Systemic and systematic downfall of the system!

Who is more responsible for the falling standards(?) of education in India today - students or teachers?

This was the topic given to a group of 12 school students for a general discussion in a spoken English class. The consensus that emerged was interesting. The group concluded that some students are at fault, some teachers may also be at fault but largely it is the responsibility of the 'System'.

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People normally tend to criticize politicians for many of their problems. Whatever may be the level of the problem : local, regional or national - it is some or the other politician or sometimes the entire political class that is to be blamed. A very big majority believes that politics is the last haven for the scoundrels. This conclusion may have a strong opposition too. But still, few will dispute the fact that good people are finding it very tough to enter the field of politics. And why is it so? Ask anyone and the most likely answer would hold the 'System' responsible for this challenging situation.

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The role of Media is also in news these days. Print, audio-visual or electronic, all types of media are under the scanner. Many people tend to whisper about the need to regulate the sector. Nearly all the political parties, in private confidential discussions, impress the need to bring a set of regulations to make media behave. But no one dares to say anything in public. 'Paid news' has become such a known phenomenon, still nobody raises a voice officially. Why so? "What can be done? It is the System of the day!"

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Let us again come to the field of education. What is the condition of our universities today? Everybody is aware about the pressure tactics adopted in the appointment of vice chancellors. Campuses have become the playing field of the various political parties. But nobody seems to worry. It is the 'System' of the day!

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Let us ponder for a moment. Why is it so that we all tend to accept the system? We all believe that the system has to be accepted without any question. And when any sincere, intelligent, independent minded entrepreneur wants to establish something new and better, the system tries its level best not to allow this positive change to become the order of the day. And not so surprisingly, when an average person wants to establish his own enterprise without any big positive change or vision, the system never opposes, rather supports the same.

As a nation, have we ceased to be alive and kicking? How long will the system of accepting follies of the System continue?

Let me make one suggestion. Students should be encouraged to prepare the model rules for various systems. Let them be in public domain. Online social media can be a very good plateform for everyone to keep a watch and contribute.

Let me ask two things to my readers. One, can you try to define the System? And two, can some independent group take up the task of preparing model code of conduct for the media today?

Active non-action or productive busyness

Today i read a very interesting write-up by the great Management thinker Sumantra Ghoshal. This write-up provides tremendous insights about the criminal wastage of executive time and also suggests the solution for the same.

I suggest everyone to read it.

"NO DOUBT, executives are under incredible pressure to perform, and they have far too much to do, even when they work 12-hour days. But the fact is, very few managers use their time as effectively as they could. They think they’re attending to pressing matters, but they’re really just spinning their wheels. The awareness that unproductive busyness — what we call “active non-action” — is a hazard for managers is not new. Managers themselves bemoan the problem, and researchers have examined it. But the underlying dynamics of the behaviour are less well understood. For the past 10 years, we have studied the behaviour of busy managers in nearly a dozen large companies. Our findings suggest that fully 90% of managers squander their time in all sorts of ineffective activities. We came to the conclusion that managers who take effective action (those who make difficult — even seemingly impossible — things happen) rely on a combination of two traits: focus and energy. Think of focus as concentrated attention — the ability to zero in on a goal and see the task through to completion.

Focused managers aren’t in reactive mode; they choose not to respond immediately to every issue that comes their way or get sidetracked from their goals by distractions like e-mail, meetings, setbacks, and unforeseen demands. Because they have a clear understanding of what they want to accomplish, they carefully weigh their options before selecting a course of action."

In search of failure....

What is the sure shot way to success?

Oh! It seems so commonplace! There is a plethora of books on such topics. A number of self-proclaimed management gurus, Success gurus, motivation gurus etc have devoted millions of pages to describe and prescribe the same. Then why this question? And why this blog post?

This morning i read a book with the title In Search of Failure. An interesting, funny book that tells the young generation not only to expect and accept failure but also to enjoy it. The book does provide an interesting reading. But i am not going to discuss the gist or the message of the book here. I'll just tell you the idea that struck me when i saw the title of the book.

And that is :

"The sure shot way to success lies in search of failure".

Failure does not happen at one stroke. Something somewhere is always failing. And when the degree of failure reaches tipping point, two things happen simultaneously. One, the failure becomes noticeable to all. Two, the failure becomes so big that it is now very difficult to reverse the procedure i.e. to convert the failure into success.

Hence, the secret of success lies in search of failure. Keep on searching failures in the system. And if you are able to find it before the tipping point, congratulate yourself. Success will be easier now. And if you are not able to find out any failure in the system or the organization, bad news!

"The sure shot way to failure lies in not finding any failures".

Interesting? Frightening? A play of words? Your decision, please. I just shared what came to my mind.

It's time to shut up!

Last fortnight has been very eventful for me. On February 16, i was diagnosed with a teachers' nodule on my vocal cord. I was operated for the same on Feb 20, and then was prescribed total vocal rest for 8 days. I could speak again in the evening yesterday, on 1st March. During these 8 days, i was working regularly at my office. I saw people also, with the only difference being that i was communicating in written mode only. I used to carry a card in my pocket with the following message :

" Hello!

I am taking medical treatment.

Voice rest. Can't talk.

But I can listen.

And I can reply in writing."



It was very interesting experience. Very humorous as well as tense situations developed in the process. But that is not the subject matter of this particular post. In this post, i want to discuss my thought process during this vocal rest.


A lot of ideas kept on coming in the meantime. Many of those thoughts deserved a separate blog post. But what kept me waiting for the right moment was the fact that many thoughts changed during this period, many ideas matured and thus the situation was very fluid.


Let me share with you now, some of the lessons of the silent period :



1. People pay more attention to you when you don't speak. They somehow treat you with more honour. Your statements ( written, of course!) carry more value.

2. There is a copycat in many of us. Many people proceeded to write their queries when they saw me writing. In fact, i had to remind many of them (by writing, of course) that they can very well speak and i can very well listen too!

3. When someone asks a question and you reply in writing, more often that not, while writing the answer, you tend to change the same. It so happens that you keep on observing the situation and hence you modify the earlier thought answer.

4. Silence is a great energy saver. I could never realize how much energy we consume by speaking. I never felt tired or exhausted during the period of silence, in spite of the fact that the food i was taking for the first seven days consisted of Dalia or Khichadi only!

5. It is impossible to pick up a fight with anyone while you do not speak.

6. Every book on Human Relations talks about the importance of observing others at the time of any discussion or interaction. I had always carried the misconception that i can do the same very effectively. But this silence made me realize that while you speak you miss out a very large portion of observable facts and hints. You must be silent to be able to observe effectively.

7. At last the most important learning. It is not necessary to speak at all in many situations. When you cannot speak, you realize that, more often than not, it is not only possible but convenient and beneficial too, not to speak!

It's time to shut up!

How much to plan?

This morning i met an ambitious young engineer. He has come back to his native town after working for an IT company for nearly two years. A question was asked to him about his future plans. He replied, "As of now i am trying to think and plan what to do. I hope to be able to think clearly within two or three months. Then i will decide what to do. Either it will be a fresh entrepreneurship venture or i will be joining my family business."

I know it is a very common thinking. Many young boys and girls think on the same lines. I remember someone telling me a week ago, " Sir, I have a job at my hands. But i want some time to think whether to join it or not. I hope that i will have a clear vision in two or three months. Then i will take a final call."

This is a classic confusion. I may also call it classic indecision or inaction. This situation may be compared with going on an unknown dark path with a single Deepak (an earthen lamp) in hand. We just can't wait for the entire path to be clearly visible before making a start. We can just see 10 to 15 feet ahead only. But it's also a fact that as we progress the way ahead will be visible. If we start, we shall always be able to visualize the path ahead and progress. If we don't start, we shall keep on waiting for eternity.

So the message is - just start! Take the first step. The road to success is never easy and never totally visible. But with a keen observation and the ability to take the right decision on every step, one can always reach the destination. The world is changing very fast and it will be useless to wait for having a clear vision. Remember, time and tide wait for none.

Now is the time.

Today is the day.

Do it now.