The Shiny Syndrome

A lot of us have what we call is “The Shiny Syndrome” where we look at a shiny object and are gradually attracted towards it, after a few years we get bored and look towards a new “Shiny” thing.

Factor this – The US/UK/Japan/Chinese economy grew by leaps and bounds when they almost embraced Capitalism as the way to move forward, and in our efforts to actually not be left behind in the race we have tried blindly ape their models in order to achieve greater growth and an increased level of “satisfaction”. My question is have they reached the desired levels of satisfaction?

The basic ingredients of happiness of the “masses” does not lie in “owning the latest version of the iphone” “earning an obscene amount of money”, or “Having a horde of skimpily clad models hang around you”, but the basic components like accessible medical aid, good education, healthy food, shelter, safety, and a social system that actually reciprocates the amount of efforts that you put in to make the system work.

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Avoid Short Attention Span

The human brain is like a computer with a limited memory storage space, The initial programming (ie the operating system, software & the decision making algorithms ) get's installed in the first 20 years that it spends time in schools & universities . 

Like a normal computer with a fixed memory system, some of the information gets deleted or lost,and with the advent of newer technologies & this information boom the mind tends to run in different directions, leading to what I call is a “Information overload”. This often leads to a lot of information that gets stored in our heads which constantly updating our decision making algorithms which affects our thinking methodology in a profound manner.

A fixed memory & a decision making system that is already saturated with the existing  information overload often tends to reject any new information that is introduced or placed in front of the human brain, thus leading to what we call as “Short Attention Spans”, as the brain automatically scans the information provided in the first couple of minutes to quickly deduce if the information would be of any use or not and then just tends to shut off as it decides that the information is detrimental or of no application.

To avoid such short attention spans is to practice meditation  as It is simply the body’s way of either releasing built up stress and tension or resisting the relaxation because it is so used to being high-strung and on-the-go.  Rest assured that if you stick with it the benefits will be worthwhile as you become calmer, comfortable, confident and more focused each day you practice

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For those who have endured hardship

I asked God for strength, that I might achieve.

I was made weak, that I might learn humbly to obey . . .

I asked for health, that I might do greater things.

I was given infirmity, that I might do better things ...

I asked for riches, that I might be happy.

I was given poverty, that I might be wise ...

I asked for power, that I might have the praise of men.

I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God .. .

I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life.

I was given life, that I might enjoy all things .

I got nothing I asked for--but everything I had hoped for.

Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.

I, among all men, am most richly blessed!....:-)

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A burning desire is the real starting point of all accomplishment.

A young man and Socrates were walking by the river, suddenly the young man asked Socrates the secret to success. Socrates asked the young man to walk with him toward the river. When the water got up to their neck, Socrates took the young man by surprise and ducked him into the water. The boy struggled to get out but Socrates was strong and kept him there until the boy started turning blue. Socrates pulled his head out of the water and the first thing the young man did was to gasp and take a deep breath of air. 

Socrates asked, 'What did you want the most when you were there?" 

The boy replied, "Air." 

Socrates said, "That is the secret to success. When you want success as badly as you wanted the air, then you will get it." There is no other secret.

A burning desire is the real starting point of all accomplishment.

Just like a small fire cannot give much heat, a weak desire cannot produce great results...

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”Overpopulated Subcontinent” : Boon or Bane

As a kid I have always noticed people talk about the high “population” as one of the reasons why there is so much misery & poverty in the subcontinent. 

What other people perceive to be a curse on India, I on the other hand consider it as a boon & a bigger challenge considering the fact that all India born people have the so called “Jugaad” principle hard coded into them. The only challenge is to channelize this unique potential to provide the required thrust to put the subcontinent to its rightful place which is the - “The Top”.

Consider this before the british came to the subcontinent,it had almost 40 % of the worlds GDP, and was actually the worlds most wealthiest & prosperous regions, this is before the british came in and forcibly destroyed the local small scale cottage  industries  to create a market for the goods which came out of their factories.

Now this article is not about “Britain Bashing”….. as there is no point in crying over spilt milk, but it is all about effectively & efficiently utilizing our present resources to regain the prosperity that once existed on the subcontinent.

Potential solutions are

1. A capitalistic approach to labour laws (Hire-Fire policy)

2. Incentives & tax breaks to promote large scale industrialisation

3. An improved educational system which would not just help in bringing in prosperity but also bring in innovation

The idea is to effectively execute these policies as “any idiot can frame policies, but it takes a genius to properly execute to  its desired outcome ”. And I am sure if these are executed effectively there is no other region that could match the subcontinent in prosperity

Consider what china has been doing in the manufacturing sector can be easily replicated by us in the Services & the Manfacturing sector, as I believe with our English speaking skills this would not be such a problem. However care must be taken to ensure that we dont just replace but actually act as a catalyst to the growth engine of the serving economies thus resulting in a win win situation for all.…. J

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Why Agriculture needs to be Nationalized

“Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan” translates to (Hail the Soldier, Hail the Farmer) is one of the most commonly heard slogans in India, while both of the components of this slogan are absolutely important for any country to survive & prosper, it is interesting to note that only one of the portion is fully under state control, the other being primarily under private hands which includes a lot of farmers who need regular bailouts & subsidies to continue this task of producing food grain in majority of the cases considering that a lot are poor & technologically illiterate “in the most inefficient way possible”.

Now don’t get me wrong, I am not quite an avid supporter of government control over anything ,considering the fact that the government is one of the biggest contributors to inefficiency in india. But a structured approach has to be taken into consideration to make this vital component that would contribute towards the growth and prosperity of the country in a positive manner.

The key lies in creating a structure that is practical as well as effective, or utilizing the existing structure to utilize the existing resources in an effective manner by putting such valuable resources under the responsibilities of the Block Development officer, or creating a special cadre along the lines of the IAS/IPS. These people once recruited would be trained to efficiently utilize such rare & vitally important resources by considering the various technologies that are available at hand, and also improve upon and divert the resources that would result from this nationalization to address the food grain storage system problem that india faces currently.

Apart from the usual benefits like improved & efficient food grain production it would also prevent events like “Singur”, which prevented industrialization which could have bought in additional full time direct jobs and many more indirect jobs is a cause of concern.

On the other hand the main drawbacks are that this particular policy is considered to be politically “suicidal” in India, considering that a lot of farmers would not want to sell off their land to the government, while the other main point being that taking into note the present state of efficiency & greed levels of the average bloodsucking "Desh ka Neta", I believe we could be in for another scam...

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