Progress report – III

 

Its that time of the year when nobody wants to work. Everyone around you is in festive mood and the last things that he/she wants is to talk about work. And this mood is very contagious.

 

I had a tough time myself. You don’t feel like doing anything when you see everyone around you in the holiday mood. But I did manage few interesting and good things this week.

 

Out of the 10 things I decided to do, the new sales channel and the physical fitness part have become my obsession now. And I’m loving every bit of it. Lets see where do I stand now at the end of November –

 

1. Setting up a 40Mn/month channel – This is very challenging and turning out to be good fun. Visiting the Call Centre has been a great experience and I’ll discuss that later on. Being a Diwali week, the progress in terms of lead generation and disbursal hasn’t been great. But I guess the time has come now – wait for the next week report

    

2. Online budget tracker – A new proposal has been made and sent to the IT team. Awaiting their revert on it

3. Loyalty Program – Tough times for such an ambitious project. Though my Boss is with me on this, we are having a tough time justifying it to the senior management

    

4. Physical fitness – Loving every moment of it. I have been very regular and doing it diligently. I’ve shifted my focus a bit and now I’m doing some weight training also ( afterall, I need to tone up a bit). Though I’ve always believed that there are only two types of people (apart from the professional body builders) who want to show off their body. The first type are the film stars and the second type consist of the ‘wannabe’s’

    

5. Books – I’m done with “The Afgan”. It was an amazing book and I intent to read it once more very soon. Due to the book, I also read a lot about the Taliban and and the so called ‘jihad’. Will talk about these later sometime

    

6. New Friends – I’ve learnt one thing from this exercise. You can force yourself to make good friends. You just meet people who can or cannot be your friends. Though I keep meeting new people but I don’t think I can make good friends for the sake of doing it. So, I’m removing this from my list and I’ll add another one instead. I’ll learn to cook. More information on this will come next week

    

7. New dance / Language – Going by the current situation, I guess learning Marathi would be a great (life saving) idea 😉 Anyways, my friend has already figured out some Kaytee’s salsa classes and we shall start next week

    

8. Cuisine – Being a Diwali week, I stayed away from Chinese food. Though I plan to learn how to cook Chinese food

    

9. Discover new places in Mumbai – Add Sahara Star’s Lagoon Lounge to the list. And this is by far one of the best places I’ve been to. Overall, the place is much better then the two places I visited before this.

    

10. River rafting / para gliding – As mentioned earlier, I went for river rafting last to last week and loved it. planning to go for para gliding and trekking this month

 

From the beginning itself I knew few things would be very difficult. Specially when a lot depends on external factors. I’m glad the 40Mn channel thing is shaping up well but I’m finding it difficult to start the other two (professional) things.

 

As mentioned, I’ve removed ‘make new friends’ and added ‘cooking’ instead to my list as I don’t want to force myself to make new friends.

 

And yeah, during the Diwali cleaning, I came across a lot old cloths and other things which were kept inside somewhere. The cloths went to an NGO near my house (lovely place – will talk about it sometime). I also found one small Fish bowl and decided to use it. So, I went and bought two gold fishes and hence I’ve two fishes staying with me. Everyday before coming to office, I give them some food and its always good to see them swimming around in the bowl when when I get back home.

 

I’m thinking about naming them now. I thought of a few names but still not sure. But atleast I’ve two new friends staying with me.

 

An eye for an eye makes the world blind

 

“An eye for an eye, makes the whole world blind.” But nobody seemed to be bothered at this point of time. Thanks to few fanatics and our politicians (no less fanatics themselves), we are slowly becoming an extremist society. Though the use of the word ‘extremist’ might raise a few eyebrows.

 

For long, the word extremist had been attached to ‘Islam’. If you do a google, 8 out of first 10 results refer to Islam. Invariably, we relate these terms like extremist and fundamentalists to Islam.

 

But lets face it – we are no exception. No matter how much we deny it, every now and then, we, as a society, show glimpses of extremism in our behavior. What is more worrying is the ever increasing frequency of such behavior in recent times. We have had two very disturbing incidents recently which corroborate the history of our extremist behavior.

 

• Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur was arrested for her alleged involvement in the recent Malegaon and Modasa blasts

   

• A young man from Bihar Rahul Raj was killed when he was trying to hijack a bus to protest against the recent violence against the North Indians in Mumbai

 

Mumbai ATS arrested the Sadhvi from Surat. Apparently, Pragya Singh Thakur was part of a Hindu right wing group which carried out the blasts to avenge the killings of Hindus by Muslim extremists.

 

What is more scary is the fact that people are coming out in open to support the Sadhvi and her acts. I’m not going very far – my cousin thinks this was needed to teach a lesson to the ‘Muslim fanatics’. And everyday, while traveling in the local train, I hear people supporting the Sadhvi. The disturbing fact is that these are all educated people who, somewhere inside, support the usage of violence.

 

Not the ones to be left behind – the political parties are all geared up to reap the maximum out of the situation. The Sangh pariwar has openly come out in support of the Sadhvi and Bajrang Dal has already branded her as her modern day Goddess Durga.

 

In case of Rahul Raj, a 25 year old young man from Bihar was killed by policemen when he was trying to protest (?) against the recent attacks on North Indians by a political party.

 

His method of protesting – hijacking a bus full of innocent commuters with the help of a country made pistol. I don’t know what his intentions were or what was he trying to achieve. To be very honest, i doubt we’ll ever come to know what was going through his mind or what exactly happened there – thanks to the ‘swift’ action by our police, who, on other occasions have been found wanting.

 

Though personally I condemn the action taken by the police (they didn’t even try to catch him alive), I don’t want to get into the debate – simply because we don’t even know what happened there. Did the boy actually fired 3 rounds of bullets on public (if he did, then what the police did was right), was he just trying to protest against a particular political party (even in this case, I personally don’t approve his method) with no intention of harming anyone..there are so many questions that need to be answered before justifying or condemn the action taken by the police.

 

To be honest, not many people know what conspired at ground zero. But my point is that there is no way you can hijack a bus, point a pistol at people and then justify your actions. This was totally uncalled for.

 

And as usual, our politicians left no stone unturned to add fuel to the fire. Without knowing the details, almost all of them tried very hard to take the centre stage by hogging the limelight. All of them gave interviews and addressed the news hungry media without any proper knowledge on the incident.

 

The State Home Minister justified the killing by saying that the ‘mad’ man deserved to be shot and that bullets were an answer to the bullet shot by the young man (wonder why he has double standards while dealing with the goons of a particular political party which started the whole drama).

 

All the Bihari leaders got together for the first time to justify the young man’s action by saying it was the result of the hatred caused by the political parties in Maharashtra (they simply ignored the fact that the young man hijacked the bus and was pointing pistol at local commuters).

 

Next day, another leader came up with another shocker. He expressed his satisfaction by stating that a Bihari goon was killed Bihari style (not to mention that it was his party which started this whole communal and regional divide). He is the mastermind behind many of the Hindu – muslim & Marathi – north Indians riots.

 

The bottomline is that both these incidences have set a dangerous precedent. In the first case, we saw a Hindu Right Wing party using violence to get back at the Muslim fundamentalists. The second one is equally horrifying. A young man deciding to prove a point against the constant acts of violence against a section of the society.

 

In fact, slowly but surely, all of us are getting involved in it. We need to save our society not only from muslim extremists but also from Hindu extremists, Bihari extremists and marathi extremists now. Because an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.

 

We must act now. This must stop. We need to realise that this dirty politics of caste, community and regionalism is taking us nowhere. We must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.

 

God’s favorite Child

 

Late last night, I got a call from one of my very old friends. He stayed with me for almost 6 years in Pune. He’s gone back now and looks after his father’s construction business.

 

There was a common joke in Pune back then – If Babu (thats me) asks Rishi (the guy), he will jump from our 4^th floor flat. And Rishi made no secret of his liking for me. He would do anything for me. And even though I had many good friends around me, I always knew that I’ve a friend who would do anything for me. He just couldn’t see me sad.

 

I still don’t know why he likes me so much. I mean I did treat him like a brother but at times I was mean too. But his affection was unconditional.

 

Even now, after 3 years, he’s the one who calls me almost regularly. At times he calls me when he is drunk and tells me how much he miss me and how important I am to him. Thanks to my busy Mumbai life, I hardly call him but he never complains. My cousin who stayed with us in Pune, says that Rishi thinks you are Ram and he is your Laxman (characters of Ramayana). I don’t know about this whole Ram – Laxman story, but I know I have a friend who would do absolutely anything for me.

 

And thats where I think I’m God’s favorite child. It is said that apart from your immediate family, if you manage to get unconditional love, affection and admiration from even one man/woman, you must consider yourself lucky. And by God’s grace, i’ve been very lucky to say the least.

 

Around a month ago, I got a call from an unknown number from Bangalore at around midnight. The caller identified himself as some Sahil who was working with one of India’s leading Software Company. He told me that he once played under me at some junior level National Cricket tournament and will never forget the support and help he got from me.

 

And to be very honest, I couldn’t even recognize the guy. But he was not perturbed by this and said he’d been thinking about calling me for a very long time but was not sure how will I react. But today he was going through some old newspaper clippings and saw my name as the captain of the team when he was chosen for the first time. So he somehow managed to get my contact number in Mumbai and called to thank me for everything (I didn’t even know what i did for him). He went on to say that he, along with few other guys from his town, has always admired me as a sportsman and as an individual. He thanked me again and said he’ll always wish the best for me in my life. I was almost speechless when he kept the phone.

 

And this was not just a one-off incident. Something very similar to this happened a year ago, when I got a call from this guy who was a part of some summer camp with me in Calcutta years ago. Though that time, I had some memories of the guy. He also thanked me told me how he’s always regarded me as a very good human being and wish the best for me.

 

And these are just few examples. I know so many people who love me and would do anything for me. I’ve not been a very good human being myself but I feel blessed to have such great people and friends around me.

 

I have always met great people and made great friends. Whenever I feel let down by anything, I have someone around me to pep me up. I have friends who know me for 15-20 years and we haven’t met for 10 years. But they still call me from all parts of the world. And no matter wherever I go, I end up making great friends everywhere.

 

Forget my school and college days. People say you hardly make good friends at your workplace. I can proudly say that I made great friends at both the companies I’ve worked in till now. Even after leaving Tata, I know I can call and speak with anyone there – right from the receptionist to the VP.

 

And thats why when I look at people around me, lonely and sad, in pursuit of happiness, I feel I’m blessed. God has always made sure that I have great people around me. And that why I feel I am God’s favorite child.

 

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Progress report – II

 

I’m already into the third week of my “10 things to do before December” experiment, and my life has become more interesting now. Though I’m not sure if its because of the experiment or some other reason, but the last few days have been exciting to say the least.

 

From partying till 5 in the morning – to almost being “picked up” by two women after the party – to enjoying every bit of rafting which almost looked like a disaster at one point of time (give me more such weekends), last week was full of action and fun.

 

Though few things are looking increasingly difficult, I’m on my way to finish few things much before the December deadline. Here is how I stand after two weeks of my experiment –

 

1. Setting up a 40Mn/month channel – Just when you think the most difficult part is over, something else comes up which looks like an uphill task. The good news is that I’ve managed to start the channel. Call Centre is in place, I’ve hired people in the 6 cities, media is in place and calling has also started. Now the major challenge is to make sure that things are working the way they should and we manage to clock 40Mn in next 2 months.

 

1. Online budget tracker – The tech team has rejected my plan. Now I’m working on preparing a sheet myself which can be installed on the intranet – still in the planning stage

    

2. Loyalty Program – There is a lot of pressure on the cost front. I’m still negotiating with the agency on the overall spends. The blueprint is ready and I just need senior management’s approval on this. This will go very high up in the hierarchy for the approval

    

3. Physical fitness – Though I was not as regular as I should be, but its because I was too tired after the party on Friday and then had to go out rafting on Sunday. So, I missed out on Saturday and Sunday

 

1. Books – After completing “When a tree shook Delhi”, I’m halfway through “The Afgan”. Again, this week this activity took some beating as I had a hectic week

 

1. New friends – I did meet few new people this week. Though I guess I missed out on two women who looked more then interested, I did meet 3 very interesting and nice people when i went river rafting

 

1. New dance / language – This is one task which looks very difficult given the time frame. This one requires time and I only get time on weekends. But then weekend is the only time I get for other activities. I’m not trying to justify my failure till now, neither am i suggesting that I’ve given up on this. I promise I’ll try and give you some good news in my next progress report

 

1. Cuisine – Continuing my effort to learn more about Chinese food, I went to 5 spices in Bandra for lunch. And by the way, did you guys know that in a Chinese meal, each individual diner is given his or her own bowl of rice while the accompanying dishes are served in communal plates (or bowls) that are shared by everyone sitting at the table. In the Chinese meal, each diner picks food out of the communal plates on a bite-by-bite basis with their chopsticks 😉

 

1. Discover new places in Mumbai – I had promised myself to discover 5 new places in Mumbai. 2 weeks into my experiment and I’ve already discovered 2 new places to hang out in Mumbai. Last week, I went to JW Marriot’s Lotus Cafe and this week, I had dinner at Sun & Sand and loved the sea side view

 

1. River rafting / para gliding – Done with river rafting. It was great fun and I loved every bit of it. So much so, that I wouldn’t mind doinf it over and over again. Infact, I’m already looking out for people who would do it with me again. Para gliding is scheduled for first week of November and i’m really looking forward to it.

 

All in all, if I look back at these two weeks, I’m happy with my progress. The only disappointment till now has been the dance/language thing. As I mentioned, I’ll try and do something about it this week.

 

Last but not the least, I’m enjoying everything that I’m doing. These are the few things I always wanted to do but never really pushed myself to do them. I’m glad I decided to do this experiment.

 

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Progress report – 1

 

Its more then a week since I decided the 10 things I wanted to do before December. And this is my first progress report. And trust me guys, its not as simple as it sounds. But I would like to believe that I’ve done a good job in the first week and shall carry on with the same dedication before the deadline.

 

So, here is my progress in the first week of my experiment –

 

1. Setting up a 40Mn/month channel – This is one of the most challenging task. The idea is to set up a whole new process for “unconventional” channels like internet or mobile. The Call Centre set up is done and I’m in the process of hiring FOS in the top 6 cities. The media plan is also ready and I expect to start it this week

    

2. Online budget tracker – This is an internal process and might be painful. I’ve initiated the process though I’m not very sure how much time will it take

    

3. Loyalty Program – This is one project I really want to do. Imagine a 100Mn loyalty program for my DMAs all across the country. I’ve the blueprint ready with me. And I’ve also roped in country’s best CRM and DM agency for this

    

4. Physical fitness – This is definitely the most enjoyable among the lot. I’m loving every moment of it. I go to a park close to Inorbit Mall for jogging and then do some weight training after that. I also went for swimming twice in between

    

5. Books – I’ve never been an avid reader. But now I read for atleast an hour before I sleep (and I feel its better then talking over phone till midnight). I’ve already completed “When a tree shook Delhi”. I started “The Afgan” yesterday

    

6. New friends – To be honest, this is a very tough ask, specially when you hardly get time to socialize. But I have time till December and I know I’ll manage.

    

7. Dance / language – I’m very excited about this one and looking forward to it. In all probability, I’ll go for Salsa classes. Infact, I’ve already asked Ships and this other friend of mine to find out the details

    

8. Cuisine – This was not very tough. Incidentally, two of my ex girlfriends were crazy about Chinese food. And after a very long time, I swapped my credit card at Mainland China

    

9. Discover new places in Mumbai – As mentioned earlier, its difficult to discover “new” places in Mumbai. But I did discover a new Movie theater in Bandra. Me and Ships went to this very “shady” movie theater to watch Daniel Craig’s movie

    

10. River rafting / paragliding – Almost went for River rafting this weekend but couldn’t get the bookings done. Infact, most of the guys are excited about this particular piece and we shall go this weekend

 

It has been an exciting week to say the least. It was somehow different from the normal. The small “multiplex” in bandra reminded me of few of the movie theaters in small towns. Pillow fight in between a Movie was funny to say the least. Infact, at one point of time, I did think about a trip to Singapore also.

 

The stage is set now and I’m sure I’ll be able to finish all the 10 tasks before the December deadline and shall be able to go on my well deserved vacation.

 

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10 things to do before the new year

“We all work hard today for a better tomorrow. Tomorrow, we will say the same thing to ourselves and this will go on. We will keep working hard, making our today difficult, for a better tomorrow which never comes.”

 

And I guess I’ve had enough of this. I wish I could leave everything, pack my bags, and travel all around the world seeing new places and meeting new people. I know I cannot do this now. But there is hardly anything I’m doing anyways. I work the whole day, go back home, meet few friends at times, go out on dates few times, go to parties on weekends, or just watch TV the whole day.

 

But I want to do new things now. There are so many options but I’m content with the life that I live. So, I’ve decided I’ll try and change few things. I’ll do new things and try and make my life more interesting.

 

So, I thought of few things that I would like to do in the near future (when tomorrow comes), and do these things now and not wait for the tomorrow which never comes. Hence, here are the few things that I’ll do before this year ends.

 

I’ll go out on a vacation of at least 15 days in December – and hence, I’ve set short term goals for myself so that I can complete them before I go out on a vacation. Though I don’t want to discuss my professional life, I’ve also included my short term professional goals in the list. These are the things I will do before I go out on my vacation –

 

Professional –

• I’ll set up a 40Mn/month channel from alternate sources (internet, mobile, etc)

• Set up an online budget tracker for my regional marketing spends.

• Start the Loyalty program for my 4000 DMAs in the country

 

Personal –

• Will give at least an hour to physical fitness everyday – already started – went for swimming this weekend

• Read at least 4 books – any four books to start with – started with “When a tree shook Delhi” on the weekend

• Make 10 new “good friends” – Men & women

• Learn a new language / any form of dance – this seems difficult because of lack of time – but I’ll try, I don’t promise

• Learn about new cuisines – am not a foodie – but I’ll develop taste for new cuisines

• Discover 5 new places in Mumbai – to eat and to party – though there is hardly anything left to “discover”

• Go for river rafting and / or para gliding

 

I also wanted to add few more things but I guess I shall start with these. These are very simple goals which are very much achievable till December. I might add few things in between but I’ll not remove anything from the agenda.

 

I’ll give the updates on the things and my progress at least twice a week. I shall complete all of these so that I can go on my vacation peacefully. Once, this is done, I already have things in mind – things I would do from January to April.

 

PROGRESS REPORT – 1

PROGRESS REPORT – II

PROGRESS REPORT – III

PROGRESS REPORT – IV 

FINAL REPORT