MyJottingz

1. Failing to have a life plan--All very successful people have a clear life plan, they create it, massage it, and refer to it often.


2. Not keeping your skill set current--The everchanging business landscape has more demand for jobs than supply. So not staying on par with colleagues and those vying for your job will be a death knell.
   
3. Failing to deliver results--Winners in business know that it’s all about accountability. Simply putting in effort is not enough, results of those efforts also matter.


4. Confusing efficiency with effectiveness--Those who think that communicating via e-mail replaces the need to actually talk with people around them fail to recognize the importance of personally connecting with others in today’s highly automated and technological environment. Communicating in person whenever possible is imperative for success-seekers.


5. Believing that you are irreplaceable--No one is indispensable. As soon as you convince yourself that you and only you can do the job "right," your star will surely start to fall.


6. Knowing all the answers--The old adage remains true: knowledge is power. Professing to know it all can readily stagnate a career. Winners remain unceasingly interested in learning new ideas and approaches.


7. Surrounding your self with "brown-nosers"--Losers like having people tell them how smart they are, whether or not it’s true, while successful managers and other professionals accept and encourage intelligence and creativity in others.


8. Forgetting to give credit to others--Losers inappropriately take full credit for positive events despite the help or input received by others, while Winners give credit where credit is due. Losers inevitably reap what they sow.


9. Failing to self promote--Bragging is one thing, but letting colleagues throughout your industry know of your success through case studies, promotion bulletins, or other such tools is quite another. Losers often fail to recognize the importance of letting others know about their successes, or go about it in entirely the wrong way.


10. Losing perspective--Intuitive business people recognize that, despite their best attempts to do everything right, sometimes they approach roadblocks and seek the advice and perspective of a respected friend, colleague, or even a business coach. Those who fail to recognize their shortcomings are destined for the unemployment line.

Link via TechRepublic



Tags : workplace, job security, human resources, success

Would it not be great to have your name come up as a developer on a product that is universal? Every programmer's dream right?

Well if you are a web-designer you will know this, when you start up Photoshop then Narayanan's name pops up.

Read this interview with Mr. Narayanan who has been with Adobe for 15 yrs. (link)


Link via Amit Varma


Tags : programmer, adobe, photoshop,software

RSA Security has some do's and don'ts regarding passwords:

Top 5 Password Do's

1. Make your password at least 8 characters long.
2. Include different types of characters in your passwords - lowercase and capital letters, numbers, punctuation, symbols etc. The greater the variety of characters that you have in your password, the harder it is for others to figure out.
3. Use different passwords for every application.
4. Consider using a phrase rather than a word. For example - "I drop Bella off at school at 9:00." If your system does not allow spaces or has password size limitations, use the first letter or number from each word - "IdBo@s@9."
5. Change your passwords at least once every 3 months.

Top 5 Password Don'ts

1. Do not use personal information like your name, account number, date of birth, anniversary or the name of your pet or child. These are some of the first passwords hackers will try.
2. Avoid using words that can be found in the dictionary - even in foreign languages. Words spelled backwards are still risky choices.
3. Do not reuse the same password from the previous nine months.
4. Avoid having 3 or more repeated or consecutive characters in your password.
5. Do not tell anyone your password.

Tags : password, security, rules,tech

On Sunday, the Fox News(Republican) channel did an interview with President Bill Clinton. The interview was supposed to be about Clinton's humanitarian causes and one other question that Fox wanted. Wallace, the interviewer, took this chance to ask Clinton whether it was his fault that they did not catch Bin Laden.

Watch Clinton's response here (link).

As someone commented :

Every time I see or hear Clinton speak I’m reminded what a real President should sound like. How do we get one of those again?

The question also is when and where will the democrats find someone like him again?

Check out some of the comments on digg about this

Tags : clinton, interview

It is that time of the year again, when the leaves start to change color. Have you ever wondered why leaves change color in the Fall.

Well about.com has an interesting feature on fall where they explain how and why leaves get those beautiful colors.

Leaves get their green color from chlorophyll, a pigment found in plant leaves that enables them to process sunlight. Fall's shorter days and cooler temperatures cause the chlorophyll to move from the leaves to the branches, trunk, and roots, and the yellow and orange pigments that are always present become visible.

Other chemical processes produce the brilliant reds,purples and bronzes. On warm fall days, sugar is produced in the leaves of some trees and then trapped by the chill of night. As sugar accumulates, the leaves turn brighter red.

Tags : fall, autumn, science, leaves

Flickr is a great photo sharing website. You can upload your favorite pics, tag them and share them with your family, friends and the world.

But when you have to click through each page individually, it does get a little tiresome. So here is the solution.

Flickrleech is the perfect way to search pictures. There are several options to search by and if you are lazy and just want to see the interesting pics for that day, just hit Go for the date on that day.
If you are like me, you could spend hours just watching some amazing pics.


Tags : flickr, photos, interesting

Lifehacker has pointed to a nice Gmail Tip.

If you need to add a contact in Gmail to your address book automatically, all you do is enclose the email address in the paranthesis like this :

To: "Doe, John "<john.doe@email.com>

And once you send the email, the email address is automatically added to your Contacts. Now that's a time saver!

Tags : gmail,google, contacts, tips,short-cut

After writing about how yahoo messenger can now talk to msn messenger, let's talk a little more about inter-connectivity across all messengers. Yes there have been trillian and jabber, but this one deserves a mention.

Meebo is an Ajax instant messaging client that works with major instant messaging services. It's website allows logging onto AOL, ICQ, Yahoo! Messenger, MSN Messenger, Jabber and Google Talk, eliminating the need for an instant-messaging client on the user's computer. For more details link

There is even a wiki and a blog dedicated to meebo.

Pros :

After you enter your password, it tells you that the password is being encrypted.

Cons :

There is no way to log off on and log on using a different combination of messengers.
You have to close the browser. If someone finds it, please let me know.
Secondly it would be nice if we could reduce the browser to a pop up window so that we don't have to be on the same page all the time.

Overall it mimics Jabber, Gaim and Trillian with a Yahoo messenger kind of feel.
Meebo was listed as one of PCWorld’s Top 100 World Class Products in June 2006.
And in Aug 2006, Meebo was listed as one of the top of Time's Top 50 Coolest Websites for 2006.


Tags : instant messenger, ajax

Some amazing aerial pictures of the forts in Maharashtra, forwarded by my cousin:

Alibaug

Arnala

Janjira

Lohgad

Pratapgad

Purandar

Raigad

Raje

Shivasamadhi

Suvarnadurg

Tags : photography, india, maharashtra,forts

Then hurry up and register here

Microsoft presents the “Microsoft BlogStars” contest – hunt for the best developer bloggers in India.

Create greater impact in the vibrant developer blogger community, showcase your thoughts and experiences around Microsoft technologies and technology in general.

Register for the contest, start BLOGGING! and be the first ever Microsoft Blogstars!

Tags : microsoft, india, developer,tech,

Dr. Bhaskar Dasgupta makes an interesting point in his article.

He explains why India inspite of having problems such as malnutrition and starvation in it's own country has gone from a net recipient to a net donor in the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). While we make enough to feed everyone, we do not have good systems in place to make sure it reaches everyone.

Dweep Chanana makes the argument that this is not aid for itself but by participating at world level India is trying to gain certain secondary benefits such as leverage in strategic places.

At the end of the day whatever the reasons be it is still a sad day when people die of malnutrition and starvation in a country which is going through an economic boom.


Tags : India, food programme

Saw the movie Failure to Launch, and as if the title of the film was a self fulfilling prophesy, it failed to launch.
I looks like the makers of the film tried to ride on the success of How to Lose a Guy in 10 days. But sadly Sarah Jessica Parker from Sex and the City, is no Kate Hudson. In fact she looks too old for Matt. And there is absolutely no chemistry between the two. Matt himself should stop trying to look shabby while he is still a marketable romantic comedy star.

The film does have much of a story. In this day & age, Matt who is not your typical loser guy still stays at home and his parents hatch a plot of get him to move out. They enlist the services of someone to 'intervene' for them. Could not figure out why the macho father (since they picked a real life football famer) could not have a man to man talk with this son.


The only things worth watching are some shots of dolphins which were really done nicely. At the end of movie all I could think of was that I would love to own a boat. May be it could serve as a commercial for the Boating industry.


Tags : movie review, hollywood

Shrinking congregations in churches have prompted novel publicity trends in a bid to boost numbers.

An image of Jesus is to appear in pint glasses in commercials this Christmas as part of a campaign to encourage young people back to the Church.

Francis Goodwin, the chairman of CAN, said he hoped the “Jesus in your pint” poster campaign (link) would prompt a debate about God, alongside a series of radio adverts in which young people talk about their spiritual beliefs. It will use the social networking site Myspace to encourage discussion.

He said: “The message is subtle but simple - where is God in all the boozing at Christmas?

“For many, Christmas is just drinking and partying and God is excluded, yet many young people are interested in finding deeper meaning and exploring faith.

“We hope the link to Myspace will offer another venue for them to discuss their feelings and debate the issues.”

The CAN has previously been attacked by traditionalists for its radical approach to publicity.

Link from the Telegraph




Tags : christianity, religion, myspace

The NYTimes has an article on how Diabetes is spreading at an alarming rate in India. (via)

India and China are already home to more diabetics than any other country. Prevalence among adults in India is estimated about 6 percent, two-thirds of that in the United States, but the illness is traveling faster, particularly in the country’s large cities.

Throughout the world, Type 2 diabetes, once predominantly a disease of the old, has been striking younger people. But because Indians have such a pronounced genetic vulnerability to the disease, they tend to contract it 10 years earlier than people in developed countries. It is because India is so youthful — half the population is under 25 — that the future of diabetes here is so chilling.

The conventional way to see India is to inspect the want — the want for food, the want for money, the want for life. The 300 million who struggle below the poverty line. The debt-crippled farmers who kill themselves. The millions of children with too little to eat.

But there is another way to see it: through its newfound excesses and expanding middle and upper classes. In a changing India, it seems to go this way: make good money and get cars, get houses, get servants, get meals out, get diabetes.

In perverse fashion, obesity and diabetes stand almost as joint totems of success.

So why is this so important. This is because uncontrolled diabetes is one of the leading causes of kidney failure, limb amputation and new-onset blindness. People with diabetes are also two to four times more likely than those without diabetes to develop heart disease.

Genetics also plays a role, your chances of getting diabetes are about 20 per cent if your mother suffers from it, 14 per cent if your father has it, 75 per cent if a brother or sister has it and 99 per cent if you have a twin with diabetes.

The Hindu has an article on how millions of high-risk people can go for diet, exercise and behaviour modification to avoid developing type 2 diabetes.

Some of the steps include :

- Walking 30 minutes each day, at least five times a week (150 minutes per week)

- A low fat diet with at least five servings of vegetables and fruits per day

- Substituting fruits for sweets

Any more suggestions are welcome.

Tags : health, diabetes, india

(A family member sent this to me, thought of sharing it. Can't determine the veracity of this but it's interesting)

No Breakfast :
People who do not have breakfast are going to have a lower blood sugar level.
This leads to an insufficient supply of nutrients to the brain causing brain degeneration.

Overeating :
It causes hardening of the brain arteries, leading to a decrease in mental power.

Smoking :
It causes multiple brain shrinkage and may lead to Alzheimer disease.

High Sugar consumption
Too much sugar will interrupt the absorption of proteins and nutrients causing malnutrition and may interfere with brain development.

Air Pollution
The brain is the largest oxygen consumer in our body. Inhaling polluted air decreases the supply of oxygen to the brain, bringing about a decrease in brain efficiency.

Sleep Deprivation
Sleep allows our brain to rest. Long term deprivation from sleep will accelerate the death of brain cells.

Head covered while sleeping
Sleeping with the head covered, increases the concentration of carbon dioxide and decrease concentration of oxygen that may lead to brain damaging effects.

Working your brain during illness
Working hard or studying with sickness may lead to a decrease in effectiveness of the brain as well as damage the brain.

Lacking in stimulating thoughts
Thinking is the best way to train our brain, lacking in brain stimulation thoughts may cause brain shrinkage.

Talking Rarely
Intellectual conversations will promote the efficiency of the brain





Tags : health, brain , life

Rashmi comments on commercials becoming increasingly risque in India resorting to attention grabbing tactics.

Is that a pen in your pocket mister? Or are you .. just happy to see me ??... Lexi pens, now, in every paacket in your city

This ad for Lexi pens (listen to it here) plays day in and day out on the radio and I am not sure what to make of it. I mean it's silly enough to pass off as humour and yet.. in a country where colleges are banning jeans because :

a) it ensures discipline
b) low waist jeans and short tops represent a threat to collective morality

It shouldn't be long, before 'pens in pockets' get the axe ...

As we have seen from the World's Funniest Commercials advertisers will do anything to make their ads stand out.
The logic is if nothing the people will remember the ad and the brand associated with it.Often at times the ads are so far fetched, it is tough to determine what product they are marketing.

So will we have more of these kind of commercials (link) or will the so called "censors/moral police" step in and decide what can be heard on radio and seen on tv ?


Tags : ad relevance, advertising

A friend of mine sent this very inspiring story.

When 27-year old Sarathbabu graduated from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, he created quite a stir by refusing a job that offered him a huge salary. He preferred to start his own enterprise -- Foodking Catering Service -- in Ahmedabad

Here is his inspiring rags-to-riches story from rediff.


Tags : MBA, entrepreneur, rags-to-riches

Someone said that everyone remembers vividly where they were on this particular day. I know I do and am sure you do too.

At this point, the words of Alan Jackson song "Where were you when the world stopped turning that September day" (lyrics) ring in my head.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words.

Here are some pics courtesy msnbc.com :Link

Tags : life, tragedy, terror

PC Mag has released its list of top 101 websites. Among it's usual rated websites it has also created a list of underdog websites that are in the reckoning but have not hit the big time yet. These are the 99 undiscovered websites. A lot of sites based on Google feature in them such as Gmail Tips, Google Maps Mania etc.

Among the list of future classic websites ofcourse figure names such as Digg, Delicious, Myspace, YouTube which is no surprise to anyone.

Here is the link

If you love these and want to hold on to them, they have created downloadable favorite installers. Happy surfing.

Tags : websites, tech, pcmag

A family member of mine sent this to me. It is really interesting

************************************************************

Imagine you're in London 's Heathrow Airport . While you're waiting for Your flight, you notice a kiosk selling shortbread cookies. You buy a box, Put them in your travelling bag and then you patiently search for an Available seat so you can sit down and enjoy your cookies. Finally you find a Seat next to a gentleman. You reach down into your travelling bag and pull Out your box of shortbread cookies. As you do so, you notice that the Gentleman starts watching you intensely.

* *

He stares as you open the box and his eyes follow your hand as you pick Up the cookie and bring it to your mouth. Just then he reaches over and Takes one of your cookies from the box, and eats it! You're more than a Little surprised at this. Actually, you're at a loss for words. Not only does He take one cookie, but he alternates with you. For every one cookie you take, he takes one.

* *

Now, what's your immediate impression of this guy? Crazy? Greedy? He's Got some nerve! Can you imagine the words you might use to describe this Man To your associates back at the office? Meanwhile, you both continue eating The cookies until there's just one left. To your surprise, the man reaches Over and takes it. But then he does something unexpected. He breaks it in half, and gives half to you. After he's finished with his half he gets up, And without a word, he leaves.*

* *

You think to yourself, "Did this really happen?" You're left sitting There

dumbfounded and still hungry. So you go back to the kiosk and buy Another box of cookies. You then return to your seat and begin opening your new Box of cookies when suddenly you glance down into your travelling bag.

Sitting there in your bag is your original box of cookies.........still unopened.

* *

Only then do you realize that when you reached down earlier, you had Reached into the other man's bag, and grabbed his box of cookies by mistake. Now what do you think of the man? Generous? Tolerant? You've just Experienced a profound paradigm shift. You're seeing things from a new point of view.*

* *

Is it time to change your point of view?*

* *

Now, think of this story as it relates to your life. Seeing things from A new point of view can be very enlightening.

* *

Think outside the box.

* *

Don't settle for the status quo.

* *

Be open to suggestions.



* *



Things may not be what they seem.

* *

Unless and until, one realizes about the fact, no one will change his Or her view of thinking in spite of lot of external factors.

* *

Every Point has THREE Sides; you're Side, My Side and The Right Side



Tags : self improvement, self development, paradigm shift

Watched the movie for the sake of Abhay Deol who did good in his opening venture and Soha who was not bad in Rang De Basanti but I was seriously disappointed.

I think the director tried to get himself an award under the Parallel Cinema Category. If you like the hero as a loser go watch Sadma where Kamal Hasaan takes care of a Sridevi who has suffered a memory loss. When she comes to her senses, she does not remember him at all.
Moral of the story, if you want to help out a girl, make sure she is in her proper senses :)


Tags : tragedy, hindi films

After posting the photo essay about life at the googleplex, I found a video that talks about working for google.

Did you know that google employees are allowed to spend 20% of their time working on their own projects? And the common thread amongst all those interviewed is how fast their ideas were translated into live projects. I guess that is why google is where it is today.

Check it out.






Update : Google videos has an entire page devoted to the Googleplex, check it here.

Tags : googleplex, work life, job satisfaction

After my post on wikis, I came across this wiki for maps www.wikimapia.org

WikiMapia is an online map resource that combines Google Maps with a wiki system, allowing users to add information (in the form of a note) to any location on the globe. Created by Alexandre Koriakine and Evgeniy Saveliev, the project was launched on May 24, 2006 and is aiming towards "describing the whole planet Earth".

Below is the snap shot of Mumbai with Airport highlighted, find your local city and tag it.




Tags : wiki, maps, google maps, reference

My brother sent this to me. It's a Time Photo Essay on Google.

The Googleplex is the Google company headquarters, located in Mountain View, Santa Clara County, California, near San Jose.

Googleplex is a play on words, googolplex being the name given to 10googol (a one followed by a googol zeros). It is also a portmanteau of Google and complex — in the architectural sense.

From the photo essay it seems that the employees are well looked after. It sure does look like a cool place to work at.

Tags : googleplex, work life, job satisfaction

A very interesting article forwarded by my friend. This is written by
Dr. Gopalakrishnan, executive director of Tata Sons Ltd.,the holding company for many of the Tata blue chips like Tata Steel, TataMotors, Tata Power, Tata Chemicals, Voltas etc.

"DESERVE BEFORE YOU DESIRE"

The grass isn't always greener on the other side!! Move from one job to another, but only for the right reasons. It's yet another day at office. As I logged on to the marketing and advertising sites for the latest updates,as usual, I found the headlines dominated by "who's" moving from one company to another after a short stint, and I wondered, why are so many people leaving one job for another? Is it passé now to work with just one company for a sufficiently long period? Whenever I ask this question to people who leave a company, the answers I get are: "Oh, I am getting a 200% hike in salary"; "Well I am jumping three levels in my designation"; "Well they are going to send me abroad in six months".

Then, I look around at all the people who are considered successful today and who have reached the top - be it a media agency, an advertising agency or a company. I find that most of these people are the ones who stuck to the company, ground their heels and worked their way to the top. And, as I look around for people who change their jobs constantly, I find they have stagnated at some level, in obscurity. In this absolute ruthless, dynamic and competitive environment, there are still no - short cuts to success or to making money. The only thing that continues to pay, as earlier is loyalty and hard work. Yes, it pays! Sometimes, immediately, sometimes after a lot of time. But, it does pay. Does this mean that one should stick to an
organization and wait for the golden moment? Of course not. After, a long stint, there always comes a time for moving in most organisations, but it is important to move for the right reasons, rather than the superficial ones, like money, designation or oversees trip. Remember, no company recruits for charity. More often than not, when you are offered an unseemly hike in salary or designation that is disproportionate to what the company offers it current employees, there is always an unseemly bait attached. The result? You will, in the long term have reached the same level or may be lower levels than what you would have in your current company.


A lot of people leave their organisations because they are "unhappy". What is this so called unhappiness? I have been working for donkey years and there has never been a day when I am not unhappy about something in my work environment - boss, rude colleagues, fussy clients etc. Unhappiness in a work place, to a large extent, is transient. If you look hard enough, there is always something to be unhappy about. But, more importantly, do I come to work to be "happy" in the truest sense? If I think hard, the answer is "No". Happiness is something you find with family, friends, may be a close circle of colleagues who have become friends.

What you come to work for is to earn, build a reputation, satisfy your ambitions, be appreciated for your work ethics, face challenges and get the job done. So, the next time you are tempered to move on, ask yourself why are you moving and what are you moving into?
Some questions are:

• Am I ready and capable of handling the new responsibility? If yes, what could be the possible reasons my current company has not offered me the same responsibility?
• Who are the people who currently handle this responsibility in the current and new company? Am I good as the best among them?
• As the new job offer has a different profile, why have I not given the current company the option to offer me this profile?
• Why is the new company offering the new job? Do they want me for my skills, or is that ulterior motive? An honest answer to these will eventually decide where you go in your career to the top of the pile in the long term (at the cost of short - term blips) or to become another average employee who gets lost with the time in wilderness?

- Dr. Gopalakrishnan,


Tags : self improvement, career advice, job

Munna & Circuit are back and in full form I must say. I had my doubts whether the sequel would be as a good so had to see it for myself and guess what I was pleasantly surprised.

Circuit (Arshad Warsi) & Munna Bhai( Sanjay Dutt) have not only recreated the magic but have taken it a few notches higher. The chemistry between the two is absolutely fabulous and Circuit's one liners are simply hilarious. It's not what he says but the way he says it, his timing is impeccable. Warsi is today I guess India' best actor in a comic role (not just comedian because he is more than just that) and given the right script there is no end to his range. Sadly the actor has not got his due but I am sure this will open more doors for him. Sanju Baba has not let us down either, he has perfected the art of playing a Don and he does it to a T. Viday Balan looks fresh. Vidhu Vinod Chopra has a tradition for introducing new faces but they tend to not go anywhere, hopefully Vidya has reversed the trend. And who can forget Boman Irani who plays a sardar without overdoing the bale bale cliche you see so often and you keep reminding your self, this is not a sardar it's Boman silly.

I think Raju Hirani has successfully created a cult like fan following. And as my brother commented he could even make a trilogy and get away with it. I have never laughed so hard for a long time at jokes in a Hindi film(which tend to be contrived, double entendres- kadar khan variety or slap stick)

Three cheers for genuine comedy in Hindi cinema!!!!


Tags : comedy, hindi films, munna bhai