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Showing posts from January, 2011

Running a business: The good and the bad

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This is a blog that I read. A guy left his job and started to work on his own. He shares his good and bad experiences. I liked them, so sharing them here With Clear Presentation Design being just over a year old I thought it might be a good time to put together some of my thoughts on the good and bad aspects of running your own business. Now, while these views are my own, and based on my experiences over the last yearI would imagine that most business owners would identify to a certain degree with at least some of what I have to say here. I’ll kick things off with the “Bad” aspects so I can end with the good news - THE BAD … - 1. You do what?… oh that’s nice. The majority of people who are important to you, friends, family etc, will just not understand. Firstly, they will probably not fully understand what exactly it is that you do. This is of course fair enough, especially if you inhabit a pretty specific niche like I do. The bottom line is that people won’t understand what you do an

51

What a way to bring about the fifty-first! Looked like a celebration post the fiftieth. More than a bombastic innings, this one had all the ingredients of a typical first-class test century coming form a master batsman. The pitch was hostile. The bowlers gave nothing away. The ball seamed and swung more than ever. And it was under these circumstances that the 146 was made. It required patience, grit, perseverance, calm and cool mind, top-class and every other thing that I missed out here. The ball did a lot. What was more special was that no side dominated. The bowlers were top-class. So many nicks didn't reach the slip fielders. So many balls hit the body. So many leg-before appeals. So many times saved from the skin of the teeth. But every time coming back stronger. We are in a bad habit of praising heroes who are flashy. A flamboyant innings laden with fours and sixes with a strike rate of over 120 would have gained innumerable applauses. What would have missed would be the clas

A day after rejection

How the hell can you feel motivated the very next day after the rejection? That is precisely what I am feeling. After the interview, in which I was royally screwed in acads, I felt great, because I didn't know acads. Preparing acads is not difficult. You just have to sit down with the books and start reading. What is difficult is to change the attitude! How do I sit with the books?! As the process is progressing, the belief that the job is a hygiene factor is only increasing. I can now empathize with Maslow and appreciate what he wrote ages ago. A good job, a well-paying job isn't a motivating factor for me. It is only a necessity, because without that, the survival would be difficult. That is the problem. In order to fulfill them, I have to let go of the things that motivate me, keeps the spark alive and makes me tick! I love them still there is a problem. Sala padhna hai . There are so many beautiful and amazing things to do than to read the academics, none of which will be a

Rejection

The placement season is going on, and the header of the topic would have indicated to you the result that I received. As great men say, "Success is moving from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm." I am slightly confused about that. Why do only those speak such things who are successful? After screwing up badly in an interview, I would never come up with any such statement. And if I do, it would sound like a loser's comment. The interview was horrible. I could barely answer a question. More than my own , I was worried about my college's reputation. "Creme-de-la-creme" students come here, and those students of don't know the basics of what has been taught and what is supposed to be "the best course of Asia-Pacific", there are reasons to worry. Though this experience is not a new one for me, and in general I hate giving excuses, but as soon as my interview started, I didn't get a good feeling like I did in the previous interview (I s

Mumbhai

Enough has been said and written about the maximum city, and I am not the best of the writers to give something new or something old in new and blasting words. But on and off, the city brings strange excitement in me. The placement season is going on. We will try to sell ourselves to the company of our choice. Most of us would not be able to do that in the most desired manner. But most of the students would get placed at Mumbai, or Bombay as I like calling it. I read two books on Bombay: The Maximum City, and Shantaram. Shantaram isn't about the city per se, but contains huge details about it, and that gave me an additional point to get excited about the city. I visited Bombay a few times and every time I felt strange buzz across the city, as if something was going on. "The city never sleeps" as some people like to say about Bombay. I feel there are innumerable possibilities there. Not only for people pursuing wealth, but otherwise as well. I feel Bombay is an experience:

Asthma

Since last few days (its been more than 30), I haven't played badminton, majorly because 'it' returned. 'It' started in class X when I was returning from a tour from Hindalco Plant. It was October, changing season and we all had cold-drinks. The damn thing happened to me! Breathlessness. It got converted into asthma and is together with me since. When I work out, whether on court or in my room via Yoga, gradually it goes away for sometime. Then suddenly out of nowhere it returns. And when it does, it takes away all the stamina I built up during all the previous days. It doesn't matter how well I am doing before that, it just takes away everything, and every time from then on, I have to start everything from the scratch. I hate it more than anything or anyone. It disables me to huge extent. Playing becomes impossible, running is out of question, even climbing the stairs becomes a problem. The only solution, they say, is Yoga. I have included it in my New year Res

A tick on xl sheet can do wonders

Last term (I am at XLRI, Jamshedpur right now. Pursuing MBA-HR, VI term) in a course called Personal Effectiveness and Leadership (PEL) , an assignment was given in which I had to decide on a few things which I will do daily for the whole term. Since I am in a B-school, the use of power point or excel sheet is inevitable in any assignment. Here too, I had to put entries in an excel sheet about whether or not I did. In addition to that, there had to be put in some of my feelings about those things or the day in general. The Start : When I started, I put in a few things which I wanted to do. They were very simple and ordinary. Playing badminton, doing yoga, going to gym (unfortunately I could write 'Y' in this column only once), reading news, brushing teeth before sleeping and so on. It started off well. Most of the columns had a 'Y' in it which meant I did them. I loved myself for that. I have always struggled with remaining regular all through my life. Innumerable time

Once More: An Entry EveryDay

It is the third time that I am writing on this topic. I am promising myself again that I will write on this blog daily. I tried doing this earlier as well but failed miserably. In fact, my last entry was in this thing only and that was a few months back. I feel some or the other thing motivates me on one fine day and I promise myself based on those feelings rather than being rational. Rational thinking might help me not feeling bad about myself because if I make some promises which are rational and achievable, most probably I would end up achieving them. However, I also feel that over rationalization makes the task simpler and easier. Mostly the progress happens when there are stretch goals: not too difficult that one can't reach them, nor too easy that there is no efforts put in to realize them. Hence, here I come again with a renewed energy and enthusiasm to restart the things that I left unrealized last time.