Let’s call it a reading challenge!

Confession time! I have been wanting to improve on my reading habit from a long time. Back in the days... (High school days I mean :P) I loved to read. All kinds of stuff – classics, fiction, non-fiction, good bad, short, long, sad, happy, inspirational and everything else. And slowly I just stopped reading. And like everyone else, I found a million things to blame it on. School, friends, family, time, newer hobbies etc. And I always promised to myself that one day – one fine day – I will get back to reading.

I guess now is the time. I have decided to start reading for pleasure again. And since I have a very short concentration span, I will have to have a plan. So let’s do this – From now on, every time I pick up the book, I will read at least twenty pages. Not too much I know, but may be a good start.

Some calculation –

I am reading The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama - Its 415 pages in total. So if I read twenty pages every time I pick up the book, I should be able to finish this book in about twenty days. But since I am on a vacation, I can read more, or may be twice. So let’s say forty pages every day. And that way I can finish reading the book in ten days. Not bad!

Wish me luck :)

P.S. Feel free to be a part of this challenge, cz it's like challenging yourself to read better stuff more often :)

How to strike the work-life balance?

All of us have been struggling to strike a balance between our work life and personal life. And obviously it's not easy, else it wouldn't have kept the entire world on toes, trying to hit it. Balance can never exist as a fixed point in life. It is a state of juggling efficiently between the several important things in life, and making time for all. This dynamic state of being, makes it difficult to achieve.

The truth is - there is no perfect balance. Like what former General Electrical chief executive, Jack Welch, once said "There's no such thing as work-life balance. There are work-life choices, and you make them, and they have consequences." So how do we make the right choices?

1. Set your priorities right - We must figure out what really matters to us in life. What is that one thing that our life should be focused on. And what comes next and so on... It could be family, career, health, hobby or anything else.

2. De-cluttering your day -Some unnecessary activities take up a major chunk of our lives without us realizing it. And eventually making us less productive during the day. For example, checking and replying to e-mails instantly. It interrupts the on-going process, and we spend time arranging the mailbox folders every time we get an e-mail. And we end up spending five minutes every now and then. The idea is not to procrastinate, but to set aside 15 minutes or so every two hours to check, reply, arrange the e-mails. Watching T.V., too frequent coffee breaks, long lunch breaks come next in the list.

3. Never bring work home - We often tend to bring work home, or spend extra hours at work when it's not required and this significantly reduces the personal time. Bringing work home is like invading your own private time. Make sure you finish your work before you come back. Even if it means putting in that extra hour in the evening or cutting your lunch hour short.

4. Don't over-commit - Especially Indians tend to promise delivering more than what they can. And then we tend to compromise on our personal time. This eventually burns us out. Don't be hesitant in being realistic and setting realistic goals. If you do end up over-committing, ask for help!

5. Force vacations on yourself - Take some time off to avoid the burn out. Talk to your boss, and book tickets in advance. Vacation is important (and it has been medically proved). This will give you more time for family and will rejuvenate your energies so that you can perform better at work once you come back.

On another note, don't bring your personal life at work. Don't forget you are being paid for the work you do. Try to be as effective as you can be during your work hours, so that you don;t have to put in extra time later.

With these little changes in your lifestyle you can also achieve a state of effectiveness and harmony in your life. Let's make living simple :)

Little things matter

I came across this little speech somewhere... After Sept. 11th, one company invited the remaining members of other companies who had been decimated by the attack on the Twin Towers to share their available office space. At a morning meeting, the head of security told stories of why these people were alive. And all the stories were just:
the 'L I T T L E' things.

Little things that make our days annoying. Like when we spill coffee on our desks, when we are rushing to catch a bus and the boring neighbor stops us to say hi and ask hows everything going, when we drive to work and the guy right ahead of us drives at 20 mph on a 45 mph speed zone, when your boss gives you that extra work right when you are ready to leave...

The security head told the survivors...
As you might know, the head of the company survived that day because his son started kindergarten..
Another fellow was alive because it was his turn to bring donuts.
One woman was late because her alarm clock didn't go off in time.
One was late because of being stuck in an auto accident.
One of them missed his bus.
One spilled food on her clothes and had to take time to change.
One's car wouldn't start.
One went back to answer the telephone.
One had a child that dawdled and didn't get ready as soon as he should have.
One couldn't get a taxi.

Now when I am stuck in traffic, miss an elevator, turn back to answer a ringing telephone, spill things... I think to myself, this is exactly what I am supposed to be doing at this moment. I don't get annoyed by this any more.

Next time your morning seems to be going wrong, the children are slow getting dressed, you can't seem to find the car keys, you hit every traffic light, don't get mad or frustrated; God is at work watching over you!

May we all be blessed with all those annoying little things that make our life and may we remember their possible purpose.