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The common thread in Why a school trip failed and a contractor lost his contract

People grossly underestimate the value of keeping others informed. It is absolutely critical that what we are thinking , be they are assumptions, feelings, thoughts, next steps etc are shared with the right people. We are so engulfed in our own thinking that we mostly assume that our assumption is a universal truth. Well, that's not always the case. The absence of information, creates a communication void. And when there is a void, it will get filled up with all kinds of stuff. Most often with negative thoughts. All this can be easily avoided by keeping each other in the (communication) loop. Even saying that I dont have an update is an update.

Here is an example of how 2 scenarios could have turned out so differently had the customers been kept in the loop. There was no other changes required only keeping the customer in the loop!

Scenario 1: 

Bob was in grade 6 and went on an out of town school trip for a 3 days. Bob's parents were nervous. After all this was his first trip outside home without the parents being there. They gave Bob a phone and asked him to send updates on a regular basis. As luck would have it, the phone's battery died and Bob lost the charger the very first hour of the trip. Bob's parents were scrambling for information. They called other parents. Emailed school and any other contact that they could think of but no luck. They knew that Bob was safe but still wanted to get the assurance. The school charged $750 for the trip. There were a no. of staff who went with the class to ensure safety and comfort. Yet none of the teachers and organizers thought that they should keep providing a simple email update to the parents! They planned every single aspect of the trip, except communication.

The trend continued for the rest of the trip. 

The kids had a great time but parents were furious. In the minds of the parents the trip didnt go well. Now if only the teachers would have thought the importance of updates

Scenario 2:

I scheduled a handyman to do some repairs around the house. He was supposed to have come at 7pm but didn't show up. After waiting impatiently till 8pm, I called him, "We are running late. We should be there in the next hour or so", was the response. I told him to not worry about it. Now if he only would have told me earlier that he would be late, I probably would have been able to juggle my plans around his availability. 

We tend to underestimate the value of updates but they are absolutely the key when it comes to customer service. 

Big Rocks

As long as you focus on the big rocks of your life, you will be ok. What are the big rocks in your life? As most of the cases, the answer is "It is up to you to decide" For some it will be  vacation, family time, for others it will be career or something else.

But whatever it is, it is critical that you take care of the big items in your life

So have you moved the big rocks from your life today? 

Today's Lesson

Do not react based on an assumption

It ain't done until it is done. Ask the Spurs or the Leafs

Success formula

In my mind success can be created by the following process.

1- Vision
A vision in my mind is an evolving goal. I think that we must have the end goal/objective in mind as we   begin the journey. We always evolve the goals and thats ok however it is critical that we begin with the end in mind (ref Covey)

2- Thinking. 
Thinking to figure out the right choices. After all it is our choices which determine who we are. In order to make these "correct" choices, we need to think correctly

By the way, the correct choice will be correct for each individual. In other words, what is correct for one may be completely different for another. As an example, someone may think that the best way to spend the day is to go fishing, whereas the other may decide that the best way to spend the day is working at the career to get ahead. They are both "correct" choices as long as they align with the life goals off the individual

3- Discipline
The thinking will not be enacted on its own. It requires a lot of will power and sacrifices of the secondary choices. For example, for the person deciding to fish, he will need to understand that because he is not working on the career, he will not be getting the next big promotion and all that is associated with it. Same for the person working on the career, he will be sacrificing a lot for that promotion as well. As long as you have the discipline to follow through on the choices thats what counts

After this, I think you need luck. Often times, life happens and this can throw us off track. This is both in a good way as well as not so good. 

What is your formula for success?

If you look, then I will run

Home crowd is considered to be an advantage. With crowds cheering, players are likely to perform better. I guess they tend to become more aware that their are some who care

Well, bloggers are no different. They also tend to go to the stats to see how many people are interested in what they are saying. Also, they tend to get excited by the fact that people from far away lands are interested in hearing about some topics. So if you reading this blog, it will be fantastic if you can provide your comments - either about this one or another one which was written previously. Thank you

Winning at all cost - is it worth it?

"Winning wins everything" is a common theme that keeps on coming across. But is it really true?

There are few, very few instances in which all it matters is a victory. Irrespective of how it is achieved  and how many rules are broken, the victory is all that counts. However in a vast majority of cases, any win which involves cheating feels like a hollow victory.

Sports - the big equalizer. Really?

When playing, we are all equal. The skills, talent and abilities are what counts. It does not matter who has the most expensive attire or who is driving the most luxurious car, ultimately the "hero" title goes  to the one who plays the best

But is it really so? Are we naive about the influence of money in Sports?

I think it was Napoleon who said that the battles are won and lost during planning.  Though it is correct that the on field performances are the ones that count, but most of the on-field stuff takes is determined by preparation that takes place prior to the game day performance. After all, a player who has access to a well equipped gym is likely to outperform the one who has barely enough to have 3 square meals a day. It is no wonder that the Olympics are dominated by participants from rich nations

Should Pittsburgh Penguins keep faith in the failed 2013 crew ?

To fire them or to keep faith? This is a mega million dollar qs that the Pittsburgh Penguins need to grapple with after the team was humiliated by the Boston Bruins in the 3rd round of the NHL 2013 Playoffs.

To provide some context, the  Pittsburgh Penguins' 2013 team was destined to be a history maker. After having a fantastic regular season in which they almost broke the record of the longest winning streak in NHL history, they won the first 2 playoff series with relative ease. In fact, so strong was their offense that they chased the Ottawa's stingy goaly, Anderson, out of the post. This event is a rarity, after all Anderson had the best record of all the NHL goalies in the 2013 regular season. So strong was their performance, that Ottawa Senator's coach quipped after Senators' loss to the Penguins, "I hope they don't charge us for the (hockey) clinic".  Yet when it came to the 3rd round, the same team failed miserably against the Bruins. So bad was their performance that they could not score more than 2 goals in the entire series. They lost every single game. And sucked big time.

So a hockey club who has some of the the world's best players had to make a tough choice. Keep their heroes for the next year or ditch at least some of them. 

It looks like they are going to keep them. They signed the coach and the coaching assistants to a 2 year contract. They were clear that their failed goalie will again start in the net next year. They signed Malkin to a 7 year deal. Bottom line, they decided that this is the team of the future.

Though the hockey fans may disagree, but the reality is that this is a fantastic long term strategy. After all, gelling as a team is what makes teams great. The players need to be a band of brothers. And yes they will make mistakes but the message of the organization is clear - we have faith in your abilities. This is a strong message and you can be rest assured that the players will respond forcefully in 2014 and beyond!

Pakistan govt decides: Army bigger priority than heath, education and economy

Pakistan had the first transfer of power in almost 7 decades! It was hailed around the world and showcased for how the democratic roots have taken a strong hold in the country. But is that really the case?

It is true the massive turnout in the election is a tribute to the resilience of the people and the strong commitment of the population to the democratic values. The turnout was higher than that in many western countries but that's not the only reason to celebrate. When put this in perspective that the brutal Taliban have openly issued threats of attacking the civilians to disrupt elections, the turnout is amazingly brave. Old and young, men and women, rich and poor, boys and girls of all ages came to cast their vote. And they spoke loud and clear. They wanted a new government. But more importantly they wanted to vote!

Armed with this massive arsenal of public support, you would expect that the incoming governing party of PML-N, would be confident about the what the people really want. But think again

With literacy rates going down the drain, public health (ie hospitals and other publicly medical clinics in far flung areas), power cuts, blackouts and rationing causing protests almost on a daily basis, and terrorism which is causing havoc in the lives of every single Pakistani it would be a hard choice to pick which they would decide to tackle first. But all these problems can wait. The biggest problem in the eyes of the Pakistani government is not all these internal threats and problems but India! Yup, you read it correctly. It is India that PM Nawaz Sharif and his government is most concerned about. At least that's the impression you would get when you look at the recently introduced budget.

Despite all the back breaking social, economic and security problems that the country is facing, Nawaz Sharif's government decided to allocate more funds for country's defense. Not to Education, not for Health, not for social infrastructure, but for the national defense! And the increase is not a single digit increase, the army is need of such repairs that the increase is a  whopping 10%!

Now we all know that any budget, including the household ones, all comes down to priorities. Putting more coins in one bucket means that you have to take it from another bucket as the pie is fixed. So what this means is that the government is taking medicines and school books away and instead investing in the army!

Dont be mistaken that this is a surplus budget. The national exchequer will be borrowing heavily to manage the huge deficits.

There are those that think that this is not the government setting its priorities but the army setting its own priorities. It is not a secret that the army has been a, nay the, major force in Pakistan,. However given the heavy duty vote of confidence, you would think that the government would have pushed back on the army. But either they didnt have the backbone, or consciously decided that Army is underfunded and is a bigger priority than anything else. Regardless of the reason, the hungry, illiterate and sick masses have taken the back seat to the army brass 

The one thing that you must know

What is the one thing that is critical to you? 

Is it the family? 

Is it the career?

Is it money?

We all want it all. But you must know what that one thing is that you will regret the most, if you dont get it. 

When you are on the rocking chair. And cant turn back the clock, it will be terrible to come all that distance without knowing what that thing is. Worse, if you spend all your time and energy trying to get after the "wrong" thing, regardless of whether or not you achieved that or not

So do you know what that thing is for you?

Potential or Experience - which one will you prefer?

Do you want the steady hand of Experience to keep the ship steady, specially when the vessel hit rough waters, Or, do you think it is better to have the flair, flamboyance and risk taking of Potential? 

It is a tough choice and so often the answer appears to be "it depends" :-)

It depends on:
- the type of business you are in
- the risk threshold ie whether a business where taking risk (and failing while doing so) is considered a good thing.
- your own style as well as those around you
- whether it is a short term or long term stint

So what is your preference?

Think Ahead - Live Now

It was game 7 of Round 1. Toronto ahead by 4 goals to 1 against Boston with only 10 mins left. The series is pretty much a wrap. And what a series it has been for Toronto. They came from 3-1 deficit to (almost) win the game 7 of the best in 7 series. What comeback. What grit! 

But as the music was playing in the ears of the Toronto Maple Leafs`players, Boston Bruins knew that it is not done yet. They still have 10 mins left to throw everything at the Leafs. And so they did. And the rest is all history as never in the history of the NHL`s several thousand games has a team able to come back from behind to score such an upset.

Thinking ahead is a great thing. It helps prepare for the events which are about to happen. More prepared you are the easier it is to deal with the situation. But thinking ahead must not confuse us to live in future. For we cant. We don`t have a choice but to live in the present. 

Toronto was living in the future. Boston was living in the moment.

A List of Interesting books

Over the years I have had a chance to enjoy various books. Following is a list of some which I will be recommending:

Good to read often:

7 habits of highly effective people

Never Eat Alone

The Happiness Project

The science of influence

Non-Fiction:

Guns, Germs and Steel

Blink

The Tipping Point

Drive

How The Great Golfers Think

Leave No Doubt

The End of Growth

Innovator's Dilemna

The Singularity it Near

Wikinomics

Black Swan

Flow

Outliers

Freakeconomics

Fiction:

All Creatures Great and Small

Life of Pi

Watership Down

To kill a mocking bird

Moments matter

We chase dreams and rainbows. It is about the journey, we are told. Yes journey is important but it is the fleeting moment when reaching the destination and finding the rainbow which is the key to success. 

This according to Mike Babcock.

For those who don't know him, Mike Babcock knows a thing or two about success. He is the only hockey coach in the history of Ice Hockey to be part of the Triple Gold Club. Triple Gold Club is coined for someone who has won a Stanley Cup, an Olympics Gold and a World Championship. So when he talks about winning strategies in his book Leave No Doubt, it is worth listening to. 

So when you spend a few seconds at the victory stand, or get the promotion (or publish the blog :-) ), it is worth cherishing the moment. It is also worth cherishing the moments when you are at the beach on your vacation. After all, these are memorable moments that  are worth remembering and living for 

How to write effective emails

I came across some very useful ideas about writing emails. They are:

- start of each paragraph with a leading sentence which describes the core of the message. For example, if there is a decision, recommendation etc that you want to highlight, say that first before getting into the rationale for it

- use bullets to make some quick points. This will help increase white space in the email,. White spaces help with readability and are visually more appealing

- Plan before writing the email. Plan should answer the question as to what the reader of the email will be thinking and be interested in 

- Be mindful that people are reading emails on their smartphones as well as laptops

- Use "You" whenever you have an opportunity. This will help your reader visualize himself as the center of the email

- Be brief. 

- Be mindful of the tone of the email and not just the content

Hope this is helpful

Cricket for sale

There are yet new reports of mega paid cricketers trying to make quick bucks by cheating. The cricketers involved are from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and previously from South Africa. Though there are no reports of losing the entire game, or spot fixing, yet Australian Shane Warne has also been news for all the wrong reasons. After all this bad press, will the crowds actually come to watch cricket in droves?

I think they will. Cricket is entertainment. It provides a past time for the masses of the sub continent. With the players trying

Will the sun shine tomorrow?

How confident we all are that the sun will be shining tomorrow. We have plans 5 years, 10 years, even 20+ years. Yer life is fickle. A few seconds can throw a big wrench in the whole plans. Priorities changes right away. Or perhaps we recognize what the priorities are.

Perhaps my thinking today is influenced by a friend whom I visited to offer condolences. His mother passed away. Suddenly. "There were no warnings. No signs (that she will be dying so soon)", he informed me. But is that not so uncommon? Of course there are cases when people are terminally ill and there death is not a surprise but then there are a whole lot of us, who just move on from here, without really giving any tell tale signs that this (move) is about to happen. 

Scary. But so true

Perhaps, it will be wise to always focus on what the real priorities are. But this is something that everyone says. The key question is how do you determine that. 

Many wise people have suggested interesting, simple and at times complex methods to figure this out. I like the 5 year rule. The rule is simple (at least that's what I think). Ask yourself the rhetorical question about a (any) event. "Will this event be still important when I try to remember it after 5 years?" This helps weed out the real important stuff from the mundane stuff that we deal with every day. 

It is real important to set the priorities right. We always think that there will be tomorrow when we can take care of the real, important  stuff. But then, there may not be a tomorrow

Free Stuff - that you have to pay for dearly :-)

I wonder why they include the 30 point inspection "for free" as part of a car's oil change package. I was told by the service desk manager that "it is as a courtesy to the customers". Really!

There has not been many of these inspections in which I have come back with an all clear. Most of the time it is a small warning. The message from the service manager is quite typical "You dont need to get it done now but it is better if you do so soon as you are going to be taking a chance if you are going for longer distances". Now I dont know about many people who only use their car to go from their home to the local convenience store around the corner. Most often you use the car to go "longer distances". The highways are clogged with people making these trips - daily. Dont take my word for it, just tune into any tv or radio news station during morning or evening and you will get a list of sections where the traffic is so thick that you can even squeeze a needle in it. 

So if you are like one of the other 100% folks who have to use the car for travelling, then it is bound to bug you that your car has this defect which can blow up any time. Now you can be going to drop your kids off to school, getting to an important meeting, on the highway, or anywhere else, and it can just hit you. It is like a ticking time bomb. You know this because the "service expert" has told you so. Now you can rely on your instincts to make the judgement that the car is fine. After all, there is nothing visibly or audibly wrong with it. The motor is making the usual sounds, it "feels" right as well. But will you have the guts to move forward and let this "fact" pinch you that there is something wrong. I dont know about you, but in the battle of "instinct vs fact" it is usually the fact which wins in my case. That is why you will see me dishing out the grandiose sums of money to my mechanic. Only for him to find some other flaws in these "free inspections".

A world without oil

Can you imagine a world where there is no affordable energy source? It means that you may not drive to your work. It means that instead of going to a super store or a mall about 30 mins away, you will need to rely on your corner store for your groceries. It means that instead of flying across the ocean for your vacation, you will be spending time with your family at a local park. IT means that you cannot take kids to their soccer games if there is extensive driving involved. In essence you will effectively be transported back a century, perhaps more back. 

Is this possible? Is what Jeff Rubin saying, makes sense?

Well, it definitely makes sense. I hope he is not right though

The premise of Rubin's argument is relatively simple and straight forward. The crux of the argument is that we rely on cheap oil for our day to day living. It is not just for the fuel that we use in our cars but also the electricity that we use requires oil for manufacturing. The clothes that we wear require transport from far away lands which requires oil. Even the food that we eat, is delivered to us from far away farms which requires cheap oil 

He has also highlighted the significant roles that cheap oil plays in the growth of a nation's economy. In short oil, or more importantly, affordable oil is the key to economic well being of nations as well as individuals. If oil gets to be too expensive, then that there is no other replacement fuel source that exists today. In other words, if oil gets to be too expensive to afford, then we will need to make tough choices (the likes of which our parents didnt have to worry about.

Imagine the scenario that the gas prices go up 10 times than what they are today. That will significantly increase our gas budget. Since our income is unlikely to increase 10 fold, we will need to cut back on other places. However, there is another catch, as the gas prices are going up, so will the price of all things requiring transport, will go up at least 10 times. Therefore the loaf of bread, the stick of butter, the milk, the clothes, everything will cost more.  Also, what about the prices for items which require oil in its production -eg electricity,their prices will be going up to.

 So, as you can see, it is not a pretty economic picture.

The unanswered questions by the media to Torontonians

The line up at the grocery store was unusually long this Sunday. I was hoping to get a few items quickly and get back home by 1 pm but it looked like that there are many other folks also deciding to pick up the raw materials for their next few meals at this time. The reason I wanted to get back by 1pm was to listen in to the Fords. They have been in a swarm of controversy all week and I was curious to hear what they had to say about the various allegations in their weekly talk show.

I tuned in to their show late and when I did, it was Doug Ford who was on air and was taking a call from a retired police officer.  The officer was the supervisor of drugs investigation unit when the elder brother (Doug) Ford was alleged to have been dealing drugs in the streets of Toronto. The officer gave his name and (former) rank on air (but I cant remember it) along with  a clear and crisp description of his responsibilities. As supervisor of the drugs investigation unit, he was in the know of all the major drug investigations that were ongoing at that time. He was also in liaison with the RCMP to help with busting drug dealers. His span, when he was the supervisor was around 10 years. He called out of "duty" and wanted to set the record straight. He stated, very factually and without any frills, that during his entire time that he was leading the investigation, he has not heard Doug Ford's name at all. The officer's view was that had Doug Ford would have been involved, the officer would have heard about him for sure. 

I heard another caller as well. He was a Councillor from Richmond Hill. He was the person who came out and presented the eye witness account when Sarah Thompson made her own allegations against the mayor. 

I had to take care of the honey to do list and did not listen to any other stuff. But I was curious to hear what happened and decided to look up the details on the Toronto Star and the CTV news I was sure they would have carried the story about the mayor's radio show as they were quite interested in what he is up to. I was not wrong. They did carry the story. However, have a look at what they wrote. There was not a word about the retired police officer's  comments refuting the allegations of the Globe and Media. 

This was significantly huge. If I would have relied on getting my news about the show from these outlets, I would have completely missed out on the context of the show!

Whats more important, in my view, is that this is a 2 hour show on a Sunday afternoon This being the start of the warm season in the city, it is unlikely that a huge percentage of Toronto residents are listening in. In other words, people are relying on the reporting of the media to get the news about the show. And if they dont read about this retired police officer's comments were not mentioned in the media. Then it is just like that he has not made that call at all. This is alarming and dangerous.

After all, we expect the media to be fair. To be just. Unbiased. And more importantly to be honest. But is it? 

Why is it only showing up one side of the story? Why is it omitting out details which does not fit in with the view that they appear to want to project? Is this that the reporters are not filing the reports correctly (which i dont think is the case)? Or is this the editorial directions are making some folks to edit out "unimportant" details?

There are lots of questions. Few answers. 

Media has a right to ask questions of Mayor Ford. But what about the media? Dont they have a few questions that they need to answer as well?