The Christmas time is here. Soon we will see the end of the year 2008. We all will celebrate in some ways to welcome the New Year 2009. Its time for me take my diary out and see what I have done through out the year. This is appraisal time for me. No, I am not talking about yearly appraisals in the companies but this is my self appraisal and also the supervisor is me. One needs to set the objective at the start of the year and then take a close relook at it before the year ends. This is what I will be doing for next few weeks.
Well, I had set lot of objectives at the beginning of the year and I have accomplished few of them for sure. In general, you can measure your performance in the year based on various parameters. This could be money, power, life style, time spent with the family, important events in the year, social contribution and so on. This list can go on and on.
We have to be in charge of our own destiny. We need to define objectives and set goals for ourselves. We need to periodically revisit the objectives to see if those are aligned or not. And last but not least, we need to appraise ourselves to see how we have performed. Other wise just like everybody else, we will say ‘what the heck….another year gone just like that..’
Cheers,
Amol
Monday, December 22, 2008
Monday, December 15, 2008
Salute to our heroes…………..
Here is my salute to all those people from Maharashtra Police, Army, Navy, BMC Fire fighting department and NSG commandos, who fought the war against terrorists in Mumbai. That was not only attack on India, but attack on our country.
I have no words to say for those who sacrificed their lives for our safety and freedom of common people like us. We are grateful to you and always will be.
Hats of to all of you!
JAI HIND!
I have no words to say for those who sacrificed their lives for our safety and freedom of common people like us. We are grateful to you and always will be.
Hats of to all of you!
JAI HIND!
Unbeaten 41st Ton……………
He has done it again. Come what may…..let people crib….let them say anything they want to say….but there will be only one Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar in this world. He has scored unbeaten century against England while chasing the victory target of 387 runs.
Incidentally, Tendlya also completed 1000 runs in the calendar year (5th time in his career).
A solid, rocking start was given to the Indian team by Viru and it was followed by brilliant partnership between Tendlya and Yuvi. And not to forget wonderful 66 by Gautam Gambhir.
Great effort guys…………………..
Cheers,
Amol
Friday, November 14, 2008
Enjoying Life like a child
Today is the children’s day. And I my childhood memories started flashing in my mind. What a wonderful life it was at that point of time. I had lots of friends. We used to play cricket whole day on the cricket ground which did not have enough big offside field. At times, I used to spend whole day swimming in the well, lake or the river which surrounds my beautiful native place. The whole town was surrounded by the farms of sugarcane and paddy fields. I could go to any farm and start eating awesome sugarcanes. Fights, games, tournaments, cultural events, NCC, study classes and what not. Everything I did was with sincerity and passion. Most beautiful season was during festivals like Diwali, Dasara etc. I used to live fearless life during my childhood. But life has changed. With loads of responsibilities, you have to work hard so that your children can enjoy.
I wonder sometimes that the kind of life which I lived during my childhood, my children may not have that. With urbanization booming, your birth place becoming a metro city, modern technologies, networks, modern devices etc., the peaceful part of the life is gone. Don’t you think so? In today’s world, if you want to have peaceful mind then you have to attend mediation classes, get some tablets and what not. In short, we have started buying the peace of mind.
When I was a child, I always wanted to grow faster so that I can be a big man. Now, I realize how foolish I was at that point of time. Now, I want to live like a child but that is not possible. Still there are few points which all adults like us can take from the diary of our little angles i.e. our children. So, what are some of those points?
1. Read poems from the schoolbook of your child. Trust me it takes you back to your childhood. Twinkle…twinkle…little star…..
2. Look at the energy your child has. It is amazing. Children can keep on playing for so many hours without eating or drinking water. That is the kind of passion, enthusiasm, concentration…which we can have doing our activities. Every single living thing on the earth has some kind of energy. And being a human being if you do not burn that energy in doing good things, then your peace of mind would go for a toss. Try playing sports which we used to do earlier. Exercise regularly. Don’t smoke. Don’t drink frequently instead go for trekking…go for a jog…..and burn your those extra calories
3. Be curious as a child. Start learning new things as if you are a child and learning to walk. You will fail so many times but keep on trying
4. Sleep early and start the day early as well.
5. Love your parents, siblings, relatives, friends and everything on this earth
6. listen to the birds when they are singing
7. Reach out to people to get proper directions
8. and so on…………….
There are lots of characteristics which we can implement and make us happy as a child.
Happy Children’s Day!
Cheers,
Amol
I wonder sometimes that the kind of life which I lived during my childhood, my children may not have that. With urbanization booming, your birth place becoming a metro city, modern technologies, networks, modern devices etc., the peaceful part of the life is gone. Don’t you think so? In today’s world, if you want to have peaceful mind then you have to attend mediation classes, get some tablets and what not. In short, we have started buying the peace of mind.
When I was a child, I always wanted to grow faster so that I can be a big man. Now, I realize how foolish I was at that point of time. Now, I want to live like a child but that is not possible. Still there are few points which all adults like us can take from the diary of our little angles i.e. our children. So, what are some of those points?
1. Read poems from the schoolbook of your child. Trust me it takes you back to your childhood. Twinkle…twinkle…little star…..
2. Look at the energy your child has. It is amazing. Children can keep on playing for so many hours without eating or drinking water. That is the kind of passion, enthusiasm, concentration…which we can have doing our activities. Every single living thing on the earth has some kind of energy. And being a human being if you do not burn that energy in doing good things, then your peace of mind would go for a toss. Try playing sports which we used to do earlier. Exercise regularly. Don’t smoke. Don’t drink frequently instead go for trekking…go for a jog…..and burn your those extra calories
3. Be curious as a child. Start learning new things as if you are a child and learning to walk. You will fail so many times but keep on trying
4. Sleep early and start the day early as well.
5. Love your parents, siblings, relatives, friends and everything on this earth
6. listen to the birds when they are singing
7. Reach out to people to get proper directions
8. and so on…………….
There are lots of characteristics which we can implement and make us happy as a child.
Happy Children’s Day!
Cheers,
Amol
Monday, November 03, 2008
Shambhu Raje……
Recently I have started reading ‘Sambhaji’ written by Vishwas Patil. I am amused to know that Rajan (Shambhu Raje) fought the battle of Swarajya with mighty Aurangajeb for almost 9 years. Not that I was not aware of this. I have read Shriman Yogi n number of times. But story of Shriman Yogi ends with death of Shivaji Maharaj. His son was a gem.
Needless to say that I am impressed by the stories of Shambu Raje and the way he had fought the battle for 9 years……..Rajan....Mujara………….
Amol
Needless to say that I am impressed by the stories of Shambu Raje and the way he had fought the battle for 9 years……..Rajan....Mujara………….
Amol
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Leadership Quotes
1."Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity."
- George Patton
2."The best teacher is the one who suggests rather than dogmatizes, and inspires his listener with the wish to teach himself. - Edward G. Bulwer-Lytton"
3."The very essence of leadership is that you have to have vision. You can't blow an uncertain trumpet. - Theodore M. Hesburgh"
4."The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out and meet it." - Thucydides"
5."If you do not know where you are going, every road will get you nowhere." - Henry Kissinger
6."You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing you think you cannot do."
Eleanor Roosevelt
7."Don't be afraid to take a big step when one is indicated. You can't cross a chasm in two small steps." David Lloyd George
8."Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, concerned citizens can change world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead
9."I am certainly not one of those who need to be prodded. In fact, if anything, I am the prod." - Sir Winston Churchill
10."Be willing to make decisions. That's the most important quality in a good leader." - General George S. Patton Jr.
11."Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other." - John F. Kennedy
Cheers,
Amol
- George Patton
2."The best teacher is the one who suggests rather than dogmatizes, and inspires his listener with the wish to teach himself. - Edward G. Bulwer-Lytton"
3."The very essence of leadership is that you have to have vision. You can't blow an uncertain trumpet. - Theodore M. Hesburgh"
4."The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out and meet it." - Thucydides"
5."If you do not know where you are going, every road will get you nowhere." - Henry Kissinger
6."You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing you think you cannot do."
Eleanor Roosevelt
7."Don't be afraid to take a big step when one is indicated. You can't cross a chasm in two small steps." David Lloyd George
8."Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, concerned citizens can change world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead
9."I am certainly not one of those who need to be prodded. In fact, if anything, I am the prod." - Sir Winston Churchill
10."Be willing to make decisions. That's the most important quality in a good leader." - General George S. Patton Jr.
11."Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other." - John F. Kennedy
Cheers,
Amol
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Bengalaru..revisited
Last week, I happened to visit Bengalaru for some work. I was visiting this place after so many years. But somewhere in my mind, I could still recollect some of the beautiful snaps of this city few years back. As they say it was city of Gardens earlier.
I landed in Bengalaru. First thought which came in my mind at that point of time, was like….have I landed in Los Angeles??? The all new airport is awesome man…..and definitely at par with international standards….boom …boom…boom….I was impressed and started my journey to my apartment in a cab. We stepped out of the domestic terminals and I was again impressed to see the motorway connecting to the city. It has 6 lanes( of course including both the sides) flooded with lights. The distance from Airport to city is approximately 30 Kms. I was impressed again. Slowly, slowly…we went ahead in dense traffic area. The number of cars in this city made me to think it as the city of cars and gardens. It took one and half hour to reach the apartment. I don’t see any problems as such with the traffic as it is at par with all the metro cities around the globe.
However, the traffic is much more disciplined and always moving on without much of noise and also without drivers blowing horns all the time. The city has still maintained its identity with respect to gardens. You can see at least couple of gardens in each locality. Now, that is a healthy sign…isn’t it?
The MG road is reshaping up because of the Metro project. The weather is good as usual. People are good and polite at least with whom I interacted.
Overall, I think that Bengalaru has very good infrastructure (roads, fly overs, metro coming up, road and air connectivity to other main cities including Pune etc.). The weather is good and also the people. As they say it all comes in a package. No wonder that why most of the companies across the globe selected Bengalaru to start their India operations.
Cheers,
Amol
I landed in Bengalaru. First thought which came in my mind at that point of time, was like….have I landed in Los Angeles??? The all new airport is awesome man…..and definitely at par with international standards….boom …boom…boom….I was impressed and started my journey to my apartment in a cab. We stepped out of the domestic terminals and I was again impressed to see the motorway connecting to the city. It has 6 lanes( of course including both the sides) flooded with lights. The distance from Airport to city is approximately 30 Kms. I was impressed again. Slowly, slowly…we went ahead in dense traffic area. The number of cars in this city made me to think it as the city of cars and gardens. It took one and half hour to reach the apartment. I don’t see any problems as such with the traffic as it is at par with all the metro cities around the globe.
However, the traffic is much more disciplined and always moving on without much of noise and also without drivers blowing horns all the time. The city has still maintained its identity with respect to gardens. You can see at least couple of gardens in each locality. Now, that is a healthy sign…isn’t it?
The MG road is reshaping up because of the Metro project. The weather is good as usual. People are good and polite at least with whom I interacted.
Overall, I think that Bengalaru has very good infrastructure (roads, fly overs, metro coming up, road and air connectivity to other main cities including Pune etc.). The weather is good and also the people. As they say it all comes in a package. No wonder that why most of the companies across the globe selected Bengalaru to start their India operations.
Cheers,
Amol
Friday, October 10, 2008
Dada retires…
Finally, Ganguly has announced his retirement from the Cricket after current Border-Gavaskar series. What a leader he has been so far and transformed the Indian Cricket like never before…..Thanks Dada for all the hard work done for Indian cricket and most importantly helping us to believe that yes we can also win…..
Personally, I will remember you for so many reasons. Following are some of them taken out from my cricket diary:
1. Throwing out the T-shirt in the Balcony of Lords after we won the match which we have almost lost. This moment portrays the aggression of the young India and beginning of the success stories for Indian Cricket
2. Magnificent come back after the Chappel episode and slapping the critics where it hurt them
3. Making us believe that we can win the Worldcup again by successfully leading the team to the final of 2003 world cup
4. Making sure that Australian captain waits for you on the ground for the toss to take place till you come.
5. Last but not least beating the mighty Australian cricket team on our soil in the test series
Dada, some of the key takeaways for me looking at your overall cricket life span are:
1. Passion
2. Aggression
3. Self belief
4. Making others to believe
5. Leading from the front
6. Never say die attitude
Although, I am the fan of Indian Cricket God Tendulkar, I have always watched you with admiration.
Cheers,
Amol
Personally, I will remember you for so many reasons. Following are some of them taken out from my cricket diary:
1. Throwing out the T-shirt in the Balcony of Lords after we won the match which we have almost lost. This moment portrays the aggression of the young India and beginning of the success stories for Indian Cricket
2. Magnificent come back after the Chappel episode and slapping the critics where it hurt them
3. Making us believe that we can win the Worldcup again by successfully leading the team to the final of 2003 world cup
4. Making sure that Australian captain waits for you on the ground for the toss to take place till you come.
5. Last but not least beating the mighty Australian cricket team on our soil in the test series
Dada, some of the key takeaways for me looking at your overall cricket life span are:
1. Passion
2. Aggression
3. Self belief
4. Making others to believe
5. Leading from the front
6. Never say die attitude
Although, I am the fan of Indian Cricket God Tendulkar, I have always watched you with admiration.
Cheers,
Amol
Monday, October 06, 2008
Desire to do something extra
Desire to do something extra …………
I have a big canvas in front of me now. I want to paint something beautiful on it. But not really sure what to paint? Many times, it happens that you want to do something. You have that inner feeling within you to do it but you are clueless about what it is. I am thinking about innovation and applying that innovation to the products resulting in either new products or enhancing existing products effectively.
I wish I had a factory which emits the products as and how I want……………..
Cheers,
Amol
I have a big canvas in front of me now. I want to paint something beautiful on it. But not really sure what to paint? Many times, it happens that you want to do something. You have that inner feeling within you to do it but you are clueless about what it is. I am thinking about innovation and applying that innovation to the products resulting in either new products or enhancing existing products effectively.
I wish I had a factory which emits the products as and how I want……………..
Cheers,
Amol
Friday, August 22, 2008
Meeting with CIO of one of the top Investment banks
How does it feel when you are having dinner with CIO of the one of leading investment banks? How does it feel when you can actually have a glass of scotch in your hand while taking to him?
Well…well…well….All I can say is that it feels great. You will get this opportunity very rarely in your life where you can express your opinion with the CIO of one of the world’s largest investment bank.
I have had my share few months back. It was really good learning experience for me. I cannot disclose the names due to copyrights and branding issues. But I can definitely tell my grandchildren that you know what…I talked to Mr. XXX in person. :)
Cheers,
Amol
Well…well…well….All I can say is that it feels great. You will get this opportunity very rarely in your life where you can express your opinion with the CIO of one of the world’s largest investment bank.
I have had my share few months back. It was really good learning experience for me. I cannot disclose the names due to copyrights and branding issues. But I can definitely tell my grandchildren that you know what…I talked to Mr. XXX in person. :)
Cheers,
Amol
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
Monsoon is approaching………………..
Well, the IPL entertainment is over now…..and the mother of all entertainment is about to start for next few months…..you guessed it right….yes, I am talking about Monsoon…which covers the entire India by making an entry from the Indian ocean.
I am sure that few of you would take exception on the word I have used earlier i.e. ‘Entertainment’ for the monsoon. But hey relax….I am just coming out from the hangover of IPL entertainment so I am still in that mode….you see…
But hang on….if you look at the romantic side of the monsoon…..isn’t it mother of all entertainment? Okay, let me ask you one question….when you think about monsoon, what are the thoughts which come to your mind? First rain……first drive in the rain with her….drinking ginger tea after eating mouthwatering bhajis (pakodas)……that romantic walk in the rain with your partner in the clouds at Mahabaleshwar……just freaking out with your friends at Lonavala…..dancing like a kid in the rain with your kids….what not….this list can go on and on…isn’t it? Of course few would also want to add things like: getting wet everyday while going to office on your bike…..no outdoor activities without getting wet….no cricket…flood water every where….traffic jams….and so on… So, this list can also go on…..But at this moment I want to concentrate only on the positive side….or rather romantic side of it…
Years after years we keep on hearing predictions on rainfall…..arrival dates of the monsoon…etc. If you have grown up in rural areas of Maharashtra (just like me), you could see the expressions/excitement on the farmer’s face and of course not to forget their fight to complete the farm landing tasks in time before the rain god starts pouring….The farmers actually predict the percentage of the rainfalls based on their experience. They observe lot of things around before the rainy season. These could be various parameters starting from the behavior of birds, cows, buffalos and other animals….colurs in the sky….wind and so on…Now, we have developed lot of methods/techniques to actually predict the rainfall using the systems….if you are from coastal side then you also know that even fishers (kolis) use their own parameters to judge the behavior of the sea based on monsoon…..
So, from where this monsoon comes and how does it cover whole India? Isn’t interesting or rather a phenomenon? Yes, it is. I don’t want to go into much details as I am not the right person to comment on it….as far as we are concerned, monsoon starts from the Indian Ocean. It is again classified into two streams as south-west summer monsoon (our monsoon) and North-east monsoon.
South-west Summer Monsoon: Typically, it is expected to hit western coast of India in the first week of June only. Again, there are two streams or rather branches as they call of South-west monsoon. The first one is Arabian Sea branch and second is Bay of Bengal branch. In case you get confused then allow me to tell you that Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal are the regions of India Ocean on the west side and east side of India respectively. Btw, did you know that Indian Ocean covers about 20% of the water on the earth and yes of course warm water……Any ways, the Arabian sea branch hits our Kerla typically by 1st June then it continues its journey towards northern India. Bay of Beangal Branch of south-west monsoon flows over Bay of Bengal heading to North East.
This is the latest satellite photo indicating the current state of monsoon waiting to hit the west coast.
North-east monsoon: This is the journey back to the Indian ocean from where it started…..Isn’t it? Typically a southern state like Tamilnadu receives north-east monsoon rainfall usually in September or so.
Well, now that you are aware of the types/branches of the monsoon and the kind of entertainment it provides to us…..don’t forget to enjoy this monsoon…..It comes to meet us once in the year ….i don’t know since when…probably few million years ago???
Enjoy with care….
Cheers,
Amol
I am sure that few of you would take exception on the word I have used earlier i.e. ‘Entertainment’ for the monsoon. But hey relax….I am just coming out from the hangover of IPL entertainment so I am still in that mode….you see…
But hang on….if you look at the romantic side of the monsoon…..isn’t it mother of all entertainment? Okay, let me ask you one question….when you think about monsoon, what are the thoughts which come to your mind? First rain……first drive in the rain with her….drinking ginger tea after eating mouthwatering bhajis (pakodas)……that romantic walk in the rain with your partner in the clouds at Mahabaleshwar……just freaking out with your friends at Lonavala…..dancing like a kid in the rain with your kids….what not….this list can go on and on…isn’t it? Of course few would also want to add things like: getting wet everyday while going to office on your bike…..no outdoor activities without getting wet….no cricket…flood water every where….traffic jams….and so on… So, this list can also go on…..But at this moment I want to concentrate only on the positive side….or rather romantic side of it…
Years after years we keep on hearing predictions on rainfall…..arrival dates of the monsoon…etc. If you have grown up in rural areas of Maharashtra (just like me), you could see the expressions/excitement on the farmer’s face and of course not to forget their fight to complete the farm landing tasks in time before the rain god starts pouring….The farmers actually predict the percentage of the rainfalls based on their experience. They observe lot of things around before the rainy season. These could be various parameters starting from the behavior of birds, cows, buffalos and other animals….colurs in the sky….wind and so on…Now, we have developed lot of methods/techniques to actually predict the rainfall using the systems….if you are from coastal side then you also know that even fishers (kolis) use their own parameters to judge the behavior of the sea based on monsoon…..
So, from where this monsoon comes and how does it cover whole India? Isn’t interesting or rather a phenomenon? Yes, it is. I don’t want to go into much details as I am not the right person to comment on it….as far as we are concerned, monsoon starts from the Indian Ocean. It is again classified into two streams as south-west summer monsoon (our monsoon) and North-east monsoon.
South-west Summer Monsoon: Typically, it is expected to hit western coast of India in the first week of June only. Again, there are two streams or rather branches as they call of South-west monsoon. The first one is Arabian Sea branch and second is Bay of Bengal branch. In case you get confused then allow me to tell you that Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal are the regions of India Ocean on the west side and east side of India respectively. Btw, did you know that Indian Ocean covers about 20% of the water on the earth and yes of course warm water……Any ways, the Arabian sea branch hits our Kerla typically by 1st June then it continues its journey towards northern India. Bay of Beangal Branch of south-west monsoon flows over Bay of Bengal heading to North East.
This is the latest satellite photo indicating the current state of monsoon waiting to hit the west coast.
North-east monsoon: This is the journey back to the Indian ocean from where it started…..Isn’t it? Typically a southern state like Tamilnadu receives north-east monsoon rainfall usually in September or so.
Well, now that you are aware of the types/branches of the monsoon and the kind of entertainment it provides to us…..don’t forget to enjoy this monsoon…..It comes to meet us once in the year ….i don’t know since when…probably few million years ago???
Enjoy with care….
Cheers,
Amol
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Sachin...Sachin.....Sachin....Sachin....
Sachin…..Sachin……..Sachin…..Sachin….. That’s all I could hear during the match yesterday (Mumabai Vs. Mohali).
All his fans wanted him to explode and he did not disappoint them. The god of cricket scored 65 runs in 46 balls with 12 fours. Once again he came firing with all engines. Unfortunately, he got run out but so is the greatness of this man that he actually encouraged Uthappa to go ahead and win the match. Those who have seen his gesture on the TV could understand what I said.
We lost just by 1 run. That’s still okay there is a long way to go. And with the top batsmen and bowlers in form who is going to stop Mumbai Indians from getting the IPL cup??????????????
All the best to Mumbai Indian team as the touch matches start now……
Cheers,
Amol
All his fans wanted him to explode and he did not disappoint them. The god of cricket scored 65 runs in 46 balls with 12 fours. Once again he came firing with all engines. Unfortunately, he got run out but so is the greatness of this man that he actually encouraged Uthappa to go ahead and win the match. Those who have seen his gesture on the TV could understand what I said.
We lost just by 1 run. That’s still okay there is a long way to go. And with the top batsmen and bowlers in form who is going to stop Mumbai Indians from getting the IPL cup??????????????
All the best to Mumbai Indian team as the touch matches start now……
Cheers,
Amol
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Sachin is back....
He is back……
Sachin Tendular is back in IPL yesterday. He played his first match in IPL leading the Mumbai Indians. What a match it was……..Tendlya and Jaysurya is nothing but a dream opening pair…..Both of them gel with each other so well…..It was good to see Sachin back in action. Jaysurya played an awesome innings…with almost 11 sixes…..That was too much…
Welcome back Sachin. You are the master of any form of cricket..let it be one day, test matches or T20.
Watching IPL without Sachin in action was like drinking a glass of scotch without scotch in it……
The real IPL begins now…..we all the dadas (including Saurav and Shoaib Akhthar) are back in form…..it is going to be a treat to watch for sure…
Cheers,
Amol
Sachin Tendular is back in IPL yesterday. He played his first match in IPL leading the Mumbai Indians. What a match it was……..Tendlya and Jaysurya is nothing but a dream opening pair…..Both of them gel with each other so well…..It was good to see Sachin back in action. Jaysurya played an awesome innings…with almost 11 sixes…..That was too much…
Welcome back Sachin. You are the master of any form of cricket..let it be one day, test matches or T20.
Watching IPL without Sachin in action was like drinking a glass of scotch without scotch in it……
The real IPL begins now…..we all the dadas (including Saurav and Shoaib Akhthar) are back in form…..it is going to be a treat to watch for sure…
Cheers,
Amol
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Housing Loan
"In this life you can choose to live whichever way you want to, if your housing loan is nullified." :) - Amol
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
