A Day of Inspiration at Office!

I had the good fortune to listen to a wonderful speaker this week. The CEO & MD of KKR and Red Chillies Entertainment - Venky Mysore, behind-the-scenes-star of the turnaround of KKR in the IPL was at office and speaking to us J

It was a wonderful experience to listen to his transition from a core financial professional to what he is today. What a journey! He even got into a Q&A and answered all our questions so patiently. He almost looked disappointed when none of us women in the room asked him about SRK (even though we were dying to, we were not courageous enough to steer the discussion in that direction).Our boss took it upon himself to do the needful, also insisting that he was doing it for everyone in the room who was secretly wishing someone else would ask that question (bless him).

So, apart from the Bollywood and some inside stories of KKR ;-), I might have just picked few “leadership & management” gems from him, which I haven’t got even from few certified management trainers! I mean, yes, most of them sound clichéd, but no one put it in context like he did, with live examples of KKR and the results seen by all!

He said:

• Do not attach sanctity to a bar that has been set. How else would anyone create new records?
• There is no substitute for experience. The next best thing to do is to observe successful people and imbibe what they do. Be open to fail in the process…
• …And when you lose, don’t lose the lesson
• Know what skills you want in your team and then start selecting people with that skill, rather than the other way around
• Constantly work towards setting a higher bar for yourself and your teams.
• It is important to shake up a team, even if it is a winning combination. It provides a level playing field for everyone and also creates an environment to try new strategies and encourages innovation.

As usual, a ton of questions came to my mind after the talk ended. The search for these answers always seems endless!

My Perfect World

The past few days have been hectic. Too many changes happening to my perfect world. Change is not my best friend. I am trying to take one day at a time for now. I am also practicing the art of deception to divert my mind.

So, I‘ve been reading some Kannada since the past few days. Accidentally stumbled on “Mankutimma”. I have read only a few verses till date and not really pondered over the relevance. Wiki says, the work “Mankutimmana Kagga” is called the Bhagavad Gita in Kannada. You have to agree with that. The Kagga has answers to all the questions we can ever ask ourselves. How could one man have written this in his lifetime? It is hard to imagine the experiences he has had that’s enabled him to write this profound piece. I am unable to describe the awesomeness of the work. If you know the language, it is even better!

Now there’s one verse that’s gnawing my mind from many days describing the illusion or everything perfect. The habit of expecting the “prefect everything” will only spread negativity. The perfect house, the perfect partner, the perfect job, the perfect lunch, the perfect blog post…….it never ends…this obsession. Once you stop this mania, I think you will start finding  satisfaction and happiness even. I also understand that there is a balance you ought to achieve. Less expectation also throws you back in life. Balance is the key…which I am struggling to find!

On a lighter note, I’ll stop worrying that my house is not really spic and span. I see that I am raising happy children in the same house J.

ಸರಿಯಾಗಲಿಲ್ಲವದು ಸರಿಯಿದಲ್ಲವೆನುತ ।
ಹರಡಿಕೊಳಬೇಡ ಮುಳ್ಳನು ಹಾಸಿಗೆಯಲಿ ।।
ಕೊರೆಯಾದೊಡೇನೊಂದು ನೆರೆದೊಡೇನಿನ್ನೊಂದು ।
ಒರಟು ಕೆಲಸವೊ ಬದುಕು ಮಂಕುತಿಮ್ಮ ।।

"This is not right, that is not correct":
Saying thus, spread not thorns on your bed.
So what if something is not perfect?
Life is but a rough job. --Mankuthimma

[With reverence to Sri DVG]

[Reference: http://daily-kagga.livejournal.com/19576.html]

Life's Milestones - 2

It was a cakewalk really. The whole pregnancy and delivery thing second time around. Some friends asked me why I decided to go through the whole thing again, was one time not enough? The pain, the angst, the check-ups and the one that tops the list – the delivery. I did not want to give them the mushy answer of how the tiny person at the end of all that was worth it and how the first cries rejuvenates you to take whatever comes next head-on. But that was actually it. I cannot forget that scene – the husband, seated on the hospital chair and holding the new born in his arms with Skanda, curiously touching his little brother’s fingers. I even remember the smell of the hospital mingled with fresh flowers from a bouquet. It was picture perfect.


I used to miss being pregnant after my first son was born. I would miss the fresh smell of babies just bathed and whole lot of such things that came with new babies. I would even sit up most nights without complaining. I would not share these feelings with anyone lest they think I had gone mad! I always thought if I was born in another century or maybe even in another country, I would definitely have a gang of kids of my own! But practicalities are woven into our lives and there is no avenue of escape from them, isn’t it?


Time is known to fly at alarming speed. Yet, I am always amazed by it. So, my second son, Pranav, came kicking and screaming into this world three years back. It just seems like yesterday that I held him in my arms admiring the miracle that he was. He is a little person of his own now and his sunny personality is beginning to show. He is full of love and naughty to the core. He loves books and riding his bicycle with anna. The brothers have formed a strong bond of kinship which, I hope, will only strengthen with time. He loves dinosaurs too and rattles off names of the species! He has the cutest lisp - he cannot pronounce "s", "sh" and "r". He has the most adorable sulk when he is admonished and I have a whale of a time cajoling him out of his anger!


He insists he is only two years old because for him a birthday means cutting a cake, which we could not on his birthday. So I have promised him a cake this weekend and he has promised that he will turn three that day :).


Happy birthday, my dear child!

Realization

Taking decisions seems so easy. Both small and large, personal and professional. When I look back on the past few days, months and years, I can recognize a pattern in my thought process while confronting a decision making occasion. I always stand out of the problem and have a third party view and take a decision which is right at that point of time.


Have I regretted any of them? Yes, I have. But has it stopped me from taking decisions in this method? No. Simply because I find it easy to detach myself and not dwell on regrets too much. I work towards forgetting the bad feeling that is associated with regret and learning from the process. Maybe this is my escape route and it works for me. It works because, all my life, with all the ups and downs, I have suddenly discovered that I have generally been a happy person! My light bulb moment for this year :-).

About learning and changing for the better

Lots of changes during the last few months...still reeling under the experiences, some lessons learnt, some fingers burnt.

I am trying to put down the most important lessons that I have learnt. Anyone reading these might feel that there is nothing new. One has definitely read it on a random quotes site or an email forward.

But for me, these really do mean something, I have experienced each of these first-hand. This also proves one of my theories – one has to experience for oneself the lessons of life, one just does not learn from others’ experiences.


1. It’s never too late to ask questions and learn.

2. Nothing ever remains a constant. Things change, people change, you change.

3. Time is a good healer…but not without scars

4. In most cases, you only remember how you felt, not what made you feel that way. It is that reminder of how you felt which either scares you or makes you look forward for similar experiences.

5. Every relationship is a ‘deal’…you give some, you take some. There are no exceptions.

6. You should make your own decision. Always.

7. You have to plan your old age funds.

8. It is always better to give others a benefit of doubt.

9. Children show us how to live life, if only we had the time and patience to observe and learn.

10. There is a thin line between being polite and being a doormat.


Life is so happening!!!