Break the Shell!!!

Being an IT professional my blogs circle around the observations in IT industry. Here's one of my latest observation...

People working on a certain profile or a particular work culture tend to feel that as and when their experience in the field increases they learn more and more about the work and environment and become the "pro" in that field. True to some extent, the knowledge in the field does increase with time and experience.
Experience is indeed the teacher of all things.

While being a fresher in the industry I always envied the experienced guys in the team because the way of thinking they used to have was in the right direction, unlike a fresher who would follow hundred wrong paths before nearing the right direction. That increased the experience though eventually and helped identify the right direction but somewhere down the line it took away a very important thing - "thinking differently". Now this is a little different than "out of box" thinking. One may be an "out of Box" thinker in his work environment but may not notice that the small things he or she is doing can sometimes be done in a much easier or better way. A person not in that environment might not find it difficult to identify such situations but being in that environment for a long time an experienced guy would miss it due to the focus on "bigger" problems/tasks at hand.

We can do no great things if we miss out of those small aspects of work/life. Thats where we need to "Break the shell" and closely observe on such small ineffective areas and try to think as if a person out of that environment would think. This way of thinking helps keeping a broader mind and in turn helps tackling all situations big or small in an effective manner.

-.-. .... .- -. --. . / -....- / --. --- --- -.. / --- .-. / -... .- -.. / ..--..

Wondering what the title is :)

Its something which I want to talk about in this blog, lets see if you can guess what exactly the title is :P

How often you like changes in your life?

Hmm now answer to this is situational, if you are in a phase wherein all good things are coming to you, then might not like that to change like getting promotions in office (being in IT, I always come up with office examples first) or you find your true love and everything you did is turning out to be a big success

Whereas if nothing is going your way, then u desperately are looking for a change like you broke up and so now are looking for a change so that you move on in life or you screwed up in your project and now looking for a change.

What I feel is Change is required at regular intervals in life even if its for good or for bad, coz that keeps the charm alive in you.

Again would like to point out to an office examples :) , if you are in a certain project for a long time, you are doing exceptionally well, getting all appretiations and have learnt everything about it but as the time passes you loose your charm. The new things coming in which used to bring a lot of questions in your mind earlier - why? how? when? what? where? when? - as the time pases it starts fading. The new things in the project or life doesn't really interest you anymore to ask these famous 5W + 1H questions

One feels that there is no point in raising them now.

This is where one starts loosing its charm, the spark which is much needed in life, which makes one special, different then others

Change so is very much required in life to keep the life interesting and avoid the monotonous nature of things coming towards you.

Ohh by the way subject is in morse code, for a change tried something new for title ;)

Move On...

Move On - Wow two small and simple words ... but have you imagined the pain they carry with it. Its enormous.

You will find people uttering these words to the ones who has seen a failure or has experienced some pain. 

It can be anything, student flunked in exam, or one who had a break-up in relation or one who has lost someone closer at heart.

Whichever case it may be, it has one thing in common, the pain it generates goes much beyond the external physical pain and hits directly to one vital organ : Heart

This pain we might not be able to see it on the face of the sufferer, coz heart has got its own way of expressing its emotions which are not controlled by the brain. 

Move on ... so simple to say this but then what does it actually means ...

Hmm... it doesn't just mean to move ahead in life forgetting the past... but it has a lot more meaning hidden behind these two words

Accept the failure be it in your exam or relationship or the loss you suffered. Though it’s bitter, that's the Truth. You failed. But then it doesn't end anything... neither your life nor your future. It was just an incident which can help you learn and inculcate something new and positive in your life.

Failures are the stepping stone to success... in case you move ahead with a positive mindset after realizing the reason behind it and converting the pain it brought into willingness to succeed.

No Pain ... No Gain : I would put this as No Pain ... No Gain... only in case you use the pain to change you life in the right direction.

Each such incident brings with itself it a change, maturity, experience and that is when you can really accept these two words ... Move On In Life...

BTW I hope I didn't bring pain in your life with this blog of mine :P

Practical Truths

Hi,

Yes you read it right; the title says "Practical Truths"

( Um.hmm...What's this new term now )

By Practical Truth I am referring to the statements (can call it a practical fact) which are not proven but then are not even questioned by anyone. 

( Hmmm ... Now what does that mean :-/  )

Let me categorize practical truth as below 

1. Hereditary Truth

2. Empowered Truth

3. Majority Accepted Truth

Hereditary Truth : 

By this term I mean the statements which are generally coming from our parents/elders. Quite common example would be about our education. No matter what each and every parent treats 10^th  and 12^th as the most important exams of a student’s life. Not denying it totally but the way it is forced on the children that they are forced to believe the same. And this will then be passed down to their children. Basically this statement became a fact just because it came from our forefathers without much questioning on the same. 

Thus a statement though not totally wrong but again not completely right has became a fact and what I term it as a "Hereditary Truth” (one type of Practical Truth :) )

Empowered Truth:

Am being an IT person, cannot really keep the office examples out from my blogs :)

Many of you are familiar about the mails from upper management mentioning "Company has not achieved its profit and the target revenue as expected in this quarter..." 

Yes you guessed it right; you must have got this mail just during the increment/bonus period for that fiscal year. Rest all quarter’s company will do well and would achieve all its targets. But when it comes to giving increments to employees, mgmt suddenly realises this and sends out a mail very nicely. This statement, again not questioned by many, becomes a fact for an employee. And I term it as Empowered Truth (another type of Practical Truth) forced upon the employees by the mgmt with whom all the power resides.

Majority Accepted Truth:

Sorry couldn't come up with any better name for this :( , please bare with me on this name

While being with a group of people and if they have to made a certain decision on something, it’s the Majority Wins funda which is always used. Now when the majority people are in support of a particular thing it automatically becomes the fact for all of them in the group. Be it politicians taking a certain decision for all the people of the country or it can be for a school/college. Basically it became the fact, again unquestioned as it was accepted by majority and so being termed as "Majority Accepted Truth" (another type of Practical Truth).

So the point here is any statement even when not closer to a Proven Truth (truth which is normally referred like: drinking poison leads to death) becomes a Practical Truth provided it is unquestioned and not every "Why" is being answered for the same. 

I feel it is very much essential to answer every "Why" for a particular statement before accepting it as a fact, at least for a personal satisfaction :)

But having said that, does a fact really need a justification?   :) :) :)

Its Good to be Crazzzyyyyyy!!!

Hi,

Crazy!!! 

Imagining a person pulling his hair just because he is not being able to understand what the hell his manager is talking about or about a student who is doing the same coz the exams are tomorrow and he is not getting a single word of what he is reading?

Don't worry am not referring to madness here... off-course who would like to be called mad ;)

But by craziness I am referring to being. It's good to have a passion.

Passion about something which we like to do or passionate about someone.

My friend likes photography; he can always be seen with a camera in his hands clicking the beautiful nature around, birds, people walking around, the sun-rise and sun-set, etc, etc

He sees the world through his camera's lens and that is what he likes to do to pass his time. Whenever I see him with the lenses on his eyes while clicking the pics, he seems very happy, enjoying every moment of his life. He is always in search of scenery or a moment which he can capture. 

The passion of his gives him happiness and a meaning to his life. The basic reason for which we live (I strongly believe we live with an aim to smile). And passion can give us a reason to live.

Also we do have a lot of examples of this from past and also present. How can we forget Albert Einstein who wrote the Theory of Relativity, Charlie Chaplin - one of the greatest comic actor, Steve Jobs - the co-founder and CEO of Apple (Stay Hungry... stay foolish :) ), and many more...

Passion gives direction to life, helps us give our 100% to the work we do which in turn gives us success and happiness.

So I say it’s good to be passionate, its good to be crazy :)

What are you passionate about?

Ask this to yourself if you believe in the words above ;). Have a great day ahead!!!

Destiny and Fate

Hi Guys,

Destiny and Fate...I would like to share something...some experience related to the use of these words.

But let me first start with the dictionary meaning of these words

Destiny : something that is to happen or has happened to a particular person or thing; lot or fortune.

Fate : something that unavoidably befalls a person; fortune

Hmm...interesting!!!

But these words are used much often in our conversations.

Recently while talking to my friend he used these words to describe the current position he was in which made me think that was the use of these words appropriate in the situation.

This is what he was taking about

Me: Hi...whatsup?

Friend: Hi...I am good. How r u?

Me: I am doing great. Where are you these days?

Friend: I am working in ABC IT company, as an expert supporting/maintaining a product used by a client in US. Basically real time problem solving for the customers using our company's software.

Me: Hey that’s great!!! Working as an expert....cool... and that too for a US client. But in college you were an excellent coder, I used to copy all your source codes :) . Why are you stuck in a support project...?

Friend: That's my destiny. You can say that’s my fate

That's it. He just used these words, which made me think over it whether they are really appropriate in this situation.

Was this not really in his hands, the profession he chose to be in even when he was best in something else?

Personally speaking I don't really believe in fate coz I don't like the idea that I am not in control of my life (...Matrix)

He preferred the easy way out by just saying that it’s my destiny to be in this company and doing the support job. Rather than accepting the fact that he chose to continue with the support job because somewhere in his mind he liked it and unknowingly he was so good at it (just like he was good in coding in his college days) that he became Expert. Is this really so difficult to accept?

If he didn't really like his job he always had an option of switching it right away or may be after gaining a year of experience. But then when he continued doing the same work, didn't quit it coz he started liking his new profession. But somewhere in his mind still he remembers his old college days wherein he loved coding and was a master programmer which overpowers his thinking and made him put this decision of his on Fate, isn't it?

So for me, fate and destiny are many times inappropriately used just coz our heart don't want to accept the fact, the decision our mind chose.

Lastly I remember the dialogue from the movie "Invictus"

I am the master of my fate...I am the captain of my soul

What’s your take on this...?

If you reached till the end :P ... have a great day ahead!!!

A day in office (28th Dec)

Its 7:00 AM but still sun is not ready to come out of its sleep. Damn!!!! This cold winter and also today its raining, God knows when the sun will light up the morning.
Actually if it was not for office I would have enjoyed an extended sleep happily. But then I have to go to office even when Sun is not ready to show up today.

Yawnning!!!! Got up with my hands streched and then rubbing my eyes to have some visibility with one hand and 2nd hand is searching the specs to make the objects around me more clearer ;)
Ohh its already 7:30 now even though my alarm was supposed to wake me up at 6:30 but then I shut it down by 6:33 so that it will not disturb my sleep again :P
Its the same story since last 3 years now. My alarm is still trying hard to wake me up at the time I schedule every night before sleeping but all its efforts are in vain. Hmm I need a better alarm. Dont you think so? (LOL)


Got ready and reched office at 9:30 today. Wow no ones in office yet :) so I can say I reached here early :P rather on time and am waiting on others to come especially the GLs so that I can ask them why they arae late today :D

Hmm again loads of unread mails. Whats the count today. Ahh!!! Its only 500, much less than yesterday. Won't take more than 30 min to read them all before starting the work

Lets also check the ticket count. Hmm pretty less. Only 28!!! What the hell, 14 assigned on my name. I better start working


(Completed Reading all the mails) Hmm I can send 5 tickets back, its all crap other team people have mentioned and haven't checked properly at all. Let them take some effort on it. I am just sending it back. 1 down, 2 down, 3, 4, 5... Wow 5 down in 5 min. Not bad :)

Whats the remaining ones. Ohh the same old ones. They are on hold waiting for some examples. Hmmm so can wait for another day ;)

Dont feel like working today on them....

(12:23) Tick tick tick....Something is ringing. Where is the sound coming from. Its coming from very near source. Tick Tick Tick... what kind of sound is this. It this from my Q messenger. No it has got different sound. Tick Tick Tick ... it is as if the bomb is gonna blow out soon. I better find the source :P


Ahh!!! Its my watch's alarm. Man I dont know why it beeps like this. Weird alarm tone and I have no clue how this alarm got turned on.


Ohh its 12:30!!! Lunch Timing :)

(Back from lunch at 2:00 PM). Hmm none of the tickets I answered have came back. Good!!! People are still in holiday mood :) . Good for them and for me too ;)

Let be on gmail for some time. Chatting & also lets read some articles or forwards...

(its 4:30 now). Damn!!!! Why is the time moving slowly today. Am fed up of chatting and reading forwards too :(

Its pin drop silence around. I can hear only the voice of keys from the 5 nearby desks. All fingers punishing the keys of keyboard for no mistake of them :( . Sad!!!They can't even complain of this everyday torture.

Still Waiting for 6:30.......