Are you making this mistake? I have been getting some strange requests of late. An executive at large consulting company wants us to participate in some research. It has to paid for. She sends me a long form to fill about my company to register etc etc and become part of this pathetic process. Then there are these requests from various people (banks, credit cards, airlines….. never ending list…) to update some information or the other. Its Funny, I NEVER got a single request from any of my customers over the years, neither did I make one. These are only from salespeople – or should I say LAZY salespeople. Why on earth are you asking me to update your database? How laid back can you be? What do you want me to do next ----- How about your windows? Do they need washing? Floors need waxing? Trash can full? Why not ask me to make your car payment? Don’t you think it’s about time that we put an end to STUPIDITY.<< MORE >>

You and I do not decide elections. Then there are loads of you’s and I’s who do not vote either. The sad part is the quest of power and how murky it all is. I do not question the quest for power. After all if your chosen profession is politics, then the quest to hold a position in a ruling party has to be there. I do however question and feel disturbed by qualifying politics as a profession. Political life has over the years transcended into a profession. A lucrative one. Everyone wants a bite of it for five years – everything else is negotiable – from ethics to integrity, from values to morals, from friends to enemies and enemies to friends – everything.<< MORE >>

Last month I had to conduct four Sales Training Programs. After interacting with salespeople and studying different perspectives towards the same product, market, situations, economies, I am convinced beyond doubt that business is never good or bad out there in the marketplace. Business is good or bad between your ears. That is the only thing that matters.<< MORE >>

Is there one word that defines success? Yes, there is. It’s attitude. And I’m certain that you have studied or been told that a positive attitude is the key to success. Not quite. Attitude is defined as the way you dedicate yourself to the way you think. Your thoughts can be positive, neutral, or negative – and you choose them. You choose the way you think, the way you speak, and the actions you take. Positive, neutral, or negative. What are your attitude thoughts? What are your attitude choices? Are you ready to win, or thinking you’ll probably lose? It occurred to me earlier in the day that there are two simple words, when lived out and applied to everything from making a single sale to a long term career goal to the overall process and philosophy of life, are incredibly powerful. Highly successful people always do what is necessary and then they go a little above and beyond. “Some More” isn’t unique to those who might have prevailed over adversity but remarkably every super successful person you will meet will invariably display the habit of “Some More”. Adversely a person performing under potential will always be displaying the habit of “No more. My hands are full. More isn’t possible. Lets see. More in these times???” << MORE >>

The past week, I was a bit unwell, sitting at home and had plenty of time in hand. I watched lots of television. I realized too that if ever you want to go further and further into depression, you simply have to watch the news channels. Its quite disgusting really that there is hardly anything ‘nice’ that people have to report. Why then must we wonder that we are headed for economic depression too? It’s a no-brainer. Watching television and reading newspapers full of disturbing, negative, painful, mindless, irrational and near sick incidents, what were we going to create, a flowering world?<< MORE >>

Lets play gentlemen! These are the words you hear from the umpire (no offence to women’s cricket!!!) just after the toss, pitch report and everything else. It’s the cricket season! Seems like Australia has been ousted and just back again as the number one team. Everyone enjoyed their bashing. The English are not enjoying the revival. Ashes up next. India nearing end of the season. A good one for us. Hopes are up. The dreams to be number one, right up, in sight and possible! Hell, we even talking about winning a World Cup which is to years away!! Who is your favorite team? Quite a useless question that!! But ever wondered why you’re so loyal to your favorite team? Even more useless question that!! But think about it we rejoice with Indian cricket team, we curse them, we abuse them, we cherish them, we seat them on a pedestal. We are the greatest fans of the game here.. We collectively are so powerful that if we decide to not watch the game, world cricket might well enter a phase of extinction! That’s how powerful fans are, especially the fanatic one’s in here. I wonder though if your customers are your fans? Ya right!!<< MORE >>

Human achievements are undoubtedly impressive. We have amazing creations, great works in music, arts, sculpture, literature, architecture and others to show for it. More recently also in science and technology. The human mind thus is highly intelligent. However intelligence in us, humans, is accompanied by sheer madness. Dysfunctional state of our minds can be depicted in how science and technology has been used to magnify the threat of complete destruction of our planet. Which sane mind will do that? We all are in one planet. We all have thought across borders and countries the same way. We all continue to thrive for this particular advancement in technology. We all, now, continue to use the same weapons on others who may be matching up to acquire nuclear weapons. Why do we need these scientific marvels that are potentially disastrous? One reason may be to protect ourselves? Protection from whom? From those who have these? This is the circular trap – fuzzy logic – that everyone falls for. We’d rather say that we are preparing to kill another person than work towards protecting each other. Collective stupidity of the entire world in the twentieth century!<< MORE >>

First of the four ‘noble truths’ that Buddha taught was that Life is suffering. Life is difficult. It is indeed a noble truth. Noble truth as once we come to accept and truly understand it then life may not be difficult. The key is accepting because once it is accepted then the fact that life is suffering no longer matters.<< MORE >>

I met a few people who are part of a sports club last week in Delhi. They were in the middle of a Cricket tournament. When I asked them how it was going for them, they told me they weren’t winning much. When I asked why, they said, “The team is not motivated enough, we think.” Just now I happened to read a note from a scientist on ‘Abstract Entities’ – “Entities like Atoms or Enzymes. Has anybody ever seen an atom or enzyme? Has anybody talked to them or touched them? They probably do exist but we know it through logic and not through any direct information? Therefore in hard sciences when we can no longer use our senses we start to use abstract entities.” We all rely on abstract entities as everything cannot be verified by direct observation. Therefore a statement like ‘team is not motivated’ is fuzzy logic. This is circular logic. It is a trap. Not winning because not motivated. In a normal environment, therefore we might start working on ‘motivation exercises’. Whereas the real cause may be that they aren’t motivated because the matches are played on Sundays and they rather be with their families. We need to be very careful with abstract entities. Ask yourself – Why do we accept it? How do we know the team didn’t have enough motivation? The answer most likely is, “They lost the game, didn’t they?” – Circular Logic.<< MORE >>

Economy was in boom. You could sell anything to anybody. You didn’t even need to own it yourself. As long as you worked, or even went to work, you made money. Then there was a storm. A storm brought about by the negative attitudes and acts of people; A storm very destructive. It first struck and made its signs apparent in the stock market. Then lightening struck everywhere. After that there were more rough seas as the financial hurricane struck and continued to strike with all its fury. Sounds familiar! Am sure it does. Though, am not talking 2008. Am talking October 1929, a storm termed the Great Depression. Black Tuesday the 29th was the day that the stock market crashed. << MORE >>