Conquest
27 SepListen to that ‘song’, what do you think it is about?
25 SepWho doesn’t love the sight of birds? What is an early morning or late evening without their happy chirps and twitters to start & end the day with? Our heart leaps in joy each time we catch a glimpse of migratory birds soaring above our heads or a flock of parakeets fly by with their unmistakable, shriek calls. It makes us happy, because we know these birds are happy too, happy to be flying, happy to with many others of their own kind. They’ve got neither bounds nor limitations. They are free to go & fly to anywhere, they need no VISAs. The vast planet is their home, unlike we ‘humans’ who have divided the land mass into bits, given them some names and then claimed them as mine & yours. Their freedom is so much more than what we are entitled to. You can’t even stay on a foreign land, a day more than for what you have been granted permission for. Yet, with such limited freedom, compared to what the other inhabitants on this planet enjoy, ‘freedom’ matters & means a lot to us. Confinement is considered as a ‘punishment’ in our hypocritical world of ‘humans’, a punishment for a wrong doing or for an act of crime. And even this, receives a lot of flak from the ‘human rights activists’ who term it as cruel and what not.
The other day i happened to pass by a pet store, which I’d rather term as a ‘torture chamber for animals & birds’, for the other name is way too misleading. In that dingy, stinky place, there were several glamorous looking cages that housed many an exotic birds that were chirping in panic & distress. Chirping for help, to be released, to be able to take to blue skies once again, to snuggle & sleep with its family at dusk on the cosy branches at the tree top…
In the human world, evil deeds & crimes like murder for instance, are awarded with a lifetime’s imprisonment. What crime or wrong have our little feathered friends’ committed then, to deserve a lifetime’s confinement like this? That they are beautiful, peaceful, have done no harm to anyone, they have sweet voices and peppy chirps? Is that what they are being punished for? I see a tragic humor in instances when i see people decorate their bird cages with colorful ribbons, bands and stars, etc . Does it mean anything to the bird inside, would it feel proud & happy, that it has such cool looking ribbons tied to its cage? What is it to the bird? A highly decorated prison? That’s exactly what it is. It doesn’t matter if the prison has been made of gold with diamonds studded into its bars. A prison is still a prison, and it’s still a punishment for anyone behind it. When people say that their caged birds sing, i ask them, do they really ‘sing’? or are they crying? What songs can your caged birds, with their wings clipped, probably be singing? Ever paused to think about it? They are all singing sad songs in there, song of loneliness, of being imprisoned for life, calling out to their other friends who are free and flying, wanting to join them. Do you think waking up to these songs everyday fills your atmosphere with positive vibes? Get a reality check as early as it can get. If your birds like you so much that they actually are singing out songs to keep you entertained, then please carry out this test, which will help you know what they truly like or love, for that matter. Open the doors of the cage, and wait. This, i assure you, would be the shortest wait of your lifetime. Do you think they’d stay in there even for a few minutes on realizing they’ve been given a chance at freedom? That’s what they want & that’s what they truly love, ‘freedom’, just as much as you love & want yours. For God’s sake, birds were never created to entertain us, to sing out songs for ‘us’! How would you like if an alien from another planet found you beautiful & your voice very melodious, smuggled you out of your home one night, took you back with him and kept you in a well decorated cage made of all platinum? And each time you cried to be let out, cried for freedom; the alien would enjoy it as a beautiful song from you, worth hearing to again and again and again. That is what you’d be doing these winged jewels, if you keep them captive. What sort a mind would then seek pleasure in keeping caged birds? Only the selfish & unevolved minds.
How different are these birds from us? Aren’t they social, just like us? In fact they enjoy greater freedom than us, ‘cos they can fly off to countries, stay there for as long as they wish and they need no authorities to grant them ‘passports’ for their journeys. ‘Freedom’ means a lot more to them and is a lot ‘stronger’ term for them, than what it is for us who can only enjoy limited freedom. It means everything to them. Don’t they have families and don’t they painstakingly build nests to which they fly back to, each dusk? Don’t they want to make babies & take care of them? How different are they from us and how can we hypocrites set dual standards then, one for our own kind and one for anything that is defenseless, voiceless or cannot speak up or fight for its rights? Why do we have the tendency to take for granted, anything that isn’t human? They may not be humans, but they still have lives that they wish to live the way they want to & are capable of feeling the same emotions that we do. Compassion towards all creatures, is preached in every religion & here, legend has it that even Sita (Lord Rama’s wife from the epic ‘Ramayan’) was not spared for keeping a parrot caged for many years. She too was made to face a painful separation of many years, from her loving husband Ram, as a consequence of keeping this bird in solitary confinement. Legends apart, it’s time we humans practiced ‘Compassion’ as our one universal religion, by which our planet would highly benefit from.
No animal wishes imprisonment, no animal or bird looks forward to die in imprisonment or die. They all fear the same things that we do. Prisons are a human invention & should be best used for humans only- the actual evil doers of the planet, not for any other life, incapable of anything even remotely evil. Even the so called ‘cruel’ lion, hunts only when he’s hungry, never for game.
A word of caution for those of you considering freeing your caged birds due to a change in heart or whatever may be the reason, please do your home work carefully before doing so. Releasing birds that are not native to your place will only end up making your bird quick snack to other predatory birds. For example, releasing a budgie (which is native to Australia) in India, would kill it in the first few hours of setting it free, because they have lost the art of surviving in wild, since most are bred in captivity. Even those smuggled from their original places can’t make it here, as this is a complete alien place for them. However, rehabilitating & releasing a rose ringed parakeet in India is fine, as it belongs here. Exotic bird trade is a vicious cycle out there and only when the demand ends, so would the supply. Hope it won’t be too late by the time this realization dawns upon all men & hope our future generations, don’t get to see our animals and birds only in books or recorded documentaries. In order to change this sorry state of affairs, we need to bring about a positive change and that change should start from our homes. Let’s pledge never to keep any life caged and educate our near and dear ones about the same, for it is but a sin to take away from anyone, something that is not yours to take- be it ‘freedom’ or be it ‘life’.
To freedom! May all birds fly free and sing songs of bliss & happiness, as they fly!
Angel departed…
22 SepPhoto courtesy: Achala Paani
How to ensure cottage safety for your pet
7 SepWarm weather makes us want to set out. Set out to cooler places and enjoy outdoors. It is that time of the year, when families head out for the cottage. Since this set up does not even remotely resemble your urban environment, it calls for a utmost pet safety precautions from your end if your planning on taking your pet along. Your pets are not very different from kids. Both are extremely curious, inquisitive and famously known to get into trouble of all kinds. By being aware of all the things that can cause to get your pet into trouble, only helps in avoiding them and ensures an uneventful stay at the cottage, both for you and for your furred companion.
Here are some important safety measures that you would want to take before embarking on your journey to the cottage:
1. The travel
First things first, make sure that your pet is securely strapped onto a seat belt or is being kept in those special carriers made exclusively for pet transportation, when driving to your destination. Ensure the temperature inside the car maintained at all times & is pet friendly by turning on the air conditioner when needed. Never ever leave your pet locked up inside your car with windows closed or even partially open because it can only be a matter of some minutes before your beloved pet collapses out of suffocation or heatstroke.
By feeding your pet with a light meal at least 3-4 hours in advance before the journey will help in preventing car sickness. Also, give your pet some respite from traveling continuously for long hours by pausing for a break every 2 to 4 hours. This break can be used to give it some time to flex its muscles, stretch itself, exercise and to attend the call of the nature. You can carry a litter box, in case of cats.
All the while make sure that the leash is securely fastened to your pet’s collar. Since pets are basically curious & still retain a part in them that is wild, it won’t be long before you find your pet chase a wild hare or a turkey and then loose its way to your car or worse, get hit by another vehicle. Leashing them therefore helps in preventing such uncalled for tragedies & accidental escapes to a large extent, especially if you are a parent to a very naughty pet.
Another important precaution that you need take regarding your pet’s safety is by ensuring that it does not stick its head out of the window. A sudden brake or debris is all it takes to cause it some serious injuries. Last but not the least, try and be sensitive to your travel companion by not blaring the speakers of car and by keeping the volumes moderate, since dogs’ and cats’ hearing are several times higher than our own.
2. Limit your pet’s freedom
You might think as to what better place than the cottage to let your pets loose and allow them some fun and frolic. Wrong! This in fact, is a place where you need to be more guarded about your pet’s freedom than ever before. Never forget the fact that this place is alien and unfamiliar to your pet.
Letting them loose in an environment like this, is like inviting trouble with a red carpet. Chances of your pet getting lost or hit by a passing vehicle are mighty. Your pet might even become an unfortunate victim of territorial dog fights. Having your pet microchipped therefore is a very good idea. Keep the contact details of local animal shelters in & around your cottage area handy.
3. A healthy pet is a happy pet
Before leaving for the cottage, ensure that your pet does not have any of its vaccinations due, especially against deadly diseases like Rabies or CD (Canine Distemper), both of which can prove fatal to your beloved pet. It should also be safeguarded against tick or flea infestation. Your veterinarian should be able to help you regarding the medications available in preventing lice and flea attacks on your pet when outdoors.
Never bring an ailing pet along with you to the cottage. Have someone take care of your pet while your away, for a travel to a new place can be traumatizing to the poor animal. In any case, keep the phone number of a veterinarian close to your cottage area, handy at all times in case of any unforeseen emergencies.
4. Water and pets
A nice water body is synonymous with fun. Boating, swimming etc., are some of the water sports that we all enjoy immensely and therefore want our pets to enjoy them too. But then, water safety is not limited to us alone, it should be extended to our furred friends too. Get them a pet life jacket, for you don’t want to lose them to an otherwise easily avoidable water accident. Life jackets are called that way for a reason, and that is because- it protects, protects life. It also helps your pet against the fatal ‘hypothermia’ in cold & frigid waters. Here are some things to watch out for:
a. Never let your dog into the water with its leash or chain still on, for these can get entangled to hidden obstacles under water like water weeds, rocks, debris etc.
b. Running or moving water can be dangerous to your pet. The large quantities of flowing water will make it difficult for your pet to swim against its current.
c. Check the temperature of the water. Very cold water can cause hypothermia to your pet, which if untreated swiftly can result in the tragic loss of your pet.
d. Keep a tab on your pet’s energy levels when it is in the water. Get him out of the water the moment you notice a drop in its energy levels, because the chances of a tired dog drowning to its death are higher than you thought.
5. Safeguard your pets against other wild animals and vice versa
You are responsible for your pets and their actions. Care should be taken at all times to ensure that your pet does not harass or attack vulnerable wild animals like ground nesting birds, hares etc. since they are very vulnerable around this time of the year, busy raising their young ones. Your pet can prove to be quite a menace to such animals. You should therefore take care that your pet does not cause any injury to wild animals and birds. Practice a ‘live and let live’ lifestyle when in places like these, esp. with other wildlife around you.
You also need to protect your own pet from more dangerous wildlife like bears, porcupines, skunks. A chance meeting with with these animals can prove to be a fatal or a painful experience to your pet. There are also chances of your pet contacting contagious diseases like rabies etc. from other animals in the area. Keeping your pet indoors and/or on a leash at all times would therefore save you all this trouble.
Rune: as the moon sets…
7 Sepa dream conceived with silent tears, tears of hopes-happy,
each night a hope is drowned, each night a heart is charred
everyday, a memory- fond’s shattered, and
everyday only takes us away farther
a new dawn sows new hopes,
& every new sunrise awaits a night-happy
each midnight a fear creeps in, a fear of separation- eternal,
fear of becoming strangers again
a silent tear falls into the darkness,
for some tears remain unseen,
unseen by others and unseen as the heart wails,
wails like a just born
pain of a dagger buried deep in the heart,
the dagger of abandonment, of love and it’s symbol alike,
of promises made & words of honor
from foes turned friends, to friends turned lovers,
to lovers turned spouses, to spouses turned foes,
a love gone sour, a love gone bitter,
the mute heart has seen it all, the helpless heart has felt it all
everyday the heart sinks further, into the abyss of sorrow & pain,
for each day was never a night- happy
the soul’s deprived, deprived of love’s snuggle & embrace,
left by itself in a desert brazen, lies my soul in me, waiting for a
some hearts break silently, unheard
in that some, is mine too,
for each night it breaks in silence, for each night was not a night-happy
everyday takes me away from you, &
everyday takes you away from me,
everyday a heart’s broken & everyday a soul’s killed
in deprivation, hope finds a way,
in callousness, love finds a way,
in the jaws of death, shall life find a way,
cos each new day without you, only makes me stronger,
and only helps me move on
each night a silent prayer is whispered,
each prayer seeks your well being & happiness
a prayer where none of this are heard by none,
for each night was not a happy night,
it continues to sow hopes, hopes for a happy night, hopes for a romance
Puppy Mills: The hellish tale
7 SepThe joy of bringing home a puppy is something that can never be described in words. Since time immemorial, man’s best friend has proved us time and again as to why it is called that way. By bringing home a puppy, we are bringing home a baby animal which will soon be a part of our family. Undying love, loyalty, affection, companionship and security are some other things that you’d be getting along with your puppy.
Now that you have decided to get home a furred friend, it’s important from where you get them. Never buy your pet from a commercial breeder or a puppy farm. These ‘puppy farms’ are also called and often referred to as ‘puppy mills’ by animal lovers because of the inhuman treatment meted out to these loving animals. Here are some facts & reasons why you should never encourage nor buy from puppy mills:
1. Inhuman breeding conditions
Puppies are bred or rather harvested only for commercial purpose and for profits with little or no thoughts about the animals’ welfare and well being. Dogs are housed in filthy cages with no sanitary facilities. They are often forced to sleep on their own excrement. Some breeders, for easy clean up of wastes, keep them in cages that have a wired floor. This type of a flooring cause serious wounds to the dog’s paws and legs. To make matters worse, several dogs are kept in a single cage making them overcrowded. There is no proper food, clean drinking water or even veterinary care given to these poor animals. In several cases, the breeders do not even bother to remove a dead puppy from the same cage where other puppies are housed. This increases the chances of infection and other diseases for the other living animals. When once the breeder dog has attained the age of four, they are killed because the breeders feel that the dog is of no use to them any more.
2. Rough treatment
This goes without saying. Now that we know how and why dogs are bred at these hellish puppy farms, one can never imagine a breeder loving, fondling and caring for his dogs. The lives of the dogs here are god forsaken. Puppies are pulled away from their mothers at a very tender age, resulting in trauma for both the mother and her puppies. They are then packed and parceled in crates as if they were vegetables and sometimes made to travel several hundred miles without proper ventilation, food, water and care. Many puppies die out of sheer exhaustion and suffocation even before they reach their destination. The transporters rarely handle these babies with care, and therefore these poor pups are deprived of all the love and care that is needed for them to become good companions for humans. Since dogs that have been bred this way, have never had a glimpse of love and care, they often develop behavioral issues like barking and snarling, become suspicious towards human beings, not trust humans (thanks to what they have seen of them) etc.
3. Health issues
Dogs at these mills are bred under extreme unsanitary conditions, where their fecal matters and excrement are never cleaned or not cleaned regularly. This being the case, these animals are harassed by flies, maggots and even rodents. Since rodents can also be carriers of several deadly diseases, chances are mighty that they may infect the dogs too. Adding to the woes are the facts that these dogs are neither given proper vaccinations nor are they protected against other dangers like lice and flea infestation. The cages that house these dogs are rarely made of solid surfaces and have wired floors. The tiny legs of puppies often get trapped in between these wires and result in some serious injuries to their legs. In some cases the wounds have been so grave, that it called for amputation. Since not many want a handicapped pup for a pet, such unfortunate puppies are done away with by means of killing (which is again extremely inhuman). Dogs bought from these places are also prone to developing respiratory problems, pneumonia and other hereditary defects such as hip dysplasia, later in their lives.
4. Purebreds
Most dogs bought from a puppy mill are bound to have behavioral and temperamental issues. Breeders falsely claim that their dogs are purebreds. With indiscriminate breeding practices prevailing at these puppy mills that do not facilitate a pure breeding, chances are high that your dog may not be a purebred. Puppies are bred by the quantity and not quality, often overlooking the genetic & personality disorders. The breeders never take into consideration the temperament of the breeding dogs, which is very important in having good puppies with no behavioral issues. Breeders often fool and trick the buyers by talking about ‘papers’ and ‘registration’ of a dog, whereas in reality, all these papers are of no use at all, except in housebreaking your dog.
5. Call for action
Do your bit in eradicating the puppy mill menace by never ever buying pets from these barbaric breeders. There are thousands of abandoned dogs, puppies and cats that are euthanized in animal shelters every year, because they found nobody to care for them and give them a home. Adopt them instead of buying from puppy mills. The more the demand for pups from puppy mills, the more these industries thrive. Break this vicious cycle of pain, misery & death by adopting a homeless animal and you would have done a very noble deed indeed. Adopting is also a feel good factor, because you know that you have given an abandoned animal, a family and home to call its own; and that you have not contributed towards cruelty of any sort. Remember, by buying a pet from a pet store, you are actually contributing to the hell like industry with no conscience or ethics.
Rune: Little teacher in the wall
7 Sepand it seemed smiling at the world so dead
Giving smart shopping lessons to kids
7 SepYou might wonder what a kid has to do with shopping. The truth is, it has! The art of shopping and shopping wisely should be taught to kids as early as possible. Shopping is something that all kids will do sooner or later in their lives. The more well taught they are about shopping, the better shoppers they are bound to become. In order to successfully download the art of wise shopping to your kids, here are a few simple but very effective steps.
1. Take your kid for shopping often
Most parents agree that tagging their kids along for shopping can be a real pain, because they will have to put up with their pleas, whines and whimpers throughout the shopping ordeal. The best they feel is to therefore, leave the kids behind while they can go about their shopping in peace and tranquility. But the truth is, this is the most disastrous thing to do. Taking your kids along for shopping, whatever may be the nature of it, say food, groceries, electronic, automobiles, etc., helps sensitize the kids towards the art of shopping smart from an early age. When they accompany you for shopping they get to experience first hand on how to go about shopping, how to bargain, how to do a thorough market research before settling to buy something.
2. Get them to indulge in the whole shopping experience
By taking your kids for shopping, you will actually be teaching them how to shop without your knowledge. As kids are extremely curious, they keenly observe how you shop and absorb all that knowledge. Getting them to participate in the whole shopping experience helps them to become better shoppers themselves. Give them little tasks like fetching the brand you’re looking for in a mall. This will not only take care of their excitement and inquisitiveness but also make them more aware of the ‘buys’ and ‘not to buys’ in the world of shopping. This also makes the whole shopping experience more memorable to them.
3. Prepare a ‘to-do’ list
Make a list of things to shop and give an excerpt of the list to your child. It may contain the list of stuffs that they would be particularly fond of shopping like their favorite cookies, dress, stationary etc. Doing this will help them focus, be attentive and also learn to prioritize things when shopping. In fact getting them to prepare their own lists before embarking on a shopping journey is an even better idea of teaching them the ways of shopping smart early.
4. Get your kids to compare the prices of various commodities
By getting your little one to compare the prices of various products and deciding which among those are a better buy and a value for money, you have imparted yet another very valuable lesson in shopping to them. Getting them to do this helps them in better decision making, hone their math skills and also realize the value of money. On the flip side of it, it saves your time from doing all the boring comparisons and mall research because your kid is not only doing all that for you but is also enjoying in doing so.
5. Teach them to read and understand labels
Your little ones should be taught to read and decipher product labels in terms of ingredients that has gone into the making of that product, number of pieces in a box, quantity etc., because you might not want a product made of leather or a food item that might contain gelatin or artificial flavors. When shopping for games or toys get them to check for stuffs like if the parts in that toy are non-toxic, if batteries come along with it or if it should be bought separately, etc. This helps them become more aware of the products they intend to buy and other related facts about it.
6. Take them shopping for big items too
Kids are known to pester and nag their parents to purchase that big car, TV, home theater, etc. Get your kids to do a homework about all those products, compare prices, specifications, features, etc., with the competitor’s brands and furnish that research work to you. You can then analyze their work and give them a feedback on their work accordingly. This enables them to develop that much needed confidence to tackle shopping for bigger, costlier products and also readies them for such shopping in the future.
7. Raise them to be good and polite customers
Teach your kids the importance of manners and respecting fellow human beings. Get them to be respectful and polite to all the sales people they come across when shopping by being that way yourself because kids learn by way of observing and imitating. Lead by example. Teach them to request and thank the sales person and not command them like they owned them. By teaching them this, you would also be indirectly contributing to raising a well mannered, compassionate and a civilized human being who knows to treat all human beings alike and with respect.
8. Make them plan their purchases in advance
By encouraging your kids to plan their purchases well in advance, you will be helping them to forecast. Spending a lot at one time can prove fatal to your wallet. Instead, purchasing in small amounts regularly would ensure that you do not feel the pinch of spending. Planning ahead would also help you be prepared to meet the expenses that your kid may come up with. Therefore, a good planning would always result in both happy parents and kids.
9. Help them make better choices when shopping
Tell and discuss with your children the importance of manufacturing products in different countries and how that might affect the quality and price of that particular product. Brief them about the labor laws and regulations governing import and export. With the download of these information you would be helping your kid decide if the product is worth its price or not.
10. Give them some pocket money and allow them its full ownership
Last but not the least, make sure you give your children some money by either making them earn for it or by entitling them to some amount at the start of every month and calling it ‘pocket money’. Let the kid decide what to do with it. Let them save or spend it or do a bit of both. Giving them some money to call it their own will make them more careful about how they spend it. This will also teach them not to get extravagant and help them understand that if they have emptied their pockets, then they don’t get to buy or shop anymore. It is another way of making them smart and money wise.
Ten best HR practices your organisation could benefit from
7 SepIt is said that an HR Manager is to an organization, what a mother is to a home. The success of an organization therefore entirely depends on it’s human resources department and its prevailing practices. Gone are the days when human beings were treated on par with machines. Today employers have realized the need for human resource welfare in order to stay in business and to continue to grow. The more happier and well cared for is a company’s work force, the greater would be the company’s success. No organization has ever tasted success without a strong backing from it’s employees. An organization therefore, is not merely bricks, machines or inventories. It’s much more than that. It’s people.
One can never list out completely, all of the effective HR practices and claim to have listed it all, for the art of HR management is very complicate d and it’s abyss unreachable. Some of the effective HR practices have been listed below, although it’s only the tip of an iceberg:
1. Happy employees = Happy organisation
Workplace is an employees’ second home. By providing your employees with a safe, healthy and a hygienic work area, you ensure your employees are comfortable at all time. This reflects in the employees’ productivity. A complaining employee would be less interested in his job while a happy employee is well motivated to do his job well. It also gives the employees, a very positive image of the company and makes them feel that they are very well cared for thereby boosting their morale.
2. Practice transparent and participative management style
Keep your employees well informed on all the aspects of the company. Be it your sales figures, losses, new contracts & sign ups, company objectives and policies. This will make the employees feel t hat they are not working for a faceless employer. Sharing company information, employee participation and being transparent with the employees makes them think of the company as their own, for they know everything of the company including it’s health. They would therefore know what their goals and objectives are without being told. They would be self driven to achieve organizational goals together. This type of a management style goes a long way building employee trust, loyalty and helps in keeping them well motivated.
3. Reward good performances
By paying bonuses to employees who’s performance is very good, the company would be sending a very important message to its employees- that it’s employees are being watched and that a good performance never goes unnoticed or unrewarded. By rewarding an employee a company achieves two motives. Firstly, encouraging the good performer to perform even better by positively reinforcing his performance and secondly, by bringing about a healthy competition amongst other employees to strive and do better. This way both the company and it’s employees are mutually benefited.
4. The effective 360 degree performance feedback system
This is a system of feedback ensures that an employee gets his feedback not only from his superiors but also from his peers and even subordinates! This is a very effective feedback system and a lot of organizations have embraced it. Now, the employee should not only please his superior but also his subordinates in order to prove himself effective. He can use all the feedback that he receives for self development. This is a more reliable way of judging an employee’s overall performance, because the feedback that an employee receives is not a biased one that is received from just one person’s view of him.
5. Employee evaluation
The evaluation system of an organization should b e such that, it directly draws a link between an employee’s performance to the overall organizational goals and objectives. Job responsibilities and description should be very clear to all employees and so should be the reporting structure. Performance appraisal should be done after giving the employees regular counseling and feedback on their outputs. Comparing their past performances to the current performance helps bring out the difference or consistency in their productivity. Care should be taken to ensure that the means of evaluation is fair and unbiased. Feedback about a certain employee when given by both his immediate reporting manager and another manager who is also indirectly effected by this employee, will help in adding that much needed fairness to the system.
6. Exchange of knowledge
Have a storehouse of knowledge in your organization in the form of knowledge sharing portal created either by the company or by the employees themse lves. Having something like this avoids in recreating the wheel. The knowledge will be ready to look up and is especially a boon for a new employee. Sharing knowledge after attending a seminar or a skill enhancement training should be made mandatory for the employees. However, a portal like this should be well organized to avoid accumulation of clutter. Innovative and constructive ideas can be posted on these platforms so that the others could benefit out of it too.
7. Identify and appreciate performers
How would it be if good performers and bad ones were both treated alike? Over time, the good ones would soon cease to be good, because of the lack of motivation in continuing to be so. Therefore, employees who have been very good performers should be recognized and be made known to all the other employees too. Posting their achievements and feats with a picture of theirs in the company’s intranet, display boards helps in giving our performers their much needed motivation. Not only does this recognition and popularity encourage the performer to perform even better, but it also creates a healthy competitive environment within the organization. All the other employees and under performers would take up their jobs as a challenge so that they would be aptly rewarded and recognized for a job well done too.
8. Welcome great ideas and thoughts
Everybody would agree that it’s the people who make for an organization. Each individual is unique. Therefore, by pooling in all these people together and hearing out their ideas makes a company open for innovations. Open house discussions, brain storming, group discussions, suggestion boxes, meeting with the superiors etc., are all ways of getting those million dollar worth ideas out of employees. A successful organization always knows how to tap, nurture and execute a good idea.
9. The rewarding process
Re warding an employee in private is as good as not rewarding him at all. No one really gets to know that he was rewarded. On the other hand, by organizing a function where the best performers are awarded in the presence of a big crowd and the senior management has a huge impact on the employee’s self esteem and motivation. It makes him feel like a king. Therefore, how an employee is rewarded is as important as rewarding itself.
10. Give your employees some pleasant surprises
Occasionally reward your employees with a gift voucher or a ‘job well done’ certificate, just to keep their motivation going. Give small gifts to average performers too who are in need of that little extra motivation to make them top performers. By doing so, you show your employees that you really care about their performances and in their welfare.
Ten Mealtime etiquette for kids
7 SepNowadays, parents are barely left with any time for themselves, let alone for their kids. The situation only gets worse if both members are working. With this being the case, the kids these days are rarely taught about the much needed etiquette, be it on the table or on the phone. Parents realize its needed when they are at a social get together, when guests visit or when they visit a relative etc. Table manners are important etiquettes that need to be inculcated in kids. First, by teaching your kids some of the dos and don’ts for the dining table, you would be able to escape the embarrassment of having un-mannered kids. Second, kids who are taught table manners, have a more polished behavior and are a treat to the eyes of anyone who get to see them at the dining table. Children learn to be patient, to share, to behave when introduced to table etiquette. Teaching these things when the children are young helps in building personality and character.
To start with, here are 10 simple tips at meal time manners for kids:
1. Catch them young
Kids around the age of two are at ideal age to be introduced to the basic table manners. Teach them to request, to say thank you, and ask to be excused. Since kids at this age are too young to question the reason and importance of table manners, your job of teaching them these would be a lot simpler. When kids do this repeatedly, it becomes a habit which slowly transforms itself into an inseparable part of their personality when they grow up. You would be proud for having raised polished, decent, and extremely well mannered children.
2. Beware of silverware
The number of forks and spoons by your side of plate is likely to unnerve both young and the old. Not knowing what to use and when seems to be a common dilemma most people are in when at the table. Kids therefore are not very experts at these too. The simplest way to approach and curb this confusion is with the aid of math. The number of pieces of silverware corresponds with each course that is being served. For example, should you be given three forks, it should be understood that this most likely means that a salad, an entrée and dessert will be served.
3. Encourage the usage of napkin
Encourage kids to use the napkin by placing it on their laps. This will help them use it instead of using their hands to wipe their mouths with. This will add an air of sophistication and royalty to the kid’s personality. Also, teach them that they are only supposed to dab their mouths with the napkin and not smear it all over their face. Remind them that should not blow their nose or burp loudly when at the table, and then they would only be making all the others at the table want to flee.
4. Teach them to be patient
Make the kids learn the importance of waiting when at the table. Tell them that they are not wild animals to get into a wild frenzy the moment food is in sight. The journey of the food from the container to the kid’s plate should be a smooth one, without the kids pouncing on one another trying to grab their favorite dish and thereby making a mess of the whole table. They should be taught to wait until the dinner has been served to all and until the host/ hostess is seated. This is the most important niceties that separate your dining table from the African wild animals’ feeding ground.
5. Teach them to eat silently without making noise
Discourage your kids from speaking when they have a mouthful of food. Chomping loudly and eating noisily is perhaps the most disrespectful breach of table etiquettes. Let them know that people judge them about their upbringing by looking at the way they eat their food. It gives away most of the person’s traits like selfishness, vain headedness, aloofness, arrogance, etc.
6. Art of conversation
How would you like, if you were dining with a bunch of your close friends and your kid repeatedly interrupts you asking you to buy him that new toy that his classmate has? It can be extremely irritating to both you and your guests when kids trouble with all their tantrums. They should therefore be taught to wait their turn to converse when there are adults speaking at the table. It’s not that kids should munch on their food in total silence or something; it’s just that they need to know when they can talk so that they wouldn’t be interrupting the elders amidst their conversation.
7. Bring the food to your mouth and not the other way round
Kids must be encouraged to sit up straight, and bring the food to their mouth and not vice versa. Hungry kids can rarely resist food and they would go closer and closer to their plates so that they can quickly get to their dish. Since this would appear rather savage, dissuade them from doing so.
8. Having food the right way
Teach them things like tearing a piece of bread or biscuit off, butter the piece and eat that instead of shoving the entire biscuit into his mouth. When attempting to eat things that require a knife, keep the knife on the side of the plate in between bites. Proper etiquette encourages the resting of silverware on the plate from time to time.
9. Teach them the polite way to leave the table
Kids find their surroundings a lot more interesting than we adults and this usually happens when the entire family is dining together. Chances are always rife that kids might get bored with all the grown up conversations that’s happening around it and may therefore want to leave the table at the slightest pretext. That’s not a problem. Only how he leaves is what matters. Teach them to ask for excuse. A “may I be excused” makes them look like kids of blue blood.
10. Clear your table
Make your little kids understand that they haven’t done a favor to you by eating their food. They should be taught to help you clear the table and clean up the mess without being asked for it.
Everyone loves a well mannered kid and raising them that way makes them shine in a civilized world.
Ways to improve your business when the growth is slow
7 SepThere is always that time in business when the growth is slow and things move at a slow pace. Most businessmen fret and panic when their businesses see this phase. What they fail to see is that this is the time, rather an opportunity to make improvements to their business, to make amendments, grow the existing network, review business strategies, chalk out new plans for sales, advertising and brand promotions, plan for diversification, and add new products and so on. So, what can be done and achieved when there is a lull in business?
Build contacts
This is the best and the most ideal time to socialize and grow your network. You never know who you may stumble across and how they might be a positive infl uence to your business. Your potential customer might be just around the corner. Try and attend as many networking events, get together, corporate conferences as you can and make new contacts. Be honest and genuine when you come across people and try to make their acquaintance with you as memorable as possible.
Seal the new professional relationship with the aid of ‘follow-up’
Just a chance meet with someone has never really done much good to any business. It all depends on how one changes that chance meet into something that is mutually benefiting, is what doing business is all about. This calls for timely follow-ups. By doing so, you are ensuring you remain in their memory, and so, whenever arises a need for something that you deal in, you would be the first person to crop up in their minds.
Get active on social networking sites
With almost half the population being on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter etc., these networking sites are a right place to grow your contacts. People who you may have chanced upon in a business meet or events might be there on any of these sites. Trace them and get them to join your network. Chances are, from them you may come across many more contacts that might really be of help to you. Invite your existing friends and business partners to join these networks, in case they already aren’t on any. This way you can keep growing your contact base.
Grow your products and services
Innovation, creativity, and thinking out of the box have always played key roles in getting a business to bounce back in action. This period is best suited for diversification, because it helps you taste success from different streams. It also works on the ‘ do not put all your eggs in one basket’ rule. Sticking to just one product can be suicidal especially when the growth is slow. If this product dies, then so would your business! However, if you choose to diversify, you may have another product to bail you out, in case one betrays you. Diversification therefore is the smartest thing to indulge in during trying times like these.
Strengthen your existing customer base
Show your customer what they mean to you. Thank and reward them for their loyalty by offering your customers of long standing, special rebates and discounts. This will ensure they continue to be by you. Improve your customer service. Not tending to your customers on time, especially during times like these, can prove fatal to the health of your business. Remember, it’s the customers who can both make or break a business.
Get your marketing folks to pull up their socks and get to work
It might sound contradictory to focus on marketing when the times are slow. But, this is indeed the department that should get to work at the slightest available opportunity, because you now would be needing more customers and it’s precisely during times like these that you would be needing new customers in order to survive the phase of lull.
Brush up and add to your own skills
It’s not just the business that you need to be concentrating on during a time like this, but also take time out to improve your own self, in terms of your skill sets. Add new feathers to your cap. Enroll for some course that compliments your career. For instance, if you happen to be an HR professional, you might want to take up a certification course in psychometric tests. This would add to your skills and bring more weightage to your profile.
Organize and make necessary purchases
Use this time to re-organize, re-design your place of work. Clear all the clutter and unwanted stuffs from your office and check if there is any scope for beautification of the office premises. You could also indulge in that long pending shopping for your office like purchasing a more efficient office desk & chairs, new systems or a mac system.
Be patient and positive
Always remember that this too shall pass and that this is only a temporary phase. Losing hope and courage can only multiply your woes. Instead, by looking at the whole thing with a positive perspective, you can not only emerge victorious from the cocoon of lull, but also take to the skies and scale new heights like a just emerged bright butterfly. By looking at this phase like an opportunity t o grow and make innovations, rather than a depressing time, you will be able to take your business to new heights that it hadn’t been before the lull!
By being patient, positive and hardworking, no period of inactivity in business, should either bother or threaten you. Being able to look into the eye of a problem is what it takes to defeat it and destroy it like it never existed.
My journey
6 SepToday, the 25th day of Nov’ 2012, is ‘International Meatless Day‘. This re-post is dedicated to all the birds and animals who are exploited & killed by the billions each day for human consumption, experimentation, clothing and entertainment. May God bless all his creations with peace, love, life & compassion & may the spirit of this day live forever!
A cryptic message from beyond…
6 SepLong ago, when I was a little girl, my grandfather had told me a story that left a lasting impression on my mind forever. Though I’ve forgotten most of it now, I still vaguely remember some bits of it. However, since I very clearly remember the message that the story had delivered in the end, I’ve tried to retell the story in my own way, making changes to the original story all along, but finally arriving at the same message. A sort of ‘old wine in a new bottle’, ‘cos I claim no originality whatsoever. My grandfather wouldn’t have been too happy, had be been around, because I’m pretty sure that my new story has little or no similarities to the one that he had narrated. But since the end message was so beautiful, I felt I had to retell & share this life transforming story, so many others could benefit out of it, just as I did. Here I go-
There once was a man- Manas, who was in his mid-thirties, when he was admitted to a city’s top hospital for treatment of his broken leg & multiple deep wounds to his leg. After a month’s treatment and much to Dr. Kanha’s disappointment (the doc who was treating him), he wasn’t responding to any treatment & despite repeated attempts and getting him to walk, he simply couldn’t for he complained of excruciating pain while trying to do so. His wounds weren’t completely healed either & the doctors treating him were at loss. Manas felt, he was ailing from a mysterious disease & that he would never recover. His family was very worried about him and would do just about anything to see him doing fine again.
It all started when, one day Manas, accidentally ran over an injured cat & killed it under his speeding wheels. Soon afterwards, there were misfortunes galore for him. There prevailed a local belief that, misfortune would quickly descend the head that kills a cat, be it knowingly or unknowingly. Manas, who was aware of this tale & who was a believer in both God & demons, was so overcome with fear and guilt that he began to look forward to his doom, that was to be bought by his careless & callous deed.
As expected by Manas, he soon lost his job with one of the top companies that he was working with. Having lost his job, he was unable to repay the loans that he had taken towards the purchase of a duplex house. His failure to repay his loan, called for an auction of his house. It was when he was immersed in these troubling thoughts on how he invited his doom, with his own hands, rather with his own steering wheel, that he failed to notice a deep pit on the road & when he did, it was too late & no amount of expert maneuvering helped in avoiding his car crash land into the ‘naturally worn & torn’ pit in the road. The speed at which he was traveling only added more impact to his accident, resulting in a broken limb & excruciatingly painful deep cuts on his legs.
His refusal to recover & respond to medications, only made him weaker, sicker & bed ridden. This made his family increasingly unhappy & depressed. He being sole bread winner of the family, they did not know what to do. They tried every possible ways of making him get back to normal. No amount prayers by the family, seemed to work. Nothing seemed to help Manas. Manas, on the other hand, had given up all hopes of his recovery. He had got into an abyss of depression & lay crippled. He was just clinically alive.
Then one day, when no one was around & as Manas was in his ward, gazing into distant nothing, a soothsayer came visiting him. He looked like any other normal person on the surface, with no special powers or magic. Introducing himself to Manas, as a staunch devotee of Lord Krishna & as the lord’s messenger, he told him that he understood exactly why Manas was in such a plight. It was because of some grave sin that he had committed in the recent past. He seemed very concerned when he questioned Manas about what that sin was and Manas told him everything about how he happened to kill a cat under his wheels & how that act was famously known as a harbinger of misfortune & invoked ill luck.
The ‘Guru’, which is how Manas respectfully addressed the soothsayer, frowned. He wasn’t very happy on hearing what Manas had done. He nodded in head in utter disappointment, adding more turbulence to the already disturbed mind of Manas. He told Manas that there wasn’t much that could be done about it & that he would have to face the consequences of what he had done. He got up from his seat, walked towards the open french window in the room. There, amidst many other plants, he saw a potted plant, with just two leaves to it. This plant was an unhealthy one.
He gestured to Manas, asking him to take a closer look at that plant in the window. The Guru then touched the plant & closed his eyes in a meditative way, like as if he was receiving some strange message from the plant. Walking back up to Manas, he told him that with the miraculous power that he possessed, he could sense a strange connection between Manas and this plant. That he had come to know that the plant in the window actually symbolized Manas, in his current plight. With just two remaining leaves on the unhealthy plant , the Guru told Manas, that whatever happens to the plant, would be what would happen to Manas. If it lives, so would Manas & should it die, the same would be his fate too. Manas now lost every hope because he knew that the plant would definitely not live, because not only did it appear unhealthy, but even its two remaining leaves were lack lustre and worse, a tiny area of rot had already set in on one of the two leaves. Having said thus, the soothsayer asked Manas to await his fate that the plant would unfold for him very soon and asked him to keep faith in the supreme lord. He then left the room without looking back at Manas. Manas, now knew for sure, that in other words, his Guru had indirectly told him that his doom was very close.
Three days passed since the soothsayer had visited Manas. Manas did not discuss this incident with any one of his family members, because he did not want to cause them more distress. Manas observed the plant by the window keenly. The major part of the leaf was now being consumed by rot. Manas could now feel himself getting weaker & weaker. On the fifth day, the rot infested leaf fell off the plant. That same night, Manas’s threw up & it was stained with his blood. His health was, no doubt on a down slide. Manas continued to pray & observed the plant everyday, hoping it lives. He requested his attender to water the plant & his wife to add some manure to plant. She was taken aback, but did not show it to her ailing husband. She did as she was told. Nothing helped the plant & in turn nothing helped Manas either.
Two days later, Manas saw what he dreaded seeing the most, the lone leaf on the plant by the window sill, was now infested by rot. This time it did not take long for the rot to spread over the entire leaf. The very next day, the rot had covered the major part of the last remaining leaf on the poor plant. Manas’s condition worsened. His body had become so weak that he was just a bundle of bones covered by skin. That night he collapsed out of extreme ill health. He was put on interveinous drips. Manas wondered how the plant could be such a powerful & an accurate messenger of his fate. He knew that his end was now very, very near. He was certain he would be dead and before the next sun rise.
When Manas woke up the next day, to his utter shock, he found a small, fresh budding leaf in the stem of the plant that he used to watch everyday. He was elated. So overjoyed, was he that he did not know what to do or how to react. He was beginning to feel better. He was starting to feel healthy, like he was blessed with a new lease of life. God had decided to forgive him for the sin that he had unknowingly committed! In the coming days the plant had given birth to three new leaves and all of them sparkling with good health. Manas’s joy knew no bounds. He was now responding to medicines like never before. His physiotherapist was very happy with Manas, for he showed great signs of improvement. His family was overjoyed too. A month after, he was deemed fit to be discharged and was considered good to go. Manas was a changed man now. He vowed never to speed for one and to never again take any lives in future, even in the name of food. All lives are precious, he had come to realize.
Manas was at the hospital reception, fulfilling some last minute discharge formalities. Dr. Kishan was beaming at the sight of this patient of his, for this doctor had a little secret to keep, a secret that Manas was never destined to know about. Dr. Kishan was very confident of his medical skills and despite his best treatment, when Manas failed to respond to it, he knew then, that the ailment that Manas was suffering from was not in his limb, but in his mind. Dr. Kishan knew very well to never ever underestimate the power that our minds have over our bodies or our physical well being. He understood that Manas’s mind was diseased and that he had to treat it. He succeeded and how! He sent a close friend of his in the guise of a soothsayer to meet Manas. Everything that happened thereafter was what that was perfectly scripted by Dr. Manas. Each day, when Manas was asleep, Dr. Kishan would send his trusted housekeeping staff- Garud, to go spray an oil based insecticide on the plant’s leaf, so that the area on which the insecticide was sprayed, would rot. Later, when the spraying of insecticide stopped, the plant bounced back with life. Manas, who had genuinely started to believe that he shared his fate with this plant, only played along. Thanks to Dr. Kishan’s well executed plan, Manas was now completely recovered, both physically & mentally. Lost in these thoughts, Dr. Kishan, carelessly scribbled something on a piece of paper , forgot about it and quietly left to attend to a new patient. Before leaving however, and smiling to himself, he took one last look at Manas , who was then walking out of the hospital door with his family, cheerful & laughing at something that seemed like a family’s private joke.
A restless little girl who was waiting with her parents in the reception to see a pediatrician, picked up the note that Dr. Kishan had left behind. Her face lit up on seeing a small image of her favorite Lord Kishna printed on it & on it’s reverse, there was something scribbled illegibly. She ran back to where her parents were seated & gave the note to her father, who read it, smiled & left it on the reading table in front of him. The illegible scribble read- ‘If you think you can, or if you think you can’t, either way, you’re right’- a famous quote by Henry Ford.
Scented candles & magic!
6 SepWe all want to make our homes special and we would try just about anything in order to achieve that. One such a way of making your abode special is with the use of sweet smelling candles. They can do much more than merely changing the ambience of your place, but they also play an important role in changing your mood as well. Not just that they compliment any type of a home and its decor, be it modern or traditional. Using them to decorate your home not just adds to the beauty of it but is also mood lifting. Such is the magic of these candles, that even if you decorate your dinner table with these on special occasions like Valentine’s Day or an anniversary, it can make those moments unforgettable.
It’s also very important to pick the right candle that suits you. There are many varieties and fragrances available in the market, not to mention the many shapes they come in. Soy candles are best suited for those with breathing problems. These candles have a very exotic smell and can pleasantly alter the environment at home. You could also use these candles to lighten up the mood in your bedroom and to ignite romance and passion where it’s needed the most. They can also act as a great stress buster. There are a wide collection of flavours available in the market like vanilla, cinnamon, chocolate, sandal, lavender etc. to choose from.
They can be a part to literally any celebration, be it Christmas, birthdays or anniversaries. Not just that, if you have a swimming pool, you could also try floating scented candles, which float on water for a long time before burning out. When used as a home decor, not only do these help in nullifying the day to day odours at home, but these candles are also famous as mood settlers, not to mention the touch of elegance that comes with it to your haven.
When it comes to choosing your candles, soy candles are indeed the best option for many reasons, when compared to paraffin candles as paraffin candles are known to emit eleven different types of toxins when burnt. The most important reasons why you should be getting yourself a soy candle is because these candles are perfectly safe for use at home as they do not have any side effects on members of the family including pets and most importantly they do not release soot that your regular paraffin candles do.
There are many creative things you experiment with candles. You could mix and match assorted candles of different shapes and smells. There are no hard and fast rules for mixing the candles together. When we come home after a hard day’s work, there’s nothing really so uplifting like a sweet smelling home. It is a little piece of luxury that you can bring into your home, not only because they help create a mystical ambience but also a relaxing environment. Therefore, scented candles can be excellent for decorating your home, be it indoors or outside, by the pool. All you however need to do, is just make wise choices when it comes to choosing your candles, their scent and the material with which it is made up of, and with that you’re ready to transform your home into an all new experience altogether!
Dear Blog mates,
6 SepI had to share this today, without which I don’t think i could have slept in ease tonight. Just a few weeks ago, I was not even aware of this little world called ‘WordPress’ and its ways. I was so skeptical to even start a blog here. With so many experienced bloggers here, it kind of intimidated a complete novice like me. I was not even sure if I should be penning down anything at all. My confidence was menacingly threatening to desert me. I felt like a hapless junior on the first day of my college, with a lot of seniors around and trust me, it was scary! But somehow, i managed to pick up bits of my shattered courage and did start a blog. I wrote a few articles on topics that were very close to my heart, on topics I felt I had to share with all the people i knew or otherwise. I did, and it took a lot of courage on my part to hit that dreadful ‘Publish’ button.
To my pleasant surprise, no sooner did I publish them, I received many kind words of appreciation and encouragement. I was so touched and overcome with emotions to learn that there are so many lovely, wonderful & encouraging people out here. There is so much warmth in here, that I did not feel like an alien anymore. Like how parents guide, encourage & motivate their children, i too was guided by my new wonderful blog mates who have now become my friends. I now feel so comfortable & at home here, thanks to all you lovely people out there. I would like to sincerely thank all my blogger friends for taking & making me a part of your WordPress family.
To my lovely blog mates turned friends turned family,
I owe you all this- Thank you so much for encouraging, motivating me and for ensuring that the fire of creativity inside me never extinguishes. I won’t let you down.
Love, hugs and best wishes to you all.
Teju ♥ ♥