Biscuits and Dustbins

For a few years now, I have had too many young techies and consultants mention to me that they consider certain elements of their work 'boring'. They profess interest only towards pursuing those aspects that 'suit' them and 'help them learn'. Upon deeper probing, it turns out that they have issues in doing things that they consider as 'coordination' or 'management' or 'providing status updates'. And then the conversation degenerates into how hopeless their managers are :-).....

Well, I have had the opportunity to reflect through each of these complaints. Admittedly, some of them have merit. I will also confess that I see shades of myself when I hear them. At the same time, I wonder whether these issues have really been thought through by the youngistan of today. More importantly, is rigidity creeping in these minds when one must ideally pursue a different kind of balance?

My post today is about my dreams as I set out on my career 15 years ago. I will then segue into the lessons I have learned & the type of balance I think one must strive for. So here it goes....

In the summer of 1995, I had three simple dreams for life. I dreamed that I would never be a manager. I dreamed that I would have just one manger for life. And I dreamed that my professional peers would be a tiny number. I am not joking. This is all I thought I wanted to make my life simple and easy.

I never wanted to be a manager. Managers, according to me, were excel-and-outlook creatures. They had no idea what they wanted. They would talk at 20,000 feet during performance appraisals. They would never give you the right guidance and always butted into meetings with half-baked knowledge.

This is what I thought & that is why I did not want to be a manager. What happened in my life however was something else. A year into my first job, I was a team lead managing four people. Over time, my teams grew – and at one point, the size crossed 100. Performance appraisals came along & so did the drama in them. To paraphrase Calvin in Calvin & Hobbes, I had transmogrified into that very excel-and-outlook monster. One particularly instructive moment occurred during a skip level meeting. I asked my team what their problems were. Two hands went up. One said there was no dustbin under his desk. The other wanted Britannia Orange Cream in the break-room instead of the boring Marie. 10 years after B-school, I was dealing with biscuits & dustbins.

I also wanted just one manager for life. I planned to understand the idiosyncrasies, wants and warts of just this person. I would then ensure that this one soul is so happy that he/she would completely forget about me and not disturb me.

Again, what happened in my life was something else. Over the past 15 years, I have had 12 managers. Some lasted only 3 months. And yes - when some of them transitioned out, they did not pass feedback about me to the next person.

My final dream was to have very few peers. I had no issues with friends, but peers were different. I had no intention of figuring when I must be a team player in one year so that my teaming skills would be rated better and when I must be an initiative taker during the other so that my personal leadership skills score higher.

Again, what happened again was something else. Over time, my peers multiplied. I was pulled into strange things like hardware budgets and facility movements. At every level, I felt I was moving away from my core and farther from my dream.

Now… most of you would be able to relate to some - or all - of what I am saying. We all want to remain - if possible - a little more technical or a little more functional or to put it bluntly, a little less manager. And when something outside the 'mainstream' sprouts, we get uncomfortable. Well, I am now going to puncture some of your balloons. Whether you like it or not, each one of you is going to be a manager in a few years, if not already one. Excel movies in vivid color are coming soon to a theater near you. While you try to grapple with what you must do with your lives, there will be 10 people reporting to you who will want career advice. Your managers will forget to fill all data points in your appraisal - and so will you.

But let me now tell you a few secrets that will show you that all is indeed well even if your path leads you into becoming a manager. I looked at enormously successful people in similar situations and noticed that they did not complain. They did not let their environment affect them. They understood that there was always something meaningful to create in every situation. And lastly, they developed tons of patience over time. No, they were not aimless in life. They were clear what they wanted. But they had struck that right balance - a balance that enabled them to be focused, yet flexible, in a manner that they would achieve what they wanted regardless of the path. They taught me that true balance was in keeping the journey as meaningful as the destination.
 
That's it for 2010 folks. Thank you all for your support and feedback this year. Wish you a very Happy & Wonderful 2011. I travel next week to the US (my first in 6 years) & will post again after a month or so. Until then, please keep those comments coming.

My first official blog....

One thing that attracted me to Infosys was their expectation that I blog frequently on supply chain topics. Well... my first blog that came out over the weekend can be read here. Do let me know your thoughts.

Julian Assange is a hero !!! REALLY?

It's that time of the year when the countdown begins for the announcement of Time Magazine's Person of the Year. See here an earlier post on the winner four years ago.

Some intro to PoY (from Wikipedia): The 'Person of the Year' features and profiles a person, couple, group, idea, place, or machine that "for better or for worse, ...has done the most to influence the events of the year." It must be noted that we live in a world that is optimistic and forward looking and works on making things better. Hence, even though a person/machine/idea that has influenced the world 'for worse' could technically make it as a PoY, the reality is that the magazine goes with those that make the world a better place. [Just in case you don't believe me, look up the PoY winner of 2001. It was not Osama bin Laden but Rudy Giuliani, then Mayor of New York for his fantastic response to the attacks & pulling the city together. Saddam Hussein likewise has never made it to the list. The last known 'bad guy' was Josef Stalin, winner circa 1942.]

So why am I bringing out the good guy/bad guy analogy? Because say what you want, Julian Assange is a BAD influence. I am completely certain Assange won't make it, but I can't believe that people think of him as a hero & that he currently leads online polls for winning the PoY of 2010 (note: the judges at Time do not use online poll results in deciding the winner).

Why don't I like Julian Assange? Well, what possible good can come out of leaking to the public the thoughts of US diplomats regarding other countries? To those who say that we need to know what the US thinks of us, I would say 'Think Again'. We are talking diplomacy here, not your street corner kabbadi game. Statecraft is played by grownups who know how the machinery of the world must be oiled. You & I don't. These players don't take barbs and baits to heart. You & I will. I really don't care what the US thinks of India in these cables because I know fully well that India will also think of the USA in a similar manner in its cables (hopefully they never come to light). Lest you think I am a mouthpiece of 'American policy', I urge you to check the term 'Arthashastra' on Wikipedia. Our own Chanakya outlined the very same principles centuries ago that USA is today accused of practicing. These principles are a political reality. So let's stop feeling offended.

Also, I don't like blackmailers. Period. Currently, some of the info posted online by WikiLeaks is redacted (in other words, some key points are blackened by WikiLeaks before publishing so that security interests are not compromised). Assange has threatened to release the password to his original data should his life be made miserable. Since when have blackmailers been considered heroes?

Lastly, there is a good likelihood that people will get harmed. WikiLeaks may post a cable without much editing because it doesn't think much of it. But a different entity might use this information for nefarious purposes - and act in a negative manner against certain people.

So folks out there who think he is a hero.... please think again. David vs. Goliath is always an inspirational & heart tugging story, but when our Mr. Julian 'David' Assange is wrong & unstable, you must root for the Goliath.

And my preference for the PoY 2010? See here for the list of nominees. I am personally partial to Robert Gates for his outstanding work over the past 3+ years as the Secretary of Defense. But if I were to bet, I would go with Steve Jobs for his success with the iPad at the top of the list followed by a joint second between Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook and the trio of Elizabeth Warren, Mary Schapiro and Sheila Bair for their work during 2010 in cleaning the cobwebs of the US financial system & bringing it on track.

We'll soon know.

Lessons from my Suresh Kalmadi Moments

In my previous post, I had given a brief on Toastmasters & mentioned about the Infosys Toastmasters Club (ITMC). Incidentally, ITMC is the longest running club at Infosys today.

My first speech below was given a month ago at the ITMC. This was before the Commonwealth Games had begun, and Suresh Kalmadi was in the news for his bumbling buffoonery & meaningless mouthfuls.

Before you get into the speech, you may want to check here for the objectives of Speech One (The Icebreaker) at Toastmasters. This speech is about introducing yourself, talking about your personal history, values & interests – all woven into a nice story. Essentially, breaking the ice. Now to the speech....

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Suresh Kalmadi & I have just one thing in common. We don't think before opening our mouth. For too long, I have suffered from the perpetual foot-in-the-mouth syndrome, and it has taken me an extraordinary effort to realize that I must stop talking and start listening. However, over the course of today's speech, I will prove to you that certain Suresh Kalmadi moments are indeed fine – provided they fall under certain precise conditions.

When your father is a banker and your mom is a music teacher and you are the only child, frankly, you are screwed. There is no way you can outclass your dad when it comes to the world of finance, and you can't beat your mom when it comes to music. However, since you move from city to town every three years due to your dad's transferable job, you realize you must adapt. You realize that if you don't go out of your way to make new friends, you will be left behind at school. You realize that if your neighborhood has no kids your age, the best way to kill time is to start playing games against yourself. (Of course, doing so has its advantages. You always win in chess even if the rulebook says that a rook can never travel diagonally. :-)). But you also realize to give people the cold shoulder. “Oh, you are the only child. What is it that you want to do when you grow up?” Until today, I have never understood the connection between being the only child and my life plans. And more importantly, you don't appreciate such personal questions when you stand 35th in a class of 37 :D.

Luckily, I found my interest. Initially, it was Biology in general, and Genetics in particular. However, while completing my B.Sc in Genetics from Hyderabad and an MBA in Marketing & Finance, I developed a passion towards software and computers. It dawned upon me that Logic was my calling.

That, Ladies & Gentlemen, is my first Suresh Kalmadi lesson for the day. Only if your father is a banker and you are the only child and you somehow want to create academic linkages between the world of Genetics, the world of Management and the world of Computers.... don't think, just do it, you will be fine.

Baan Company in 1996 was my first employer. From then on until I joined Infosys a few weeks ago as a Principal Consultant with the Supply Chain Practice, life has been one professional blur. Software engineer, support analyst, business analyst, implementation consultant, delivery manager, project manager.... the roles have been diverse & enriching. Excellence & integrity are what I hold dear, and reading – and occasional blogging – are my interests. But what I remember the most of my professional years is something else. A few days after the tragedy of Sept. 11, 2001, my client indicated that there was no budget to continue with me on the project, but asked if I was willing to travel to Chicago. Loading everything I had in the backseat of my Camry and with no cell phone, I drove the 2200 miles alone from California to Chicago in 3.5 days. For those of you who have never done a long roadtrip before and contemplating one, I would say “Do it”. There is so much you learn from the kindness of strangers and fellow road travelers.

That, Toastmasters & Guests, is my second Suresh Kalmadi lesson for the day. Only if your father is a banker and you are the only child and you want to create academic linkages and want to take up varied roles in your career.... don't think, just do it, you will be fine.

But every kahani has a twist, that lurking danger, that roadside bomb you must watch for. Here is mine and it happened several years ago. A few months after getting married, my wife asked me just what is it about her that made me decide to marry her. It was a loaded question – and I completely missed it. I looked at her, I looked to the ground, I looked at her and I looked to the ground. I talked, and talked, and blabbered, and talked. My verbal diarrhea lasted a full 10 minutes. Until today, I don't remember a single word of what I said. Until today, she remembers every word of what I said.

That, Ladies & Gentlemen, is my final Suresh Kalmadi lesson for the day. Even if your father is a banker and you are the only child and you want to do so many things in life.... if you can't give your wife a romantic answer on why you are marrying her.... please think, don't just do it because you will not be fine.

Thank you.

Toastmasters International

Toastmasters International is a non-profit organization focused towards developing and enhancing public speaking skills. I had come across some of their videos of accomplished speakers a few years ago and was blown by their delivery, diction & style. Every city around the world will have a Toastmasters club that meets weekly and where public speaking is practiced, honed and critiqued. With 12500 clubs in 113 countries over 260,000 members, it is the best forum out there to develop public speaking.

One of the first things I noticed upon joining Infosys a few months ago was that they had a Toastmasters club. Sufficiently piqued, I started attending the Infosys Toastmasters Club (ITMC) meetings as a guest and then transitioned to a full-time member recently. I would strongly advocate becoming a member. What you learn in these meetings is the structured approach towards being a better speaker. Every new member is given a starter kit that outlines the specifics. And the best part? Every time you walk up on stage and speak, someone in the audience observes you & provides feedback. Together, we all grow into better public speakers.

You can learn about Toastmasters here.