Showing posts with label random thoughts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label random thoughts. Show all posts

Tuesday 20 September 2011

The passionate worker

This post is based on a very interesting point of view that author Adam Singer talks about in his post - A secret of the social web: Passion.

An excerpt


"In the frenzy of marketers drowning the web in their ultra-proofed and overly refined messages, there is something that is severely lacking:  passion.  And, passion is the largest driver motivating people to produce, share and remix content online.


What motivates someone to share her recipes with the world every day?  What motivates a tech blogger to write about the latest gadget?  What motivates a web guru to talk about the latest startup or e-commerce site?  Simple – it is pure and raw passion for the subject matter."


Why, really, does passion matter?


One of my favourite authors, Ayn Rand wrote a huge tome about this particular subject - Atlas Shrugged. She talked about "the role of man's mind in existence" as well attempted to showcase how the world needs 'prime movers'.


In other words, what both the writers above had touched was - Passion. Pure. Simple. Engaging. And one of the great 'oils' that move many a human to go beyond what could be called the ordinary. The pursuit of excellence, as it were.


image credit: Shutterstock
I am a firm believer in that most people are smart enough to see beyond the chaff. A passionate person's work will clearly shine through all the dazzle that keeps hitting your eyeballs. When you do something for the love of it, others can't help but recognise it. Unless, they deliberately turn a blind eye towards that expression of passion.


Many of us out here, have at some point or the other, conducted interviews to select a person for a particular post. Beyond all the regular questions, is the mind's eye trying to discern how passionate a worker will the interviewee be. 



Passion matters a lot. Most people are passionate about one thing or the other. Sometimes, many things, sometimes just one. Maybe it was running hard to be the first in that school race, maybe it was the attempt to get out of a vicious economic circle, maybe it was trying to create a better product, maybe it was the attempt at being self-sustained, maybe it was bringing up kids. Whatever may have been the cause, at some point or the other we all have experimented and quite often stayed passionate about something that so truly engaged us.

Passionate worker or Workaholic?


How do we differentiate between a passionate worker and a workaholic? The true difference is that passionate work does not let us drop dead or destroy ourselves in the process of creating a superior output - be it a work of art or simply greater quality of service. And, not to forget, it is not being passionate about the company we work in, it is being passionate about our profession. 


Having been exposed to the advertising industry for a bit now, I have seen some of the most passionate people engaged in creating, debating, fighting, and finding solutions to many a normally insurmountable problem. It never is about how late you stay at work. It is about when you go to sleep, having either the satisfaction - I did the best I could or having the dissatisfaction - I can do better and future action - I will make it better.    

Passion breeds value 


Ideas are quite often the base and cornerstone of innovation, evolution and that edge which differentiates us and lets us lead. For a bit, at least. When you are passionate about something, working hard and coming up with fruitful ideas is easier. And with great ideas come great rewards. A virtuous cycle instead. Now imagine, harnessing this power multiplied by the number of employees working together in an organisation. This is what successful companies like Apple, Canon and Singapore Airlines, to name a few, have done.


Yet for every one of these smart companies, there are thousands out there who do not even begin to realise how important it is to have passionate and motivated people working in harmony to take the organisation to extremely high levels of achievements including profits. This is sadly true of most Governments that I have been exposed, not all though. I do believe firmly in the profit principle. Passion should be rewarded. And usually is. Not because of anything else, but simply the response that we the consumers and customers show to the ideas and product emerging from such hubs of excellence. For it remains a fact that all a customer has to do is go and spend her/his money and attention elsewhere to bring down a company or for that matter an economy.


This blogger's passion 


I do love to share my thoughts, opinions and emotions. While this medium does not have the same level of interactivity that a face-to-face opportunity brings, it still has enough for you to let me know what you think about whatever I express through these blog posts. 


This particular post is purely a random thought process that I decided to pen down. The Culture, Cuisine, Customs that Travel lets me experience, forms one of those passions of mine and as seen before in the Hong Kong series, there is another series about a different trip to a different continent - coming up. So be on the lookout here and do feel free to express your opinion at any stage, as I do value your feedback.


Track code: AG4FBQ8UFF8T

Saturday 5 July 2008

Random thoughts...

An interesting discussion I had with a friend recently, regarding thoughts rather than opinions on blogs, sparked this post off. This is a set of some thoughts... random thoughts. Agree? Disagree? or just don't care? Feel free to write whatever you feel about any of these thoughts.

I recently happened to get a forwarded video about a chap called Matt who's paid by a company to roam around the world (really, how lucky can you get???). Interesting and funny video, but what got some me a bit riled up was, what he has posted on his blog. Do visit the site http://wherethehellismatt.com and you can see his blog entries (check out Jan 2003). While there are some people who feel that he writes as he sees it, some believe that he is opinionated and a racist. My thought was, what is right and wrong in the whole debate that's going on? Is it right to be politically incorrect or is it wrong to call a spade a spade? Is it wrong to defend your feelings about your country and its culture and is it right to demean others in doing so? After all are we not all different yet similar?

I happened to later drift on to a blog by a lady from Aussie land. Very interesting posts she's got about some of the Indian 'customs' and 'traditions' and how it leaves her completely baffled. Like the 'arranged marriage' concept. An ancient tradition, that many a generation of Indians believe in, and this despite all the education, exposure and experience they may have had in their lives. Come to think of it, I too am equally baffled about some of the other traditions we have e.g. leaving the footwear outside the door. When we remove the footwear, our sweaty feet (with or without socks) actually collect more dirt from outside the door and spreads it on the floor on which we step. On the other hand, wiping the shoes on the door mat before entering will in most cases ensure that we do not carry any dirt in, but that would be disrespectful as our homes are like temples. Huh?

The other day, saw a picture of one of our top political leaders feeding a cow on the road. Feeding the cow is an important tradition in our culture. What I couldn't help noticing was that the cow and the person were standing on one of the main roads of that State, right in the middle of a rubbish pile full of peels, rotting food, discarded plastic bags and what not! Does our tradition not advocate public cleanliness? Does sense not advocate cleanliness to avoid spread of disease causing bacteria and of course the stench?

Moving on to relationships. I do believe that any relation between two humans is complex, even more so when the two are from different species. While it is all well and good to read, hear, experience and see the 'he says' and 'she says' angles, who is really right and wrong? Is there a right and wrong? Why is it that the very same thing which seemed so right months ago, now seem so worthless and pitiful to have agonized about? Is it about time? I just happened to see the movie - Holiday starring the very beautiful Cameron Diaz along with talented actors like Jack Black, Kate Winslet and Jude Law. If ever an optimistic movie about the romance between individuals who are unlikely to think of it in the first place, this is it. A playboy father who actually weeps, a sexually charged up successful businesswoman who can't cry, a push over production assistant and yet another push over music director - seem like typical characters, yet the passion that is in them comes out with the right sort of place, time and situation. While this may be a movie story, I think quite often, reel life is nothing but an exaggerated reflection of real life. So does it happen in real life? Does one come across that perfect individual who sweeps all other thoughts out of your head? Why is it that quite so often, a few months or years down the line, one has to work at it? Is there a companion meant for every person on this earth? I have my doubts, but I am willing to be proved otherwise :)

Which brings me to the thought of why do relationships fail? Is it about expectations? Is it about familiarity, breeding maybe not contempt, but maybe boredom? Is it about treading an unknown path?

In my own experience, I have have gone through times, today which, when I look back in one of those crazy flashback moments, seems difficult to believe that it was even actually possible to have felt all those intense emotions at that stage for 'that' particular individual. At the cost of sounding a bit brittle and possibly not so sweet, is there really true love (for want of another phrase)? It is something I am not yet in a position to comprehend or even believe wholeheartedly. It is not that one does not want to have a companion with whom one can share one's deepest fears and hopes and more, but just that it seems increasingly a tough goal to achieve. All one has to look at is the percentage by which divorce cases have gone up - 60% and these are legal situations, not to speak about the many relationships which do not even make it to the legal stage and keep being broken!

What a life!

What are we really focusing on?

Are the words Trust and Faith , really just words or do they truly matter? These days, and most nights too, are really about nerve wrack...