"You are on stage"

"You are on stage"- These four words are something that all the people associated with performing arts in any way would be well versed with, be it in the school play, or a recital. The idea behind these words is that every move of yours is being observed and every step you take is being scrutinized.

But the question is why am I stating this obvious thought on this particular platform??

The reason why I am stating this is because this is as relevant in a organizational context as it relevant on the stage...but how is being on stage relevant in an organization??

This is something that every manager in the organization needs to be mindful off in everything he/she does. Most managers fail to realize that as they observe their team members for their performance, actions and behavior, in the same way the team members observe them in the way the act, treat their superiors, peers and subordinates and conduct themselves at the workplace.

Every little action of yours as a manager is something that your team members/subordinates are observing and taking cues from. If you do not want them chatting with their friends while in office, make sure that you yourself are not doing it. Same way, if you want them to extend cooperation to other colleagues and members of other teams, make sure that you are doing the same thing with your peers and setting the right tone for them. If as a manager you are busy being a jerk then it will not be wise of you to expect other team members to be behaving any differently.

As a manager or a team leader it is imperative for you to live the behavior that you want your team to emulate. Always remember “you are being watched”!!

As another year comes to close, we see more and more instances of how the best of organizations continue to survive and prosper despite the global meltdown and one common theme that may explain the tenacity of these organizations to weather such a storm is the people who form these organizations. Thus, if you are looking to build a great enterprise make sure that you are building great teams and by extension great people managers.

Wishing all of you and your loved ones a very happy and successful 2010!!

Translating individual brilliance to team brilliance

What if we picked the best sales guys in a particular domain across the globe and put them all in one team, would it make the best sales team in the world??? Or closer home, if we picked the best batsmen, best bowler, best wicket keeper, best fielders, best support staff from across the globe and put them all in one team... would we get the best cricket team in the world, which will win every single cricket match it plays??

The answer to my mind is NO...even though we may have the best performers all together in one team... we may still not be able to put together a world beating combination. But why is it so that even with so much individual brilliance we still do not have the collective brilliance of world beaters.

All these people have the same goal of winning the deal or winning the cricket match that they are playing but still their individual excellence may not lead us to the goal that we are looking to achieve.

It has been often said that human beings are selfish by nature and hence even when they are put in a team situation with a common goal, the need to satisfy their own individual interests may sometimes overpower their ability to work towards a common goal and hence they may fail to achieve the mark that they were looking to achieve.

Another obvious reason for lack of cohesive working in a team setting may be the basic human emotions of ego and jealousy. With all the star performers on one side, the need to showcase their skill and perform at a level which is better than the other person may be all the more stronger and hence it may cause the team to miss its mark.

Hence, while rationally speaking all this individual brilliance should translate into team brilliance, it still fails to do so because emotions are paramount in every human interaction and hence they may have a bearing on the performance of this all star team.

Therefore, in order to ensure a world beating performance in a team setting, it may be critical to manage the emotional elements in team interactions and the organization and/or team which is able to manage this emotional aspect may see itself delivering a world beating performance.

So, as organizational success becomes more and more dependent on team success it may be worthwhile for managers and leaders to identify ways and means to manage these emotional aspects of human interactions to achieve their end goals.

Sustained Success=function(talent+values)??

Ever so often we come across some very talented individuals in sports, cinema, politics, business or any other field, whose success seems hand written by god himself. As soon as these individuals get a chance to showcase their talent you know they are destined for a bright future and lots of success.

But ever so often these bright stars just fade away into the oblivion in no time. All the promise that they held, all the good luck that you thought would be bestowed upon them eludes them and they are forgotten, never to be remembered again except as part of conversations where you talk about how that guy had so much promise but could not make it because he could not digest his success... because he had no respect for his seniors...because he forgot where he came from.....so on and so forth....

Every time I hear such stories I am compelled to think-why is it that even with all the talent in the world we could not see more of our talented future superstar. And every time I am faced with this question one common differentiating factor which emerges from all my internal dialogues is the "Value" system of that individual and his/her ability to practice that value system which can explain his/her fall from grace.

Basic values of respect, integrity and persistence are what I often see as missing in all these one time superstars.

Its an age old saying you give respect, you get respect and that's what our superstars sometimes forget. Take a lesson from your successful peers and seniors and always be respectful to others. Every time you are respectful to the other person, you are adding a drop of positivity to his/her mental bucket and making him/her richer with your words. Make sure that you are as respectful to others as you would want them to be to you and you will never ever be in a situation where you feel you are not being treated well.

Integrity in all your dealings is critical to ensure you win respect of others. Be honest in your dealings both professional and personal. So, no matter how great the temptation is always be mindful of what you are putting at stake with this one act of dishonesty and evaluate whether you should give in to that temptation or not. Your inner balance will guide you towards making the right decision.

So much has been written and so much has been said about the value of being persistent and the rewards that lay ahead of you if you do not give up on your dreams. Yet we see our promising stars missing the mark because of their inability to see beyond the present and the need to be persistent in their efforts. Your success may open a lot of doors for you but you have to make sure that you are making a continuous efforts to keep those doors open for you. It does not take time for this world to find newer heroes to praise and newer idols to worship so make sure that your efforts are forever aligned to keeping you on the right track without comprising on the basics of what got you there in the first place.

These values though may sound very obvious and basic are often one critical piece which could explain the fall from grace for many of our stars and I sincerely hope that the all mighty gives all our promising superstars of future the clarity of thoughts and actions which may help them live these values in all their actions.

While I sign off from this post, I just want you all to know that I wrote this piece to just get you to start thinking and make your own list of values which may help you become superstars in your own right.

One last thought: Talent may get you the first date with success but it is your ability to live your value system that may help you translate that first date into a lifelong relationship.

Changing yourself- One vision at a time

Every now and then I feel let down by the people around me or the situations I am in and everytime that happens I blame my stars for everything wrong that has happened. Even while I am doing that there is a voice in my head which tells me that it is not the people or the situations or the stars that are to be blamed for this, it is you who has to take ownership of whats happening and work towards improving your lot. This does not mean being harsh on yourself or putting too much pressure on yourself. What this essentially means is that you have to take a stand and decide that things have to change and it is me who is going to change them.


Only deciding that this has to change and I will do it may not necessarily lead you down the road to a successful change. You have to inculcate that disipline in yourself which keeps you at it and encourages you to change. Most of us may take the ownership but still continue being our miserable self because we lack the disipline and the sheer will to change.


So everytime you decide to change, make a commitment to yourself that you will do it and keep at it like you would to a professional commitment. Make time for it in your calendar like you would for a professional appointment. Analyze and take decisions like you would if this is something that your boss would've entrusted you with and you were to be evaluated on.


Most importantly it is crucial to keep reminding yourself of the change that you want to see in yourself and your life and how life would be when that change actually comes in your life. This ability to envision the future would surely keep you focused and motivated to keep going.

So, like the song goes..."Don't go changing... trying to please me... I love you just the way you're"... and if you don't love it the way it is... then please change it...

"Paa"- We need more of such movies

Saw "Paa" yesterday and was moved to see such sensitive portrayal of a rare genetic disease. We definitely need more such movies to educate and sensitize us.

Kudos to all those involved...

My learning: Life is not short or long its how you live it which makes it short or long!!

How to discover your lifes purpose...

A very interesting post which talks about simple questions that may be hiding your real purpose of existence. Do take time to read and find your purpose...good luck!!
http://www.dumblittleman.com/2009/11/how-to-discover-your-lifes-purpose-7.html
Credits: Guy Kawasaki on Twitter (06th December 2009)

Role of manager is today's changing organizations...
Increasingly we are witnessing organizations undergoing a state of constant change. Be it changes due to the changing external environment in which the business operates or due to the changing organizational dynamics. In a fast paced and changing organization what is the role that a manager needs to play to ensure he is extracting the best possible performance from his/her team which is inline with the organizational objectives and at the sametime satisfying the inherent selfish requirements of every individual such as constant learning, challenge and growth.

This question has been bothering me for quite a long time and everytime I try to find answers, I find myself coming up with one word which may actually be holding the key to success and that word is COMMUNICATE.

Human beings have an inherent need to be aware of their immediate environment and same if replicated at the workplace could mean the difference between a high performing focused team and disengaged team working towards completing the task at hand.

Know the "person" first: Managers need to make sure that they are interacting with every individual member in their team as individual people and not as another piece of equipment in their team to get results out of. They need to appreciate the fact they have people working for them and it is critical for them to establish a relationship with their team members as people before they actually look at them for higher productivity, commitment or greater engagement.

Once a manager has established that critical link at an individual level with his/her team members, it gives him/her a chance to know them better. This improved understanding of an individual's self enables a manager to better translate the expectations from a particular team member in a language which is inline with his/her value system and at the same time ensure that the team member is in a position which gives him/her a chance a to maximize his/her personal victories. These personal victories if achieved in light of the organizational objectives would mean greater commitment to the task at hand by the individual and improved and significantly better output for the organization.

Teamwork means success:Teams do not necessarily work in isolation and are frequently dependent on other functions/departments for support in effective execution. Hence, as a manager it may be helpful if you can work with the team to understand and identify such points of interaction and work closely with your peers (other team managers) to ensure that your teams are able to better communicate and work together. It never helps if you as a manager are constantly bashing the other team managers and members for their incompetence as it only leads to loss of mutual respect and only deteriorates the relationships further.

Be Honest:A manager needs to constantly keep his/her team updated with what is going on in their larger environment. This does not mean pushing down all your individual pressures to your team members and expecting them to come up with answers. But this means keeping them posted on why something is being done and what this means for us as a team and what this will translate into for us as a organization. This little and regular communication will go a long way in ensuring that your team is looking at the same goals as you and the organization.

All the above little actions when clubbed into a bucket may actually classify as "Effective Communication- at an individual, team and organizational level" and hence could mean the difference between a highly effective team manager and one who is struggling to come up with the answers in review meetings.