Friday, December 08, 2006

Enthusiasm

There is a real magic in enthusiasm.
It spells the difference between mediocrity and accomplishment.

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Interest vs. Commitment

There's a difference between interest and commitment.

When you're interested in doing something, you do it only when circumstances permit.

When you're committed to something, you accept no excuses, only results.
- Art Turock

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Where are you headed?


Where you are headed is more important than how fast you are going. Rather than always focusing on what's urgent, learn to focus on what is really important.
- Stephen Covey

Wednesday, August 30, 2006

Lalu to teach management at IIM-A

Believe it or not but Lalu is all set to don the role of a management guru and deliver a lecture to the IIM-Ahmedabad graduates on 18th Sept on the turnaround of Indian Railways which earned a profit of Rs. 15000 crore in 2005-06. Beloq are few excerpts from a news article on Rediff News -

Prasad puts it in his inimitable style: "My mother always told me not to handle a buffalo by its tail but always catch it by its horns. And I have used that lesson in everything in my life, including the Railways."

When some of the Railway Board members expressed apprehensions in increasing wagon loads, a decision which alone generated Rs 7,200 crore (Rs 72 billion), Prasad said: "Wagon is the bread earning horse of the Railways. Load it adequately. Make it run and don't stable it."

Prasad's other management mantra for the Railways has been: "If you do not milk the cow fully, it falls sick," which he is practicing while running the Railways.

Prasad's secret lies in the fact that he did not convert the ministry into a Bihar Bhawan but left the crucial decision to his bureaucrats. He is achieving his targets not by increasing fares or downsizing, but by increasing traffic.

Today it is not only IIM Ahmedabad, which wants to fete Prasad for posting a fund balance of Rs 15,000 crore in 2005-06. Even the premier international business schools like Harvard and HEC Management School, France, have shown interest in turning Prasad's experiment with the Railways into case studies for aspiring business graduates.

Read the full article here or click on the title above.

Believe in your Dreams


Luke : I can't believe it!
Yoda : That is why you fail.
[Yoda - The 'Star Wars' Jedi Master]

Saturday, August 26, 2006

Wednesday, August 09, 2006

Disneyland on the Ganges

Shiv Sagar, grandson of the popular Indian film producer Ramanand Sagar, (Ramanand Sagar is largely remembered for his immensely popular TV serial Ramayan), who holds a management degree from the Indian School of Business (ISB) Hyderabad, is planning to launch a spiritual theme park on the bank of River Ganga near Haridwar, a first of its kind in India. Read details of the same here.

Monday, June 26, 2006

Spain to Lift the Soccer World Cup 2006

Spanish journalists have managed to find a prediction made by Nostradamus in 1555 about the outcome of the 2006 World Cup, Russian magazine 'Pravda' said in a report.

The 16th century author of prophecies wrote that "the Spanish king and his army will cross over the Pyrenees at the end of the sixth month of the sixth year. The king will win the battle with Beelzebub on the fields of Central Europe, and the army will return the Holy Grail to Spain".

Click on the title above to read the full story.

Monday, June 19, 2006

Fun With Words

What do the following words have in common?

# Banana
# Potato
# Dresser
# Grammar
# Revive
# Uneven
# Voodoo

In all of the words listed above, if you take the first letter of each and place it at the end of the word, and then spell the word backwards, it will be the same word. Amusing ! Isn't it?

Sunday, June 18, 2006

That's what Government is..

Milton Friedman writes here -

"There are four ways in which you can spend money. You can spend your own money on yourself. When you do that, why then you really watch out what you’re doing, and you try to get the most for your money. Then you can spend your own money on somebody else. For example, I buy a birthday present for someone. Well, then I’m not so careful about the content of the present, but I’m very careful about the cost. Then, I can spend somebody else’s money on myself. And if I spend somebody else’s money on myself, then I’m sure going to have a good lunch! Finally, I can spend somebody else’s money on somebody else. And if I spend somebody else’s money on somebody else, I’m not concerned about how much it is, and I’m not concerned about what I get. And that’s government."

Sunday, June 04, 2006

Taking Care of Your Laptop

If you own a laptop, you should take good care of it. This also includes some cleaning once in a while. The screen and the keyboard are the areas that need the most attention. And while you are at it you need to be aware of some of the do's and don't s. Read here for some techniques to do the cleaning effectively and without damaging your laptop.

Saturday, June 03, 2006

World's Greatest Magician

I am sure you would be amused to see some of the most exceptional tricks being performed by the World's Greatest Magician..click on the title above to see the video clip...

Friday, June 02, 2006

I Support Reservation...

One of my friend send me the below excerpt on the current controversy on Reservation -

"I think we should have job reservations in all the fields. I completely support the PM and all the politicians for promoting this. Let's start thereservation with our cricket team. We should have 10 percent reservation for muslims, 30 percent for OBC, SC/ST and so on. Cricket rules should be modified accordingly. The boundary circle should be reduced for an SC/STplayer. The four hit by an OBC player should be considered as a six and a six hit by a OBC player should be counted as 8 runs. An OBC player scoring 60 runs should be declared as a century. We should influence ICC and make rules so that the pace bowlers like Shoaib Akhtar should not bowl fast balls to our OBC player. Bowlers should bowl maximum speed of 80 kilometer per hour to an OBC player. Any delivery above this speed should be made illegal. Also we should have reservation in Olympics. In the 100 meters race, an OBC player should be given a gold medal if he runs 80 meters. There can be reservation in Government jobs also. Let's recruit SC/ST and OBC pilots for aircrafts which are carrying the ministers and politicians (that can really help the country.. ) Ensure that only SC/ST and OBC doctors do the operations for the ministers and other politicians. (Another way of saving the country..) Let's be creative and think of ways and means to guide INDIA forward...Let's show the world that INDIA is a GREAT country. Let's be proud of being an INDIAN.. May the good breed of politicians like ARJUN SINGH longlive..."

Monday, May 29, 2006

How to Stay Young

A friend of mine shared with me the secret of "How to stay young". I am sharing the same with you all...

1. Try everything twice.
On Madam's tombstone (of Whelan and Madam), she said she wanted this epitaph: "Tried everything twice...loved it both times!"

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.
(Keep this In mind if you are one of those grouches).


3. Keep learning.

Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, Whatever. Never let the brain get idle.

"An idle mind is the devil's workshop." And the devil's name is Alzheimer's!


4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

And if you have a friend who makes you laugh, spend lots and lots of time with him/her.


6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on.

The only person who is with us our entire life is ourselves. LIVE while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.


8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9. Don't take guilt trips.

Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county or to a foreign country, but NOT a guilt trip.

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

Saturday, April 22, 2006

For wud-be parents...

Here's some helpful information from Johnson & Johnson for to-be-parents and for people who have been newly promoted as parents...

You can even sign-up for the monthly newsletter at this site which is very informational.

Any Questions?

Yahoo has come out with this new forum where you can post any questions and get answers from fellow users or even you can answer to the questions posted there by others.

For example I have been looking for the answer to this question since some time now but could not find any - So I have posted it on Yahoo ! Answers as my first entry.

"Why do ceiling fans always rotate anticlockwise and table fans always rotate clockwise?"

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

Long Bets

If you have an urge to predict the future this is one site which records all such predictions. Alternately, you may read through the predictions that others have made and even challenge them if you think otherwise.

Sunday, April 16, 2006

MBA Fundas From a Taxi Driver

"Amazing" - This is what I would describe this piece of conversation between a Taxi Driver and his customer. The Taxi Driver shares his "trade secrets" with practical examples. And he has a valid point when he says "Each job has its own beauty. We need to learn how to experience that beauty in our work." This is very important to move ahead.

Monday, April 10, 2006

Log-A-Note

This is real cool tip for people who use notepad to write down any info on a day to day basis...
Follow the below steps to create a Log-A-Note for yourself -

In Notepad
- Create a blank text file with .LOG as the first line of the file, followed by a carriage return. [ Enter ]
- Save and close the file .
- Double-click the file to open it and notice that Notepad appends the current date and time to the end of the file and places the cursor on the next line.
- Type your notes and then save and close the file. Each time you open the file, Notepad repeats the process, appending the time and date to the end of the file and placing the cursor below it.

It simply serves as a virtual diary !

Friday, March 31, 2006

Shocking ads

You think advertisements are always going to please you? If so, you may just change your opinion in the next few seconds...

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

Keyboard not working? No Problem...

If your keyboard is not working due to some technical glitch but you mouse is and you need to send and urgent email, what do you do?

While you are still evaluating your options let me tell you that this is all you have to do - Assuming that you are a Windows user, just click on Start, Select Run and type OSK and hit OK.
Bingo! What do you see...a keyboard will pop up on your screen and you can use your mouse to compose your urgent email. Yes, this is an alternative keyboard provided by Windows, just in case your keyboard or some keys stop working.

Make a note of this information..it might come in handy sometime...

Update - If the entire keyboard is not working and you are not able to type the "OSK" even then you can activate the alternate keyboard by clicking on
Start ==> All Programs ==> Accessories ==> Accessibility ==> On-Screen Keyboard

Thursday, March 09, 2006

India Rising?

Here's a video clip you must watch...
You got to see what the world thinks about India...

Click on the title above to go to the video clip.

Saturday, March 04, 2006

Mallu Names - Formula...

I was very tempted to title this entry as "Mallu Naming Conventions" particularly because we use a lot of naming conventions at work when we code new components but not everyone would be able to appreciate the pun involved.

Anyways enjoy it.

Newsmericks

If you are still wondering what newsmericks is - let me explain. Aparna has a different way of presenting news "news in limerick form".

If you still have no idea what I am trying to convey then check out this very different blog and you will be amused.

Street harrassment

Annie Zaidi writes in her blog Known Turf: Streets, stories, strategies what a woman goes through in most metroes whether it is Delhi or Mumbai.

"When you leave the house, an invisible snake of alert suspicion will wind down from your shoulders down your back and become a clenched fist in all public spaces, through all journeys. "

A very powerful and disturbing blog. Very well written and it says all that needs to be said.

Note - Blank Noise Project is an effort to fight this menace. Check out this blog for details.

Tuesday, January 31, 2006

Look What Conditioning Can Do !!!

"As I was passing the elephants, I suddenly stopped, confused by the fact that these huge creatures were being held by only a small rope tied to their front leg. No chains, no cages. It was obvious that the elephants could, at anytime, break away from their bonds but for some reason, they did not.

I saw a trainer near by and asked why these beautiful, magnificent animals just stood there and made no attempt to get away. "Well," he said,"when they are very young and much smaller we use the same size rope to tie them and, at that age, it's enough to hold them. As they grow up, they are conditioned to believe they cannot break away. They believe the rope can still hold them, so they never try to break free." I was amazed. These animals could at any time break free from their bonds but because they believed they couldn't, they were stuck right where they were."

Like the elephants, how many of us go through life hanging onto a belief that we cannot do something, simply because we failed at it once before?

Tuesday, January 24, 2006

Nobel Prize for Literature in 2005

Harold Pinter is the man who won Nobel Prize for literature in 2005. His Nobel Lecture was E X P L O S I V E ... to say the least.

An excerpt:
Do we think about the inhabitants of Guantanamo Bay? What does the media say about them? They pop up occasionally - a small item on page six. They have been consigned to a no man's land from which indeed they may never return. At present many are on hunger strike, being force-fed, including British residents. No niceties in these force-feeding procedures. No sedative or anaesthetic. Just a tube stuck up your nose and into your throat. You vomit blood. This is torture. What has the British Foreign Secretary said about this? Nothing. What has the British Prime Minister said about this? Nothing. Why not? Because the United States has said: to criticise our conduct in Guantanamo Bay constitutes an unfriendly act. You're either with us or against us. So Blair shuts up.

If you wish to read the original – here is the link - http://nobelprize.org/literature/laureates/2005/pinter-lecture-e.html

P. S : For non-literature-buffs...the political part of the speech starts with the sentence "As every single person here knows, the justification for the invasion of Iraq was that Saddam Hussein possessed a highly dangerous body of weapons of mass destruction, some of which could be fired in 45 minutes, bringing about appalling devastation."

Monday, January 23, 2006

Good News India - Work creeps into life...

Mr. D V Sridharan of Good News India writes about a story of personal courage. Amazing read. Though the narration is a bit long but it’s difficult not to read it till the end. Below is an excerpt from the story…

Work creeps into life:

In the five and a half years of publishing GoodNewsIndia, I , D V Sridharan have kept a low profile. Finally, having written about many people who stood up against odds, I could not escape my turn when an issue popped up in my own backyard. This is then my own story and I believe it belongs in this site.

My strife also cost me much time during which GoodNewsIndia, a one man operation that it is, has suffered neglect. Reading the story -which includes my brief arrest by the police- I hope you will forgive me this spell. At 64, my passion for seeking out the good work in India, has only increased. This episode and your support will sustain it. I promise to make amends in the coming months.

By a strange coincidence this is also the 100th story in the Magazine section: an occasion when writing in the first person, seems somehow appropriate.

Many of you may not have visited the site recently and therefore, the redesign will be new to you. I hope you find it pleasing.

Now without further ado to a story of vandalism, substantially resisted:

http://www.goodnewsindia.com/index.php/Magazine/story/mgm/

Friday, January 13, 2006

New China

Business Week brings us the face of new china through this slideshow.
A must watch...
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