“How can you continue sleeping with so many mosquitoes around?” asked a friend in the morning.
My friend was staying with me in Chennai for a while. Last night had been a nightmare for him. Mosquitoes had raided our home and the mosquito repellant was as useful as a mobile phone in a no network area. Five mosquitoes swooping around your ear like jet fighters is not everyone’s idea of a good night’s sleep.
I realized that somehow I managed to sleep peacefully right through the mosquito attacks. This scenario repeated for quite a few days in the following month. The reasons for my friend’s lack of sleep changed, from ants to skin allergy to heat to mosquitoes again but I slept peacefully through all of it. I now realize that I am off to deep sleep almost as soon as I lie down, waking up only in the morning. Mosquitoes, ants, noise do not disturb me much.
I had taken this good night’s sleep for granted until now. Only when I saw my friend struggling to sleep on a number of occasions for various reasons, did I realize that God has indeed given me a great present; the ability to sleep peacefully as and when I desired. I am thankful indeed now for this gift. Rest in Sleep!
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Customer is King!
“So the customer is king!” ending a b-school classroom session case study in India; or for that matter in any other country for that matter.
“Customer needs to be the centre of all activities of a company.” and “Customer is the reason for the existence of a business.” are some of the other quotes often heard or spoken. These thoughts came into my mind again recently…
There is a very old restaurant near my house in Chennai. This place has probably been in existence before my father was born! The floor, windows, tables etc. have ‘antique’ written all over it. Actually, the place is quite small and looks more like a house converted to a restaurant. In the first room of the ‘mess’ as the restaurant calls itself, there used to be a huge picture. The picture ran from floor to ceiling and was kept diagonally; in a manner that occupied a lot of corner space. Space, that otherwise could be used to keep tables for customers. I used to wonder why the picture was not kept along the wall so that one more table could be added in this cramped restaurant. I realized that in such places, change takes a long time to seep in. The food would be of excellent quality but the owners are not the type who would stand and shout on rooftops to attract more people. Such places do not seem to be governed by ‘sales per square foot’ as the be all and end all of success! Things just remain the same in such places… probably a reason for customers coming there.
On my last visit to this restaurant however, I got a surprise. The place had embarked on a revamping exercise! Brand new vitrified tiles had replaced the old cement flooring. The diagonally placed picture was now attached to the wall, making way for one more table. Though the new table had not been put in place yet, it seemed a mere formality now. The picture had been relocated making way for the customer! Sales per square foot, here we come!
“Customer needs to be the centre of all activities of a company.” and “Customer is the reason for the existence of a business.” are some of the other quotes often heard or spoken. These thoughts came into my mind again recently…
There is a very old restaurant near my house in Chennai. This place has probably been in existence before my father was born! The floor, windows, tables etc. have ‘antique’ written all over it. Actually, the place is quite small and looks more like a house converted to a restaurant. In the first room of the ‘mess’ as the restaurant calls itself, there used to be a huge picture. The picture ran from floor to ceiling and was kept diagonally; in a manner that occupied a lot of corner space. Space, that otherwise could be used to keep tables for customers. I used to wonder why the picture was not kept along the wall so that one more table could be added in this cramped restaurant. I realized that in such places, change takes a long time to seep in. The food would be of excellent quality but the owners are not the type who would stand and shout on rooftops to attract more people. Such places do not seem to be governed by ‘sales per square foot’ as the be all and end all of success! Things just remain the same in such places… probably a reason for customers coming there.
On my last visit to this restaurant however, I got a surprise. The place had embarked on a revamping exercise! Brand new vitrified tiles had replaced the old cement flooring. The diagonally placed picture was now attached to the wall, making way for one more table. Though the new table had not been put in place yet, it seemed a mere formality now. The picture had been relocated making way for the customer! Sales per square foot, here we come!
Sunday, November 25, 2007
The great Indian driving experience
Whats the most frustrating thing while driving on Indian roads (Or even as a non-driver)? I am sure each one of us would have their own set of 'frustrations'.
“These fellows cross the yellow line onto your side. Sick guys. One day I will just bang into them.”
“Why do people keep honking even when there is a traffic jam ahead”
“These bikers! The way they drive!!! Don't they want to reach home.”
The only time I ever heard anyone look at the great Indian road experience positively was during one of those talk shows on a news channel. “I find that there is a lot of energy on Indian roads.” The lady who told this was a visitor from a foreign land and I am quite sure that she generally looks at life positively!
It is also interesting that otherwise polite people start shouting at other drivers once they are in the driver's seat. Though the other driver is probably at fault on many occasions, I wonder if our shouting makes a difference to him or her. And yes, I have done some shouting myself at times.
I think the best thing one can do while driving on the Indian roads is to expect the worst. Yes, expect everyone to cross the yellow line onto your side and come scaringly towards you. Expect people to honk even when there is a huge traffic jam ahead! Thats the only way to come out happy after a long drive! Having any sort of expectations of others driving behaviour is not going to yield anything but frustration. After all, the cause for rash driving by other drivers is not under our control.
So I will head out onto the roads tomorrow morning again. Hopefully without any expectations from other drivers.
“These fellows cross the yellow line onto your side. Sick guys. One day I will just bang into them.”
“Why do people keep honking even when there is a traffic jam ahead”
“These bikers! The way they drive!!! Don't they want to reach home.”
The only time I ever heard anyone look at the great Indian road experience positively was during one of those talk shows on a news channel. “I find that there is a lot of energy on Indian roads.” The lady who told this was a visitor from a foreign land and I am quite sure that she generally looks at life positively!
It is also interesting that otherwise polite people start shouting at other drivers once they are in the driver's seat. Though the other driver is probably at fault on many occasions, I wonder if our shouting makes a difference to him or her. And yes, I have done some shouting myself at times.
I think the best thing one can do while driving on the Indian roads is to expect the worst. Yes, expect everyone to cross the yellow line onto your side and come scaringly towards you. Expect people to honk even when there is a huge traffic jam ahead! Thats the only way to come out happy after a long drive! Having any sort of expectations of others driving behaviour is not going to yield anything but frustration. After all, the cause for rash driving by other drivers is not under our control.
So I will head out onto the roads tomorrow morning again. Hopefully without any expectations from other drivers.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Marriage Season
It’s that time of the year again! When the inbox is full of wedding invitations.
I have received six or seven invitations in the last few days. I guess given that it’s been three years since b-school, this is peak time for the “Wonderful Day” as marriage invitations put it.
It is interesting to note that in marriage invitations, more often than not, the educational qualifications of the bride and bridegroom are mentioned along with their name. I wonder if this happens in any other country but it is quite understandable in India where education in some ways shows your status in society and is still a major means for the ‘good’ life.
What is also interesting is when the person who is getting married is your close friend, one gets verbal (Phone call) or written communication (Orkut scrap or mail or SMS) with varying degrees of threats to come for the marriage.
Some are requests, “Please try to see if you can make it.”
Some are outright threats, “Agar tu nahi aaya to achcha nahi hoga” (If you don’t come, you will have to face the consequences.)
Some assume you are coming, “Ok, so which flight are you coming in?”
It is difficult to react to these statements especially when one knows that is difficult to make it. I usually end up giving a global general answer! It is difficult to go for every marriage invitation one receives.
I also know of few married people who only go to those weddings where one of the bride and bridegroom came to their marriage!
Overall, I suppose marriage hopping is quite a pleasant experience for most people, a chance to enjoy and catch up with friends.
I think to myself, If only we could cut down a little bit on some of the outright lavish stuff during marriages… But then who defines what is lavish and what is not lavish? Hmmmm.
Even if we don’t cut down on the lavishness, I do hope we cut down on the ‘ticket size’ of the “gifts” that are given by the bride’s parents to the new couple.
And to end on a radical note, maybe one day marriages would be 50:50 jointly financed by the bride and bridegroom’s family instead of the current skewed pattern of spending primarily by the bride’s side.
Economics theory says that anything in short supply would become more ‘expensive’. If onions are not available in the market, the price goes up. Fairly simple. Similarly, If India’s gender ratio continues to skew more and more towards males, the day a bride’s family starts demanding ‘gifts’ from the bridegroom’s family may not be far away!
I have received six or seven invitations in the last few days. I guess given that it’s been three years since b-school, this is peak time for the “Wonderful Day” as marriage invitations put it.
It is interesting to note that in marriage invitations, more often than not, the educational qualifications of the bride and bridegroom are mentioned along with their name. I wonder if this happens in any other country but it is quite understandable in India where education in some ways shows your status in society and is still a major means for the ‘good’ life.
What is also interesting is when the person who is getting married is your close friend, one gets verbal (Phone call) or written communication (Orkut scrap or mail or SMS) with varying degrees of threats to come for the marriage.
Some are requests, “Please try to see if you can make it.”
Some are outright threats, “Agar tu nahi aaya to achcha nahi hoga” (If you don’t come, you will have to face the consequences.)
Some assume you are coming, “Ok, so which flight are you coming in?”
It is difficult to react to these statements especially when one knows that is difficult to make it. I usually end up giving a global general answer! It is difficult to go for every marriage invitation one receives.
I also know of few married people who only go to those weddings where one of the bride and bridegroom came to their marriage!
Overall, I suppose marriage hopping is quite a pleasant experience for most people, a chance to enjoy and catch up with friends.
I think to myself, If only we could cut down a little bit on some of the outright lavish stuff during marriages… But then who defines what is lavish and what is not lavish? Hmmmm.
Even if we don’t cut down on the lavishness, I do hope we cut down on the ‘ticket size’ of the “gifts” that are given by the bride’s parents to the new couple.
And to end on a radical note, maybe one day marriages would be 50:50 jointly financed by the bride and bridegroom’s family instead of the current skewed pattern of spending primarily by the bride’s side.
Economics theory says that anything in short supply would become more ‘expensive’. If onions are not available in the market, the price goes up. Fairly simple. Similarly, If India’s gender ratio continues to skew more and more towards males, the day a bride’s family starts demanding ‘gifts’ from the bridegroom’s family may not be far away!
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
A dog's life
As I returned home from another day in the office, the lone stray dog which lives in front of my house, was wagging its tail as usual.
I keep a few biscuits in the car for that dog which I feed it after I park the car. Naturally, the dog gets excited every time its sees my car approaching. I personally find it quite amazing that the dog is able to recognize my car from quite a distance.
As I gave the usual quota of 4 biscuits to the dog, I found that the dog had hurt its leg badly. It was limping on three feet.
Yet, until I saw closely, I could not make out the difference. The dog's behaviour hardly changed that day, even though one leg seems to be lifted off the ground due to injury.
I cant think of many humans including myself not changing our behaviour when one of our vital organs is not functioning properly. We would probably take some action to get the problem rectified. We would tell everyone we meet the next day on the hardships faced by us because of this ailment and expect back sympathy or atleast kind words from others.
Coming to think of it, there is lot much we can learn from dogs, atleast the non-biting ones!!!They never seem to lose enthusiasm, always wagging their tail at every opportunity. Even if you hit them, they come back wagging their tail. And for a stray dog, not knowing where your next meal will come from is not likely to be a very comforting experience.
I wonder why so many then, so many idioms and colloquial phrases in various languages portray dogs in a poor light. People we don't like are often referred to as dogs. Maybe it is because of the few odd dogs which have the tendency to bite.
Coming to think of it, it can be argued that a dog is never born 'wild' (i.e. the type that keeps barking at humans and bites on occasions). It is probably the circumstances in which they are born or some incidents in their life that makes them that way.
Given this situation, maybe the humble dog deserves better. Atleast the one near my house does. Lets see if I can do something about it...
I keep a few biscuits in the car for that dog which I feed it after I park the car. Naturally, the dog gets excited every time its sees my car approaching. I personally find it quite amazing that the dog is able to recognize my car from quite a distance.
As I gave the usual quota of 4 biscuits to the dog, I found that the dog had hurt its leg badly. It was limping on three feet.
Yet, until I saw closely, I could not make out the difference. The dog's behaviour hardly changed that day, even though one leg seems to be lifted off the ground due to injury.
I cant think of many humans including myself not changing our behaviour when one of our vital organs is not functioning properly. We would probably take some action to get the problem rectified. We would tell everyone we meet the next day on the hardships faced by us because of this ailment and expect back sympathy or atleast kind words from others.
Coming to think of it, there is lot much we can learn from dogs, atleast the non-biting ones!!!They never seem to lose enthusiasm, always wagging their tail at every opportunity. Even if you hit them, they come back wagging their tail. And for a stray dog, not knowing where your next meal will come from is not likely to be a very comforting experience.
I wonder why so many then, so many idioms and colloquial phrases in various languages portray dogs in a poor light. People we don't like are often referred to as dogs. Maybe it is because of the few odd dogs which have the tendency to bite.
Coming to think of it, it can be argued that a dog is never born 'wild' (i.e. the type that keeps barking at humans and bites on occasions). It is probably the circumstances in which they are born or some incidents in their life that makes them that way.
Given this situation, maybe the humble dog deserves better. Atleast the one near my house does. Lets see if I can do something about it...
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Customer is not always right (Nor is the seller)
The title of this quite opposite to what we learn in our MBA. The customer is always right isn't it.
Well, my little work experience in three years and my own behaviour as a customer has lead me to believe that the customer is not always right. Only gods and goddesses are always right.
How many times have I seen people calling their telecom service providers to reactivate their outgoing call services after they failed to pay on time. “I was out of the country.” and "I never got the bill” are some of the excuses often given. Even though the reality may be different.
Same goes for credit cards. “Please reverse the late payment charges because I dropped the cheque on the last day. If you have not got the cheque, thats not my problem.” Again the reality maybe that the cheque was dropped a day or two after the last date. If so, the service provider has every right to charge late payment as per terms of agreement originally agreed upon.
“Lets see what they will do. I will teach them a lesson if they do XYZ.” some of my friends dare companies. Probably I have also done the same many times.
By writing this I am not saying that all the companies in this world are always right. Definitely not.
All I am trying to say that at the end of the day customers are human beings who have their own self interest in mind, and rightly so. Even companies are made up of human beings and again have their own self interests. These self interests often drive behaviour.
To think that any party is always right is being naive.
What is more important is that when a dispute arises between seller and buyer, it is amicably resolved based on the terms of agreement between them.
Unfortunately the terms of agreement itself is fully loaded against the buyer many times! Read any home loan document and you would know what I am talking about!!! Some of these terms of agreement can be reworded into one line. “Whatever happens between us, good or bad, it is always the buyer's fault.” Instead of wasting paper on those huge agreements, both buyer and seller can sign under this one line. There wont be much difference!
Well, my little work experience in three years and my own behaviour as a customer has lead me to believe that the customer is not always right. Only gods and goddesses are always right.
How many times have I seen people calling their telecom service providers to reactivate their outgoing call services after they failed to pay on time. “I was out of the country.” and "I never got the bill” are some of the excuses often given. Even though the reality may be different.
Same goes for credit cards. “Please reverse the late payment charges because I dropped the cheque on the last day. If you have not got the cheque, thats not my problem.” Again the reality maybe that the cheque was dropped a day or two after the last date. If so, the service provider has every right to charge late payment as per terms of agreement originally agreed upon.
“Lets see what they will do. I will teach them a lesson if they do XYZ.” some of my friends dare companies. Probably I have also done the same many times.
By writing this I am not saying that all the companies in this world are always right. Definitely not.
All I am trying to say that at the end of the day customers are human beings who have their own self interest in mind, and rightly so. Even companies are made up of human beings and again have their own self interests. These self interests often drive behaviour.
To think that any party is always right is being naive.
What is more important is that when a dispute arises between seller and buyer, it is amicably resolved based on the terms of agreement between them.
Unfortunately the terms of agreement itself is fully loaded against the buyer many times! Read any home loan document and you would know what I am talking about!!! Some of these terms of agreement can be reworded into one line. “Whatever happens between us, good or bad, it is always the buyer's fault.” Instead of wasting paper on those huge agreements, both buyer and seller can sign under this one line. There wont be much difference!
Joke 1
Q) Why do CDMA users talk less compared to GSM ones?
A) Because CDMA technology is from Qualcomm (Call kum = Less calls in Hindi)
A) Because CDMA technology is from Qualcomm (Call kum = Less calls in Hindi)
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