The paradox of our time in history is that...

Long back, someone forwarded an email to me...I thought it might be something witty (bush-laden jokes) or just waste-of-time forwards (‘send it to 10 people and you will get a laptop’). I wanted to  delete it but don’t know why I opened it and started reading....and kept reading. The mail was not fun, neither waste of time. It was a nice text, written by unknown, touched me and forced me to think over what is happening all around and within.

Here is what I read. (I’ve very slightly modified the text for better reading)

The paradox of our time in history is that...

We have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints.

We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness. We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much and pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom and hate too often.

We've learned how to make a living, but not a life.  We've added years to life not life to years.

We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbour.

We conquered outer space but not inner space. We've done larger things, but not better things.
We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.
We write more, but learn less. We plan more, but accomplish less. We've learned to rush, but not to wait. We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships. These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes. These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom.

A time when, technology can bring this letter to you and when you can choose either to share this insight or to just hit delete.  Remember to spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever. Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side. Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent. Remember, to say, "I love you" to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.

Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again.
Give time to love, give time to speak, and give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind.

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

Thank you for reading this.

Wish you a very happy New Year!
:)

Numismatics Meets QR Codes - Dutch coins with QR codes!

QR codes (Quick Response codes) were designed by Toyota for use in their systems to encode and decode bulk information at higher speeds.

Due to their large storage capacity and quick readability they were adopted by other industries across the world and in a short span of time we started seeing QR codes for almost every product we use, from mobile companies to apparel brands to personal profiles on social networks. In fact, the QR code decoder apps are available for mobile and smart-phones, so people can decode QR codes themselves.

However, no country has ever embodied QR codes on their coins or paper notes. The first time ever,   Netherlands' Royal Dutch Mint has produced coins with QR codes embodied. Occasion is the 100th anniversary of the Royal Mint. They are producing silver and gold coins of €5 and €10.

Juan José Sánchez Castaño, the designer of these coins says "I want the QR Code to be an icon
of our nowadays living. Nowadays we live in a world in which technology and communications changed the way we think and the way we have relations. A world where internet is present in our daily lives. A world where the “master and apprentice” concept of transmission of knowledge is changing, due to the great source and amount of information available in internet. A world where the coins are not hammered anymore, but engraved with laser technology. A world of QR codes, augmented reality, internet, screens, lasers and mobile phones. A world with a fifth element in nature: instant communication.

The QR code on the coins when decoded directs to this website.

If you collect coins, this is for you. Shop and book one before its out-of-stock.

How can communication be global in the midst of local cultures?

Since they were dropped to the earth humans have developed local languages, cultures and societies unique to their part of the world. These cultures influence (and define) the way they express themselves. Different cultures express the same thing differently. A smile is the best example of global communication which is received equally and similarly by all cultures wherever you travel and live.

Here I will use the word 'communication' to refer not only the human-to-human direct communication but also in the form of products, services, forms of arts and sciences each culture has to offer the other.

In today's connected world it is easy to interact with consumers around the world but the consumer should be able to access and perceive the context and purpose of this communication.

Communication can be made global if we consider the following traits which define human values; these traits drive the message across cultures.

Few examples of global communication (as products, services, arts, sciences and everything)

• Indian curry, Italian pizza, Chinese noodles or Coca Cola - These foods & beverages are typically local but are loved globally.
• Yoga - Originated in India but is practiced around the world.
• Ford's cheap black cars introduced in 1900s - The cheap cars made by Ford were so good and affordable by common American that it took no time for this company to quadruple their profits. 
• Movies, like, Titanic don’t necessarily need translation. Charlie Chaplin’s movies were very well connected to the masses. These were silent movies but depicted the joys and sorrows of the common man.
• Van Gough’s paintings have lovers around the world 
• James Bond - The British fictional character's style impresses everybody.
• WhatsApp – Who imagined a simple chat messenger will do so much better than any other messenger in the Internet history!
• Google – Can you live a day without Google?
• iPad – Microsoft and HP were ahead of Apple and already had tablet products but iPad was a classic success.

Every example discussed above is communicating something to the end user–the consumer. Food is communicating taste, Yoga is communicating wellness, car is communicating comfort of travel, a movie or painting is communicating a dream/memories/fiction/reality that people can relate to, James Bond is communicating style and determination, WhatsApp is communicating easy communication.

These examples influence the global consumer because of some common traits:

• Aesthetic – How ‘usable’ the product is, i.e., how obvious is the product’s usage with respect to global user.
• Simplicity – Industrial design is embracing simplicity, the software screens are becoming simpler.
• Purposeful – There should be a purpose of the communication and it should be visible.
• Attractiveness – Style attracts consumer. 
• Reachability – The communication channel should be capable of spreading the message to the masses.
• Joy – The consumer should feel happy.
• Honest – As Dieter Rams said “It does not make a product appear more innovative, powerful or valuable than it really is. It does not attempt to manipulate the consumer with promises that cannot be kept”

Local communication requires wings of these qualities to be able to take a global flight.

Space Travel - Virgin Galactic brings the greatest adventure of all

Have you ever dreamt of travelling in space, and seeing the earth and the stars from the high skies with naked eyes being there in the middle of skies?! Your dream can come true...Richard Branson the British baron has launched Virgin Galactic – world’s first commercial spaceline! Virgin Galactic will make the space travel possible for almost anyone (who has money to spend).

Unlike the airplanes which fly around 30,000 feet above sea level the virgin galactic spacecraft will fly at the altitude of 360,000 feet above sea level crossing the Karman line. The karman line is considered as the boundary between the earth’s atmosphere and the outer space. This is the point where eadth’s atmosphere starts getting thinner and thinner... This is the same altitude where Aurora is formed, wow we can fly even higher than auroras!

At this height imagine how the earth will look..the cities will appear like a pixel dot on the canvas of earth and the huge oceans and continents will be visible as you are standing in front of a huge globe in a dark room...could be scary for some people...but won’t be wrong to say it will be ‘heavenious’ trip for adventurous folks.

Years of research on re-usable spacecrafts and safe re-entry into earth has made this dream possible.

Designed by the legendry British architects Foster + Partners (who are already doing wonders in the middle east) the spaceport is based in New Mexico, USA and looks like shooting spot of a sci-fi movie...

Here is the official Virgin Galactic video which will show you the glimpses of space travel and the programme.



Cost? Well, such an adventure is priceless :) but still you will have to pay $200,000 to fly...what are you waiting for? If you have millions to spend then go book your journey.

Six Keys to Being Excellent at Anything

(By Tony Schwartz)

I've been playing tennis for nearly five decades. I love the game and I hit the ball well, but I'm far from the player I wish I were.

I've been thinking about this a lot the past couple of weeks, because I've taken the opportunity, for the first time in many years, to play tennis nearly every day. My game has gotten progressively stronger. I've had a number of rapturous moments during which I've played like the player I long to be.


And almost certainly could be, even though I'm 58 years old. Until recently, I never believed that was possible. For most of my adult life, I've accepted the incredibly durable myth that some people are born with special talents and gifts, and that the potential to truly excel in any given pursuit is largely determined by our genetic inheritance.

During the past year, I've read no fewer than five books — and a raft of scientific research — which powerfully challenge that assumption (see below for a list). I've also written one, The Way We're Working Isn't Working, which lays out a guide, grounded in the science of high performance, to systematically building your capacity physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.

We've found, in our work with executives at dozens of organizations, that it's possible to build any given skill or capacity in the same systematic way we do a muscle: push past your comfort zone, and then rest. Aristotle had it exactly right 2000 years ago: "We are what we repeatedly do." By relying on highly specific practices, we've seen our clients dramatically improve skills ranging from empathy, to focus, to creativity, to summoning positive emotions, to deeply relaxing.

Like everyone who studies performance, I'm indebted to the extraordinary Anders Ericsson, arguably the world's leading researcher into high performance. For more than two decades, Ericsson has been making the case that it's not inherited talent which determines how good we become at something, but rather how hard we're willing to work — something he calls "deliberate practice." Numerous researchers now agree that 10,000 hours of such practice as the minimum necessary to achieve expertise in any complex domain.

There is something wonderfully empowering about this. It suggests we have remarkable capacity to influence our own outcomes. But that's also daunting. One of Ericsson's central findings is that practice is not only the most important ingredient in achieving excellence, but also the most difficult and the least intrinsically enjoyable.

If you want to be really good at something, it's going to involve relentlessly pushing past your comfort zone, along with frustration, struggle, setbacks and failures. That's true as long as you want to continue to improve, or even maintain a high level of excellence. The reward is that being really good at something you've earned through your own hard work can be immensely satisfying.

Here, then, are the six keys to achieving excellence we've found are most effective for our clients:

• Pursue what you love. Passion is an incredible motivator. It fuels focus, resilience, and perseverance.
• Do the hardest work first. We all move instinctively toward pleasure and away from pain. Most great performers, Ericsson and others have found, delay gratification and take on the difficult work of practice in the mornings, before they do anything else. That's when most of us have the most energy and the fewest distractions.
• Practice intensely, without interruption for short periods of no longer than 90 minutes and then take a break. Ninety minutes appears to be the maximum amount of time that we can bring the highest level of focus to any given activity. The evidence is equally strong that great performers practice no more than 4 ½ hours a day.
• Seek expert feedback, in intermittent doses. The simpler and more precise the feedback, the more equipped you are to make adjustments. Too much feedback, too continuously, however, can create cognitive overload, increase anxiety, and interfere with learning.
• Take regular renewal breaks. Relaxing after intense effort not only provides an opportunity to rejuvenate, but also to metabolize and embed learning. It's also during rest that the right hemisphere becomes more dominant, which can lead to creative breakthroughs.
• Ritualize practice. Will and discipline are wildly overrated. As the researcher Roy Baumeister has found, none of us have very much of it. The best way to insure you'll take on difficult tasks is to ritualize them — build specific, inviolable times at which you do them, so that over time you do them without having to squander energy thinking about them.

I have practiced tennis deliberately over the years, but never for the several hours a day required to achieve a truly high level of excellence. What's changed is that I don't berate myself any longer for falling short. I know exactly what it would take to get to that level.

I've got too many other higher priorities to give tennis that attention right now. But I find it incredibly exciting to know that I'm still capable of getting far better at tennis — or at anything else — and so are you.

Google and the Myth of Free Time

(By Chris Trimble — a well-known innovation speaker and consultant, is on the faculty of the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College.)

In my travels, I'm frequently asked to share my thoughts about Google's stated practice of encouraging individuals to spend 20 percent of their time pursuing innovative projects of their own inspiration.

It's not hard to understand where the question comes from. Many people are told routinely that innovation is everybody's job. And yet, the pressures of day-to-day operations are enormous. Who has time to innovate?

But my answer to their question about the 20 percent policy is always the same: It sounds expensive. Very expensive. For sake of argument, let's say 60 percent of the cost structure in your organization goes to salary and benefits. If you were to allocate 20 percent of each person's time for innovation, it would immediately cut 12 points from your margins. Twelve points! Even if you cut it down by extending the 20 percent policy only to a subset of employees, those are huge numbers.

Could it be worth it? Will the investment pay off in the long run?

Unfortunately, it probably won't. To see why, you have to recognize that innovation is a two-part adventure. First, you have to come up with a great idea. Second, you have to execute it. My co-author Vijay Govindarajan and I refer to that second step as the other side of innovation because it is often underappreciated or even completely overlooked.

The problem with the 20 percent policy is that it's likely to generate a great deal of activity on the idea side of innovation and very little on the execution side — the other side. Think about it. Just how much can one person accomplish with 20 percent of their time? They might be able to complete some very small projects, but if we're talking about anything significant — a new product, a new service, or a brand new businesses — then 20 percent of one person's time is just not much to work with.

Even if a few people come together organically to tackle the same challenge with a "group 20 percent," resources are still slim. Perhaps it's enough to articulate a great idea. Perhaps it's possible to even complete some research that supports the idea's viability. But what of the rest of the journey? The other side of innovation is out of reach.

The hidden risk in the 20 percent policy is that you end up generating a mountain of great ideas on paper that never become anything more than a mountain of great ideas on paper.

It's probably best to view Google's stated policy with at least some mild skepticism. Does Google really live up to its 20 percent ideal? I'm sure the company is delighted that their 20 percent philosophy has become so well known and so readily accepted as reality. It must be terrific for recruiting. But I think it is most likely that 20 percent time is an ideal the company aspires to but finds very difficult to live up to in practice, even with their seemingly boundless resources — a luxury most companies can't even imagine.