DUBAI - A LAND OF SUPERLATIVES

I had the opportunity to travel to Dubai, this month and I would like to share some of my learnings through this editorial. In addition to the other things that impressed me like the booming growth in infrastructure and the list of biggest and tallest structures coming up there, what striked me most was the astonishing fact that  the crime rate in this country was less than 1%. Well, the simple rule here is, if any one was caught robbing, his hands were chopped off and if someone was caught for eve teasing, he was given fifty lashes, which he will never be able to forget for fifty years. All this sounds like cruelty, but is it that the human mind can be disciplined only by fear. It sounds so!!!

This country has only 17% of the native population (the Arabs), and the rest being migrants across the world, mostly from India, who have come to make a living. Foreigners cannot get a citizenship neither own land in this country. This makes the rental income lucrative for the natives, who build huge commercial complexes and residential buildings.

Recently, they have built a island called the PALM Jumeira. Foreigners can buy property, in this island. The approx cost of a house here will be 1.5 million dhirams. 1 Dhiram=Rs. 12.25/-. Inspite of this exorbitant cost, this island was sold out in 72 hours from time of announcement.  That shows the amount of interest foreigner have in this country. One more interesting fact about this island is that this is considered as the 8^th world wonder, because, this is the only man made island that is visible from space. Adding to this astonishing news, I was informed two similar projects PALM Jebeleli (4 times bigger than the existing one) and PALMS Deira (8 times bigger than the existing one) is under construction and will be open for sale in 2008 and 2012, respectively.

Contrary to popular opinion that this country is rich, only because of its oil resources, I came to know that only 15% of Dubai’s  income comes from oil and the balance comes from a variety of trading activities, tourist income and most importantly visa income. As citizenship is not granted to foreigner, they work on work permit visa and this visa income is a major earner for this country. As the earning here are absolutely tax free, it makes it a haven for workers to work and save money here.

I had the opportunity to meet and have breakfast with the richest Indian in UAE, Mr.B.R.Shetty. This man went to UAE 40 years ago as a medical representative and today he owns the largest hospital there, named the New Medical Centre. His major business is the foreign currency exchange , in addition to the many other business he owns. The Indians working there, support the families back in India or make investments in India to the tune of US$ 20 billion/ year. This is the amount of money transferred by Indians living in UAE to India.

It is a proud moment to know that Indians flourish everywhere, and especially in UAE, they are well respected because of their sincerity and commitment to work. No matter where they live, they always the carry the spirit of India and try to do something for the home country.

There is a lot more to say about this country, which really enthralled me, by its vibrancy and the speed of growth. For limitation of space, I end here.

 

Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan

Article Dated Mar 2007

 

 

 

 

Faith turns aspirations to reality

On 12^th July 2007, a beautiful flower withered away from my family garden. I used to call this flower, Amma.  No matter what the age, what the health condition, a mother is always a mother and the loss of someone who has been with me right from my birth, is ofcourse painful. Though, it is true that anyone in this world is indispensable, yet there are a few relationships that are not replaceable and I think a mother is one.

I have a habit of trying to find and adopt atleast one good quality from my near and dear ones. When I think of my mother, I think the most important thing I wish to imbibe from her, is the faith she had in her children. I am sure this sharing of mine, will help other parents to get a perspective of this goodness of having faith in children

Right from my childhood, I have been a pride to her.  She delighted on the simplest of my achievements. She used to talk very proud of me to my relatives, her circle of friends and who ever she knows. She has never let me down on any occasion. Even when I failed in my 9^th Std examinations, due to my negligence in study, she did not scold me. She just told these words “Don’t lose heart”. To make sure that I am not mocked by others, she went about telling everybody that my son was detained, because he was having fever and he was  not able to write his exams. Why was there so much of protection? Why was I not punished?.  I used to think.

This unshakeable faith she had in me turned me a new leaf. I realized my fault. I felt so bad and guilty for having disappointed her. From then on, I concentrated well on my studies and made sure I was atleast in the top ten of my class, till I completed my post graduation. This was the magic of faith, she had on me. Faith turns aspirations to reality.

What I observe in many parent’s today is this lack of faith in their children.  We get easily upset over their children’s failures. We tend to lose confidence in their children’s ability.  We use wrong and negative words, thinking that we are correcting our children, without realizing that we are making things worse. I think it is time, we correct ourselves and behave as more responsible gardeners of our children.

Just like a plant needs good soil, water, and sunlight to grow, we have to nurture our children with the soil of positive thoughts, water them with abundant love, support them with the sunlight of  encouragement and appreciation.

  

Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan

Article Dated Feb 2007

Watch Your Words, Before You Speak

Judgement is a activity that we unconsciously do, at every moment of our life. It is said, that the moment we meet a new person, our mind just takes 10 seconds to form a impression about the person. He might not have even spoken a word or shook hands with us. His face, his dressing, the colour and texture of his skin, his body language, communicates something about the person to us, based on which we make our  judgement.

This process of continuous judging has greatly contributed to what we have achieved or where we have reached today. All the choices we have taken in our life is a result of our judgement. We judge a person, before making him our friend. We judge a education programme, before making a career decision. We judge a company, before making a job decision. So every moment of our life, we are judging.

This process of judgement is good for us, but what happens when we pass our judgement to others. Is it right or wrong.? For example, many a time, we go for a movie and come out saying that the movie was horrible. We go to a hotel and come out saying the food tasted awkward. We go to a garment store and say the collection was not good. We make bold judgements, not realizing the negative effects it can have on people and business. We need to give room for perception. The way we look at things is not the only right way. People may have different tastes and different preferences. Of course, we have all the right to say, that I did not like the movie; I did not enjoy the meal; the showroom did not have the garments with colour of my choice., etc. But quite often we do not do that. We just give our verdict, without a second thought.

It is not right on our part to ruin somebody’s business, by our negative comments. Our words catch up like wild fire. Negative comments reach out faster than the positive ones. You would have observed this.

Now, imagine someone telling something negative about your business to others and think about the impact it could have on your business.

I have found in a few restaurants this caption written on a board or a wall “Tell the good things about us to others and the bad things about us, to ourselves” ( in tamil). This might be a fitting job to do when we encounter a unpleasant experience or a unsatisfactory experience. Leave your thoughts and feelings, there and move on. If he changes, it is good for him and if he does not, let him decide his own dooms day. Why should you?. Most of the time, it would be resolved. Because any sensible business owner, who wants to improve his business, would look forward to these type of negative feedback from his customers, which will give him a opportunity to improve and make his products or services likeable to his customers. In a highly competitive business environment, only those who adapt to the customers can survive.

So next time, before you pass a judgement think. It only takes a few seconds to make a comment, but its effect may be drastic. I am not talking this as a person who is away from this sins, but as a confession of a culprit, who is looking forward to change this behaviour. I take effort to catch myself aware of such situations and try to change myself, but habits die hard.  However with a conscious effort to change for the better and with practice the desired behaviour can be achieved.

Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan

Article dated Jan 2007

WITH GREAT POWER COMES GREAT RESPONSIBILITY

A few days back, while I was travelling from Chennai to Tuticorin by train, one incident happened which kept me thinking for a while. As you would be aware the food vendors, pick up food orders in the train and deliver it to us at some particular station. So, I ordered for a food parcel and the same was delivered to me after Chengelput station. The vendor asked me for Rs.30/-, which I happily paid.

One of my co - passenger, who had not been talking with me till then, asked me a question. He asked what was the price printed on the wrapper box of the food parcel. I saw and said it is Rs.27/-. He asked me, why I paid Rs.30/- and did not demand the balance amount of Rs.3/- from the vendor. I did not have an answer. Infact, I myself had not noticed that there is difference of amount being charged and the price printed on the pack. Even if I had seen, I am not a person who would have insisted on the change, because of my general generous behaviour.

He told me, “You look like an educated person and you itself do not question such things. If literate people like you don’t question, what is the plight of the illiterate people, who do not know to read or write”. He added that people were exploited because they do not dare to question the wrongs happening around them. I did not feel hurt by his remarks, but I felt quiet guilty for a moment. The guilt arised out of his words, “literate people like you”.  For a moment, it opened my eyes to a fact. It showed the amount of faith and trust the common man has on the educated segment, who he thinks will take India out of the darkness to light.  In this case, it was not the meagre Rs.3/- that mattered, but the question of social responsibility.

It is not OK, to just keep blaming the politicians and higher authorities for the mishappenings around us. It is perhaps because we succumb to such situations, so easily, more and more mistakes are happening. It does not necessarily mean, that we should pull a fight with each and everyone, to justify our rights, but trying to be assertive enough to stress our rights.

A dialogue in the movie, Spiderman goes likes this. “With great power comes great responsibility”. I was able to relate this to the incident that happened.

Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan

Article Dated Dec 2006

THE SPIRIT OF FRIENDSHIP

There is a far deeper meaning to friendship, than what we normally perceive. While many of us may feel the primary reason for having friends is for social interaction and entertainment, if we look more closely to what it means we will realize that the reasons go way beyond that.

Friendship is not only about spending time with like-minded people so that one doesn’t get bored on a Saturday evening; its purpose is far more meaningful.  It is about love and understanding.  It stretches beyond our family relationships and lends us a support that is different.  It is about a different kind of love.

With our families we are sometimes wary about discussing our fears or difficulties, but with friends often it is easier to discuss our feelings, as there remains a space that is personal yet with fewer expectations.  It is a space that is built on sharing – sharing of our joys and sorrows, of discussion and reasoning, and many other things that urge us to open our hearts to others.

It is in friendship that we also learn to be less judgemental and to be accepting of other people’s differences and eccentricities and to be open to loving our friends even if they don’t think like us or share our philosophies.  Friendship teaches us to be helpful.  To give support and a listening ear to our mates, to be there for them in times of need or celebration, and to be part of their lives as a person that gives them comfort and who is able to understand and accept them for who they are.

Cherish and celebrate the spirit of friendship, everyday.

Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan

Article Dated Nov 2006

FINANCIAL ADVICE

In this issue, I just want to share two of  my recent learnings from the TYCOON programme I attended recently. Jci. Sen. Sunil Kumar is not only a  excellent trainer, but also a  consultant with wide experience.

Information 1:

He said in the future banks will give personal loans, based on your credit card transactions and nothing else. He said the credit card transaction statement is a far better proof of your ability to pay, than your Income Tax records or your Networth statement. The financial integrity of the person can be easily judged, by taking a closer look at the 3 years record of your credit card statement. This is what is happening in advanced countries like USA and Europe He therefore suggested, that we have a credit card and try to pay most of our bills by credit card and also to settle the credit card bills promptly.

Information 2:

He said, take a insurance to the extent of the loans you have. For example, you have a loan of Rs.20 lakhs, for yourself or your own business, then we should have a insurance policy to the extent of the same amount, so that in the unfortunate event of our death, our children do not have to face the beating. This means, your family does not have to dispose any asset in order to clear your loan. Your family does not have to face the liability of the loan. If there is a insurance cover, the insurance will take care of your debts and the loan will not affect the existing life standard of your family. We strive hard for their well being and we certainly do not want them to be in trouble at any point of time. The next important thing is, this also gives you the freedom to play the business/ money game without big hesitations.

I think the strength of the positive side of life depends upon our preparedness for the negative things.

Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan

Article Dated Oct 2006

SMILE – The forgotten language of the human heart

Quiet recently, I read an article , which talked about cultures that smile the most and can you guess in what place in India was. It was 124^th on the list. Denmark was No.1. What does this imply?

Does this mean that Indians are a set of serious people?  

Does it mean that we have a poor sense of humour?

Does it mean, we are so busy that we do not find the time to smile?  Of course not.

What then is stopping us from smiling. I think it is because we attach too much of ego to our conscious living. We smile only at a selected list of people, who we think or near and dear to us. We never get to smile at the waiter at the restaurant, but we are fast to complain that the waiter is not courteous. We do not smile at a co-passenger on a bus or train, with whom we travel a long distance. We are sometimes comfortable travelling a few hundred miles without even speaking a single word and we say people are not friendly. Remember, the good old nature’s law applies in this well, “ What you sow, so will you reap”. Share a smile and see how many smile responses you get. Start from today. Be happy to know, that smiling is a learned behaviour. This gives you great scope, to think and start afresh on cultivating the habit of smiling . It is just  about consciously lifting the two muscles on the side of your mouth.

Smile is the greatest gift bestowed upon human beings. Animals don’t smile. A smile is meant as a friendly acknowledgement of another member of the human race. So let us start smiling. Don’t wait for the other person to smile first. Be the first to smile. You have nothing to lose. You only have a lot to gain. Smile at the watchman, driver, tea stall vendor, receptionist, client, whoever you share physical space and time with. Most of our faces look better when we smile. Don’t be shy, show your teeth and speak the only language that connects the whole world.

 Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan
Article dated Sep'06