Sreesanth syndrome - the continuation

I don't know why, he is one player, who comes into my column very often. A few weeks ago I had mentioned about this player of our Indian Cricket team and his style of taking God and rituals into the playing field when he is required to perform. I bring this point again looking at the news space he is getting once again - somehow or other. When Indian Cricket Team has been selected for playing in Ireland, it should have had made a simple logic - that any normal person would have taken - to take precautions about the Irish Weather and playing conditions and keep the players fit enough to go out and play while in Ireland. 6 or 7 players out of the 15 member squad is out of action for the 2nd One day international shows the amount of preparation our Team Management and Cricket Board does with these high profile players. I know it is easy to criticise than make things happen. But how many times we see this situation when teams like Australia, England or West Indies come out to play in India during extreme summer? Coming back again and continuing what I wrote about Sreesanth last time - one more country stamp in his passport, without playing in full. BRAVO. I know he will get to read this column and hence it's an open challenge to perform and prove otherwise.

India poised to raise fuel prices

Get ready for a petrol price hike........

Indian investors get reprive for Pan card

For all those who have not taken a PAN Card, kindly read this and obtain one at your earliest convenience.

The Economic Times Knowledge Forum

Greetings from The Times Group!

The Times Group has always been known for its visionary approach not just in the media space but in its numerous endeavors to provide knowledge to people at large. They are empowered on Information/News/Analysis not just through our various publications like ‘The Times of India’ & ‘The Economic Times’ to name a few, but also through professional forums, seminars and symposiums.

In our effort towards such knowledge empowerment, we have designed yet another program. The Economic Times Knowledge Forum is a platform for our esteemed clients/readers/associates to experience the power of learning and development through relevant and professional training. As you would know, training today has become the backbone of every organization across the globe in terms of developing knowledge, skills and attitude

To facilitate the same, The Times Group has got in to a strategic tie-up with the world's leading training institutions, such as Dale Carnegie, DOOR Training, TMI, TACK International and FICCI to name a few. Through these alliances we are looking at delivering world class professional trainings in the core areas of Management.

Our solutions focus mainly on Open-Programs. We cover various concepts like Managerial & Leadership skills, Soft skills, Sales & Customer Care, Behavioral Skills and Team Building programs across India.

Attached, please find our program calendar up till January 2008. All these workshops are conducted across 17 locations in the country.

Based on the workshops of your interest, we will be able to share additional information on each of the programs.

We sincerely hope that you will be a part of this learning space. Kindly nominate yourself and recommend the same to your colleagues and business associates to benefit from the listed programs.

Registration is restricted to not more than 25 persons per program. Please send us your registrations at the earliest.

For further details, please feel free to contact us.

Thanks & Regards,

Vickram Swamy

Senior Manager
Response & Training Activation (South)
The Economic Times

Tel: Direct: 25594724
Cell: 99452 14666
Email: vickram.swamytimesgroup.com

Everyone Works Hard For a Living !!!

This was a one liner gem from my CEO friend this morning..... I told him, good, I have an opportunity to portray some of the actions I captured during my journey around.

Comings soon - - - Long & Tall and the TOLL on Dubai roads

A lesson for the aged

A lesson for the aged
Seema Burman
June 27, 2007

Older people grumble that nobody pays attention to them. A mind that is not trained to be spiritual feels lonely in old age. But those who develop affinity with live souls, love to feed them and look after them. This gives us a happy connection with existence.

Those who build up their love for God or a guru establish a relationship with their favourite deity The satisfaction of such a relationship is soothing for the mind, body and spirit.

With changing times, rules too are changing. Children find elders a nuisance and neglect or abuse them. Gurus now advise the old not to relinquish their property to their children as long as they are alive.

In a true case, a retired man distributed his three floors to his three sons after his wife died and lived with the eldest son. One day the son complained that his brothers were not contributing to the father's food and an arrangement reached that each son's family would cook food by turn. The arrangement soon fell apart. The father started going to a nearby dhaba. His friends got together and hatched a plan. One day he gathered his sons and gave them tickets for a vacation. When they returned, a builder was waiting for them to take away their belongings as the house had been sold and their father had left without leaving behind any address.

The biggest mistake we all commit is of getting attached to people and possessions. When discarded by our loved ones, we are saddened. That is why saints ask us to devote more time to spiritual attainment.

Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa said that the best way to live life is like a caretaker A caretaker is not attached to possessions. When worldly things are snatched from him, the caretaker remains calm and unconcerned.

Rain rain go away

It's rain, rain and more rain every where. Here are some photos.

How organizations were named....

This is again a nice forward by Mr. Shanawas & team from Bangalore. And it was again an opportunity for introducing the Team 1 for the new members. With Team 1, an opportunity will never be wasted.

Read on......

Yahoo!
The word was invented by Jonathan Swift and used in his book Gulliver's Travels. It represents a person who is repulsive in appearance and action and is barely human. Yahoo! founders Jerry Yang and David Filo selected the name because they considered themselves yahoos.

Xerox
The Greek root "xer" means dry. The inventor, Chestor Carlson, named his product Xerox as it was dry copying, markedly different from the then prevailing wet copying.

Sun Microsystems
Founded by four Stanford University buddies, Sun is the acronym for Stanford University Network.

Sony
From the Latin word 'sonus' meaning sound, and 'sonny' a slang used by Americans to refer to a bright youngster.

Motorola
Founder Paul Galvin came up with this name when his company started manufacturing radios for cars. The popular radio company at the time was called Victrola.


Microsoft
It was coined by Bill Gates to represent the company that was devoted to MICROcomputer SOFTware. Originally christened Micro-Soft, the '-' was removed later on.

Hotmail
Founder Jack Smith got the idea of accessing email via the web from a computer anywhere in the world. When Sabeer Bhatia came up with the business plan for the mail service, he tried all kinds of names ending in 'mail' and finally settled for Hotmail as it included the letters "html" - the programming language used to write web pages. It was initially referred to as HoTMaiL with selective upper casings.

Google
The name started as a jockey boast about the amount of information the search-engine would be able to search. It was originally named 'Googol', a word for the number represented by 1 followed by 100 zeros. After founders - Stanford graduate students Sergey Brin and Larry Page presented their project to an angel investor, they received a cheque made out to 'Google

Apple Computers
Favourite fruit of founder Steve Jobs. He was three months late in filing a name for the business, and he threatened to call his company Apple Computers if the other colleagues didn't suggest a better name by 5 o'clock.


And last but not the least Team 1.
In 2005, it was just a spark - a thought - an idea to motivate a select group of students who joined the MBA programme of IGNOU and to request the IGNOU Partner Institution in Dubai to organise regular contact classes for those students who were interested and available. From then on, it gently started its growth and took various size and shape - first that of a yahoo group, then came the weekly newsletter, then the daily mails and now the blog.

Several of those joined during that time had to discontinue the programme due to various reasons, but many of them remained on board to continue their quest for knowledge.

Like a passenger train, when many people got off, many new came in and the train journey continued - of course some regular passengers who took season ticket for life and the GUARD remained.

It has a long way to go, as it has certain destinations in mind, which will all be announced at appropriate times. Till then enjoy the journey, feel comfortable and bring along your friends - because this is one place where you will love to come back often and often. Because WE ARE COMMITTED TO QUALITY & CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT - WHEREVER WE ARE AND WHATEVER WE DO.

Have a pleasant journey throughout.

God Bless and let God's Grace Prevail.

Ramesh Menon
26062007

Advertisements at its best

Our Bangalore team member Mr. Shanawas send me these. We all know that it is very difficult to capture the attention of consumers. Many times we glance through newspaper ads in full page, color and promising words. The cost for releasing such ads may go into thousands of Rupees or Dirhams. But they never remain in our mind or heart and fail to generate the intended results. However, many other times we see a small insert getting into the hearts of millinos.

This is one item that I was looking forward to, the Art of Presenting things in the right way within the right space and time. Here they are - some of the successful ones during year 2006.

Of course, you can revisit our Saturday Special news to imagine the value of time, space, content and deciding NO when it is required to - I am learning more about it by each week.

You will also see in due course some of the ones which failed to generate the results.

The four blessed looks

A nice post by Vijay Kumar, please read on

The four blessed looks:

Look back and thank God.
Look forward and trust God.
Look around and serve God.
Look within and find God!"

"I asked God, 'How do I get the best out of life?'

God said, 'Face your past without regrets. Handle your present with confidence. And prepare for the future without fear!'"

"Without God, our week is: Mournday, Tearsday, Wasteday, Thirstday,Fightday, Shatterday and Sinday. So, allow Him to be with you every day!"

Life is short, so forgive quickly. Believe slowly. Love truly.
Laugh uncontrollably. Never regret anything that makes you happy.

Have a wonderful journey of life!

God bless!

Easy way

This is a new way someone tried the other day. In the FM they said, Take it Easy and he just followed.........

Forgotten Mail

Communication is a very important factor to keep alive Team work. It is the same in personal life too. With the advent of internet, mobile and the latest 3G technology PDA phones, Mail Boxes have become a history. How many of you write a letter or send a post card these days? The condition of this mail box in one of the street here tells you the number of users it has..

Reflections of Rain

It's raining heavily back home and getting the smell of it here. Not a recent one, but taken WHEN IT RAINED HERE IN ABU DHABI LAST YEAR. We too get one or two days of rain every year.

*Two moons on 27 August*

*Two moons on 27 August*

*27th Aug the Whole World is waiting for...*

Planet Mars will be the brightest in the night sky starting August.

It will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye. This will
cultivate on Aug. 27 when Mars comes within 34.65M miles of earth. Be
sure to watch the sky on Aug. 27 12:30 am. It will look like the earth
has 2 moons. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287.

Share this with your friends as NO ONE ALIVE TODAY will ever see it
again.

$152,000 for Your Thoughts

$152,000 for Your Thoughts

by Gary Carini and Bill Townsend

To draw out employees’ creativity, get tougher on them. Don’t let them get away with summarizing their ideas on simple forms. Make them prove their concepts’ viability, right from the start.

That advice may sound counterproductive, considering the dearth of worthwhile innovations that are emerging from the rank and file. In our interviews over the past 12 years with more than 300 managers in technology, media, venture capital, and other fields, executives have said that employees don’t come close to filling the need for workable ideas. So why would we recommend raising the bar?
Because putting the burden of proof on the proposers results in well-formed ideas and knowledgeable, motivated employees who understand the value of their innovations. Raising the bar won’t stifle innovation as long as the company couples that policy with the right support and incentives for encouraging employee entrepreneurship. Companies must give workers the tools to prove their ideas’ worth—in other words, firms must teach the economics of innovations. Managers must repeatedly instill in employees’ minds the concept that ideas are valued. The process for reviewing proposals must move quickly.

Companies must also put serious rewards on the table. All too often, bonuses don’t inspire employees to shape and articulate their ideas. We estimate that in most companies, the ratio of employee reward to savings or increased revenue from innovation is about .001%, or $100 for that $10 million idea.

Firms should establish specific and trackable rewards or bonuses, preferably a set percentage of the savings or the increased net, and should publicize success stories internally. Companies that required employees to present business cases for their ideas and offered substantial rewards saw the number of workable innovations rise significantly. (We’ve found increases in the 20% to 40% range, depending on a variety of factors and baseline conditions.) Firms that had implemented such programs but discontinued them, usually as a short-sighted cost-cutting measure, observed a significant decline in workable innovations, our research shows.

Interminds, the consulting firm that one of us (Bill Townsend) founded, is a good example of a company that puts its money where its mouth is. An employee who comes up with an idea to save money while promoting the company’s vision gets half of the first year’s savings. The policy was instrumental in drawing a great idea from a $38,000-a-year executive assistant. Her process improvement was to automate the laborious system of manually tracking 900 field representatives. She built the business case with an individual in the finance department. The company implemented her plan and saved $304,000 in the first year. She earned a $152,000 bonus.
This was a success story for Interminds’ employee entrepreneurship program, which proved its value in generating a money-saving idea and in energizing an employee to think more creatively about her job. This new attitude became contagious at the firm. It can happen at your company, too.

Abu Dhabi

Hi all, This is my first Video post. Welcome all of you to Abu Dhabi. Cheers, Ramesh Menon

Discipline Opens Up A Whole New World

Discipline Opens Up A Whole New World
22 Jun, 2007 l 0029 hrs ISTlDiscourse: Gurumayi Chidvilasananda

How can the mind learn to perceive its own source, the light of Consciousness or Chitprakasa? By learning to keep its energies centred. This is possible with discipline.

Krishna describes the necessity of discipline when he says to Arjuna: "The yogi should constantly discipline himself,/ remaining in solitude, alone,/ with mind and body well restrained,/ having no desires, and without avarice".

In yoga, the word discipline has nothing to do with the rigours of boarding school or military life; it means to purify thought, speech and action.

Baba Muktananda placed great importance on spending time alone: "One should abandon all thoughts and practise watching what is happening within".

This is not just a matter of distancing yourself from people, buildings and professional obligations. You must make space in the region of the mind. The mind consists of four psychic instruments: the intellect, subconscious mind, ego, and conscious mind. When you make space beyond all your mental activity, you discover the company of a deeper silence within.

Krishna began with discipline; then he asked Arjuna to remain in solitude. He added the word 'alone'. Being alone means separating yourself from the things that keep you from being with God. In this aloneness, kaivalya, there is no loneliness.

'Having no desires' is the next teaching in this verse — becoming free from the clutches of sense objects, from the desires of the senses. When desires are not under your control, they drive you into a ditch. A yogi, therefore, must develop the power to say 'no' to unwanted desires. A yogi is free from avarice. When you look at history, it is clear that greed is the cause of downfall of empires. Avarice is like a disease invading the body. For the fulfilment of yoga, to become free from desires, one-pointedness is vital, ekagra manas. A stable mind is a tranquil mind. A scattered mind can never gather enough momentum to progress on the path of discipline. When you focus the mind on something, whatever it may be, you absorb its qualities. In a very real way, you take it into yourself.

At the same time, you infuse it with your own bhav. Devotion to God is much more than a feeling. Through your devotion, God comes alive for you. Through your devotion, you also invite the one you worship into your body and mind, into your life. The formless takes on a form that you can relate to.

Krishna says: "Whenever the unsteady mind,/ moving to and from, wanders away,/ the yogi should restrain it/ and control it in the Self/ with niyama, regularity." In the Yogasutras, Patanjali lists the niyamas as cleanliness, contentment, austerity, regular recitation of scriptural texts, and the surrender of one's limited will to God.

Contentment, austerity, chanting mantras, and samarpana or surrender to God, help liberate the mind and receive God's grace. Constantly remember how much grace there is in your sadhana. It's like going for a walk and having the wind at your back. When that happens, it's as though when you are walking, the wind is behind you, supporting you.

When You Create Music, Become The Instrument - How to overcome fear when performing before an audience?

When You Create Music, Become The Instrument
21 Jun, 2007 l 0000 hrs ISTlSatsang: Sri Chinmoy

How to overcome fear when performing before an audience?

Whenever you perform, feel that... there is only one person listening to you, and imagine that that person is a child only two years old. This is the human way.

The divine way is to see immediately the Supreme before you. If you see the Supreme and feel that you also are the Supreme, then how can one Supreme be afraid of the other Supreme? There is only one Supreme. If you bow to the Supreme inside each individual in the audience, then immediately you become one with each indivi-dual. Then you will not be afraid. Because you do not feel your oneness, you are afraid. But if you are one, then you do not feel afraid. This is the divine way...

What makes music full of supreme beauty?

Remembering constantly that your music is only an extension of your inner consciousness and that it is also an expression of the divine within that is crying for manifestation. If you can be aware of the divine within you, then you can bring to your music, supreme beauty. But always feel that the divine within you has accepted music as an expression of its reality for your own perfection in life. When you play music... feel that you are the instrument and the Supreme is playing in and through you. You are His instrument and He is playing you. He is the musician and, at the same time, He Himself is the listener. You have to feel that He is the player, He is the listener, and He is the instrument itself. If you have that kind of feeling, automatically divine perfection dawns in your music... How to keep ego out of art?

Think that you are one individual and your ego is another... From experience you know that this ego is really your enemy. The ego will stand in your way when you try to run towards your goal. By feeding someone who has a different goal from you, you are only delaying your own progress and weakening your own strength.

The Supreme is waiting for you... to reach Him. Yet you are giving half your strength to somebody who is really your enemy. The Supreme gives you the opportunity and capacity to run the fastest, but you are sharing half your capacity with somebody who is running to another goal, of des-truction. If you see the ego in this way, then you can easily separate your creative capacity from your ego...

How to infuse music with spirituality?

Each seeker-musician has a golden opportunity to please the Supreme with his music. Whenever you play music, you have to know whether or not that music is going to please the Supreme. If it pleases you and you feel it will please God, then play it. If you feel it will not please God, then never play it. ...A sincere seeker needs to play only spiritual music that elevates his and others’ consciousness. Play music that inspires you, that comes from the very depth of your heart and illumines your consciousness. When you play this kind of music, you will see that in each note God Himself is blossoming like a lotus, petal by petal. When you play divine music, please feel that God is unveiling His own inner Music and fulfilling Himself in and through you...

Watch out for eye flu outbreak

Watch out for eye flu outbreak
25 Jun, 2007 l 0307 hrs ISTlKamayani Singh/TIMES NEWS NETWORK

NEW DELHI: The early shower in city might be a pleasant sight, but watch your eyes. The rain not only spells relief, but is an invitation to number of infections like conjunctivitis.

Doctors claim they have already started getting cases of conjunctivitis. With monsoon round the corner, such infections are likely to rise in the coming days. ‘‘Delhi is getting rain for the past few days. Many cases of haemorrhagic conjunctivitis have started pouring in, where bleeding starts in the conjunctiva and can affect the eyesight. A rise in the humidity levels will certainly lead to an increase in the number of cases of infectious conjunctivitis,’’ said Dr Ritu Aurora, consultant eye surgeon, Max Healthcare.

While infectious conjunctivitis, which is caused by pathogens (viral or bacterial), has just started manifesting in the city, cases of allergic conjunctivitis are an all time this year.

‘‘Allergic conjunctivitis, which is an allergy or reaction in the eye due to a foreign particle, has been extremely high this year. I would say that there is an increase of almost 20%-30% in the cases of allergic conjunctivitis this year. The high number of dust storms in the city has been responsible for the surge in the cases,’’ said Dr Mahesh Chandra, professor of Ophthalmology AIIMS.

Doctors suggest wearing dark glasses, avoid touching the eye and frequently washing face to prevent allergy. Infectious conjunctivitis is contagious and one has to be careful to not share eye drops, tissues, eye-makeup, towels, clothes and bedsheets.

People wearing contact lenses should take extra care as the allergens in the air, like pollen and dust, can create problems for them. ‘‘With lenses one needs to be more hygienic, avoid using them for long and preferably wear disposable contact lenses,’’ added Dr Aurora.

The symptoms of conjunctivitis start with an irritation and redness in the eye and inner eyelid. In infectious conjunctivitis, there might also be discharge from the eye. Antibiotic drops, ointments and artificial tears are prescribed as medicine. Use of steroids — which are often prescribed for allergic conjunctivitis — should be avoided.

Eat potatoes for strong immunity

Eat potatoes for strong immunity
25 Jun, 2007 l 1107 hrs ISTlIANS

LONDON: Eating potatoes could have a beneficial effect on the immune system, says a study conducted by Spanish researchers.

The vegetable is considered to be rich in vitamin C, B-complex vitamins and has good doses of minerals like iron, calcium, manganese, magnesium and phosphorus. It has long been known that potatoes are good for bowel health.

It is believed to be good for the immune system, particularly if eaten cold or in a salad, the researchers write in Chemistry & Industry, a magazine of the Society of Chemical Industry.

The scientists carried out a study where they fed growing pigs large quantities of raw potato starch (RPS) for over 14 weeks and found that they had healthier bowels.

They also found that these pigs had decreased levels of white blood cells - such as leucocytes and lymphocytes in their blood. White blood cells are produced due to inflammation or when a person is ill to fight the disease, reports the science portal EurekAlert.

The general decrease in leucocytes observed by the researchers suggests an overall beneficial effect, according to immunology expert Lena Ohman at the Department of Internal Medicine, Göteborg University, Sweden.

Said José Francisco Pérez, the lead researcher from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona: "The use of raw potato starch in this experiment is designed to simulate the effects of a diet high in resistant starch."

Humans do not eat raw potatoes, but they do eat a lot of foods that contain resistant starch, such as cold boiled potatoes, legumes, grains, green bananas, pasta and cereals.

About 10 per cent of the starch eaten by humans is resistant starch - starch that is not digested in the small intestine and so is shunted into the large intestine where it ferments.

Starch consumption is thought to reduce the risk of large bowel cancer and may also have an effect on irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

The decrease in white blood cells observed is therefore interesting, and a diet of resistant starch may be worth trying in IBS patients, an expert said.

Indians crack mental illness

Indians crack mental illness
26 Jun, 2007 l 0043 hrs ISTlMadhavi Rajadhyaksha/TIMES NEWS NETWORK

SMS NEWS to 8888 for latest updates
MUMBAI: For the millions living with mental retardation, this breakthrough holds out a ray of hope. An international group of researchers, including two Bangalore neuroscientists, has identified an enzyme that causes the syndrome called Fragile X and successfully reverses its symptoms in mice.

Fragile X Syndrome is a genetic condition caused by a defect in the X chromosome. It’s the chief cause of mental retardation, and in some cases, a known cause of autism. It can cause varying degrees of impairment, from minor learning problems to cognitive disability. Until now, there’s been no known treatment for Fragile X.

Bangalore, was published in the ‘Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences’ on Monday. Scientists say we can expect similar results in human beings in five years.

"We found that a specific enzyme in the brain called P21-Activated Kinase (PAK), when inhibited, reversed the debilitating symptoms of Fragile X in mice," said Sumantra Chatterji of the National Centre for Biological Sciences.

The second researcher, Shankaranarayana Rao of NIMHANS, explained that in the brain, connections between neurons are formed by protrusions called ‘spines’. The Indian contribution to the research involved monitoring how these spines were altered in the mentally challenged.

Thinking out of the Box

Contributed by Mr. Ankit.

Imagine this ...

You are driving along in your car on a wild, stormy night, it's raining
heavily, when suddenly you pass by a bus stop, and you
see three people waiting for a bus:

1. An old lady who looks as if she is about to die.

2. An old friend who once saved your life.

3. The perfect partner you have been dreaming about.

Which one would you choose to offer a ride to, knowing very well that
there could only be one passenger in your car?
Think before you continue reading...

....

....

^
.....

.....

......


This is a moral/ethical dilemma that was once actually used as part of
a job application.


* You could pick up the old lady, because she is going to die, and thus
you should save her first;

* or you could take the old friend because he once saved your life, and
this would be the perfect chance to pay him back.

* However, you may never be able to find your perfect mate again.

The candidate who was hired (out of 200 applicants) had no trouble
coming up with his answer. Guess what was his answer?


....




He simply answered: "I would give the car keys to my Old friend and let
him take the lady to the hospital. I would stay behind and
wait for the bus with the partner of my dreams."

Sometimes, we gain more if we are able to give up our
stubborn thought limitations. Never forget to "Think Outside of the
Box."

The Battle of Desires

Never Take things for Granted

A photo provided by friend from Oman - disasters takes place unexpectedly. It is up to us to recover from it and how fast we get going towards our set path and goals.

6 Ways to generate great ideas at work

Emptiness

Heavy rains

The umbrella is for the mahout or the elephant?. Both ways, it's raining heavily. Where are the photos.................?

Inspirational story - Unconditional Love

Inspirational story - Unconditional Love

A story is told about a soldier who was finally coming home after having fought in Vietnam . He called his parents from San Francisco .

"Mom and Dad, I'm coming home, but I've a favor to ask. I have a friend I'd like to bring home with me."

"Sure," they replied, "we'd love to meet him."

"There's something you should know the son continued, "he was hurt pretty badly in the fighting. He stepped on a land mind and lost an arm and a leg. He has nowhere else to go, and I want him to come live with us."

"I'm sorry to hear that, son. Maybe we can help him find somewhere to live."

"No, Mom and Dad, I want him to live with us."

"Son," said the father, "you don't know what you're asking. Someone with such a handicap would be a terrible burden on us. We have our own lives to live, and we can't let something like this interfere with our lives. I think you should just come home and forget about this guy. He'll find a way to live on his own."

At that point, the son hung up the phone. The parents heard nothing more from him. A few days later, however, they received a call from the San Francisco police. Their son had died after falling from a building, they were told. The police believed it was suicide. The grief-stricken parents flew to San Francisco and were taken to the city morgue to identify the body of their son. They recognized him, but to their horror they also discovered something they didn't know, their son had only one arm and one leg.

The parents in this story are like many of us. We find it easy to love those who are good-looking or fun to have around, but we don't like people who inconvenience us or make us feel uncomfortable. We would rather stay away from people who aren't as healthy, beautiful, or smart as we are. Thankfully, there's someone who won't treat us that way. Someone who loves us with an unconditional love that welcomes us into the forever family, regardless of how messed up we are.

Tonight, before you tuck yourself in for the night, say a little prayer that God will give you the strength you need to accept people as they are, and to help us all be more understanding of those who are different from us!!!

There's a miracle called Friendship That dwells in the heart You don't know how it happens Or when it gets started But you know the special lift It always brings And you realize that Friendship Is God's most precious gift!

Friends are a very rare jewel, indeed. They make you smile and encourage you to succeed They lend an ear, they share a word of praise, and they always want to open their hearts to us.

My Dog Can Walk On Water

My Dog Can Walk On Water

There was a hunter who came into the possession of a special bird dog. The dog was the only one of its kind, because it can walk on water. One day he invited a friend to go hunting with him so that he could show off his prized possession. After some time, they shot a few ducks, which fell into the river. The man ordered his dog to run and fetch the birds. The dog ran on water to fetch the birds. The man was expecting a compliment about the amazing dog, but did not receive it. Being curious, he asked his friend if the friend had noticed anything unusual about the dog. The friend replied, “Yes, I did see something unusual about your dog. Your dog can’t swim!”

Success Principles

More than 90% of the people that we face everyday are negative. They choose to look at the hole in the middle rather than the doughnut. Do not expect compliments or encouragement from them. These are the people who cannot pull you out of your present situation. They can only push you down. So be aware of them, spend less time with them, and do not let them steal your dreams away from you.

Team 1 news - 25 Jun 07 - Pg 1

Team 1 news - 25 Jun 07 - Pg 2

Electronic Sign boards - Dubai

Dear Members,

Team 1 always keeps an eye on what's new and interesting happening around. It is also meant to continuously promote Quality and sustain the development. With this view in mind, all options and resources available to promote Quality initiatives are explored, possibilities identified, and communications generated and results attempted and achieved. At times or many times, it may be failure, but by repetition, these attempts get converted to Success. It is not the question of whether you are in Cochin, Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai, Dubai or Canada. It is the initiative to go for a change, if you feel that it is required and can be achieved with quality communication methods. Dubai Government has a forum for its expatriates and residents to communicate them their suggestions and complaints. It is through their web page:

http://www.dm.gov.ae/portal/dt?desktop.suid=uid=ENanonymous,ou=People,o=public,dc=dm,dc=gov,dc=ae

and through their programme “Have Your Say”. Do utilise this. I regularly contribute to this site. And the response time is some times as fast as 1-2 hours from the time you post a request. When they say, Dubai is growing fast; it means also that they have a government who listens fast... When are we going to get a pro-active administrative set up? My friends from Cochin and Bangalore - I am sure you are reading this. If you wait, you will always wait.

There are several things that we can do, but we don't do - Why? This is my question for you all this evening.

Have a good evening,

Ramesh Menon

It is a son's world

It is a son's world by Seema Burman HT New Delhi, June 22, 2007

When my maternal uncle was alive his only son quietly made plans to settle in Germany with his wife. Without informing his father or sister he bought tickets and sold all movable things at home.

A week before he left, everyone was informed of his plans. People criticised him for abandoning his father. The married daughter who was settled in Bhopal, shifted to Delhi to look after her father.

A year later the father was admitted to a private hospital and died. The son came from Germany, paid the bills and performed all the death ceremomes. People now said that after all, he had come all the way, so he was not a bad son.

No word about how he had neglected his father or how his sister had to disrupt her personal life to take care of old Dad. This is what life teaches every daughter. That our society values a son more because he has the religious sanction to perform death ceremonies and grant them liberation (mukti).

A daughter may have given them love, care, sensitivity, time, service, but the son gets preference because he carries forward the family name and performs shraadh. He may be uncaring, arrogant and indifferent but for parents a son is their treasure.

Two years back in our neighbourhood a man died without leaving a will. His only son sold the bungalow and took away his sick mother without informing his three sisters who then approached the courts for a share of the property.

Is this the family structure we boast of to the world? Where does love and laughter vanish when siblings become adults? Are we right in blaming a newly wed for poisoning a son's brain? Love for a daughter has to come from within.

Saints repeatedly clarify that death ceremonies need not be performed only by one's own son.

And what guarantee is there that a son will perfOrm the shraadh? If parents do not reciprocate a daughter's love, won't Heaven, which claims to be just and fair, reproach them for their insensitivity?

On your way - a display on a shop window in Abu Dhabi Hamdan Street

Dear Members,

Many times during our hectic schedules we come across several funny things which will act as a refresher. This ad display at one of the shop in the main Hamdan Street in Abu Dhabi is one of them. You may find many during in your day's running around. Do not hesitate to pass on. May be the artist who drew this poster was also rushing from one job to another and missed something very important. Many times, we too do the same - Missing something valuable for NOTHING.

Find beauty & humour in everything. Enjoy life as it is. Have a great day.

Ramesh Menon

Team 1 news - 23 Jun 07 - Pg 1

Saturday, 23 June 2007

Dear Members,

I am very happy to post you Team 1 news Saturday Special for the week # 26 of 2007. This week we are touching an interesting topic “Disaster Management”. As the name denotes, and as it happens, the contents of the week are slightly heavy despite of trying my effort to keep it short. However, it will be worth to brush up your Disaster Management knowledge, keeping in mind the heavier monsoon already on its way in many parts of India.

Continuous improvement along with change, i.e. one aspect, I have tried to maintain while preparng and disseminating the Team 1 news. This week, you will be receiving only selected pages through this mail. If you are happy to read on further, you can straightaway visit our webpage www.team1dubai.blogspot.com. You may also forward this link to your friends and colleagues to whom you have been forwarding the same as email. In case you have any restrictions to visit or download the same from there, you are always welcome to email me with your request.

For your information, Google is coming with several new features to be included on its blogspots including addition of video files. I am already testing some of them on a beta version and will be able to utilise it for our news as soon as it is officially available. Utilise these opportunities to the maximum as otherwise, we all will get outdated by the technology.

Continue to write to me with your thoughts and comments. Do not hold on to them. It has the greatest value, when it reaches Team 1 mail box which is team1dubai@gmail.com.

Have a great week-end and great week ahead,

Ramesh Menon
23062007


*~*"All great achievements and success in life, and all changes for the better have one powerful characteristic in common: The First Step.Take the first step, and the journey has a way of taking care of itself." *~* Team 1 Dubai – Committed to Continuous Improvement. *~*

Team 1 news - 23 Jun 07 - Pg 2

Team 1 news - 23 Jun 07 - Pg 3