Author: Shivaram Kumar
What is courage?
Courage : The mental or moral strength to persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty – Merriam Webster
While thinking about this, the first thing that comes to my mind is my earliest recollection of fear. I remember the sun was blazing into my eyes when my mother and aunt literally had to carry me like a swing (one grabbing my feet and the other my hands) to drag me to nursery school for the first time. I don’t remember that turning into courage, school just became routine.
Another early recall is my constant fights with the apartment building bully who was a few years older and much stronger, because I did not want to give in like the others. This continued until I turned 11 or 12. Considering that I was skinny and considerably weaker, this required what seemed to be at the time, monumental courage…. Continue Reading →
Role Models
Someone recently asked me “What kind of a role model will this President be for our children?”. My answer was, “He will be a role model in his areas of strength”.
Every achiever can be a role model, in specific areas. One person having to be a role model for everything is unnecessary and impractical. For example, I could serve as a role model for optimal health through moderate exercise and eating habits but not for someone who wants a six pack.
I have never understood why a sports celebrity also needs to be a moral role model. A great tennis player could be emulated for her discipline, tenacity and talent. A political leader who surrounds himself with competent people and executes his duties efficiently and effectively in trying to keep his promises can be a role model for leadership. No one is perfect, so the tennis player may not be a great role model as a mother,… Continue Reading →
Finishing Strong- Iron Man, Silken Heart
Bill Britt was one of the greatest business leaders of the 20th & 21st centuries. I had the privilege of spending time with him, learning and observing. This included watching him on stage for hours on end, listening to his CDs and streaming talks, and most importantly, sitting at his feet, spending face time with him, singing with him and building a unique bond.
He would often tell us that a dreamer will always have unfulfilled dreams when he breathes his last, and if they were worthwhile dreams, others would carry the torch and help fulfill them. Bill Britt was an influence leader, and was able to create a strong vision that other leaders bought into, of helping the everyday person with much needed guidance and mentorship on how to create economic and personal freedom. He was able to realize many unusually strong dreams before he passed away on Jan 23,2013…. Continue Reading →
How spotlights work
While sharing pictures and videos of the grand receptions and vast audiences related to our speaking engagements, I am torn between the fine balance of sharing relevant parts our lives with you, and being braggadocios. Every time I click the “Post” or “Publish” button, I tell myself that my intentions matter more than perceptions.Because they do.
When spotlights are new, the glamour and the attention can be intoxicating. However, with the passage of time, other things take priority. Anjali & I are in the business of developing and empowering leaders. This means that we have the responsibility of putting the spotlight on other people -those new and upcoming team leaders who are proving themselves through words, deeds and character.
You see, unless you have the spotlight, you cannot put it on others. You may not be an attention seeker, but you should get the necessary attention to get your message across…. Continue Reading →
Will may not be the way
“If you control your environment, you don’t have to control your will.”
I love this quote not just because it is mine. I do believe that if we put our will to test unnecessarily, it is only a matter of when, not whether we will succumb.
If you are a teetotaler, and you insist on spending every evening with friends in a local bar, it is only a matter of time before you try a sip.
A few years ago a holy man India with a massive following was caught on video in a compromising position with a movie star. Many people argued that it was a case of entrapment. My question- Why was he alone with the movie star in a hotel room in the first place?
On an earlier post, Thanksgiving, Tourniquets and Trains, I talked about how the internet can foster unhealthy relationships…. Continue Reading →
Thanksgiving, Tourniquets and Trains
There are some who gather friends on social media like it is a contest. While we can debate about how many of those connections are meaningful, we should be grateful for the opportunity to track down old connections and friends.
Not a single Thanksgiving has passed by since 1988 without me thinking about Emma Carney. She was a colleague, friend and mother figure when I started to work at Bell Communications Research in Piscataway during the late eighties. I remember asking her questions about the festival, and she was gracious enough to invite me to her house. She even took me to her Indian neighbor’s house (the Mehrotras’) in Hillsborough. While the turkey lovers dug in, I went for the stuffing. Every Thanksgiving season, I remember the Carney family. Even with social media it took me a while to find Emma, but this month I was able to track her down…. Continue Reading →
Say Yes When They Say No
During the late 1950s, a young man in his twenties found a job as a stenographer in a small Bombay (now Mumbai) company called Fassalboi. The namesake and owner was a visionary, and was trying to introduce fluorescent (tube) lights and transistor radios to rural India. His slick salesmen returned empty handed, saying that bad electricity and fear of “black magic” from a little box not connected to anything were respective deterrents.
The stenographer offered to step up to the task. Mr. Fassalboi liked the attitude, and gave the boy some money to buy a suit, and sent him off to his village in Palakkad, Kerala. On the first day, the young man’s excitement generated a lot of interest in the tube light, but the transistor radio was still off limits. Voices from a little box spooked everyone in the village. The next morning, he was able to bring divinity into the picture when he discovered a radio station that played religious hymns…. Continue Reading →
Just Stitious
“Son, based on your history and background, you should never wear any jewelry with black onyx”, said Anjali’s uncle to me, soon after we were married.
I have been a rebel all my life, questioning beliefs that made no sense to me. But I have unwittingly paid heed to uncle’s suggestion, mostly because I didn’t know what black onyx was, and I had no particular desire to find out.
In India, religious, cultural, traditional and superstitious beliefs are intertwined, and it is often hard to tell them apart. Many people believe that Tuesday is the best day to fast, whereas others choose Friday, or any other day. From movie stars to street hawkers, people carry talismans, amulets and other objects to protect them from evil or to attract certain energies. In one blockbuster movie, the hero, a dock worker, learns from his friend that the number on his metal badge had special protective powers…. Continue Reading →
Charity – From Gong to Giving
Have you ever heard of The Gong Show? In the 70s and 80s, it was a televised contest between performers ranging from dubious to amateur. Each contestant had 3 minutes, and any one of three judges could strike a huge Gong in plain sight to interrupt a performance and disqualify the contestant.
I played a South Indian classical percussion instrument called the Mridangam. I am not sure if it was my talent, or that the judges were too intrigued by its exotic appearance and sound, but I prevailed without getting “Gonged”.
Ok, so mine wasn’t a televised show. It was organized in Piscataway, NJ, by Bellcore (now Telcordia Technologies) to raise money for the United Way organization. I was relatively new in the country and wasn’t involved in any charitable giving. As a matter of fact, I felt like I should have been on the other end of giving…. Continue Reading →
Tender Tantram
Something went wrong at a company. The CEO is outraged and he unloads on the President, who in turns takes it out on the GM. This process continues all the way down to the secretary, who yells at the receptionist. The one at the bottom of this hierarchy is the janitor, who bottles up his emotions till he gets home. Finding his son watching TV, he flares up, and gets into a tirade about how his “good for nothing son” is wasting his time in front of the idiot box. The son turns the TV off, and walks outside, frustrated. He comes across a cat, and kicks it.
The company hires a management consultant. After much research, she comes up with a proposal to improve efficiency. One of the recommendations she makes is to provide the CEO directly with a cat, saving time and sparing the people in between…. Continue Reading →