Dance of Democracy

In the stained fabric of Indian democracy, the recent chain of events in Karnataka added another ostensible blot which would be as permanent as a birthmark.  The disgrace it brought was not less impudent than the gang-rape of an infant. No one is a dumbass who can’t decode what all is going on and who is engineering all of it. Sssshhhhh, but in real all of it was a coincidence. Suddenly 15 MLAs got a pang in the corner of their heart for not being able to server their country in the best possible way and decided to move on. They strongly felt that if they move to the opposition, they can better feed their instincts and dedicate their lives unconditionally with utmost devotion. We say it’s a democratic country where members who can enter the house are elected by public but if we see substance over form, by any stretch of the imagination does this statement makes sense? If we vote for a member, we typically vote for the ideologies of the party then how come the doors are open for such members to cross over and abuse our preference on the face of it?

If we delve into all the drama which went on for couple of weeks, every single event appeared scripted as well fully sponsored. How come all this happened when the CM in power was not in the state? If bunch of servants were pure enough to take a call in the interest of the country, then why did they have to cover their ass by hiding themselves in a resort? How come they used a private jet to run away from the world where few members of leading opposition party were spotted? Why these servants are scared to come back to their own hometown? Till the time trust vote is complete in all respect, why each party is taking their members to an undisclosed location where not even gods have the access? Just imagine, these members will serve the country and make it a great place so that we all can blow the trumpet “India Shining”, hahaah nice joke, right? Isn’t it like holding on your pant for the whole day or else it would drop off? What’s the utility of such trouser which can’t even stick to your waste and is simply a pain in your ass than to cover it at the least?

You don’t need to be an intellectual after when these arrays of questions will start popping in your head. Even an illiterate can smell the rat but still would prefer to stay mum as powerless people are supposed to act blind although they can see everything. Watching all this happen is not less exasperating than watching a gang rape but alas, neither the public who vote have any right/power nor the ones who skip this with pride. When we vote for a party and just after when election results are out, the same party join hands with the one which was portrayed as their opposition/rival, then how voting process has any sanctity left? All what matters, in the real world, is the power of being in power and power of money and if that’s the case they shouldn’t our country be saving 60k-70k crores which is spent on elections? How come trading of these members is easier than trading of FMCG products? In our mumbo jumbo constitution there is no provision for such a basic abuse of power?

I sometimes wonder that in the name of political history what can we narrate to our kids and forthcoming generation. I guess the easy option would be to explain them that politics is a synonym for abuse so let’s not talk about it or I would rather prefer to lighten their mood by using these events like jokes/hilarious Tom and Jerry stories. Atleast I can keep them away from the ocean of negativity, impudence, selfishness and voracity. Today the downgrade of politics has reached to a level where it would take centuries to even imagine of the breakeven. With more of such events taking place as if nothing unusual has happened, it will get permanent scars which would be incorrigible. It’s not that horse trading has never happened before and there is a sudden spike in recent years but surely the rate at which members change their political connect, at times its faster than sunlight taking charge of the darkness for another bright day.

During the course of 2 weeks of drama, the so called governor/speaker who are expected to run the show are more powerless/helpless like a one-legged person in a bum kicking competition. Although they act to follow all the protocols and regulations but in real they dance in the direction in which their head captain pulls the strings. In this entire process these people are as useless as ‘ay’ in okay. Neither they can decide anything, nor they have the intention to honor the responsibilities of their position. They are simply slaves who prefers to snooze on no matter how openly the hooligans are ripping apart the sacredness of the world’s biggest democratic set up. These elected members use public as doormats to enter the house and then do everything except the ones which they promised while begging for votes. Nothing can be more devastating when black starts looking like white and smuggling of house members appears to a be a routine business transaction. This is the exactly what we call as dance of democracy.

Mistress of Stress

As per the dictionary definition, stress is a state of mental or emotional strain resulting from adverse or demanding circumstances. Literally, every word used in the definition shouts out loud enough to resonate with zillions of scenarios we all come across in our routine lives. If we simplify it further, it’s nothing but how we react or behave in tough/adverse situations. What if, the definition of tough situation is liberalized, and we tune our minds to consider the given situation as normal? So, does that mean stress is mostly a state of mind for being in stress or in real it exists and cast shadows on our state of mind? Is it fairly simple to be stress free or it requires some efforts to brush it under the carpet? Does stress always harm us or whether it offers some benefits too? Let’s not stress out to analyse its domain and try to combat it to achieve some peace of mind.

We can’t deny that the seeds of stress are sown from the thoughts we allow to dominate us. If we keep feeding our minds to consider something as negative/unpleasant, there is no way that the energy released from the feed would be on a different tangent. If we closely try to decipher the countless moments of stress we have experienced, one thing would be very common i.e. we were stressed because the given scenario was labelled as unpleasant and we never tried to challenge the stereotype. When we are about to go to the podium (veterans are exempted), why do our heart beats skyrocket? Whenever we think of any test/exam/deadline, why does the stress get on to our nerves and make us numb? When we commit any mistake which could have been avoided, why are we worried as if it was the end of the world? As and when we have to manage multiple things, why do we tend to block our minds saying, ‘It’s gonna be a stressful day’? Well, answers to all these questions are engraved within us but we still prefer to be in stress rather than addressing the elephant in the room.

It might not be as easy as it sounds but if we have to get rid of the monster, we need to stir ourselves from the comfort zone and work towards facing it. Our actions are aligned to the thoughts paddling inside us so the shift of focus towards our thoughts will have direct cascading impact on our actions. If our thoughts are dipped in stress, then it’s not possible to have our actions in an organic and best possible way. The whole idea of diffusing the stress is to gain strength to combat the real issue than augment it by giving rise to another one. The more we disassociate ourselves with presuming an event as awful, more strength we gain to take on the issue head-on. Adverse moments are the nature’s preferred agents for inspiring change in us so instead of just worrying about it, it’s important to crack it down and redefine it as a regular moment. If we fuel our minds to extinguish the predefined scenarios of adversity, at the least adverse moments should not affect us psychologically and will allow to deal with it rationally.

Prima facie it must sound crazy, but stress sometimes has a brighter side too which enables us to be on our toes and take certain things with utmost seriousness. Whenever there is a significant event like a presentation, exam, interview, deadline for a task or a crucial meeting etc., we tend to sink our teeth to the core just because the ticking time bomb of stress is not letting us think of anything else. If this stress wasn’t there, probably we wouldn’t have made endeavors to work so hard and maybe the outcome wouldn’t have been the same. So as long as stress induces seriousness which goes in sync with the designated event, pushes us to our limits and doesn’t control our senses; it’s no different than a mistress. If an invisible power prompts us to think and act rationally, can we call it our enemy? Wouldn’t we consider this superpower to be our best friend and wish to have it with us for the rest of our lives?

One thing surely comes out very clearly that stress can be seen as an enemy or mistress depending on how we treat it. Stress is one of those monsters which can devour our peace of mind without even burping but we are the owners who have the right to decide as to how much of peace we are willing to share. Peace and stress are mutually exclusive and if we are determinant to hold on to peace then stress has no other option but to extinguish. It is catastrophic when we embrace stress as is and peace has no other option but to disassociate with us. I am sure given a choice we would hog on to peace over stress so let’s control our peace of mind and stress be the mistress.  With this, these oxymorons will be balanced and we can comfortably snore while we snooze on!!!

 

Lights, Camera, Election!!!

National election is one of those most awaited festivals which occurs once in five years (obviously in normal course) and the excitement it holds is simply unmatchable. We might not be able to connect the dots with remarkable/terrible decisions made by the government during its tenure but, somewhere within, we are thrilled to get the mystery uncovered. The mystery is not confined to getting an answer as to who will be our next PM but it extends to countless things which runs into our minds. Amongst all this anxiety, media doesn’t leave any stone unturned to milk this opportunity of feeding spicy content which either adds to the adrenaline rush we already have or gives us a sense of direction which is even more exciting. Should media be held responsible for the quality of information presented during this sensitive period? Can we consider significant changes, events or decisions made during the election month to be a coincidence? Well, politically, it’s almost impossible to validate this or else we will not be able to call it as politics.

Against all other festivals, this festival entails preparation at a monumental level which goes on for almost a year. All of us know that the money spent on election campaigns and related activities is simply insane. According to the sources, an estimated amount of INR 50k crores to be spent for 2019 elections. Phewwww! by any stretch of my imagination I can’t think of an alibi to spend this much amount to echo your fabricated achievements and outplay other’s mistakes. The biggest question is from where this money comes from? Is there any provision for this spend in our budget? Is this not questionable or all of us are supposed to keep mum and just ignore as we are ignored for 5 years? Have the media considered it as an issue or they are not supposed to think in this direction and highlight issues which are already known to everyone? To be frank, this is worse than being blind as things can be clearly seen but everyone pretends it to be unseen.

Media plays a very pivotal role during this season. What is more important is not the content which they showcase but the way the content is portrayed. This projection can be highly persuasive and can influence the voters to think/act in a manner which is ethically not correct. If I take a very simple example of exit polls (which defies its name to the extent of 100% as the election is yet to kick start), I would personally never be able to comprehend what could be the intended message around it. If I am rest assured that one party is leading already then would it make sense for me to waste my vote by choosing someone at the losing end. Wouldn’t I rather prefer to strengthen someone at the borderline and bypass someone who is way behind the borderline? I noticed beeline of news articles leapfrogging to headlines and getting lot of media coverage but suddenly these headlines have taken a back seat. So now, all at a sudden the mudslinging and the accusations made by one to another is more important than anything else in this world? It’s hard to believe if this projection is ethical and again everyone prefers to cover their naked eyes with their eyelids.

The best part of this festival is yet to come i.e. floodgate of sops, promises, positivity, compassion, waivers, cash distribution/freebies, horse trading, movement of members from one party to another, pre-alliance/ breakups, glamour and so on. Quite often there is a sense of euphoria during this season like stock market skyrocketing, a very robust growth projection in upcoming years, stereotyped reforms suddenly benefiting millions of us without we even realizing it, reservation proposed for a new community, loan waiver, minimum income for the poor and what not. Can we call all of it a co-incidence which would have occurred otherwise also? One month of stock market run outmatched the growth being witnessed in years, so was it organic? How come an airline company which was on the verge of collapse got further aid when it was already indebted for INR 10k crores? How come the biopic on PM is coming exactly in the same week of election? How come the money withdrawn from banks in this season amplified 100 times and high value notes didn’t come back into the system? Shhhhhhh, we can’t talk about these things. How can we stoop so low that we think it’s not a co-incidence?

Ideally this festival is more colorful than Holi as it has numerous shades which can never be known. During holi, even when someone is completely embroiled with multiple colors, we can identify the person but unfortunately during election season it’s impossible to imagine the true colors of our Gods. Pumping up glamour by hiring few jobless film stars is further intended to deviate the real issues and focus on something which is temporary and artificial. What is really required for us is to factor in everything which occurred/missed over the period and not the chain of events close to election time. It shouldn’t be difficult for anyone to fake for a temporary period, but the mask will surely be rotten in 5 years and we can easily see the true picture if we analyze things for a longer period. Lights, Camera, Action sounds good only in reel life and by no means we should draw parallel lines from there to be influenced by the political drama which essentially aggravates during the so called ‘DESH KA MAHA TYOHAAR- LIGHTS, CAMERA, ELECTION!!!

Online Shopping- Buy until you die

We all would agree that technology has the tendency to offer umpteen benefits but mostly at a very high invisible cost and surely online shopping is one of them. It’s one of those drugs which works both ways i.e. it not only creates the adrenaline rush for evaluating and grabbing the best deal but at the same time it takes care of the adrenaline rush generated from other means. Online shopping is much more than getting the product online as compared to hitting the physical set up. It’s a typical form of indulgence where we are well aware as to where we are heading but still choose to ignore and simply love to get carried away. It instigates us to defy our periodic budget and find justification for artificial needs which never existed ever.

Does that mean that online shopping is simply a curse? Not exactly!!! It has different shades ranging from rational buying through dangerous addiction but unfortunately as we start with the rational buying, gradually the lines get blurred and we don’t even realize how and when we have already entered in the dangerous territory of addiction. When it comes to making use of this forum in the right way, it’s not less than a blessing. With the busy schedule, it’s mostly impractical to visit tons of stores for every single thing or one stadium like store for petty things. It can’t get more convenient to order routine things online and get it delivered as per our convenience whereby we can easily get rid of the hassles of crazy traffic as well as spending considerable time.

In a very short span of time this platform has gained popularity, mushroomed like anything and still growing by leaps and bounds. The real penetrating strategy being used to trap billions of customers is not to offer the convenience but to offer magical deals. From billion dollar days to days enticing us to shop till we drop, from season sales to end of reason sale; deals are just getting outrageous and can’t get better for consumers. On one hand, consumers are enjoying the war between online players as it allows them to buy the most coveted products at a throwaway price but at the same time consumers are also not able to gauge their real needs. These crazy deals simply make them blind and creates a lust for possession.

Online shopping has made lives easy but at a huge price. The drug like addiction to compare and check for the lucrative offers is an ostensible trap which keeps haunting every now and then. If we see the bigger picture, the impact is way more toxic. It lures us to possess more and more & look different for the smallest possible occasion or even for no occasion/to binge just because extra-large is coming at the price of small or to own gadgets just because everyone else has it. It has overtaken our common sense and we have stopped realizing the value for money as the products we used to buy at full price are now available for less than 60-70% of the price or the products which we used to dream and couldn’t afford has suddenly became affordable. So, basically, now we wish to own the regular products as they are cheap as well as the fancy ones as they are affordable.

This vicious circle of saving more on more for each category of available products eventually makes us spend way more than what we would have spent otherwise. Now, can we call this proposition rational? Does this count for actual saving? Whether the convenience offered by this forum is worth it? The real epidemic is the effect on the mind set like, “I am getting a branded apparel for just 500 bucks, what else I can ask for?”, “although it doesn’t fit well but not bad as it’s available at 80% discount”, “it’s so cheap that I should buy, if I don’t use it I can gift it to someone”, “I don’t have this color/style in my wardrobe, I can upgrade it with literally no cost”, “I am sure I can use it someday” and the worst one, “it might not be that great but not bad for the discounted price”.

If we simply understand the math behind this model, the trap planned for us is self-explanatory. We all know that there are no free lunches in this world so, obviously, online players are not concerned for the well-being of the entire nation, but they are burning money every second for a bigger reason. It’s high time to take a step back and realize the real objective of buying online and benefiting from discounts. If we choose to skip this introspection now, we would be in the middle of a slippery slope very soon where we would simply stock things for no reason and realize that the budget we used to have for 12 months of shopping is already exhausted in the first quarter, then first month and so on. Need not to say that if the rhythm continues, it would simply lead to ‘BUY UNTIL YOU DIE’. So, let’s use the technology and don’t let the technology use us/ let’s benefit from the offers and don’t let offers get inside our veins!!!

Job Satisfaction

Whenever we hear this term, by default the disclaimer at the start of every movie comes to our mind which would fit in for this term as “Every interpretation around this word is fictional and has no resemblance with anything which exists in real life. Any similarity to actual events is purely coincidental.” Some people say that combining these two terms together is just unfair to humanity. Finding someone who is completely satisfied with his/her job is almost like finding greenery in desert. But why is it so, is it more of how we perceive or the reality actually sucks? Are the expectations around it unrealistic or the real expectations are botched up every time to make us believe that job satisfaction is never possible? It would be quite interesting to decode this one as every disgruntled/satisfied creature can relate themselves to the extent of 100%.

I personally feel that the way most of the employees infer job satisfaction is very similar to what investors infer of insurance products. Insurance products have an element of insurance as well as investment which can’t be compared with typical investment products. If as an investor you buy insurance product based on their return, then surely it will never satisfy you. Coming to the job, it’s very important as to what all we associate with our job. Since, we spend most of the time at office so we tend to associate every aspect of our life with it which sometimes is the real root cause of our dissatisfaction level as a workplace can’t feed every possible need of an individual. As a professional we should be very cautious of weaving our expectations from our job.

I wouldn’t deny the fact that low level of job satisfaction in few cases are very genuine. The reasons in these cases are mainly attributable to lack of rewards & recognition, prejudice, lack of transparency, lack of growth opportunities and most importantly bad leaders/seniors/counselors. Coming to rewards, no one in this world can demystify the unimaginable elements attached to it. 

Everyone at every level has to embrace the reality that rewards will vary from one individual to other. If we can’t understand why it is so then there is nothing worth understanding in our life. Recognition, prejudice and lack of transparency mostly goes hand in hand. This is the worst element to exist in any organisation and unfortunately this is one of those elements which finds space for itself irrespective of tons of efforts made to dissipate it. An entity should never be complacent of the fact that it has controls in place to take care of prejudices which affects recognising the right talent and also creates a damp on the transparency levels.

The next is growth opportunity which is not as simple as it sounds. Chasing growth opportunity is sometimes like chasing sun rays to catch hold of the sun. I don’t say that every job change ever done in the name of better growth opportunity is just a myth but at the same time fancy job descriptions doesn’t always translate into better opportunities. We should accept the fact that we are not NASA scientists who will develop something crazy on a daily basis. If we analyse, we will realize that 95% of the jobs in this world are the ones where more or less same set of things are done in more or less the same fashion so if we peep outside the window to do something very different, we should first do the reality check. Lastly, the most important reason i.e. bad boss/counselor/leader/supervisor. The only thing I can say in this regard is that if you strongly feel about it, fight it out to the extent you can. Don’t give up assuming you are weak and powerless or it will affect your appraisals. In most of the cases the relevant person turns bad because the people let them do so.

Job satisfaction, lot of times, is a euphoria in reverse because we allow ourselves to be vulnerable to believe that it doesn’t exist and choose not to explore possibilities of dealing with it. In majority of the instances, the hardships thrown by a job does more good to an individual than what it takes in return. Each individual has to carefully assess multiple aspects of job before reaching to the conclusion around the satisfaction derived from it. Sometimes, the dissatisfaction from a job is like a mirage which we can see clearly but very soon we realize that it doesn’t exist anymore.

However, if we are quite certain that the current job is like a long chewed chewing gum, there is no point of chewing it further unless a complete makeover is possible. If we continue chewing it, all it’s going to do is to make our jaws pain. We need to make sure that the terms of our satisfaction levels are defined, controlled, planned, executed and monitored by us. No one else can make a job satisfy us as per our needs and wishes. So at the end of the day, job satisfaction is nothing but a reconciliation of ground realities with our priorities, making sure that we understand and make efforts to resolve the non-reconcilable items and finally act/react with prudence if few items are still not reconciled. This term is not different than happiness which in itself is very vague and can’t be achieved unless we learn to be happy in whatever we do than doing things which makes us happy!!!