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Current Success is always Small February 18, 2012

Posted by aglakadam in Children n Students, Management.
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Current Success is always Small

National Talent Search Examination, popularly known as NTSE, has always been an aspiration mark for school students. Recently results were declared for the first level examination of NTSE 2011. Approximately 13,000 students appeared for this test in Chhattisgarh. My daughter Mahima, who is a Class VIII student at Krishna Public School Raipur also appeared for this examination and secured a slot in the first 90 odd students to get through. We all in the family were overwhelmed with this success and surely this was an occasion for celebration.

Immediately after the results we went to meet the director of her school, Mr. Ashutosh Tripathi to convey our gratitude for extending the best academic support. He was elated with his student’s success and it was all showing on his face. He luxuriously lauded Mahima for the feet and expressed his happiness in smile studded words of praise. His words of wisdom were highly inspirational. What came thereafter from his coffer of knowledge is absolutely rich and valuable life skill. I take this opportunity to share his success sutras with all the readers of “The Hitavada”.

One step of praise and two stages of admonition was his strategy. Suddenly after the dose of appreciation the director made us wary and suggested no party for this success. We all were surprised, why no party when there is such a relevant occasion to celebrate! To elucidate further, Mr. Tripathi shared two success secrets with Mahima :

  1. Remember this for lifetime that “current success is always small”

                      &

  1. Make success a habit.

These are so powerful advises I feel every person on the universe should take cognizance of it. Let’s try and understand the depth of these sutra’s. Qualifying for NTSE Level is a recognizable achievement though it is just half the way through. The ultimate victory happens when the student qualifies in the final (national) level examination! Being selected in the first stage and becoming eligible for appearing in the national level NTSE examination is similar to having qualified in the league matches before the semi finals and the final match. When you have a larger goal in front of you, it is a vital success habit to always consider the current success to be small. Current success should be used as an inspiration to achieve bigger victories. Current success should enable an individual to steer aggressively towards higher goals.

It surly makes sense to target partying at a higher achievement point and not get complacent by celebrating the smaller success. Success at every stage should be treated as an investment bank account. To en-cash the current success you should only withdraw confidence from the bank of success.  Where is the time to rest when there are bigger challenges to test! A cricket enthusiast once asked Sachin Tendulkar “How do you celebrate every six that you hit in a match?” Came the reply, “I celebrate by focusing on the next incoming ball!”

Success breeds success. Getting habituated to success is good but getting into the habit of failure is worst! One should have the passion to be successful. When you do not make success as a natural tendency it becomes tough to align the mindset even when you are close to success. Here is an illustration from the world of cricket to put forth the point. The national cricket team of Bangladesh was in a phase of poor performance. They had lost a few matches in a row and the overall moral was very low in the team. At such a juncture they had to play a match with the then world champion Australia. To the shock and surprise of the cricketing world one new find bowler in the Bangladesh team spelled doom for the rival batsmen. The Aussies somehow managed to be at the crease at stumps. In the evening television journalist interviewed both the captain’s. The Aussie captain said, “To be in the game and to WIN it we will have to add 250 more runs tomorrow”. In the same interview the Bangladesh team’s captain said, “ we will have to ensure that we take all the wickets before lunch if we have to save this match!      Pl re-read the words… “if we have to save this match”!!! Where is the question of saving a match when you are in a favorable match winning situation? What went wrong with the Bangladesh team was that they got habituated to loosing matches. Due to this negative habit they missed to recognize the visiting victory. On the contrary the Australian team was in the winning habit and even in a stressful situation they were thinking of victory!

We all know that it takes no time for the current to become past. With every passing moment, the current success tacitly gets buried into history and future unfolds with more demands for success. Winning should then become a way of life. We should allow our thoughts and design our actions to be governed by the habit of success.

Lessons for Excellence :

  • Like failure, success should also not be counted as final
  • Milestones of smaller success should never tempt you to rest till you achieve the bigger targets.
  • Make wining a habit and you will never get distracted on the way.
  • Current success should lay the carpet to welcome the next success.
  • Always think success, to achieve success.

Feedback : Ajit Varwandkar

Email : md@fsindia.in

You cannot re-listen the spoken words February 15, 2012

Posted by aglakadam in Inspirational Story, Management.
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You cannot re-listen the spoken words

A police officer in a city stopped a motorcyclist who was speeding down the cricket stadium. “But sir,” the motorist begged, “I can explain the reason why I was driving fast…” “Will you please be silent?,” snapped the police officer. “I’m going to put you behind the bar until the commissioner is in here at the police station.” “But sir, I only wanted to say that …,” rebuffed the police man : “dear I asked you to keep mum! You’re going to jail and that’s for sure!”  

A few hours later the police officer looked into the innocent eyes of the prisoner and said, “Did you know there is a marriage hall on the way where you were driving so fast? There were children playing near the hall and with your speed you might have surely hurt someone.” The lamenting man replied from behind the iron grill, “Yup, I know it the best, actually I’m the groom!”

Good listeners always give others a chance to speak. They allow the communication to happen.  A good listener has a huge amount of patience. We all might have observed at one time or the other that people tend not to have the patience to listen till the end. You start telling some story and chances are that half way through someone might barge into the communication stating he also experienced something similar once upon a time and start narrating that experience. Not listening is one of the biggest barrier to communication. Anger is the first enemy of good listening while impatience is the second.  Many of life’s failures and tragedies happen because we cease to listen.

Here is one more example. Ramesh’s boss, was known to be a hard task master in office. Once he was instructing his subordinate on some business issue. Ramesh actually had more updates about the subject matter and hence tried to interrupt his boss with that information but was harshly rubbished by him. In spite of his best intervention efforts the facts could not be communicated to his boss. Ramesh was compelled to work as per the imperfect directions of his boss. Eventually the strategy proposed by his boss failed and the plan backfired. The company had to incur loss. A post loss repent does never correct the past. Unfortunately there is no undo command for not listening!  

Those who can listen and comprehend can only be successful in life.  Listening is different to hearing. You ‘hear’ sound which might not make any sense to you. You hear noise, you listen words. Noise might not have any sense while words have the power to move the world! Listening is an art inherited by the wise. It is one of the most primitive arts learned by mankind. It helps individual to connect with other people and the world. When you listen properly you pay attention.

Listening is also about caring. Children grow up and parents grow older, what does an old parent need from its progeny?  A patient listening can many a times ease of high levels of accumulated stress.  You need to be a very good listener if you wish to become a good parent, a good spouse, a good teacher, a good boss or a spiritual person. Listening breeds result when caring follows it because you care only when you empathise with the other person. You can empathize only when you listen properly.

Think of a seriously ill patient lying on the bed by your side. What do you think the patient needs the most? Nothing but an attentive listening is desired by the patient. Just try to recall what did you share with your friend when the friend lost a near and dear one? The friend was upset and very sad, actually crying a lot. At such times and caring ear is what maximum can be offered by any human being.

You cannot re-listen the spoken words, hence it is better to listen it right the first time. When you pay attention to what is being said you actually give the most precious reward to the speaker.  Sometimes inspite of having listened properly you do not get the right meaning of the words. On such occasions one should request for elucidation. You are listening only when your heart is in synchronization with the rhythm pouring in from the ear.

Are you listening?

 Lessons for Excellence :

  • Learn to listen, not just hear or else you might miss out on the essence of life.
  • Always give full opportunity to the other person to speak out before you take a decision.
  • Listening properly is a mandatory ingredient for being successful.
  • Those who do not listen thoroughly, repent later.
  • Each one of us should learn to be a good listener.

Ajit Varwandkar

Feedback : md@fsindia.in

For SUCCESS : commitment is more important than speed January 21, 2012

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FROG in the milk pond

Efforts never die

Your commitment is more important than your speed

I retell the story of a few frogs which lived their life happily near a dairy farm. Once while they were in search of food, a few of them inadvertently jumped into a milk bucket. Milk bath was an entirely new experience for these frogs. Eventually they realized that the side walls were too slippery and it was not possible for them to jump out of the vat. They could do nothing but to swim around hoping for some help. They were unaware of the fact that help comes to those who try a way out on their own first.

God helps those who help themselves. Almost all the frogs that

…………………..  Complete write-up in my forthcoming book…. for announcement on the book title and launch, pl keep visiting www.aglakadam.com  ……………………………………… 

In the journey to success, your commitment is more important than your speed.

 Ajit Varwandkar

Feedback : md@fsindia.in

Kites fly highest against the wind, not with the wind January 14, 2012

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Lessons from Kite

Kites fly high against the wind

When we see thousands of kites flying in the air demonstrating a kaleidoscope of patterns, shapes & colors, it surely spreads pure happiness and rejuvenation in the air. The galaxy of kites put you in an awe and you think if life could get any better? A deeper look into the sight of kites soaring high into the sky can instigate spirituality and give you lessons in life. It’s really amazing to know what a kite can teach us. If we are open to get lessons, anything around us can teach us – even a kite!  I summarize few lessons that can be driven out of this festival of kites.

…………………..  Complete write-up in my forthcoming book…. for announcement on the book title and launch, pl keep visiting www.aglakadam.com  ………………………………………  Ajit varwandkar                                            

Feedback : md@fsindia.in

PS. An appeal : It has been found that some birds get killed by the string of the kite. Request all not to apply sharp edge materials to the kite string. This might harm a bird. Also fly a kite in such open areas where the birds are less likely to fly low.

When opportunities knock, don’t be sleeping on the couch November 26, 2011

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  When opportunities knock, don’t be sleeping on the couch

Recently news about a reputed airline company cancelling flights occupied the media headline space prominently. This aero business company suddenly realized that it was in a horrendous loss of more than Rs. 1000 crore. The high-profile chief executive of the company approached the government heads requesting bailout! It was as if the airline was unaware of the impending crisis! …….

 

…………….  Complete write-up in my forthcoming book…. for announcement on the book title and launch, pl keep visiting www.aglakadam.com  ………………………………………  Ajit Varwandkar

Feedback : md@fsindia.in

These children are brand ambassadors of strength November 12, 2011

Posted by aglakadam in aglakadam, Inspirational Story.
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These children are brand ambassadors of strength

Our state Chhattisgarh celebrated its eleventh state formation day by organizing a state level fest in Raipur called Rajyotsav-2011. In between 1st Nov’2011 and  5th Nov’2011 people from all across the state gathered in huge numbers to this expo. It was an influx of almost one lack footfalls each day.

Luck struck fair for me and I got to make my presence usefully registered on this occasion. Higher Education Department of the State Government of Chhattisgarh organized a unique reality show named as “Nano Career Guidance- ON THE SPOT”. I was given the responsibility to counsel students and extend guidance in this show. In the course of these five days more than 600 students visited us. Apparently the students who visited had an inconspicuous personality but still each one of them carried a unique history. When I spoke to the students at length I understood more about life. Some students had some characteristics so special about them that one could draw a heavy dose of inspiration out if it. I present here the real life stories of a few such students.

The first story is of Dhanesh Sahu who belongs to a small village near Raigarh. He scored 87% marks in class XIIth examination. His father is a cycle rickshaw puller and mother works as a house maid. He has two sisters. Father is a drunkard and has articulated a hell in their daily life out of his bad habit. Dhanesh had appeared for pre engineering entrance and qualified to join a reputed engineering college. However he consciously decided not to take admission into engineering because his financial & family situations did not support his education. He knows he will not have enough time and money to get an engineering degree from a full-time course college.

The most appreciable part of Dhanesh’s story is that his dream & desire to become an engineer is intact with him in spite of acute constraints in life. According to him “lack of motivation” is the first commuter which starts running along with an individual as soon as he steps on the lane of problems in life. Always stand directly under the “sun rays of motivation” so that the “shadow of second thoughts” is never seen. He has already acquired the qualification of ITI and has started working with an engineering organization as a machinist. I will work for two years, earn some money for myself and then attempt to become a diploma engineer. He says “When I get enough money to sustain myself I will surely study to become an engineer in life!”

Second story to share is that of Ramashankar. With a B.Com degree in hand Ramashankar is currently pursuing his management course. He has the responsibility to support his family. Lack of financial stability compels him to earn money simultaneously along with his education. He lost his father when he was a small kid and has been into some or the other kind of occupation since those days. What distinguishes him from others is the fact that he is also working as a waiter in one of the hotels in Chhattisgarh. He’s highly inspired by Amitabh Bachchan and refuses to accept tip from his customer’s who visit the restaurant, a la Vijay in the bollywood movie “Deewar”, ‘fenke hue paise mai aaj bhi nahi leta’ ( I do not accept the fee amount,  if a person throws maney towards me ). In his words, “My only challenge is the situation when I have to serve food to my colleagues as a waiter in the restaurant. However I have no complaints, my duty is to make every situation in my stride!”

Third story is of a blind girl. She lives in one of the blind girls hostel in the city. I was exhilarated to know that this girl was pursuing her Masters in Arts. It had been a tough journey for her to reach this stage in her academic career and this was not the end of road for her. She visited us at the career guidance fare to know about the future prospects of career growth for her. Her blindness, so far, has never interfered in her aspirations. The girl says she is happy in her life and her face radiates the pleasantness. Meeting her reminds me of the miraculous achievements of Helen Keller, in her words :

They took away what should have been my eyes    
(But I remembered Milton’s Paradise).

They took away what should have been my ears,    
(Beethoven came and wiped away my tears).

They took away what should have been my tongue,            
            (But I had talked with God when I was young).

He would not let them take away my soul –  
Possessing that, I still possess the whole.

Friends there are many such children around us who have demonstrated extraordinary courage and commitment in order to make life worth living. These are the hero’s who have defeated deprivation. Such children are surely the brand ambassadors of strength and will power. My salute to them.

LESSONS FOR EXCELLENCE :

  • Success and Failure have no direct relation with ones financial background.
  • Winners focus on the possibilities and not on the limitations.
  • Champion is determined by dreams, not excuses.
  • If you choose to stay motivated in life, one morning you will get up happier.
  • If you have the necessary will, you will surely find the rightful way.

(PS. I have changed the names of children in the stories to respect their individuality)

Ajit Varwandkar

Feedback : md@fsindia.in

Never write-off anyone in life November 5, 2011

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Never write-off anyone in life

I have been a keen cricket enthusiast right from my school days.  It’s an all together different fact that I was never considered as a useful cricket player by my friends. In those day’s children who were not considered good either at batting or at bowling but still insisted to play along with others on the ground were asked to stand behind the stumps or at short mid on or at third man position. When the number of players were more than 11 I had to sit in the pavilion and do the score counting job. As such most of the times I used to play as a wicket keeper and never bothered about the partial treatment being given to me.  I loved the game and used to enjoy it a lot.

I share an incidence which turned around my image as a cricketer in my locality.

…………………..  Complete write-up in my forthcoming book…. for announcement on the book title and launch, pl keep visiting www.aglakadam.com  ……………………………………… 

Failure should be considered as a relearning detour.

Feedback : Ajit Varwandkar

 Email : md@fsindia.in

Don’t stop at Good, Great is waiting ahead October 3, 2011

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Suppose you are travelling from Delhi to Mumbai and on the way you reach Agra. You are welcomed by some acquaintance of yours in the midway city. Will you consider having arrived at your destination? I am sure you won’t. While the target is to reach Mumbai, Agra is just a milestone. Apparently this looks like a very simpleton fact. Let me present the same situation with a twist. On your one way from one city to other suppose your car gets a flat tyre and cannot move ahead. Will you declare that the target destination is reached? Not really. You will have to find a way out to move ahead. When on road this might seem easy but when travelling on the  journey called life, it becomes tough to distinguish a milestone from a goal.

Sachin Tendulkar started playing cricket for India at a very early age and it took him a 22 years long journey to be the part of a World Cup winning team. In the meanwhile he created a history of world records.

…………………..  Complete write-up in my forthcoming book…. for announcement on the book title and launch, pl keep visiting www.aglakadam.com  ……………………………………… 

Never confuse a milestone as the ultimate destination on the road to success.

Ajit Varwandkar

 

Email : md@fsindia.in

Time Management is not the key to success July 23, 2011

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Yes, I repeat the title: Time management is not the key to success. I would go ahead and request you also to repeat it with me once again : Time management is not the key to success! I am sure this is something you never heard of before. There is so much of pollution on the subject of “time management” in the world of self-help guidance & trainings. Google it and you will find that content worth lacs of pages is available on time management. Every next book in the management shelf refers to time management on some page. Leading management gurus conduct workshops and seminars on the concept of time management. With so much of a recognition to time management I still dare to demand: time management is not the key to success.

There is an ancient proverb which says : “Inch of time can not be bought with an inch of gold.” 

…………………..  Complete write-up in my forthcoming book…. for announcement on the book title and launch, pl keep visiting www.aglakadam.com  ……………………………………… 

 

Time does not discriminate between living things.  Even the president of a country gets the same quantum of 24 hours which every other citizen gets!

Ajit Varwandkar

Email : info@fsindia.in

Birth of an Unemployable Engineer July 16, 2011

Posted by aglakadam in career guidance and counselling, Children n Students.
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Admission session is back on cards. Various academic institutes across India are into the refilling mode. Recently we had the news from Shri Ram College of Commerce, New Delhi about the mind shattering 100% cut-off marks for admission. The demand supply imbalance of seats versus prospective students has surfaced yet again. Engineering has traditionally been the most preferred & “rest assured” choice of professional career for students and parent’s alike. Getting an Engineering degree is like a dream achieved. However the story post engineering is not all that encouraging these days. We have seen a large mass of unemployed engineering students struggling hard, unsuccessfully, to get into employment.

Time and again we get to see those enticing advertisements from various colleges imparting professional education. We also come to understand that India is on the path of exponential industrial growth & that industry would be requiring thousands and lacks of qualified manpower in years to come. A very important question which one thinks of is “In spite of seemingly win-win scenario for students and industry both, why is there a situation where thousands of unemployed engineers flock on the roads every year? There has to be some remarkably important phenomenon responsible to catalyze this situation. To my understanding the main reason behind this situation is that some of the institutions are giving birth to unemployable engineers. The obvious blame flame targets the mushrooming of engineering institutes, short sighted policies, lack of vision etc. On the contrary I think there is one more factor responsible for this imbalance. You would agree with me that it is the input which justifies the output. We need to take a serious look into the kind of students intake today’s institutes of excellence are forced to acquire. A few of real life experiences will elucidate my views in the next paragraph.

A parent visited us last week and wanted career counseling for their child. Father is a reputed builder and desperately wanted his son to join his business. Sir please guide my son to become a Civil Engineer. It was a close ended request. Father had not given any alternates to his son. On the first place I had doubts if the young lad even had an aptitude for engineering, leave aside civil engineering. The kid confessed, he wanted to become a stage artist. In spite of all the guidance and counseling efforts, the psychometric assessments et al, I know the boy will have to digest the qualification of Civil Engineering.

In yet another real life experience a girl child spoils her career because her parent’s are too liberal. They not only assured her to give her the financial support to visit a career counselor and get the most professional advise but also to arrange for the best education infrastructure for her. “Do what you want to & we shall support you financially” goes their words. The girl got all the more confused. All choices and no signboards from parent! Which way should I go?

Choices are the hinges of destiny, said Pythagorus. Surely so and very true also. More so when one is on cross roads of career and the decision taken today will decide the direction of the future life. With thousands and lacs of engineering seats available in India getting admission to an Engineering College is not much an issue. Any institute is as good or as bad as its faculty, campus placements and students provided the Institute is statutorily accredited and recognized.

Friends, students & parents let me share a secret with you. “Just like all medicines are helpful to cure some or the other illness but this happens only when the doctor reads the symptoms rightly and prescribe the right medicine, likewise all Engineering Branches lead to success – what is required is to have the right match.” To select the right branch is a very serious decision. This shall define the course of your career. In the process of making this decision students get strongly influenced by parents, peers and people in general. The opinion of every person you meet contributes in creating thought ripples. In the field of engineering there are immense opportunities for those with the right attitude, skills. The need is to choose the right branch as per the interest and aptitude parameter of ones personality. Opportunities will definitely follow those students who select the right academic slot for themselves. Even in times of recent recession, exciting opportunities were available for technically qualified & EMPLOYABLE manpower.

Making a BRANCH SELECTION is all the more tough when the choices are more. Before taking the right decision students should necessarily meet and discuss with at least two on job working engineers from every stream of engineering and get their opinions about the particular branch. Selecting a branch of engineering also depends on the students career planning. It is must that students should be able to evaluate their inherent personality traits and match it against those which may be the mandatory determinants for any particular branch of engineering. Not all branches of engineering may be suitable to every student. For example if you have a extremely introvert personality and you desire to become a civil engineer or get into construction activities in your life, it may not be really the right decision for you since civil engineering on field ( mostly) requires the traits of extrovert personality.

Every engineering field has its own set of challenges and opportunities. The student should first logically establish the best preferred stream of engineering by getting a. professional psychometric consultation. Having established the best branches the student should introspect and reflect about his/ her aptitude, interest and personality, the strength areas and match it with the career goal.  A lot of material is available on the internet which can be surfed to get a glimpse into the engineering branch selection subject. Its however wise & fruitful to consult seniors in the industry, teachers & placement managers, counselors & education coaches before jumping on to the final decision.

LESSONS FOR EXCELLENCE :

1. All branches of engineering have the potential to deliver a great future to the student.

2. More than selection of the institute it is the selection of the right branch which is more critical.

3. Before finalizing on any institute a student should necessarily be satisfied with the institutes accreditation status. You have all the rights to ask for these details.

4. Understand & analyse your aptitude, interest & skills and use this report to select the right branch of engineering.

5. It pays to discuss with senior / just pass-out students & relevant working professionals in the industry to get more insight about the institute and the various streams of education in engineering.

Ajit Varwandkar

Email : info@fsindia.in