Narayanan Krishnan

Simple and powerful video

The violin player

Snip

Its India's Independence day... A few Indians are roaming and checking out the place (Times Square)... They are visiting NY from India and are enjoying the place when a street side violin player asks them to stop... He says -- Today is your Independence Day right, this is my tribute... And he plays the Indian National Anthem on his violin...


I am not kidding, he plays Jana Gana Mana perfectly on his Violin... The Indian family stands upright in respect for the national anthem, that too played by a non-Indian, on India's Independence day... It is a matter of such pride...

Snip

http://nikhilraikar.blogspot.com/2010/08/its-not-worth-it.html

Putturaju

Extract:

Putturaju’s family had nothing when his father passed way. He had eight siblings. His very first job was that of a butcher in a stall. After working as a milkman, dealing with soaps and getting into the catering business he finally landed in the hotel business and struck gold

Full Story:

http://www.daijiworld.com/news/news_disp.asp?n_id=82132

Respect to mother

http://www.mindtree.com/subrotobagchi/my-mother-is-an-ugly-woman/

Beautifully written, and so true.

Blind man and Infosys

Source: Forward

It wasn’t that great morning today but became one after I rushed to get INFOSYS bus to EC. I stay at BTM 2nd stage, where traffic is peak between 7.00am to 10.00am (thanks to all company buses). As usual I was eager to cross the road to catch the bus and then I saw visually challenged person who also wanted to cross the road. Anyway, even I wanted to cross so I thought of giving him company.

The moment, I held him and said “let’s cross”; he asked whether I am a infosion. I was wonderstruck and my cluster of grey cells starting buzzing up (why he didn’t ask my name or where I work, why directly asked whether a infosion I am). I literally interrogated him for asking me this question. He smiled and replied,

“Everyday I stand here waiting for somebody to help me cross this road. I know that this place is a stop for many company buses, but each day only a infosion help me reach the other side.”

That very moment made me flash 1000w smile (I wonder what people must have thought :-)). But these beautiful words changed my perception. I realized that we do “act with sensitivity” in our day-to-day lifestyle. Everyday morning unwritten agenda of mine was to blame INFOSYS for making me away from Mumbai but today the feeling of proud has sunk in so much that still I am keeping my head high and those goose bumps haven’t settled down yet.

Salute to the Tatas

Very inspirational article - http://rummuser.com/?p=3182

KISS

Source: A fwd / Shobhaa's blog post

I was in Bhubaneswar for the second time in the last 12 months. Back, to visit an extraordinary school for 10,000 tribal kids from 63 tribes of the region. This could possibly be the most deprived section of our society, where, in this day, starvation deaths still take place. It is a region so abysmally neglected, its disenfranchised people continue to live in the dark ages, literally and metaphorically.

Under such primitive conditions, one man’s vision has transformed the lives of tribal kids by creating the only such facility for tribals in Asia. It is called the Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS, for short), and is located on a neat and scrupulously clean campus just a short distance from the airport. I felt privileged to be welcomed there by these remarkable kids who live in well-maintained hostels and receive quality education—all for free! The first time I’d visited them, they were enjoying a hearty, well-balanced lunch and preparing for the second half of the day. They appeared confident, well integrated and happy. What a contrast to the lives of their forefathers who have lived pathetically marginalised lives for centuries, unaware of anything outside their forests.

Even today, there are people among them who, believe it or not, have not heard of a word called ‘India’. Women’s Reservation Bill? Sonia Gandhi? You must be joking! They lead an existence of total isolation in abject poverty, cut off from the rest of the world. It is in the context of such a shameful sub-human existence that when I was introduced to a teenager wearing a smart blazer and told she was the captain of the school’s rugby team, I did a double take! Rugby? Being played here by tribal girls? Can it get more bizarre than that?

I turned to Dr Achyuta Samanta, the founder of KISS who is frequently referred to as the Charismatic Fakir by his countless international admirers, and asked for details, while my husband, a former rugby player, engaged the young lady in an animated conversation about the game.

According to Samanta, it all started when an English coach visited the school a few years ago and decided to train the kids to play this very boisterous, very Brit game. The kids succeeded big time, and soon were competent enough to get invited to compete internationally. Compete, they did, and came back with a trophy for under-14s! Since that early victory, they have been playing the game all over the world and now have an American coach.

The captain of the girls’ team told me she was leaving for France soon where the girls will be playing against the top teams of the world. This is a phenomenal achievement by any standards. But I was curious to know how these kids managed themselves when they travelled abroad. Said Vikramaditya, a smart and motivated person who has worked extensively with tribal communities, “It is amazing how quickly they learn. I travel with them sometimes, and watch as they rapidly teach themselves to swipe cards and negotiate their way through hotels, airports and sportsfields. They are swift learners.”

I met another young lady who had completed her law degree from a sister institute (Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology, declared a deemed university in 2004). She had just returned after a short course at the Harvard Law School, and had applied for a postgrad programme later this year. Her enthusiasm was palpable as she spoke about her dreams and aspirations.

But for me, it isn’t just about those well-designed buildings or the ambitious expansion plans chalked out by Samanta and his team. It is the light of hope in that young tribal girl’s eyes, as she looks beyond the campus and at the future. In her transformation lies India’s eventual redemption. I am sure Sonia Gandhi would be pleased to meet her. And see her in Parliament one day.

http://www.kissorissa.org/

Undercover!

This one was very inspiring. Thanks, Nikhil! This is about CEOs interacting with first level employees undercover!

Money matters

An interesting article from Singapore's Youngest Millionaire....
A Blog Post by Singapore 's Youngest Millionaire

By Adam Khoo on Money, got through a fwd

Some of you may already know that I travel around the region pretty
frequently, having to visit and conduct seminars at my offices in
Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Suzhou (China). I am in the airport
almost every other week so I get to bump into many people who have
attended my seminars or have read my books.

Recently, someone came up to me on a plane to KL and looked rather

shocked. He asked, 'How come a millionaire like you is travelling
economy?' My reply was, 'That's why I am a millionaire.' He
still
looked pretty confused. This again confirms that greatest lie ever
told about wealth (which I wrote about in my latest book 'Secrets of
Self Made Millionaires'). Many people have been brainwashed to think
that millionaires have to wear Gucci, Hugo Boss, Rolex, and sit on
first class in air travel. This is why so many people never become
rich because the moment that earn more money, they think that it is
only natural that they spend more, putting them back to square one.

The truth is that most self-made millionaires are frugal and only
spend on what is necessary and of value. That is why they are able to
accumulate and multiply their wealth so much faster. Over the last 7
years, I have saved about 80% of my income while today I save only
about 60% (because I have my wife, mother in law, 2 maids, 2 kids,
etc. to support). Still, it is way above most people who save 10% of
their income (if they are lucky). I refuse to buy a first class
ticket or to buy a $300 shirt because I think that it is a complete
waste of money. However, I happily pay $1,300 to send my 2-year old
daughter to Julia Gabriel Speech and Drama without thinking twice.

When I joined the YEO (Young Entrepreneur's Organization) a few years
back (YEO is an exclusive club open to those who are under 40 and make
over $1m a year in their own business) I discovered that those who
were self-made thought like me. Many of them with net Worth well over
$5m, travelled economy class and some even drove Toyota's and Nissans
(not Audis, Mercs, BMWs).

I noticed that it was only those who never had to work hard to build
their own wealth (there were also a few ministers' and tycoons' sons
in the club) who spent like there was no tomorrow. Somehow, when you
did not have to build everything from scratch, you do not really value
money. This is precisely the reason why a family's wealth (no matter
how much) rarely lasts past the third generation. Thank God my rich
dad (oh no! I sound like Kiyosaki) foresaw this terrible possibility
and refused to give me a cent to start my business.

Then some people ask me, 'What is the point in making so much money if
you don't enjoy it?' The thing is that I don't really find
happiness
in buying branded clothes, jewellery or sitting first class. Even if
buying something makes me happy it is only for a while, it does not
last. Material happiness never lasts, it just give you a quick fix..
After a while you feel lousy again and have to buy the next thing
which you think will make you happy. I always think that if you need
material things to make you happy, then you live a pretty sad and
unfulfilled life.

Instead, what make ME happy is when I see my children laughing and
playing and learning so fast. What makes me happy is when I see by
companies and trainers reaching more and more people every year in so
many more countries. What makes me really happy is when I read all
the emails about how my books and seminars have touched and inspired
some one's life. What makes me really happy is reading all your
wonderful posts about how this BLOG is inspiring you. This happiness
makes me feel really good for a long time, much much more than what a
Rolex would do for me.

I think the point I want to put across is that happiness must come
from doing your life's work (be in teaching, building homes,
designing, trading, winning tournaments etc.) and the money that comes
is only a by-product. If you hate what you are doing and rely on the
money you earn to make you happy by buying stuff, then I think that
you are living a life of meaningless.