Saturday 1 October 2016

“Gandhi Jayanti 2016 Special ― Praying for Peace across Indo-Pak Border after India’s Surgical Strikes” ―Professor M.S.Rao





“An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind.” ― Mahatma Gandhi


It is untimely to write an article of this kind imploring both India and Pakistan to stay united and collaborate especially when the tensions are high across the Indo-Pakistan border. At the same time, it is timely to write an article to preach and practice non-violence and truth on the eve of Gandhiji’s birth anniversary which is celebrated on October 02 every year. First let us address the relevance of Mahatma Gandhi in today’s world.


Is Mahatma Gandhi’s Philosophy Relevant in Today’s World?

After the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi many people opined that Gandhi would be forgotten soon and his ideologies would fade away quickly. However, Gandhi and Gandhism still lives in the hearts and minds of not only Indians but also the people across the world. He is not only a national leader but also an international leader who influenced many leaders including 6 Nobel laureates for Peace ― Martin Luther King Jr, Nelson Mandela, Dalai Lama, Aung San Suu Kyi, Adolfo Perez Esquivel and Barack Obama.


India and Pakistan must Collaborate to Grow as a Super Power

Mahatma Gandhi was against the partition of India. He always strove for unity among all religions and communities. He wanted both Pakistanis and Indians to live like brothers. It is time for these countries to join together to make a better world. Pakistanis admire Indian film stars and Indians admire Pakistani singers. Why not to have a synergy between both of us?  Let us forget our unpleasant past. Let us start our life on a clean slate. Both India and Pakistan have brotherly relations for many years, and they cannot be separated by these politicians through geographical borders.

The leaders who divided people are always villains while the leaders who united people are always the heroes. When you look at Abraham Lincoln who was the first Republican President and the 16th President of America, he led during the turbulent times of Civil War in America and became a hero because he emphasized the unity of America and finally achieved it. 

The politicians from India and Pakistan were responsible for the division of India into two parts. It was Mahatma Gandhi who pioneered the unity of India and Pakistan. When you look at Pakistan, it could not grow rapidly due to division. If India and Pakistan remained as one country, we would have grown as a super power by now. It is unfortunate that the political leaders from India and Pakistan often indulge in rhetoric against each other to incite people to cover up their internal incapacities. These games must be checked. All efforts must be made to bring both brothers together.

Competition kills while collaboration thrills. India and Pakistan must collaborate to grow in all aspects to build a better world. Conflicts bring ill-will among the people. Hence, bringing both Pakistan and India under one platform is always good for both India and Pakistan.

India and Pakistan must collaborate forgetting their unpleasant past. The Indians and the Pakistanis are alike in attitude and mindset. They are like brothers. The only difference is the religion. But there are many religions in India who live together under one roof with peace and harmony. Hence, it is very much possible for both Indians and Pakistanis to unite and live like brothers. We lived together for many years. We have been separated for only 69 years.  When Germany could unite as one nation, why not India and Pakistan unite as one nation?   Remember, everything is possible in the world. A right educational system presenting both countries in a positive perspective will pave the way for collaboration and unity between these two countries. Indians and Pakistanis must avoid antagonistic attitude against each other to unite under one platform to become a great country and a super power in the world. To summarize, India and Pakistan are like brothers who have been separated by politicians. They have similar culture, attitude and value system. They lived together for many years. They share similar culture and value system. Separation of India and Pakistan is only a geographical one, not psychological one. Both must work together to achieve peace and prosperity.


Surgical Strikes and Tensions across Indo-Pak Border

“If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner.” ― Nelson Mandela

Currently the emotions are running high in both countries after the Uri attacks. What is essential now is reason, logic and analysis rather than being carried away by emotions.

While I appreciate the initiative taken by our beloved Indian Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi to conduct surgical air strikes, I implore him to exercise restraint as we Indians demonstrated our might by avenging for Uri attacks. War is not the solution for any country in the world. As a follower of Mahatma Gandhi, I sincerely believe that dialogue is the only solution. If war is declared it does no good for both India and Pakistan. It is beneficial for China and US. Are we here to benefit others? Are we here to progress? We must think.


Mahatma Gandhi is Mortal and his Philosophy is Immortal

I am a follower of Mahatma Gandhi and Swami Vivekananda. 26 years ago, I read Mahatma Gandhi’s autobiography, The Story of My Experiments with Truth when I was serving in Indian Air Force. I was inspired by his ideas and ideals. I learned many things from this great soul such as walking the talk, caring for others, respecting women, emphasizing right means to achieve ends, and leading a simple life. 

Mahatma Gandhi’s impact on mankind is eternal. His ideals and ideas are immortal. In a nutshell, his principles are eternal and his leadership is everlasting. The global citizens must contribute their best without craving for any recognition, and take a pledge to inculcate his principles and philosophies to build a better world.


Conclusion

Hatred doesn’t have any place in the world. Love is the only way to connect with the world. Love breaks all barriers including political, social, cultural, religious, racial and national. We are all the branches of one tree. The root is one. The world is our root; branches are the nations; and leaves are the people. Let us appreciate the fact that we all have originated from one place and we all belong to one family. Hence, the whole world is one family. Although we are separated by regions, nations, and borders people remain the same at the core level. The children are born innocent but the environment brings them up as per their faiths, regions, religions and nations. Hence, let us focus on bringing the children with a global mindset with a universal brotherhood to achieve the ultimate objective of global peace and prosperity.


“War does not determine who is right - only who is left.” ― Bertrand Russell

Note: This article has been adapted from my upcoming book ‘Professor M.S.Rao’s Vision 2030: One Million Global Leaders’. Kiran Bedi wrote foreword. I dedicated this book to Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam. Read free chapters http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.in/2015/07/sample-chapter-professor-msraos.html

References




If you like this article, Like and share Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Professor-MSRao/451516514937414




Life is great!

Professor M.S.Rao, India
Founder of MSR Leadership Consultants India
Recipient of 10th International Prestigious Sardar Patel Award―2015






Tuesday 9 August 2016

“We are Only on this Planet for a Very Short Time. It is an Opportunity for us to Make a Difference!” ―Professor M.S.Rao



“We are visitors on this planet. We are here for one hundred years at the very most. During that period we must try to do something good, something useful, with our lives. If you contribute to other people's happiness, you will find the true meaning of life.” ― Dalai Lama XIV


People often waste their precious time without realizing that the life is very short. At times they waste their time, money, energy and resources to fight against others. At the end of their lives, they realize their folly but it is too late. Most of them die with regrets at their deathbeds.

When you look at Steve Jobs, he knew that he would die due to cancer. He valued every moment and spent his time with his family and the things that were close to his heart. He rightly remarked, “Your time is limited, don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma, which is living the result of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinion drowned your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition, they somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” He followed his heart and invested his entire life in passionate areas and brought a qualitative difference in the lives of others.  So why don’t you learn to live wisely and qualitatively to provide meaning to your life and make a difference in the lives of others?


Conclusion

“Over short time periods, people are more likely to regret actions taken and mistakes made. Over a long time, they are more likely to regret actions not taken, such as missed opportunities for love or working too hard.” ― Melanie Greenberg, clinical psychologist

We are only on this planet for a very short time. Accept the fact that you have a limited time at your disposal. Learn to enjoy the present without worrying about your unpleasant past and thinking about your future unnecessarily. Future cannot be predicted and past cannot be changed. What you have now is the present. Learn to live with the present. Enjoy your life qualitatively. Always think of adding value to others to make a difference in their lives. Life is great!


“Live today the way you want to be remembered tomorrow.” — Dillon Burroughs




If you like this article, Like and share Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Professor-MSRao/451516514937414




Life is great!

Professor M.S.Rao, India
Founder of MSR Leadership Consultants India
Recipient of 10th International Prestigious Sardar Patel Award―2015




Thanks for reading!

Kindly share your thoughts and comments below, I’m sure someone out there will find your story useful.



Copyright©2016 MSR Leadership Consultants India. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

This is a nonprofit blog to share Professor M.S.Rao’s passion and vision to build one million students as global leaders by 2030. Please don't cut articles from my blog and redistribute by email or post to the web. The use of this material is free provided copyright is acknowledged and reference or link is made to the Blog http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.in.  This material may not be sold, or published in any form, or used in the provision of business services to a third party without permission.




Sunday 7 August 2016

“Why is the Success Rate in the Children of Military People Higher? Example of Bollywood Actor, Akshay Kumar” ―Professor M.S.Rao





“My dad was a Punjabi from Amritsar, and my mom is a Punjabi from Kashmir. My dad was a soldier in the Indian Army.” ― Akshay Kumar

“Superstars come and go. I want to make sure I am always a producer's actor. I may be refused to be called a great actor but I have never troubled any of my producers in my life. Honesty always catches the camera, and that is what my strength is.” ― Akshay Kumar


When you observe Akshay Kumar, Ajay Banga, Arnab Goswami, Karan Thapar, Prahlad Kakkar, Tarun Tahiliani, Vinod Khosla, Soumitra Dutta (Dean who wrote foreword for one of my 30 leadership books), Sushmita Sen, Aishwarya Rai, Priyanka Chopra, Lara Dutta, Anushka Sharma, Preity Zinta, Neha Dhupia and Gul Panag, their parents served in Indian Armed Forces.  

I am a keen observer of success people in the world. I am passionate about observing the successes and failures of people, and of course, mostly about successful people. I have been observing the children of military people achieving success in spite of odds stacked against them. Whether it is in the film industry or any other area, the children of military personnel perform their best. I found them acquiring great qualities from their parents such as rising early, being punctual, disciplined and dedicated. They are good time managers with work ethics and professionalism. One Indian actor who proudly talks about his military background is Bollywood actor, Akshay Kumar whose father served in Indian Army. He is honest, down-to-earth and humble. He is a family man and a home bird. He has a great attitude and seldom criticizes others. He works hard, manages his time effectively and enjoys vacationing with his family. He is resilient. He survived in the Indian film industry for more than two decades because of these qualities without any film industry lineage.


My Experience in Indian Air Force

I served in Indian Air Force and always take pride in wearing uniform and serving my nation as a soldier. I have the habit of observing the success of military people and their children. There are a number of reasons for their success. They encounter several hardships in military and have the ability to get along with other communities and cultures. They have fraternity and camaraderie. They have higher emotional intelligence than civilians. They respect all cultures and communities. They see similarities, not differences. They are flexible and adaptable; and bounce back from failures quickly.  They move to different locations to due to postings to their parents, and have the ability to get adjusted with inclement weather conditions. They undergo several challenges due to relocation to different places and typically attend several schools. It gives them unique and rich experience which is missing in civilians. They become amicable and adjustable and jell with others easily. They are tolerant towards others.  They are adventurous and risk takers. In fact, risk is an integral part of their lives. They explore and experiment and learn lessons from their mistakes quickly. They demonstrate positive attitude and winning spirit.  


Real Leaders Grow from Challenges

The children of military people are exposed to the outside world, and are aware of the challenges and ground realities. They become empathetic. They are great communicators and network with others easily. They can work in team and build teams successfully and excel as leaders. They overcome insurmountable obstacles in armed forces and become courageous and great decision makers. They make friends easily and value friendship more because they are away from their relatives. They are warm, friendly and helpful. Above all, the patriotic fervor runs high in them. Hence, their success rate is higher.

Real leaders grow from challenges.  The children of military people undergo several trials and tribulations due to different geographical locations, climates and multiple schools, and grow as true leaders. Although we cannot conclude that the children of military people alone succeed but it is fact that their success rate is certainly higher than their counterparts in civil life. Jai Hind!


Note: This article is dedicated to the children of military people for growing as leaders and coming out with flying colors in spite of facing several hardships.




If you like this article, Like and share Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Professor-MSRao/451516514937414




Life is great!

Professor M.S.Rao, India
Founder of MSR Leadership Consultants India
Recipient of 10th International Prestigious Sardar Patel Award―2015




Thanks for reading!

Kindly share your thoughts and comments below, I’m sure someone out there will find your story useful.



Copyright©2016 MSR Leadership Consultants India. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.


This is a nonprofit blog to share Professor M.S.Rao’s passion and vision to build one million students as global leaders by 2030. Please don't cut articles from my blog and redistribute by email or post to the web. The use of this material is free provided copyright is acknowledged and reference or link is made to the Blog http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.in.  This material may not be sold, or published in any form, or used in the provision of business services to a third party without permission.

Sunday 31 July 2016

Professor M.S.Rao’s 3 Filter Test


“Lost wealth may be replaced by industry, lost knowledge by study, lost health by temperance or medicine, but lost time is gone forever.” ― Samuel Smiles


One day when I was writing a chapter for my tentatively titled book, “Spark: 21 Success Principles to Unleash the Leader in You” my elder son, Ganesh Sai asked me to visit his office for ‘annual day’ event along with my wife. He was working in private company after completion of his graduation to gain experience. I stopped writing the chapter, thought for a moment and asked my son the following 3 questions:
  1. How much time do I have to spend for the event?
  2. How much money do I have to spend for the event?
  3. Are there any takeaways from the event?

My elder son replied to my first question that I must spend a day for the event. For the second question, he replied that we must spend 100 US dollars for the event.  
For the third question, he replied that there will not be any takeaways from the event.

Then I replied to him as follows: You know very well that I have important international assignments lined up to the year 2020. If I spend a day for such an event, I waste a day of my life, and there will be delay in my deadlines and commitments. Secondly, it is not advisable to spend 100 US dollars for the event. Thirdly, I don’t learn anything and gain anything from the event. As a result, I won’t be able to share anything with others. Then why should I attend the event?

My son was surprised with my response. I shared with him that whenever he undertakes any assignment; he must calculate risk factor, time factor, and the value-addition involved in it to lead a meaningful life.  I further advised him that if the risk is lesser and return is higher, he can invest his precious time, money and energy to undertake the assignments.

The message from this story is that time is more than money. If you waste a second, you wasted one second of your life. God gifted us a fixed span of life. We must understand how to utilize our time effectively. Whether rich or poor, all are blessed with time. Hence, we must utilize our time intelligently. If you lose your money, you can earn but you cannot get back your lost time. Jim Rohn once remarked, "Time is our most valuable asset, yet we tend to waste it, kill it, and spend it rather than invest it." To summarize, we must understand the value of time to understand value of our life. Remember, time management is life management. Hence, invest your time wisely to provide meaning to your life.


“Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.” ― William Penn




If you like this article, Like and share Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Professor-MSRao/451516514937414




Life is great!

Professor M.S.Rao, India
Founder of MSR Leadership Consultants India
Recipient of 10th International Prestigious Sardar Patel Award―2015




Thanks for reading!

Kindly share your thoughts and comments below, I’m sure someone out there will find your story useful.



Copyright©2016 MSR Leadership Consultants India. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.


This is a nonprofit blog to share Professor M.S.Rao’s passion and vision to build one million students as global leaders by 2030. Please don't cut articles from my blog and redistribute by email or post to the web. The use of this material is free provided copyright is acknowledged and reference or link is made to the Blog http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.in.  This material may not be sold, or published in any form, or used in the provision of business services to a third party without permission.

Monday 25 July 2016

“An Open Letter to Shri K. Chandrashekar Rao, Chief Minister of Telangana – Close Fraudulent Private Colleges in Telangana to Enhance Quality Education to Students” ― Professor M.S.Rao




Dear Honourable Chief Minister of Telangana,

You must have heard about oil mafia, sand mafia and now you must hear about college mafia who are fraudsters and leeches who suck money from students through dubious means; ill-treat faculty; and cheat the leaving faculty without paying their salaries and filing false cases against them.

While I appreciate your sincere efforts to close down the erring and unethical educational institutions in Telangana, there are still fraudulent colleges that cheat university officials during inspections, cheat students and faculty; and government through false reimbursement claims.   

I worked in various private engineering colleges in Hyderabad and found a lot of irregularities and corruption. I regret to bring it to your notice publicly that a college in Hyderabad cheated me by not giving my salary more than three months causing mental agony and hardships to me and my family. I complained to appropriate forums including AICTE Chairman and the Registrar of JNTU Hyderabad. The AICTE Chairman, Prof. Anil D. Sahasrabudhe, and the Registrar of JNTU Hyderabad, Dr. N. Yadaiah are aware of my issue and know my name. In spite of my repeated requests to credit my salary, the college has not credited my salary into my account. I don’t want other intellectuals to undergo agony like me. Hence, I am writing openly some of the irregularities happening in private engineering colleges in Telangana State to bring to your notice so that you can take remedial measures to streamline the education system:
  • Most colleges don’t have adequate infrastructure. Students don’t have adequate facilities to acquire quality education. Required number of laboratories are not available.
  • Most colleges don’t have adequate faculty strength. These notorious colleges engage ghost faculty. That means they hire the faculty at the time of inspection to cheat the visiting inspection officials.
  • Most colleges don’t pay salaries as per the norms. They show on record that they pay as per the latest pay commission and follow the norms. They are notorious by crediting the salaries into the accounts of faculty and withdrawing the differential amount forcibly on the same day through self-withdrawal forms signed by the faculty. Any bank official can easily identify these irregularities. Any person with common sense can easily identify how colleges cheat intellectuals by taking their signatures on the withdrawal forms on the day of giving salaries. At times the faculty end up paying more income tax as officially the salary on records is higher than what is received in reality.
  • The faculty don’t receive their salaries on time. Most colleges don’t pay salaries to the leaving employees. Worse some colleges don’t give relieving order to the relieved employees. The owners are sadists without any ethical values, and they harass leaving intellectuals by various means. When the leaving faculty challenges them, these fraud managements file wrong cases against such employees. 
  • The name of the same faculty member appears in other colleges also. Previously, these fraud colleges collected fee reimbursement from government fraudulently by showing fake students.
  • These fraud colleges give advertisement to recruit faculty. They get lots of CVs at the time of recruitment and misuse CVs during inspections. At times, these fraudsters take scanned copies of certificates from the prospective applicants before interview and show them during inspections without the knowledge of faculty. Faculty won’t be recruited and the colleges misuse the documents.
  • These fraud colleges have close nexus with other fraud colleges. They share faculty members to cheat inspection officials from their affiliated universities. They fool students and officials by listing ghost faculty.
  • The college owners are notorious for inviting the influential university officials for ‘guest lectures’ and ‘graduation day’ events and pay handsome remuneration. It is an indirect way of bribing these university officials.
  • These fraud colleges openly flout the norms. They are confident that they can bribe officials during inspections. The corrupt officials are not in the mood to redress the grievances made against these colleges by students and faculty.
  • The inspecting officials are aware of the irregularities in these colleges. These colleges are noted for offering bribes to visiting inspection officials. Some of the university officials are corrupt, and they hardly take any action.
  • These fraud colleges flout labor laws, and the labor officials are aware of them but they don’t take any action since they also receive bribes regularly.
  • Some of the colleges are run by so called entrepreneurs with criminal background. Some money lenders, toddy contractors and real estate agents have reinvented as educational entrepreneurs to cheat students, faculty, university officials and government. They have no passion or vision to build quality educational institutions. Their mission is to cheat somehow to make quick money. How can you build Bangaru Telangana with such managements?
  • Some of the visiting officials during inspection are very strict and honest. They cancel affiliations to erring colleges. The owners of these private colleges apply political pressure on these university officials based on caste, community or region. When honest university officials cancel affiliations, the notorious owners approach courts and bribe there also.


Solutions

Here are some solutions to these problems. We must have quality educational institutions, not quantity. Cancel affiliations to the fraudulent colleges with a track record of complaints such as not paying salaries to the leaving employees and collecting extra fee from students indirectly through dubious means. Create a grievance cell where faculty and students can complain irregularities anonymously. Ensure that every college has adequate number of faculty as per the prescribed norms, laboratories and infrastructure to run courses successfully. Make biometric attendance system for faculties, students and employees compulsory. Check the bank records of each college whether the salaries are paid promptly. Check the open irregularities such as taking the differential salary amount from the faculty forcibly on the day of crediting the salary. Involve income tax authorities to check these irregularities.

It is time you checked these unethical businessmen masquerading as educationists. Remember, if corruption enters into educational institutions and armed forces, the country will collapse.

Educational institutions are the temples of learning. The onus lies with you to maintain sanctity by weeding out fraudsters and criminals. Only then you will be able to ensure quality education and shell out students with ethical values.

I request you to build a strong educational system where intellectuals are comfortable with pay and perks to share their knowledge, and students are confident of acquiring knowledge to grow as healthy citizens. Jai Hind!


Note: I authored a book sharing my bitter experiences with the colleges I worked in Hyderabad. The book is yet to go for print, and is tentatively titled as “Sharing in Success! A Guide to Acquire Insights on Academic, Career, Leadership and Entrepreneurial Success.”  URL: http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.in/2016/07/free-chapter-professor-msraos-book_6.html

References



If you like this article, Like and share Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Professor-MSRao/451516514937414




Life is great!

Professor M.S.Rao, India
Founder of MSR Leadership Consultants India
Recipient of 10th International Prestigious Sardar Patel Award―2015




Thanks for reading!

Kindly share your thoughts and comments below, I’m sure someone out there will find your story useful.



Copyright©2016 MSR Leadership Consultants India. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

This is a nonprofit blog to share Professor M.S.Rao’s passion and vision to build one million students as global leaders by 2030. Please don't cut articles from my blog and redistribute by email or post to the web. The use of this material is free provided copyright is acknowledged and reference or link is made to the Blog http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.in.  This material may not be sold, or published in any form, or used in the provision of business services to a third party without permission.