Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Feb 7, 2012, 12:46 pm
…speak only what everybody wants to hear; …trust the wisdom of the crowd; …generally have excuses ready for not doing something that matters; …are afraid to get out of the status-quo; …are reactive, almost always; …never question the decisions you’ve taken in the past; …believe that ...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Feb 6, 2012, 2:06 pm
Limit number of discussions per day, do something that matters instead. Limit items on your to-do list; get the most important ones done instead. Limit eating junk food; eat fresh fruits and vegetables instead. Limit bullets on your PowerPoint; give a spontaneous presentation that doesn’t require ...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Feb 1, 2012, 11:28 pm
She was managing one of the most important projects of the company for past 26 months. One day, the junior most team member asked her if he was smart, she said, “No”. He asked him again if he thinks that he wanted to have him in her team, she said “No”. Then he asked him if there’ll be an...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jan 28, 2012, 5:28 am
That’s the question you need to ask post each confrontation. Sure, it’s a powerful tool in bringing your team members to the next level but pausing and measuring the progress is even more important. Confrontation is more of a cost v/s benefits issue so measurement is required. And, the thing a...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jan 23, 2012, 12:10 pm
…no matter what your business is. Leading a Business is unlike any other role of an organization, because it’s always dissimilar. Unstructured, unpredictable, atypical…a right brain activity. No predefined set of rules or guidelines are much of help because everyone leads their business dif...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jan 19, 2012, 4:11 am
There are a few grounds to stand a team member who makes inordinate requests: You anticipated you would; His skills are peerless; He’s a great grapeviner – has good political influence that you think would help you one day; Consequences of informing the client that you’ve sacked him are much ...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jan 14, 2012, 5:01 pm
... although it’s not explicitly mentioned) Oh yes, we must open three of new ... main business is not doing well) Oh yes, we should alter some of our ... the chief motive of the business) Oh yes, I’ll have a dinner with ... spouse has to be alone) Oh yes, you called me few minutes back...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jan 7, 2012, 2:42 am
Often, Delivering is burdened with threats and perils. Every time you stand up, send a text message, write a piece of software code, publish a blog post or write a tweet, you’re exposing yourself to disparagement. Not just disparagement, but the possible negative consequences that come with your ...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jan 1, 2012, 8:16 am
Look at 2012 from a different lens, COMMITMENT, not just a plan is required to make a difference.
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Dec 28, 2011, 11:18 pm
Keep complaining Be a Yes-man Take shortcuts Do not tell the truth Threaten your people Operate in your own silos Offer compelling excuses Opt for short-term, sacrificing the long-term Show respect only to strong people, not to all. Do not show your gratitude publically Keep shouting on subordinates...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Dec 25, 2011, 9:42 am
There are two problems with complaining. First, it doesn’t work. You can complain about your company, your country or your friend’s cooking habits but nothing will change except you’ll end up wasting your time. Second, complaining has a boomerang gist. When you get good at complaining, you s...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Dec 21, 2011, 12:50 am
There’s a difference between two. Amateurlike makes a great performer; Amateurish creates scenes. Amateurlike brings a fresh view to programming problems; Amateurish delivers something other than agreed scope. Amateurlike has conquered her fears and is internally strong; Amateurish is irrita...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 31, 2011, 11:54 pm
It is simple like hell. Care about details. At least don’t deliver bad experience. Amazing thing is how little attention is paid to these two, how often we encounter service businesses who just don’t get it. You can easily find a web hosting provider who guarantees 99.99% site uptime and you�...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 27, 2011, 1:49 am

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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 25, 2011, 12:11 am
I wanted to read a very specific chapter of an important reading resource – that subject is strategically aligned with my goals – this morning. But, I didn’t. I went into 2-3 other small things that got my attention somehow. While closing the morning hours, I am wondering: Perhaps, it is more...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 23, 2011, 7:36 am
“But the company I work with doesn’t allow me to become what I might have been,” you might argue. No point pointing figures to anyone else. You make your choices, softer or harder. Only you are responsible for it. ‘You’ are your environment, or at least a major building block of it. The...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 22, 2011, 8:07 am
you focus on one thing at a time; you keep one, focused list; you are focused, no matter what. you  maintain focused energy; you uphold focus on keeping balance; you create, follow, innovate and change systems that are focused to bring expected results; you organize yourself for focused execution. ...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 21, 2011, 12:15 am
Blind person with vision can ‘see’ what a person with eyesight and zero vision cannot.  Good thing with zero vision thing is that it can be changed, for better.  Photo Courtesy: Curious and Smile
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 20, 2011, 6:17 am
What, exactly, does a project manager do? In the software development, the project manager doesn’t always write code, create architecture, perform system tests, or provide funding. And yet, no project manager, no project. The project manager asks questions, “How do we deliver as per the scope...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 19, 2011, 6:08 am
Power of dreams you truly believe in coupled with unreasonable passion is matchless.  Read a masterpiece from Google Chair Eric Schmidt on Apple maven Steve Jobs: Everyone knows the transaction where the board sided with John Sculley and Steve left Apple (AAPL). Steve sold all of his Apple stock,...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 19, 2011, 12:00 am
At some point, most software engineers start talking about themselves like they’ve got enough experience. “Even if it seems right, it is too late to change our focus now.” Or “Why do I need to understand the mobile platform now? My twelve year experience in client-server and web is enough...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 18, 2011, 5:58 am
Some musicians spend years doing nothing but practicing a piece of music and get it validated from their artist guru. If the piece of music isn’t right, it doesn’t matter what else you do, you cannot perform in the live show. Clients of most software programming projects that expect you to bui...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 18, 2011, 12:05 am
Does what’s difficult; Asks difficult questions; Does the right thing even if it leads him to stretch; Focuses on one thing at a time; Does not take initiatives but the right initiatives; Mostly leads, gracefully follows sometimes; When programmer, programs. When cook, cooks. Regardless of the res...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 16, 2011, 4:06 am
“When you get really, really good at something, your confidence cannot help but build.” ~ Nicholas Bate Read on: Get really, really good at something.  
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 14, 2011, 3:29 pm
If you have ever worked with a team of people who produces something, you will just get it. People, even the experienced ones, are waiting for you to check their work prior to delivering. They need explicit confirmation from you that you have checked it. There are many reasons for this, but I thin...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 10, 2011, 3:49 pm
I’ve got tired; I don’t have time; It’s too costly; I cannot match that speed; I don’t have the space; I don’t have good resources; I don’t have ‘that’ title … …are mere cunctations for not getting into the execution mode. And, (the right kind of) execution separates the sheep ...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Oct 6, 2011, 9:40 am
Steve Jobs: 1955-2011 “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the co...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Sep 22, 2011, 1:21 pm
“If we are facing in the right direction, all we have to do is keep on walking.” ~ Proverb “…Only if you know it is the right direction,” You might argue. ‎If you don’t know whether the direction is right then you know what you don’t know, so start knowing what you should know. Yo...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Sep 16, 2011, 3:44 pm
A friend shared a graphic showing Effects of Missing Elements on Facebook. I like the essence of it. It is: Vision + Skills + Incentives + Resources + Action Plan  =  Change No vision + Skills + Incentives + Resources + Action Plan  =  Confusion Vision + No skills + Incentives + Resources + A...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Sep 6, 2011, 1:54 pm
If you want to employ a software engineer, who will be a part of your long running dedicated team and is expected to do exactly what’s told, you might want to instruct your Recruitment Executives to look for profiles that are mediocre by choice and have medium to low self-esteem. Nah, I’m not k...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Aug 27, 2011, 11:53 am
If you have a boss that you cannot delight, that is unwilling to take you to the next ladder in your growth path because s/he is defending the status quo and highlights your inability on whatever official document s/he uses to score, you could consider yourself as a loser. Or you can remind yoursel...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Aug 22, 2011, 4:54 am
Fix the problem right now, justify later. Procrastinate going after the comfort – get comfortable being uncomfortable. If you’ve observed it, express it. Even if it leads to a confronting dialog. There’s a distinction between an activity and an accomplishment – know it. Be revolutionary and ...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Aug 15, 2011, 5:18 am
Stay committed to your decisions, but stay flexible in your approach.  ~ Tony Robbins In today’s fast paced world, project and lives are getting more complex and continuously changing. What used work twenty years ago, is no longer effective. For example, in the Non-Google days just the  knowle...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Aug 14, 2011, 6:20 am
Waking up early; Start doing things that your colleagues are waiting to do once s/he’ll have that ‘position’; Showing up when you don’t feel like showing up; Put in great efforts to deliver even if you don’t feel like making that delivery; Uncrowding yourself – for example, you choose to...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Aug 5, 2011, 6:16 am
If people around you are not noticing what you do, there’s a reason. If your circles aren’t discussing about your skills, your efforts, your crusade or your vocation, there’s a ground. The ground is that you’re mediocre. Being mediocre equates to the fact that you’re less than excellent...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jul 28, 2011, 2:39 pm
It is your performance review meeting. You accomplished almost everything you were assigned to. However, you were not able to confidently put your feet down and emphasize on the value you created for the organization because you missed out on an important commitment. You had several reasons for no...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jul 26, 2011, 1:51 pm
1. Understanding the perceptions: Many times we take in information from everywhere without particularly being focused on slowing down and understanding the right perspective. For example, consider the following: A person from India – who usually lives in 40-45 degree – goes to Europe, lands ...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jul 20, 2011, 2:37 pm
…and always living in the comfort zone is that it keeps you away from being excellent at what you do. Safety becomes a paradigm that holds you back from taking necessary risks that help you go to the next level. The prototype of safety is a lot misunderstood. For most of us, it simply means not ...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jul 11, 2011, 3:25 pm
“Life is not fair; get used to it.” ~ Bill Gates Life is not fair. Or you have been conditioned to believe so. In fact, it is only as fair as you make it. You rush around doing a whole lot of stuff every day for a simple reason: You want more from life (than what you have). You get so busy ch...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jul 7, 2011, 5:51 am
…is that it might enable your colleague to outperform. The problem with not sharing your knowledge is that it will seldom add up different perspectives to what you already know. Some of you believe that sharing your knowledge is a risk and you fear that you might lose your importance but rewards...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jul 3, 2011, 4:54 am
Discoveries begin with right kind of questioning. So let’s begin: Why are you here? What’s your destiny? Is anything beyond just chasing numbers? Who you really are? Are you sure you’re on your right career path? What’s your life calling? Dharma is a substantial version of what you call yo...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jul 2, 2011, 11:45 am
Saying I’m sorry; Agreeing to respectfully disagree; Choosing servant leadership over self-interest; Offering tolerance; Creating coalitions; Respecting the weak, not just the strong; Making sacrifices of short term, number driven gains; Leading beyond your title… …are different forms of poten...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jun 29, 2011, 5:26 am
The energy and time you put into writing emails should be applauded. It gets people to change their thoughts. It coaxes some people into taking decisions that they otherwise wouldn’t have taken. If you guess it wouldn’t work, then what’s the point of writing that email? Then, are you respon...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jun 27, 2011, 5:51 am
Because you like it; Because you don’t know anything else that you can do; Because you do not have abundant means to start doing something different; Because you are scared to change. Why? Once you find out the reason why you’re doing whatever you’re doing, it’s easier to go to the next leve...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jun 25, 2011, 10:35 am
Not all conflicts can be averted. Not all conflicts are disastrous. When you accept these two truths, your approach to your communication will change. If you build a conflict-liberal organization, you focus more on the real problem that needs to get resolved, rather than engaging into the fixed w...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jun 24, 2011, 1:12 pm
On Weekdays: no television, no newspapers; On Saturdays: no e-mails; On Sundays: no cell-phone; Is your desk de-cluttered? Your car? Home? How many items did you marked off your list? Are your lists organized? How many times did you have dinner with your spouse? Did you...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jun 11, 2011, 7:24 am
Wish I had: …been more adventurous to create the life I wanted, rather than waiting for others’ direction; …told those three words to her (or him) – I love you; …called Mikael, my childhood buddy more often than I did; …slowed down and spent more, quality time to my family rather than b...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - Jun 4, 2011, 8:25 am
…you need to become fantabulous in your area of passion, regardless of what your passion is. May your passion be writing an extraordinary software, may it be building a world class team that delivers results, may it be becoming a world class photographer or a writer or a speaker…whatever. Be i...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - May 30, 2011, 5:07 am
Haven’t you heard the word ‘urgent’ used even when the matter is not so urgent? It’s a known tactic which might be effective in the short term but not otherwise, for sure. Why? Because the word itself is overrated. It deprecates any quest that’s not urgent. Who wants to communicate som...
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Utpal Vaishnav posted an article on Utpal on Leadership, Management, Self-Help and Fun - May 28, 2011, 7:09 am
Read. Read more; Read meaningful books; Read meaningful books and blogs; Keep reading; Keep reading something you would like to learn from. Walk. Walk more; Keep walking; Keep walking;  pause. Keep walking; pause. In fact, pause often. Keep walking, pause often. Reflect on why you’re walking. Wri...
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