Author: Shivaram Kumar
The Motivation Multiplier
One of my mentors, Bill Britt, explained motivation using a simple formula-
NEEDS X FAITH = MOTIVATION
Joe has needs – to pay the bills, to put food on the table. He also has faith (belief in something that is yet to happen) that he will reach his workplace safely each day, and that he will get a paycheck every two weeks. Without faith, he wouldn’t leave his house. With faith, he is motivated to act.
Faith can be further explained as a cross product of different kinds of faith. Joe’s needs are normal. His faith formula could be as follows-
FAITH = FAITH IN THE JOB X FAITH IN THE PROCESS X FAITH IN SELF
Mary has just founded a tech startup. Her passion has created an intense need to succeed. She has to fight against all odds, put a team together,… Continue Reading →
Green before Blue met Yellow
Yesterday my cousins and I were chatting about how conscientious our parents and grandparents and their generations have always been.
Erratic electricity, inadequate water supply, and the inability to afford cars, refrigerators and other gadgets automatically contributed to the unintended consequence of green living. But, in addition, an obsession to save up, reuse and recycle, would make current day environmentalists look inadequate. They were green before blue met yellow.
In villages, dairy was delivered without involving any cartons or emissions. The milkman would show up each morning with his cow or buffalo and do the milking right into grandmother’s milk container. No one ate beef or any kind of meat. The cows and buffaloes were treated with respect, and were not subject to the atrocities of mass production. As you probably know, there is a religious aspect to this as well.
My mother still has stuff from the time she was 16 years old (newly married)…. Continue Reading →
Fast and Steady
If you are walking on a tight-rope or threading a needle, then Slow and Steady will probably win the race. But in day to day living, we need momentum. Not break-neck speed, but momentum.
One of my mentors, Bill Britt, repeatedly told us that happiness comes from the process of accomplishment rather than the accomplishment itself. And the process can only be fulfilling if there is energy, choices and quick decisions to make. Without choices, we cannot set priorities.
In the story of The Hare and the Tortoise, the problem was not that the hare was fast. The problem was that the hare took a nap. He wasn’t steady. In life, moving slowly hoping that others will take a nap to allow us to win, is not a good strategy. Naps are helpful and sometimes critical, but they do not belong in a race…. Continue Reading →
Prayer and Priorities
I am not a religious person, but I do believe that there is a power that responds to our thoughts and actions. Some people call it “God”, others call it “Universal Energy” or “Infinite Intelligence”.
I have been exposed to many religions and rituals, but I strongly believe that God will not fail the common sense test. As such I don’t believe that some select people receive preferential access to eternal bliss, just because they belong to a certain group.
I remember growing up challenging what I perceived to be meaningless rituals and superstitions. I fought and argued with my parents, uncles and aunts. I memorized some prayers in Sanskrit, I didn’t always understand the words. My mother would translate them, and while I still remember many of them, the one that had the most impact on me was the following Shloka:
आकाशात् पतितं तोयं यथा गच्छति सागरम् ।
सर्वदेवनमस्कारं केशवं प्रतिगच्छति ॥
This translates to:
As the rain water falling from the sky go to the same ocean,… Continue Reading →
Crazy! Can this really happen?
Mali is a great friend. He was next door to me in Ruby hostel at REC, Trichy. One time we were talking about nail-biting finishes and he shared a story about his friend Kalyanaraman from high school who managed to get the last seat in Chemical Engineering at the prestigious IIT Madras (now Chennai).
A year or so later I was in the city of Coimbatore, waiting for a bus. It started to rain and a guy wearing gold rimmed glasses, about my age, offered to share his umbrella.
“Are you an engineering student?” I asked. He nodded.
“IIT Madras?”
He was a little startled, and he nodded again.
“Chemical Engineering?”
“Wait, is this some sort of a trick?” He asked.
“Did you get the last seat in Chemical Engineering?”
He was evidently confused and taken aback…. Continue Reading →
Another Tree Story
Words of encouragement. Uplifting, belief giving words. They cost nothing, but can change lives for the better.
I have shared my story hundreds of times with audiences of all types and sizes. I have talked about people who have showered me with great, empowering words that contributed to my success in life- my parents, my wife, my sisters, a couple of high school teachers, and business leaders who came into my life in my mid twenties. However, I have failed to acknowledge a few of them that came into my life, primarily during my college years. In this post, I want to talk about one such person.
In an earlier post, Lessons from a Mango Tree, I talked about my spectacular failure in a singing contest. Despite the encouraging lesson I learned through that, I became a reluctant performer. While I would sing in class during free periods,… Continue Reading →
Living Rooms around the world
I started to write this blog in-flight, on my way back from London, UK. I am extremely fascinated and grateful that I am able to connect to the internet at 35,000 feet.
In my business, I teach people how to build an asset through business ownership, without jeopardizing their primary income, and not having to worry about raising capital and hiring employees. Through the Britt Worldwide system, we have an elaborate training, coaching and mentoring program to empower people around the world with the right mindset and tools to own and operate their own Independent Business.
While we have meetings of all sizes from homes to coliseums, my favorite ones are small huddles in living rooms. This is where great relationships are built and we get to know about people by listening to them.
Once again, my weekend trip to London, taught me that people have the same basic desires all over the world. … Continue Reading →
The Superhero Inside
Inside me is a superhero, always rearing to go. This guy is limitless. He has unbounded energy and a limited list of real talents, but an inexhaustible set of “possibility” talents and skills. If my body is an institution, then this superhero heads two departments – “Dreams and Vicarious Living ” and “Goals and Accomplishments “. The first department has taken me from benign indulgences like simply day dreaming to fantasizing the possibility of becoming a world class tennis player well into my forties. In my mind I have been an adviser to the U.S President and other world leaders, and on the board of Google, Facebook, Apple and Tesla. In this world I have won the Oscar, and the Augusta Masters tournament. I could have landed the plane on the Hudson just as effectively as Scully.
This crazy department also made me think out of the box,… Continue Reading →
My Amazing Wife
Today is Anjali’s birthday. In our family, we celebrate happy events, but on our terms. We went out to dinner a couple of times last week, and to a comedy show in New York, and decided that they were all part of the birthday celebration. Today there won’t be any special plans because it is also Karva Chauth. This means Anjali is fasting. She won’t eat a morsel until the moon shows up at night.
I would hardly classify our family as religious or ritualistic. Karva Chauth is the only ritual that Anjali follows diligently each year.
What is remarkable is her equanimity. It is one thing to read about and preach an evenness of spirit, calmness in demeanor, and a non-judgmental attitude, it is a whole different thing to implement all of this.
Anjali Kumar does this effortlessly, every day of her life,… Continue Reading →
Lessons from a Mango Tree
I grew up in Chembur, Mumbai in a rented one room and kitchen apartment, with my parents and two sisters. My extracurricular life revolved around a giant rectangular play area (we called it “the compound”) surrounded by buildings on three sides and a street up front. There was a huge mango tree smack in the middle of the compound, which belonged to the landlord. Each summer the tree would be laden with delicious green mangoes. Not unlike a plot from Mission Impossible, we did our groundwork. We timed the landlord’s afternoon siesta, and struck with unpredictable frequency. The rocks and stones we threw at the stems to dislodge the mangoes would rustle the leaves, but we managed to get away before he could find his bearings.
On one occasion my Dad caught us in the act. “I know we are not rich, son” he said, “but we can afford to buy mangoes from the market.”… Continue Reading →