Signing off 20s...

 I am about 2.5 hrs from turning 30!!! Yes, 30!!!! i don't  know what to jot down....i only know blogs are supposed to provide a medium to express what you feel or think...20s was super,,,last year was especially amazing!! i got married!! things have settled ,,,life is on a different plane..

i am not going to write more here... just wanted to record this moment, while i am still 29!!! i only wanted to express my feeling that i am turning 30!! super...thats a different domain, senior domain,,and looks so much fun!!

cheers...good bye 20s..... 30s, here i come!!!

Rain rain, please don't go away

Dear Rain Gods,

There is little difference between the mood in my country today, and what we generally call 'filth'. As I write to you, Team Anna has shut shop for reasons known only to you. As I write to you, our olympic teams have lost another stab at a medal and some more money has been siphoned off somewhere.

Last month was a bad month, where all the negative benchmarks and levels were crossed. Assam was burning in riots and drowning in floods. The whole of North India and 30% of the population were subjected to power failure for 5 to 6 hrs on end. Life was badly disrupted, to say the least. 

Inflation is at an all time high and your absence isnt helping anything. Rupee levels are dismally low and that has made life miserable. Our farmers continue to commit suicide after after finally succumbing to the pressure of huge loans they cannot repay. Population, pollution and corruption continue to remain loyal to us

Shitty movies, tv shows and shitty people continue to mint money. There is absolutely no substance in the gazillion things that are churned out today. TV, internet and radio all have more ads, many more ads and absolutely very little substance. And of whatever is actually shown, 89.9 % is garble. 

And in all of this bad news, the one thing that could have cheered (and resolved most of these issues), is missing. Rains! Every year, after burning and sweating it out in the hot may summer, India waits for the rains with bated breath. The first time when it rains, around the 7th of june, the heat takes a backseat and the air becomes sweet. Lovely drops of water settle down on grass blades,on tress, on the windows, and on the ground. Things become so much clearer, so much better, the air becomes so quiet, cool and bearable. Birds, animals seem to suddenly become so peaceful. For once, the sound of frogs is tolerable, and brings with it,the signs of good times ahead. Office travels become much more difficult, yet so much more pleasant. A trip from Mumbai to Pune is no longer just that. It is a lovely journey that passess through the lush green hills of the khandala valley. 

And to top all of this, the lakes start smiling. Having been made to overwork, tire and slowly shrink, the lakes themselves are parched to the point of disappearance than humans are. Hitherto dry river banks start swinging and make for such pretty sight. In all of this, man is at the receiving end of all your blessings. The problems of food, water, heat are taken care of for one more year. For one time, although window seats in trains are empty because they are so wet, i love travelling by train. I know this is temporary but much needed, for the rain Gods are taking care of me.

But this year, you havent blessed us as much. The negativity in the air is not so much due to human intervention as it is due to your non-intervention. Man knows, but does not realize, that he has so much blame himself for your absence progressively every year. Yet, in his whole daily business of "going about things as usual", he does not realize how much he needs you.

How much he needs you this year, more than anytime else, India needs you dear rain God. Please come down and bless us. We need you, not so much for the water, but for all garble we have created since you last left us. We need you to come and help us clear this mental filth. 

The power of incrementality

Small things make a big difference. But sometimes, they dont. Size does matter, calories do matter, but sometimes they dont. 

The rainy season always brings in more troubles and issues, and consequently, newer solutions. The most common NEW solution amongst all is the LONGER-BUT-HAS-LESS-TRAFFIC-AND-IS-LESS-TROUBLING-ROAD that we take to avoid peak traffic jams in the rains.Essentially, we opt for the longer route because it will have less traffic, less potholes and therefore will be a better ride. And in doing that, inevitably, we think about how much EXTRA fuel we consume and how it affects our budget for that month..Don't tell me we dont think about it coz we do. In doing so, and in fretting about the extra fuel, we forget a couple of things. First, the amount of  extra (INCREMENTAL) fuel that we spend, is too negligible when compared to the total fuel we have spent in the entire trip. Yes it costs us a little more, but just a LITTLE more. Secondly, and more importantly, we forget the peace of mind it gives us in avoiding all the traffic, potholes, and in reaching the destination on time. Small may not make a big difference after all.

Take another instance when  EXTRA, MORE, or LESS hardly matter. Those who are regulars at the gym know that obsession with the treadmill and handling that obsession well is the single biggest factor in determining  the effectiveness of the workout. A treadmill of about 20 mins helps us shed around 250 cals. Now, I know people who fret over the extra 1 minute or the less 5 calories. If such a person tread for 19 mins, he is bound to fret about the fact that he will lose less calories. Less how many? Lets find out. When we hope on the treadmill, the first and last minute lose less calories, since the body is either warming up or is cooling down, respecively. Typicall, one loses about 7 calories in each of these 2 minutes, and about 230 calories in the next 18 minutes, a little over 12 calories per minute. Therefore, by not working in the last minute, the person saves only 7 calories, or about 3% of the total 250 calories!! Why fret for the one minute  when you have burnt 243 calories anyway??? Why fret for 3%??

Now, let us take look at situations when small indeed is big..

The best example of small things giving rise to big ones is the case of a savings bank account or of a recurring deposit. With small amounts deducted each month, a recurring deposit hardly does any harm for the time period. However, at the time of maturity, the big lumsum comes as a pleasant surprise, much like an oasis in a desert,  or as a wave of fresh air in a crowded place. Good example of small things making a difference.

In another instance, consider the case of income tax. When you dont pay taxes on time, and delay them, you incur a fine. If for some reason tax is not deducted at source, but if you are eligible to pay tax, then you will have to pay it all at once, at the end of the year. This is so much worse than paying much smaller TDS amounts every month. The same holds true for credit card and other bills. This is a classic case of size mattering.

So whats the point? Incrementality matters. Even when it does not matter, incrementality matters. There is much power in breaking down values into smaller increments, and then comparing these increments with the overall value. Doing so helps us make a better and informed decesion, and in all likelihood, reduces the pain of that decesion if it has to hit us hard. There is much value in analyzing the power of incrementality.

Superstitions

 It wasnt raining so much today. Yet, there was toooo much traffic on the road. I did leave later than usual, but not so late so as to be stuck in a bad traffic jam, that caused me to reach office by almost half an hour!! And as Murphy's law said, once something goes wrong, others will too. Sure enuf, today hasnt been a good day at office either...lts just end it there :(

On my way back from office, after a terrible day that began late and ended late, I was once again stuck in traffic. This time, at a long signal, i kept wondering why life was being so unfair. And thats when, something struck me. Just before leaving office this morning, I DID NOT say bye bye to mom. I was in too much hurry and rushed out of the door 20 mins later than usual. Saying bye to mom is something i do everyday. Would there be any relation, AT ALL, between that and the terrible day today?

Naah. Its just a coincidence that on the one day i dont say bye to mom, i have a bad day in a long time. I mean, how does the traffic on the road have anything to do with my mom? Even if i had said bye to her, there would have been as many cars on the road, and the traffic would have been as bad. Things at work would have been as bad as they were. They are independent from what happens at home.

Or are they?

I always wonder how we commonly follow some things under the pretext of belief, rather than of superstition- fasting on certain days, avoiding non-vegetarian on some days, going to the place of worship, praying every morning, following some particular trait that in the hindight, make no sense. I must be honest, every time I see a cat walk across me, i exclaim SOMETHING. I either curse the cat, or i cringe with a "Damn!!" or I do something else that indicates negativity around it. And yet, nothing good or bad has happened before or after that. I also wonder, what would happen if we FAIL to do one or more of the above. How about eating not fasting this time? not praying on a certain day? How about taking it HEAD-ON. See what happens?????

I know I have tried and found it pretty DIFFICULT. Its just too hard to not exclaim or even THINK when a cat crosses by. As educated as i am, i am always aware of the cat. As educated as someone else is, they continue to do their routine. I am not judging or indicating that these are bad or unnecessary things. A lot of people do it our of respect, out of habit or simply because they've been told that that is what is to be done.

But at the hear of it all, isnt it all really superstition? Would terrible things really happen if we didnt do these things once? Would the respect come down in any manner? Would the Gods be affected in any manner if we didnt fast for a day? I know i say bye to mom not out of superstition, but out of personal liking. Is murphys law actually a science-loving-belief-hating version of what is truely superstition? or is superstition a belief-loving-science-hating version of what is actually murphy's law? i.e- whats gonna happen, WILL happen.

Aisa hi hai zindagi ka khel

Aisa hi hai is zindagi ka khel,
Tere haath mein chanaa, mere haath mein bhel
Salary agar badhi toh hoga khooshiyon hi khooshiyaan,
Varna aankhon par patti bandhe, stand in front of the rail


Aisa hi hai is zindagi ka khel,
Begunaah ghum rahe aazad, bekasoor languishing in jail...
Pakde bhi gaye toh no worries for them,
Aaj nahin toh kal mil hi jaayegi bail.


Aisa hi hai is zindagi ka khel,
Exam mein kabhi, there is no option to fail,
Hameshaa lead karna hai, rehna hai aage,
It is always considered bad, if you are the tail.

Aisa hi hai is zindagi ka khel,
Kuch bhi ho jaaye, we want everything on sale,
paise bachaane ko, bus aur train mein sadte hue safar toh karein,
par weekend pe 200 Rs. ki picture dekhne kabhi na honge fail.

Aisa hi hai is zindagi ka khel,
nahi sakte hum for meeting purposes, traveling ko jhel
Therefore, shortcut and virtual ho gayee hai zindagi,
its all about Whatsapp, Facebook, chat and email..

Aisa hi hai is zindagi ka khel,
land ki bhook mein gandey ho gaye hum tooth and nail,
expansiion ki chakkar mein animals ko karte gaye samaapt,
be it tigers, birds, crows ya fir whale...

Aisa hi hai is zindagi ka khel,
many people are trying but barely managing to sail,
Zindagi ho gayee hai sasti, jeena ho gaya expensive,
Koi bhi nahi raha ab, hearty and hale.

The twilight that spoke...

We have read, heard and listened to a lot of things/people that speak about being 'Free as a Bird'. Somewhere in our minds, we all want to be a free bird, or, simply put, a bird- free, independent, can fly, etc etc. Just as a bird represents the FREE end of the spectrum, a kite (not the bird kite)- a flying Kite, represents the other CONTROLLED end of the spectrum. Just like a bird, a kite flies high in the sky, but differs from the bird because a kite is controlled by someone else. I then thought that if someone wants to be a bird, chances are they would not like to be a kite.And probably vice versa.

Until today, that is. As I was returning home in the twilight of the day, I saw in the sky something rolling, swaying aggressively end to end in its own orbit, as if losing control. I thought it must have been a bird flying around, but on a closer look (it was evening so my eyes can be forgiven here), I realized it was a kite- a kite that got cut from its strings and was set free in the sky, ready to land somewhere in the unknown. Basically, it was a kati patang.

And then, as usual, my crazy mind started thinking about something. I started to evaluate if this controlled and guided kite was indeed all that different from the free independent bird than we usually think.

Lets see.. What are the advantages of being a bird?? A bird is, well, independent, free, and on its own. No control, no restrictions, the lead-your-life-your-own-way types. Fly high into the sky!

On the flip side, when a bird is lost, it has pretty much no one to guide it. It is bound to meet obstacles all alone. And finally, and most importantly, since it flies high in the sky, it always looks DOWN at the earth! It is always downward looking.

What then, are the advantages of being a kite? for one, you always have someone to guide you. If a problem arises, a helping HAND is always around. Lets say, you are always I-am-safe-and-secure kinds. Most importantly, a kite always looks UP in order to rise high in the sky! Always upward looking.

On the wrong side of things, well, it is not independent.No much freedom of your own, limited choice and the likes.

Given this analysis, would you still want to be a free independent bird, or a controlled and guided kite? Well, lets put it this way- When the weather is nice, skies clear, and you are listening to most soothing title track from the movie Forrest Gump, and you are gazing at the sky with a drink in your hand; when things are the best they ever can be, both the kite and bird have a good joy ride, and life seems equally beautiful.

But on the day the weather turns rough and stormy, rainy; when times are really bad, both, the kite and the bird are likely to have a torrid time. Neither the independence of the bird, nor the helping hand of the kite, are going to be able to do too much.

Well then?

Whats with this term- BODY SHOP ????

What is this thing with branding IT companies as Body shops? It is probably coincidental that Chetan Bhagat targets none other than Mr. Narayana Murthy, and Infosys, 2 of the biggest names in corporate India, just a week before the release of his latest book. I certainly do not intend to questions his intentions or give him any disrespect; he is an acclaimed author and is doing well in his space. But I certainly do object to his expression, language and his constant use of the word BODY SHOP, in a definitely negative connotation.

What does the word body shop mean anyway? And why is it being used only to Embarrass someone? If I use common grammatical analogy, then, just as a Cosmetic shop means a shop that sells cosmetics, just as a sport shop means a shop that sells sport items, just as a book shop means a shop that sells books, shouldn’t the word BODY shop mean a ‘shop that sells bodies’???? I had to use this seemingly trivial stupid and CRUEL analogy, because I could not find the meaning word BODY SHOP anywhere on the internet.

Now tell me, does Infosys SELL BODIES??? Does any other IT company sell bodies? Then why this usage? The IT industry in India, of which Infosys is a pioneer and a big name, employs almost a million people, and feeds around 4 million families! This industry has been responsible for giving India a USP and brining some kind of glamour to its corporate image, not to mention how much it has contributed to the economy.
What does Infosys do? What do similar IT companies do? They sell services, IT services , which help other business do better. Just as a cosmetic shop has its customers, just as a book shop has readers who buy books, just as a sports shop has young people or sportsmen who buy sports goods, IT cos too have their own clients. Then what is so WRONG in that? Come on Mr. Bhagat, simply because you aren’t from this industry, doesn’t make this a bad deal!

On a final note, when it comes to Mr. Murthy, he is a person everyone looks up to. He, along with his colleagues, has created what is truly a phenomenon. His leadership, entrepreneurial abilities and his persona are admired around the world. I do not think anyone should score such public , brownie points against him.

Mr. Bhagat, you are a very successful man yourself, and I admire your work, and respect you for that. But please, this is not done.