I often worry about how busy everyone in Corporate America seems to be. I bumped into a colleague at lunch and he was busy reading a presentation while also glancing at the WSJ at the same time. As he got up, he took out his blackberry frantically reading all the unread messages. We both agreed to catch up but his calendar was completely booked for two weeks!
The guy is busy!
Does he has some time to just sit back and think? Think about what he needs to do, think about the critical few things, think about where he is taking his career etc etc. I wonder...
The more and more I have met people, I have begun to realize that there are two things happening. One- a busy calendar is a sign of importance, so "busy"ness is a reinforcement of one's self esteem. Two- we dont prioritize well at all. Things just get on our calendar and we do them. Half the meetings are meetings we dont need to be at and so if we got really intentional about things, we wouldnt be that busy at all. I remember reading once that this generation is caught up in the thick of thin things. Thick of thin things...that really resonated with me. We just need to keep things in perspective and the real test of all this is when one goes on vacation. If nothing major drops when one is out (and seldom is that the case), clearly we have an overblown sense of our own importance than needs to be the case.
What does it mean? Enjoy the meeting, keep some "free" time to go with the flow, to allow for flexibility for what is life without a little bit of a surprise. While being busy is good, if you're too busy, you are living by a calendar and thats no fun...I know Sumantra Ghoshal wrote an article in HBR a few years back titled- Beware the Busy Manager, wherein he found that a lot of managers really dont focus their time well and they could be so much more effective if they just stepped back to take an objective look at how they spend their time. We could all do very well with that advice.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Leaving Microsoft to change the world...
This is the title of the latest book I read over this weekend, and what a fascinating story this is...
John Wood did what most people only dream of- he left a lucrative position in one of the world's top companies to form a non-profit organization whose purpose it is to bring books, computers and a chance at education to children throughout South and Southeast Asia.
The epiphany came to him on a trip to Nepal as he was taking a break from a grueling but highly successful career at Microsoft. As he saw the incredible paucity of books in the country, he decided he needed to do something different. A small project turned into a large one and before he knew it, John was more passionate about it than his day job. Much to the chagrin of his employers, he quit.
And then he wrote a book about it. In it, he says that non-profit companies should work, in practical matters, very much like for-profit companies. They should be organized, passionate and focused. Wood takes some time to give readers pointers as to how to achieve this. He also makes the story very personal and you literally feel you are with him every step of the way- the sacrifices, the tough choices, the passion, the fatigue, the joy when the faces of children light up- it makes for fascinating reading.
If you dont have time to read the book, go to the website- www.roomtoread.org- to read about Wood's organization and the wonderful things it is doing for education of the underprivileged in some of the poorest countries in the world. I have often thought about doing something but have done nothing. I salute the man who had the courage to do it all, and do it in a manner that was forthright, upfront and not taking no for an answer but fighting all odds to make it all happen.
Read the book, you will not be disappointed.
John Wood did what most people only dream of- he left a lucrative position in one of the world's top companies to form a non-profit organization whose purpose it is to bring books, computers and a chance at education to children throughout South and Southeast Asia.
The epiphany came to him on a trip to Nepal as he was taking a break from a grueling but highly successful career at Microsoft. As he saw the incredible paucity of books in the country, he decided he needed to do something different. A small project turned into a large one and before he knew it, John was more passionate about it than his day job. Much to the chagrin of his employers, he quit.
And then he wrote a book about it. In it, he says that non-profit companies should work, in practical matters, very much like for-profit companies. They should be organized, passionate and focused. Wood takes some time to give readers pointers as to how to achieve this. He also makes the story very personal and you literally feel you are with him every step of the way- the sacrifices, the tough choices, the passion, the fatigue, the joy when the faces of children light up- it makes for fascinating reading.
If you dont have time to read the book, go to the website- www.roomtoread.org- to read about Wood's organization and the wonderful things it is doing for education of the underprivileged in some of the poorest countries in the world. I have often thought about doing something but have done nothing. I salute the man who had the courage to do it all, and do it in a manner that was forthright, upfront and not taking no for an answer but fighting all odds to make it all happen.
Read the book, you will not be disappointed.
Sunday, December 09, 2007
Can we read a book a different way?!!
It was only a matter of time before this was to happen. The Digital Book is here, Sony with its Reader Ebook and Amazon with Kindle are the two that are the most popular. Its a screen that you carry, ~150 or so books in hand, that you can read anywhere- on a plane, in bed, wherever- as long as there is enough charge on the device.
Reading a digital book has not really caught on yet but my guess this is going to change profoundly the way we operate sooner than we know it. When we moved from Singapore to Boston, what books to take was a key question. Books are heavy and it is difficult lugging the around. The more mobile we've become, it is important that things become more portable and the Ebook is the perfect solution. I know a lot of people read the newspapers on the web now (including your truly) and though, once in a while, I do miss the turning of the page, it doesnt bother me much anymore. The convenience on your device is critical and digital device is the logical extension for any book-lover. It saves the person not only space but also gives speed in terms of going to an actual bookstore. It downloads right off the device. How cool is that?!!
I get the feeling we are traveling faster towards convergence than we ever have and with the Iphone that combines surfing the web, listening to music, having all our photos and handling all calls, it is very well possible that books could be read on it too. A single device that serves everything you really want. We will just need to get used to reading books differently, but then, we also wouldnt need to carry three books when we go away on a trip or vacation. A single Ebook will do!
Welcome to the truly digital world!
Reading a digital book has not really caught on yet but my guess this is going to change profoundly the way we operate sooner than we know it. When we moved from Singapore to Boston, what books to take was a key question. Books are heavy and it is difficult lugging the around. The more mobile we've become, it is important that things become more portable and the Ebook is the perfect solution. I know a lot of people read the newspapers on the web now (including your truly) and though, once in a while, I do miss the turning of the page, it doesnt bother me much anymore. The convenience on your device is critical and digital device is the logical extension for any book-lover. It saves the person not only space but also gives speed in terms of going to an actual bookstore. It downloads right off the device. How cool is that?!!
I get the feeling we are traveling faster towards convergence than we ever have and with the Iphone that combines surfing the web, listening to music, having all our photos and handling all calls, it is very well possible that books could be read on it too. A single device that serves everything you really want. We will just need to get used to reading books differently, but then, we also wouldnt need to carry three books when we go away on a trip or vacation. A single Ebook will do!
Welcome to the truly digital world!
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