Reality Bytes - Wired Perspectives #AnandKumarPadmanaban

Is Sustainability about just getting by? I have been wondering about the meaning of the word sustainability - Does it mean to just get by (Wiki Answers says “to get by, endure or support”), many others have many different definitions. For me, it means being able to get to a better alternative and leaving the world a better place than what it is currently and eventually leading to a healthier community. When I look at sustainability initiatives, I am hoping that the objective is not to get by but to help create conditions which allow us to live a wholesome life – helping create a standard of living that is healthy socially, environmentally and economically viable as well. Another common definition I have come across is that sustainability is about development that meets the present needs without compromising needs of future generations. I am not too sure how to understand or interpret that , I also wonder how do we know the needs of future generations and how do I draw the line an

I have many of my friends lamenting that they need to change but have not been able to ...well, here are some pointers ... A. Stay involved in whatever you are doing - if someone else were considering the work you do, what would they think ? B. Keep an eye on the big picture - our workplace is more than our workstation C. Talk and listen - we will be better able to interpret the world around us if we talk and listen D. Look for ways to add value - conduct a personal swot analysis E. Be flexible - be flexible in your attitude and your responsibilities ; be keen on finding efficient ways to adapt to new realities F. Learn from your network - if we don't learn together, we hang together ... As Peter drucker said • Managing oneself (Sept. 13): Drucker says to ask yourself some basic questions in deciding how to guide your career. Are you a reader or listener? How do you work best: alone or with others? Please refer to the link as well ...

I was reading a report which says that an average worker spends at a minimum 2 hours a day at work doing personal work. This could be either doing day trading , or house hunting or trying to buy something etc etc. Managers have a dilemma ? how much of this should be allowed and what should be done ... I have a few pointers around this ... involve your teams and employees on what is reasonable and what is not ... once you do this .. you set guidelines and you also elicit tacit disapproval on what is not reasonable. You will find more cooperation around what you believe is not reasonable time spent at work doing personal stuff having regular dialogues and updating the guidelines and reminding them is also a key aspect for sustaining the message sometimes, when employees dont follow the guidelines, disciplining them is a key part of the whole message as well. the key message should be ... keep your personal work at work time to a minimal amount .... hope this helps ... have a

I have been hearing from my colleagues and other friends that sometimes managers seem to think that they are superior in intellect and capability and that is the reason they are part of the top decision making teams in their organizations. That is not necessarily true - I have studied and also read many articles around successful leadership teams and have noticed that teams that have had the greatest impact derived it from their informal networks of collaborators in the workplace. Their value did not come from the meetings they conducted and the decisions they made together? a leadership team is in most companies a misnomer although many senior executives throughout the company may jostle for a seat on the leadership team because that is where the key strategic decisions are supposedly made. In actuality, the leadership team rarely conducts its work in group mode, as a deliberative body or a source of direction. Instead, its power comes from its team member's informal and