Have any questions about management, philosophy, education, literature, yoga, mountaineering in India, or psychological issues or all of these?
Disclaimer:The responses in this column given by me are based on my learnings and experience. They should, by no means, be taken as a substitute for medical/professional help.
Dear Sir,
I hope you are doing great as always.
I remember you appreciatiing Sartre once in one of our Leadership through Literatue class.
I have assumed him to be none other than Jean Paul Sartre.
Could you kindly tell mem the name of the his book that influenced you most? Out of all the work, I need to know the specific readable that you admired.
Thanks and Regards,
Gaurav
1. Quality vs. Quantity time for your child: ever since I have started doing a full-time management course the quantity of time I spend with my 2 year old daughter has fallen drastically- I had quit my job after she was born and was a full time mom till I joined this course- the fact that I am not around for her makes me feel very guilty- my friends keep telling me it is the quality and not the quantity of time you spend with our child that is important however I somehow am unable to accept it- will she ever forgive me for not being there for her? Will me not being with her have an adverse effect on her psychologically- I stay in the family accommodation hence she is with me just that since she is with her nanny the whole day and I have seen her becoming very dependant on her- to the extent she sometimes prefers the nanny to me; that makes me very sad. Also now that I will have to start doing a job the long hours will come back to haunt me- honestly I want to do a job that gives me the flexibility of time but am scared whether I will get one- also I have taken a loan for this course and hence will have to work at least for next 3-4 years till my EMIs are taken care of. I don’t know what to do…..i don’t want life to pass me by when I am busy sitting in an office and attending meetings………you might ask if the decision of doing this course was well thought- honestly i over estimated my ability to manage both studies and parenting……
2. What is the reason of fear? Even though God gives you things you want (he takes his own sweet time though), one lives in a constant state of fear…..of not getting what you want, of your future, etc how do you move away from fear?
3. Why is ˜having expectations such an ugly phrase? Why should we not have expectations from others?
4. In the so called harsh corporate world to move ahead do we need to change ourselves? If I am not diplomatic and do not sugar coat things should I change myself to fit into the world or should I find a place wherein I fit in? Can u really change the person you are?
When I analyse myself, I understand that I lack self confidence. I compare myself with others and end up with wrong decisions. How should I come out of this?
Dr Rai,
I would like to know what according to you is an individuals foremost duty his/her calling or his/her responsibilities. If your calling is for the greater good and if in pursuing that you may hurt people who have been exceedingly kind to you, what would you choose? How do you deal with the guilt that follows either decision?
I have also lately realized that putting your interests above others actually requires a lot of courage. What are your views on this observation?
Chintan
If someone very close to you expires, how do you reconcile with the fact? It is easy to talk of the cycle of life and death but when it actually happens, when a person you have been seeing for as long as you have lived goes away, how can you brace yourself?
Hi sir,
Can you please suggest..how can i increase my concentration towards work… sometimes feel very restless.how to overcome these situations
Hi,
What according to you are the surviving noble professions today?
Dear Dr.Rai,
Your insights into the world of religion is quite mind boggling to say the least! (Btw I agree with the larger font preference, much too often, we enlarge the page since the fonts are way too small and the page appears quite chaotic),.
But I was interested on your take on FountainHead, and yea the idealist Howard Roark. Is it even possible to even attempt to be like Howard in the current world (cut-throat scenario),? If so how?
Dear Sir,
Recently happened to read a book Apprenticed to Himalayan Master, autobiography of Sri M.
His experiences mentioned in the book is incredible and unbelievable (His Gurus living for several hundred years, connecting with minds of others etc),
In case you have read the book, can you please give your comments on the same.
Regards,
Anoop
Dear Sir
What is your take on the following –
1. Plan your career/life on a long term basis – have an end goal in mind and then take small steps towards it
2. You do not have a long term/end goal in your mind. you plan your career/life on a short term basis .. say 2-3 years at a time, live life in moments, enjoy what you enjoy doing and then move forward again with short term landmarks.
Regards
Who can be an entrepreneur?
In Mahabharat, Pandavas (especially Yudhisthira), were severely criticized for the gambling and playing with their wife Draupadi. Yudhisthira later disguised as Kanka (during Agyatvas), explains it to Virat King that though he was not wrong in gambling with his wife as if he had not done that, mankind would not have known the consequences of this bad game.
Sir, in this way, anything and everything can be explained. Do you agree with Yudhisthiras statement?
Hi,
Im a big admirer of you and a regular follower of this section. Also, Im between 25-30 years of age, male, unmarried and recently employed.
Recently, Ive been facing a lot of instability in my life because Ive been trying to answer the question What do I want to achieve in my life?. This leads me to a bigger question What describes me as a person?. Myers-Briggs personality test brands me as an INTJ/INTP (close-call),. My questions to you are
a. Apart from the MBTI, what other tests/indicators would you recommend me to understand myself, and what is their difference and significance?
b. Is it right to focus on these questions at this point of time, or would you recommend me to keep doing whatever comes in my way now and connect the dots later on?
Himanshu, I wouldnt consider myself religious or ritualistic, or religiously literate for that matter, but I do appreciate the foundation and structure a religion provides. Lately I have been feeling the need to understand Hinduism – and dont know where to begin. My knowledge of the Hindu way is from the Ramayan and Mahabharta strories my grandmom told me when I was a kid (which btw have shaped my values to a large extent!),. I tried reading the Bhagvat Gita (in English), but found it to be very poorly written. Any suggestions on books I can read? Thanks, sandip
Dear Sir,
The reason why I am writing this is because I need someone helps in my present state of distress and confusion and by reading your posts I believe that you are the one who can help me here.
To tell you little about me, I have done my schooling from Hindi Medium school and have done my engineering from IIT and then worked in industry for three years. After that I have done my MBA from IIM. Now I am working in finance field in Mumbai and staying very far from my family. I also want to reveal that my admission in IIT was result of my hard work but getting a good trade there and getting admission in MBA collage was possible because of the reservation as I belong to Schedule Caste.
I am not performing up to the expectations of bosses at my job. I don’t have very good writing and communication skills. Therefore my boss in office doesn’t have good impression of me. I think that I am being left out. This feeling is making more and more stressful. I think reason behind not able to performing well is because I am not able work with full dedication.
I am feeling very home sick (one reason of feeling home sickness is that my mother is not keeping well, she is suffering from cervical),. I want to go to Delhi. Therefore I requested my boss to transfer me to Delhi. But I was not persuasive enough and he did not allowed my transfer. He gave me reason that it is possible only after one year. But I think my boss believe that I was telling lie when I told him my mother illness as a reason for my transfer. I am uncertain whether I should ask again or not. Now whenever I talked over the phone at home I always felt heavy hearted.
Whenever I compare myself with my classmate/collage mates, I see myself among the bottom both financially and psychologically. There was time I used to consider myself very strong emotionally and used to give consultation to my friends whenever they felt low.
Day-by-day my confidence in myself is reducing and I am feeling more & more fearful. Also feeling of being Schedule Caste makes me diffidence as still I am not able feel the sense of achievement.
I didn’t see any purpose in my life. I don’t feel anything doing with total dedication. Last thing which I remember towards which I have worked with my heart and mind for long time was preparation for JEE. After that whatever I have done it is because it is the best available alternative at times.
Now, sometime I want to start my own venture and sometime I want to study more and more to understand the world and to know the meaning of life. I don’t know how to figure what I should do.
I have started to cry whenever I am alone. I don’t remember when I have last felt total fearless and confident.
In this state of confusion and stress can you please suggest me something which can help me at my workplace and which can bring back my confidence and more importantly make me fearless.
Thank you in advance
Dear Sir,
Congratulations for the very nice blog and the valuable inputs that make it.
Sir, I have a technical question that pertains to the recruitment of disabled persons in a listed company. The information is required in the context of drafting a disability-friendly hiring policy for the company.
The PWD Act, 1995, Chapter VI (Employment), Section 41 states that the appropriate government shall provide incentives to organizations where at least 5% of the workforce is composed of persons with disabilities. The details of the incentives, however, are not mentioned.
Could you please shed some light on how the incentives are structured or decided?
Regards
Sir, what do you mean by living life inside out?
How would you compare Vipassana Meditation as taught by S N Goenka (www.dhamma.org), with Osho Experience (www.oshoworld.com),. S N Goenka follows Buddhas teachings that life is full of pain, and the root cause of this suffering is desire. By detaching ourselves from worldly sensations, it is possible to attain freedom (moksha), from the otherwise endless cycle of life and death. On the other hand, Osho believes that Buddhas teachings need to be taken in context of Buddhas life. Gautam Buddha had lived in tremendous luxury, surrounded by beautiful girls, beautiful palaces… He had seen all that was possible in those days for a man of power and riches to see, but he could not find peace, contentment, silence…Gautam Buddha’s search for truth, for himself, for the source of life which is eternal, cannot be the search of a poor man who is hungry, who is searching for a loaf of bread.
Dr Rai, this is an excerpt from the book Zen and the Art of motorcycle maintenance. The author puts a question and explains how Hume and Kant would have answered it respectively but somehow I wasnt satisfied totally. I would like to put the same question to you:
Hume had previously submitted that if one follows the strictest rules of logical induction and
deduction from experience to determine the true nature of the world, one must arrive at certain
conclusions. His reasoning followed lines that would result from answers to this question: Suppose a
child is born devoid of all senses; he has no sight, no hearing, no touch, no smell, no taste…nothing.
There’s no way whatsoever for him to receive any sensations from the outside world. And suppose this
child is fed intravenously and otherwise attended to and kept alive for eighteen years in this state of
existence. The question is then asked: Does this eighteen-year-old person have a thought in his head? If
so, where does it come from? How does he get it?
Sir,
As read in some of the spiritual books, as per Vedas the entire world is Maya, a drama, or like a movie, or a veil, exhibiting the traits of duality and relativity and is also transient. From this it sounds that no ordeal could be better than the ordeal of piercing this veil. And then it is also says one has to do his karma, as you say as an exampe of a business man. But if the reality is ony Maya or shadow reality what meaning it is to be a business man? Shouldnt all of us strive to pierce the veil of Maya for Moksha?
Sir, what is the validity of 1), astrology 2), vastu shastra. Should any decision be based on the influence of these?
what is management ?
Do you think there is any inherent goodness in the concept of morality, apart from the expectation of reciprocal behavior?
Hi , I have a major problem of self-study. I want to concentrate on my studies and do well but the moment the thought of sitting down and studying crosses the mind, I feel frustrated and ignore it. I have been going through this problem for past two and a half years. This is the reason why despite having a desire to succeed , I could not do well in my board exams this year. But , on the other hand , I study with full interest while in school and coaching classes. I remain focused during these times and then studies do not become a burden for me. What can you suggest for me?
Dear Sir,
What is my swadharma? Is it the path in sync with the way that I have always been (my nature),?
Or is it the path in sync with what I have always aspired to be?
Say, I am not comfortable with ambiguity, not great at accepting rejections, like to work at my own pace (without the topline hassles), and not street smart. But I have always aspired for a career in business development and believed that I would be good at it.
The Gita says it is spiritually incorrect to go against ones swadharma. Books such as Jonathan Livingstone Seagull celebrate breaching limitations.
Its quite confusing!
Excellent blog. i have two questions. 1), How can i reduce my sleeping hours to 6 hrs.and be active the whole day? i usually need eight hours of sleep or else i become very lethargic and dull the whole day. but, i can’t afford eight hrs. of sleep. 2), Why was Karna so ill fated, inspite of him being more capable and better individual than Pandavas.
What according to you Sir is the Kingfisher crisis all about. Mr. Rahul Bajaj has remarked today that what should die should die. Did it all start with Deccan and were there problems from the days of Gopinath? Mr. Mallya blames it on oil prices and bad sectors – so is it for other carriers too. Should Kingfisher be bailed out? Are private sector organisations meant to be bailed out when they land in muddy waters due to incompetent vision and management, pure loss of focus and extravagance on non-essentials ignoring the industry norms?
Can you suggest from where I can get to read more about Supply Chain issues of Toyota Motors post 2008, Toyotas mistakes and the corrections initiated. Most books talk of its Supply Chain JIT and direct models only and the need for supply chain re-engineering is not discussed anywhere.
How you are what you are?
My son has good memory and intellect. At just six he knows capitals of almost all countries their currencies and state capitals of India. He watches Discovery and Nat Geo along with normal cartoons and talks of becoming a scientist. He is hyperactive too – do you say it is ok or I should put some breaks on his inquisitiveness and association with material above his age cause that is what his father says I should do with him. I stay very worried for him. Is teaching at home better or should a child be sent to tutions? With every passing day he is getting hooked to me and distancing from his friends as his questions are rebuffed by his friends and he will discuss things like hurricanes, earthquake, bhoo-madhya rekha, etc?If I refuse to answer he immediately types his question on Google and surfs. How can this be balanced to bring things to his age? Should I get Tata Sky removed? I understand it is a typical query but Do reply whenever you can squeeze out time.
Warm regards
In the Mahabharata, why does Krishna ask Bheema to fight Jarasandha when he could have defeated him,himself? Does Krishna offer any explanations in the Bhagvat Purana? Moreover, when Jarasandha attacked Dwarka, Krishna fled the city. Likewise, no explanations offered.
Could you throw some light on this sir? I couldnt find any forums that addressed the question.
Sir, recently when Karnataka Govt. was contemplating to make Bhagvad Gita reading compulsory in schools, there was a big hue n cry from the (pseudo), secularists. They even pointed out that Gita supports caste system and should not be made compulsory. Some other people argued that if Gita can be taught, why not Quran or Bible (without analyzing whether they are also as rich as Gita),. In many Christian minority institutions, reading of Bible is a common phenomenon. But nobody points out that.
When lot of wealth was found in Shri Padmanabhaswamy temple (Kerala), secularists (& even atheists !), suddenly remembered about Indias poverty and wanted to use the temples wealth for countrys welfare. Probably their secular credentials prevent them from pointing out that Christian NGOs, missionaries and Churches get funds from abroad for conversion.
If M F Hussain paints Hindu Godesses inappropriately then it is art and we have to respect freedom of expression but when Taslima Nasreen/Saman Rushdie/Subramanian Swamy writes anything against the minority community, it becomes communal.
BJP is communal but Congress in alliance with Muslim League/Farooq Abdullah is secular ! ?
People talk about Gujarat violence (2002), or Babri Masjid demolition and violence that followed aftermath in depth but little about ethnic cleansing of Kashmiri Pandits. There are lot of other examples.
Why do secularists target only Hinduism? Is the English main stream media (TV), also hand in glove with pseudo secularists?
Dear Sir,
Greetings ! I actually dont know whether its related to you or not, but I feel like taking expert advise from you. Basically I am a professional social worker and have worked for more than 9 years with non governmental organizations (WHO, UNICEF, Govt. of UP (health dept.), Now I feel to develop my own organization, but dont where to get assistance/grant for projects, however I can implement social development projects very well but dont where and how to approach. My organization is 10 years old but with little work in field now I actually need to take up some projects (to start with even very small ones), I have bad experience of appraoachig for projects with Government in Uttarpradesh and people ask for bribe which I cant give them. I really want to make a difference in the life of people especially my town – shahjahanpur in Uttarpradesh. If you can guide or support or help me out where to start and how to approach or whom to approach. I am ready for any type of hard work, but need proper guidance & councelling and small support also intially. I wish you could help me out. If you provide your e-mail ID, I can mail my organizations profile to you.
Kindest Regards
Fardin khan
Shahjahanpur
Dear Dr Rai,
I am visiting this page for the first time but i am really mesmerized by the width of topics discussed here and you excellent answers/suggestions. You are multitasking in its true sense. I am an MBA and after 1.5yrs of work exp i am realizing that my inclination is towards reserch and i want to go for Phd…i have some teaching experience in past.
Related to it, i have written a Management research paper Most likely consequences of Unethical Organizational Behaviour. I dont know whom to approach for review or where to get it published. If you take some time out of your busy schedule then i would welcome your comments on it.
Ok tell me how do I quit smoking and redeem my balance life…it has affected me all areas!!
is going in e-learning more fruitful or going for lecturership?
I have a question regarding the Work Timing for knowledge workers especially in IT industry. I would like your views from legal, ethical and sociological perspective.
As you would know IT companies are known for their long working hours. The Units where I am partnering is also not an exception. I can see employees slogging it out for upto 60-70 hours a week without getting any extra benefits. However when the same employees move to a customer location in US or Europe to do the same work, they are protected under various labour laws in those countries and hence enjoy benefits like over time pay which is sometimes 1.5 to 2 times their actual pay. Consequently the management make sure that employees doesnt work for more than 35 or 40 hours a week.
However, in India, I am of the view that management has taken the employees for granted and there is a lack of proper planning and organizing from management to reduce the work timing of employees. Here in some projects, it is expected that you have to work for long hours. My questions to you on this topic are as below:
– Is it ethical for the employer to ask employees to work beyond the office hours. Especially when this is a planned work, assuming employees will work for long hours. Also please consider the fact that the same employer pays for over time in other countries for the same work.
– Do we have currently or will have in future any legal protection for IT/ITes workers in terms of working hours.
– There are some senior management folks who maintain a view that, if such labour laws come in India then it will adversly affect our Industries. Do you think this is true, given that western industries have done well while they were having such labour laws. Even if it adversly affect industry, shouldnt welfare (not only economic), of employees come before welfare of industries even though both are highly coupled to each other?
Regards,
Mera weight last 8 yrs mei 70 kg se 94 kg ho gaya hai, kya aapke paas kuchh saral upay hai.
Dear Sir, Can you please send me the correct meaning of the mantra of Yoga Gayatri Mantra. Archit Mukherjee
Sir i want to ask how to reduce negative thinking what books should i read and exercises should i practice for overcoming negative thoughts?everytime i participate in something it keeps going in my mind i cant do this ,this is not meant for me and in this way my negative vibes get converted to reality.
I have always been confused about leadership. Most of the time I see the leader emerges as the people around him are too timid to take charge. And in case there are two or more equally ambitious people then it becomes that hard for one leader to emerge and if that situation worsens there are loud disagreements with each others personality. I know it is not a question but still want to know your views on it. Or if I can try and phrase my confusion: Are leaders self-made or are they result of our unwillingness to come to the front ourselves? Which one is expected to last long?
hello sir…
I ve been aspiring for CAT this yr. I work hard day and night for it. And ve been thorough with all the type pf questions that are normally asked in the exam.
One thing I am facing problem with is delivering the maximum output during those 140 mins of my exam. Whenever the paper starts…thousands of thousand thoughts start revolvin in my mind and thus screwin my paper.
Can u guide me how should i get over this anxiety?
I want to be a good speaker. My work involves analysis and a quick presentation on analysis. I am someone who, well by nature prefers quality time, preferably by myself, to research and analyse. However, my current profile requires me to gather facts on events within say 10 minutes to an hour, with some amount of distraction and present them. So I feel rushed and stressed a lot and when I present, I feel I am not deep enough. I find myself stuttering at times as well.
While I am working towards improving my fundamental understanding so that I can grasp events faster, can you suggest ways to i), counter the stress as I feel I am always racing against time and ii), to improve my concentration. Also, any tips for being a good speaker. My voice is thin and of a low pitch.
Recently, I have been engrossed by watching Mahabharata (B.R. Chopra version),. Since you are the foremost impartial personality in the case of Mahabharata among all the dignitaries I have the pleasure of knowing, I would like to seek your comments regarding the followings.
a. Is the B.R. Chopra version of the Mahabharata pretty accurate as compared to the official Manuscript?
b. Is there any literature available that is based on the Mahabharata but has a different ending (Kauravas defeat Pandavas),. I feel that the B.R. Chopra version portrays Pandavas in a positive light and Kauravas in a negative light. It would be interesting to read a version that portrays Kauravas in the positive light and Pandavas in the negative
light.
Good Morning Sir…
First and foremost Happy Teachers Day sir. Sir actually I am about to start my P.Hd(HR), and I am too confused regarding my topic. Sir there are certain topics which I found good like Managing Workforce especially physically challenged people, Talent Management, Faculty Attrition, Academic Leadership. But due to some reason I cannot connect them with Rajasthan as I am from there only. Sir can you guide in this respect with some current topic of research or which topic can I pick and connect with the HR that is related around me????
And thank you Sir for Yoga as after reading your blog ive truly got inspired to fit it into my everyday life…
Thank You Sir
Sir,
A very straightforward question. What are you views on god, religion, faith and a superpower which is sitting there and balances everything out here?
If I were to ask you… who is John Galt? what would be your reply?
Can you suggest some yoga to improve on the effects of hypothyroidism. I have been taking 100mg eltroxin now for13 years and have this problem of falling asleep all of a sudden, it happens during meetings, during lectures and even while driving and this sleep is just for a few seconds but something I could never understand. People do not believe me that it is a problem they say I deliberately fell asleep. Firstly, do you think it could be due to thyroid and does yoga have any answer cause I have met with several accidents due to this and its risky at times specially if i have someone else sitting with me. I know you are not a doctor(rather an engineer practicing the art and science of curing 😀 and teaching management and philosophy), and would not have asked if you were one cause they say no more than controlling my TSH levels. Also wished to say after reading your articles that the kind and way you use words in english is a rare attribute a limited few can practice – its amazing and beautiful too.
What is your opinion about self conceit and bragging.. in present day world people who blow their own trumpets are given due respect than humble beings..
sir, very small but very important query—- how to stop feeling sleepy during morning lectures even after getting a 6-7 hr sleep at night?