This guy`s blog post seriously got me thinking. Its an article about Indians and their 'its OK' attitude. Being mediocre is one the easy things to be. It is just following the crowd and ending up getting the same results we have been getting since decades. India s medal tally at the recently concluded Rio olympics(2 medals-silver, bronze) is testament of how competitive we are as a sporting nation. If at all we as a nation want to be, we should aim to be the best in the world and not just comparing ourselves against the countries of Indian subcontinent.
Do Indians seriously need generations to change the mindset towards getting away from mediocrity. Following heart and passion are one of the forbidden things for an Indian kid. In Indian cities, the aim of a parent is make their kid the best in academics, without giving them free-time to play, explore their personalities. The exceptions are far and few without this mindset.
The social media is the most interesting phenomenon happening currently. It has never been this easy to get virtually in touch with a company owner or a pioneer of any field. If one has a entreprenual acumen and is crazy enough to float a company, there are channels to get funded provided your idea strikes a cord with the venture capitalists.
We have a prime example of how a relatively unknown kid from Ranchi make it big in cricket. I am talking about MS Dhoni who was a hockey goalkeeper till 19 years of age. Fast forward a few years, the same guy is captain of India winning India the cricket World Cup. There are many more fields where many Dhonis can be discovered if only we let go of our conservative mindset. We just need to come out of the comfort zone to explore the possibilities...
Monday, September 5, 2016
Sunday, September 4, 2016
Discussion culture
Have you ever noticed that you refine your idea when the idea is discussed. Discussion has such an impact on the thought process. As a story writer, you might want to discuss how your story would end so that you know how your prospective audience will take the ending. If you think of a designing a product, you might want to discuss with industry experts to see if there are already solutions implemented which your product aims to solve.
A good discussion not only brings different points of view of the participating individuals but also focusses on intricate detail of the subject of discussion. This detailing is very important when execution of the idea is initiated: to plan for the worst/best case scenarios. If you are intending to be in a shoe making business, it would not hurt to discuss who would be your target audience, whether you wish to tie up with Amazon or any other online shopping portals, who you intend to be your brand`s ambassador and some such ideas.
The reader of this post would think: Why I am wasting time on the things I know and do.
The point I want to drive is discussion as an act or habit is necessary and needed in the short term. In corporate world, one might move to different projects or different companies and you may not see that individual anymore. The same cannot be said when the participating individuals are family. There has to be a healthy discussion or exchange of ideas regularly. After all, one just cannot let go of family that easily. A part of us would want to connect back to them whenever possible.
The entire family of a friend I know of discuss news or their day`s plan over breakfast everyday for an hour. I find this extremely interesting as most of us dont or cant even manage to get a family meal together even in a week. Parents or adults would bring a lot of patience, knowledge and experience in any discussion. Naturally, the kid will be well informed as it need not discover the ways of the world itself. Fast forward to couple of decades of this family`s discussion culture and you would note that the people from that household are thinking outward, forward and for the betterment of themselves or society.
This is exactly the reason why I am definitely for discussion as a culture to be part of any family, organization, faith, religion or practice
A good discussion not only brings different points of view of the participating individuals but also focusses on intricate detail of the subject of discussion. This detailing is very important when execution of the idea is initiated: to plan for the worst/best case scenarios. If you are intending to be in a shoe making business, it would not hurt to discuss who would be your target audience, whether you wish to tie up with Amazon or any other online shopping portals, who you intend to be your brand`s ambassador and some such ideas.
The reader of this post would think: Why I am wasting time on the things I know and do.
The point I want to drive is discussion as an act or habit is necessary and needed in the short term. In corporate world, one might move to different projects or different companies and you may not see that individual anymore. The same cannot be said when the participating individuals are family. There has to be a healthy discussion or exchange of ideas regularly. After all, one just cannot let go of family that easily. A part of us would want to connect back to them whenever possible.
The entire family of a friend I know of discuss news or their day`s plan over breakfast everyday for an hour. I find this extremely interesting as most of us dont or cant even manage to get a family meal together even in a week. Parents or adults would bring a lot of patience, knowledge and experience in any discussion. Naturally, the kid will be well informed as it need not discover the ways of the world itself. Fast forward to couple of decades of this family`s discussion culture and you would note that the people from that household are thinking outward, forward and for the betterment of themselves or society.
This is exactly the reason why I am definitely for discussion as a culture to be part of any family, organization, faith, religion or practice
Saturday, September 3, 2016
Benefits of competition
Surely everyone likes success. Be it successful companies/brands or humans. Success comes as a byproduct of doing something awesome, by overcoming competitors/competition.
One just cannot discount the power of competition. After-all, its one of the way to bring out the best among competitors. There is always the runner up in this competition who is equally responsible for bring out the best in the eventual winner.
Being a sport enthusiast myself, I try to see how competition in sports brings out the best athletes. Since this year was the Olympics year, I noted how top countries perform. We were privileged to view superstar athletes like Usain Bolt and Mo Farah in athletics, Phelps and Katie Ledecky in swimming. What made these athletes superior or world class? Its the competition at local, college, state or national level. These competitions are so fierce at all these levels that the competing athletes realize their true potential. 2012 200 meter women`s olympic champion Allyson Felix could not even qualify from USA olympic trials! Jamaican olympic trials finals had all the finalists who are capable of running 100 meter race in sub 10 seconds. Such is the level of competition for Mo Farah as well who is always challenged by Kenyan/Ethiopian athletes. This decorated olympian from Great Britain endured a fall on the track and still managed to win the 10k race
In the PC market Apple and Microsoft were serious competitors. While Apple took the lead with Graphical User Interface(GUI) in operating system, Microsoft had to reinvent and be relevant in the PC business to compete with Apple. Reinvent and come back they did with Windows PCs in the late 80s and 90s. The fierce competition between these technology giants brought down the prices of PCs to such a low level that even a middle class household can easily afford a PC. This type of competition has helped mankind from many such industries like automobile, telecom, mobile phones. I seriously do hope that we get affordable healthcare in the coming future.
So, if life challenges you, do compete! If you are winner, enjoy it or be happy that you have done your best and made your competitor realize their true potential.
One just cannot discount the power of competition. After-all, its one of the way to bring out the best among competitors. There is always the runner up in this competition who is equally responsible for bring out the best in the eventual winner.
Being a sport enthusiast myself, I try to see how competition in sports brings out the best athletes. Since this year was the Olympics year, I noted how top countries perform. We were privileged to view superstar athletes like Usain Bolt and Mo Farah in athletics, Phelps and Katie Ledecky in swimming. What made these athletes superior or world class? Its the competition at local, college, state or national level. These competitions are so fierce at all these levels that the competing athletes realize their true potential. 2012 200 meter women`s olympic champion Allyson Felix could not even qualify from USA olympic trials! Jamaican olympic trials finals had all the finalists who are capable of running 100 meter race in sub 10 seconds. Such is the level of competition for Mo Farah as well who is always challenged by Kenyan/Ethiopian athletes. This decorated olympian from Great Britain endured a fall on the track and still managed to win the 10k race
In the PC market Apple and Microsoft were serious competitors. While Apple took the lead with Graphical User Interface(GUI) in operating system, Microsoft had to reinvent and be relevant in the PC business to compete with Apple. Reinvent and come back they did with Windows PCs in the late 80s and 90s. The fierce competition between these technology giants brought down the prices of PCs to such a low level that even a middle class household can easily afford a PC. This type of competition has helped mankind from many such industries like automobile, telecom, mobile phones. I seriously do hope that we get affordable healthcare in the coming future.
So, if life challenges you, do compete! If you are winner, enjoy it or be happy that you have done your best and made your competitor realize their true potential.
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