Tag: mindful approach

What to expect as people emerge from the lock-down!

~ PA ~ Leave a comment

As we emerge out of the demonic shadows of the pandemic, you will find that the world has changed a big time, for good or bad- well this will largely depend on how your lock-down period was and what were the contents of  your isolation! Irrespective of whatever it was- you will be a changed person for a lifetime and may that be for the good and greater well being of yourself and everyone around you! This piece is a quick one trying to share what are the emerging shades and colors of human behaviour you will get to see around as the world begins to gets ready for business as usual in a few weeks from now!

You will probably encounter what I call is the “Butterfly syndrome” well not everyone, but the usual “social and ultra extroverted types” will be the ones’ who will display this. These will be the ones’ who will go from desk to desk and check if all is well and so on and so forth! Well, folks, I am not going to tell you if this is a wise thing to do or not, I leave that to your own figment of imagination! (as a Coach I am largely indifferent to how people behave- much of my focus is to see if their behaviors are aligned to the outcomes that they aim for!). But in a way these people with the “Butterfly syndrome” are the ones’ who have walked into the event and walked out of it with relatively the same levels of IQ and for them coming back to the routine is akin to waking up to reality (they forget all the torture, stress and challenges that the lock-down would have presented). This is good in a way but the problem is that they also forget the vital learnings that are needed to have a meaningful life ahead as they go on to embrace the world- full speed ahead with their selective amnesia!

The next broad display will be from people whom I like to call the “Reversed Polarity syndrome” As the name suggests these people will display completely opposite behaviors then what they were before the break off from the routine– you will come across cases wherein a person who has been a known introvert- suddenly is getting colorful and is too much into everyone’s face at times and borders on actually ending up irritating others (this irritation would normally have more to with lack of content for the right contexts as the person tries to overdo the extrovert’s role- not knowing when to shut up and when enough is actually enough!). On the other extreme other end of the band you would have an otherwise vibrant and chirpy individual suddenly transformed and metamorphosed into a deadly silence, displaying a matured behaviour which would generally be not congruent to their age! Now whether this will be good or bad- depends on multiplicity of factors like who they are what they do and the kind of job that they do etc. etc.; The best part of all this, is the fact that people who will display these traits- with time, will elastically come back to their natural zone; even before they realise it, they will be once again their authentic self! Even they will find it hard to believe that they did behave the way they did in the initial days after coming back (which will fun for some and embarrassment for few others)!

Then you would have that pristine balanced lot- right there in the middle- as if nothing happened- will go on as usual as if they are just back from a vacation and their conversations will all loop to things- like- during the work-from-home I had sent you that mail on Saturday at 5 pm and that other mail earlier on Friday at 3:30 pm) and people are left dumbfounded- “Wow, this person is God in disguise-even as the earth and society seems to be falling apart- you have this smart person- rattling off the data, numbers and also sending out plan of action for days ahead! Cool!

Apart from these superficial aspects- there will be however, a lot of serious stuff playing around the minds of the people all the time for a good long time- this could be as long as few weeks for a few of them it can be a lifelong challenge depending on how an individual would have soaked the episode in! These things and episodes will be played out in the deep confines of peoples’ mind all across the world- these will be what I call as “Automated Response mechanisms” which will evaluate every act and every action in light of how vital or trivial it seems to be in the larger scheme of things- read ones’ life and what one wants from it! Of course not everyone and all people will be able to have this space of their mind ticking around this- But this will be reflected and shown by people who actually have used this space of isolation to seek and find their real urge and have got their priorities of life right during this time in isolation, for some it will mean reinforcing their beliefs and values in what they have been doing so far and for few others it would be throwing away and walking away form all that they were doing and head to pursue something totally new with a refreshed approach and work towards what their new priorities are now! Whichever you look at it, it certainly assures a positive outlook for the individual, but that may not always work for a similar experience for the  organisation that an individual works for unless the supporting ecosystem within the organisation echoes the same!

These and many such evolving patterns of acquired behaviors will play out across offices and work places at all levels and these interplay will lead to new synergies trust behaviors and in few odd cases will lead to fall outs and complete rejigs of value systems and individual alignments vis-a-vis- the work place mandates! Importantly after spending an excessive time through the work-from-home scenarios- there also will be realignments and re-calibration of inputs and efforts that are provided by individuals at their homes with an aim to calibrate these inputs against outputs that are being perceived and experienced! You will see instances of where people want to spend more time at home, you will come across instances where people start to work late more often, you will see people wanting to travel more often or less often- all this will be in a nutshell reflective of how the excess time at the home front went by. There will be multiple reasons and again a hue of colors and shades of different personalities working with or against each other as well- and honestly that is befitting for  another article altogether!

Whatever it is, folks, trust me the period coming up, certainly promises to be rich, colorful and entertaining, which will offer a window into the human mind and behavior like never before! I am also quite sure none of us want another global crisis just for studying changing behavioral patterns- certainly not me! But then, this is perhaps among the  few positive fallout of a crisis, next only to that of saving lives from the clutches of certain death!

I leave you here for now and will be back soon with another refreshing article. Do keep writing in and do let me know what is that you want me to write next about and yes; stay calm, wise and safe always! If dumbness and stupidity gets you dusted- well nothing can be paradoxically as painful as that would be! Ciao for now and will catch up soon!

 

The aftermath of a pandemic- The way global communities will change!

~ PA ~ Leave a comment

Whether you in self imposed isolation or into an isolation because someone unwittingly gifted you the virus- whatever the case is- the fact remains this is perhaps the biggest opportunity in your life- where you have your employers paying you to think further and beyond for your own life! (unless you are working for yourself or you have got those gifted employers who are tracking you by those sinister cameras on your laptop- to check if you are indeed working!). This article is not about checking what could have been done or not and what is being done- it is about trying to unravel the scenarios that will come to play when all this dust settles in the next month or two and the new world order will have reset priorities – for almost everything- how businesses are conducted with whom, how people travel and how they stay connected, where the opportunities are and who will eventually benefit from all this mayhem until the next big episode which will dawn upon us! – Which certainly will- but of course – no predictions here on the timelines for the moment! So here we go!

To begin with, take a moment to reflect how the world was just before this pandemic started to become one. In terms of the health of the world economy- Majority of the top economies across the world were in dire straits for one or the other reasons with each nation slipping away into ever-increasing fiscal deficit (this is one way of simply telling you that each nation has been living beyond it’s capacity to create and spend wealth- either through internal or external borrowings!). Next, what are the major events that happened as this was breaking out- withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan- Trade deal with China and Brexit. Now with global economies under pressure and still scratching their heads individually as nations and as collective groups of the G7, G20, ASEAN, You pick a block and you will see a trend that there have been meeting of each large trading or business block during the period preceding this pandemic. Well I am certainly not trying to suggest anything here, but these are facts and these meetings did happen and they did happen before this “pandemic”went live! Now hold your thoughts on this right here and let’s move into another space for the same timeline- just before the pandemic!

Travel and tourism- This sector too had been struggling for long for some or the other reason- whether it was the plane manufacturers, hotel chains or the average traveler- who again have been shifting and changing their travel patterns for the last two years because of economic indicators (which in turn have been equally shifting and dodgy on an ongoing basis). This complete lock down and a clamp down of sorts again has come as a blessing in disguise (whether by accident or by design- perhaps we will never know). To this add a slew of other sectors which have suddenly announced to produce chemical compounds, instruments, equipment’s- all aimed to fight this “pandemic”(some of these companies have never had their core competency in the longest time in history- for what they propose to manufacture and offer!). Now all these business will use their respective laws of their land to rejuvenate, re-boot (read- government write off’s on loans, waivers and job losses). Now hold this thought and try to think and see what your intelligence is saying to you! (I may be wrong- well the whole point is to make you think!)

More importantly, this is going to alter the hardwired approach that people have always had towards dealing with each other as societies! Ironically densely populated societies will emerge as more isolated and even more disconnected after this all ends and will end up being more self-centered (read selfish and self-serving) then before. However, the communities and societies across the developed world will find a new reason to practice heightened care for other members of their societies and emerge as more connected and and more empathetic then before! This will partly be because the way communication around the “pandemic” has been propagated and dished out! Human brain too, being what it is, will trick people form one segment of societies (which have high densities) to follow the norm that distance is good and will factor this into everything going ahead (anyways much of the human societal interaction and engagement has been shallow and self-serving for the longest times of history). When it comes to societies with lesser population density- the human mind  will play the other way around- it will reach out on the note of empathy and care (as few number to a sparse society) will trigger the part of the brain where duty of care, respect and mutual affection (with now available access to medication) will ensure that health and wellness emerge as the top most priorities of those societies and will go on to reflect in every choice that they make- whether be food, travel, fashion or whatever element you want to choose!

Well, since there is a limitation to a blog, I can’t go on picking every space and zone of human lives and possibly discuss how I think those will be altered- but wherever you are and whichever society class you are a part of – you will see all this playing out right in front of you! In the times ahead- based on which society you are specific aspects will become costlier- say you belong to societies with high population density- travel, medical costs will go up and since this societies will get hard wired to social distancing and start becoming withdrawn even data costs will start to rise! Before anyone realizes access to transport, travel, data and healthcare will end up being costlier at least by 40% then what it is today- by 2022. This will further make the society withdrawn and fragmented within- and based on what type of a government you have- it will just help the people in power to gain complete control, which  will finally rest with few people who will have a greater advantage to influence and navigate a fragmented society to a point  that they want to! As far as societies that have fewer number of people- well they will be more resilient and will give away a lot of baggage and make the governments feel lighter- once these people start to take more care of their individual health- recurring health costs will start to come down and as these societies already have ongoing capped prices for utilities and services- there will be a flattening of the service costs to societies and people in these societies will be in a more advantageous position then the ones’ those have higher densities!

Eventually, in the smoke of the settling dust, from this episode; billions and billions of dollars worth of money and resources will change hands and ownership, simply to ensure that the world order remains sane (the way “they” want it) and to disallow “anarchy” (as “they” see it). This is just a step away and anarchy sets in  once world leaders start to believe that they will not talk to each other! (which thankfully doesn’t seem to be happening at least for now!). If you are wondering who these “they” are- Well I leave it to your wisdom- possibly you are working for one of them in one way or the other at this very moment- as have generation before you and possibly after you will!

I leave you here, and hope you use this time to reflect on how you are changing and what are the changes that you will allow and not allow so that when the freeze is over, you emerge as a better version of yourself- that is the only hope that the world has for now- that each one of us emerges as a stronger and better human being from this ongoing war!

Ciao for now and have your coffee- if nothing else- it will keep you warm and alert! I will be back soon with another piece and that will be on discussing the probable mental health challenges that we face in times ahead!

 

 

The unavoidable outcome of a Pandemic-WFH to AAH!

~ PA ~ Leave a comment

Hello there, yes we are at war- with something that we can’t even see with our naked eyes! Well call it rule of nature or whatever you may like to- The fact always has been that wars and enemies emerge from unseen blind quarters within or outside! Today, I want you to think around what is developing behind the smoke screen of the pandemic- sure enough- the pandemic is real people have risked themselves and have become history- but there is more in store and for what is in store- not everyone needs to die necessarily- but the changes over the horizon will be no less then having a rebirth! This piece is about what the unseen and unavoidable fall out of this chaos will be for the next 12 months at least- beyond that- well let your wisdom guide you!

So wherever you are on the world map right now- If you have been one of those lucky one’s to get a reprieve from travelling to work and are soaking in the windfall time with your family or pursuing your hobby or plain speak- something that you like to do (rarely that is possible when you are at work!); be wise and stay cautious! If you have not got that call from your boss, that client of your’s and if you did not get a chance to wear that mask and do a quick trip to your office like a super-hero to save the day- well you know what chances are your Work From Home (WFH) will eventually plateau out to a Always At Home (AAH) scenario pretty earlier then you would have thought! Yes! you read it right- you don’t trust me- well, no problem- drop me a mail around September 2020, then we will have a chat! Now don’t get scared- here’s what you need to understand and take charge of to ensure you stay relevant through your absence!

People tend to forget the age old maxim- “Your absence must be just enough so that your value (if any at all) must be realized- but your absence must be not so long that people learn to live without you and move ahead!” This is the space where the risky WFH is treading on- We live in times where interpersonal skills among people in work environments are already substantially screwed and messed up- if there is anything important that we talk with co-workers even as we work- it is about the third person- whether that third person in the context and content is a team member, your client or the classical corporate bitching session that has no end! I read somewhere- what people have started to realize is how shallow the entire corporate experience has been- once everyone has been packed to their homes-for their WFH- the realization has dawned that- the only thing that always mattered was the responses to the mails, the quick chats of under 3 minutes with clients and action planning and getting work done for that day! Everything else suddenly has started to seem to unwise- dumb and completely useless! Well, realization of all this is good for you as a worker- the problem here is even your employers now have started to realise- how dumb they have been to get sold to your personal charisma- your high value degrees and much hyped and eternally eroding experience(of course- there are a few exceptions- and this is not about them!)

Yes, folks, even as you think you have been smart to convince your employer for a WFH waiver and you are possibly working as you binge on a some movies and web series even as you work! Employers world wide right now are unleashing the complete available power of AI (Artificial Intelligence) – something that you, would have contributed to- knowingly and unknowingly (knowingly if you have bee a software and systems developer and unknowingly- if you have left a great digital imprint of your existence on the planet to provide ample data points to study behavioral and capability patterns)- and this is what can possibly make you technically redundant!

Well, there is nothing wrong and right about this – It is about knowing what we have done to ourselves as human beings!– First, we built capabilities through enveloping our intelligence- next we misuse and abuse them to sub-serve ourselves and for those who we work for – whether employers or society and finally we play dumb and under the garb of automation end up making ourselves redundant! What is happening to the service sector today- is what had happened to the manufacturing sector thirty years ago with the advent of robotics and CNC (Computer and  Numerically Controlled) programmable machinery, and as humans guess what- We failed to remember what we should have learnt from that instance- We should have could have set a limit to our levels of procrastination and laziness which have in a way led to the need and urge to seek more and more automation! Automation from an innovator’s point was always designed to make things easier for difficult situations- now that has been extended to manage dumb and repetitive tasks (that’s what I asked in a previous article- Does your designation define your incompetence!)

So what next, well as humans we can do only one thing what we are best suited to do- turn the circumstances to our advantage- understand and differentiate from what is meaningful and what is meaningless!– I will tell you what- here’s simple test- If what you can do- can be done by anyone else- Well then you are in trouble and you need to course correct your life and skill sets now- to stay relevant and stay alive! another step you can think around this is – Can anyone do what I do the Way I do It- here if you have answered NO- Well, then Congratulations- No matter how much automated the world becomes- You are and will always remain to be one of those human beings who have been and continue to be “Human” in the essence of the word by simply being “Who You Are” and that is how it is supposed to be and this is what each one of us should aspire for ourselves to be! Always remember, every time that stepped back and gave away the control to technology- technology has come back seeking more and more and there will be really no end to it- The only way to subvert this, is to ensure we are smart enough to limit and know what we should, can and need to automate and to what extent!

I leave you at this point- Take a pause and reflect- What is the essence of being an human mean to You and more importantly Being You – whats is that helps and harms you! Importantly also Know what is the relationship that you share with automation- Who is the Master and who is the Slave and what are you going to do about it- so that in times to come that equilibrium stays the way You want it to be and that’s how it should be!

Stay wise, have an awakened weekend ahead and stay who You are and stay Relevant!

 

Making sense of the nonsense around you!

~ PA ~ Leave a comment

Even under normal circumstances, it would be important to have clarity about what we pay attention to and what we ignore! Given the kind of conflicting mayhem that the world is in right now; it’s no wonder that people now are getting  overwhelmed with the noise around- most of which is pure information garbage! This short piece is about trying to decipher the way around too many inputs and stay focused on the outcomes that you want in a given scenario!

So, depending on where you are on the world map- you are either moving about normally, locked in your own abode or moving around wearing the latest designer masks- which- trust me are doing nothing more then making it harder for you to breathe in and out- unless you are a trained yoga student- with some great breath control techniques at your disposal!

It is in times like these, that we can learn valuable lessons and also understand how we individually process information that we receive on an ongoing basis– What is that we do to know what is the right source, what to believe, what not to and how to verify what is being told and how do we go about that verification process to validate the information that we have been provided with! Many a times the information that receive will be crafted in the agenda of the sender of the message for all the right and wrong reasons!The more critical the formation, more are the chances of it carrying along with it an element of what I call as “Information malware”- which will override the essence of the information’s contents – This malware has one objective to have your reaction directed in a particular manner even before your discerning mind tries to make sense of what the context is and evaluate sensible options to address the contents of the information! So what do we do?- well read on…

To begin with, what we can always do and must always do is keep our approach in life (especially when we are at the receiving end) simple! Yes folks, that’s as easy as this, keeping a simplified approach- but the journey to develop a simplified approach given the complex brain that we carry over our shoulders is very often easier said then done!- At times there is a good measure and reason for it (when you are leading a large organisation or a nation) and yet at  other times you may tend to just procrastinate- even when your decision will not even make an impact on your shadow!- forget anyone around you!

When you do receive a piece of information- When it is  for your survival- well in most cases that will be an order and then overriding all else you will have to simply follow- because any argument will ensure you aren’t there for the next get together among your known faces! Of course this works only on the premise that the sender also has the real single point agenda of saving your life! Recall “brace” positions call out by flight crew, when they say “Brace” or a pilot says, “Mayday” well there’s no arguing and overthinking about what will follow next- it’s simply a clear statement of an emergency and asking each one to follow a laid out protocol- no one holds debates around this time and kind of messages and information flow! In times like these; De-clutter and follow what is being told- when the source is verified beyond doubt to be having the same interest like that of your’s- To stay alive!

When  you receive information through a chain of command in the corporate world- as far as possible and whenever possible – if you can’t figure out (which ideally you should be able to most of the times!) why you are performing a task, it’s always good to ask for clarification- for two reasons- one possibly you may not be the best person to do it (since you need clarity!) and secondly your ignorance can actually cause a far greater blunder (in your attempt to try doing something which you aren’t sure about!). You don’t want to be a first-aid responder who faints at the sight of blood! The corporate world is replete with examples wherein  people have been entrusted with tasks and given instructions only to screw up things even more and ensure more pain is given to the person from whom the instruction came! Why does this happen?- Well, simply because the person at the top had assumed that because you are labelled as what your designation says- you must be competent to manage what has been informed to you! More often then not what is importantly missed out– Is the ability to verify precedents wherein such a situation was previously managed or not by you!

On a societal level, we have always ensured that we are constantly bombarded with an ongoing onslaught of information- most of which is absolutely useless and has no bearing whatsoever on our dear lives! Yet, the confirmation biases and the peer pressure to be part of that large social gang and be able to contribute to general gossip is so overpowering that it also silences the internal correction mechanisms – called your Soul! More often then not it takes away the remaining limited level of intelligence that one may have and once the dumb part of us takes over- we just go on adding to the spread of nonsensical information- ending up being the source and the victim both! Here the way- and possibly the only way is to Avoid!- Avoidance is the only first and last step to battle information nonsense floating round the society! Each time before you click that button on a site,  or share your cell number for that offer by an sms,  or subscribe to that channel on a social handle, pick up that gossip magazine, or supplement from a newspaper (I presume you will be left with only a page or two of real news- the times that we live in!), you are just opening up channels for all that information filth to come and hit you in your private space! Don’t do that!

Instead subscribe to any and all information that serves you to be a better person, enhances your knowledge in the area of your work, information that uplifts your soul and helps you learn something new (hobbies, music, crafts), urges you to explore something better (travel) and makes you more wise in terms of choosing what to hold on to and what to let go! This is the real essence and way to manage the onslaught of information nonsense around us! As the old saying goes- You are known by the company you keep, and more importantly, The company you keep is a factor of the Quality of Information that you hold!

I will leave you with these thoughts for now, take your time to subscribe to new channels and information treasure troves and unsubscribe from glorified nonsense today! Take charge, have your drink and stay wise- making sense from the nonsense around!

 

The art of disrupting a disruption!

~ PA ~ Leave a comment

Hello there! I am sure not many people would be in a mood to seek introspection and dive deep within even as the world around “seems” to be caving in. The word here is “seems” and this quick piece is further to my last one- a step ahead if you like- to possibly fog out whatever ambiguity is remaining within our minds and stay glued towards the sensible way of making sense around the nonsense!

So, at this moment, possibly you too are among the many humans worldwide who have been disrupted, from what used to be an otherwise “structured routine”( irrespective of how fulfilling that was or how dumb your daily routine was), the simple fact that you have been thrown off guard and forced to comply with another routine makes that rebel in you to wake up- even as you remain unclear about what you are actually rebelling about and why! But once you have overcome this initial shock of being sent into a space of your discomfort! (if people think- work from home- is all joy and glory- well wait and watch as news starts to hit headlines across the world- how homes have found new challenges in dealing with never seen faces, attributes and behaviors of family members!), what follows is a wide space where you are equally lost as even your fellow mates are lost by seeing the sudden freedom and trust ushered in on you by the companies that you work for! Your brain is right now somewhere in this zone – “Why was I cribbing about my job for such a long time- see no supervisors- no meetings- no politics- plain freedom and what I say is being believed upon- even if I am binge watching the web series and having a house party!” Sooner or later once reality sets in, over the next two – three days or following weeks (depending on where you are right now on the world map)- you will for sure start getting those pesky mails- saying- “If I can reach and work- why can’t you”, “that strong mail from a client who wants to jump back and have the first advantage to be back in the saddle” or even more gloomier news that surely will follow-  people quitting, few  being asked to leave- and few others will simply vanish! (read incomprehensibility of the mind over the surroundings!). This stage then will be quickly replaced by a strobe light effect which will hold  anxiety at one end of the blip and boredom at the other! Now all of these or any of these will happen only  if you resign yourself to the fate of your disruption and allow it to dictate your future! The good news is there is a way to beat around this seemingly sluggish and clawing up menace and that is to disrupt what is disrupting you within the disruption!

What governments and organisations, fail to notice is that although, one public notice and one official email is all that it takes to change the way people are going about, the fact remains that we are reaching out to Individual human beings (who are a world unto themselves and micro ecosystems of responsibilities, planning and tact even at that micro level)!Well, at the macro level an organisation or a government may do it’s job by sending out that communication- but when you try to deep dive and see how the construct of every individual is the stories will be many and different with no common thread to fall back on except that dictate from the organisation! For few (if not all) being confined to their place of stay could be far more worse then being at office (reasons could be multiple- family elders being disrupted- health issues of family members- genuine paucity of space- ambiance – privacy- their accommodation are many grades down then their office premises- an issue of affordability, fear psychosis of being dis-connected- read dis-connected from office grapevine and  the ongoing maneuvers that have got left half cooked which can come back biting!) So how does an individual navigate this space and emerge with sanity intact more then anything else! well read on!

Among the many things, that one can do, limiting to the length of the blog, I will share with you a few simple aspects that I can think of and will emphatically urge you to find your heaven because, remember, no two of us are alike- each one of us- each of the 7.5 billion of us are different when it comes to our psychological frameworks and orientations! One way of disrupting a disruption is to analyse what is the element within the disruption is nagging you! The moment you seek that and address it- trust me half of your battle is already over! This can be known by knowing what keeps you ticking you and what ticks you off and the only person who can find this out- is U!– no one can do this for you! Next, once you have found out – what is helping and what is not helping you – keep focusing on what’s working for you as much as you can, so that you are able to nudge out the “not working elements” of disruption completely from your line of sight and top of mind thought placards! Consider this if you always wanted to finish reading that favorite book (which you long wanted to and did not have time to finish it), seize this opportunity and go for it, and every now and then as those thought placards start to pop  up(which reflect your anxiety, concern, worry about being isolated, or when your mind tries to drag into playing futuristic role plays of what happens next); use this book reading time more and more so that your mind knows that “this reading of the book” is the “new assigned task” and this will automatically stop the diversionary tricks that draw your mind into the endless chaos of ambiguity! Well, this was just a plain example and each one of us can find our own safe haven and island of calm- even as others tend to struggle around the chaos with clouds of ambiguity and smoking high on their own unfound fears! 

Once you begin to take charge and effect change for yourself – for who you are- through a directed and sustained effort; irrespective of the times- whether they are disrupted or not- things will never remained fogged out for your vision!

I leave you with these thoughts- Embrace disruptions and use them to Your advantage! Will be back soon with another piece, until then take care and stay safe!

The isolation advantage!

~ PA ~ Leave a comment

Well, in the context of what’s happening around the world, for now, “isolation”, may be the only word that is so respected  and feared at the same time! So even as nations battle it out there using all the tricks that they have in their book- one common thread on all this happens to be “keeping distance” and “isolation” as much as possible- well certainly that’s the way and perhaps the only way to fight contagious diseases from spreading (we learnt this as students of grade four, I guess), until we have the vaccines in place. But still what’s important to observe and study is how the human mind is coping up with or loosing it, as social interactions are restricted and at times when Isolation becomes the norm! This is about knowing how amazingly we the see the best and hope even in the darkest and most trying times! So here we go!

We all know about humans being “social animals” and have learned this at school (and even if we have not been to any), through the mere fact that we are related and would have a dozen of first cousins and over two dozens of second level relations, merely reflects how human society has evolved through the last three centuries! As the promise of resources (read food, water, shelter and safety) grew over the last three centuries, humans have resigned themselves to the comfort of community support for all situations good and bad– whether it is a community fun fare, marriages in the little town tucked away far from the city, political representation (unless you are yet being ruled by kings/ autocrats) or it is about saving lives in face of natural calamities and being there for one another when disaster strikes! This is more or less how we have always been and this is how it is supposed to be – irrespective of all the differences of ideologies and pressures acquired by a society by virtue of the urge to control and dictate- this fundamental thread of being able to look out for one another for good and bad and expecting nothing in return ( and you always thought only animals are wired like this!).It has always been so and it is again, we humans who have from time to time either ignored this or played even this to our advantages!

Looping back to the times that we are experiencing right now, the induced isolation, through self-quarantines and medical quarantine worldwide to protect ourselves and the ones around is throwing up some strange strategies to cope with this new dictate of the ruling governments! There are some communities which even under lock-down situations have managed to connect through human voice and music (even as they stay isolated), there are yet who have possibly sought refuge to engage and interact online, so that they feel and stay connected, yet others roam about as if nothing happened ( and these are the gifted ones’ who have always remained in self- imposed quarantine either because of their lengthened intelligence or completely extinguished cognitive ability- either ways it’s helping the world for now! More strange have been those instances where few- really handful few- who have mustered the courage to escape and run away form quarantined zones! So what are all these behavioral attributes saying about us and the human mind! What are we now evolving into as we face and overcome this global menace which is requiring us to manage social distance and be unto ourselves- how will this help or harm the future of our societies?

Human brain seeks companionship and that’s how it is hard-wired – you may be the most eclectic of yogi’s or saint’s seeking divine bliss- but even for you to tell the world that you have attained it- you will still need someone to speak to about it! So when you put people in completely unnatural situations- the first involuntary reaction is of disbelief- “No this can’t be happening- not to me- the medical guys have made a mistake- they are idiots- It can’t be”, this is followed by a quick realization of the next point- “well what if they are right and I am not taken care of – I may not exist and I may be well on my way out of the planet and the end up being a statistical number!- This powerful thought then overcomes the initial disbelief and shock making co-operation possible and then resigning oneself to the orders from perfect strangers who call themselves whoever they are-doctors, paramedics, you name it – The simple promise that you will be fine and safe by doing what we say- is such a powerful statement that almost 99% people will comply and pay heed to what these strangers are saying(In different context of history though- read dictators- it is exactly a similar response that has ended up having more people killed then cured!).The remaining 1%, well yes they do exit and these are the one’s who will end up doing eccentric stuff- running away, not following rules, not taking medicines, playing dumb- intentionally and unintentionally- they do this not because they want to – but simply the situation has become so overwhelming to their minds that they no longer can cope with it and hence neither have a trusting bias or a doubting bias (if you have one of these biases you can be managed and cured by developing an alternative narrative- but when you keep switching fast between the narratives- you end up becoming a living nightmare for the world – far worse then the battles against a virus! So what’s the way ahead and how do we make most of a situation which gets labelled as “Isolation”

One way, is to change the narrative from the word itself-instead of calling it Isolation- Call it “Time for personal investment”- a time to invest into yourself – to develop your personal strengths, learn to do away with your fears (demons in your head) and your weaknesses, a time to pursue something your daily routine and rush of life kept you away from (as long as it can be pursued within the confines of being isolated- I am not suggesting someone to pick up a guitar and arrange for live concert- rather pick it up and upload a video online!). This “Me time” can be used to assess your priorities in light of the new vulnerabilities that the world is bring to you- maybe you need to move to a new place- maybe you need to reassess the job you do – maybe you need to learn how to be strong and focused by yourself to keep you safe and maybe its time for you to realize that “Life cant and should not be taken for granted”! Once we flip our view of isolation and start to fill it with the books we needed to read, the films that we wanted to watch, the chats that we wanted to have with our friends, the peace that we would have wanted to hold within or as simple as the afternoon nap that you wanted to have in so many years- just seek what was amiss from your busy life and let this curse of isolation be turned into a blessing in disguise and use it to your advantage so that we the crisis is finally over and you emerge- you emerge as a person changed for good – who now values each moment of life in a more meaningful and mindful way- and possibly by then you know what wise issues you should engage with and when you should walk way from what doesn’t make you feel enriched and a better person!

I leave you with these thoughts on a Monday, wherever you are reading this, no matter how isolated you are, now you know how to make isolation work for you! Remember it is not the Isolation that hurts, it is the fear of missed opportunities and lack of connect that troubles us- because we tend to have a fear of missing out the social beacons (which we normally  use as our glide path as we navigate around society!). Once you have reached deep within yourself and re-assessed your priorities- thanks to the available time through isolation- you will no longer be in search of beacons and will most probably end up being a light house for others in the society to follow!

Ciao for now, grab that drink and stay wise! Run wild  with your thoughts and imagination and pursue your dreams- for this is the time to build upon your strengths, dreams and ideas and these will come alive eventually as you sustain and their time arrives!

 

The real essence of saying “I”

~ PA ~ Leave a comment

Well folks, for a Sunday  quick read, I thought this would be a great topic, a topic which will help you get some space for yourself and importantly this should help a big deal the next time, you picked up the phone and introduced yourself or told someone that , It was “I” and “My” team who got this done!” well this piece is about the “I” hidden within you and each one of us and an attempt to gauge who this “I” really is!

I am sure you too would have observed and come across people who have, time and again told you stories about what they had done, and the story more often then not goes on with an opening like, “I had then said that or done that or I did this and that” etc. So who is this “I” the central character in the multitudes of the stories that unfold- at times this “I” seems to be different for different people and at times this “I” also contradicts preset behaviors from earlier times and surprises everyone by doing something which at times also ends up stumping the “I” eventually! So how and what is all that goes around with this “I” and what role does it play and what is it’s relevance!

Let me take a case in point, to try and simplify, if I have not confused you enough as yet! Consider this, you wake up on a Monday morning, you rush through your morning chores, drop your kids to school (if they are still young! If they are grown up- they would be ideally coming into the house as you leave for work!), reach your work area- you speak with your peers, junior and seniors and all those who matter through the day- some of this chatter is meaningful and tons of it borders on things, people and aspects which really don’t make sense! (for either they- the people don’t care that you discuss about them or your discussing them doesn’t change anything for them or anything regarding them with the framework of the universe!). Once you have done this then you head back home to resign yourself to the safety and comfort of the nest that you relate yourself with as your own! and then finally you say- I have had a great, hectic day! In all this hectic run-around of the day, “I” was always there making its’ presence felt during meetings, taking decisions and utilizing power and position to influence outcomes at home and work by virtue of who you are assigned to be and the “I”within takes charge! But somewhere in all this, the true essence of “I” gets lost and the lost essence is more about seeking your true inner self and knowing who You are hidden away within the I!

I am not too sure, how much of what you are reading is making sense to you at the moment, but trust me, once you realise the true essence of  the “I” within you, it will set you up for a completely different level of yourself!

As you rushed through you daily chores; the “I” was squeaking and guiding you from time to time to act and say something differently; perhaps it was the choice of words in your sentence, perhaps it was the way you conducted yourself, perhaps it was about something that you did;- which you would have not wanted to do at all!- this subtle conflict is something that goes on within each one of us- but of course, with the mad rush to rush through our lives ever increasing with our complicated lives; this subtle voice, tends to change into whispers and fade away into nothingness by the time we realize the extent and impact of what we have silenced!

If you think about for a moment (trust me you need only your drink and an open space to think around this!), the “I” which defines you- at least what you think – defines you has got severely entrapped into the definitions limited to your business cards, family name and social titles ushered to you- certainly nothing wrong with all this- all well earned and well deserved- but what all or any of these can’t and will never be able to impact and alter is the truest essence of the intrinsic “I” within you- this my friend is at the heart of the matter!

In the times that we live in, the real “I”, (you may call it your soul, your connect with the almighty, your elevator to tap the vast power of the Universe; well you may like to give it any shade of higher intellect and I would be happy with that!) is often miles away from the “I” that enacts your soul in the settings of the world to achieve specific ends- whether that is to relate to the relations that you manage, work, peers, social presence and influence that you want to exercise– well almost anything around you- any interaction that you do with this entrapped “I” will eventually come back haunting you sooner or later once the point of divergence goes beyond a pint of no return!

So whats the plan you may ask me around now! Well, keeping it to the limitations of a blog, that I have here (and avoiding to dig deeper and drown into philosophy), let me decode the lesson for you right away! The real essence and the real magic of your “truest I” is the fact that – it is Your Soul- Your very Intrinsic reason – The purpose – The “Fundamental Why” of why you exist! The only way that you can progress on the charts and metrics of your Soul is to allow this inner self to govern and guide your perceived and projected self as you engage and move around the world! Given the level of diminishing intelligence around, you will come across shades of engagement ranging from being dumbfounded to utter disbelief to gross disregard to all that you go to do with the intrinsic power of your true self! However, once you don’t allow this to impact you and  you overcome this, it becomes easier and lighter for you to progress and move ahead!

Our  real “I” is always kind, compassionate, mindful and non-judgmental and is more of an universal grand-dad who keeps a watch and says, “Well okay dude, you are doing just fine, keep going I am here within and I will pinch you the moment I think you are trying to be more loyal to your perceived self ( as seen by the society) rather then being who you really should be! This, my friend, is the long and short of it! It is about being aligned and in-sync with your soul always and all the times, social compulsions, positions will come and go, what is important is being able to steer clear and know when to strike a balance between your real self and your perceived self! Always remember one thing- No matter who says what- the only individual who will ever recognize and appreciate your soul is the you and your discerning mind!

I will leave you with these thoughts for today and hope as you sip your drink and feel content with it! As you walk into your work area on Monday morning and for all times in the future- May you carry along with you- within yourself – The True “I” and ensure that you stay incrementally ahead of the perceived “I” all times!

Ciao for now! Will be back with another piece soon! Stay Soulful and Stay Present!

What travel type are you?

~ PA ~ Leave a comment

In an era where airplane tickets are as affordable as a buffet at five star property and with more and more people then ever before living by the maxim of “Soaking in Today”, it’s no wonder that after food, travel happens to be the biggest indulgence! This piece is about, trying to understand why people do what they do as they travel and how we can find our zen as travelers!

One primary reason, that the very thought of “travel” uplifts our soul and mind (in most of the cases) will be largely because of the hard wiring that exists within us through evolution of earlier being nomadic wanderers, hunters and food gatherers moving from one region unto the next with a view of surviving- it is these journeys eventually made us reach shores and lands of promise- along river basins, coasts, flat lands where opportunities flourished to provide longer sustenance and dependability so that civilizations can be born and foundations of modern day human societies could be laid!

Sure enough, as the wise people have always said, “Travel makes you wise”- The reason behind this statement was in a very compelling context of bygone times though! Those were the times when long voyages were only possible if they were funded by Kings or if you were a wealthy trader who had a liking to know what existed beyond and wanted to use that first movers advantage to get your hands on some eccentric stuff which could mean a great profit in the courts of the kingdom! Then there were again a few select dedicated travelers through the ages who were seeking the divine truth through pursuing theosophical teachings and soaking in what life means across cultures and belief systems around the yesteryear civilized world! Irrespective of what was the reason of travel then and who you were, the chances were that even if you were a sail boat oarsman in those times, you had an IQ and physical strength of even the most revered scholar or a Harvard MBA of today! This is one reason why you will find that the whole of documented history of the known world is a knowledge repository that has survived the ravages of time and upheavals – courtesy of these great people! You can call them scholars and geniuses who importantly knew-“When to travel,”Where to travel”, and “Why to travel”!

Our modern life has been a blessing and a curse in disguise, blessing because I can be sitting right on my chair, use a few applications that are available in the market and zoom onto my  favorite street  or beach front or a mountain range, literally any place around the world and see the views and soak into the virtual feeling of being there- right from the comfort of my home! Sure enough, nothing beats the actual and real feel and this is where the actual story begins!

When you travel around and observe the modern day travelers,what do you see? Who are they, or at least who do they seem to be? Well, I will make this simple for you, you have possibly seen these focused travelers– these are the people who travel to their relatives to return the compliments and accept every wedding invitation (as if the wedding will not happen if they didn’t make it!), then you have those time bound family vacation travelers who will hit the same airport or rail head, around the same time of the year- complain and compliment about what changed at the terminal and in the cabin or the railways carriage and visit the destination have alive- half dead (because in that one year- gross disregard to health will take its’ toll- with the dragging of all those heavy bags which just keeps on growing in weight every year- for no real sensible reason!). Next you have those corporate hot shots who are always moving around the terminals like they are on a MI6 mission to save the world and always drowned into themselves and struggling with their bags or the laptops that come along with them as extended parts of their physical being! So, now the million dollar thought- think about it- are they really travelling? in the real sense of the word? 

Certainly they are not, sure enough if you are on a office assignment, no one expects you to go shopping or sight-seeing- but how about even getting that 10 minute break to know where you have landed- what’s the culture of the place like- who are these people who reside here?- what is that drives them and what is that they enjoy and need the most? This missing human connect which is the million dollar essence of travel has all but gone away for a toss and whatever little chances are there to understand fellow humans, cultures and places that we visit has been taken away by those senseless and limitless self-indulging and self-obsessed selfies that you see standing out menacingly all over the digital landscape! Of course all hope is not lost, not everyone has lost the old and intellectual charm of traveling and when you get to see these wise souls at airports or at travel exchanges, you will feel uplifted by just seeing them and when you speak with them, the knowledge that flows and the story of the one day adventure that they had during the last hike or beach ride or rock climbing or walk in the old market place or the local dish that they had simply baffles you- because your may have traveled the sector many times; but these wise people travel once and they do it right!

So what’s the point here, well simple, travel in the essence of travel, whether you travel all by yourself or tag along a few friends, or your family along, let that travel be compelling, enriching and something that adds value to the lives and knowledge of those who are along with you and also to the people whom you meet and interact with through the course of your journey and when you make it to the destination and back! Let there be videos and snaps that tell as troy that soak about a narrative, a learning that you picked up rather then that mindless grin which you can anyways see while your brush you teeth everyday morning!

Like mindful living, mindful travel can do wonders, it can help you come up with the next big idea or it could help you overcome a life challenge- well who knows for that’s the real magic of travel when its done in the true essence of it! I normally don’t preach on what people should do or not do (they are the best judge to know what works for them or otherwise!), but one thing that I can share as an experience is that when you travel hands free with as minimal luggage as possible and have a vision and a camera that is always pointed away from you and into the journey and places and people around- you will end up capturing stories that can inspire and motivate and uplift you when you spend time and come back to them when you need them! 

I will leave you here, with your thoughts on travel and something to plan this weekend for a wonderful travel for some other weekend the future! Whatever you choose, a mountain range or a beach, a metro city or a quiet village- let there be a purpose, a plan and a learning that enriches you and everyone that you come across in the future by virtue of the travels that you undertake! Always remember if you have got  the 5 senses, make use of them and there is nothing that compares with travel when it comes to rejuvenating these 5 senses of being human in the true essence of it!

Ciao for now, Travel Safe and Travel wise! remember no pulling of bags and senseless grins on those spooky selfies!  

 

A drug called curiosity.

~ PA ~ Leave a comment

Well; I read this sometime somewhere, “Curiosity never killed the cat”, and then there were friends around who also had read, quite the contrary; “Curiosity killed the cat”! Well this piece is a quick sneak peak into the intrinsic element that we all have within in some measure- called, “Curiosity” and to know whether that’s actually helping us live or getting us killed! So here we go!

Every, life-form that has a brain with an ability to exercise cognition- will be curious in some or the other way- depending on the type of organism, it’s immediate environment and the kind of dangers and threats that it needs to ward off! Curiosity has evolved, being a reflection of how dominant a species has been through the evolutionary ecosystem! One thing that you will always find even in nature is that the most dominant of the species in an area of study will demonstrate heightened levels of curiosity which are reflective of the higher value that the organism carries in the value chain and these are enhanced in equal measure for both prey and predators and this I believe is nature’s masterstroke, among many others, to ensure that the natural world and the selection of the species and survival all of these aspects keep moving ahead through a fine balance!

Coming back to our world- a world of evolved- sapiens- the final frontier of biological evolution (as of now at least), we can flip the pages and take pride in the the kind of achievements that we have been able to register- as Individuals and societies across the world at different times- under different co-existing challenges! An element of common thread that runs beneath all the success and failure that humankind has experienced and shared through the ages is also reflective of the amount of curiosity demonstrated/ exercised and avoided!- We have stood to benefit and struggle at different times through history depending on whether we decided to act proactively or ignored our wanderlust mind and tried to remain passive to our own peril!

Every person who has read history, geography or geology has read about Mt. Vesuvius (the eruption that happened around AD 79) which famously wiped out the entire human habitat at Pompeii in a matter of minutes! What could have happened here , when we think about “Curiosity”- Weren’t the residents of a progressive society, living under the shadow of a tall mountain- which may also have sent out smoke plumes and occasional rumblers, ever wonder and think what was going around that Mountain? Well, certainly they would not have had the advantage of modern day science apparatus and gadgets, but during that time, knowing well, that Roman societies were highly evolved with arts, sciences (like Philosophy, Literature etc.) the question simply remains- why were their “curious minds” so oblivious of a danger sitting right over them? Think around this and hold your thoughts- as we explore another arena from recent history…

Fast forward to 1700s (the dawn of modern history)- say we arrive in a period post 1700s- what we witness here is a rapid development in technological areas and machine science coming of age- methodical and unprecedented documentation of history through volumes over volumes of books, research papers, scientific journals, all of them collaborating and contributing to help us reach where we are today! So what is the common thread running through human history in this period of time- Well, you guessed it right! “Enhanced Curiosity” and a sustained effort towards experimentation! The result, well we owe each and every bit of our modern day luxury to the pioneers and scientist of this bygone era- whether it is the CT scan machine that you are using, that X Ray door frame at the airport terminal, that electron microscope that ensures that airplanes are safe or the simple science applied to food chemistry that has ensured we live longer (living healthy is a choice as yet left unto us!)

So what actually was different between the Roman example and the the advent of modern societies post rapid industrialization- well the difference was in a simple aspect- the aspect of knowing when to be curious and in what measure. Of course, stable societies that guarantee safety and offer incentive for risk taking and enterprise always enhance “curiosity”. Societies that shun risk appetite (for one or the other reason) eventually end up being under the proverbial Volcano that will certainly erupt! (it always is just a matter of time- it’s then about When and not about If!) These proverbial Volcanic eruptions are not necessarily volcanic ash in pour face and lava lakes flowing through our cities- it is something far worse then that- when societies shun – individual enterprise by penalizing curiosity and enterprising approach by tying it up with penalties; these curious minds seek environments that offer better intellectual spaces and (which are the least penal and far more intellectually stimulating- read Brain Drain!)

Well, so whats the point here- well simple as always- The intrinsic fabric of our mind holds Curiosity- don’t believe me – fine- try interacting with those 2-5 year old’s and then let’s have a chat! The essence of human mind and the bio-chemical gift that it is also underlines this basic hardwired trait to be always seeking, searching and finding answers and developing our abilities of reliability through cognition and experimentation to make our today and tomorrow safer for us and the following generations! Like every other attribute- too much or too little of it surely can spell a disaster– example by setting off false levels and layers of urgency or complacency- which we often see in our workplaces! (because as long as we are not ending up killing anyone – everything seems fine in the corporate world- no matter what new levels of dumbness we achieve). Most of the times these errors are not fatal , but complacency when coupled with a fatigued mind- has almost always led to disasters and the only attribute that could have helped avoid them would have been a sustaining and an inquiring mind- which always asks- “Why is this – what I see- the way it is- is there a better way- for this to exist or work or provide that next level of benefit which is out of reach as yet!”

Before I leave you at the mercy of your curious mind- Always remember- All greatness that Humankind has ever achieved has been a function of an underlying curious mind and a curious-mind led thought leadership! As species it is our curious minds that help us navigate situations which are out of any written script whether we are dealing with animal instincts hidden among humans around us or we encounter real animals at their wildest best- when we are on our next hike!

I leave you here, grab your drink and let your curious mind wander a bit- a good question- well- try and figure out – “Who are you”! Ciao for now!

Disconnect and stay connected!

~ PA ~ 1 Comment

Not that I am turning out to be an old monument or a war memorial in the making- but the other day when the idea of this topic was shared by a friend, couldn’t resist writing a few lines! This topic has been playing on my mind for a while now- this piece is about really understanding how we get drawn and pulled into the senseless and at times the idiotic world of being Online for kind of forever and ever- and the greatest irony- well to know How being online (in a trance mode) is harming you, you need to come online to learn how to stay away from it!

Before the young audiences start assuming and logging off- well there was a time not so long ago- when letters were written ( not only as part of school letter writing assignments), fixed line phone calls were made only when the message was of grave importance (more often then not it would communicate about somebody’s death or someone getting married or someone coming anew into the human race!). This was a time (which I also referred to in an earlier article) where a two hour train journey could help you find friends for life- who in turn would mean more then your family- there was a time when you had groups and groups of acquaintances and friends (real people- not those spooky virtual ones!) who were available on a call and yet there was space- so much space for yourself to know really Who U are and what is that U have set to achieve! So what changed- How did we come to this point – A point where, we believe everything that is said online over the digital world and we doubt real people and then regret for it!

Well, the answer simply lies within us, because we are humans and this is the way we are wired! Get back to the good old times of Kingdoms, clans, tribes and simple one level societal structures- what do you see happening here- well the only way to get popular support was either through brute strength – physical or demonstration of brilliant thinking by being a thought leader among the people who could impact a positive and visible change on the lives of people (read- building of civilizations and large empires). All this was possible because of the intrinsic people connect– even in those times undertaking journeys of thousand miles or more just to propagate an idea (in-person) and garner acceptance and approval!

With the advent of modern times, still all was not lost- greatest of inventions, scientific discoveries, breakthroughs in modern human lives all of them have occurred only by collaboration and people-to-people connect. Whether it is the first manned mission to the moon, fighting wars, creating path breaking medicines, setting up great marvels of engineering through factories and machines- you think of it and you will see that at the foundation of all great things that humanity has ever achieved – it always has the underlying essence of Human-to-human personal connect- in flesh and blood!

In the last 20 odd years or so, with the menace of the digital age (thanks to the collaborative research done by people talking and working with each other!) as a society, we have developed a false sense of acceptance, social presence- through real life isolation and created space for being in pseudo-control- of everything around us by being online! All these are ramifications of the online-digital menace that coerces you too like that post, share content (which rarely makes sense) and post those tons and tons of personal snaps and videos which do nothing but add up to the pile of E-Garbage and different laws make it mandatory to have more and more servers added up just to store this pile of electronic data and garbage – so that it stays available!– I mean who really cares when you have loaded that snap- people who know you “know you” and those who don’t, really don’t care what happiness or grief you ate going through at the time when you do what you do! Even as your neighbor does not know who you really are! and at times even shocking your own family members on the go! things have just seemed to go from one stage of unmanageable mess to another!

As opportunities to lead real humans- through participating in society groups diminishes for one or the other reasons, people tend to explore the more convenient space of this digital arena to create pseudo follower-ship which gives a real life high by tracking virtual developments!– No wonder this has also lead to manifestation of new age – digital linked medical and mental health conditions! Can you even remotely recall any King who went into a depression because the audience did not clap hard enough after his speech? but I am sure you would have heard about that person who went into a depression because the posts did not gather enough likes! This is what running after hallucinations and mirage does to your mind and health- so what if the mirage is created in an online space!

More importantly, this is something not only makes us poor at real social connections, but also sabotages the quality of relationships that we have within our own house, family and friends; often you will see four friends on a table each one into their own screens, families at a dinner table- each one updating their own online status! Well, when you should be really looking into the eyes and mind of the person next to you and contributing to their life’s betterment and sharing stories that make sense- all that we end up doing is taking some stupid snaps and uploading them where it really matters to none!

So what’s next from here now- Well not that I am advocating for you to do something- you are wise enough to decode what has been shared here! The secret lies in striking a balance– the answer lies in the fact that we use every speck of technology in the way it is meant to be used (not abused) and meant to make it more empowering so that it creates impacts at all levels which are benefiting and uplifting human mind to pursue and create something collectively more wonderful and meaningful! Any piece of technology that isolates or alienates humans is nothing but a piece of epic shit which should be junked away immediately! Next time you want to dance- hit the dance floor, not an app, next time you want to say something to an audience- walk onto a stage- not a vlog, next time you want to share a great picture- be sure it uplifts, motivates or inspires someone- if it does- then upload it! These are the simple nuances that will go a long way in building your well being mentally and as a society will see more of amicable discussions and real life connections!

It’s not that, being online or the digital arena is the demon; the demon lies in the way we abuse it rather then use it to our advantage and make technology our slave rather then allowing it to be the other way around!

I leave you here with these thoughts for now, have a great day ahead and yes, Disconnect and stay Connected- with fellow humans and wise people around you- it’s time for you to start discussing the next big idea that will make human societies a shade brighter and better!

Ciao for now! Will be back soon with another piece!

Hidden in plain sight!

~ PA ~ 3 Comments

Hello people! Hope you are having a great time trying to make sense of the world as you rush into your week ahead! Depending on where you are on the planet, you are either completely consumed by the outbreak of the Coronovirus, some kind of political upheaval, facing a financial crisis or dealing with a flash flood or an environmental challenge! and If none of these things have impacted you; then you are probably thanking your stars and are wondering what is in store for you! “What is hidden in plain sight” that is heading for you! This crisp piece is a sneak peak into how “We miss-what We see”!

As we go about rushing through our daily lives, what we end up doing inadvertently is missing the bigger picture and the contextual settings of what we see, furthermore add to this fleeting inference the extrapolation that your brain would do (on it’s own- tricking you in a way- based on your past experiences and stored reference points) which will do nothing more then taking you away far away from what the reality is and set you up in a completely manufactured setting which tends to create a narrative that confirms with your liking and comfort! This is the demon that we deal with, the good part- this demon is created by us- the bad part- we hardly know how to control it and when to unleash it!

Having spent close to two decades in areas of Sales, Marketing and HR, lot of my time has gone into dealing with people- yes- “dealing” with them in the every essence of the word! Surely enough- I may not have been that “Best Sales”, or “Best HR” or adhered to any of the society led conformity standards, but (what is important) what I learnt through my experiences being with fellow humans- has been that each one of them- has a story which in-turn has a fascinating contextual setting- which none of us can ever imagine-you would have heard that line, “Facts being stranger then Fiction” and boy, when you get to listen to people how they have moved around and through these contextual settings and the kind of extraordinary things that they would have done to survive and overcome situations- it’s a different universe unto itself!

Consider this setting; a sales person who was performing quarter on quarter suddenly seems adrift- seems to have lost the sheen completely and the magic seems to have worn off and with no time to spare(not to blame the organisation here) pretty soon by the end of the ongoing quarter- this person gets ejected from the system altogether! Here’s one such case about one such individual- what had transpired then was rather interesting- so this person- was going steady- in no time- incentives began pouring in and with that started the problem! Being young- lesser responsibilities and an approach that simply refused to prepare for a worst case scenario-the excess cash-at-hand soon became a curse- slowly indulgence turned into full blown addiction and in no time- addiction led to inattention at work- which translated into missing targets and eventually getting ejected! This is what appeared to be – but well- as I have been saying- this is what was seen but what actually happened was this- In plain sight what was hidden- The fact that the addiction had developed on the job while working! The person’s team leads then used to fun at the expense of this person (instead of censuring and discouraging this kind of contra behaviour which violated almost everything- from policy to genuine human value of care!) this was one thing that further reinforced the notion of being addicted and being high at work was fine! and when the fun was over and when the number game began to get hit- no time was wasted by the same team leads (who used to have parties around this person’s addiction) in preparing a case against him for being addicted on the job, missing business objectives and showed the policy clause number 1,2,3 and there went his future with his ejection!

So what had happened here? Well things were hidden in plain sight- Even the HR teams possibly failed to see what they should have ideally picked up (the root cause analysis) and instead believed to buy the story that was sold by the business team leads! Now, why did HR do that- well simple- No organisation, in today’s age has the time, money or resource strength to value individual’s as “Individuals” and the second problem of assuming “anyone can do anyone’s work” (which at times works and most of the times does not!) holds ground. What happened next- well with this person gone – sure enough some good clients left and when the rut continued eventually the team lead had also to go!- A complete collapse of a team in a span of 8 months! Coming to think of it all this shit happened for what?- “Extracting fun at a cost of an individual when it was not warranted and when it could have been managed and at it’s best effort stopped!

Another story- An organisation had hired a supposedly smart person for a client facing role. At the beginning everything seemed fine, and in about two months (as client work began and things started to build up)- this person started working from one mistake unto the next- sure enough competency issues were flagged off (which the HR already had flagged off during hiring- but went ahead because the business said, they will manage it!). This all seemed normal until this point, but this where the fun began (at times literally spooking the people around!). This person started a tell-tale predictable absenteeism which was always accompanied by complete communication black out and radio silence! Subsequently every time that this person rejoined duty- it was an all OK and normal one week then again the same story- shocking still were the reasons that this person started to come up with! (when confronted and asked about complete communication black outs and radio silence while being absent!). the reasons ranged from serial stalking to house breaks to SOS from family to threats for ransom- you name it and everything was on the table! Well, I don’t want to make it more dramatic right now! Eventually things were called off and this person decided to move out of the organisation (for everyone’s happiness!) A detailed calm and probing discussion (on the way out-read exit interview) finally gave away a major clue! This person was having an underlying psychological problem- which translated into getting into hallucinations and escapism every time stress or pressure was increased (read normal work pressure) and this was an ailment for which this person had already undergone a comprehensive therapy few years back and this new place had just compounded and brought that back!

Guess what, it is not only Individuals, but also companies and organisations that start collapsing when we fail to read what is hidden in plain sight– as I write this article a successful private bank in India has triggered off a major stock market crash- the bank just collapsed on account of giving bad loans for last few years (bad loans given to supposedly successful business tycoons and their businesses!) well this is an altogether different subject(though similar) and can by itself be a subject for another article!

Well, to end it here, I leave you with thoughts to reflect inwards and see for yourself what is that you are missing in your plain sight – based on what is around you and in front of you- this very moment! For always remember- What we miss in plain sight- comes back to haunt us – now or later- but surely it does- it may be a blunder as simple as a penny or may be measured in terms of millions of dollars- but our oversight eventually ends up costing us and we having to pay the price!– Whether you end up working extra (because your colleague got fired or your investments get messed up- because that finance company holding your savings just went bust!). The point to remember here is- Always seek What seems to be hidden in Plain sight and keep unwanted-uncomfortable surprises at bay!

Ciao form now, have an attentive week ahead, will be back with another piece soon!

SOS(Self Obsessed Societies)!

~ PA ~ Leave a comment

OK folks, here’s the thing, like each one of you who read and engage with me here, I too am part of an ecosystem that reaches out to the sensible part of the knowledge and information ecosystem from time to time. partly to keep sharpening my observations and knowing how rapidly we are either correcting some aspects or further damaging ourselves- individually or collectively! This piece is a crisp one that deals with it!

There was a time (yes hard to believe!), but it surely was- when you could actually start a conversation with a perfect stranger without having to try to get the name first- do a lookup on a social account (to gauge likes and dislikes) and then strike a conversation! The conversations themselves could be around a wide array of topics- at times they could be nominal takes on the current socio-politico-economic opportunities or challenges of a region, nation or the world- depending on the cumulative IQ of the participants in the discussion. When levels of intelligence allowed the discussions could easily be around religion, politics, philosophy or even taking on one of the most challenging topics- Does God Exist! Well that is how it was- whether your were with people that you know or don’t information sharing and knowledge gathering always happened subtly and in the most uncertain ways- but the biggest part of this was- It was an ongoing process and it had a pace of its own- it allowed the participants to choose how deep they would want to venture into a subjects and they could leave the moment when they thought- That’s it– beyond this I do not want to go ahead (for whatever the reasons might have been).This mechanism allowed intelligence to flourish and develop in ways which were most suitable and conducive to an individual- because the probing mind- had made its choices of what is that it wants to seek and where it should move ahead next! So you see there was an ongoing latent effort taking an individuals journey in the direction of evolving likes ( you can rename this as passion, interest, vocation, professional aspirations so and so forth!)

The dawn of the e-age brought with it some great opportunities and advantages- absolutely no doubt around that- but like everything else it also has brought with it- the lesser good- which has created more hollow and pseudo portraits of human abilities then what they would have been really able of sans the space provided for going on with Self-obsessed behavior over social sites! In the beginning all this seemed cute and innocent- until the medical world began to wake up and come up with specific disorder names along with a complete medical drill right from defining the symptoms to the diagnosis and the post diagnosis control- as they would have for any routine ailment!

Get on your any of your favorite social sites (whether these are the ones you use to upload your snaps- or engage with professionals (so- called at times) or you want to pen a few lines and share an update about things happening around- as you go through the pile of social information floating around (most of which is unsegregated intellectual garbage), you will come across a common trend- The need and desire to be heard- something that each one of them is trying to tell about themselves (whether it is a snap, an award, a paragraph- most of this and much of the time- this is something that they want to badly speak about and that too, “speak to anyone” (half of the time they don’t even care if this will be relevant to the people who will possibly glance through this!) This is the crux of the matter and this is what is a true reflection of our times- societies (individuals who are part of this societal framework) that are too busy and too overworked seeking confirmation and approval from everyone and anyone around to everything that they do and say! This behavior crawls up further and starts to play mind games which leads to sub-fragmentation of societies- at times this can be seen as multiple trade bodies for a same region, at times these can be seen as multiple trade unions, multiple courses offering the same syllabus- multiple designations for doing the same piece of work- multiple awards saying the same things again and again with equal amount of ambiguity each time!- you name it and you have it out there!

Well, so what’s happening here?– to put it simply people are just lost- lost for not knowing what is to be used for what- which medium is for what purpose- lost because either they have too much on their plate or too little- lost because they are not been heard to and also lost because they have a voice and no one seems to understand that voice! All this further manifests (most of the times in sensible efforts and initiatives that go on to make peace with inner voices and implemented actions) but in some cases these take a dramatic weird turn and often result into nothing but a colossal waste of time considering that we all have limited time at our disposal – irrespective whether we agree to that fact or not! So what’s the way out of this nonsense?

Well, to begin with, take a pause every time you are tempted to put up that award pic, that snap on the social handle- The fact remains- those who know and care for you- always know what you are dealing with and what’s happening with you even at this moment- and for the rest- they anyways don’t give a damn- so why bother?! Be wise to know how much of “I”, “We” and “Our” does your outreach carry rather then “For Us”, “For everyone”, “For society”, “For nation”, “For the world”. Remember this whether you like it or not – social spaces- whether they be print or online are meant to impact and effect change for the larger good of humankind at all levels – some areas it build momentum rapidly over the others- Your private space is not the world’s problem- you have a great life- be tankful and help the less fortunate- your life is screwed up- well see what best you can do with it and leave it at that! Blowing your trumpet and over-glorification and public sulking either ways doesn’t help anyone nor yourself in the least!

The only way to stop this menace of SOS behaviour is to ensure that individually we take actions that are wise and sane, take a pause before your upload your next picture, next video or next write up and think- “Is this for you or for the world to know- does it help the world around you?”- This is the only differentiating criteria to either go ahead with that upload or stop right there!

I leave you here for now and we will catch up soon with another piece! Ciao for now! Stay wise and stay blessed as always!

Entrapped to confirm!

~ PA ~ Leave a comment

Well, my last two pieces were slightly covering a different area, part rational, part philosophical; I thought let’s get back to our good old corporate world riddled with slavery, nepotism and showcasing and touch upon yet another interesting nerve that runs deep within organisations, teams and individuals and it really doesn’t matter whether you are working for an organisation which has 5 people or has 5000 people- at some or the other time you would have too experienced this space of being “entrapped to confirm” at times this being pleasant and sometime being the only reason for you too move out and ahead of the system!

Often we walk into or find ourselves part of situations where we are supposed to act- behave- orient ourselves in a particular manner- well nothing wrong with it- considering that If you are at a Red signal and driving- you would be expected to stop and you should and you indeed do (most of the times). However the challenges start when this behaviour is extrapolated and expected in the most unusual situations and circumstances where you would actually end up behaving in a very different manner (than what your intrinsic common-sense beacon would be asking you to do!)

Let me jog your memory a bit- remember the last time when you were part of that Tuesday/ Friday team meeting discussing sales targets (remaining to be achieved) and your reason for the delays in getting that revenue seemed all too same- and your boss said, “give me some other reason- if you cannot work- at least be creative at that!) and of course yes, you would have done that- shared another reason ; all this because your boss wanted to share that different reason possibly with his boss (because that is what he would have said at some or the other time!) When you sit back and think around this- irrespective of what reason was sold – there is no change in reality for when the sales revenue will come in- whether you had continued with the same reason or given this new made-up version- the money was always going to come in when it was supposed to come- heart in heart- you and your Boss always know that! This is what I call the Sales Brotherhood- and at some or the other time all of us have to be baptized through this! It teaches a few things for sure- like becoming creative with reasons – as long as you don’t begin to use this non-productive creative part to procrastinate your work- all this seems cute, innocent and fun part of a mundane stressful existence!

Let’s quickly pan across to another scenario- Remember your last flight? well the most recent one- before airlines tarted to pull the plug off because of the dreaded little Corona virus! If you have been able to steal a few minutes off your mobile device and pay attention to the screaming and yelling of the crew at the gate requesting all passengers from Zone 1 to come to the gate and you suddenly notice almost the entire waiting area has got up and like all 200 passengers are going to sit across those first 30 seats- well yes- this is something that every flight that you undertake– you will find this type of irrational behavior response over and over and over again! Given the passengers- who they are and why they are the way they are- well the airline crew at the gate also doesn’t seem to get few creative ideas to break this stalemate and they too keep on going on and on wit the same set of instructions which eventually result in same type of passenger behaviour! This is a completely non-productive, rather counter productive result when rules and guidelines are followed irrespective e of them being of no great value or use! Sure enough the airlines have a reason for having the boarding done Zone wise- the point here is “Entrapped confirmation” to follow the same process which yields poor result doesn’t allow them to think creatively beyond to overcome the problem of over-enthusiastic passengers- who at all times feel they are going to be left behind at the terminal!

Our brains are wired to naturally seek safety or at times thrill/ regressive enjoyment by following confirmations (whether good or bad) at times even if they put you in harms way- you may go ahead with (like jumping off a moving train or bus!). When it comes to the confines of the corporate world which is now (more whenever) dogged with and riddled with corporate minefields across levels and processes) it’s but natural to follow the rules without applying greater thought- the thought process is simple here” well this act or way of working never got anyone killed/ harmed- no one is complaining- there is nothing that makes it difficult for me- so why bother!” and of course, even If I were to suggest and implement something to help and make things better- Why should I?- what’s the benefit or Incentive in me for that?! More then anything else- It is this very thought process- which gets entrapped to an established “confirmation process and approach” that causes more harm and increases costs for organisations to provide services and goods to customers in the long run which goes on to do impact customers and businesses in a cycle that just seems to have a mind of its own!

So now, you may start to ask- what can be done around this- well, given the limitation of a blog- I certainly can’t elaborate strategies and intervention mechanisms that can be deployed. However what can be done is take a simple step towards “Individual Empowerment”. Organisations need to understand that, whether they touch the customer through service or goods- it is the connect and the last person standing representing them in-front of the customer who matters more then the CEO! It is this person who is going to make that all important sale click or have that deal signed off and for that person to able able to do that with a flair of confidence and charm that is available at individual disposal; the individual must be free from”entrapment to confirm”. The rules have to be simple to follow and difficult to be broken- the fewer the better! Case in point- if the airline crew at the gate announce the boarding citing seat numbers 1- 30 rather then Zone 1 the impact will be dramatic- because for a passenger who travels less often- Zone 1 is alien, but seat number is kind of printed on the mind!

I leave you here, and hope you have a blessed meeting today or this Friday and are able to wriggle yourself out of the entrapment minefields laid out for you- inn a way that helps you and the services that your represent- by empowering yourself and bringing your individuality to the forefront!

Do keep writing in and do let me know what next you would like to read about! Reach me on parimal.aluri@simplifylives.com and learn more about our consulting and training solutions that are aimed to bring about empowerment in the true sense of the word! Ciao for now!

Deciphering the Hate rhetoric!

~ PA ~ Leave a comment

Whether we agree or not, we see an ever increasing instance of hate and negative emotions at play around us;more then ever before and ironically these are “allowed to be ok”! When we genuinely come across “normal good behavior” (which by itself is a rarity!) we start to doubt intentions of people! This piece is about trying to see what causes this anomaly and how can we deal with it- should we join the bandwagon of hate or should we be doubting every person around us!

Human brain is simply brilliant- ask any psychiatrist, psychologist and have a chat with that young neurosurgeon who just got a chance to open up and see one! All of them(irrespective of their approach of study) will agree to one thing- this is one machine that evolution has been absolutely brilliant at- so much so that even decades after the first time the brain was surgically opened up- it still keeps throwing surprises – when it heals and when it ends up having a mind of it’s own!

The human brain, like any machine provides an output proportional to the input. You feed it with garbage- garbage will flow out; feed it with stimulating and complex challenges, it will throw out ingenious solutions and provide answers (almost always) either by itself or by collaborating with other working brains (read progressive and purpose driven team work!). Now the million dollar question- If the brain is so evolved and able to take wise decisions- what in the world is wrong with it- when you actually see people, leaders alike using negative emotions and “hate” in particular as a rhetoric to address and reach out to masses or communities! What’s going wrong here? The answer lies in the hard wiring of our brains!

Through evolution, the brain has developed ensuring that as species we survive- the onslaught of nature, wild animals and eventually are able to ensure individual succession through battling and protecting oneself from other tribes and clans- it was and is the master control- to ensure the survival of the fittest all through evolutionary history of human species- and evolution never stops- its an ongoing phenomenon- which is on even now as I type this and you read this and will go on long after you and I do not exist! The earlier battles were simple and more of an survival instinct- with time as societies evolved, safety and security was more or less settled, the brain started to navigate the nuances of living with more and more number of people like never before and that’s where societal structures and rules began to came into play- this order was necessary to ensure channeling of human resources happened optimally through division of labor or other structures that a society would have had. At this point of inflection- as human greed began to take seed more then ever before- the brain started to learn the traits that today display all the negative elements and more importantly of societal level and community level hate mongering!

This hate and despise rhetoric when carefully deciphered originates form nothing else but “insecurity”. That feeling of being inferior to someone or something- ideologically, financially (which limits the access to perceived comforts) and a touch of attention seeking disorder – a blend of all this leads to that vitriolic “hate” rhetoric. Insecurities- at individual level and society or community level can further originate from a number of socio-economic or political reasons- it could be neglect of a section of a society for a long time- depriving them of certain societal benefits because of who they are or what they are; there can be a hundred reasons why certain actions would have been taken towards specific segments of society/communities across the world- not all of them would be right and neither all of them would be wrong! It is in this grey space that all unfulfilled and half-served promises stay on like eternal ghosts and demons which go on to infect the most vulnerable sections of the modern days societies at both individual and community level!

At times, when long deprived sections of societies seem to develop and contribute in an increasing manner and seem to have better control and better solutions for the larger good, vested interests tend to come out to play and distort the trajectory under the garb that the majority and puritanical fabric of a said society is under threat (sounds familiar- well it should- no matter where you are on the world map now- this is exactly what is being played out and irrespective which side you are and who’s right and whos’ wrong (this is a mind-game that tricks individual brains into believing one thing and later as a collective society ends up doing exactly the opposite!) I will share a case in point here- Individually every brain (unless you are a clinically certified psychopath) knows that arson, abuse, violence (physical and otherwise) is unbecoming of being human being (keep aside all other values systems and belief systems for a moment- they are not even needed at this stage)- next you add another half a dozen brains- add a layer of a value system or belief that “because of “x”, “y” is not available and to achieve “y” we must enact “z”- That’s about it- it is this small aorta of collective hallucination and distortion in the thinking cycle that is needed to lead to a full blown crisis of captivated and manipulated thinking process that will undermine every ounce of common-sense, ethics and individualistic values systems of mutual care for ages to come- just one figment of collective distorted thinking- all that is needed to let all hell break loose- now with a population of over 7.5 Billion, coupled with an ever increasing insecurity at play- internationally, within nations, within regions of a nation and within cities and societies within a region- Now you know why “hate and despise” is so easy! and readily available for serving hot and cold all the time!

Science has ample evidence that the right to uphold value systems and beliefs which service the larger and greater good and difficult to come up with and even more difficult to sustain in an ever changing dynamic world wherein even friendships between nations seem to flirtatious at their best! Alongside this , you have the quick service restaurants that serve hate and vitriolic rhetoric by the dozen and on order, 24 hours a day! No wonder that when genuinely good humans walk by- we either end up awarding them after they are dead or award them the highest peace time awards and technically make them redundant so that they are as ineffective as the awards been given to them!

More importantly for the average person on the street, the world over the dilemma to trust, invest and hold the hands of a stranger seems to just become more complicated because of these varied and paradoxical hues that modern days societies preset themselves as! The ensuing result- No commitment for any relationship- within the family or elsewhere- modern day societies are turning into more and more individualistic silos hidden away within a fragile shell – add a little pressure of insecurity and each element within the shell will crack and stand up for himself/herself- there is no more “WE” and the “I” although looks good;, seldom stands a chance of defending or defeating anything worthwhile! So how do we manage this? Can we?

Well to be very honest, societies where hate/despise is served by so-called leaders of the society- God alone can help! The only other way to turn around such deeply flawed societies is a comprehensive revolution and well – history knows, revolutions are filled with sweat and blood- apparent or real! The cost of a revolution is evaluated by the benefit that will ensue once the dust settles- if there is no great incentive- then societies stagnate and implode within; too weak and too starved to even voice out anything- forget about addressing the world! But there is hope and the hope comes from the ingenuity of the brain itself- as like minded brains connect and interact and as they grow in number through education and progress of the said society-the more accommodating and human thinking gets ground- fewer will be the oddities that relish on hate and hence eventually they will get weeded out by Thought- The power of Human Thought- seeded by right education that embraces the over arching principle of being human and fostering care and affection for fellow humans is the only answer that societies can give to the underlying demons of hate despise which at times are apparent and other times lie in the wait to capture the weak links and bring havoc to our otherwise serene thinking!

I leave you with these thought, grab your coffee and seek the sane part of you and see how trusting you are and how others feel around you- that my friend is the first step to ensure and spread the warmth in the society which will dispel the ghosts of hate and despise- One enlightened mind and One warm soul at a time is all that it takes! Until next time ciao!

Human greed and climate change!

~ PA ~ Leave a comment

Well, not a very great title to start the week with; but this is something that I wanted to share and would like each one of you to share further and practice to do what is best possible by you! Climate change is a direct consequence of human greed! Someone said this earlier, “Our planet can fulfill all our needs but there is nothing that can ever fulfill human greed”! With almost 35-40% of human population staying within 50 miles of a coastline around the world and almost 75-80% of all major urban cities and mega-cities under severe infrastructural pressures; isn’t it time that we cared enough and thought about all this chaos around us (at times apparent and at times hidden) with a little more wit?

Scientific data can be quoted and one metric over the other, there can be arguments on the rate of rise of sea-levels world over, there will be claims and counter-claims to decide which of the many environmental problems is a larger emergency over the other, but what people and in fact all of us miss the bigger point is that- one fundamental aspect – reason for this mayhem has absolutely nothing to do with science at all to begin with- it has fundamentally everything to do with a very simple and ancient problem that is so intrinsically woven into our psyche- “Climate change is a problem cause by human greed”- nothing more, nothing less!

This topic, in itself, qualifies for a new best seller to be written, but I will try to share my thoughts as crisply as possible appreciating the limitations of a blog- wanting it to remain a blog!

Pick up any scientific literature and you will be surprised to know that all the bad guys (the pollutants- polluting agents- raw materials/finished products/chemical intermediaries) were at some or the other point in history hailed as the “new wonder”, “answer to energy crisis”, “agents to propel development for human society”; whether it was extensive coal mining earlier on, or the ability to tap into massive hydrocarbon reservoirs of oil and gas fields, rapid development in the field of polymer sciences or innovation of new polymer molecules etc (to enhance their utility and versatility); each and every step that science took in the last 150 years across its fields and sub-fields and inter disciplinarian areas was with a single motive and purpose to make life “easy” and “value driven” for humans! Then where do things begin to go wrong? How did these miracles of modern science (many Nobel awards were given in these or related fields of path breaking research) turn into demons and manifestations from hell, that now threaten to wipe out ecosystems and alter climate in an irreversible and damaging chain reaction? Well lets decipher and simplify the chaos!

Science by it’s very nature is an enabler and a simplifier- No matter which field of science you choose it has only one aim- to enable, improve and simplify complexities of human life and provide mankind with a quality of life which is incrementally better then what it has been before! Even to put it cynically, if science can’t provide you an elixir of eternal life, it can improve the quality of your death by making it quick and less painful! So if this is the noble high ground of science, why is it that we face today a challenge like never before by using the very substances which have originated in research labs few decades ago? Well the answer my friend lies in the fact that it was never a problem with what was innovated- rather with how the innovations were produced post scaling up productions and the deviation of the utility of what was innovated- deviation from the primary reason of scientific research that was conducted in the first place!

Pesticides, Fertilizers were hailed as answers to world’s food problems and a solution to increase yield in limited fertile land tracts around the world to feed the ever hungry people! A closer look into this space will provide you with a few facts- even though yield increased, application of fertilizers and pesticides was not done always as per laid down standards- result food contamination causing new health complications (and the next challenge for science!), simultaneously depletion of soil fertility which further puts pressure on crop growth- further increasing use of chemicals and the cycle just goes on and on- another tweak in this cycle was the new age genetically mutated crops which were supposed to grow fast, in soils and climates where they had no business growing and there by we end up altering food habits and consumption patterns (again which go on cause environmental and health complications– As nature gets compromised and tricked into something that it is not designed or equipped to deal with for that particular geographical area and climatic zone!) One final element to make note of – increasing food consumption- well with advancements in food technology and food processing simultaneously, even as millions go to bed without a single meal all through the day- we have plenty examples of people indulging in gluttony- consuming food for no real reason- just think about the last buffet where you had been or think about the juice that you left half-way or the plate that you did not complete- because you had seriously misjudged your hunger! Well, yes – no matter how insignificant or innocent this instance looks- this is by far one of the leading reasons that go on to contribute the adverse climates that we face- unplanned and unwanted consumption of food- eating when not hungry! Just imagine- if the predators in the wild forests had started to operate on similar lines a few thousands of years back, by now we would have been the meal of their choice because they would have ended up killing all the herbivores just for fun!

If you understood the above example, now try extrapolating this behaviour to every aspect of your life and all that you see around- “consumption – senseless consumption” is the key word which is nothing but repackaged “greed” in its new age form which is the fundamental problem. The ever increasing demand for clothes (read nylon and polymers- micro-plastics), shoes , vehicles, furniture, etc etc… you just think of it- every time you have bought something that you don’t need and already have just because you felt like- well you just drove another nail in your coffin by contributing to climate change!

Science has always solved problems and challenges that were impediments to the development, safety and security of mankind. What we have ended up doing is abusing its benevolence to suit our greed and this gross disregard has lead us to where we are now!

The fact also remains that, by being what it is- science can and does offer solutions and remedies to solve this crisis as well, however what needs to be learnt is that, science cannot and nothing for that matter can ever provide a solution to human greed!

So, let’s do what can we do in our own little ways, simple and effective things; eat and drink as much as is needed to nourish yourself, remember flaunting that burger for an Instagram pose, or holding that beer glass for earning your badge among a group- does no service to your health, unless you have been made to starve sufficiently to assimilate those calories that come along, not to forget the damage that you health faces by overdoing these seemingly cute little fallacies! Whether it is food, the clothes that you wear- get into a mode of mindful and sensible consumption, no one is asking you to be miserly or miss out that big wedding or that party- it is just about being smart in your selection of clothes, apparels and all the paraphernalia that goes with it (to make you socially acceptable- read conformity bias) so that you contribute to a sustainable way of living and make your presence on this planet that much little painful!

It is the incremental values of multiple such contributions done by individuals around the world that will be required to minimize and manage the negative impact of climate change (let alone stop it or reverse it).

I leave you with these thoughts and urge you to get some mind-space to ponder- how you would like to contribute to either mitigate or accelerate climate related challenges that we,as mankind collectively face!

Is your rear-view mirror larger than your windscreen?

~ PA ~ 1 Comment

I was keen to provide some decent weekend motivation, so as you ramp up your weekday, if you do get time to read through this, I am sure you will plan to have an engaging and introspective weekend- some quality time with yourself! This is something that will give you some much needed hope and make your life that bit less miserable!

Observation is a powerful tool, if you take a moment off – from whatever you are doing right now (unless you are driving or operating someone!) just hear the people around you- what are these enlightened beings talking about?, what is the content that they are referring to? In all probability they are collectively looking into history- as recent as five minutes back or as old as ancient roman history and fleeting references to times in between- this my friend is the aspect of the “rear-view mirror” each one us have them on our cars and vehicles- conversations of these types are the intellectual personification of the state of mind that an individual is in (as that person speaks to you!)

Certainly rear-view mirrors have a certain value and purpose. More often then not, it is to be sure that we are not caught off guard from something that’s heading our way (as it is not intended to)! Well likewise these reflecting conversations help discuss examples and happenings from the past to help us avoid what must be and repeat what should be and can be. Problems start happening as soon as we focus more on the rear-view mirrors and loose focus of the big windscreen bang in front of us which is vying for our attention, that windscreen my friend is our present moment- our now- which ensures us that we reach our tomorrow!

The fallacy of our times, is that people spend so much time and energy discussing, debating what worked and what did not work,they often end up loosing all the needed time and focus to know where they are heading and what is that their gossip and bitching is manifesting– well needless to say, like an automatic vehicle gone wrong, they tend to just keep driving around in a big never ending circle- bitching away to glory same things over and over (only references or names change but the underlying nonsense tends to remain the same) case in point- each one of us would have had that odd colleague who speaks about all the bad bosses that this person experienced (well there can be genuine exceptions)- but more often then not, it also reflects something cranked up and broken about this person as well- either emotionally or intellectually! Move over to a societal problems- no matter which country you come from- everyone will agree politicians are f**king a**holes and do nothing, but yet- every four or five years- its is these same set of morons that keep on coming back and with every term seem to get better and better by offering more varied subjects and topics to gossip and bitch about! So what does this basically say about each one of us- what is that needs to be corrected? what are we missing in here?

The plain fact and the only fact that we have taken our eyes off the windscreen- that windscreen, my friend is our now- and the only thing that provides you a sneak peek into the destination where you are driving to arrive to a future of your choice- the constant bickering and needless glancing into a rear-view mirror can generally give you neck sprain bad enough- with you actually wanting to throw away the mirror altogether! Loosing site of the windscreen as you cruise ahead on the engine power(of your actual and perceived competencies) can be fatal and consequences often put you back by a few years if not months and you need to start for your journey all over again- this is something like the age old- snake and ladders game! So what’s the right way to go about this?

Well, as a a coach, we always ask our clients on what they feel and what they think and through an exhaustive process, enable them to de-clutter and simplify their present in context with their past and align them to the future of their choice! It’s a strikingly similar process, while your past and things may be important, what is required is to assign each incident from your past a weighted value- one simple way could be- what you do not need to remember can be directly flushed away and what was most rewarding and most threatening should be remembered and recorded so that next time you face a similar or a worse situation you have a plan to overcome the same! Societies world over rest on past and this is one of the biggest fallacies of human behavior- we tend to look more into the past to justify our present and create and develop hope for our future (which ironically we seldom believed into it with the exuberance that we must or should). Societies based on memories and past laurels never prosper- look at the difference between the developed nations and developing nations- the biggest difference is that developed nations have been as a society looking more through their windscreens – into their now and future while the developing one’s spend more time looking into past references and past standards and believe that this will help them move ahead- which never really works and these nations tend to keep going in the same cycle- much to the benefit of the developed nations- as their competition is automatically taken care of!

As for nations, likewise for us- individuals- learn to take control of the Now and trust me your next moment will be automatically calibrated to the efforts and merit you have given now! The past is a bygone cannot be changed nor altered, each one of us is a fascinating story- all of us have ups and downs- what matters is remembering what works and what does not work given in the totalitarian context of who you are where you are and what is that you are seeking! People often try finding examples- that’s the most stupid thing to do- as Is aid in my earlier blog, each one of us – each one of us is unique and one of a kind!take pride about that fact and do justice to yourself for your own sake!

So until next time, adjust the size of your windscreen in context to your rear-view mirror and ensure you don’t end up loosing focus or start driving in circles by engaging in those Friday afternoon corporate bitching sessions (often disguised as corporate strategy sessions!)

Ciao for now and have a great weekend! Keep writing in your suggestions and we will keep sharing and discussing intriguing facets about the time that we live in and about we all are! Unique masterpieces! Each one – One of a kind!