Tata Jagriti Yatra Experience – Day 1

Below is a friend, Dhawal’s, first day account of the Tata Jagriti Yatra. Dhawal is a Certified Franchise Executive and promotes Franchising opportunities through his venture Way2Franchise

I have never been so excited as much as I have been for this trip, I have awaited TJY since almost over a month, since I was shortlisted. We were called at 8 am at Ravindra Natya Mandir, staying in Mumbai, gave me a little comfort. I reached about at 9 am, met over 400 vibrant young men and women, and exchanged ideas. We had breakfast, got done with the formalities and it was lunch time. Then finally we were inducted into the process and institution.

TJY is an initiative of Jagriti Sewa Sansthan, a non-profit instituted by Mr. Shashank Mani. I went through the notes and the handbook, a part of the Yatri Kit.

And the excitement just kept growing. Post lunch, Ms. Rewati Prabhu and Mr. Shashank Mani presented about how it all began and introduced the 3^rd edition of TJY. The mammoth TJY event is organized by a skeleton team of about 8.

We practiced the Jagriti Geet. More on that a little later.

TJY is a great event, the audience mix is more of students (potential entrepreneurs) than actual entrepreneurs, between the age of 20 and 25. I met a lot of engineers during these days. There were about 20 international participants as well.

Now we start getting a glimpse of what it is all about. We begin the evening session with an introduction to Mr. R Gopalakrishnan. Mr. Gopalakrishnan, spoke briefly, initially mentioning that this was not going to be an elongated speech, where he talks about how great the Tata Group is, what they have been supporting it all this while. How happy the Tata Group is to support this initiative. He gave a few examples of India and its greatness.

Then we had another brief edutainment session by Mr. Manish Tripathy of the Mumbai Dabawalla’s association. This was the one that kept us all glued, I don’t remember when I was more attentive. Briefly dwelling on the history and the origins of the Dabbawala, he mentioned how a Parsi Banker, who wasn’t happy dining elsewhere for his daily meals, while he was at work due to its inherent problems.

He then signed up for the Dabbawala Service, to express his love and devotion to his wife, his colleagues then signed up for it as well, since they too wanted to express their love towards their spouses. Even those that are single and prefer to eat outside sign up for, they deliver restaurant food. This service gradually expanded, all thanks to Word of Mouth.

For those that are not aware about the Dabbawalla’s, The Dabbawala service is pick up and delivery services of home cooked meals. It began 119 years ago with a humble Parsi gentleman.

Some more accomplishments:

• Prince Charles as Brand Ambassador, One fine day, prince Charles calls up one of their members asking to meet up, the members decline meeting him at a fancy five star restaurant, and ask him to meet up at Churchgate railway station at 11:30. Since this meeting in 2003, the Dabbawalla’s have been invited by leading B Schools across India and internationally to speak about their systems

• Even Richard Branson the maverick entrepreneur of the Virgin Group, visited the Dabbawallas and ferried the tiffins of his employees from Dadar to their office at Churchgate

A lot of the times, the cynics confront and ask if they will continue existing. To them, Manish had another hilarious response, i.e they will be in business as long as husbands will keep loving their wives, ‘Jo Biwi se kare pyaar, woh Dabbawalla se kaise kare inkaar.

Some of the Key Management Principles:

• Be inspired about what you are doing, when you feel about it from the heart, the passion will flow

• Do not diversify in what you don’t know, i.e. Stick to your core competency

• Do not employ, highly qualified people, the Dabbawalla’s employ only Thumbs Up (Angutha Chap / Illiterate), as commitment matters not qualifications

May be the Dabbawalla’s could expand in other cities if such a demand exists, maybe they could franchise their system and know how and provide more business opportunities to other illiterate, uneducated people. Similarly, a lot of social franchising options would open up in parts of India, which would uplift the lives of many, like the 4500 Dabbawalla’s in Mumbai.

Touchwood

I am not a very superstitious person.

The only one thing I do is to actually touch wood when I feel my Chotu is the bestest pet in the whole world.

Not that it would protect Chotu from the evil eye…but bas ab aadat si ho gayi hai…

Umm….apart from that…

Yes, I also don’t cut nails at night. Now, I don’t know why, but my Mom always said that something BAD would occur if I cut them at night !

Bahut poocha ki bhai kya hoga…batao batao….

Mujhe kya pata…I never tried it to know the consequences was her reply…

I think this sums up the superstitions that I follow….

Though am bugged every time I have to Touch Wood…Guess will have to get rid of this habit…

Anyway, just curious about the various superstitions that people un-mindfully follow, without pausing and re-looking at their absurdity…

Would love to know the stories/trivia behind some of the most famous superstitions…and would also like to know if you have ever faced ill-luck due to non-adherence to any…

P.S. Allthecrap I do remember that a Post on NDA and it’s weaknesses is pending. But I thought it would be best to come up with that post On/After May 16 🙂

Cherish your experiences…

“The difference between school and life? In school, you’re taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you’re given a test that teaches you a lesson.”

– Tom Bodett

Nope, I am not here to theorize and lecture on life experiences.

But yeah, I am here to talk about experiences, to be precise – Work Experiences.

The other day, was having a chat with a few colleagues, our general ambitions, goals and plans.

Most of us are keen on doing PG, a few are already in preparation for CAT and some more keen on pursuing non business degrees.

A few have already put in their papers to drown themselves in the SIM/AIMCATs.

Many from the group had been working for more than 2 years and couldn’t wait to get back to school.

Surprisingly, most from the group felt that they had “wasted” 2 precious years of their lives and it was either now or never as far as PG was concerned.

Abhi nahi kiya toh mummy papa shaadi karva denge….

Bore ho gaya hoon…isliye CAT le raha hoon…

Yaar, ab kaam vaam bahut hua…Chetna/MET bhi kya kharab hai…

I differ on the above.

Neither am I in a hurry to pursue my PG nor do I feel that my work experience has been a waste.

If I were to do a comparative analysis on myself now and while in college… I would prefer my “now” version.

Yes, I was brimming with enthusiasm, wanted to take on the world, had stars in my eyes and a lot more while in college.

I am the same even now. Only a more refined, practical version.

Yes, it has increased my knowledge, given me domain expertise, opened my mind to new ideas and global happenings, made me more analytical, improved my logical faculties AND a lot more.

But these could have been achieved from theory and academics too ! This is not what one should seek from a “work experience”.

It’s the “life skills” that are my major take away from my work.

My work has given me a sort of independence that most people my age can only dream of – freedom of thought, choice, speech and financial independence.

It has made me capable of holding my own in tricky situations, increased and improved my confidence and self belief, helped me in fostering great relationships that have extended beyond work.

It’s not just about networking with colleagues. It’s about learning about people, cultures, situations.

It’s not about professional mail writing. It’s about client interaction and finesse.

It’s not about information overload. It’s about sifting through loads of data and understanding what to choose and more importantly, what to Ignore !

It’s about plain common sense.

Again, humour has always worked as a saviour in tough situations – your boss – your idol – I can fail too – he is a human after all.

Working before one’s PG also helps decide what one wants to do further in life. Your work might make your realize where your strengths lie and what kind of work you would like to do for the next 30 odd years.

On a more personal front, my work has made me realize and opened my eyes to a lot of things I took for granted earlier – time with loved ones, time for myself, my responsibilities.

I have also come to appreciate and respect the hard work put in by my parents to bring me up.

I always wanted my dad to have dinner with us, not understanding his work commitments. Though he had a tough and busy schedule, yet he made it a point to share a meal, discuss, share his insights. Never once did he complain of backache, headache, tiredness when my brother and I threw all our childish and irritating questions at him at night.

He always managed to find enough time to teach us, play with us, narrate bed time stories, take us to places, plan birthday parties – ALL with truckloads of work.

You shall use the jargon of “Time Management”. For me, it is all about prioritizing and knowing the importance of family life.

Had I not worked, not been involved with deadlines, not been forced to stretch myself – I might not have learnt to prioritize, be patient and be more loving towards my family.

I hope, more people work with an open mind and heart to truly understand and cherish the experience.