THE DARKER SIDE OF BEING JUDGMENTAL

Judgment is an 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 an 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  judgment.

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 are a result of our judgment. We judge a person, before making him our friend. We judge an 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 judgment is good for us, but what happens when we pass our judgment 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 judgments, 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 an 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 judgment think. It only takes a few seconds to make a comment, but its effect may be drastic. Let us imbibe the virtue of “Live and Let live!

Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan

Article Dated Jun 2008

Towards a Better Education System

The Education system in India, has been widely acclaimed as one of the best in the world. Yet, on taking a closer look, I would say that it is the intelligence of the Indian’s that has given the merit and not the learning system itself.

One of my important observation, when I visited Finland as a Rotary GSE Team member  in 2006, was the system of education, which has been rated the No.1 in the world by PISA - Programme for International Student Assessment.

I had the opportunity of meeting and interacting with the principal of a teacher training school in Rovaniemi. She shared a lot of useful information of which one point caught my attention.  She said that, “the failure of the student is the failure of the teacher”. The child comes with a raw mind to learn and it is the duty of the teacher to teach the child the way, he/ she understands. There is no justice in classifying a child as bright or dull, without the teacher taking enough efforts to bring out the best in the child. The inefficiency of the teacher, surfaces on the results of the student. But the teacher comfortably shifts the cause to the inefficiency of the child.

When it comes to education the Parents - Teacher – Student form the 3 vertices of the magic trio. Everyone has to play their fair part. While it is true that the child has to put in its share of effort to study and present well, it is the duty of  the teacher to create a interest of the subject in the child by some innovative means and it is the duty of the parents to create a good learning atmosphere.

In Finland, teachers have strong methodical autonomy , which means they do not have to fall into a glue of a fixed teaching pattern. They therefore think of new ways of teaching and make the learning process as fun and experiential as possible.

Throughout the education students with learning difficulties are paid special attention to. There is a strong favour for individual learning guidance. This is possible because the number of schools as compared to the number of student is high. A classroom has a maximum of 20 students, therefore personal attention is possible.

The parents seems to be very co-operative with the teacher and the child in terms of the child’s interest development.  There is no imposing of the parents on the child as to what he or she should become at the end of his education.

In Finland, there is a uniform curriculum throughout the country, in alternate to our system of multiple curriculum such as ICSE, CBSE, Matric, State Board etc. This uniform curriculum establishes a national standard and eases student migration, from one part of the country to the  other.

One noticeable and appreciatable part of their education is there is no ranking system in school.  The school is considered as a place of learning and not as place of competing. No child fails in class. Therefore no emotional damage is caused to the students during the learning period. No complexes are developed.  There is no public ranking lists. Entrance to Colleges based only on Entrance Test.  The Entrance test is again, not a place where you get rejected. The entrance test is more or less like a general aptitude test, wherein the students subject preference is evaluated. At the end of the entrance test a counselor sits with the student and discusses, the suitable options for the student based on his interest and skill level. The student then chooses the field of study based on this evaluation.

In Finland, all education institution are run by the Government . There are no private schools. While in India, the students studying in Government schools are considered unfortunate, in Finland the Government is able to provide the best of education for its students and also be ranked as No.1, in the world.

While it is nice to shout out loud, “ East or West, India is the best” it also makes sense to learn the success strategies from the experts, and move the way forward.

 Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan

Article dated May 2008

Widening the perception

I remembered an incident, which happened in my life many years ago, during my college days in London.

It was a lazy Sunday morning and I had taken my dirty linen for wash to the coin operated washing booths, located nearby. Having stowed my laundry, I walked out and sat on the bench of a nearby garden.

As I was sitting there, enjoying the gentle rays of sunlight, a drunken British beggar came near me, and started talking to me in abusive language. In London, as you walk down the streets you could see some beggars, who come and ask you, “hello, can you spare a few pence, please”. This person was one such kind, but because he was drunk he was behaving a bit differently. He seemed to be disturbed, which in turn disturbed me. It was a very uncomfortable situation for me, sitting there and listening to all his blubbering. I showed I was not interested in hearing what he says, by turning away my face ( just like what the British do).  He said, “You, …….. (abusive words) guys, have come and robbed away all the jobs and we British or on the streets”.  I understood he was jobless and he was finding a vent to his feelings, by abusing me.. I was just seeing, how fast I could get away from this situation, just when a British lady who passed by, saw this happening and came to my rescue. She came and told the drunken guy to move out of the place or she will call the cops, in a commanding tone. She also told the drunken guy something, which I still fondly remember. She said, “He is our guest and it is not good manners to treat him like this”.

Both were British, but both had a different attitude towards a Indian. One person treated me like a “robber”, while the other person treated me like a “guest”.

Often in life the fact remains the same, but the way we perceive the fact makes all the difference. There are people who choose to live with a positive attitude, while there is a majority choosing the negative attitude.

While I lived in London, some of my Asian friends, used to say, these whites have a scorn towards the Asians & Blacks.  I used to revert back saying that, why should we think that way.  I believe that, no can make us feel inferior without our permission. It is only by we letting go our self esteem, we get into such a complex.

If alone we can keep our self esteem high, nothing in this world can affect us. If some one looks down at you, there is no reason to shun away from them. You can look straight into their eye and re-affirm that you are an equal. This is what Gandhiji, too preached. We do not have to allow external influence to have an effect on the way we look at life. In fact, by looking straight into their eye, you make a bold statement that you are honest and open about the relationship. This will help the other person to come in terms with you.

It is the same British people who treated the Indians, like dirt during our pre-independence time, who have conferred, the Man of the Millennium title to Mahathma Gandhiji.

We human beings, are evolving not only in our life style, but also in our consciousness. The more our consciousness grows, the more peaceful our lives would be. It is time, we widen our perspective and be willing to change our perception. The world is changing. Are you changing with the world?

 Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan
Article dated April 2008

GR=IP2 to CHINA

A 44 member team from India, headed by Jci. Sen. Ramesh Batavia, went on a 10 day business exploration tour to China, from 25^th January to 4^th February 2008. The group consisting of prominently businessmen from diverse fields, undertook this tour to have a first hand information of the business prospects and culture in China.

The Thai airways flight from Hyderabad, touched base at Swarnaboomi airport, Thailand and after transit arrived at Hongkong. From Hongkong, we were transferred by coach to Shenzen. Shenzen, is primarily a electronic city with options to buy a whole gamut of hi-tech electronic items at cheap prices. Barring the brand imitations part, there was a huge selection to choose from ranging from LCD panels, LED Lights, Laptop computers, Mobile phones, Memory Sticks, Camera and other devices. One evening, we visited the famous “Window of the World” theme park, which had miniature structures of important world architecture and natural places. The highlight of the , Window of the world is the evening stage performance, where over 1000 artistes perform a dance drama. A must see attraction, for those traveling to Shenzen.

We then proceeded to Guangzho. Guangzho is the third largest city of China and has a wide range of products ranging from electronics, clothing, hardware, automobiles and furniture. 100kms away from Guangzho is a furniture city called Shunde, where a whole range of furnitures are available at cheap prices. For those working on or considering a big budget building project, this would be an ideal place to see before you finalise on the interiors.

After spending 2 days in Guangzho, we proceeded to Shanghai. Shangai welcomed with a snow fall. We proceeded by Van to Yiw, which is a gifts market place of China. Unfortunately, owing to heavy snowfall and Chinese new year celebrations, the market was closed and we could visit the market only for a day. It is the destination, for those who are looking into the gifts business.

From Yiwu we arrived Shanghai and spend a day there. In the evening, we visited the famous “acrobats of china” show, which was a splendrous show. We visited the famous Jade Buddha temple, visited the pearl and silk factory outlet and also took a ride on Maglev train. Maglev runs on magnetic tracks at the speed of 430kms/ hr. The 32 kms distance from airport to city, is covered in 7 minutes. It was  a thrilling ride.

From Shangai we proceeded to Hongkong. We visited the Hongkong Disney land, the Victoria peak, Aberdeen fishermen village and the gem factory. We had a wonderful time shopping at the night market, the day before we started back.

While a major part of the group extended 2 days of tour at Bangkok, I returned back to Bangalore with happy reminiscences of the tour.

Mr.Vikranth, beautifully captured the essence of the tour, through his SMS, which reads: “Nihao/ Se Sa Jing!!/ Se Sae/ Remember the times in de ice/ de train ride from Yiwu to Shanghai/ Disneyland/ Veronica/ Charlie/ Ramada Inn/ Maglev Ride/ What fun/ Great team/ de excess luggage/ great wasn’t it.”

Thanks team members for making it happen. The interesting part, was that 14 out of 44 participants, were the participants of the CEO Summit and Winning Edge programme organized by PALMS in the fag end of  2007.  Dear friends, thanks for your continued patronage to PALMS and our initiatives.

Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan

Article Dated Mar 2008

Can taxation be simplified?

The Union Budget that is presented at the parliament, in the month of February, every year draws a lot of anxiety.. There are pre-budget meetings conducted by various trade bodies like CII, FICCI, which consolidates the recommendations from trade and industry and presents it to the finance minister, before the budget is made. Well , as most of us have become so acclimatized to think how better or how worse the impact of this country budget could be, we do not think radically different

I personally have a recommendation to make. It may sound insane, but this is just what you call a “out of the box” thinking. I would like the country to stop collecting all existing taxes, such as income tax, sales tax, property tax, luxury tax, service tax, excise duty, customs duty and the whole gamut of it. Instead we will have just 3 taxes

1. Wealth tax of 1% on assets, which comprises of land, building, gold, business investments and cash.
2. Citizenship tax at Rs.500/- per year
3. Forex spending tax of 20%

So how do I think these 3 taxes alone can support the Indian economy. If you take a look at the last year Union budget, you will find that the net revenue of this country from all taxes put together, was 200 billion of which only Rs.3.15 billion came from Wealth tax. While most of you are aware that anyone holding assets above Rs.15lakhs is liable to pay wealth tax, how many people pay wealth tax? Most of the wealth is undervalued. The wealth tax is not a serious tax consideration, by the government. Why? Is it because so much of undisclosed wealth is held by the politicians? Now let us say you collect 1% wealth tax from every person, without any minimum ceiling, the country will have more revenue generated than what it generates now. Imagine the amount of wealth available in this country hoarded with few individuals.

My argument is based on the simple logic, that earning should not be penalized but hoarding should be penalized. While the concept of savings is good, creation of unfair amount of wealth will help continue the trend of the rich getting richer and poor getting poorer. You can also call it the first mover advantage.

The second tax will be citizenship tax, which is the basic tax every citizen has to pay. A billion citizens paying Rs.500/- each will be 500 billion rupees. This tax amount should entitle everyone to receive a Citizenship card, similar to a social security card issued to the US citizens (a compulsory document for every Indian, which also serves as the voters card or identity card). This amount should be used for developing and maintaining the needed infrastructure, which provides for free schooling and free health care for all. In other words by collecting this Rs.500/- from every citizen, the country promises to take care of the basic necessities of every citizen.

The third tax will be on “forex spending”, which will substitute all taxes such as import tax, custom duty etc.  It is just a simple method to prevent people from,  excessively spending their untaxed income on foreign goods or foreign travel which will be detrimental to the economy.

This idea may catch the imagination of some or have the criticism of many. However, it is a idea born out of my intuition and intelligence and I felt it is worth sharing.

Without straight away rejecting this idea, if someone can refine this idea taking into consideration many other parameters, it will be a great new start. It will make life very simple for the common man in this country.

No where in the world, this type of tax structure exists. So what? Would not we Indians like to call ourselves as “trendsetters”.

Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan

 Article dated Feb'08

Guanxi - An Important Chinese Business Element

 What is Guanxi?  Guanxi, like many other foreign words, this word too does not find any single word parallel in English, however the closest translation is “relationships" or “network of relationships”.

Guanxi is a network of relationships among various parties that cooperate together and support one another. The Chinese mentality is very much that of "You scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours." In essence, this boils down to exchanging favors, which are expected to be done regularly and voluntarily. Therefore, it is an important concept to understand if one is to function effectively in Chinese society. Regardless of business experiences in ones home country, in China it is the right "Guanxi" that makes all the difference in ensuring that business will be successful. By getting the right "Guanxi", the organization minimizes the risks, frustrations, and disappointments when doing business in China. And moreover, the inevitable risks, barriers, and set-ups you’ll encounter in China will be minimized when you have the right “Guanxi” network working for you.

Although developing and nurturing the "Guanxi" in China is very demanding on time and resources, the time and money necessary to establish a strong network is well worth the investment. It is very common for individuals of an organization to visit the residence of their acquaintances from other organizations, bringing gifts (such as wine, cigarettes, etc.). They can indirectly link you to new acquaintances and information resources, thus helping you to develop other right "Guanxi" you need.

Keep in mind that "Guanxi" can take on many forms. It can take form of giving money to people who have helped you in getting a business order. While we would deem it as a bribe or kickback, it is completely legal in their culture. So, there is no need to feel uncomfortable about it. Trustworthiness of both the company and individual is an important component. Following through on promises is a good indication of this. Treating someone with courtesy while others treat him or her unfairly is another aspect. Frequent contact fosters friendship as well. Chinese feel obligated to do business with their friends first.

Though the word Guanxi sounds foreign, I presume that the concept is not foreign at all. As it is true to China, this basically is true to any country as a whole. This is about people and how people expect to be treated.  Of all the human needs that exist today, it is this need for appreciation and recognition that is in great demand. In a fast evolving world, where networking is the mantra, let us learn and practice the art of Guanxi.

·  Wear a big SMILE on your face

·  Give gifts, when possible.

· Remember people’s name and call them by their name often.

·  Shower words of praise and show genuine appreciation

·  Keep up promises you make

·  Be willing and volunteer to help others in time of need.

·  Develop a sense of fair play, in all your dealings.

By consciously practicing these skills, you will soon realize that the network of your friends and business contacts are not just growing, but zooming beyond proportions. The power of networking, will make you feel stronger and stronger, day by day.

Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan
Article dated Jan'08

Subjective reality

If I ask you a simple question, “From which direction the sun rises and sets”, you would think I am kidding. Even a small kid would answer that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west.

Now if I were to challenge your answer and give you a different answer, that the sunrises in the north and sets in the north in some part of the year and it rises in the south and sets in the south in the other part of the year, and sometimes it does not rise or set at all, you would probably think that I have lost my brains. Right?.  But this is the truth in an island called Tromso, located in Northern Norway. This is not a myth but a proven fact.

What we consider a fact is not necessarily a fact in every part of the world. It may be false.

We know the sun doesn’t move but our perception of its movements have become our reality and we live our lives accordingly.  Seeing the midnight sun and its impact on the local people really will turn one’s assumptions upside down. You realise that at the physical or metaphysical level, there is no “One Reality”.  For nearly six-billion people, the reality is that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, but for a half-million people the sun rises and sets in the north or south. The minority reality may be experienced by only a few people, but it’s as real and valid as the majority  experience, however contrary, unreal or absurd  it may seem at first.

And that’s a message the majority community of any nation would do well to learn, understand and accept.  The minority experience is a reality.  Seemingly contrary multiple realities can and must coexist harmoniously in a country as they do in nature.

The development of human intelligence should not always be objective in nature, it has to be subjective, as well. This above illustration is a classic example of subjective reality. We often fail to see the larger picture. This holds true for different religions too, different communities, different economic classes, etc. 

Therefore every time there is a difference of thought or opinions, before blindly arguing to justifying our point, let us try to listen with empathy what the other person is trying to say and then decide. Let us learn to accept the fact that,  our life’s reality is limited to our perception and it is not the wholesome truth.

Galileo was killed for telling the world, that the earth was round like a ball, when the whole world was living by the assumption that the world was flat. Killing the person did not kill the truth. After a few years it was proved that the earth was round.

Happy Reading,

D. Senthil Kannan

Article Dated Dec 2007