Initiate or Die!!!

 Some great stuff to boost that introvert leader in you...

Open Up Take More space!!

Amy Cuddy, assistant professor at Harvard Business School, describes a simple way to raise confidence and reduce stress. She defines two basic hormones one that exerts dominance--Testosterone and the other that makes us depress—Cortisol  she then elaborates 4 simple ways of controlling stress and feel more self-assured to influence your team. These ways are:

·         Understand the science of testosterone and cortisol

·         Warm up with big poses in private

·         Tone it down—a bit—in public

·         Make power poses a habit

Do watch this video to control your stress and look more influential: Boost power through body language 


For all introverts out there!

In recent years I’ve realized how important is it to understand your own personality cuz a complete comprehension enables you to recognize the way your cognitive system works best. Douglas R. Conant reflects on the introvert leaders and how they can cope up with their inhibited behavior. I JUST LOVE this article and the way he reassures the introverts that it’s okay to be mindful and listener rather than always be ‘ON’ for public. 

“…….Introverts need thinking time. I tend to do my best thinking when I can carve out some "alone time" to reflect on important decisions that need to be made. 

 In meetings, introverts can often be perceived as aloof, disinterested, shy or retiring. In my case, I often times prefer to listen to people than to speak and I find it very difficult to pretend that I'm naturally out-going when I'm not. When viewed from the outside, it may seem that I'm not openly contributing as much as I could or should, but that's just because I'm busy listening and thinking.

Introverts benefit from familiar touchstones. For me, a feeling of familiarity with a situation helps me engage in the situation in an effective manner. So I always try to be familiar with the material I'm covering in every meeting……” 

Do Give it a read: Are you an introverted Boss?? 

Traits of thriving doers!

I don’t know how this guy managed to break into my mind and stole these thoughts. I literally felt that Heidi Grant has transformed my thoughts into words. Especially ‘build your will power muscle’ and ‘Focus on what you will do, not what you won't do’ felt my very own traits. DO read this superb article and try to master each clause one by one cuz I personally practice many of these characteristics and working on the rest.

 The 9 Characteristics are:

·         Get Specific

·         Seize the moment to act on your goals

·         Know exactly how far you have left to go

·         Be a realistic optimist.

·         Focus on getting better, rather than being good

·         Have grit

·         Build your willpower muscle

·         Don't tempt fate

·         Focus on what you will do, not what you won't do

“----Believing you have the ability to reach your goals is important, but so is believing you can get the ability. Many of us believe that our intelligence, our personality, and our physical aptitudes are fixed — that no matter what we do, we won't improve. As a result, we focus on goals that are all about proving ourselves, rather than developing and acquiring new skills.

 

Fortunately, decades of research suggest that the belief in fixed ability is completely wrong — abilities of all kinds are profoundly malleable. Embracing the fact that you can change will allow you to make better choices, and reach your fullest potential. People whose goals are about getting better, rather than being good, take difficulty in stride, and appreciate the journey as much as the destination---“

Read Full article here:  Nine things that successful people do differently

Smiles!!!

 

  

My Favorite Ted Talks!

Here are 3 of my favorite Ted Talks and these are really Worth listening:

Humorous Iranian-American Orator

 

Just loved this Talk by Maz jobrani; the way these guys (axis of evil comedy) have adopted an innovative and funny way of tackling Stereotyping and pigeonholing its really commendable. Do listen to this 10 minutes talk and you’ll definitely want to listen it again. His way of expressing events and his vivacious personality…amusing!  Can’t hold back my laughter when he says ‘we’ve been looking for you for 200 years; your grandfather had a parking violation it’s well overdue…’ & ‘I thought you were My driver….’

Do try it!!! Listen complete talk here: Did you hear about the Iranian-American?

 
The Art of fiction without identity politics

 

Elif Shafak describes how west defines pigeonholes for Muslim women and why Muslim writers are expected to write about certain topics. Loved her line ‘Knowledge that doesn’t take you beyond yourself is far worse than ignorance ’. Although Im still unsure how fiction can solve our macro problems but I’ve learned that restricting your imagination can be lethal to your creativity. Release your imagination..you’re free!!!

You can listen to complete talk here: The Politics of Fiction

 
Stories of 3 Radical Women

I was so dumbstruck to listen to this talk. The way she enlightened efforts of 3 women with diversified backgrounds…Im just buoyed by the efforts of Afghan Muslim woman…such exemplary woman! And Im thinking we’ve so many opportunities available but still…do listen!

Listen to Kavita ramdas here: Radical Women embracing traditions

Smiles!!!

How Colors affect purchase decisions

I didn’t know that color and packaging have such huge impact on purchase decisions but this clearly provides valuable insights into consumers’ buying behaviors.  I read in a Deloitte research report that 70% of the shopper decisions are made in-store. So proper shelf space and product presentation can yield targeted results for marketers; the store is a critical and highly interactive touch point to reach and influence consumers. You can study complete research report here: Shopper Marketing: Capturing a shopper’s mind and heart

See how much color influences purchase decisions:

Click on the image and discover a number of interesting facts about how color impacts purchase decisions. This visually stimulating chart compiled by Kissmetrics outlines the influence color primarily, but also other factors. For example, 85% of shoppers place color as a primary reason to buy a particular product. Color increases brand recognition by 80%, which directly links to consumer confidence (in the purchase). Further the visual touches on the power of words, overall design and lays out how color could influence different types of shoppers (i.e. traditional vs. impulse vs. on a budget).

Tell yourself…that’s Enough!

I’ve noticed it many times whenever we’re unsure of something or a little under confident about the soundness of a statement we keep on budging others with several attempts to reassure them (actually ourselves) that something is or isn’t important to us. Over the years I’ve realized that such kind of practice can trap you in mirror spell i-e you assess the veracity of your suggestions and ideas through other’s reactions. For instance if you suggest a party and your friend says ‘sounds great lets plan a blast’ your enthusiasm will bounce to many times the original magnitude. Great! But now consider the flip side; when you come up with a plan and your friend says ‘nay! I’d rather prefer go shopping’….? The matter is actually much sterner than this. Cuz our opinion-seeking habit can influence ideas ranging from simple initiatives to more pragmatic issues of your life like specialization selection in university to career plans. 

A weird implication that I observed was making others believe in our ability to achieve our ‘very much’ individual plans: 

"I’ll study from the start of the semester" (ahh! right)

"You know I just replied her because I didn’t want her to think I am ignorant" (outright lie!)

"I don’t care much about what people say about me; I like to go by my rules" (what’s the point of this confession?)

"I really want to nail this pitch and you’ll see I’ll make it spot-on" (so what you want from me? Standing ovation?)

 

 

You might argue what’s the hitch in tendency-to-share if we succeed in making ourselves believe in such disguise? Good point! I wish you were right but unfortunately that’s not the case. A research study has proved that whenever a person enlightens his/her aims to others, odds of Actually achieving that aim drop dramatically.  40 persons were divided into two halves and group A was asked to elaborate their future plans in front of all others while group B was asked to jot down their plans quietly. After the session everyone was asked to write their plan-of-action (through which they intend to achieve their aims) in 45 minutes. Almost all members of group A stopped writing after 23 minutes in average because they said they felt less enthusiastic about their plans now. While all members of group B availed 43 minutes on avg and said that they feel there’s still a long way to go. Bottom line: whenever we discuss our plans openly our mind creates a pretense that we’ve already achieved it and we feel less enthusiastic about it in the implementation phase. 

Over the years I’ve learned that the most crucial cog regarding your plans and ideas is You and you need to explain to yourself the pros/cons and implementation strategies of your plans. Of course Im not suggesting to eliminate the idea of taking opinions from your peers, rather I am saying don’t depend heavily on it. Set goals, strive your best to achieve it and demonstrate your vision through results. Even evaluate your performance yourself and define ways to reward or excoriate yourself. 

Stop viewing yourself from eyes of others, you are what you are and others can only cast illusions on your vision to make you see in a certain way. Get up! GET UP!

Me Dot Biz

I read an amazing research report by Mckinsey & Co that suggests 4 leadership traits more often demonstrated by women leaders than men do and interestingly these 4 traits are the most suitable behaviors for the global competitive trends in upcoming years. Hence organizations are shifting their focus to gender diversity in order to foster more strategic and diversified skill sets in their boardrooms.

 

McKinsey identified 9 Key leadership behaviors that improve organizational performance:

• Participative decision making
• Role model
• Inspiration
• Expectations & Rewards
• People development
• Intellectual Stimulation
• Efficient Communication
• Individualistic decision making
• Control & Corrective action

Alice. H. Eagly conducted a study using Bass & Avolio’s database to sift the behaviors that are applied by each gender more frequently than the other. It was concluded that Women use 5 leadership behaviors more frequently than men do.

McKinsey then conducted a research to find out the most effective leadership behaviors that would be crucial for organizations in the next 5 years. The panel of executives identified four most important leadership traits for the imminent competitive environment. Interestingly the crucial leadership behaviors, needed to cope up with the predicted global trends, are the same behaviors more frequently exhibited by women leaders than other executives.

These 4 traits are: 

 

Female leaders and a diversity of leadership styles can give companies a real competitive edge. The companies that succeed in fostering effective leadership, sustained by a diversity of both practices and gender will gain a unique opportunity to develop a competitive edge that latecomers will find hard and long to acquire especially as the barrier lies in culture and mindset. Such a motivating research report for future women leaders that are looking forward to mark their way to the top. 

You can read complete Research report here: Women Matter

Amour De l'Art

From a life characterized by the same reiterating activities its always tempting to escape to such exotic places and have some out-of-this-world experiences. True spirit of sightseeing can only be felt in such eerie resorts and hotels. Will share a whole list of world’s weirdest hotels but for now just see this awesome igloo hotel. Sleeping directly under a wide open sky is always so appealing (not out of poverty of course)  

  

 
Check my favorite Hotel Kakslauttanen (pictured above) in Northern Finland, where you can sleep in a glass igloo, offering a complete view of the Northern Lights from the comfort of your bed (complete with zebra-striped bedding).

My deepest covet would be to stay here and observe Auroras—A true mesmerizing artifact of nature. The best time to view Aurora is around the equinox (March and late September-October) because this time of year offers the best trade-off between mild weather and dark skies.

I sometimes wonder is there anyone to whom art and design don’t fascinate. It’s always so great to see aesthetically pleasing objects regardless of their milieu. Here’s some stunning paperwork that’ll surely leave you contemplating on the human approach and creativity. Aren’t they amazing?

Simply love this concept: hanging man

And my favorite one: Wataru Itou

You can check an exclusive collection of paper art here: Stunning Paper Art


 
Living close to nature…beautiful idea! Fresh air, wide open sky coupled with the charm of profound sea, unpolluted sunset and sunrise... need to experience it after a certain stint of time. Here’s a list of ten must-visit islands, although my fav one is missing from the list. From amongst these Chiloé is really appealing where residents still live in traditional palafitos (stilt houses) Must see Cetacean Conservation center where they study dolphins, penguins, otters, and the largest creatures in history—blue whales. Tantalizing!!

The other choice would be Penang although I don’t personally like ‘salad bowls’ but there’s something about this island that allures you away.

 And Vieques of course!

   Here’s the complete list of 10 islands you must visit before you die. 

 Smiles!!!

Hold On to Equanimity-- For your own sake!

We confront furor almost every other day and yet even after years of experience we still fail to dispel our impulsive retorts and the burning desire to snap back harshly. While some people consider this demonstration of furious response as the true mark of deference, I’ve learned that true leaders always handle awry situations with empathy and composure. Besides, your momentary backlash will only yield stopgap satisfaction while the resulted regret and culpability are not going anywhere. So a sensible act would be to focus on the bigger picture instead of behaving like juveniles. And you’ll realize that handling the situation cool-mindedly will always bring favorable results. So you have two choices; either to snap angrily and make things more amalgamated (for which no medal would be awarded) or to hold your reflexive thoughts back just for a while and tackle the situation more prudently.  

 

Now if you have decided to stick to the first option you can discontinue reading right away otherwise we can explore firsthand ideas to get rid of our nasty and useless anger demos. I strongly believe that it’s so hard to suppress the outburst when someone assigns you another task in office while you’ve already been stretched to your last extent; with piles of files and approaching deadlines. Or whenever you come home weary and a family member provokes you with irrelevant grouses and even ‘invites’ you to have a fair skirmish. If you come across any such situation where insolence becomes almost imperative and you find no other way than to yell at the other person…follow a simple trick. Close your eyes and in your mind shout aloud “CUT!!!” just like a director who bellows “Cut!!!” to end a scene. But beware of shouting it literally cuz that would only give an impression that you’re stressed and don’t ever give other person a clue about your rage. 

Then open your eyes and try to laugh (or at least chuckle) if you can think of a joke; do go for it even share it with everyone around you. And in the end don’t forget to sizzle it with your laughter. If you’re thinking that you’d rather prefer not to try it then you’re missing a crucial element of better social contacts and even personal relationships. First try to implement it in personal life and after few initial hiccups you’ll notice how surprisingly the situation can turn jovial with this practice. Once your levity lifts the agonizing anger from the scene (and especially from your head) you can then turn to business and explain your concerns to the other party in a more rational manner. Try to describe what bothers you about something and listen to their consternation and everything will work out fine. 

 

I sometimes think why we can’t practice this in serious business environment or in negotiations with clients? May be we’re all so tamed by the solemn professional environment and don’t ever dare to change a thing. But we all come across such scenarios in B-life where matters turn sour and go out of control. I duly believe that, if handled cheerfully, you can always turn the table in your favor. All you need is a ‘working’ brain and a little self-control.

So do give it a try and start with your personal affairs and implement this cheery plan on your friendship and inter-peers ties. Some friendly suggestions to make this plan work:

Tips:

1)      Say ‘Cut!’ ONLY in your head

2)      Before telling the joke; try to create a suitable condition with a friendly note. For instance: if stuck in a tumult during brainstorming session try this: “Awesome! You’ve broached such a valid issue. You remind me of my class mate in college whenever (s)he used to….. ”

3)      The joke must be relevant to the current situation or at least try to make it relevant by personalizing it (describing it as if it’s your personal experience) The other option is to select an entirely discrete and quirky joke (that would at least ensure silence for few seconds because everyone would be trying to figure out the connection)

4)      Be very clear about the difference between a genial person and a clown. The anger management tip must be practiced sporadically only otherwise you’ll earn yourself a fair reputation of a clown.

Anger management and equanimity is not only to prove that you’re a nice happy chap rather a systematic approach towards anger control can untangle situations and connections quite smoothly. The secret is to use it shrewdly.