Living Life with Positivity

Stephen Hawking was 21 when he was diagnosed with a rare motor neuron disease that made him wheelchair-bound and having to talk through a computerised voice. He is now 73 and one of the foremost physicists alive. His advice to people with disability is,  "concentrate on things that your disability doesn't prevent you doing well and don't regret the things it interferes with. Don't be disabled in spirit, as well as physically."

#MyLearning
Life throws many challenges at us. Some we overcome successfully and others we have to cope with. Focusing on things we can do and control, and attempting to push the boundaries on them without fear, can help us be positive in mind and spirit.

Leaders Build Cultures

Warren Buffett has often noted that you build a reputation over years and decades, but you destroy it in a blink of an eye,. Well, Volkswagen just blinked.
The most critical work of an incoming CEO may be to rebuild and overhaul the culture where this sort of deception occurred, says Charles Elson, a governance expert.

#Viewpoint
The Volkswagen case is a rude reminder of the role leaders in creating organizational culture. Employee performance is a function of assumptions & behaviours leaders encourage, promote, or turn a blind eye to. And these assumptions and behaviours drive the results.

4 Ways Leisure Pursuits Can Provide a ROI

 “I’ve realized that somebody who is tired and needs rest, and goes on working all the same”, is a fool” - Carl Jung.

We live in a highly competitive world where employees have high material and professional aspirations. Many work at jobs that demand global business interactions, which keep them up at unearthly hours. To them any leisure activity may only seem at best like a dream, or worst, an unproductive use of time. Not just that, but any mention or suggestion to spend time on them, is likely to elicit a response such as the one below

Carl Jung's words notwithstanding.

But what if they knew that leisure activities could teach them valuable skills which could be assets to them in other their work, as well as other dimensions of their lives? What if they realized that the returns on them could be disproportionate to the amount of time invested?  Would it then make it a worthwhile investment for them?

Well, 'show me the ROIers', (and also others) read on and decide for yourself: 
1. ROI: Leadership and Negotiations Skills
Activity: Essaji Vahanavati, son of former Attorney General of India is a young partner at a reputed law firm. He is passionate about wildlife photography. Benefits: His leisure activity has ingrained in him the virtues of patience; given him an eye for detail; and taught him to stay cool in critical situations. During transactions, he can patiently wait for others to put their point on the table and at the same time quickly grasp the matter and come out with solutions. This has earned him the respect of senior partners at the law firm.

2. ROI: Importance of Making the Journey the Destination

Activity: World Bank economist Kaushik Basu spent his leisure time working on a longer method to prove what Pythagoras proved 2600 years ago. In a right angle triangle, the sum of the square of two sides equals the square of the hypotenuse.  
Benefits: To justify the new and longer proof,  he invokes the Greek poem Ithaca, which describes the long journey to Odysseus' home island. The island,  the poet Cavafy says, is disappointing, but Ithaca's charm is in the journey itself.

3. ROI: Patience
Activity: Stock market man Ramesh Damani has a thing for dough which made him seek out baking and attend a week's bakery course in Paris. 
Benefit: Asked for the similarity between brokers and bakers, Damani's reply is, "Both like the feel of dough....and both (investment and baking) need a lot of patience."

4. ROI: Inspiration

Activity: For geniuses, a routine was more than a luxury - it was essential for their work. Charles Dickens took three hour walks every afternoon, while Beethoven took lengthy strolls after lunch.

Benefits: For Charles Dickens what he observed on his walks, fed directly into his writing, while Beethoven carried a paper and pencil with him in case inspiration struck. 

Call to Action
Leisure activities can be both both satisfying and capable of building and honing useful skills and virtues. Discovering the parts between your profession and your hobbies which are similar, or support the other can help you get satisfying returns.

Dealing with Complex Times

During his childhood days, says Sri Lankan PM Ranil Wickramasinghe, having a phone connection was considered a status symbol and since his family was influential, they soon had two telephones which further elevated their status.  Now, he says, things have changed in his country and he is the only one in the family who does not have a cellphone.

#Learning
Life is becoming more complex, and every new technology, tool or device has it's uses - ranging from improved efficiency to increased self-esteem. Asking ourself why and what questions on the benefits of ownership can save us money, time and stress.

Enjoy the Journey

World Bank economist Kaushik Basu has found another new and longer method to prove what Pythagoras proved 2600 years ago - that in a right angle triangle, the sum of the square of two sides equals the square of the hypotenuse.

#Learning
"I treat this as my hobby.  I do it for fun", says Basu. To justify the new and longer proof,  he invokes the Greek poem Ithaca, which describes the long journey to Odysseus' home island. The island,  the poet Cavafy says, is disappointing, but Ithaca's charm is in the journey itself.

Commit to the Process

In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna advises to not let the fruit of action be our motive. Cartoonist Scott Adams, puts it as committing to a process, and not a goal.

Karl - John Persson,  CEO of H&M, may have that thought in mind when asked about his brand's targets for India. He said, "We never say, 'Let's reach amounts of stores or this sales target.' We want to deliver something fantastic for the customer. If we do that well,  the selling will come."

Leander Paes too must have thought along similar lines when he shared that all he does with doubles partner Martina Hingis is to keep her happy and relaxed. The tennis takes care of itself to produce wins such as the Wimbledon doubles championship.

Daily Fundamentals

“Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.” - Zen Saying

The message, according to college lacrosse coach John Brubaker is that consistent execution of fundamentals over time is the key to success. In ancient times you chopped wood to make fire and carried water for drinking; and if you didn’t, you wouldn’t survive, never mind thrive. What are the high-value fundamentals you yourself must execute daily to ensure prosperity? Possible examples are:
^ Responding to all emails the same day they come in.
^ Returning all phone calls by the close of business that day
^ Waking up and going to bed at the same time
^ Exercising daily during lunch hour

So what are your preferred 'chop and carry' fundamentals?

The Path of Four-Way Wins

Stewart Friedman, founding director of Wharton's Leadership Program and the Work/Life Integration Project,  recommends pursuing the path of four-way wins. The path comprises practical steps to making things demonstrably better in four domains of of our life,  at work,  at home, in our community and our private life. To begin, do a quick  review to explore: what's important to you,  where you focus your attention and how things are going in each of the four domains. Use some of the the thoughts and experiences of the people given below, help to generate ideas for experiments to better align what matters to you to what you actually do. Design experiments in which you are deliberately aiming to improve your performance and results in each of the four domains.

    1.   Expand your Knowledge

Scott Adams, creator of Dilbert cartoons, believes, every adult must have working knowledge of; Public speaking, Psychology, Business writing, Accountancy, Design (the basics), Conversation, Overcoming shyness, Second language, Proper grammar, Persuasion, Technology (hobby level) and Proper voice technique.

       2.   Declutter you Mind

"To compose, I need to be happy and to have free mind space, " says A.R. Rahman the Oscar winning music composer, and Leander Paes, winner of the US Open Mixed Doubles title along with Martina Hingis says, "if I can keep Martina happy,  if I can keep her relaxed,  the tennis I don't even have to worry about. "

Focusing our motivation results in our single-minded immersion and harnessing of our emotions into performing and learning. The emotions are not just contained and channeled, but positive, energized, and aligned with the task at hand.

     3.     Dance with your Emotions
"A relationship is like a dance,  says Indian classical dancer Anita Ratnam, "sometimes you are close, sometimes you pull away;  there is passion, anger and forgiveness;  and much like a dance,  the relationship will end one day." 

Every relationship has its share of a range of emotions - most, if not all are impermanent, changing with time, context and our personal and mental growth. Let us make the best of our relationships in our time in the world.

     4.    Accept the Past

"Not surprisingly,  I find myself thinking about that slippery substance - the past - and the infinite variety of human attempts to make peace with it.  The impulse to freeze it into tradition,  to tame into verity,  these are common options.  But just as readily available is that other inconvenient choice,  so seldom exercised - the choice to wonder at it,  too accept it's essential non- graspability." Arundhati Subramaniam in book review of Keki N Daruwala's book Fire Altar in HT

      5.   Accept your Ignorance

"Belief means something that you do not know. You want to assume and bring a certainty to something that you do not know. says Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev.  "That means you are concretising your ignorance.  There is no need to know everything.  What I know, I know. What I do not know I do not know."

       6.    Establish a Routine

For geniuses, a routine was more than a luxury - it was essential for their work…Charles Dickens took three hours walks every afternoon - and what he observed on them fed directly into his writing. Tchaikovsky made do with two hour walks, but wouldn’t return a moment early, convinced that cheating himself of the full 120 minutes would make him ill. Beethoven took lengthy strolls after lunch, carrying a paper and pencil with him in case inspiration struck. Ernest Hemingway tracked his daily word output on a chart “so as not to kid myself”. Arthur Miller said, “I don't believe in draining the reservoir you see? I believe in getting up from the typewriter, away from it,  while I have still things to say.” 

        7.    Measure What You Can Control

Film director Ashutosh Gowarikar's advice to  actor Abhishek Bacchan - do not measure your success by how your film fares at the box office - because that is not within your control.  Measure your success by how you fared with the goals you set yourself for the film. Their success is within your control.

         8.     Be Resilient
"The hardest time to Captain the team is when your are not scoring runs and that's when your character and of leader you are outweighs your own form. The team needs the Captain to be a strong person who enjoys other people's success and sees the bigger picture. " Brendon McCullum, New Zealand skipper.

         9.      Create Lasting Emotional Bonds 

"In every situation, says Deepak Chopra, make it a habit to ask the key questions of emotional intelligence: How do I feel? How do they feel? What are the hidden stumbling blocks? A leader who can answer these questions will be in a position to create lasting emotional bonds.” 

Call to Action

The result of undertaking the practice of the four-way win is a greater sense of control and freedom living in ways that are consistent with what you're passionate about, what you really care about. When people take even a small step that's under their control, that's intentional and that's in a direction that they choose, they feel better about their lives and about the people they're affecting with their actions on a daily basis.

Focused Motivation

"To compose, I need to be happy and to have free mind space, " says A.R. Rahman the Oscar winning music composer. While Leander Paes, who won the US Open Mixed Doubles title along with Martina Hingis says, "if I can keep Martina happy,  if I can keep her relaxed,  the tennis I don't even have to worry about. "

#MyLearning
Focusing our motivation results in our single-minded immersion and harnessing of our emotions into performing and learning. The emotions are not just contained and channeled, but positive, energized, and aligned with the task at hand.

Power of Intention

It was my son Sooraj's 12th birthday and I was feeling guilty that I had to attend an urgent meeting out of town.  So, I was at the Delhi airport. My flight had been announced but the since the queue was long,  I decided to continue to wait for some time.

Finally, the queue had thinned and I rose from my seat.  Just then I spied a tall imposing man with a shawl wrapped around his shoulders striding regally towards a seat. It was superstar Amithab Bachhan! The last of the passengers had walked out of the gate to board the plane, just then, a thought struck me;  why not I take Amitji's autograph as a gift to Sooraj? I quickly retraced my steps and headed towards where Amitji was sitting.  But my țhroat was dry and my steps faltering!  I seemed to have been struck by a sudden bout of nervousness! Regardless,  I went up to him, and croaked, "Sir, could you give me your autograph? " and stuck out a piece of paper from my pocket. "Certainly", he said. "... and please say,  happy birtday,  Sooraj, as your message*. He duly wrote the message and handed it back to me with a smile. 

On my return a few days later,  I gifted this 'special message for Sooraj from Amithab Bachhan" to him He was very happy! I do not know whether Sooraj still preserves that piece of paper,  but I still preserve the memory of it. For it demonstrated to me that if your power of intent is strong and emotional ( guilt of being not present on son's birthday), one can overcome one's weaknesses ( my terrible nervousness! ).

Money Matters

For Donald Trump, money is a way of keeping score.
For film producer director Karan Johar, money is a resource to make a bigger, better film.
For actress Karena Kapoor, money is security - money in the bank.

#Reflection
What does money mean to you?

Size Doesn't Matter

In the human body,
the large intestine weighs 1.8 kg,
a lung weighs in at 1.13 kg,
liver: 1.5 kg,
brain: 1.7 kg.
But the heart weighs only 0.3 kg

#MyLearning
Size doesn't matter - your contribution does

Contemplation

There is no escalator to the top of the spiritual peak. It is a step-by-step journey within, shaped by nidhidhyasana, or contemplation of our daily experiences, and insights from it.

Evolution of a Leader

Acording to LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman, a CEOs skills and responsibilities need to evolve according to the size and needs of the company:
Small company
(1 to 50 or100 people, depending on industry)
# build a strong team
# work on a few clearly defined problems
# focus on establishing company's identity

Medium company
(50 or 100 to 500 or 1000)
# focus on process and organization
# setting new set of priorities
# training employees on how to meet new goals

Large company
(500 or 1000+)
# focus on leading company strategy
# developing and maintaining corporate culture
# creating  appropriate structure for company
# ensuring right people in essential  roles
# making the most important hires
# empowering employees to meet their goals

5 Stolen Recipes to Do and Become

A recipe has no soul, You as the cook, must bring soul to the recipe.” - Thomas Keller, chef, writer, restaurateur.

Every artist gets asked the question, "Where do you get your ideas?" The honest artist answers, "I steal them."

Here are a 5 stolen life recipes to which I have added my soul (aka my learning spin) to;

1. Adapt to the times

Restaurateurs today, realising that food is not the only carrot drawing diners in are giving more emphasis to the design and giving their places a makeover. Attention is being paid to the decor, layout, music. lighting, the clean fragrance (of herbs or fresh coffee and bread or wood charring in a clay oven) comely staff. All of which come together very nicely to pull in the customers. Ultimately however, as Chef Solomon says, as good as the decor maybe, it will be the food which will pull in the customer.  

Know when to focus on targets, when to pay attention to emotions and when to focus on the changing needs of customers. Be sensitive to the ecosystem and respond accordingly, taking care to never forget your essence.

2. Connect to the environment

When we think of the word 'food', we only think of nutrition, says chef Pankaj Walia. But the truth is our connection with food is deep and spiritual; something that our ancestors realised and respected. Archaeology professor Dr Kurush Dalal recommends slow cooking to establish the connection. Slow cooking, he says, recognises the connection between plate, people, planet and culture; things we have forgotten to correlate these days while munching on fast food."

People, planet and culture - each, some, or all three, are integral to our every action. Recognising the connection between our actions and their impact on the three, can help us become more conscious and connected to our environment.

 3. Connect to the Universe

“You’ll find a sense of calm overtaking you as soon as you pray or sprinkle water around your food before your meal," says Prof. Kurush Dalal. That time - even if it is for a split second - makes you appreciate the world, its wonders and the food on your table. It connects you with the Universe.”

Ritual or ceremony is a celebration, a tradition. Through these rites we re-live, re-enact, honor, remember, and call forth ancient spiritual teachings, tradition and divine spirits. Studies show that they are good for people’s physical and mental well-being. They help make life seem predictable, under control, and meaningful.

4. Have a hobby

Money isn't  the only thing stock market man Ramesh Damani kneads. He has a thing for dough which made him seek out baking and attend a week's bakery course in Paris. Asked for the similarity between brokers and bakers, Damani's reply is, "Both like the feel of dough....and both (investment and baking) need a lot of patience."

A hobby is an echo of the soul, and if you are following your heart, so can be your profession. Seek answers within, discover the parts between your profession and your hobbies which are similar, or support the other.

6. Play your cards wisely

"I realised my face was never going to be my fortune," says  Prahlad Kakkar, ad guru. "(So) I decided to impress ladies by tickling their palate - good food, full-bodied wine, candlelight and my storytelling powers are a lethal combination.  It has always worked. Food is much more than fuel for your body."

Remember what Randy Pausch said, "we cannot change the cards we are dealt with, just how we play the hand."

CALL TO ACTION

Now that you have a bunch of recipes to choose from, make your choice, put the ingredients of your choice into the pot, marinate in a thick sauce of motivation for a few days. Then light the fire of your passion, stir in a good dose of determination and serve. 

Bon Apetit!

Buzz Off Buzz Words!

Carter Murray, the CEO of ad agency FCB, makes for an unusual CEO.  He hates buzzwords. Something that many of his contemporaries appear to find comfort and meaning in.  Murray calls them "completely wanky, corporate rubbish speak." He can't stand the stuff. Asked how he gets by as CEO with such distaste for industry jargon,  Murray says,  "We are in the business of understanding people and advising clients on how to connect with them. I find it strange that we hide behind the corporate lingo."

#Reflect
Am I a jargon buster or a Jargon Morgan?

Values Based Leadership

Narayan Murthy,  when asked what management ideas influenced him on his journey with Infosys, replied that more than management ideas, he "set store in values:fairness,accountability, transparency. The rest then fall into place." Citing an instance of fairness, which says you have to provide equal opportunity, he says he once had four women direct reports - an instance of diversity,  which flourishes in such an environment.

Call to #action
Which of my values are reflected in my leadership?

Leap From The Comfort Zone

A king received a gift of two magnificent falcons and called in his head falconer to train them. Some months later the head falconer informed the king that though one of the falcons was flying, the other had not moved from its branch since the day it had arrived. The king summoned the best healers and sorcerers and healers to tend to the falcon, but no one could make the bird fly. Having tried everything else, the king decided to call in someone familiar with the countryside - a farmer. In the morning, the king was thrilled to see the falcon soaring high in the sky. He immediately ordered his courtiers to bring him the doer of this miracle. When the farmer arrived,  the king asked him, "How did you make the falcon fly?" " It was very easy, your highness, the farmer replied  I simply cut the branch of the tree where the bird was sitting."

#My Learning
I am most comfortable in my comfort zones because within it, I can operate with certainty and least risk. Can I take the leap?

Wise Leadership

In the week in August that saw more than $1 trillion wiped out from the Asian markets making people around the world jittery, a memo went out from the CEO of Starbucks Howard Schultz. The email to his employees urging them to be more sensitive to anxious customers, said,"Today's financial market volatility, combined with great uncertainty both at and abroad,  will undoubtedly have an effect on consumer confidence and perhaps even or customers'attitudes and behavior...Let's be very sensitive to the pressures our customers may be feeling, and do everything we can to individually and collectively exceed their expectations."

Wise leaders care for the needs and feelings of their people and customers. Their sensitivity makes them to respond at the right time and in the right way. In turn, people and customers return their gratitude, by helping wise leaders make their enterprise a success.

Leading Under Pressure

"It is harder to lead when you are not scoring runs but that is when your character and fighting qualities as a leader come out. " - Brendon McCullum, New Zealand skipper on leading from the front.

Play Your Cards Right

I realised my face was never going to be my fortune,  I decided to impress ladies by tickling their palate - good food, full-bodied wine, candlelight and my storytelling powers are a lethal combination.  It has always worked. - Prahlad Kakkar, ad guru.

#MyLearning
Reminded of what Randy Pausch said, "we cannot change the cards we are dealt with, just how we play the hand."

9 Thoughts to Craft The Leader In You

Though much of the art and science of leadership remains unchanged over time, it needs to be crafted to suit the needs of the current environment. The following stories of contemporary leaders and views of leadership gurus, should give you food for thought to craft your individual leadership style and craft it to suit your time and context.. 

1.Reinvent Yourself  

"Companies fail or are successful because they either get or miss market transitions", says John Chambers, CEO and Chairman of Cisco. ..."What Cisco has done is that we compete on market transitions, not against competitors...We have reinvented ourselves five times"

Reinventing is not a necessary evil to be undertaken to undertake to survive. Being inquisitive - a hankering to learn new things, can lead to seeing the world of work as an opportunity and make it easier to adapt - a quality essential in the present times.

2 Give your people permission to fail

"One of the saddest things that happen with creativity...I think sometimes it isn't expressed because of fear," says Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel. "Everyone is born very very creative. But at some point it can be scary to do something new." To overcome this fear, Snapchat encourages the idea of 'failing fast', since it's better that those failures happen in private before being released on users.

3.Play for Win-Win

Unlike Steve Ballmer, Satya Nadella is clear that times have changed and he is taking tough decisions. For him,  competition is not a zero sum game. Just because Android wins does not mean Microsoft loses.  If Android wins great. I'll also put Office 365 on Android so it can be a win - win,  it doesn't have to be a win - lose.

3. Make the right life choices

"There is nothing like work-life balance, there is only one life", believes Padmasree Warrior, former CTSO of Cisco. Bhaskar Pramanik, Chairman Of Microsoft India, agrees with her wholeheartedly. "You live life the way you want it. Life is about choices," he say

4.Practice brevity in communication

A Microsoft research reports that the average person's attention span is just 8 seconds, a second less than that of a goldfish.  For humans it used to be 12 seconds in 2000. Abundant reason why CEOs and you and me, need to communicate well internally and externally in the most effective manner.

5. Surround yourself with the best people

Leslie Gaines-Ross, Chief Reputation Strategist usually gets involved worn CEOS in their first 100 days  that they  build up their credibility quickly. And this what she tells them, in that order - listen to customers, surround yourself with the best senior management and communicate with the board.

6. Make your knowledge 'future ready'
"Half-life of knowledge is getting shorter and shorter with new breakthrough technologies and discoveries," says Management Guru Jagdish Seth, Management guru.."Therefore old perspectives and evidence are no longer relevant.We need to develop or discover new perspectives which are suitable for tomorrow's world"

7. Tailor your communication to the audience

Mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik explains how in the Gita, there is a three way communication between Krishna the speaker, and three receivers; Arjuna, the seeker of knowledge, Sanjay the transmitter of the knowledge  and Dhritirashtra, who is eager to know only the fate of his sons. This, Devdutt observes, is aimed to draw attention to the complexity of any communication. Are people around you interested in what you are saying (Arjuna),  are they merely memorising (Sanjay), or are they just disinterested or even suspicious (Dhritirashtra)? 

Tailor your communication accordingly.

8. Be Considerate of your people

On his last journey from Guwahati to Shillong for a speaking engagement, the late president's car was being escorted in front by three soldiers travelling in a Gypsy. Seeing one of them standing throughout the journey, Kalam repeatedly asked his aide to request him to sit down, but his aide was not able to get him on the phone. At the end of the journey, Kalam invited the soldier to his room, shook hands with him, thanked him and enquired whether he had eaten.

9. Appreciate - Motivate

Debutant Actress Ruhi Singh says, "When you enter the sets of (film director) Madhur Bhandarkar's film, you hear words like 'jalwa' (charisma/luster/ splendor) and 'aag laga de' (be on fire) which is a driving force for us. I had to shoot a waterfall sequence in the night, and it was freezing cold. But I could only do it because (Madhur) makes sure everyone feels comfortable before filming." 


Call To Action
Time to craft your own leadership recipe? Set the fire going!

Saying it like it could be!

In his autobiography restaurateur Vithal Kamat describes strategies he used to attract customers to his newly started Udupi restaurant. Lining up his friend’s cars outside his restaurants - many of them also sitting inside as dummy customers to create a perception of a busy restaurant. Wafting smell of fresh ground coffee and food in the restaurant to titillate and tempt customers. All strategies to create the perception of the amazing experience waiting for customers inside.

#Viewpoint
Greg Creed, CEO Yumi Brands says, "you can market to love and hate,  you cannot market to indifference.

Communicate to Motivate

Debutant Actress Ruhi Singh says, "When you enter the sets of (film director) Madhur Bhandarkar's film, you hear words like 'jalwa' (charisma/luster/ splendor) and 'aag laga de' (be on fire) which is a driving force for us. I had to shoot a waterfall sequence in the night, and it was freezing cold. But I could only do it because (Madhur) makes sure everyone feels comfortable before filming. "

#Viewpoint
Good leaders communicate to #motivate. They channelise the desire and energy of their people to achieve things they know must be done for mutual success.

1+5 Ways to Be The Complete Hu(Man)

The advertisement of a well-known suiting and shirting company assures us that wearing garments made from their fabrics will make you 'the complete man'. But completeness is not complete by only wearing smart clothes. Clothes, and something more go into making the complete (hu) man.

The 5 stories I have gathered suggest some ways of going about making ourselves more complete.

1. Invoke the Universal Power
When Saurabh Kochhar of Foodpanda approached mentor Praveen Sinha in putting putting together a business plan, the latter's advice was ' epic '. He suggested that after creating a business plan, scale it down by 20 %. Consider it " God's share, " for hoping things go well, said Sinha. 

2. Have a healthy ego
"My profession demands that unless I bury conceit, I will not be able perform," says actor Kay Kay Menon. "Today people seem to prioritise ego and call it acting.
The film industry is just a part of my life, I have other interests like sports and reading. I try to understand the inner me and not bother much about the superficial me," 

3.Keep an open mind
An open mind and a willingness to expose oneself to new experiences, new ideas and new people is the fuel of creativity. When he painted ‘Femme D’Algiers”, Picasso took visual information and emotional understanding of his life experiences and transformed them into something unique and unexpected. His creation is now the most valuable painting in history. 
Creativity transforms information into more insight, a better picture of our world, and therefore a more solid foundation on which to build bigger, better ideas.

4. Starve your doubts
When he first approached his boss at Kuoni India, with the idea of offering visa processing services to the American embassy in 2001, Zubin Karkaria met with understandable skepticism. Their was the toughest visa regime, with more processes and documentation than any other country. But Kuoni had nothing to lose in letting Karkaria try, and when he did submit the proposal - the Americans said yes! Today, the visa services operation has turned into a global money spinner. 

5. Maximize your mind’s potential
“Your mind is like a sponge, and less filled it is with muck, the greater the capacity of it to absorb water,” Says Ajit Doval, National Security Advisor. “Keep your mind out of petty jealousies like who is doing what and who is talking about what. You are taking away the tremendous capacity of your mind. You don’t know how much talent and energy it is sucking out of you.” 

Call to Action
The said suiting company also offers bespoke tailoring at its showrooms. You might want to tailor some of the above strategies to suit you. Do share your efforts with us.

Goal Alignment

Lenovo's roots have been as an enterprise focused B2B business. But now, with growth happening more in the smartphone space than in the PC space, they have realised that if you have a B2B mindset and B2B structure, you cannot succeed in the B2C space. To give itself a youthful look, Lenovo's formal dress code, reserved parking space and cabins for senior managers have been done away with,  All senior managers have also been asked to be on Twitter to get a better understanding on how millennials think.

#MyLearning
For success in  work and life, align what you have with what you want.

Adapt or Perish

Restaurateurs today, realising that food is not the only carrot drawing diners in are giving more emphasis to the design and giving their places a makeover. Attention is being paid to the decor, layout, music. lighting, the clean fragrance (of herbs or fresh coffee and bread or wood charring in a clay oven) comely staff. All of which come together very nicely to pull in the customers.

#MyLearning
Adaptability is one quality that is key to success.  Know when to focus on targets, when to pay attention to emotions and when to focus on the changing needs of customers. Being sensitive to the ecosystem and responding as per need the need of the time is the essence of adaptivity.

Starve your doubts. Believe

When he first approached his boss at Kuoni India, with the idea of offering visa processing services to the American embassy in 2001, Zubin Karkaria met with understandable skepticism. Theirs was the toughest visa regime, with more processes and documentation than any other country. But Kuoni had nothing to lose in letting Karkaria  try, and when he did submit the proposal - the Americans said yes! Today, the visa services operation has turned into a global money spinner. It has captured 50% share of the market and contributes to 60% of Kuoni’s FY14 profits.

Share Offering

When Saurabh Kochhar of Foodpanda approached mentor Praveen Sinha to put together a business plan, the latter's advice was 'epic'. He suggested that after creating a business plan, scale it down by 20%. Consider it "God's share," for hoping things go well, said Sinha.

The Data Continuum

The seemingly unlimited data available to us nowadays, seduces easily into an illusion of certainty and objectivity, says Jason Gonsalves, MD, BBH London. But ultimately, data will only provide a description of what has happened. Not what will. The alternative is to look at the available data and come to an original conclusion, or imagine a new application or action from the data. Data is the fuel of creativity. Creative execution and constant reflection on the learning becomes wisdom.

5 Ways to Never Give Up

What do you do when a project you have invested everything on - your blood, sweat, tears, mind and heart - proves to be a failure? Why, just get up, dust yourself and get going again, of course! Here are five stories I have gathered of how some people did it. 
1. Take pride in past success
Dustin Brown ranked 102, on beating Rafael Nadal at Wimbledon, but losing his very next match to Viktor Troicki. 
"It doesn't matter if I lost or not, no will ever be able to take that (beating Nadal) away from me."

2. Respect failure
Howard Schultz after a major setback at Starbucks.
"Celebrate failure, learn from the failures, and not hide from mistakes". He also spoke of the bottle of Mazagran, a coffee drink he helped launch in the 90's. It proved be a spectacular failure. He now keeps a bottle of the drink on his table, to remind him to do a reality check on his success when he's up, and equally - never give up, when he's down. 

3. Reconnect with your passion.
Filmmaker Deepa Mehta on the failure of her film 
'Monsoon' at the box office. 
She remembered her father, who, when told about her decision to take up filmmaking, had encouraged her, but cautioned her about life's unknowns, "You make a film because you have incredible passion and because you want to tell a story. If it does well, good. But if it doesn't, you can't do anything about it, but you've had the satisfaction of doing something honest." 

4. Reframe strategy
Satya Nadella on how he handles the failure of the Windows OS for mobile phones. 
Competition for him, is not a zero sum game. He believes, "Just because Android wins does not mean Microsoft loses. If Android wins great. I'll also put Office 365 on Android so it can be a win - win, it doesn't have to be a win - lose."

5. Keep the spirit
After Edmund Hillary's great, but failed attempt, at scaling Mount Everest in 1952.
Though he regarded himself a failure. He did not however, lose his spirit. At a function organized to recognize the attempt, people greeted him with thunderous applause. Hillary, walked onto the stage, balled a fist at the picture of the mountain and said, "You beat me the first time, but I’ll beat you the next time, because you’ve grown all you are going to grow… but I’m still growing."  

He beat Everest on 29th May 1953.