Practice more important than formal courses

Last week I gave a week long 'Public Speaking' course to secondary level students in a summer camp. The way I'd conduct the session would be to give a short introduction about the area we were focusing that day - for example: organization, body language or vocal variety - and then spend the rest of the class for practice through various activities. At the end of the five days I don't know if anybody became a better speaker. It might have been the first time few students were ever speaking in front of people. Yet I don't think anyone gained much from the short course. I say so because I know through experience that there are only three rules for becoming a better public speaker and that is "Practice....

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Ego - a source of conflict

I am not an expert in conflict resolution. Yet I know one thing about conflict to be true - many times the source of it lies in the 'ego'. Sometimes why does a manager resent a very hard-working and capable employee? The answer - "They did not act as I said or they did not do what I asked them to do." More than a case of discipline or the work not being done, it becomes a case of gratifying one's ego. "How can someone dare to disobey me", right? The same holds true for the employees. Instead of gracefully accepting a constructive criticism or feedback, they start contemplating that fact that the 'I' was criticized. It is important for each person to have a sense of self-respect. There will...

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Gratitude at workplace

Do you have any idea what a job may mean for a person? It is taking care of a family, sending kids to school, being independent, buying that lovely dress you see in the mall, eating your favorite meal, paying rent and staying warm in winter. Yet most of the time all that a job gets is complaint - "This is not enough, that is not enough and blah blah... " - rather than gratitude. Do you have any idea what someone working for you means? That person is making the functioning of a business possible. With his help your business, which is probably your dream, is moving ahead. The employees are giving their time, effort, attention for a dream that is yours. Yet an employee is treated with anything...

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Performance vs. Character

Someone close to me recently told me that her boss called her for a one-on-one meeting and told her, “From the time I’ve know you, you are someone who tries to please everyone. That does not work in real life. I expected you to change as a person but you haven’t. Please change that in you.” She was shocked by this comment and asked, “In what context are you saying this to me?” Her boss stayed mum. As far as her performance at work was concerned, nothing much was discussed. She expressed her dissatisfaction with me. I asked, “What gives your manager a right to comment upon your character? Isn’t it his job to help you with your performance instead?” As a member of Toastmasters and as an evaluator...

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Telecommuting as a tool for productivity

The world has grown into a global village now. Thanks to computers and internet. But it’s not just our loved ones that the internet has been able to connect. It’s even the workers in organizations. Yet the benefits of this technology are not being utilized for purposes other than posting photos in Facebook. With the advent of the computer generation, change in work schedules and organizational structure has been possible. Yet at this part of the world, I don’t see these changes being adapted. I work at an organization where one of my key works involves designing courses to be taught to school children. Now this work involves some thinking, some internet research and some book and article...

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Complain culture

Complaining has become a culture at our workplaces. But have we ever asked ourselves this question - what function does complain accomplish? Now complain can help in identifying or solving a problem. Complaints point out the weak areas management can focus on improving. But complaints can also be a way of exacerbating the intensity of our current problems. It is because when more people talk about what's dissatisfying, the problems occur to be bigger than they really are. In some cases, the complaint may not even be a problem in the first place. Yet the continuous discussion of what's not right makes a small glitch appear like a big devil. Shiv Khera wrote in his book 'You can Win': "When...

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Rat race - where did it all start?

Leg-pulling, back-stabbing and the rat race is prevalent and persistent in corporate culture. Manipulations and politicking to get ahead never stops. Soon after people enter the work life, they start reminiscing their childhood days in school or college. But my question has always been, "Where did this rat race start in the first place?" I found my answer today. As I was conducting the 'Life Skills' class encouraging students to compete only with themselves, the coordinator madam entered the class. She picked one student and said, "Alice, you used to come in the 10th position and now you're 11th. Are you going to win next time? Are you going to let anyone overtake you?" Then she picked another...

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Plan vs. Implementation

My college is planning to implement a new set of procedures for the management program once again. It’s probably the third time that they have changed their way of teaching students. More class room participation, student-centered and web-based activities and thought-provoking session among students are encouraged. The intention of doing all this is good. In case of an effective implementation of this plan, the results would bring very remarkable results. More proactive students and critical and creative thinkers can be produced through this program. But the question is – will this program be effective? I can find myself nodding my head in a ‘No’ not because I don’t trust the plan but because...

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What 'professionalism' means for me

The word 'professionalism' means two things for me - delivering what we promise and keeping our personal biases aside.  Delivering what we promise We need not be an expert. We might not even be the best in the field. But if we say we're going to deliver a certain product or service at a certain time and certain date, then we have to do it. That's delivering what we promise. Sometimes we may not be able deliver due to uncontrollable circumstances. In this case, proper communication about the delay is important. At times we might end up making errors. Accepting our mistakes and making improvements makes a big difference. When we take responsibility and deliver what we have promised...

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What kind of work you want to do?

Consider the following two scenarios: Scenario 1: You have a work that enriches you and fulfills you internally. Your senior is not your boss but your mentor. He believes in you and your ability to do any task assigned. Even when you make mistakes or sometimes dodge deadlines, he doesn't make an issue out of it but tries to understand what has been bothering you. He has his complete faith in you and every time tells you 'you can' even when you're not doing your work as per his expectations.  Scenario 2: You have a work that drains you from the inside. Your senior is a dictator. He constantly doubts your ability to do the work assigned to you. When you make an error, he gives this...

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