The importance of co operation in competition

All great leaders of the world believe that if you want to succeed, you should help those around you, grow.

Today I would like to share a story about success.

There was a farmer who grew superior quality and award-winning corn.
Each year he entered his corn in the state fair where it won honor and
prizes.


One year a newspaper reporter interviewed him and learnt something
interesting about how he grew it. The reporter discovered that the
farmer shared his seed corn with his neighbors'.


"How can you afford to share your best seed corn with your neighbors
when they are entering corn in competition with yours each year?" the
reporter asked.


"Why sir, "said the farmer, "didn't you know? The wind picks up pollen
from the ripening corn and swirls it from field to field. If my
neighbors grow inferior, sub-standard and poor quality corn,
cross-pollination will steadily degrade the quality of my corn. If I am
to grow good corn, I must help my neighbors grow good corn."


The farmer gave a superb insight into the connectedness of life. His
corn cannot improve unless his neighbor's corn also improves. So it is
in the other dimensions! Those who choose to be at harmony must help
their neighbors and colleagues to be at peace... Those who choose to
live well must help others to live well. The value of a life is measured
by the lives it touches.


SUCCESS DOES NOT HAPPEN IN ISOLATION. IT IS VERY OFTEN A PARTICIPATIVE
AND COLLECTIVE PROCESS.


So share the good practices, ideas, new learnings with your family, team
members, neighbors. All the Successes is a Team Work of a family, group,
enterprise, corporation... Infact TEAM as an acronym of letters T,E,A,M
T Together
E Everyone
A Achieves
M More

CORRUPTION – ARE WE ACTUALLY DOING SOMETHING ABOUT IT?

Corruption – the word has been rocking the nation in the recent times more than it has done in the past. But the fact remains that it has been there in the society even before we actually got on the streets, and fighting it became a household discussion. Right from the times of ‘Shree420’ and ‘Anari’ to ‘Roti, Kapda aur Makaan’ to the more recent ‘Rang de Basanti’ and ‘Aarakshan’ , it has only multiplied in its magnitude and proportions so much so that it has gained public acceptance. And owing to the external locus of control that we Indians are known to have –blame it on the system.

While the Oxford dictionary defines it as an irregular alteration of the text, language etc., I understand it as having altered meaning of the same law for different people at different times. That’s what we see happening in public life – a behaviour is punishable if enacted by a ‘mere mortal’ but ‘no big deal’ when committed by the more influential and people in positions of power. In very simple words – when one is not doing one’s duty honestly and begins to believe that they are doing a favour and therefore need to be compensated for it, that’s corruption.

Do we see an end to it in the near future – the answer is a big NO.

I’ve my reasons for saying so – it cannot go because we’ll not let it go. Surprised ? But that’s true. Its so deeply ingrained in our psyches and our social fabric that at least in a 100 years to come – it is there to stay.

If we consider the psychological dynamics of the phenomenon we would realize that it serves a potent role in the lives of people. It starts with the assumption that some people are more privileged than others and that everyone is not equal. There are systems that relegate more power and prestige to some people by virtue of their sex, religion, caste and a number of fractions created for convenience of having control over certain segments of the society. Such power brings with it a social hypocrisy that bestows on them more privileges and the right to dictate terms at the cost of the fundamental rights of that group.

Unfortunately this happens not only at the national, regional and community level – it happens in families. Family the smallest and the most basic unit of a society – which is responsible for the formation of social and national character is at the seat of corruption. Families fail to give equal rights to certain members in the name of hierarchy, family honour and/or issues of security and protection – suppressing the human rights. Rights and duties are unequally distributed in the favor of the more powerful – who get to enjoy all the rights and duties are delegated to the not- so-powerful.

The ancient texts have clearly laid down the rules for the people in authority positions and the protector or as we shall call the head of the organization in modern times – the leader – to lead by example. Leadership is about guarding the interest of the protected and about motivating them for the efficient execution of the system. Family being a primary organization, the head of the family needs to protect and appreciate the interests and safeguard the dignity of the dependents. When families begin to give equal opportunities and rights to all its members irrespective of the place in the hierarchy and various other factors, it will start to show in the social fabric and then reflect on the national front. When the law applies to all with rather more stringent consequences for the people in authority, then we will succeed in bringing about a corruption free society.

So, on this women’s day I would appeal to all women – the bearers and rearers of the future generation – teach your children to be more just, more patient and tolerant of the rights of others. Feel more empowered and teach your children to be independent, teach them to be considerate and teach them to take responsibility for their thoughts, feelings and actions.

Einstein's Ability to Risk and Willingness to Be Wrong

Dear friends here I would like to share some material I found on the net. I bet we all can benefit from it.

Never be afraid to be wrong and to fail.

The early life of Einstein gives us some clues to the great man he would become. He was never one to dominate conversation to prove his intellect. Even as a child he didn't talk much. It has been said that he didn't talk until the age of 3 (there are conflicting accounts on this). But it took him a little longer to talk than the average child. Yet, we must remember that Albert Einstein was far more than average.

Einstein's parents hardly coddled their firstborn. They gave him tremendous freedom to roam and grow. This no doubt had a positive outcome on his development. When he was just 4, he was allowed to roam the neighborhood alone. Believe it or not, his parents even encouraged him to cross the street on his own at this young age. They watched the first few times to ensure that he looked both ways, but soon he was on his own.

Now keep in mind, when he was crossing the street, he wasn't dodging Fords, Chevrolets, Mercedes or cars with a lot of horsepower. He was dodging only true horse power! In other words, he was dodging horse-drawn carriages. But, it was still very dangerous for the young child. In our world today, I would not encourage my 4-year-old to roam the neighborhood alone or even allow him near the street. That being said, the principles of self-reliance and risk that Einstein's parents implemented in his life are ones we can perhaps model on a smaller scale. Einstein certainly modeled this behavior with his own son on a smaller scale.

In his late 20s, Einstein moved to Zurich with his first wife, Mileva, and their son. Friedrich Adler was living near Einstein and they became great friends. They would often get together to share ideas. Oftentimes their sons would get rowdy and it would be hard for the two men to talk. Other parents might barge in and tell their sons to be quiet, that they are having a meeting. Not Adler and Einstein. These great thinkers would climb into the attic to carry on their conversation. They allowed their boys to grow and explore even if they were noisy.

His freedom as a child and the freedom he gave his son were in part due to his attitude on failure. He was not afraid to fail. After all, he tackled some of the most perplexing questions of our universe. Many would have shied away from tackling these questions simply because the rate of failure seemed extraordinarily high. However, it is evident that Einstein was not afraid to be wrong or to fail.

When Einstein was 50, reporters were hounding him for an interview during the time in which he was working on a unified field theory. Put into layman's terms, this meant he was working on a theory that would explain the entire universe in a single mathematical equation. He had the attention of the world. Reporters parked outside his home in the vain hope for an interview. Many kept all-night vigils waiting for the story. As a rule, Einstein did not chase the spotlight and dodged the requests often. It was the same in this instance as well. He did, however, allow an interview with one reporter from The New York Times. You see The New York Times was edited by Carr Van Anda, and Van Anda had found an error in one of Einstein's previous equations. Imagine that! The editor of The New York Times finding an error in the math of Einstein! Don't you think that Einstein must have been irate that the editor would point this out? He must have been insulted. Actually, on the contrary, Einstein was impressed and that is the reason he allowed an interview to the reporter from The New York Times. You see, Einstein was not afraid to be wrong, and when corrected he was not insulted.

At Princeton, Albert Einstein was more like a kindly uncle. When he arrived in 1935, he was asked what he would require for his study. He replied, "A desk, some pads and a pencil, and a large wastebasket—to hold all of my mistakes."

Albert Einstein spent his last two decades trying to reconcile quantum physics with relativity. His Holy Grail—a so-called "Unified Field Theory"—eluded him. He once casually mentioned to a colleague that he was on the verge of his "greatest discovery ever," before admitting that "it didn't pan out" just two weeks later.

One day in his twilight years, he received a letter from a 15-year-old girl asking for help with a homework assignment. She soon received a curious reply: a page full of unintelligible diagrams, along with an attempt at consolation: "Do not worry about your difficulties in mathematics," Einstein told her, "I can assure you that mine are much greater!"

The man who was the greatest success at mathematics also failed a lot at them. But that didn't stop him from moving forward.

Not only was he willing to take risks in math, he also risked when he gambled. While attending a physics symposium in Las Vegas one year, Albert Einstein, to the astonishment of many of his sober-minded colleagues, spent a fair amount of time at the craps and roulette tables.

"Einstein is gambling as if there were no tomorrow," an eminent physicist remarked one day. "What troubles me," another replied, "is that he may know something!"

Too often in life, we attempt to spend all our energy demonstrating how we are right instead of accepting constructive criticism and getting better. This is not true of Einstein. Not only was he not afraid of being wrong, he was not afraid of being corrected. Ask yourself honestly: How do you respond when you are corrected? Do you lash out or are you grateful?

If you want to develop the mind of Einstein. You must not be afraid to fail; allow yourself the opportunity to fail. Herman Melville put it this way: "He who has never failed somewhere, that man can not be great."

Thomas Edison, when he was constructing the light bulb, built 1,000 prototypes that did not work before he successfully built the one that we still use today. A reporter asked Edison how it felt to fail 1,000 times. Edison replied, "You misunderstand. I did not fail 1,000 times. I successfully found 1,000 ways that the light bulb would not work." Edison, like Einstein, did not view failure the way so many do. They viewed it as acceptable and a way to learn and grow.

The fear of failure could have paralyzed Einstein and Edison, yet it did not. What about you? Are you so paralyzed with fear that you have settled for mediocrity? Don't allow that to happen. Embrace risk and failure. Learn that it is OK to be wrong, and run headlong into the rewards of risk as Einstein did.

HAPPY RISK TAKING.

Merry Christmas

Wishing everyone a very merry Christmas

“The true spirit of Christmas is love.” —Linda Willis

“Christmas is most truly Christmas when we celebrate it by giving the light of love to those who need it most.” —Ruth Carter

“Christmas gift suggestions:
To your enemy, forgiveness.
To an opponent, tolerance.
To a friend, your heart.
To a customer, service.
To all, charity.
To every child, a good example.
To yourself, respect.”
—Oren Arnold

“It is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air.” —W. T. Ellis

“The only real blind person at Christmas-time is he who has not Christmas in his heart.” —Helen Keller

“Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.” —Norman Vincent Peale

“Christmas, my child, is love in action. Every time we love, every time we give, it’s Christmas.” —Dale Evans Rogers

“I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all year.” —Charles Dickens

“Love came down at Christmas; love all lovely, love divine; love was born at Christmas, stars and angels gave the sign.” —Christina G. Rossetti

Einstein's Ability to Risk and Willingness to Be Wrong by Ron White

The early life of Einstein gives us some clues to the great man he would become. He was never one to dominate conversation to prove his intellect. Even as a child he didn't talk much. It has been said that he didn't talk until the age of 3 (there are conflicting accounts on this). But it took him a little longer to talk than the average child. Yet, we must remember that Albert Einstein was far more than average.

Einstein's parents hardly coddled their firstborn. They gave him tremendous freedom to roam and grow. This no doubt had a positive outcome on his development. When he was just 4, he was allowed to roam the neighborhood alone. Believe it or not, his parents even encouraged him to cross the street on his own at this young age. They watched the first few times to ensure that he looked both ways, but soon he was on his own.

Now keep in mind, when he was crossing the street, he wasn't dodging Fords, Chevrolets, Mercedes or cars with a lot of horsepower. He was dodging only true horse power! In other words, he was dodging horse-drawn carriages. But, it was still very dangerous for the young child. In our world today, I would not encourage my 4-year-old to roam the neighborhood alone or even allow him near the street. That being said, the principles of self-reliance and risk that Einstein's parents implemented in his life are ones we can perhaps model on a smaller scale. Einstein certainly modeled this behavior with his own son on a smaller scale.

In his late 20s, Einstein moved to Zurich with his first wife, Mileva, and their son. Friedrich Adler was living near Einstein and they became great friends. They would often get together to share ideas. Oftentimes their sons would get rowdy and it would be hard for the two men to talk. Other parents might barge in and tell their sons to be quiet, that they are having a meeting. Not Adler and Einstein. These great thinkers would climb into the attic to carry on their conversation. They allowed their boys to grow and explore even if they were noisy.

His freedom as a child and the freedom he gave his son were in part due to his attitude on failure. He was not afraid to fail. After all, he tackled some of the most perplexing questions of our universe. Many would have shied away from tackling these questions simply because the rate of failure seemed extraordinarily high. However, it is evident that Einstein was not afraid to be wrong or to fail.

When Einstein was 50, reporters were hounding him for an interview during the time in which he was working on a unified field theory. Put into layman's terms, this meant he was working on a theory that would explain the entire universe in a single mathematical equation. He had the attention of the world. Reporters parked outside his home in the vain hope for an interview. Many kept all-night vigils waiting for the story. As a rule, Einstein did not chase the spotlight and dodged the requests often. It was the same in this instance as well. He did, however, allow an interview with one reporter from The New York Times. You see The New York Times was edited by Carr Van Anda, and Van Anda had found an error in one of Einstein's previous equations. Imagine that! The editor of The New York Times finding an error in the math of Einstein! Don't you think that Einstein must have been irate that the editor would point this out? He must have been insulted. Actually, on the contrary, Einstein was impressed and that is the reason he allowed an interview to the reporter from The New York Times. You see, Einstein was not afraid to be wrong, and when corrected he was not insulted.

At Princeton, Albert Einstein was more like a kindly uncle. When he arrived in 1935, he was asked what he would require for his study. He replied, "A desk, some pads and a pencil, and a large wastebasket—to hold all of my mistakes."

Albert Einstein spent his last two decades trying to reconcile quantum physics with relativity. His Holy Grail—a so-called "Unified Field Theory"—eluded him. He once casually mentioned to a colleague that he was on the verge of his "greatest discovery ever," before admitting that "it didn't pan out" just two weeks later.

One day in his twilight years, he received a letter from a 15-year-old girl asking for help with a homework assignment. She soon received a curious reply: a page full of unintelligible diagrams, along with an attempt at consolation: "Do not worry about your difficulties in mathematics," Einstein told her, "I can assure you that mine are much greater!"

The man who was the greatest success at mathematics also failed a lot at them. But that didn't stop him from moving forward.

Not only was he willing to take risks in math, he also risked when he gambled. While attending a physics symposium in Las Vegas one year, Albert Einstein, to the astonishment of many of his sober-minded colleagues, spent a fair amount of time at the craps and roulette tables.

"Einstein is gambling as if there were no tomorrow," an eminent physicist remarked one day. "What troubles me," another replied, "is that he may know something!"

Too often in life, we attempt to spend all our energy demonstrating how we are right instead of accepting constructive criticism and getting better. This is not true of Einstein. Not only was he not afraid of being wrong, he was not afraid of being corrected. Ask yourself honestly: How do you respond when you are corrected? Do you lash out or are you grateful?

If you want to develop the mind of Einstein. You must not be afraid to fail; allow yourself the opportunity to fail. Herman Melville put it this way: "He who has never failed somewhere, that man can not be great."

Thomas Edison, when he was constructing the light bulb, built 1,000 prototypes that did not work before he successfully built the one that we still use today. A reporter asked Edison how it felt to fail 1,000 times. Edison replied, "You misunderstand. I did not fail 1,000 times. I successfully found 1,000 ways that the light bulb would not work." Edison, like Einstein, did not view failure the way so many do. They viewed it as acceptable and a way to learn and grow.

The fear of failure could have paralyzed Einstein and Edison, yet it did not. What about you? Are you so paralyzed with fear that you have settled for mediocrity? Don't allow that to happen. Embrace risk and failure. Learn that it is OK to be wrong, and run headlong into the rewards of risk as Einstein did.

Beautiful quotes about Success and Failure

Success is not to be pursued; it is to be attracted by the person you become.

Failure is not a single, cataclysmic event. You don't fail overnight. Instead, failure is a few errors in judgment, repeated every day.

Don't take the casual approach to life. Casualness leads to casualties.

Success is the study of the obvious. Everyone should take Obvious I and Obvious II in school.

It's too bad failures don't give seminars. Wouldn't that be valuable? If you meet a guy who has messed up his life for forty years, you've just got to say, "John, if I bring my journal and promise to take good notes, would you spend a day with me?"

Success is not so much what we have as it is what we are.

Success is 20% skills and 80% strategy. You might know how to read, but more importantly, what's your plan to read?

Average people look for ways of getting away with it; successful people look for ways of getting on with it.

The Virtue of Gratitude

Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire. If you did, what would there be to look forward to?

Be thankful when you don't know something, for it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be thankful for the difficult times. During those times you grow.

Be thankful for your limitations, because they give you opportunities for improvement.

Be thankful for your mistakes. They will teach you valuable lessons.

Be thankful when you're tired and weary, because it means you've made a difference.

It's easy to be thankful for the good things. A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are also thankful for the setbacks. Find a way to be thankful for your troubles, and they can become your blessings.

I must take this opportunity to thank Dr. Vijay Kansal for sending in such words of wisdom.