Musing of a mind

Samskritam aham cha (Sanskrit & I)

2011-10-17T11:06:00.000-07:00

IIMB is the best thing that has happened to me so far. It has made one more of my dreams come true.

Samskrita Bharati in association with IIMB has organised a 10-day Samskrita Sambhashana Shibira at IIMB. I am eagerly attending the class everyday. It is amazing how much Samskrit I can speak and understand in just 5 days.

That reminded me that my paternal granduncle (Neerpaje Bheema Bhat) had won Kendra Sahitya Academy award for translating Kalhana's Rajatarangini to Kannada way back in 1998. So I googled and found the announcement in The Tribune. Here it is:

Links: Learn Samskrita through Correspondence

IIMB Presents Vista 2011

2011-09-14T02:11:00.000-07:00

Another edition of IIM Bangalore's premiere Business Festival is back this year. Visit http://www.iimb-vista.com/ to know more about competitions, talks, workshops and conclaves organized as part of Vista 2011!

This year also, there are exclusive corporate events with interesting competitions that enable you to come out of the daily job chores and participate and network with like-minded intellectuals!

Corporate Czars

Whether it is a frail or robust economy, corporate strategies have evolved into newer and newer dimensions. Gone are the days when the mergers, acquisitions and partnerships were based on the prevailing regulatory frameworks or ideology of open standards. Strategies for controlling technology and market access have taken interesting routes with IPR battles and IP trading arising as the front-runner in acquisition strategies.

Is it the ego that is playing the daemon? Are market players moving in the direction of mutually assured destruction?
or is it still the strategically thought decisions that win the bet?
Are you ready to play the role of a protagonist to devise strategies for the next big move for one of the leading market player?

Click here to participate!

Deadline for initial submission - September 16

The Next Big Wave

Innovative solutions crafted with a keen market understanding will be the only straw that will keep the companies afloat in this dynamically changing market. The Next Big Wave challenges you to identify innovative solutions for the live and imminent business problems faced by the emerging industry sectors. Can you ride this next big wave ?

Click here to participate!

Deadline for initial submission - September 16

Corporate Quiz

Vista presents Corporate Quiz an exclusive quizzing extravaganza for corporate participants. Hosted by acclaimed quiz masters, with the top corporate teams fighting it out, the winners would have to dig really deep and bring out their best game to the table. So, come and join us for an entertaining and joyful afternoon which is sure to prick your brain at the same time. Let the sparks fly!

Rise and Raise your voice against Corruption

2011-08-19T05:27:00.000-07:00

I have been gone for a whole six months now. Now that I am back, I will tell you a story.

It was Aug 2007. My family had just moved to our new flat in a very calm and quiet area of Bangalore (yes, there exists such a place!). We were the first occupants in our 70+ flats apartment complex. Having moved from Jayanagar, where everything was a stone's throw away, we thought it was only matter of days to get our BSNL connection transferred and installed at our house and get Internet connection in the new house. Little did we know that we would be fighting a long battle against the system and against corruption.

My brother, father and I started making routine visits to the nearest BSNL office for connection. We gave an application and were told that they were short of cables and couldn't service our request and that we had to wait. My brother went to the Regional BSNL office and met the officer and told him how important it is to have a phone connection, since Airtel, Reliance hadn't started their service in our area back then and he needed Internet connection for his study related activities and his sister is a software engineer and needs to work from home. After couple of months, the update was that BSNL didn't have permission for road cutting in order to lay down the cable, hence we had to wait. Adter some more time, it was back to 'no cable' and 'no BBMP permission for road cutting'. We asked them give it in writing.

1 year had passed. After going from pillar to post, we were thoroughly harassed. Bangalore is the IT capital, the Silicon Valley of India with all amenities and services. It was ridiculous that we couldn't get a BSNL connection for our home. We consulted our uncle who is a prominent lawyer in Karnataka High Court. He asked us to provide him with all the documents and he got the case ready. Finally we filed a case against BSNL in the consumers forum. When the case was to come for hearing, we posted an RTI application to BSNL asking for status of the work(asked specific questions seeking answers). In a month, we got a lame reply from BSNL. Our uncle included that in his arguments and the judge fined BSNL and asked it to pay us Rs. 7,500 for the delay. Within a week, we got our BSNL connection.

RTI application is truly empowering. We didn't bribe the officials with a single rupee(maybe that's why they didn't give a connection for more than a year). Our complaints had fallen on deaf ears. No action was taken on erring officers. If a powerful Jan Lokpal bill was there, maybe our voice would have been heard sooner.

Friends, it's truly a fight for our rights. Right to get a phone connection without having to bribe someone. Right to get a gas connection, a ration card and documents from government offices without having to face harassment. And if harassed it is our right to be heard. These officers are people working for US. Let us show solidarity in our fight against corruption and fast once a day.

P.S.: Prof J Ram asked us in class today, 'how many of you are fasting?'. No one answered. He said, 'guys, it's not bad to skip a meal to show support. It's even healthy'. I was ashamed. Now on, I am involving myself in the fight against corruption. Maybe once we get a bill of the people, for the people and by the people, our country might be a better place to live.

I'm a Star!

2011-02-22T09:14:00.000-08:00

I have been voted as the Star of the Quarter for Q2 for PGSEM @ IIMB.

Yay!

Of a fall and breaks

2010-12-13T06:18:00.000-08:00

There is truly someone up there who decides who gets a break and when, no matter what we puny mortals have planned for.

A surgery. An MRI scan. A CT scan. an ultrasound. an X-Ray. A spinal headache, countless injections, countless tablets.

I have had it all in the past week. An experience enough for a lifetime!

It has been 10days since I fell from scooty and went through unspeakable pain. After a knee joint fracture and a surgery to fix it, now that I have been forced to stay in bed for the next 5 weeks, I am quite relieved. The worst has passed and now is the time for resting and for healing. After recently turning an year older and (hopefully) wiser, I haven't had the heart to ask 'why me?' but have thought 'if it has to be me, so be it!'. That has given me courage to carry on and have faith in myself.

To avoid turning my top shelf from becoming a devil's workshop, I became member of Just Books today (with due permission from my doctor of course!) and I am feeling like a kid in a candy store. Within minutes of becoming a member, I have 2 dozen books in my reading queue. I am really really happy to have got a breathing space, I realise how much I have missed reading fiction. I am breathlessly waiting for the first batch of books to arrive tomorrow. I am going for a vacation, to the world of make believe, a world which some others imagined and brought to life, a world full of action, romance, thriller, horror and happiness.

And oh ya, in all the madness, I am truly very very happy to have become a proud aunt of a beautiful nephew :) :). I wish I could be with my sister and nephew instead of here. Other than that, this break (not the bone break, the rest) is most welcome. I don't think I have had this much free time since I started working.

Happy reading and happy getting well soon - to me :-)

P.S. All belated birthday gifts and get well soon gifts are being accepted now ;)

Insanely insane.....

2010-11-15T21:56:00.000-08:00

This week is insane. I am neck deep in high water. Too much work at office and submissions pending in college and one last test & project presentation coming on the same day. I don't know how I will manage. A hundred thanks to friends who are managing it without me... One more weekend to go and that will be the end of 6th term i.e. 1.5 years milestone crossed.

All personal tasks are pending since I have to be in office all week and in college on weekends. Didn't know that 4 subjects would be so highly demanding. Entrepreneurship and New Venture Creation, Social Entrepreneurship, B2B Marketing and International Business Negotiation Skills. All in all, quite satisfied with the courses taken this term.

Meanwhile, got 4 subjects allotted for the next term. Like always, I haven't got that ONE finance course I seriously wanted to take. Well, for the next term then.

So long...

Good bye dear friend

2010-11-12T05:39:00.000-08:00

My friend, my soul mate left me yesterday.

All of a sudden, she went blank... Staring blankly at me, she gave no signs of life. My heart stopped for a moment. "Oh my God!", I thought, "how can God take her away from me? she is my lifeline". I called to her lovingly again and again. My cajols couldn't wake her up. A desperate wail escaped my lips. What was I to do? Where was I to go? My entire life depended on her. She knew everything about me. I could turn to no one else.

I tried resurrecting her with a faint hope that she wouldn't dare give up on me. But this time, it was not so. She truly had left me. I took her to her kind of doctor, he gave me a brief spark of hope that she might not be brain dead after all... May she return to life and give me my life back.

Dear friend, I wish you were still with me. You have been there for me through thick and thin for the past 15months. If only you could be with me for some more years. Thank you so much for all you have done for me. You were the 'apple' of my eyes my friend. Adieus, my blackberry...

UPDATE: My dearest darling Blackberry miraculously sprang back to life after the technicians told me the display wasn't working and that I had to take her to the BB Service Center. Miracles do happen!

SVYM and Dr Balu, a unique Social Entrepreneur

2010-11-03T03:16:00.000-07:00

There are several moments in a person’s life that some stark truths stare him/her right in the face. What the person decides to do about it determines what he/she will accomplish in life. The fact that Dr. Balu did decide to take some action, dedicated his life to it and made a huge social impact is truly remarkable. It also struck me that one always starts in a small way and then builds on the foundations of his work and extends it to include a larger section of the society. That is how social changes and improvements come about.

SVYM is not-for-profit, non-religious, non-political, voluntary organization. It was started by a group of young medical students led by Dr. R. Balasubramaniam at the Mysore Medical College in 1984, who were starting to feel that the career in medicine they dreamt of pursuing was very different from the practice of medicine around them. They believed they had in them to make a difference and make a positive impact on the lives of the poor & the marginalized. And so, they started the Swami Vivekananda Youth Movement (SVYM). Dr. Balu shared with us how he was deeply influenced by the writings of Swami Vivekananda at the tender age of 17 and the touching incident about the death of hypertensive patient which prompted him to start community service.

The breadth and depth of activities SVYM have been able to cover in these 25 years is astounding and is a testament to their dedication and commitment towards making a difference in the lives of the poor. SVYM undertakes community based Health and Education projects and several Community Development Initiatives, catering to a populace of about 300,000 comprising both tribals and non-tribals. SVYM is working on hundreds of projects in Health, Education, Community Development and trains the rural youth to be self sufficient, self confident and guides them to lead a dignified way of life.

“If you measure success by the number of children who have become doctors, engineers and MBAs, perhaps I can be considered as a failure”, announced the nonchalant speaker. He also gave us instances where young tribal boys aged 5-6 knew precisely how to hunt, to identify leaves of 160 types, even mention that the honey released by a tree is toxic and can make one go mad. It again reminded me that what we need in India is an education system that helps us take “Indian way” of life forward. It must help us revive the art, crafts, cultures and native wisdom that have been present for generations together. It must encourage experimentation, practical experiences rather than the rote system we have become so accustomed to. Like Dr. Balu mentioned, one shouldn’t force the tribals to conform to the standards of civilized society; they live in harmony with the nature and protect the ecosystem. Reckless modernization destroys the environment and their way of life. Deforestation, indiscriminate mining have made them abandon usage of traditional wisdom, natural instincts, but they don’t fit in today’s world anymore. Exactly this reason has made youth in one third of the country to take up weapons and fight against the state. The work carried out by Dr. Balu and his team in rehabilitating the tribals is truly commendable.

Dr Balu speaks on educational innovations of SVYM, at Harvard (Photo: http://blog.svym.net/)

One thing that intrigued me was that Dr. Balu referred to turning to Swami Vivekananda, Shankaracharya for inspiration. He also mentioned that great scholars have mentioned so many great things centuries before the western world came up with the theory. Our Vedas, Upanishads, Gita have propagated the ancient and righteous way of life thousands of years ago. Our mainstream education doesn’t try to propagate this wisdom in any way. This ancient knowledge is available only for those who go in search of it. So it is good that he has continuously incorporated these Indian values in his work.

Attending Dr. Balu’s energetic lecture on 16^th Oct was a truly eye opening experience for me. It got me thinking on what I could do to serve my community. I have taken so much from the society, now I should be able to give back in a meaningful way that could make a great impact on the society. I have got a free education from Class VI till Class XII in Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (set up under Ministry of HRD to provide quality education to the rural children). It has given me an all-round development, has made me what I am today. An idealistic middle class upbringing has inculcated just values that have made me take up volunteering activities in my spare time. Listening to and interacting with social entrepreneurs has been an enriching experience so far, it has made my resolve of trying to bring change stronger.

Change will be more universal if we are to successfully amend the existing rules and regulations that hinder our society’s progress. NGOs are actively fighting for citizen’s rights and play a major role in influencing the policy changes. It is heartening to see more and more educated people getting into this sector and working towards positive change in the society.

Porsche and others

2010-10-24T10:51:00.000-07:00

Just concluded Carrera Task Force negotiation as part of IBNS. As I am strictly against putting up my/others' pics online, I am only posting these beauties for all of you to see.

To think Porsche wanted to ramp down 911 Carrera and stop the production way back in the 70s!! OMG!! I would have missed such wonderful trips cruising down M25.

Jai's Lexus and Carrera S:

Rear-engine, water cooled Porsche 911 Carrera S. Mr. VP of R&D, did I hear "obsolete design" from you??!!!!

Joe's Porsche Targa 4s:

Targa with sun-roof. They did not discontinue this for good, after all....

Others:
(Can I get one of these please?)

Humara Paisa Humara Hisaab - The Power of Right to Information

2010-10-24T02:38:00.000-07:00

Social Entrepreneurship in the 6th term has become one of the most interesting, thought provoking subjects I have taken at IIMB. OB classes made me take a look at myself, but SE on the other hand, is making me think how I should look at the world around me and how I can make a difference. In the journey called Social Entrepreneurship, we have come face to face with so many people who have selflessly dedicated their lives to making others lives less of a struggle.

One such person is Nikhil Dey. Founder of Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sanghathan, a non-party peoples' organization, held a guest lecture at IIMB yesterday. MKSS famously used the right to information as tool to draw attention to the underpayment of daily wage earners and farmers on government projects, and more generally, to expose corruption in government expenditure. Initially, MKSS lobbied government to obtain information such as muster rolls (employment and payment records) and bills and vouchers relating to purchase and transportation of materials. This information was then crosschecked at Jan Sunwais (public hearings) against actual testimonies of workers. The public hearings were incredibly successful in drawing attention to corruption and exposing leakages in the system. They were particularly significant because of their use of hard documentary evidence to support the claims of villagers.

We live in our sheltered world, have all the right answers to our problems, and think that our managers are our biggest problems in life. We think about how much more package can we get if we jump to another company. We want a bigger car, a bigger house. But what about the 60% of our population, which doesn't even get a Rs. 100 per day? What about them who have no money, no power, no education to guide them through? Take a look at this video and you will know what MKSS is accomplishing in Rajasthan.

We are all political. Right from the way we treat womenfolks at house, the way we treat our domestic help, the way we see what is going on around us. We are deeply political. But when it comes to doing something about it, we raise our hands and say "what can I do?" or "Our country has gone to the dogs. Only God can save it". We have abstained from the political process all together and have left it to the gundas who are our so called 'leaders', who are only interested in making money for themselves and people who elect them are jokers to them. Have we tried to find out what our elected representatives have done for us? Have we tried to get information about what development works are going on in our area? Can we find out who laid our roads that develop potholes every 3 months, and who was the engineer who okayed it and passed the payments? Do we try to get information on why all the greenery of Bangalore is being sacrificed in the name of development?

But can we really make a difference?

YES, WE CAN.

The right to information act is truly powerful. The government has never been accountable to the people so far. The government is ours, the MPs and MLAs are our servants. We chose them to do our work for us. RTI is that tool with which we can ask them what the hell are they doing, how they are spending our money. The money that we earn by travelling to the other end of the city - day in & day out, the money that we earn by slogging every weekday of the month.

Today, I invite all of you to give it a thought and to participate in our democracy. Try to get involved. If every informed citizen like you and me takes the responsibility to get involved in our democracy, we can make our society better. Especially at the time when our MLAs are ready to be sold for obscene amount of money due to their greed for power, position and wealth. Especially when the legislature is a place for goondas who have made a mockery of democracy. Especially when the elected MLAs have brought shame to the state.

Links: Longer version of the video is available here.
A video that every Indian should watch: Aruna Roy at IISC, Bangalore

हमी नवोदय हो....

2010-10-04T03:48:00.000-07:00

End of 1st Year

2010-05-29T03:22:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since I have posted about what is going on with my MBA. I had too much fun sitting in class listening to Operations Management, Corporate Finance and Organisational Behaviour and then preparing for the next week's classes in the first half of 4th term. Second half of the 4th term, however,got too hot to handle, with me struggling to be up-to-date with readings and then presentations looming large on the horizon and 3 assignments due dates closing in so fast that my head was spinning.

All that is history now. First year MBA is over and I am enjoying my well deserved break. Now that there are no classes for a month, with the constant pressure out of the way, days seem empty. Today is a saturday and I am wondering how am I going to spend my free time at home till Sunday evening. Never thought I will think this way...

So many things to write about, so little patience. Let me see how much I end up writing in another fortnight.

Till then..

Tidbits for the summer

2010-04-26T00:37:00.000-07:00

Use your sunglasses and umbrellas without hesitation this blazing summer. To heck with those who stare at you. I have had a 100% eye infection-free rate for the past 2 years.

Don't eat chats from roadside thela. Gastroenteritis is on its way otherwise.

Drink plenty of water. Go easy on that oily greasy food. Decrease intake of coffee/tea and enjoy a glass of nimboo paani or fresh fruit juice. Eat lite, feel lite.

Use cotton dresses/tops/shirts and a pleasant scented perfume please. Most people use one strong perfume all round the year, make life difficult for those sitting near them(in bus, especially).

Keep a sunscreen at hand all times, and apply it on face too.

Spend your free time with your loved ones, family and friends. Maybe read a book or simply use the time to sleep :-)

Windsor Castle

2010-04-01T03:26:00.000-07:00

I visited Windsor castle on an afternoon. In winter, England gets engulfed by dark by 4pm. By the time I reached there, it was 3:15pm.

There is a also boating facility that takes you on a river cruise of Thames from this place.

Entrance to the castle was closed by that time and could only talk to the guards and click few flicks.

It is one of the principal official residences of the British monarch. Queen Elizabeth II spends many weekends of the year at the castle, using it for both state and private entertaining.

Queen was in residence and hence you can see the flag hoisted on the Round Tower.

Above is the entrance to Windsor castle

The castle is surrounded by road housing shops selling souvenirs, restaurants housed in beautiful ancient buildings preserved even today. A walk to around the castle was pleasant. Since I had time to kill, I crossed Windsor bridge and walked till Eton college. Eton reminded me of a sleepy little town with its hundreds of years of history, housed quite charming shops, each of which had a different story to tell.

Avalanche.. Is it really how it feels?

2010-03-31T08:01:00.000-07:00

Heard a song written by Leonard Cohen. Very deep, meaningful, moving...

Well I stepped into an avalanche,
it covered up my soul;
when I am not this hunchback that you see,
I sleep beneath the golden hill.
You who wish to conquer pain,
you must learn, learn to serve me well.

You strike my side by accident
as you go down for your gold.
The cripple here that you clothe and feed
is neither starved nor cold;
he does not ask for your company,
not at the centre, the centre of the world.

When I am on a pedestal,
you did not raise me there.
Your laws do not compel me
to kneel grotesque and bare.
I myself am the pedestal
for this ugly hump at which you stare.

You who wish to conquer pain,
you must learn what makes me kind;
the crumbs of love that you offer me,
they're the crumbs I've left behind.
Your pain is no credential here,
it's just the shadow, shadow of my wound.

I have begun to long for you,
I who have no greed;
I have begun to ask for you,
I who have no need.
You say you've gone away from me,
but I can feel you when you breathe.

Do not dress in those rags for me,
I know you are not poor;
you don't love me quite so fiercely now
when you know that you are not sure,
it is your turn, beloved,
it is your flesh that I wear.

I'd give my right arm to know what he was feeling when he wrote this composition. You can listen to this song here.

30% and counting...

2010-03-22T02:34:00.000-07:00

When I came back from my vacation in Dec, I thought I would have to write so many posts to share my experience of England, even though it was a very short stay. It was my first foreign vacation, after all. But as days passed, I got so involved in my work and study that I lost count of time. When you are studying at a place like IIMB, that too along with your work, a week's lag will take you down if you are not careful.

Finished my 3rd term and realised that I hadn't posted anything for 3 whole months! By the time I could relax some, 4th term had already begun...(Yeah, that's why the title, I am a 30% MBA! ;-) ). I am 2 weeks into my 4th term now and am already buried under books.. Operations Management, Corporate Finance and Organisational Behaviour are the 3 subjects this time. All seem very interesting and have big fat books to be studied. As mentioned in the post here, delving into human psychology, studying human behaviour has started giving me a deep insight into personality types, attittudes, perceptions etc and has started making me more tolerant. If I used to be irritated with people earlier, today I have become more analytic. Prof. C M Reddy is a good prof and keeps the entire class engaged and has lively discussion contrary to my expectations that the classes would be boring.

Operations Management under the famous Prof. L S Murty is making me look for all aspects of operations in management, utilisation of resources, efficiency. I have started reading 'The Goal' by Eliyahu M Goldratt& Jeff Cox. Would recommend this book to everyone involved with operations or any aspect of management.

Corporate Finance is another subject I am following very keenly. Looks at time value of money, stock and bond evaluation, risk and returns, financial markets, cost of capital, capital structure and so on and so forth. Prof. Sabarinathan G. is an IIMB alumni and a former director of a private equity firm. It is truly a privilege to be in such great company.

UK Trip via Dubai

2010-03-21T02:32:00.000-07:00

I landed in Dubai airport on an early 1st December morning. I had idiotically declined the air hostess' inquiry for breakfast and had used that time to sleep and by the time I reached Dubai I was starving and cursing myself for my foolishness. Since I had another 3 hours to kill at the Dubai airport before hopping onto my flight to London, I purposefully strode near my check-in gate and filled my belly with a stupid dry sandwich from Cosi and hot sugarless coffee which burnt my tongue.

Slightly deviating from the topic, the early morning view of Dubai from above was simply breathtaking! Vast expanse of desert, divided into grids of roads, orange halogen lights dotting both sides of roads, looked heavenly.. Traffic movement was heavy at most places even at 5am in the morning.

Dubai airport is in 3 levels, each level spanning for miles.. I did not explore much on my way and was happy clicking photos on the level where my next check-in was scheduled.
On the way back, I had 7 hours to myself. Went to each and every duty-free shop on all the levels. Bought Gold (yessss!!!!!!), loaded my already exploding hand luggage with heaps of chocolates, and digged into a veg Mac, hoping that it was actually Vegetarian, unlike the Hindu "veg" meal which turned out to be Hindu non-veg meal served to me on the Emirates flight!

When I was returning from my vacation, I already had had my fill of great European architecture, expensive sports cars, and loads of photos(on all you are going to hear a lot I am afraid) that I did not bother with photographs...
View of level 3 from inside
Dubai airport looks like a narrow tube on a deserted patch of land, looks magnificent from the inside.
Above is the view of the airport from the runway. Gave me an impression that I was moving inside the stomach of a snake all along!

Plate Change or Cognitive Dissonance?

2010-03-18T08:00:00.000-07:00

We all have experienced irritation when someone has commented that our way of doing certain things are wrong and that what they do is right; suddenly when the same people have to do things our way they come up lame excuses to justify that they are right (without acknowledging the fact that what we were originally doing was not wrong either?). We call it "plate change" ("usne plate change kar diya!" rings a bell?). Well, my Organisational Behaviour textbook tells me that it is called cognitive dissonance.

Example 1: A friend has consistently argued that the quality of Indian cars isn't up to that of imports and that he'd never own anything but a Japanese or German car. B his dad gives him an Indica and suddenly Indian cars are not that bad anymore.

Example 2: A relative who always argued that flat can not be considered a house, has to buy a flat in Bangalore for investment(houses in Bangalore are a dream now, of course) and now says that house or flat, what is the difference, everything is crowded here anyways!

When people experience conflict between attitude and behaviour, they try to find a middle ground to reduce the discomfort caused by dissonance. Next time you do a plate change, I will tell you that your congnitive dissonance can't fool me! ;-)

Couldn't help writing about it. OB as a subject seems fascinating. It approaches human behaviour in a scientific way to analyse why we do/feel/act the way we do in different situations. It also explains methodically at one point why(we all know why!)/how an employee feels disgruntled when he doesn't get promotion that he feels he deserves, especially when it went to a coworker who deserves it less and starts looking for a change in job. If managers started responding to employees, rewarding those who do good work rather than turning a blind eye, so much attrition wouldn't happen. Mangers often "don't get it" and they assume that all is going well is what the writers of the book say. Is any manager listening?

रुकावट के लिए खेद है

2010-02-24T02:00:00.000-08:00

Haven't been able to update my blog since my return from vacation. I have been immersed in studies. Watch out for interesting updates next week.

Oh, what a day!

2009-12-23T21:05:00.000-08:00

"It is snowing, it is snowing!", Maya's delighted screams woke me up. I peeped out of the window to find the green grass looking strangely grayish white and the bare trees appearing as if they have got a whiff of powder on them. It was Wednesday and my last day in England.

Couple of hours later, I was in Tesco doing last minute shopping when Emma pointed out, "Look, it is snowing". Little flecks of snow were falling down. The entire surrounding looked as if skies were pouring down little pearls on earth. I gladly walked around in the parking lot immersing myself in gleeful joy, appreciating the nature's wonder.

On the way back, Chess valley had already started becoming white. The snowfall was harder now and the entire valley which was green moments earlier was shrouded in white. The roofs of houses were white and so were the roads, with track marks clearly appearing. There I was, drinking in the beauty of nature and getting ready to bid adieu to a beautiful countryside. What a perfect way to end a great vacation!

P.S. The moment I landed in Bangalore I saw a perfect rainbow and a beautiful sunset on the way back to town. Guess Bangalore was welcoming me back, trying to make me forget the perfect English winter... At that moment, I fell in love with my land. Again.

Shakespeare County - Stratford

2009-12-06T09:00:00.000-08:00

Shakespeare's county is situated in Stratford, which is built on Avon river and hence called Stratford-upon-Avon. Shakespeare's house has been preserved till date and is open to visitors. Shakespeare Center hosts a gallery which gives a detailed account of Shkespaere's life and works. The gallery opens to a garden which leads you to Shakespeare's house.

The house has 3 bed rooms, living room, work shop and an extension to the house. The guide explains the origins of phrases like 'Good night sleep tight' and 'I had a ropey night'. In the 16th century, the cot had wooden famework and had a base of ropes, which would be tightened every night by the servent. And so comes the phrase "Good night, sleep 'tight'". If not tied properly, it would stick to one's back and make one uncomfortable. And hence the phrase, 'I had a ropey night'.

The exit leads to the Gift shop. The shop has a range of souveniers to choose from.

It is really amazing to know that almost every phrase you use in English was written by this one man. A man, whose writings inspire millions every day and are showcased by plays, drama, movie, songs and what not.

Stratford-upon-Avon has canal built on river Avon and makes for a beautiful sight. Small boats travel through these canals all the way upto Paris on one side and to London on the other. Water levels at each stage of the canal are different. A boatsman will open up the lock at one level, which causes the water in the next stage to rush in and raise the water level of your location. This helps you move on further. Once you reach the end of that level, you would open the lock of the next level. This story continues until you reach the destination. Amazing! The streets are dotted with ultra posh shops like Austin Reed, Marks and Spencer, Debenhams, Goldsmith so on and so forth. All the buildings are from the 17th Century and have been preserved in their original form.

The way to Stratford has breathtaking scenaries which makes this trip worthwhile and very satisfying. One can spot many castles along the way which have been turned into Hotels and Spas.

Cold start, sunny spells

2009-12-03T23:46:00.000-08:00

Cold start, sunny spells. That's what the BBC predicts of the weather today here in Birmingham. Poised to be at 6 degrees, I am about to set off for an exploration of the city of Birmingham.

Yesterday's shopping at BullRing shopping center went well. To be frank, I found stuff cheaper here than in Bangalore. Maybe the X'mas season has got to do something about it. And getting good deals on GAP, H&M, CK feels good( :-) ). All the 'super brands' that we always long for have 'Made in India', 'Made in Bangladesh' 'Made in China', 'Made in Vietnam', 'Made in Turkey' tags on them. Now I know why we Indians get a raw deal back home. All the good stuff gets exported and we get the second rated stuff which is overpriced... Just as I had always suspected! X-(

Did I tell you about my first flight experience? Well, that's a story for another day..

Peace, finally!

2009-12-03T00:06:00.000-08:00

As this post comes to you, I am sitting on a cozy couch in a beautiful home just off Birmingham. I am here in England enjoying my well deserved vacation(that's what I tell myself anyway). I have the entire day for myself and I am here watchng BBC Breakfast and blogging away. The curse of being a software engineer!

The temperature is 2 degrees today. Its windy and is raining outside. I don't envy those who have to be outside in this weather :-). All those instructions I got back home are coming handy. Though I haven't been out in the open much, I haven't had to use my gloves so far, and that's an achievement for me. For a first timer, I am doing all right here (I guess). I have people asking me if the train stops in certain stations, and I am answering their queries... ;-). I am a natural!

I am being pampered by my hosts, being taken care of in a manner fit for a queen. And then there are two very good kids at home, especially a cute cuddly, very talkative 4 year old, who has been teaching me to count to ten in French. (Oh Yes!!). Today I am just relaxing at home and then off for shopping in the evening. Tomorrow, I plan to set on foot for some exploration on my own. So far, so good.

Stuck between rock and ....

2009-11-12T23:17:00.000-08:00

The worst of situations bring out the best in me. Bulb jal gaya...!!

Being the lazy bone that I am, I usually go about doing my chores just about right. Nothing extra ordinary. I have realised that the more pressurised I am(until handle-able situation), I come out with flying colours.

I was tensed with work and studies, and a project ppt and presentation coming up, I stressed out. When friends and family support you, tell you not to worry and that you can do it, becomes music to one's ears.

Could catch Ajab Prem Ki Gazab Kahaani earlier this week. A refreshing movie I must say. Watching it in movie theater after 2 long years was a double whammy.

With two more quizzes and one final exam in each of the subjects, I have lot of stuff to complete. Work pressure is not helping either. Looking forward to a vacation now. Wonder how UK would be!

Work, study et al

2009-11-01T09:45:00.000-08:00

I had totally forgotten that I have a blog. The pressures of life are about to get to me, but I am safe so far.

Studywise: Macroeconomics has interesting concepts, but the oh-so-complex graphs have my head spinning. Managing Organisations has those surprise(our confidence intervals on estimation are getting better and better!!) quizzes for which I am never prepared. QM1. Do you need to ask anymore?

Workwise: Hectic hectic hectic.

Lifewise: :) Am I still alive??

Well, it wont be so bad in a week I guess. Might be able to post something better. Well, hopefully..

Where is the world going?

2009-09-18T08:52:00.000-07:00

One question I am frequently asked now-a-days is ‘are you not on facebook’? When I say no, the sense of incredulity that grips the other person is quite perplexing to me. I have stayed away from all of the social networking sites, but for one. That itself seems redundant to me. But for the sake of keeping in touch with some near and dear ones, I have maintained that account. Now that the entire world is moving towards Facebook, I think I will be forced to use Facebook very soon. Today, I read Ramayana, the Facebook way! And I even got a BnCC invite to join Facebook!!

With all the frenzy of announcing to the world that 'you are sitting' and that 'you are standing' and that you hate pasta and then putting up your entire life on display through your albums, is very scary and a big no no to a private person like me. I wouldn't do it for the world. So, when one doesn't upload any photos and doesn't share anything personal, it is no fun, ain't it?

The amount of time I will have to spend on logging in to these networking sites and checking the statuses, I will prefer to use for other activities which will benefit me in some way. As it is, deleting the invites to umpteen useless sites is becoming a big task for me.

Well, even Mr US President Obama has cautioned youngsters to be cautious while posting every aspect of life online, maybe people will sit up and notice. Not only that, when everything is online, the world is losing touch of itself. It has already reached a point where people talk to others sitting next to them online than personally waving and saying a hi, where is the world going?

Random thoughts:
A piece of article recently caught my attention. It was regarding facebook’s search being powered by bing. Now a days, seeing ‘powered by bing’ statement takes my mind back to my strategy classes and makes me wonder the implications of MS’s takeover of Yahoo’s search engine.

Life is like that

2009-08-30T04:26:00.000-07:00

Oh, it is good to be back! With Swine flu scaring the hell out of everybody, and exam fever running high in my own class, everything has been a commotion this past month. With one assignment submission done and two more to go this week, 'hectic' has taken a new meaning in my life.

Also, I am entrusted with work in Branding and Communication Cell and Career Management Cell, of which I am a member.

With quarter 1 out of the way, I am looking forward to quarter 2. And I have resolved not to repeat the mistakes I did in qtr 1 and manage my time better and get the best out of the course. In the meantime, I am enjoying peace and tranquility till Sept 10.

The time table for qtr 2 has already been put up and I will be studying Macroeconomics, Managing Organisations and Quantitative Methods - 1.

All said and done, life is interesting and I wouldn't trade it for anything else in the world.

My MBA - one month and counting

2009-07-19T20:00:00.000-07:00

It has been exactly a month since I started my MBA and my world has turned upside down. I have been studying Microeconomics, Financial Accounting and Strategic Management. As I write this, I am done with the midterm exams for the first two and gearing up to take SM midterm this weekend.

The chilly breeze and slight drizzle on my face while riding to IIMB every week is the one thing I cherish the most. The ambiance and the stone structures of IIM are awe inspiring; I remember the day I went for interview and sat in the auditorium for Convergenz and wishfully thought it would be a dream come true to study at this wonderful place. The professors are great and very knowledgeable. Phrases like 'competitive advantage', 'leveraging strengths','economies of scope' have started making sense(finally!!) and have become a part of my lingo. To think of it, when people used to effortlessly drop these phrases, I used to wonder how smart they were and what those words possibly meant :-D

Wonderful it surely is, but I must also mention the other side of the story, which relates to life being 'upside down'. Since we don't stay in hostel, has contributed to hilarious incidents. The first week itself, my group members-me included, thinking that we need to make presentation in strategy class, struggled to find time to prepare the case study, met on yahoo messenger and gtalk to discuss the case and then connected to each other through conference calls, only to find out on Thursday night that we should have analysed the case from Porter's five forces angle and then stayed awake till late into the night and got to the class next day half awake. To top it all, we found out on Friday morning that we were not required to do any presentation, but we had to prepare accounting cases, not strategy!! If this was the case with strategy, midterms were all googlies and bouncers. And now, I am sitting on 3 assignments to be submitted in a month's time. Reminds me of my JNV days!!

My life has changed drastically and I guess it will be the norm for the next 2.5 years. I decline all invites for shopping(!!), have been deferring going to all my friends' places, my family considers me absent for all important chores. I do all transactions only online and my nap time while traveling to office has turned into my study time(which I regret the most)...

In the mean time, class of 2009 arranged Pehel on 12th July 2009 and had a blast arranging and participating in it. The journey so far has been amazing. So much of knowledge packed sessions every week, interacting with classmates twice a week and so many seminars on various topics, involving the industry experts and IIMB faculties, make all the efforts worthwhile. I now vouch for the fact - 'No pain, no gain'!

The five competitive forces that shape strategy

2009-06-28T23:59:00.001-07:00

The five competitive forces that shape strategy by Michael Porter forms the basis of Strategic Management, one of the subjects I am studying for 1st quarter in MBA. The following video illustrates what these forces are and how they interact with each other and shape the strategy of a company and an industry all together.

What I like about this is, coupled with the case studies that we do in class, it makes perfect sense!

Alternatively, this video can be viewed here

ಬೆಟ್ಟದ ಜೀವ

2009-06-23T20:37:00.000-07:00

ಶಿವರಾಮ ಕಾರಂತರ ಬೆಟ್ಟದ ಜೀವ ಓದುವ ಅವಕಾಶ ಕೆಲವು ದಿನಗಳ ಹಿಂದೆ ಒದಗಿತು. ಇದೇ ಮೊದಲ ಬಾರಿಗೆ ಕಾರಂತರ ಕೃತಿ ಓದಿದ್ದು. ಓದುತ್ತಿದ್ದಂತೆಯೇ ಊರಿನ ನೆನಪು ಉಮ್ಮಳಿಸಿ ಬಂತು. ಎಷ್ಟು ಚೆನ್ನಾಗಿ ಸುಳ್ಯ, ಪಂಜ ಸೀಮೆಯ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ವರ್ಣಿಸಿ ಬರೆದಿದ್ದಾರೆಂದರೆ ಮರಳಿ ಮಣ್ಣಿಗೆ ಹೋಗಿಬಿಡುವ ಆಸೆಯಾಯಿತು. ಮಧ್ಯೆ ವಿಟ್ಲ, ಪುತ್ತೂರು ಸೀಮೆಯ ಬಗ್ಗೆಯೂ ಉಲ್ಲೇಖಿಸಿದ್ದು ಓದಿ ಸಂತೋಷವಾಯಿತು. ಗುತ್ತಿಗಾರು ಬೆಳ್ಳಾರೆಯ ನಡುವೆ ಹಾದಿ ತಪ್ಪಿ ಗೋಪಾಲ ಭಟ್ಟರ ಮನೆ ತಲುಪುವ ಲೇಖಕ ಶಿವರಾಮ, ಭಟ್ಟರು ಹಾಗೂ ಮಡದಿ ಶಂಕರಿಯ ಆತಿಥ್ಯಕ್ಕೆ ಮನಸೋತು ಅವರ ಪ್ರೀತಿಯ ಕೋರಿಕೆಯ ಮೇಲೆ ಕೆಲವು ದಿನಗಳನ್ನು ಅಲ್ಲೇ ಕಳೆಯುತ್ತಾನೆ. ಅಲ್ಲಿನ ಅವರ ದೈನಂದಿನ ಜೀವನ, ಏಕತಾನತೆ, ಕೃಷಿಕ ಜೀವನ, ಕಾಡಿನ ಮಧ್ಯದ ಬದುಕಿನ ಹಲವು ಮುಖಗಳನ್ನು ಲೇಖಕ ಕೆಲವೇ ದಿನಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಕಾಣುತ್ತಾನೆ. ತಾಯಿ ಶಂಕರಿ ಮನೆ ಬಿಟ್ಟು ಹೋದ ಮಗನಿಗಾಗಿ ಹಾತೊರೆಯುವುದು, ಭಟ್ಟರು ದುಃಖವನ್ನು ಮರೆಯಲು ಕೆಲಸಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ತೊಡಗುವುದು, ಸಾಕು ಮಗ ನಾರಾಯಣ ಅವನ ಹೆಂಡತಿಯ ತೊಳಲಾಟ, ಆದರೂ ಕಾಡಿನಲ್ಲಿ ನಾಡು ಕಟ್ಟಿ ಅದರಲ್ಲಿ ತಮ್ಮ ಜೀವನದ ಸಾರ್ಥಕತೆ ಕಾಣುವುದು ಎಲ್ಲವೂ ಮನಸ್ಸಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಬೆಚ್ಚಗೆ ಕುಳಿತು ಬಿಟ್ಟವು.

ಕಾರಂತರ ಬರವಣಿಗೆ ಎಷ್ಟು ಸುಲಲಿತವೋ, ಅವರು ಬರೆದಿರುವುದು ಅಷ್ಟೇ ಸತ್ಯ. ನನಗೆ ಆಶ್ಚರ್ಯವನ್ನುಂಟು ಮಾಡಿದ ಸಂಗತಿ ಎಂದರೆ ಇತ್ತೀಚಿಗೆ ಚರ್ಚೆಗೆ ಬಂದಂತಹ ವಿಷಯಗಳನ್ನೆಲ್ಲ ಆಗಿನ ಕಾಲದಲ್ಲೇ ಅವರು ಬರೆದಿದ್ದುದು. ಪೂರ್ವಿಕರ ಕಾಲದಿಂದ ಬಂದಂತಹ ಆಸ್ತಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಅಡಿಕೆ, ತೆಂಗು, ಬಾಳೆ, ಭತ್ತ ಬೆಳೆಯುವುದು ನಮ್ಮಲ್ಲಿ ಈವರೆಗೂ ನಡೆದುಕೊಂಡು ಬಂದಿದೆ. ಆದರೆ ಮಕ್ಕಳು ವಿದ್ಯಾವಂತರಾಗುತ್ತಿದ್ದಂತೆ ಊರು ಬಿಟ್ಟು ಪಟ್ಟಣಕ್ಕೆ ವಲಸೆ ಹೋಗುವುದು, ಕೆಲಸಕ್ಕೆ ಆಳುಗಳು ಸಿಗದಿರುವುದು, ಬಂದ ಘಟ್ಟದ ಮೇಲಿನ ಜನ ಮಧ್ಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಬಿಟ್ಟು ಹೋಗುವುದು, ಇವೆಲ್ಲ ದೇಶದ ಬೆನ್ನೆಲುಬು ಅನಿಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳುವ ರೈತರಿಗೆ ಎಲ್ಲಿಲ್ಲದ ತೊಂದರೆಯನ್ನುಂಟು ಮಾಡಿವೆ. ಗೋಪಾಲ ಭಟ್ಟರು ಮಗನಿಗೆ ಇಂಗ್ಲೀಷ್ ಕಲಿಸಿದ್ದೆ ತಮಗೆ ಮುಳುವಾಯಿತೇ ಎಂದು ಚಿಂತಿಸಿದಾಗ ನಾನೂ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದು ಅದೇ ಅಲ್ಲವೇ ಎಂಬ ಅಪರಾಧಿ ಭಾವ ಬಂದಿದ್ದು ನಿಜ.

ಭಟ್ಟರು ಕಾಟುಮೂಲೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಕಾಡು ಕಡಿದು ತೋಟ ಮಾಡಿದ ಸಾಹಸ, ಚಿಕ್ಕಂದಿನಲ್ಲಿ ನಾವು ಮಕ್ಕಳು ಬೇಸಿಗೆ ರಜೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಕಾಟುಮೂಲೆಗೆ ಹೋಗಿ ಲಾಗ ಹಾಕಿ, ಮಾವಿನ ಕಾಯಿ/ಹಣ್ಣು ತಿಂದು ಊಟ ಬೇಡ ಅನ್ನುತ್ತಿದ್ದುದನ್ನು ನೆನಪಿಗೆ ತಂದಿತು. ಗುಡ್ಡ ಹತ್ತಲು ಸುಲಭ ದಾರಿ ಇದ್ದರೂ ಸಾಹಸ ಎಂಬ ಹುಂಬ ಧೈರ್ಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಎಲ್ಲೆಲ್ಲೋ ಹೋಗಿ ಜಾರಿ, ಬಿದ್ದು, ಎದ್ದು, ದಿನವೆಲ್ಲ ಕಾಡು ಸುತ್ತಿದ ನೆನಪು ಇನ್ನೂ ಹಸಿಯಾಗಿ ಉಳಿದಿದೆ. ದೇರಣ್ಣ ಗೌಡನು 'ಮಂಗಗಳ ಕಾಟ ಅತಿಯಾಗಿದೆ, ಈ ಬ್ರಾಹ್ಮಣರು ಮಂಗಗಳನ್ನು ಹೊಡೆಯಲೂ ಹಿಂದೆ ಮುಂದೆ ನೋಡುತ್ತಾರೆ' ಎಂದಿದ್ದು, ನನ್ನ ಅಜ್ಜ ಮನೆಯಲ್ಲಿದ್ದ ಕೋವಿಗೆ ಗುಂಡು ಹಾಕಿ ಗಾಳಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಗುಂಡು ಹಾರಿಸುತ್ತಿದ್ದದು ನೆನಪಾಯಿತು. ಭೂತದ ಕೋಲ ಮಾಡಿಸಬೇಕು ಅಯ್ಯ ಎಂದು ಬಟ್ಯ, ಅದಕ್ಕೆ ಖರ್ಚಿಗೆ ಹಣ ಎಲ್ಲಿಂದ ತರಲಿ ಎನ್ನುವ ದೇರಣ್ಣ ಗೌಡ, ನೀವು ಹಣ್ಣು ಕಾಯಿ ಕೊಡಿ ಎಂದು ಭಟ್ಟರು ಎಂದಿದಕ್ಕೆ, ಬಟ್ಯನ 'ನೀವು ಜಪ ತಪ ಮಾಡಿ ವಿಭೂತಿ ಹಚ್ಚುತ್ತೀರಿ, ನಾನು ಕೋಳಿಯ ಬದಲು ತೆಂಗಿನ ಕಾಯಿ ಕೊಟ್ಟರೆ ಕಲ್ಕುಡ ನನ್ನ ರುಂಡವನ್ನೇ ಹಾರಿಸೀತು' ಎಂಬ ಉತ್ತರ ತಮಾಷೆ ಎನಿಸಿತು.

ತೋಟ,ಗದ್ದೆ, ಗುಡ್ಡ, ಅದರ ಪಕ್ಕದಲ್ಲೇ ಹರಿಯುವ ನದಿ, ನದಿಯ ನಂತರ ಕಳನ್ಜಿಮಲೆ ಕಾಡು. ಕಾರಂತರು ಮಾವೆಗೆ ಬಂದಿದ್ದರೂ ಇದೇ ರೀತಿ ಬರೆಯುತ್ತಿದ್ದಾರೋ ಏನೋ... ಅಥವಾ ನಮ್ಮ ಸುಳ್ಯ, ಪುತ್ತೂರು,ವಿಟ್ಲ ಸೀಮೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಇಂಥ ಎಷ್ಟು ಗೋಪಾಲ ಭಟ್ಟರೂ, ಅವರ ಕಥೆಗಳೂ ಕಳೆದು ಹೋಗಿವೆಯೋ ಏನೋ... ಗೋಪಾಲ ಭಟ್ಟರು ಶ್ರಮ ಜೀವಿಯಾಗಿ, ಹಟ ಕಟ್ಟಿ ಸಾಹಸಗಳನ್ನು ಮಾಡುತ್ತಾ, ಮಗನ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ನೊಂದಿದ್ದರೂ ತಾತ್ವಿಕರಂತೆ ಮಾತಾಡಿ ತನಗೆ ತಾನೇ ಸಾಂತ್ವನ ಹೇಳುವ ಪರಿ, ನಾರಾಯಣನ ಜೀವನಕ್ಕೆ ದಾರಿ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಟ್ಟು ಅದರಲ್ಲೇ ಸಂತೋಷ ಕಾಣುವ ತ್ಯಾಗಮಯಿ ಜೀವ, ತನ್ನ ಅರ್ಧಾಂಗಿ ಶಂಕರಿಯ ಮೇಲಿನ ಪ್ರೀತಿ, ಮಮಕಾರ - ಇವುಗಳು ಮನದಾಳಕ್ಕೆ ಇಳಿದು ಉಳಿದು ಬಿಟ್ಟವು.

Orientation 2009 at IIMB - the full story

2009-05-31T07:59:00.000-07:00

It was a very very very hectic weekend at Orientation at IIMB(seniors say - "Get used to it!"), but also fun filled. Orientation, along with L-CUBE activities, not only showed us how physically unfit we are(from all the running around in campus for all the activities) but also got the grey matters working with the case studies...

L-CUBE event kicked in with a debate from the industry experts, PGSEM alumnus and Prof DVR of IIMB on 'Executive MBA - A faster way to the top?' and gave way for interesting view points. After dinner we were asked to participate in cultural events(regarding which I wont divulge anything) which went on till 11:30PM. This was followed by a shocking news that we need to submit a case study before 8AM next day and we got the PGSEM motto - "SomeHow, In Time!" :) Wow! Did life seem really interesting at that moment...

After catching a wink, the formal IIMB PGSEM orientation began and we were addressed by Prof Venkatagiri and Prof Aggarwal. As a part of icebreaker session, we participated in a mystery murder game. Then began the case study by Prof L S Murthy. We all had spent a sleepless night, analysing the case and were very confident that we were prepared and all set for our first case study of our MBA. As Prof Murthy took us through the case, prodding us for points, facts, data and then flipped the case study in such a way that our whole analysis and the sleepless night we had spent analysing, discussing, rearranging the points of the case seemed just ridiculous. Our minds opened up to a new insight of our own 'unconscious incompetence' and came out the auditorium with a wow! moment of my life :)

This followed with more surprise activities had us all running in the campus at night competing with other teams for points and getting stuck in the rain. Boy, is IIMB campus huge or what!

The final day of the orientation had a student profiling activity and also a talk by Sanjay Anandaram on entrepreneurship, the conclusion of orientation program with address by Prof. Pankaj Chandra, Director, IIMB and ended up in Prof. Venkatagiri handling the PGSEM mantle over to Prof Aggarwal. The entire afternoon was then a plethora of quiz, cultural and sports activities. I went back home, with the satisfaction of a weekend well spent and with an enthusiasm to return to the campus at the earliest for classes.

I thoroughly enjoyed all the activities, even though I was exhausted at the end of it. There were many a wow moments(case study, Prof. Venkatagiri speak), many groans(when we were asked to get ourselves in motion), some jubilation(on winning events), some disappointments(on not winning the House Cup). I am not yet ready to go semi-philosophical(Hope you know what I mean ;)), so let us just leave it at that.

Send a mail without forgetting the Subject

2009-05-27T01:57:00.000-07:00

I was looking for a way to make sure that whenever I sent a mail from Outlook, I should not be able to send without a subject line. Finally got a way to do it and here it is:

1. Open your outlook.
2.Press Alt+F11. This opens the Visual Basic editor.
3.On the Left Pane, one can see “Microsoft Outlook Objects”, expand this. Now one can see the “ThisOutLookSession.”
4.Click on “ThisOutLookSession”.
5.Copy and Paste the following code in the right pane.(Code Pane)

Private Sub Application_ItemSend(ByVal Item As Object, Cancel As Boolean)
Dim strSubject As String
strSubject = Item.Subject
If Len(strSubject) = 0 Then
Prompt$ = "Subject is Empty. Are you sure you want to send the Mail?"
If MsgBox(Prompt$, vbYesNo + vbQuestion + vbMsgBoxSetForeground, "Check for Subject") = vbNo Then
Cancel = True
End If
End If
End Sub

6. Save this and now close the VB Code editor

This macro makes sure I don't send a mail without subject.

Orientation 2009 at IIMB

2009-05-25T20:25:00.000-07:00

I am off to IIMB for orientation this weekend. Loads of interesting stuff planned by SAC and lots of competitions too for the new PGSEMers. This, coupled with L3 and guest lectures, should make the 2.5 days a breeze.

Classes are due to start from June 19th and am pretty excited about it.

ತೇಜಸ್ವಿ ನಾವಧೀತಮಸ್ತು..

2009-04-14T03:34:00.000-07:00

ಭಾರತೀಯ ವ್ಯವಸ್ಥಾ ಪ್ರಬಂಧ ಸಂಸ್ಥೆ ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು ಎಂದ ಕೂಡಲೇ ಏನೋ ರೋಮಾಂಚನ, ಈಗ ನನಗೆ ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಕಲಿಯುವ ಭಾಗ್ಯ ಒದಗಿ ಬಂದಿದೆ ಎಂದಾಗ ಕನಸೋ, ನಿಜವೋ ಎಂದು ನನ್ನನ್ನು ನಾನೇ ಕೇಳಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತೇನೆ.

ಎಲ್ಲರೂ 'ತುಂಬಾ ಸಂತೋಷ, ಕೊನೆಗೂ ಸಿಕ್ಕಿತಲ್ಲ', 'ಶುಭಾಶಯಗಳು, ಒಳ್ಳೆದಾಗಲಿ', 'ಒಹೋ ಭಾರಿ ಒಳ್ಳೇ ಸುದ್ಧಿ, ಪಾರ್ಟಿ ಯಾವಾಗ' ಅಂತ ಪಾಟೀ ಸವಾಲು ಹಾಕ್ತ ಇದ್ದಾರೆ. ನನ್ನನ್ನೇ ಕೇಳ್ತಾ ಇದ್ದಾರಾ, ನನಗೆ ಬಂದ ಈಮೇಲ್ ನಿಜವಾಗ್ಲೂ ಅಲ್ಲಿಂದನೇ ಬಂದಿದ್ದ, ನನ್ನ ಕೈ ನಾನೇ ಚಿವುಟಿ ನೋಡಿದ್ದಾಯಿತು. ಹೌದು ನನ್ ಹತ್ರನೇ ಎಲ್ಲ ಕೇಳ್ತಾ ಇರೋದು..

ಮನೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಎಲ್ಲಿಲ್ಲದ ಸಂಭ್ರಮ, ಎಲ್ಲರಿಗೂ ಫೋನ್ ಮಾಡಿ ಹೇಳಿದ್ದೂ ಆಯಿತು, ಎಸ್ ಎಂ ಎಸ್ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದೂ ಆಯಿತು.

ಎರಡು ವರ್ಷಗಳ ಶ್ರಮಕ್ಕೆ ಫಲ ಸಿಕ್ಕಿತು. ಇಲ್ಲಿಗೆ, ಒಂದು ತಪಸ್ಸಿಗೆ ಇತಿಶ್ರೀ ಹಾಡುತ್ತ ಇನ್ನೊಂದು ತಪಸ್ಸಿಗೆ ಅಣಿಯಾಗುತ್ತಿದ್ದೇನೆ..

ಏನು ಬಡಬಡಾಯಿಸುತ್ತಿದ್ದಾಳೆ ಅಂದುಕೊಳ್ತಾ ಇದ್ದೀರ, IIM Bangalore ನಲ್ಲಿ MBAಗೆ ಅಡ್ಮಿಶನ್ ಸಿಕ್ತು ಅಂತ ಇದ್ದೀನಿ...

ಜಯವಾಗಲಿ!

-ಸುಪ್ರೀತ

PGSEM interview @ IIM Bangalore

2009-04-12T21:34:00.001-07:00

I attended an Alumni interview and a Faculty interview at IIM Bangalore for PGSEM 2009.

Alumni Interview questions:
1. Where are you located?
2. Why do you want to pursue PGSEM?
3. What are your short term goals?
4. What are your long term goals?
5. What do you mean by growth? What does it mean to you?
6. Your project, what is your contribution, what does the tool you develop do? About the client and the process followed in that sector(Chemicals and Petroleum).
7. Do you know how much time is required to complete this course?
8. What is a normal work day like. How do u spend your day?
9. Do you have family or financial commitments?
10.Why so many change of companies? What kind of organisation do you like better(Indian/MNC)?
11. Have you applied to any other PGP courses? Why only PGSEM, why not some other course(PGP, PGPX) from IIM or regular MBA?
12. Is this the first time you have applied to PGSEM?

The interview lasted around 15-20min. It was informal and the Alumni wanted to know in general whether you wanted to get an MBA just for the heck of it or whether you will be dedicated, and if you had the right attitude.

Faculty Interview questions:
1. You have mentioned about business processes in different industry sectors. What processes were you referring to?
2. You have done social service. Why did you start doing it? What work have you done so far?
3. What is your take on moral policing? Is it right that today's youth drinks and goes pubbing? What are your thoughts on this?
4. You want to do management, what management books or articles have you read? Talk about one topic for two minutes.
5. What are the 2 things that you will bring to this MBA class, that we should consider your candidature?
6. Why do you want to do PGSEM? You have got pretty good score, you could have got into full time MBA in any decent business school in India(of course, other than IIM).
7. You are inclined towards social service, why have you not considered taking up FPM? (FPM is a 4 year residential doctoral program by IIMB).
8. Why have you changed companies so often? Are you a rolling stone? (:))
9. What do you like about your present company? Everybody does the same work, what is special in the work you do?
10. How do you rate yourself on a scale from 1 to 10? Why?

The interview lasted 20minutes. The panelists were very friendly, and I wouldn't say they grill you, because once they ask some question, they really listen to what you have to say in the matter and ask further questions based on your answers. I was my normal self and was honest about my goals.

Background:
Post Graduate Program in Software Enterprise Management is an MBA for working IT professionals provided by IIMB spanning 2.5 years. It is a general management program and the course fee is 8.5 lakhs.

Some useful links:
IIMB PGSEM Website
IIMB PGSEM Blog
PGSEM in Wikipedia
IIMB Alumni Association
Useful FAQ

I am just lazy to write more than required and so, I would point you to this blog for the PGSEM application process.

Are you ready to Vote?

2009-03-19T02:45:00.000-07:00

Are you one of those who crib about bad roads and don't know what to do? Are you one of those who wonders where all that tax you pay to the government goes? Do you belong to the group which wonders how you can make a difference in society? Well, here is your chance..

15th Lok Sabha Elections are coming near and those who had missed the bus during the Assembly elections can rectify that and make sure that they vote and make a difference this time. I just got my Voters ID card made today and wanted to post some information to those who want to get their voters ID.

You should fill Form 6(available online and at voters registration centers) and submit to your Voter Facilitation Center along with your address proof and age proof. You will get an acknowledgment for the same. Once you submit the form, your name will be included in the Electoral Roll. When your name appears in the electoral role, you will be given information notices by the Electoral Registration Officers of your area. These notices contain your name and age, house number, constituency number, and polling booth or part number.

You need to go to the registration center (officially called Designated Photographic Locations or DPL)of your ward and get an Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC) made.

You may register at Jaagore and make use of resources like Form 6, your registration center etc. Jaagore is also running a national campaign aiming to register 1 Billion voters in the next five years and is trying to spread awareness among citizens.

You may also refer to this article and get more information.

Let us all be responsible and choose our leaders with care. This time, cast your vote and make it count.

Haan, inclusion of names in electoral list ends on March 25th, 2009. So hurry!

Supreetha

ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಹೀಗೆ...

2009-03-04T21:00:00.000-08:00

ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಬರೆಯಬೇಕು ಅಂತ ಅಂದುಕೊಂಡು ವರ್ಷಗಳೇ ಕಳೆದಿವೆ, ಇನ್ನೂ ಏನು ಬರೆಯಬೇಕು ಎಂಬುದು ನಿರ್ಧಾರ ಮಾಡಿಲ್ಲ. ನಿರ್ಧಾರ ಎನ್ನೋದಕ್ಕೆ ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಏನು ಹೇಳೋದು ಅಂತ ಎರಡು ನಿಮಿಷ ಯೋಚ್ನೆ ಮಾಡಿ ನಂತರ ಸುಮಾ ಹತ್ರ ಕೇಳಿ ಬೈಸ್ಕೊಂಡೆ... 'ನಮ್ಮ ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು' ಮಹಿಮೆ ನೋಡಿ! ಬೆಂಗಳೂರಿಗಳಾದ ಮೇಲೆ ಕಂಗ್ಲೀಷ್ ಮಾತಾಡಿ ಅಭ್ಯಾಸ..

ಮೊನ್ನೆ ಹೀಗೇ ಆಯಿತು ನೋಡಿ, ನಾನು ನವೋದಯಕ್ಕೆ ಹೋಗಿದ್ನಾ, ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರಾಂಶುಪಾಲರು ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಭಾಷಣ ಮಾಡು ಅಂತ ಅಂದುಬಿಟ್ರು. ನಂಗೆ ಒಂದು ಸೆಕೆಂಡ್ ಕಣ್ಣ ಮುಂದೆ ಕತ್ತಲು ಕಟ್ಟಿತು, ಮತ್ತೆ ಶುರು ಹಚ್ಕೊಂಡೆ, ಮಾತಾಡ್ತಾ ಮಾತಾಡ್ತಾ ಇದಕ್ಕೆ ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಏನು ಹೇಳೋದು, ಅದಕ್ಕೆ ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಏನು ಹೇಳೋದು ಅಂತ ಯೋಚ್ನೆ ಮಾಡ್ತಾ ಮಾತಾಡಿದೆ. ಪಾಪ, ಆ ಮಕ್ಕಳಿಗೆ ಎಷ್ಟು ಅರ್ಥ ಆಯಿತೋ ದೇವರಿಗೇ ಗೊತ್ತು...

ಆಮೇಲೆ ನೂರ್ಜಾಹಾನ್ ಮಿಸ್ ಅಂದ್ರು, ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಯಾಕೆ ಬರಿಯಲ್ಲ ನೀನು, ಕನ್ನಡ ಮರೆಯುತ್ತ ಇದ್ದೀಯಾ ಅನ್ಸುತ್ತೆ, ಅಂತ. ಅಯ್ಯೋ ಹೋಗಿ ಮಿಸ್, ಬರೀಬೇಕು ಅಂತ ಯೋಚ್ನೆ ಯಾವತ್ತೂ ಮಾಡ್ತೀನಿ, ಆದ್ರೆ ಟೈಪ್ ಮಾಡ್‌ಬೇಕಲ್ಲ... ಅದಕ್ಕೆ ತುಂಬಾ ಹೊತ್ತು ತಗೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತೆ. ಅಷ್ಟೆಲ್ಲ patience ನಂಗಿಲ್ಲ ಅಂತ. ಅದು ಮಾತ್ರ ಅಲ್ಲ, ದಿನ ಇಡೀ ಆಫೀಸ್ನಲ್ಲಿ ಕೂತು ಆಮೇಲೆ ಮನೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಕಂಪ್ಯೂಟರ್ ಹತ್ರನು ಸುಳಿಯೊ ಮನಸ್ಸು ಬರಲ್ಲ. ಆಫೀಸ್ನಲ್ಲಿ ಈ ಘನಂದಾರಿ ಕೆಲ್ಸ ಮಾಡಿದ್ರೆ ಒದ್ದು ಓಡಿಸ್ತಾರೆ, 'ಸಾಕಮ್ಮ ನೀನು ಉಪಕಾರ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದು, ಮನೆಯಲ್ಲೇ ಕೂತು ಈ extra curricular activities ಮಾಡು ಅಂತ'.

ಹಾಂ, ಕಂಗ್ಲೀಷ್ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಹೇಳ್ತಾ ಇದ್ದೆ... ಬೆಂಗ್ಳೂರಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಆಟೋದಲ್ಲಿ ಹೋಗೋವಾಗ ಮಜಾ ಇರುತ್ತೆ. ಬಲಕ್ಕೆ ತಿರುಗಿ ಅಂದ್ರೆ ರೈಟಾ ಲೆಫ್ಟಾ ಮೇಡಮ್ ಅಂತಾರೆ. ಇನ್ನೂ ಕೆಲವರು ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಮಾತಾಡಿದ ನಂತರವೂ ಕಹಾನ್ ಜಾನಾ ಹೈ ಮೇಡಮ್ ಅಂತಾರೆ. ಅದು ಹೇಗೆ ಮುಖ ನೋಡಿ ಇವ್ಳು ಕನ್ನಡ ಮಾತಾಡೋಕ್ಕೆ ಫಿಟ್ ಅಲ್ಲ ಅಂತ ನಿರ್ಧಾರ ಮಾಡ್ತಾರೊ!

ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಹಲವೆಡೆ ಬೋರ್ಡ್ ಗಳ ಅವಾಂತರ ಹೇಳತೀರದ್ದು. ಜಯನಗರದಲ್ಲಿ ಇಬ್ರಾಹಿಮ್ಸ್ 'ಇಭ್ರ್ ಹಿಮ್ಸ್' ಆದರೆ ಬ್ರಿಗೇಡ್ ರಸ್ತೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಅತಿಥಿ 'ಅಥಿತಿ'ಯಾಗಿ ಕನ್ನಡ ಗೊತ್ತಿರೋರಿಗೆ ಒಂದೋ ಕನ್ ಫ್ಯೂಸ್ ಮಾಡುತ್ವೆ, ಇಲ್ಲ ತಲೆ ಚಚ್ಚಿಕೊಳ್ಳೋ ಹಾಗಾಗುತ್ತೆ.... ಇದು ಖಾಲಿ ಸ್ಯಾಂಪಲ್ ಅಷ್ಟೇ, ಲಿಸ್ಟ್ ಮಾಡಿದ್ರೆ ಮುಗಿಲಿಕಿಲ್ಲ(ಬೆಂಗ್ಳೂರ್ ಭಾಷೆಯಲ್ಲಿ 'ಮುಗ್ಯೋದೇ ಇಲ್ಲ')...

ಸಧ್ಯಕ್ಕೆ ಇಷ್ಟು ಸಾಕು, ಆದಷ್ಟು ಬೇಗ ಇನ್ನೊಂದು ಲೇಖನ ಬರೆಯಲು ಪ್ರಯತ್ನಿಸುತ್ತೇನೆ....

ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿ ಟೈಪಿಸಲು ಅನುವು ಮಾಡಿಕೊಟ್ಟ http://quillpad.in/ಗೆ ಹೃದಯಪೂರ್ವಕ ಧನ್ಯವಾದಗಳು.

ಜಯವಾಗಲಿ!

-ಸುಪ್ರೀತ

Idle banter

2008-10-17T01:46:00.000-07:00

Sensex is in dumps @9951 and Nifty down 198 points and at 3070.55 at the moment.

Just gave some blood for blood test on the occasion of Women's Well Being Day at office.

Wanted to get back to writing since long and then after a friend insisted on knowing why I don't update my blog, I thought I better do.

Hope to write something more meaningful from next time.

Pranayam - A panacea!

2008-03-16T22:27:00.000-07:00

'Prana' means breath and 'aayama' means control hence pranayam is the exercise of controlling your breath. Why control your breath, you may ask. Pranayam enhances the amount of oxygen taken inside, removes the toxins and waste from the body and hence results in a healthy body and mind.

Normally, we do not pay attention to our breathing when, in fact, it is the most vital part of being alive! So a series of breathing exercises brings more oxygen to blood and to the brain and automates flow of blood throughout the body. It regulates the breathing and brings in the vital pranic energy and rejuvenates the mind and body.

Pranayam has innumerable benefits. Regular practitioners have reported relief to many problems like headaches, joint pains, acidity, asthma, diabetes, constipation etc. Even healthy individuals can practise pranayam to keep fit and reap the other intangible benefits.

Pranayam is best when done in the morning on empty stomach. But it can also be practised 4-6hours after meal. Take 2-3 deep breaths between every exercise to relax. One can sit in either padmasana, vajrasana or sadhasana, whichever one is comfortable with, while doing pranayam. One should learn pranayam under the supervision of a doctor or a yoga teacher before practising it independently.

Pranayam is practised as given below:

Bhastrika
Sit in comfortable position in dhyan mudra*. Take a deep breath. Breath out forcefully and uniformly. Repeat this for 5 minutes. Point to note here is that the breathing in and out are done with equal force and pace.

Kapalbhati
Sit in comfortable position in dhyan mudra*. Inhale a little and exhale through both nostrils forcefully. Inhale again and follow with another forceful exhalation passively and effortlessly. Continue these cycles. The frequency should be about 60 strokes/minute. Kapalbhati can be done for 5-15min with short breaks in between.

Anulom-Vilom
Sit comfortably in dhyan mudra*. Close your eyes. Close the right nostril with the right thumb. Inhale slowly through the left nostril. Close your left nostril with the ring and little fingers of the right hand and exhale slowly and completely with the right nostril. Again inhale through the right nostril.Close the right nostril with the right thumb. Breathe out slowly from the left nostril. This is one cycle of anulom-vilom. This pranayam can be done for 5-15min.

Bahya
Sit comfortably in dhyan mudra*. Breathe air out, touch chin to chest, squeeze stomach completely and hold for a while. then release chin, breathe in slowly. This can be done 3-5times.

Bhramari
Sit in comfortable position. Inhale completely, press the base of nostrils with little fingers, close the ears with thumbs, keep the index fingers on the forehead, close the eyes with ring and middle fingers. And now breathe out through nose while humming like a bee. Repeat it at least three times and maximum up to 21 times.

Udgeet
Sit in comfortable position with dhyan mudra*. Breathe in deeply, and chant 'Om' while exhaling. One should inhale and exhale so slowly that he or she should not feel the sound of respiration.

The session is concluded with 5-10min of Shavaasan.

Your comments/experiences/thoughts are welcome.

Some links: DivyaYoga Pranayam on IndianEducation Pranayam Tutorial Pranayam on WikiHow

*dhyan mudra - Touch the tips of the thumb and index fingers with each other and keep the remaining three fingers straight.

Of this and that...

2007-09-20T05:04:00.001-07:00

My workstation. :) nice, eh? Again, i'm publishing this from Sony Ericsson W830i. Since i've got internet connection in my phone, have truly been able to explore the features. Pretty cool this is! I can play radio, and record bits of music and make sony Ericsson remember it for me. I can browse through all news portals, blog, check mails, google, Download songs and ringtones etc etc. I even get RSS feeds directly into my phone!! I'll keep this up as long as i'm connected. Tempting it is, but will get heavy on my pocket!

My First Mobile Blog

2007-09-20T04:46:00.001-07:00

I'm excited to post my first Mobile blog ever! This pic was taken at the lalbagh flower show.

View Website as Graph!!

2007-03-16T02:21:00.001-07:00

After one particular frustrating and boring day at work, I went on an Internet-browsing spree(equivalent of window-shopping in the real world). I came across a lot of new concepts, some surprising and others weird..

Just stumbled across this amazing site. If you give your website address, it parses it and loads it as a Graph!! The program executes an applet to render the graph. It slowly builds the graph and it looks as though a colourful Hydra is spreading its tentacles and stretching itself. You can have a look at this site by clicking here.

My site looks like this:

System Requirement: J2SE Ver 1.5.
Link Courtesy: VishnuPrasad
Related Links: Author | Processing | Traer Physics | HTMLParser

Want to know where your bus is? SMS `Yelli Iddira'

2007-03-12T11:00:00.000-07:00

When techies and tech companies have gone hi-tech in India's Silicon Valley, why should BMTC be left behind? A first of its kind in India, BMTC has started a revolutionary SMS initiative called YI to track Volvo bus where about. YI is a short form for "Yelli Iddira" which translates into "Where are you?" and you can ask this of the Volvo buses v356C and v335E by sending an SMS. And you will get an instant reply of the whereabouts of the bus.

Currently, the service is available on two Volvo routes — V356C between Kempe Gowda Bus Station(KBS) and Electronic City(EC) and V335E between KBS and Kadugudi via ITPL. To avail oneself of the facility,one has to send an SMS from the mobile phone in the following manner — YI Volvo Route Number U or D to 9945634666. For example, YI 356C U to 9945634666.

But there is one problem. There is one 356C plying out of KBS every 20-30min. And the total journey time from KBS to EC is around one to one-and-a-half hours depending on the traffic on 356C's bus route. Bus Routes info can be found here: ಕನ್ನಡ and English. If you SMS YI 356C at, say, 9.30am, the bus which started from KBS @8am would have almost reached EC, the one started @8.30am would be near Madiwala/Silk Board, the one which left @9am would be near Wilson Garden/Dairy Circle whereas another would just have left KBS @9.30. Whereas the SMS should give info regarding all the 4 buses, it gives the whereabouts of only one bus. So the yardstick for deciding which bus will be included in the SMS is not clear. The same happened to me one day. I SMSed @9.40am from Madiwala and the SMS said v356C is near Wilson Garden, and lo! another bus is in Madiwala( much to my delight!!).

All in all, a truly commendable initiative by BMTC and hope it will be extended to all the other volvo buses soon. And who knows, we may also be able to know where our regular BMTC bus is, in not so distant future!!!

Your comments/thoughts are welcome.

Information regarding the firm that developed this software can be found here.

Related Links:
Nidhi's Article on Volvo
Volvo Bus Routes |ವೋಲ್ವೊ ಬಸ್ ಮಾಹಿತಿ| The Hindu Article
For more Info Regarding the SMS Alert: YI

Nike Crazy Ad

2007-02-26T15:00:00.000-08:00

I happened to watch this ad on TV over the weekend. I fell in love with it!!! I wonder how they picturised it.... An Ad I'd blindly rate with 5 stars!

My First Post

2006-12-17T20:00:00.000-08:00

First impression is the best impression.
Having read this so many times, it popped up the moment I sat down to write my first post. Made me think whether the first impression is truly the best.

Is it not true that the first impressions we have had of people change due course of time as a profound understanding of plausible reasons for a person's behaviour at the first meeting dawns over us? Is it not true a song that we first thought was despicable grows on us so much sometimes, that we find ourselves humming it unconsciously?

Well, what I think is, first impression is not always the best impression. We can not see everybody under the same light. Because the circumstances in which we meet different people differ and most importantly, the people we meet differ in their attitude, thinking, upbringing etc which deeply influence a person's behaviour. True, one who is boisterous and full of interesting pieces of anecdotes may present a positive first impression whereas someone sitting silently at a corner of a room observing others may incite negative first impression. But it is when we truly get to know him/her well that we truly understand how he/she thinks and why does he/she do so. If we judge someone on the basis of how serious or jolly he/she looks, we would be making a big mistake. Because there are so many people who appear reserved at first but turn out to be quite easy-going, funny and friendly (read,ME :-)). The body language itself is capable of telling the entire story on its own. But what I say is never make a judgment on the basis of first impression, who knows; you may be missing out on the finer-things in life just because you erred in haste.

How can I forget to include about making first impressions in the corporate world? It is stressed upon so much during the endless training sessions that we go through; that a good first impression is crucial to gaining respect, trust and confidence and that it will take you a long way in your life. So in the corporate world, you must always be ready to present your best self and make the first impression the best (Then what about later? It's truly difficult to impress later, don't you think? Beacuse how will you better the best???).

Ok people, that's all from me.
Let me know what you think... Are first impressions truly the best?