Back in 2010, seemingly bored with lack of things to like on Facebook (no sarcasm there!) and with restless energy abound, I used to volunteer with non-profits on the weekends. More than a feel-good feeling, there was this sense of working on real problems within constraints and trying to come up with effective solutions which could help make us some headway, regardless of the constraints.

Restlessness was such that one time even when I was working full time with an NGO back in 2010, India Sponsor Foundation (ISF) - a Mother NGO funding grassroot NGOs, I also got ‘volunteering’ (Saturdays) with 1 of the 7 Partner organizations we were then funding. Now when I look back at it, it was like 5 days of work which I was committed to do, and then volunteering to put in a few more hours on the weekend with the 1 organization where I saw greater potential for change (compared to the other NGOs whom we were funding) – Thankfully they worked on Saturdays too and were able to accommodate me.

Later when I moved on from the NGO, I moved on from volunteering at the partner organization too.
Back on Facebook and spending countless productive hours surfing the pages (no sarcasm again!), I was introduced to an initiative where a group of young guys would gather together at one place, get good fresh food in bulk from one of the nearby Dhabas and then share the food with the less privileged. This sounded cool, and I decided to join in for the same.

Given the initiative aimed to share food including Khamiri Roti and Mutton Korma, it was sure to be the ‘One great meal’ of the week for the guys whom the initiative aimed to provide for. The initiative was not targeting the same people again and again, and was open to anyone (kids, women, men – young/old/differently abled) who did not have access to such food, but happened to be in the vicinity on that day.

We did this for a few weeks, and later when I happened to meet Mrs. Lekha Srivastava, Exec Director, ISF around that time, I mentioned that there was this initiative being undertaken by a few guys where we bought food in bulk and then gave it away. The first question she asked me was “Why are you paying for this? You should be tying up with the eateries so that you can help route/ distribute the excess food which remains, to the needy!”

For some reason, the question stayed with me, and the point came up repeatedly if and when I would be catching up with someone in the Hospitality industry, and the topic of excess food came up. Some of the points which came up from such discussions:
 

1.  A single day’s leftover food from one five star hotel in a Metro is sufficient enough to feed at least 300 people – This was a statement from someone who was in the Hospitality industry and working with 5 star hotels!
2. No hotel ever gives away leftover food for charity because of hygiene and safety being a major issue. It is straight away incinerated or dumped at common dumping places.
3. When thinking across different food categories (Milk products are best avoided given out) and exploring possibilities wherein whether it was possible for the hotels have a partnership/ tie-up with other social organizations to take care of this, and wherein this network could then ensure that food reaches them in the right condition; the feedback was that it was not easy at all to keep this quantity of food safe till midnight or the next day.
4. There are concerns around the food being delivered in the right condition, state and time. There was very much a possibility that it could make the hungry kids sick.
5. There was the concern that some people might misuse this, and also look at it as a means to make money. So hotels try and play safe by not giving anyone a chance to say anything which might go against them.
6. The Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI), which is into a lot of charitable deeds and events could help take such ideas forward – it all had to be coordinated though.

Now, from a consumer point of view, we have all had instances wherein we have consumed stuff over a couple of days (provided we keep them simply refrigerated until further use), and lived to tell the tale.

All said and done, every once in a while this would pop into my mind when I would be sitting in Cafe’s looking at the processed food, and wondering to self how much more time there was before one would have to dispose them off. Trying to think from putting yourself into the shoes of an entrepreneur who might be in the Hospitality Sector didn’t help things much either! This was until yesterday, when I tripped on this interesting video which seems to be going viral all over Social Media.

Now what the  Happy Life Welfare Society and The Dabbawala Foundation are trying to achieve is laudable and worthy of being emulated. But hey, the Mumbai Dabbawalas network is only spread across Mumbai and when thinking of scaling such initiatives across regions and countries, it gets one thinking.

If you look at it closely, the trigger is where the customer decides to put on the ‘Share’ sticker on their dabba (tiffin box), giving dabbawalas the cue that they could share the extra food with those who needed it. 

Regardless of whether the distribution network is present for ‘large scale implementation’ of such an initiative, would it make sense if more and more Cafe’s/ Restaurants/ Fine Diners/ Eateries gave customers the choice of sharing forward the food if there was a choice to do so?  As also give them the option of adding in a not-much-expensive filling food item/ coffee from their menu?

Would this shift the focus from thinking of this activity as a CSR chore, to thinking of it as one more way to delight your customer?

So, hey, if there were folks celebrating their birthday/ anniversary/ treat; could we amp up the entire customer delight experience by helping them pay forward one extra coffee/ one extra ice cream to share their joy with the less fortunate, along with their extra food? Enabling them to check on social media how their food is being shared, giving them joy points (customer loyalty points), etc etc are other things which could be considered.

To keep aspiration levels ticking amongst the different organizations, the initiative could also be driven down the pyramid structure (more affluent to less affluent) so as to create an aspirational pull amongst organizations to deliver this.
 

‘Food left in your Dabba?!’ Picture Credit: Well, I took this from the video I have shared above!

Well, still looking for answers; but am sure those who are working in the Hospitality sector and on their respective ventures are far more empowered and creative to take forward the idea of delighting their customers as also trying out various permutations and combinations when serving them on these lines. Now to gorge on some food to finish off my post whilst you my friend: the CEO/ the manager/ the individual who drives initiatives/ the entrepreneur working on your next customer delight experience munch on my blog. The best part is, it doesn’t even have to be just food that you might be working on.

So hey, share my Dabba will you, and know what, add in an ice-cream if you don’t mind?

Cheers, Monce

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p.s.:  There is also this message which keeps doing the rounds: ‘If you have a function/party at your home in India and food gets wasted,Pls don’t hesitate to call 1098 (IN INDIA ONLY) – child help line. They will come and collect the food. Please circulate this message which can help feed many children’.

Well, don’t call them – because I did (when I first read about them a few years back), to verify this. They are a private NGO working with the Government, and are into helping kids on other issues: Kids lost, helping kids with education (the ones who can’t afford it), kids needing medication etc.

One good thing which came out of the hoax message :- 1098 which was nonetheless working with the kids, got loads more attention.

A TED talk that made me smile in a long long time, especially when you keep reading about Prof Clayton Christensen predicting 50% of US Universities to go bankrupt within the next 15 years… Worth every single second of your time… !

For those who would love to experiment with the SOLE Tool Kit (read Parents/ Teachers who want their kids to discover their inner Superhero): CLICK HERE

Curious to see what happens when we try to use, internalize and unleash a SOLE or similar environments across schools, homes, clubs and non-profits.

What do you think will happen?

Cheers, Monce

As we got into the rewind and review mode during the last few days of the year and as this New Year unfolds; I can’t help but feel grateful for the experiences and learning that the past year had to offer me.

2o12 – Well, it’s been the year I went from saying Hi to our Former President while wearing pyjamas and a tee shirt, to dozing off in between a meeting with the Founder & CEO of the current venture I am involved with; getting to speak with and learn from some of the most outstanding Indian thought leaders, to taking on 8km runs once a week. In between I also learnt to drive a car (well, had to do it someday), and got chased on an empty stretch by 3 miscreants on a motorbike, morning 2 AM.

Inside I feel good as to how the year treated me (caught up on a few good movies too – ‘Dark Knight Rises’ included); this whilst I can’t wait to take on, and experience what 2013 has to offer.

Picture Credit: The Dark Knight Rises official website

Over to the Details…

Interaction with Thought Leaders

 
I have thanked Yinglan before – here, here and here; and I can’t help but thank him enough for his continued trust and belief in me.

Over the past nine months in 2o12, I had the opportunity to speak with and take a look into the minds of 35 plus FABULOUS thought leaders – It’s been one heck of a crazy learning experience. During this period, I have managed to miss (without any regrets) breakfasts and dinners, sometimes meeting the leaders late night 11 PM at the airports; sometimes early morning over breakfast; sometimes hopping from 1 interaction to the other the same day (with venues spread across opposite ends of Delhi!); sometimes speaking with them during transit in a car (in between meetings at Pt A and Pt B) etc. In one instance, wherein the chunk of the discussion was still left, I have even requested the individual if I could stay back in their vehicle/ vicinity and work on my laptop till the time they came back from their next meeting (learning: make sure your laptop and mobile are fully charged on the days you make such requests!). There was also this one instance wherein after a 2 hour long discussion, the individual and I decided against hiring a cab and simply hopped onto the Delhi Metro (impeccable timing: End of work day!) to catch up on our respective meetings for the day. All in all, they make for some valuable learnings and experiences.
 

* Leaders who were gracious with their time and insights in 2o12 include: Dr. R A Mashelkar, Dr. Anil Gupta, N R Narayana Murthy, Nandan Nilekani,  Dr. Swati Piramal, R. Gopalakrishnan, Arjun Malhotra, Phanindra Sama, Ganesh Krishnan, Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Deep Kalra, Naveen Tewari and many more – Much Grateful. Thank you.

Starting off with my entrepreneurial journey full time

 
Having consulted a few entrepreneurs and leaders for almost a year (I used to work during the day with an organization 10 AM – 6 PM, and consult serious entrepreneurs and leaders during my free time, evenings and weekends), I guess it was only natural that I took the leap when the opportunity came along. Two crazy memories from working on the current ventures include:
 
(a) Literally slept off during a 5 min break in between one of the early (skype) meetings with Sanjiv ( Sanjiv is the Founder & CEO of the ventures I am involved with) morning 1:30/ 2 AM – Before you judge me, this was the third straight day I was pushing myself a bit more than usual, having been up for straight 22 hours that day – Waking up for consulting work morning 3:30 AM, going for work (with an organization) 10 AM – 6 PM, post which I hit the gym and was back in for skype meetings 10:00 PM onwards.

* I did manage to wake up later that morning around 8 AM – if I may add, with a wee bit of strange ‘surprise’ on finding the lighting and PC (still) switched on.

 
(b) Reaching out to former President Shri APJ Abdul Kalam (probably the most humble individual I have met till date) while wearing pyjamas, when he visited our residential apartment to bless a young couple post their marriage – When one is working on a venture wherein one thinks that they are ‘changing the world’ (to put it in perspective – working out of one’s home wearing a Superman tee, minus the cape), one tends to act in the oddest of ways at the oddest of times. The result – I didn’t care (well, actually didn’t have enough time) to shave  or change into formal attire on receiving the news, and had to rush to see if I could speak to the Hon’ble President on his way out (in the parking lot!); this, wearing a tee-shirt, windcheater and pyjamas.

*Later that night, I realized that I had forgot to introduce myself personally in those 10 seconds when I had shared a line about our venture and requested for his mail id.

Running 8 kms runs a week

 
Being part of the NCC in college can teach you a bit about taking on your own personal limits – Having progressed from being a 16 yr old teen who could run just 2 km distances max with breaks in between, NCC was a good change in terms of realizing that I could do better than that – Learnt that, despite my generous build, could persevere and take on 7 rounds of a field 3 times the size of a football field, early morning 5 AM.

Having touched 7 km runs early on in 2oo9; now that I look back, it seems crazy that it took me almost 3 years to realize and break that plateau to run 8 km runs this year (Best timing: 45 min 02 sec).  Maybe I should start keeping a tab and become more conscious of the plateaus that keep building up around me.

Having run this distance regularly once a week along with my regular week exercise routine, I lost 7 kgs this year and feel better in terms of what I can endure physically. For those who are curious whether you can take this up (a few guys did reach out to me on FaceBook for this) – Well, just make sure you have been given the go-ahead by your physician and are warming up most days with 2 km runs – from there on, it’s just about not giving up on the running in the 5 min intervals.

What I followed, without injuring myself  running on the treadmill (Source: Men’s Health India, October 2012 Edition):

6.5kmph(5min) – 8kmph(5min) – 11kmph(5min) -8kmph(5min)
R.E.S.T.(3min)
13kmph(5min) – 10kmph(5min) – 11kmph(5min) – 8kmph(5min)… walk/ run rest distance to cover 8km total…

Learning to Drive… and finding my first 3 Speeding Tickets in the mail

 
It seems almost embarrassing to admit that I had been putting off learning to drive all these years! – Nonetheless, 2o12 happened to be the year that I finally picked up some driving skills. Not-so-amusingly, from the first time I drove the car all by myself, I have (unwittingly) also managed to pick up ’3′ speeding tickets over the 45 odd days which followed that moment.

Having said this – Thanks Pa and a shoutout to Merly for being patient with me and coaxing me to take this up eventually. Thanks Ma, for allowing me to drop you off at work everyday morning to brush up on my skills, and for bearing with me every time I started off 5 min later than required (every single day). Need to learn ‘some’ patience from you and Pa (well, been saying this for a ‘few’ years now – don’t think will ever get there!).

All said and done – 1200 bucks poorer (that’s INR 400*3 – Thanks Delhi Traffic Police btw, you guys are doing a great job), and a wee bit wiser, I have switched to listening to soft(er) music whenever I think I can see a bit too much road ahead of me which needs to be can be covered.

Having started with this, I also intend to pick up some basic skills for car repair and stuff this year – Been too narrow minded (ahem, stubborn) when it gets down to more details, need to change that.

 
 
 
My New Year Resolution for 2013?! – Well, do enough things in 2o13 to ensure I write a blog around the same time next year.

Best Wishes to you and your loved ones for a great year ahead!

 
 
 
Cheers, Monce

Though the year 2o12 had a lot to offer me personally, I can’t help but not go back to some not so happy personal incident(s); plus of course the plight of the 23 year old woman who was subjected to gangrape and subsequent inhuman torture at the hands of 6 individuals recently in the Capital. What happened afterwards in terms of protests, and the way the protest were handled by the government also threw up some unpleasant questions which needed answers, and which needed them fast.

Be you a student, entrepreneur, activist or leader (corporate/ government) who might happen to read this post;  I sincerely believe that we all as individuals, and a country, are capable of achieving much greater things. As we all condemn the act, and seek justice and fairness for such untoward incidents, let us also take a look inside and try to understand what makes individuals, who are not so much different from us in flesh and bone, commit such acts – and therein try to nip the issue at the bud.

A solution that might work in the long run (not saying it’s the fastest way to bring about change) is to create the right environment at the family level wherein we consciously seed out patriarchal/ matriarchal traits which differentiate between a boy and a girl  (one which gives privileges to one child more than the other, at different levels/ instances/ ages etc); treating the children equally in terms of love and care, and enabling both to find and pursue their greatness in thoughts, words and deeds – By doing this, we might, perhaps, be able to achieve an environment wherein more men respect women and look at them as fabulous individuals, just like themselves. In such an environment, more men should, and will, understand that when it comes from a woman – a ‘no’ means ‘NO’. (Below is a campaign which I had come across sometime back, and which shows how powerful the idea is in such an environment).

Picture credit: My Strength Campaign (http://www.mystrength.org/)

Recently had the opportunity to read Dan Ariely‘s book ‘Predictably Irrational’ wherein a part of the book discussed experiments conducted on students across institutions such as Harvard, MIT, Berkeley etc  on as to how our minds behaved irrationally (and in sharp contrast to the beliefs and decision making abilities we might hold as conscious individuals) in a state of sexual excitation.*

One obvious learning (from the book): It’s easier to walk away from something you might regret doing, when your mind is at a lower level of excitement – Applies to any area of your life including maintaining ethics in business dealings, when you still have not got seriously hooked to drugs or whatever-new-thing-is-out-there-that-supposedly-makes-you-cool (well, it doesn’t), and not letting down your parents and rest family.

And yes, let’s not make it just a Government or Police thing to do - even though the Government and the Police needs to do more than just washing off it’s hands off the responsibility due to them as Decision makers and Protectors of, and for, the Democracy of India – The issue runs much deeper and needs to be looked at closely when we think of the kind of environment that ‘exists’, and the kind of environment or country that we and the coming generations would rather ‘live’ in.

Praying for the 23 year old woman (Jyoti Singh Pandey) who passed away on 29th Dec 2012 – May God bless her soul, and give her family and friends the strength and courage to move on. 

- Monce C. Abraham

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* No disrespect to the individuals from the institutions covered in the book, and which were mentioned above; more so because I have had the honor and the privilege of consulting and working with a few brilliant minds out of these and similar leading institutions of learning. 

The fact that individuals from such institutions (who more-often-than-not set very high standards for themselves in terms of commitment and self-discipline) can show such results in these experiments, reveals a bit about what the outcomes might be when it comes to other individuals who might not have set such standards for themselves – Thus, making the case stronger for why we need to be more aware, and control such circumstances with care.
 

If you happen to be one of those late night creatures on my FaceBook network who find it hard to sleep before 2/ 3 AM, chances are you would have tripped on the below post from me on 16th November morning 2:36 AM:

Well, it was a serious incident, but we were able to take care of it as a family. Given how our minds respond in a very limited fashion under such circumstances, all four of us were able to focus on four different activities and managed to arrive at our place unharmed whilst taking care of the needful.

Once home, we informed the district police on ’1oo’ and also corresponded with a couple of officials from the district police station on phone. We also made it a point to reach out to the Police officials at more responsible positions (on mail), to ensure that those guys were caught and so that others would not have go through this kind of ordeal at their hands. Having waited for a few days, finally got the following mail from the Delhi Police Commissioner’s cell today morning:

 
It’s always a pleasure to see officials working sincerely towards deterring such criminal activities, and to improve the state of affairs in the country.

Remember reading about the ‘Broken Windows Theory’ a couple of years back in the Malcolm Gladwell book ‘The Tipping Point‘; and couldn’t help but consider the fact that there was not even a single policeman/ van along the entire stretch of the road where this incident happened (Thanks Pa, for pointing this out to me when I was in the process of reaching out to the police officials).

The Broken Windows Theory states that a small deviation from the norm can instigate further disorder and thus even further deviation (from the norm). In this case, the empty stretch at night 2 AM without any police supervision served as a ‘broken window’ for those men to try to commit a crime. Had there been even an indication of the law (honest and active) being present in that stretch, it would have served as a deterrent for such to-be crimes — In fact, nothing else would have been required to prevent this kind of a scenario  wherein the individuals had the guts to follow us all the way through a straight stretch of road extending almost 5 kms!

Whilst a few basic things can be taken care of to improve situations such as these, one might as well take them up some other time. You can, of course, in the meanwhile, trip on gems like ‘Predictably Irrational’ and other books and talks by Dan Ariely (in addition to Gladwell) to figure out how to save the world from crimes in a more civilized setting, say, a workplace or a classroom. * Yes… Gasp! *

Three things to keep in mind when faced with a similar situation:

1. Make sure all your doors are locked and keep driving – Do not stop.
2. Remember that you are not Liam Neeson – Recognize risk when you do not have sufficient information about whether the assailants are carrying arms – Do not get into a fight. Call the police and try to get to the nearest point where you can find some safety – This could be a crowded place/ police van/ police station/ driving into a secured society building etc.
3. Try to gather information about the assailants, if possible, so that you can help the Police track them going forward – Face, Vehicle number etc – Try to take their pic/ video and share with your network ASAP

Just these 3 things… and hope you never have to put them to use!

Now to to work with the Police officials to help resolve this matter, by extending all possible help in terms of information.
 
 

Stay Safe, and keep kicking!

 
 
Cheers, Monce

We had the opportunity to discuss a few things, but as I close on my work tonight, I can’t help but go back to the most important chat we had that day:

Yinglan : “So tell me Monce, have you ever been in such a rush to reach where you wanted to reach, that you couldn’t wait to finish your shave and nicked your face in the process?”

Me (already lost in thought during the conversation but experiencing one of the best feelings while answering this): “I missed my dinner once… I missed breakfast a few times… * ” (trying to analyze  the strange feeling, and back to being even more lost in thought now…)

* And trust me, it was true: It was only during I was already en-route somewhere that I realized I had forgot to have my dinner that particular day!

For those who are trying to find meaning in the above lines, just try to think of the times you were doing something that you really wanted to do (stuff that makes the real ‘you’ come alive), and rest everything (time, place, everything!) fades into the background.

Yinglan, it’s always such a pleasure to meet and learn from you, each and every interaction.

Night 2:45 AM and inspired, a good day coming to an end…

p.s.: That’s me above – on one of the days I really do need a real bad shave.

Got similar experiences to share?  Would love to hear from you in the comments below.

Cheers, Monce

Can’t help but imagine what Neil was thinking when he was chosen for the Apollo 11 Space mission, along with Edwin Aldrin and Michael Collins… and what must have been going through his mind when he ‘decided’ to go ahead with what he did.

Neil inspired folks to think B.I.G. … that all limitations are, but self-imposed… and that when one outrageously decides to give a shot at being the first man on the moon, rest everything looks ordinary.

Kids will keep learning about you in the years to come Neil; & no one can take away the fact that you were the ‘First Man to Walk the Moon’…

RIP Neil… you live on…

DECIDE… DO…

p.s.: I am neither a Science geek, nor a self-proclaimed fan… Just an ordinary guy who feels inspired by Men such as these who dare to walk the Earth, or the Moon for that matter.

p.p.s.:  Those who have the urge to comment on the Moon landing conspiracy, some other day folks!

Cheers,  Monce

Back then, I was this 18 year old ‘kid’ who had decided to enroll with the NCC simply because they had told us that, as NCC cadets, we would get to do crazy adventurous stuff like rifle shooting, skeet shooting, parasailing, etc.  - Enough ammunition to get the pulse of any guy racing!

What they did not tell us – We would be put through a gruelling self-discipline learning over the next couple of years which included attending NCC training on weekends and annual camps where we would learn to march (or walk smartly, as they put it), run 7 laps of a ground 3 times the average football ground (at 5 in the morning!), and also do a whole lot of other stuff which would, ahem, build our character.

Why do I speak of this – Because I loved every moment of it! Strangely when I look back, I now realize that we were doing all the not-so-fun-disciplinary-stuff for the major part or almost 80% of our time spent in NCC activities but which made us able and up-to-task to take up the next 20% of mind-blowing experience that the annual camps had to offer us.

I remember, in particular, my first para-sailing experience – Our batch from college had assembled that evening at the grounds for the parasailing drill (the entire drill was to be on ground, and not water), and all of us were asked to strap on the harness one by one… and wait.

For most of us who had no idea how to go about the para-sailing, this meant that we had to keep running behind a jeep which held us by a thick rope, this with a para-sail strapped to our back, lift off to stay in the air for some 3 minutes, and then land on the ground from a height of 25 – 30 feet at the end of it.

Though I was ‘a bit’ enthusiastic about the entire experience, I did feel a bit unnerved at the thought of ‘plummeting to death’ on my way down, and managed to delay the experience by asking others to go ahead all evening – this till I was the only one left for the exercise! Having seen a few guys get bruised from the effort (or lack of it!) of not keeping on running before they were lifted off – in which case one is dragged by the jeep for a few seconds, and suffers bruises and cuts; I just strapped on my frail helmet while being assisted with knee pads (the knee pads hardly looked as if they could support my weight and save my knees should I ever be gloriously dragged on the runway, or on cheese for that matter!) and started to focus on what would help me survive the entire drill.

The instructions were simple:

1. Run with the jeep.
2. Once you are lifted off the ground, focus on keeping up with the peddling action up to a height of 10 feet, so that even if you were to get back on ground because of not strong enough winds, you would be in running motion and will not get dragged around by the jeep (very much a possibility given my generous built!)
3. Once you have crossed 15 – 20 feet and reach a stable height, signal whether you are comfortable: (a) If Comfortable - Release grip from harness and stretch hands wide open once, then get back to hold the harness, (b) If Uncomfortable - Cross and open legs a couple of times.
4. On your way down when being lowered, ensure you bring together your body such that your line of sight is in aligment with your knees and forefoot.
5. Land gently while keeping balance.

SOUNDS EASY, RIGHT!

Now the funny part – I managed to keep myself focussed on points 1 and 2, as had been instructed, and did just fine till the part I was in the air… and then the wind hit me!

For the few seconds that I left grip on my harness to signal that I was doing Ok out there, the feel of wind on my face with all that force, and the feeling of flying out there (self-confessed Superman fan!) was so strong that I kept my hands off the harness and stretched out my hands all the while, till I was lowered down.

Grinning all the way down, I felt like a champ and was all kicked up with wishful thinking whether I could do this a couple more times before retiring for the day. However, my seniors at the camp did not share the zesty feeling and rushed forth, rebuking me for not having kept my hands on the harness after signalling. I, of course, thanked them for their concern, and told them that the harness felt all right and safe… and that I would heed their advise going forward. Got let off, thankfully!

The next morning, the Sergeant who had coordinated the drill practice (Sgt Johnson) called on me and one more individual to help him arrange for the para-sailing experience.

During that day, I learnt a lot about as to how one had to keep the sails arranged for quick launches, what were the different aspects one had to keep in mind so that we could assist safe launches and avoid any mishaps, and all that jazz. By the end of second day, I had made considerable progress and was already amongst the 2 guys who were chipping in full time for the para-sailing part.

At the second camp, we did the para-sailing on the Runway: winds were much more powerful and even at a height of 50 feet, one really did not want to lose grip of that harness! I and my friend Subin along with young NCC cadets (whom we were now training how to get the drill in order safely, more so given that our second camp was also our last one), managed more than 50 launches in an evening. Sgt Johnson told us this was the highest number of launches he had done in a single evening, throughout his career! Sgt Johnson was retiring from the Air Force soon after the camp, and intended to start a para-sailing club abroad; with the credible number of launches he had done as one of the points, helping him with his venture.

Felt good, given that we had just one jeep and 2 sails – along with a bunch of guys who were working efficiently to pull this off!

As the camp drew to an end, I was already speaking with different individuals as to where and how I could skydive – I liked the para-sailing part, but now wanted to learn how to manage the entire distance from launch to landing on the ground by myself. The camp passed by and I told myself that I would skydive soon, and then college passed by and I forgot all about it.

All ideas of para-sailing and skydiving somehow got buried for a few years, only coming up in spikes when one got to watch a ‘Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara’ or when revisiting college albums (so much for living life vicariously!).

…

….

…..

That was till today – When I have made the conscious decision to move from a job to a start-up full-time… and can somewhat feel the lightness of being up there.

Now for the wind to hit my face… and to delightfully soak in the experience of flying without wings while I am still in the air… !

Got similar experiences?  Would love to hear from you in the comments below!

Cheers, Monce

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For the uninitiated, I have decided to put my foot where my mouth is. I have worked with a few entrepreneurs, helping them do their thingy better with their marketing, branding, strategy etc, for some time now, and have finally jumped in full time to join an exciting startup with Sanjiv Rai. (Thanks Sanjiv, for the opportunity and your belief in me; and Thanks Yinglan, for helping me with initiating a journey towards doing more of what I want to do).

Not sure if going down the line, this will count as one of the better decisions I would have made in my 26 years on this planet so far (Ok, let’s cut the cr*p, I am really looking forward to this!), but one thing is for sure – I intend to do and learn a lot, and I intend to have fun doing it…

Praying to the One above. Eternally thankful and grateful for all my experiences so far…

“School ke liye fees thodi lagti hain, uniform lagta hain… uniform… !”

- Aamir Khan, in the movie ’3 Idiots’ (2009)

 
If you happened to be in India in the year 2oo9 and like to watch movies that do not require you to switch your brains off, chances are that you might have watched the movie ’3 Idiots’. One of the best things that I liked about the movie was the idea about how education ought to be – all learning that is in sync with your passion, the rest being details.

As mentioned earlier, when reading a book like Outliers, one starts to wonder whether the same principles that are applicable for individuals to reach Point B from Point A, are also applicable to organizations including businesses, schools and colleges at large.

Just recently, one of my former teachers from school, Ms. Diana Charles (fellow Columbans would fondly remember her as the person who inducted us into the Spelling Bee) shared a link on her FaceBook wall: What Americans Keep Ignoring About Finland’s School Success, which speaks about how the Finnish schools are achieving excellence in schools. Though the article focuses on 2-3 few key points, the one idea that really caught my imagination was  the point that the Finnish schools were achieving great results by focusing on ‘equality’ more than excellence.
 

 
It was with a similar idea in mind that I had met up the co-founders of a social organization in early 2010. The team was working on the education of kids from disadvantaged backgrounds, and were doing this on the weekends from within St. Columba’s School (SCS), the classrooms being provided for free by the school towards this. The idea discussed was a simple one – to make efficient use of the ‘Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act‘, bearing in mind that just making the ‘right’ compulsory was not going to solve the problems. If you think about it, there is more to making the ‘right’ work than putting a child in a great school and hoping that we have solved the education problem. The usual hindrances being how the transition works out for the kid, and as to how he/ she adjusts to the new setup.
 
Factors that need to be taken into account
 
Factors include – the books, school bag, lunch (‘Stanley ka Dabba’ anyone?) , stationary, and last but not the least – the uniform*. Easier said than done though, because the list adds up to minimum INR 1,000, for a family whose monthly income would be in the range of INR 2200 – 3000 (or less).

* (The uniform, in my opinion, is amongst the greatest levellers out there. It brings everyone under one roof, fosters a sense of brotherhood, takes out most diversity issues and gives all kids a level playing field – for all you know: kids, teachers and even your school canteen guy thin slices students on a daily basis, but most are not aware of it at a conscious level).

Whilst I toyed with a few ideas as to how the school could leverage and lend support to this initiative by spending least money and effort, I also got teaching the kids at the social org on weekends  (standards 2 to 5) during my free time to get an idea about their potential. My observations, in brief, were as follows:
 

1. The kids were extremely smart. 

Not only were the kids fast to grasp things if we made learning interesting but they were extremely smart and consistently on the lookout to negotiate and barter freebies (extra time to play games, toffees, chance to write on the blackboard, you-get-the-idea!) in lieu of study/ work done.

2. Rote learning levels were alarmingly high. 

What really ticked me off: The kids could recite all alphabets from A-Z, they could also write most alphabets in order… But should one randomly ask which alphabet was which, they had no clue!

Their math was comparatively better.

3. Some of the kids, especially the outstanding ones, could really thrive in an environment that a good school could offer.

Thankfully, I didn’t have to wait till I read about KIPP (Knowledge Is Power Program) in Outliers to figure out that quite a portion of the gap could be bridged by making education accessible to the kids more frequently. Some avenues were already in place at SCS, wherein the junior Columbans would interact with the kids with an eye on focused learning (more ideas given towards the end).

In Outliers, apart from learning about KIPP, it was interesting to read as to how the learning system of the Chinese were helping them perform better in school, hence laying the groundwork for success in their later years; plus of course the Chinese’ belief in hard work: “No one who can rise before dawn three hundred and sixty days a year fails to make his family rich”; learning which can and should definitely be adopted/ adapted.

 
The benefits of a great environment for learning cannot be negated, and must be made full use of. I have always believed that simply inculcating the kids with knowledge won’t help them. Knowledge + Communication (not mutually exclusive!) will be the 2 things that will help kids do well going forward, more so with kids from disadvantaged backgrounds. When kids interact and learn from each other (learning to communicate in a global language such as English would be a great enabler), and as they learn to interact and work with authority (skills they won’t usually pick up somewhere else); what can be realized is fast paced change which will help more and more people break the cycle of poverty based on their own merits and strengths, not to mention the talent and brainpower that comes to the market and which India can offer to the rest of the world.

p.s.: After a 3 month long pursuit in 2010, I managed to get an audience with Brother Lobo, Principal, St. Columba’s who was gracious enough to give me a 30 minute window to discuss the possibilities. The discussion ended on a positive note with us discussing that we could also speak with the Old Columban’s Association (OCA) and get them on board for some of the ideas discussed going forward. However, since I had decided to move on from the social organization by December 2010, I was not able to take this forward.

Having recently discussed this with a few teachers and having taken their inputs, I now intend to get back in touch with the concerned individuals at SCS/ OCA.

 
Where do we go from here?
 
I believe that the potential for change is huge when we start thinking of the possibilities. By ensuring that we put in place a system of merit by which the best of the students (from disadvantaged backgrounds) can be integrated into the private schools, we can make sure that there is a sense of urgency when it comes to encouraging the parents of these kids to make best use of the right. It will take a few success stories for the parents of these kids to start taking things seriously, so that the thrust on the importance of education is there even when the kids get back home from remedial centres. For it’s only when people start dreaming and believe in the hope of a better future that change begins to take place.

For schools, one of the ways to facilitate meaningful interaction is to tap into the stds VI-VIII and get each division to interact with kids from disadvantaged backgrounds just TWICE a month! (Basis: 5 divisions per standard * 3 standards = 15 standards = 15 individual days of interaction. 15 days * 2 = 30 days or One month. ) This interaction could be in the form of 40 min stay-backs (as calculated, just twice a month per student) where the current students interact with the kids on a planned basis, the structure of interaction based on what the kids are already learning/ not learning in their municipality schools.

The assumption here is that class VI onwards, the kids are capable of acting responsibly and helping the other kids on a conscious level (meaningful interaction with a focus on learning), plus we do not disturb the schedules of classes IX and X who would be getting into the exam mode for Class X Boards, or higher studies coaching.

We can also encourage kids graduating to the higher sections to donate their text books (the ones in proper condition), so that we can build a library of books which can be made accessible/loaned out to the kids from disadvantaged backgrounds.

[** Do note that these are very basic ideas which can be implemented easily without incurring too much cost or effort. A better understanding via inputs from the concerned authorities would lead to more effective solutions, esp possibilities where the Alumni network joins in, leveraging on its own networks and resources to aid the efforts of the Alma Mater].
 
All said and done, if you can read this, be grateful to your parents, the One above and the Alma Mater… It’s time you payed it forward.
 
 
Cheers, Monce

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Apart from his professional commitments, Monce works with multiple genuine social organizations on their management problems on a ‘pro bono’ basis, and also serves as a panelist on Whiteboard, a fabulous initiative by Governance Counts and iVolunteer to connect everyone with genuine social entrepreneurs. 

A word of appreciation for Governance Counts and iVolunteer: Both organizations are working on fabulous initiatives to bring about fast paced social change. Their work has also been profiled by Forbes in Forbes India, Jan 2011 issue amongst the 5 unique Social Start-ups in India.

Those of you who know me are well aware that I usually do not buy books, for the simple reason that most of the times it’s just skim reading, going through the book (fiction/ non-fiction/ other classifications out there in the universe) and taking away 2-3 key concepts that stay with me. I might return to revisit a few concepts now and then, but am not exactly in love with the idea of ‘rereading’ books.

To cut a long-story short, I managed my way into the inhouse (or is it in-airport?!) bookstore, and the first book that caught my eye also happened to be the one I bought – The Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell.  It had been recommended a few times on some LinkedIn forums and by some of my peers; plus having read Malcolm’s earlier work ‘The Tipping Point’ in 2011, it seemed like a good enough choice.

The brilliant book that Outliers is, when one starts thinking of the theories given therein,  it opens up a world of possibilities in terms of their applications to the real world. Taking forward some of the learning, in this post I intend to share what most people know works beautifully in teams, but never knew why – Having a flat organization structure and the payoffs of being approachable.

The Power Distance Index (PDI)

 
So what would your reaction be if Malcolm Gladwell told you that there was a ‘direct’ correlation between the number of plane crashes and the place from where the pilots belonged. Sounds crazy right? Wrong. Read more on this by clicking here.

A section of Outliers builds on the concept of the ‘Power Distance Index’ (PDI) which is an interesting theory (amongst the 6 Dimensions of national culture) put forth by Geert Hofstede, and which looks at how much a culture values hierarchical relationships and how individuals within that culture interact with authority. The implications of PDI when applied to plane crashes are powerful enough to make you stop reading midway and think as to how this augurs for the different businesses across the globe.

Considering the fact that India has a ‘relatively high’ PDI of 77, one is forced to revaluate as to how are the current systems that we have in place enable us to leverage the entire concept of competing in a flat world, and when doing business on a global scale. Or, are the current systems and processes enabling us?

Having a flat organization structure and being approachable:

Having a flat organization structure in order to get the competitive edge has also been examined in the much acclaimed management book  ”In Search of Excellence – Tom Peters & Robert H. Waterman Jr.“

Having a flat organization structure where information flows freely (as opposed to a pyramid structure which calls for more time for ‘informed’ decision making) cuts down on unneeded bureaucracy and red tapism to ensure rapid iteration of tasks getting completed on time/ before time. An environment where people feel free to discuss ideas and speak up is also one where the ‘rare’ someone who sees the oblivious pitfall helps bring that point into consideration when planning and executing a project.

If your firm preaches an open door policy, please ensure that your team knows it’s for real and that you get the best out of it by listening to people and their experience of working on the front line, and the real time problems that prop up from time to time. No one can help get inputs from your internal and external customers better than the ones from your team who are engaging with them on a day-to-day basis.

Be approachable, listen.

Check out the following video which I stumbled upon whilst I was learning more about this online (should you wish to watch the video from the beginning, simply drag the horizontal bar to the start):

 
It’s always a great idea to have one’s team interact, work with and learn from one’s global counterparts (in short regular spurts, if not on a continual basis) as it’s a powerful learning which no seminar, e-learning or book can impart.  That kind of learning will be a powerful enabler when your business tries to cut across global boundaries – think overcoming localisation issues when marketing and branding your product/ service in different markets, working with global teams efficiently, inculcating respect for diversity etc.

So before you head towards your next project meeting or plan to engage with a Global client/ team/ client’s team, you now know what to do, right?… Yep, revisit this blog.

 
Cheers, Monce