OPINION MINING & JUDGEMENT ERRORS

OPINION MINING & JUDGEMENT ERRORS

(Artificial Intelligence Series)

Video link for this article:

Machine learning is a great tool for developing predictive models. One of the most interesting applications is its use in opinion mining. Opinion mining too is a broad field with numerous use cases ranging from product reviews to personality assessment. It is often argued by advocates of AI that human judgment is always biased and machines can perform better in this area. However, the bone of contention here is this – Who is training those machines? Well, without getting into the complexities involved let me bring your attention towards the psychological / technical basis of judgment and the error-prone systems that we face each day.

Products

How do we judge any given product? Without understanding this, training a machine to analyze huge chunks of data and generate results – be it a Recommender System or a UX dashboard; the value to effort ratio remains below unity. We have tried everything from the basic “queuing theory” to “gamification” and even the “hyper-game theory”, but still struggle to find the golden ratio. In an ideal scenario, the following equation will hold good:

When emotions overtake the intellect fueling our experience for the cause or reason-to-believe that goes beyond the expectation of the product itself, we make the decision to buy. Whether it is a need or a want, whether it is justified or not, whether it comes with a positive or negative feeling (e.g. vaccination is received out of fear), people buy something if and only if the perceived value is greater than the perceived effort. Great marketers and advertisers know this too well and they constantly exploit the emotions to evoke the decision to buy. 

Just look at the film industry and compare the movie reviews from the pre-covid and post-covid eras. Until two years ago, when the public could watch their choice of movie inside a theatre, their review would mostly largely positive where even mediocre movies would gain 3.5-4 stars on a scale of 5. Post-covid, when people are able to watch movies mostly on the OTT platform, their reviews have become more critical where everyone is seeking for quality content amidst binge-watching. Many starrer movies are being rated below 3 stars and seemingly underdog movies are being rated higher. The reason for this shift is that the pandemic has bitten into the overall “movie-going” experience, thereby letting the watchers use their intellect more rather than being swayed by their emotions that were previously being fueled with anticipation via teasers, trailers, promotions, campaigns and advertisements.    

Thus, no amount of “sentiment analysis” of movie review data can predict anything with accuracy; without understanding the basic premise or context. 

Processes

What happens before any output is generated? If we do not understand the process behind a given outcome, we are playing a “trial-and-error” game. Obviously one can’t play a game where the rules, the stakes and the quitting time remain unknown. This is one of the main reasons that domain knowledge is an absolute pre-requisite for delivering any kind of technological solution viz. machine learning in the current context. Understanding a process involves going beyond the process itself, as shown below:

With the kind of technological advancement we have today, one can create a robotic bartender and automate the process of serving drinks at the local pub. But, without considering a “process approach” that includes the process, the environment, the human factor and other variables, one will end up with nothing more than a “talking vending machine”. 

Training a machine simply by mimicking what a human being does, does not add any value to the process per se. If your algorithm can either augment or compliment what a human being or an existing machine can, then it is definitely worth it to take the leap forward. This is the main reason as to why the adoption of “Conversational AI” like chat-bots, digital assistant, etc. has not picked up on a massive scale. I know that many AI enthusiasts and experts will disagree with me and probably refer to several hypotheses and modern theories like AGI, ASI, Swarm Intelligence, etc.; but the harsh truth is that we are centuries far from it.            

People 

Why do people perceive something the way they do? The world we are living in today is primarily system-driven, be it the rule of democracy or online shopping. That’s what most of us are made to believe. But, if you do a reality check at the grassroots level, everything depends on people. End of the day, it is people who affect both processes and products, either directly or indirectly. Organizations with the best processes and products in place can fail if it is not support by the right kind of people. In terms of leadership, people factor is of prime importance. 

For the sake of our understanding, if we ignore the Fortune 500 list; all other companies including startups and SMEs heavily and solely depend on their leadership structure for their success, growth and / or survival. So, when it comes to selection of leaders or rewarding top performers, people make huge judgmental errors. Similar to management of products and processes, there are numerous theories for people management like BEI (Behavioral Event Interviewing), Psychometrics, Adam’s Equity Theory, Hertzberg’s Motivation Theory, Jay Hall Conflict Management Theory, etc. 

Most of these judgmental errors can be attributed to the misunderstanding of two most basic theories: 

Dunning-Kruger Effect – A hypothetical cognitive bias stating people with low ability at a task overestimate their ability. 

Imposter Syndrome – A psychological pattern of perceived fraudulence, where an individual doubts his / her skills, talents, or accomplishments despite having external evidence of competence.

It is simply illogical to compare Guy Martin (famous pit stop wheel changer) with Michael Schumacher (famous F1 racer). If one were to get into their minds, Guy would be found suffering from the Imposter Syndrome and Michael Schumacher facing the Dunning-Kruger Effect. Now, if one were to reverse their roles, what would be the effect? While this may seem to be an extreme example; such scenarios occur often in our day-to-day routines. An example that everyone can relate to is your appraisals. More than the actual ability and past performance, more weightage is given to attitude. Those who rate themselves high during self-appraisal are the ones who usually get the highest rating in the final appraisal. The fact remains that the lot who hold themselves in high esteem and exuberate confidence are actually part of the Dunning-Kruger Effect, while those who are self-doubtful lie somewhere in the Imposter Syndrome region. 

Thus when it comes to people analytics or consumer research, even the best of experts can go wrong when the primary data is based on opinions prone to judgment errors.  

The following quote sums up my point too well:

Summarizing the whole article, I can say that the following factors need to be accounted for before embarking on a decision-making journey based on analytics:

• Value created or projected (product-centric)

• Variables both known and unknown (process-based)

• Viewpoint of everyone involved (people-centric)

I help improve people, processes and products.. Reach out to me to know more. 🙂 

HAPPY BY DEFAULT VIA "MINDS"

HAPPY BY DEFAULT VIA MINDS^TM

(Life Coaching Series)

In the arena of self-improvement, one can find myriad solutions to suit everyone’s needs and interests. Beginning from the 1930s with concepts like “Pragma-Psychics” to “Psycho-Kinesis” and advancing to the 1970s with new age theories like “Holistic Medicine” to “Transcendental Meditation” and almost reaching a dead-end by the 1990s with newer techniques like “Silva Mind Control”; mankind has witnessed a great leap forward in the awareness of the human consciousness. The sole purpose for any individual is “to be happy” and with the dawn of realization and to achieve this one goes about seeking for solutions and guidance everywhere.

Of course, we have witnessed three industrial revolutions and are in the midst of the fourth one. Though, the manner in which we lead our lives has been made far easier than the pre-modernization era with the advancement of technology and growth of civilization; we are still at loggerheads with our own being. We seek for external pleasure rightly so as part of our innate nature but forget that such pastures cannot be permanent. When we are hindered on our path, we search for quick-fixes and get back to our rudimentary ways of living. If we are to find any concrete solace, we need to understand that our existence is pre-occupied by our own sensory perceptions. A brief description of the same is provided below:

💢👀  Visual:

What do we see day-by-day? How do we make sense of it? Are we influenced too much by visual experiences? Do we crave to see something specific? What usually occurs is that we may indulge in binge-watching while totally ignoring our real life surroundings. We might cry with the actor in a series but forget to notice the sadness on the face our child.

💢👂  Auditory:

Whatever a human being speaks or hears i.e. words affect our mental health and performance. Generally, we constantly keep filtering the words that we hear i.e. whatever others say; all the while ignoring whatever comes out of our own mouth. The difference in the level of filtering between the input and output, leads to conflict in our minds.

💢🤚  Kinesthetic:

One of the most ignored sensory inputs is what we feel through touch. How comfortable our immediate environment is? Do we abhor being near someone? Do we crave to be physically near someone? Is the chair that we sit upon conducive to our health? What about our posture? Are we physically active or leading our lives as a couch potato? These are some of the critical questions that we need to ask ourselves.

💢👃  Olfactory:

Aroma affects our mood and can be used for healing too. Whatever we smell does affect our overall sense of comfort. From exhaust pollution to exquisite perfumes, we face a wide range of possibilities in our day-to-day lives. Our disposition can get changed with a slight change in the atmosphere.

💢👅  Gustatory:

Last but not the least; our taste buds trigger certain feelings within us. One must know that, our tongue tastes all the time and not just when we open our mouth to eat. It is not an exaggeration but a fact that even a slight change in the external environment can be felt through taste. Just like smell, our mood can get affected by taste even when there is no emanating smell. 

All of this leads to one major problem of the 21^st century i.e. “Emotional Bankruptcy”. We spend a lot of time each day with negative feelings either directly or indirectly. On one hand our negative emotions require adequate venting while on the other hand our mind craves for more emotional experience which we try to satisfy through addictive habits. When we are unable to achieve this, feelings of depression, frustration, irritation, anger etc. take shape. These are on the rise in this modern world. In the wake of COVID-19 era, the same has been amplified.     

A list of new age problems is provided below:

💢  Stress

💢  Anxiety

💢  Depression

💢  Fear

💢  Irritation

💢  Anger

💢  Frustration

💢  Procrastination

💢  Overwork

💢  Information overload

💢  Performance pressure

💢  Peer pressure

💢  Interpersonal conflicts

A few statistical charts are provided below to make you aware of the prevalent scenario:

The questions that we all need to ask ourselves are:

💢  Are we productive 24x7?

💢  Are we calm 365 days a year?

💢  Are we stress-free most of the time?

💢  Do we manage our engagements with zero conflict?

💢  Do we conduct regular self-introspection?

💢  Do we effectively manage our time?

💢  Do we spend all of our energy on productive tasks?

💢  Are we performing to the best of our abilities?

💢  Is there no room for improvement?

💢  Do we not ponder in hindsight on how things could have been better?

This is a universal problem that needs to be addressed immediately if we are to lead our lives with full potential. Try to answer the below questions honestly for your own self-assessment:

💢  When was the last time you were really happy…happy from inside out (not that smiley face with grumpy feelings within)?

💢  When did you last feel real empathy for a person or situation (no diplomatic answers please)?

💢  Do you remember your last best performance (not referring to acting skills)?

💢  Have you ever counted the number of times you get put-off each day for petty reasons (22 seconds attention space to 14 minutes attention span..did you know)?

💢  Have you ever tracked your rate of procrastination (well, no one is productive for 8 full hours everyday..but)?

💢  Have you ever noticed how a child remains happy for no apparent reason (no, you are not a child anymore..but)?

The moot point here is that – “STRESS” does not build up in a day. STOP the domino effect now!

Before trying to attack the problem, one needs to understand the root cause of it as shown below:

The core philosophy behind my method is:

Here, I present you with a method called MINDS^TM that can make you “HAPPY BY DEFAULT”:

💢 Mindfulness

It is a natural state of heightened awareness of the present moment without being judgmental, overly reactive or overwhelmed by one’s environment. It is about being in a state of calm by gentle observation of one’s own behavior, thoughts and feelings. What should be natural to us becomes alien with all the pre-conditioning we go through at various stages of life. This state can be brought back through certain techniques borrowed from Tibetan Zen, Buddhism and Vedic Dhyana.   

💢 Ingenuity

This is a skill of being resourceful and original through cleverness, being imaginative, inventiveness, etc. Most of us develop pre-conceived notions or are conditioned to accept things from someone else’s point of view. This leads to us being in constant conflict with ourselves and lose our originality. It can further make us incapable of solving problems and not being able to see reality as it is. The good thing is that it is a skill and can hence be developed via training. 

💢 Neuroplasticity

It is the brain’s capacity to continue growing and evolving in response to life experiences. Everyone has it, but not all can do it willfully. Some become too rigid after a certain age and are averse to change. Some are too fluid and too fickle to be able to form strong neural connections. Both are extremes and most of us fall somewhere in between. Higher the neuroplasticity, higher is the adaptability to different situations. One can with focused effort learn to develop their own neuroplasticity and strengthen their mind. 

💢 Detoxification

In the name of clearing the negativity around and detoxification of your mind, what you are being fed with is more of intoxication. Whatever is being served to you, you consume it with the very same mindset that got you into the problem first. This does not lead to emptiness or clearing the clutter. Detoxification is not a relaxation technique but a conscious effort to develop your internal filters. Your mind is equipped with natural filters that help you in discernment and decision-making. If these filters are too weak, you start making mistakes and jump to conclusions. In this modern age where information is bombarded 24x7, one needs to effectively practice detoxification, in order to lead a fruitful life.

💢 Self-Awareness

It is a lifestyle design tool that enables one to have good knowledge and judgment about oneself. It is a form a leadership too that helps you lead an extremely fulfilling life. Most of us are subliminally influenced by various messages throughout our routines. Being unaware we toe the line and try to conform to whatever the majority does. Self-Awareness is all about breaking those very shackles that bind us from realizing our true potential. It is an invaluable tool towards self-actualization. The best part is that even this can be learnt and practiced easily.  

How does MINDS^TM work?

It utilizes the V-A-K-O-G model to train your mind and optimize your performance thereby increasing the overall quality of life. It is aimed at making you “HAPPY BY DEFAULT”.

 As shown in the above image, each method is mapped to one or more senses where one’s mind can be trained to develop specific sensory experiences to trigger the required emotional experience and vice versa. It is a very fluidic process that first breaks down our mental constructs and then rebuilds it the way one wants. Mind you, it’s not magic and requires a great deal of commitment from you. After all, it is about YOU taking charge over yourself!

 

Please contact the author to know more about how you can benefit from it.

"TOPS" METHOD FOR BUSINESS TRANSFORMATION

TOPS^TM METHOD FOR BUSINESS TRANSFORMATION

 

All business is a “going concern” and everyone wants the going to be smooth. In an ever changing world where Moore’s law, Butler’s law and Kryder’s law seem to be inversely proportional to customer perception; staying ahead of the competition becomes a matter of survival. But apparently, as Hector Berlioz has said “Time is great healer, but unfortunately it kills all its pupils”; one does not have all the time in the world to learn, apply and wait for the long run. Results are expected from day one and most leaders do not realize that concrete outcomes are fructified only after deliberate attempts are made to obtain them. If all of this sounds like Greek or Latin, then let me spell it out directly – “Business Transformation” is the need of the hour if one has to maintain their operational resilience amidst the fourth industrial revolution.

In my two decades of career, I have been able to witness world class manufacturing, best-in-class productivity, industry best practices and several innovative methods to achieve overall improvement. As a Management Consultant, I always insist on remaining a skeptic with an open mind without which it is practically impossible to either learn from or advise your clients effectively. For any organization, business transformation means management of change at its core. The more rigid the organization, the more difficult it becomes. Let me clarify here that I’m not pointing towards agile methodology, as in the current context even an agile organization is deemed to be rigid. Given the innate nature of mankind, a definite structure appeals to us more than a formless manner of functioning. Hence, resistance to change is imminent and how do we manage this resistance is critical to success in modern times. A simple IFTTT (If This Then That) approach can be as disastrous as the ITTYTWIT (I Thought That You Thought What I Thought) error that most of us are prone to. In general, without mincing my words - most of us have witnessed that organizations, enterprises, programs and projects are driven by HiPPOs (Highly Paid Person’s Opinion). While the matter of fact is that opinions don’t matter, actions do. I have personally witnessed leaders in pretty good organizations toying with ideas like “Thought Leadership” and “Design Thinking” and thereby costing the organization huge amounts of wasteful expenditure by attempting to engage in miscalculated or misleading steps and activities like using “post-it notes for process mapping” involving entire top and middle management team for weeks altogether, where it could have been easily executed by an outsourced expert at a fraction of the cost or like moving from one legacy system to the other before ending up with budgetary constraints for a real digital transformation project.  

Let me bring you back to the current topic, where I wish to present a proprietary method for achieving business transformation with the least resistance as shown below:

As can be seen from the above image, one can drive transformation using any of the four paths viz. Technology, Operations, Process and Strategy. However, the stars provided for each indicate the weightage or importance of that particular aspect w.r.t to overall improvement in the organization. The stars also are an indicator of the level of paradigm shift and ensuing resistance to change that can occur while bringing about the transformation. Hence, if an organization is geared up for operational resilience right from the beginning, then it would be ideal to follow the steps as described below:

§  STRATEGY:

Irrespective of the vision, mission and goals of the company; the strategic direction must be formulated after a careful consideration of the overall context to successfully manage the stakeholders. A risk based approach is required to envisage unforeseen circumstances and be prepared for accommodating major tweaks in the future.

The more flexible the strategy, the more resilient is the organization as opposed to a robust strategy that harbors enormous internal resistance and does not provide enough space for management of change. In pure layman terms, your strategy is your bulletproof vest – it has to be soft enough to allow you to breath and hard enough to be impenetrable. 

Strategy can neither be run through bias nor is it a mere thought experiment. From strategy emanates tactics and from tactics flow maneuverability and from maneuverability comes victory.

§  PROCESS:

Once the overall strategy has been established, a clinical approach to process management is required. Without a process approach, an organization cannot achieve its intended purpose. To do this effectively, one has to sift through layer upon layer of existing dogmas, norms and practices. One must not hesitate to question the adequacy of the existing procedures and rethink the alternative possibilities of getting the job done.

Consider process as the battlefield formation, where it must work with synchronicity and swiftness to enable one to adapt to ever changing requirements and newer environments. However, one must be smart enough to not to reinvent the wheel when not required and diligent enough to dive deep to uncover hidden treasures, if the need be.   

Process transformation is one of the toughest nuts to crack and it really does pay in the long run.

§  OPERATIONS:

Now that an excellent process has been set up, one can look into transforming operations. One must note that both strategy and process are enabling functions while operation is an execution function. Here, one must have a hands-on approach to solving everyday problems. A cursory glance here and slight nudge there will only lead to weakening of the pipeline. A thorough systems approach is required to identify opportunities for improvement and close the gaps if any.  

Allegorically, operation is the weapon without which any enterprise is rendered unviable. So, to bring about operational transformation it is imperative to get your hands dirty and perform a microscopic examination of all the corners involved.   

§  TECHNOLOGY:

Technological advancement is inevitable in the current times and organizations need to either adapt to this change or adopt newer ways of working. But it must be noted that, any kind of technological transformation must not be attempted if the underlying foundations of operations, processes and strategy are not strongly resilient; unless one has the willingness and capacity to change the entire landscape solely on the pillar of technology.

Technology can be either an enabling function or an execution function or both depending upon the context, scale of operations, and complexity of processes. Mere shift from legacy systems to latest technology does not constitute digital transformation. Business transformation that leverages technology to build upon its operational resilience in accordance with the strategic direction is the preferred way to go.

 

Technically speaking, technology is like a telescope that helps you aim better and hit the bullseye with ease. However, it can be of no help to the one who is blind. In the current context, what is implied is that going gung-ho with a haywire approach to whatever is the latest will not work. A careful and holistic take is required to undergo transformation at the technological level which must also be supported by the other three levels described earlier. 

An organization can survive without technological transformation as this can be achieved later if not imminently. Similarly, operational transformation may or may not affect the overall performance of the organization in the immediate future but is important in the long run. In a competitive scenario, revamping operations is a must in order to survive and stay ahead. On the contrary, process transformation is a critical factor that can decide the bottom-line of the organization and define its growth. If this is overlooked, things can go wary with the slightest of change in market dynamics or the business environment. Under stable conditions, most organizations assume that their processes are performing to their optimum values while the reality is otherwise. The greatest risk in times of change or turmoil is that a company might cease to exist if processes are not reviewed periodically. Lastly, strategic transformation is needed when there is massive change or advancement in the industry. If there is rigidity and resistance at this level, then the existence of the company itself can be questionable.

No matter which framework one may choose to adhere to or follow, the TOPS^TM method for business transformation ensures a smooth transition with the least friction.

 

Just Don’t Be A “Munnabhai”!

OR

10 Things Not To Learn From Munnabhai

(Life Coaching Series)

Watch this video in case, you don't like reading just like Munnabhai...!

Inspiration is what fuels our emotions and leaders who appeal to our emotions are the ones who inspire us. Cinema or the film industry goes a long way in shaping the psyche of a society or that of a an entire nation. Sometimes, this can be counterproductive. Let me draw your attention to two similar movies viz. Patch Adams and Munnabhai M.B.B.S. Many of you would have watched at least one of these movies. Though, both movies have a similar plot but the protagonist played by Robin Williams is quite different from that of Sanjay Dutt. Both the movies have been quite popular with their respective audiences. Not being a film critic, I will not get into the nitty-gritties of the storyline. However, both the movies have had a tremendous impact on the mindset of the general public. This brings us to the current topic of leadership and how some people subconsciously misinterpret what they see on the silver screen.

In my experience, I have observed that ineffective leaders often don the garb of Munnabhai and try to steal the show with their mere presence rather than doing something worthwhile. It is very imperative for organizations to identify such tendencies in their leaders and coach them for effectiveness.

Hence, rather than what we can learn from the character of “Munnabhai”, I will be focusing on what kind of unlearning needs to be done in order to be a good leader. Here are the key takeaways: 

1.       Stick to the agenda – Just as in the movie Munnabhai interrupts during an inaugural session asking a seemingly naïve question - Do we have to fill the form?, we all have co-workers who might do that in regular meetings. The insecure leader often tries to divert the flow of conversation into something that is not part of the agenda. Such leaders often cause disinterest in the project and can even sabotage your useful time. I can quote Elon Musk here – “Walk out of a meeting if you feel it is not useful”.

 

2.       Do not run a parallel story – Storytelling is an art and it goes a long way in getting the buy in from the stakeholders, be it your customer or the top management. In the movie, Munnabhai attempts to create parallel stories at various points like setting up a makeshift hospital and pretending to be a doctor when his parents come to visit or when he cooks up a false story during a marriage proposal, etc. He keeps repeating the formula until a time comes when he inflicts self-injury to prevent himself from being rusticated from the medical college. Many leaders often fall into this trap where they try to run parallel stories in order to influence the outcome of a particular task or project in their favor. Eventually they end up hurting themselves or the organization.    

 

3.       Avoid gimmickry – A blatant mockery of the medical profession is made in the movie especially when Munnabhai calls to treat a paralytic patient humanely by addressing him with his name instead of using the word “subject”. Well, it can be dismissed when done for entertainment purposes. As opposed to the theme of the movie, it is a well-known fact that emotions can hinder the precision of a surgeon. Likewise, in a business setup a leader must never attempt using gimmickry and hope for magic just as in the movie where the patient miraculously starts responding to Munnabhai’s tricks. For example, too much use of jargon where most of the team or stakeholders do not get it, is a waste of everyone’s time, energy and resources. Elon Musk’s view – “Focus on the product and not power-point” is very much valid in this scenario.    

 

4.       Accept what is not understood – There is a scene where Munnabhai confesses to his bosom friend Circuit that though he had broken bones of many, but he had no idea that the human body is made up of 206 bones until getting into this medical school. In a real-world scenario, one does not get the opportunity to learn after the opportunity itself is lost. Hence, leaders must at times upskill themselves and accept what is not understood upfront before the beginning of any project. If the realization dawns at a later stage, it can lead to wastage and cost a lot of resources to meet up with the loss. 

 

5.       Do not sell dreams – It is a plain simple advice – do not sell dreams unless you are a marketing or a sales guy. In the movie, a terminal cancer patient is made to cheer up through a sensuous date with a hooker sent to the hospital. Well, this might suit the plot of the movie but will crash all your expectations amid reality. A good leader must never attempt to please his stakeholders for the sake of personal benefit or any other ulterior motive. The true picture must be presented with facts and a sinking project must not be used for siphoning off resources.    

 

6.       Be actionable – There is a scene in the movie where Munnabhai says “Thank You” and gives a magical hug “Jaadu Ki Jhappi” to one of the housekeepers who usually remains agitated possibly due to insensitive behavior of others around. Though this is a beautiful concept that connects with everyone at an emotional level, ineffective leaders use the very same “formula” to manipulate the perception of the co-workers. Whenever there is a problem that everyone is trying to solve, there are some leaders who will suggest something that seems quite attractive or appealing initially but fails to deliver the results in the end. As a result, the organization loses on optimization and service delivery results go nose-diving.   

 

7.       Do not downplay – In one scene, when a seriously emaciated Parsi patient is brought in for treatment and put on an IV saline, Munnabhai retorts at the doctors saying “Just feed him through the mouth” implying that there is no need of the standard treatment. The scene is stretched later, wherein the patient himself gets up to play carrom and drinks juice after his curiosity is awakened. Many leaders at times engage in downplaying various matters like the expertise of their team, criticality of the problem, inherent risk, etc. Irrespective of the reason behind this sort of behavior, downplaying any critical component of an enterprise will always lead to rework, rejection and failures.  

 

8.       Do not overshadow – Throughout the movie, Munnabhai overshadows all other characters who are made to look funny at various points of time. That makes a good script and screenplay for a comedy movie but falls flat when it comes to ground reality. Sometimes, leaders spread themselves across all aspects of a project or across all processes of an organization. They do so to hide their insecurity and lack of trust with the team. This may deliver quick wins initially as people perceive you to be a star but will surely make your image wither out in the long run as they start realizing your true worth or rather lack of it. 

 

9.       Do not bite more than you can chew – The whole movie revolves around the plot of Munnabhai wanting to become a “real” doctor. He fraudulently secures admission in one of the best medical institutes, drags on till the end but utterly fails in his final viva exam. In our zeal to achieve something more, to do what has not been done before and project a larger-than-life image, we forget our own limitations and end up overpromising and underdelivering. Many leaders fall prey to this type of mentality and end with abandoned projects or unsatisfied stakeholders.   

 

10.   Stay relevant – In one of the scenes, Munnabhai is asked to dissect a body and is given a scalpel which he holds like a knife. The professor smiles and advises him to hold it like a pen. This seemingly short yet funny scene describes how most leaders act in times of distress. I have seen many war-rooms and board meetings, where when encountered with a new situation or problem, most leaders usually fail to see the current scenario staring into their face. They almost always fall back to their prior experience and start quoting what they had done in a “similar” situation in their previous organization or assignment or project. What one has done previously may not be relevant at all to the matter at hand unless it is a case where specialist advice is needed. Thus, such leaders who lack critical thinking skills may lose their credibility over a period of time.     

All said and done – Just Don’t Be a Munnabhai!

DISCLAIMER: Anecdotal examples from the movie Munnabhai M.B.B.S. are provided to deliver the message. The author is neither endorsing the movie nor criticizing it in whatsoever manner. The takeaways have been developed by the author based on “Reverse Psychology” as part of his life coaching series. 

 

To know more and participate in my life coaching sessions like this one – “Be WISE Program” (Wisdom is always within I Insights is not what you alone see I Seity is all around you I Engineering of the self); click on the contact link provided here.

 

Avoid Mahabharata Like Vidur!

Life Coaching Series

Everyone has to fight their own battles in life. But, there’s something greater that occurs within ourselves. We are always at war with ourselves. This war within is more important than the petty battles we see outside. Whether you acknowledge it or not, it is happening within you right now. There’s a lot that goes on in our heads which goes almost unnoticed. It is this lack of awareness that is the root cause of most of our internal schisms as well as interpersonal conflicts.

The great epic “Mahabharata” has a lot to offer for the inquisitive mind. Vidur is one of the most overlooked and sidelined characters of the Mahabharata in the psyche of the public. For starters, Vidur’s main role was that of an Advisor, Minister and Treasurer of the state of Hastinapur. He was the wisest of the three brothers viz. Dhritarashtra, Pandu and himself. He is considered as a reincarnation of Lord Yama – God of Death! He is said to have written the “Vidur Neeti” (Aphorims of Vidur) – a treatise on statecraft; which is a first of it’s kind in ancient Indian history.  

Now, let us analyze his overall life events to have a greater insight into this great personality and learn about leadership. There are at least 10 things that leaders of today can learn from Vidur:

1.       Always keep a low profile: Though of royal lineage, Vidura was born of a maid servant and hence denied the opportunity of becoming the King of Hastinapur. He was raised by Bhishma along with his brothers and had no airs about himself being the wisest of all. Leaders who do not carry their weight around are the most successful in the long run.

2.       Ethical conduct precedes everything else: Dhritarashtra had the strength of 10,000 elephants while Pandu was a master archer. Vidur excelled in Dharma shastras i.e. Ethics and principles. There are many instances in his life where he displayed exemplary characteristics amidst turmoil. Great leaders never compromise on ethics and that is what contributes to goodwill, trust and brand value.

3.       Stay away from partisanship: When time came for coronation of an eligible King, Vidur knew that he would be ineligible as per the prevalent norms. Being the Chief Advisor his vote was decisive and he could have easily sided with Dhritarashtra who was blind and planned to rule with a remote control. Instead of behaving like a kingmaker, he voted for Pandu in all righteousness for the sake of the country. A leader must always be impartial and must not lean towards a particular team or department or employee just for the sake of selfish interests.

4.       Always prefer equity over equality: When the time was ripe for marriage, he chose to marry the daughter of King Devaka, who too was born out of a Kshudra (no reference to casteism here) mother. Here too, he could have preferred to marry a princess of royal birth but chose someone lower than his status. This indicates his decision-making abilities and weighing choices for a win-win situation, that are essential for a good leader. Leaders must seek equity over equality both in competition and partnerships. 

5.       Practice critical thinking: At the birth of Duryodhana, when asked by Dhritarashtra about inheritance since Pandu’s son Yudhishthira was elder to his own son; Vidura observed certain omens and declared that the new-born be killed as he may bring calamity upon the kingdom. In a corporate setup, at the launch of a new project one needs to perform thorough risk assessment and at times abandon certain projects that might become the “invisible elephant in the room” in the future. The leader must also possess acute perceptive faculties to capture what others are missing to be able to foresee the outcome clearly beforehand.

6.       Do not plan if you do not wish to execute: When Duryodhana invited Pandavas to stay at the “Lakshagraha” (palace made from flammable materials) with a plot to burn them all at once into ashes; Vidura sensed the ploy. He warned Yudhishthira about it and also arranged for a miner to dig an underground tunnel for them to escape safely. As and Advisor, his job was over after warning the Pandavas about the impending danger, but he went ahead with the objective of rescuing them. Leaders these days are primarily responsible for planning and shift the responsibility of execution to the lower rung; which is not a very good example. If you are planning, you must be prepared to execute. In other words, the best leader is the one who can navigate as well as steer simultaneously. Most leaders are either good at planning or execution and it is a rare view to see one who is good at both.

7.       Do not be a sheeple: Vidura was the only character who vehemently opposed the gambling game knowing that it would lead to distress and openly objected to the insult of Draupadi in the court. Leaders need to voice their concerns to the whole team including the top management and must not remain silent when wrong decisions are being taken that are detrimental to the greater good of the organization.

8.       Do not fear personal loss: Vidura advised Dhritarashtra to divide the kingdom between Kauravas and Pandavas to avoid an impending war; for which he was banished by the king. Eventually, Dhritarashtra realizes his mistake and invites Vidura back to the kingdom as the Prime Minister. Leaders often are unwilling to state facts as they are fearing undesired repercussions from the top management; which eventually leads to downfall of the organization. Genuine feedback may receive criticism initially but one is rewarded eventually.

9.       Do not engage in conflict: Vidura gladly accommodates Krishna when he rejects Duryodhana’s offer of hospitality. Vidura was not bound to do so and could have added fuel to fire just before the beginning of the war. Leaders must try to avoid conflict at all costs even if it means going a second mile.  

10.   Do not compromise: Vidura makes one last attempt to instill sense into Duryodhana after he rejects Krishna’s peace mission. Duryodhana rebukes Vidura and insults him which makes Vidura leave the kingdom immediately for a pilgrimage. Resourceful leaders must not compromise on objectives and not partake in wasteful expenditure at any cost.

As can be seen from the above that Vidur is the only character in the Mahabharata, who expelled all his duties efficiently while avoiding conflicts at every stage.

To know more and participate in my life coaching sessions like this one – “Be WISE Program” TM (Wisdom is always within; Insights is not what you alone see; Seity is all around you; Engineering of the self); click on the contact link provided here.