Anukul...?

I wanted to share this since long. The sci-fi genre is not about the technology or its wonders but rather about its applications and implications. That makes this best sci-fi film India has ever produced. And guess what, this story was written by the legendary film-maker Satyajit Ray which easily makes it 40-45 years old, even with a random guestimate. It not only proves the vision of the great filmmaker but also his deep concern and care about the humanity, particularly for the way, direction and pace with which the ‘development’ is moving forward lately.

The time to share ‘Anukul’ couldn’t have been better as the occasion is aptly symbolic when Geoffrey Hinton – Godfather of artificial intelligence (AI) has decided to step-down for realizing the growing dangers from developments in the AI (Artificial Intelligence) field saying that... "Right now, they're not more intelligent than us, as far as I can tell. But I think they soon may be."

Now there are three things humans, with all their collective wisdom, should deep dive in –

1. Do we really need to create anything that we may not be able to control?

2. Are we ready to trade-out human values and common good for convenience?

3. If AI learnt to validate vices in the name of conscience, where would this take us?

In this regard, I would like to reiterate my most favorite questions that should be answered before indulging into any and all types of advancements and developments projected as conveniences, facilities and services for ease-of-living –

1. Is it worth it?

2. At the cost of what?

If you are fan of ‘sustainability’, think over it! However, if you prefer ‘convenience’ over anything else, please feel free to make it ‘Anukul’!

Way to go...

Old habits...

In the ABCD of life, both Birth and Death are inevitable and beyond our control, but there are 'Attitude' and 'Choice' before and between which can make or break us. Although Attitude is overrated (90%, you know!) and Choice is a freewill if not luxury, what matters most is the Habit and when it is 'Old' it dies hard, they say!

 

Leadership expert Elizabeth Lyle offers a new approach to breaking the rules (and old habits!) sharing creative ways how middle managers can climb the corporate ladder while by challenging the way things have always been done.

 

"I believe there is a window of time in the formative middle-manager years when we can lay the groundwork for that kind of leadership, but we're missing it. Why? Because our future leaders are learning from senior role models who just aren't ready to role model yet, much less change the systems that made them so successful..."

 

"Organizations are evolving rapidly, and they're counting on their future leaders to lead with more speed, flexibility, trust and cooperation than they do today..."

 

"We need middle managers and senior leaders to work together to define a new way of leading and develop each other to rise to the occasion..."

"The command-and-control behavior that she was once rewarded for just isn't going to work in a faster-moving, flatter, more digitally interconnected organization. What got her here won't get her there..."

 

"But what we find is that they're often doing the best job at not rocking the boat and challenging the system because they're trying to impress and make life easier on the senior leaders who will promote them..."

 

"...our role models are in behavior boot camp right now, and our work environments are undergoing unprecedented disruption. We are systematically changing just about everything about how organizations work, but by and large, still measuring and rewarding behavior based on old metrics, because changing those systems takes time..."

 

"Either he inherits an organization that is failing because of stubbornly old-fashioned leadership, or he himself fails to build the capabilities to lead one that transformed while he was playing it safe..."

 

"I work with another senior client who summed up this dilemma beautifully when we were talking about why he and his peers haven't empowered the folks below them with more decision rights. He said, "We haven't done it because we just don't trust that they're going to make the right decisions. But then again, how could they? We've just never given them decisions to practice with."

 

"That is seriously hard mentorship to provide, and even the best leaders need help doing it, which is why we need more coaches coaching more leaders, more in real time versus any one leader behind closed doors..."

"Around 20 years ago, Warren Buffet gave a school lecture in which he said, "The chains of habit are too light to be felt until they're too heavy to be broken..."

CEO...?

"It took us a while to learn that you can't actually make a company more digital by appointing a chief digital officer, or that a chief diversity officer could not single-handedly make a company's culture more inclusive. So we already know that we cannot just appoint a chief stakeholder officer if we really want to serve all stakeholders. Instead, we need to reset. If we really want to serve stakeholder needs, we need to get everyone involved. There are no quick fixes..."

There never were...!

"We've been looking for people who look different, but boards still do the same thing. We don't need tokens. We need people who truly understand the experience and represent the diversity of our stakeholders."

The Living Beings with Brains as well as Hearts...!

"Imagine a world where corporate governance was very different than today:

Community leaders sitting on the boards of their local bank;

Moral philosophers advising social media companies;

Environmental activists as directors of global energy companies."

Can I ask for more...?

"If customers are stakeholders, then they should not be harmed by the goods, services and products we produce. It's that simple."

Really...?

"For stakeholder capitalism to really work, we all need to see ourselves as chief executive officers. If we really want change, we have to be willing to bear the backlash. We're not always going to get it right, and that's OK. Real, substantive change takes time. The right answer keeps changing. But we have to try to do better."

Indeed...!

Way to go...

Privilege to Choose…!

I chose to break away from the systems and the expectations and imprison me. I started to live a conscious mindful life and because of that I got to live purposefully and fully. I have exposure to beautiful villages on stunning mountains across running streams all across a beautiful world!

I meet local heroes that inspire me to become a better person every day, teach me about love, privilege, perseverance and strength! So I ask you what if some of the choices that you are faced with, which side of the glass window are you on.

Are you filling your can with mosquito-infested brown murky water or are you choosing between your morning milk obverses latte or perhaps your afternoon sandwich versus a salad? Do you have privilege in your choices and if so what do you do with that privilege?

And let's take this even further, are you living a life that the system has precondition usefulness or are you living the life you really want? Are you using meaningless choices to distract from that one choice that really means something?

What is that inner voice?

What is that voice you can no longer ignore?

What is that one choice but is so authentically you that will make you a slightly better and happier person?

What is that one choice that could defy all reason to make the world just a slightly better place?

I definitely don't have all the answers and I still have a lot of life to live, stories to tell and choices to make. I feel like my life's work has just begun. But what I do know is that when you embrace the uncomfortable and start making mindful conscious choices, change becomes possible and perhaps tomorrow because of you, one more person will have the privilege to choose…!

Strategy...!

"Create something that's compelling for other people where they see the value for themselves to participate..." - INNOVATION

“Being incredibly open about where you are and where you are going to go…” - REFLECTION

“Willingness to give up control…” - OPENNESS

“There is a list of thousand people who contributed…” - COLLABORATION

“Honest Process…” - INTEGRITY

“It is about the community…” - ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I know it is neither new nor a celebrated talk or something, then why am I sharing it here today...?

Well, every organization, irrespective of its size, certainly has some defined targets and to meet those, a strategic plan has to be in place with all its essentials like structure and processes with all required resources to achieve the preset objectives. Besides, there is a vision and a guiding principle(s) that drives the change or transformation the organization must undergo to execute its strategy.

Strategic planning is clock-work, not as in its literal meaning that implies schedule but more like the intricate mechanism behind three arrows of the clock to help them show the right time. A strategic plan without a structured line-of-action to follow it up for execution is as good as a dead clock which has a potential to keep everything on track but fails to do so in absence of an intervention to restart it.

I have always been a big fan of Wikipedia and thought of sharing this to find some insights and tips for putting together something in view of Creating Shared Value by upholding above values. Way to go...!

Schooling...!

"Our collective well-being starts with inclusive schools

and helping every child realize their endless potential..."

"When families and schools work together, everyone wins. Students are supported, families are empowered, and teachers' jobs just become that much easier. Education goes beyond economic growth, and our goal goes beyond the classroom..."

"Schools are a funnel to the real world. Public education makes citizens. And in creating the next generation of citizens, we cannot be leaving behind four out of five children or their families. If we continue to pick and choose who the system engages with generation after generation, like we do now, we will not be left with a community, a civil society or even a functioning democracy..."

"Our dream is that one day, they'll feel included 

in the very communities that they're expected to build..."

VOICE...!

Sarah Kay – a writer, performer and educator from New York City – tells the story of her metamorphosis from a wide-eyed teenager soaking in verse at New York's Bowery Poetry Club to a teacher connecting kids with the power of self-expression through Project V.O.I.C.E. in this talk.

Project voice is an interesting initiative that utilizes poetry to entertain, educate and inspire. It has worked with hundreds of schools in thirty countries reaching over 150,000 students from kindergarten through university level. Project voice promotes empowerment, improves language skills and spurs creative collaboration through award-winning performances and innovative workshops.

Sarah’s ‘confession’ about her poetry is not only downright candid but also absolutely profound - 

"...But there are plenty of things I have trouble understanding. So I write poems to figure things out. Sometimes the only way I know how to work through something is by writing a poem. Sometimes I get to the end of the poem, look back and go, "Oh, that's what this is all about," and sometimes I get to the end of the poem and haven't solved anything, but at least I have a new poem out of it..."

We have read, heard, shared and interpreted Abraham Lincoln’s the world-famous Letter to his Son’s teacher that talks about the values that must be taught to the pupil. No doubt it is a classic example of communication literature and the optimism about the virtues against the vices makes it timeless also, however, it is more retrospective in nature being based on experiences of an adult and tends to become little idealistic in expression.

Sarah in her poem ‘If I should have a daughter…’ seems to be more realistic and revolutionary as she doesn’t advise her daughter to get adjusted to the circumstances as they are but tries to fuel her with the preparedness to empathize with the situation and try to change it for better. Her narration is overflowing with the hope and the grit expressed is so contagious that it can ignite minds. I strongly recommend that you hear it out completely no matter how long it seems. Here are few excerpts…

"...And, baby," I'll tell her, don't keep your nose up in the air like that. I know that trick; I've done it a million times. You're just smelling for smoke so you can follow the trail back to a burning house, so you can find the boy who lost everything in the fire to see if you can save him. Or else find the boy who lit the fire in the first place, to see if you can change him. But I know she will anyway..." 

"...Because there's nothing more beautiful than the way the ocean refuses to stop kissing the shoreline, no matter how many times it's sent away. You will put the wind in win some, lose some. You will put the star in starting over, and over. And no matter how many land mines erupt in a minute, be sure your mind lands on the beauty of this funny place called life..."

"...Your voice is small, but don't ever stop singing. And when they finally hand you heartache, when they slip war and hatred under your door and offer you handouts on street-corners of cynicism and defeat, you tell them that they really ought to meet your mother..."

"I know that Jean-Luc Godard was right when he said that, "A good story has a beginning, a middle and an end, although not necessarily in that order."

Way to go…!