Negative Thinking

                                           Negative Thinking

1. Negative thinking has been associated as the ills of all wrong things like depression, failing, setbacks and positive thinking as the savior. It leads to a general impression that negative thinking is always bad and positive thinking always good. But let us ponder for a minute about whether a positive thinking can exist without negative thinking. I fact positive and negative thinking are two sides of the same coin and can not exist without the other. Only positive thing is utopian concept and is far away from reality. They are two sides of the same coin. They are on the two ends of the same spectrum where in between negative and positive both exist with varying degree depending upon the position on the spectrum.

2. There are some problems for which at present no solution exits, whether logical or creative. But in the present world these problems will continue to exist and one can not either just ignore them or wish they do not exist. These problems can at best be managed and one has to learn to live with them in a day to day life. These are the problems hat are best handled by positive thinking without solving them but learning with positive thinking as to live with them and still carry on day to day work.

3. Negative thinking is more prevalent than positive thinking as a natural way. Negative thinking does not require any deliberate effort from the person as it is a natural outcome of the present day world whereas positive thinking requires a deliberate effort from an individual. It is quite natural due to a human tendency to blame others or circumstances on your failure rather than look at it as your own shortcoming. We tend to remember more as to what all wrong or bad things happened in our lives than the good things. If it is a natural tendency then why we tend to blame negative thinking to our failures? It is not the negative thinking that is bad but the negative thinking which leads to negative thoughts and finally to negative action and which becomes the source of our failure in future also.

4. Negative thinking like greed, anger, depression, blaming others and hatred are like viruses because not only they lead to negative action but also tend to simulate the same thoughts in other persons around us and thus leading to a catalytic reaction which only ends in getting the situation out of control.

5. Negative thinking has its own importance which is wither underplayed or not understood at all as it is a natural outcome of human experience and behavior and on the other side it is incorrect to label it as leading to negative thoughts and actions. A negative thinking can also lead one to positive and healthy thoughts and actions provided one understands that where one stands and uses it as springboard to launch himself back to getting on his feet. This will lead one to positive thoughts and to a better and positive outcome and person.

6. By choosing as to how we are going to view the setback we can change the thinking from negative to positive and our actions from negative to positive. It is when you view these setbacks not as failure but as simple points on the learning curve that you gravitate towards more and more positive thinking and actions. No amount of positive thinking is going to get rid of these setbacks or failure as they will always be there being a part of the same system but what you can do is to use these to launch yourself to more actions , more efforts and hence leading to success in life. It is your thinking, your viewing and your behavior to these failures which will turn a failure into ultimate success and nothing succeeds like success. If you view it as failure, setbacks then it will take you to gloom, depression, self pity and anger towards others but if you view it as a launching pad then it will take you to future success. If you are lying flat on the ground then you can not go down any further and it the last positive n your life. You can either lay inert there only or use your hands o get up and launch your self once again with more vigor, effort and determination. It is just a matter of how you are going to view them. Negative thinking does not have to be liability but in my opinion it is that negative people are more realistic in their life provided they learn to balance and give the right weight age ton negative and positive in their life. A realistic person tends to anticipate the potential problems and situations more easily and in a better way than a overly optimistic person. 

7. We have been told repeatedly that to be a successful person you have to be positive towards life and negativity leads to failure. Therefore, our whole life we keep making deliberate and conscious effort to change our thinking towards positive and thus waste a major art of our energy, time and efforts to achieve it. Hence less and less time energy is available to put our thoughts into action. A major part our effort goes into combating this negativity. Why fight it when it is just the other side of the same coin, why not use it as a launching pad to much better results. Why keep making efforts to change yourself when all that is required is to accept it as it is and channel it to more positive actions. Do not change the thinking but just change your view in order to look into it from a different perspective.

8.  Most of the decision makers use imagination to create a worst case scenario. It is like creating a worst possible outcome in a given situation and decision making process. Some people tend to label it as a negative or pessimistic approach but it allows one to develop plan to deal with these worst case scenarios and one is always prepared to deal with it. This eliminates the chances of failure and leads one to better results in every possible scenario. This is a classic case where a negative thinking has been successfully uses to achieve success in the end. In fact the source of our problem is not this negativity but we have chosen an uninspiring and unchallenging task that brings forth this negativity. It is always good to plan for the worst but hope and make efforts for the best.

9. It is not that negative thinking is the root cause of all your ills and misfortune but it is your false belief to be so and you use it as a base to attach all your failures and misfortune to it. The only way out is to start a fresh thinking  with a brand new perspective of having to over come your shortcomings and failures and start seeing it as a springboard from where one can launch itself to a more better result. This new action with the reasons of your last failure in the background is what will lead you to success in your life. So take control of your thinking, emotions and thoughts so that you can become a better and successful person. Think of it as the lowest where you can reach and it is no further down you can go but one up and up as long as you use your arms as a spring board.

Hiring- A New perspective

                                  Hiring- A New Perspective

1. Hiring is an ongoing process in very organization, whether is a new start or a existing one or one who is expanding either in terms of production or diversification. The usual way followed by the organizations is to either outsource the whole process or do an in house process. It depends on the resources available, time and expenses involved and the size of the organization. In the first process the job is given to a firm of headhunter with specifications about the job, job profile, qualifications and salary structure. The firm carries out the initial sourcing and screening and short list the candidates who are interviewed by the HR department after interview at their level or at higher levels depending on the post on offer and a final selection is made. In the other case it is the Hr department who is tasked to do everything from the beginning to the end in house.

2. Irrespective of which type of process is being followed the final word rests with the HR department or with the immediate superiors of the post on offer.  In the end it is the higher ups who take a final decision whether the candidate is fit to be part of the organization or not. The underlying fact remains the same that besides looking at its suitability to the organization they look at whether the person is also fit enough to be their subordinate or not and whether they will be comfortable to have him in their team.

3. The role of the manager over the years has gone for a change where it is not only important for him to be a good manager and follower but also to be a good leader, who will lead and galvanize the team into action to is achieve the goals set for them.  A good leader needs followers who will give their best in order to reach the goal. Of course identification of individual aspirations with the team goal and ultimately to the organizational goals is an important aspect which will have tremendous impact on the outcome. There is another aspect which is normally presumed to be present and easily overlooked by most of the people is that to be a good and effective leader you need good followers and without them one can not be a leader.

4. When a person appears for an interview , after the initial selection process, then his suitability is judged by his would be superiors, but what is presumed to be present or overlooked is that the acceptability of  his subordinate. Whether the person is accepted or will be accepted by thee subordinates to be their leader whom they will gladly follow to achieve the organizational goal. It is presumed that the superiors have gone through the process and are fully aware and well versed and experienced to judge that a person whom they are selecting to lead a team will be acceptable by them as their leader. But I practice it may not be necessarily true and this is where the conflict start and may either force the individual to leave or the followers to leave or not to give their best resulting in harm to the organization in terms of wastage of money, effort and time.

5.  Another different approach to overcome this small problem could be to have the interview of the manger or superior taken by his immediate subordinates to judge whether he will be acceptable to them as their leader or not and thus have a say in the whole selection process. I am not advocating that the whole process be reversed but only that the subordinates view about his acceptability as their superior should also be taken in consideration of final selection. A step further would be for them to have a say in the gross pay of their leader.6. This will require a major change in the mindset of the superiors, HR department and in the organization but also some procedural changes. This will go a long way in building the trust and faith between the subordinates and their immediate superior. It will also be a major step towards the empowerment of the workers and a sense of belonging to the organization by being involved in the selection process and having a say in the whole process. It will also bring in openness in the organizational structure. In many organizations there is a feeling among workers that the superior has been imposed on them and it takes considerable amount of effort on his part to prove himself of being worthy of their leader with success or without with considerable loss to the organizations depending upon the leadership qualities of the superior. He starts from a negative to go on and prove himself to start on a positive note thus wasting his time and effort in small issues where the same time could have been used by him to build and motivate the team for greater goals. It is this time and effort which can be eliminated or a possible later rejection prevented if the juniors are involved in the selection process of their superiors and thus leading to harmonious relationship with considerable benefits to the organization.

Change or Perish

                                      Change or Perish

1. “I am convinced that if the rate of change inside the institution is less than the rate of change outside, then the end is in sight. The only question is the timing of the end.” Jack Welch was not forecasting but stating a mere eventuality when he made this statement. What could be more appropriate example to this statement than our industrial and labor laws, a haphazard cluster of legislation followed by innumerable rules, notifications and amendments?   The beginning of these laws can be traced back to 1850 when the Apprentice Act was placed on the statue books. In all over hundred of these laws have been enacted by the Central and State governments. Many of which have been almost totally modified or even repealed or replaced.

2. It is generally understood or rather misunderstood that labor laws are meant for large size establishments only, with a large working force. Undoubtedly, labor is a dominant factor of production in all units of organization and therefore legislation have been made for all types of labor employed in different types of establishments.  We in India unfortunately are still living in the shadows of the laws enacted during the colonial rule with only amendments being done in order to plug the legal loopholes rather than to change them to suit to the changing world of business competition. The time has come to do a rethinking or re engineering in these laws, regulations, Rules, procedures and systems and unless we change that and that too a revolutionary change, we will not be able to survive in the world market. It is an accepted norm  that when a road has become too old and obsolete that it can no longer meet the present day requirements then it would be better to relay the road or rather make a new road rather than to put patches on it. Roberto Goizueta of Coca Cola was not out of the mark when he said” If you think you are going to be successful in running your business in the next ten years the way you did in the last ten years, you are out of your mind. To succeed you have to disturb the present”. In our case of Industrial laws it is not ten years but a multiple of ten years as a unit.

3.  “Look at China and then look at our mess” says Arun Shourie, were the headlines of Indian express. It highlighted the statement made by Mr. Arun Shourie in the Rajya Sabha on 20^th August 2001. Painting a dismal picture of the economy, he said that if steps were not taken fast, we will fall into that abyss whose depth we do not know. It took China a few decades of isolation to come out and participate in the Olympics and look at the results. They even threatened the sporting giants like USA and Russia for the top spot in medals tally. Now they have opened another area-industry, and unless we wake up and wake up fast we will be left so far behind that it would appear that we were never part of the race at all. Will Rogers was bang on the spot, when he said “Even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you just sit”.

4. The root cause of this spectacular success in such a short time lies in their commitment to excel, to be a market leader, to produce goods that are cheap and reliable. The success has come due to some basic radical changes in their Industrial and Labor Laws, which have resulted in shifting the focus from labor to industry itself. Some of the steps taken are:-

     (a) No trade unions are allowed in the special economic zones.

     (b) Strikes are banned in these zones.

     © Labor can be asked to go by giving 30 days notice or compensation in lieu of

          notice.

     (d) The strength of the civil servants has been reduced to half in just two years

           resulting in a drastic decrease in government interference and regulation in

           business activities.

    (e) Labor works for seven days a week and takes two days off in a month.

    (f)  The normal shift is for eight hours but they have to give in writing to their

          employers that they will work for 10 to 12 hours a day, when required at no

          extra cost implying no overtime.

    (g)  Availability of electricity at a very low cost.

    (h)  Change in appreciation that the emphasis is to change from protection of labor

           to the protection and survival of Industry. They believe that if the industry can

           not sustain and grow, the workers and nation can not sustain and grow. It is just

           change of priority of what should come first.

5.  We have a host of industrial and labor laws and the situation is further complicated when each legislation distinguishes between different types of industry and the number of workers, not to mention the innumerable number pf notifications, departmental clarifications and opinions. Some have limit of less than ten workers while other have limit of 20 or more workers and this trend continues. It is humanly impossible to be able to remember all these variations and their amendments. This is compounded by the fact that the ignorance of law is no excuse. It is essential that each person is familiar with these laws and in addition other laws that govern his individual behavior. This aggravates when we take into account the fact that our legal procedures are so lengthy and time consuming and they take so long to decide that it is no wonder people try to bypass them, find loopholes or even avoid them. The situation becomes especially depressing when we take the case of small or tiny industries which are managed by a single person or a couple of persons, who look after all the aspects pf purchase, production, marketing, maintenance and personnel, not to mention the hosts of visits, inspections by various government agencies and their return and records.

6. The demand of the day is to simplify these laws, records and returns to a bare minimum so that these can be effectively understood and implemented. Unless we can cut then down and in turn cut down the time, effort and the cost wasted in preparing, filing and maintaining them, we can not become competitive in the world market. One simple way would be to divide them and issue a consolidated labor and industrial law for:-

    (a) Industries employing less than hundred workers.

    (b) Industries employing less than thousand workers.

    ©   Industries Employing more than thousand workers.

7. Each law should contain a comprehensive list and consolidation of all the laws, rules, regulations and notifications elated to that particular category of industry including the records and returns required. These are to be kept at a bare minimum and should only deal with what is absolutely essential. No amendments or notifications can be issued in respect of this law for the next five years and that too should require that the whole laws is to be reproduced again and should not be confined to only issue of amendments or notifications. The industrial and labor disputes are to be reduced to just one that has the guarantee of payment of adequate compensation as per the applicable law. In other words, the hire and fire policy with a guaranteed compensation in case of removal is the requirement of the day. Strikes and stoppages or go slow of production should be banned by law with employees resorting to such measures to be removed from employment without any compensation.  This will help the industry in not only cutting down the costs but will also cut down the time and efforts and will lead to concentration of time and effort for higher production and thus bringing down the cost of production even further. At present the major emphasis of the laws is on policing. Civil servants act more like police and the laws heavily tilting towards, punishment, penalty, etc. This emphasis is to shift to that of an adviser, facilitator and guide.

8. In general among the workers there is a feeling that the departments like Provident Fund, Employee state Insurance, etc are not performing their functions as they are expected to but are plagued by procedures, wastage of time and corruption. A number of problems between the management and workers are due to these departments and arise due to non transparency, lethargy, red tapism and the typical babu like attitude of civil servants employed in these organizations, which lead to mistrust and fraud. We can take examples from other countries like USA and European countries, where provident fund, insurance, medical facilities are in the hands of private sector and the workers are free to choose the organization or institutions to whom they wish to entrust their funds with. Government does not act as a regulator and administrator but as a facilitator.

9. The crux of the problem is that instead of government deciding what is best for the workers let the workers decide what is best for them. It is imperative for the government to change its attitude before the attitude of the industry and workers can be changed. The first step in this right direction would be the long awaited overhaul of the industrial and labor laws. We should do away with the lengthy procedures, record maintenance, returns, visits, inspections and a host of penalty charges. Give the business a friendly environment to work in, an environment wherein the business can modify or change its role, requirements, functions and procedures fast enough, if not more, but at least equal to the rate of change taking place in the business world. Give some protection to the industry, not in terms of subsidy, but in terms of freedom to work as per the changing situation without any interference or squeeze from the government or other civil bodies, a corruption free environment. With due apologies to Archimedes we can say that “Give the business a place to stand firmly and a long enough lever and we can met the challenges of the world”.