Never Judge a Person by his/her Resume

A good Resume is a gateway for a candidate into an organization. In so many instances my inbox would be flooded with 100’s of resumes for a single position. The easiest way I choose to shortlist the candidates then were the following:

       > Educational Qualification,

       > Relevant Work Experience and

       > Present & Expected Salary  levels

With the above filter, my choice would reduce to a dozen resumes which will make my life simpler. This is the standard process I was introduced to and many industry recruiters follow this filter too. However let me now explain how I got this filter strategy wrong especially when handling Middle & Senior level position.

Educational Qualification:

To explain with an example, walk into an IT company, you will notice thousands of Civil Engineers & Electrical Engineers write programs. Most of them were not trained in Software (or) Computer code while joining the organization. How do they manage to do it? While the candidates bring the basic requirements of Analytical skills & logical understanding, software is industry specific skill where they are trained by their employers. It doesn’t matter what engineer you are, do you have it in you to perform the given task. That matters the most.

Lesson 1: The first lesson I learnt was to look beyond their educational qualification & see if a candidate has it in him/her to perform the job to expected levels.

Relevant Work Experience:

For Generalist roles like HR, Accounts, Finance and Sales it is not a crime to consider candidates from other sectors. Rigidity doesn’t help here. Having candidates with cross sector experience will bring in the best practices from other industry which can be tailor-made to suit our organization.

Lesson 2: The Second lesson I learnt is for non-specialized jobs, cast your net wide for a better catch.

Present & Expected Salary levels:

Consider this situation.

You are looking to recruit a Chartered Accountant for the post of DGM with 15 Yrs work Experience in all domains of Finance. Salary level you have fixed for this position is Rs. 20 Lakhs/Year. You stumble upon a candidate who is currently drawing Rs. 22 Lakhs/annum. What do you do?

In first glance, I would not consider his resume since it doesn’t meet my criteria.

However what if you understand after the interview, the candidate has the potential to fit in CFO shoe who is due for retirement in 2 years (or) can handle dual responsibilities of Finance & Secretarial. His resume is worth considering. Isn’t it? Many organizations recruit for the current opening without thinking if the candidate will suit for the future organizational requirements. If one fits for future requirements, then the premium we pay should not be a point of consideration.

This necessarily may not be a time tested technique. But this is a gamble that has paid rich dividends in my organization.

Lesson 3: For Senior positions, don’t just look into current scenario, see if the candidate will fit into the organization for future requirement.

Fellow recruiters and HR professionals, next time you go through a resume, remember that the Education, Experience and Salary levels are just like a cover of a book and as the saying goes, “Never judge a book by its Cover”

3 mistakes I made as an Evaluator

1.    Never speak on behalf of the audience

 

Evaluators often come up with following statements:

 

-          Audience understanding of your speech was crystal clear

-          Audience would have liked your speech if you added some humour in your speech

-          Audience would have heard your speech clearly if were a bit louder

As an evaluator, one’s evaluations should always be centered around YOUR opinion about the speech and not the audience opinion.

2.    Inducing irrelevant Humour

Making people laugh is an art and everybody tries their hand at it whenever they get stage time. I believe it is ok to try humour in a Prepared Speech (or) Table topics but definitely not during Evaluations especially if the humour is not connected to the speaker’s speech.

3.    Usage of Acronym

Evaluators tend to use ACRONYM to evaluate speeches. I’m listing below some of acronyms that I have come across:

-          C C C (Concept, Clarity, Conclusion)

-          T O P I C (Topic Selection, Organization of speech, Pause, Interest of audience, Conclusion)

I’m a big fan of such evaluations since the use of acronym helps the evaluator to highlight the various aspects of the speech that was done well and areas that need improvement.

However I see some evaluators forcibly use acronyms in their evaluations resulting in non-value addition to the speaker.

Hence it is advisable not to force push any acronyms into the evaluations.

So the next time you evaluate a speech, kindly avoid the above mistakes I made to make the speaker’s toastmasters journey fruitful.

 

Five Minutes

{Bang}

The door was shut with the huge bang.

Inside the room, Mohit looked around.. Sweating profusely a sense of desperation engulfed him.

Rushing to the wood work, Mohit started scanning all the cupboards.

He threw everything.. Papers, stationeries, files, clothes until he stumbled upon what he was looking for..

MOBILE PHONE

Holding the mobile in his hand he dialed a number with a sense of relief and starting speaking..

“Hi Bharath.. How are you.. Long time since I spoke to you.. Why haven’t you called me..When are you coming down.. I want to talk lot of things… ”

He spoke continuously for five mins..

Voice at the other end said “Please check the number you have dialed…”

He again dialed a number and started speaking..

“Hi Bharath.. How are you.. Long time since I spoke to you.. Why haven’t you called me..When are you coming down.. I want to talk lot of things… ”

He spoke continuously for five mins..

Voice at the other end said “Please check the number you have dialed…”

Mohit is among the 5% of world population who have the fear of being ignored and unloved. A psychiatric condition referred to as “Autophobia” – Fear of loneliness. Though the physical well-being of the sufferers is not affected they experience undue anxiety and fear being left alone. Worst only 2% seek medical help. Medicines contain the patients but do not solve the problem. Simply put damage once done remains forever.

Imagine a world without Autophobia.. Imagine a world filled with love.. Imagine a world where no one is ignored. It is possible. It is possible only by YOU.

Mother Teresa said “The poorest of poor are not those without food, clothes and shelter but those who lack Love & Care”

There is a Mohit in your neighbourhood.

Pick the call that you left unattended. Return the call that you had to shorten due to your constraints.

Never underestimate those five minutes you spend for others.

TRUTH

As a child I got everything I wanted. Toys, Chocolates, Bi-cycle, Cricket Bat, Video games… u name it.. But all of them didn’t come just like that.

I had to pay a price - A PRICE THAT WENT ON TO BECOME A PART OF MY VALUE SYSTEM

My parents gifted me those goodies during the moments of truth i.e. whenever I spoke the truth. Well, it was there way of teaching me that “Truth always Triumphs” :)

Since then I grew up thinking it pays to speak the truth, only to realize in the real world I had to pay huge price for speaking the truth.

In college, our gang had the custom of dining out during b’day of our friends. Soon into the dinner, we spoke a lot… all about college girls :P . During one such time, the wicked friend of mine bowled me over with his question. Who is your crush in class?. For a moment I didn’t know what to say. I had to choose among so many girls ;) Realizing I was in the company of my dear friends, I threw two names in their chronological order. Guess what? I was mocked, teased and eventually become a laughing stock for all my friends throughout the college days. 

“What big deal? It’s just a trivial issue”, you may feel.

It is a trivial issue but the feeling of being reprimanded for speaking what I genuinely believed in hurt me then.

During a Job Interview, the interviewer asked, “Do you support capitation fees for education”? I said “YES”. With completing all the rounds successfully I was all set to work in my dream company. But the happiness didn’t last long as I was rejected from qualifying for the job. A strong supporter of merit based education system; the interviewer had every right to dislike my answer. But I felt that it should not have been the sole criteria for disqualifying me from the job.

Again paid a huge prize for speaking the truth.

Over the years I have lost many prized possessions because I choose to speak the truth.

Inspite of many losses I choose to speak the truth, after all what’s wrong in calling a spade a SPADE.. 

I speak the truth because it is that VALUE SYSTEM that has brought me to what I am today. 

I never intend to preach anyone through my blogs yet I’m tempted to say this…

I urge you to have a VALUE SYSTEM for your life and follow it rigorously. It can be as simple as not getting angry to never taking a bribe.

When life is getting ready to test your character listen to your VALUE system and act accordingly. 

You may not win all the battles but you will be happy all day because unlike many YOU HAD THE COURAGE TO STAND UP & SPEAK THE TRUTH..and of course you didn’t have to remember what you said ;)

Leadership lesson from Toastmasters

Being a Human Resource professional, one thing that I never failed to do was to talk to my employees about great leaders who inspired the masses to perform well. I used to prepare PowerPoint presentations filled with leadership lessons stirred by great leaders like Dr. Abdul Kalam, Jack Welch and Mother Teresa. Every month my presentations changed but the desired behavioural changes was never evident among my employees. With all doors closed, I quizzed myself if there was any other way to make my employees become good leaders.

That was the time when I took over as the President of Chennai Toastmasters Club and in the next six months I got the answer to my question.

Initially I thought leading a club that brags of more than 80 members and great speakers was always a cake walk.

Soon I was in for a shock. True to the words, that the devil is in the detail, going through the member’s achievements, all I could see was, there were only handful of good speaker’s and evaluators who have played the dominant role and ensured that the quality of club meetings was kept high. We were at times made to feel handicapped by their absence.

That was the time my team identified few good talents who with little encouragement and opportunity had the potential to become great speaker’s and evaluators.
Those talents always existed in Chennai toastmasters but somehow, somewhere along the path they were not made to unleash their potential.

We as a team spoke to them, encouraged them, and helped them to perform better. Things weren’t as easy as I have penned down. People did fail at times. They wanted to throw their hands up and surrender. But we knew that those failures were needed to create better future for the club. Since then, whenever member’s failed, we lend them the helping hand, encouraged them and provided them the opportunity to excel.
That’s how we created better speakers, better evaluators and better leaders in Chennai toastmasters club.

The greatest leadership lesson I learnt from my term was that “Identify talent; provide them the opportunity and conducive environment to excel. Soon you will be amazed by their achievement”.

Today I no longer prepare leadership presentations for my employees instead I put them on the job, create a conducive environment and encourage them to perform well.
Thanks to toastmasters movement which taught me a leadership lesson that I never learnt even during my management lectures.

It’s pleasure waiting for you

It was 8:30 AM. I walked into South India’s biggest Conglomerate Corporate office to close a deal. My appointment was at 9 AM and felt glad that I maneuvered through Chennai traffic to make it on time. I glanced through few newspapers to while away some time. It was 30 minutes past 10 AM and I was still waiting.. After some time I looked at the watch, now it was almost 12 noon. By now, I had gone through all the papers lying in the reception and was restless. I was totally frustrated with the client for making me wait for almost 3 hours.

I wondered “What pleasure do they get by making me wait?”

That was a Eureka moment for this blog… I have waited for so many things in life and all those waitings have always been a pleasure…

In school, it was a rule that one of the parent must come to pick their children at the stroke of bell. While everyone would leave by 4 PM, my mother always comes late because of her work. She had to transit 2 buses to reach school from my home. The wait for her arrival was filled with irritation then. I used to stand on my feet, putting my head outside the door with my eyes wide open anxiously yearning to see my mother strode to pick me up.. Today as I reminisce that incident I sincerely feel it was a pleasure waiting for my mother :)

During college, we the notorious eight were thick and thin of all the happenings. We used to bunk classes together, play volleyball, strike the snooker balls in Potshot and hang around the city. It was during the 2nd year that one of the naught eight was celebrating his birthday and he treated us in a star hotel. We spoke on various topics which included gossips and confessions {Wonder how all the topics we discussed were always centered around women ;) }.. Over a period of time this star hotel dinner treat was a ritual and we enjoy it to an extent that it cannot be explained but only experienced. Today sitting in this part of the world, I am waiting for one of that dinner to happen. I am not sure if it would be logistically possible for all of us to assemble at one place now but the mere thought of it gives me immense pleasure :)

No two persons are similar, even if so it’s difficult to find them. But Meshak and I have always thought alike atleast in most instances: P. Though being classmates in school, we befriended each other when studying in different colleges. Soon we became close and this 2011, we are celebrating a decade of friendship. Those countless coffee day outings, rambling across besant nagar beach, Cup corns and self depreciating comments we made, ofcourse not to forget those bird-sighting sessions. :) Wow!!! Just too good. He left to US in 2008 and is yet to step into India. Most probably he might be coming this year end for his marriage and I am anxious to see not just him but also his marriage. Surely this wait is a pleasure indeed :)

No one passes by without making an impression in our life. Divya is one among them who has always impressed me. The lady with a sparkling smile, simple yet scintillating dressing sense and a level headed person who always takes genuine interest in me will forever remain special in my life. It took sometime for us to break the ice, but once done we enjoyed each others company. Those little misunderstandings, witty humour sense, exchange of thoughts, little fights, dinner at restaurants and long drives have always strengthened our bonds of friendship. It’s been 4 years since she went for an onsite assignment and I am already feeling her vaccum. I am waiting for her arrival and needless to say this wait is also a pleasure :)

Friends, it’s 1 PM and I hear that the meeting is called off. I am terribly upset with my client yet I think I should thank him for making me wait all along because he has given me a chance to sit back and realize all those worthy wait’s which I cherish and look forward in life.

{Client gives a cock and bull story for not meeting me today}

I shook hands with him and left the place telling “It’s pleasure waiting for you”

What lies behind the Mask?

A beautiful woman clad in dark red saree, hair decorated with jasmine and a bindi that occupied half of her central forehead walked down the street after enjoying the company of her boyfriend, since her husband was out of town. Seeing her, a person told his friend, “Dude, Have you ever watched goddess lakshmi walking down the street? If not, look at her. Wow! I wish to have a wife like her.. infact I wish she was my wife”

At the same time, a girl was fighting against a man who tried to rape her. She fought with a conviction…used the sand, pebbles, few wooden sticks left in the sea shore to save herself from this butcher, in the process she was drenched in the sea water.

Watching this girl walking down the road with the Jeans and white tops that was totally drenched, the same person told his friend, “Dude, Look at this bitch. She is returning after enjoying the day with her boyfriend. I pity her husband”

Friends, like those poor chaps, how many times we judge people just by their outer look. So many times we form opinions just by people’s appearance, structure, the way they speak, clothes they wear, in the manner they carry themselves and other extrinsic characters. We perceive only their face value and never try to see what lies behind the mask.

I was in a similar situation today and told myself, “Share your thought with all your friends :)”.. and that’s why I decided to pen down this post :P

Letter to Prime Minister on Corruption

This letter is nothing short of a far cry of a common man who still believes that a Government of the People, by the people and for the people will not bring his confidence down.

When I went to school, people talked about corruption in terms of thousands, when I entered college it was talked in lakhs, few years later it was in crores and today we see corruption interms of few lakh crores.. I wonder if we need another Ramanujam to invent new number systems for representing the corruption levels in our Country.

Your government won extraordinary elections in 2008 and people who termed you as a “Weak Prime Minister” were defeated. Everyone from Corporate houses to Common man rejoiced your victory with an only belief that India’s Aam aadmi will shine thanks to Mr. Clean occupying the Prime Minister Chair.

The original thought of Left sitting in the opposition, meant that the minimal interference in policy making will take India to higher levels. Within 3 years of occupying this office, Government has indeed taken India to higher levels in terms of mishandling the corrupts and corruption cases.

India scored 3.3 in the World corruption index on a scale of 0 – 10 (0 being the Most corrupt and 10 being corrupt free). We see the Raja’s, Kalmadi’s, Khan’s and other culprits having a free run. Needless to say they are only the last face and big fishes have had their share in the looting. If not for the backing, these guys will not have audacity to act on their wishes.

Today the corruption level is very high that a common man doesn’t understand the figures involved in it. 2G Spectrum Scam has had its money share spread across various beneficiaries like Politicians, Policy Makers, Corporate houses, Brokers etc. I strongly believe that without the support and backing of Big names, Raja could not have done this. Amidst all these fiasco, all we hear from you is no wrong doing in 2G spectrum allocation. What an irony Prime Minister? I strongly believe that you are a person with impeccable integrity; however hiding facts is equivalent to committing a crime. Your silent is a serious concern for the people of this country.

A leader may be of high integrity but if he doesn’t look into the anomaly in his sub-ordinates work, it’s equal to not discharging your duties properly. Do you want to be remembered for that?

Deccan Herald has released a news item on January 9th 2011 which quotes that the original estimate for CWG was Rs. 618 Crores. However approximately Rs. 60000 Crores were spent (Almost 100 times the original estimates) only to see the foot-over bridge collapse in the CWG venue on the eve of your visit. It’s an irony that a bunch of jokers brought the country of billion people to its knees. Its even sadder to not that all accused in CWG are out in bail and enjoying life lavishly.

To me, it sounds weird that in a country were strict actions is taken against a peon/clerk for accepting bribes in the order of 1000’s, why is that culprits who loot in crores are left free.

Inspite of having the support of other countries, why isn’t your Government taking any action against people who have parked billions in tax havens? Why isn’t Hasan Ali Khan arrested and interrogated? I fear that before even the action is taken the individual might move the money from his bank accounts. What is your Government doing on this issue?

It’s unfortunate to note other instances like Adarsh housing scam, S-Band Deal, P J Thomas appointment issues, Scam in bullet proof procurements (Remember the bullet proof that failed to save Hemant Karkare?)

I don’t want to see myself as problem highlighter but solution giver. Find below few points for you to ponder over,

1. Our law is framed in such a way that a person is innocent until he is found guilty. It’s high time we redefine it as “a person is guilty unless he is found innocent”.
2. Let his/her passport along with their kin’s be confiscated
3. All bank accounts of the accused and beneficiaries be freezed
4. If found guilty, all his material wealth be confiscated by the Government
5. Any Educational degree (Indian or Foreign) obtained by his/her kith and kin be deemed invalid.
6. They should be deemed ineligible to register any property or buy wealth in his/her and their descendant’s name.
7. They should not be allowed to hold any post in future
8. They should be declared ineligible for any benefits that may arise out of their stature during their tenure.
9. They should not be allowed to start any business ventures in future.

This may sound ridicule but somehow I feel these types of harsh punishments will help to reduce the corruption in this Country. Fear of Punishment is required today to save the country from selfish pythons.

Prime minister, you were instrumental in avoiding the collapse of Indian Economy in 1991. You came up with bold decisions and drafted new policies that orchestrated India’s Growth story. After 2 decades, we are today in need of similar bold decisions and new policy to eradicate corruption. I may not be competent to advice but I wish to tell you this, Please do not succumb to coalition politics pressure, we don’t see you as a politician. Listen to your inner conscience, fix the urgent needs of the country.. Else step down. Don’t allow, history to remember you as a person who derelict the voice of billion Indians.

Remember “India is not suffering due to the violence of many people but due to the silence of few people like you”

Evolution

“You are a tough nut to crack man” my friend said with genuine interest on me…

I have been contemplating over that comment of hers for sometime now…

I am not just happy because it came from her but I feel really proud of myself in the way I have evolved over the last 5 years… Disappointments, betrayals, hurt, Cheating, Embarrassments, back-stabbing – Every time tears roll down my eyes, I asked God “Why me?”.. I seek answers from my friends, loved one’s, well-wishers, self-help books, even under the bottle of whiskey ;) Little did I know the answer lies within me. I recognized, all that made me cry converges to one point.. “MY EXPECTATIONS WERE NOT MET”

That was a Eureka moment. Probably a revelation too.. I realized that expectations led to disappointments. Since then I make it a point not to have any expectations from anyone, even my akin.

At the same time, I ensure that I am available for anyone when they need me, to share their joy with me, to vent out their emotions or to lean & cry because I strongly believe that the poorest of poor are those who don’t have companion to share their feelings. I ensure no one is left poor in my backyard.

You might think “What big deal? It’s a small things”.

All I wish to say is, in life, SMALL THINGS MEAN A LOT :)

Spice to my Life...

I had spent most of my childhood days in the sea shore. Simply because of two reasons, one it was close to my place and the second was you don’t need money to visit the sea shore..

Building sand castle, shooting balloons and lapping against the waves have always fascinated me. I was even more enchanted to see the flights flying high in the sky above the sea and land. My bro and I use to gape at the flight like a shooter whose eyes are fixed to the target. We jumped, shouted and waved our hands at the flight thinking that someone would respond… In short, the world came to a standstill when I see a flight..

Though the flight journey was making travel easier, exciting and enjoying I couldn’t yearn for it since they were expensive.

Needless to say Flying was a far reaching dream then..

But today, thanks to toastmasters that gave an opportunity to accomplish my age old dream..

I was very proud to take those small little steps to step into the aircraft. Like any other first time flyer I glued to the window seat and seeked the help of my co-passenger to fix the seat belt.

First thing I felt doing then…Guess What? To update my facebook status.. Searched for the internet enabled computer.. Damn!! Air hostess said they don’t have one and smiled. Oh boy! That smile was more than enough to kill the male community in large…

The flight aligned to its trajectory and pierced into the sky.. I was experiencing a feeling that could not be explained in words.. I fixed my eyes to the window and was gazing at the land beneath. Wow! It was a fascinating view of mother earth. Just when I thought there cannot be a better sight, I saw the sun rise from the skies.. For the lack of better word, all I would like to say is it was a zenith of natural beauty.

I was distracted from enjoying the nature’s beauty by this snoring “sound” sleep of my fellow passenger.. I contemplated if not for this spectacular nature’s beauty what else could interest him…

We landed in Mumbai and as I looked back at the flight I traveled with a lot of pride, my friend put his hands on my shoulder and asked “How was your maiden flight journey”…

I said “SPICEJET ADDED SPICE TO MY LIFE” :)

Confession

Diwali is a festival of lights that symbolizes the victory of Good over Evil. It is on this day Lord Rama returned to Ayodhya after defeating King Ravan…

Today we are surrounded by so many many evils in the name of corrupt Politicians, Beaurocrats and ills from other section of society who are bringing shame to this country and worst is, I fear if India will ever change..

1,39,652,00,00,000 – This is the official number quoted by the Auditor General of India to the Supreme Court with regard to the amount relating to the irregularities in the 2G Spectrum Allocation. It’s been almost a year since CBI took over the case and no progress has been made to punish the guilty inspite of many evidences that CBI claims to have. The corruption charged minister still enjoys all privileges of his position and is taking all of us for a ride.

In organizations, when someone is accused of wrong doings they are “suspended pending enquiry” meaning they are relieved from their duties until they come clean. Why isn’t the same applicable to Politicians? A Minister charged with corruption in all possibilities may misuse his position to get rid of the case. Instead it will be wise if they get out of the thrown and prove themselves.. If they do so, people will surely bring them back.

Telecom Minister says he hasn’t done anything wrong but practiced what is predecessors did?.Bull Shit… Mr. Raja, Would you sell your property for the price that was fixed in 2001? Your answers are testimony to your incompetence and inefficient way of running your department.

Moving on, a country with billion people was literally brought to its knees by OC of CWG. Indeed CWG has turned out to be wealthy game for few people. Asusual the probe is on which isn’t time bound and I’m sure the culprits have the option of free run.

Lastly, there has been lot of kidnap cases. Offlate a 10 year old girl was molested and murdered. Day before that, 2 siblings were kidnapped and murdered. I wish these culprits are hanged to death in public without any mercy after the time bound proceeding. No humanitarian consideration should be shown to such inhuman acts.

Instead we are admitting such culprits in hospital, saving his life, conducting the proceeding for year’s together inturn wasting our resources including public money.

I believe Harsh, Immediate and Major Punishments like what it is in the Middle East should be given to these sorts of criminals because the fear of punishment is the only thing that will drive our system clean.

I confess that I am penning down these thoughts with a sense of disgrace, guilt and shame that I am not able to do anything about this singularly but sincerely hope that somewhere someone will rise up to win these evils and I will be glad to join hands with them..

Why few people wish to stay Single :)

Until now I have come across atleast half a dozen ppl who wish to stay single throughout their life.. and this blog is as a result of the conversations(Oops! Sorry. Read it as confrontations) I had with them..

Disclaimer: Utmost care has been taken to avoid male chauvinistic remarks, however any comments that may seem to be biased towards a gender or section of society are not intentional.

While there may be various reasons for one to take this extreme step(Staying Single), my focus is on few reasons that seem to be very absurd to me..

Broken Relationship: While it’s normal for people to get into a relationship, many times this relationship fails to meet the long term commitment i.e. Marriage. I have come across ppl who fall in love deeply, madly that he/she goes to any extreme to make their loved ones happy. Sadly this happiness is short-lived and many times these relationships are treated only as passing clouds by few who do not value the love that’s showered upon him/her.

When they hit reality it looks as though the world has come to a standstill and he/she starts detesting people/world simply because they aren’t able to accept the fact about their failed relationship. While this is normal to many, only few accept the reality while the rest feel that it’s no longer normal life for them and thinkfeel it’s not possible for them to love or accept any other man/woman in their life.

My Comment:

1. If you are the reason for the broken relationship, it’s good that you understand the mistake. That’s the first step toward building bridges in a relationship. Better late than never, speak to your partner and apologize if required without any ego.. Afterall its your life.. Especially for guys, you don’t have to feel ashamed for falling at her feet, since that’s going to be the way of life after marriage ;)

2. Now what if the fault is on your partner and he/she doesn’t want you in their life anymore? I feel there is no point in shedding tears for someone who doesn’t deserve it. Though easier said than done, move on with life.. Take a break, Go for an holiday, Meet your friends, Speak out with your akin, Rejoin those dance classes which you always wanted to attend, colour your wall like an Michael Angelo’s art.. Main idea is to keep yourself busy in something or the other so as to divert your attention. Who knows? You might find your better half in the dance class, music festival or in your holiday.. I can vouch for this..:)

Personal Experience: Many times we come across bad marriages within our family and friends circle. Barring love, inspite of matching horoscopes, background checks and hefty sum as dowry, many arranged marriages fail. Over a period of time we hear 2,3,4 marriages that fail due to various reasons. These external experiences also have a profound impact on our decision to stay single…

My Comment:

Never let other’s experience decide your future. You may not exactly know what happened in their lives. You might have a great opinion on your friend and you thought he is the best husband material and the girl should be lucky enough to get him… But you may not exactly know how your friend handles his personal life. Friendship & Marriage are two different entity that cannot be compared.. Never form an halo effect seeing the few characteristics of your friend.. and last thing you could do is, draw his personal life as an inspiration and decide to stay single. You should be insane. Please friends do not do this..

All said and done what’s important to keep a happy, blissful marriage life going? To answer in one word “COMPROMISE”. I believe nobody is perfect and we have to understand & accept those imperfections to lead a healthy marriage life.

Finally, no amount of reading romance books is equal to the act of falling in love. Similarly you need to get married and enjoy life. It’s always special to live life for that one special person who will not only share your joy, sorrows, happiness but also your credit card.. Lolz.. Kidding ;)

Best Kiss I ever received..

After playing cricket in the scorching heat, I returned home sweating profusely. I felt disgusted by the heat and told myself “Oh God! I’m stinking”. But at my doorstep my mother embraces me, wipes the sweat in my face with her pallu and kisses on my cheek.

Wow! Those Childhood days were amazing..

While this scene is common to everyone in the childhood days seldom (Not common) it happens now. And that’s exactly I am baffled about.

Why don’t they see us as child even after we grow up….I think the reason in my case is that my parents thought I was too old to get such a reception today. Rather they were conditioned to think so by "ME"…

Yes! Once I entered my adolescent age, kiss from my Girl friend was for more interesting than from my parents. Whenever they tried to hug me, I tell them “Ma.. I’m 17 years, don’t treat me like a child..”, “No Appa, I’m going out with my friends, cannot come with you”..

By those words I slowly kept moving away from them thinking I should behave like an adult and shouldn’t entertain those acts…

All went well until I went to work.. 6 days work, even before you get ready to relax on Sunday your holiday is over…. No longer meeting friends, no night outs, no birthday parties, No time to meet your relatives.. Life became mechanical.. I was entangled with daily routine work and felt a vaccum in my life.. I wanted to go back to those lovely days where my parents showered the unconditional love on me..

Today all I had to do was to ask my mom.. and there it comes.. Kiss on my cheek after almost 10 years… Wow!! This will remain as the best kiss I have ever received in my life :)

Special Person in your life

Rajesh, who is the most special person in your life?

I was flummoxed with this question. So many people’s name ran through my mind. My Parents who even today stand as a rock of our family, My teachers who moulded a rough charcoal into a polished diamond (Tht’s me ;) ), My Professors who helped me to sharpen my management skills, my mentor who coaches me on life skills, my friends who are an integral part of my life, My love who made me realize that it is still possible to forgive a person who hurt you..
So many names cris -crossed my mind…

{Mobile Ringing}….

As soon as I saw the name on the mobile phone I realized who that special person in my life was.

Yes. Many people walk into our lives, serve their purpose and walk away but only very few remain with us through out our life. They are the one’s on whom we drench our happiness, Joy, Love, affection, Sorrow, Anger and all other emotions.. They will stand by us during our bright sunny day’s while offering their shoulder for us to lean during our downhill.. Whatever we say, they won’t react but respond. They might be far away from us yet they will have an eagle’s eye on us & monitor the progress we make in our life…both professionally and personally.

I am sure you all will also have a special person in your life but the biggest question is how to identify them.

Well, Very Simple… If their name flashing on your mobile phone brings a smile on your face then they are the special person in your life. :)

Cherish the lovely moments with them.. Its Priceless!!!

The Gas Tragedy

I never wanted to voice my opinions on this issue but recent developments made me to rethink my decision. I’m writing this not as a Politician or Indian or American but only on the humanitarian grounds and on compassion I have towards my fellow human beings.

Everything takes time in India and 25 years of waiting for justice is no exception to it.

Leak of Methyl Iso-cynate gas from the Union Carbide plant has not just succumbed 25,000 people to death but has caused generations of ill effects on the health of people living in Bhopal. Off Springs are born with birth ailment, Permanent damage has been caused to the flora & fauna, people around the factory inhale air that’s poisonous even today.

I would like to voice over my opinions on different sections of this society.

Politicians

We are hearing a no. of stories on the way the issue has been handled. People who never opened their mouth all these days are letting out sensational news that causes a great concern. Pilot, Taxi driver, Home secretary and District Collector are coming out and saying on record that they were ordered to pave way for Anderson’s escape.

Infact I was dumbstuck to see a footage showing policemen opening the gate and saluting Warren Anderson, 3 days after he was released on bail. For sure many Government departments have tirelessly worked & lobbied to ensure Warren Anderson’s exit from India.

All I would like to ask these politicians is how on earth you can protect the interest of a billion people if you cannot account responsibility for the death of masses? You guys have pledged 25,000 lives who died and 50,000 people who still live with permanent ailments and many generations to come to protect your own interests. These Sufferers are the Aam Aadmi’s who feature in your election manifestation. How is the pain caused to them justified?

Media

All news channels carry some message on this tragedy ever since the verdict came. While it is good for media to bring out issues to catch audience attention, the same media are also responsible for infinite pain. “GROUND ZERO – BHOPAL”, “24 HOURS in BHOPAL” and other stories which cover the victims of the gas tragedy will only make things worse. Questions like How did you feel after the gas leak? How much compensation you received? How many people in your family died in the gas leak?, will only rekindle the trouble, tragedy & trauma they have gone through and cause endless pain to them. Asking such questions is like asking a father who lost his son “How do you feel now?” Oh Please for all the Bakra’s, Rajdeep’s, have some mercy on the people of Bhopal.

When will you guys stop making sensation out of other’s sufferings?

People of Bhopal

While I salute your perseverance and patience for justice, I believe it’s high time we give new dimension to our way of fighting for justice. I may be a fool who is influenced by some radical thinking but I think extreme measures like boycotting the elections and letting the governance know that our fundamental rights/needs are not taken care off will send strong signals to people who govern us. Time has come where these Pandits of Politics cannot take us for granted. Mahatma Gandhi said “Be the change you want to see” and I believe if things have to change we need to take drastic steps.

Justice Department

25,000 Lives = 2 Years of Jail (or) Rs 1 Lakh Fine.

How is this justified?

All said and done, it’s just a matter of time before the attention shifts from this tragedy to some other news. It may be FIFA World Cup, Elections, Oil Price, Food Inflation or Aishwarya Rai. Who Knows?. We people have to blame ourselves for this short term memory loss that we suffer from.