Fun filled week

Last week we had a totally different, unofficial,fun-filled environment in our office.
Our admin team had arranged lot of fun events to get a feel of the Diwali Week.
There was art , rangoli , salad decoration, flower arrangement , tradition dress and cubicle/desk decorations as well.
Everyone participated enthusiastically and so does I.

Here are some of the pics of it..

First it was art competition. The subject was "Go-Green"

And another picture:



Then comes the salad decoration:

Welcome to dreamland! I liked the concept of pinapple well over here.. Really innovative.
And then the new born baby and the celebration...
Look at the carving done on tomatoes...Just awesome!


Third day we saw colorful rangolies... here are some of the pictures..
So neat, clean and unique..

Very nice color combination, quite clean and clear ..

And then comes a winner. A rangoli or a painting? You decide..
The picture says it all...


4th Day we enjoyed the flower arrangements. And guess what? I was the judge along with one of my friend.. Here comes some of the pictures of it.

Only used roses, still looks lovely.


And then the Hawai theme: Nice combination of flowers, the pottery and the concept..

The judges judging it:

And on the last day, we'd cubicle decoration... and what a day it was..
I was amazed to see so much of creativity and team work that day.
There were many themes like Sea world, home-sweet-home, Tradition and so many more..
Everyone was trying to show something different and unique to the judges.
As a result of it that day really became a memorable day to all of us.

First comes the Diwali Theme:

Then comes the home-sweet-home theme:

Welcome home... This is our kitchen


And then the bedroom:


And the kids room ofcourse...

And then comes the "Go-Green" theme:


Then comes a typical bar.. A bar in the office.. Can you imagine it?


And well, there was a prince-princess wedding as well..


Just married :)



Then comes then CWG.. How can we forget that?

And last but not least, it was our tradition, apli sanskruti...
Look at the tiny home and the small people:

Phew!! The week passed by like this only and here we are ready for Diwali!

रुपाली रेपाळेचा जलप्रवास

" रूपाली रेपाळे", जन्माने तुमच्या-आमच्या सारखीच सामान्य, पण स्वकर्त्रुत्वाच्या जोरावर genis book पर्यंत मजल मारलेली. आई-वडील-भाउ अशा चाकोरीबध्द आयुष्य जगत असतानाच पोहायला शिकली आणि या पाण्याने तिचे अवघे आयुष्यच बदलुन गेले.
धरमतर ते gateway of India हा ३८ नौटिकल किलोमीटर्सचा प्रवास ... ज्यामध्ये अन्दाजे ८-१० हजार रुपये खर्च अपे़क्षित असतो, तो तिने वयाच्या केवळ १२ व्या वष्री पूर्ण केला.
त्यानंतर मात्र जगात जे ६ मोठे channels आहेत, ते रुपालीने लहान वयातच पार करावेत असे तिच्या वडिलाना वाटु लागले.
channel म्हणजे ज्याच्या २ किना-यावर २ वेगवेगळे देश वसलेले आहेत असा प्रदेश. सुरुवात झाली ती "English Channel" ने.
हे Channels पार करायचे तर world swimming association चे काही संकेत असतात.
सतत पोहुन swimmer च्या अंगातली चरबी जळत असते. तसे होउन शेवटी फ़क्त हाडाचा सापळा उरु नये, त्याला T.B. सारखे आजार होउ नयेत यासाठी वजन ४२ किलो तरी पाहिजेच! ह्या Channel मध्ये तिन्ही ‌ऋतु एकाच वेळी अनुभवायला मिळतात आणि तेही अगदी तीव्रतम!! म्हणुन swimmer च्या शरीराचे तापमान किमान पाण्याच्या तापमानाईतके तरी पाहिजे. पोहताना कधीही ते कमी झाले तर association कोणत्याही क्षणी ते पोहणे रद्द करु शकतात. याशिवाय प्रवास, राहणे, जेवण-खाण या सगळ्याचा मिळुन खर्च २-३ लाख!!

English channels पार करताना १ observer boat बरोबर असणार, जी दर तासाने ग्लुकोजपाण्याचा एक घोट आणि cadbury चा लहान चौकोन swimmer कडे फ़ेकणार. त्यांना swimmer च्या शरीराला स्पर्श करायला परवानगी नाही.
"English Channel" च्या एका बाजुला England मधले "Dover" हे गाव, तर दुस-या बाजुला France मधले caley हे ठिकाण.
आजपर्यंत गेल्या १०० वर्षात केवळ ४५० पैकी १८ भारतीय लोकांना हे यश मिळाले आहे. पण रुपालीने सतत १६ तास ७ मिनीटे पोहुन ही कामगिरी शक्य करुन दाखविली. She became the first Indian girl to swim against the reverse current and achieve the world record.

English Channel नंतर नंबर लागला तो जिब्राल्टरचा.मोरोक्को ते स्पेन हे अंतर २८ नाँटिकल किलोमीटर. पण English Channel पार केलेल्या रुपालीला यात काहीच कठीण वाटले नाही. दोन्ही देशांच्या naval अधिका-यांच्या उपस्थितीत तिने ही खाडी केवळ ७ तासात पार केली. त्या वेळी तिचे वय होते फ़क्त १२ वर्ष!!

यानंतर धरमतर double. म्हणजेच Gate way of India ते धरमतर. तिथे १५ मिनिटे पाण्यात विश्रांती आणि परत धरमतर ते Gate way. १३ वर्ष वय असलेल्या रुपालीने दुपारी ४ ला पोहायला सुरुवात केली आणि दुसरे दिवशी दुपारी २:३० वाजता परत Gate way गाठल, जवळजवळ २४ तास पाण्यात.

English Channel, जिब्राल्टर आणि धरमतर double नंतर रुपालीला वेध लागले ते श्रीलंकेच्या पाल्क सामुद्रधुनीचे. या समुद्रात विषारी सापांची खुप भिती असते तसेच तामीळ वाघपण कधीही हल्ला करु शकतात. सुरक्षेचे उपाय म्हणुन १ pilot boat आणि १ coast guard boat बरोबर होती. त्या पायलट बोटीच्या दिव्याच्या आधारावर हे सगळे अंतर कापायचे होते. रुपालीने हे अंतर ११ तासात पार केले. ही खाडी पोहणारी ती पहिली महिला बनली.

Australia मधील bass strait, ज्यालाच Philips Bay म्हणुन पण ओळखतात. याच्या दोन्ही किना-यामधे ७५ नाँटिकल किलोमीटर अंतर आहे. पण या समुद्रामध्ये शार्क मासे खुप मोठ्या प्रमाणावर असतात म्हणुन ईथे cage swimming करावे लागते. पोहणा-या माणसाच्या उंचीपेक्षा थोडा मोठा धातुचा पिंजरा बनवतात, swimmer ने यात पोहायचे. ४-५ strokes मधे swimmer पिंज-याच्या पुढच्या टोकाला आला की pilot बोटीतल्या लोकांनी पिंजरा पुढे ओढायचा आणि मग परत पोहायचे. या पिंज-यांवर हात पाय मारुन मारुन असंख्य जखमा होतात आणि त्यात खारट पाण्यात पोहणे. एकवेळ साधे पोहणे सोपे पण हे म्हणजे भलतेच अवघड. पण रुपाली मागे हटणा-यातली नव्हती. तिने १७ तासात ही खाडी केवळ १४व्या वर्षी पार केली.

आता उरली होते ते फ़क्त, New zealand चे cook strait. New zealand च्या south irland आणि North irland दरम्यान असलेली खाडी म्हणजेच cook strait. एकुण अंतर २८ नाँटिकल किलोमीटर . एरवी हे पार करायला रुपालीला ५ तास सहज पुरले असते. पण ५-१० नाँटिकल miles ने वाहणा-या वा-याचा वेग ३२ नाँटिकल miles एतका प्रचंड वाढला. ह्या वा-यात कोणी सजीव पाण्यात तरंगु शकेल ह्यावर एरवी कोणी विश्वास पण ठेवला नसता, पण एथे तर ही चक्क पोहत होती. BBC ला ह्या घटनेची माहिती कोणीतरी दिली. त्यांनी ह्याचे घटनास्थळावर जाउन चित्रीकरण केले. ५-६ तासात पर होणारी ही खाडी पार करायला रुपालीला तब्बल २० तास लागले. But she did it finally!!!

पोहुन समुद्र संपले....जगातल्या ६ प्रसिध्द खाड्या पहिल्याच प्रयत्नात पार करणारी रुपाली पहिली महिला ठरली. आजपर्यंत अनेक सन्मान तिच्या पदरात आले पण ते केवळ अथक प्रयत्नांच्या जोरावर!!!

32 - Heartbits!

"मी रोज पहाटे ४ वाजता उठतो. तुम्ही दुपारी १२ वाजता जेवता ना, तसेच मी पहाटे जेवतो. मग सकाळी ६ ला cricket खेळायला जातो. ६ ते ९ practice करतो. मग सकाळी ९ ते रात्री ९ office. ९ नंतर ११ वाजेपर्यन्त तोच local चा धक्काबुक्कीचा परतीचा प्रवास. ११ वाजता dombivali ला परत. Home sweet home.
रात्रीचे जेवण झाले की १२ ते ४ शांत झोप. परत दुसरे दिवशी ४ वाजता दिवस सुरु."

वाचुन आश्चर्य वाटतय ना? किती busy schedule हे? आणि फ़क्त ४ तास झोप? कोणी तरी युक्तीवाद करेल की "काही काही माणसांना थोडी झोप पण पुरते हो" . जरा थांबा ना... खरी मजा तर पुढेच आहे. ह्या माणसाच्या heartbits किती असतील मिनिटाला?

पण ह्या दोन गोष्टींचा काय संबंध एकमेकांशी? गोंधळलात?
One minute please........

मि. प्रकाश वेलणकर. अतिशय सर्वसाधारण माणुस. अगदी तुमच्या-आमच्या सारखाच. जबरदस्त cricket fan. स्वत: उत्तम cricket खेळतात सुध्दा.
पण एका रात्री अचानक star बनले. कशामुळे? तर त्यांच्या heartbits मुळे.

त्याचे झाले असे, निरोगी माणसाच्या heart bits मिनिटाला ७०-८० असतात. जर त्या कमी झाल्या तर धाप लागणे, चक्कर येणे, खुप झोप येणे असे प्रकार घडु शकतात, आणि वेळीच उपचार नाही झाले, तर काही खैर नाही त्या माणसाची!!

मात्र वेलणकर साहेब ह्या सगळ्याला अपवाद आहेत. त्यांचे heartbits दिवसाला २९-५० पर्यंत कितीही असतात. पण त्याहुन अधिक मात्र कधीच नाहीत, आणि गंमत म्हणजे त्यांना वरचा कुठलाच त्रास होत नाही. त्यांची तब्येत एकदम ठणठणीत. ऎवढेच नाही तर ते आपल्या सगळ्यांहुन जास्त fit आहेत.

जेव्हा doctor ना ह्या सगळ्या गोष्टींचा पत्ता लागतो, तेव्हा अतिशय निरोगी असुनही वेलणकराना कुठ्ल्या
गोष्टींना सामोरे जावे लागते, कुठ्ल्या tests कराव्या लागतात, त्यावेळची त्यांची, त्यांच्या कुटुंबियांची झालेली मन:स्थिती ह्या सगळ्याचा वेलणकरांनी आपल्या "32 HeartBits" ह्या पुस्तकात अतिशय खुमासदार भाषेत आढावा घेतला आहे. serious गोष्ट असुनही "Doctor, अहो माझा प्रेमविवाह आहे, त्यामुळे माझे निम्मे HeartBits माझ्या बायकोकडे असतील कदाचित. तुम्ही एकदा check करुन बघा" यांसारखे त्यांना सुचणारे विनोद तर केवळ अफ़लातुन. सगळ्या tests करुन झाल्यानंतरही जेव्हा doctor ना त्यांच्यात काहीच दोष आढळत नाही तेव्हा त्यांना झालेल्या आनंद खरोखरच अवर्णनीय आहे. पुस्तक अतिशय उत्कंठावर्धक आहे. वाचुन संपेपर्यंत खाली ठेववत नाही आणि राहुन राहुन नवल वाटत राहते ते वेगळेच!

वैद्यकशास्त्राच्या द्रुष्टीने एक चमत्कार, आधुनिक विज्ञानाला पडलेले एक कोडे आणि आपल्या सर्वांसाठी अगदी शब्दश: "एक जगावेगळा माणुस" .................... मि. प्रकाश वेलणकर!!
वेलणकरांना असेच दीर्घायु लाभावे अशीच ईश्वरचरणी प्रार्थना!!

Stop Demotivating Me!!!

Came across this really nice article! So just thought of putting it on my blog.
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It never fails. Every time I give a talk on management, someone asks, "How can I motivate my staff?"
Managers hold pizza parties, deliver pep talks and hand out trinkets to boost motivation. And it's all for naught.
Most people show up for a new job with high motivation. They're excited and they want to do a good job. But as the weeks pass, motivation dribbles away. It's not because managers are failing to motivate these once-enthusiastic people. It's because organizational systems, policies-and yes, management actions -- actively demotivate people.
How can a manager demotivate employees? Let me count the ways.
The Demotivator's Hall of Shame
Surprises at the annual employee review. Most people believe that annual reviews and evaluations improve performance. But people need to know where they stand and what they can do to improve all year, not just at review time. When managers wait until the review cycle to communicate the need to improve, staffers feel set up. When the manager says he wants them to succeed, they wonder if he really means it. Not very motivating.
Micromanagement. Most people desire some measure of autonomy at work. Micromanagement -- dictating each detail of how a task should be done -- deprives people of autonomy. It communicates that the manager believes people are incompetent and incapable of making judgments. The worst form of micromanagement is telling people how to do a task without telling them why the task matters.
Public criticism. If you must criticize, do it in private. "Public" includes yelling so loudly that the entire staff can hear even when the office door is closed. A public dressing-down is a sure demotivator. And it doesn't affect just the individual; it affects everyone who witnesses the event.
Asking for one behavior and rewarding another. One of my early managers proclaimed that a stable production environment was our first priority when we made changes to the software we worked on. But I soon noticed that the people who received praise and promotions were not the ones who were methodical about testing their code. The rewards went to the developers who found and fixed crash bugs in the middle of the night -- usually crash bugs that they themselves had created. The steady Eddies of the group worked unnoticed -- or started inserting a few bugs themselves to gain the limelight.
Unachievable deadlines. Many managers seem to believe that without a deadline, people will dilly-dally and waste time. They profess that the work will expand to take all the available time, and that people (usually referred to as "workers" when this logic is applied) must be pushed to produce. Most people will bust their butts to meet a challenging deadline -- as long as they believe there's a reasonable chance of making it. But give them a deadline they believe is impossible, and motivation drains away.
Asking for input and then ignoring it. A manager asked the developers on his team to estimate a how long it would take to complete a project. The manager didn't like the estimate the team produced. "I've met rookie programmers who could work faster than this," the manager declared as he slashed the estimate by half. "Why did he waste our time?" one developer wondered. This team had a triple whammy: an unachievable timeline, a manager who dismissed their professional judgment, and a manager who berated them in public. They weren't motivated to meet the manager's aggressive timeline (but they were motivated to prove his timeline wrong).
Preferential treatment. Managers don't need to treat everyone equally; they do need to treat everyone equitably. Singling out employees for differential treatment (good or bad) telegraphs that honest hard work isn't the path to recognition. A few people may be motivated to "brown nose"; the rest will be turned off.
Empty phrases. It seems like there's an unending supply of (supposedly) inspirational directives: Just do it! Failure is not an option! Think outside the box! There may be situations where these phrases actually help, though I'm challenged to think of any. When managers meet legitimate concerns with empty phrases, it communicates that the manager a) doesn't understand the issue and/or b) doesn't have a clue what to do. Plus there's a bonus effect: People who believe their manager will dismiss their concerns out of hand don't stop having problems, they just stop telling their manager about them.
In addition to bad management, organizational procedures and systems can also sap motivation. Most companies acknowledge on some level that people are important to producing results. Yet organizational systems and policies may communicate the opposite message. (Like) People are expendable, Some people are more valued than others (as per a forced ranking and rating curve), and Employees are not trustworthy (e.g. policy requiring approval from senior manager for trivial amounts).
Creating an Environment for Success
Even against these odds, a manager can create an environment that maintains motivation and mitigate some negative effects of organizational demotivators.
Here are six things every manager can do to create a local climate that supports natural motivation:
Articulate the group's mission. Make sure people know the purpose of their work and how it fits into the overall mission of the company. Instill an understanding of how the group's work affects the bottom line of the company. Knowing the big picture enables people to make better decisions, and means you, as manager, don't need to be the decision bottleneck.
Recognize and appreciate contributions. Notice that I didn't say "Implement a rewards and recognition program." Those programs backfire as often as not. I'm talking about direct conversations with individuals that show that you, as a manager, notice and appreciate the contributions people make.
Provide clear, congruent feedback. People want to do a good job, and sometimes they need information to fine-tune performance. Rather than evaluate, describe behavior, or results, explain the impact and engage in problem solving. Providing information that helps people improve also helps them know you want them to succeed.
Deal firmly and respectfully with performance issues. Most people want to do a good job, and sometimes people don't have the skills (including interpersonal skills) to be successful. Don't let the situation drag on and on or protect one person at the expense of the group.
Eliminate obstacles and be an advocate for the group. When your organization throws up roadblocks, help knock them down -- or at least find a way around them for the group. Nothing is more demotivating than a manager who insists that employees meet deadlines but does nothing to help them with organizational issues.
Share company data. Disclose as much as you can (of course respecting confidential personnel matters) about company financial results, decisions and strategies. Even saying you don't know is preferable to saying nothing, especially during times of upheaval. Spreading knowledge spreads power.
Pep talks, speakers, posters, forced fun, and prizes are the stock and trade of companies that specialize in employee motivation. Although they may provide a temporary bump in morale (one that may even last a few hours longer than the rah-rah meeting), they won't overcome the underlying problems. Real motivation comes from pride in work, fair treatment and trust.
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Let us also look at the other side of the coin: most leaders do not start out being unfair tyrants, they also begin their managerial careers with enthusiasm to do well in their new roles. Somehow many of them soon forget how they behaved and felt in the earlier phase of their careers. Inadequate ongoing training is provided to managers. Their beliefs and behaviours are influenced by what they see their role models at higher levels do and thus it goes all the way to the top for stating and practising the values of the organization. I also think expertise in terms of knowledge and skills in a particular area often leads everyone into a leadership position for which they might not be suited so part of the solution is to clearly lay down criteria for holding positions involving decisions about people. At the same time, such positions must not be glorified too much in comparison to subject matter specialist positions.

I take my car to servicing..

"Our car needs servicing very badly" I told Harish...
"OK. So this time you can take it for servicing" Harish replied
"ME??? " I just can't believe what he was saying!!
Earlier, before my marriage,my father used to check the air, petrol levels in my vehicle. Also he used to start the vehicle every morning so as to avoid the morning strating trouble. I was so much pampered by my parents and now he is asking me to take the car for servicing.... gosh!!
I thought of throwing some reason... "But I'm so busy, I don't have time in the whole week"
But he was ready with answer "I know. So you can take it on saturday".
"But even I give it on saturday, I'm not able to collect it on Monday because of my office"
But today he was not in the mood to listen... "Give early morning on saturday and they will give your car back on the same day. So take the appointment accordingly for coming saturday "
All roads were closed for me by then!!!
I called the service centre. Got the appointment for Saturday 9.00AM.
Hearing that time, I asked the service centre guy if he is sure the centre will open at morning 9.00?
That guy was pretty sure... he said it's their everyday job.
I reached there before time at around 8:45AM and noticed there were people like me already waiting for the service engineers.
Right now there was only one man who were greeting the customers, preparing the job cards, giving the estimats.. So all one-man-show :)
But he assured all of us that 3 more service engineers will come in 10 mins. I just roamed around to see the service centre.
It was 9.00AM in my watch and the scene literally changed within 5-10 mins.
There were 3 more service engineers calling people according to the job cards.. My number also came sooner than expected.
We took the test ride in my car, he asked what all problems I'm facing currently, and some general questions like when was the last servicing done, what all things needs to be done in this servicing etc.
Then came the million dollor question "When can I get it back?"
That guy thought for a moment and said "You will get it today at around 6.00 PM. Do call up before coming"
I called them up in the evening. The vehicle was ready. I got almost brand new car :)
Well... I was much relieved... The process was much simpler than I thought it before..
"So from next time you are going to take the car for servicing, right? " Harish asked.
"let's see" I gave politically correct answer this time.

नर्मदे हर......

मागच्या आठवड्यात श्री. भास्कर लिमये लिखीत "नर्मदे हर..... हर नर्मदे" हे पुस्तक वाचायचा योग आला.

श्री. लिमये आपल्यासारखेच एक सर्वसाधारण व्यक्तीमत्व.
"Bank Of India" मध्ये नोकरी करुन सेवानिवत्त झालेले... त्यांच्या मनात अगदी लहानपणीच गोनिदांचे "कुणा एकाची भ्रमणगाथा" हे पुस्तक वाचुन पायी नर्मदा परिक्रमा करायची इच्छा निर्माण झाली...नोकरीत असेपर्यत त्यांना ते जमले नाही...पण नंतर मात्र त्यांच्या जबरदस्त इच्छाशक्तीमुळे त्यानी हे शक्य करुन दाखवले.

या पुस्तकात नर्मदा परीक्रमा बरीच खोलात जाऊन समजावून सांगितली आहे...
फ़क्त परिक्रमेचा रस्ताच नव्हे तर परीक्रमा म्हणजे काय, नर्मदा परीक्रमा का करावी, गंगेसारख्या पुरातन नदीची किंवा इतर कुठ्ल्या नदीची परीक्रमा का करत नाहीत , परीक्रमेदरम्यान सांभाळायची काही पथ्य/नियम, परीक्रमेसाठी केलेली शारीरिक आणि मानसिक तयारी अशा सर्व वि‌‍षयांकडे लेखकाने आपले लक्ष वेधले आहे.

oveall पुस्तक खूप छान आहे. पुस्तक वाचताना आपण पण लेखकाबरोबर परिक्रमा करत आहोत असा भास होतो. परीक्रमे दरम्यान आलेल्या अडचणी, त्यांचे नर्मदा मय्याने केलेले निवारण, काही खरोखरच चमत्कार वाटाव्या अशा घटना, १२ जणांच्या group मध्ये फक्त लेखकाची पूर्ण झालेली परीक्रमा, पुनीसाच्या जंगलात अश्वत्थाम्याची पडलेली गाठ ह्या सगळ्या गो‍ष्टी खरोखरच भान हरपून टाकणा-या आहेत.

पुस्तक वाचुन खाली ठेवले की आपल्या मनात लेखकाबद्दल कौतुक आणि नर्मदा परीक्रमेचे कुतुहल मात्र जागे होते आणि मग आपण पण नकळत म्हणतो.... नर्मदे हSSSर हSSSर.

Don't complaint!!! Think otherwise :)

The other day when reading TOI, the paper was filled with lots of flashy news about the most talked game cricket as who should be the coach, about the actors/actresses how they enjoyed their parties, the latest who's who were invited and about the politicians as usual.
But apart from that, there was a very small news somewhere in the corner
"people in Vaikuntha crematorium honoured for their work" -- people working there were honoured for doing their daily job so well, without any complaint, suffering so much of heat all the time, seeing thousands of people crying for their dear ones day in and day out.
And still all of them were smiling in the photo.

I was shattered!!!! We never even thought of it!! We all are so much busy in our lives to even care for it!
But I was more surprised to see there are people or organisations who not only thought of it, but also they carried out such events.
Effect??? I'm sure it would have done immense effect on the workers of vaikuntha.
There are people like Baba amte who has devoted his life to the care and rehabilitation of leprosy patients, Medha Patkar who led the organization for the Narmada Bachao Andolan, people who run the orphan care centres, who care for the AIDS affected.
I really respect all these people. I think they are the real pillars of our society. Otherwise it would have been a mess totally.
This blog is really dedicated for all those seen and unseen people who works for the society without any expectations.
Hats off to them...
So from next time, when the AC stops working, instead of complainting, if we try to suffer a little then I think all these efforts are really paid off!!!