Monday, June 22, 2015

Want Success? Take Decisions!

"Whenever you see a successful business, someone once made a courageous decision" - Peter F. Drucker

So, I recently celebrated my 33rd birthday and there's a great likelihood that I have already consumed half (or more) of my allocated time in this world. In some sense, I am in the perfect "Glass half-filled or half-empty" situation. Now, you might have come across pretty smart (and sometimes cheeky) responses to the water-and-glass scenario, but the truth is, there comes a point in a person's life when he has to decide whether to dwell on the past (the glass half empty) or focus on the remaining life (glass half filled)
While I am no one to tell or suggest what an individual should or shouldn't do, but yes, today when I reflect back on life's events, I wish I could collect all of those with a sponge and squeeze it up in a container. This container would clearly reflect on one astounding aspect, that is, "Taking Decisions"
Taking decisions is important, but why? Decision-making is the greatest ornament of a leader and after having worked with senior business stalwarts in my career, I am in awe of people who exhibit clear thinking and take timely decisions, showcasing their invaluable trait. Irrespective of what designation one may carry, decision-making is recognized and rewarded at every stage of life. No decision - is bad decision !

A life full of inspiration - Ratan Tata, Chairman Emeritus, TATA Group

A lot of times we keep waiting for that perfect opportunity, the perfect setting, the perfect atmosphere and conditions where we want to take the next step. We keep waiting endlessly, only to realize that the perfect time to do anything is simply "now"!
Often we find people sitting on the fence and making up for only good critics, but the real winners are the ones who get themselves dirty in the duel called life.
So, my point is simple. Take decisions, good-bad-or ugly but TAKE THEM. Life's circumstances will only change if your take a stand, choose a path and believe in your choices like there's no tomorrow. Not every decision is destined to be right, some might even lead you to extreme trouble but the one thing I can guarantee is that if you don't take decisions, life will compel you to do so. You can either gear up and prepared or wait to be blown away by the winds.
A lot of my decisions were probably not the best, some terrible ones too, but whatever and whoever I am today, is because of those few life-changing calls I made, which makes me an incredibly proud and happy man today. My personal and professional life is a reflection of my decisions and I'm going to focus on the remaining "Half glass filled" with opportunities.
This post was originally published on my LinkedIn Pulse Blog: Click HereDo reach out to me with your comments & suggestions on vishalg82@gmail.com

Sunday, February 22, 2015

My Prime minister a master strategist; and he is NOT an MBA

"Mind is never a problem but mindset is. - Narendra Modi, Hon'ble Prime minister of India

I believe you're reading this post because you're horribly disappointed, sick-and-tired of your employer/recruiter/friends/colleagues (basically everyone) suggesting that for being a good strategist you need to have an Ivy-league MBA. Sounds familiar?
Hon'ble PM of India, Mr Narendra D. Modi, a master strategist
Let me today break the myth by sharing with you a mint-fresh story of our Prime minister, Mr Narendra D. Modi, who has probably put the best strategists to shame by his master-stroke. If you're an aspiring business leader, you don't want to miss this one.
My story today is about a men's suit. Really, a suit? So what's with this "Suit-Strategy" that I'm emphasizing on. Let's find out, shall we. Just for the record, this post has got nothing to do with politics, sounds interesting? Read on..

Our Prime minister won an unprecedented election in May 2014, beating all possible predictions, analysis, rhetoric etc and transformed the political dynamics of the world's biggest democracy. His inspirational "Tea seller-to-PM" story is now immortal.
Recently, India invited the Hon'ble President of the United States, Mr Barack Obama to New Delhi and hosted a never-seen-before affair of bilateral ties between the two great nations. Mr Modi chose to wear a specially designed suit while greeting the US president. This outfit was gifted to him by one of this many admirers and apparently costed a Million rupees in Indian currency (That's a little over USD 15k on a fair conversion basis) The suit has the prime minister's name woven in it and that apparently was a "big deal" !

The controversy suit :)
So, was that really a big deal? Well, this is where the fun begins.

India's federal opposition parties are so devoid of issues that believe it or not, in a recent state election, Mr Modi's USD 15k suit became a key electoral issue! What? Really? Are we serious? Yes, I am and it's just sad. We are becoming a country where affluence is considered a taboo and poverty, an achievement.
Mr Modi is not a quitter and that's exactly where he came up with his Master-stroke.
In order to silence his critics, he declared to auction his "suit".Pretty smart, wasn't it? What could the opposition possibly say now?
The good news is: Mr Modi's strategic thinking has fetched a whopping sum of 43 Million in Indian currency after an interesting three day auction. That's roughly USD 700k ! Yes, a diamond-merchant bought the suit for USD 700k...all cash ! The venue of the auction was smartly chosen to be a city called "Surat", the diamond business hub of India and not Delhi, Bombay or any other Metro city. The result: Absolutely fabulous.
Mr Modi has announced that the proceeds of the auction will go towards cleaning up the world's most sacred river, Ganga (or Ganges, as the British termed it)
In one-single master-stroke, our prime minister did the following:
  1. Silenced his opposition
  2. Compelled his critics to look for another issue to attack him
  3. Generated money for a cause to save a great river
  4. Evoke respect from all walks of the society
  5. Establish that he could give away his personal belongings for nations' cause


My conclusion: Strategist don't necessarily need to sit in air-conditioned boardrooms & formulate ideas. They perhaps can come from any part of the system, not compulsorily an "MBA institute". Even a street vendor, a local bakery, a fast-food joint, a car repair shop or a newspaper seller can inspire you with a unique idea that will help you sell bettergrow faster and achieve higher. So, look around you, understand your business, study your customers (Read: Talk to them) come up with a better offering (not necessarily cheaper) and be humble enough to always keep your "Customers-first".
For the record, Mr Modi does not have an MBA !
Looking forward to your comments and feedback. This article was originally published on my LinkedIn page: Click Here
Follow me on Twitter: @vishalg82

Thursday, February 5, 2015

‘Thank You’ and ‘Sorry’; My greatest takeaways from America

If you’re wondering what’s the big deal about these two words, believe me you’ve landed just at the right post and I’m sure you’ll enjoy reading about what I call my two greatest takeaways from America.
Is it a cultural thing, or personal? I can't say for sure. Our life is all about the“expressed” and the “implied”. A mother loves her kids, parents earn a living for the family, teachers and professors impart education, so on and so forth - All these are examples of “implied” deeds that we assume people have to do for us. Thus, whether we express our gratitude or not, it’s assumed we’re thankful.
Hold on, wait a minute! Do you think this is enough? Adequate? Sufficient?
I thought so, just before I landed on the shores of America and boy! What an incredible aspect of life was I missing…and how!
As a youngster, filled with dreams in my eyes I landed in Los Angeles, one of the most beautiful places on the planet. (By the way, if you’re in LA right now, feel blessed!)
My cultural shook-up started when the immigration officer at LAX checked my papers, asked a couple of questions, passed a smile and said, “Welcome to America, Thank you, next in line please”. It’s been exactly ten years but I have the incident fresh in my mind, etched for a lifetime I guess. So, what was wrong with me? Any guesses?
I thought, aren’t government officials always meant to be grumpy? Cranky? When was the last time I heard a officer say ‘Thank You’ even though I actually didn't do him a favor by landing up at his door at 2:30 in the night. Especially, in India, we rather have a heart attack than hear a thank you from an official.
That’s when I realized I was up for a real change (Read: Cultural shock) and the next two years that followed, transformed me for good!
For every small gesture, for even the tiniest of help extended, I heard Americans express gratitude. That’s when I realized that we needed to get rid of ‘implied’ and ‘assumed’ and start expressing, start acknowledging and stop complaining. Expressing our happiness if someone does something for us, isn't difficult at all, believe me.
A smile costs nothing, but its healing power is remarkable. If you’re thankful towards someone, say it with a smile! If you feel you’ve hurt someone, intentionally or otherwise, say ‘Sorry’! It’s the most powerful human emotion that you can exhibit and the greatest of grudges calm down on hearing this pleasant word.
My parents visited me and were quite surprised to see the changes in me. I returned back to my country a transformed personality.
Life has changed; Saying ‘thank you’ to the taxi driver, the guy who fills up my gas tank, the waiter at my favorite Chinese restaurant, my car mechanic, that helpful co-worker helping me with the lousy photocopier machine, the housekeeping lady at the hotel etc etc; All of this has become a habit. A lot of times people turn back and look at me in disbelief, because they don’t expect to be acknowledged for doing their jobs properly. I hope this changes, and soon.
It’s important, very, very, very important. Especially in the corporate world, it’s critical for us to be thankful towards our peers, mentors and associates. There’s no sweeter voice than a “Thank You” when you’re heading home from office. Teams that stick together for longer hauls exhibit such professional traits and eventually achieve results.
The same way, expressing ‘Sorry’ doesn't make you look small, infact, it makes your personality more appealing, acceptable and charming. Apologizing makes you stronger from within and outside. It tells people that you realize your shortcoming, accepted it, corrected it and moved on to the next challenge.
I hope to be a successful corporate professional and my takeaways will help us all in this thrilling journey.
A big "Thank You" for reading my post.
You can find me on Twitter: @vishalg82 or visit my LinkedIn page here

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

May the best man win; it’s time to change this idiom

"A woman is the full circle. Within her is the power to create, nurture and transform." ~Diane Mariechild
Well, I do understand that the idiom “May the best man win” does not specifically imply any gender bias, but it does inspire me to talk about gender equality, women empowerment and most importantly, the change of winds in India.
I have my reasons to be inspired and yes, it is one of those path-breaking moments that we witnessed a couple of days back. We celebrated our 66th republic day with usual fanfare, heightened patriotic emotions, show of military might amidst President Obama receiving a much louder applause than our own president! However, I was delighted to witness a change which none of us expected or anticipated during the republic day parade.
This year, we dedicated the auspicious day of 26th January to the theme of “Naari Shakti”, which means ‘Women empowerment’ and I was delighted to see it happening on the greatest platform of the biggest democracy on the planet. India, being a male dominated society has been trying to break the shackles and while it’s true that women empowerment is still nascent, I am thrilled to experience the efforts by the new federal regime, which was voted to power last year on the promises of bringing about real change.
I was enthralled to know that this year, an Indian air force officer, Wing Commander Puja Thakur, led the ceremonial guard of honor to visiting US President Barack Obama at the Rashtrapati Bhavan (President’s House) in New Delhi. An incredibly proud moment for this country and its citizens!
(Wing Commander Pooja Thakur leads guard of honor for US President Barack Obama)
(All-woman Indian army contingent march at the Republic Day parade in New Delhi on Jan. 26, 2015)
This year, the Republic Day Parade saw the all-women contingents from the army, air force and navy walking at the same pace, with the same discipline and same dignity as the men in uniform. People watching live telecast saw a prominent federal minister smiling, applauding and standing in awe of this spectacle. Not only is this minister a favorite of Indian households, she also personifies the changing dynamics of India’s gender inclusiveness.
(All-woman contingent from the Indian Air Force marching at the Delhi parade marking the 66th Republic Day of the country)
(All-woman contingent from the Indian Navy march during the Delhi parade marking the 66th Republic Day of the country)
One might argue whether such moments will make any real difference to the realities of women safety, social and financial equality on the ground, however I believe these are strong measures towards recognizing that our societies simply cannot progress without having women at the forefront.
As a corporate professional, I am happy to see more women graduating in rank and position while taking up leadership roles. Women in corporate help balance power equations, bring diversity to thought-processes, put checks on rampaging egos and boost healthy competition. I cannot believe any organization could sustain real growth unless it creates a culture of gender inclusivity. There have been debates on whether women have been disadvantaged in terms of their rightful place in the corporate world and I do see a lot of merit in such facts, but what we forget is that it will take time for the society to evolve and it’s a healing process that we need to give time.
Just when I was finalizing this article, I got to know that the Indian Government had unleashed several measures for saving the “Girl child” and improving the overall gender-ratio in the country. Christened as the “Beti Bachao Beti Padhao” campaign (save girl child and educate her) it talks about measures to prevent female infanticide and providing financial incentives to parents of girl child. These measures are deserving of a genuine applause and will serve as an inspiration to cultures and societies where female oppression is observed on a rampant and mass scale.
My article is dedicated to all the existing corporate and non-corporate efforts towards women empowerment. If you know of real-life examples of individuals, companies, Non-profit organizations working in this direction, do let us all know about them and tell us about the unique and innovative idea we could replicate.
You can reach me on Twitter: @vishalg82 or Facebook: Click Here
If you have an incredible, innovative idea that you would like to share with the Office of the Prime Minister of India, use Twitter: @PMOIndia or visit website: Click Here

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Strategy Execution - Harvard accredited certification

Hello Bloggers,

I recently accomplished my second Harvard accredited certification. This is a joint collaboration between TATA Management Training Centre & Harvard Business Publishing.

Some of the most exciting and insightful modules are as follows:
  • Understand what strategy is, the elements of a strategic plan, and the strategic planning process
  • Develop action plans for strategic initiatives that support your company's strategy
  • Execute your action plans
  • Ensure that your action plans remain focused and aligned with the corporate strategy
  • Evaluate and reward excellence
I am proud of this and would like to thank the Tata Group for providing this immense opportunity.

Happy blogging everyone!

Wednesday, January 7, 2015

AirAsia Disaster: My open-letter to top IT CEOs of the world

“Aviation in itself is not inherently dangerous. But to an even greater degree than the sea, it is terribly unforgiving of any carelessness, incapacity or neglect” - Captain A. G. Lamplugh, British aviation expert
  • AirAsia Flight QZ8501 disappears and crashes into the sea on December 28th 2014
  • Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 shot down in Ukraine on the 17th of July 2014
  • Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 still “Missing” since March 8th 2014

What a terrible year for the aviation industry and what a frightening saga for flyers & relatives alike. Some of these people got closure and some still awaiting to solve the greatest mysteries of the modern day avionics. To me, this situation is not acceptable and though I may not be an aviation expert, I refuse to agree that the human race cannot do better.

My open-letter to the top IT CEOs of the world: its high time technology becomes an integrator and enabler of the supreme measures of security, ensuring that the next time you board that aircraft, you can sleep peacefully and look forward to hugging your loved ones once you land.


I cannot believe an aircraft of enormous measures goes missing and none on the planet can find it? How is that even possible?

I do not want our aircrafts to be sitting ducks in the hands of some fanatic holding an anti-aircraft gun in the air and shooting like an errant kid. Is this some kind of a cruel joke?

I do not want an aircraft laced with sophisticated equipment on board, not able to send some basic distress signals because the weather is too bad? Who knows AirAsia passenger could have been saved if the plane emitted proper signals at the right time? Are we still living in the age of the Titanic? No, we are not and I believe it’s time technology again comes to the forefront, making it mandatory for any aircraft manufacturer on the planet to install the latest and the greatest mechanisms on each and every plane out there.

I want this change to happen soon and now! I am not willing to hand over my near-and-dear ones to luck and fate. I believe we have enough technological advancement available with us that can help modern-day aviation to meet its challenges.

Imagine, we can send a successful mission to Mars, in its first attempt and cannot protect human-lives on this planet? I don’t think so.

I call upon the top IT CEO's of the world, to put together an invincible set of measures that compels giants like Airbus and Boeing (and others) to understand that human lives are non-negotiable henceforth.

Let us bring the experts, the technologists and the controllers, all under one roof to make air travel 100% safe. This is an open and earnest request to the top brains of the aviation industry to come together and make flying safe again.

I invite everyone to share their valuable thoughts, suggestions, opinions on how could we support the aviation industry in this hour of need. If you are a techie or otherwise, do leave your comments for benefit of all.

This article was originally published on LinkedIn Pulse: Click Here

Monday, January 5, 2015

Wharton Business School - Certified at 90.5%

Dear Bloggers,

Yesterday, I received my coveted certification from the Wharton Business School, University of Pennsylvania, through their educational collaboration with Coursera.

I would encourage you all to leverage this immense platform www.coursera.org and learn from Internationally accredited faculty.

My course titled: "Analyzing Global Trends for Business and Society" was delivered across 7 weeks by Prof. Mauro GuillĂ©n.

The course touched upon the following topics:
  • Globalization
  • Demographic Trends
  • Inequality and the Global Middle Class
  • Global Economic and Financial Imbalances
  • The Shifting Geopolitical Landscape
  • The Quest for Sustainability
  • Global Powers of the 21st Century
I am so privileged and thankful to the Wharton School & Coursera for opening a new world of opportunities for ambitious professionals like me.

I invite you to visit the verifiable links, a feature which is so incredibly unique and helpful from Coursera.
Vishal Gaurav's Certification on Analyzing Global Business Trends at 90.5% Score
Happy blogging everyone!