i-TFTD #238: @ 43

Note: This self-indulgent year-end post contains a lot of links that may lead you to interesting sites.

My niece Viyoma inspires me in many ways. The first child in the family, she was always the quiet one and soon acquired the label of "shy". Her creative presentations during her MBA, and her early foray into blogging made her popular amongst her friends. She forms and expresses her independent views in a politely assertive style and her offbeat career choice has opened up excellent opportunities for her. I love some of her interesting blog posts. Like the one on vendors in Mumbai local trains, her poem on the monsoon, her short description from Mangalore, her dialogue with her ideas, and her reaction to the tragic 26/11 event in Mumbai in a poetic rendition of what The Taj Hotel had to say.

On her 24th birthday she listed 24 things she did in the previous year that she is proud of. In a blatant plagiarization of title and format, along with the clear and present risk of bragging, I decided to attempt a similar list for myself. With apologies in advance to gentle readers of i-TFTD, here are 43 of the new or good things I did in 2009:

▪       Spoke at a seminar—my first where I addressed an HR audience—at Somaiya Institute of Management, Mumbai around Jan-09
▪       Won second prize in the first Inter-corporate team Scrabble tournament held at Bangalore in Jan-09
▪       Led a day-long Strengths Approach to Career Development workshop for HR Infotech Association Mumbai chapter in Feb-09
▪       Opened Goodreads account around Feb-09 where I list the books I read, categorize and rate them, and occasionally write a review.
▪       Was Tournament Director for a Scrabble tournament at our Mumbai offices for employees in Mar-09
▪       Co-led a half-day training programme on Branding Self for NASSCOM's Women in Leadership in IT (WIL-IT) forum members in Mar-09
▪       Delivered 90-minute capsule sessions for senior managers titled Mindmapping and Beyond (covering mind maps and concept maps! ) around Apr-09
▪       Flew (parasailing) 50 feet above ground, tethered to a vehicle at Arnala beach near Virar, Mumbai in May-09
▪       Experienced handling different kinds of sail boats at Aquasail India's Murud facility, courtesy a one-day outdoor event arranged by National HRD Network in May-09
▪       Eased into HR operations role in May-09 by figuring out that it is more or less like managing software application production support
▪       Conducted 1-day Strengths Workshop for over 200 HR and Training professionals at Hyderabad International Convention Centre under the aegis of Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and More Than HR Global in Jun-09
▪       Facilitated one of the break-out sessions at Global Diversity Symposium at Bangalore in Jun-09
▪       Finally got on to Facebook around Jul-09 though still an infrequent updater
▪       Rolled out an internal coach development programme involving HR teams other than my own around Aug-09
▪       Began tweeting in Sep-09 at http://twitter.com/r_ganesh - 95 posted in 105 days
▪       Floated (tandem paragliding) 3,000 feet above sea level at Panchgani-Mahabaleshwar in Oct-09
▪       Thrilled to be the oldest member (with my daughter as one of the youngest) in a trek to Naneghat (3,500 ft above MSL) near Kalyan arranged by our office club in Oct-09
▪       Participated as a provocateur in a panel discussion at a B-school for women in Pune in Nov-09
▪       Started posting haiku poems (17 syllables in three lines of 5-7-5) at http://twihaiku.com/ in Nov-09 - 52 posted in 50 days
▪       Sang on stage for the first time in my life at a friend's wedding in Dec-09. Mangaloreans are friendly and courteous
▪       Met school mates in Dec-09 after over 28 years, basked in the warm nostalgia, spoke to "girls" who never interacted in SIWS High School in the 1970s   
▪      Designed and delivered a 90-minute capsule session titled From Creativity to Innovation in Dec-09
▪       Posted comments at Harvard blog (here for example) and Ribbonfarm (here and here, for example) blogs that received pointed responses from the blog authors
▪       Wrote over 50 instant rhymes of 4 to 48 lines (unsure if purists would call them poems) to wish someone on their birthday or to describe a get-together event
▪       Always spoke to and played with kids with eye contact at the same level
▪       Refrained from pointing out spelling, grammar and alignment mistakes 864 times (shall work on reducing the remaining 9,136 times in the coming decade)
▪       Opted to be boring and nice in conversations instead of clever, cute or cutting, succeeded 13 times, lowered target for next year
▪       Made spontaneous gifts of books without occasion at least 7 times, target tripled for 2010
▪       Continued to collect accusations of being incorrigibly overenthusiastic all the time about almost everything
▪       Introduced the treasure trove of TED videos to many colleagues and friends
▪       Completed (within 16 months), almost 50 Strength Workshop sessions to 1,000 participants and 6 day-long creativity workshops to over 150 attendees
▪       Promoted budding writers amongst colleagues on this i-TFTD blog
▪       Let myself be persuaded to accept the post of chairman at my apartment cooperative society
▪       Read every day of this year, started the habit of simultaneously reading multiple books
▪       Though never a video game fan, bought a Nintendo Wii and play regularly on weekends: bowling, tennis and golf
▪       Stopped making perpetually unattained resolutions, fine-tuning along the way with small wins
▪       Broadcast a long overdue message of gratitude to i-TFTD subscribers, naming some special ones, on the occasion of i-TFTD's 4th anniversary
▪       Sent over 100 ILU SMSs to my wife (expectation fallen short by 265 says she, I agree and plan to remedy)
▪       Asked more questions than gave answers or argued against (results satisfactory, should I do more of this?)
▪       Connected with more alumni of my organization, really happy that many who started their careers here are doing extremely well all over the world
▪       Resumed the old habit of writing colorful To Do lists in tiny-sized pads while also using mobile phone and Outlook reminder features
▪       Played vigorous if unskilled TT (ping pong) whenever I saw a table, ditto with carrom
▪       Learnt to shun starting idea discussions with "But…", trained myself to avoid the "either/or" trap and evangelized the Strengths Approach and creativity to almost everyone I know      

Wish you and your near ones a Happy, Healthy and Cheerful New Year 2010,

RG

i-TFTD #237: On Acting Ably

#237-1. The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world's problems.
-Mahatma Gandhi

#237-2. Intelligence is quickness to apprehend as distinct from ability, which is capacity to act wisely on the thing apprehended.
-A. N. Whitehead

#237-3. There is something that is much more scarce, something finer far, something rarer than ability. It is the ability to recognize ability.
-Elbert Hubbard

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Unrealized potential is a basic fact of life. Sometimes we are more comfortable with our imagined hidden talents than to risk trying to act on it.

Acting wisely is less common than knowing and understanding something. Action for the sake of action is quite common.

Recognizing talent in others is an obvious requirement for managers but it helps all of us in knowing who to choose as role models, as friends to hang out with, as partners to seek help from.

i-TFTD #236: Three Ways to Keep Your Ego in Check

By John Baldoni (highlights mine)
December 10, 2009

"It's okay if other people think you're God, but you're in trouble if you start believing it."

David Cornwell, a sports attorney, recalled that quote as one uttered by his father, a surgeon. While Cornwell was speaking on Larry King Live about Tiger Woods' foibles, the quote has relevance to anyone in a leadership position, not just doctors and big name athletes.

Sure, leaders have to believe in themselves — otherwise no one else will. Their conviction in their own abilities has to be strong as well as resilient, but such self-assurance cannot be allowed to become arrogance. So often when we see business leaders making poor decisions it seems as if their ego is speaking louder than their voice of reason.

And yet we need to remember that, while it's easy to throw stones at people and power, and lampoon their outsized egos when they stumble, so often that outsize ego is the result of the relentless fawning of others. You do not rise to power without followers, but if that followership is more sycophantic than supportive, the leader can lose his bearings.

Keeping your ego in check is an exercise in humility, with the emphasis on the word exercise, so here are a few tips:

Accept praise, but never believe it totally. Ancient Romans had a tradition of welcoming home victorious military commanders with a state-sponsored procession that included the commander riding in his chariot. Legend has it that a slave standing next to him would hold a golden laurel above his head and whisper into his ear, "Remember you are mortal." True or not, it is a good lesson for anyone who achieves success to remind himself that success is earned, not bestowed. You need to keep earning it.

Listen to your best friend. While the word "friendship" may have become diluted in this era of social media mouse-clicking, the relationship between people who know and respect each other remains essential. Such friends (be they spouses or colleagues) are not afraid to give each other the straight dope. Senior leaders need the friendship of one or two close associates whom they trust above others to tell them the truth. Treasure those friendships.

Reflect on your shortcomings. Taking time out to gain perspective on what you are doing is valuable. In the Catholic tradition, penitents are taught to go through an examination of conscience, reflecting on their transgressions. A frank look at what you have done wrong, as it applies to decisions made, behaviors exerted, and treatment of others is vital to a leader keeping his head on straight. Too much dwelling on the negative is not good, but a frank assessment of shortcomings is advised.

Ego affirms a leader's ability to take charge. But checking the ego demonstrates a leader's ability to take charge of himself. That is critical to developing strong organizations which can achieve sustainable results.

(Thanks to PJR Sudhir for sharing this.)

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I notice that many achievers with well-developed communication skills tend to use phrases like, “Clearly we have to…”, “It’s obvious that…” and “Having considered everything, I have no choice but to…”. While such clarity and confidence is useful, there are many situations where the possibility of new ideas and additional perspectives need to be given space and time. Real life and people’s brains have a way of enlarging the scope of what seems so clear to us. Better choices may exist outside the boundary of our “everything”.

Another important point was made by a senior manager friend in this manner: When people greet me in a friendly and respectful manner, I pause to think whether it is aimed at me or at my chair. One should not confuse one’s own standing as a person and a professional with any temporary value accruing from one’s position.

i-TFTD #235: On Persistence

#235-1. If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Then quit. No use being a damn fool about it.
-W C Fields

#235-2. If at first you do succeed -- try to hide your astonishment.
-Harry Banks

#235-3. In some schools they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as many times as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.
-Bill Gates

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It is an interesting creative exercise to make variations of well-known proverbs. The first two are practical observations on knowing when to "cut your losses" and move on, and how we sometimes expect to fail at a first attempt.

Competition is a fact in most aspects of life and who better to point it out than one of the most hyper-competitive icons of our time? We like it and accept it when we are positioned to win, we despise it when we lose. If the energy spent in complaining and criticizing is instead channelized into understanding the factors that lead to success...

i-TFTD #234: Ultimate Advice

#234-1. All the stress that we feel is caused by arguing with what is.
-Byron Katie, American speaker and self-help author (1942-)

#234-2. You have to take life as it happens, but you should try to make it happen the way you want to take it.
-German saying

#234-3. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.
-J. R. R. Tolkien, English fantasy writer, poet, philologist, author of The Lord of the Rings (1892-1973)

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Spiritual teachers often advise acceptance. Paradoxically, it enables deep change. On the level of daily affairs, this could remind us to distinguish between facts outside our immediate control and aspects that can be influenced by us. A married person encounters examples of this when dealing with the personality traits of the spouse, which are less changeable than outward behavior.

Acceptance should not be confused with passivity or apathy. Living involves taking action, which includes forming opinions, deciding and influencing the outer world.

One can endlessly debate the above or avoid spending think time on such matters in the abstract but either way one is making a choice.

i-TFTD #233: On Hope

#233-1. Never let go of hope. One day you will see that it all has finally come together. What you have always wished for has finally come to be. You will look back and laugh at what has passed and you will ask yourself, "How did I get through all of that?"
-Anon

#233-2. Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.
-Dale Carnegie, pioneering self-help author of How to Win Friends and Influence People and other books (1888–1955)

#233-3. The only guide to man is his conscience; the only shield to his memory is the rectitude and sincerity of his  actions. It is very imprudent to walk through life without this shield, because we are so often mocked by the failure of our hopes and the upsetting of our calculations; but with this shield, however the fates may play,  we march always in the ranks of honor.
-Winston Churchill, British orator, author and Prime Minister (1874-1965)

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Hope, like faith, involves holding a belief in the mind that is not fully indicated or substantiated by facts. ‘Hope for the best, anticipate the worst,’ one of the many age! -old aphorisms drilled into me from a young age, has been a useful guide for prudent planning balanced with a general optimism.

But hopes do not always come true. What we do when they don’t has to be guided by conscience.

i-TFTD #232: Plan But Don't Always Stick to It

#232-1. Plans are nothing; planning is everything.
-Dwight D. Eisenhower, U.S. general and 34th president (1890-1969)

#232-2. We cannot truly plan, because we do not understand the future—but this is not necessarily a bad news. We could plan ! while bearing in mind such limitations. It just takes guts.
-Nassim Nicholas Taleb in The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable

#232-3. Enlightened trial and error outperforms the planning of flawless intellects.
-David Kelley, founder & CEO of Ideo Product Development

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A powerful quote that is a favorite of mine. Making a plan is necessary for most activities in life. It induces us to gather data, think about the objectives, constraints and sequence of steps. But once we have a plan and start execution, it is vital to keep our antenna tuned for new information, changed circumstances and unexpected events that may suggest changing our plan. Rigidly adhering to what we decided based on assumptions that no longer hold true is sometimes worse than having no plan.

In the software development process, the so-called agile practices are posited on planning for changes. This appears to go against the emphasis on scope freeze that is the essence of quality processes but customer reality always overrides the idealistic models. Adaptability can be planned and nurtured.!

Taleb has expounded on this aspect from the perspective of financial markets and the (mis)use of statistical models in his books, Fooled by Randomness and The Black Swan.

Innovation gurus remind us that the nature of the creative process is messy and cannot be planned and measured in simplistic ways.