Bottom Of Pyramid

In economics, the bottom of the pyramid (BOP) is the largest, but poorest socio-economic group. In global terms, this is the three billion people who live on less than $2.50 per day. But there also lies an interesting version of BOP in management hierarchy of the institutes/organizations out there striving to make a mark. By management, I mean people who are responsible for decision making and corporate governance.

Management in all business and human organization activity is simply the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives. The definition makes it look like a cakewalk but it’s easier said than done. Of all the animals, men are the most unmanageable; nevertheless, the BOP phenomenon I wish to explain here is the outcome of faulty and myopic decision of back seat drivers upon those in front.

According to famous advertising executive late David Ogilvy, “In the modern world of business, it is useless to be a creative original thinker unless you can also sell what you create. Management cannot be expected to recognize a good idea unless it is presented to them by a good salesman.” That means to be able to monetize your innovative ideas, you need a manager. Also for the seamless, frictionless and progressive functioning of the organizational machinery, Management is a must. But Management must manage and not create layers of isolation. Peter Drucker, famous American Educator said that “Management by objective works - if you know the objectives. Ninety percent of the time you don't.”

That’s the bone of contention I am talking about. The loss of foresight, lack of clear objective and the fear of unknown. Together, they create a sense of complacency in the top management and when the time to act comes, the most you can expect is a restructuring, new process methodologies and heightened but short-lived motivation. The problem, however, still continues to grow as the root was not acknowledged but only the stems were pruned. The top management will hope for the best with their new projections but at the grass root level, what happens to those who have to physically act? Alas! Nobody cares!

Time for one more quote by Warren Buffett : “When a management team with a reputation for brilliance tackles a business with a reputation for bad economics, it is the reputation of the business that remains intact.” The failure should not be confused with destiny. Poor management is the only evil. That management is best which manages least, and in the end, when everyone is ready for it, that management is best which manages not at all.

Hole Heartedly

"I ne'er can love another
As long as life may stand.
No maid the wide world over
Shall hold this heart or hand. "

It’s rightly said that Heart is the only broken instrument that works. Or is it that the Heart was made to be broken? Its strange how common are Heartbreaks and Heartbreakers. And more so the fact that it’s called “Heartbreak”, let me tell you when it hits, all the parts of your body break equally.

Where it used to be him/her, there is now a void. Time can try and heal it but it may also end up giving you even more time to miss the same. Wounds are healed, they turn in to scars. Scars are good, it means the wounds are healed but it’s the invisible wounds that are the most difficult to heal, invisible tears are most difficult to wipe.  As the famous  American rock band in 70s 'Toto' featured the hit song “As soon as forever is through, I'll be over you”.

When I was a child, the thing I feared most was skinned knees. Boy! Did it hurt? Well, few things are even more painful. But in a way, these wounds also turn you wiser. You eventually learn to let go. You learn that it was not your weakness to give up but your strength to let go. May be it’s too saintly a way to put it but that’s the way it is.

It certainly seems to be the end of the world but actually it’s just the end of a dream which unfortunately turned out to be nightmare. What do you do when you just had a nightmare? You wake up and realize you still have everything in place. You gather yourself to face the usual music. Do the same thing when you are heartbroken. Gather all the pieces; just make sure you have all the pieces with you.

A word to the wise

On the list of virtues one would love to have, wisdom should certainly top the chart. What is more enticing than to be called wise, to be able to dissect issues and find solutions, to anticipate troubles and be proactive and above all to comprehensively understand human psyche.

The path to wisdom is not as attractive as wisdom itself. Even if I am nowhere near it, I can certainly say why I am still a peeping Tom to this phenomenon. Till the time we concentrate on knowing others and search for mere things around us, the most we can be is Intelligent. But that is equally far from wisdom, the trick is probably to know ourselves first. As Carrie Latet mentioned “Wisdom is never on the menu, you have to own the restaurant”.

There is one more truth attached to this whole theory and it is the fact that even if you are wise, you will not be wise all the time. At times you will act like a damn fool; you only have to limit those instances. Even if that’s the case, wisdom outweighs wealth, status and power. So any means required in achieving it wouldn’t be uncalled for. In his Metaphysics, Aristotle defines wisdom as knowledge of causes: why things exist in a particular fashion.

Let’s formulate a strategy to be wise. The first thing is perhaps to know the inflexible truth that no one is wise by chance (read god gifts). It only comes after a series of slip-ups (read experiences). So the first step in the direction is to dare to be a fool and then learn ahead. The second step is to listen frequently and suppressing an urge to talk all the time. Believe me, people around us are smart enough, not dumb as many assume. The third stair is the principle of equanimity. It means to be composed in grief and happiness alike. It emphasizes logical bend of mind than emotional. The perfect balance of mind and the heart is the way forward to be wise. So lets try and sharpen our wisdom teeth, shall we?

Other's Idea can’t change your life.

I am sure not a single day passes without you listening to people advising you on one thing or the other. The advices may range from carrier to behavior, from romance to dressing sense, from attitude to hairstyle, from the kind of men/women you should go after to the brands you should buy. The list goes on with myriad advices.

But are these advices are of any use? Don’t we seek advice with a yearning of accomplice? As a matter of fact, people mostly seek advice when they already know the answer but wish they didn’t. It’s true that you can always learn from other’s mistakes rather than making all of those yourself, but the learning is often so situational and relative that they are hardly applicable anywhere else.

It’s always more easy to advise others than to follow them yourselves. As Jughead articulated once “Take my advice, I don’t use it anyway”. Moreover, if the advice is going to end up framed on a wall, it’s better to use your own mind for a change. Nobody can give you wiser advice than yourself. But then, not all advices are superfluous and useless. As H.W. Smith puts it “The true secret of giving advice is, after you have honestly given it, to be perfectly indifferent whether it is taken or not, and never persist in trying to set people right”.

Therefore, the best advice is this: Don't take advice and don't give advice.