I chanced upon this article on CBSNews website about the generation "born between 1980 and 1995", who are "rapidly taking over from the baby boomers who are now pushing 60". While the article has been written from a US society perspective, I somehow felt it applies partially to Millennials in India as well - people of my generation (though talking mostly of middle class fellas here .. not the unprivileged)! Some quotes from the article: The workplace has become a psychological battlefield and the millennials have the upper hand, because they are tech savvy, with every gadget imaginable almost becoming an extension of their bodies. They multitask, talk, walk, listen and type, and text. And their priorities are simple: they come first. They were raised by doting parents who told them they are special, played in little leagues with no winners or losers, or all winners. They are laden with trophies just for participating and they think your business-as-usual ethic is

I have been travelling by train a lot lately and as most people will agree that railways have improved quite a lot in the past few days. The cleanliness has improved, and trains run more timely than earlier. Railway stations are also improving - better facilities are in place (Kiosks, Cyber Cafes, vending machines etc.) and the staff is more 'friendly'. At the same time, the price of railway travel has gone up - even though nominally. In addition to increase in fares, new overheads are been added. For example, now if you book a ticket for a different destination than the location from where you are booking your ticket - you have to pay a surcharge. (Internet booking always had a surcharge). The question is - is the price rise justified in wake of the fact that Railways are the primary mode of transport for the weaker economic sections of the society as well? I think yes. Take the case of railways introducing better toilets - each toilet will cost Rs 60K ($1500) - this appo

I got a nice forward today from Sabya ... the essence is something like this Many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it. And if you let them, they’ll dump it on you. When someone wants to dump on you, don’t take it personally. You just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. You’ll be happy you did. I guarantee it. If you want to read it in full, you can read it here.

My GMail Inbox suddenly seems to have received a lottery in storage space - my Inbox size has suddenly jumped to 3681 MB which till yesterday was hovering around 2900 MB. I tried to figure out as to what happened but all I could Google was a blog post written way back in March which predicted that it would take 5 years for Gmail to reach 3.5 GB ... Anyway, so like a kid who gets a 100 bucks ' bakshish ' from his grandpa - I should start planning as to how I am going to spend the 1/2 GB extra space that I now have (not that I have exhausted my current space, but still). For starters, I will no more bother to delete 'heavy forwards'; then I could restart receiving a lot of email from mailing list where I have set up 'no email' option. To avoid email overload because of this, I will simply filter these emails, make them skip the inbox and have them marked as read. I know what you are asking me now - why the hell receive those emails if you aren't going to read

न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचिन नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूयः अजो नित्यः शाश्वतोsयं पुराणो न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे “What dies is the body, the soul is neither born nor dead” - The Bhagwat Gita This line from the Gita provides succour to many of those who loose their loved ones. One likes to believe the theory – more so because it is from the Gita – the epitome of human experience from over the centuries. But there are times when one wonders about its authenticity – if the soul is indeed all powerful, why does it succumb to the illness of the body? So many physically challenged people find their self-confidence diminished throughout their lives. There are some who are mentally strong - but (1) they are more exceptions than a rule (2) most of them have had to go through rough times before they (re)gain their confidence. One feels even more compelled to question this belief when death comes by. Death – a biological phenomenon; manifestation of the simple fact that just like any other machine, org

Many times I find Taxi drivers in south Mumbai, who are in such a hurry to wade through traffic that they forget to notice that there is a fare waiting on the side of the road. In a hurry to surge ahead in the traffic laden streets of Mumbai – they overlook the little opportunities that stare them in the eye. Aren’t we all too like those Taxi drivers, who just want to go somewhere, without thinking where? In our jobs, we are all running, to outsmart the other, to grab even larger pay checks, to rise faster through the corporate ladder; to buy a bigger house, in a more expensive locality; to buy a car, an newer car, a more expensive one – WHY? Are we all not just running in every direction possible – just faster … speedier … farther – without even knowing if there is a destination out there which we will reach, if there is a reward out there to grab, and even ignoring if there were some rewards on the way – we keep running and see just the road and nothing beyond !! I wonder!

I was trying to hire an auto-rickshaw to an unfrequented place – almost ten rickshaws refused to travel to that place before one agreed. Amused, I asked the driver why he agreed, the answer he gave set me thinking. “Sir, most autowalahs only keep running in a particular direction. They run away from home in the morning, as the day progresses they change their direction towards home. But what each one of them forget is that, our job is to ferry passengers – to travel in a direction which they desire; not to pursue our own agenda. I am ferrying you to the place you want to go now, I will earn my bread by the money you pay – then even if I have to ferry back empty to my home – it will still turn out to be a small profit; never a loss. On the other hand the other rickshaws which refused you will probably have to ferry all the way to their home empty – not earning any fare and burning his fuel anyhow. Very few auto drivers realize this.” There was a lesson for all leaders in the above

Today's Hindustan Times Op-ed has an article by Sujata Anandan around Vidarbha farmer suicides etc. It throws light on how misuse of credit by people compounds the situation created by poor rains and lack of proper irrigation. I quote: My sister spotted a vegetable vendor at the local market who had been defaulting in payment for months. When she swooped on her, the lady brazenly told my sister she had taken the loan not to buy a stall, as stated in her application, but to marry off her daughter. " Mera kaam ho gaya. Muzhe ab zaroorat nahin . (My purpose has been served. I do not need you now)," she said. Most of the money borrowed by farmers goes not into seeds or crop but into paying off their debts to moneylenders, the dowries of daughters or gambling dues... Moneylenders were big business in Andhra Pradesh's villages, too, but then the state government came up with a scheme to settle with those bloodsuckers and banned their return to the villages. Suicide rates

Yesterday evening around 5.45 PM, our department secretary asked everyone in office to assemble for birthday celebrations of a colleague. I was in the middle of something and so was in two-minds whether to join or not. After some seconds of haggling in my own mind, I decided not to go. So with everyone at the celebrations, I was sitting all alone at my desk - feeling hungry I went to the pantry to get some grub. There were no wafers or biscuits left - so reluctantly I got some coffee and came back. And then it happened!! My cellphone rang. In a hurry to pick it up, I spilled the coffee on the table! I immediately moved my laptop aside and ran to collect tissues; but by the time I came back the coffee had spread further and had touched the edges of my laptop. While I was wiping the coffee off the table, my laptop went off, never to start again! Being the end of the day, IT dept could not help me - a replacement could be arranged only today evening. Lesson learnt- a decision made in a sp

IEB has put up two posts [ 1 ] [ 2 ] on increasing divide between the rural and the urban. My own interpretation of it is of the divide between informed and uninformed - either way, there is no denying to the fact that there exists a gap which is further widening with the influx of technology and development. Many a times we debate as to how to reduce the gap, the whole system of communism is based on reducing the inequalities in the society. However, time and again it has been proved that inequalities are bound to occur; a fallout of Darwinism - they can only be reduced but cannot be eliminated. In fact, as the failure of communist system has shown - any attempt to eliminate inequalities leads to lack of motivation in individuals to compete and succeed - thus leading to stagnation of the society at large. Yet, if socialism exists -what does it mean? I interpret socialism as a just system where every human being is guaranteed basic rights and comforts. A socialist society will have in

IEB has a classic post based on Game Theory - explaining how expectations affect results... some quotes: We behave to a large extent on how others expect us to behave. People expect trash on the streets in India. That is they expect others to throw trash. That expectation allows them to feel free to add their own (small amount of) trash. Aggregated over many people over an extended period of time, the trash accumulates as the expectation itself gets reinforced. Eventually you have Singapores and Mumbais. I had once written similarly , though from a different perspective. But the essence was the same - you are what you believe to be - so the essence to success is to raise your mental bar first!

Update: As a fellow blogger Bhopal-e pointed out, I missed the Bhopal buses (literally too, I haven't yet travelled in them). The Star Buses had been introduced in Bhopal before they were introduced in Mumbai. Also, the multicolored (all Web 2.0 colors used!) buses of Bhopal look much better than the mono-colored BEST star buses in Mumbai. Original Post I am in Bhopal - my hometown .. a lot is changing here and this time around the major changes that struck me were: 1. Radio In the past 3 months, Bhopal grew from being a single Radio channel town (FM Vivid Bharti) to a 4 FM Channel town. BIG FM (92.7), My FM (94.3) and Radio Mirchi (98.3) are already here - thats just one channel less than Mumbai! 104 Fever - where are you??? ;-) 2. Roadside Beauty Before you start getting ideas - I am talking about the beautification of road dividers and footpaths. Run along the road from MP Nagar (Ambedkar/ Board Office चौराहा) to New Market / TT Nagar - the dividers and the footpaths have bee

Shubham has posted a philosophical musing titled " Living with purpose ". I myself have reflected on this topic earlier [ 1 ][ 2 ]. However, a very related question is 'What makes you Happy?'. I have pondered peripherally albeit in a different context on this one as well [ 3 ]. At this stage of life where most of my friends are getting settled in life - I am confused. On one side are the tall dreams and ambitions set in childhood and adolescence, on the other are practical aspirations which arise more out of peer interactions than individual thought and on the third side are expectations others have from you. Looking back, till now I have mostly done what pleased my heart whether it was in school, college or MBA. Even in my job I have been fortunate to have got interesting opportunities (though not always :-P). But will following the same path keep me happy - what of expectations of loved ones are not fulfilled? They won't be happy then - in turn I would not be ha

New Yorker writes: In terms of how we evaluate schooling, everything is about working by yourself. If you work with someone else, it's called cheating. Once you get out in the real world, everything you do involves working with other people. .... Studies show that there is very little correlation between how someone's peers rate him and how his boss rates him Read the complete story [ The Talent Myth ]

One of the biggest motivations which drives people towards achieving perfection in work is the (actual or illusionary) realization of the importance of their work. All other factors are merely hygienic - money, designation, working conditions - all merely ensure that one is motivated to perform 'good enough'. However, in absence of the 'work worth realization' (lets call it WWR from now on) - the extra bit of dedication is hard to come by. The best illustration of this would be in the Army. Irrespective of the designation or salary everyone - from the highest ranked officers to the foot soldier - is dedicated to the extent of his/her lives. What motivation can there be to give one's life for, if not the fact that the job is more important than your life, that winning the war is infinitely more important than the salary or benefits you will accrue as a part of your job (if you would live on!). Similarly, have you ever come across a sweeper who makes sure that not eve

[Via: Emergic ] Make no little plans. They have no magic to stir men's blood and probably themselves will not be realized. Make big plans ; aim high in hope and work , remembering that a noble, logical diagram once recorded will never die, but long after we are gone will be a living thing, asserting itself with ever-growing insistency. Remember that our sons and grandsons are going to do things that would stagger us. Let your watchword be order and your beacon beauty. Think big! - Daniel Burnham (1846 – 1912)

I am confused! When we were kids - the sentiment used to be high against Brain Drain - young talented students migrating to the US for studies and then work. But today, after the government and 'thinkers' realize the amount of benefits that accrue from the Diaspora - the situation has changed .. we are simply calling it a form of 'Globalization' On the other hand, the country which held the 'Globalization' flag high in the 70s and 80s - the US - is today faced with protests like this . The fight though is not so more on the streets than on the cyber'streets. Yes, anti-immigrant sites in the US are now using Google Bombing in an effort to combat the job-drain problem. Truthfully, I am on neither side of the debate. In my opinion, where you live, how you live, what kind of jobs you do should depend on your own likes and dislikes (aren't there several Indian who are today choosing to stay in India than migrate?) on your talent and its value in the market (

India is a true melting pot - and the language we speak are true representations of the same. In any given location, the way people speak (the dialect, the accent and vocabulary inclusive) is a wonderful mix of local, regional, national and even a bit of international influences. To take some examples: Bangalore lingo: "Enjoy Madi!" Mumbai lingo: "Its all over Akhha Mumbai yaar" Some International sprinkled in: "Dude! Hows life yaar?" All in all - India has been pretty successful in integrating its regional disparities with nationally pervasive trends and a bit of International lingo as well (thanks to its diaspora). The same has happened in terms of the numeral terminologies that we use. In India - even with the English media, we use terms like a 'lakh' (= hundred thousand) or a 'crore' (= ten million). But what is surprising is that beyond these, the media usually follows the international numeric term - billion. This is in spite of th

Every fortnight, a new Comic Strip is sent to the members of the Arbit Choudhury Yahoo Group .We also try and make the e-mail (which goes along) informative and interesting, while also updating fans with the latest milestones achieved by the venture. This fortnight we were announcing about Arbit Choudhury Comics hitting the 75th Comic Strip mark. So, one of us suggested using the term 'Diamond Jubilee' for the same. Somehow, I remembered that 75 is associated with Platinum and not Diamond - so I went to Google/ Wikipedia and did some research only to discover the confusing world of 'Jubilees'. I first discovered that Diamond Jubilee is associated with 60 years by the British standards. So, I checked if using 'Platinum' would be correct to discover further that 'Platinum Jubilee' is associated with 70 years by British usage and with 75 years by South Asian (Read: Indian) usage. However to add to the twist on Jubilees, in the US "Diamond Jubilee"

Just back from Delhi after attending the wedding of two of my closest friends - M &A - to each other! As Shubham put it quite aptly on our way back from Chandigarh to Delhi – "Hamare jeevan ka ek aur parv sampann hua" ! Indeed, this wedding actually marks a ceremonial moment - not just for the couple - but for our whole group of friends, in the gradual transformation we all are going through. [In NITIE, we had christened our gang as G-7 (actually a gang of 8 – a counting mistake while choosing the Yahoo Groups identity of the group created this name!). Among G-7 – only I, Shubham and Sabyasachi now remain the un-married and/or un-committed ones!] Today, as I was returning through Saki Naka towards my home, a sudden feeling of nostalgia gripped me and left me wondering as to what the nostalgia was all about? These two friends of mine just got married, but they are not going anywhere, they are still going to be around! Then what was the nostalgia about? I guess deep inside