Rs. 5 day!

Yesterday I unknowingly found myself in a midst of a bizarre 'shopping spree'. Whatever I bought in till the day was over amounted to Rs. 5...(nothing more or nothing less). I started my day by buying a Rs. 5 steel ring in the local train, then spent another Rs. 5 for a packet of roasted chana (grams), another fiver for sukkha (dry) bhel-puri, and the last 5 for a small glass of Kokum sherbet. Interesting ... Rs 5 seems the way to snack in Mumbai!

Climate Talk

The Climate Policy Wonks : http://climateprogress.org/
The Science Corner : http://www.realclimate.org
The Advocates : http://www.desmogblog.com

Booklist...

Books I Want To Read:
Attracting Investors by Philip Kotler, Hermawan Kartajaya and S. David Young
Repositioning Asia : From Bubble to Sustainable Economy (Hardcover)by Tim Calkins, Hermawan Kartajaya
Living Buddha, Living Christ by Thich Nhat Hanh
The Wisdom of Crowds: Why the Many Are Smarter Than the Few and How Collective Wisdom Shapes Business, Economies, Societies and Nations (Hardcover)by James Surowiecki
Everyday Ethics : Inspired Solutions to Real-Life Dilemmas (Hardcover)by Joshua Halberstam
The Three Ways of Getting Things Done Hierarchy, Heterarchy and Responsible Autonomy in Organisations by Gerard Fairtlough
The Little Kingdom: The Private Story of Apple Computer by Michael Moritz
Spare Room Tycoon : The Seventy Lessons Of Sane Self-Employment by James Chan
Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham
In an Uncertain World by Robert Rubin
Why Smart People Make Big Money Mistakes and How to Correct Them : Lesson from The New Science of Behavioural Economics by Gary Belsky, Thomas Gilovich
The Box : How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger by Marc Levinson
Say It With Presentations: How to Design and Deliver Successful Business Presentations
Please Understand Me II: Temperament, Character, Intelligence (Paperback) by David Keirsey
Moving mountains;: Or, The art and craft of letting others see things your way by Henry M Boettinger
Tested Advertising Methods by John Capes
Personal Financial Planning By Koh, Benedict & Fong Wai Mun

An inspiring evening spent in Mr. E Sreedharan's presence

My dad, one of Mr. E Sreedharan's most trusted lieutenants (then Chief Engineer of Tunnels) in Konkan Railway during (1993-1996), talks about the now famous 'Metro Man' as one who will be remembered like Gandhi in times to come. I had a great opportunity to meet this living legend and listen to an inspiring speech by him at the Konkan Railway founders day on Oct 15th, 2009 and I was moved. Such agility at an advanced age of 77 and such humility! He enquired about everything from children's playground, hospital, ladies club, health etc and asked personally for certain people during this visit. I have had an opportunity to meet Mr. Sreedharan on a few occasions but this is the first time I heard him speak publicly. He spoke slowly and softly and without any written aid and many things stood out from this speech. I have heard many great, successful and famous people speak but none has had such a profound impact on me.

1) He spoke about punctuality and respecting other people's time. He said respect people by respecting their time

2) He spoke about integrity. His integrity led government to invite him to chair Rs. 2500 crore Konkan Railway and Rs. 10000 crore (phase 1) Delhi Metro and Rs. 22000 crore (phase 2) Delhi Metro project. If anything that can win a battle and war for you in all fronts of your life it is this timeless value of integrity - personal as well as professional integrity

3) He spoke about health - sound sleep, good food, exercise, spending time with loved ones, i.e. overall balance, as a key to a happy life and its easy to see how he has practiced this value to its heart. He is 77 and can put a 30-something to shame.

4) He spoke about inculcating spiritual values as a key to achieving happiness, peace and success, i.e. work done with an attitude of service, not money, giving one's best always and leaving the final results to God. He emphasized the value in giving time for personal introspection and getting in touch with the spiritual power within us.

5) He also spoke about excelling in one's job by knowing everything as a key to self-confidence, self-assurance. If one excels one is beyond assail of any kind.

6) Last but not the least he emphasized the value of leading by example. Walking the talk.

God give Mr. Sreedharan a long life so that he can continue to inspire and lead the country and the world!

Words of wisdom from Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam

There is a famous saying in Thirukural by Saint Poet Thiruvalluvar -- Vellathanaythu Malar Neetam Mandartham Ullathanaytu Uyarvu. It means that, just like the height of the water in a pond determines the height to which a lily would grow, it is the heights of thoughts that determines the heights to which you could aspire for. So as human beings they should have great thoughts, great aims, and when thoughts become transformed into actions performed with perseverance and devotion, success has to follow.