must have read most of those books at least 10 times at various stages in my life and each time I learned something new, and am able to look at the book from an entirely different angle. For example, as a child I was thrilled at the story telling ability of Valmiki in Ramayana. But much later in life, I was able to read Ramayana with a detachment and with a critical mind whereby I looked for rights and wrongs, management wignets and the philosophical moorings. The reading gave me the ability to analyze a situation in depth, and look for out of the box solutions, a skill that I exploited to the hilt in my later stages of career as an Analyst. The story telling aspect of a novel had such a profound impression on me that I adopted it as the base when I am teaching Management.
Another hobby I picked up early in life was Photography. I am one of the few who started his photographic career in the B&W era and later migrated to Colour. More about that in another blog. The trick with photography is that your subconscious mind is always looking for an exception in the normal scenario. Normal scenes are no good for photography. It is always the strange colours, uneven lighting, rare people, unseen expressions, uncommon scenes that a photographer looks out for. And one has to be always on the look out for it. This skill developed over a period of time, along with my inborn sense of humour has gone a long way in looking at the quirks of the people and the situaion in a different way. Also, when you are a photographer, you have to look at the total frame, and have a wholistic outlook. It is a pure right brained activity. One has to not only look at a potential frame with ones eyes but one also has to use one's internal eyes (Aka kannu) to get the maximum effect. Thus was born another skill which helps me create visions for the Companies as a Strategic Planner ........... to be continued
