Canteen Fundas

‘I don’t enjoy studying,’ said Rahul. ‘I cannot understand how people do things they do not enjoy.’ ‘Yes,’ said Rinku. ‘It would be great if we could only do things we enjoy right bhaiyya?’ ‘What you enjoy can also become boring if it becomes ‘work’,’ said Rakesh. ‘For example, you may enjoy playing basketball but if you have to practice hard every morning and evening it might not be enjoyable anymore. Or you like gaming and it becomes a job, you may not enjoy it as much. So it’s not only about what you’re doing, but knowing the secret to enjoying ‘work’, that leads to real enjoyment and success.’ ‘Are you saying we can also enjoy boring things like studying?’ asked Rahul. ‘Yes,’ smiled Rakesh. ‘In fact many things that bring you success are what you might call ‘boring’. To become an expert at your ‘work’ you have to put in conscious, regular, hard work that is always beyond your comfort zone. Doing mindless work does not bring improvement.’ ‘So what’s the secret that makes ‘boring’ th

‘Rinku, did you hear that Akshay has chosen to concentrate on music as a career?’ asked Rahul. ‘I am quite amazed at his decision.’ ‘That way Zeeshan has opted for a career in tennis too,’ said Rinku. ‘It’s quite interesting to see them make such choices.’ ‘It makes me wonder what makes them make such choices,’ said Rahul. ‘For us it’s the conventional choices. Study science, work hard, build a career. What makes them decide so early? A special talent?’ ‘It is a good question,’ said Rakesh. ‘We normally look at cognitive abilities as being a sign of general intelligence. Being good at languages, math or science are somehow more valued than others.’ ‘How exactly do they define intelligence bhaiyya?’ asked Rinku. ‘Gardner’s definition of intelligence was defined broadly as the ‘potential to process information that can be used to create products or solve problems of value,’ said Rakesh. ‘Perhaps it was interpreted as the intelligence that can fetch you a ready job – like languages and sc

‘I wish I could commit fully to one thing and do it well,’ said Rinku. ‘There’s so much choice and I don’t know what to commit to.’ ‘True,’ said Rahul. ‘We wrote down our passions but I’m finding it difficult to commit and give them enough attention. There are so many things that seem to be more important.’ ‘But you identified your passions after a lot of thought and effort,’ smiled Rakesh. ‘So why are you not able to give more attention to what you are passionate about and commit to it?’ ‘Because it’s not practical bhaiyya,’ said Rinku. ‘If I study hard and attend the right courses, it will help me get more marks and qualifications. But instead, if I follow my passion of playing the guitar, learning history or literature, what will happen to my career. I’d rather choose data sciences or surgery or whatever, which are not passions of mine today, but at least I’ll end up with a good life.’ ‘Ah,’ said Rakesh. ‘So you’re not able to commit because the choices you’re passionate about are n

‘Hello Rinku,’ said Rakesh. ‘Why is Rahul so glum?’ ‘He’s worried bhaiyya,’ said Rinku. ‘His basketball selections are clashing with our exam. He’s scared if he misses practice they may drop him. He’s planning to lie to them that he was sick. I don’t think that’s the right thing to do.’ ‘But what can I do bhaiyya,’ said Rahul. ‘Our selectors are very strict.’ ‘In such situations follow basic principles,’ said Rakesh. ‘In your case, the principle you could look at is – “don’t make a decision because of the fear of losing something”. Fear messes up your thinking and you end up making wrong decisions.’ ‘What do you mean?’ asked Rahul. ‘It’s your fear of being dropped from the team that’s forcing you to lie,’ said Rakesh. ‘When you know very well that the right thing to do is to tell the truth. Let’s imagine the worst – that you get dropped anyway. If you lie and they find out you lied, you’re in deep trouble. But if you tell the truth and promise to attend practice after the exam, they’ll

‘Last week we identified our top 5 passions after doing the ‘Passion Test’,’ said Rinku. ‘My passions when living my ideal life are - I’m the greatest keyboard player in the world, I’m playing basketball for India, I’m helping people achieve their potential, I’m having fun and I’m spending quality time with family.’ ‘And my top passions are,’ said Rahul. ‘I’m a successful CEO of one of the top 5 companies in the world, I’m living a luxurious life, I’m having great relationships, I’m a celebrity and I’m having a lot of fun.’ ‘Excellent,’ said Rakesh. ‘And we made passion cards with our top 5 passions and stuck them up so we can see them often,’ said Rahul. ‘But when I look at my passions I’m getting tense. Some of them look impossible. Have I asked for too much?’ ‘No tension,’ smiled Rakesh. ‘Now that you’re clear about your top 5 passions, let the ideas sink in and firm up. The next step for you is to live it which means that every time you get an opportunity to choose between living y

‘I wonder if it’s possible to live a life doing what we like doing?’ asked Rinku. ‘That would be fun.’ ‘Nope,’ said Rahul. ‘We can’t do what we like Rinku. We have to like what we do. No option.’ ‘But I don’t want to be doing something I don’t like for a living,’ said Rinku. ‘I’d rather do something I’m fully involved in, something that’s enjoyable, that grows me to my potential.’ ‘That won’t earn you a good living,’ said Rahul. ‘Right bhaiyya? You’ll have to sacrifice comfort. I’d like to play games and live a great life but that’s not possible right?’ ‘Why not?’ asked Rakesh. ‘I read this book called ‘The Passion Test’ written by Janet Bray Attwood and Chris Attwood which says that living our passions is the key to a happy, fulfilled, fun and prosperous life. And as we know, there are people making a great living while playing games and having fun.’ ‘True,’ said Rahul. ‘But how? What is ‘living our passions’?’ ‘Our passions are what we love doing the most,’ said Rakesh. ‘What are mos

‘I’m so sleepy,’ said Rahul. ‘I stayed up all night to study for today’s test.’ ‘Same here,’ said Rinku. ‘I slept for a couple of hours and now I’m good to do an all-nighter again.’ ‘I’ve read this book called ‘Why We Sleep’ by Mathew Walker who’s researched sleep extensively,’ said Rakesh. ‘There could be certain pointers for you two. More so since Rahul enjoys his sleep a lot.’ ‘Oh no bhaiyya,’ said Rahul. ‘I’m sure the book will say I’m sleeping too much.’ ‘Not at all,’ said Rakesh. ‘In fact the author advocates a full 8 hour sleep to reap the many benefits of sleep. He says those who get less than 6-7 hours of sleep, could invite health issues like a weakened immune system, obesity, cancer, Alzheimer's, cardiovascular disease, stroke etc. So much so that World Health Organisation has declared a sleep loss epidemic in industrialised nations highlighting the effects on health from lack of sleep.’ ‘Whoa,’ said Rahul. ‘But we relate working hard to late, sleepless nights. Are y

‘Bhaiyya, I want to facilitate some change in our community where we help one another and optimize resource utilisation,’ said Rahul. ‘Since we’re talking about leadership, is there some way to make some change here?’ ‘You’re right Rahul,’ said Rinku. ‘Even I feel we need more bonding in our community. Right now we’re existing as individuals or small groups instead of a close knit community. Any ideas bhaiyya?’ ‘Hmm,’ said Rakesh. ‘How about a ‘Joy of Sharing’ activity in your community to promote bonding? You could start a ‘Joy of Sharing’ club.’ ‘What’s that?’ asked Rinku. ‘How does it work?’ ‘Simple,’said Rakesh. ‘Ask everyone in your community to share any items they may not be using which may be of some use to others. Things like books, clothes, shoes, electronics, sports goods, stationery, music, toys, furniture…whatever. Anything of use.’ ‘Hmm, I do have many old books and comics that I am not reading anymore,’ said Rahul. ‘And I have some sporting stuff and music to share,’ sai

‘I do like our Principal Mr Gupta,’ said Rinku. ‘But the one thing I don’t like is that he’s so dull and serious.’ ‘True,’ said Rahul. ‘He is efficient and all that, but everything seems like a big burden with him leading the effort. Something’s missing in his leadership style. What’s it bhaiyya?’ ‘Enthusiasm my friend,’ smiled Rakesh brightly, banging his fist on the table. ‘According to John Adair the author of ‘Confucius on Leadership’, some of the important qualities of a leader include Enthusiasm, Integrity, Being tough yet fair, Warmth and Humility. Your Principal seems to be suffering from a serious lack of enthusiasm.’ ‘What do you mean bhaiyya?’ asked Rinku. ‘He’s got a job and it must be done, that’s all. Right? Why add enthusiasm and all that to it.’ ‘Rinku,’ said Rakesh. ‘Listen carefully - the secret ingredient to an interesting life is enthusiasm. You can do the same job or live the same life with enthusiasm and interest and enjoy the process. Enthusiasm is the ingredient

 ‘I’m planning to promote some of our team members,’ said Rinku. ‘But I’m confused about who to promote.’ ‘What are you confused about?’ asked Rakesh. ‘For example, Rithu is a good candidate in my opinion with the right intent,’ said Rinku. ‘But she says something and does the opposite. Like she says all the right words – ownership, commitment, responsibility, team first - but I see nothing of that in her actions.’ ‘Yes bhaiyya,’ said Rahul. ‘Even I get confused with such people. They say all the right things but do the opposite.’ ‘That’s a good observation,’ said Rakesh. ‘The general rule when it comes to judging people is to judge them by their actions, not their words. That’s because most of us believe we’re doing what we’re saying, while in reality we may be doing the opposite. Like a person may talk with great conviction about being punctual but may be a habitual latecomer. She may genuinely believe she has valid justifications for being late often. On the other end are people who

‘Bhaiyya,’ said Rinku. ‘Some of my team members are not fully loyal to me or the team. You keep telling us that it’s the leader’s job to develop the individuals in the team. Why should I?’ ‘Yes,’ said Rahul. ‘Why should we care?’ ‘Because your results are dependent on the individuals in your team,’ said Rakesh. ‘When individuals feel taken care of they perform well and you get better results. There’s an old saying that says – The wise leader meets the individual’s needs, just as a parent does for his children.’ ‘That’s too much,’ said Rinku. ‘On one hand they’re not doing enough and you say we have to care for them like parents.’ ‘Good leaders do that,’ said Rakesh. ‘They’re genuinely concerned about every team member and their growth. Though you may feel they do not deserve any love from us, we must persist like parents do with children who may have different ways. Like they say, evidence of trust begets trust and love is reciprocated by love.’ ‘But can’t we get work done without gett

‘Where have you been Rinku?’ asked Rahul. ‘We’ve been waiting for you?’ ‘Two of our sports captains, Reena and Parul, have been replaced as per our rotation policy,’ said Rinku. ‘I went to the farewell party.’ ‘They were very senior weren’t they?’ said Rahul. ‘I wonder how they’ll adjust to being led by a junior. It might create ego issues do you think?’ ‘Reena has adjusted to being part of the team very well while Parul’s struggling.’ ‘I can understand what Parul might be going through,’ said Rahul. ‘I went through the same thing when I was replaced as captain of the basket ball team. I found it difficult to be led by my junior. It was an indignity.’ ‘How can we handle it bhaiyya?’ asked Rinku. ‘When someone has worked at a higher level, how can they obey others?’ ‘As Aristotle says – he who has never learned to obey cannot be a good commander,’ said Rakesh. ‘Reena appears to have been a more secure and better leader than Parul - she knows how to obey, to follow.’ ‘What has obeying go

 'Sometimes I wonder how Chandra sir became Head of Science Department,’ said Rahul sipping on his lime juice. ‘All others in the Department are much smarter than him.’ ‘But he gets results,’ said Rinku. ‘Our Science Department is one of the best. Thanks to the rest of his team perhaps. He’s lucky. In any other place, he might not have found a place in the Department itself.’ ‘Interesting,’ said Rakesh. ‘So, who according to you should be leading the Department?’ ‘Clearly Roshan sir,’ said Rahul. ‘He’s the smartest of the lot. He won many awards and people really respect him for that.’ ‘Yes bhaiyya,’ said Rinku. ‘I agree.’ ‘Hmm,’ said Rakesh. ‘Would you go with someone who knows the science behind how the bus works but does not know how to drive, or with someone who can actually drive the bus?’ ‘I guess we’ll go with the person who knows how to drive the bus,’ said Rahul. ‘But clearly the one who understands how the bus works knows more than the driver no bhaiyya?’ ‘Y