My New Car

Yesterday I purchased a used car. It is an Ambassador (see description below) which continues to produced with the same body as it had back in the 1950's. In my mind it is a classic, however my Indian co-workers and friends are shocked that it is my vehicle of choice. In a country that is taking leaps and bounds ahead in development respective to its past, I guess they find it strange for me to be drawn to something considered to be part of its history.

The cars color is almost always white and I am having mine painted black to add a little spice to it. Pictures of the car will be posted soon.

Ambassador - "the first car to be manufactured in India, has been ruling the Indian roads ever since its inception in 1948. Ambassador, the only automobile to ply Indian roads for more than five decades now, has carved a special niche for itself in the passenger car segment. It's dependability, spaciousness and comfort factor have made it the most preferred car for generations of Indians. The Ambassador's time-tested, tough, accommodating and practical characteristics make it a truly Indianised car. "

The Meaning of Josh

People say there is a lot of meaning in a name and I agree. The Hindi names all have deep meaning. However, the supply of names is much less than the demand in a country of over 1 billion people. So, it is very common to know A LOT of people with the same name

I was flying back from a business trip and got a bag of goodies containing a candy called "Orange Josh". I started laughing and showed it to a hindu colleague of mine. He looked at the candy and said nonchalantly, Josh is a hindi word meaning energy and power.



In fact Ford makes a car here called "The Ford Josh" (see link).


http://www.blonnet.com/catalyst/2004/06/17/stories/2004061700050200.htm This is hilarious and no joke.

Shoe Security

I have been checking out quite a few temples and mosques and the thought in my mind before entering has been “I hope no one takes shoes". To ease my mind and be at peace I have incorporated the following security measure.

The Art of Living

The past six days I participated in a workshop called the Art of Living. This course teaches ancient breathing techniques, yoga, meditation and philosophy. It was a powerful experience and this organization does
amazing work for individuals and the world. They conduct workshops all over the world so check them out! http://www.artofliving.org/

Train Bombing in Mumbai

Friends,

I appreciate all of your concerns regarding my safety during this shocking event. I am doing fine in southern India about 1000 miles from where the bombings took place. In spite of my safety, this has been an alarming event for the country and its people. As I fly Chennai for business next week, I am a little more on edge than I might normally be. However the show must go on!!!

Thailand

After seven weeks in India, I was in need of some Rest and Relaxation. My entry into the India was congested with learning about the culture, surroundings, my new organization and role, finding a place to live, furnishings for the new crib (as all I brought to India was some clothing and a few personal affects), and overall sensory overload. I was thrilled to head to Thailand for five days! We arrived in Bangkok after a long day of travel and went and got reflexology massages that slowly drained the tension and stress out of bodies. Bankok is a very modern and clean city and the contrast between it and Hyderabad was apparent. The lack of omnipresent honking and people was refreshing. Not to mention the ability to get a cheeseburger and Heineken, something that I had been deprived of recently. The lack of things that back home I would have taken for granted made every experience exhilarating and precious as I knew that it was going to be awhile till my next taste of certain small pleasures. We spent our time visiting temples, touring a riverboat market, exploring the coast, taking advantage of little big things we cannot attain in India and relaxing on the beach.

Intersection

Seth is a pal who I came to know while living in Colorado Springs. A dynamic fella with unquenchable thirst for knowledge….He has chosen to take a year of his life traveling the world. Check out his blog and accounts of the journey! http://awayaround.blogspot.com/

Andrew is a good friend of mine who I have known since 7th grade and ended up going to college with. He plays and works in NYC and has a passion for music. Here is a link to a site where you can download some of his mixes. http://illjazz.blogspot.com/

Ed is my friend and colleague. I worked for him for five years prior to moving to India. He is an inspiring servant leader. Ed decided to up-root his family (wife Priscilla and 16 yr old daughter McKenzie) and move to Hyderabad without ever visiting the country…Talk about courage! Check out his story @ http://journey2india.blogspot.com/

Whats Really Going On?

My friend first and driver second, Ferroz has taught me much about life and India. He has a smile as wide and bright as the sunrise over the ocean. Whenever that smiles shines into my eyes it washes all the anger and frustration away that has accumulated like a hug from a child. Recently, we were at a stop light and Ferroz rolled down his window and gave a beggar some money (this from a man who has never been to a movie, which will not be the case in a few days). I asked him why he gave money to the beggar and told him about my stance on the topic. He said to me emphatically, that god is everything, aka Mashala in the Muslim faith and that it was his duty to help others in situations that less optimal than his own.
These beggars show up outside of stores or at your car window in many shapes and sizes. I will spare you the pictures, but assure you they are hard to forget .The images haunt my memory like lost loves...
A blind women; eyeballs gone, guided with her hands on the shoulders of a young boy in front of her, a barely teenaged mother holding a malnourished baby begging for money with motions of her hand to her and child’s mouth repeatedly, men on boards with office chair like wheels missing limbs and shuffling between the high-rises of cars….I imagine that you get the picture. I have seen and had profound experiences with these types of people in my past travels and my stance up until now has been to not give them money as I thought it reinforced in-appropriate behavior. Is it inappropriate to ask for money to sustain your livelihood? Or was that just my justification so I could turn away and not have to absorb these haunting images?

Threading Ceremony

Yesterday I had an opportunity to participate in an Indian thread ceremony for a colleague’s son. This ceremony is a rite of passage similar to a confirmation, or bar mitzvah in the Hindu context. Every intricate detail had rich meaning and to be apart of the experience was amazing.



Background info on Upanayanam (Thread Ceremony)

Upanayanam is the Samskara or the ceremonial rite in which the young Brahmin boy is invested with the sacred thread and initiated into the Gayatri - the Holiest of all mantras in the legacy of the Rishis. This ceremony is only for boys from the top three social classes. Traditionally, an auspicious time and date is chosen to shave the boy's head completely, leaving only a small tuft in the centre of the scalp, called bodi.
The sacred thread used for the ceremony consists of three strands, joined by a knot known as Brahmagranthi or the knot of Brahma. The three strands symbolise the Hindu trinity - Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma. There are various interpretations of the three strands to represent many of the other triads like Mahasarasvati, Mahalakshmi and Mahakali. Or the three qualities known as sattva, rajas and tamas; past, present and the future; the three states - wakefulness, dream and deep sleep. Some even say that it represents the three dimensions known as heaven (swarga), earth (martyaloka) and netherworld (patala). The twist of the thread must be upwards to ensure that the Sattwaguna or the good quality of truth predominates.
The most important meaning of the three strands is ida, pingala and susumna nadi, through which the kundalini energy manifests as prana and consciousness. Yajno-pavita means 'thread of sacrifice.' That is so called because it symbolises the sacrifice of ego.
The sacred thread was a passport to obtain education. It was a prerequisite for education and also for marriage. Without it, no man could dream of getting a bride for himself. It was considered important because a person with Yajnopavita should have undergone all the oaths associated with wearing it, led a celibate life and completed a major portion of his education. Brahmachari or the bachelor (also, a learner) wore a single sacred thread while the householder or the married person wore two. A person who was married and had lost one or both of his parents wore three.
There are different methods of wearing the Sacred Thread at different occasions. While performing an auspicious ceremony one should be Upaviti, that is, the Sacred Thread should hang from his left shoulder. At the performance of some inauspicious ceremony one should be Prachnaviti, that is, the Sacred Thread should hang from the right shoulder; and at times he is called Niviti when the Sacred Thread is worn round the neck like a garland.

This ceremony has evolved over time and to see more of my experience you can check out the links to my pics and videos

Growth

There in no doubt that India is hot right now, especially since it is summer and temperature has been in the hundreds. Thank god for the monsoons which are arriving any day now... While the seasons are about to change, India’s economic climate continues to be hot like fire. Growth rates the past few years have skyrocketed and there is a constant debate about which country will be the next superpower, India or China. There is currently a war for talent in the global market that will continue to heat up as baby boomers retire and we live in a world where EVERTHING is outsourced (read the world is flat for some crazy accounts of this phenomenon).The growth in such a raw place was one of many drivers fueling my desire to live in this mystic country. Lately, Indian business has been known for its technology. In fact many people are comparing what is happening here to what happened during the dotcom area in terms of business opportunities. While all of this is extremely exciting and India is getting a lot of press, it is still a third world country and the infrastructure is in need of serious development. Some people see this as a weakness; I look at it as opportunity.
In terms of the workforce; the people, time management, presentation, deductive reasoning, consulting, business development, and customer service skills are in need of serious fine tuning. My role is to facilitate human performance and process improvement for the Leadership of Satyam (the top 5% of a 30,000 people). After working for the #1 corporate university in the world, my director from my previous company, our new staff and I are in start up mode attempting to deliver the same quality product. Building the school brick by brick is challenging but also fulfilling. The physical school of leadership is scheduled to be open in November and will be a 240,000sq ft world class facility. We are open for business now and continue to expand our infrastucture and service offerings. Satyam has a vision of growing from 30,000 employees today to 90,000 in the next five years! In order for the vision to be attained they must have world class leaders that can navigate an increasing complex global marketplace. Our mission as the school of leadership is to empower and equip these leaders with the necessary skills to flourish. As we build the schools processes, programs and leaders a fleet of men and women are building the actual structure. I go over to the site at least once a week to look at the progress. Watching these people work is incredible. They only utilize a very small amount of machinery as they take away from the employment and livelihood of people. This construction team is over 200 hundred people working two shifts per day and living in tent communities on the land. The area that the construction is taking place is called Cyber City and if you drive around a five square block radius you will see companies such as IBM, Google, Deliotte, Mckinsey, Dell, and many more all putting skin in the game..

Contact Information

For those of you wanting to connect here is my information:

Cell: 91-9949476478

Address: Plot No: 527-B, Road No: 86, Flat no: 5, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad India

Lighting the way...

Do you remember being a teenager? Sometimes when I reflect on that period of my life it feels like yesterday. Without going into the details of a very interesting time in my life... lets just stay many of my choices were not calculated. The past two weeks Dr Zayd (Traveling from the US) contributed to the development of around 50 teenagers of Satyam employees.

Global Rising Stars is a 4 day/ three night experiential workshop that equips and empowers young people to live purpose driven lives. All participants learn how to:
1. Develop self-leadership
2. Expand attitudes and habits for success
3. Overcome fear and procrastination
4. Turn solutions into action
5. Enhance self-motivation and positive self-image
6. Improve time management

Dr. Z has been successful working with youth in America for many years and I was curious how his program would be receivedd in a different country with a very contrasting culture. I facilitate learning with adults around the world and every region of the world, I must shift my style in order to besuccessful. Believe me, I have gone into other countries using anAmerican style of teaching/facilitation and failed miserably...We learn from what is most painful and I adapted quickly by seeking 1st to understand then trying to be understood. This shift in style, with the kids was not necessary. The saying boys will be boy's or kids will be kids comes to mind. Dr Z's course was a huge success and the cultural difference was not an issue with the teenagers.

I love spending time with young and old people. Either theydon't know or they don't care. Which allows them to be open and free creating a platform to explore and express.
Helping pave a path in a world that is becoming increasingly complex and confusing for youth is a worthy endeavor... Feel free to contact Dr. Zayd (dtsys.com) about youth programs in your community.