The Top Ten..

The Top 10 global brands (as of 2005)

1. Coca Cola
2. Microsoft
3. IBM
4. GE
5. Intel
6. Nokia
7. Disney
8. McDonald's
9. Toyota
10.Marlboro

More details at Business Week Top 100 .. Intel has moved from position 6 in 2004 to 5th position in 2005 :)

Why am I writing this? Well.. this term one of the electives I have chosen is "Branding" and I have just fallen in love with this subject. Just amazed as to how these brands have really established themselves to success. I have been reading a lot about it and I seem to be viewing the branding world in a totally different way!!! This means you can expect to see more posts (trivia/insights/analyses!) regarding this on my blog often :)

Today is diwali and an official "holiday" for us (thats great news coz we hardly get any days off here!). Half the people have gone home for diwali celebrations and the rest of us are celebrating here on the campus itself. Today after a long time, I get to chill out in my room, all by myself without any assignments or deadlines hanging on my head. Could get that luxurious 8-9hrs of sleep and now happily lounging, catching up with all the blog readings that I have missed over the last few weeks, browsing the net, reading some WSJ and economic times (yeah, yeah, placements are coming up!) and replying to emails...

People dont like to be led...

A very nice article on leadership and what a B-school doesnt teach you about it..

http://www.business-standard.com/strategist/storypage.php?leftnm=6&subLeft=8&chklogin=Y&autono=261124&tab=r

As the article says, its my personal belief too that leadership is a state of mind. Its the art of influencing and directing people. Its all about passion and charisma to get people to accomplish a vision. Are leaders born or made? Well.. this can always be debated. The B-schools can just give the set of tools and cognitive skills that can make you more confident to lead but not turn you into a "leader" itself.

One of the pictures that i took last year, same time..while trying to learn some photography skills :) Found while browsing thru and feeling nostalgic about the time when this was taken. Am sure someone who was present at that time while i took this, can associate with it too!!

Letting go...

To let go does not mean to stop caring,
it means I can't do it for someone else.
To let go is not to cut myself off,
it's the realization I can't control another.
To let go is not to enable,
but allow learning from natural consequences.
To let go is to admit powerlessness,
which means the outcome is not in my hands.
To let go is not to try to change or blame another,
it's to make the most of myself.
To let go is not to care for,
but to care about.
To let go is not to fix,
but to be supportive.
To let go is not to judge,
but to allow another to be a human being.
To let go is not to be in the middle arranging all the outcomes,
but to allow others to affect their destinies.
To let go is not to be protective,
it's to permit another to face reality.
To let go is not to deny,
but to accept.
To let go is not to nag, scold or argue,
but instead to search out my own shortcomings and correct them.
To let go is not to adjust everything to my desires,
but to take each day as it comes and cherish myself in it.
To let go is not to criticize or regulate anybody,
but to try to become what I dream I can be.
To let go is not to regret the past,
but to grow and live for the future.

To let go is to fear less and love more
Remember: The time to love is short.

-- author unknown

Half the journey!

It's such a relief today to finally get done with the painful exams and catch up with that ever-wanted-but-always-short-of sleep!!! This term has been the shortest of all with just 4 weeks but seemed the longest to me! (not sure about the reasons). It marks the end of our core terms..which means I am a 50% MBA now :) Half the journey is thru...and 6 more months to get to that graduation day, when I'll have another degree added to my qualification.

"If you do a typical MBA, you'll never be a successful entrepreneur"

This article in rediff.com by Mahesh Murthy, Founder and CEO, Pinstorm.... is related to my viewpoints expressed in one of my previous posts titled "Entrepreneurship..". A nice read....

http://www.rediff.com/money/2006/sep/26inter.htm

"We dont need no education...?"

....but reservations and quotas?

We have all heard David Gilmore singing this line in Another Brick in the wall.. Am not here to talk about the song.. but does this line really hold true, especially in the Indian context? We had a class discussion on the various Millenium Development Goals(MDGs) laid out by the UN that are adopted across the countries in the world. "Achieving universal primary education" is one of them and India is definitely facing a great challenge in making significant progress in this aspect. It still accounts for about 34% of the world's illiterate population. Attribute this to the large extent of rural areas, high population, low unemployment or the idiosyncratic reservations and quota system in the colleges and government offices?

A country like India which is plagued by evils such as caste, creed and religion would definitely want more of a compulsory primary education rather than a huge quota of reservations in PG colleges and jobs in govt. sectors. Building a strong base is more important than trying to improve the mansion. How long can the govt continue to use reservations as an alternative to quality education?? Is it really seeing any benefits thru this with regard to achieving the actual goal? Well... i dont want to take the liberty to mention what benefits the govt might be actually deriving at present by implementing such rules.. But I guess it's really time to give this a serious thought now than just let the problem reach the brink!!! I feel, that by delinking the backward classes from having any requirements to meet the basic education markers, it is doing more harm than good. Dont you think the govt has to spend at least 10 times more money on primary education for every buck spent on these quotas and reservations? Well... we all know the answers but who will really implement this is the question....

Snapshots from hell....

One of the nice(st) books on the B-school experience, that I have read recently.

We all agree that an MBA is a tough grueling experience that places huge demands on the individuals embarking on the challenge. Snapshots from Hell is one such book which answers “What is life at a B-school like”? This book authored by Peter Robinson, who was a speech writer at White House, describes his first year’s experiences at one of the country’s elite business schools, Stanford GSB. Poets, in a B-school lingo, are those few people who come from disadvantaged backgrounds – English majors or track-jumping corporate types, as in the case of the author. In a B-school the poets compete against Chartered accountants, Investment bankers and consultants who are already familiar with discounted cash flows, stocks, options and other quantifiable cryptics. Overfed with jargon and number crunching, Robinson always felt under prepared, uninspired and inundated while tackling the compulsory core subjects. He struggled to understand the supply-and-demand curves, decision trees and influence diagrams and also discovered his classmates' appalling unawareness of economic philosophy- be it Adam Smith or Karl Marx.

A very well written book, which captures the essence of an MBA very brilliantly, with humor and reality in all aspects described. Every B-school student will be able to relate to – random “cold calls” by professors in class, impossible exams, competition, and camaraderie. I highly recommend this book to every MBA student – current or prospective! It is a very quick and light read, covers both personal and professional experiences of the author at Stanford that are compelling enough to interest and entertain the readers.

Political upheavels and the oil barons...

This term we have a subject which deals with Government, Society and Business. My first reaction was that this would be really boring but I am being proven wrong. We had this discussion in class today about the political uncertainty in the Central Asian Republics (CARs) - especially Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and the surroundings and their struggle to set up the pipelines for oil trade in new directions- keeping their distance from Russia and avoid being sucked into the economic and military pacts that arose out of the break up of the Soviet Union. When I tried to read the articles and cases yesterday, which also spoke about the power and influence of Taliban, Bin Laden etc..I was a little lost... as i never religiously followed the news about these things the last few years.. But watching these videos gave me a lot of info and I really feel its worth a watch!

http://www.ibnlive.com/videos/19805/from-shy-boy-to-terrorist-this-is-osamas-story.html

Give it a thought!

Interesting read... worth it

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.Of course, the sand filled up everything else.

He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous "yes."

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.
"Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things - God, family, children, health, friends, and favorite passions -- things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, house, andcar.
The sand is everything else -- the small stuff.

"If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

So...Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups.Take your loved one out to dinner. Play another 18. . "Take care of the golfballs first -- the things that really matter. Set your priorities.The rest is just sand."

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

Sleep...where art thou??

It's 4:00am and almost the whole ISB is still sitting up trying to crack a case assignment. Having cups of coffee and listening to music so that we can stay awake. People are taking polls over the email as to who are the (un)lucky ones who are still awake at these wee hours in the morning!! The deadline is 10.30am and we are still half way thru the case...4 more hours and it is time to prepare for another case and go for a class!!! Cant even sleep in the class 'coz of the high pressure to do "class participation" as it accounts for 40% of the course :-) So..I am forced to concentrate on what's happening there. This has become the usual routine during this term... I have lost track of when my day actually ends and the other begins.. Sleeping 5-6 hours a day has become a luxury!! I can soon see myself sleeping every alternate day!! So dazed.......I feel like a zombie!!!!!!

But the best part is... you walk out of your room at this time and you see lots of other people walking around in the campus...wide awake...struggling with the same set of things.. and you know that you are not the only one sailing on this boat :-)

Software in Indian languages?

I came across this piece of news in Business Daily which said that there is work going on to develop software in 12-14 Indian languages which if used with low cost hardware will speed up the computerisation process in India. Hmmm.. I just paused here to think if this is actually a good idea and if it will really achieve its desired results? Well, considering how prevelant illiteracy is in India, this does seem like a good move. At least it can replace the manual processings in a lot of places which really eats away our time!! If you step into a government office in bangalore, more often than not, they still need to dig up a huge pile of ledgures to get hold of your case or profile. Also, this is mainly to cater to people who cannot communicate in English.The new software will significantly improve this. But I feel it could also act as a disadvantage. By making it easy for people to stick to their local languages, it really doesnt help them raise the bar for themselves or take that extra step to go ahead and get that English education. When India as a whole is trying to develop in every sector and every aspect, in my opinion, this may not be that good an idea in the long run! As an immediate step...it does sound good though..

The Namesake

I came across a review of "Interpreter of Maladies" in our to-be-published-ISB newsletter today and that reminded me of "The Namesake" by the same author - Jhumpa Lahiri. I happened to read this book about a year back and was really impressed with her writing. A very subtle story told in the most simple and interesting way. The strength of her writing is her exquisite details - be it describing a meal at the dining table or the interiors of a room. It is still so fresh and vivid in my mind!!

The book is about a Bengali family - Ashima and Ashok Ganguly who are in America, but are strongly tied to their roots, rituals and customs in India. They are blessed with a son, whom Ashok names "Gogol" (after the Russian writer Nikolai Gogol who inspired him). The book centers on how Gogol detests his name given by his father. His parents form a wide network of Bengali friends who meet often and celebrate the special occasions ..keeping up the Bengali tradition. Gogol, is more drawn towards the American culture and torn apart with his dual Indian-American life. But after a few relationship failures and few successes, his perspective changes over years and Gogol starts to connect back to his origin.

Jhumpa has done an awesome job in portraying the subtleties of many relationships - most importantly the bonding between Ashima and Ashok and the mother-son relationship, in addition to describing the culture shock that Ashima goes through when she moves to the U.S soon after marriage - the pain of leaving home and years of tradition. This Pulitzer-prize winner is a must read and a treat to the heart.

Entrepreneurship..

It's been 3 days into a new term and it already feels like we are slogging for term exams! This term seems to have the toughest and not-so-interesting combination of subjects.

"Entrepreneurship" is one of the courses and on the surface seems like it has not many takeaways at the end. I just wonder if "Entrepreneurship" is actually a required course? Can Entrepreneurship be taught? In my opinion this is something similar to Leadership. Some people are just born with it - to become successful entrepreneurs or leaders. I agree that analysis and discussion of 10 or more cases in class do give insights into the various challenges faced by people in different situations, while they just started on their new ventures. But according to me, every situation in life, every opportunity is unique in its own way. Different people give the same data and facts different meanings. The "personality" of an individual also plays a significant role in the kind of decisions he/she takes. So there isnt "one best way" or "one golden rule" to success. You cannot teach people "persistence", "perseverance", "creativity", "self-confidence" , "drive", "ambition" and "risk taking". These are - to a large extent - imbibed in our personalities and hence very tough to "teach" them or inculcate them into us, if we lack one or more of it.

I feel that more vocational experiences and more chances to work together in entrepreneurial initiatives will help develop the "enterprise skills". Facing up to failures - seeing it as something from which we can learn, taking calculated and sensible risks, meeting challenges, networking et al. come from practice and not theory - is my opinion!

Anger destroys reason...

Something good i found while reading TOI... in the midst of all the exam craziness around

Delusion arises from anger. The mind is bewildered by delusion. Reasoning is destroyed when the mind is bewildered. One falls down when reasoning is destroyed.
-Bhagavad Gita

When anger rises, think of the consequences.
-Confucius

He is not strong and powerful who throweth people down; but he is strong who witholdeth himself from anger.
-Prophet Muhammad

I have learned through bitter experience the one supreme lesson to conserve my anger, and as heat conserved is transmitted into energy, even so our anger controlled can be transmitted into a power that can move the world.
-Mahatma Gandhi

To be angry about trifles is mean and childish; to rage and be furious is brutish; and to maintain perpetual wrath is akin to the practice and temper of devils; but to prevent and suppress rising resentment is wise and glorious, is manly and divine.
-Alan Watts


Cast abroad the rage of thy wrath: and behold every one that is proud, and abase him.
-Bible

I think people here at ISB can take up snake charming as a backup profession!! 3 snakes spotted in the Student Village - 1 within a span of 10 days...

Resistance to change..

At this eerie hour of the night, bored with case studies and strategies, decisions and optimizations, I just let my mind ponder over a few thoughts - thoughts which are always at the back of my mind and never seem to come out due to immense pressure and stress out here......I just wondered how people always tend to live in their past or worry about their future and just forget about "Present". The mind always seeks to deny the "Present" and to escape from it. There is always some form of a non-acceptance and unconscious resistance to what is happening at present - about things which have changed significantly compared to our past..I feel that a lot of pain which we create for ourselves is unnecessary - by oscillating between past and future - trying to change what has already occured or trying to get a hold on things which have not yet happened!! It is so necessary to associate ourselves with what is happening in life at present and stop letting the mind wander.. I came across these few lines in one of the articles of a newspaper recently..

Why does the mind habitually deny or resist the Now? Because it cannot function and remain in control without time, which is past and future, so it perceives the timeless Now as threatening. Time and mind are in fact inseparable.

Say "yes" to life and see how life suddenly starts working for you rather than against you

This is so true...

It is very essential to make our "Present" the primary focus of our lives and am sure this does take a lot of effort. But this doesnt mean we forget our past and stop thinking about future. Paying brief visits to past and future helps in dealing with some practicalities of present.

Many a times we fail to realize that life is all about "Living in the moment" :-)

Back to business...

The term break flew by faster than the term itself and am back in ISB! It was just when I was beginning to settle down in bangalore and started feeling at home, that it was time for me to leave..This was actually harder than the first time.. It was such a short flight that I didnt even realize when I was in hyd!!

Now, am back to my usual routine - wake up, eat, study, attend classes, study, eat, sleep, wake up :) This term I have added one more thing to the schedule - swimming!! and I hope to get over my hydrophobia asap...Within few mins of landing at ISB, I figure out that there are 100 pages of gruelling pre-reads and 1 case study to be prepared for the first class of Term2 !! Hmmm...nothing new about it, now that everyone is used to being in the nazi camp out here :-)

12.5% MBA...and back in blore!

Yesterday marked the end of Term 1 at ISB and we have 7 more terms to go.. so to say a 12.5% MBA as of now :) That explains my sudden disappearance from the blogging community for the last 3 weeks... Was just trying hard to get the most out of the 24hrs in a day... Time management and stress management are the 2 key skills which am going to learn here in my tenure at ISB!!

Our finals of term 1 ended yesterday. The papers were just a nightmare. 2 were closed book exams , horrible performance and the other 2 - accounts and eco were "open" book but still the performance didnt improve in any ways - it was a zero value add!! Just hoping to do better in the next term...

The whole campus was partying yesterday and lot of people who have stayed back there still have party plans lined up for the next 5 days.. But 70% of the batch is back in their respective homes. The airport was a sight to see today morning....ISB students were the main source of revenue generation for the airlines industry today!!!

One whole term just passed like a wink of the eye and now am back in blore at my home sweet home!! Feels just great to unwind and relax for 4 days without any stress or tensions of case studies, assignments, exams blah blah... I have been away from this place for just 2 months but when i entered the city I felt so alienated... I have forgotten the way I used to live in this city and my home... My own room feels so new and strange to me today. Completely dazed and wondering - "Sleep - where art thou??!"... Waiting to catch up on all the things I have missed here in the last 2 months and everything which I have been craving for :)..