A Few Good Things

Its interesting to watch “Diplomacy” .  Nobody supported the US in its dominating brute force to bomb Syria.

UK Refused , The G 20 refused , UN refused , the Polls showed that the majority of people in US oppose a strike against Syria – and then suddenly Mrs Clinton wakes up and appears with a possible solution that if Syria returns its Chemical weapons then the matter could possible be resolved.

I am making an assumption here – but I feel that a lot of bombs in the US armory are reaching their expiry date . The Iraq, Afghanistan wars are over and the Arms lobby is itching to keep the factories humming.  A war has always been good for the US economy and a Democrat President supporting the Arms lobby is a slap in the face for the Republicans – so its a double winner.

Obama has been an extraordinary individual and leader – but his ( or was it Kerry) war mongering has taken many by surprise. The image he has built till date is that of a sensible , logical , mature leader. Not a Texan cowboy who screams that he will ” smoke em out of their holes”

So is Obama a  genius who has played a masterstroke. Till date no President has taken congressional support before launching military action – Reagan did not seek authorization in 1983 before the invasion of Grenada , Bush did not seek authorization before attacking Panama in 1989 , even Bill Clinton did not seek approval from Congress before authorizing airstrikes in Yugoslavia in 1999.  So why is he seeking Congress approval this time ? Is it the fear of Guilt, or is he just playing a brilliant games and winning popularity from all quarters.

The Syria war is nothing but a power struggle between Iran (Shia) and Saudi Arabia ( Sunni). Iran threatens the power of the Saudis, it is a bigger threat to Israel &  and the US is more than happy to join the party – and project itself as a saviour of the world. 9 / 11 was caused by bombers from Saudi, UAE , Egypt – but Afghanistan was bombed. There were no WMD in Iraq , but on mere suspicion Iraq was hammered . Its the same story now about Syria.

Whats the US track record on Chemical weapons. Not very healthy. Way back in 1966 the US used Chemical weapons in Vietnam. Israel attacked Palestinian Civilians with White Phosphorus in 2008 – 2009. Washington attacked Iraqi Civilians with White Phosphorus in 2004. But did you hear of the UN or the Global Media make any noise about this

(Read about all this & more in http://www.policymic.com/articles/62023/10-chemical-weapons-attacks-washington-doesn-t-want-you-to-talk-about)

Which brings me to the topic of Leadership Vs Dictatorship. 

When you think of a Dictator – the first names that comes to your mind are Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini , Pol Pot , etc.

But what about Churchill , Indra Gandhi , Margaret Thatcher, Putin  – they are or where equally powerful in crushing dissent and ensuring that their will was always enforced. I wonder what makes them men & women of steel and not dictators.

Who is not a dictator or desires to be a dictator.  99 % of Indian Husbands are dictators at home, Ask a teenage girl and she will say her mother is a dictator, the CEO of every company just has to raise his voice or glare and dissent vanishes – he is also a dictator. Almost every CM in India has shown dictatorial powers. Every MP , MLA , Zamindar, every Panchayat & Ward leader have exhibited strong tendency of being dictators. Like the TISCO ad we may say ” there is a little bit of a dictator in every one of us” 

Its natural that every leader wants to dominate and get his way …. always , so whats the difference between leadership & dictatorship.

The world despises dictators – we shun them – its even a crime to praise them. The Indian media and the INC say that Modi shows dictatorial powers. So shun him.

Then we should shun the powerful rulers of the Middle east – they are dictators , they don’t even give freedom to the women in their own country. We should not allow the roads in Delhi to be named Aurangzeb Marg – after all he was a notorious brutal dictator. So was every Mughal King. So was Tipu Sultan. So were the Hindu rulers of J&K . So why do we hold them in respect – every King has been a ruthless dictator. We should ban them from the pages of history rather than eulogize them.

In conclusion its all about diplomacy , real politik and who controls the media. the US can attack Syria and use their dictatorial might over the world to get away with it. Its all about how you position it and spin a story – finally the line between Leadership & Dictatorship is indeed very fine.

8th , 9th , 14th , 19th – thats what I hear every morning as I enter the lift to my office. Its 8.30 AM  as hordes of hassled people jam into a lift juggling their bags , tiffin boxes still managing to talk on the phone. One lone voice and a smiling face greets the old lift operator in Tamil “ Appu Sir – Did you have your breakfast” . You can see the joy in Appu Sir’s  face as he finally feels acknowledged. He feels he exists.  To everyone else he is just a robot who for years has been pressing the lift buttons to your floor.

The 32 lane Toll booth on NH 8 between Delhi & Gurgaon is the second largest in Asia. Over 2.5 Lac’s pass thru them daily. Its a sight to see the speed with which the toll boy collects and dishes out changes in the evening rush. He is just a nameless face.  One morning when the crowd was not a mad rush my friend Rajesh Marwaha a good rare samaritan  greeted the  Toll Boy with a pleasant smile ” Good Morning Ji – Kaise Ho” . The guy literally fell off his chair. For so many years nobody had even noticed him – and here someone was greeting him. A simple act – but the millions who cross him daily had never thought about it.

While Govt may claim that Wholesale price inflation is 7 – 8% the truth on the street is very different. Food inflation is at an all time high – galloping past 20 % YoY. Onion prices in many parts of the country are touching Rs 100/Kg and most vegetables are priced above Rs 50/kg. Govt employees DA is increasing by 20% , most companies are doling out pay hikes in the range of 12 – 15% – but have you even given a thought to your maid & drivers salary. People who live from hand to mouth. While the Planning Commission & Montek may say that Rs 32 / day is all takes to be a middle class citizen of the country the truth in the street is very different. Maids earning 3000/ HH / Month and Drivers earning 10 – 12 K / Month need a big fat hike now.

I have tried convincing many in my building to give maids a weekday off. But thats a touchy topic and 125 angry women pounce upon me as the discussion starts. These  people  are indispensable to the Housewife ( there are over 15 M of them in the country and they form the largest group of unorganized labour) they are supremely skilled and can manage a wide variety of work ambidextrously. They are efficient , fast , tech savy with HH gadgets , they are not maids they are Super Maids. If they knew english they could be the next big export from India –  and yet when it comes to feeding them – the first thought is to treat them with leftovers and cold food. Dammit they are human too – treat them to a nice warm lunch after they have slogged in your house for 4 hrs with backbreaking work. When you give them Diwali sweets get a nice new box for them. Its not the cost that you save – its all in the thought.

The MP’s gang up together to give them pay hikes and block thru legislation any rule that puts them at a disadvantage ( RTI for political parties , no participating in elections if you are in Jail etc) – and we shame the politicians for this. But the smiling housewife your friends & relatives & maybe at your very house needs some introspection. Like they say change begins at home.

We see the contractors at Maruti & Bajaj protest against low wages and long hours. The era of “salam saab” is fast ending. We are lucky that the poor in India are not violent ( Aka S Africa / Brazil) – but lets not push them into a corner so far that they have no choice but to revolt – and that can indeed be a violent volcano.

I see a lot of Tablets & iPads being sold. If we believe the predictions of one of the large market research firms 2014 will see approximately the same no of tablets being sold as computers in the country ( ~ 10M). At home , in a airport , on a train – almost everywhere I see iPads being used by kids as a device to play games.

There are two common themes that cut across most Indian families.

1. We are ready to pay an arm and a leg for our children’s education. Tuition , special classes , all the books they need  – right from age 6 we start preparing them for their competitive exams.

2. We are not DIY ( Do it Yourself ) people. Our banks even offer to deliver money at home for lazy customers who cant travel to an ATM 100 m away from their home ( and that is a popular service) , our cars are cleaned by our drivers , most of us have drivers , and no house can operate without a few maids, a small balcony garden needs to be tended by a gardener – so overall the point is we are not DIY people . When it comes to studies we are more than happy to pack away our kids to Tuition classes rather than spend that extra time ourselves. After all money can buy everything.

Keeping these points in mind the iPad is a great tool for Kids at home. In addition to playing games they can learn a lot of useful stuff in a DIY manner. That helps in better knowledge retention and understanding of the concepts.

Listing below sections on the App Store where you can download education Apps for all levels – Pre School & Kindergarden , Elementary School , Middle School & High School . These are very useful & simple to use educational Apps for all ages. If you have an iPad download them for your kids and get started with getting more  value for the lovely iPad you have at home.

Apps for Pre-school & Kindergarten:  https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewRoom?fcId=630741467&mt=8

Apps for Elementary school: https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewRoom?cc=us&fcId=634073737&mt=8&ls=1

Apps for Middle School: https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewRoom?cc=us&fcId=634638382&mt=8&ls=1

Apps for High School: https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewRoom?cc=us&fcId=634638644&mt=8&ls=1

PS – Thanks to my colleague Kiran for compiling all the details

Its Tax Time and after three weeks I finally managed to compile all the information that is needed to get the job done in a thick 2 inch file. I got wiser after an IT Enquiry a few years back &  play it safe by  compiling every bit of information of the last FY. An IT enquiry can be really stressful – if you are asked in 2011 to provide in-depth detail of all your finances  in 2006 & 2007 – it isn’t easy  to dig out old records & transactions.

As you start compiling bank account (s) statements , TDS Certificates , Capital Gains & Losses , Property Details , Home Loan statements , Insurance Receipts , PPF scans , Nett Worth calculations, Credit card statements , Form 16………..- you start wondering – What can I do to simplify my life ?  How can I minimize transactions ? A time comes when you say its Ok to earn 1 % less interest but I want to sternly reduce  all the challenges and paperwork. And thats the goal behind this blog – The road to happiness and how to simplify your life.

Step – 1 : The goal of every human being is to be HAPPY 

I start with a simple Question – What is it that is common to all the 7 B people who inhabit planet Earth ? Other than the fact that they all breathe , need food & water , have desires and  live in communities ? Suppose I get all the inhabitants of the world into a large Stadium and ask  – All those who want to be Happy raise your hands ! My guess is that every person in that Stadium would raise his hand.

Step – 2 : What makes you Happy 

This is a tougher question.  A Big House , a hefty bank balance , a promotion , becoming a CEO , getting elected as a MP or the Prime Minister , a Rich Husband , A pretty wife , fancy holidays in exotic jets……. In short to a vast majority on earth Happiness is defined by two broad parameters – 1. Wealth

and 2. Status & Power. 

What is common to the Bellary Brothers , Satyam Founder Raju  , Rajat Gupta & Sanjay Dutt ? They are just some of the Rich & Famous people who are now behind bars. I doubt if they are Happy. Is a rich & powerful CEO happy – constantly under pressure to perform and facing the axe  from the shareholders if he slips a tiny bit. Partying in a pub with wild friends maybe happiness to many on a Fri evening after a long hard week – but its  similar to the pain killer shot that the doctor gives you , it just numbs your pain for some time. Most people run after wealth , power & status – that is clearly not the road to happiness. So what is the REAL  road to Happiness ? Thats a tough one to answer. But lets keep trying.

Step – 3 : Six Sigma & What makes you Unhappy

Lets apply a bit of Six Sigma Concept here. (Six Sigma became very popular in the mid 90’s when every large India IT company touted  Six Sigma and SEI CMM as their road to growth and the flag to enter the global world of IT outsourcing). Six Sigma preaches that the way to improve is to indetify defects – its easier to identify defects than to figure out a way to improve. If Six Sigma can help GE  & Motorola I am sure we can apply this principle to our life and try figuring out what are the defects that make us Unhappy. If we can reduce our unhappiness then automatically our happiness will go up.   Thats is simple and makes sense.

Step – 4 : 4 Key elements of Unhappiness 

1. Physical Pain – Headache , stomach pain , hurting knees , indigestion , arthritis , BP , 80 % blocked valves in your Heart and similar physical ailments cause unhappiness.

How can you eliminate or minimize physical pain  ?  A good lifestyle , sleeping at the right hours , healthy food & regular exercise – thats all it takes to ensure a health pain free body ( at least in 99 % of the case where you do not have a genetic disorder).

2. Stress  – Unhappiness can also be caused by Stress & Tension. Meeting deadlines , driving sales growth Year of Year , juggling with multiple balls at the same time , trying to squeeze too much out of too less – all this can add to Stress. A lot of this Stress is driven by trying to do too much in too less a time. You are constantly trying to race against the clock. And why are you trying to do this – because you have too many TRANSACTIONS. One transaction leads to another – and another and all of them start adding complexity to your life.

The trick here is to start Minimizing Transactions. Unsubscribe from all unwanted groups and mailing lists , simplify your investment portfolio from 20 different investments to 2 – 3 , avoid multiple Credit Cards , Multiple Bank accounts , reduce your FB friends, if you have 3 houses sell 2, avoid a role in the apartment management committee, stop trying to solve all the problems of the world   – If you consciously start working on it you can make good progress. Each Transaction reduction starts a chain of events and the chain of Transactions continue to reduce.  Set a goal and work towards achieving it. Each reduction reduces pain and gives you joy.

3. Insult – The 3rd thing that makes you unhappy is Insult. You feel your voice was not heard , your opinion & view was not respected , you were ignored. Your EGO is hurt. You created your own EGO – a small kid does not feel insulted its only adults who create their own Ego’s who feel insulted. With insult comes revenge & vendetta. And a river of negative energy starts flowing.  Its easier said than done – but if you can curb your EGO you will never feel insulted.

4. Unfulfilled Desire – The last and most common element that causes unhappiness is unfulfilled desire. The kid wants an expensive Nike shoe and Dad says NO . You want a promotion and a 20 % hike – Boss says NO. Wife wants a holiday to Switzerland and Europe –  Husband says NO. We all get upset when we don’t get what we want.  But getting what you want never makes you happy – else the people I spoke about earlier would not be in Jail. Again a little difficult to get started – but a conscious effort to reduce desire and can help eliminate unhappiness.

Step – 5 : Starting the journey – Meditation 

It sounds simple but getting started and maintaining it is not easy. A simple tool that can help you and be an enabler is to start  meditating for 10 minutes every day. Human beings consist of a Physical Body + Something Extra (Soul , Life , Prana , Consciousness)  . We are constantly in touch with the Physical Body but rarely do we connect with that “Something Extra” . Meditation is the only way to connect with that Something Extra and just 10 min a day can change your life and start helping you to control the above mentioned 4 elements that cause so much unhappiness. its not mumbo jumbo – but a science that can be practiced by one and all.

For someone with a little entrepreneurial ability there are many exciting business opportunities. Most people tend to be repetitive & follow existing models that lacks innovation. This Blog lists down a few interesting ideas that can be developed as a successful business – so all the intelligent bored housewives, Gujjus, Sindhis …with business in your blood –  here is something to get you started.  All the ideas are based on Basics of human need around Food , Shelter , Clothing. In the past many of my ideas have translated into big business – hoping some of you pick up these ideas and execute them successfully.

Nuts.com – Simple Trading – but go Online

The Marwari’s have built an empire out of this. Small Investment, Low margin but multiple cycles of business is their mantra. If you invest 1 Lac and make a profit of 2 % in one day by trading in wholesale look at the money you can make in a year. The ROI is obscene !

We were recently in Kashmir and found that the best quality of Walnuts & Almonds are available at about Rs 600 / Kg. At Delhi INA market this becomes nearly 1000 / Kg and at Bangalore its closer to 1200 / Kg.

There are at least 10M Indian families whose daily food intake includes some nuts – its good for health. And then during Diwali and other festivals Nuts are great gifts. So here is the idea – start an Online Store that sells limited variety of quality Nuts, Tie up with a large merchant in Kashmir, depending on the scale and margin you want to make you can decide if you want to run this as a small outlet store in Bangalore or a large online play with a warehouse out of Srinagar. So with Nuts.com – you can actually start a very profitable business – margins in excess of 50%. You can then expand this to get dates from Middle East – that’s another great food item, doesn’t need refrigeration, can be stored for long and its rare to find good quality pitted dates in India. Take a look at what sells online in India eTailing –  everyone is busy selling books , gadgets , apparels .

Once the concept starts , further expansion is possible – create an online store for every unique item you get from different States – yes the concept of State run handicraft stores exists, but its poorly managed. So your online store can have Cotton Sarees from Cal, Kolhapuri Chappals, Pashmina Shawls, Silk Sarees from Kancheepuram, Special Navratri Dresses from Gujarat etc – an online boutique that gets you the best from every state in India at the lowest possible prices. Today this segment does not exist online – so there is virgin opportunity waiting to be tapped both from India and the 15 M NRI’s visiting India.

Italian Buffet

Indian’s love Pizza & Pasta. India is the fastest growing base for Domino’s & Pizza Hut. We also consume more Pasta than all of Italy ! Yes we have many Italian Restaurants and Pizza Joints but what we lack is a low cost Italian Buffet joint. Many years back we used to frequent one in the US – CiCi’s Pizza, it was a great success story. Unlimited Pizza , Pasta & Soft Drinks for $6.99. In India you can probably charge Rs 499/- for a similar buffet. Clear opportunity to build a chain with scale.

Theme Restaurants

Many years back we had visited Cancun. One evening we visited a cultural program that included a buffet dinner. It was organized by the Mexican Govt – but it was an excellent experience. In any large Indian city we are starved for entertainment – IPL tickets get sold months in advance, and any good dance / musical event at Chowdiah memorial is a sell out. The only entertainment for Indians in most metros is eating food, visiting malls and watching movies.

How about a Theme Restaurant that serves different variety of Indian food each day along with some cultural program from that state using local artists. So Mon night would be Bhangra & Punjabi food, Tue would be Odissi or Baul Sangeet with E Indian Food, Wed could be Gujju food with Dandiya & Garba & Thu could be dishes from the Malabar Coast with Kathakali Dance. You will need a place in the suburbs (Something like Vishala in Ahmedabad) and could announce the schedule in advance and have all the seats booked ahead of schedule. Given the no of IT companies in Bangalore and the foreign visitors who come every week – this one will be a sure hit from an entertainment point of view both for tourists & locals. ( This one may be a little complicated to execute and would require some connections with a big realtor or politician)

Food for Rail Travellers

Not sure how many of you saw the recent TV expose on how food is cooked in Trains. Most people would want to stay away from that food. There are over 5 M passengers who travel every day on an overnight train. They need food – what you get in the train & station is substandard and not something you would want your children to eat. Cooking at home is an option but it would be a lot easier to get something from near the station.  Renting space in the station is difficult (you need to know Mr. Bansal’s relatives). So what’s the Option ?

A Saravana Bhawan type joint that is located close to the station – offering packed delivery food. Not too many varieties but clean, hygienic & packed well for travel. Idli Vada Combo, Curd Rice, Lemon Rice, Sevai, Roti Subji, Puri Bhaji.. Over a period of time the good food and hygiene standards will establish the place as a brand by itself. You may even have the option of delivery in the platform so that you don’t need to visit the shop as you rush to the

Store for the Sr Citizens 

We have many stores dedicated for Babies – why not a store dedicated for the old ? A store that specializes in food / medicines / soaps / day to day ingredients that they need most. Maybe extend it to a restaurant like Sanjeevanam that serves Indian food with limited oil , create a menu for diabetics , one for Heart patients , make it like a club for old people who can spend a few hrs every day – a sort of CCD for the elder citizens to hang out.

And finally my favorite one – A nice housing complex in Coorg on the banks of the Cauvery 

Water is drying up – in the last few years we have seen how the water table has gone from 30 feet to 500 feet and we survive on tankers. Think of how the situation will be 10 years from now as even more people migrate to the cities. A great opportunity exists in building a good quality medium budget villa complex on the banks of the Cauvery – in case of water shortage you can always go and haul a few buckets in. Land in Coorg is still cheap – less than 10 Lacs / Acre – so its very possible build Villas 1500 sft 3 BHK independent houses for 30 – 40 Lacs on 1/2 acre plots – the right builder with the right pricing can sell his layout in one weekend in Bangalore.