How to Get Your Audience to Buy into Your Idea

How to Get Your Audience to Buy into Your Idea by HBR

Even the most innovative ideas might be seen as boring if they aren’t presented in the right way. You want your pitch to be as clever as your idea so that you’re more likely to gain approval. To shift the odds in your favor, there are a few hacks you can use. 

Start with the setup of the room. Having your colleagues sit around a conference table signals to them that they are there to judge your idea — not nurture it. Lose the table, or hold your meeting in a space where there’s no separation between you and your colleagues. 

Then focus your audience’s attention on how they can build upon your idea. One way to do this is to encourage people to use a tool from the world of improv. Ask the audience to respond with “yes, and” statements. This small shift in language encourages the audience to share things they might have otherwise kept quiet about. 

Finally, ensure your pitch brings every type of learner into the fold. Some of your colleagues might prefer visuals while others prefer listening or interacting. This means you’ll want to give people several entry points into the concept you’re pitching. If you share your idea in a few different ways, at least one of them is likely to resonate

Interested to know more?

Read the complete article at:

https://hbr.org/2021/09/is-your-pitch-as-great-as-your-idea?utm_medium=email

Giving Hard Feedback Is...Hard. Here’s How to Do It. --> The HBR Way

 Giving your employees tough feedback can be painful, but it’s a requirement for any leader. 

Here’s how to navigate the discomfort and apprehension that comes with difficult conversations so you can say what needs to be said. 

1. Start by challenging the assumption that critical feedback makes you a difficult or mean manager. 

2. Instead, focus on the rewards of clear, honest communication; your input may be exactly what your employee needs to finish a challenging assignment, and it could help them grow in new, productive ways. 

3. Then, before you actually deliver your feedback, consider the worst, best, and most likely outcomes, and come up with a game plan for each. 4. Plan your opening remarks: Use “I” statements, be specific, and strike a respectful, honest tone. 

5. Finally, make feedback a regular, predictable habit, rather than an occasional “big” conversation. 

The more you practice giving feedback in lower-stakes, everyday scenarios, the better at it you’ll become. Remember: You’re not criticizing your people; you’re nurturing them. And you’re certainly not being a villain; you’re being the leader they need. 

Interested to know more?

Read the complete article at: 

https://hbr.org/2023/07/overcoming-your-fear-of-giving-tough-feedback

Keep Your Audience Engaged in Your Presentation by HBR

 Keep Your Audience Engaged in Your Presentation by Harvard Business Review

To become an excellent presenter, you need to master the art of grabbing your audience’s attention—and holding it. Here are three techniques you can use to engage any audience like a pro. Physical. Whether you’re giving an in-person presentation or conducting a virtual meeting, think about how you can get your audience moving. A simple invitation to “Turn to the person next to you and greet them” or “Raise your hand if X, Y, or Z” can get them involved. Your goal is to turn your audience into participants, not just observers. Mental. Fight back against your audience’s tendency to zone out or multitask by fostering cognitive engagement. You can do this by asking direct questions, incorporating provocative statements or data, and introducing smart, surprising analogies. Linguistic. Use language to invite your audience in. Mention participants’ names when you can, and use phrases like “As you know…” or “Today, you will learn…” to directly address the crowd. You can also spur your listeners’ imaginations with phrases like “What if you could…” and “Picture this…” to help them visualize the future, or “Remember when…” or “Think back to when…” to bring them back to the past. Interested to know more? Read the complete article at:  https://hbr.org/2023/07/3-ways-to-keep-your-audience-focused-during-a-presentation

Quality is King -- The Japanese Way...

 

A few years ago, I completed my Six Sigma Black Belt process improvement project, and contrary to the generic perception, Quality is a lot of fun. Needless to say, like all high-quality stuff, even Six Sigma was born in Japan. Six Sigma's definition is the reduction of defects to no more than 3.4 per million opportunities(lines of code for software). Of course, we do not want to meet such stringent quality requirements but we can strive to be as close as possible.

Japanese products are well-known throughout the world for their high quality, precision, and dependability. Quality in products and services. From medieval katana crafting to modern automobile manufacture, the Japanese excel in quality and subconsciously seek quality in everything more than other cultures.

We experience it first-hand every day. For some of us who have been working on the Japanese project for a while now would assent to the fact that Quality and Process takes precedence for our customer. Sometimes even more than timelines to be met. Initially, it was a huge challenge, however, most of us have accepted high quality and being on time as a way of life now :-)

 I would like to urge each one of you to keep Quality as a key focus in everything you do. Be it Functional Requirement (FR) writing for the customer, or Design Item (DI) with the key audience as our development team, to the actual Code which we write, let’s keep quality as your prime focus.

Do NOT release a piece of design or a set of code to Functional testing if you are not comfortable. In the process, if it means that you need a day or a week to perfect your deliverable, I and the project management team will stand behind your decision. Come to us and we will amicably find a solution that helps have a better quality standard

I urge you to keep quality as your prime focus, as not only is it a professionally enriching experience; it’s a lot of fun too!

 

16 unforgettable quotes from Oppenheimer movie

16 unforgettable quotes from Oppenheimer movie Dedicated to Christopher Nolan Thank You for this masterpiece of art and film. It will live forever

HBR Guides us When Should You Keep a Poker Face at Work?

 As a leader, it’s often beneficial to put your feelings on display. But there are certain situations when unleashing your raw, unfiltered emotions can backfire. How do you decide when to put on a poker face at work? Ask yourself these questions:

• How will expressing my emotions help or hinder my goals? If you’re trying to build relationships and rapport, using a poker face may come across as insincere or uninterested, whereas if you’re negotiating, it may be advantageous to protect your position.
• What’s my role in the interaction? For example, if you’re leading a meeting, you may want to display more confidence and assertiveness, whereas if you’re a participant, you may want to display more openness and receptivity.
• How appropriate is it for me to show vulnerability in this context? Consider whether the situation calls for a more guarded approach or whether it’s appropriate to be more open, along with your personal style and what feels more authentic to you.
• What are the norms of the people or organization I’m communicating with? Different cultures and groups have different expectations around the expression of emotions. Try to adjust your behavior accordingly. 

Interested to know more?

Read the complete article at: 

https://hbr.org/2023/03/when-and-how-to-keep-a-poker-face-at-work

Indian Cuisine in the Land of the Rising Sun

 In Japan, when we think of Indian food, we usually think of Curry, Rice, or Nan. However, Indian Cuisine is much more than that. Let’s take a gourmet trip through Indian food.

India’s diversity reflects in its Cuisine. Every region has unique indigenous ingredients that lend it its exotic flavor.

Broadly, the primary distinction in India’s Cuisine is between North Indian and South Indian Cuisine.  For example, delicacies prepared in the northern portion of the country differ significantly from those prepared in the southern half.

Despite the mélange of Indian cuisines, several eating, serving, and preparing food mannerisms and etiquettes are practically universal across the country. In that way, food is a unifying factor in India, bringing various communities together.

Returning to Japan, we have Karē, the Japanese version of Curry that has grown in popularity over the years. Karē is often made with a combination of meat and vegetables stewed in a delicious sauce of spices and herbs. It is typically served with rice and pickled veggies or other side dishes.

The main differences between Japanese Karē vs. Indian Curry are as below:

The flavor profile is one of the fundamental variations between Karē and Indian Curry. While Indian Curry is noted for its powerful, spicy flavors, Karē is often softer, sweeter, and has a subtle depth of flavor.

The consistency of the sauce is another distinction between Karē and Indian Curry. Indian Curry is frequently thick, whereas Karē is usually thin and broth-like.

Last but not least, the cooking method varies, with Japanese Karē often simmered over low heat and Indian Curry typically prepared swiftly over high heat.  

 

Despite the differences, Indian food’s popularity among the Japanese population is evident from the many Indian restaurants available across the country. It is tough to miss home food on a trip to Japan with so many options. I am grateful for this love as it gives me a vast range of vegetarian options on my frequent trips to Tokyo.

 

Also, here are the Indian restaurant options around the Shinagawa-Toktyo area, where you can enjoy an array of Indian cuisines.

Restaurant (Links to Location)	Specialty
New Delhi	In our NTT Finance Building itself. Good North Indian Food
Jharana	Great South Indian Food Very close to the NTT Annex office
Spice Lounge	A good option for Biryani Great for team events with seating area on the river-front
Devi Corner	Known for Curry and Cheese Nan Mind the spice level though

 

Bon Appétit!

-- Sanjay Ishwarlal Upadhyay

How to Make the Most of Your 24 Hours

As written By Leo Babauta

So many of us feel a scarcity of time: we feel rushed, like there’s not enough time to do everything, always behind, never feeling like we’re doing enough.

This problem is called “time scarcity,” and it’s one of the most common stresses in our society.

So how do we deal with this? Unfortunately, there’s no easy answer — but there are a few things I’ve found to be really powerful.

Let’s talk about the problem before we talk about the solution.

The Problem of Time Scarcity

Most of us feel some kind of time stress: I’m not making the most of my time, or there’s not enough of it to get everything done, it’s slipping away too fast, I’m overwhelmed by it all.

The feeling is that there’s not enough time. With a feeling of scarcity about time, we stress that we won’t get everything done. We feel behind.

Here’s the first thing to realize: there’s always a fresh supply of time. We get the same amount of time no matter who we are, and we get a fresh batch of 24 hours every day, no matter how terribly we spent the previous 24 hours. It’s a fresh start, over and over, a chance to try something new.

Here’s the next thing to realize: it doesn’t matter how much you get done, doing more doesn’t solve the problem of not enough time. I have had fantastically productive days, where I’ll get 20-30 tasks done with zero procrastination or distractions … and I still feel like I need to do more, and that I wish I had more time.

And here’s the fourth thing to realize: these hours really are precious. They are a gift. We take them for granted, and don’t appreciate them to the fullest. We go through our days doing routine things, not really paying attention, and because of that … the hours slip through our fingers, and we wonder where it all went.

So with these things in mind, I’ll share the three most important ways to make the most of our 24 hours.

4 Ways to Make the Most of 24 Hours

These work for me. Your mileage might vary widely, but I hope you’ll try them out.

First: be intentional at the start of each day. With a fresh 24 hours before us, it’s easy to just get started in our usual way. But to make the most of this new batch of hours, I’ve found it important to take a few moments at the start of the day to refect on what I want to do with them. I might not end up doing things exactly as I plan, but I’m much more likely to spend the hours wisely if I set intentions at the start. I make a list of what I would like for the day.

Second: don’t shoot for doing more, do what matters. As I said, even doing 30+ things in a day won’t get rid of the time scarcity — in fact, it often makes the stress even worse. Having a list of 30 things to do each day also gives you a feeling of stress and scarcity. So what if you had a list of 3 important things? You’ve probably heard this advice before, but do you follow it? If you could only put 3 things on the list, you’d choose carefully. Btw, after you do those 3 things, you can still do others, but I wouldn’t expect yourself to do all the other things. As you do each of the 3 things on your list, do each thing as if it were the only thing that mattered. (See next item.)

Third: create moments of transcendence. Rushing through tasks and chores like we need to get to the next thing only creates an experience of life that blends together in a dull soup. But what if we could elevate the moments of our lives to something special, sacred, alive? What if cooking soup for dinner became a transcendent experience? A moment of transcendence is something each of us has experienced: when we feel incredibly connected to the world around us, when we lose our sense of separate self and feel a part of something bigger. It’s that moment when you’re at the top of a mountain looking with awe on everything around you, or looking up at the stars, or floating in the ocean, or having your breath taken away by a sunset or field of flowers. We can intentionally create these moments, with practice, in our everyday lives. As you’re doing everything on your list, as you’re washing the dishes or having a conversation, driving home or eating kale and beans … you can elevate that moment into one of transcendence. Try it. And if you could create multiple moments like this throughout your day … time feels less scarce, and incredibly abundance. This is by far the most important thing on this list, btw.

Fourth: reflect with gratitude. At the end of each day, take a few moments to reflect back on your day and think about what you’re grateful for. Such common advice, I know, but combined with the other things on this list it’s ridiculously powerful. Try it.

So those are the four ways. Together, they are a way of being in our lives that is radically different than most of us experience our days.

The post How to Make the Most of Your 24 Hours appeared first on zen habits.

Completed my Doctorate of Business Administration program

  I'm excited to share that I've recently completed my Doctorate of Business Administration program at the Swiss School of Business and Management. 

The A rating with a score of 90% is the icing on the cake.

I enjoyed every step of the Thesis journey, from writing an abstract for a Concept Paper to researching what has been published and what problems remain unsolved through a Literature Review, to designing my research and validating findings with industry leaders in technology and telecommunications.

I'd like to thank my Mentor, Dr. Iva Buljubasic, Professors at SSBM, Executives at UpGrad, Colleagues at my Workplace, and Fellow Research Scholars for all of their help and advice. And thanks to my family for allowing me the space and time to conduct my research.

If you aspire to be one, please contact me and I will gladly assist you. :-)

#SSBM  #Doctor of Business Management  #DBA #Switzerland #UpGrad #Research #Business #Management #telecom #customerexperience

Did you go skiing in the Tokyo Area yet?

Skiing in the Tokyo area is listed as one of the top things to do in Tokyo in winter. So, we went to the Gala Yuzawa Snow Resort during the first week of February.

The ski resorts we recommended were so close to Tokyo that we could go and come back on the same day. The one we went to was the Gala Yuzawa Snow Resort, a resort with about 17 slopes, ideal for beginners. Gala Yuzawa is more accessible because it has its own bullet train (Shinkansen) station, the only one in the world. Also, with a relatively high altitude of 1181 m and large amounts of snow, Gala Yuzawa enjoys a long season and offers some of the best snow conditions in the region. 

Things to do before you travel:

1.     1. To be on the safe side, we started by checking the live cameras to see if there was enough snow. We recommend you do the same by using the live cam link below:

https://gala.co.jp/winter/livecam-central/

2.     2. Another important thing to get is the "Tokyo Wide Pass," which saves a lot of money if you are an expat in Japan. The economical Tokyo Wide Pass allows you four days of travel on JR Trains in the Tokyo Wide Area, which includes Nikko and the bullet train to and from Gala Yuzawa. We used the Shinkansen four times, and it was worth the money spent J

 

From Tokyo Station, it is just a 70-minute Shinkansen (bullet train) ride to the resort. However, I would recommend making reservations, especially if you will be visiting on weekends or during holidays. The trains tend to be full, and only a limited number of non-reserved cars are available. On our trip, we had to stand half-way as the train was full. We arrived at Gala Yuzawa Station, which is directly connected to Cowabunga Ski Center, where you can find a ticket office, large coin lockers, ski and snowboard rental services, changing rooms, and more. And most importantly, we could also access the gondola to get up to the slopes in the same building. 

We started with the busiest area, the Central Area, which has a mix of beginner and intermediate runs for skiing. The Snow Enjoyment Park next to it was a family-friendly place where we sledded in the play area. From the Bell of Love observation deck, we enjoyed panoramic views of the mountains. The main place to eat at Gala Yuzawa is the large food court, PALPAL. This food court serves a wide variety of dishes, from Japanese curry to ramen noodles, and for the sweet tooth, there is also ice cream at Blue Seal and crepes at Marion Crepe, which were really delicious.

We stayed at Karuizawa, which has cool, fresh mountain air and stunning views. The town has a very laid-back vibe and its own unique culture. The next day, we went around the area to visit Karuizawa Shaw Memorial Church, which is known as the oldest church in the area with a history of over 100 years, and Shiraito Waterfall, which has thousands of crystal-clear water threads that create stunning scenery along with the lush greenery surroundings.

If you have not been there yet, we strongly recommend doing so before the snow melts and the beautiful Sakura (Cherry Blossom) season starts at the end of March.

Practical information:

•Location: GALA Yuzawa Snow Resort is located in Minamiuonuma Ward, Niigata.

• When to go: The ski resorts are open from December to March, as long as there is enough snow.

• Price: Admission can vary between approximately $40 and $20.

• Hours: Typical skiing hours are during the day.

 

HBR Guides us as Leaders on How to Handle Public Criticism from Employees

 As a leader, all eyes are on you. Sometimes that attention will be positive—but when things go badly, not so much. If you’re facing criticism from your employees, what’s the best way to respond? 

Here are some strategies that can help when you’re in the (public) eye of the storm.

• Accept that it’s part of the job. Given the number of decisions you make each week, you’ll inevitably get things wrong and disappoint people from time to time. If you focus too much on the failures, you’ll risk losing confidence, clouding your judgment in the future.

• Don’t focus on fairness. Rather than focusing on whether or not you deserve the blame, focus instead on solving the problem, responding to anyone who’s been harmed, and learning from what happened.

• Set the record straight with facts, not emotions. Defensiveness will only fuel people’s derision. If there’s inaccurate information feeding the frenzied reactions, do what you can to replace it with facts.

• Be humble, transparent, and open-minded. Ask yourself what lessons you can learn from the experience. Do you need to lead differently? Have you made unfounded assumptions? Look closely enough, and you’ll find important insights.

• Take action and report back. Commit to a new direction, clarifying what you’ll change and how you’ll avoid repeating the problem—and update your team on progress over time. 

Interested to know more?

Read the complete article at: 

https://hbr.org/2022/12/how-leaders-should-handle-public-criticism

Don’t Follow Your Passion

What? Don’t Follow Your Passion? 

I was shocked the same way when I read this career advice in the Harvard Business Review.

Below is what the Harvard Business Review has to say about it:

When it comes to career advice, the adage to “follow your passion" isn’t all that useful, and it can be misleading. 

If you’re looking to find a career that will matter to you, don’t just think about the things that come naturally to you, the things you love to do, or the things you’ve always excelled at. 

Instead, consider the activities that you return to time and time again—despite the fact that they are hard for you, or maybe even painful. Think of this approach as “following your blisters.” These probably aren't the activities you're the best at (yet)—they’re the ones that challenge you, frustrate you, and attract you all at once. Maybe it’s writing. Maybe it’s data analysis. Maybe it’s managing people. 

Whatever it is, if you follow your blisters, you’ll never be bored, and you’ll always be learning. And eventually, you’ll earn the calluses of an expert.

Interested to know more?

Read the complete article at:  

https://hbr.org/2020/11/what-you-should-follow-instead-of-your-passion