Provoke some...

Acceptance (Antonym of Disclaimer):  In the true spirit of our era in Roorkee (the reason for mentioning 'our era' is solely to save the current batches), I have blatantly topo-ed from one of my earlier blog... :-) ------------------------------------------  "Will I recognize anyone?" was the question that repeatedly did rounds in my head (like the rounds we used to make around Sarojini Bhawan), "Will my batchmates still remember me?", "How has everyone changed in so many years?", "Does the UOR spirit still lingers?" and many such thoughts were put to rest the moment I laid my eyes on the first set of classmates who had flown from around the world for the Bodi cup which was effectively a reunion after 23 years of our batch of University of Roorkee that passed out in 1993. While I might be telling others that I am from IIT, Rookee, somehow I still get the real feel when I loudly mouth UOR or University of Roorkee and I kn

Corporate Lala... does it sound like an oxymoron? How can a Lala be corporate? The way we differentiate companies in India is on the basis of whether it is a "professional" company or a "Lala" company? The moment we get an answer we immediately "assume" about the way that particular company would be running. Does it mean that Lala companies are NOT professional? Or a professional company CANNOT be a Lala company? What exactly comes to our mind when we think of a "Lala" company or a so-called "Professional" company? What are the myths & realities that reside in our minds when it comes to differentiating the two? Do we see any similarities or do we believe these are two extremities? Will the twain ever meet or will they continue to co-exist to complete the balance in the enterprise universe? Who exactly is a Lala or a Professional? Can a Lala be professional or can a professional have Lala traits?  So many questions... I am

Balance... just like how one cycles. Visually, cycling seems so difficult but ask the cyclist and she surely has no idea why anyone would think so. Remember when you learnt how to cycle. You straddled and pushed the paddle, fearfully removed your other foot off the ground, the handle shook violently and BAM! you fell. That's exactly how everyone learns to cycle... No exceptions. You try it again and maybe after a couple of failed attempts, you are able to move forward a few meters albeit in a snake-like movement. In no time, you are cycling like an expert wondering why you were so afraid of it in the first place. You still had no idea how you were balancing on two wheels, it's just that you were. You however knew that to keep moving forward, you need to keep it balanced and that is only possible if you kept pedaling.  Life, my friend, is exactly like that. The only thing that matters is BALANCE which can only be achieved if you keep pedaling. Let me try to explain. Entire

What does the doctor tell you when you are diagnosed with Diabetes? Stay away from sugar... What does the wife of a smoker tell him when he coughs incessantly? Stay away from cigarettes... What does the priest tell the person confessing to a misdemeanor? Stay away from sins... What does the father tell his wayward son? Stay away from bad company... I think these instances are enough to bring out the intent of this discussion, which is, if there are symptoms pointing to a problem/issue/disease you would be better off by "staying away" from the "cause". Moreover, have we not heard more often than enough that "Prevention is better than Cure"? The problem we are facing today is that of too much screen time. Anywhere we go, we see people staring at various types & sizes of screens - from large TVs, computers / laptops to tabs & mobile phones. Recently I saw four "friends" sitting "together" on a table-for-four at a restaura

Most of us, during the drinking session which followed our graduation ceremony, made either of the two statements in a state of drunkenness or otherwise: (a)     I can’t imagine myself working my entire life. I want to enjoy. I will retire the day I make XYZ amount of money (The XYZ varied between lakhs to at max a crore of rupees.) (b)    I can’t imagine myself working my entire life. I will slog my butt off during the initial years and worst case I will retire when I turn 45. Was I one of the many who said either of the two statements as mentioned above? You bet I was. This year I will turn 45 and by God’s grace have been able to exceed the monetary goal that I started off with (Just to think of it, was the goal too unambitious? Didn’t seem at that time though. After all those were the days when even the grandeur film villain Ajit was smuggling gold worth 5 lacs plus minus) but am I even remotely close to hanging my boots? So what happened in these two decades t