Stress Managment :New ways of being

Guys here I am providing the good example for How to remove the stress its all nothing but the stress management …. Work out on it ! Definitely it will work for u. u can do wonders …thunders
It’s a real time experience for me /

A lecturer of mine (during engineering days ) when explaining stress management to me and my friends , Raised a glass of water and asked "How heavy is this glass of water?"
Answers called out from us was ranged from 20g to 500g. The lecturer replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long you try to hold it. If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem.,If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm. If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance. In each case, it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes." He continued, "And that's the way it is with stress management. If we carry out burdens all the time, sooner or later, As the burden becomes increasingly heavy, We won't be able to carry on." "As with the glass of water, You have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again. When we're refreshed, we can carry on with the burden." "So, before you return home tonight, put the burden of work down. Don't carry it home. You can pick it up tomorrow. Whatever burdens you're carrying now, Let them down for a moment if you can." So, my friends , Put down anything that may be a burden to you right now. Don't pick it up again until after you've rested a while.

How Can You Prevent Anxiety?

Distress and anxiety are believed by the medical profession to be the most ongoing illness of our time. The fear of developing heart problems or cancer alone is enough to cause tremendous stress and accompanying depression. There is a tremendous malaise circulating our world today. Both the medical profession and the media are constantly "threatening" us of the dangers and probabilities of incomparable diseases, some of which seem numerous than likely to shorten our life span. For illustration, if there is cancer in your family, you're most likely going to get it! And of course, if cancer is not threat enough there is always the West Nile virus, Bird flu, AIDs and a host of other diseases to frighten us...

One thing is for sure, we will never hear the end of calamities that are likely to beset us, whether from infirmity or some other form of challenge we may face. It seems inevitable that there will always be something that will get our blood pressure soaring.So, what is the answer to this quandary? How can we carry-on with our lives without being constantly afraid and anxious of what lies around the next corner? Here are several suggestions about how to effectively deal with life's challenging situations:

1) Obtain interpersonal supportPeople need other people, and there are bountious splendid and practical ways to relieve stress and anxiety. Exercise, positive nutrition and certain thinking are tremendous antidotes. These not only a remedy to relieve the angst; they actually give us a sense of empowerment over our lives.

2) Pursue spiritual guidance about spoken wordsThe Bible tells us that the power of life and casualty are in the tongue. Words can both bless and curse (James 3). Negative words can evoke fear, anxiety and actually produce negative effects in a person's life.Whenever a word is heard - any word - the mind paints a picture of it. For exemplification, when someone says "black cow" immediately you will see that cow in your mind's eye. Although words are not tangible, they have the power to bring about temperamental and tangible change! Remember - The Bible teaches that the earth was created by the Word of God! Now that's real word power!We all have a choice when it comes to listening and what we hear. We can determine to empower ourselves by listening to certain words and encouraging thoughts or we can do otherwise. Think about the last time you listening to some of your favored music. Did your feet start tapping? Did you start to hum the melody? Didn't your mood lighten-up a bit as a aftereffect of hearing the melody and the words? Negative words almost always produce negative results, whether apparent or lurking. On the other hand, certain words instill a sense of well-being. A mere smile and a swift, jolly-sounding, "Have a great day!" can instantly produce admirable feelings and joy.

3) Develop a "gratitude" attitude.Thankfulness is one of the greatest virtues. A clever man once said that if we divided a page in two and wrote all our setbacks on one side and all our blessings on the other, we would obtain that the blessings far outweigh the negatives. The Bible teaches us to give thanks with a grateful heart for all things. Don't look back on past hurts, nor fret about tomorrow. Live each day to the fullest to determine joy and thankfulness.In conclusion, remember that our thoughts respond to what we feed the mind through our senses. Therefore, it naturally follows that content is a choice. This may be a foreign brainchild to quite a few of us initially, but when applied, the results can be truly amazing! Break the habit of feeling trapped in a world of negative thoughts and anxiety and form opinions to switch-on the power of affirmative thoughts today!

Science behind positive thinking

I have always been reading and hearing people saying “Think positive” . Yes I do think positive but I never knew the exact reason why one shud think positive. I think positive because it makes me feel better. This is how I look at it. Suppose there are two people aspiring to reach their destinations. THey both start at a point A and have to get to point B. One of them is very positive about the results and the other one is all pessimistic about the results. In most of the cases we spend like 90% of the time to get to the destination and stay at the destination for like 10% of the time and then the next journey begins. One who is thinking positive about the destination is all happy during the journey. His mind just knows that it will gets what it wants. He is cheerful all the time. The negative person is continously telling himself “i wont be able to get to the destination, there are so many problems in life , Life sucks”. At this point none of them knws for sure whether they will get to their destination. But the positive person had made 90% of his life already HAPPY . It doesnt matter whether he will get to the destination, he has already succeeded. Lets see how Mr Negative is doing . He is thinking only about negative things. His 90% of life is already screwed thinking crap and negative thoughts about the destination. Now even if he gets to his destination, he is a failure. So by thinking positive you can surely make 90% of your life better if not 100%.I knew all this but what I didn’t know was the Law Of Affinity, which says similar incidents attract each other. One who is thinking positive is attracting only positive incidents like meeting some nice peple on the way, beautiful things and more learning. This negative person is having all negative thoughts and attracting similar negative incidents like flat tire, accidents and other unpleasant events which makes his belief stronger that Life sucks.

Sometimes I used to have arguments with some pessimist people . They would say that I think positive because my life has been full of positive events and I havnt seen many hardships in my life. They think negative because of what they have seen in their lives. People have left comments on one of the posts saying the same thing. I used to think “Yes they are right. Probably I have seen mostly positive things in my life so I am a positive person” . Now I realize that I was not thinking positive because positive things happen in my life instead I think positive so I attract positive incidents and life has been all full of positive events. Either the incident was positive or my way of looking at it was positive. Both the things make life beautiful. Everybody gets his share of problems and happiness. But when we face some problem in life like loss of job, loss of a dear one and we continuously think of these negative events of our life we are indeed attracting more such negative incidents making our life worse. This is the reason that people who crib like ” I have no money, I dont have a good job , my life sucks , my partner doesnt love me ” continue to attract negative incidents and continue to crib throughout their lives.

This is not some philosphy but there is whole science behind this law of affinity. I dont want to stretch this post but the words you say has lotta impact on how you feel and what incidents you are attracting. You have no idea how much power the words you speak have. When you say “I m tired ” , that itself saps off your energy. When you says “Not doing grt man ” , smile goes off fro your face .When you say “Life sucks” , it indeed start sucking. When I say “Life is Beautiful” , it INDEED becomes beautiful.

Even today I cant think of ONE GOOD REASON why one should think negative or say negative words. For some people positive thinking comes naturally but other can always and always make concious effort to think positive and hence make life more beautiful.
Life is beautiful and will always be Happy !!

How to Manage Your Team in a Downturn (and Come Out on Top)

Layoffs have truncated staff; cost-cutting measures are threatening projects, and morale is in the toilet. From the manager’s perspective, getting the most out of employees in this kind of environment can seem like a Sisyphean task. In fact, it’s a perfect opportunity to rejigger processes and fix what’s broken — and managers are uniquely positioned to do just that. Here’s how being candid with your employees, rewarding them in creative ways, and enlisting them to help make hard decisions can not only keep your team motivated but pull your company out of its slump.



Things you will need:



· Any additional cash that can be set aside to reward the top-performing members on your team.

· Constant attention. It’s your sole task right now to improve the mood in the office so that everyone can get back to work.

· Informal Meetings: Give employees frequent opportunities to openly discuss — and ask questions about — the business situation the company is facing.

· Employee Buy-In: Now is the time to leverage the expertise of your team. Motivate and engage employees by including them in the problem-solving process.

· Transparency: The middle manager plays a crucial role in communicating messages from senior leadership. Maintain loyalty from direct reports by giving them what they deserve: honest explanations for what went wrong and how the company plans to move forward.

Set the Tone

Goal: Lower the anxiety level in the office by being candid about the challenges — and opportunities — ahead.

It’s easy to blame the economy for all the reasons a company is suffering: Customers are cutting back on their expenses, advertisers are trimming their budgets, and stock prices are sliding. These problems may, in fact, be attributable in part to the downturn, but going with the “It’s the economy, stupid” defense sends a subtle but potentially dangerous message to employees: It implies that the situation is totally out of the company's hands and left in large part to fate. This is exactly the kind of attitude that raises anxiety levels in the office and disrupts employees’ focus on the problem at hand: turning business around.

“Have the confidence to not completely blame the economy,” says Stanford business professor Bob Sutton. “If employees believe that leadership can break things, they’ll believe that leadership can fix things, too.”

Don’t just rely on the CEO’s message. An e-mail from the top explaining why the company is in the red can’t tell employees much, which means mid-level managers need to be the interpreters. Speak to employees in small groups and be as candid as possible about where the company stands. This is also a good time to suss out any rumors. “Organize quick events to ask what people have heard and to answer any questions they have,” says Dave Logan, a senior partner at Los Angeles-based consulting firm Culture Sync.

Open the books. Giving employees the numbers behind company performance clarifies where the business needs to change and how their jobs connect to the bigger picture. But be warned: “If you’re going to be transparent, take the necessary time to teach employees about how the business works,” says Rich Armstrong, general manager of the Great Game of Business, a coaching firm that teaches open-book management. He advises managers to start with what employees probably already understand, like operational numbers, and then connect the dots with how those numbers increase gross margin and generate cash flow. Above all, keep finance jargon to a minimum.

Focus on the future. There’s no need to sugarcoat it: Pulling the company through the downturn isn’t going to be easy, but emphasizing the challenge can have its benefits. “It’s a great time for [your employees] to realize that they can play a role in discovering opportunities for the company,” says Vince Thompson, a former manager at AOL and author of the book Ignited.

Hot Tip

The You in Team

If a company is going to stay resilient, the staff’s collective commitment and collaboration are essential. In this environment, simply making an effort to be more visible and available to employees can spark productivity and bring the team together.

For example, if you normally work within the confines of a walled office while your team toils away in the cube farm, grab your laptop and set up shop in a cubicle near them — even if it’s only a couple of times a week. Start showing up to the smaller meetings that you usually skip, or rearrange your travel schedule to cut down how much time you spend out of the office. In short, don’t wait for employees to take advantage of an open-door policy. Go to them first, and ask how their work is going. This isn’t about micromanaging — it’s about knowing firsthand what they need.

Enlist the Team to Fix What’s Broken

Goal: Motivate employees and find out how and where the business needs to change.

Traditionally, the top execs decide the strategy and let it trickle down. The problem with this tactic is that it rarely makes the emotional case needed to mobilize employees around a common goal, says Paul Bromfield, a principal at Katzenbach Partners, which has advised companies like Aetna, Credit Suisse, and Pfizer. “This is about problem-solving and discipline, and that’s where employees come in,” he says. “Companies should be harnessing employees in the effort to identify where to cut costs and how.”

Not only will utilizing workers’ expertise make them more invested in the company’s success, it also gives management a more honest look at what’s not working. Senior leadership tends to focus on just one area of cost-cutting, Bromfield says, like products, headcount, or moving operations off-shore. Employees, on the other hand, can use their collective wisdom to eliminate clumsy (and costly) procedures across divisions.

Here are four guidelines for involving staff in the process:

1. Identify key influencers. “If you’re really going to mobilize people, you can’t do it from the top,” Bromfield says. Find the key employees who hold sway in their departments and get them to embrace and spread the change effort. These are the people who know how things really work (not just the way they’re supposed to work) and have a way of bringing together the right people to get things done.

2. Let teams do the problem solving. Form groups around the influencers and motivate (rather than mandate) employees to identify what’s slowing down business. Often the best place to start is to look for processes and bureaucracies that annoy the team. Set a basic timeframe to achieve cost savings, but let each group work at its own pace.

3. Make it a conversation. Schedule brown-bag lunches or other informal venues to talk to employees about their findings and where they might be hitting roadblocks. In the early 1990s, Bromfield’s former client Texas Commerce Bank held focus groups with thousands of its employees to find out what procedures most frustrated bankers and customers. Using the feedback, the company nearly doubled its $50 million cost-savings goal.

4. Follow through. Many cost-savings programs fail because management implements the initiative only halfway or lets inefficiencies creep back after meeting short-term goals, which won’t sit well with employees. Adopt the changes wholesale or not at all.

Big Idea

Keep Top Performers Moving

In an ideal world, the upside of a downturn is that recruiting qualified employees becomes easier. With more candidates in the job market, now could be the time to find new talent if your company has the resources to continue hiring. But managers shouldn’t forget about the top performers already on staff, say Monster executives Steve Pogorzelski, Dr. Jesse Harriott, and Doug Hardy, authors of a recent paper on how companies should invest in employees when business slows down.

When the economy’s bad, it’s easy to think that employees are grateful to have jobs at all. But layoffs and budget cuts may cause good workers to look for better opportunities. Give them a reason to stay by making room for them to keep advancing their careers. “Keep critical talent moving — not necessarily up, but growing in experience, responsibility, money, or other tangible and intangible ways,” say the authors of the study. If promotions or raises aren’t possible, give good workers the chance to make a lateral move or to take on a struggling department.

Get Back to the Work That Matters

Goal: Make sure your team is tuned in to growth opportunities.

The problem with a downturn is that while cost cutting is absolutely necessary, it can make everyone gun-shy about pursuing new initiatives and opportunities for investment. However, if your department, and in turn the company, is going to emerge from the slump in a competitive position, there are a few key investments you can’t afford not to fight for now:

Customers

Learn about the customers of your weakest competitors, writes Michael Roberto, a blogger for Harvard Business Publishing and management professor at Bryant University. While competitors are busy shoring up their relationships with large, established clients, it could be the perfect time to swoop in and court their smaller customers.

Research and Development

Take a cue from Apple’s Steve Jobs. When asked by Fortune magazine recently about Apple’s strategy for the downturn, Jobs pointed to how the company survived the 2001 tech bust by upping its R&D budget. “It worked, and that’s exactly what we’ll do this time,” he told the magazine.

Separate the value-added activities from the wheel-spinning exercises, Thompson suggests in Ignited. Instead of giving up on new projects in a downturn, shift focus so that the team is investing time in identifying and prioritizing the projects that will generate the most benefit for the company. Even if the final product will have to wait until more resources are available, doing the legwork now means the product will go to market faster when the time is right — and employees will stay engaged in the meantime.

Vendors/Partners

“There are two ways to run a business,” says Fred Mossler, senior vice president of merchandising for online shoe retailer Zappos, “adversarily or as a partnership.” Considering that the company relies on about 1,500 partners to provide its customers with a diverse selection of shoes, Zappos has chosen the latter option. To that end, the company built an extranet, so that every partner can see how its brand is performing. “They get to see everything our buyers see,” Mossler says. “This way we have about 1,500 other sets of eyes looking at our business and helping to improve it.”

Case Study

How Zappos Survived the Tech Bust

The idea for Zappos was born in 1999, when the economy was booming. But the shoe retailer still was unprofitable and struggling to grow revenue two years later, when the recession hit. “It was impossible for us to get any additional funding,” Mossler says. To make matters worse, the company was learning that its original business plan, which made Zappos a middleman, wasn’t working as planned: Vendors didn’t always have every shoe in stock, and customers — who sometimes had to wait weeks for their orders to arrive — often ended up with the wrong orders.

Though the times might have called for belt-tightening, the company had to make a couple of very expensive decisions, both of which put long-term strategy before short-term cost cutting. First, management realized that it needed total control over the merchandise in order to give the best customer service — a decision that meant sacrificing 25 percent of company revenue. Second, to make sure customers knew exactly what they were getting, the company hired photographers to take pictures of every pair of shoes it stocked. The site now has photos of its more than 3 million items, mostly shoes, from up to eight different angles. “Most companies look at customer service as an expense, but we look at it as a long-term investment,” says Mossler. The moves paid off: Less than 10 years after its founding, Zappos is on track to bring in more than $1 billion in sales this year.

Acknowledge and Reward Deserving Employees

Goal: Recognize achievement, even if resources are scarce.

Employee bonuses and raises are among some of the first expenses that upper management cuts during a downturn. But even if extra compensation isn’t in the budget, that doesn’t excuse managers from rewarding employees. “Lack of recognition — both financially and verbally — is one of the things that does the most damage,” says David Sirota, founder of the management-consulting firm Sirota Survey Intelligence. “I worked with an investment bank some years back where bankers were earning bonuses from $100,000 to $1 million a year,” he says. “You know what they complained about? They didn’t know if the chairman thought they were actually doing a good job, because he never spoke to them about it.”



Danger! Danger! Danger!

Save Rewards for the Worthy

Keeping your employees engaged doesn’t mean rewarding them just for doing their jobs. The most effective rewards are significant but well deserved. Libby Sartain became head of Yahoo’s human resources department in 2001, just as the company received a hard knock from the dot-com bust. She decided that instead of quietly giving large bonuses to overachievers, which wasn’t providing much bang for the buck, Yahoo needed to regularly single out the top 15 to 20 stellar individuals and teams — not only to reward them, but to help the rest of the company understand what made these employees outstanding.

The following year, the company gave its first Superstar Awards. Candidates were nominated by their peers for significant achievements and awarded cash prizes ranging from $5,000 to $50,000. The Yahoo Superstar Awards program is now in its seventh year and has honored employees for contributions like creating the Panama advertising system, inventing a way to advertise on instant messages, and fixing a troublesome accounting problem. “This isn’t egalitarian, this is a meritocracy,” Sartain says, acknowledging that some managers resisted the idea at first. “When people saw the winners, they understood why they won, and it took hold and became part of the culture.”

Confessions of teens !

Compromise or sacrifice.. not too sure about which word I am supposed to use.My career does not demand lab tests or mapping. But it does require loads of mathematics,mental construction,talent and ofcourse practice. I am sure many of you might be dumbstruck by the importance of maths in music.But if anything works it's only cos of simple maths and some can even get complicated.And music is also used as a medicine.If it wasn't for my voice,I would be studying Mass Communication somewhere in this world.And today I realise my greatest asset.God gifted in other words.To be God gifted makes me feel special.Infact so special that now I have to take the responsibility of nurturing it.And here comes the worst part. Advices from seniors..boring lectures, mandatory attendance to each class. Passing phase in every life.But when I was asked to give up cold items that too stuffs like ice cream and curd I was in doubt if I was really lucky about being gifted.Then I realised that kuch paane ke liye kuch khona padta hain .So precise!And trust me this isn't a sacrifice but a compramise with God for all the success in the coming future that is awaiting me.And no, I havent given up ice creams :) but I know my limits. I had read somewhere that Rahul Dravid had to compromise on a lot of things he loved to be cricketer. That list included his best of friends.

I am sure each one of you must have compromised something or the other to gain something you have longed for.Weird is life and it's ways and so are we.One thing I am very proud of is my positive attitude towards anything.Being an optimist always keeps your mind happy and confident to face a storm.Sadly I have seen a very small count of optimists. Neverthless, in a half glass of water learn to see it half full.

Selecting A Leader: Do We Know What We Want?

Selecting A Leader: Do We Know What We Want?
If you read many articles or books on the desired qualities of a CEO or a managing partner, you can get very confused. The list of desirable character traits, attitudes, skills and philosophies seems endless.

You can get the same impression looking at the job descriptions that many firms put together when searching for a new leader. There is often a long list, including both “qualifying” characteristics (such as “integrity”) that most realistic candidates are likely to possess, as well as a number of factors that will truly distinguish the best candidates .

Very frequently, the desired characteristics that are listed are in conflict with each other. For example, firms often say that they want their leaders to be both decisive and consultative. These are both virtues, but there is a risk that they can neutralize each other as a guide to choosing the best candidate

Similarly, it is not uncommon to find firms who say they want leaders who are especially adept at being active externally (dealing with clients, shareholders, the media, the community) and also be active internally: motivating people, readily available, and managing the firm’s affairs. These two skill-sets are not the same. Taken together, the message can be confused, if not completely contradictory.

The situation can be made even more difficult. Many firms make lists of generally desirable characteristics of a leader, failing to recognize that the best set of attitudes, skills and behaviors depend on the individual firm, the specific opportunities and needs that the organization faces, and (for example) how ready the organization is to make changes.

After all, there’s no point selecting an Olympic-level coach for a team of people who don’t want to play that game. There’s no point appointing a skilled cost-cutter if the primary strategic need is to grow revenues in new markets!

For professional firms run on “partnership” principles, the bar is raised even higher. Unlike a corporation, which can (and usually does) select its leaders according to the views of a relatively small Board, the choice of a new leader in a professional firm usually requires taking into account the preferences, desires and ambitions of a broad group of partners, shareholders or senior vice-presidents

The need for this is not driven (just) by ideals of democracy, participation or consultation. It’s about ensuring the organization’s understanding and acceptance of the CEO’s (or managing partner’s) mandate

All too often, I have seen CEOs and managing partners criticized, resented and made relatively ineffective by being judged (both by their Board and those they manage) on aspects of the role they were not chosen to perform.

It is hard to hold a leader accountable if there is not a clear, unambiguous understanding of the role. Many leaders prefer it this way: they like the freedom of action that comes from an unambiguous role. However, as my co-author Patrick McKenna points out, leaders are, inevitably, going to be judged: wouldn’t it be better for all concerned to know, in advance, and with clarity, what the true, real expectations are?

This seemingly obvious principle is widely neglected in practice. In many firms, in many industries, in many countries, I have learned, people are appointed to managerial positions without detailed consideration of the requirements of the role

Many firms go directly to a discussion of the merits of individual candidates, based on a very general job description, without priorities established among the characteristics listed for the “CEO search.”

If, however, you (first) have an in-depth discussion of what you seek in a leader, the weighting given to competing virtues can be discussed dispassionately, and not be excessively influenced only by the specific candidates involved.

A Diagnostic Tool
In order to assist with this process, I have designed a simple diagnostic tool that can be used to facilitate your firms’ discussions of the characteristics it seeks in a leader.
In the questions that follow, there are a series of “paired” qualities that a good leader might possess. In each case, either quality in the pair might be desirable, and (perhaps) an equal balance desirable.

However, the point of pairing these qualities is to ask: if there HAD to be a choice between the two items in the pair, which would each respondent really prefer in a leader?
A simple way to “force” people to think through their preferences (and also to provide a simple way to aggregate the views) is to ask them to allocate 100 points between each of the paired items. Thus, if the respondent thinks the CEO should be mostly focused on the external community rather than inside the firm, he or she could allocate 90-10 or 80-20 to the “outside / inside” pair.

So, what are the “either / or” choices you might present to your firm? As you scan the alternatives below, bear in mind that either side of the pair is (or can be) a virtue in a leader. The issue here is to set priorities, avoid ambiguities and conflicting messages and force some clarity.
Do you want your CEO / Managing Partner to be someone who…

Focuses on working inside firm versus focuses on a high profile with clients and marketplace
Is good with numbers versus good with people
Leads in accordance with a strong personal ideology of his or her own, versus be the kind of person who tolerates different views, values and approaches
Has a track record of generating business, versus a track record of managing people well
Is the type of person who thinks we need to make big strategic moves, even if they involve bigger risks, versus someone who thinks we should make small, incremental changes
Has strategic acumen personally, versus the ability to facilitate and let others innovate and make strategic choices .

Has the best business qualifications, versus has the best character qualifications
Prefers to confront problems early, even if this can be disruptive, versus the kind who avoids conflict until it’s necessary to tackle it

Focuses on preserving the firm’s historical culture versus changing the culture to adapt to meet new challenges of the marketplace
Moves fast versus someone who acts deliberatively
Emphasizes ambition and growth, versus someone who emphasizes caution and risk management

Emphasizes reasoning and logic versus someone who emphasizes emotion and excitement
Acts a peer, a first among equals, versus someone who is clearly a leader and will manage that way

Is primarily a “businessperson” versus being “ideology-driven”
Acts as the firm’s “face” or “identity” in the media, versus someone who facilitates others achieving a high profile
Is a fresh face versus a known quantity
Is very self-confident, versus someone who acts with humility
Already has a clear view of where we need to go and what we need to do, versus someone who will develop that with us after appointment
Is a pragmatist, versus a visionary
Primarily has a “hard head” versus a “soft heart”
Focuses on getting things done (i.e. a “driver”) versus someone who focuses on getting it right (i.e. an “analytical”)

Has an introverted style, versus someone with an extroverted style
Focuses on capitalizing on short-term opportunities, versus someone who focuses on long-term wealth creation
Makes changes through dramatic, big moves, versus someone who makes changes through continuous, insistent pressure
Sets the example of hard work, versus someone who lives a balanced personal / work lifestyle
Is diplomatic, versus someone who is “straight-talking.”
Is usually sympathetic to people’s personal problems, versus is unwilling to allow sustained underperformance.
Has a track record of personal professional success, versus has a track record of building an organization

Is usually trusting of others, versus not easily fooled
Prefers to manage people directly, versus prefers to work through others
Is decisive versus consultative
Is hands-on, involved in the details, versus hands-off, sets the direction and then holds people accountable

Naturally, it is possible to adapt this questionnaire to your own firm, inserting key trade-offs that I have omitted and deleting ones you think are less critical to your firm.
The key is to make the choices difficult, so that people are forced to reflect on what characteristics a CEO or managing partner really requires.
Mechanistically, I have also used other ways to “force” people to indicate preferences. Instead of allocating 100 points, respondents could be asked, for each pair of virtues, to choose one point on a four-point scale:

1 = the leader should possess the first quality MUCH more than the second quality;
2 = the leader should possess the first quality a LITTLE more than the second quality;
3 = the leader should possess the second quality a LITTLE more than the first quality;
4 = the leader should possess the second quality MUCH more than the first quality.
Because we are trying to ask what people would choose if it really came to a choice between the two qualities, there would be no “middle ? equal balance” option in this version. In this way, true priorities are more likely to be revealed.

Using the Tool
Begin by circulating the questionnaire among the relevant participants (partners, shareholders or senior vice-presidents.) When everyone has contributed their views, charts should be prepared showing both the weighted average view and (this is important) the distribution of views, so that it is clear where the shareholders, partners or senior executives are of similar minds, and where they have divided views.
The results thus obtained should then be used for an open debate which tries to reconcile the differing views, and thus can serve an important educational, bonding and strategy-setting function.

The point of the polling is not to suppress debate, but to identify the subjects most worthy of debate. Areas of consensus can be quickly noted, and discussion focused on topics where there is a disparity of views.

For example, some participants may enter the process thinking that the CEO or managing partner should be a primary business-getter, while others think differently. Through debate, a better, healthier consensus may be forged about what the priorities are, not only for the CEO, but for the firm.
There are built-in flaws in any discussion of desirable leadership characteristics. For example, when asking people for their views about what they look for in a leader, (using this approach or any other) there always exists a tendency for “regression toward the mean.” People tend to express preferences in comparison to the existing (or recently departed) leader, rather than absolute ones.

For example, if a previous leader has been noted for tilting the balance toward decisiveness rather than extensive consultation, there will be a tendency for people to vote for the new leader to be more consultative. And, of course, vice versa.
Once you have completed a first-round survey using these “paired characteristics,” you will probably still have a lengthy, multi-item list of desired traits. It will usually be necessary to conduct a second round of the survey by creating new “either / or” choices from the surviving criteria.

Repeated rounds of “forced choices” may sound onerous, but eventually you will emerge with a clearer focus on what kind of leader is desired, and more support for any new leader chosen in line with the carefully debated, unambiguous, non-contradictory criteria.
To facilitate the ability to hone in on the few key descriptors that summarize the group’s preferences, I often run meetings on this topic using “audience response systems” where each person has a (wireless, electronic) keypad and can quickly vote (anonymously) with the group results being shown instantaneously on a screen in front of the whole group.
The virtues of this system are many, but three stand out. First, there is no requirement to pre-program the questions, and the time from phrasing the question to seeing the views of the group is only a few seconds. Because of this, if a vote is ambiguous, or seen to be poorly phrased, a re-vote is possible immediately.

Second, the ability to conduct sequential “rounds” of voting enables the group to really test its key criteria. For example, if a list of ten criteria “survive” as the most desirable (or consensus) characteristics, it is easy to reduce the list to the most important five or six by repeating the pairing process instantaneously, asking “If you could only have one of these, which would it be?”
Finally, the fact that audience response systems are based on computers means that the group is able to “capture” the expressions of views that were made, and use them in future deliberations and decisions. What used to be called “a paper trail” is automatically created, which can be referred to long after to remind people of views expressed at the meeting

Summary
If you are like other firms with whom I have used this exercise, you will find that it will force many participants to really reflect in depth (many of them for the first time) what kind of leader they truly think is best for the firm and, perhaps more importantly, what kind of leader they are prepared to accept and be guided by.

By the way, even if you do not have a broad group with whom you are required to be consultative, the “forced-choice” questionnaire can still be a helpful tool. I have used it with relatively small corporate Boards of Directors where there can also be a need for clarification and choice among competing criteria when appointing top corporate officers.
You may be surprised that, when faced with competing virtues, some of your colleagues will make surprising choices. You may also be surprised by the amount of unanimity that often exists in what people seek in a leader.

Your firm will then be in a good position to examine your candidates, and choose the right leader, at the right time, for where your firm is today and where your organization is prepared to go.
If you can clarify your criteria, it will be easier to recognize the best leader for you. If your criteria are confused, it will be very hard to make a sensible choice. The effort described here is as nothing compared to the benefits of making a better leadership choice

Lehman's crisis : Learning..Article by Yogesh Chhabria.

It's an interesting article by Yogesh Chhabria.

LATELY, I have been thinking a lot about the Lehman crisis . Spending money

that they didn't have and going beyond their means is one of the main reasons for

their situation today. In fact that is the cause for the current economic crisis in the US.

When I see all this happening, I can only remember the good old days. Then,

karz was bad. People looked down upon those who took loans. Parents would

not give their daughter's hand in marriage to a man with loans.

But of course, the times have changed now. Everyone I know has a loan. The

buzz word is EMI (equated monthly installment). Today, you can buy

everything on EMI - a house, a television, an i-Pod. In fact I know of

someone who just bought a fancy BMW 3 series on EMI, instead of buying a

cheaper car outright with cash. I mostly prefer to take public transport,

but then I am an old man with old thoughts!

Anyway, coming back to what caused the crisis. Imagine having Rs 2 lakh in

your bank account, no regular income, yet buying a house worth Rs 65 lakh,

in the hope of selling it for a higher price. Even if the price of the

house fell by just 5 per cent (that is Rs 3 lakh), you will go bankrupt.

This is what Lehman Brothers did; with around USD 20 billion they went and

bought assets worth over USD 600 billion. Isn't it suicidal and simply

foolish?

I am sure things would have been different, had I been the head of Lehman

brothers. But who wants an old conservative man like me to head a complex

financial institution.

But there are a few lessons that we can learn:

1.Live a balanced life and avoid overspending.

2.Don't buy things we don't need.

3.Don't buy Branded good's.

4.Don't buy excess Food, Cloths, Cosmetics, Footwear, electronics and

Fashion accuracies

just think before you buy.

Tip: World still has a lot of growth ahead and the future holds immense

opportunities for us. Let us make the most of it and save and invest

it wisely instead of wasting our precious little on things we don't

need.

5.Try to balance life with work (No one is happy to work in there

profession's).

6. Don't stress out your-self, after work try to do some extra activities

like swimming,

yoga, walking, running where you can divert your mind from stress.

A thumb rule: Health is more important than money.

7.Try to understand each other (Wife and Husband) in financial matter's and

help each

other.

Tip: As soon as you get your monthly salary, set aside a fixed amount,

usually 35 per cent, for insurance, savings and investments. You can then

spend the rest.

8. Not all loans are bad. Loans that are 'need based' (home loans,

education loans) can always find a place in your finances against those

that are largely 'want based' (Credit cards, personal loans, car loans).

9. Borrow only if repayment is financially comfortable.

A thumb rule: Keep EMIs within 35 to 45 per cent of your monthly income

In that respect, there is one American who I really respect - Warren

Buffet. He has lived in the same ordinary house for over three decades,

drives his own medium sized car and leads an extremely regular 'middle

class' life. If that's all it takes for the richest person on earth to be

happy, why do all of us need to take extra stress just so that we can get

things which aren't even essential?

An Inspirational Person, madhur chakravarthy

In our lifetime, we meet many types of people. The ones that stand out for me are the ones who overcome challenges and have a positive outlook on life.

Most recently, I have had the pleasure of communicating with Madhur chakravarthy , or as he goes by, madhu. He writes poetry, and has sent me poems for the site. Through emails, I have had the pleasure of getting to know Madhu, and his story is an inspiring one.

You see, Madhu became ill at the age of 10. He had a rheumatoid condition that left him disabled. He was only able to walk with the use of crutches. Madhu is now 60 years old. He retired in 1991, and to quote Madhu, "I retired in 1991 when my health crashed very badly and my arms, on which I had, literally, 'walked' with crutches for the best part of 40 years finally decided they'd had enough! Most unsporting of them!!!"

Madhu talks about life and, as you will read in the paragraph quoted below he has a great outlook on life:

"Life, though, is full of compensations and I have been well blessed throughout my 'Life Journey' with good friends met and made along the way. Life is a kind of swings and roundabouts situation; if you can't kick a football you turn to other pursuits. So I read and learned and learned and read, endlessly curious about the World and its mysteries. I loved and love music and movies, good drama, good quality TV, anything scientific, anything, which makes me think about those things, which lie just beyond understanding. I am also a radio-ham holding a full Class A transmitting license since 1979. So while disability imposes its physical restrictions I am able to go out and meet the world via the air-waves. I speak to other 'Hams' all over the world."

We all face challenges in our lives. But how we handle these challenges, how we look at life is truly what matters. We can all look at life one of two ways: 1. we can focus on the good and move forward, or, 2. we can focus on the negative and wallow in self pity.

My Favooooooooooooooooooorite .Digital cam

Nikon D80 - 10.2 MP Digital SLR camera is my favooooooooooorite camera . i love to take the snaps with this . when my dream comes true to purchase ........

About the Product : Nikon D80 - 10.2 MP Digital SLR Camera
Nikon D80

Features:
10.2 effective megapixel Nikon DX Format CCD image sensor
High-speed continuous shooting: 3 frames per second (fps) in bursts of up to 100 consecutive JPEG (FINE M-size or smaller) or 6 RAW (NEF) images
Advanced high-precision, high-performance imaging processing engine with color-independent pre-conditioning
3D-Color Matrix Metering II with 420-pixel RGB sensor delivers consistent and dependable automatic exposure for ideal results in most lighting conditions
Refined 11-area AF system with new Auto-area AF mode and center sensor that can be switched to wide-frame operation for broader coverage
ISO AUTO mode automatically adjusts sensitivity between ISO 100 to 1600, maximizing available light to help achieve optimal exposure
Seven automated Digital Vari-Programs (Auto, Portrait, Landscape, Close Up, Sports, Night Landscape and Night Portrait) optimize white balance, sharpening, tone, color, saturation and hue to match the scene.

User-selectable choice of Normal, Softer, Vivid, More vivid, Portrait, Custom and Black-and-white image optimization options

Near-instant response with 0.18 sec. power-up and approx. 80-millisecond shutter release time lag promotes fast handling

Top shutter speed of 1/4,000 second and flash sync speeds up to 1/200 second
Fast image transfer via USB 2.0 Hi-Speed interface and SD memory card
Creative in-camera effects and editing functions consolidated under the new Retouch menu, including D-Lighting, Red-eye correction, Trim, Image Overlay, Monochrome settings (Black-and-white, Sepia, Cyanotype) and Filter Effects (Skylight, Warm filter, Color balance)
Multiple Exposure shooting option automatically produces an effect that resembles multiple exposure techniques used with film

Large 2.5-inch LCD monitor with ultra-wide 170-degree viewing angle for clear image preview and easy access to settings and information, including RGB Histograms
Selectable Slideshow function (Standard or Pictmotion)

SD memory card storage, SDHC compatible
Lightweight, compact body

High-energy EN-EL3e rechargeable lithium-ion battery delivers the power to shoot up to 2,700 pictures on a single charge and provides detailed battery status information. (Battery life figure determined by in-house test parameters)

Built-in Flash with I-TTL flash control and full support for Nikon's Creative Lighting System
The D80 supports more than 43 AF Nikkor lenses in addition to the growing family of DX Nikkor lenses

Includes Nikon’s Picture Project software for easy control over image adjustment and management

Support for Nikon's new Capture NX software, which provides easier access to powerful and visually intuitive enhancement tools that help tap the full potential of NEF images

Specifications:
Effective pixels
10.2 million

Image sensor
RGB CCD, 23.6 x 15.8 mm, 10.75 million total pixels

Image size
L (3,872 x 2,592) / M (2,896 x 1,944) / S (1,936 x 1,296)

Sensitivity
100 to 1600 (ISO equivalent) in steps of 1/3 EV, plus HI-0.3, HI-0.7 and HI-1

Storage media
SD memory card, SDHC compatible

LCD monitor
2.5-in., 230,000-dot, low-temp. polysilicon TFT LCD with brightness adjustment

Exposure metering
3D Color Matrix Metering II, Center-Weighted and Spot Metering

Exposure modes
Digital Vari-Program (Auto, Portrait, Landscape, Macro Close up, Sports, Night Landscape, Night Portrait), Programmed Auto [P] with flexible program; Shutter-Priority Auto [S]; Aperture Priority Auto [A]; Manual [M]

Interface
USB 2.0 (Hi-speed) (mini-B connector); SD card slot

Power sources
Rechargeable Li-ion Battery EN-EL3e, MB-D80 battery pack (optional), AC Adapter EH-5 (optional)

Dimensions (W x H x D)

Approx. 132 x 103 x 77mm (5.2 x 4.1 x 3.0 in.)

Weight

Approx. 585g (1lb 5oz) without battery, memory card, or body cap or monitor cover


finally the price is :
Rs. 45595.00 / USD 925.22

When there will be a seriuos Action on Child Labour

The latest ILO Global report on Child Labour found that the number of working children under the age of 15 years in Asia and the Pacific declined by 5 million to 122.3 million from 2000 to 2004. Despite this positive development, the region still faces major challenges. The number of working children in Asia Pacific is by far the largest in the world and represents 18.8 per cent of the 650 million 5-14 year-olds in the region. Furthermore, progress in eliminating child labour is still modest compared to progress in Latin America and the Caribbean.


Many worst forms of child labour are still important concerns, including child trafficking, commercial sexual exploitation, bonded child labour, child domestic work, hazardous child labour and the recruitment and use of children for armed conflict or drug trafficking. A high tolerance for child labour in many countries and political volatility and conflict in certain others exacerbate the problem and has hindered the implementation of action against it. In addition, a large number of children in areas affected by natural disasters are vulnerable to entering child labour.
Strategies such as capacity building for social partners and IPEC implementing agencies, advocacy for adherence and implementation of ILO Conventions, awareness raising of the public and target groups and focused direct assistance are slowly but surely making inroads into the child labour problem. Awareness and support for the eradication of child labour in a comprehensive manner is on the rise. Seven countries in the region have set time-bound targets to end selected worst form of child labour and national time-bound programme projects are now being implemented to help reach these.


IPEC works to mainstream child labour into government policies, strategies, plans and budgets. Child labour issues have been included in the national Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers in Cambodia, Indonesia, Nepal and Pakistan, and mainstreaming is being pursued in other countries, such as the Philippines and Viet Nam. There are efforts to integrate child labour and trafficking concerns into Education for All initiatives in Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Viet Nam.

A Guide to Cultivating Compassion in Your Life, With 7 Practices

“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.” - Dalai Lama
“My message is the practice of compassion, love and kindness. These things are very useful in our daily life, and also for the whole of human society these practices can be very important.” - Dalai Lama
I believe compassion to be one of the few things we can practice that will bring immediate and long-term happiness to our lives. I’m not talking about the short-term gratification of pleasures like sex, drugs or gambling (though I’m not knocking them), but something that will bring true and lasting happiness. The kind that sticks.
The key to developing compassion in your life is to make it a daily practice.
Meditate upon it in the morning (you can do it while checking email), think about it when you interact with others, and reflect on it at night. In this way, it becomes a part of your life. Or as the Dalai Lama also said, “This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness.”
Compassion is an emotion that is a sense of shared suffering, most often combined with a desire to alleviate or reduce the suffering of another; to show special kindness to those who suffer. Compassion essentially arises through empathy, and is often characterized through actions, wherein a person acting with compassion will seek to aid those they feel compassionate for.
Compassionate acts are generally considered those which take into account the suffering of others and attempt to alleviate that suffering as if it were one’s own. In this sense, the various forms of the GOLDEN RULE Share clearly based on the concept of compassion.
Compassion differs from other forms of helpful or humane behavior in that its focus is primarily on the alleviation of suffering.
Benefits :
Why develop compassion in your life? Well, there are scientific studies that suggest there are physical benefits to practicing compassion — people who practice it produce 100 percent more DHEA, which is a hormone that counteracts the aging process, and 23 percent less cortisol — the “stress hormone.”
But there are other benefits as well, and these are emotional and spiritual. The main benefit is that it helps you to be more happy, and brings others around you to be more happy. If we agree that it is a common aim of each of us to strive to be happy, then compassion is one of the main tools for achieving that happiness. It is therefore of utmost importance that we cultivate compassion in our lives and practice compassion every day.
How do we do that? This guide contains 7 different practices that you can try out and perhaps incorporate into your every day life.
7 Compassion Practices
1. Morning ritual. Greet each morning with a ritual. Try this one, suggest by the Dalai Lama: “Today I am fortunate to have woken up, I am alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others, to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings, I am going to have kind thoughts towards others, I am not going to get angry or think badly about others, I am going to benefit others as much as I can.” Then, when you’ve done this, try one of the practices below.
2. Empathy Practice. The first step in cultivating compassion is to develop empathy for your fellow human beings. Many of us believe that we have empathy, and on some level nearly all of us do. But many times we are centered on ourselves (I’m no exception) and we let our sense of empathy get rusty. Try this practice: Imagine that a loved one is suffering. Something terrible has happened to him or her. Now try to imagine the pain they are going through. Imagine the suffering in as much detail as possible. After doing this practice for a couple of weeks, you should try moving on to imagining the suffering of others you know, not just those who are close to you.
3.Commonalities practice. Instead of recognizing the differences between yourself and others, try to recognize what you have in common. At the root of it all, we are all human beings. We need food, and shelter, and love. We crave attention, and recognition, and affection, and above all, happiness. Reflect on these commonalities you have with every other human being, and ignore the differences. One of my favorite exercises comes from a great article from Ode Magazine — it’s a five-step exercise to try when you meet friends and strangers. Do it discreetly and try to do all the steps with the same person. With your attention geared to the other person, tell yourself:
Step 1: “Just like me, this person is seeking happiness in his/her life.”
Step 2: “Just like me, this person is trying to avoid suffering in his/her life.”
Step 3: “Just like me, this person has known sadness, loneliness and despair.”
Step 4: “Just like me, this person is seeking to fill his/her needs.”
Step 5: “Just like me, this person is learning about life.”

4. Relief of suffering practice. Once you can empathize with another person, and understand his humanity and suffering, the next step is to want that person to be free from suffering. This is the heart of compassion — actually the definition of it. Try this exercise: Imagine the suffering of a human being you’ve met recently. Now imagine that you are the one going through that suffering. Reflect on how much you would like that suffering to end. Reflect on how happy you would be if another human being desired your suffering to end, and acted upon it. Open your heart to that human being and if you feel even a little that you’d want their suffering to end, reflect on that feeling. That’s the feeling that you want to develop. With constant practice, that feeling can be grown and nurtured.

5. Act of kindness practice. Now that you’ve gotten good at the 4th practice, take the exercise a step further. Imagine again the suffering of someone you know or met recently. Imagine again that you are that person, and are going through that suffering. Now imagine that another human being would like your suffering to end — perhaps your mother or another loved one. What would you like for that person to do to end your suffering? Now reverse roles: you are the person who desires for the other person’s suffering to end. Imagine that you do something to help ease the suffering, or end it completely. Once you get good at this stage, practice doing something small each day to help end the suffering of others, even in a tiny way. Even a smile, or a kind word, or doing an errand or chore, or just talking about a problem with another person. Practice doing something kind to help ease the suffering of others. When you are good at this, find a way to make it a daily practice, and eventually a throughout-the-day practice.

6.Those who mistreat us practice. The final stage in these compassion practices is to not only want to ease the suffering of those we love and meet, but even those who mistreat us. When we encounter someone who mistreats us, instead of acting in anger, withdraw. Later, when you are calm and more detached, reflect on that person who mistreated you. Try to imagine the background of that person. Try to imagine what that person was taught as a child. Try to imagine the day or week that person was going through, and what kind of bad things had happened to that person. Try to imagine the mood and state of mind that person was in — the suffering that person must have been going through to mistreat you that way. And understand that their action was not about you, but about what they were going through. Now think some more about the suffering of that poor person, and see if you can imagine trying to stop the suffering of that person. And then reflect that if you mistreated someone, and they acted with kindness and compassion toward you, whether that would make you less likely to mistreat that person the next time, and more likely to be kind to that person. Once you have mastered this practice of reflection, try acting with compassion and understanding the next time a person treats you. Do it in little doses, until you are good at it. Practice makes perfect.

7. Evening routine. I highly recommend that you take a few minutes before you go to bed to reflect upon your day. Think about the people you met and talked to, and how you treated each other. Think about your goal that you stated this morning, to act with compassion towards others. How well did you do? What could you do better? What did you learn from your experiences today? And if you have time, try one of the above practices and exercises.
These compassionate practices can be done anywhere, any time. At work, at home, on the road, while traveling, while at a store, while at the home of a friend or family member. By sandwiching your day with a morning and evening ritual, you can frame your day properly, in an attitude of trying to practice compassion and develop it within yourself. And with practice, you can begin to do it throughout the day, and throughout your lifetime.
This, above all, with bring happiness to your life and to those around you.

Do you have experience in practicing compassion? Share your thoughts and ideas in the comments.

Understanding The Cycle of Change, And How People React To It

Managers often make the mistake of assuming that once a change is started, that employees will see that it is going to take place, and get on side. This is rarely the case. Because change causes fear, a sense of loss of the familiar, etc., it takes some time for employees to a) understand the meaning of the change and b) commit to the change in a meaningful way. It is important to understand that people tend to go through stages in their attempts to cope with change. Understanding that there are normal progressions helps change leaders avoid under-managing change or over-reacting to resistance.
As we go through the stages, you will probably find many similarities with the process a person goes through with the loss of a loved one.
Stage I: Denial

Stage II: Anger & Resistance
Stage III: Exploration & Acceptance
Stage IV: Commitment
Below I have mentioned about the each stage in detail ..

Stage I: Denial

An early strategy that people use to cope with change is to deny that it is happening, or to deny that it will continue or last. Common responses during this stage are:
"I've heard these things before. Remember last year they announced the new customer initiative? Nothing ever happened, and this will pass."
"It's just another hair-brained idea from the top."
"I bet this will be like everything else. The head honcho will be real gung-ho but in about six months everything will be back to normal. You'll see."
"I'll believe it when I see it."
People in the denial stage are trying to avoid dealing with the fear and uncertainty of prospective change. They are hoping they won't have to adapt .
The denial stage is difficult because it is hard to involve people in planning for the future, when they will not acknowledge that the future is going to be any different than the present.
People tend to move out of the denial stage when they see solid, tangible indicators that things ARE different. Even with these indicators some people can remain in denial for some time.

Stage II: Anger & Resistance when people can no longer deny that something is or has happened, they tend to move into a state of anger, accompanied by covert and/or over resistance. This stage is the most critical with respect to the success of the change implementation. Leadership is needed to help work through the anger, and to move people to the next stage. If leadership is poor, the anger at this stage may last indefinitely, perhaps much longer than even the memory of the change itself .
People in this stage tend to say things like:
"Who do they think they are? Jerking us around"
"Why are they picking on us?"
"What's so damned bad about the way things are?
"How could [you] the boss allow this to happen?
Actually people say far stronger things, but we need to be polite.

Stage III: Exploration & Acceptance
This is the stage where people begin to get over the hump. They have stopped denying, and while they may be somewhat angry, the anger has moved out of the spotlight. They have a better understanding of the meaning of the change and are more willing to explore further, and to accept the change. They act more open-mindedly, and are now more interested in planning around the change and being participants in the process.
People in this stage say things like:
"Well, I guess we have to make the best of it." "May be we can get through this."
"We need to get on with business."

Stage IV: Commitment
This is the payoff stage, where people commit to the change, and are willing to work towards making it succeed. They know it is a reality, and at this point people have adapted sufficiently to make it work. While some changes will never get endorsement from employees (downsizing, for example) employees at this stage will commit to making the organization effective within the constraints that have resulted from the change.
Concluding Points
Let's conclude with some key points:
1) The change process takes a considerable amount of time to stabilize and to work. Don't undermanage by assuming it will "work itself out" and don't over-react when faced with reasonable resistance.2) Worry if there is no resistance. If the change is significant it means that people are hiding their reactions. Eventually the reactions that are not dealt with will fester and can destroy the organization.

Nothing is Impossible..

The article Nothing is Impossible.. is really gr8.
I got this article through mail from one of my collegue . thnkx for her and i want the site visitors to read the post and provide me the feed back .

Nothing is Impossible..A crorepati who lives in a hut!

His story is an inspiration for millions. A self-made entrepreneur, his mission is to help the poor through job creation. E Sarathbabu hit the headlines after he rejected several high profile job offers from various MNCs after he passed out of IIM, Ahmedabad two years ago.
He instead started a catering business of his own, inspired by his mother who once sold idlis on the pavements of Chennai, worked as an ayah in an Anganvadi to educate him and his siblings. As a child, he also sold idlis in the slum where he lived. "We talk about India shining and India growing, but we should ensure that people do not die of hunger. We can be a developed country but we should not leave the poor people behind. I am worried for them because I know what hunger is and I still remember the days I was hungry," says Sarathbabu.
In August 2006, Sarathbabu's entrepreneurial dream came true with Foodking. He had no personal ambition but wanted to buy a house and a car for his mother. He has bought a car but is yet to buy a house for his mother. The "foodking" still lives in the same hut in Madipakkam in Chennai. Today, Foodking has six units and 200 employees, and the turnover of the company is Rs.32 lakh a month. But it has not been a bed of roses for Sarathbabu. After struggling and making losses in the first year, he managed a turnaround in 2007.
How has his experience as a 'Foodking' been in the last two years? Sarathbabu shares the trial and tribulations of an exciting and challenging job in an interview with Shobha Warrier.
A tough beginningAs I am a first generation entrepreneur, the first year was very challenging. I had a loan of Rs 20 lakh by the end of first year. I had no experience in handling people in business, and it was difficult to identify the right people. Though I made losses in the first year, not even once did I regret my decision of not accepting the offers from MNCs and starting an enterprise of my own. I looked at my losses as a learning experience. I was confident that I would be successful one day.

Sleeping on the railway platform

My first unit was at IIM, Ahmedabad. When we started our second unit in October 2006, I thought now I would start making money. But I made losses of around Rs 2000 a day. A first generation entrepreneur cannot afford such a loss. But I worked really hard, working till 3 a.m. in the morning. What reduced my losses were the birthday party offers.
I started the third unit again in Ahmedabad but it also made losses. All my units were cafeteria and I understood then that the small cafeterias do not work; I needed huge volumes to work. My friends who were extremely supportive in the first year when things were difficult for me. I had taken loans from my IIM-A friends. They were earning very well.
In December 2006, an IIM Ahmedabad alumni event took place in Mumbai and I decided to go there mainly to get a contract. I was hopeful of getting it. I also knew that if I got the huge contract, I would come out of all the losses I had been incurring.
I booked my train ticket from Ahmedabad to Mumbai for Rs 300 and I had Rs 200 in my hand. As the meet went on till late at night, I could reach the station only at midnight. I missed the train. I decided to sit on the platform till the morning and travel by the next train in the morning. I didn't have the money to check into a hotel. I didn't want to disturb any of my friends so late at night.
It was an unforgettable night as I was even shoved off by policemen from the platform. It was quite insulting and embarrassing. After two hours, people started moving in, I also went in.
A man who sat next to me on the platform gave me a newspaper so that I could sleep. I spread the newspaper and slept on the platform! I sleep well. I got my ticket refund in the morning and went back to Ahmedabad. And, luck did not favour me, I didn't get the contract.
In March 2007, I got an offer to start a unit at BITS, Pilani (Sarathbabu was an alumnus of BITS, Pilani). That was the first medium break for me. For the first time, I started making profits there though the other units continued to make losses. The reason for our success at BITS, Pilani was the volume; there were more students and there was a need for a unit like ours while in Ahmedabad, they have at least a hundred options.
If I made Rs 5000 a day at Ahmedabad in two shifts, here I made Rs 15,000 a day. BITS, Pilani unit gave me the confidence to move on. Unless you make money, you can't be confident in business.

What changed my fortune

When all my friends who worked for various MNCs made good money every month and I made losses with my venture. But I kept telling myself, I am moving in the right direction to reach my ambition and vision. My dream was to provide employment and I was doing just that. I continued to work till 3 a.m. but I never felt tired.
Through BITS, Pilani, I got the BITS, Goa contract and that was the biggest break for me. It was not a cafeteria like the earlier ones but the dining hall that we got. We had to feed 1300 students. We started our operations in July 2007. At Rs 50, for 1300 students, our sales was Rs 65,000 per day. We soon started making a profit of Rs 10 to 15,000 a day. Around 60 to 70 people work there. I gave the charge of the Ahmedabad operations to one of my managers and moved to Goa.
I was still in debt by Rs 15-20 lakhs but I knew BITS, Goa would keep my dream alive. Within six months of starting our operations in Goa, I repaid all my debt.
I was called to give a speech at the SRM Deemed University. After the speech, I asked the Chancellor, can you give me an opportunity to serve in your campus? He said, "If not you, to whom will I give such an opportunity?" It's a food court but a big one, similar to the one at BITS, Pilani. There are around 17,000 students there.
Now, I have the BITS, Hyderabad contract, ready to start in July 2008. Other than the six units, I have approached a few more universities and corporate houses too. In the first year, I had made a loss of Rs 25 lakh. Right now, we have a turnover of Rs 32 lakh every month, which works out to 3.5 crore (Rs 35 million) a year. I have hired about 200 people. Indirectly, we touch the lives of around 1000 people. By this year end, we will have 500 people working for us. Only 10% of my workers are educated, the rest are uneducated. I want to make a change in their lives. If they have any problem, I will take care of it. We support the marriages and education of poor families. We are paying more to the employees as the company is doing well. Now that the foundation is strong, I plan to have ten units and a turnover of Rs 20 crore (Rs 200 million) turnover by next year.

His advice: Never give up!

In the last two years, I have given more than 120 lectures in various institutions in India. When I got the first opportunity to speak, I thought God had given me an opportunity to encourage or inspire entrepreneurs. When youngsters tell me they are inspired, I feel good.
When you just dish out the theory, nobody believes you. But when you do it, they believe you. What I tell them is based on my own experiences.
When I thought of starting a company, I felt India needed 100 people like Narayana Murthy and Ambani. If 100 such people support 2 lakh people each, imagine how many Indians get supported.
Entrepreneurship is needed to uplift the poor. It is not easy to be an entrepreneur, especially a first generation entrepreneur.
There will be lots of challenges in the beginning but you should learn to look for the light at the end of the tunnel. Never give up even if there are hurdles. There are many who give up within a week. You need determination and a tough mind to cross the initial hurdles. If you are starting without much money, you should not have any overhead expenses.

He still lives in the same hut
As I am in the food business, I know how much the price of every food item has gone up. Many people will languish in poverty because of inflation. Had my mother been working as an Anganvadi ayah today and earning Rs 1500, she would not have been able to feed us and educate us.
On the one side, we talk about India shining and India growing, but we should ensure that people do not die of hunger. We can be a developed country but we should not leave the poor people behind. I am worried for them because I know what hunger is and I still remember the days I was hungry. That is why I feel it is our responsibility to take care of them.
I wanted to buy a car and a house for my mother. I bought a car first, not a house. I still live in the same house, the same hut. I can build a house right now but I want my business to grow a little more. I feel good in the hut; that’s where I get my energy, that's where I lived 25 years of my life. I want to remind myself that the money and fame should not take me away from what I want to achieve.
But within six months, I will build a good house for my mother. Her only advice to me is, don't waste money. Till I was in the 10th, there was no electricity in my house. I had to sit near the kerosene lamp and concentrate hard. That's how I learnt to concentrate. The two year journey has been very enriching. It seems like a 20-year journey for me. I was living every moment of the two years, from sleeping on the Mumbai railway station platform to this level.