As I saw it

Last week I was wondering if my 100th blog could be special but I left it open and not force fit it. I have always benefited more from serendipity and by going with the flow. And here it happened today. Are you a heartist? I first came across this word in an ad campaign that was done a couple of years ago by the Pullman hotel at the Delhi Aerocity. I believe a lot in heart centric work and heart centered leadership. In my work over the last 23 years and in my curiosity since long before that, motivation has been a key subject of exploration, experimentation and explanation. I learnt of the 3-H model from Ken Blanchard’s work. Essentially, in my understanding, experience and therefore belief, great work happens when the Head, Heart and Hands align within a person. And when this happens within a team and organisation, even greater things can happen where the whole becomes greater than the sum of the parts. But it’s not an easy task for an individual or even a manager. There are lots of f...

I just double checked for sure and found that there would be no training programmes for me on 11th August this year as it’s Rakshabandhan holiday. Even otherwise I wasn’t going to make myself available for any official work that day as one my most anticipated remakes is releasing that day. Forrest Gump has had a tremendous influence on my life since the time I first saw it in the iconic Chanakya theatre of Delhi in December 1995. I still remember it was a Thursday and three of us friends decided to go for this movie given the physical fight that had broken out between some of the teachers in our college due to which classes were suspended. I still remember it was cloudy and cold when we came out and I was choking a lot in my heart and throat. The first thing I told my friends was that I wished I was an idiot like Forrest. That way I will at least not be able to hate anyone. And now this! I was looking forward to see how they were going to adapt it to the Indian audience. But the last d...

Caution: Long read. Remember: “Take off is optional. Landing is Mandatory.” Proceed only if you want. Else abort and take a parachute out of this flight! ——————— That long hug said it all. ~ I had initially taken seat 13F during the web check in but when I realised my mistake I changed it to 32A and printed my boarding pass at the Hyderabad airport as I realised that in a south to north  bound flight, I will be able to see the sunset only from the left side of aircraft. I had begun developing a sore throat an hour back at the airport and so after doing a hot gargle with disprin tablet in the flight toilet I settled into my seat. I did get quite a good number of pictures and videos as the plane sliced through the clouds and banked to the right. I put away my phone camera, picked up my book Spy Stories and began reading even as my co-passenger was deeply involved in the Rishi Kapoor movie Do Dooni Chaar on his phone and dozed off till the air hostess came with our meals and I nudged ...

There was an interesting question raised in one of the Whatsapp groups that I am in about why cricketers, movie stars and politicians have unbelievable levels of income and why we shouldn’t feed those self-serving, selfish people leading a debauched life of sex and drugs. There were a couple of interesting as well as balanced perspectives shared by others in the group there. This is what I shared there: I used to wonder about the same question till I came across an interesting perspective in the book: The Go Givers by Bob Burg and John David Mann. What I am about to say doesn’t to apply for politicians as their way of making money is pure thuggery. What I learnt from that book is that the income you generate is directly proportional to the number of people you serve with great value. One might be a great teacher or a doctor but the moment you scale up either through technology or a team that can serve more people, your potential to earn or the number of people willing to pay for your s...

Maybe I can write an entire thesis on this movie but I will keep it short to say that after Gandhi, Amruthangamaya, October and the movies by Raj Kumar Hirani, I am yet to see a film like this with so much of depth, breadth, story, characterisation, screenplay and so much more. Don’t be misled by the trailer and the language to dismiss this movie. The thing with most Malayalam movie trailers is their genius that you can never predict what the movie is all about simply by watching the trailer. This should by far be not only one of the best ever Malayalam movies I have seen but if I were the Chairman of the National film awards committee, I would have given it the best picture award for 2021 and it would have certainly got an Oscar. You can never predict the twists and turns in this amazing story. So, so heart touching and inspiring with so many lessons for all of us, cutting across generations, ages, civilisations and cultures. Please watch it even if it’s with subtitles. Currently on S...

So, a new scam: I thought only the auto drivers of Delhi-NCR, Chennai and Kerala are the rapacious ones. But the Uber cab drivers in Hyderabad have joined the bandwagon. I booked an Uber cab in the morning today from my hotel in Hi-Tech City to the airport. It showed 4 minutes waiting time. And that’s at 6.55 in the morning. After 10 minutes I found that the cab was still at the place it was earlier on. I called the person - one Jatoth Pradeep with an all 5 star rating. He wanted to know the destination and the fare it was showing. Even though I found his request odd I finally relented and told him it was 643 Rupees. Without any second thoughts or even hesitation he told me that he will give me a bill of 1500 Rupees and that out of that I need to pay him only 1200 Rupees! I asked him if he thought I was an idiot? Again nonchalantly he told me that he won’t get any return fare from the airport in the morning and I should pay him the return charges. He refused to cancel the ride from his...

I believe in return gifts and reverse service. Do you? So I was in this Vistara flight to Hyderabad last Wednesday for a client engagement when one of the stewardess bent down near me and asked me if I had a meeting in Hyderabad? I guess she assumed that based on my formal dress. Let’s just call her A, based on one of the alphabets in her name. I said yes and she wished me good luck while she served me my breakfast. As she came by to clear the table, I had my mask down as I was sipping coffee. As I smiled in acknowledgement and thanks for her service, she remarked that I had a nice smile. I don’t know what made her say that but it certainly did broaden my smile and I sensed an expansion in my heart. And then as she came to clear the trash, I motioned to her and asked if she believed in return gifts? Taken aback a little, she said yes. I told her to come back once her job was done. As she came back a few minutes later, I showed her the stuffed hearts that you see and asked her to pick o...