Let's Speak life...

Life  is  not  only  marked  by  tears  but  also  by  happiness.

And  life  and  all  that  lives  is  conceived  in  the  mist  and  not  in  the  crystal  so  how  can  it  be  crystal  clear  at  any  point  of  time?

Our  body  that  is DRY BRUSH  paints  beautiful  pictures  taking  colours  from  the  environment  and  thus  creating  colourful  memories  of  past....in  the  process  our  spirited  FLAME  guides  us  and  nourishes  us  by  showing  right  path.

This  journey  which  is  intermittently  consuming  ends  being  ETERNAL  FLAME.

I  remember  few  lines  written  by  a  renowned  poet (forgetting  his name),

samay  ki  shilaa  per  madhur  chitra  kitne,

kisi  ne  banaye  kisi  ne  mitaaye.

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Thoughts in Walking ... !!!

I was Attending to kids’ lessons to guide them in their studies.
Kid answered to my questions.
Who invented telephone?  -  me.
Abraham Bell.   –   Kid.
It’s Alexander Graham Bell  –   I corrected the kid.

After a while, I received a telephone call, which was not pertaining to us.
Wrong number – I said and disconnected.
The Kid asked me suddenly,” Grandpa, who invented wrong number?”

Such funny, peculiar but true sense of thoughts we face in our routine life
while meeting with friends, relations, shop sales gals while shopping and such and such.
A thought would lighten suddenly in our mind that funny but meaningful, intelligible, Influential & etc….

We share it here.

Graham Bell invented Telephone but wrong number is invented by you and me.

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Flow Production: a target for today's Manufacturing Industry

by Carlo Scodanibbio for "The Malta Independent"

Imagine going to a restaurant for dinner, not knowing that this particular restaurant is geared for "batch production", in other words that the kitchen is organised to prepare food "by the lot".
What would happen is something as follows:

Waiter (after you have been snooping through the Menu for 5 minutes): ".....Well, have you decided, Sir?"
Customer: "Yes, I fancy your Tortellini Alfredo as a starter, and then...."
Waiter (interrupting): "I am sorry, Sir, but tonight we do not have Tortellini, we only have Spaghetti ready - however, if you are prepared to wait for a while, until some other customers pop in and order Tortellini, than may be our Chef will cook them as well..."
Customer (rather surprised): "What do you mean? If you have Tortellini in your Menu, I don't quite see why your Chef should wait for other orders to come before he cooks Tortellini...."
Waiter (very professional): "Sir, let me explain to you: our Owner is a very cost conscious person. He likes efficiency throughout, of which we are very proud. Surely, you will realise that approximately the same amount of time, water and gas is needed to cook Tortellini for one or Tortellini for six. Well, we have decided long time ago that we would go for a minimum batch of six in all our Pasta dishes, in order to achieve optimum efficiency. Besides, this way, we can afford to have only one person in the kitchen, so the saving in manpower is tremendous. Should we go for individual orders, we would need at least another cook, and possibly also a junior to help out.... You see, we do not like to pass extra costs onto our Customers, that's our principle, and that's why tonight there are Spaghetti ready in our kitchen store. Can I get you some lovely Spaghetti Bolognese warmed up in our microwave oven?"
Customer (ready to blow up): "But, wait a moment, assuming your cost saving issue is right, why do you have to warm up my Spaghettti in your micro ?
Waiter (a bit annoyed, but still professional): "Sir, more than half an hour ago, a few customers came in, and the three of them agreed to have Spaghetti Bolognese. Our Chef had gone for the usual batch of six, so now there are three portions of Spaghetti in the store, ready 'off the shelf', but obviously you won't like cold spaghetti, will you? - and it only takes one minute and thirty seconds to warm them up, how is that for speedy service?....."
Customer (boiling): NO, thank you, I don't like cold nor warm Spaghetti, in fact I don't like Spaghetti at all, I hate Spaghetti...... in fact I don't even want Tortellini anymore, I'll rather go next door for a Pizza...."
Waiter (paternalistic, but still professional): "As you like, Sir, good evening, Sir, hope to see you some other time...."

Amazing, isn't it? But something very similar has been going on during the past few decades in many sectors of the Manufacturing Industry.
Many Manufacturers have adopted a simple philosophy, in production:

    * Manufacturing is the business of producing goods
    * Products must be good, cheap and delivery must be reasonably fast
    * Efficiency can be achieved through "large lots" production, which brings considerable cost savings
    * Factory Management determines Production capacity and Production Schedules, according to estimates
    * Profit is something that comes "naturally" out of the manufacturing and marketing process

This philosophy has been well rewarded for long time, and well accepted by the market.
In the past 2 decade, and specifically in the past few years, something has been changing in the market, a sort of silent revolution has taken place.
Customers are not the same anymore, they have become "strange". For many reasons, most of which very difficult to understand, they seem to adopt more and more a different approach: they want the goods they need, in the quantity they want, with the quality they want, in the time they want, and at the price they are prepared to pay.
How have many Manufacturers reacted to this revolution? Simply taking the immediate measures they considered adequate:

    * They have increased their efficiency investing in sophisticated technology: huge, expensive machines able to turn out products faster and in larger lots
    * They have coped with the higher demand for quality introducing a squad of Quality Inspectors and sophisticated Quality Control Systems, with the aim of stopping defective goods from being passed to clients
    * They have reacted to faster deliveries demand making their finished products warehouses larger and larger, trying to offer "off the shelf" goods availability and speedy service

But also these measures now seem outdated. What many Manufacturers have not realised is that the overall market cake has not grown much larger, while the variety of product has.
Due to hot competition, due to higher quality awareness, but mainly due to everybody's different and subjective interpretation of the "quality-of-life" concept, the market is now flooded by a tremendous variety of products, with an enormous range of optionals and personalised accessories, and still clients want "what they want and how they want it". In this tricky chicken-and-egg situation, many manufacturers have been caught in badly.
Their technology seems more and more unable to cope with such a diversified demand, and those bulky, expensive machines do not seem to be the best to run fast smaller batches of diversified products.
Besides, overall efficiency has in fact decreased due to more sophisticated waste proliferating in each corner of their factory, often very close to the expensive, sophisticated machines.
Their quality Control system has, in many instances, just managed to reduce the number of defects passed onto clients, but at the expenses of a "black" store in which defective goods, rejects, second class products and degraded components stockpile to the ceiling.
And the large warehouse, designed to despatch products faster to the market, has not only started to grow a new breed of unusable products called "obsoletes", but has also become a thicker wall between the manufacturer and customers' needs.
In conclusion, many Manufacturers that, like our Restaurant's Owner, have become more concerned about their internal efficiency, with the best utilisation of their sophisticated equipment and with their production planning schedules than with real Customers' explicit or implied expectations, are now having rough times.

The answer to the problem exists, and is called Flow Manufacturing.
Flow Manufacturing, as the name suggests, is a way of producing goods in a "stream" fashion, with materials and workpieces "flowing" smoothly, regularly, inside the factory while becoming finished products in the productive process, and flowing again, without interruption, to the natural outlet, the market.
To perfect the similitude, rather than visualising a stream, or a river, in which the flow of water is driven by gravity, one should try to visualise a pipeline with a pump positioned at the pipeline outlet, sucking water out of the pipeline: this meaning that it is the market (our pump) that determines how the flow (the production style and capacity) should be in the pipeline (our Factory).

What does this approach imply? A few revolutionary consequences:

    * Production (with its rhythm, style and capacity) is not anymore "pushed" by Management through the Factory and to the Client, but rather pulled out of the Factory by Clients' needs, like at a (good) Restaurant table
    * Seller's Market time is over - today it is a "Buyer's" Market
    * Profit is no longer a conventional benefit, attached to manufacturing: profit is to be earned through hard, intelligent work
    * Products must be exactly what Customers want, and they must be delivered as they want, with the quality they expect, when and in the quantity they want - Manufacturing is no longer the business of producing goods: Manufacturing is a Client-Oriented, Service Industry
    * Production is to be considered more and more "wide-variety, small-and-frequent-lots" type, as Clients wish
    * Manufacturing Time should become closer and closer to Selling Time
    * Nowadays Customers are prepared to pay only an amount corresponding to the right "value" of the goods supplied, and therefore the Manufacturer's Selling Price must be very close to that "value"
    * This dictates that true efficiency must take place in the Production Process, as Customers are less and less prepared to subsidise Manufacturers' internal waste

The waste issue fits the missing piece in this puzzle.
In any production process there is waste. Any useful component and material add value to a product, as any useful productive operation does.
Unnecessary components, that do not serve any purpose in the finished product, do not add any further value to it. And the same applies to any wasteful operation.
Where does waste hide in a Factory? Waste is found in any operation that disrupts the normal, regular, smooth flow of materials through the Factory, thus causing turbulence, back-flow and stoppages to the flow itself. And those same wasteful operations do not add any real value to the product/s being manufactured. Examples? Storing, piling up, picking up, laying down, counting, checking, moving, handling, positioning, idling, waiting, transporting, conveying, inspecting, degrading, declassing, repairing defects, re-working, changing production, setting up machines for production, plant break-downs, plant working at reduced speed, searching for tools, dealing with accidents, duplicating efforts, passing the buck.............. and dozens more.

Flow Production is the Discipline that deals with waste and fights it to death.
In fact, if production can be transformed into an easy flowing process, without any interruption between value-adding operations, most definitely the bulk of the waste would be eliminated. Quality should be "built-in" the productive process by multi-skilled workers, capable of handling reliably multi-process operations.
And Manufacturing time would be so close to Selling Time that no finished product warehouse would be necessary. Products would be produced so fast that Clients would be really pulling them out of the Factory's final assembly lines. And those lines would pull components and sub-assemblies out of upstream processing lines, and so on.
This is Flow Production, a manufacturing "style" and "mentality" aimed at reducing internal waste to such a bare minimum that the resulting productive process becomes so "slender" (Lean Manufacturing), so "flexible", so receptive to Clients' needs that it really flows like water in a pipe.
The target is both very challenging and very difficult, to say the least. Still, many Manufacturers, and not only in Japan, have succeeded in getting very close to Flow Production.
What does their experience say? Implementing Flow Production requires time, guts, techniques, efforts, and a tremendous amount of creativity.
But the main obstacle to overcome is and always will be "resistance" from people to the change in mentality that such a project dictates.
Because Flow Production is made, like anything else, by men

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How to Impress a Girl - Best Tips

When you find that specific and particular girl, you always want to impress her but scared of getting her offended. Most of the guys find it really hard to impress a girl, and you always end up in having your shaking legs and speechless mouth.

There are ways to impress a girl that will make the girl want you more and notice you more. Hurry up and read the post below, the tips guys need to impress girls are here!

1. Make a cool appearance

It is very necessary to make a cool and neat appearance of you whenever you go in front of that girl. It will look great to her and of course yourself.

2. Never Show off
Girls actually hate the show off thing; don’t ever put a fake appearance or something that you are not. Be yourself and do your best. That will surely impress girls.

3. Respect and Admiration

Always respect and admire the girl, because girls love when you admire them, treat her with kindness.

4. Meaningful talk

While talking to her don’t discuss controversial issues and don’t talk endlessly. Especially discuss things that have her interest and surely will catch your attention.

5. Take interest in her interests

Listen carefully to whatever girls says or in which she has interest. Respond to the talking quickly and throw back the questions to her to make her keep talking about that subject.

6. Compliment

Compliment her on her eyes, attire, hairs, looks and talking style, don’t talk about how hot figure she has. Girls love it when they are complimented on the looks or other features.

7. Respect her friends

When it comes to colleagues and friends, girls are very possessive about them, either you like them or not try to become the good guy that respects her friends.

8. Politeness
Always try to act politely and have the best behavior, because these two things can make you a perfect guy.

9. Humor

Be humorous sometimes, because girls love the humor factor about guys, crack jokes but only then when it is required otherwise try to take things seriously.

10. Be a good listener

Be the one who can give a shoulder to her when she is sad, as girls are always emotional so make her laugh with your jokes sometimes and listen to her always.

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38 Responses to Plastic Money Makes India Another USA?

Speaking about India and its financial scams, new theories have been making rounds and experts are trying to come up with suggestions which can curb the corruption and fraud in the nation. Now, one of the common propositions being made by them is the usage of plastic money. As such, there are the regular users of credit card, debit card, cash card etc but given the population of India, the percentage of such users is highly negligible.

Though it is being insisted that by bringing black money out India will become like USA, it is not just about black money, even the mindset of people should change. Why USA is successful is not because of absence of black money, it is because of the self discipline of the individuals and how the citizens abide by the law and follow the basic regulations. A simple act of paying the right taxes or not resorting to defaulting in payments is good for starters.

Coming back to the point, if the system insists and encourages the use of plastic money, there will be a significant change. As such, the usage of fake currency is ruled out. Moreover, plastic money means accounted money in the bank which obviously will go through the tax scanners. But in order to create an environment of using plastic money, it is imperative that there must be a strong infrastructure and network which will motivate the citizens to develop trust on such form of transactions.

While the usage of plastic money brings good amount of advantages, they come with few underlying requirements. It is not just about the technical equipment, it is also about creating the apt mindset. If USA is where it is, a lot of contribution has come from the government in terms of implementing the rules without corruption. So, a change has to happen from the system in a democratic environment like ours that will eventually create the change in the society as well. What more is needed to improve then? Definitely, the scams will not happen like it is happening now.

I see here people are comparing India to US which itself is incorrect. Managing people of around 30 crore is way too easy compared to 110 crore. First we need to clear the hurdles that are in the way of introducing plastic money before talking about its advantages.

I have gathered few points:

Literacy Rate:
India considers a person a literate if he can read and write, is of age above 7yrs whereas in US this age limit is at 15yrs. India has the largest illiterate population than in any country on Earth.
India literacy rate is at 74.04% (world’s average is at 84%) Studies in 1990s stated that India would reach that mark in 2060 if it maintains its literacy growth rate till then which is reducing decade by decade.

Poverty Line:
According to a 2005 World Bank estimate, 41.6% of the total Indian population falls below the international poverty line of US$ 1.25 a day (in nominal terms Rs. 21.6 a day in urban areas and Rs. 14.3 in rural areas) which is estimated to be a third of the world’s poor. This number is more than the total population of 26 poorest African nations.

Bottom line:
How many of these people can afford a bank account with a minimum balance and a debit card ?? Even if they manage do that, how can they manage a bank account being an illiterate ?? We know how sincere the people are in helping out others.
What I feel is this problem is not as simple as it appears. There is a lot more to it. I just hope that the solution put up in this blog turns out good and serves for a better India .

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"Forget and forgive" !!!!

"Forget and forgive" its the most comman statement others might offer you for a particular situation where we might have been cheated, decieted and taken aback by someone's actions.

What I believe is that nobody, yes nobody but "we" are ourselves responsible for whatever happens to us- good or bad. If thought for a while this statement will make sense, because we have something like  a conciousness which tells us what is right and what is wrong.

I think I have made a statement which might not be going down some people's throat or should I say ears and finally to their brains!

Well lemme explain- it is as simple as if we don't eat we feel hungry and if we eat we don't. We can extrapolate the same logic to problems in our lives and get a reason which actually points to "US" (not united states) for all the problems in the world.

Now about "forget and forgive". We have no right over another being but 100% on ourselves, so we should forgive each time, we make a mistake and forget those which cannot be corrected and soon we will realise that we have found a meaning to our life. But the catch is that we need to correct not forget the mistakes we can improve and some day eliminate.

Yes life is forget and forgive-- there is no third person just "ME".

THANKS

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What you mean by "Open marriage" or "open relationship" !!?

What you mean by "Open marriage" or "open relationship"? Whatever you defined above is nothing but "keeping the options open". Yeah... there are plenty such "open relationship" out in this world, I assume. I would compare someone, who keep going behind everyone in this world, with that of a street dog. There is a whole lot of difference between caring a dog, raised at home and that of a street dogs. Both are dogs, but their quality and standards differ considerably.

To Caring

You shocked me with your narration and understanding of the Hindu marriage process. Probably, you must be one of the many in this "modern world", who have such opinion. There is nothing wrong with the Hindu marriage process, including "trading the buffalo in the upcountry market", but the problem lies with the people, who (mis)understand the marriage process. Have you ever thought, the so-called "ugly buffalo", who gets traded in the market does the same, when she gets her son married later.

Certainly, Hindu dharma never preaches or accepts such trading. Personally speaking, when my parents began my marriage process in 2001, upon my return from abroad, we received about 120 horoscopes from different sources. We picked only one and tallied it. I was so careful, not to entertain such trading process of the girl. So, we asked for her picture in advance. But, her mother said "we don't have the habit of sending pictures in advance", but they adamantly got my picture for her approval. we went to her home and had the first glimpse of her. Before reaching her home, we decided to say "YES" to this girl, however she is, though she had seen me in picture.

I am now wondering, whether I was subjected to such a "buffalo trading" in this way Winky.

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thoughts for the day

Experience can't prepare you for the awareness of a new change.
But our trust in friends, and our faith in the spiritual
process of life, can and will see you through whatever comes.

Believe that whatever faces you today .... know you are not alone.
The change will be okay for you and necessary to your well-being.
Life is growth. The next stage of your life awaits you.

Today, have faith, and all will be well

Smile from within today. That will help free you from your
negative cages. New possibilities and situations awaits you.
Always remember, if you find someone
without a smile, give them one of yours!


Lessons are repeated until they are learned.
A lesson will be presented to you in various forms
until you have learned it. When you have learned it,
you can go on to the next lesson


Lessons are repeated until they are learned.
A lesson will be presented to you in various forms
until you have learned it. When you have learned it,
you can go on to the next lesson

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9 Best Diet Tips Ever!!!

Tip No. 1: Drink plenty of water or other calorie-free beverages.
Before you tear into that bag of potato chips, drink a glass of water first. People sometimes confuse thirst with hunger, so you can end up eating extra calories when an ice-cold glass of water is really all you needed. If plain water doesn't cut it, try drinking flavored sparkling water or brewing a cup of fruit-infused herbal tea.


Tip No. 2: Be choosy about nighttime snacks.
Mindless eating occurs most frequently after dinner, when you finally sit down and relax. Snacking in front of the TV is one of the easiest ways to throw your diet off course. Either close down the kitchen after a certain hour, or allow yourself a low-calorie snack, like a 100-calorie pack of cookies or a half-cup scoop of low-fat ice cream.


Tip No. 3: Enjoy your favorite foods.
Instead of cutting out your favorite foods altogether, be a slim shopper. Buy one fresh bakery cookie instead of a box, or a small portion of candy from the bulk bins instead of a whole bag. You can still enjoy your favorite foods - the key is moderation.


Tip No. 4: Eat several mini-meals during the day.
If you eat fewer calories than you burn, you'll lose weight. But when you're hungry all the time, eating fewer calories can be a challenge. "Studies show people who eat 4-5 meals or snacks per day are better able to control their appetite and weight," says obesity researcher Rebecca Reeves, DrPH, RD. She recommends dividing your daily calories into smaller meals or snacks and enjoying most of them earlier in the day - dinner should be the last time you eat.


Tip No. 5: Eat protein at every meal.
Protein is the ultimate fill-me-up food - it's more satisfying than carbs or fats and keeps you feeling full for longer. It also helps preserve muscle mass and encourages fat burning. So be sure to incorporate healthy proteins like lean meat, yogurt, cheese, nuts, or beans into your meals and snacks.


Tip No. 6: Spice it up.
Add spices or chiles to your food for a flavor boost that can help you feel satisfied. "Food that is loaded with flavor will stimulate your taste buds and be more satisfying, so you won't eat as much," says American Dietetic Association spokeswoman Malena Perdomo, RD. When you need something sweet, suck on a red-hot fireball candy. It's sweet, spicy, and low in calories.


Tip No. 7: Stock your kitchen with healthy convenience foods.
Having ready-to-eat snacks and meals-in-minutes on hand sets you up for success. You'll be less likely to hit the drive-through or call in a pizza order if you can throw together a healthy meal in five or 10 minutes. Here are some essentials to keep on hand: frozen vegetables, whole-grain pasta, reduced-fat cheese, canned tomatoes, canned beans, pre-cooked grilled chicken breast, whole grain tortillas or pitas, and bags of salad greens.


Tip No. 8: Order children's portions at restaurants.
Ordering a child-size entree is a great way to cut calories and keep your portions reasonable. This has become such a popular trend that most servers won't bat an eye when you order off the kids' menu. Another trick is to use smaller plates. This helps the portions look like more, and if your mind is satisfied, your stomach likely will be, too.


Tip No. 9: Swap a cup of pasta for a cup of vegetables.
Simply by eating less pasta or bread and more veggies, you could lose a dress or pants size in a year. "You can save from 100-200 calories if you reduce the portion of starch on your plate and increase the amount of vegetables," says Cynthia Sass, RD, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.

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Men Vs women

 Men Vs women

First Men:

1. All men are extremely busy.
2. Although they are so busy, they still have time for women.
3. Although they have time for women, they don't really care for them.
4. Although they don't really care for them, they always have one around.
5. Although they always have one around them, they always try their Luck with others.
6. Although they try their luck with others, they get really pissed off If the women leave them.
7. Although the women leave them they still don't learn from their Mistakes and still try their luck with others.

Now Women:

1. The most important thing for a woman is financial security.
2. Although this is so important, they still go out and buy expensive Clothes.
3. Although they always buy expensive clothes, they never have something to wear.
4. Although they never have something to wear, they always dress Beautifully.
5. Although they always dress beautifully, their clothes are always just “An old rag".
6. Although their clothes are always "just an old rag", they still Expect you to compliment them.
7. Although they expect you to compliment them, when you do, they don't Believe you.

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Live positive and be positive

Let us think over........

Why is the media here so negative?

Why are we in India so embarrassed to recognize our own strengths, our achievements?
We are such a great nation. We have so many amazing success stories but we refuse to acknowledge them. Why?
We are the first in milk production.
We are number one in Remote sensing satellites.
We are the second largest producer of wheat.
We are the second largest producer of rice.
Look at Dr. Sudarshan , he has transferred the tribal village into a self-sustaining, self-driving unit.. There are millions of such achievements but our media is only obsessed in the bad news and failures and disasters.
I was in Tel Aviv once and I was reading the Israeli newspaper. It was the day after a lot of attacks and bombardments and deaths had taken place. The Hamas had struck. But the front page of the newspaper had the picture of a Jewish gentleman who in five years had transformed his desert into an orchid and a granary. It was this inspiring picture that everyone woke up to. The gory details of killings, bombardments, deaths, were inside in the newspaper, buried among other news.


In India we only read about death, sickness, terrorism, crime.. Why are we so NEGATIVE? Another question: Why are we, as a nation so obsessed with foreign things? We want foreign T.Vs, we want foreign shirts. We want foreign technology.


Why this obsession with everything imported. Do we not realize that self-respect comes with self-reliance? I was in Hyderabad giving this lecture, when a 14 year old girl asked me for my autograph. I asked her what her goal in life is.. She replied: I want to live in a developed India . For her, you and I will have to build this developed India . You must proclaim. India is not an under-developed nation; it is a highly developed nation.


..
YOU say that our government is inefficient.
YOU say that our laws are too old.
YOU say that the municipality does not pick up the garbage.
YOU say that the phones don't work, the railways are a joke. The airline is the worst in the world, mails never reach their destination.
YOU say that our country has been fed to the dogs and is the absolute pits.


YOU say, say and say.. What do YOU do about it?


Take a person on his way to Singapore . Give him a name - 'YOURS'. Give him a face - 'YOURS'. YOU walk out of the airport and you are at your International best. In Singapore you don't throw cigarette butts on the roads or eat in the stores. YOU are as proud of their Underground links as they are.. You pay $5 (approx. Rs.. 60) to drive through Orchard Road (equivalent of Mahim Causeway or Pedder Road) between 5 PM and 8 PM. YOU come back to the parking lot to punch your parking ticket if you have over stayed in a restaurant or a shopping mall irrespective of your status identity… In Singapore you don't say anything, DO YOU? YOU wouldn't dare to eat in public during Ramadan, in Dubai .. YOU would not dare to go out without your head covered in Jeddah.
YOU would not dare to buy an employee of the telephone exchange in London at 10 pounds (Rs..650) a month to, 'see to it that my STD and ISD calls are billed to someone else.'YOU would not dare to speed beyond 55 mph (88 km/h) in Washington and then tell the traffic cop, 'Jaanta hai main kaun hoon (Do you know who I am?). I am so and so's son. Take your two bucks and get lost.' YOU wouldn't chuck an empty coconut shell anywhere other than the garbage pail on the beaches in Australia and New Zealand ..
Why don't YOU spit Paan on the streets of Tokyo ? Why don't YOU use examination jockeys or buy fake certificates in Boston ??? We are still talking of the same YOU. YOU who can respect and conform to a foreign system in other countries but cannot in your own. You who will throw papers and cigarettes on the road the moment you touch Indian ground. If you can be an involved and appreciative citizen in an alien country, why cannot you be the same here in India ?

In America every dog owner has to clean up after his pet has done the job. Same in Japan ..
Will the Indian citizen do that here?' He's right. We go to the polls to choose a government and after that forfeit all responsibility.
We sit back wanting to be pampered and expect the government to do everything for us whilst our contribution is totally negative. We expect the government to clean up but we are not going to stop chucking garbage all over the place nor are we going to stop to pick a up a stray piece of paper and throw it in the bin. We expect the railways to provide clean bathrooms but we are not going to learn the proper use of bathrooms.
We want Indian Airlines and Air India to provide the best of food and toiletries but we are not going to stop pilfering at the least opportunity.
This applies even to the staff who is known not to pass on the service to the public.

When it comes to burning social issues like those related to women, dowry, girl child! and others, we make loud drawing room protestations and continue to do the reverse at home. Our excuse? 'It's the whole system which has to change, how will it matter if I alone forego my sons' rights to a dowry.' So who's going to change the system?
What does a system consist of? Very conveniently for us it consists of our neighbours, other households, other cities, other communities and the government. But definitely not me and YOU. When it comes to us actually making a positive contribution to the system we lock ourselves along with our families into a safe cocoon and look into the distance at countries far away and wait for a Mr.Clean to come along & work miracles for us with a majestic sweep of his hand or we leave the country and run away.
Like lazy cowards hounded by our fears we run to America to bask in their glory and praise their system. When New York becomes insecure we run to England . When England experiences unemployment, we take the next flight out to the Gulf. When the Gulf is war struck, we demand to be rescued and brought home by the Indian government. Everybody is out to abuse and rape the country. Nobody thinks of feeding the system. Our conscience is mortgaged to money.


Dear Indians, The article is highly thought inductive, calls for a great deal of introspection and pricks one's conscience too….. I am echoing J. F. Kennedy's words to his fellow Americans to relate to Indians…..


'ASK WHAT WE CAN DO FOR INDIA AND DO WHAT HAS TO BE DONE TO MAKE INDIA WHAT AMERICA AND OTHER WESTERN COUNTRIES ARE TODAY'


Lets do what India needs from us.
Forward this mail to each Indian for a change instead of sending Jokes or junk mails.


Thank you,

Dr.. Abdul Kalam

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Why love is beautiful

 just by name "It takes a minute to have a crush on someone,
an hour to like someone, and an day to love someone...
but it takes a lifetime to forget someone."
Faith makes all things possible. Love makes them easy."
"I believe that to truly Love, is the ultimate
expression of the will to live. A heart that
truly loves is forever young."
"Love makes life so confusing, but without love
would you really want to live?"
"Do you love me because I am beautiful
or am I beautiful because I am loved?



* Love is an act of endless forgiveness, a tender look which becomes a habit.
* It is astonishing how little one feels alone when one loves!
* Thou art to me a delicious torment.
* So dear I love him, that with him all deaths I could endure, without him live no life.

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Mantra of true friendship.

sand & Stone

A story tells that two friends were walking through
the desert. During some point of the journey they had an argument,
and one friend slapped the other one in the face. The one who got
slapped
was hurt, but without saying anything, wrote in the sand:

TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SLAPPED ME IN THE FACE.

They kept on walking until they found an oasis, where they decided to
take
a bath. The one who had been slapped got stuck in the mire and started
drowning, but the friend saved him. After he recovered from the near
drowning, he wrote on a stone:

TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SAVED MY LIFE.

The friend who had slapped and saved his best
friend asked him, "After I hurt you, you wrote in the sand and now, you
write on a stone, why?" The other friend replied "When someone hurts us
we
should write it down in sand where winds of forgiveness can erase it
away.
But, when someone does something good for us, we must engrave it in
stone
where no wind can ever erase it."

LEARN TO WRITE YOUR HURTS IN THE SAND AND TO CARVE YOUR BENEFITS IN
STONE.

They say it takes a minute to find a special person, an hour to
appreciate
them, a day to love them, but then an entire life to forget them.

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Effective Listening in the Workplace

What is listening? And moreover, what is effective listening? Of course, we all listen carefully, making a mental note of every word and every syllable. If that's the case, stop! Right now, at this moment, as you are reading this, ask yourself an honest question, are you assimilating, what you are reading? Often we skip words, while listening or reading. To make this worse we listen with prejudices and biases. This, primarily, is what hampers effective listening. Effective listening is an important part of building trust and strengthening business relationship, which in turn are inevitable ingredients of building empires. Those with effective leadership traits, know the importance of effective listening in the workplace. Complete understanding of the term is what makes them successful entrepreneurs, mentors and leaders. Let's see what lies in the nitty-gritty of effective listening in the workplace.

Developing Effective Listening Skills

Conscious Decision
The first step towards being an effective listener, is to take a conscious decision to hear someone. Once you've decided to listen effectively, then there's no looking back.

Body Language
Body language is an integral part of everything you do. Hence, it plays a crucial role in making you an effective listener in the workplace. When the speaker addresses you, make a confident eye contact. Sit in a position that you are most comfortable in, so that you don't fidget. Changing your emotions, appropriately to react to the listener's story, is a real test of understanding the body effective listening in the workplace. Read more about workplace ethics.

Share is Caring
Back home, when parents try to advice kids, the advice is straight away trashed. But in a workplace, the opposite is most likely. Considering, the similar age brackets of co-workers, the troubles of the speaker may seem more realistic to you, which makes you responsible to advice or at least pep-talk your colleague. If you are a good boss, don't probe too much into the matter, as not all employees are comfortable talking to their bosses. Let them befriend each other, to share and care for one another. This will also help in building teams and raising team spirits.

Connect
The last, final and the best of effective listening techniques for effective listening in the workplace, is to connect with the speaker's problems. Striking a connection, means talking about the problem or trouble or reacting to a good news as though it's a part of your life. Giving listening a personalized touch will help you establish a trustworthy bond.

Effects of Effective Listening in the Workplace

Non-Verbal Communication
Effectively listening in the workplace is a form of non-verbal communication. Clichéd, as it may sound, silence speaks more than words. When you make a conscious decision to listen to somebody, you do it with full, undivided attention. Your complete attention and concentration, towards the speaker's subject, communicates your concern to the speaker. In this way, effectively listening in the workplace, serves as a non-verbal communication tool. Corporate organizations are demanding and challenging. Most of us cope up with the pressures, however, it is always a listening ear, that provides us with motivation, care and concern to carry on. Read more about employee motivation.

Intelligent Emotions
Developing effective listening in the workplace through effective listening activities, is a way of fortifying emotional intelligence at work. This works with the logic of 'a friend in need, is a friend indeed'. If your employees can establish strong relations with each other, it's going to benefit your organization. Those of you, who think that your employees may conspire if they mingle too much, then let me tell you, boss, you are wrong!! Hearing out one another, working together, sharing load, being a helping hand and walking the extra mile, will go a long way in making your organization successful. Read more on emotional intelligence.

There are many factors to effective listening strategies. However, focusing with clarity is the important of all. I hope these effects of effective listening in the workplace and effective listening techniques, help you in building a reliable workforce.

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Traits of Effective Leadership

Honesty
Being honest is one of the most vital effective leadership traits in successful leaders. Honesty should be shown towards the organization which the leader is leading and also towards his fellow employees and stake holders of the organization. Whether it is a small company or a large multi-national organization, honesty in the leadership of the company alone can take it ahead on the path of progress. Honest leaders have a lot of mass support and respect in their company, as well as in the society. The unity in the company increases a lot with honest leadership.

Talent
Talent must be included in the effective leadership traits list. If you observe carefully, you will notice that most of the famous world leaders are highly qualified and have the ability to think in a more creative and unique way than the rest of the world. These people are visionaries and know very well, what will be the short term as well as the long term effects of their actions. Reasoning abilities, decision making, effective management and effective leadership styles constitute the concept of 'talent'. Though many leaders are said to be 'born-talented', this talent gets nurtured only with practical experience.

Confidence and Enthusiasm
Confidence and enthusiasm are the essential and effective leadership traits, which make a great leader. A good leader should always be charged up and should boost the morale of his workforce. He should have tremendous energy and enthusiasm to work for long hours and achieve the set targets. Having faith in one's abilities and the eagerness to learn new things, improving with the changing times by adapting to the new technologies and learning from the previous mistakes are all signs of a smart and effective leadership. However, one should note that over confidence and excessive false pride can be a hindrance to the progress and development of the company or a team. The effective leadership traits include generating a team spirit among the workforce by proper implementation of strategies.

Respecting Opinions of Others
Another one of the effective leadership traits is the important value of respecting the opinions of others. While taking any decision, whether big or small, all the concerned persons should be consulted and given prior information. Give the freedom to every person to voice his/her opinion freely and try to implement all those suggestions which are in the good interests of the team or organization. Taking decisions on your own without taking into account the presence of others gives rise to unnecessary feelings of rivalry and hatred, which will definitely prove to be detrimental to the interests of the entire group.

Presence of Mind and Decision Taking Abilities
Presence of mind and decision taking abilities are those effective leadership traits which can make a very successful leader. There are many situations wherein some kind of difficulties attack the progress or even the existence of the group. Such situations can be overcome by presence of mind and taking brave decisions at the right time. Decision making is a very complex process and needs a dynamic leader to complete it. For more leadership articles, refer to:

    * Effective Leadership Qualities and Skills
    * Different Styles of Leadership - Six Leadership Styles
    * Leadership Types and Styles

The effective leadership traits mentioned above are needed in leaders in all fields of life. Outstanding leadership skills have changed the lives of many people till date.

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Afterlife: Is There Life After Death?

"If you would behold the spirit of death, open your heart wide unto the body of life. For life and death are one, even as the river and sea are one." are the words of none other than Kahlil Gibran. This is such a beautiful description of something as intriguing as death. Now I really wonder what exactly is being dead, and what happens after death, or in other words, is there life after death? But wait, I cannot deal with two complicated things at the same time! So first I will try and uncover the meaning of death in different connotations in short.

Death - Different Perspectives
Medical Terms: In plain and simple medical terms, death is the end of all the biological functions of a living organism. It could be either the breakdown of the functions of the heart, the brain or both. This could be either in natural circumstances or man-made circumstances - wars, murders, capital punishment and so on.

Religious and Spiritual Interpretation: This is as vast as it can be, but on a very general note, there are views that death, is actually the death of the body and not of the soul. The body becomes a part of this universe and it returns to the original elements of which we are made. The Bhagvad Gita, the holy scripture of the Hindus, also proposes the same thing. Death, is the ultimate end. According to The Bible, death is a result of sins, rather the wages of sins is death. It believes that physical death is the separation of the soul from the body and spiritual death means that the soul is separated from the almighty. Similarly, there are numerous other interpretations and connotations attached to death.
All said and done, however you interpret it, one thing is sure, that just as life is a certain occurrence, death definitely, comes as the end.

Afterlife
These interesting perspectives on death lead us to the next obvious question - what after death. Is there life after death? What is meant by afterlife? Well, frankly speaking, there is really no definite answer to this absolute googly of a question, we sometimes come across and think about.

Philosophical and Religious Explanations: For me, the answer to living after death, perhaps means living in other people's memories and hearts. (That's the safest place I guess). This is the feeling that you get when you say that the person very dear to you, who died, is still there, somewhere, around you and watching you. Some people say that we have spoken and communicated with our loved ones after their death. But these are mostly anecdotal evidences. When we talk of afterlife, there are basically three major viewpoints from where the concept of afterlife or life after death, has been derived. They are Religion, Esotericism and Metaphysics. To add to the popular notion of afterlife, after someone dies, he or she is believed to go on a particular plane of existence, decided by god, based on his or her deeds during their lifetime. Those who are lucky enough, achieve 'Moksha' or freedom from this cycle of life and death, as believed by the Hindu religion. Islam's concept of afterlife is similar to some extent, to that of The Bible and Christianity, that life after death and where the person goes after death, depends upon his or her sins. This comes close to the Hindu religion's concept of 'Karma', that the way you lead your life and deeds you do in your life have an impact on your afterlife.

One of the empirical views of life after death could be the vital factor in this whole tangle of afterlife and is there life after death, is the concept of reincarnation. It is a major aspect of Hindu religion's description of afterlife, especially in the Upanishads. Reincarnation too, has two meanings; one is the preservation of the 'essence' of that being or being born in some other form. This also constitutes a major part of the debate of afterlife. Then, there are atheists who believe that there is no life after death. On the other hand, in many religions, as mentioned earlier and as scripted in the Bhagwad Gita, the soul is believed to be immortal. To further elaborate on this concept, they believe that the soul is eternal and just as a human being changes clothes, the soul changes bodies. The spirit lingers, as believed in Zoroastrianism. Egyptians on the other hand, were amongst the first to believe in life after death and so the practice of mummification and keeping the Book of Dead, food, jewelry and curses for the body.

Life After Death - Contemporary Perspective: Most scientists are not known to have voiced their opinions regarding the issue of soul and rebirth and so on. Parapsychology and a few other branches have tried to unravel the secrets of this mystical process and related paranormal phenomena, but there have been no concrete conclusions. Scientists, like Duncan McDougall, actually tried to find out through an experiment if the soul really exists, way back in 1901. In the modern era, what we can relate most to, rather than the soul and rebirth, are the near death experiences and near death experience stories narrated by people who have been in such experiences. For instance, from the occurrence of an accident, till the person is taken to the hospital and the vitals were taken care of, the experience the person felt in those few minutes. That could probably explain what is a near death experience. Then, in relation to this, what could you call a human heart which has stopped beating for a few seconds during a surgery or any medical condition and then after a shock treatment, the individual's heart starts beating again. So if considered medically, his heart stopped beating, therefore, the individual was dead for a few seconds, until the shock treatment was given. So can this also bring to the fore the issue of what is an out of body experience.

Forget about afterlife and the issue of life after death, even the concept of death is not a universal one. So it is absolutely impossible to answer the question if there is life after death. It's something which you believe in, only when you experience it; otherwise you do not.

The only way you could get the answer to the query, 'is there life after death', is to actually die. But, hey, do not rush into that, everyone of us has to die at some point of time and for that to be a satisfying experience, leading a good life is the best bet. What say? Because finally, as Vladimir Nabokov said, "Life is a great surprise. I do not see why death should not be an even greater one."

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The Nifty Newcomer

This morning my husband and I had the joy of watching our five year old son receive his very first school award, given by his teacher and presented by the principal in front of an entire auditorium full of his schoolmates - probably at least 400 people there in all.

Could this confident boy skipping up onto the stage be the same child who four months ago told me that he wasn't smart and had no friends... and whose former teacher had described as a shy loner who produced average work?

Thrillingly, it is! He isn't really the same boy though... the last four months have brought an explosion of growth for him, both mentally and emotionally.

Moving to our new home and this community has been a true blessing for our family in so many ways, but the most important and immediately noticeable way has been how it has impacted our five year old's life for the positive.

Yesterday afternoon as I tidied our small house before leaving to tutor a high school sophomore, our little boy was belting out an original song of his own creation. "EVERY ONE HAS GOT A FRIEND!!!" he sang at the top of his lungs. "I HAVE FRIENDS AND SO DO YOUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!! I HAVE TWENTY FOUR FRIENDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Just listening to him brought a huge smile to my face, and I turned away to play down my joy so that he wouldn't feel self conscious. Sometimes I have to pinch myself to remember that this is the same child who felt so lonely and hated school. These days he's always talking about his buddies and his best friends... and happily he's connected with at least 5 of the kids in his class who always wave at him and chatter away to him when I come to pick him up in the afternoons.

I have made a lot of decisions as a wife and mother over the past 7 years - some of which were better than others - but this move stands as one of the top five decisions I have ever made. What a thrill it was on Saturday night to hear my husband tell one of his best friends that "We love it up here, man - definitely a fantastic move for our family. I've completely come around, I'm so glad we moved." Yay!

A week ago I opened up the yellow manila envelope that our son's teacher sends home with him every Tuesday to find a half sheet of paper folded with our names on it. Expecting another fundraising flyer I opened the sheet to read:

"Your child has been selected for a special award. Parents are requested to attend an assembly on Wednesday, May 25th at 8:45am in the school auditorium."

"WOW! Honey, this is great!"

"What's great, mom?"

"You're getting an award next week!"

"I am? For what?"

Our son was as surprised as we were... but very pleased. "Maybe it is for math," he smiled. "I am good at math. Or maybe for P.E. I won that silver medal at the Junior Olympics. I've been winning a lot of awards lately, Mom!"

"You know why this is great honey?"

"Why, mom?"

"This shows that you are really blending into your new school and thriving like your Dad and I have noticed. Things are going very well for you!"

"Yep, they sure are!"

* * * * *

The week passed swiftly and by yesterday evening, our son had grown nervous.

"What if I look silly on stage? What if everybody laughs at me?"

"You won't look silly honey - there will be other kids getting awards and you won't be alone. Besides, nobody is going to laugh at you for earning an award. You are a kind, smart kid. Your true friends will be happy for you."

"Okay." He didn't sound convinced.

Before bedtime he picked out his own outfit for the award ceremony... nice jeans and a short sleeved collared shirt.

"You'll look so handsome!" I gave him a big hug. "I'll take a nice photo of you for our family album."

"Awwww, MOM!!!!" He was embarrassed but happy.

In the morning he dressed speedily and was waiting by the front door ready to leave for school 35 minutes early.

"Sweetheart, we'll have to wait just a little longer," I consoled. "Your teacher may not even be at school yet!"

"I don't want to be late, Mom!"

At the assembly our son sat with his kindergarten class in the front row of the auditorium while we stood at the very back with his baby sister who was busily taking off her shoes and handing them to the fifth graders seated around us. (She also tried to "read" her Curious George book out loud and raced out of the auditorium into the lunch court about three times, prompting her Daddy to throw her over his shoulder in a fireman's carry while she squirmed and squealed hysterically.)

The assembly itself was very cute - in its entirety it was about thirty minutes long and revolved solely around recognizing PTA parents and school students for their hard work, kindness and effort. After several rounds of awards and a short skit, at last the principal announced that it was time for classroom awards.

As it happened they gave awards in reverse order from 5th grade to Kindergarten, with our son's award coming last.

"And finally..." the principal announced, "From Room K, we have The Nifty Newcomer Award for (Our Son). Although he came to us midway through the year, this child has such a friendly spirit and a great attitude. He is a good sport and a hard-working student. It feels like you've been here forever and we just want to say, we're so happy that you're part of our school now!"*

He was the final child called up onto the stage and I could see from the look on his face as he came to shake the principal's hand that he'd been worried that they had forgotten about him.

Still, after skipping up the stairs he took his award and turned around to face the audience. Suddenly realizing that there were 400 pairs of eyeballs trained on him, he sat down at the front of the stage and dangled his feet off its edge. All of the other honorees and their parents stood in a line behind him.

"It's okay," said the principal to our son via microphone, "We have plenty of room for you to stand up here with the others... why don't you come back up to have your picture taken?"

My husband came to his rescue, giving our son a hug and leading him back up to the line of honorees. There was a nice round of applause. From the back, I took multiple photos while his sister called out in a surprisingly loud voice, "YAY BRUDDAAAAAA!!!!!!!"

Within moments, the assembly had concluded and the classes began to disperse. My son exited the auditorium with his class and my husband returned to say goodbye to our daughter and me.

"Wait!" I called out, "The certificate!" I raced to the line where my son stood with his class and whispered, "Honey, let me get your certificate framed before it gets torn or wrinkled!"

He turned around with eyes shining. "Did you SEE ME, Mommy? Did you like my assembly?"

"Oh yes. I saw you. It was marvelous!"

Glowing, he handed me the cardstock award certificate and disappeared into his classroom.

As I walked to myself, his words repeated themselves in my head. "Did you SEE ME? / Did you SEE ME?" When I returned to my husband, I related our son's burst of enthusiasm.

"We see him," I affirmed to my husband, "but even better and more importantly, everyone else here actually sees him too. His teachers. His friends. The principal... they really see him.

They see the best in our son, and they're celebrating it!"

What more could any parent hope for?








*Words spoken by his principal paraphrased from memory... you get the gist.

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Great Leaders are Great Listeners

When we ask participants in seminars why it is important to listen, the responses almost always relate to the need to gain accurate information from employees. That is correct, but it’s only a small part of the reason why it’s important to listen. A greater concern to a leader should be that their employees truly believe that their leader cares about them. One way to say that you truly care about employees and value their opinions is by listening to them with undivided attention.

The following tips will help you to listen more accurately and convey the feeling to others that you really do care about them and value their opinions. Listening involves not only hearing the speaker’s words, but also understanding the message and its importance to the speaker, and then communicating that understanding to the speaker.

Following these five guidelines will improve your listening ability:

   1. Develop an attitude of wanting to listen.

      Being a good listener starts with a positive attitude toward listening. If you are not in the right frame of mind for listening, you will miss valuable information. Remember, you can learn something from everyone. And if you cannot listen at this time, reschedule the conversation for another time when you will be able to give the other person your undivided attention. They will be thankful and impressed that you care enough to reschedule.


   2. Focus your attention on understanding the other person’s meaning, not on formulating your response.

      A good listener is “other-focused” rather than “self-focused.” Your goal is to understand the other person. Show the speaker that you are listening by using “attending skills.”
          * Maintain eye contact to show interest and to observe the speaker.
          * Lean forward slightly to communicate concern and to better comprehend the message.
          * Come out from behind a desk or any other physical barrier.
          * Nod your head to indicate understanding.
          * Smile when the speaker uses humor.
          * Allow for pauses–don’t feel you have to fill the space with your words while the other person needs time to collect his or her thoughts.


   3. Use open-ended questions to open up communication.

      Open-ended questions facilitate the conversation and provide an invitation to respond back and forth. They also let the other person know that his or her thinking is important to you.


   4. Use paraphrasing to ensure understanding.

      Paraphrasing shows the speaker that you are listening and that you understand what he or she has said. It also ensures that your interpretation of the message is correct.

      Examples:
          * “You think the XYZ program is not a good idea because…”
          * “It sounds like your major concerns on this project are…”


   5. Summarize conversations to ensure understanding and provide closure.

      A summary statement is a concise restatement of the key points discussed during a lengthy conversation. The summary brings the conversation to a close. It may also include a recap of specific actions or agreements made during the conversation.

      Examples:
          * “It seems that we agree that the project has gotten off track and that we will take the following steps to correct the situation…”
          * “As I understand it, you feel that we should bring the marketing people in on this proposal. As we discussed, I will contact them and set up a meeting for next week to discuss their involvement.”

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8 Steps to Becoming the Leader You’ve Always Wanted to Be

True leaders understand that success does not depend on their titles, but on the values they uphold and the choices they make on a daily basis. They know that leadership is not achieved through technical expertise, but rather is based on a relationship with their followers. It is our hope that the following insights will help you with the “relationship savvy” you need to be a great supervisor, and an outstanding leader.

   1.Acknowledge that the world is rapidly changing.
      You can decide that you are going to help create change and learn from it, or you can try to resist change. The current state of the economy is proof that it is important to change. Managers and employees alike will need to remove themselves from their comfort zones, whatever those may be, to enable their organization to survive the economy and come out on top.

   2.Focus on opportunities, not on what you cannot change.
      Where are you going to spend your energy? Complaining about things you cannot change or revamping the things you can? Believing that your destiny is in someone else’s hands relieves you of responsibility for your own actions. Focus on what you can do and take responsibility. There is power in responsibility.

   3. Lead with your heart AND head.
      We recently heard a manager say that he did not care about people’s emotions. He went on to say, “We have a job to get done!” Unfortunately, people are the ones who are going to get that job done. And, people have feelings. In fact, everything about motivation and the desire to do good work is based on a feeling. If we do not consider people’s feelings, it is impossible to be an effective leader.

   4.Reach out to people who have different perspectives.
      There is no challenge in communicating with people who think just like you. Communicating with people who have different views requires you to think outside of the box when explaining your thoughts and exposes you to new ideas or perspectives you may have not encountered otherwise.

   5.Become comfortable with the unknown.
      One of the necessities to becoming empowered is to feel at ease with the unknown. As fast as our environment is changing, it is impossible to know all the facts or have all the answers all the time.

   6. Develop a leadership “tool kit.”
      No one can have all the answers. What you can develop is a “tool kit” of resources that can help to solve problems. If you only have a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail. Collect information, and then learn and practice leadership and management techniques. Remember, good leaders never stop learning.

   7.Look for multiple right answers.
      With technology rapidly changing, we can no longer afford to look unilaterally for one right answer. Become multilateral in your thinking. Search for possibilities–not just one solution.

   8.Substitute effectiveness for perfectionism.
      If you wait until all the available information is in to make your decisions, the chances are you have waited too long. In a world of increasing competition, we can no longer afford the luxury of waiting until something is absolutely perfect.

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Projecting your work positively to your boss

Effective communication makes life easy and simple.  Take an example from your personal life- smooth communication with your friends and near & dear ones makes life easy. Same is true regarding your professional life. Your professional life could become a lot more easier if you communicate effectively with your boss. One of the most common ways to communicate with your boss is by sending reports. Smart employees know how to write effective reports and project their work positively to the boss.

It is strange, but true that almost all employees find sending of reports a very monotonous task and often take it for granted, but on the contrary reporting is one of the most significant ways to communicate effectively to your boss and represent your image positively. Employees find reporting annoying, time-consuming and useless where as for the boss, the report is one of the most important document that provides a clear picture of work, its progress and also helps in assessing the employee’s performance. Regular reporting help authorities in planning better future policies and plans.

A smart employee knows how to communicate effectively with the boss and how to get maximum exposure just by sending a daily report. It is true that work speaks louder than words but, your seniors and boss have number of other liabilities and sending a report is the only means to communicate with the concerned authorities. Your boss will perceive you as you project yourself in your report. Though each office and designation has its own reporting rule, but there are a few common rules that are required to be fulfilled to make a reporting effective and impressive.

While sending report or any kind of mail consider your audience and write accordingly, if you are reporting to a number of departments either write a separate mail or mention each department in a new section. While reporting try to keep your sentences short, but do not forget to mention the main task of your activity.

It is very important to write precise and accurate report. Do not clutter your mail with irrelevant details instead make it crisp and short. Make sure that your mail is grammatically correct and error free.  You can use spell check and grammar checker to make your report error free. No matter how good you are at your job, but if you cannot project it to your boss effectively you will never win your piece of cake. Professional world is very competitive and to remain in the race it is important to show yourself in the correct manner.

One of the best ways to communicate effectively is to provide executive summary at the starting of the report, highlighting the salient features and writing a short paragraph on the main task.

It is very important to proof-read a report before sending it to the concerned authorities; a report which is full of grammatical errors will surely damage your reputation where as an error free report will show your commitment and dedication to the job.

It is common to use acronyms and jargon in day to day conversations, but while sending a report, remember that you are formally communicating with your boss and an informal conversational use of jargon and acronyms should be avoided.

Use simple and easy language in a report. A report is not meant for showing your linguistic skills, but the purpose of a report is to maintain communication between the employee and the boss. Keep it neat, simple and short so that the concerned authorities can easily find the relevant information without getting lost in unnecessary details.

An employee’s future in any company is largely decided by his relation with his boss; open the source of communication with your boss, send your reports regularly, follow the etiquette of sending a report and make your professional life easy.

Communicate smartly and project yourself and your task intelligently it will make your path of professional success easy. This can also lead to Merit Pay or increment if the boss is impressed.

Two more recent adaptations of merit pay plans are popular. One awards merit raises in a lump sum once a year and does not make the raises of the employee’s salary (making them, in effect short term, Bonuses for lower level workers). Traditional merit increases are cumulative but most lump sum merit raises are not. This produces two potential benefits. First, the rise in payroll expenses can be significantly slowed. Lump sum merit increases can also be more dramatic motivation than traditional merit  pay raises.

The other adaptation ties merit awards to both individual and organizational performance. In this example, you might measure the company’s performance by, say rate on return, or sales divided by payroll costs. Company performance and the employee’s performance (using his or her performance appraisal) receive equal weight in computing the merit pay.  Here an outstanding performer would receive 70% of his or her maximum lump sum award even if the organization’s performance was marginal. However, employees with marginal or unacceptable performance would get no lump sum awards even in years in which the firm’s performance was outstanding. The bonus plan at discovery communication is an example. Executive assistants can receive bonuses of up to 10% of their salaries. The boss’s evaluation of the assistant’s individual performance accounts for 80% of the potential bonus: 10% is based on how the division is done, and 10% on how the company as a whole does.

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