Tomorrow could be ours

Everyone knows the long journey of life. During this journey we continuously face many situations. In every situation we have to decide one way or another. Many people including well known people have offered valuable quotes. These quotes help us in motivation and to deal with situations. The basic idea is to pick a quote and start seeing how to make it work for each situation. One quote that I found very useful is "Do Today What Others Won’t, Have Tomorrow What Others Don’t" [Reference : https://www.mattmorris.com/do-today-what-others-wont/]"

Somehow I had realized this when I was in my early twenties. At different intervals I kept doing something that wasn't the trend . The way I went about this is by trying different things either singly or in association with young or old people like students, or colleagues. I tried myself going through the toughness of learning. In some cases I couldn't get momentum. Those I left. In other cases I got momentum but little support.

The key point to note is that no one would support when one would do today what others won't. They would ask so many questions that would load a big burden and cause demotivation. So, the point is to work quietly and keep the steps and tools ready. Then look for opportunities such as a project or a collaboration where these new learnings come in handy.

According to a TED talk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MgBikgcWnY it doesn't take too long to learn something new -- say about 20 hours. I would give about 20-30 hours during a 2-3 weeks time. This is a great news. This experience nicely shared by Josh Kaufman offers a nice avenue to try out different things and see if one can catch on to a new path.

We generally get into doubting because it is said that it takes 10,000 hours of work in a given field to become expert. The important point to note is that it doesn't take that long to learn although if we wish to go to the pinnacle of it, we might have to spend that long. Therefore it is important to try learning new things within the resources available and get to know something better that others don't do.

Takeaway

1. Try to learn something new at different intervals

2. It doesn't take long to learn something new

3. Not all things tried would give the momentum

4. A few may give the traction. Sticking to them yields profit in time

5. By adding new expertise a different alley opens to new collaborations and new projects.

The act of trying

“I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.” – Michael Jordan

Here is another quote I find very useful. Give it a try. We are usually busy engaged in some already decided work. In addition we do our housekeeping work. Together these two works occupy most of the day. We need some entertainment too. Some time goes in chat business. Some time goes in personal calls. A very common question arises in our minds - "Where is the time?" This question is so powerful that it practically prevents anyone trying anything different or new out of the routine. Some people counter by saying "Learn to take out time". Yet most of us know that this learning doesn't usually work.

The key point to note is that we should keep our expectations very low when we try. No comparison, no goals, just trying. Trying for a short while. Then come back to it again whenever some free time gap arises. We have usually faced free time gaps arise just like that in our day's run. Simply give it a try. If we like it, we would repeat trying again. If we don't then it drops and we move on. I tried making Upma (a south indian dish). I failed. After some gap I tried again. Failed again. Whatever I did the taste just wasn't coming. Then one day, I suddenly tried and the taste, the texture all came out superb. I tried recollecting and more or less memorized in my mind how to go about it. Even though we find many recipes on the internet, there are so many little things like the heat time, the fry time, the heat intensity, etc. that add to make a big difference in the taste and texture.

So, breaking down into components, any try has a subjective part and an objective part. Most help files and tutorials offer the objective part but the subjective part, which are largely not quantifiable, is mastered only with practice. Therefore repeated trying enables both the arms of trying and slowly one moves up in proficiency.

As failures after trying are very discouraging at least momentarily, the repeat trying can be done after some time gap. The noting point is not to repeat the errors done in previous trying, basically by remembering even the failed trying. So, memory is nice and helping.

Takeaway

1. Trying is a game changer. .

2. Start with very low expectations.

3. Remember the trying exercise.

4. Keep trying and then practicing

Doing, counts .......

"Well done is better than well said". - Benjamin Franklin

Saying and doing are our daily activities. I have observed that the two usually don't go together. Some people however can manage both. But usually while doing an activity we are mostly quiet. On the other hand, while saying we usually don't do anything. Sometimes we might have faced criticism - Instead of saying why not do it and show. This means they are asking for a demo. Demo is a very nice way to show how an activity can be done. However, if some creativity is demanded, then it is better not to show a demo and wait for someone to figure it out. YouTube, for example has lots of demos. Coming back to the quote, a work well done has a far greater impact and use than saying about it well. Doing a work well, which means not leaving loop holes or doing everything in the work to the point, requires lot of thinking and skill. This means that the work has to be broken down into smaller elements and each element must be completed with measurables. So, one can read about making a dish from the internet or even hear about it. But unless one comes down to work the dish, the impact is not created. When it comes to work, trying is the first step. Doing a work well requires trying several times or a prior training. A useful phrase is skilled in the art. As mentioned before, trying repeatedly and learning from those experiences, we can reach the destination - a work well done.

Takeaway

1. Doing a work well has greater impact

2. Doing a work well requires lot of thinking and skill

3. Doing a work well requires lot of trying and learning

4. Doing a work well is possible through prior training

Just when to know we have done it .......

It is quite common to not being able to know "Have we done it? This is where most problems start showing. Generally, after we do something or learn something and present what we have done, people start asking questions: Why did you do it? Maybe you could have added .... and so on. Until nothing is done or presented, no such questions are thrown. I face it all the time. Over years I started to take these responses (mostly verbal) as a list of comments for improvement. There is a systematic way of taking feedback and suggestions. In that system most people don't give their feedback. They will say mostly either through phone or when they meet you somewhere. Some feedbacks are outright negative -- for example, "course topics are outdated", "this course is of no use to me" etc. Some feedbacks are positive -- for example, "you could show us a few more examples". Negative feedbacks are demotivating. Positive feedbacks are motivating. Over the years I learn't a few basics out of many such experiences.

The grasping nature of people varies widely among them. Some people are very fast, some in the middle and some are very slow. Usually negative feedbacks come from the slow grasping people and positive feedbacks come from fast grasping people.

A well known myth is that older people are generally slow in grasping and therefore they generally are negative in their responses. In my experience this is myth because grasping power is not age dependent unless some medical condition has set in. So, how to present what we have done so that we could avoid negative feedback? I realized that the best way is to simulate the slow graspers and prepare the presentation such that they could appreciate. Then, it is very likely that those with higher grasping rates would appreciate certainly. In general the following rule holds : what is done well can be presented well. Therefore, doing well as mentioned above is the first step followed by presenting well.

Takeaways

1. After doing a work well prepare for presentation

2. Prepare presentation for the slowest graspers in the audience

3. Interact nicely and helpfully with the audience

4. Encourage suggestions and improvements