My latest read: “Jack: Straight from the Gut” by Jack Welch. I wanted to read this one for some time. Somehow my previous boss (an MBA) instilled this belief in me that books by great management experts is worth reading and he gave some recommendations – this is one of them. But over time, I have developed some distaste for self-help kind of books which advertises “10 ways to make your wife happy”, “How to become popular” etc and the likes of “Chicken Soup for the soul” (I think they must have got a kick from the success they got for their first editions, so they started giving these soup bowls for Teenage soul, Couple’s soul, Mother’s soul, Daughter’s soul etc – you can find soups for any soul now). This one has a tag line which says “For every man and women who wants to succeed in 21st century” or something like that. Just because of that line, I would have dropped this book, but I saw that line only after borrowing it from a friend.
To tell you the truth, he is really an amazing man – it is not like you take a lottery coupon and next day you are chairman of GE. It takes lot of grit, intelligence, courage, passion and all that good stuff. So maybe there are some things which I can learn.
There is something he professes though out the book – ability to take tough decisions, be it people or business. I got fascinated by this term “Superficial Congeniality”; by being soft with people when you need to be brutally honest, you are doing injustice to yourself as well as the other person.
Once upon a time, I use to think that I can never be a manager type, I am too techie for that. I still harbor that thought some times, but maybe I can bring myself to terms with being in management stream and be good at it. Or maybe all this is “Quarter-life crisis” (a chain mail) which is talking about the confusion of twenty-something.
Funny side of it: I was telling my wife over lunch that this guy is great, but maybe he didn’t do good in his personal life because he divorced his wife after 28 years because they could not adjust with his workaholic nature. That is the downside of becoming a CEO. She promptly said that I can look for something peaceful after making enough money to sustain ourselves for some years.
“So you don’t want me to become a CEO? Any wife would want her husband to succeed.”
.......she was silent for some time and then replied
“Come to think of it, it is okay even if you become the CEO.”
Question in today’s newspaper: - Do you think we should have something similar to corporate culture in parliament?
This made me think a little bit about corporate culture. Maybe when it comes to parliament, we should talk about culture first instead of getting into something else. When I was a kid, I used to think that how can people ever be able to behave like they do. I thought maybe it is a problem with older generation, newer enlightened/educated/forward thinking youngsters will change all that and world will be a nicer place once again. I thought how one could ever be able to even think about the religion or caste of your friends or neighbors, when I listened to such discussions between my elders. I thought how you could be so mean behind ones back and say such things about them. How could you ever loath your friends and still smile at them and make sweet talk with them? I thought all this is going to change, I used to tell my father so and he used to wisely say that I am yet to get into the real world. I used to vehemently disagree and say that he is getting old and the new generation will change all this. Later I was really surprised when my friends started discussing about marriage (during college, generally) and said that they have to find a nice muslim/christian/hindu/nair/catholic girl and marry her and settle down for life. I asked couple of them and the answer was all the modern talks are fine but when it comes to your life, you won’t say that let your child go and marry a Muslim and say that I have a big heart about it. I used to see people who would declare that they consider their brother/sister among the dead since they married a Christian. I have seen death threats and attempted suicides, just on this marriage issue. Nothing changes with age around here.
So how could you cheat and take something which is not rightfully yours and be thick skinned about it. We have a stereotype about politicians that all of them are corrupt. Maybe that is because they reinforce that belief time and again. So what is corporate culture? Being fair about everything? Being professional and approach everything in professional manner? Be transparent about financial transactions? Work hard, achieve and be proud about what you do? Have a competency based work culture which allows you to progress if you work hard? Have thorough knowledge, improve continuously? You get ahead only if you are competent enough to handle the responsibility? As in normal life, I used to think that it is all that, everything is fair, human factors doesn’t come into all this, no sentimentality/partiality/ego issues, no reason to suspect anybody of foul play. But there also I get rude surprises once in a while. I believe I am wiser than that and can understand that world is anything but fair.
When they say, we are being so generous and that’s why you are getting a salary hike, what they actually mean is, here is a small bone, chew that and don’t jump out of here for sometime. I am not saying that it is all bad, but there are hidden agenda behind polished talk sometimes. But be high and mighty about it, at least you will feel good. People are intelligent nowadays, so politicians should also get that idea and move into much rosy “corporate culture” and keep doing the same thing behind a much more reinforced shield. Sometimes it just simply translates to being sophisticated about it all.
Other day, I read about CPI(M) thinking about training their leaders on how to answer questions in interviews, how to excel in debates (“Big Fights”, “Crossfires” and the like) and how to leverage this emerging force called the Media to their advantage. One good thing about communists is that they will theorize everything and make you think that there is a “philosophy” behind all this – so this time it is, our ultimate aim is to reach maximum people and convey the message, and so what is wrong in doing what others do. I am sure they will also have training where they will be taught not to say something which you don’t want to say, how to package it in a shiny envelope which won’t let you guess what is inside.
PS: excerpt from Chicago, Razzle Dazzle:
Give 'em the old razzle dazzle
Razzle Dazzle 'em
Give 'em an act with lots of flash in it
And the reaction will be passionate
Give 'em the old hocus pocus
Bead and feather 'em
How can they see with sequins in their eyes?
What if your hinges all are rusting?
What if, in fact, you're just disgusting?
Razzle dazzle 'em
And they;ll never catch wise!
How can they hear the truth above the roar?
Throw 'em a fake and a finagle
They'll never know you're just a bagel,
Razzle dazzle 'em
And they'll beg you for more!
Though you are stiffer than a girder
They let you get away with murder
Razzle dazzle 'em
And you've got a romance
Give 'em the old
Razzle Dazzle
Daze and dizzy'em
Show 'em the first rate sorcerer you are
Long as you keep 'em way off balance
How can they spot you got no talents?
Razzle dazzle 'em
And they'll make you a star!
This made me think a little bit about corporate culture. Maybe when it comes to parliament, we should talk about culture first instead of getting into something else. When I was a kid, I used to think that how can people ever be able to behave like they do. I thought maybe it is a problem with older generation, newer enlightened/educated/forward thinking youngsters will change all that and world will be a nicer place once again. I thought how one could ever be able to even think about the religion or caste of your friends or neighbors, when I listened to such discussions between my elders. I thought how you could be so mean behind ones back and say such things about them. How could you ever loath your friends and still smile at them and make sweet talk with them? I thought all this is going to change, I used to tell my father so and he used to wisely say that I am yet to get into the real world. I used to vehemently disagree and say that he is getting old and the new generation will change all this. Later I was really surprised when my friends started discussing about marriage (during college, generally) and said that they have to find a nice muslim/christian/hindu/nair/catholic girl and marry her and settle down for life. I asked couple of them and the answer was all the modern talks are fine but when it comes to your life, you won’t say that let your child go and marry a Muslim and say that I have a big heart about it. I used to see people who would declare that they consider their brother/sister among the dead since they married a Christian. I have seen death threats and attempted suicides, just on this marriage issue. Nothing changes with age around here.
So how could you cheat and take something which is not rightfully yours and be thick skinned about it. We have a stereotype about politicians that all of them are corrupt. Maybe that is because they reinforce that belief time and again. So what is corporate culture? Being fair about everything? Being professional and approach everything in professional manner? Be transparent about financial transactions? Work hard, achieve and be proud about what you do? Have a competency based work culture which allows you to progress if you work hard? Have thorough knowledge, improve continuously? You get ahead only if you are competent enough to handle the responsibility? As in normal life, I used to think that it is all that, everything is fair, human factors doesn’t come into all this, no sentimentality/partiality/ego issues, no reason to suspect anybody of foul play. But there also I get rude surprises once in a while. I believe I am wiser than that and can understand that world is anything but fair.
When they say, we are being so generous and that’s why you are getting a salary hike, what they actually mean is, here is a small bone, chew that and don’t jump out of here for sometime. I am not saying that it is all bad, but there are hidden agenda behind polished talk sometimes. But be high and mighty about it, at least you will feel good. People are intelligent nowadays, so politicians should also get that idea and move into much rosy “corporate culture” and keep doing the same thing behind a much more reinforced shield. Sometimes it just simply translates to being sophisticated about it all.
Other day, I read about CPI(M) thinking about training their leaders on how to answer questions in interviews, how to excel in debates (“Big Fights”, “Crossfires” and the like) and how to leverage this emerging force called the Media to their advantage. One good thing about communists is that they will theorize everything and make you think that there is a “philosophy” behind all this – so this time it is, our ultimate aim is to reach maximum people and convey the message, and so what is wrong in doing what others do. I am sure they will also have training where they will be taught not to say something which you don’t want to say, how to package it in a shiny envelope which won’t let you guess what is inside.
PS: excerpt from Chicago, Razzle Dazzle:
Give 'em the old razzle dazzle
Razzle Dazzle 'em
Give 'em an act with lots of flash in it
And the reaction will be passionate
Give 'em the old hocus pocus
Bead and feather 'em
How can they see with sequins in their eyes?
What if your hinges all are rusting?
What if, in fact, you're just disgusting?
Razzle dazzle 'em
And they;ll never catch wise!
How can they hear the truth above the roar?
Throw 'em a fake and a finagle
They'll never know you're just a bagel,
Razzle dazzle 'em
And they'll beg you for more!
Though you are stiffer than a girder
They let you get away with murder
Razzle dazzle 'em
And you've got a romance
Give 'em the old
Razzle Dazzle
Daze and dizzy'em
Show 'em the first rate sorcerer you are
Long as you keep 'em way off balance
How can they spot you got no talents?
Razzle dazzle 'em
And they'll make you a star!
In Mangalore when it rains it really pours and when it is hot, it is red hot. Now the rainy season has started. Didn’t even notice when we slipped into the routine of carrying an umbrella. It usually starts with the exact same day school opens after summer. I think I have bought the car at the right time because umbrella is just a play thing for this kind of rain. It will beat it and soak you by the time you count ten steps.
Right now I am exploring all the byways, alleys around the office with the car – still not confident of taking it to the main road. It is like those parents say that they are afraid of bringing up their kids in this kind of world. It would pain you when, with just a warning from a horn just behind your ears, they overtake you and you almost fear that they have touched your rear view mirror.
I was in Bangalore for most of last week. I think I am lucky not to bring up my car in Bangalore. It is jungle out there. If you stop at a signal, autorickshaws and two-wheelers will cover you like those flies. It would be almost impossible to get out of those claws without touching anything. I always tend to compare this with those building block puzzles. Within half a minute of stopping at a signal, each car/auto/two-wheeler will do their individual part and fit everything perfectly into the nooks and corners that it will be the most efficient way of packing different kind of vehicles into minimum space.
It is like art of walking in a crowd (I would think of the crowd coming out of a theatre) without touching anybody, but still maneuver by applying breaks, suddenly accelerating, sensing openings and counting on the speed of others when you cross over. It almost becomes a second nature in these parts of the world. Ever tried crossing over a 4-way intersection? It is just like those magic acts. Close your eyes and just glide forward, those who needs to stop will stop and you will reach there without a scratch. But you may get slightly scared if you keep your eyes open. It is not the concern for others which would make you good at driving; it is just the art of survival and protecting your skin at any cost which will see you safe at the end of the day when you reach home.
I know that it will all look very silly and exaggerated to a veteran, but maybe because I drove for around 2 years in US (that is the first time I owned a car), I have too many bad habits (like checking blind spot, waving pedestrians to cross the road – one guy today stared at me for stopping and asking him to cross the road, these concepts called “yield”, “signals”, don’t horn unless the other guy is going to hit you for sure etc). I have to unlearn a lot of things. Hope I will get better at it soon. Then maybe I will start appreciating my friend’s view that driving here is the ultimate enjoyment (why don’t they seek that enjoyment only from video games which allows you to restart the game when you hit something).
Right now I am exploring all the byways, alleys around the office with the car – still not confident of taking it to the main road. It is like those parents say that they are afraid of bringing up their kids in this kind of world. It would pain you when, with just a warning from a horn just behind your ears, they overtake you and you almost fear that they have touched your rear view mirror.
I was in Bangalore for most of last week. I think I am lucky not to bring up my car in Bangalore. It is jungle out there. If you stop at a signal, autorickshaws and two-wheelers will cover you like those flies. It would be almost impossible to get out of those claws without touching anything. I always tend to compare this with those building block puzzles. Within half a minute of stopping at a signal, each car/auto/two-wheeler will do their individual part and fit everything perfectly into the nooks and corners that it will be the most efficient way of packing different kind of vehicles into minimum space.
It is like art of walking in a crowd (I would think of the crowd coming out of a theatre) without touching anybody, but still maneuver by applying breaks, suddenly accelerating, sensing openings and counting on the speed of others when you cross over. It almost becomes a second nature in these parts of the world. Ever tried crossing over a 4-way intersection? It is just like those magic acts. Close your eyes and just glide forward, those who needs to stop will stop and you will reach there without a scratch. But you may get slightly scared if you keep your eyes open. It is not the concern for others which would make you good at driving; it is just the art of survival and protecting your skin at any cost which will see you safe at the end of the day when you reach home.
I know that it will all look very silly and exaggerated to a veteran, but maybe because I drove for around 2 years in US (that is the first time I owned a car), I have too many bad habits (like checking blind spot, waving pedestrians to cross the road – one guy today stared at me for stopping and asking him to cross the road, these concepts called “yield”, “signals”, don’t horn unless the other guy is going to hit you for sure etc). I have to unlearn a lot of things. Hope I will get better at it soon. Then maybe I will start appreciating my friend’s view that driving here is the ultimate enjoyment (why don’t they seek that enjoyment only from video games which allows you to restart the game when you hit something).
I was in classroom training for three full days this week. Reminded me of old college days. But this was more meaningful and I wanted to listen and understand, maybe because I can make direct use of the knowledge. In college, during some boring lectures, I used to shut myself out and completely get lost in something else. Now I can attend sessions only if I want to and only if it is useful for me. There is a difference in trying to mug up something for getting good grade and studying something to make use of it. I still maintain that we have a rusty education system.
Some random thoughts related to this:-
I attended a long seminar where technical details were getting explained with general statements like “it is good”, “it will make your life easy”, “it is the in-thing now”, “it is accepted by industry and pioneered by major players”, “great people are talking about it”, “statistics shows that it is better”. I wanted to say “cut the crap and get to the point”, but as usual I didn’t even show that I am not interested. At the end, I am not clear what “it is” and how exactly is it great. All this statements doesn’t make it great, accepted or respected. It is like painting a very foggy picture, no outline visible, you can’t make out any shape out of it, but it is made as if it has some meaning. You won’t be able to say for sure that are bluffing or you won’t be able counter argue because they haven’t said anything clearly. They specialize in making general open-ended statements which can interpreted either way. I get a feeling that there is nothing tangible, nothing intelligent, no use listening to this babble.
It is almost like you can spot phonies by just listening to them for some time. Elusive, shadow-fighting are some words coming to my mind. Sometimes I think the one problem with corporate culture is, these non-absolutes grow much faster than anybody else. It is somewhat difficult to deal with such guys. Maybe it is one of those skills needed to survive in this world. But only problem is, you keep painting an unclear picture every time, you may end up disoriented yourself.
One piece of quotable quote (I don’t remember exact words): Don’t accept anybody else’s reality as your own just because they say so. Subject it to your own reason and accept it as your reality only if it is reasonable to you. Don’t fake reality.
Some random thoughts related to this:-
I attended a long seminar where technical details were getting explained with general statements like “it is good”, “it will make your life easy”, “it is the in-thing now”, “it is accepted by industry and pioneered by major players”, “great people are talking about it”, “statistics shows that it is better”. I wanted to say “cut the crap and get to the point”, but as usual I didn’t even show that I am not interested. At the end, I am not clear what “it is” and how exactly is it great. All this statements doesn’t make it great, accepted or respected. It is like painting a very foggy picture, no outline visible, you can’t make out any shape out of it, but it is made as if it has some meaning. You won’t be able to say for sure that are bluffing or you won’t be able counter argue because they haven’t said anything clearly. They specialize in making general open-ended statements which can interpreted either way. I get a feeling that there is nothing tangible, nothing intelligent, no use listening to this babble.
It is almost like you can spot phonies by just listening to them for some time. Elusive, shadow-fighting are some words coming to my mind. Sometimes I think the one problem with corporate culture is, these non-absolutes grow much faster than anybody else. It is somewhat difficult to deal with such guys. Maybe it is one of those skills needed to survive in this world. But only problem is, you keep painting an unclear picture every time, you may end up disoriented yourself.
One piece of quotable quote (I don’t remember exact words): Don’t accept anybody else’s reality as your own just because they say so. Subject it to your own reason and accept it as your reality only if it is reasonable to you. Don’t fake reality.
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