Short Take
Short Take – GULF TODAY – dt. 25.09.2010 – Exploration Future
A caricature was done as a best wishes card for all of us to write our future wishes to him and presented to him during the farewell lunch.
‘Exploration Future’ GULF TODAY Dt. 25.09.2010
It is hectic these days as the start of winter season after the summer holidays bring in many new staff. This is the time when some of the old hands say good bye after their assignment period in the UAE gets completed. It follows with a farewell lunch and welcome parties and one such event happened this weekend.
It was a farewell lunch for one of our managers, who, unlike others remained in this region for two terms, i.e. almost six years, which is not common among our expats. It is a professional environment at office. Seldom do we get to speak personal matters between colleagues as we all immerse ourselves in our own area and scope.
Considering the long interactions with him and the bond and team spirit, I thought I should know a bit more about him than I know as a colleague. I took time out before our normal start and spent a few minutes with him.
Talking to him gave interesting insights and remembrance of my mother’s retirement from work. Into his late fifties, he refused to say the word “retirement.”
He preferred to use “professionally provided long term leave.” With more than 38 years experience, he has worked in France, the Netherlands, Ireland, Brazil, Indonesia and now the UAE, his last professional stop.
Being a sport, he has travelled extensively in all these countries and their neighbouring countries on road and sea. In addition, he has also visited, Yemen, Oman, Jordan, Qatar and Bahrain several times and all the roads and important places are easy for him as the lines on his palm.
With his children now settled, he and his wife, have already bought a boat and plan to explore the un-explored and explored locations for another 10 years. To keep himself fit, he plans to continue canoeing, kite surfing, mountaineering, skiing etc as he is an expert in all those.
I know well, but even then I asked him, do you keep any photos or write blogs about your expeditions so far? Or plan to do any such thing in the future? He answered, “No. I do them and forget them to look forward to the future one. May be a few photographs here and there, which my wife takes. But not on a regular basis. That encourages me to always look forward to the future and keep myself young.”
Well, I listened to him silently and wished him good luck in the new assignment of his life, which I termed, “Exploration Future.”
Ramesh Menon
To read it in original, please visit GULF TODAY online.
Short Take – GULF TODAY – Dt. 18.09.2010 – Choose the right path
Short Take – GULF TODAY – Dt. 18.09.2010 – Choose the right path
Choose the right path
Summer holidays are over and schools in the region have started a new academic session. Most of the expatriates have returned from their holidays. Back to work and back to the old problems. Traffic, traffic, traffic everywhere.
Speeding, wrong parking and bullying by big cars.
Maybe it is due to the fact that some of the driving habits they witnessed in the country they visited, or maybe the roads have new expats who just arrived and do not know the regulations here.
It looks like, traffic wardens have to restart the campaigns they successfully conducted last year once again to remind one and all about safety aspects on the road.
Add to it, the weather is also changing to foggy mornings.
Hope good sense prevails on the road and this winter we do not get to witness major accidents.
Ramesh Menon
To read it in original, please visit GULF TODAY online.
Short Take – Gulf Today Dt 11.09.2010 – Mail shock
Short Take – Gulf Today Dt 11.09.2010 – Mail shock
A few weeks ago, I was talking on the mobile with a friend based in Dubai. After 10 minutes, I received an email from him saying that he was stuck in Switzerland and lost his wallet, all credit cards and money.
The email continued requesting my help to rescue him out by sending a specified amount of money in US dollars which the author said will be given to me upon replying to the email. I knew then and there itself that his email account has been hacked.
I called him and he was shocked to hear this news. Within minutes he was receiving several calls from his friends who did not talk to him for some time and they all suspected the same or even thought whether it was real as he travels extensively. The damage had been done by then, and he was unable to recover the email address or thousands of contacts and records in it. Just the other day, the same thing happened to another friend based in Abu Dhabi. His friends too got a similar email and he too lost all details.
There is a new email hacking or threat happening now, which you may or may not be aware of. Please do not therefore use your email account from unknown computers or locations. Even if you have to use it, clear the cache, and history on the computer immediately.
Also, please do use a different password whenever you register yourself at new sites or promotional websites and keep it entirely different from your email password. Thirdly, please keep changing the password periodically. Hope, you do not get to become a victim the next time.
Ramesh Menon
To read it in original, please visit, GULF TODAY online.
Short Take – GULF TODAY Dt. 04.09.2010 – New Vigour
Short Take – GULF TODAY Dt. 04.09.2010 – New Vigour
New vigour
The Holy Month of Ramadan is almost getting over. Children and families have started arriving back to the UAE after their summer holidays. Many of them have had an extended stay this year due to additional holidays declared by educational ministry for children. The intensity of summer has also reduced. It is a new vigour and enthusiasm for all those who have taken this break. It should now be utilised to the year ahead.
Those memories, those beautiful scenes, interactions and travelogues should all be shared as positively as one can with friends and well wishers. Constructive methods and schemes observed should be tried to blend in to our society as far as possible. Readers should start transforming themselves from mere observers to active participants.
After all, the UAE is our home away from home, which gives us the opportunity to buy our daily bread and supplement ourselves for a future ahead. Let us be part of a contributing community that reacts to the needs of the hour as and when a necessity arises. Be active and interact with all the new energy you have gained during your summer break.
Ramesh Menon
Short Take – GULF TODAY Dt. 28.08.2010 – Surprise gift
Short Take – GULF TODAY Dt. 28.08.2010 – A surprise gift
Surprise gift
The other day, I was having dinner with an Indonesian friend of mine. He seemed to be very happy during our meeting. Conversing with him, I realised, he had just finished scheduling a Haj visit for him and his parents the next month. They were aged, and so he will go to Indonesia and from there fly to Saudi Arabia for Umra.
His parents have had a very normal life all throughout and they took care that their children did have good school and life, even forgetting about their own hardships.
Now, the son, who is here and well employed, is comfortable and thankful to hand over a surprise gift of their life to them this year.
I could see his joy as well as theirs while he conveyed this happy move from his side.
It brought out memories for me of many such parents who work all their life for the benefit of their children.
It was not a one-off instance, but it did create an impact in all our minds about what such actions can bring out in the life of those who get to receive it.
Ramesh Menon
Short Take – GULF TODAY – Dt. 21.08.2010 – Elephant walk policy
Short Take – GULF TODAY – Dt. 21.08.2010 – Elephant walk policy
Elephants – Temple elephants are an integral part in the life of Keralites. Especially, if you are from the Trichur area. The attachment towards the animal are so emotional and sensitive that people even address them by names and from ancient times there are several stories propagating the love and affection between man and elephant. An elephant’s walk is a beauty to watch.
However, imagine a situation if it gets wild. You just have to do a search on YouTube, you will see several videos of attacks by wild elephants killing their mahout or others who come across.
Out of love and passion for the animal, I have developed an important management principle based on elephants, closely following its gentle and beautiful walking style which is a beauty to watch and its actions scaring all when it is wild. I have termed it as Elephant Walk Policy. It is somewhat related to some of the age-old philosophies and principles we normally follow.
The first part of this principle follows non-violence. Be mild – as mild as you can till you cannot tolerate any more when you may change over and follow the other part and be wild and aggressive – as aggressive as you can. Create a wild impact and then let this impact force the results.
Ramesh Menon
To read it in original, please visit GULF TODAY Online.
Short Take – GULF TODAY – Dt. 14.08.2010 – New Age Pets
Short Take – GULF TODAY – Dt. 14.08.2010 – New Age Pets
New age pets
If someone asks what is the most inseparable electronic gadget one loves to carry, you will easily be told by one and all that it is a mobile phone. Many times, we get to see people go crazy over this gadget and disobeying instructions and carrying out their conversations irrespective of the danger it could bring out to him or others near.
During my recent visit to India, I witnessed such an incident when a gentleman inside the flight kept on talking on his phone even after the pilot’s instructions came on for take off. He chose not to listen to the instructions of the staff and kept on talking of some silly business transactions he was able to carry out during the recent times. Co-passengers had to literally force him to switch off his mobile. Probably, every one had in their mind the recent air traffic tragedy at Mangalore.
In another incident, I was visiting a relative. As we were received and led inside the sitting room and started conversation, the host sat in front of us in his sofa.
Next to him lay, two phones, and as he talked to us, he was checking the phones one after another. It went on to an extent that we felt his mind was not there with us as he just tried casually to get in and out of the conversation happening without actually involving himself. Curious to know what was that urgent thing that kept him distracted continuously, I came to know that he was responding to his emails on one and on the other, he was doing online queries and trading. I was thinking of the earlier days, when pets used to sit near and the owner patted them and as they expressed their affectionate emotions enjoyed by all around.
Now, the new age pets converse with the owner only as others watch helplessly.
Ramesh Menon
To read it in original, please visit GULF TODAY Online.
Short Take – Gulf Today Dt. 31.07.2010 – Quest for knowledge
Short Take – Gulf Today Dt. 31.07.2010 – Quest for knowledge
Our knowledge and experience are the only things that, if passed on, will remain with the generations. All the other things, money, property, etc, will have a natural, timely or untimely death.
Knowledge passed on, by any means, will become immortal. It will be all the more, if it is through a creative medium. I was surprised recently to learn this when I happened to notice a painting, which I had created in 1999 and posted on a webpage created that time, now being used in a German site, where they explain in detail the thoughts and principles underlying that drawing. I was amazed and swept off.
I am writing this to all those who hold their reservations, either due to shortage of time or other reasons for not utilising a wonderful opportunity thrown in front.
This is not the old age situation that happened to Ekalavya, who learned the secrets of archery techniques from the legendary guru Dronacharya, by hiding behind the bushes. When he came to know that Ekalavya had learned more than what he had taught to his favourite student Arjuna, Dronacharya, asked for his thumb finger as the Guru Dakshina (fees) from Ekalavya.
Don’t worry, our science and technology is far and well advanced now. Give your thumb finger out to your gurus or mentors if they are asking for it, and share your knowledge, as we have many a new technology already ready to replace it better than the original one. Have no fear, and have no holds.
This is also a tribute to all those who work hard and do continuous education through various Distant Learning Programmes. They deserve a special applause for hard work and dedication put in to continue their quest for gaining knowledge, without forgetting commitments towards profession and family.
Thanks to all those professors and support staff who work hard to present and create a classroom atmosphere and provide quality materials at par with other universities worldwide for these knowledge seekers, who in normal case could not have done it without their efforts.
Ramesh Menon
To read this in orginal, please visit GULF TODAY online.
Short Take – GULF TODAY – Dt. 24.07.2010 – Keep Communicating
Keep communicating
The heat is on. CVs are coming in volume from job hunters. Thanks to the global recession, many companies still reduce staff.
The banking sector is also in greater caution and this is another major area for many of us who have an attitude to be there when in need.
In the coming days/months we may get to hear many sad stories/tragedies of job loss/life etc directly or indirectly due to the economic scenario.
It is, therefore, important to be in touch with your regular friends/loved ones/contacts. Make sure you get to create a communication and feel their pulse. I am sure you will definitely be able to get the feelings across, even if it is a silence or pause in the communication. But to be there at the time in need is the most important gift you can give to a friend or a well-wisher of yours.
The reason for writing this here is an interview of Indian actor Dileep shown on TV some time ago about a movie where he did a stunt scene by jumping into the sea. In it, he explained what was his feeling before jumping and once in motion down.
No control, and life and death were seconds away.
Luckily for him there were people to rescue him, who were on standby. But a repeat shot had to be taken and he continued, there were no one around and it was really touch and go.
Two years ago, a friend committed suicide due to a financial fraud by one of his customers. Almost similar time, another friend’s wife committed suicide due to prolonged arthritis ailment. Both took the same aerial route of jumping from the balcony and the narration by Dileep was really touchy and brought back memories several times.
If, someone was there to hold them/restrain them back from that decision, life would have been an altogether different thing for their children.
Let the party continue, enjoy life as it happens, let the rejoicing progress if you are on the lucky side. But keep an eye and ear open for that precious silence somewhere around.
You never know, a chance hello or a short email will make you realise the reason for that precious silence and may give you an opportunity to be the important person for someone whom you care.
Ramesh Menon
To read it in original, please visit GULF TODAY online.
Short Take – GULF TODAY – Dt. 17.07.2010 – Stick to values
Short Take – GULF TODAY – Dt. 17.07.2010 – Stick to values
We all come from different walks of life, and walk past different routes and directions of it each day. During the same course, we come across several people and some remains within our mind for a longer time and some are easily forgotten. Certain actions by certain individuals will easily capture our admiration and then we follow them and certain others, they might have a slow start and we tend to ignore them totally.
It is time we think about how we could transform ourselves to a society that responds at the right time.
Each day brings out a joy of learning a thing new, irrespective of which side I get up, who double parks in front of my car, and who speeds and misses hitting my car while travelling between work and home. The world is growing in pace and volume and along with it the diverse culture and style. Even during the last holy month of Ramadan, I witnessed women dressing scantly, people smoking discreetly, which a few years before I could have never even imagined or seen. Several times I did ask myself, why public has a tendency to violate rules and values when they clearly know that these are not to be violated during this period to give respect to the religion and numerous people who follow it. May be I will be labelled crazy, if I discuss such things frequently. But, how can I resist expressing myself. No, never, I will never keep my thoughts within.
ClicksandWrites 
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