Growing Pains

In the context of the modern world, growth has become a pain more than a challenge. And that is not good for any society. The greatest fallout of this is that it sucks out the very joy of living. When that becomes the case, there is very little Individuals, Enterprises and / or Societies can do other than manipulate themselves and others around them into believing whatever is convenient. Such a make-believe society has very little chance of being able to survive; leave alone thrive. How can one get out of this self-destruct mode?

First of all, let us admit that the challenge of growth is different from how it was perceived a few years ago. The Internet of everything has changed everything into a Glocal (Globally Local) manifestation. This has tremendously impacted the perception of “Value” of a Customer / Consumer in every segment of life itself; and hence needs a of foundational re-defintion. Greater emphasis is required to Create and therefore generate demand rather than just put a spin around a yarn often spun.

Secondly, the advance of technology has put an added impetus to doing things more efficiently than in the past; from a simple going to the loo to performing a complex brain surgery. And every step of that technology is guided by Information and Intelligence that intersperse the pauses between our breathing. It is critical to therefore understand its sanctity and move away from pithy slogans like big data and expand one’s big thinking first; in order to get everything bigger and better with information continuously rather than discretely. In other words, we might want to call this the need to Innovate every waking moment with the Processes that move Data and Work Products from Source to Consumption. And it must become an Institutional Practice.

Last but not the least, both the above demand a fundamental need to go back to the drawing board and have the ability to Design. Not just a function but an entire ecosystem first and then match the function of a process to concurrently facilitate that Chain of Collaborative Elements globally. This is the true promise of a Connected World that can source real talent to Create a New World and Obliterate the Problems of the old one; rather than meander around just trying to solve with Old thinking and techniques that may no longer be of any relevance.

The new world demands a dramatic shift in Capabilities (Capacity to Transform + Ability to Perform). It would be a disservice for the older generation to lead the Gen Y into the potholes that they have dug for themselves. There is very low tolerance among them to wear out the pain as the older generations have managed and technology will allow a faster route to destruct if it is not gainfully employed for Productive and Peaceful endeavors.

Entitlement – The bane of Failing at Innovation

At Kodak, Changing to a Future beyond Film

The inspiration for this edition of blog is the above inserted film I viewed and I knew I had to write about it. I have had the great opportunity to actually serve Kodak as a consultant when I used to work with Coopers & Lybrand. Similarly, I have and continue to serve other major Fortune rated organizations across the North America. My experience includes work globally and therefore the fortune to observe Culture and Human Behavioral differences and learn subtly not only the art of thriving in these cultures but also their strengths and weaknesses.

There is so much talk about Innovation in world today and yet very little significant contribution to the growth of society. Those that persisted with a Culture of Innovation are the only ones attempting the next higher threshold of capability and their concern is not always about Marketing but Creating and Cultivating Core Competence in their people towards a Unified Cause and Vision. And despite the Internet of Everything, it is still People that have to do it and will continue to do it; build a better world.

Be it Government or Private Enterprise, the method of engaging talent from the age of monopoly has not changed. To produce an assembly of the same black car, line after production line, you didn’t need people to be Creative. You wanted them to Conform. Look around at supposedly the “Most Innovative” companies in the world and you will notice very little has changed. And that includes the likes of Google and Apple.

It is about time Talent and Merit were recognized and given their due in the useless hierarchical structures of an enterprise. Employment and Entitlement became synonymous for a class that needs a base to find its bearings before it can rear its wings. Let that remain and they can Conform if there is no Choice. But making the majority of the organization Conform because of the Carrot of entitlements is the only reason why Innovation fails at both Government and Private Enterprise.

Make an educator accountable for producing Path Breaking Research in Universities. Make the Research & Development department of a consumer product company believe in shaping the minds of markets and creating demand for new products and services. Make Doctors accountable for Preventive and not Procedural Medicine. Make Musicians produce music that defines and not defies Sound Energy. Innovation is a Path to Progress; not a Pavement to be Pedestrian. Let Merit take center stage in society and let there be a new world that sees Opportunities and not Problems. This video of Kodak should reinforce that thought.

The Quality Value

Juan and Antonia started the Alberto’s Bistro in the French Market of the French Quarters of New Orleans five years ago; naming the place after their son. This eatery cannot be missed as it is right at the entrance of the French Market. Antonia ran this initially without any alcohol being served because Juan ran another restaurant in another part of the city. With increasing demand potential, they decided to focus all their energies on this one. I write specially about this eatery because of the Quality Consciousness of the entire family in serving customers and the passion of Juan to make great food in the kitchen. In fact I had to coax him out of the kitchen to get a picture. Corporates can do great by just observing this family work in unison, serving customers with a single devotion as well as the love, pride and affection for each other that manifests when they speak about their business and the way they conduct themselves.

The speciality of this place is the Muffuletta which is a large, round, and somewhat flattened loaf with a sturdy texture, around 10 inches across. It is described as being somewhat similar to focaccia Bread used for the Muffuletta is different from focaccia, however, in that it is a very light bread,the outside is crispy and the inside is soft. It also has no additional seasonings baked into it, aside from the sesame seeds. The bread is more like French bread, but a tad heavier.

Juan used to be a chef in one of the best five star hotels in Spain and his passion for food spills into using the freshest of ingredients. I had the vegetarian variety and the quality and aroma of Olive Oil used in it is to die for. You have to be patient as Juan bakes the bread fresh and then makes the sandwich. It is very difficult to stand out in a place where there is great food all around. Yet this little eatery is a remarkable exception for the great Quality of Value they bring to a wholesome Customer experience despite being just a market cafe.

I have nothing against franchises and big businesses. However. quality has been sacrificed in the attempt to commercialize profit by commoditizing every ingredient. I can assure that even if the same ingredients were used, the love, warmth and care that Juan allows in the making of a simple sandwich cannot be replicated in most commercial joints. It is this quality that not only North America but the world over businesses must learn to incorporate. It is not enough to bring personalization and interactivity in enterprise applications and software. It must manifest itself into Customer and Consumer experience. It must make someone like me write about the experience; where I am neither a food critic nor am I paid to advertise for them. I wish this family grows and sustains its love to serve people and be an example of what great business is all about. If you happen to visit New Orleans, do not miss this opportunity to meet this family and have their muffuletta or many of the other good stuff that they serve with their heart and soul.

 

Life Skills: Learning in a Restaurant

I had to kill some time between my workout and meeting someone last weekend and so I headed to satiate my hunger at an Indian Restaurant. I was alone and had the option of keeping busy and to myself by playing with my mobile phone and pretending to be busy or generally snooping around. I did both with the first activity ending soon as my patience with playacting is very thin and I had nothing much to do with cleaning up my data on the phone or being up to date with my messages. I’m doing it every two minutes of my existence anyway. The second activity got interesting as my eyes and ears roved around and picked up some interesting stuff and I’m sharing two specific observations that tie into each other.

Life Skills:

Right next to my table were an Indian (South Asian) father and teenage son seated enjoying their buffet meal. It was very obvious that the father was an early settler in the US and the son was struggling with the identity clash of two cultures. The father enjoyed a full meal while the son was struggling with a dosa that was stiff and clearly a very difficult object for the son to negotiate with his fork and knife. To make things worse, he dropped it on the floor and apologized for it rather meekly. The typical American cultured Indian father thought nothing of it and asked for a replacement. The Indian manager obliged. While all this happened and in-between looking through messages and mails, the father opened a conversation about the son’s school marks card that the son and read thru the document that was apparently on the agenda for the lunch session. The son seemed to have done very well in all subjects including math where he seemed to have scored a 100 but apparently there was one area of concern; which was pertaining to listening skills. The father joked about it to the son that “I now have proof that you don’t listen enough” and the son defended that he didn’t think it was a great trait to be evaluated upon and most of his class had scored low on it anyway. All this polite conversation soon ended and the son went back to his struggle to complete his newly arrived dosa and the father went back to paying attention to his mobile phone. And my attention got drawn to another drama that unfolded before me.

Table for two?

If you were the manager on the floor of the restaurant, is that the question you would ask the couple pictured here along with their son? Well, that is what was asked of this charming couple with their gurgling bundle of joy as they entered the restaurant. Clearly, the guy was confounded and he retorted in mock meekness under his breath that “two would be good” and then went on to politely point to his child and request for a child seat. The manager of course brought out a child seat and the family continued to enjoy their meal. I went across to them after I had finished my meal (clearly over eaten) and paid my bill and related my observation before requesting their permission to take a picture. There was instant rapport and the guy who said was a lawyer by profession seemed to have a great sense of humor and timing and even related how he had when cross examining during a deposition from Crossfit the previous day asked his witness “whether he had to cross-dress to attend crossfit”.

And now to my observations starting from the first case:

Why are Indian Children so awkward and lack in life skills when they are brought up in the US? It is another matter that most US children also are awkward and lack in life skills. Has this got to do with the way they learn about life and matters in their school and society? What inhibits their confidence and ability to counter culturally; both the good and bad aspects of life? Are they cushioned and smothered too much to not realize the realities of life and be conscious of their response? On the other hand, children from lesser worlds seem to be more alert and confident despite their veritable social disadvantages. This is a very important question for society to answer as this Gen Y or Z is going to become centric to shaping the polity of this universe in the next 15 – 20 years. Is it safe to pass on and entrust these self-doubters this boiling cauldron of a universe?

It is very typical in the Indian society not to consider a child as an entity. But in the western world a child is an equal entity. Every life is precious and everyone needs to be treated with respect. Yes, even a child cannot and should not be ignored. The manager meant no harm and he would have provided a child seat only if requested; however the question is that the western society expects him to not ask “table for three instead of table for two”. It is a deep cultural assimilation that is required in order to be successful for businesses. Indian software companies despite their presence in the US and other global locations for more than 25 years have failed to assimilate with the local cultures and have done little to educate and train their employees in this process of assimilation. Given the circumstance, can they be truly global and succeed in deeply competitive times?

Don’t you think that both the above point instances point to how we develop our life skills which are so important to succeed in life; at a personal, organizational and societal level. Where life skills must be understood in the context of the adaptability and assimilation of Cultures which is defined as the Values, Beliefs & Assumptions.

Globalization is Personal; Globality & Globalization are by design

Yesterday I was in a chat conversation with a young person who is readying himself to travel to the US to get a Master’s Degree in Computer Sciences from Georgia Tech. And he was ruminating that he is going to miss his family and friends and that parting was difficult. And I retorted inadvertently, No…you are not going to miss them. They are going to be there with you 24*7 via Facebook, Google, Skype, Vonage and what not. And what is a 22 hour flight for someone who comes from an economic background as yours? Not only that, his parents keep traveling to the US on business all the time. And he has extended family all over the US. The choicest global cuisines including Indian are available in every segment of food business in the US or China or even Russia.

There was of course a time when an Indian left the shores of India and crossed the seas for nearly a month before he got to the US and even a letter took a couple of months to reach from one continent to another. The journey was unpredictable and life was too. There is a lot more certainty in every aspect of Logistics & Transportation as well as environment and conditions of living. We have brought all this change upon ourselves and we are physically global but have yet to condition our minds on the globality of life. Such a maturity on globality and globalization will happen the day we don’t see the barriers between nations and races and ethnicities and religions. We see a human race that is adapting to life on this planet and is striving for each other’s quality of life; not against each other’s quality of life!

Speaking of which, this morning I picked an elevator that arrived to take me to the 28th floor of my workplace. There was one other person already there waiting for the elevator. However, he did not make a move. So I held my arm to the sensors and asked him loudly whether he wanted to join in. He did and thanked me and even wished me a great day before he went out on the 16th floor. He was engaged on his mobile phone messaging and had not perhaps noticed the elevator which arrived away from him and therefore had not taken it. I could have for all my narrow mindedness let the elevator door close on me and travel solitary cooking up all kinds of theories on racism and spewed it out at the next available opportunity when someone pretended to be interested in my intellectual discourse. Thank God I did not opt for the latter. For such is our power to strengthen the barriers that plague our societies that destroys the quality of life.

Therefore I wonder what all the Social Media is about! It is the most significant tool for promoting globality and globalization; and yet it is more parochial than ever. Businesses look upon it as a sole marketing tool and individuals look upon it as a personal advertising tool. Is this a flower garland in the hands of a monkey? Oh, I hear the protesters saying that it is only evolving….but what is the end game to that evolution. There needs to be a vision for evolution as well. Otherwise, the word used is “drifting” for it until the next wave catches you and tosses you to a spot you never intended to be in the first place!

Design therefore is essential, at a personal, enterprise and societal level to address this phenomenon called Globality and Globalization. Globality is a verb and Globalization is an adjective that needs to be understood and woven into the fabric of our lives.

Does that make sense to you? I would love to hear your comments….

The Digital Enterprise

Unlike the past, when human kind stumbled upon the Renaissance, Political and Industrial Revolution, the Digital Revolution has been in the making for the last 20 years though the Internet was officially invented in the 1950’s. The cycles of maturity are getting more and more rapid as the time has advanced and we are at a point of inflection in its history, when we have yet to consume more than 90% of the benefits it has spewed in a fraction of the time it has taken to develop.

Before we even go there, the term digital today means everything that we do in our lives to be connected and communicating in our communities where the globe is the village and the standards are universal with respect to interactions. So we are no longer talking about one area being more developed or mature than the other. Quite the contrary, the latecomers to the party seem to be taking more advantage of this revolution than the incumbents.

From a the June 2014 survey report published by McKinsey titled “The Digital Tipping Point” it becomes quite evident that most corporations in the world still see the term digital as IT. We need to infer this only because of the terminology used and the initiatives described and / or attributed to the digital enterprise. However, the revealing insight on the five top issues facing the enterprise is necessarily true of digitization; whether participating in the digital revolution or not.

Like saying I have cancer but I am taking care of the Acne on my face. For ages, IT folks have argued thus, even justifying that they were doing something as opposed to nothing. Well, that something means absolutely nothing in the current digital revolution context. Size and shape of businesses are being replaced by creativity to corner customers and consumers on experience. The smaller the player, the easier it is to Innovate. The Digital Revolution demands a Transformation in the Thinking and Structuring of Action.

The three C’s are foundational both within and outside the enterprise for enterprise to succeed in being digital.

1. Content: This must be narrative oriented and Purposeful in nature. It must educate without pontificating retaining the rate of interest.
2. Convergence: This must follow the content closely not just with respect to the device but also the right rendering focusing on the duration and the nature of content; keeping a clear distinction between Channel, Medium and Devise though personalized.
3. Collaboration: This must involve the customer and consumer to participate in the experience across the lifecycle of Product, Process and Personal Experience.

The above are the first three foundational steps that need to be established in an enterprise to build digital content that will contribute to the sweet spots of Innovation and Growth.

I am writing a blog edition after a considerable hiatus. The reason for this is the disillusionment with the reading habits of people. It appears there is very little audience and patience for the written word. Even when there is, the absence of dialog is heartbreaking. For me writing is not just to express myself and let my steam off. It is about generating a dialog and therefore Thought Leadership. I would like to quickly add here that I have not stopped myself from constantly examining where I might lack in communicating my ideas.

Recently I was asked a question about “Trust – whether it was at all necessary in the context of relationship”. This question could not stop me further from writing this edition of my blog. Trust is a very passionate subject with me. I believe it is the genesis of all relationships and can never ever be supplemented. Let me stick here to the context of Leadership.

People often use the terms “Trust” and “Faith” interchangeably. Nothing could be further from truth. Trust is inherent and intrinsic to a relationship. It does not demand anything and it remains as a supportive element of a relationship; be that between a leader and a follower or any other human relationship we might know on the face of this earth. Faith on the other hand is a corruption of trust, in that it is demanding. Trust is born out of conviction and respect for ideas, while faith is born out of imagination and a hope for ideas to succeed.

When we observe history, we can find very few leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela who banked on the principles of trust to generate followership. A majority of leaders such as Hitler, Mussolini, Khomeini, Saddam Husain and / or George Bush (both son and father) whipped up passions of the people and demanded that their doctrine be subscribed to and followed in absolute faith. In the modern day, leaders such as Gorbachev or Obama who subscribe to the former view of creating trust have been often sidelined and history / people are not very kind on them despite their great qualities of leadership. In the corporate world, trust is a very rare word even when the very models of B2B, B2C and C2C are based on the principles of trust. Perhaps a very rare name comes to mind such as Herb Kelleher, Chairman & CEO of Southwest Airlines or Jamshedji Tata.

Trust takes nothing more than a dialog to build relationships while Faith takes enormous amounts of PR. The ideas of trust are usually fundamental and core to life while that of faith are alien and imposed upon life. Those of us living through the “Organic” Fad know by now that anything that is imposed has to give way eventually for a simpler way of living. Shouldn’t a connected world learn to trust people and cultures rather than be dictated by the narrow-minded dogmas of a few misleading powerful people who choose to impose themselves as dictators? Isn’t this the significance of globalization where people in the world can benefit from understanding and learning each other in a spirit of mutual trust and respect for freedom? 

Perhaps one of the foremost things that we humans need to learn in this modern free and democratic world is the meaning of Freedom. It is not the ability to do whatever one wants without being watched. It is the ability to do things that everybody watches and appreciates as meaningful to their own lives.

Trust Deficit – The Cause of Economic & Social Depression

It is not an exaggeration to use the word Trust interchangeably with Brand in a societal, enterprise and /or the personal context of the people who inhabit them. That is how the word “Brand” came into being symbolizing the significance an entity. The origins of branding of course come from a symbol being branded (burned with a hot iron stamp) into the skin to distinguish one’s cattle from the other. In today’s enterprise context the question that comes to be is what is the brand you carry that distinguishes you and the organization or society you represent? And by that, what do you define your success by?

In its recent research report released in late 2013, Booz & Company has correlated the drivers contributing to the success versus the assumptions / perceptions of the companies researched globally over a three year period and come to some broad conclusions.

• There is no dominant school of strategy that dominates the thinking of leadership. It is very surprising to see from the following graph that the three dominant success factors considered by leaders in these modern economic are: 1) Economies of Scale; 2) Some things better than anyone else; 3) Controlling Lucrative Assets
• Paradoxically the three most relevant factors are considered least as success factors including: 1) Agility as an Innovator; 2) Distinctive way of providing Value; 3) Coherence in the Company Direction
• Many of them belied the understanding of Identity, Addressing Causes and being motivated to deliver Value. They attributed too many strategic initiatives (29% respondents) and focus on short-term performance improvement (27% respondents) as the reasons for this. Only 7% respondents believed that their leaders ignored external market forces while 36% believed leaders lacked the combined strength of Strategy Development and Execution.

Booz & Company in their annual research titled “The Global Innovation 1000” since 2011 have been highlighting on how Culture is Key to Innovation. This is referenced here that Innovation is the pivot on which the future of success for enterprises rests today. Three simple terms define the term “Culture / Trust” as the below illustration demonstrates; Values, Beliefs and Assumptions. There is a complete lack of trust in our societies today and that reflects in every aspect of our life; be it in families, enterprises and governments. Therefore, it is no surprise that we see ourselves adrift globally, despite the huge advances of technology and availability of wealth. These however are not able to solve any of the societal problems such as Poverty, Energy Deficit or Terrorism. Examine closely and you will see a pattern in all of them. The overarching narrative is driven by a selected few that likes to maintain the status quo of mediocrity for one’s own preservation and benefits. This is the reason Breakthrough Innovation or Life Inspiration is so hard to find in any field of life.

Our societies globally have come to a point when private enterprise is driving public life in most ways as well as influencing governance and policy. Therefore the rot needs to be stemmed first here where Culture needs to take center place with a well defined and delivered narrative that connects Potential and Performance. Business enterprises the world over must renew the design of their enterprise to the five principle constructs of Digital Revolution, Globality, Experience Economy, Gen Y Workforce and Societal Wealth as the following illustration demonstrates:

1. The narrative must excite the enthusiasm of the people in the Values espoused by an enterprise and make them willing contributors to work towards its delivery.
2. The narrative must create the Belief in the people that Methods, Tools and Practices that they get to adopt are adequate to help them achieve their aspirations.
3. The narrative must develop the deep-rooted conviction in people that the Assumptions (when experienced is perceptions) they make are supported strongly; both in the case of failure and success as they are born out of a collective understanding of a context that is common and uniform across a global enterprise.

We must find a way to address this Cultural Transformation as suggested in the above picture. Transforming enterprises and societies with the right context from a Performance to Potential Orientation. A Powerful Narrative that emerges from active strategic processes in organizations and societies must guide the people to believing in their capabilities to deliver value. They should be able to make a difference and contribute effectively to their organizational and societal causes. They should be able to see their own growth in the growth of the causes they participate and support.

The Secret Sauce

This is perhaps going to be my last blog post in 2013 and I wanted to gift all you readers this invaluable secret sauce to successfully keeping your resolutions. Try this prescribed method and amaze yourselves in the wonder of how simple and easy it is for you to grow and contribute to the growth of the environment you live in that includes the enterprise where you make a living and the society where you thrive in joyous celebration. If you find any difficulty or you have additional queries, do not hesitate to reach out to me through the comments section of this post and I promise to answer every query and comment within 24 hours. So without further ado, let’s get to the heart of the matter. I would like to warn here that I use the metaphor of sex to explain certain concepts and those whose sensibilities might be affected by the topic of sex may discontinue reading this post a this point.

Let us first understand why we have so much difficulty in keeping our resolutions whether as an individual, organization or society? We are the same human being who inhabit all the three spaces and impact what happens here with our behavior influenced by our intellect. And our intellect is shaped by three shades of the same dimension; Passion, Habits and Obsessions. First reflect on the following chart:

Every living being is born with the senses that transmit signals to the brain that forms the data on which we operate. However, unlike animals and plants, humans seem to have the ability to convert data and retain metadata (which appears absent in animals and plants), convert that data into information and intelligence depending on the effective use of the metadata.

The term Meta Data is defined as “Data about Data”. It is also understood as the description of containers of data or “descriptive metadata”. In the case of human beings, Experience defines the descriptive Meta Data. This is further influenced or description is added depending on the Environment and Culture (Values, Beliefs and Assumptions) that an individual lives in. Therefore the layers of data color the behavioral manifestation of an individual.

Let us understand all the above a little deeper with the metaphor of sex, which is one of most natural phenomenon as life itself:

1. If you allow your passion to rule you as a Basic Instinct, it is the empathy (Reason) that operates your love making with your partner irrespective of the gender. However a habit doesn’t really differentiate (repetitiveness) between masturbation, dildo or a partner’s presence. An obsession on the other hand performs a selfish (manipulative) act to achieve personal orgasm, which at its extreme is recognized by society as rape but happens everyday in many homes and even brothels without the notice of the public gaze. And the same people extend that sexual behavior to other aspects of life in the organizations and societies that they spend their lives. Don’t you think The supreme court ruling in India criminalizing gay sex (again) is one such manifestation where the most powerful institution in a country passing a judgment that manipulates the very fundamental truth of human existence; the experience of love?
2. Sex that is consensual is considered legitimate in all societies. Passion finds the Reason for having sex as people who interpret the data about each other as something that enriches their experience in being one and together. Habit doesn’t care for the presence of reason or otherwise and just needs to have sex because there is a sex organ (convenience) to be pleasured. Obsession forces itself on others into submission by the pleasure (logic) it provides to gloat and grab power. America’s aggression and foreign policy[i] to police the world in the name of democracy is a classic example of the obsessive behavior, don’t you think?
3. Passion enriches one’s own experience and growth. Therefore a Passionate act of sex explores (Enriching) new ways of keeping a partner in anticipation of the next encounter. A habit has no such pretenses and just survives (ignorance) the routine of an orgasm from one act to the next one while obsession performs different acts of sex to increase one’s own pleasure (fuel) ignoring the concern and interest of the other party.  Don’t you find resonance in behavior of the leaders at financial institutions worldwide in recent times; resembling this obsessiveness in their approach to making money?
4. Passion naturally supports Learning, which is fundamental to growth. A person Passionate in Sex learns (Naturally Responsive) continuously; not only implicitly but also asking the partner explicit questions on what would enhance the experience of being together.  Habit doesn’t bother (Attitude) with the questions because it is not dealing with entities that could anyway experience reality or answer questions. Obsessive sex operates on the knowledge that is selectively gleaned from the literature / propaganda (Influenced) of others’ experiences that has little to do with the partner in question who is just a mere object of pleasure.  Don’t you find this self-aggrandizing brand building of individuals and enterprises through the willing and collaborative social and electronic media; clinging to the age-old principles of Monopoly and Oligopoly?
5.  Finally, it goes without saying that where there is passionate sex enjoyed between two consenting adults, there Love and Trust. Such is the power of Learning and Relationship. Habitual sex shuns learning and has no real relationships and consequently catalyzes (mediocrity) decay. Obsessive sex drives fear and complexity into a very beautiful act of oneness and divides and destroys societies. Isn’t this obsessive behavior manifested in the terrorist outfits of the world whose dogma and doctrines of religion drive fear and destruction in our societies?

I had to provide you all that contextual information to bring you to the realization that most people when making a resolution are skimming behavioral level. Examples are quitting smoking, start dieting, stop drinking or avoid fornicating, which are mere symptoms (behavioral manifestations).  This is where the problem lies. It is wonderful that many people might succeed in one of their resolutions such as dieting but unfortunately another one, equally or more debilitating, replaces such as fornicating. Now the person has a better physique and can attract others that they hitherto could not.

We make resolutions in order to renew ourselves in the pursuit of growth and not destruction; whether as an individual, enterprise and / or society at large.

• Shouldn’t we be focusing on the right elements for renewal and real progress?
• Should we be focusing on the manifestations of our behavior caused by our intellect or the lack of it; as opposed to renewing how our intellect operates?
• From the above chart and the explanations provided, shouldn’t we be examining our own self and see how we are interpreting our experiences or otherwise to impact our behavior that causes Growth, Mediocrity and / or Destruction to the environment we live in?

Keeping the above three questions in the context of your life, let’s see how you are now going to now address your New Year resolutions in the firm belief that this is going cause a shift in your personal, professional and emotional response to life; contributing growth for you and the enterprise and society that you live in.

1. Ask yourself “What is the Purpose of my Resolution”? The resolutions you make should contribute to defining you as a contributing member of your community, enterprise and / or society.
2. Then ask yourself “Why is it important for me to define and / or re-define myself and my intellect”? Find succinct answers that support the articulation you have arrived at for What Defines You.
3.  Only after having iterated and finally accepted the “What” and “Why” as intellectually the right steps forward, articulate to yourself “How I plan to implement it in my life”. Make it as detailed, as you want, including the Method, Scope and Approach that you are going to adopt.
4. For the above three bullets, define a time line with the “When will I see the Transformation / Change Manifested in my behavior” that not only allows you to figure out a roadmap and the resources you require to fulfill the how but also gives you a measure of understanding how you can test the transformation you are undergoing is successful.
5. Finally, articulate “Where I expect to see my transformed manifesting its behavior” and the Contributions its makes to yourself, your enterprise and society at large; measurably providing you learning to go back to the drawing board to refine your resolutions for the next year.

Do yourself a favor. Invest time on this before the festivities of Christmas and the partying can begin. Write them down on your Computer / hand held devise or even the good old notebook because thinking and writing and then reading it regularly will commit it to your senses and the metadata of your brain. Do it religiously and don’t forget to mark the milestones of completing the When and Where and Celebrate.

It is not unusual to seek help with the process. However, avoid the “gatekeepers of information” such as the self-professed spiritual and corporate gurus. They have a vested interest in supporting you with their knowledge. But what you want is not their knowledge[ii] but the method of making that knowledge work for your growth. Remember that Learning is key to Transformation & Growth. Figure out who is willing to contribute to your learning and be there responsively for you when you need them most.

Trust me! Try out the prescription that I have laid out for you here. You will be rewarded with success and you will become the new Transformation Agent and a Leader that enterprises and Societies are desperately looking for. Not all aspects of your intellect can be changed overnight. It is a process and it will take time. However, it is critical to recognize the fact that you are keeping the context and conditions of your environment in mind and shaping your life to be relevant. This is the way to feeling alive and joyous and becoming a part of the growth that we are all so desperately searching for.

 

Merry Christmas and a Joyous and Cheerful 2014 for you and your loved ones.

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[i] President Obama’s Iran diplomacy is a welcome change to the American Foreign Policy adopted by most past presidents irrespective of whether they were Democrats or Republicans

[ii] Knowledge is not what you know but what you do with what you don’t know.

5 Inter-Related Profitable Ideas for 2014 and Beyond

This edition of my blog is dedicated to predicating the future with 5 Key Inter-related Ideas that we will ignore at our own peril as a humanity. These ideas have already taking root in our societies, no matter which part of the world we live in.  These ideas are foundational to the future of human existence.

We are at a fork in the road in our existence on this planet where the choices we make will significantly impact the Quality of Life.

It is our responsibility and accountability to be participative in shaping people, societies and enterprises to meet the future with conviction and courage. This calls for leadership from every individual and section of society. Everyone needs to make a significant effort to be able to participate in building the society of tomorrow in which the next generation can responsibly take forward the promise of the human race.

It is not a choice, it is an imperative.

Digital Revolution

Digital Revolution is and will continue to impact our every action in our every day lives; the way we exist on this planet. It is almost as though digital technology has replaced the earliest and most important invention of the human race; fire. In today’s life the only friction that one needs to use is the slight brush of the index finger against a stylish mouse pad or a remote switch in order to ignite fire to a suitable range and temperature. We are already witnessing everything around life being scheduled and managed digitally. Whether it is Entertainment, Education or Establishment. Of course, digital revolution is still in its infancy but its idea has taken root in the deepest corners of society and there is no escape from it. Like all revolutions, Digital Revolution brings with it the good and the bad. Should we be responsive humans, we will learn from the mistakes of the past and not let them repeat in the future. There is much to do from a constructive perspective to connect digital revolution to life and companies that have taken an early lead such as Google, Samsung, Apple, Tesla, Intel and General Electric to just name a few. These companies have themselves touched just a very small fraction of the scope and opportunities it represents. Many others are on the frivolous edge and will probably never make a difference beyond a few years of hype.

Innovation must be focused on creating enterprises that will become a part of life and be centric to the existence of humans. The verticals of Education and Healthcare will drive the greatest and most important benefits of Digital Revolution to shape the growth of society and humankind; is our considered opinion. Digital Revolution must transition from being a play toy that causes productivity loss to making it a toy play to boost productivity gain.

Globality

Globality is a coined word that finds definition in Wikipedia as the end state of globalization. The journey of globalization began with the invention of the principles of  “Force of Buoyancy” by Archimedes during his lifetime, which is dated as Circa 287 – 212 BC that led to shipping which became the first connection to the different parts of the planet through the medium of water. The Wright Brothers of course shortened the time and increased the comfort of travel with their building an aircraft and this journey is now culminating with the invention of the Internet around 1955. Where we are today is that people can connect from exactly wherever they are with whoever and whenever they want 24X7X365 without even the lag of Nano Seconds.

This connection will influence and shape life and politics around the globe and truly bring democracy to be exercised without the gatekeepers of the treasured Knowledge of history and Evolution. Governments and their related agencies must become more active in modernizing and extending themselves to this concept of Globality without losing their relevance. There is the danger that Human Progress itself could be thwarted if this phenomena of Globality is not addressed with the urgency it deserves. The Process of Innovation Management must be a globally inclusive one that recognizes the need to create and at the same time manage demand concurrently.

A Regenerative Gen Y

As the end of life expectancy of the baby boomers is coming to an end the new millennial or Gen Y is taking root in society, the confused in-between generation that has spent most of its life looking to create a better standard of living has failed miserably in transferring values to the new generation. This new generation is intelligent, impatient and to a point impertinent.  They form the backbone of our society in the immediate future through being the workforce that creates wealth. This generation lacks the right insights of human history and has not experienced the trauma and turbulence of social upheaval. They have been raised in relatively higher levels of comfort than the past generation and are generally perceived to lack in empathy with humanity. They are very nuclear in their instincts for thriving and surviving and need to be re-wired to the concepts of Community, Collaboration and Contribution. Cultural Transformation will need to be a major agenda at the Societal and Enterprise level to make life not veer from bad to worse.

The previous generations were only self destructive to a large extent with their drugs and depression but this new generation if not handled with Care and Compassion would wreck havoc in society with their selfish zeal that they have learnt as an acceptable norm from their mediocre previous generation.  The above ideas of Digital Revolution and Globality can become weapons of mass destruction in their hands as opposed to being tools of social construction; should Cultural Transformation not be addressed seriously.

Experiential Autonomy

The talk around everywhere is the experience of a consumer. With the digital revolution and the globalization and a wave of entrepreneurship driven by the idea of becoming rich, the idea of innovation has focused solely on the sale side while the problem has been on the supply side.  The B2B, B2C, C2C or P2P business models did not discover experience being centric to human nature. It is a very foundational principle of life.  Humans learn only through experience and it is rather unfortunate that as society and technology have progressed, humans have lost the ability to literally smell the roses. Individuals, Families, Governments and Commercial Enterprises have focused on elevating themselves to a higher level of income and status by just selling; not building capabilities. That is the reason why we haven’t seen innovations that have led to foundationally shaking society and leading them to a higher quality of living. This needs to be changed and the only way this can happen is to start focusing on Potential rather than Performance.

The emphasis on Performance has constrained people and enterprises to not have the time and design for building the potential and creating a higher threshold of capabilities. In its absence, the word Innovation has become the most abused in the English vocabulary. Experiential means addressing the Emotional Response and therefore the Emotional Quotient (EQ) intended at the time of creating a Product, Process and / or Service. Innovation that focuses on Potential will address Causes while Innovation that addressed Performance will only address Symptoms. Isn’t it clear where the shift needs to be accelerated?

Societal Wealth

Creating societal wealth is not a utopian state but an absolute necessity. Look around us and you will realize that we are fast depleting our resources but that does not in any way stop our consumption process. The reason why governments have had to increase tax rates is because of a lack of societal wealth. The modern day conflicts and increased military spending can be cut down with the focus shifting to collaboration and cooperation that includes an inclusive dialog of Environmental Resources and Natural Resources. Despite all the attempts at Conservation and Sustainability Movements that are enabled by Individual & private enterprise, it still requires huge amounts of resources to sustain and succeed and facilitate humans all over the planet. There have been attempts at Public –Private Partnerships but a well-discoursed Framework of Processes must guide these initiatives. It is not enough to fashionably discuss at World Economic Forums. It is imperative to define roles and make participation a joyous exercise. This will create avenues for Societal Wealth and consequently personal wealth. In the absence, the social inequalities resulting from oligopolies and monopolies will never cease to exist. True talent in societies will never get opportunities to express and renew growth. This implosion is more harmful than any nuclear explosion as its affects will be fatally destructive for succeeding generations and life on planet itself.

The present day manifestation of terrorism is just a representation of the dissatisfaction and inequality of the distribution of societal wealth. It is the responsibility of every individual, enterprise and government to address societal wealth not from the narrow definitions of Charity, Philanthropy or Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). These efforts must be embedded to the Core processes of the business that demonstrate how they create social wealth in the societies where they participate and how these efforts contribute to Social Fairness and Economic Justice that help communities thrive with dignity and grace.