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.

What can't be taught at a b-school!

India has been witnessing a mushrooming growth of business schools for the last 10 years. All these business schools promise to create world class leaders. But not all are successful. What may be the reasons? Well, frankly speaking, only world class persons can be groomed to be world class leaders. And what do i mean by a world class person? Not much, simply a person possessing some skills and habits that are essential to be successful in this fast changing liberalized, globalized, privatized world! Let us take some such things one by one :

1. Attention efficiency :

We are surrounded by excellent learning opportunities. If we are able to use this great gift of God to all the mortal ones known as attention efficiency, our mind will gradually pick up and store all what is needed to grow ahead. But what surprises me is that how ignorantly many people keep on passing through same experiences and situations without being able to pay attention to the obvious! I'll define Attention Efficiency as the tendency to notice the surroundings, and also as the natural habit to look at them, pay attention and learn as a result of it.

2. Belief in the power of knowledge :

Very easy to say, very difficult to practise! When it comes to real life, many youngsters are just incapable of believing in the power of knowledge. They tend to give undue importance to money, political power and other such illusory power sources.

3. Flexibility and adaptability :

There are no fixed roles in today's business set up. For God's sake, we have to overcome our age old bureaucratic mentality. In a government office, one would not move beyond his or her work space. But not in today's corporate world! A corporate leader is expected to take care of all unstructured situations. And this is true for everyone. The demands of a changing world order can never be static. One needs to champion flexibility and one has to adapt oneself to any situation or role.

4. Ability to unlearn and relearn :

It's really interesting to note how quickly the things we learn with keen interest become outdated. The world is changing very fast and the rate of change is also growing by leaps and bounds. Alwin Toffler has stated that illiterates of the twenty first century are not those who cannot read or write but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn. We need constantly to relearn our lessons with some alterations and we also need to forget a lot many out of them!

5. Ability to accept his own fallibility :

We are human beings. We can and will make mistakes. But the more important fact is our ability to learn and move on. Lack of confidence has definitely caused many a career tremendous damage but so has over confidence too!

6. Quick learning skills :

The real learning happens on the streets or on the workplace. And a world class person is not only mentally ready to learn consistently but is also able to train his mental faculties to learn quick, real quick and everywhere!

7. Habit to read proactively :

Oh! Can we imagine a world without books? The lifetime wisdom and knowledge of a thinker is covered in a book. World class persons today are habitual of reading. They not only read a variety of material, but are also able to read proactively. They master the art of reading between the lines. They are able to gauge the mindset of the author and are also capable of discounting the impact of his or her illogical beliefs on the writings.

No business school can teach these things. In fact, no school or college can teach these. Then how can one acquire these valuable traits? A right attitude, willingness to stay relevant and respect for the world are some of those inherent skills that are required to pick up these habits. But one thing is sure. The probability of forming these habits is definitely higher in a developing economy that offers challenges to survive. I am sure contemporary India fulfils the conditions but of course, the commonly found parental care and over protection is a hurdle.

Let them grow. Let them face problems. Let them suffer from their mistakes. Just guide them to pay attention a bit more actively. That's it!