Archive for February, 2006
By Rajesh Setty on Mon 27 Feb 2006, 4:40 PM - 1 Comment
I am a Citibank customer and my first job was with that organization (long) back in India. I love that company.
Recently I noticed that they have an offer for people like me – Non-Resident Indians. We can open an NRI account with Zero Balance.
Now, think of that offer for a second -
1. Why would I open an account if I don’t want to have a balance in that account?
2. What is so special about this?
3. How many account holders will consider this the best thing to happen since slice of bread?
A bank account, unfortunately is a commodity offering. So, I understand that banks have to work hard to distinguish themselves in that regard. But offering a “zero balance” account does not fall into that “special feature” category. Sorry!
Posted under Main Page.
By Rajesh Setty on Mon 27 Feb 2006, 4:32 PM - Leave Comment
Last month I wrote about why of Personal Branding for technology professionals and this month my column talks about the how of Personal Branding for Technology Professionals.
If you are a technology professional, please spend a few minutes to go over to CIO Update to read both the columns.
Here are the links:
1. CIOUpdate: Personal Branding for Technology Professionals – Part 1
2. CIOUpdate: Personal Branding for Technology Professionals – Part 2
Good luck!
Posted under Leadership, Main Page.
By Rajesh Setty on Sun 26 Feb 2006, 10:36 AM - Leave Comment
In a short but sweet article “But We’ve always done it this way“,
Denise O’Berry talks about a woman who followed an interesting practice
while fixing holiday ham because her grandmother taught her that way.
The practice was to lop off both ends of the ham before placing it in
the pan. Upon checking with the grandmother, what they found was that
her grandmother followed that practice to ensure that the ham could fit
into the pan she had. Although this woman had a bigger pan now, the
practice continued.
While we can chuckle at the story, I am sure there are many such
practices of convenience that we follow in our lives just because
that’s how we learnt them. Actually, it’s hard to identify these
practices as these are “truths” and “facts” in our mind. We don’t
question facts just like we don’t question gravity. They are just there.
One way to break free from this prison is to just stop the temptation
to defend something when someone else has a different opinion about
that same thing. It is an immediate opportunity to see “whose thoughts
are we following” blindly. Many times we learn what we do from someone.
At the time of learning the lessons may have been valid but the lessons
must change to reflect the times.
So, the question therefore is “Why
not proactively look at some of those lessons and upgrade them to the
current times rather than wait until we are forced to do so?”
Posted under Main Page.
By Rajesh Setty on Fri 24 Feb 2006, 9:55 PM - 5 Comments
Got this gem from David Maister.
Here is a great perspective on success. Again, it is better to be in the ring and fail than to sit on the sidelines and comment.
“Glory may be fleeting; but obscurity is forever”
- Nepolean Bonaparte
Posted under Great Quotes, Main Page.
By Rajesh Setty on Wed 22 Feb 2006, 3:40 PM - 1 Comment
Having coached some of the smartest business people on this planet, Marshall Goldsmith believes that one of the problems with smart people is their need to add a “lot of value” to the other party. Sometimes that can hurt rather than help.
Please take a look at this brilliant article that I first read in his newsletter on this topic. I am sure all of you smart people out there will find this fascinating.
Link: Marshall Goldsmith on Adding Value (word document)
Thanks Marshall and good luck for all of you.
Posted under Leadership, Main Page.
By Rajesh Setty on Tue 21 Feb 2006, 10:07 AM - Leave Comment
John Gehl from Ubiquity (An IT opinion magazine and forum published by Association of Computing Machinery) interviewed me recently on topics covered in my book Beyond Code. This was one of the most comprehensive interviews related to the topic of distinguishing yourself. Here is the link and hope you will enjoy it.
Ubiquity: An Interview with Rajesh Setty
Thanks John.
Posted under Endorsements, Main Page.
By Rajesh Setty on Mon 20 Feb 2006, 7:06 PM - Leave Comment
I have written about thinking before. Here is one link:
Ways to distinguish yourself #78 Think!
When I talk about it some people get offended. It’s as if I am making
an assessment that THEY are not thinking and I am the ONLY one that is
thinking. Once I clarify to them that we are ALL victims of this
wonderful trap that will force us to “Thinking on the go”
meaning we have to think when we are doing something else. The society
and structure won’t let us to just set aside some time to JUST THINK.
In general nobody does it and you don’t want to be an odd man out – so
you get into the same trap.
In order to make a change, try to do carry out this exercise this week:
Make
an appointment with yourself for about an hour. Switch off all
communication devices (cellphone, blackberry, email and internet) and
think about a topic that matters most to you in the near future. For
now, don’t worry about the outcome. It doesn’t matter. The key is to
get into the thinking habit and getting off the “Thinking on the go”
habit.
On a lighter note, I ask people these questions:
1. Have you ever run so fast that you legs were hurting?
2. Have you worked out for so long that your body was aching?
3. Have you written so much that your hands were hurting?
4. Have you eaten so much that your tummy started hurting?
Most often, people say “Yes” to more than one of the above questions leading me to asking them one final question:
5. Have you ever thought so much that your head started hurting?
Let me end this short note with a famous quote by Henry Ford.
“Thinking is hard work, which is why so few people do it”
– Henry Ford
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By Rajesh Setty on Mon 20 Feb 2006, 7:39 AM - Leave Comment
Everytime I meet someone who is looking to change his (or her) job, I
ask them why are they wanting to change jobs. While I learn about their
reasons, I learn a lot more about them from what they say about their
current job and what reasons they give for wanting to change jobs.
Let me talk about a recent incident. I have told you about my friend Naveen Lakkur who is a serial entrepreneur in India. His new company Compassites
was launched when I was in India a month ago. Naveen wanted me to meet
a person (let’s call him Joe) who could be a potential candidate to be
recruited into Compassites. I was happy to meet with Joe and during the
conversation I was trying to determine why Naveen wanted Joe on his
team. I learnt that Joe was working for the same company for the last
nine years and had, of course, grown to a very responsible position
over there. Joe had a lot of respect for Naveen and when the topic of
joining Compassites came, Joe said something very interesting. He said
“Naveen, I have worked for this company for the last nine years. I had
a lot of good times here. Now, the company is in trouble and I can’t
leave them at this time. Once we tide over the current problems, I am
happy to consider exploring options with you.” That one statement sealed it for me and it was clear why Naveen wanted Joe on his team.
Next time when you talk to someone who is planning to change their job,
ask them why they want to do that. You will observe that most people
want to change jobs because their current jobs have some problems.
Duh.. you think. It is almost like they are thinking that there is a
new job where there won’t be any problems. Which we all know is only an
ideal condition.
On a separate note, think about who gets promoted – typically people
who can solve problems. I am sure all these people who are running away
from problems also want to grow in their careers. There seems to be
some contradiction here, don’t you think?
So, the question is:
If don’t face the problems and keep running away from the sight of them, when will you learn to solve them?
Note: I agree that there are
times when you need to change jobs as there are problems in the current
job. I am not talking about isolated situations here. If this becomes a
chronic condition that everytime there is a problem, you feel like
changing your job then that in itself is a problem.
Posted under Distinguish yourself, Main Page.
By Rajesh Setty on Sun 19 Feb 2006, 7:51 PM - Leave Comment
I will be speaking at a SIPA event this March 8, 2006. There is no fee
for SIPA members and Agilent employees. Other registration details can
be found at SIPA’s website
SIPA: Personal Branding – Goals, Competence and Differentiation
When you have a moment, please take a look at a related article which is my recent column at CIO Update.
CIO Update: Personal Branding for technology professionals – Part 1 of 2
Look forward to meeting some of you there.
Posted under Endorsements, Main Page.
By Rajesh Setty on Sun 19 Feb 2006, 3:55 PM - Leave Comment
Brilliant article by my hero Seth Godin over at his blog. Here is the link:
Seth Godin: The culture of dissatisfaction
Once you finish reading it and digesting that wisdom, if you still have
some time to spare, please read a related article that I wrote a few
months ago:
Got carried away by the web; now take back your life
Enjoy and have a great week ahead!
Posted under Main Page.
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