HR Goal

How can an organisation make its Performance management systems more effective ?

2008-12-10T03:17:00.000-08:00

Performance management begins,when an employee is assigned a job and end when that employee leaves Organisation. Though it is a ongoing communication process, undertaken in partnership, between an employee and his her immediate supervisor that involves establishing clear expectations and understanding about job and how effectively each employee can achieve his/her goal. Though it is combined effort of both employee and his immediate supervisor, but Supervisor/manager are playing major role.Many times we only focus on major factors, and forget many minute factors. If any organisation talking about a successful Performance management then it should focus on the given points.

1.Clarity in Job description:- Job only can be performed when we have a clear idea about our job and that is:

a) what is the job.

b) what are the procedure.

c) what are the skill set we required to perform the same.

2. Selection method:- Once job description is finalized management proceed for recruitment. At the time of selection we should follow only those methods which are related to our required skill set . Right people at right place is the first principle of a successful performance management system.

3.Idea about performance standards,outcomes, and measure:- Employee should know what to do , what are the best procedure to do the job effectively, what will be the quality of product.What are the standard to measure their performance and tips to how easily meet managements expectation.

4.Effective Training:- For best performance, the management should provide necessary information to employee,regarding the company, regarding their position and their job, which has to be performed by them. It is management duty to provide effective training for process and for product. Same time apprise them about customer needs and requirement .

5.Effective and prompt feedback:- Training will be only fruitful, if managers will give on going and consistent feedback to their employees,on their strength and weaker areas. feedback system will be more and more effective, if it will create such a work environment, where people feel free to ask the question about their job, their performance on job, and give suggestion about their job.

6.Monthly and quarterly review:- The review will help to create a healthy and positive atmosphere for discussion on

a) what are their achievement.

b) what will be their next goal.

c) what are they planned for their job.

d) how they are doing their ground work.

7.Design Effective compensation and recognition systems:- The entire process is for money, of money and to money for both organisation and employee. We can't ignore the measure motivating factor. Most of the organisation just over looked this important factor. Any reward or recognition send message to an individual about their value.

8.Promotion/career development:- The immediate supervisor/manager is a best person to help employees to develop their potential, through assigning challenging job, more responsibility and cross training. It will be more productive if manager/supervisor will create a environment, where people feel comfortable to do the experiments.

9.Try to know the reason why valued employees leave the organisation:- When a valued person leaves the company, it is important to know the reason for which he leaves the organisation. The exit interview feedback will help the company to take some measure action. It will not only helpful for employee retention,but also help to retain valuable employees.

What a performance review is not ???

2008-12-07T21:42:00.001-08:00

A Performance Review is not an opportunity for Blatant criticism of an employee without just cause.
A Performance Review is not the primary means for firing or terminating employees, though a manager may use it to provide employees with feedback pending and termination.
Performance evaluation is not a tool that supervisors should use to rate an employee's personality or personal traits.
A performances assessment is not a negative process.

By Robert Bacal

What are the priorities of the HR managers in this current industrial slowdown?

2008-12-04T18:41:00.001-08:00

The HR managers are walking on a tight rope amidst the current economic slowdown. I feel there are six main areas of concern for them.

Deciding on whom to retain and whom to retrench.
Attempting to meet the aspirations of high performers and keeping them motivated.
Scouting and developing new leadership talent among the existing employees.
Managing the impact of mergers and acquisitions, which may alter the company structure.
Building new capabilities to meet new challenges in the changed economic scenario.
Reviewing and revisiting the reward system for the employees to match it with the financial status of the company and the overall business

Variable compensation optimises company and people performance

2008-12-04T18:32:00.001-08:00

Companies are increasingly adopting variable compensation systems at different levels to ensure that everybody feels responsible towards the success of the company.

The growing trend is that IT firms are adopting a western salary mode, i.e. companies are ensuring that the salaries of senior employees as well as those associated with sales, marketing and other delivery functions become productivity/performance linked. What is your view on this?

With the industry becoming increasingly competitive, it is important to reward performers, if only to retain them. The focus is slowly shifting from rewarding efforts to rewarding results. Variable pay promotes greater transparency throughout the organisation, holding both the management and staff responsible towards each other. This results in increased productivity and effectiveness.

Is this trend likely to intensify?

Variable compensation is here to stay. However, I feel that most companies will embrace this system in phases, with the variable component of the salary going up slowly. The fixed component of the salary will eventually reduce to a level between 50 and 70 percent of the total compensation package. The rest will be performance-linked.

The real challenge lies in measuring employee performance correctly by evolving an impartial system of evaluation that is in line with the organisation’s business and culture.

Does your company have a variable pay programme in place? If yes, is this for all employees/functions or only in specific areas?

Recently we introduced variable pay system in our company at all levels in the hierarchy. For the lower and middle management, the variable component has been fixed around 7-10% of the total salary. For senior management, the performance-linked component is as high as 25% of the total salary.

What has been the reaction of the employees to this programme?

The response has been encouraging. In fact, our first initiative towards introducing variable compensation was based on a suggestion from few of our staff members. My contention is that the IT industry is composed mainly of young individuals who are more receptive to performance-linked compensation than their older counterparts.

What benefits do you hope to achieve from a performance linked compensation policy?

The benefits are all encompassing and will affect the entire organisation. Besides improving productivity and efficiency of the staff, we expect an increase in the billing rate per employee. An important intangible benefit comes in the form of higher customer satisfaction. In the IT industry, customer interaction is not limited to just the sales team. The technical team has to work in conjunction with the customer. Customer-Relations is an important feature of any sustainable business model in the IT industry and a performance linked pay will stimulate an overall increase in efficiency and accountability that will have a direct impact on customer satisfaction.

Coming to recruitment trends, has industry slump made it easier to find good candidates at lower salaries?

That is not true. I don’t agree with the general viewpoint that skills are available in plenty. Talented people are still in demand, primarily because the skills they possess are rare. Also, in the current situation, most people are afraid to take the risk that comes with a new job. That’s because, in case of downsizing, the usual tradition followed is that of "last in - first out".

As far as salaries are concerned, besides the actual compensation most candidates look for a host of intangible factors before accepting a job offer – this includes reputation of the employer, working environment, growth and learning potential, etc. So, we still need to provide sufficient compensation to attract the right talent.

Automatic defrag also a way to increase productivity.

2008-12-02T19:04:00.001-08:00

Today office means computers on the desk. We all are handicapped without computers. Automation concept introduced us with computer and eventually it became our priority.Automation helps us to increase productivity with 100 percent quality within time frame while keeping a watch on the cost barrier.

Hope all we noticed in our day to day office life, that some of our colleague are wasting their valuable time on gossiping,forming informal group,to giving thousand one excuse and many more.It not only spoil the working environment, but also effects productivity.

The day computer was introduced in the work place, employees discovered a new way how to avoid the work. The most used excuses are: computer is constantly slowing down, hanging, periodically crashing.

These ultimately leads storms of calls to the help desk . For every minute problem they tends to depend on helpdesk people. The interesting part is, even the managers raise their hands. The result leading to an obvious under-productivity.

The primary cause of these occurrences is file fragmentation, and today it seems to be more prevalent than ever. This is despite the implementation in many sites of scheduled defrag. But in fact, because computing environments have changed while defrag solutions have not, scheduled defrag is actually the cause of the problem. A higher-than-ever number of systems must now remain up and running 24X7, and "time windows" in which defrag can be run while users are off the system have all but disappeared. The solution has become to schedule defrag whenever possible and unfortunately those opportunities are rare.

A unique solution to this problem which I came across, as many organizations have discovered, is Diskeeper(R) software with InvisiTasking(R) technology. InvisiTasking allows Diskeeper to defragment whenever otherwise-idle resources are available -- meaning that drives are constantly kept defragmented and running at maximum performance. Scheduling is never required and there are never negative performance hits from defrag. Factors such as crashes, slowdowns, and slow boot and load times become a thing of the past

According to me, rather than wasting valuable time for helpdesk, the employee can manage on their own. Only thing require, that is notion to develop himself/herself.

AUTHORITY SYSTEM WITHIN AN ORGANIZATION

2008-11-30T18:15:00.001-08:00

The authority system functions within a hierarchical structure in which a few make decisions for the relatively many.
All decisions in an authority system are communicated from the executives to their subordinates.

3. Power, authority and influence are exercised continuously at all hierarchical levels.

Power the ability to control behaviour.

Authority The formal right to issue orders or directives by virtue of one's position in the organizational structure. Influence The ability to control others by suggestion or example rather than by direct command

PURSUING YOUR PASSION

2008-11-27T22:54:00.001-08:00

You have been created by God with different and unique abilities. Your ability has a tremendous amount of value. Passion is the key to releasing your ability to recognize that value.

"Your Passion is the 'inner wealth' that God has given you that must be discovered, and lived to produce external wealth."

Some people are fortunate enough to be in a career where they pursue their passion each and every day. These are the people who love going to work. Let's face it. If you hate what you're doing all day, it's tough to have a positive attitude.

For the purpose of this article, I'm concentrating on areas where you take an active role. For example, you could be passionate about watching sports as a spectator, but that's not what I'm getting at. I'm asking you to identify opportunities where you can participate. It doesn't have to be something where you work up a sweat. You could collect stamps or coins or comic books. You could study art history and visit museums.

You could write a book. Only you know what gets your juices flowing. I know what some of you are thinking. You're saying to yourself, "I know what my passion is, but it would be unrealistic for me to pursue it right now. I have a mortgage to pay. I have to help support my family. It's just not possible for me to quit my job and do what I love." Rest assured, I'm NOT suggesting that you act irresponsibly. You don't have to quit your job to pursue your passion. Lots of people use this as an excuse. The truth is, you can treat your passion as a hobby at the outset. That's what I did. I loved motivational materials so much that I started to think about how I could share this information with others. All I knew was that I was passionate about this material and wanted to do something with it. I was still a practicing attorney at the time. I was also someone who never took risks, who always played it safe. I certainly didn't see how I could work this into my life. Then I got an adult education catalog in the mail at home, describing night courses being given at the local high school. In the back of the catalog, there was a page that said, "Are you interested in teaching a course? If so, let us know your area of expertise and send us an outline." I submitted an outline, and much to my surprise, I got a call that the outline was approved and my class would start in a few months. Since the course was at night, I was able to teach after working my regular day job as an attorney. It was one of the best decisions I ever made and it opened up a whole new world for me. I'm not telling you this story to pat myself on the back. The point here is this: you can keep working at your regular job and still follow your passion. I actually treated my passion a hobby for five years while phasing out my legal career.

I'm guessing most of you have a passion you're not following right now. Maybe you want to be a writer. Maybe you'd like to sing, perform in a band, or do stand-up comedy. Perhaps you have talent working with your hands or you're a great cook with some unique recipes. You just know that when you think about, speak about or actually do this activity, you feel passionately alive. Time seems to pass quickly. You're completely absorbed and in the moment.

I think every person comes to this earth with special talents to express. You have talents that you bring to the table and you express that talent in a way that nobody else does. You feel positive, fulfilled and happy when you express the talent and you feel like "something is missing" when you refuse to engage in that activity and keep ignoring it.

Nature does not give you the desire to do something that you don't have the ability to do. You have the desire to purse this passion because it is something you were meant to develop - and more often than not, when you develop this talent and express it, you're going to make a positive contribution to the lives of others as well.

Following my passion led to a career change. But that isn't the case with everyone. You can have lots of fun and enjoyment pursuing your passion while remaining in your current line of work. In fact, you'll find that your enthusiasm carries over to your full-time job. That's why I keep saying that you don't have to quit your job. Put that excuse to bed. Find some way to do what you love. Take the time you've been watching TV or reading the negative articles in the newspaper and re-allocate it to pursuing your passion.

By the way, just because you're passionate about doing something doesn't mean you'll be able to do it well right away. In most instances, you have to develop the talent, and be willing to face your fears.

I had a passion for communicating motivational ideas, but at the beginning I had no experience in public speaking. I had to develop that talent over a period of years. I also had to learn to improve my writing skills. The same is true with you. Here again, don't use the excuse that you're not good enough to pursue your particular passion. If you love to sing, but you think you're not good enough, take singing lessons. Sing badly at the beginning, but SING!

When you follow your passion, you'll be much more positive and excited about your life. That will transfer over into other activities as well. And you'll be amazed at how opportunities open up for you. I'm not saying your passion is guaranteed to make you a lot of money. It may, but then again it may not. In any case, don't have money as your primary focus. You'll be a happier, more fulfilled person when you follow your passion. And, take it from me, it's a decision you will never regret, and it will do wonders for your attitude.

DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY

2008-11-27T00:49:00.001-08:00

The primary purpose of delegation is to make the operation of an institution possible.

Just as no one person in an institute can do all the tasks necessary for accomplishment of a group purpose, so it is impossible, as an institution grows, for one person to exercise all the authority for making decisions.

CONSIDERATIONS IN DELEGATION

· The competence to make decisions on the part of the person to whom authority is delegated.

· Adequate and reliable information pertinent to the decision must be available to the person making the decision.

· The scope of the impact of a decision (i.e., How many and which units are affected by any decision?)

ATTITUDINAL REQUIREMENTS FOR DELEGATION

A WILLINGNESS TO:

· Let go
· Give opportunity to the ideas of others
· Let others make mistakes
· Trust subordinates
· Establish and use broad controls

GUIDELINES FOR EFFECTIVE DELEGATION

· Define assignments and delegate authority in the light of results expected
· Select the person in the light of the task to be done
· Maintain open lines of communication
· Establish proper controls
· Reward effective delegation
· Reward successful assumption of authority

A MANAGER'S ROLE IN FOSTERING GOOD COMMUNICATION

2008-11-27T00:16:00.001-08:00

1. A manger should ensure that a good, working communication system functions within the unit, promoted by:

regular staff meetings,
- briefings,
- circulation of memoranda, and
- circulation of reports

2. A manager should strive to identify and develop those among the staff who have the potential to be good communicators.

3. . A manger should recognize the need to develop good communication skills among the staff, by:

providing opportunities for participation in in-house technical meetings and seminars, as well as in professional meetings, and being a good teacher of effective communication skills

Technorati Tags: Manager communication

What Employees Really Want ?

2008-11-26T23:42:00.001-08:00

There's no denying the huge impact on an organization when an employee leaves: for those peers who remain and must compensate for the increased workload (and possibly lowered morale), for those customers who have built a relationship with that employee who must now "break in" a new account representative, and for the direct reports who must now transfer loyalty and respect to a new manager.

Recent data compiled by the Saratoga Institute in California shows the average exempt position remains vacant for 75 calendar days and costs a minimum of a year's salary to hire and train the new employee to regain the lost customer and supplier contacts.

After reading dozens of books and articles from hundreds of experts in the field, it came as no surprise to learn that what employees really want is meaningful work that provides an opportunity to grow in a healthy environment. Easier said, than done, though, because each person's temperament is different, and largely controls what is considered "meaningful" or "healthy."

Imagine how much easier it would be to satiate employees' work needs if managers understood the importance of self mastery, or strategy of design, planning and logistics, or tactical intelligence to each individual.

Another way to keep employees physically and intellectually present is to develop a career path with them entrepreneurial and traditional types alike benefit from this process. Whether it's a new position and title, or being charged with the creation of a new process or team, seeing new opportunities continuously appear on the horizon keeps talent on board, especially those who need and seek change.

And while employees want a good salary, and good benefits, there's little that those at the top can do to influence an employee's decision to stay. A better indicator of an employee's retention is the quality of relationships with her peers and manager. Employees... people... want to feel cared for, respected, admired, liked... and yes, it is that simple.

Technorati Tags: employee satisfaction

Paradox of our time ...............

2008-11-25T23:03:00.001-08:00

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints.

We spend more, but have less. We buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time.

We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.

We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

We've learned how to make a living, but not a life. We've added years to life not life to years.

We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.

We conquered outer space but not inner space. We've done larger things, but not better things.

We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.

We write more, but learn less. We plan more, but accomplish less.

We've learned to rush, but not to wait.

We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships.

These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes.

These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill.

It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom.

A time when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete.

Remember, spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever.

Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side.

Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent.

Remember, to say, "I love you" to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.

Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again.

Give time to LOVE, Give time to SPEAK and give time to SHARE ......................

Dealing with Emotional Pain ?..............?

2008-11-25T22:44:00.001-08:00

We feel emotional pain when we do not get what we want, need, or expect. We might feel hurt, rejection, bitterness, abuse, injustice or simply emotional pain.

In such cases, we have not received the behaviour or outcomes we expected or believed we deserved.

We feel this kind of feel pain in cases when * people * do not behave to us in the ways that we had expected as well as in situations where * life * does not give us what we feel we need or deserve.

We believe, "I cannot feel happy unless I get that which I believe I need."

We have associated our security, satisfaction, self-worth or freedom with something that we are not getting from persons, society, God, or life as a whole.

Some examples might be when:

1. Others lie to or deceive us.

2. They do not support us when we need them.

3. They reject or criticize us.

4. We fail at some task, which we feel that we should have succeeded at.

5. We loose a loved one.

6. Our loved one shows preference to another.

7. People important to us do not show us the respect we expect.

8. Others do harm to us or our loved ones.

9. We are accused of doing or saying something we did not do.

10. When are falsely suspected of having ulterior motives.

11. "Friends" gossip about us behind our backs.

12. We are not given the raise of promotion we believe we deserve at work.

13. Others do not keep their agreements with us.

14. We are robbed.

15. We lose our fortune in some way.

You can add many more situations in which we feel hurt because we have not received the respect, love, affection, loyalty, truth, kindness and justice that we were expecting.

*** Positive Alternatives to Feeling Hurt ***

Positive alternatives to feeling hurt, bitterness and injustice could be:

1. * We can have Faith * in divine wisdom and justice.

2. We are all in a process of evolution and nothing can happen to us, which is not exactly what we need in order to learn our next lesson. So rather than be overwhelmed by negative feelings, we can seek to discover what we can learn through this experience. Our lessons usually have to do with discovering the strength, security and self-worth, which are within us. As souls in the process of

evolution, we are constantly being directed to contact and bring to the surface our spiritual self.

This means realizing that we are whole within and can feel safe, worthy and fulfilled regardless of what is happening around us.

Thus, every event which might cause us to feel pain is also a great opportunity to contact our inner spiritual self and move on and beyond this pain.

3. We are the sole creators of our reality.

We as souls create our reality through:

a. Our past choices, thoughts, words and actions.

b. Our present conscious and subconscious beliefs, feelings and needs.

c. The lessons we have chosen to learn at this stage of our evolutionary process.

d. How we subjectively interpret what is happening.

Thus others are simply actors in the scenarios of our life the script of which we have written. We can create a happier reality by:

a. Transforming our conscious and subconscious beliefs.

b. Learning our life lessons.

c. Interpreting events in a different way ? as opportunities for growth

rather than as injustices.

4. Forgiving and forgetting the past.

In light of what we have said above, others are not responsible for our reality and thus can easily be forgive. Such forgiveness frees us from negative feelings and allows us to transcend pain.

Thus we can overcome emotional pain by:

1. Realizing that every event is exactly what we need for our evolutionary process.

2. Learn the lessons involved.

3. Forgive others and ourselves.

Next Big Thing - Reinvent yourself

Technorati Tags: Emotional Pain

NEVER HAVE REGRETS…………………….

2008-11-21T06:46:00.001-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

Think about this. You may not realise it, but it's 100% true.

1. There are at least two people in this world that you would die for.

2. At least 15 people in this world love you in some way.

3. The only reason anyone would ever hate you is because they
want be just like you.

4. A smile from you can bring happiness to anyone, even if they don't like you.

5. Every night, SOMEONE thinks about you before they go to sleep.

6. You mean the world to someone.

7. You are special and unique.

8. Someone that you don't even know exists, loves you.

9. When you make the biggest mistake ever, something good comes
from it.

10. When you think the world has turned its back on you, take a
look at what life has given you.

11. Always remember the compliments you received. Forget about
the remarks.

NEVER HAVE REGRETS!!!!

"FRIENDS ARE ANGELS WHO LIFT US TO OUR FEET WHEN OUR WINGS HAVE
TROUBLE."

"Smile and the world smiles with you"

Improving employee morale

2008-10-05T21:43:00.000-07:00

Improving employee morale benefits everyone involved in a work place. Boosting employee morale means that people will take more pride in their work, call in sick less often and be more productive. Happier employees mean happier employers, since the employer will not lose money due to inefficiency and lost time. Improving employee morale can be accomplished fairly easily.

Most people thrive on feeling appreciated. You can improve employee morale by showing your appreciation in simple ways, such as rewarding an employee by saying, "job well done," or, "thank you for the good work." It is a grave mistake on the part of employers to only interact with their workers when there is a problem.

Another way to show appreciation and boost employee morale is by being friendly and interested in your employees. A warm smile and a sincere query about how one is doing will in turn motivate employees. Knowing people’s names and personalizing the work environment inspires employees to want to help you.

Encouraging social interaction between employees and immediately resolving conflict is another way to improve employee morale. Social events such as office picnics and softball games create a sense of camaraderie between employees. Social interaction positively influences cooperation and a general enthusiasm about coming to work everyday. Isolation, on the other hand, causes depression and a lack of motivation.

Another way to improve employee morale is by offering reward incentives. A job well done might be rewarded with a gift card or a cash bonus. This reward can come as a surprise to the employees who earn it, or it can be announced as a sort of game or contest. Having a goal to work towards that directly benefits the employee can help create enthusiasm, which tends to be contagious.

A very important factor in improving employee morale is the work environment. Psychological research shows that atmosphere greatly and directly affects the motivation level and feeling of well being of the employees in a workplace. When possible, providing comfortable and aesthetically pleasing furniture is one way that researchers suggest to motivate people. Lighting, flowers and artwork can also help improve employee morale.

Obviously, providing a pleasant atmosphere is not always possible, for instance in factories or repair shops. In these types of environments, offering a pleasant break room or relaxation area helps to improve morale. In any work environment, safe and comfortable conditions improve employee morale by giving workers a reasonable sense of security.

How to increase self esteem of your employees

2008-10-02T22:07:00.000-07:00

The ways to increase your staff self-esteem.

• Act as if you have high self-esteem. Your behaviors, beliefs, attitudes, and example are a powerful role model for staff members. How you look, talk, present yourself, and act send the most powerful message possible to all staff members.

• Practice personal integrity and fairness. Model it and expect it from others. People who feel they can tell the truth, without fear of reprisal, grow as they experiment and experience success and failure.

• Provide frequent feedback that reinforces what people do well and corrects the approaches that need improvement.

• Learn what staff members feel good and positive about doing. Maximize their opportunity to contribute in these activities.

• Provide assignments that stimulate growth. Ask people to stretch beyond what you have observed them doing in the past. Challenge staff members. Negotiate goals which are realistic, yet a stretch.

• Provide positive reinforcement, rewards, and recognition to reinforce the standards and practices you believe your staff members are capable of achieving.

• Create an environment in which people practice self-responsibility. Show that you trust them to report production numbers, deal with employees who are not contributing to the team effort, and succeed and/or fail at implementing new ideas.

• Demonstrate that it is okay to disagree with the supervisor. Allow the implementation of new ideas, even if they are different than yours. Praise when the approach works and ask the employee to implement more good ideas.

• Provide clear expectations about performance standards to all employees and express your sincere belief that they can meet or exceed these standards.

Find Your Strengths

2008-10-02T01:30:00.000-07:00

How well do you really know yourself? Do you know your strengths? The combination of talents which is the core of your individuality?

When your abilities are really being used in your life and work, you're fulfilled. Happy. You have an enthusiasm and dynamism which is attractive and inspirational to others. You go to work with excited anticipation, not a leaden heart.

When they aren't, you're bored, frustrated, dulled and deadened, maybe feeling life is pointless and purposeless. You're one of the 80% of people who, research suggests, find work is unsatisfying. You don't feel stretched, challenged or appreciated.

So how do you find your personal strengths? You may feel you don't have any. You're just not that good at anything. Maybe so, if you're thinking of things like knowing a foreign language or playing the violin. But these are skills, not talents. The strengths I'm talking about are things which may not be easily described, which you may not have thought of as talents at all.

For instance, you may have good empathy, the ability to sense other people's emotions and understand their point of view. You could be a great arranger and organiser. You could be good at bargaining and making deals. You could be driven by the need to find out why things happen.

You could be fascinated by ideas or collecting facts. You could be brilliant at seeing the big picture. You could be great at communicating. You could have a talent for forming deep and lasting friendships, or for building up a good support network. You could be thrilled by learning. Or by helping others.

Some new research* has identified 34 strengths like these, powerful attributes which express themselves in almost every aspect of our lives. For most of us, there'll be four or five main ones which come together to give us our personal constellation of talents.

These talents can be hard to identify because they aren't things apart from ourselves, like speaking French or being able to ski. Almost, they are us. And because our personal talents come so naturally, we tend not to value them. We take them for granted. There's so little work, effort, learning involved that we feel they're things everyone can do.

In fact, you probably really admire other people's talents -- which you don't have -- and simply fail to recognise your own. Others may see your strong points much more clearly than you do.

Almost any strong character trait you have is a talent. Are you competitive, persistent, responsible, witty, caring, inquisitive, meticulous? What are the adjectives family and friends would use about you? These are talents and abilities which could and should be used.

Negatives can be positively used as well. Roger was a car mechanic who was obsessional about checking. He had used the right spare parts and done everything correctly. Treatment stopped him checking 20 times and encouraged him to develop an excellent system for ensuring everything was correctly done. His obsessional tendency became a strength. Everyone knew that when he fixed a car, it stayed fixed. He was happy and so were his customers.

Look at your yearnings, activities you have always been drawn to from childhood, even if you've never had time or opportunity to express them.

What activities or skills have you learned very easily and naturally, with enjoyment? For example, the world famous artist Matisse never painted till his mother gave him a paintbox when he was 21.

What things give you a real sense of inner satisfaction and achievement, make you feel fulfilled?

What do friends, family, colleagues compliment you for, or take for granted you'll do well?

Looking back, remember some moments when you felt most yourself, most alive.

What are the things you get completely absorbed in, so that you lose track of time?A friend told me that when he was at university, planning an academic career, he yawned and clock watched his way through various holiday jobs. Then he took temporary work in a film studio. On his first day, just when he became aware he was so hungry he thought it must be lunchtime, he saw that in fact everyone was going home. Time had flown, and he had found his lifetime career in a completely unexpected area.

What should you do about your weaknesses? Well, don't feel you "should" be able to do something or other. Don't worry about what people expect of you. Stand back from your weaknesses and don't identify with them. If they get in the way of your life or your talents, work out how to cope with them, manage them or delegate them. Or (very liberating) just stop doing them!

There's a great American expression, "I don't do something-or-other." No excuses, explanations, or apologies. You just don't do it.

The important thing is, don't try to work on a weakness in the hope it'll turn into a talent. It won't. We tend to spend too much time and effort trying to be what we aren't. It's easy to think that the way forward is to work on our failings, brushing up the things we're not good at.
Both school and work push us into this thinking, emphasising remedial classes and training to sharpen up weak areas, describing these as "challenges" or "opportunities for growth". We feel we need to be 'well-rounded'.

But the people you've heard of -- celebrities, achievers, artists, discoverers, creators -- are often not that well-rounded. Instead, they're exceptional in one main arena, and who knows or cares if they're hopeless at putting up shelves, can't add up, hit a ball or make friends easily -- because their energy and focus has flowed into their natural talents.

The real opportunities for growth come from working with the strengths you have got, not the ones you haven't. From identifying your talents and developing a lifestyle and work style which uses them to the maximum. So put the effort where it will really be rewarded ? in developing and training your strengths.

A problem can be if you need to feel you've fought yourself, and won. It's not a success if it hasn't been a struggle. I know someone whose life has been blighted by something his mother taught him, and no-one has ever been able to unteach him since: nothing is achieved without hard work, nothing that comes easily is worth doing. So of course he's backed off from the things he can do easily and well, because they don't feel like work. He's turned away from his talents and wasted a lifetime battering away at things which don't come naturally to him.

It takes courage to fully acknowledge who you really are, not who you, your family, school, friends, colleagues think you are or should be. It takes courage to accept that there are talents you have and talents you don't have. It can take courage to stop spending time trying to strengthen your weaknesses and instead focus on perfecting your talents.

But that is the way forward for each of us. Giving time to your weaknesses can bring you up to average. Give the same time and effort to developing your talents, and you'll be exceptional .

STORY OF -TWO POTS

2008-09-30T22:06:00.000-07:00

An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walk from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water.

Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had been made to do. After 2 years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house."

The old woman smiled, "Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them." "For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house."

Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding. You've just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.

Types of Training

2008-09-30T21:26:00.000-07:00

Formal Training : Training that has a structured, formal, and defined curriculum; it may be conducted by supervisors, company training centers, businesses, schools, associations, or others. Formal training includes classroom work, seminars, lectures, workshops, and audio-visual presentations.

Informal Training: Training that is unstructured, unplanned, and easily adapted to situations or individuals. Examples include having a co-worker show you how to use a piece of equipment or having a supervisor teach you a skill related to your job.

SEPT data are used by government, private industry, and the academic community to determine the major types of training that American workers receive from their employers. Types of training include the following:
Basic reading, writing and arithmetic skills training is training in elementary reading, writing, arithmetic, and English language skills, including English as a second language.

Occupational safety training - Provides information on safety hazards, procedures, and regulations.

Employee health and wellness training -Provides information and guidance on personal health issues such as stress management, substance abuse, nutrition, and smoking cessation.

Orientation training - Introduces new employees to personnel and workplace practices and to overall company policies.

Awareness training - Provides information on policies and practices that affect employee relations or the work environment, including Equal Employment Opportunity practices (EEO), affirmative action, workplace diversity, sexual harassment, and AIDS awareness.

Communications, employee development, and quality training- Training in public speaking, conducting meetings, writing, time management, leadership, working in groups or teams, employee involvement, total quality management, and job reengineering.

Job skills training that includes:

Management training - Training in supervising employees and in implementing employment practices. Examples include training in conducting employee appraisals, managing employees, resolving conflicts, following selection/hiring practices, and implementing regulations and policies.

Professional and technical skills training- Training in professional areas such as engineering, nursing, accounting, science, law, medicine, training, education, and business; or in technical areas such as drafting, electronics, and medical technology.

Computer training - Includes training in computer literacy, security, programming, use of standard commercial and other software, and methods for developing software applications.

Clerical and administrative support skills training - Training in areas such as typing, data entry, filing, business correspondence, and administrative record keeping, including budget and payroll.

Sales and customer relations training - Training in areas ranging from how to maintain or improve customer relations to specific selling techniques. Examples include training in how to deal with angry customers and information about specific product lines.

Service-related training - Includes training in the traditional service occupations-food, cleaning, protective, or personal services. Examples include training in waiting tables, preparing food, using cleaning equipment, conducting security work, providing care for children or the elderly, tailoring, and barbering.

Production-and construction-related training - Training in areas such as operating or repairing machinery and equipment; manufacturing, assembling, distributing, installing, or inspecting goods; and constructing, altering, or maintaining buildings and other structures.

Promote Your Personal Growth and Motivation

2008-09-30T20:36:00.000-07:00

Are you feeling blah about your work and life? Does the experience of boredom make you unmotivated and unexcited? Are you having a mid-life crisis? You can promote your own personal growth, motivation and career development to overcome this inertia. Here are ideas and tools that will help you explore personal growth, set new goals, choose motivation and get your life and work back on a course that excites, motivates and fills your life with joy.
One person, in particular, said "I am bored, bored, bored with everything in my life - my friends, my job, my family and how I spend my time.
I don't feel any excitement and I'm not looking forward to anything in particular." These thoughts are for you. You can make this a searching time or you can do silly things. The stereotypical mid-life crisis turns a conservative businessman and family man into a gold-chain-sporting, long-haired, red-Corvette driving hedonist. It doesn't have to be this way. Mid-life crises, whether you are thirty, fifty or sixty-five years old, can be a time of awakening, self-actualization and new direction.
Guided Thinking Exercises
Take some time to do these exercises. The time invested will enable you to focus on the positive and the possible for your life. I recommended the first two exercises for your career crisis and I also recommend them for your personal growth. The rest are new.

• List everything you’d like to do in your lifetime. These lists can run several hundred items. (Mine included walk frequently on the shore of Lake Michigan, write books, travel to every country in Europe and design two additional websites.) Your chosen lifestyle must allow the accomplishment of these dreams.

• Write down your ten favorite activities, the ones without which your life would feel bereft. (Mine included reading, writing, creating new recipes, traveling, walking and more.) No life choice is suitable unless you get to do your favorite activities at least weekly, and preferably, daily.

• Think of a time when you felt more positively about your life. What has changed between then and now? List everything that is different. Perhaps you will gain insight into what is causing your current dissatisfaction. Then, you can change the issues causing unhappiness.

• If you are like many of us, you rarely take time to be alone with yourself. In fact, many people avoid this time and prefer to fill every minute of the day with activity. Schedule quiet, thinking time for yourself every single day. Spend time alone with yourself doing nothing. Some people call this meditation; others practice yoga. The key is to spend time in your head going gently wherever your thoughts take you. If those thoughts turn negative or self-deprecating, kindly change the subject.

Take Action Exercises

You’ll want to do these daily as you explore what makes you happy.

• You have listed your favorite activities and the hundreds of items you’d like to do in your lifetime. Begin. Add one each day to your schedule. Minimally, do all ten activities you love in a week.

• Do something that is totally new to you once each week. Get out of your comfort zone and try on new people, places and activities.

• Write a journal that tracks your thoughts, the new ideas you are generating and the added life activities you schedule every day.

• See a friend at least twice a month for conversation and to maintain the supportive and caring relationship.

• Eat a balanced diet, get daily exercise, even if only for ten minutes, and sleep on a regular, refreshing schedule.

I have actually tried out the above exercise, and it really works to the extent of relieving you from those unwanted demotivate crisis situation.

Boost your Self Esteem & Career

2008-09-25T08:42:00.001-07:00

Are you constantly competing with the furniture to be inconspicuous around the office?

Does the thought of a presentation give you palpitations?

Then what you might be suffering from is a lack of self-esteem. It is a trait that can seriously hamper your growth, even if you have the intelligence to teach Einstein a thing or two about E=MC2 and the skill to show Bill Gates how to secure Internet Explorer.

Here's the lowdown on this problem that plagues many professionals, its identification, consequences and correction.

According to Colonel Ravi Joshi, a personality development trainer at the Indo-American Society, there are various signs that indicate a low self-esteem.

"Physical signs include poor body language and posture, guilty or apologetic expressions, a weak handshake, slow movement and low levels of energy, among several others," he says.

Behavioural signs include reluctance to call attention to oneself, to engage in a conversation, or to accept a change.

"Low self-worth individuals also avoid taking risks and perceive risks that other people fail to see. They usually lack goals and have a negative attitude," Joshi adds.

Emotional signs include being paranoid about becoming the object of ridicule. Or about having a sense of dependence on other people. Or constantly comparing oneself with others. Or doubting one's talent.

Sometimes, even seemingly smart people, with an air of confidence about them, can also have self-esteem issues. While some hide the problem well, others, especially those in high corporate positions, try to cover their lack of self-worth by being domineering and trying to act overconfident and superior.

"Such people make overbearing, untrusting and suspicious bosses and colleagues, who come across as obsessive control freaks," says Joshi.

If you have any of the above sides to your personality, it's time to give your self-esteem a much-needed shot in the arm before the consequences catch up with your career.

Facing the consequences

If not caught and corrected, low self-esteem can deeply affect your personal and professional life.

"Shunning challenges becomes a part of your personality. As a result, new responsibilities don't come your way and so promotions are also unlikely," says Joshi.

Most of the times, such people avoid communicating their ideas in a meeting with a group. Sometimes, these ideas come out in a private moment with a colleague or a boss. At other times, they just die inside the mind.

"If you are lucky, your colleague or boss will give you the credit for the idea. If not, either he or she will hog it or unintentionally forget to mention that it was your idea to begin with," he says.

Both scenarios will not contribute to your career graph, which will reach a plateau or even decline if you don't modify your personality.

The first step to getting the world to love you is to love yourself. Try these tips.

Making behavioral changes

Showing your vulnerability in a personal relationship might bring you closer to your partner> But as far as the workplace is concerned, it might backfire on you, feels Dr Tushar Guha, managing director of Nrityanjali, an institute for personality development in Mumbai.

"If you are a sensitive person by nature, try not to show it in front of colleagues. Emotions do have a place in the work space but you have to learn where which emotion should be used," he says.

Compassion and surprisingly, anger, if used correctly, can impact your work life positively. "Anger can help assertiveness. Blowing your top and going out of control when angry will only aggravate the problem. But if you put your anger down in black and white, that is, list the reasons for your anger, it can help you put your point across more effectively," says Guha.

Many believe that compassion at the workspace undermines your authority. But looking into a person's life beyond the office can help you identify the root of the problem and hence, eliminate it. "For example, a person might be efficient but may be showing signs of inefficiency lately. This might be because a personal problem is dogging him or her. If a colleague senses it, it lightens the emotional burden on the person who is going through the bad patch," Guha adds. Ever notice how a boss sharing his or her lunch with subordinates increases comfort levels?

Some emotions can harm your career graph. Jealousy and a superiority complex are the fastest ways to alienate your colleagues. "Belittling other people won't show you in a good light. It will just make your insecurity obvious," say Guha.

Body beautiful

One of the main reasons for low self-esteem is a dislike for one's body. This is why you will rarely find a fashion model lacking in the self-confidence department.

Dr Guha advocates examining yourself closely in the mirror and taking note of your pluses and minuses.

“See which of your features are your best. And highlight them. Project yourself the way you think you look best,” he elaborates. According to Guha, this technique is used extensively by showbiz folks, who are known to possess oodles of confidence.

Being positive about your physical appearance can translate into mental confidence. Taking a trip to the parlour, shedding that extra weight, and overhauling your wardrobe are some things that can do the trick.

Keep track of your progress

Write down your thoughts. It will help you deal with behavioural issues better.

"You will find it easy to look at your thoughts objectively once they are down on paper to check if your fears and concerns are unfounded," says Dr Guha.

To build on this, make note of your everyday successes. "It can be as little as saying no to a chocolate pastry when you are trying to lose weight.

Gradually, a positive picture will emerge and you will start seeing your potential," Joshi adds.

Set weekly goals and try to reach them. This is help to give your life a sense of purpose.

Get a life

Don't make your career the be all and end all of your existence. Growing in other spheres of your life can also boost confidence levels.

"See that your colleagues are not your only friends. Make friends outside of office and seek emotional support from your family. This way, you will be able to offset a bad experience in office with a good experience outside," says Mumbai psychiatrist Dr Harish Shetty.

Don't abandon your hobbies either. "This is a common thing once we start pursuing our careers. It isolates us from what we enjoy doing and keeps us away from like-minded people," says Dr Guha. However, take care not to stick to only hobbies that make you a loner.

If painting is your hobby, seek out other painters and visit exhibitions where you can meet more people.

The purpose of your hobby should be to meet like-minded people and discuss subjects that you are comfortable with.

Get a social life

This one is an introvert's nightmare. But developing social skills is of supreme importance. This doesn't mean you need to randomly attend parties.

"Find a group of people at a party or a social event, who you are comfortable with and make an effort to talk to them. Once you open up you will find it easier to meet strangers and forge bonds," Guha says.

All you need to do is look around. There might be others who are sitting around alone. Approach them, they may be more receptive to company.

Your body language while talking to people is also important. There's nothing to get nervous about. "Look into the eyes of the person you are speaking to," says Shetty.

Developing a sense of humour can help you score brownie points with co-workers and new people you meet, says Joshi. This does not mean that you need to reel off witty one-liners.

You should learn to see the humour in a situation as well as be able to laugh at yourself.

Upgrade your skills

Upgrading your workplace skills can go a long way in giving yourself that extra dose of confidence.

"Upgrade them by way of a course or teach yourself and compete with yourself," he advises.

Work on your communication skills, as self-esteem increases or decreases depending on other people's perceptions of you.

"The 'how' is as important as the 'what'. So work on effectively communicating with people," says Guha emphatically.

Seek professional help

If you can't get it together, despite all your efforts, get in touch with a psychiatrist or attend a personality development class.

Characteristics of a manager

2008-09-24T05:39:00.001-07:00

Professional	Personal
· Professional excellence	· Caring about people
· Analytical abilities	· Commanding respect
· Diagnostic skills	· Good judgment
· Planning skills	· Drive and energy
· Resource allocation	· Creative
· Leadership qualities	· Oriented towards excellence
· Decision making capabilities
· Tolerance of ambiguity
· Delegation of authority and responsibility
· Negotiating skills
· Coordinating and liaison
· Human relations manager
· Managing conflicts

Seven Steps To Reduce Stress

2008-09-24T05:19:00.000-07:00

1. Pursue the Joy of the Unpredictable

We derive joy from pursuing interests and passions that do not produce any obvious benefits. Unfortunately many people believe that joy should reside in the world of hobbies or retirement. Not so! Do something that gives you energy that resonates with you and motivates you to jump;out of bed in the morning. Joy is about surprises and the unexpected. It’s not tranquil and it’s not spurred by attaining material possessions. It’s about feeling the thrill of life. It’s about experiencing moments that you will never forget.

2. Start Liking Yourself

You will find on the outside only what you possess on the inside. Deep down most of us do not have a lot of self-respect. Use your downtime to fix whatever problems keep you from following the best track. Self-discovery and self-improvement are a good start. As a result, improved self-respect often produces better jobs, better outlooks, and better lives.

3. Spend Time with Family and Friends

We tend to hide both physically and emotionally from loved ones and colleagues when we are burned out. We feel embarrassed because we are always canceling commitments or making excuses why we cannot commit. Instead of using downtime to reconnect with loved ones, we wallow in quit. It is too easy to get caught up in our work. It is too easy to treasure our trash and trash ourselves. We may feel important at work but we are only truly valued when we are with family and friends. We can be replaced at work. Our friends and family stick with us.

Burnout may be reserved for people who have more choices than they appreciate. It is an early warning system that can help us get back on track. Burnout may just bring with it a more satisfying life for you, your family, and your future employer. Listen to the disappointments, the sadness, and the regrets from your family and friends. There is truth behind the emotion that is calling to you.

4. Change the Way You Look at Stress

One way to change stress is to change the way in which we interpret any stressful event. We change how we interpret an event by changing how we think about the event. Instead of saying, “I can’t do this, it won’t work out”, try saying “I will break this project down into small steps and talk with my manager later to negotiate more time.” Even slightly changing how we choose to evaluate an event will greatly decrease the amount of burnout we feel. Try to eliminate words and phrases such as ‘Hate”, “can’t stand it”, “no way”, etc. Make a list of those negative words or phrases that you most often use, and then flag them each time they are said and replace them with a more neutral word or phrase.

5. Build Your Personal Foundation

The personal foundation process involves deliberately investing in one’s self. A strong personal foundation includes 10 distinct stepping stones which, when linked together, provide a solid yet personalized base on which to build one’s life. In a world that sometimes appears to be built on quicksand, we all need a personal foundation base. This includes some foundational components such as reduce and eliminate tolerations in your life, simplify, create and use daily habits, creating reserves, and reorient around your values. If you cannot manage this on your own, I recommend finding a personal or life coach to help you in the process.

6. Work to Have Fun at Work and Build Creativity into Your Day

You do not need to throw a party to have fun at work. You can have fun by talking to a co-worker, listening to music, or by just increasing those tasks that you enjoy at work. Attempt to complete tasks that you do not enjoy right away so you do not think about them all day. Check with your manager to see if you can eliminate or delegate these tasks to someone else. If you honestly cannot find anything you enjoy about your work, you might not be experiencing burnout at all, but a true feeling of needing a new job. This might be a good time to do some self-discovery work, take a career assessment, or hire a career coach.

If you go in the same door everyday, sit at the same desk, and start the day off with the same phone calls, a routine can easily lead to boredom. Add some job creativity to your day. For example ask to change your start time, redecorate your office or cubicle, or ask to take on some new tasks that you enjoy. Do not ask to take on additional busy work. It is far more important to ask to take on a new assignment that will fuel your creativity, add interest to your day, and give you positive feelings.

7. Ask for Some Control in Your Job

If you need permission to take control, ask your employer to take a risk by allowing you to take control over your job for one week to see if production increases. If they do not allow you to take full control, ask for control over one small aspect of your job. They slowly ask for more and more until you have as much as you want.

How to Stay Motivated and Live in Balance

· Honor your own values – 365 days a year/24 hours a day
· Live life authentically
· Appreciate and acknowledge who you are – NOT what you do
· Become more conscious about how you are with others
· Access your heart to help you manage the feelings of stress and manage burnout
· You do have a choice about how you feel
· Get help when you need it

It is lack of Opportunities or we have wrong receptive

2008-09-24T05:16:00.000-07:00

Today, many people plan their careers using trial and error methods that
lack proper focus and tangible goals. This situation often leads to a loss
in terms of opportunity, that would be vital for ones career.

It is imperative that we need to plan our career more effectively. Most of
the time, career decisions are taken, based on the following parameters:

Financial Reasons:

Choosing a job based upon lucrative monetary benefits. This could be because
of financial situation at home or because of the myth that once you have
money other things can be bought or higher salary is an index for higher
social prestige.

Locational Reasons:

Taking up a job to be at a particular place for emotional reasons, could be
because the person does not want to stay away from his family, friends and
relatives.

Security Reasons:

Taking up a job for security reasons to avoid risks.

Going Abroad:

Certain jobs and courses facilitate easy trips abroad and rake in a lot of
money. This we call it the IT-phenomena

Qualification Trap:

People are also of the belief that the work you do should be based on the
degree you have earned. So, if a person is creative and good in designing
clothes she would still be teaching in a college or school rather than
taking up her hobby as her profession purely because she had earned a degree
in teaching.

For all these and several other ones we find many people pursuing their jobs
with lot of resentment and in consequence would be under a lot of stress.

The famous scientist Thomas Alva Edison who used to work 18 hours a day once
said, "I never worked ..I only played"

The important thing in selecting a job is that you should be able to enjoy
what you are doing. If you are able to achieve this, you would be able to
cherish the amount of time you spend on your job.

Let us go in a systematic manner in making a right career decision.

Managing Stress

2008-09-24T05:11:00.000-07:00

Many times we all are depressed and asked this question to ourself "Why
is God creating so many difficulties for us? How to handle stress?"

This story tells us ......................................

A man goes to a shop, picks up a beautiful cup and says "my god this
cup is so beautiful" and suddenly the cup starts talking to the man.

The cup starts saying "O man, I am beautiful right now, but what was
the state of my being before the pot-maker made me a beautiful pot?

Before I was sheer mud and the pot-maker pulled me out of the mud

from the mother earth and I felt why that pot-maker is so cruel, he
has separated me from mother earth. I felt a tremendous pain. And the
pot-maker said, "Just wait." Then he put me and churned me, when I
was churned I felt so giddy, so painful, so stressful, I asked the
pot-maker "Why are you so cruel?" the pot-maker said, "Just wait."

Then he put me into a oven and heated me up, I felt completely burnt.
There was tremendous pain and I asked the pot-maker "Why are you so
cruel?" and the pot-maker said, "Just wait." Then he poured hot paint
on me and I felt the fume and the pain, I again asked the pot-
maker "Why are you so cruel?" and the pot-maker said, "Just wait."
Then again he put me into an oven and heated it to make me more
strong, I felt life is so painful hence pleaded the pot-maker and the
pot-maker said, "Just wait." And after that the pot-maker took me to
the mirror and said, "Now look at yourself". And surprisingly I found
myself so beautiful.

When god gives us lot of trouble, it appears god is very cruel but we
need patience and we have to wait. When bad things happen to good
people, they become better and not bitter.

So all difficulties are part of a cosmic design to make us really
beautiful. We need patience, we need understanding, we need the
commitment to go through in a very calm and wise way. So all
difficulties are not to tumble us but to humble us.

With this understanding, let us not be against difficulty. Understand
difficulty is a part of a purifying process. A purifying process at
present which we cannot understand and hence we need faith and we
need trust.

Let us understand how to handle stress with this background. You can
be affected by stress from two angles. There is an internal stress
and there is an external stress. Nobody can avoid stress; one has to
only manage stress. Managing stress can be internal and also
external.

The internal stress is; your thoughts can create stress, your values
can create stress, and your beliefs can create stress, meaning
thereby your stress is coming from your mind more from the outer
world. Many people suffer not from heart attack - they suffer from
thought-attack.

For example, when somebody says you are an idiot, we get so hurt, we
get so victimised . My boss has called me an idiot and I am feeling
tremendous pain. Now where does this stress come from? If my boss has
called me an idiot, I have to ask myself "am I an idiot"?

If I am an idiot nothing to be upset about; and if I am not an idiot,
then also nothing to be upset about! It is the perception of the
boss. But why do we suffer from that stress? I suffer not because my
boss has called me an idiot but because of the thought-attack.

I may say the boss has called me an idiot; therefore I am suffering?
It is true that the words are unpleasant. But what hurts is the
interpretation of the unpleasant word. The thought in me interprets.
That is pain and therefore it becomes pain. Much of our stress is our
mind interpreting it as pain. So we suffer from thought-attack more
than heart attack.

‘Cross industrial expertise’

2008-09-19T10:22:00.001-07:00

‘Cross industrial expertise’ is the latest buzzword for several companies as they are choosing candidates coming from diverse industrial backgrounds for the value that they bring.

‘Birds of a feather flock together’, right? In today’s Indian corporate scenario, the above adage might not necessarily ring true. ‘Diversity’ is the latest corporate mantra. And today, if you’re a candidate equipped with cross functional competencies and skeptical us as to which job profile suits you the best, don’t lose heart as India Inc. is hiring people who are willing to experiment by putting their varied range of skills to maximum use.
SWINGING WAYS
While most companies believe in following this trend in the near future, many Indian organizations have already started hiring people with different backgrounds for their top management positions. Industry experts say that many organizations prefer bringing in people with different work experience rather than choosing someone who has been doing the same thing for many years.
    S Nagarajan, Chief People Officer, 24/7 Customer says, “We have within our company few employees recruited at different levels. These employees coming from diverse backgrounds have joined us from varied industries like IT, teaching, hospitality, manufacturing, advertising, automobile, etc. We believe that people coming from different backgrounds equipped with the right set of core competencies can be a right candidate for the required role.” Sudhesh Venketesh, Head-HR, Tesco HSC, believes in the same and adds that in today’s corporate environment, it’s necessary to hire such people for the value that they bring to the organization. He says, “We have employed many people from different backgrounds in some of the top positions in our company like our Property Director was a part of the Buying Segment and our new COO in Malaysia was formerly an operations officer.”
    Shiv Agarwal, CEO, ABC Consultants says that a few years ago, knowledge about a particular sector or industry was considered to be invaluable and could not be done away with under any circumstances. However, with changing times, he explains, a person with a wider range of contacts and knowledge is preferred over an industry expert. “In today’s modern day work sphere, top managers need to be keen multi-taskers. Brand management, media positioning, networking, target achievement, people management etc. are all functions that a top manager would be expected to perform irrespective of the domain that they are in,” he adds.
WORKING WONDERS
Industry experts feel that choosing a head of the department or a sector with a different background usually works in the favor of the organization. Experts feel that bringing in a fresh perspective helps the organisation to get a different outlook, bring in greater creativity, flexibility etc. “A top manager from a different domain would be more receptive towards his/her team. Ideation would flow within the team and the person’s journey up the learning curve would also make the employee feel empowered as he/she would have a say in the decision making process,” explains Agarwal.
    Harish Govind, VP-HR, Blue Star Infotech Ltd, further explains that getting a head from a different background can help smaller departments within the organisation grow and prosper. He explains, “Many large companies which have high sustainability and stomach for experimentation would like to try out a fresh approach in a small unit or division of the conglomerate which it seeks to revive or turn around. The freshness in approach could come from a professional high on management skills rather than industry specific skills.”
    Experts feel that if hiring an individual with a different work background can help in an organisation’s growth, one needs to make this organizational practice a part of their recruitment policy. Also, whether a company decides to hire somebody with a diverse background is entirely an organisation’s decision but industry pundits point out that this organizational move certainly has more pros than cons.
THE BELL CURVE
On the other hand, many feel that this may not work to the company’s advantage at all times as many say it’s not always easy to bring on a fresh candidate with no industry specific skills, especially at senior level positions. Though it is a gamble that many organisation's are willing to make, they believe that this experiment may also backfire. “The degree of uncertainty is high and the system has to be prepared for it as this practice may drain out precious time and energy which could have been deployed elsewhere,” explains Govind. Agarwal says that a new person would be more prone to making mistakes and would run the risk of losing key team members because of his/her ignorance. “Getting a new person from outside often leads to a re-alignment in team dynamics and a churn in team compositions as well. Such a person also needs to be handled patiently since he/she would take some time before settling into the new role.” Experts say that no matter what the pros or the cons of hiring somebody from a different backgrounds are, this decision usually seems to be working towards the company’s advantage. So if you think that your expertise will go waste in some other department, don’t lose hope as many organisation's would rather hire someone who is ready to take risks over someone who’s always willing to play safe.