Dead Horse Theory

Courtesy: From a person personally known to me

“When you discover that you are riding a dead horse, the best strategy is to dismount and get a different horse.”

However, in government, education and corporate life, more advanced strategies are often employed, such as:

1. Buying a stronger whip.

2. Changing riders.

3. Appointing a committee to study the horse.

4. Arranging to visit other countries to see how other cultures ride dead horses.

5. Lowering the standards so that the dead horse can be included.

6. Reclassifying the dead horse as ‘living impaired’.

7. Hiring outside contractors to ride the dead horse.

8. Harnessing several dead horses together to increase speed.

9. Providing additional funding and / or training to increase dead horse’s performance.

10. Doing a productivity study to see if lighter riders would improve the dead horse’s performance.

11. Declaring that as the dead horse does not have to be fed, it is less costly, carries lower overheads and therefore contributes substantially more to the bottom line of the economy than do some other horses.

12. Rewriting the expected performance requirements for all horses.

And, of course,

13. Promoting the dead horse to a supervisory position!

Alarmingly True, right ?

Courtesy: From a person personally known to me

Cheers,

Vijay Srinivasan
29th April 2012
Mumbai

The Taxi Ride

Courtesy: Anu, my IIM-B Classmate

Note: I do not know the original author, so I am unable to give the credit that is absolutely due to him/her. I am just reproducing this outstanding story from an email I received from my classmate, and I believe that the more it is read, the more it would convey the importance and criticality of its central message to a wider audience. This truly impressed me and is really a great story with a strong message on how small acts of courtesy would go a very long way in life.

The Taxi ride….this is beautiful

I arrived at the address and honked the horn. after waiting a few minutes, I walked to the door and knocked.. ‘Just a minute’, answered a frail, elderly voice. I could hear something being dragged across the floor.

After a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in her 90′s stood before me. She was wearing a print dress and a pillbox hat with a veil pinned on it, like somebody out of a 1940′s movie.

By her side was a small nylon suitcase. The apartment looked as if no one had lived in it for years. All the furniture was covered with sheets. There were no clocks on the walls, no knick-knacks or utensils on the counters. In the corner was a cardboard box filled with photos and glassware.

‘Would you carry my bag out to the car?’ she said. I took the suitcase to the cab, then returned to assist the woman. She took my arm and we walked slowly toward the curb.

She kept thanking me for my kindness. ‘It’s nothing’, I told her.. ‘I just try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother to be treated.’

‘Oh, you’re such a good boy, she said. When we got in the cab, she gave me an address and then asked, ‘Could you drive through downtown?’ ‘It’s not the shortest way,’ I answered quickly… .

‘Oh, I don’t mind,’ she said. ‘I’m in no hurry. I’m on my way to a hospice.

I looked in the rear-view mirror. Her eyes were glistening. ‘I don’t have any family left,’ she continued in a soft voice.. ‘The doctor says I don’t have very long.’ I quietly reached over and shut off the meter.

‘What route would you like me to take?’ I asked.

For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator. We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived when they were newlyweds
She had me pull up in front of a furniture warehouse that had once been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a girl.

Sometimes she’d ask me to slow in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.

As the first hint of sun was creasing the horizon, she suddenly said, ‘I’m tired. Let’s go now’.

We drove in silence to the address she had given me. It was a low building, like a small convalescent home, with a driveway that passed under a portico. Two orderlies came out to the cab as soon as we pulled up. They were solicitous and intent, watching her every move. They must have been expecting her.

I opened the trunk and took the small suitcase to the door. The woman was already seated in a wheelchair.

‘How much do I owe you?’ She asked, reaching into her purse.

‘Nothing,’ I said.

‘You have to make a living,’ she answered.

‘There are other passengers,’ I responded.

Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto me tightly. ‘You gave an old woman a little moment of joy,’ she said ‘Thank you.’

I squeezed her hand, and then walked into the dim morning light.. Behind me, a door shut. It was the sound of the closing of a life…..

I didn’t pick up any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly lost in thought. For the rest of that day, I could hardly talk. What if that woman had gotten an angry driver, or one who was impatient to end his shift?

What if I had refused to take the run, or had honked once, then driven away? On a quick review, I don’t think that I have done anything more important in my life.

We’re conditioned to think that our lives revolve around great moments. But great moments often catch us unaware-beautifully wrapped in what others may consider a small one.

PEOPLE MAY NOT REMEMBER EXACTLY WHAT YOU DID, OR WHAT YOU SAID BUT THEY WILL
ALWAYS REMEMBER HOW YOU MADE THEM FEEL

You might help make the world a little kinder and more compassionate by sending it on and reminding us that often it is the random acts of kindness that most benefit all of us.

Thank you, my friend…

Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we are here, we might as well enjoy it…….

Courtesy: Anu, my IIM-B Classmate

Note: I do not know the original author, so I am unable to give the credit that is absolutely due to him/her. I am just reproducing this outstanding story from an email I received from my classmate, and I believe that the more it is read, the more it would convey the importance and criticality of its central message to a wider audience. This truly impressed me and is really a great story with a strong message on how small acts of courtesy would go a very long way in life.

Cheers

Vijay Srinivasan
21st January 2012
Mumbai

Word Count on Blog Posts

Wow, that’s a new topic, and I hope my friend who commented on my earlier post on “Aspartame” reads this one !

I have been made conscious about the fact that I am too verbose when it comes to writing articles. Some people do complain that I am longish when talking to people or addressing a group of people. I have strived hard to correct this second complaint, and I have discovered to my pleasure that I am indeed able to limit any consequential damages by limiting the word count which flows out of my mouth. Collateral damages could continue however.

When it comes to writing about my own personal exploits or commentaries on world affairs, I am finding it tougher to limit my word count, despite pressures from well-wishers like the friend I referred to above. While I am not enamoured about his writing either, I have to say that he is more savvy and marketing-oriented rather than self-centred when it comes to expressing his thoughts. However, I am writing for my own pleasures, and I have belaboured many a time to mention this aspect to my friends who insist that they will come by and drop into my blog. Well then it is their problem, I guess.

I think it is important to express oneself lucidly with abundant clarity and the English language offers fabulous opportunities for the same. I am not confident about other languages though. I am not a cartoonist who can express figuratively what I have in mind. My mind is complex, and so no choice but to cull out of my brain what it is thinking and trying to tell me. I hope my friend realises that this a truth that even he has to face sometime.

Given this kind of complexity, and also given the fact that life is far too complex to solicit brevity of any kind, I have no choice my dear friend except to write lucidly and test the reader’s patience. If you have come this far, it shows that my language skills are good and adequate to keep your mind focused on what I am trying to communicate.

Well, I must be the only person who has written so much about “word count on blog posts”. Please leave my blog now and enjoy the start of the weekend. And my friend, I was not able to connect with you even though I was in Singapore, I am now returning to Mumbai this evening ! Sorry about that, next time will arrange to meet with you and have Char Kway Teow in East Coast !!

Have a wonderful weekend.

Cheers,

Vijay Srinivasan
7th August 2009
Singapore Airport

Real Faith

Courtesy : My IIM-B Classmate, Sanjay

In a small town in India, a person decided to open up his Bar business, which was right opposite to the Temple. The Temple & its congregation started a campaign to block the Bar from opening with petitions and prayed daily against his business.

Work progressed. However, when it was almost complete and was about to open a few days later, a strong lightning struck the Bar and it was burnt to the ground.

The temple folks were rather smug in their outlook after that, till the Bar owner sued the Temple authorities on the grounds that the Temple through its congregation & prayers was ultimately responsible for the demise of his bar shop, either through direct or indirect actions or means.

In its reply to the court, the temple vehemently denied all responsibility or any connection that their prayers were reasons to the bar shop’s demise. As the case made its way into court, the judge looked over the paperwork at the hearing and commented : “I don’t know how I’m going to decide this case, but it appears from the paperwork, we have a bar owner who believes in the power of prayer and we have an entire temple and its devotees that doesn’t !!’

Courtesy : My IIM-B Classmate, Sanjay

Cheers

Vijay Srinivasan
17th May 2009
Mumbai

Few Definitions

Courtesy : Sanjay Mahajan, my classmate from the IIMB 1985 – 87 Batch

School: A place where Papa pays and Son plays.

Life Insurance: A contract that keeps you poor all your life so that you can die Rich.

Nurse: A person who wakes u up to give you sleeping pills.

Marriage: It’s an agreement in which a man loses his bachelor degree and a woman gains her masters.

Divorce: Future tense of Marriage.

Tears: The hydraulic force by which masculine willpower is defeated By feminine waterpower.

Lecture: An art of transferring information from the notes of the Lecturer to the notes of the students without passing through “the minds of either”

Conference: The confusion of one man multiplied by the number present.

Compromise: The art of dividing a cake in such a way that everybody believes he got the biggest piece.

Dictionary : A place where success comes before work.

Conference Room : A place where everybody talks, nobody listens and everybody disagrees later on.

Father: A banker provided by nature.

Criminal: A guy no different from the rest….except that he got caught.

Boss: Someone who is early when you are late and late when you are early.

Politician : One who shakes your hand before elections and your Confidence after.

Doctor : A person who kills your ills by pills, and kills you by bills.

Classic: Books, which people praise, but do not read.

Smile: A curve that can set a lot of things straight.

Office: A place where you can relax after your strenuous home life.

Yawn: The only time some married men ever get to open their mouth.

Etc.: A sign to make others believe that you know more than you actually do.

Committee : Individuals who can do nothing individually and sit to decide that nothing can be done together.

Experience: The name men give to their mistakes.

Atom Bomb: An invention to end all inventions.

Philosopher: A fool who torments himself during life, to be spoken of when dead

Courtesy : Sanjay Mahajan, my classmate from the IIMB 1985 – 87 Batch

Cheers

Vijay Srinivasan
13 May 2007
Mumbai

Sense of Purpose

I have been thinking about this topic for a couple of days.

Most people around seem to be carrying out their daily lives in a predetermined sequence of actions to earn their livelihood, raise their families, make some money, et al. How many people really execute their lives with a sense of purpose and mission ? Does life have a greater meaning, a goal, a serious sense of purpose, for most people ?

I think not even educated and professional folks seem to be having a comprehensive vision on what they wish to achieve in life. Recently I was reminded of this when I saw the question on future plans and vision in University application forms for my daughter’s admission. Universities seem to be wanting to find out which applicants have a higher sense of purpose in life, which one of them have really thought through what they wish to do with their lives, is there any role envisaged for a service to the society at large, etc., This set me thinking, as I was also searching for a meaning in life’s greater landscape.

I read an article in International Herald Tribune (“The Comfort of medical studies” by Daniel Klein – “IHT Daniel Klein” ) in which there was an interesting study mentioned – by S.K. Bhattacharya and H.K. Battacharya – and the quote from this article is as follows – “For too many unenlightened people, life has no meaning, no ever-present goal that gives them daily purpose. But for a person who wakes up every morning with an acute itch, what to do next is self-evident”. Please read the article which has no relation to the topic that I am now writing about, but I liked this quote out of context.

Having a sense of purpose is more critical than just feeling good. One may dress well, have the right kind of diet, work-out to maintain a trim figure, engage in social networking at parties, etc., but I think all of this and more are not the same as developing, focusing and maintaining a clear sense of direction and purpose in life. By doing so, I would not be surprised if one also feels good and achieves good health. Meaning appears to be more important than Form. Coming together they would be a potent combination for success and fulfillment in life. It also leads to happiness in whatever you set out to do in life.

One’s sense of purpose is very important to leverage and maximize one’s potential, creativity, and imagination. It helps to focus intensely at life’s problems and opportunities and helps one to make the right move forward. Think of the power of purpose ! If only you can align and focus your energies and passion going after the purpose in life !! You could achieve what an Einstein achieved in his life. Never defocus from your greater sense of purpose in life.

Have a wonderful weekend and week ahead, folks ! And write down your Statement of Purpose rightway, if you don’t have one as yet !!

Vijay Srinivasan
24 Feb 2007
Mumbai

Pune Drive

I took a drive for the second time in four months on the Mumbai – Pune Expressway. This time it was different for two reasons – my family was with me, and secondly, I did part of the driving.

My report card – the Expressway is good stuff, it is definitely far superior to anything else I have seen in India (I haven’t seen most of it though). People say it is much better than the old highway, though the old one I believe has more scenic sections and winding roads around the ghat.

However, there were several negatives – one is that it took a long time to reach the expressway on both sides, much worse on the Mumbai side. There is a confusing section on the Mumbai side, wherein one pays Rs 25 as toll charge to get into a bad highway stretch, before one gets into the Pune Expressway by paying Rs 118 as toll fee. I don’t understand why they are not able to integrate both into one seamless experience from Vashi all the way to Pune. Then, there were several open sections in the middle of the expressway which allowed drivers to take a dangerous U-turn, this is extremely dangerous and forces people on the high-speed rightmost lane to break hard – they hardly expect anyone to join them from the right anyway !

Apart from these, there are the usual Indian driving madness when you are chased by small mini-sized/pint-sized cars of the Alto, Suzuki Swift types who are so fast that there is not even any time for you to move to the left lane to allow them to pass by. Indian drivers also are not able to keep their a** on the lane, they keep moving left and right all the time which I found was totally unnecessary. I thought they must be enjoying their new-found freedom even if they are really not chasing anyone. But it is dangerous in ghat sections, when the number of lanes drops from three to two and the speed limit is only 30 KMPH. Youngsters have hot blood, but I even found middle-aged and older drivers taking a swing at it – may be they thought that having paid Rs 118, they have temporary ownership of the Expressway.

Apart from all of these observations, the one which made me compare with highways elsewhere was the quality and finish of the expressway. There were continuous undulations on the surface of the expressway which one will constantly feel at the rated speed of 80 KMPH or less. This means that you will feel a series of small jerks as though the road is a series of small bumps. The journey is not one smooth straight one, though the road is a straight road cutting through the Western Ghat.

We enjoyed the two long and one short tunnel we passed through. I maintained a constant speed of 80 KMPH, not because I am a good conscientious driver, but because my Toyota Innova vehicle is not even two months old and prior to first service, cannot be raced. Otherwise, one would normally be tempted, having gone through the lousiest road conditions on the Mumbai side – probably the worst in all of India. It is not unusual to heave a sigh of relief when you see a good expressway with much less traffic due to the toll, and some elation at having been able finally to press the accelerator.

The Innova is a sturdy one – I could never feel that I was cruising at 80 KMPH, except when I was forced to overtake some slow speed vehicles which should not have been in the right most lane in the first place. Almost every small and big car overtook me, as they were going at not less than 120 KMPH, given that there is no radar speed device on this expressway.

I was amazed to see bulls on the section of the old highway between Talegaon and Lonavla, which I was forced to take while returning as I had to see someone in Talegaon. Everybody waited patiently to let the farmer cross the highway – I guess he had no option but to cross the highway since probably his house was on the other side and he couldn’t care less about the developments coming his way.

The hilly environment on the expressway ghat sections is truly scenic. I commented to my wife that in certain section of the expressway, one cannot tell the difference between India and New Zealand. It was simply superb, and I enjoyed the ride, given that I was able to drink in the scenery with my slow speed ! The evening sunset was amazing, as the sun fell through the gaps in the mountains.

The quality of the rest rooms on the expressway was found much wanting – looking good from the outside, but stinking inside. There was no sight of any cleaner, the place was totally slippery, and had no air blowers. Absolutely abnoxious. I thought about the clean restrooms on the North – South Highway system in Malaysia – truly world class.

I liked the fact that the expressway authorities have clearly displayed the emergency contact numbers all over, and I saw the emergency crew at several places, meaning that they really seem to be working ! There were several phones on the way. If only they could enforce good driving habits on those rash drivers……..and implement speed controls, we could have a much safer journey.

India is on the economic expressway though. Every city seems to be booming, people are very optimistic, the economy does not depend on the U.S., domestic consumption is growing fast, and India seems to be truly on its way to economic stardom this year……and potentially, for the next 5 years. Welcome to Mumbai – Pune Expressway, and enjoy the ride !

Have a wonderful week ahead,

Best Regards

Vijay Srinivasan
5 Nov 2006
Mumbai

From Gateslife to Jobslife

Today, I finally got our Apple iMAC G5 from the repair centre, with a new hard disk replacing the damaged one. Almost all the applications and data were recovered, thanks to a dedicated Apple geek. Since Mumbai has many film studios and digital editing facilities, the number of Apples in Mumbai could easily be the highest in India, and so apparently the Apple skills available in the city are substantial as well.

It has been a problem for me to handle the vagaries of Windows XP on the home laptop for the past couple of months. Given that there is no choice in an office environment where Gates has a stranglehold, I was only too happy to retire for the day with my iMAC. The deprivation of Apple from the life’s routine does have an impact once you are used to the ease of use and elegance of Apple.

Further, some of my Singapore friends teased me as to the predicament of living in India – “I told you so” types. I am sure they will be surprised to learn that I got the iMAC fixed after all – it took around a week and costed approximately S$ 60 ! The hard disk replacement was free due to the existing international warranty. The cost was more for the labour involved in data recovery.

Now, I have commissioned the Apple iMAC at my home, and successfully connected the Airport to the wireless network at home, which I have learnt how to secure with WEP encryption (128 bits). Though there were just two other wireless networks in the vicinity of my apartment complex, I thought that the real “technical” Indian geeks would know how to tap into my PC or Apple for that matter, if I do not take the pains to encrypt my transmissions. Given that there were lots of young people working in the Mindspace Complex, it was a prudent decision, though I did not see any of them using a laptop in the “Cafe Coffee Day” coffee shop, India’s answer to Starbucks. This was surprising to me – in Bangalore, for instance, I saw many of the coffee drinkers surfing the free Wi-Fi internet at coffee shops. Mumbai does not seem to have the same buzz as Bangalore when it comes to IT people and adoption of IT/Wireless Networks either for home or the office. Offices are largely ethernet cable wired.

I am publishing this blog using the Apple Safari browser, which seems to have been recently updated. One of my favourites on the Apple is “Software Update” – I used to keep checking this facility once in 3 – 4 days to see whether Apple has provided updates. This is a much more elegant update facility than the Windows Update tool which is clumsy and non-intuitive.

I now also have iLIFE 06 and iWORK 06 though I haven’t extensively used them – not being a member of .MAC community, and having built my own website (with the help of my ex-colleague Gopi) – not this one you are browsing – I would like to figure out how to use iWEB to publish to my own server site at Bluehost. This is going to be interesting, and avoids some of the complicated tools that I got to learn otherwise, which Gopi often pointed out were actually in his realm of knowledge, and should not be easily learnable, otherwise what is the difference between a geek like him and an ordinary blogger like me ? Right, Gopi ?!

Well folks, I am now at peace with my Apple, though not fully utilising the same as there is a queue to use the same behind me, and would like to explore the intricacies if time permits. In the meanwhile, let Steve Jobs keep us Apple aficianados (Danesh, check the spelling please) busy and expectant. He is one hell of a savvy geek.

All the best for the weekend and the week ahead folks,

Best Regards

Vijay Srinivasan
9th Sep 2006
Mumbai

Delhi’s Difference

I am spending time in Delhi this week, going through a short induction program. It has been hectic, but one cannot but notice the rapid strides in infrastructure at Delhi, as compared to any other city in India. A concerted effort to quickly build out highways and the Metro network is showing results – finally, Delhi is starting to look like any other advanced country’s capital city !

Well, the way they drive in Delhi is altogether a different matter, but not that different as compared to other major cities of India. My car had couple of close encounters of the flesh kind today, in the second instance when I was returning at about 7 PM to the hotel where I was staying – my head hit the ceiling of the door side while the driver sudden-breaked to avoid a cyclist who was backpedalling into the highway. Ofcourse, everyone is resilient, and goes about their normal way of doing things (in the wrong manner ofcourse) the moment the immediate danger passes by. This cannot be witnessed in any other country. Welcome to Indian driving. If you want to read about the way drivers in Singapore behave, please read one of my earlier blogposts on the matter.

So, today I learnt that it may not be a bad idea to be religious in a certain important way. When you get into the car in India, you are surrendering to the “fate god” who is actually the driver. The driver may be good, may not be good, you can’t really say till your Hindi is tested. If you don’t know Hindi, the only thing you can trust is your own instinct – gut feel, so to say. If you are not good in instinctive way of thinking on your feet, then you have to depend on God in this case. You may entrust God with your safe ride. Look outside the car, and you can see very “determined” mad drivers who could be executives and managers in companies, who have the sole intent of getting to their office before anyone else does, and don’t bother whether, in that process, they turn arrogant and sometimes cause bedlam.

Coming back to infrastructure and “architectural” beauty, I think Delhi remains unsurpassed in India. The elegant Moghul architecture always enchants me with its ambience, and timeless sense of beauty. Delhi has had a long history for anyone who cares to read up. Indian History text books in schools used to be full of the history of Delhi and Moghul emperors.

So much for Delhi’s difference. Hope it maintains the elegance in the new townships springing up all around. Gurgaon is amazing, looks like it is from North America. Gleaming blue and steel buildings all over the place, good roads, coffee shops in buildings, international companies, lots of youngsters coming to work – this is the microcosm of New, Emerging India !

Welcome to Delhi !

Best Regards

Vijay Srinivasan
8 June 2006
DELHI

A Different World and JBW’s Farewell

In the past 3.5 years, I developed a good deal of understanding on how the academic world works and what exactly drives academics (atleast the ones I came to connect with). Before this period, my thinking was totally different – I always thought the academic world is arcane and tradition-bound, and academics are inscrutable and commanded respect due to their seeming brilliance and impenetrability.

Was I wrong – ofcourse, people are always in a perceived sense of correctness till the time they personally discover reality. It has got to be personal. I did, and I found a world which was vibrant, young, charismatic, and ofcourse, full of egos. The academics I came to know and respect were nice people in general – however, there is always a proportional politiicking in every aspect of human endeavour, and academic world is no different. I found that academic politicians were a tad better than the ones in the corporate world. They seemed to be better camouflaged and smarter in the way they approached the necessary evil of politics to advance their intent.

I also found absolute gems, which was not surprising. I developed good relationship in general with the several academics. A mutual sense of respect developed with almost all of them, and for most, I was a different kind of person – a “sales” guy with a bravado and corporate mannerisms – they do not normally work with people like me in an academic environment. U21G is different – it was a fusion of academic world and business world. Chemistry and explosions apart, it was a challenging world for most of us to adjust to each others’ idiosyncracies. However, it settled down once the respective “cleanliness” of the motives were understood by either side. Some sanitization was needed though.

Some lemons caused trouble on either side, and the academic ones were flavoured with the veneer of surreal respectability. Quiet battles were waged, but we all recovered to normalcy when the lemons were forced to emigrate. I always like strong, visible characters who make an impact on their surroundings, so I took a liking to such people at the beginning. However, political unraveling of intentions was strong enough to activate antennae internally and manage the situations amicably given the diplomacy sales people are accustomed to.

Well, if the above appeared to be a tough read, it was designed to be one. The experiment that we all went through was unique in the world.

Now my good academic friend, JBW, wanted to give me a farewell dinner on Friday this week. He is a sustainable economist, and his latest research publication is “Vijay Unplugged – Star of India” which he presented at a U21G Conference on 15 May 2006. It received rave reviews, not simply because of its academic quality but it also incorported for the first time a podcast type of punjabi music integrated with a powerpoint file.

JBW and his wife met myself and my wife at Raj Restaurant at Biopolis on Friday evening. JBW likes Indian Food, especially the Curries, and so I was not surprised he chose this restaurant. We had a curry attack that evening with 4 different types of side curries attacking the rotis and naans. It was absolutely delicious. We talked a lot about everything under the sun (or the lovely moon that evening), and it was simply refreshing. I came up with some new academic theories, and JBW said it was the first time I ever made some sense in my ramblings.

We then retired to the coffee shop across from Raj, and then had some photo shoot. Not exactly great kind of photos, but something is better than nothing during these cherished moments. JBW wished me well in my endeavours, and we vowed to stay in close touch. Take a look at the photos !

Best Regards

Vijay Srinivasan
Singapore
19 May 2006