NARA'S NOTEPAD
VOLUME 9
APRIL 2013
NUMBER 4
Sunday, March 31, 2013
SPONSORSHIP
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NARA’S NOTEPAD thank
Dr. K. Mohan Naidu, Former
Director of Sugarcane
Breeding Institute,
Coimbatore for sponsoring
March, April and May 2013
issues.
MEMO FROM NARA
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Transition
from the past to the present to the future has been realized by on and all.
Nature changes from season to season with slight modification although the
transition is certain. In other words, transition brings changes. Many changes
are for good whereas some are not.
One
of the glaring changes we observe is food habits. People who have visited the
US – in fact, most of the educated classes and business people very often do –
generally taste the American foods and develop a taste for them, especially the
young ones. They prefer to eat pizza, potato fries, KFC, Mac Donald burger etc.
These people when come back home, try to search for such food to which they
have developed a special taste. Of course, we do find the same types of food in
Pizza Huts, Subways, KFCs and Mac Donald outlets in every city of India. The
transition of food from country to country has become popular because of
people’s preference.
Religions
preach that God is beyond transition and thus there is no change in God. Godly thoughts also do not change. Is it true
that the natural process of change is applicable only to human beings? Is it
possible for us to stop transition from the past to the present? I don’t think
so, because the present and probably the future generations look for change and
create changes in everything. They live in change and bring in change.
Advancements and progress in human activities like education, science, health,
business, and social service bring in changes and transition happen from year
to year and decade to decade. History hints at all these aspects. The
transition from a manual typewriter to a computer and sending letters
(messages) through posts to e-mails are very common examples we all know. In
future, how these things are going to be transformed? – Only time will tell. So
transition is linked somehow with time. We have heard about the animals lived
in Planet Earth millions of years ago. Today they are extinct. Transition led
to new kinds of animals! Therefore, we can assume that there is no end to transition
on earth.
However
the religious and philosophical ideals postulate that the intransient and
immortal as the highest order of being. But transition is an inescapable
reality. The nature of social organization and the innate political wisdom make
transition not only inevitable but even desirable. Every country tries to
improve the living conditions of its people and empower them with health and
education. Such attempts bring progress and improvements in individual life and
generate good citizens who in turn contribute to for the changes. Marketing of
commodities, management of finance and communicating the quality of products
produced (Advertisements) have evolved over time. Selling things what human
being needs in a sophisticated manner is another example for transition from
exchange of goods for our food. By allowing education for women – a big change
in countries like India – we have revolutionized the society and social order.
Because of this transition today we see women working like men in all fields
without fear or favour. They have built up courage and confidence in their mind
to involve all aspects of social services. Someone rightly said: “Even truth
changes every 8 or 10 years.” Therefore, whether one likes it or not change is
bound to happen to create transition and we have to accept it.
WHAT IS CREATIVITY
Creativity
is the bringing into being of something which did not exist before, either as a
product, a process or a thought. You would be demonstrating creativity if you:
- Invent something which has
never existed before
- Invent something which exists
elsewhere but you are not aware of
- Invent a new process for doing
something
- Reapply an existing process or
product into a new or different market
CHINESE THINKING
The
trouble with Americans is that when a thing is nearly right, they want to make
it still better, while for a Chinese nearly right is good enough. The three
great American vices seem to be efficiency, punctuality and the desire for
achievements and success. They are the things that make the Americans so
unhappy and so nervous. They stel from them their inalienable right of loafing
and cheat them of many a good idle and beautiful afternoon.
According
to the story of creation in creating woman, God took of the beauty of the
flowers, the song of the birds, the colours of the rainbow, the kin of the
breeze, the laughter of the waves, the gentleness of the lamb, the cunning of
the
fox,
the waywardness of the clouds and the fickleness of shower, and wove them into
a female being and presented her to man as his wife. – Lin Yutang
OUR NEEDS...
We have
many needs, as I am sure you know. First in the hierarchy come our physical
needs (food, water, warmth, safety, shelter, sex, touch etc...). Many of these
are essential for our physical survival and so these become pressing if not
met. We feel intense and desperate pain (thirst, hunger, cold) and an intense
joy at the first sip of water, morsel of food or warmth of the blanket thrown
around our shoulders. But this quickly wears off because that need has now been
satisfied. More (or prolonged) warmth, more food or more water brings
diminishing returns in happiness. Eventually, other needs come to the surface -
the need to be cool, the need to rest and digest. Whereas before, the cold wind
caused the most intense agony and you longed for a good crackling fire to warm
your bottom against, now the cold breeze from the open window feels good
against your face. You feel a momentary flash of joy...
INTROVERTS AND EXTROVERTS
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The introverts are
the ones who enjoy spending ‘alone time’ whereas the extroverts are social by
nature. Also extroverts are looked upon as easy going and approachable. The
introverts get perceived as ‘non-participative’ because of their
less-expressive nature. About one third to one half of the population considers
themselves to be introverts. Some of the best leaders in the world have been
introverts by nature.
Introverts
typically derive energy from within, reflect upon their thoughts and the
resulting ideas or solutions have immense depth and value. Talented introverts
are generally aloof, observant and less talkative and may need probing to
elicit response. They may not be socially inclined and don’t enjoy much of
attention, but prefer to work in solitude. They generally perform better as an
individual than in a team.
JUST TO LAUGH
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The
waitress went up to her boss and said: “I am not going to serve that cheeky
devil over there!”
“What
is wrong?” asked the boss.
“Well,
he asked me for French salad and when I asked him “what’s that?” the devil
said, “It’s the same as any other salad; only you serve it without dressing.”
Police:
“Drunken driving is an offence, I charge you for that. Tell me the name.”
Driver:
“It is Scotch brand, Sir.”
Police:
“How dare you! Anyway, do you have another bottle?”
FULFILLMENT
Don’t play the
career game for cash. If you think money is the top prize you’ll get suckered
in by all kinds of get-rich-quick schemes, and you’ll make a lot of dumb bets.
Even when you win the money you seek, you still lose because you miss the mark.
The real prize is fulfilment. This means putting yourself in a position
where you’re doing work you love, building your strengths and talents, enjoying
abundant income, and making a meaningful contribution to others. Now that’s a
prize worth having. - Steve
Pavlina
.
PRACTICAL STEPS TO LISTENING EFFECTIVELY...
Listening is described
in numerous studies as the most prominent kind of communication. It has been
identified as one of the most frequent problems in marriage, one of the most
important in family and social settings, and one of the most important on-the-job
communication skills. Often people think that because they can hear, listening
is a natural ability. It is not. Listening effectively requires considerable
skill and practice and is a learned skill. Listening skills have been described
as either 'listening with our hearts' or 'hearing between the words.' Listening
is a process that consists of five elements: hearing, attending, understanding,
responding, and remembering. Hearing is the physiological dimension of
listening that occurs when sound waves strike the ear at a certain frequency
and loudness and is influenced by background noise. Attending is the process of
filtering out some messages and focusing on others. Understanding occurs when
we make sense of a message. Responding consists of giving observable feedback
to the speaker such as eye contact and appropriate facial expressions.
Remembering is the ability to recall information. Listening isn't just a
passive activity; we are active participants in a communication transaction. By Gwen Nyhus Stewart
Finish
what you start!
Meet you
next month – May, 2013
Prof. A.
Narayanan, Ph. D., FISPP
naara@india.com
Ph : 0422 2423017 Mobile : 098422 42301
Friday, March 1, 2013
MEMO FROM NARA
Fifty years ago when I was a student of B.Sc(Ag),
the then Professor of Economics taught us the law of supply and demand giving
examples of agricultural products. Later on, I could see it in real life, how
supply and demand operates not only in marketing of goods but also in every
walk of life. In Tamil Nadu, (why in Tamil Nadu alone? Almost in every State)
there is a severe power shortage while demand of power for various purposes –
domestic, industrial, agricultural, business etc. is growing but we all know
for sure the supply is limited because of constraints in production. If there
is no production, supply gets limited and hence one has to limit one’s demand.
One of the methods of limiting demand is to save power without wastage. In
order to make the people to use less power, the cost of the power can be
increased. When the cost escalates people have an inclination to use less power
in both domestic and commercial sectors.
The
power shortage has increased the demand for gadgets like UPS, inverters and
generators and the supply of these gadgets has also increased. Therefore when
the supply of power is limited, demands for an alternative increases and thus
creates good marketing for UPS, inverters and generators.
The
supply and demand determine the prices of products. If desire for goods
increases while its availability deceases, their prices rise. On the other
hand, if availability of the commodity increases and the desire for it
decreases, the price comes down. This fantastic economic theory is used as the
fundamental rule for marketing all over the world.
Production
costs limit the supply or increase the price of goods – may be electronic
goods, vehicles, tooth paste, soap, clothes etc. etc. Supply is also determined
by the technology used in the production. New advanced technology also
determines the supply. Sometimes supply is withheld for creating a scarcity in
the market to get increased price for the commodities. Above all, the number of
suppliers of a particular product counts a lot. Limited numbers control the
market price while larger numbers create competition in supplying; such
competition helps the consumers to go for better products with cheaper cost.
Similarly
one of the major determinants of demand is the income of the consumers. The
demands get increased when people have more money in their pockets. Taste and
preference also determine the demand. Sometimes consumers expect that the cost
of a particular item may go up in future, so they decide to buy it as early as
possible. Also if the number of potential consumers is large the demand gets
increased. I find it so fascinating to think of our day to day life linked with
supply and demand theory of Economics. Actually the phrase “supply and demand”
was first used by James Denham-Steuart. Then later on, many other economists
applied this in their own studies.
Hence,
supply and demand, indeed govern our life. One has to plan his or her life
according to this simple economic theory. But who cares about it when one has
plenty of money! Somehow supply and demand are ignored or managed. In fact,
life itself is a management and everyone is good at it.
SPONSORSHIP
NARA’S NOTEPAD
thank
Dr. K. Mohan Naidu, Former
Director of Sugarcane
Breeding Institute, Coimbatore for sponsoring
March, April, May 2013 issues.
INSPIRE YOUR BRAIN
Take care of stress. Avoid dulling routine. Do something creative every
day. Read poetry, spiritual material or anything else that makes you feel
uplifted. Take time to be in nature. Bond with another person who is heart-warming.
Pay attention to being happy. Make sure you take time every day by yourself to
relax, meditate and self-reflect. Deal with negative emotions like anger and
anxiety. Focus on activity that makes you feel fulfilled. Give of
yourself. Follow a personal vision. Attach yourself to a cause that is bigger
than you are. Take the risk to love and be loved.
IGNORING THE BRAIN
Get
set in your ways. Don’t look
beyond your opinions, likes and dislikes. Isolate yourself from others. Take
relationships for granted. Reconcile yourself to going downhill as you age.
Look upon the past as the best time of your life. Forget about having ideals.
Act on selfish impulses. Don’t examine what makes you tick. Give in to anger
and anxiety. Let life take care of itself. Go along to get along. Assume that
you are automatically right. Avoid anything new or challenging. Put up with
stress. Take no emotional risks. Distract yourself with mindless diversions
like watching sports for hours on end.
THE FEELING OF LIFE
The feeling that life is essentially but a
dream, while we row, row our boat down the river in the sunset of a beautiful
afternoon, that flowers cannot bloom forever, the moon waxes and wanes, and
human life itself joins the eternal procession of the plant and animal worlds
is being born, growing to maturity and dying to make room for others. Man began
to be philosophical only when he saw the vanity of this earthly existence.
Life is really a dream and we human
beings are like travelers floating down the eternal river of time, embarking at
a certain point and disembarking at a certain point and disembarking again at
another point in order to make room for others waiting below the river to come
aboard. Half of the poetry of life would be gone; if we did not feel that life
was either a dream, or a voyage with transient travelers, or merely a stage in
which the actors seldom realized that they were playing their parts.
-
Lin Yutang
JUST TO LAUGH...
Reality of Indians…
-
The smartest students pass with 1st
Class and get admissions to Medical and Engineering Colleges.
-
The 2nd Class students get MBA and
LLBs to manage the 1st Class students.
-
The 3rd Class students enter
politics and rule both 1st and 2nd Class students.
-
The Failures join the under-world and control
politics and businesses.
-
Those who did not attend any school, become
Swamis and everybody follow them.
CREATIVE PEOPLE
·
Are easily bored.
·
Willing to take risks.
·
Don’t like rules.
·
Ask “what if?”
·
Make lots of mistakes.
·
Collaborate.
·
Are generous.
·
Are independent.
·
Experiment.
·
Motivate themselves.
·
Work hard.
·
Aren’t alone.
·
Are you creative?
ELIMINATE...
1. Doubt and fear of your ability to
please others.
2. All antagonisms towards other people.
3. Your eagerness to get the best of
others.
4. Feelings of superiority over anyone.
5. Thoughts of yourself as the only
person that matters.
6. Desire to rule or oppress others.
7. All urges to impress others.
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