My posting on “The art and ethics of lying” evoked quite a few responses; some as comments in the blog and some as emails. The two comments given below are thought provoking.
“Thought the rule was not ‘Don’t lie’ but ‘Don’t get caught?’ (by others or by self-guilt) Ethics is an essential compass - a needle towards north, but - but true north is slightly different on Earth?” Sajan
“I think you carry the thread too far. Saying "I bluffed" does not mean that I will do the things that you cite later in the paragraph. When I am talking with you on a contract, do not my morals require me to be responsible, (loyal, even) to the party I represent? So I say "If you do not accept my final offer, we will walk away". I might e bluffing, and this is a lie; but do I own no debt to my colleagues to get them the best deal from you? This need not be a slippery slope (Once we allow in western music, we will end up with...).” Sanjeev Gupta (ghane)
I did not mean that it is always possible to live by the commandment “Thou shall not Lie.” There could be occasions when lying is fair and even necessary. Let us take an extreme example to make a point. Consider that you are standing at a junction and a person comes running totally scared and he runs along the right fork at the junction. After few minutes you see a thug coming running with a gun and he asks you which way the first person went. You may prefer to lie to save a life. There may be less dramatic reasons where lying is the right thing to do.
As Machiavelli argues in ‘The Prince’ “A man who wishes to profess goodness at all times will come to ruin among so many who are not so good. Hence it is necessary for a prince who wishes to maintain his position to learn how not to be good and to use this knowledge or not according to necessity”. A desi corollary is “the Good may often bear the fruit of the Bad”
Then there is the question of business ethics that Sanjeev has raised. Business in that sense is like poker. It requires strategies and posture that could be termed as lies in the normal sense. But that is how poker and business are played. But poker and business have their own set of rules. So in this case being good is about playing as per the rules of the game.
Game theorists will point out that reciprocal altruism, (generous tit-for-tat) which while showing a friendly face to the world will not want us to be exploited, is the most sensible strategy for survival.
But what is more reprehensible is when you become the follower of Shakuni and take pride in the rigged dice game where the balance between rational self interest and selfishness tilts as per convenience. It is then that the lies get to be amoral.
As Laurie Calhoun noted in his article The Problem of “Dirty Hands” and Corrupt Leadership “In thinking about this issue, it is important to distinguish self-serving opportunists from those who suffer corruption through their sincere efforts to govern well. Self-serving opportunists often rationalize their dubious measures to themselves through self-deceptive references to ‘the good of the whole,’ claiming that group loyalty demands moral sacrifice or that ‘the end justifies the means.’”
Such rationalisation could become a slippery slope. Especially if we start to justify in relative terms, drawing examples of errors and omissions that we see around particularly that of people who are held in high esteem. In this world of seven billion human beings, who by design are not perfect, there would be statistically significant sample for aberrant behaviours from all walks of life.
That is the message that comes from the story of Yudhishtira’s chariot settling down to the ground when he lies. It reminds us that while we may have a justification of an ‘extenuating circumstance” a deceit is still a deceit.
So while it may not be humanly possible or even unnecessary to strive for absolute truth and justice, it could still an ideal, a ‘guiding star’ (concepts like ‘six sigma’ and ‘ethics in business’ are examples of attempts to represent absolute ideals which many may never reach) so that when we are faced with moral conflicts we could attempt not to justify our selfish acts in relation to the ‘immorality and injustice we see around’.
“We are all in the gutter. But some of us are looking at the stars” Oscar Wilde
Monday, February 22, 2010
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Few Good Men
Recently there were couple of accidents in the construction site of Delhi Metro. There has been much hue and cry demanding the blood of senior officers. Criticism and accusations were part of daily news. I was surprised at such negative media attention on an organisation that in my mind is an icon of national pride.
I “Googled” for some facts. Since the construction work started in 1998 there have been a few accidents in at the Metro construction sites. But the incidences have been very few and except one or two instances these were minor. Even by international standards the accident history of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) related to its construction activities is quite low. On the other hand in the last eight years of operation of the Phase 1, there has been not a single accident in its operations.
I agree that we cannot condone accidents and we need to expose inefficiencies, failures and corruption in all public projects. When I read through the press coverage on the recent accidents at DMRC construction sites, I almost got a feeling that it is one of the most poorly managed projects.
But the reality is that this is one of the few institutions that our country can be proud of from the point of its magnitude, scope, design, implementation, operations and maintenance. Name any area the score is superlative. It has been spearheaded by a man who has proved himself multiple times in projects of such scale and national importance which has been widely acclaimed around the world.
We don’t need to treat such people and institutions like Gods and close our eyes when they make mistakes. But when we present these cases we should place these in proper perspective. Very often we see these cases blown out of proportion whereas the incidences which need true and sustained exposure are buried so fast.
The reasons for this phenomenon are many. The real scams get buried because media may have been bought over with the financial and political muscle of the perpetrators. Lack of support to genuine organisations and genuine people have many underlying reasons. The corrupt don’t want ‘the clean’ to succeed or deliver. The ‘good’ believes that only his goodness is the authentic variety. Then we have the “Indian Crab syndrome” which cannot stand the other guy rising above mediocrity. We are happy to pull him/ her down. Recently I was talking to a person who was instrumental in establishing and nurturing an institution of national importance. He confided to me that he was surprised at the extent of anger (not just jealousy) that the success of his institution had evoked.
We recently witnessed this kind of failure when practically very few took a public position to support Shahrukh Khan when there was a backlash against his remark about allowing Pakistani Cricket players to play in IPL. We have seen many more such examples of unwarranted allegations and criticisms; Sound bites on RK Pachauri, CB Bhave, Shashi Taroor etc are examples of this.
There is nothing new in this other than a suggestion that there is a need to stand up and support those few good men who try to make a difference. If you are too scared to open your mouth, at least try to take a position as a group.
"First they came for the unions, but I didn't speak up because I wasn't union. Then they came for the communists, but I didn't speak up because I wasn't a communist. Then they came for the Jews, but I didn't speak up because I was Protestant. And then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak up."
- Reverend Martin Niemoller a German Lutheran monk who was arrested by the Gestapo in 1937
I “Googled” for some facts. Since the construction work started in 1998 there have been a few accidents in at the Metro construction sites. But the incidences have been very few and except one or two instances these were minor. Even by international standards the accident history of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) related to its construction activities is quite low. On the other hand in the last eight years of operation of the Phase 1, there has been not a single accident in its operations.
I agree that we cannot condone accidents and we need to expose inefficiencies, failures and corruption in all public projects. When I read through the press coverage on the recent accidents at DMRC construction sites, I almost got a feeling that it is one of the most poorly managed projects.
But the reality is that this is one of the few institutions that our country can be proud of from the point of its magnitude, scope, design, implementation, operations and maintenance. Name any area the score is superlative. It has been spearheaded by a man who has proved himself multiple times in projects of such scale and national importance which has been widely acclaimed around the world.
We don’t need to treat such people and institutions like Gods and close our eyes when they make mistakes. But when we present these cases we should place these in proper perspective. Very often we see these cases blown out of proportion whereas the incidences which need true and sustained exposure are buried so fast.
The reasons for this phenomenon are many. The real scams get buried because media may have been bought over with the financial and political muscle of the perpetrators. Lack of support to genuine organisations and genuine people have many underlying reasons. The corrupt don’t want ‘the clean’ to succeed or deliver. The ‘good’ believes that only his goodness is the authentic variety. Then we have the “Indian Crab syndrome” which cannot stand the other guy rising above mediocrity. We are happy to pull him/ her down. Recently I was talking to a person who was instrumental in establishing and nurturing an institution of national importance. He confided to me that he was surprised at the extent of anger (not just jealousy) that the success of his institution had evoked.
We recently witnessed this kind of failure when practically very few took a public position to support Shahrukh Khan when there was a backlash against his remark about allowing Pakistani Cricket players to play in IPL. We have seen many more such examples of unwarranted allegations and criticisms; Sound bites on RK Pachauri, CB Bhave, Shashi Taroor etc are examples of this.
There is nothing new in this other than a suggestion that there is a need to stand up and support those few good men who try to make a difference. If you are too scared to open your mouth, at least try to take a position as a group.
"First they came for the unions, but I didn't speak up because I wasn't union. Then they came for the communists, but I didn't speak up because I wasn't a communist. Then they came for the Jews, but I didn't speak up because I was Protestant. And then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak up."
- Reverend Martin Niemoller a German Lutheran monk who was arrested by the Gestapo in 1937
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
The art and ethics of lying
“Ashwathama is dead” replied Yudhishtira.
He also mumbled under his breath “May be a man or an animal”. (अश्वत्थामा हतो नरो व कुंजरो व”)
Drona the Commander in Chief of the Kauravas and also the teacher of both Kauravas and Pandavas who obviously heard only the first part of Yudhishitira’s reply was devastated believing that his son Ashwadhama was no more. He laid down his arms and then he was killed by Draupadi’s brother.
In the story of Mahabharata, Pandava’s are the good guys and Kaurava’s are the bad ones. The war and destruction of Kurukshetra was primarily caused by greed and intransigence of Kauravas.
In this war of good and evil Pandava’s had to use deceit a few times. Although many would sympathise with these strategies, none of the parties who implemented these were proud of this. After Yudhishtira lied (first time in his life) about the death of Ashvathama, his chariot which was always few inches above the ground, settled down to earth. Each of the players was filled with remorse at the deceits that they had to use disguised as strategies.
Their use of these strategies was more and exception to regain what the Pandavas lost to on account of the treachery of Duryodhana and his cohorts.
Today in the jungle of governance (of both corporate and the country) we see the use of treachery as a strategy to achieve one’s end. Shakuni’s deceit is packaged and sold as the strategy of Krishna.
We see many who proudly boast “I bluffed” with a gleam in their eyes that shows how smart they feel. It then becomes a part of their nature to say white lies or to palm out concoctions of facts, suitably laced with lies to suit their convenience. They will use this strategy to get what they want or to destroy whoever comes in their way. They will work on the insecurities of their colleagues and egg them on to make mistakes. They have no shame to take credit of others achievement and will feel no compunction to exploit. They, like the renowned Tuglak, will work towards fomenting discord in their team so that they can promote their agenda without opposition. They will stand in the frontlines of the temples and front benches of churches.
These are not strategies to achieve a larger goal; but a means to further their private agendas. If you have to survive in this modern jungle, the easy way out is to join the gang.
But if you have little scruples left and you are not yet ready for ‘vanaprasta’ (ie; be the monk who sold his Ferrari), then you need to learn to recognises these seekers of self interest to have your own strategies for survival.
It is going to be a difficult task because in this endeavour you are going to be mostly alone, because the ‘good guys’ seldom co-operate or stand-up for their fellow ‘goods’ unlike the ‘bad’ . (Take a look at my earlier posting "To be or not to be (Part 2) – Of Good being Bad" for some thoughts on this)
Otherwise you should be lucky enough to have ‘Krishna’ (the God) as your charioteer and/ or you should be willing to redefine in your heart what you mean by victory.
"Let the lie come into the world, even dominate the world, but not through me......
Writers and artists can do something more: they can vanquish the lie.......
Once the lie has been dispersed, the nakedness of violence will be revealed in all its repulsiveness, and then violence, become decrepit, will come crashing down" Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsy, Winner of Nobel Prize in Literature in 1970
He also mumbled under his breath “May be a man or an animal”. (अश्वत्थामा हतो नरो व कुंजरो व”)
Drona the Commander in Chief of the Kauravas and also the teacher of both Kauravas and Pandavas who obviously heard only the first part of Yudhishitira’s reply was devastated believing that his son Ashwadhama was no more. He laid down his arms and then he was killed by Draupadi’s brother.
In the story of Mahabharata, Pandava’s are the good guys and Kaurava’s are the bad ones. The war and destruction of Kurukshetra was primarily caused by greed and intransigence of Kauravas.
In this war of good and evil Pandava’s had to use deceit a few times. Although many would sympathise with these strategies, none of the parties who implemented these were proud of this. After Yudhishtira lied (first time in his life) about the death of Ashvathama, his chariot which was always few inches above the ground, settled down to earth. Each of the players was filled with remorse at the deceits that they had to use disguised as strategies.
Their use of these strategies was more and exception to regain what the Pandavas lost to on account of the treachery of Duryodhana and his cohorts.
Today in the jungle of governance (of both corporate and the country) we see the use of treachery as a strategy to achieve one’s end. Shakuni’s deceit is packaged and sold as the strategy of Krishna.
We see many who proudly boast “I bluffed” with a gleam in their eyes that shows how smart they feel. It then becomes a part of their nature to say white lies or to palm out concoctions of facts, suitably laced with lies to suit their convenience. They will use this strategy to get what they want or to destroy whoever comes in their way. They will work on the insecurities of their colleagues and egg them on to make mistakes. They have no shame to take credit of others achievement and will feel no compunction to exploit. They, like the renowned Tuglak, will work towards fomenting discord in their team so that they can promote their agenda without opposition. They will stand in the frontlines of the temples and front benches of churches.
These are not strategies to achieve a larger goal; but a means to further their private agendas. If you have to survive in this modern jungle, the easy way out is to join the gang.
But if you have little scruples left and you are not yet ready for ‘vanaprasta’ (ie; be the monk who sold his Ferrari), then you need to learn to recognises these seekers of self interest to have your own strategies for survival.
It is going to be a difficult task because in this endeavour you are going to be mostly alone, because the ‘good guys’ seldom co-operate or stand-up for their fellow ‘goods’ unlike the ‘bad’ . (Take a look at my earlier posting "To be or not to be (Part 2) – Of Good being Bad" for some thoughts on this)
Otherwise you should be lucky enough to have ‘Krishna’ (the God) as your charioteer and/ or you should be willing to redefine in your heart what you mean by victory.
"Let the lie come into the world, even dominate the world, but not through me......
Writers and artists can do something more: they can vanquish the lie.......
Once the lie has been dispersed, the nakedness of violence will be revealed in all its repulsiveness, and then violence, become decrepit, will come crashing down" Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsy, Winner of Nobel Prize in Literature in 1970
Monday, February 1, 2010
Modicum of Truth
“Encounter Killing” is a familiar term for most of us. It refers to extra judicial killing of gangsters and terrorists who are a menace to the society. In its most benign form is used as a substitute for the slow and often ineffective judicial process of conviction that fails to deter the guilty. But it is also used as a means to eliminate dissent in many parts of the world.
It is claimed to have been beneficial in controlling the underworld and terrorism in some parts of India. As these are mostly extra-judicial and staged operations, they arouse quite a lot of controversy particularly from the human rights activists. In many cases the specialists who have been nurtured for this role have graduated to roles where extra-judicial means becomes more a norm than an exception and used as shortcut, a means to promote private agenda and a way to settle disputes.
The practice of using such un-lawful means and building and encouraging individuals and organisations that have no respect for the process of law is not an invention of Indian Police or of modern times. It has been / is being practiced by corporations, ministries and even nations.
Bindran wala of Punjab was nurtured initially by our political process. Similarly Taliban was supported by US as a counter to Russian influence in Afghanistan. Look around we will be able to see many more examples.
We see many bureaucrats in our administration who are also nurtured, supported and used by their political bosses willing to adopt any means to further their agenda. We see examples of such encounter specialists even in business organisations who are used and encouraged for quick results not necessarily with physical violence.
In certain circumstances there may be a justification to cultivate a “Rambo” and use his service. Often these Rambos are brilliant people who might give outstanding results especially when not restricted by conventional restraints that are meant to safeguard the justice.
But we need to keep in mind that it is a dangerous experiment to be used in only rare occasions and with extreme caution. Otherwise it may be addictive. For the sake of expediency we take the easy road and then it may become difficult to put a stop and restrain the Rambo. Especially when they are giving us results. Accountability and safeguards get subverted in the altar of quick results.
It becomes even more dangerous if we allow such specialists to rise up to leadership positions with the same disregard for ordinary people and conventional processes.
It is equally or more important to prevent a situation where we need to resort to such extra-constitutional measures.
The question on the balance between intentions, actions and consequences has always confounded statesmen, philosophers, religious leaders and the common man. Pragmatic view often tilts towards the philosophy of “end justifies the means” with less attention in evaluation of the fairness of ‘means’ and reasonableness of ‘end’
It is here that we need to appreciate the true import of the serenity prayer
“Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things that I cannot change; the courage to change the things that I can; and the wisdom to know the difference.” .. Reinhold Niebuhr
It is claimed to have been beneficial in controlling the underworld and terrorism in some parts of India. As these are mostly extra-judicial and staged operations, they arouse quite a lot of controversy particularly from the human rights activists. In many cases the specialists who have been nurtured for this role have graduated to roles where extra-judicial means becomes more a norm than an exception and used as shortcut, a means to promote private agenda and a way to settle disputes.
The practice of using such un-lawful means and building and encouraging individuals and organisations that have no respect for the process of law is not an invention of Indian Police or of modern times. It has been / is being practiced by corporations, ministries and even nations.
Bindran wala of Punjab was nurtured initially by our political process. Similarly Taliban was supported by US as a counter to Russian influence in Afghanistan. Look around we will be able to see many more examples.
We see many bureaucrats in our administration who are also nurtured, supported and used by their political bosses willing to adopt any means to further their agenda. We see examples of such encounter specialists even in business organisations who are used and encouraged for quick results not necessarily with physical violence.
In certain circumstances there may be a justification to cultivate a “Rambo” and use his service. Often these Rambos are brilliant people who might give outstanding results especially when not restricted by conventional restraints that are meant to safeguard the justice.
But we need to keep in mind that it is a dangerous experiment to be used in only rare occasions and with extreme caution. Otherwise it may be addictive. For the sake of expediency we take the easy road and then it may become difficult to put a stop and restrain the Rambo. Especially when they are giving us results. Accountability and safeguards get subverted in the altar of quick results.
It becomes even more dangerous if we allow such specialists to rise up to leadership positions with the same disregard for ordinary people and conventional processes.
It is equally or more important to prevent a situation where we need to resort to such extra-constitutional measures.
The question on the balance between intentions, actions and consequences has always confounded statesmen, philosophers, religious leaders and the common man. Pragmatic view often tilts towards the philosophy of “end justifies the means” with less attention in evaluation of the fairness of ‘means’ and reasonableness of ‘end’
It is here that we need to appreciate the true import of the serenity prayer
“Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things that I cannot change; the courage to change the things that I can; and the wisdom to know the difference.” .. Reinhold Niebuhr
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
No Man is an Island..
Many of us invest in capital market and each of us may follow different investment strategies. Some of us are long term investors and some are short term traders. But these are not discrete choices but two extremes of a continuum. Therefore most of us, on the basis of our risk aptitude, will lie somewhere in between. Whatever be our investment profile our primary reason for our investments is return.
When we invest, we carry out lot of research, fundamental or technical, friendly tips or even ‘insider news’, to maximize our return. Whatever type and extent of research we carry out, we know that all our investments will not give us positive return all the time. If we are good and/ or lucky a large chunk of assets in our portfolio will give us positive returns often enough or some of them will give us extraordinary return occasionally. It is this uncertainty that we try to address when we acquire a diversified portfolio of assets, which on aggregate has a higher probability for offering positive returns.
Some people don’t have the stomach to take this uncertainty and therefore they keep away from the world of investment. When they consciously keep away from the risk they also give away the potential return associated with it. There is no asset that can give total guarantee of return all the time and risk goes hand in hand with any asset.
In the same way our circle of friends or our network of contacts can also be seen as a portfolio of assets. Some of them are worth long-term investment some are worth short term; but, it definitely makes sense to have a diversified portfolio to be built and nurtured.
One may say that this is a very materialistic way of looking at relationships. It will be so only if we define returns in absolute material form. If we include everything that a friendship brings, whether material or spiritual or emotional or just plain cherishing of companionship into the ambit of our model, then this model is a good way to understand and appreciate our portfolio of friends and contacts.
We can seldom get friends or business partners who will always match with our thinking, preferences, beliefs or whims and fancies. There are times some of them will ‘let us down’ beyond our imagination.
What is our response to this? Do we take a position that ‘we cannot trust anybody’ and keep away from relationships as much as possible? If we do so, we will be losers. We miss the opportunity to experience and cherish a variety of wonderful people who may sometime share happiness, sadness and prosperity with us.
Sometimes we overreact to some incidences in which a person has behaved in an unfair/ unethical / disloyal fashion. Do we jump to conclusions on the basis of one/ few incidence (s)? If we do, it may not be a good idea or may not be fair. One missed dividend or one bad quarter cannot be a good enough reason to dump an asset.
It is the reality of life that we need to have a diversified portfolio, whether it is of people or whether it is of material possession. We need to develop a sensitiveness to judge the kind of assets we are comfortable with and what kind of portfolio we need to keep for different proposes; as friends to share our happiness and sorrow and as partners in our professional dealing to strengthen our collective offering.
One of the most critical qualities of people who make things happen and / or is at peace with themselves is their ability to nurture a strong portfolio of friends / contacts (the ‘end’ each of them seek is different; but. there is a commonality in ‘means’ from this point of view). Politically savvy may even have large ‘trading portfolio’ too (a portfolio they churn and trade :-) ).
We need to accept that at best we can expect 80% co-operation from 80% friends at any time. This is only 64% co-operation on a steady state, which is just more than half the time. We need to learn to build on this to go forward. Especially if we are involved in public service, then our skill in identifying areas of common interest with a wide cross section of people becomes a key determinant of success.
I agree, like in capital market, there may be some assets which may be better to shun. But mind you they are a minority, and often contextual and if you are smart and or lucky even they pay a dividend sometimes which may at worst a ‘lesson for life’
“No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less......” John Donne, 1620
When we invest, we carry out lot of research, fundamental or technical, friendly tips or even ‘insider news’, to maximize our return. Whatever type and extent of research we carry out, we know that all our investments will not give us positive return all the time. If we are good and/ or lucky a large chunk of assets in our portfolio will give us positive returns often enough or some of them will give us extraordinary return occasionally. It is this uncertainty that we try to address when we acquire a diversified portfolio of assets, which on aggregate has a higher probability for offering positive returns.
Some people don’t have the stomach to take this uncertainty and therefore they keep away from the world of investment. When they consciously keep away from the risk they also give away the potential return associated with it. There is no asset that can give total guarantee of return all the time and risk goes hand in hand with any asset.
In the same way our circle of friends or our network of contacts can also be seen as a portfolio of assets. Some of them are worth long-term investment some are worth short term; but, it definitely makes sense to have a diversified portfolio to be built and nurtured.
One may say that this is a very materialistic way of looking at relationships. It will be so only if we define returns in absolute material form. If we include everything that a friendship brings, whether material or spiritual or emotional or just plain cherishing of companionship into the ambit of our model, then this model is a good way to understand and appreciate our portfolio of friends and contacts.
We can seldom get friends or business partners who will always match with our thinking, preferences, beliefs or whims and fancies. There are times some of them will ‘let us down’ beyond our imagination.
What is our response to this? Do we take a position that ‘we cannot trust anybody’ and keep away from relationships as much as possible? If we do so, we will be losers. We miss the opportunity to experience and cherish a variety of wonderful people who may sometime share happiness, sadness and prosperity with us.
Sometimes we overreact to some incidences in which a person has behaved in an unfair/ unethical / disloyal fashion. Do we jump to conclusions on the basis of one/ few incidence (s)? If we do, it may not be a good idea or may not be fair. One missed dividend or one bad quarter cannot be a good enough reason to dump an asset.
It is the reality of life that we need to have a diversified portfolio, whether it is of people or whether it is of material possession. We need to develop a sensitiveness to judge the kind of assets we are comfortable with and what kind of portfolio we need to keep for different proposes; as friends to share our happiness and sorrow and as partners in our professional dealing to strengthen our collective offering.
One of the most critical qualities of people who make things happen and / or is at peace with themselves is their ability to nurture a strong portfolio of friends / contacts (the ‘end’ each of them seek is different; but. there is a commonality in ‘means’ from this point of view). Politically savvy may even have large ‘trading portfolio’ too (a portfolio they churn and trade :-) ).
We need to accept that at best we can expect 80% co-operation from 80% friends at any time. This is only 64% co-operation on a steady state, which is just more than half the time. We need to learn to build on this to go forward. Especially if we are involved in public service, then our skill in identifying areas of common interest with a wide cross section of people becomes a key determinant of success.
I agree, like in capital market, there may be some assets which may be better to shun. But mind you they are a minority, and often contextual and if you are smart and or lucky even they pay a dividend sometimes which may at worst a ‘lesson for life’
“No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less......” John Donne, 1620
Thursday, January 21, 2010
It pays to be nice; but you pay ?
My friends always used to make fun of me that very often I display a grumpy countenance. One day we were all on a tour and we chatted about this trait during dinner. So next day when I got up I decided that I am going to be show a pleasant face.
I was taking a flight back to Mumbai that day. I gave the taxi driver one of the most charming smiles that I could. He smiled back too. We had quite a lot of small talk on the way. When I finished my drive and was paying him, I smiled again. Suddenly with the best smile he could offer, he asked me. “Sir, this is the ‘bonny’ for the day, give me an extra 50”. After this exchange of smiles and pleasantries, how could I ruin it for Rs 50?
I was now in the airport, and after check-in I proceeded to the security. I smiled also at the policeman while being frisked. Initially he had a quizzical look at my attempt of bonhomie. Then after frisking was complete and as I was moving out, he coughed and muttered. “Sir, how about giving me something for a coffee?”
“It pays to be nice, but you pay..”
What does it mean? Does it mean that being nice, friendly and polite mean being weak?
Not necessarily, though very often people perceive it that way and many people try to take advantage of it. That is why sometimes people in power and in a position of being a ‘giver’ normally try to keep a very ‘aloof’ expression.
On the other hand this aloofness could be a mask to hide your inability to be assertive. Assertive about what is right, what is fair, what is due and so on. (The aloofness could also be a ploy for extracting something from the client, or satisfying ego trip or when the service provider doesn’t care and is only doing a job. This is out of scope of this discussion)
In my opinion this aloofness though an effective tool, it is not the best tool for overcoming your weakness in being assertive. Imagine how nice you feel if the doctor who treats you, the policeman who attend to your complaint and the bank teller who services you are also pleasant.
Once I was travelling from LA to Washington on a winter morning. Though it was Christmas season it was a gloomy day. The weather was bad and the aircraft was being tossed up and down. Many of the passengers including my daughter and I were feeling very sick and ready to throw up. The PA system came live and I expected either the monotone of a digital voice or a human being sounding digital making a safety announcement as per the federal regulations. But the captain came online. He had a terrific sense of humour and talked over the PA system for almost five minutes. Of course he made the safety announcement. But it was interspersed with humorous interludes on the season and the weather. It was really soothing and lifted up the mood of all the passengers who were down and moody in the gloomy weather.
I remember a similar experience in a difference context. I fainted in the office and was taken to the hospital. They wired me up and put me through a battery of tests. It was not a pleasant experience and I was generally tensed. The doctors were efficient going about their job with precision. But I was still on the edge, though they had given me a general clearance. I later visited another doctor for a second opinion. This doctor was a different kettle of fish. More than the second opinion and the treatment he suggested, his comforting chat made me feel much better, confident and helped me to recover faster.
But this is one aspect often forgotten; especially in public service. Even many organisations which try to ‘take care of’ this aspect in their client service department fail to address at many places. One of the areas many people fail very often is at the reception counter and with the secretaries of the big bosses. Their rude behaviour often makes the visitors feel so insulted and irritable and the guests are made as if they are being given a big favour (unless of course the guest is a VIP). Mostly the visitors will never mention this. But that doesn’t mean that they never felt bad.
A service, when laced with a smile and/ or a nice word, can double the value of what you offer at no extra cost. This may make the recipient feel respected and may even make his day. This is all the more important when we are serving the public at large. Then we have to accept that we are expected to serve and not just rule like the old feudal lords.
May be I am asking too much
I was taking a flight back to Mumbai that day. I gave the taxi driver one of the most charming smiles that I could. He smiled back too. We had quite a lot of small talk on the way. When I finished my drive and was paying him, I smiled again. Suddenly with the best smile he could offer, he asked me. “Sir, this is the ‘bonny’ for the day, give me an extra 50”. After this exchange of smiles and pleasantries, how could I ruin it for Rs 50?
I was now in the airport, and after check-in I proceeded to the security. I smiled also at the policeman while being frisked. Initially he had a quizzical look at my attempt of bonhomie. Then after frisking was complete and as I was moving out, he coughed and muttered. “Sir, how about giving me something for a coffee?”
“It pays to be nice, but you pay..”
What does it mean? Does it mean that being nice, friendly and polite mean being weak?
Not necessarily, though very often people perceive it that way and many people try to take advantage of it. That is why sometimes people in power and in a position of being a ‘giver’ normally try to keep a very ‘aloof’ expression.
On the other hand this aloofness could be a mask to hide your inability to be assertive. Assertive about what is right, what is fair, what is due and so on. (The aloofness could also be a ploy for extracting something from the client, or satisfying ego trip or when the service provider doesn’t care and is only doing a job. This is out of scope of this discussion)
In my opinion this aloofness though an effective tool, it is not the best tool for overcoming your weakness in being assertive. Imagine how nice you feel if the doctor who treats you, the policeman who attend to your complaint and the bank teller who services you are also pleasant.
Once I was travelling from LA to Washington on a winter morning. Though it was Christmas season it was a gloomy day. The weather was bad and the aircraft was being tossed up and down. Many of the passengers including my daughter and I were feeling very sick and ready to throw up. The PA system came live and I expected either the monotone of a digital voice or a human being sounding digital making a safety announcement as per the federal regulations. But the captain came online. He had a terrific sense of humour and talked over the PA system for almost five minutes. Of course he made the safety announcement. But it was interspersed with humorous interludes on the season and the weather. It was really soothing and lifted up the mood of all the passengers who were down and moody in the gloomy weather.
I remember a similar experience in a difference context. I fainted in the office and was taken to the hospital. They wired me up and put me through a battery of tests. It was not a pleasant experience and I was generally tensed. The doctors were efficient going about their job with precision. But I was still on the edge, though they had given me a general clearance. I later visited another doctor for a second opinion. This doctor was a different kettle of fish. More than the second opinion and the treatment he suggested, his comforting chat made me feel much better, confident and helped me to recover faster.
But this is one aspect often forgotten; especially in public service. Even many organisations which try to ‘take care of’ this aspect in their client service department fail to address at many places. One of the areas many people fail very often is at the reception counter and with the secretaries of the big bosses. Their rude behaviour often makes the visitors feel so insulted and irritable and the guests are made as if they are being given a big favour (unless of course the guest is a VIP). Mostly the visitors will never mention this. But that doesn’t mean that they never felt bad.
A service, when laced with a smile and/ or a nice word, can double the value of what you offer at no extra cost. This may make the recipient feel respected and may even make his day. This is all the more important when we are serving the public at large. Then we have to accept that we are expected to serve and not just rule like the old feudal lords.
May be I am asking too much
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Matter of Honour
“Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!” The Bible
What is the primary role of a Stock Exchange?
It is to provide liquidity for the stocks. It managed this liquidity by having processes in place that enabled thousands of transactions every hour which has now increased to millions per hour with the help of technology. To manage this rate of transactions, even the settlement of trade (fund against security sold and security against funds provided) is made an asynchronous activity (i.e. settled later).
When trading and settlement are asynchronous, there could be risk to both the buyer and the seller; the risk of counter party walking out of the transaction leaving you high and dry. When we have long chains of multiple transactions intertwined and interlinked, such counter party risk will have a domino effect and lead to market failure. This could dissuade many potential investors from participating in the market which ultimately affect liquidity. This used to be the case in Indian capital market before NSE was established with its sophisticated mechanisms for managing the risk. There is margin payment to take away incentive to default; there is a clearing corporation to provide counter party guarantee and so on and so forth.
These risk management measures have significantly contributed to market expansion. The level of trade has increased more than 100 times. Today Indian Capital Market is rated to be one of the best in the world in terms of institutional infrastructure on account of this strong risk management capability.
This is relevant and critical in every human interaction. Every day we deal with a number of people (costumers, suppliers, service providers, regulators, bankers etc) and we agree and commit on certain deliveries between us. Your supplier promises delivery of input materials based on which you have committed delivery to your client for next week. The finance manager has promised to complete the project review by today evening to help you submit the final report to the board tomorrow. The tailor has agreed to deliver the new dress you have ordered for your child. A number of deals and deliveries.
Like in the case of capital markets, the chain of commitments and deliverables are linked to multiple levels and any failure in any level could have cascading effects.
Some people are very reliable in their delivery and even if an unfortunate delay happens they give advance warning helping us to reschedule our plans and our deliverables in an orderly fashion. Some cannot ever honour their commitments. Very often people don’t appreciate the importance of this chain reaction and the need to be reliable.
Let us look at how this affects you and how you should manage this in your daily life.
One of the critical components of professional success is how reliable you are on your commitments. If you are not able to do deliver a promise you should not commit. If you commit and you are unable to meet it, please give advance warning.
When you reduce the risk of dealing with you, then there are more people willing and interested to deal with you. The demand for and liquidity of your offerings increases. On the other hand if you are not a reliable partner, then however capable you are or however useful your products or services are, the demand will be much less than the potential. This reliability factor is critical for your growth and as you go higher it becomes one of the key parameters on which your clients, subordinates and friends decide to deal with you.
On the other hand when you are at the receiving end you need to learn to judge the reliability of person you are dealing with. If you are not dealing with a person who is not reliable, then you need to have mechanisms to incentivise or force reliability.
In fact in your professional life your reliability and that of your partners (colleagues/ service providers / subordinates / bosses) is one of the most critical ingredients that will determine what you achieve.
Contracts, Service Level Agreements, Penalty Clauses etc are tools to manage reliability. As in the case of relationships, your market power (the power you can exert on the giver) can influence the reliability you will be able to command from your partners. But there is no substitute for the age old value of “Pride in Your Commitments”
What is the primary role of a Stock Exchange?
It is to provide liquidity for the stocks. It managed this liquidity by having processes in place that enabled thousands of transactions every hour which has now increased to millions per hour with the help of technology. To manage this rate of transactions, even the settlement of trade (fund against security sold and security against funds provided) is made an asynchronous activity (i.e. settled later).
When trading and settlement are asynchronous, there could be risk to both the buyer and the seller; the risk of counter party walking out of the transaction leaving you high and dry. When we have long chains of multiple transactions intertwined and interlinked, such counter party risk will have a domino effect and lead to market failure. This could dissuade many potential investors from participating in the market which ultimately affect liquidity. This used to be the case in Indian capital market before NSE was established with its sophisticated mechanisms for managing the risk. There is margin payment to take away incentive to default; there is a clearing corporation to provide counter party guarantee and so on and so forth.
These risk management measures have significantly contributed to market expansion. The level of trade has increased more than 100 times. Today Indian Capital Market is rated to be one of the best in the world in terms of institutional infrastructure on account of this strong risk management capability.
This is relevant and critical in every human interaction. Every day we deal with a number of people (costumers, suppliers, service providers, regulators, bankers etc) and we agree and commit on certain deliveries between us. Your supplier promises delivery of input materials based on which you have committed delivery to your client for next week. The finance manager has promised to complete the project review by today evening to help you submit the final report to the board tomorrow. The tailor has agreed to deliver the new dress you have ordered for your child. A number of deals and deliveries.
Like in the case of capital markets, the chain of commitments and deliverables are linked to multiple levels and any failure in any level could have cascading effects.
Some people are very reliable in their delivery and even if an unfortunate delay happens they give advance warning helping us to reschedule our plans and our deliverables in an orderly fashion. Some cannot ever honour their commitments. Very often people don’t appreciate the importance of this chain reaction and the need to be reliable.
Let us look at how this affects you and how you should manage this in your daily life.
One of the critical components of professional success is how reliable you are on your commitments. If you are not able to do deliver a promise you should not commit. If you commit and you are unable to meet it, please give advance warning.
When you reduce the risk of dealing with you, then there are more people willing and interested to deal with you. The demand for and liquidity of your offerings increases. On the other hand if you are not a reliable partner, then however capable you are or however useful your products or services are, the demand will be much less than the potential. This reliability factor is critical for your growth and as you go higher it becomes one of the key parameters on which your clients, subordinates and friends decide to deal with you.
On the other hand when you are at the receiving end you need to learn to judge the reliability of person you are dealing with. If you are not dealing with a person who is not reliable, then you need to have mechanisms to incentivise or force reliability.
In fact in your professional life your reliability and that of your partners (colleagues/ service providers / subordinates / bosses) is one of the most critical ingredients that will determine what you achieve.
Contracts, Service Level Agreements, Penalty Clauses etc are tools to manage reliability. As in the case of relationships, your market power (the power you can exert on the giver) can influence the reliability you will be able to command from your partners. But there is no substitute for the age old value of “Pride in Your Commitments”
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