Are You Having Fun @ Work Place?

On my way to a meeting this morning, I heard over the FM radio a special program on work place culture. The Radio Jockey (RJ) was reporting live from the office of a particular organisation, sharing all the fun the employees were having. She interviewed a number of employees and you could catch the excitement as the employees narrated the various fun activities at work that the management promoted..The list seemed endless . . . The RJ too was impressed and she wished she was working there.

This made me think about my own workplace and I found myself asking the question , 'AM I having fun @ work ? I work in the virtual world with a team that is on the other side of the globe.Very rarely do I have meetings with people sitting in front of me. What fun can you have when your life is a series of conference calls, chats and endless emails ? All of this happens in a small corner in my house that I call 'Home Office'. Time zone is the other challenge, I need to work late at night to be connected with my US colleagues .

By now you may be feeling sorry for me . . . but Wait a minute, I am not complaining or mourning my existence in the virtual world. Yes I would love to work in a regular office and be involved in the fun activities there . However I feel that more than fun at work, the question is "Do you enjoy your work?" I like what I do and that coupled with the fact that I don't have to commute two plus hours every day to get to a physical office makes me a envy of many. One of the other 'plus' in my job is the creative freedom that I enjoy to turn out outputs that is needed by the business. The list does not end there, there are lot of other privileges that I enjoy at work (I am not talking about Pay& Comp or other perks) All of that keeps me at work and makes me jump out of my bed every week day morning with the thought, 'Wow a new day, another opportunity to be at work!"

I am aware of the specially appointed 'fun Officers' in many BPOs, whose main job is to make sure the workforce in these organisations are having fun at work. The fun officers are constantly on their feet coming up with more and more new activities that will induce fun in the work environment. Over a period of time what was fun at one time looses its fun quotient and it becomes business as usual activity.

I am for fun in the workplace but then if you don't have fun activities at your work place or cannot take part in it, don't worry, find a job that you enjoy doing. Job satisfaction which gives you the joy of work is more lasting than fun !

Progress @ what Cost ?

The other day I watched the fiery debate on TV between the auto lobby and the environmentalist following the launch of TATA Nano, the smallest car in the world. Both sides had some very good arguments for and against the motion of whether the car was a boon or burden. Having priced at 2500 US $, the manufacturer was trying to offer a small car to the lower rung of society who could not afford a car.

The environmentalist felt that the car would clog the roads and create lot more pollution as almost everyone could afford the Nano. It was difficult not to take sides during the debate, Bina was for those who were fighting to keep the pollution out and the earth green. Although I love the earth to be green and clean, I was with the car maker . . . I was of the view that owning a car was everyone's right and thus if someone could make an affordable car, that is goodness. It was only next morning as I went out for a walk that the effect of auto caused pollution hit me . . .

That morning I decided to explore a wooded area close to our home. The huge property is owned by a church and is deserted most part of the day. On entering the property I found a winding path and took it . As I started walking I noticed the dew on the grass and heard the birds chirping. I slowed down enjoying every minute of it, it's been a while since I had heard so many birds in one place and that too so close to our home! I continued walking enjoying the nature, the peace and the security that the birds of the air were enjoying in this abode.Soon the magic was broken as the path finally wound up on the other side, the main entrance of the church. The tree-cover disappeared and a stately Church and the concrete parking lot came into view. The chirping of the birds gave way to the distant sound of traffic and as I continued walking the main road appeared swollen with all kinds of vehicles with its monstrous noise and pollution. I shook my head in disbelief, what a difference . . . Yes truly I can agree with John Milton, 'Paradise' has been lost !

You may argue that progress comes at a cost and depleting tree cover, global warming and all of the other ill effects that come with it are the cost we pay to have a better, faster and a more comfortable world. I may have agreed with you earlier but I am not so sure about it any more. Though I don't want to be a prophet of doom, all the run away 'progress' has put us on a roller coaster ride to a bottomless pit. Maybe we won't get effected by it in our life time or our children's life time but what about the generations after that? Imagine them having to buy and cart around a personal oxygen pack or going to see the trees and stuffed birds in a museum !

I strongly feel that we can make a difference to conserve this beautiful earth and give it atleast the way we found it to the future generations. Every bit counts, and so I am going to do my small bit rather than crying about 'Paradise Lost'

The New Year Prayer

I am sure you have come across the saying that time and tide waits for none, what that really translates to is that days,weeks, and months wait for none. Before you know it, the year has come to a close. Eight days of the New Year has already flown by and soon we will move into February and the pattern will set in and the true automatic process will take us to December. The question that comes to my mind is what have I done with the 8 days of the New Year? Have I lived it well? Have I utilised every waking hour to its full potential? Have I touched lives ? Have I added value to others? Have I done things that I really love to do ? . . .

An excuse that I can always come up with is, hey it is only eight days and it is too early to be asking all those questions but I won't hide behind the excuse. Looking back on the eight days, although I have had full days and have been able to honour many of the things I decided to do differently this year, I still have not been living up to my full potential . Other than work ( which puts the bread and butter on the table) I did do couple of activities to touch lives, build lives and release the potential in others. These can be counted as just three times in the last 8 days. I must confess that I had more opportunities in this area but I could not find time to accommodate those requests . . . Sorry that is another excuse . . . 'No Time'

Any one who has been to a Time Management session and listened, will know that, if you want to do some thing, you can find time for it . Looking back, last year I did not do too well on Time Management. The good news is that I have done better on that front in the last 8 days. In my last post I had talked about wanting to be walking in the park more often and I was looking at how to make time for that. I worked on that and made time by cutting off weekday TV and doing away with the second Newspaper with a lot of local news. (which I had got accustomed reading, to keep in touch with what was happening in my city.)

Going back to my earlier questions on how I have spent my days thus far this year, I realise that unless we plan in on a daily basis all that you want to do over and above your regular work and find time for it, it is not going to happen. So it is back to the drawing board and the thinking cap to work out a plan to live for others, at least 5 days of the week! The weekend is for recouping, family, friends and church.

My prayer for this year is that I live for others and make the best use of time and in all that make sure that I live and enjoy life to its fullness.

The festivities have kept me from being active in this space. Now I am determined to get back and key in my thoughts at least once a week. Another activity I had fallen behind in, is my walk in the park. This morning I was determined to restart both the activities, for a starter I got to the park after breakfast and hit the walking track. I love walking and as I started on the park's walking track, I felt the usual excitement I experience on a walk. It starts with a peace that touches every part of my body and ends with an awesome personal delight. Most of the time I end the walk reluctantly due to time pressure. Personally for me the walk is not so much about burning the excess calories but it is an activity that I enjoy and reap instant benefits. I start slow and then pick up speed but I never loose sight of my surroundings. My walk, I suspect is most of the time an opportunity to admire nature and praise the Creator. At other times my walk is about switching on my 'Thinking Times' and I come away solving a problem that I have been wrestling with or end up with a bunch of new ideas. As I walk, my eyes feast on the birds, flowers and the greenery around the park, I like what I see and soon I end up rendering silent praises to the hand behind these beautiful creation. The walk is always very relaxing as the mind is completely occupied in admiration and adoration, and shuts out the regular pressures, worries, and fears that is generally fighting for residence. This morning towards the end of my walk as I started experiencing the awesome personal delight, a thought stuck me, if I enjoy the walk so much, what keeps me from doing this more often ? I did not get an immediate answer to satisfy me but the thinking cap was on and I continued to wrestle with the question and later as I relaxed after the walk, some answers came to me and I was ashamed! The walk involves some amount of effort. . . the first part is saying 'No' or delaying some other activities that is now and here. For instance reading the newspaper from the front page to the last word on the last page or jumping into your mail for an early start or even chatting with a friend on phone etc. All of these activities I can do without leaving my bedroom but walk means I need to get dressed, go down to the garage and drive out into the traffic for 4 to 6 minutes before I can get to the park. Often there are other 'easy' activities that will keep you busy the whole day and stop you from doing something that you enjoy so much and benefit from ! At the end of the day there is only regrets or guilt and you promise a better tomorrow, which may never come.So what is the way out ? I thought on this question too and I came away convinced that, prioritisation, discipline and consistency were needed to make some thing a way of life. I am now listing down what I want out of my days and then I will put a time plan to make all that happen. Yes, I want to walk everyday and it is on my list. Something has to go from my daily schedule to find walking time. The choices are to shave the time off the TV minutes or the net surfing. . . I will let you know where the time came from and how I am doing. How about you, do you want to do something that you enjoy but don't find time to do? Let us work on it together...

Home Sweet Home

It is been more than a week since I posted the details of my weekend in
New York. On Monday evening I got on a flight out of JFK and arrived home in the wee hours of Wednesday. It is great to be home, sleep on my own bed and have my loved ones around me and never having to worry about where my next spicy meal is coming from ! The weather too is great after the freezing wet weekend I experienced in New York. It is good to be home and I rejoice at the privilege of having a home where I am loved and cared for, a home where everyone in the family is happy to to get back after a trip or at the end of a hard day's work. A home where every one loves each other and bond well. I believe a happy home is the outcome of our attitudes, beliefs and practices. We will only succeed in our goal of creating a happy home if we are ready to sacrifice our egos and selfish behaviours that is wrapped around 'I' 'Me' and 'Mine' rather than 'You', We, 'Us' etc.

A happy home may not be a must to succeed in life but a happy home sure accelerates your success and what good is success if we have no one (Folks who genuinely care for you and love you) to celebrate it with?

Happy homes are a Blessing and results from our unselfish motives and unconditional love. Tough to do but a great investment for your future and your children's future. I am very happy to have a happy home.

Weekend In New York

I packed and checked out of Hilton as soon as I finished my work on Friday morning. I had some deadlines to be met and so I spent the morning closing out all that. The logistics for my meetings scheduled for the day was daunting. I had to get to Somers office for a meeting at 12 Noon and then the next meeting was at White Plains 2 PM. After that I had to travel to New York to Issac and Susan's home for the weekend. With no one one to drive me around and no taxi to hail I asked the hotel to organise transport for me. Initially they were only successful to arrange for a drop to Somers but later we got the whole thing worked out. Just after my meeting in Somers at 1 PM, I got a message that the meetings in White plains was called off. The meeting was to be held in Crown Plaza Hotel. As the Limo had already come and I was to be picked up from Crown plaza by Issac after my meetings, I decided to go there. A 60 minute drive took me to Crown Plaza, White Plains. I walked in with my luggage very confidently and made myself comfortable in one corner of the lobby. I spent the next 3 hours there working on my laptop and when the battery ran out I sat back and caught up with my reading. For about 20 minutes I had company, some of my colleagues who were camping in Crown Plaza came back from work to get ready for a evening in Manhattan.







About 7 PM I breathed a sigh relief as we drove into Issac and Susan's drive way. Susan was at home and she busied herself to get us Tea and snacks. Later we went out for dinner to a Indian restaurant. Saturday was at the Mall, my contribution to the US economy. The highlight of the day was our Lunch at a Thai restaurant. I was bent on having some spicy food and I was confident that Thai eating houses won't let me down. We found it in Issac's GPS and set directions to get there . It was a cute little restaurant tucked away in one of the New York suburbs. The decor was authentic and the food even more authentic. It was not only spicy but delicious as well . I loved it! Issac and Susan went to the international mart brought fish and tapioca (Yuca) and cooked me another delicious meal for dinner. I did not want Susan to spend her weekend in the kitchen and so I had told them that we will eat out . She did not listen and she ended up cooking many meals at home for me. God Bless her!



Sunday I woke up to see the first snow fall of the season! I stood by the window looking at the snow flakes coming down. Soon a blanket of white covered every thing and I rejoiced at the whole experience . Although the snow kept falling and the roads were slippery we went to Church. Issac and Susan attends a AG church. There are two services in the morning as they cannot accommodate all their members in one service. We choose the second service at 11 AM and got there just before the the first service got over. I didn't think that there would be any one at the service as it was too early and the weather was not commuter friendly but to my surprise it was full house. The 11 AM service was no different,it was packed, every seat in the 300 plus auditorium was taken! As we had arrived early I decided to attend the Adult Sunday School class. I learned a lot during the the 45 minute interactive session, the church service too was a blessed experience.





Lunch was at Charlie Brown, a stake house, I had fish and Chips. The salad bar helped me get some chillies to spice up my food. Lunch was followed by more shopping. The snow ploughs were out on the streets to clear the snow and driving became a little more easy. The snow was followed by a light drizzle sending the mercury down. Fortunately I was well clad to meet the biting cold. How much better it is when we are prepared !

New York Post IV

I woke up a little late this morning, after making myself some coffee, got down to work. Curtains came down on the business meeting yesterday late afternoon. I was sorry to see my colleagues leave one by one in their rented cars to catch their flights. Fortunately there was one lady from the extended team at the meeting, who stays in Danbury and was able to drop me back to the hotel which is in the opposite direction of the airport. Before leaving, Bob a colleague of mine was ready to drop me to the hotel about 25 miles away ! I thanked him for the offer but did not want to take advantage of his big heart.

I did feel a little lonely when I got back to the hotel, it looked empty ! Although the weather was not at its best (Wet and very cold . . . ) I decided to venture out to the mall 5 minutes away from the hotel. I had planned to have my dinner there but by the time I finished shopping, I was worn out and decided to head back and have dinner at the hotel. I enjoyed walking around browsing through the Christmas wares and listening to Carols at each of the outlets. The mall was lit up and ready for Christmas. That lifted my spirits . I love good old Christmas and the real message of this festival. Unfortunately to be politically correct, all reference to Christmas is now limited to the word 'holidays' here. Soon every one will be wishing each other 'Happy Holidays'. Recently we received a note from the Headquarters to remind us that any events or parties held during this season should not be referred to as Christmas parties etc. but the word 'Holidays' could be used. I am amused ! Well there is another perspective to this and I respect that view, whether I agree with it or not . . . Looking from the organisation's view point the note was sent out so that we do not offend others who may not be celebrating this festival.

I am involved in lot of Christmas events at home and in my church. More about it another day . . . I was happy to hear Bina's voice this morning. It is already Friday evening in Bangalore and she was feeling a little lost as her date is 7000 miles away . For years we have been having a date every Friday. just the two of us, we window shop, hang around in Malls, have dinner at our favourite restaurant and come back home late at night. I too miss her, I wish I was in Bangalore for our Friday date.

Got to go now, I have couple of one to one meetings today and will have to get to the office for that. Looking forward to the evening and the weekend with Issac and Susan, my friends who stay in New York. I met Issac in Kolkata, the city I grew up in. When he got married, I was his best man and later when I said, 'I do' with Bina, Issac was my best man !

It is a beautiful day outside. The sun is at its best . The tall trees minus their leaves look a little forlorn but they still stand majestically refusing to cry over some thing which they know is temporary. I feel they are more wise than Men and Women, who complain,worry and cry over temporary setback!