Dear all,
We all have fears and phobias as part of our persona ..some of them we admit some of them we dont ..but they do exist and sometimes at the back of the mind they bother us ..please read the following article ..Itsays ...FEAR IS GOOD......
Courage and Creating
By Douglas Eby
Doing anything creative often brings up fears, anxieties, insecurities. Courage may be defined as going ahead in spite of fear. But many creators not only live with their fears, they welcome them.
Fear is perhaps the most basic emotion we have. As Leonardo da Vinci reportedly said, "Fear arises sooner than anything else." Writer Julia Cameron has commented that artists are often terrified. Being creative is venturing into the unknown, and it sets off emotional alarms.
Fear can show up, in various forms, at any stage of a creative project, and regardless of our level of talent or experience.
When she was told that Scholastic Press was paying a huge advance to publish her first Harry Potter book, J.K. Rowling said, "Most of me was just frozen in terror."
Actor Nicole Kidman admits she has tried to get out of almost every film she has done "because of sheer terror. I can always come up with a list of actresses who would do better."
Meryl Streep said she identified with "Adaptation" screenwriter Charlie Kaufman's insecurities. "You realize that everyone is just eaten up by that feeling," she said.
Many writers and coaches talk about the destructive and limiting effects of fear, and what to do about it.
Dr. Judith Orloff, author of the book Positive Energy, says we are addicted to fear. and cautions it is "the biggest energy thief there is." She counsels acknowledging any voice of fear in our head "Thanks for sharing" then moving awareness back to our heart.
Sandra Ford Walston, author of the book Courage: The Heart and Spirit of Every Woman, points out the cowardly lion of "The Wizard of Oz" actually had tremendous courage but was unable to perceive that quality in himself. She notes that people often do not recognize their everyday actions as courageous, especially women.
But is it always in our best interest as creators to "fight" fear?
Director Steven Spielberg has said, "I still have pretty much the same fears I had as a kid. I'm not sure I'd want to give them up; a lot of these insecurities fuel the movies I make."
Many actors and other artists say they are drawn to projects that make them feel scared. Meryl Streep said of insecurity, "Maybe it's a good thing. I hope it's some sort of breaking down of whatever is familiar to you. Whatever is complacent, whatever is easy."
American Buddhist nun Pema Chodron writes in her book The Places That Scare You: "To the extent that we stop struggling against uncertainty and ambiguity, to that extent we dissolve our fear."
Psychologist Robert Maurer has worked with many successful writers and other creative people, and thinks fear may be an indispensable part of the creative process.
"Fear is good," he says. "As children, fear is a natural part of our lives, but as adults we view fear as a disease. It's not a disease." He points out that a creative achievement, such as publishing your first novel, does not make fear go away.
He adds, "Your skill at being able to nourish yourself and give yourself permission to make mistakes and learn from them is your single greatest attribute as an artist and as a human being." Philosopher Mary Daly notes we "learn courage by couraging."
Doing what scares us can enable us to do more and be more.
Have a great day..
Rajat
From India, Pune
101We all have fears and phobias as part of our persona ..some of them we admit some of them we dont ..but they do exist and sometimes at the back of the mind they bother us ..please read the following article ..Itsays ...FEAR IS GOOD......
Courage and Creating
By Douglas Eby
Doing anything creative often brings up fears, anxieties, insecurities. Courage may be defined as going ahead in spite of fear. But many creators not only live with their fears, they welcome them.
Fear is perhaps the most basic emotion we have. As Leonardo da Vinci reportedly said, "Fear arises sooner than anything else." Writer Julia Cameron has commented that artists are often terrified. Being creative is venturing into the unknown, and it sets off emotional alarms.
Fear can show up, in various forms, at any stage of a creative project, and regardless of our level of talent or experience.
When she was told that Scholastic Press was paying a huge advance to publish her first Harry Potter book, J.K. Rowling said, "Most of me was just frozen in terror."
Actor Nicole Kidman admits she has tried to get out of almost every film she has done "because of sheer terror. I can always come up with a list of actresses who would do better."
Meryl Streep said she identified with "Adaptation" screenwriter Charlie Kaufman's insecurities. "You realize that everyone is just eaten up by that feeling," she said.
Many writers and coaches talk about the destructive and limiting effects of fear, and what to do about it.
Dr. Judith Orloff, author of the book Positive Energy, says we are addicted to fear. and cautions it is "the biggest energy thief there is." She counsels acknowledging any voice of fear in our head "Thanks for sharing" then moving awareness back to our heart.
Sandra Ford Walston, author of the book Courage: The Heart and Spirit of Every Woman, points out the cowardly lion of "The Wizard of Oz" actually had tremendous courage but was unable to perceive that quality in himself. She notes that people often do not recognize their everyday actions as courageous, especially women.
But is it always in our best interest as creators to "fight" fear?
Director Steven Spielberg has said, "I still have pretty much the same fears I had as a kid. I'm not sure I'd want to give them up; a lot of these insecurities fuel the movies I make."
Many actors and other artists say they are drawn to projects that make them feel scared. Meryl Streep said of insecurity, "Maybe it's a good thing. I hope it's some sort of breaking down of whatever is familiar to you. Whatever is complacent, whatever is easy."
American Buddhist nun Pema Chodron writes in her book The Places That Scare You: "To the extent that we stop struggling against uncertainty and ambiguity, to that extent we dissolve our fear."
Psychologist Robert Maurer has worked with many successful writers and other creative people, and thinks fear may be an indispensable part of the creative process.
"Fear is good," he says. "As children, fear is a natural part of our lives, but as adults we view fear as a disease. It's not a disease." He points out that a creative achievement, such as publishing your first novel, does not make fear go away.
He adds, "Your skill at being able to nourish yourself and give yourself permission to make mistakes and learn from them is your single greatest attribute as an artist and as a human being." Philosopher Mary Daly notes we "learn courage by couraging."
Doing what scares us can enable us to do more and be more.
Have a great day..
Rajat
From India, Pune
Dear all,
Here is the full text of the Fourth Madhavrao Scindia Memorial Lecture deliverd by Richard Branson, the founder of Virgin Records and Virgin Atlantic, for the benefit of the group. Among other things he speaks about his people management skills and how he started the company..n his struggles..it's worth a look to understand how an entreprenuer innovates & makes a successful business of it..
Happy Reading!!..
Rajat
Losing My Virginity: Sir Richard Branson
18 November 2005
Thank you so much Mrs Scindia for the wonderful introduction, I am truly honoured and humbled to have been invited to participate in the Madhavrao Scindia Memorial Lecture.
I sincerely wish I had had the opportunity to have known Madhavrao Scindia, the distinguished man whose memory we are honouring today. It is clear to me that he was a charismatic visionary whose powerful legacy will continue to inspire Indian people. His dedicated approach to life and commitment to liberty remains an inspiration to all of us.
My early memories of India start with my first visit around 30 years ago. I remember India as a mystical and spiritual place with strongly ingrained traditions. There was little indulgence and people worked hard so that their children could aspire to great things.
Today as soon as you enter India you cannot help but be overwhelmed by the optimism.
India has transformed into an agile powerful democracy whose people have a strong sense of pride and purpose. People in India know what they want and what it is worth to them. Indian people today are confident, articulate and grounded. They know that the world is watching and that when India speaks -the world listens!
High quality education, a good work ethic and strong service sector have given Indian people choices and social mobility. Middle class families are eating out, going on family holidays and enjoying the consumer market. India is an astoundingly youthful market with over 50 per cent of the population under 24 and an emerging middle class market at least twice as big as the UK, and growing fast.
This government has begun unshackling the economy with regulatory reform in transport and communications, with all the noticeable benefits that this brings, and ambitious plans to deliver a high quality infrastructure that can serve the world's largest democracy.
The road ahead is challenging with high execution risk and further deregulation is required to welcome foreign investors, giving Indian consumers the benefit of their experience as well as their established brands! I am confident that time is fast approaching
Mother India will soon make way for her wise, modern and beautiful daughter and Virgin is a willing suitor! So I've confessed Virgin's undying love for India but will this love remain unrequited? I'll leave that for you to decide - the wooing's already begun.
The film you watched by way of introduction to the world of Virgin - always sits slightly uneasily with me - 36 years of my life crammed in to three-and-a-half minutes it makes it all look easy. Doesn't it?
Now, I've been told that this evening I'm here to talk about "my vast knowledge" on leadership, building brands and successful marketing on a global scale. I'm here to tell you how 36 years ago, Virgin drew up a strategy for global penetration by the year 2010 and the fact that we always knew how to make Virgin a household name.
Sounds great doesn't it - aren't we clever! If only it were true! The best example of how far from the truth this is - is the now famous Virgin logo. When one night over a drink, sitting around on cushions in a basement, we came up with the name 'Virgin' instead of 'Slipped Disc' Records for our record company in the winter of 1969, I had some vague idea of the name being catchy and suitable to lots of other products for young people. But that was about the size of it.
A little known fact is that we weren't even allowed to register the brand name with the patent office for three years as they felt it was too "rude". I had to write long letters explaining that Virgin was the complete opposite of 'rude', before I finally got it accepted. Not the most auspicious start for a brand, but a start that I am, bizarrely some might say, proud of.
Virgin was abou hving fun
When Virgin Records became successful, we followed our instincts and only signed long-term artists who, in the music-speak of the late 1970s, would have been termed progressive. Initially the music reflected the "hippy" era and our logo of a naked lady back-to-back reflected it too. Then when punk came along we felt we needed a crisper image.
I was talking to our graphic designer one day, explaining what we wanted, when he threw the piece of paper he was scribbling on, on the floor and got himself ready for the serious business of designing a cutting-edge logo. Little did he realise that the piece of paper he thought was rubbish - which I fortunately picked up on the way to the loo - contained the scribble that was just about to become the, now famous, Virgin signature.
If I'm perfectly honest (which of course I always am!) the early days of Virgin were very much about having fun. I loved what we were doing in our record mail-order business, I loved our cool, laid-back record stores, I loved the people who worked for Virgin - we truly lived and breathed the brand as a family. And to be frank, being a teenager, I loved the girls!
It's amazing how many first dates the introduction: "Hi, I'm Richard Branson - entrepreneur" gets you! Unfortunately, the fish and chips, wrapped in that day's newspaper, I bought them for dinner and the fact that they had to eat them in the very smelly, grotty, squat, which served as Virgin's HQ in those days, meant that the dates very rarely had a successful outcome. The 'entrepreneur' line only worked until they were faced with the reality of the fledgling Virgin Empire in the early 1970s.
In truth, in the early days I didn't really look at myself as an entrepreneur I never thought about what we were doing in those terms. I was brought up by my parents to try new things - never be disheartened if a madcap venture failed - to just get on to the next one and enjoy every minute of what life threw at you. We wanted to create things we were proud of, we were young, it was the '70's and the world was our oyster. We were genuinely not aware that the way we approached business was setting a new example in how businesses could be run.
The flight from Puerto Rico
In 1976, when Joan, my fianc้e, and I were on holiday in the British Virgin Islands, we were trying to catch a flight to Puerto Rico but the local Puerto Rican scheduled flight was cancelled. The airport terminal was full of stranded passengers. I made a few calls to charter companies and agreed to charter a plane for $2,000 to Puerto Rico.
Cheekily leaving out Joan's and my name, I divided the price by the number of remaining passengers, borrowed a blackboard and wrote: Virgin Airways $39 single flight to Puerto Rico. I walked around the airport terminal and soon filled every seat on the charter plane. As we landed at Puerto Rico, a passenger turned to me and said: "Virgin Airways isn't too bad - smarten up the services a little and you could be in business." "I might just do that," I laughed, having just made my first profit on my first flight.
It got me thinking. Airlines didn't think twice about bumping people. They didn't think twice about quality. They didn't care about their staff. The staff therefore didn't smile. The food was dreadful. The entertainment non-existent. I told myself 'Don't be tempted. Don't even think about it!'
But I was tempted. The idea grabbed me. It was exciting. And it certainly would be fun.
I called Boeing on my return. I asked how much it would cost to rent a second hand jumbo jet for a year. "What did you say your business was again?" they asked. "It's called Virgin. We sign great artists like the Sex Pistols, the Rolling Stones and Phil Collins." Believe it or not they didn't put the phone down on me. They listened to my enthusiasm and decided to take a risk on me. Their only hope was that with a brand name like that .. we'd go the whole way! I was ready to give it a go. I met my partners in my record company to discuss it.
The discussion basically consisted of me saying: 'Starting an airline is not too big a risk. If people don't like it, we can always hand the plane back at the end of the first year. And it'll be fun.' Whenever I say the fun word they always groan - and I can assure you they groaned. They then pulled themselves together, shook their heads and said "Guess we'd better pick up the telephones and start selling some tickets then!"
I decided to call the airline Virgin Atlantic.
Warned about BA's 'dirty tricks'
I asked Sir Freddie Laker to lunch to talk about our new project. He was a great help. He had years of experience. Most of all, he knew the problems in starting a new airline. His airline had done well until the big airlines undercut him. They had the money to keep going. They could afford to make losses while they drove his new airline to the wall.
Over lunch, he told me how an airline worked. We discussed what I should look out for.
Freddie said, "Look out for dirty tricks from British Airways. BA's dirty tricks ruined me. Don't let them ruin you. Complain as loudly as you can. My mistake was that I didn't complain."
I don't like to complain. I don't cry over spilled milk. I just get on with things. But I made a mental note. "Watch out for dirty tricks. Complain loudly."
It wasn't long before BA unleashed their dirty tricks team against us. They tried to destroy us by ruining my name, illegally tapping in to our computer information and poaching our passengers. Sir Freddie said, "Sue the bastards!" and I took BA to court - and won a historic victory. When Virgin Atlantic launched in 1984, not one person thought it would survive for more than a year. The bosses of these 13 big American airline companies, that we competed with, said we'd fail. Now 21 years later all 13 of them are out of business - proving the number 13 is unlucky for some.
The fights that we have found ourselves in over the years have (strangely) done wonders to promote the Virgin brand. They have proved that we refuse to be walked over. They have proved that we truly believe in our brand, a brand that we are asking our staff and our consumers to place their belief in.
They have proved that, without exception, we are prepared to fight for that brand, no matter what the cost. That's how to build a brand - you've got to believe in it more than you believe in anything else. You've got to believe that your reputation is more important than the cold, hard reality of the bottom line.
Freddie also advised, "Don't make Virgin Atlantic a cheap, no-frills service. Make sure it's the best Airline flying in the world. The big airlines can undercut you, like they did to me. Instead, offer a better service than they do, at a good price. People want comfort on long flights. And don't forget the fun. People like to have fun. Good luck. Be ready for a great deal of stress."
People, not logos, make the brand
He was right, the beginning saw a lot of stressful times - times I felt that the big corporate sharks would achieve their aim in destroying us. Through it all, it was the people who worked for Virgin Atlantic (and our growing list of diverse companies) who kept me going.
I was determined not to let them down, determined that the sense of fun, the belief that nothing was impossible and importantly that it was my responsibility to stay true to their belief, that Virgin genuinely stood for something different. That we would never become the same as all the rest. We saw off these hard times - together. Without good people a business is worth nothing.
A very wise man once said: "A customer is the most important visitor on our premises. He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an interruption of our work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an outsider to our business. He is part of it. We are not doing him a favour by serving him. He is doing us a favour by giving us the opportunity to do so."
Now I'm not one to argue with the father of modern India, Mahatma Gandhi. But, at Virgin we've always done things slightly differently!
We've always had a policy of trying to put our staff first. In our opinion the staff should come first, the customers second and your shareholders third, and if you take that approach then you'll find that everyone wins in the end. Happy staff result in happy customers - lots of happy customers result in happy shareholders! It's not a logo that makes a brand it's the people who represent that brand every day, day in - day out. They are the people who really define your business.
The humane face of business
To me this is what truly makes a brand. The brand is something that the whole team have got to believe in, something they are proud to talk about. Herb Kelleher of SouthWest Airlines in America was a pioneer of this approach - he believed that working for SouthWest Airlines was not a job, it was a crusade.
Under his guidance the "higher-calling" that drove SouthWest employees was "how can we protect the people who fly our airline? How can we protect small businesses? Are we doing what's best for the senior citizens who count on us for low fares?" This is why the people of SouthWest Airlines have become politically active over the years. They believe that politics is the business of protecting peoples' freedom and when you look at their success its important to understand that SouthWest employees have, not only bought into the company in terms of stock, but also bought into the principles for which the airline stands.
So this is a more humane way of running a business.
It's an ethical way of running a business and it's a sensible way of running a business and building a truly great brand. It's giving your employees motivation to deliver a wonderful service to the community and its doing something that everybody can be proud of. The alternative approach is to try to run your business through monopolising or driving out your competitors through sheer dominance of your market.
Here's a quote from a chief executive of another airline which Virgin have had a few run-ins with over the years. The chief executive once said, "I've never come across a businessman who did not pursue monopoly. What you pursue in business, in my experience, is monopoly for yourself and maximum competition among your suppliers and therefore there is nothing wrong in any chairman or any company eliminating competitors. Competition is about eliminating competitors; it's not about competing. That's what business is about. It's about the elimination of competitors."
Subsequent to that chief executives' speech, that particular company did drive a number of competitors out of business but they also ended up ruining their reputation, damaging it for many years by behaving in, what many people believed to be, an inhumane and unethically responsible way.
Capitalism works
The public genuinely care about how the companies - in which they choose to invest their trust, their loyalty and their money - behave in the market place; for many companies out there it's worth remembering this! And if they don't remember this, governments must come down hard on them, however hard it may be for a politician, to take on a big corporation. For real competition is what makes people strive to deliver a better product.
If monitored properly, capitalism works. Every other system has been tried and has failed. But capitalism still brings with it extreme wealth to a few individuals and companies. To become top of your profession as a businessman is no more difficult than going to the top of your profession as a nurse, doctor, journalist or politician. But the difference is that reaching the top of your profession in business brings excessive wealth with it. And, therefore, with wealth, comes responsibility.
Therefore, those who do command huge wealth have an equally huge responsibility to use that wealth constructively, to look closely at how they can possibly redistribute that wealth for the collective good.
For example, if somebody sells a company, they must not leave that money wasting away in a bank account. They should use that wealth creatively to change society, to start new companies, expand their existing businesses in new regions of the world, therefore employing more people and bringing opportunity to areas which may previously have been exploitative and monopolistic.
Wealth should be used to challenge the established way of doing things and try and make a difference.
If one's running a company, there's not only an ethical responsibility but importantly there are human responsibilities. I fear that the majority of major companies forget this fact or hold it very low on their list of priorities. I've always believed that there's no point in going into business unless you're going to make an enormous difference.
People who work for a company have got to feel passionately about their jobs and feel as though they're involved in what the company's trying to achieve.
They must be proud of working for their company, look forward to going to work everyday, feel part of the brand, feel part of the mission.
Loose change ushers in a big change
Years ago I found that every time I came home from a flight I would put my loose foreign change in my top right hand drawer and completely forget about it. It was only after the drawer was beginning to sag that I thought of all the other bedside cabinets across the country, which must be suffering the same fate. Why shouldn't we try to collect that foreign change off people on our planes - our staff loved the idea, they really felt they were making a difference.
We are now collecting millions of pounds every year for charities across the world. But the most rewarding thing was the fact that other airlines followed suit and now hundreds of millions of pounds a year is being collected for worthwhile causes. Once again the benefits of competition and of getting your people motivated by facilitating their desire to help others less fortunate.
Mates Condoms is perhaps another example of how using business acumen, and listening to the concern and everyday fears of your staff, can be hugely successful when used for the benefit of others. Some years ago when it looked like AIDS could become a problem, we set up a not-for-profit condoms company to try to encourage people to use condoms.
Also we wanted to encourage Durex, who had 98 per cent of the market, to spend more on promoting condoms and through awareness attempt to curb the spread of this disease. We even got the BBC to run an advertising campaign for the first time in their history - a very proud and historic moment for everyone who worked at Virgin.
Moves like this meant that people working for Virgin companies felt even prouder of the company they worked for. So although these things may cost us money, in an indirect way through staff morale, they were also good for business - good for the brand.
Running a condom company also brings some interesting complaint letters. I once received a letter of complaint from a young lady to whom I wrote back a grovelling apology. Only to receive - almost nine months later - a beautiful picture of mother and daughter asking me to be Godfather! So through founding Mates I also managed to find myself another Goddaughter - if only all complaints had such adorable results!
Ambassador for the social side of the brand
When the world of setting up new businesses for Virgin - a world that I love! - starts to occupy all of my waking thoughts, I try to remember the words of President Roosevelt, a hundred years ago, when he rebuked men of vast wealth who "do not fully realise that great responsibility must always go hand in hand with great privilege", in the same way that he believed "that great countries have great responsibilities".
Trying to keep these sentiments at the forefront of my mind, today not only is my role to travel to many new and exciting territories (including India!) expanding the Virgin businesses but I also see my role as being the ambassador for the social side of the brand. Born through the desire of our thousands of staff across the world, Virgin Unite has brought me closer to my desire of using the Virgin brand to make a real difference to the world.
Never a brand to choose the well-trodden road of those who have come before, Virgin Unite is there to tackle the tougher social challenges by leveraging all our global resources, especially our people. One of the challenges we felt we needed to take on was what we call 'the BIG 3 malaria, TB and HIV / AIDS. Over 16,000 people die every single day from these preventable and treatable diseases in Africa alone. We will never make poverty history and build healthy economies until we stop the BIG 3 from decimating entire generations.
The 0% Challenge
The worst of the BIG 3 is AIDS, which is winning the battle in many countries - around the world AIDS is winning the war. This does not have to happen in India. India truly is a great country and it too has great responsibilities.
India is changing in positive ways but we have to keep the momentum going in this great sub-continent. India stands at a critical point in its epidemic - HIV is poised to explode. As the second most populous nation in the world, even a small increase in India's HIV / AIDS prevalence rate will represent a significant component of the world's HIV / AIDS burden. Last year alone, there were more than 600,000 young people who were newly infected with HIV here in India.
So those are the horrific statistics linked to HIV / AIDS in India - but what I want to talk about is a new statistic, the '0% Challenge'. Getting all of us to work together towards ensuring that our employees and their families have:
0% new HIV infections
0% mother to baby HIV transmission
0% deaths from AIDS
We have the tools to make this happen with proven prevention education, condoms, antiretroviral drugs and other drugs to stop mother to baby transmission. We can no longer sit with these tools in our hands and watch thousands and thousands of mainly young people die needlessly.
A couple weeks ago, we visited a wonderful clinic in South Africa where these tools were in place were being used and they have proven that no one needs to die from AIDS. I call it the 'living' clinic. This was such a sharp contrast to my previous visit to the 'death' clinic, where people came to die and where we saw rows and rows and rows of dying people. As human beings we cannot allow anyone to die unnecessarily. As businesses (and individuals) we have a wonderful opportunity to stop the HIV / AIDS crisis from continuing to grow in India.
The starting point for businesses is taking care of our own staff and their communities with the '0% Challenge, but we can go well beyond that and use the innovation inherent in entrepreneurialism to change the way we approach social issues.
We at Virgin pledge not to let one of our staff die of AIDS, in India or anywhere else in the world. We ask every other company to join us in this pledge.
Yes, it is a war but a war that I truly believe can be won - if we all overcome territorial, religious, cultural and social barriers and work together. Every single business needs to look at their core resources and see how each of us can play a role in ensuring that HIV / AIDS does not win the war in India and the rest of the world.
It is our responsibility not to turn a blind eye to what is going on but to reach out our hands, lift them from their knees and stand together shoulder to shoulder to defeat this scourge.
So, before I answer questions, let me end on a slightly more uplifting thought Where next for the Virgin brand (apart from India, of course)?
Over the next few years I hope to see Virgin bring our unique brand of fair, innovative and quality consumerism, to all countries across the world. With this feat in mind, a feat I believe we'll achieve, I started to ponder what happens then. You all know where this is going, don't you? mmm Sod it, I thought, let's look in to going to space!
Virgin Galactic was born
From India, Pune
Here is the full text of the Fourth Madhavrao Scindia Memorial Lecture deliverd by Richard Branson, the founder of Virgin Records and Virgin Atlantic, for the benefit of the group. Among other things he speaks about his people management skills and how he started the company..n his struggles..it's worth a look to understand how an entreprenuer innovates & makes a successful business of it..
Happy Reading!!..
Rajat
Losing My Virginity: Sir Richard Branson
18 November 2005
Thank you so much Mrs Scindia for the wonderful introduction, I am truly honoured and humbled to have been invited to participate in the Madhavrao Scindia Memorial Lecture.
I sincerely wish I had had the opportunity to have known Madhavrao Scindia, the distinguished man whose memory we are honouring today. It is clear to me that he was a charismatic visionary whose powerful legacy will continue to inspire Indian people. His dedicated approach to life and commitment to liberty remains an inspiration to all of us.
My early memories of India start with my first visit around 30 years ago. I remember India as a mystical and spiritual place with strongly ingrained traditions. There was little indulgence and people worked hard so that their children could aspire to great things.
Today as soon as you enter India you cannot help but be overwhelmed by the optimism.
India has transformed into an agile powerful democracy whose people have a strong sense of pride and purpose. People in India know what they want and what it is worth to them. Indian people today are confident, articulate and grounded. They know that the world is watching and that when India speaks -the world listens!
High quality education, a good work ethic and strong service sector have given Indian people choices and social mobility. Middle class families are eating out, going on family holidays and enjoying the consumer market. India is an astoundingly youthful market with over 50 per cent of the population under 24 and an emerging middle class market at least twice as big as the UK, and growing fast.
This government has begun unshackling the economy with regulatory reform in transport and communications, with all the noticeable benefits that this brings, and ambitious plans to deliver a high quality infrastructure that can serve the world's largest democracy.
The road ahead is challenging with high execution risk and further deregulation is required to welcome foreign investors, giving Indian consumers the benefit of their experience as well as their established brands! I am confident that time is fast approaching
Mother India will soon make way for her wise, modern and beautiful daughter and Virgin is a willing suitor! So I've confessed Virgin's undying love for India but will this love remain unrequited? I'll leave that for you to decide - the wooing's already begun.
The film you watched by way of introduction to the world of Virgin - always sits slightly uneasily with me - 36 years of my life crammed in to three-and-a-half minutes it makes it all look easy. Doesn't it?
Now, I've been told that this evening I'm here to talk about "my vast knowledge" on leadership, building brands and successful marketing on a global scale. I'm here to tell you how 36 years ago, Virgin drew up a strategy for global penetration by the year 2010 and the fact that we always knew how to make Virgin a household name.
Sounds great doesn't it - aren't we clever! If only it were true! The best example of how far from the truth this is - is the now famous Virgin logo. When one night over a drink, sitting around on cushions in a basement, we came up with the name 'Virgin' instead of 'Slipped Disc' Records for our record company in the winter of 1969, I had some vague idea of the name being catchy and suitable to lots of other products for young people. But that was about the size of it.
A little known fact is that we weren't even allowed to register the brand name with the patent office for three years as they felt it was too "rude". I had to write long letters explaining that Virgin was the complete opposite of 'rude', before I finally got it accepted. Not the most auspicious start for a brand, but a start that I am, bizarrely some might say, proud of.
Virgin was abou hving fun
When Virgin Records became successful, we followed our instincts and only signed long-term artists who, in the music-speak of the late 1970s, would have been termed progressive. Initially the music reflected the "hippy" era and our logo of a naked lady back-to-back reflected it too. Then when punk came along we felt we needed a crisper image.
I was talking to our graphic designer one day, explaining what we wanted, when he threw the piece of paper he was scribbling on, on the floor and got himself ready for the serious business of designing a cutting-edge logo. Little did he realise that the piece of paper he thought was rubbish - which I fortunately picked up on the way to the loo - contained the scribble that was just about to become the, now famous, Virgin signature.
If I'm perfectly honest (which of course I always am!) the early days of Virgin were very much about having fun. I loved what we were doing in our record mail-order business, I loved our cool, laid-back record stores, I loved the people who worked for Virgin - we truly lived and breathed the brand as a family. And to be frank, being a teenager, I loved the girls!
It's amazing how many first dates the introduction: "Hi, I'm Richard Branson - entrepreneur" gets you! Unfortunately, the fish and chips, wrapped in that day's newspaper, I bought them for dinner and the fact that they had to eat them in the very smelly, grotty, squat, which served as Virgin's HQ in those days, meant that the dates very rarely had a successful outcome. The 'entrepreneur' line only worked until they were faced with the reality of the fledgling Virgin Empire in the early 1970s.
In truth, in the early days I didn't really look at myself as an entrepreneur I never thought about what we were doing in those terms. I was brought up by my parents to try new things - never be disheartened if a madcap venture failed - to just get on to the next one and enjoy every minute of what life threw at you. We wanted to create things we were proud of, we were young, it was the '70's and the world was our oyster. We were genuinely not aware that the way we approached business was setting a new example in how businesses could be run.
The flight from Puerto Rico
In 1976, when Joan, my fianc้e, and I were on holiday in the British Virgin Islands, we were trying to catch a flight to Puerto Rico but the local Puerto Rican scheduled flight was cancelled. The airport terminal was full of stranded passengers. I made a few calls to charter companies and agreed to charter a plane for $2,000 to Puerto Rico.
Cheekily leaving out Joan's and my name, I divided the price by the number of remaining passengers, borrowed a blackboard and wrote: Virgin Airways $39 single flight to Puerto Rico. I walked around the airport terminal and soon filled every seat on the charter plane. As we landed at Puerto Rico, a passenger turned to me and said: "Virgin Airways isn't too bad - smarten up the services a little and you could be in business." "I might just do that," I laughed, having just made my first profit on my first flight.
It got me thinking. Airlines didn't think twice about bumping people. They didn't think twice about quality. They didn't care about their staff. The staff therefore didn't smile. The food was dreadful. The entertainment non-existent. I told myself 'Don't be tempted. Don't even think about it!'
But I was tempted. The idea grabbed me. It was exciting. And it certainly would be fun.
I called Boeing on my return. I asked how much it would cost to rent a second hand jumbo jet for a year. "What did you say your business was again?" they asked. "It's called Virgin. We sign great artists like the Sex Pistols, the Rolling Stones and Phil Collins." Believe it or not they didn't put the phone down on me. They listened to my enthusiasm and decided to take a risk on me. Their only hope was that with a brand name like that .. we'd go the whole way! I was ready to give it a go. I met my partners in my record company to discuss it.
The discussion basically consisted of me saying: 'Starting an airline is not too big a risk. If people don't like it, we can always hand the plane back at the end of the first year. And it'll be fun.' Whenever I say the fun word they always groan - and I can assure you they groaned. They then pulled themselves together, shook their heads and said "Guess we'd better pick up the telephones and start selling some tickets then!"
I decided to call the airline Virgin Atlantic.
Warned about BA's 'dirty tricks'
I asked Sir Freddie Laker to lunch to talk about our new project. He was a great help. He had years of experience. Most of all, he knew the problems in starting a new airline. His airline had done well until the big airlines undercut him. They had the money to keep going. They could afford to make losses while they drove his new airline to the wall.
Over lunch, he told me how an airline worked. We discussed what I should look out for.
Freddie said, "Look out for dirty tricks from British Airways. BA's dirty tricks ruined me. Don't let them ruin you. Complain as loudly as you can. My mistake was that I didn't complain."
I don't like to complain. I don't cry over spilled milk. I just get on with things. But I made a mental note. "Watch out for dirty tricks. Complain loudly."
It wasn't long before BA unleashed their dirty tricks team against us. They tried to destroy us by ruining my name, illegally tapping in to our computer information and poaching our passengers. Sir Freddie said, "Sue the bastards!" and I took BA to court - and won a historic victory. When Virgin Atlantic launched in 1984, not one person thought it would survive for more than a year. The bosses of these 13 big American airline companies, that we competed with, said we'd fail. Now 21 years later all 13 of them are out of business - proving the number 13 is unlucky for some.
The fights that we have found ourselves in over the years have (strangely) done wonders to promote the Virgin brand. They have proved that we refuse to be walked over. They have proved that we truly believe in our brand, a brand that we are asking our staff and our consumers to place their belief in.
They have proved that, without exception, we are prepared to fight for that brand, no matter what the cost. That's how to build a brand - you've got to believe in it more than you believe in anything else. You've got to believe that your reputation is more important than the cold, hard reality of the bottom line.
Freddie also advised, "Don't make Virgin Atlantic a cheap, no-frills service. Make sure it's the best Airline flying in the world. The big airlines can undercut you, like they did to me. Instead, offer a better service than they do, at a good price. People want comfort on long flights. And don't forget the fun. People like to have fun. Good luck. Be ready for a great deal of stress."
People, not logos, make the brand
He was right, the beginning saw a lot of stressful times - times I felt that the big corporate sharks would achieve their aim in destroying us. Through it all, it was the people who worked for Virgin Atlantic (and our growing list of diverse companies) who kept me going.
I was determined not to let them down, determined that the sense of fun, the belief that nothing was impossible and importantly that it was my responsibility to stay true to their belief, that Virgin genuinely stood for something different. That we would never become the same as all the rest. We saw off these hard times - together. Without good people a business is worth nothing.
A very wise man once said: "A customer is the most important visitor on our premises. He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an interruption of our work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an outsider to our business. He is part of it. We are not doing him a favour by serving him. He is doing us a favour by giving us the opportunity to do so."
Now I'm not one to argue with the father of modern India, Mahatma Gandhi. But, at Virgin we've always done things slightly differently!
We've always had a policy of trying to put our staff first. In our opinion the staff should come first, the customers second and your shareholders third, and if you take that approach then you'll find that everyone wins in the end. Happy staff result in happy customers - lots of happy customers result in happy shareholders! It's not a logo that makes a brand it's the people who represent that brand every day, day in - day out. They are the people who really define your business.
The humane face of business
To me this is what truly makes a brand. The brand is something that the whole team have got to believe in, something they are proud to talk about. Herb Kelleher of SouthWest Airlines in America was a pioneer of this approach - he believed that working for SouthWest Airlines was not a job, it was a crusade.
Under his guidance the "higher-calling" that drove SouthWest employees was "how can we protect the people who fly our airline? How can we protect small businesses? Are we doing what's best for the senior citizens who count on us for low fares?" This is why the people of SouthWest Airlines have become politically active over the years. They believe that politics is the business of protecting peoples' freedom and when you look at their success its important to understand that SouthWest employees have, not only bought into the company in terms of stock, but also bought into the principles for which the airline stands.
So this is a more humane way of running a business.
It's an ethical way of running a business and it's a sensible way of running a business and building a truly great brand. It's giving your employees motivation to deliver a wonderful service to the community and its doing something that everybody can be proud of. The alternative approach is to try to run your business through monopolising or driving out your competitors through sheer dominance of your market.
Here's a quote from a chief executive of another airline which Virgin have had a few run-ins with over the years. The chief executive once said, "I've never come across a businessman who did not pursue monopoly. What you pursue in business, in my experience, is monopoly for yourself and maximum competition among your suppliers and therefore there is nothing wrong in any chairman or any company eliminating competitors. Competition is about eliminating competitors; it's not about competing. That's what business is about. It's about the elimination of competitors."
Subsequent to that chief executives' speech, that particular company did drive a number of competitors out of business but they also ended up ruining their reputation, damaging it for many years by behaving in, what many people believed to be, an inhumane and unethically responsible way.
Capitalism works
The public genuinely care about how the companies - in which they choose to invest their trust, their loyalty and their money - behave in the market place; for many companies out there it's worth remembering this! And if they don't remember this, governments must come down hard on them, however hard it may be for a politician, to take on a big corporation. For real competition is what makes people strive to deliver a better product.
If monitored properly, capitalism works. Every other system has been tried and has failed. But capitalism still brings with it extreme wealth to a few individuals and companies. To become top of your profession as a businessman is no more difficult than going to the top of your profession as a nurse, doctor, journalist or politician. But the difference is that reaching the top of your profession in business brings excessive wealth with it. And, therefore, with wealth, comes responsibility.
Therefore, those who do command huge wealth have an equally huge responsibility to use that wealth constructively, to look closely at how they can possibly redistribute that wealth for the collective good.
For example, if somebody sells a company, they must not leave that money wasting away in a bank account. They should use that wealth creatively to change society, to start new companies, expand their existing businesses in new regions of the world, therefore employing more people and bringing opportunity to areas which may previously have been exploitative and monopolistic.
Wealth should be used to challenge the established way of doing things and try and make a difference.
If one's running a company, there's not only an ethical responsibility but importantly there are human responsibilities. I fear that the majority of major companies forget this fact or hold it very low on their list of priorities. I've always believed that there's no point in going into business unless you're going to make an enormous difference.
People who work for a company have got to feel passionately about their jobs and feel as though they're involved in what the company's trying to achieve.
They must be proud of working for their company, look forward to going to work everyday, feel part of the brand, feel part of the mission.
Loose change ushers in a big change
Years ago I found that every time I came home from a flight I would put my loose foreign change in my top right hand drawer and completely forget about it. It was only after the drawer was beginning to sag that I thought of all the other bedside cabinets across the country, which must be suffering the same fate. Why shouldn't we try to collect that foreign change off people on our planes - our staff loved the idea, they really felt they were making a difference.
We are now collecting millions of pounds every year for charities across the world. But the most rewarding thing was the fact that other airlines followed suit and now hundreds of millions of pounds a year is being collected for worthwhile causes. Once again the benefits of competition and of getting your people motivated by facilitating their desire to help others less fortunate.
Mates Condoms is perhaps another example of how using business acumen, and listening to the concern and everyday fears of your staff, can be hugely successful when used for the benefit of others. Some years ago when it looked like AIDS could become a problem, we set up a not-for-profit condoms company to try to encourage people to use condoms.
Also we wanted to encourage Durex, who had 98 per cent of the market, to spend more on promoting condoms and through awareness attempt to curb the spread of this disease. We even got the BBC to run an advertising campaign for the first time in their history - a very proud and historic moment for everyone who worked at Virgin.
Moves like this meant that people working for Virgin companies felt even prouder of the company they worked for. So although these things may cost us money, in an indirect way through staff morale, they were also good for business - good for the brand.
Running a condom company also brings some interesting complaint letters. I once received a letter of complaint from a young lady to whom I wrote back a grovelling apology. Only to receive - almost nine months later - a beautiful picture of mother and daughter asking me to be Godfather! So through founding Mates I also managed to find myself another Goddaughter - if only all complaints had such adorable results!
Ambassador for the social side of the brand
When the world of setting up new businesses for Virgin - a world that I love! - starts to occupy all of my waking thoughts, I try to remember the words of President Roosevelt, a hundred years ago, when he rebuked men of vast wealth who "do not fully realise that great responsibility must always go hand in hand with great privilege", in the same way that he believed "that great countries have great responsibilities".
Trying to keep these sentiments at the forefront of my mind, today not only is my role to travel to many new and exciting territories (including India!) expanding the Virgin businesses but I also see my role as being the ambassador for the social side of the brand. Born through the desire of our thousands of staff across the world, Virgin Unite has brought me closer to my desire of using the Virgin brand to make a real difference to the world.
Never a brand to choose the well-trodden road of those who have come before, Virgin Unite is there to tackle the tougher social challenges by leveraging all our global resources, especially our people. One of the challenges we felt we needed to take on was what we call 'the BIG 3 malaria, TB and HIV / AIDS. Over 16,000 people die every single day from these preventable and treatable diseases in Africa alone. We will never make poverty history and build healthy economies until we stop the BIG 3 from decimating entire generations.
The 0% Challenge
The worst of the BIG 3 is AIDS, which is winning the battle in many countries - around the world AIDS is winning the war. This does not have to happen in India. India truly is a great country and it too has great responsibilities.
India is changing in positive ways but we have to keep the momentum going in this great sub-continent. India stands at a critical point in its epidemic - HIV is poised to explode. As the second most populous nation in the world, even a small increase in India's HIV / AIDS prevalence rate will represent a significant component of the world's HIV / AIDS burden. Last year alone, there were more than 600,000 young people who were newly infected with HIV here in India.
So those are the horrific statistics linked to HIV / AIDS in India - but what I want to talk about is a new statistic, the '0% Challenge'. Getting all of us to work together towards ensuring that our employees and their families have:
0% new HIV infections
0% mother to baby HIV transmission
0% deaths from AIDS
We have the tools to make this happen with proven prevention education, condoms, antiretroviral drugs and other drugs to stop mother to baby transmission. We can no longer sit with these tools in our hands and watch thousands and thousands of mainly young people die needlessly.
A couple weeks ago, we visited a wonderful clinic in South Africa where these tools were in place were being used and they have proven that no one needs to die from AIDS. I call it the 'living' clinic. This was such a sharp contrast to my previous visit to the 'death' clinic, where people came to die and where we saw rows and rows and rows of dying people. As human beings we cannot allow anyone to die unnecessarily. As businesses (and individuals) we have a wonderful opportunity to stop the HIV / AIDS crisis from continuing to grow in India.
The starting point for businesses is taking care of our own staff and their communities with the '0% Challenge, but we can go well beyond that and use the innovation inherent in entrepreneurialism to change the way we approach social issues.
We at Virgin pledge not to let one of our staff die of AIDS, in India or anywhere else in the world. We ask every other company to join us in this pledge.
Yes, it is a war but a war that I truly believe can be won - if we all overcome territorial, religious, cultural and social barriers and work together. Every single business needs to look at their core resources and see how each of us can play a role in ensuring that HIV / AIDS does not win the war in India and the rest of the world.
It is our responsibility not to turn a blind eye to what is going on but to reach out our hands, lift them from their knees and stand together shoulder to shoulder to defeat this scourge.
So, before I answer questions, let me end on a slightly more uplifting thought Where next for the Virgin brand (apart from India, of course)?
Over the next few years I hope to see Virgin bring our unique brand of fair, innovative and quality consumerism, to all countries across the world. With this feat in mind, a feat I believe we'll achieve, I started to ponder what happens then. You all know where this is going, don't you? mmm Sod it, I thought, let's look in to going to space!
Virgin Galactic was born
From India, Pune
Dear all,
I would like to share with you an interesting and
energy (electricity) saving modern technique which is
come to use in our country since a year back.
(Although it is started 20 years back in Europe).
Came across this in email and sender's details is
mentioned as below:-
An excellent example of innovation in place!!
Instant gas fired Water Heater which gives 6litre/min.
hot water. This will be installed in Bath rooms/
Kitchen.
LPG cylinder which is being used for Cooking can be
put outside kitchen or at Balcony, from which Gas
piping i.e PE-AL-PE
(Polyethelne-aluminium-polyethelene)a composite pipe
(highly protected and pressure tested) is to be taken
thru wall chasing or exposed to connect Cooking stove
in Kitchen and geyser in Bathroom. Thats'all, work is
over.
TOTAL INSTALLATION CHARGES INCLUDING ALL SAFETY
VALVES,
PIPING(12 TO 15M LENGTH), WATER HEATER = RS.7500/-
(NOTE: Gas fired Water Heater is being imported from
Korea which is an ISO certified / 1 year Warranty).
COMPARISION FOR 100 LITRE HOT WATER / DAY AT
TEMPERATURE RISE 25deg.C (i.e. 25deg.C to 70deg.C)
Gas fired Water Heater:
Gas consumed is only .235 kg i.e.= 235gm
Expenses = 0.235x20.70(price of LP gas/Kg)
= Rs. 4.85 say Rs.5/-
Total expenses for 2.5 months(for Winter Climate)
= 75days x 5 = Rs.375/- only.
Electric Water Heater:
Electric energy consumed = 6 to 8 Units (i.e 8KW/hr)
Expenses = 8 x 3.75(price of electricity/ Unit)
= Rs.30/-
Total expenses for 2.5 months(for Winter Climate)
= 75days x 30 = Rs.2250/-
OVERALL SAVING IS ABOUT 75 TO 80%
Since Winter is already started, You can think it of.
and it can be used for in Government/Welfare Hostel
also. I have installed it in my Home and it is giving
very good result.
best regards
V Srinivasan
New Delhi
>
( M.no. 09312077912)
From India, Pune
I would like to share with you an interesting and
energy (electricity) saving modern technique which is
come to use in our country since a year back.
(Although it is started 20 years back in Europe).
Came across this in email and sender's details is
mentioned as below:-
An excellent example of innovation in place!!
Instant gas fired Water Heater which gives 6litre/min.
hot water. This will be installed in Bath rooms/
Kitchen.
LPG cylinder which is being used for Cooking can be
put outside kitchen or at Balcony, from which Gas
piping i.e PE-AL-PE
(Polyethelne-aluminium-polyethelene)a composite pipe
(highly protected and pressure tested) is to be taken
thru wall chasing or exposed to connect Cooking stove
in Kitchen and geyser in Bathroom. Thats'all, work is
over.
TOTAL INSTALLATION CHARGES INCLUDING ALL SAFETY
VALVES,
PIPING(12 TO 15M LENGTH), WATER HEATER = RS.7500/-
(NOTE: Gas fired Water Heater is being imported from
Korea which is an ISO certified / 1 year Warranty).
COMPARISION FOR 100 LITRE HOT WATER / DAY AT
TEMPERATURE RISE 25deg.C (i.e. 25deg.C to 70deg.C)
Gas fired Water Heater:
Gas consumed is only .235 kg i.e.= 235gm
Expenses = 0.235x20.70(price of LP gas/Kg)
= Rs. 4.85 say Rs.5/-
Total expenses for 2.5 months(for Winter Climate)
= 75days x 5 = Rs.375/- only.
Electric Water Heater:
Electric energy consumed = 6 to 8 Units (i.e 8KW/hr)
Expenses = 8 x 3.75(price of electricity/ Unit)
= Rs.30/-
Total expenses for 2.5 months(for Winter Climate)
= 75days x 30 = Rs.2250/-
OVERALL SAVING IS ABOUT 75 TO 80%
Since Winter is already started, You can think it of.
and it can be used for in Government/Welfare Hostel
also. I have installed it in my Home and it is giving
very good result.
best regards
V Srinivasan
New Delhi
( M.no. 09312077912)
From India, Pune
Think different!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Innovation is nothing but changing for the good. At the workplace, innovation is doing your job in a better way, which is usually a different way. After all, one cannot reach a different destination by walking the same route everyday.
For companies, innovation allows them to stay a step ahead of competition. Anil Chopra, National Marketing head of Anchor Daewoo Industries feels, companies that introduce customer friendly products regularly carry that feel good factor about them.
Says he, "Any innovation, even a small way is profitable. The consumer realises that the brand is continuously doing something for the consumer, which shows that the company cares for them."
On an individual level too, being innovative in your assignments, portrays your involvement. Now, which employer would have a problem with that?
Companies appreciate employees who think out of the box. In technology-driven sectors like Telecom and IT, companies regularly reward winning ideas that help them better their products.
Dishing out bonuses on performance, rather than tenure, is again a company's way of motivating employees to improve themselves continuously.
Says, T Sriramkrishna Mohan, Manager HR, Tata Teleservices, "Companies are always taking a closer look at employees who have delivered an exceptional performance, well aware that any exceptional performance happens only when an employee thinks differently".
Today, companies have begun recognising an individual on the basis of new ideas he comes up with. Innovation need not be limited to any field or level.
A shop floor worker in a manufacturing unit has just as much scope to innovate as a software programmer. If a shop floor worker finds a method whereby, he can skip even one step in what would otherwise be a five-step process, it would be an innovation.
It is easier to come up with bright ideas without the pressures of having to do so. This way, any innovation would be a value addition to the current job. A few tips:
Develop the idea. Most products and processes that we take for granted today were thought of while their inventors were actually working at something else. They became success stories because their inventors worked on developing these ideas.
Innovative always. Novel ideas generally come about only when individuals are placed in problematic circumstances. For instance Hutch came up with the idea of mobile service stations, as it was not economical to set up full-fledged service stations in far-flung areas. But this need not be so. Try to think towards improvement even without problems.
Train yourself to think differently by constantly looking at alternative methods for doing things. Start with smaller assignments like a departmental presentation.
Learn from others and improvise. Being involved with the team is how the top management usually comes up with the one winning idea. Even if it is not the Vice President's idea, he is involved with the teams that are working at it.
Learn to live the situation. This would give you, a fair idea of what process or product could actually make life easier. Then all you need to do is apply the logic on a larger scale.
For instance, It was when Sony Corporation's founder, Akio Morito missed listening to his favourite music while playing golf, that the need for portable music was felt. And Sony introduced the walkman
Cheers,
Have a great day!!
Rajat
From India, Pune
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Innovation is nothing but changing for the good. At the workplace, innovation is doing your job in a better way, which is usually a different way. After all, one cannot reach a different destination by walking the same route everyday.
For companies, innovation allows them to stay a step ahead of competition. Anil Chopra, National Marketing head of Anchor Daewoo Industries feels, companies that introduce customer friendly products regularly carry that feel good factor about them.
Says he, "Any innovation, even a small way is profitable. The consumer realises that the brand is continuously doing something for the consumer, which shows that the company cares for them."
On an individual level too, being innovative in your assignments, portrays your involvement. Now, which employer would have a problem with that?
Companies appreciate employees who think out of the box. In technology-driven sectors like Telecom and IT, companies regularly reward winning ideas that help them better their products.
Dishing out bonuses on performance, rather than tenure, is again a company's way of motivating employees to improve themselves continuously.
Says, T Sriramkrishna Mohan, Manager HR, Tata Teleservices, "Companies are always taking a closer look at employees who have delivered an exceptional performance, well aware that any exceptional performance happens only when an employee thinks differently".
Today, companies have begun recognising an individual on the basis of new ideas he comes up with. Innovation need not be limited to any field or level.
A shop floor worker in a manufacturing unit has just as much scope to innovate as a software programmer. If a shop floor worker finds a method whereby, he can skip even one step in what would otherwise be a five-step process, it would be an innovation.
It is easier to come up with bright ideas without the pressures of having to do so. This way, any innovation would be a value addition to the current job. A few tips:
Develop the idea. Most products and processes that we take for granted today were thought of while their inventors were actually working at something else. They became success stories because their inventors worked on developing these ideas.
Innovative always. Novel ideas generally come about only when individuals are placed in problematic circumstances. For instance Hutch came up with the idea of mobile service stations, as it was not economical to set up full-fledged service stations in far-flung areas. But this need not be so. Try to think towards improvement even without problems.
Train yourself to think differently by constantly looking at alternative methods for doing things. Start with smaller assignments like a departmental presentation.
Learn from others and improvise. Being involved with the team is how the top management usually comes up with the one winning idea. Even if it is not the Vice President's idea, he is involved with the teams that are working at it.
Learn to live the situation. This would give you, a fair idea of what process or product could actually make life easier. Then all you need to do is apply the logic on a larger scale.
For instance, It was when Sony Corporation's founder, Akio Morito missed listening to his favourite music while playing golf, that the need for portable music was felt. And Sony introduced the walkman
Cheers,
Have a great day!!
Rajat
From India, Pune
Inspiring Creativity in Your Employees
Don't think of your employees as very creative? Here's why it's important to encourage them to think outside the box.
April 04, 2005
By David G. Javitch
So you say you're not creative? And your employees aren't either? Then "physician, heal thyself." You may be the source of the problem!
Everyone can be creative--it has nothing to do with smarts. In fact, having smarts is no guarantee that you can or will be creative. But just what is creativity? Dr. Theresa Amabile of Harvard Business School defines it as the process of doing something differently that works. That's it. Real easy.
But why should you and your employees work creatively? It's simple: Creative people tend to be more motivated because they've achieved something. They've discovered a better way of doing things or they've solved a problem by thinking outside the box. By successfully finding solutions, they're more motivated to work. And the more motivated they are, the more productive they are. And the more productive they are, the more satisfied and motivated they are. The cycle endlessly recreates itself.
But before you can increase creativity in your employees, you need to figure out why they're not creative now. Once you know where to look, the answers are usually obvious.
Let's first look at your employees. You need to determine whether or not they have the necessary knowledge, skills, resources and abilities to successfully get their jobs done. Are they hard pressed to find the correct and/or best materials to complete their jobs? Do they have the right experiences and ability level to allow them to be effective? As I said, being intelligent doesn't guarantee that they're creative. On the other hand, not being intelligent or educated most certainly does not lead to creativity!
If you decide your employees don't have the best knowledge, skills, abilities and resources, then you need to decide how to get them further education and training, hire better people or provide more challenging experiences.
Next, look at your attitude toward doing things differently. How often do you or your employees ever say "We can't do it that way because...," "It costs too much money," "We've always done it this way," "They won't let me do it that way" or "It's too hard." These and similar expressions are direct killers of creativity.
What can you do? When you hear yourself or your employees using one of these excuses, stop! Turn those negative statements into positive ones such as these:
"It may be hard to do it, but here are some ideas how we can do it."
"It's expensive, but let's see how we can still come in under budget."
"Let's see how we can increase the budget."
Once you convince your employees to think positively, an entire new world of possibilities emerges.
Actually, thinking positively also involves an aspect of risk-taking. Do you allow or even encourage your employees to take risks? What kind? To what extent? To what dollar amount? I've known many employees who've had creative circuits running through their brains but were afraid the boss would penalize or criticize them if they spoke up. Sometimes when the money crunch puts the squeeze on departments and employees are afraid of losing their jobs, they hold back and resist the temptation to be creative.
As the boss, when you witness these occurrences, you have a marvelous opportunity to chime in and encourage "appropriate" levels of risk-taking. For example, when you hear a manager reject an idea because it sounds too absurd, simply ask, "What's the worse thing that could happen if that person acted on his or her idea?" As the boss, you need to encourage more risk-taking and more creative thinking on the part of your employees.
So once you've assessed your employees' knowledge, skills, abilities and resources and have started to encourage risk-taking and positive thinking, you can move on to noting individual and group motivational levels. Find out why people are motivated--or no t. For those who aren't motivated--or aren't motivated enough--don't hesitate to find out the reasons and obstacles that prevent them from being highly productive, highly effective employees. Remember, high levels of motivation, energy and enthusiasm are related to increased levels of creativity.
Next, I suggest you move past your employees to focus on the work environment. Have you or others created unnecessary and possibly restrictive levels of rules, regulations and procedures? If so, you've just identified more obstacles to thinking and behaving creatively. An atmosphere like this can stifle people by decreasing their risk-taking behavior.
You also need to determine if your employees fear stepping out of line to come up with new ideas? Do they fear questioning you or other managers? Do they fear working in small groups and not by themselves? Do they fear losing their jobs or receiving negative comments or evaluations from their supervisors? If so, you've discovered yet another threat to creativity--the fear of recrimination.
Finally, ask yourself just how often you or your managers seek opportunities to recognize and praise your employees. Most people praise their pets much more than they praise others in the workplace. Simple statements such as "Nice job," "Well done," "Nice try," "Great improvement" or "I'm glad you're trying" are extremely powerful inducers of a positive working environment and a more creative and satisfied workforce.
So take a moment to ask yourself just what you can do to increase your own levels of creativity and those of your employees. Enjoy the adventure.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
David G. Javitch, Ph.D., is Entrepreneur'com's "Employee Management" columnist and an organizational psychologist and president of Javitch Associates, an organizational consulting firm in Newton, Massachusetts. With more than 20 years of experience working with executives in various industries, he's an internationally recognized author, keynote speaker and consultant on key management and leadership issues.
From India, Pune
Don't think of your employees as very creative? Here's why it's important to encourage them to think outside the box.
April 04, 2005
By David G. Javitch
So you say you're not creative? And your employees aren't either? Then "physician, heal thyself." You may be the source of the problem!
Everyone can be creative--it has nothing to do with smarts. In fact, having smarts is no guarantee that you can or will be creative. But just what is creativity? Dr. Theresa Amabile of Harvard Business School defines it as the process of doing something differently that works. That's it. Real easy.
But why should you and your employees work creatively? It's simple: Creative people tend to be more motivated because they've achieved something. They've discovered a better way of doing things or they've solved a problem by thinking outside the box. By successfully finding solutions, they're more motivated to work. And the more motivated they are, the more productive they are. And the more productive they are, the more satisfied and motivated they are. The cycle endlessly recreates itself.
But before you can increase creativity in your employees, you need to figure out why they're not creative now. Once you know where to look, the answers are usually obvious.
Let's first look at your employees. You need to determine whether or not they have the necessary knowledge, skills, resources and abilities to successfully get their jobs done. Are they hard pressed to find the correct and/or best materials to complete their jobs? Do they have the right experiences and ability level to allow them to be effective? As I said, being intelligent doesn't guarantee that they're creative. On the other hand, not being intelligent or educated most certainly does not lead to creativity!
If you decide your employees don't have the best knowledge, skills, abilities and resources, then you need to decide how to get them further education and training, hire better people or provide more challenging experiences.
Next, look at your attitude toward doing things differently. How often do you or your employees ever say "We can't do it that way because...," "It costs too much money," "We've always done it this way," "They won't let me do it that way" or "It's too hard." These and similar expressions are direct killers of creativity.
What can you do? When you hear yourself or your employees using one of these excuses, stop! Turn those negative statements into positive ones such as these:
"It may be hard to do it, but here are some ideas how we can do it."
"It's expensive, but let's see how we can still come in under budget."
"Let's see how we can increase the budget."
Once you convince your employees to think positively, an entire new world of possibilities emerges.
Actually, thinking positively also involves an aspect of risk-taking. Do you allow or even encourage your employees to take risks? What kind? To what extent? To what dollar amount? I've known many employees who've had creative circuits running through their brains but were afraid the boss would penalize or criticize them if they spoke up. Sometimes when the money crunch puts the squeeze on departments and employees are afraid of losing their jobs, they hold back and resist the temptation to be creative.
As the boss, when you witness these occurrences, you have a marvelous opportunity to chime in and encourage "appropriate" levels of risk-taking. For example, when you hear a manager reject an idea because it sounds too absurd, simply ask, "What's the worse thing that could happen if that person acted on his or her idea?" As the boss, you need to encourage more risk-taking and more creative thinking on the part of your employees.
So once you've assessed your employees' knowledge, skills, abilities and resources and have started to encourage risk-taking and positive thinking, you can move on to noting individual and group motivational levels. Find out why people are motivated--or no t. For those who aren't motivated--or aren't motivated enough--don't hesitate to find out the reasons and obstacles that prevent them from being highly productive, highly effective employees. Remember, high levels of motivation, energy and enthusiasm are related to increased levels of creativity.
Next, I suggest you move past your employees to focus on the work environment. Have you or others created unnecessary and possibly restrictive levels of rules, regulations and procedures? If so, you've just identified more obstacles to thinking and behaving creatively. An atmosphere like this can stifle people by decreasing their risk-taking behavior.
You also need to determine if your employees fear stepping out of line to come up with new ideas? Do they fear questioning you or other managers? Do they fear working in small groups and not by themselves? Do they fear losing their jobs or receiving negative comments or evaluations from their supervisors? If so, you've discovered yet another threat to creativity--the fear of recrimination.
Finally, ask yourself just how often you or your managers seek opportunities to recognize and praise your employees. Most people praise their pets much more than they praise others in the workplace. Simple statements such as "Nice job," "Well done," "Nice try," "Great improvement" or "I'm glad you're trying" are extremely powerful inducers of a positive working environment and a more creative and satisfied workforce.
So take a moment to ask yourself just what you can do to increase your own levels of creativity and those of your employees. Enjoy the adventure.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
David G. Javitch, Ph.D., is Entrepreneur'com's "Employee Management" columnist and an organizational psychologist and president of Javitch Associates, an organizational consulting firm in Newton, Massachusetts. With more than 20 years of experience working with executives in various industries, he's an internationally recognized author, keynote speaker and consultant on key management and leadership issues.
From India, Pune
Dear members,
I would request everyone to not copy complete texts from other websites and posting them on CiteHR. This is a violation of the copyrights act. Instead what you should do is copy a paragraph and provide a link to the original article - this is called fair use. As per the notification posted at the footer of the website - "All trademarks and copyrights held by respective owners. Member comments are owned by the poster." CiteHR is not legally responsible for such violations and this may create unnecessary hassle for the violating member. So please do not copy paste entire articles unless you have written consent from the writer.
Warm regards,
CHR
From India, Gurgaon
I would request everyone to not copy complete texts from other websites and posting them on CiteHR. This is a violation of the copyrights act. Instead what you should do is copy a paragraph and provide a link to the original article - this is called fair use. As per the notification posted at the footer of the website - "All trademarks and copyrights held by respective owners. Member comments are owned by the poster." CiteHR is not legally responsible for such violations and this may create unnecessary hassle for the violating member. So please do not copy paste entire articles unless you have written consent from the writer.
Warm regards,
CHR
From India, Gurgaon
Dear CHR, Thanks for informing us about the same..and regret for the inconvenience caused.. Shall take note of this in future postings. Regards, Rajat
From India, Pune
From India, Pune
Dear all,
Remember that time you were sitting or stuck in traffic or travelling in a local train and had an idea that came out of nowhere.
What did you do?
You probably made a mental note to follow it through when
you got home.
So what happened?
Well, probably nothing as you had forgotten it by the time
you had got there.
What you didn't know was that this idea could have made
your fortune if only you had the opportunity to develop it
further.
This may seem far-fetched to you.but it happens. You just
don't realize it.
So.next time that an idea comes to you wherever you are -
write it down.
Action Point:
How will you make sure that you have a pen and paper
available to you at all times?
This surprisingly simple concept can dramatically increase
your 'luck'!
Why? Well...by writing down your ideas.your will automatically set your mind in motion to try to come up with ways of making it work.
Cheers,
Rajat
From India, Pune
Remember that time you were sitting or stuck in traffic or travelling in a local train and had an idea that came out of nowhere.
What did you do?
You probably made a mental note to follow it through when
you got home.
So what happened?
Well, probably nothing as you had forgotten it by the time
you had got there.
What you didn't know was that this idea could have made
your fortune if only you had the opportunity to develop it
further.
This may seem far-fetched to you.but it happens. You just
don't realize it.
So.next time that an idea comes to you wherever you are -
write it down.
Action Point:
How will you make sure that you have a pen and paper
available to you at all times?
This surprisingly simple concept can dramatically increase
your 'luck'!
Why? Well...by writing down your ideas.your will automatically set your mind in motion to try to come up with ways of making it work.
Cheers,
Rajat
From India, Pune
Dear all,
Lateral thinking as you all understand by now has to got to do your thinking..how you manage your sphere of mind.
Lot of times people miss out the things or not able to think beyond the boundary as a lot things goes in the brain..like monkeys jumping from one branch to another...
More than that its pertinent to note that most of the people who are creative esp at the senior levels of CEOs, Managing Director, VP manage their minds well..in order to sustain the pressure of delievering the results and lead the company to higher growth..
Let me share this story as how words affect one's personality,thinking & perhaps is one of the keys to successful career & happiness..
Toxic Thinking!!!!
I remember my dad teaching me the power of language at a very young age. Not only did my dad understand that specific words affect our mental pictures, but he understood words are a powerful programming factor in lifelong success.
One particularly interesting event occurred when I was eight. As a kid, I was always climbing trees, poles, and literally hanging around upside down from the rafters of our lake house. So, it came to no surprise for my dad to find me at the top of a 30-foot tree swinging back and forth. My little eight-year-old brain didn't realize the tree could break or I could get hurt. I just thought it was fun to be up so high.
My older cousin, Tammy, was also in the same tree. She was hanging on the first big limb, about ten feet below me. Tammy's mother also noticed us at the exact same time my dad did. About that time a huge gust of wind came over the tree. I could hear the leaves start to rattle and the tree begin to sway. I remember my dad's voice over the wind yell, "Bart, Hold on tightly." So I did. The next thing I know, I heard Tammy screaming at the top of her lungs, laying flat on the ground. She had fallen out of the tree.
I scampered down the tree to safety. My dad later told me why she fell and I did not. Apparently, Tammy's mother was not as an astute student of language as my father. When Tammy's mother felt the gust of wind, she yelled out, "Tammy, don't fall!" And Tammy did... fall.
My dad then explained to me that the mind has a very difficult time processing a negative image. In fact, people who rely on internal pictures cannot see a negative at all. In order for Tammy to process the command of not falling, her nine-year- old brain had to first imagine falling, then try to tell the brain not to do what it just imagined. Whereas, my eight-year-old brain instantly had an internal image of me hanging on tightly.
This is why people who try to stop smoking struggle with the act of stopping smoking. They are running pictures all day of themselves smoking. Smokers are rarely taught to see themselves breathing fresh air and feeling great. The language itself becomes one barrier to success.
This concept is especially useful when you are attempting to break a habit or set a goal. You can't visualize not doing something. The only way to properly visualize not doing something is to actually find a word for what you want to do and visualize that. For example, when I was thirteen years old, I played for my junior high school football team. I tried so hard to be good, but I just couldn't get it together at that age. I remember hearing the words run through my head as I was running out for a pass, "Don't drop it!" Naturally, I dropped the ball.
My coaches were not skilled enough to teach us proper "self-talk." They just thought some kids could catch and others couldn't. I'll never make it pro, but I'm now a pretty good Sunday afternoon football player, because all my internal dialogue is positive and encourages me to win. I wish my dad had coached me playing football instead of just climbing trees. I might have had a longer football career.
Here is a very easy demonstration to teach your kids and your friends the power of a toxic vocabulary. Ask them to hold a pen or pencil. Hand it to them. Now, follow my instructions carefully. Say to them, "Okay, try to drop the pencil." Observe what they do.
Most people release their hands and watch the pencil hit the floor. You respond, "You weren't paying attention. I said TRY to drop the pencil. Now please do it again." Most people then pick up the pencil and pretend to be in excruciating pain while their hand tries but fails to drop the pencil.
The point is made.
If you tell your brain you will "give it a try," you are actually telling your brain to fail. I have a "no try" rule in my house and with everyone I interact with. Either people will do it or they won't. Either they will be at the party or they won't. I'm brutal when people attempt to lie to me by using the word try. Do they think I don't know they are really telegraphing to the world they have no intention of doing it but they want me to give them brownie points for pretended effort? You will never hear the words "I'll try" come out of my mouth unless I'm teaching this concept in a seminar.
If you "try" and do something, your unconscious mind has permission not to succeed. If I truly can't make a decision I will tell the truth. "Sorry John. I'm not sure if I will be at your party or not. I've got an outstanding commitment. If that falls through, I will be here. Otherwise, I will not. Thanks for the invite."
People respect honesty. So remove the word "try" from your vocabulary.
My dad also told me that psychologists claim it takes seventeen positive statements to offset one negative statement. I have no idea if it is true, but the logic holds true. It might take up to seventeen compliments to offset the emotional damage of one harsh criticism.
These are concepts that are especially useful when raising children.
Ask yourself how many compliments you give yourself daily versus how many criticisms. Heck, I know you are talking to yourself all day long. We all have internal voices that give us direction.
So, are you giving yourself the 17:1 ratio or are you shortchanging yourself with toxic self-talk like, "I suck. I'm fat. Nobody will like me. I'll try this diet. I'm not good enough. I'm so stupid. I'm broke, etc. etc."
If our parents can set a lifetime of programming with one wrong statement, imagine the kind of programming you are doing on a daily basis with your own internal dialogue. Here is a list of Toxic Vocabulary words.
Notice when you or other people use them.
ุ But
ุ Try
ุ If
ุ Might
ุ Would Have
ุ Should Have
ุ Could Have
ุ Can't
ุ Don't
But: negates any words that are stated before it.
If: presupposes that you may not.
Would have: Past tense that draws attention to things that didn't actually happen.
Should have: Past tense that draws attention to things that didn't actually happen (and implies guilt.)
Could have: Past tense that draws attention to things that didn't actually happen but the person tries to take credit as if it did happen.
Try: Presupposes failure.
Might: It does nothing definite. It leaves options for your listener.
Can't / Don't: These words force the listener to focus on exactly the opposite of what you want. This is a classic mistake that parents and coaches make without knowing the damage of this linguistic error.
Examples:
Toxic phrase: "Don't drop the ball!"
Likely result: Drops the ball
Better language: "Catch the ball!"
Toxic phrase: "You shouldn't watch so much television."
Likely result: Watches more television.
Better language: "I read too much television makes people stupid. You might find yourself turning that TV off and picking up one of those books more often!"
Exercise: Take a moment to write down all the phrases you use on a daily basis or any Toxic self-talk that you have noticed yourself using. Write these phrases down so you will begin to catch yourself as they occur and change them.
Wishing you all a very happy new year 2006.
Cheers,
Rajat
From India, Pune
Lateral thinking as you all understand by now has to got to do your thinking..how you manage your sphere of mind.
Lot of times people miss out the things or not able to think beyond the boundary as a lot things goes in the brain..like monkeys jumping from one branch to another...
More than that its pertinent to note that most of the people who are creative esp at the senior levels of CEOs, Managing Director, VP manage their minds well..in order to sustain the pressure of delievering the results and lead the company to higher growth..
Let me share this story as how words affect one's personality,thinking & perhaps is one of the keys to successful career & happiness..
Toxic Thinking!!!!
I remember my dad teaching me the power of language at a very young age. Not only did my dad understand that specific words affect our mental pictures, but he understood words are a powerful programming factor in lifelong success.
One particularly interesting event occurred when I was eight. As a kid, I was always climbing trees, poles, and literally hanging around upside down from the rafters of our lake house. So, it came to no surprise for my dad to find me at the top of a 30-foot tree swinging back and forth. My little eight-year-old brain didn't realize the tree could break or I could get hurt. I just thought it was fun to be up so high.
My older cousin, Tammy, was also in the same tree. She was hanging on the first big limb, about ten feet below me. Tammy's mother also noticed us at the exact same time my dad did. About that time a huge gust of wind came over the tree. I could hear the leaves start to rattle and the tree begin to sway. I remember my dad's voice over the wind yell, "Bart, Hold on tightly." So I did. The next thing I know, I heard Tammy screaming at the top of her lungs, laying flat on the ground. She had fallen out of the tree.
I scampered down the tree to safety. My dad later told me why she fell and I did not. Apparently, Tammy's mother was not as an astute student of language as my father. When Tammy's mother felt the gust of wind, she yelled out, "Tammy, don't fall!" And Tammy did... fall.
My dad then explained to me that the mind has a very difficult time processing a negative image. In fact, people who rely on internal pictures cannot see a negative at all. In order for Tammy to process the command of not falling, her nine-year- old brain had to first imagine falling, then try to tell the brain not to do what it just imagined. Whereas, my eight-year-old brain instantly had an internal image of me hanging on tightly.
This is why people who try to stop smoking struggle with the act of stopping smoking. They are running pictures all day of themselves smoking. Smokers are rarely taught to see themselves breathing fresh air and feeling great. The language itself becomes one barrier to success.
This concept is especially useful when you are attempting to break a habit or set a goal. You can't visualize not doing something. The only way to properly visualize not doing something is to actually find a word for what you want to do and visualize that. For example, when I was thirteen years old, I played for my junior high school football team. I tried so hard to be good, but I just couldn't get it together at that age. I remember hearing the words run through my head as I was running out for a pass, "Don't drop it!" Naturally, I dropped the ball.
My coaches were not skilled enough to teach us proper "self-talk." They just thought some kids could catch and others couldn't. I'll never make it pro, but I'm now a pretty good Sunday afternoon football player, because all my internal dialogue is positive and encourages me to win. I wish my dad had coached me playing football instead of just climbing trees. I might have had a longer football career.
Here is a very easy demonstration to teach your kids and your friends the power of a toxic vocabulary. Ask them to hold a pen or pencil. Hand it to them. Now, follow my instructions carefully. Say to them, "Okay, try to drop the pencil." Observe what they do.
Most people release their hands and watch the pencil hit the floor. You respond, "You weren't paying attention. I said TRY to drop the pencil. Now please do it again." Most people then pick up the pencil and pretend to be in excruciating pain while their hand tries but fails to drop the pencil.
The point is made.
If you tell your brain you will "give it a try," you are actually telling your brain to fail. I have a "no try" rule in my house and with everyone I interact with. Either people will do it or they won't. Either they will be at the party or they won't. I'm brutal when people attempt to lie to me by using the word try. Do they think I don't know they are really telegraphing to the world they have no intention of doing it but they want me to give them brownie points for pretended effort? You will never hear the words "I'll try" come out of my mouth unless I'm teaching this concept in a seminar.
If you "try" and do something, your unconscious mind has permission not to succeed. If I truly can't make a decision I will tell the truth. "Sorry John. I'm not sure if I will be at your party or not. I've got an outstanding commitment. If that falls through, I will be here. Otherwise, I will not. Thanks for the invite."
People respect honesty. So remove the word "try" from your vocabulary.
My dad also told me that psychologists claim it takes seventeen positive statements to offset one negative statement. I have no idea if it is true, but the logic holds true. It might take up to seventeen compliments to offset the emotional damage of one harsh criticism.
These are concepts that are especially useful when raising children.
Ask yourself how many compliments you give yourself daily versus how many criticisms. Heck, I know you are talking to yourself all day long. We all have internal voices that give us direction.
So, are you giving yourself the 17:1 ratio or are you shortchanging yourself with toxic self-talk like, "I suck. I'm fat. Nobody will like me. I'll try this diet. I'm not good enough. I'm so stupid. I'm broke, etc. etc."
If our parents can set a lifetime of programming with one wrong statement, imagine the kind of programming you are doing on a daily basis with your own internal dialogue. Here is a list of Toxic Vocabulary words.
Notice when you or other people use them.
ุ But
ุ Try
ุ If
ุ Might
ุ Would Have
ุ Should Have
ุ Could Have
ุ Can't
ุ Don't
But: negates any words that are stated before it.
If: presupposes that you may not.
Would have: Past tense that draws attention to things that didn't actually happen.
Should have: Past tense that draws attention to things that didn't actually happen (and implies guilt.)
Could have: Past tense that draws attention to things that didn't actually happen but the person tries to take credit as if it did happen.
Try: Presupposes failure.
Might: It does nothing definite. It leaves options for your listener.
Can't / Don't: These words force the listener to focus on exactly the opposite of what you want. This is a classic mistake that parents and coaches make without knowing the damage of this linguistic error.
Examples:
Toxic phrase: "Don't drop the ball!"
Likely result: Drops the ball
Better language: "Catch the ball!"
Toxic phrase: "You shouldn't watch so much television."
Likely result: Watches more television.
Better language: "I read too much television makes people stupid. You might find yourself turning that TV off and picking up one of those books more often!"
Exercise: Take a moment to write down all the phrases you use on a daily basis or any Toxic self-talk that you have noticed yourself using. Write these phrases down so you will begin to catch yourself as they occur and change them.
Wishing you all a very happy new year 2006.
Cheers,
Rajat
From India, Pune
Hi Hemaa,
Thanx..am glad you liked it... :D
Creativity is A Balancing Act
As the pace of life becomes faster, as markets become more segmented, as tools become more sophisticated, and as individuals become more interconnected, the need for creativity is greater than ever before.
Creativity has two distinct processes, and each one is vital.
First is the process of integration and synthesis of a new idea. Everything new that is created -- great buildings, works of art, businesses, complex machines, books, films -- must first exist in the mind. New ideas come largely from the integration of existing concepts -- combining and intermingling them in ways that have never before been expressed. This part of the creative process requires exposure to a diverse set of experiences and a broad spectrum of thinking.
Just as vital to creativity is the action necessary to bring ideas to reality. The creation of great architecture demands engineering and construction skills. The creation of great literature demands grammatical skills, and the ability to operate a printing press. Discipline and focus are necessary to manifest any creation.
It's a bit of a paradox. In order to be fully creative, we must be very open-minded, while at the same time remaining disciplined and focused. A delicate balance, indeed. And balance is the key. In all great creations the idealistic coexists with the pragmatic in an elegant proportion. A great idea is worthless unless it is manifest. And a great skill is useless unless it has direction.
Think balance. Learn to be a dreamer while also being a doer. Harness the power of your thoughts and the power of your actions together in the same direction, and your life will be a truly creative force.
My recent experience in understanding creativity:-
Last week during the return flight to Mumbai from Delhi i met the famous & upcoming singer who composed the music of the movie " Hum Tum"... as am curious as what makes them so creative..i asked him as how did he create the lovely composition..He said "Rajat..my profession has a lot of pressures & deadlines..which is pretty stressful which is actually detrimental to creativity to some extent..so i spend a lot of time with my kids..play with them..act their age..this gives me the insight in composing the numbers.."..not only that i spend time quitely in the midst of the rush hour in local train from Borivali to Churchgate..looking at people all round alongwith the pad & pen..studying their body language..facial expressions..understanding or rather imagining their personal stories..struggles..hopes.."..
Wow..some food for thought...howz that?..
Cheers,
Rajat
From India, Pune
Thanx..am glad you liked it... :D
Creativity is A Balancing Act
As the pace of life becomes faster, as markets become more segmented, as tools become more sophisticated, and as individuals become more interconnected, the need for creativity is greater than ever before.
Creativity has two distinct processes, and each one is vital.
First is the process of integration and synthesis of a new idea. Everything new that is created -- great buildings, works of art, businesses, complex machines, books, films -- must first exist in the mind. New ideas come largely from the integration of existing concepts -- combining and intermingling them in ways that have never before been expressed. This part of the creative process requires exposure to a diverse set of experiences and a broad spectrum of thinking.
Just as vital to creativity is the action necessary to bring ideas to reality. The creation of great architecture demands engineering and construction skills. The creation of great literature demands grammatical skills, and the ability to operate a printing press. Discipline and focus are necessary to manifest any creation.
It's a bit of a paradox. In order to be fully creative, we must be very open-minded, while at the same time remaining disciplined and focused. A delicate balance, indeed. And balance is the key. In all great creations the idealistic coexists with the pragmatic in an elegant proportion. A great idea is worthless unless it is manifest. And a great skill is useless unless it has direction.
Think balance. Learn to be a dreamer while also being a doer. Harness the power of your thoughts and the power of your actions together in the same direction, and your life will be a truly creative force.
My recent experience in understanding creativity:-
Last week during the return flight to Mumbai from Delhi i met the famous & upcoming singer who composed the music of the movie " Hum Tum"... as am curious as what makes them so creative..i asked him as how did he create the lovely composition..He said "Rajat..my profession has a lot of pressures & deadlines..which is pretty stressful which is actually detrimental to creativity to some extent..so i spend a lot of time with my kids..play with them..act their age..this gives me the insight in composing the numbers.."..not only that i spend time quitely in the midst of the rush hour in local train from Borivali to Churchgate..looking at people all round alongwith the pad & pen..studying their body language..facial expressions..understanding or rather imagining their personal stories..struggles..hopes.."..
Wow..some food for thought...howz that?..
Cheers,
Rajat
From India, Pune
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