[Time-Management] Arise, awake and take charge!

 

18th April 2011

"Play the game for the games sake is my advice to the youngsters coming on and keep your eye on the ball."

Don Bradman

Next time when you watch a cricket match, notice the intensity of concentration of the bowler when he delivers the ball. For that matter, notice the concentration of the batsman as gets ready to face the ball. Also notice how the fielders are alert to stop the ball when the ball travels towards them. Notice the wicketkeeper and observe how he is preparing himself to collect the ball.

The concentration these players bring to their work is amazing, to say the least. When the master batsman waits to face the ball, his concentration is 100.00% on the game. There is nothing else in his mind.

Now, recall the concentration we bring to our job. Do we display that concentration when we work? We complain that we are disturbed and that there are distractions. Consider the distraction when a cricketer is batting. Consider the crowd watching the match and the level of noise. Compare that with the number people surrounding us and the noise level when we work! If they can concentrate in spite of such level of disturbance and distraction, think how much we can concentrate in our situation.

Nearly forty years ago, I had the chance to listen to the then Captain of West Indian cricket team, Garry Sobers. I was a student in Loyola College, Chennai. At that time Garry Sobers was at the peak of his fame and an acknowledged batsman. One student asked him how he is able to play every ball so well. The answer he gave was very interesting. He said that he had trained his eyes so well that he could see every ball as big as a football and hence he was able to meet the ball at the middle of his bat!

I was stunned at the strategy – seeing every ball as big as a football!

Next time when you are at your workplace, imaging that you are a Tendulkar or a Dhoni, and bring in the concentration and focus that they bring in to their game. Do this modelling exercise for a month and notice the quality of your output!

N C Sridharan

www.thetimefoundation.com

ooo

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[Time-Management] Arise, awake and take charge!

 

15th April 2011

In order to excel, you must be completely dedicated to your chosen sport. You must also be prepared to work hard and be willing to accept destructive criticism. Without 100% dedication, you won't be able to do it.

Wilson Mizner

We can learn some more things from cricket. A batsman wants to score a run by playing the game so well that no matter how aggressive the bowling and fielding is, he will outsmart them. When he faces a ball, he will not know exactly how and where the ball is going to land. He will not also know how the ball will spin and behave. But he will be prepared for any type of ball. His preparation will ensure that he can play any ball.

This should be our approach also. We cannot expect very ideal situation which will allow us to reach our goals smoothly. We will have surprises and crisis. We will have absence of cooperation. We should have a contingency plan to deal with any unfavourable situations as they arise.

A batsman is appreciated only when he scores a century against a tough team. A bowler is appreciated only when he takes the wicket of a master batsman. So in life. The more the difficulty, the more will be our happiness and glory.

We have to learn the attitude of perseverance and continuous efforts from the cricketer. Imagine a funny scene: Sachin Tendulkar is batting; he faces the first ball and drives the ball powerfully, but the same is stopped and thrown back to the wicket keeper; he faces the next ball and hits the ball over the bowler's head, but the same is fielded by another fielder and thrown to the wicket keeper; his next hit is also stopped. Tendulkar gets so irritated and angry with the fielder, shouts at them that they are not at all cooperative and throws away his bat and gloves and walks back to the pavilion!

If this happens on the ground, do we need Tendulkar? Even the most ardent fan of Tendulkar will want him to score a century against the most toughest team and most unfavorable conditions. Even in a football match, the player may take the ball very near to the goal, but the opposite player will prevent the goal. Nevertheless, the players will not be disappointed.

This principle of tough fight is applicable to our life also.

N C Sridharan

www.thetimefoundation.com

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[Time-Management] Arise, awake and take charge!

 

14th April 2011

`I will know how much impact my elbow is going to take only when I play more. Frankly it is too early to when I will come back'

Sachin Tendulkar

In a cricket match, there are eleven players watching one batsman very keenly. Their only aim is to catch him committing one mistake and eliminate him from the game. As far as the batsman is concerned, no matter how well he played every ball, if he plays just one ball badly, he is out. The batsman should outsmart the eleven players.

So in life. Others are watching us. Our competitors are watching us even more keenly. If we make just one mistake, we lose. It is not how smart you are which is important. What is even more important is how you are going to outsmart your competitors. Whether we like it or not, we live in a world of competition and it is the age of the survival of the fittest.

What happens in net practice is very interesting. Every player wants to work on his weakness by practicing at the net. A player does not straight away to the field to play his game. For every one hour he is at the field, he practices several hours in the nets. Every player has his own coach, his physical fitness expert and he has experts to advise him on how to keep up his mental fitness. He has experts to advise him even on his diet.

Compare this with our approach to our profession. Do we invest time to keep ourselves fit physically and mentally? Do we spend our time to improve our skill set? Do we benchmark our ability with international bests?

We can watch a game of cricket either for entertainment or for learning some important life lessons. It's up to us to decide!

N C Sridharan

www.thetimefoundation.com

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[Time-Management] Arise, awake and take charge!

 

12th April 2011

At least with me, the match starts much, much earlier than the actual match.

Sachin Tendulkar

Cricket also represents a metaphor to explain the principle that you have to reach your goal within the resources available to us. Whether you like it or not, there are only six balls in an over. If you do not score a run in a ball, it is gone for ever. There are only forty overs and the match will be over after that! It is upto you to score a run or not to score a run when a ball is bowled to you.

So in life. You cannot expand the time. Time is a fixed and finite resource. You have to make maximum use of the available time. It is upto you to indulge in a specific activity at a point of time or not. If you do nothing in your time, you will get nothing in your life.

An aggressive batsman will try to score a four or a six to reach his dream century as early as possible. The sooner he reaches the more valuable he will be for his team and the more will be his earning. But he has to train himself very well to hit the ball to the fence. He has to bring all his focus into his game and take an instant decision on how and where to hit the ball.

So in life. We have to work smart and not hard. We have to identify value adding high pay off tasks and give it a top priority. We have to maximize the outcome per unit of time.

A game of cricket cannot be won with the cooperation of the opposite team! The other team will be hostile and will not be considerate and sympathetic to your goal of wanting to score a century.

So also in life. You have to reach your goals in life in spite of lack of cooperation and support. You may and will come across hear breaking opposition. You have to take such efforts that you overcome the same. Just like in cricket, you have to enjoy the game of life the challenge it offers. The more the challenge, the more you will enjoy the victory!

N C Sridharan

www.thetimefoundation.com

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[Time-Management] Arise, awake and take charge!

 

12th April 2011

I've always believed that if you put in the work, the result will come.

Michael Jordan

We can learn more things from cricket.

You would have noticed a batsman running between the wickets after hitting the ball. He has to run as many runs as possible before the ball is collected and thrown to the wicket keeper.

There cannot be a better example to explain the concept of productivity of time. Time is a scarce resource and we have to produce as much outcomes as possible within a given time frame. It is not how many balls that you faced. But, what is even more important is how much run you scored which is important. You have to be faster and alert as you run. Else, you will be run out. You will not be given sufficient time to return to the crease. You have to run faster than the fielder.

This concept is very relevant to life also. In a day of eight working hours, you have to tick of as many activities as possible. Not only that. Each activity has to be completed as early as possible and as speedily as possible. The world will not give you `more time'. Actually there is no such time as `more time'. A day has only twenty four hours and an hour has only sixty minutes, whether we like it or not. We should make effective use of the available time.

In cricket, every team will be given the same amount of time. Similarly in life, all of us have the same quantity of time, irrespective of any social, cultural or economic differences.

A batsman should practice how to run faster. Similarly, we should learn how to work smarter. We should eliminate unnecessary non value adding activities.

The more and more you think of, the more you will find that the principles of cricket will apply to our life!

N C Sridharan

www.thetimefoundation.com

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[Time-Management] Arise, awake and take charge!

 

11th April 2011

 

 `Sports do not build character. They reveal it'

John Wooden

Cricket is a good metaphor. In fact we can learn many life skills from sports. We should learn how to develop a killer instinct, we should learn how to focus on the winning strategy, we should learn the ability to handle failure, we should learn the ability to lead a highly disciplined personal life, and we should learn the ability and willingness to work very hard etc. from the sportsmen.

Let's assume that we are the batsman and wanting to score a century and that we want to hit every ball to the fence, either for a boundary or for a six. What will happen? There will be eleven players who want to stop the ball, and if possible, to make us commit a mistake so that we are out.

Our journey to our goal and ambition is also another cricket match and there are eleven `players' who will stop us from scoring a six or a four. They are:

  1. Laziness
  2. Procrastination
  3. Bad habits
  4. Lack of concentration
  5. Lack of training
  6. Negative attitudes
  7. Poor inter personal relationship
  8. Lack of self confidence
  9. Lack of requisite skills
  10. Lack of knowledge, and the `wicket keeper',
  11. Lack of passion and interest;

If we have to win the match, we have to beat these eleven players. They will try to slow down your `run rate'!

Think you are a Sachin Tendulkar or Dhoni and try to improve your game of `life cricket'!

N C Sridharan

www.thetimefoundation.com

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[Time-Management] Arise, awake and take charge!

 

8th April 2011

 

Action is a great restorer and builder of confidence. Inaction is not only the result, but the cause, of fear. Perhaps the action you take will be successful; perhaps different action or adjustments will have to follow. But any action is better than no action at all.

~Norman Vincent Peale

Just imagine a stationary car or stagnant water. What is the use? The car may be a powerful car designed with the latest technology. Unless and until there is mobility, there is no use. The water will start stinking and the car will rust and will be disposed of as a scrap.

So is the situation if we do not act. No matter what idea we have and how wonderful is our idea. The critical issue is: what do we do with the idea? Time is a very crucial factor. Timing is a good strategy. One trait which made Alexander the Great as the conqueror of the world is his speed. History says that we will strike at the most unexpected time and at a speed that the opponent will be taken back by shock and surprise.

It is true that we should plan and we should deliberate on the strategy in detail and then only act. We have to analyze various choices before we act. But it should not land us in `analysis paralyses. In my time management seminar I discuss about what is called `cycle time and lead time'. Lead time is the time we normally take to complete a task. In this we accommodate delays, waiting time, mistakes etc. But cycle time is the least minimum time we should take to complete a project. One example is the time we take to replace our punctured tyre and the time a racer takes in an international car race to do the same!

Time is a great resource and we should use it to our advantage. Else, someone else will beat us when we are least prepared!

N C Sridharan

www.thetimefoundation.com

ooo

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