BREAK THAT VUCA JINX

This is the VUCA Era- a common statement that is heard all over the World and almost in every walk of life. VUCA is an acronym used to describe or reflect on the Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity of general conditions and situations. VUCA has penetrated at each level and phase of human life. Confusions keep cropping up in human minds even as the World has been virtually shrunk and is commonly labelled as a Global Village.

Luxury today knows no bounds. The planet is full of amenities, devices, gadgets, life-saving paraphernalia and what not. However, the dream of settling the Mother Earth into the elusive Eden Garden remains unfulfilled. Each human is trying to outgrow his/her own self. This, surely is a biological phenomenon, as one grows. However, the lust for endless growth leads to a mix of confusions which then grow faster than anything else and thus is born the VUCA. The lives of humans have got cluttered rather than getting uncluttered with the ever penetrating technology. One does not know where to stop and what to do in case of encountering a speed breaker jump in the life’s arena.

Almost all humans are employees in some way or the other. Either they serve an outside agency, or, if not outsiders, then, they serve their own creations. After all, everyone gets up in the morning and serves himself/herself! Even breathing can be considered as a service. The service is supposed to be a comfortable process for a skilled human being. Each one gets picked up for a particular work based on their qualifications/skill sets developed.

In spite of skills and all the training, humans fall into the vicious VUCA Loop. Once they fall then the VUCA Loop continues to cast it’s never ending spell. Employees end up playing truant at works be it professional or personal and keep leaving digital traces of the misadventures. Poor delivery patterns emerge as the set datum is not reached due to lack of focus. The aim to do “much more with much less” keeps the humans tied up into myriad activities some of which are actually beyond their skill sets and natural capabilities. Technology is supposed to be breather for humans, but, here we are standing in a World where communications between humans are falling to lower levels. Technology has brought in the spoken jargon and use of the half understood jargon is leading to more of VUCA.

The clarity of the mission or the works to be achieved gets lost as VUCA emerges in simplified processes. Each process has a definition and a road-map. Difficulty levels have a natural place in any process achievement. However, the cluttered mindset blocks even the easiest of operations. What is the reason for the cluttered mindsets and its natural outcome-VUCA? Is it lack of clarity as humans are not designed to address multiple issues or is it that the cluttering of processes is the hallmark of the humanity? The human capabilities have only increased vi-à-vis their life spans. However, the volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity has increased multiple fold in almost all the arenas of human influence. Too much of care, support and availability of various means has dented the human performance rather than enhancing it. Long working hours, poor health, lack of focused approach and confusions in spite of long duration meetings clearly reflect the long shadows of VUCA. Vested interests keep natural progress at bay and does not let the global village to stabilize.

So, what do the humans need to get out of the VUCA jinx? Simplicity is the key for rich civilizations. All that is required is understanding of the objective and to approach towards the mission without a negative self-interest. Humans have always succeeded when they have kept their differences aside and worked selflessly. There is no harm in calling a spade as a spade. A spade cannot be a gun, right! Keep life at its simplest boundaries and the World starts appearing round. A flat path can be long and tiring. A round path at least brings one back to the start point. Confusions lead to panic and downgraded performance is the natural outcome. VUCA emerges suddenly out of nowhere and then there is no escape from its venomous jaws.

It is true that the fittest will only survive. To remain fit, humans have to really work hard. The cluttered humans will continue to fall behind in the race towards survival. The aim is not to lose the sight of the mission but to scale it with ease. The plans should not fall apart at the first impact with the enemy or the situation. Simple objectives can be converted into complex goals and scaling can be carried out to climb the stairs of success smoothly. Each field requires humans and in each field there are cluttered and uncluttered methods. The choice would remain with humans to break the VUCA jinx by remaining alert and perform according to their capabilities.

After all, nothing remains permanent and change is the only constant. The Management Gurus have preached VUCA to the World and days are not far when something new emerges and outshines today’s VUCA. Change should always be for the betterment, isn’t it folks? So, why live with VUCA! Break that jinx, move on and do not let your mind get clogged. Take bold decisions and move along for no one in this World is actually perfect. We are all being measured against a gauge and who knows what its calibration standards are! VUCA can be captured and eased out of human lives. It just requires a bit of standing up for the harder rights instead of the easier wrongs. So, do you have it in you to capture and decimate the jinx of VUCA circling your life, eh!!

    

CLIMB IN A DAY

On 29 May 1953, Sir Edmund Percival Hillary and Nepalese Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers to reach the summit of Mount Everest. They were part of the ninth British expedition to Everest, led by John Hunt. In 1952, Tenzing Norgay was part of a Swiss Expedition which had fallen short of Mount Everest by 240 meters due to weather and exhaustion.

Hillary and Norgay had carved out a professional relationship as they both trained together for the treacherous climb through Khumbu Icefall. The final Camp at South Col was set up by the Hunt Expedition at 7890 Meters. The first of the two climbers of the expedition, Bourdillon and Evans, attempted the summit on 26 May 1953. They fell short by 91 Meters as Evans’ oxygen system failed in those trying conditions. Hillary and Tenzing then made the second attempt.  

Snow and wind held the pair up at the South Col for two days. On the morning of 28 May 1953, Hillary and Tenzing set out with a support trio of Lowe, Alfred Gregory and Ang Nyima. The two pitched a tent at 8,500 m on 28 May while their support group returned down the mountain. On the following morning, Hillary discovered that his boots had frozen solid outside the tent. He spent two hours warming them before he and Tenzing attempted the final ascent wearing 14 kg packs. The crucial move of the last part of the ascent was the 12 m rock face later named the "Hillary Step". Hillary saw a means to wedge his way up a crack in the face between the rock wall and the ice and Tenzing followed. From there on the balance effort was relatively simple. Tenzing Norgay stated in his narration "The Dream Comes True" that Hillary had indeed taken the first step atop Mount Everest, despite Hillary quoting that both had reached the summit at the same time. They reached Everest's 8,848 m summit, the highest point on earth, at 11:30 am on 29 May 1953. As Hillary put it, "A few more whacks of the ice axe in the firm snow, and we stood on top." 

What would have been the thoughts of Hillary and Tenzing as they packed their bags to make the final assault on the virgin peak of Mt Everest? The day would have dawned with its own peculiarities on 8500 meters above the Mean Sea Level. All the previous days of the expedition were now events of past utilized for acclimatization, training and climb. 29 May 1953 was a brand new day for both the climbers and they had a mission to scale. The only baggage they carried was physical in nature and weighed 14 Kgs each pack. With their eyes set on the top of the summit, they would have both made a careful climb up the mountain. They did not carry any radio sets to communicate their climb with the base camp. Everything that they both were tasked to achieve had to be done on that day- 29 May 1953. Each passing day would have only made their task difficult and worn off their spirits. The mission would keep on getting critical with the ticking away off the clock. The choices are limited when time starts wearing away towards darkness. Both Hillary and Tenzing did what was supposed to be done- they climbed the Mount Everest in a day on that fateful day of May 1953. In the history books, both got etched forever as the first climbers to scale the tallest mountain and the singular date 29 May 1953 became a landmark date.

In any human life, the time spans can be large but the days of milestones are unique and singular. Humans prepare in their own myriad ways for various challenges and adventures of the maze called life. Who knows what they encounter in between or how they shape up plans to meet the exigencies? The magic of successful humans lies in circumventing/taking challenges head on and achieve the tasks on the designated day. The significance of each day lies in the achievements scaled in its span of 24 hours. Humans learn and practice to be ready for the D-day. Everything, therefore, does happen in a day!! Some may contest this assumption but what is the harm in getting pinned to the ideology that each day is important and much can be achieved if the focus is correct.

A student prepares the whole year to write that elusive exam on the D-Day, an astronaut trains for that perfect take off on the D-Day, the project are matched for various timelines to meet the D-day etc. In almost each human activity, the day is an important constituent. A lost day cannot be regained. All practice is void if the target cannot be captured on the D-Day. Each one of the humans have the capability to awaken themselves to capture their day and to achieve the climb. The will power factor plays an important role in shaping the human destiny. No human activity is easy, but on the flip side no activity is such complex that the little climbs associated with them cannot even be attempted. Each failure can be converted into First Effort in Learning (FAIL) and each end can be termed as Effort Never Dies (END). In every No there can be the Next Opportunity (NO). There is no better adage that “Each Day Counts”. After all, the final climb happens in a day only.   

Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay dreamt years about climbing the Mount Everest and climbed for 07 grueling weeks before they dug the final axe on the peak at 1130 hrs on 29 May 1953. The climb was done in a day.

Each day, all of us are preparing and practicing for the respective climbs in various fields. The D-day arrives with each of its moment etched with precision. The time does not stand still ever. We have to gather ourselves up on all possible fronts and make the first move for the climb. Each step takes us closer to the summit. Finally, the last axe is dug deep onto the summit and it provides the last help to scale the highest point. The height of success dwarfs everything else- though momentarily as the next challenge starts unfolding its majestic climb. So, keep putting out those steps in the right direction to achieve the climb in a day.    

FOX SQN MEGA SOCIAL, NEW DELHI-28 NOV 2015

#BEST ADVICE: PERFECTION-MATCH IT!!

Manoj laid down the map on his table and carefully studied the contour lines laid out on the paper. The solitary bulb in his makeshift cabin was trying to add to the warmth of the “Sigri” burning inside the cabin. Low temperatures in high altitude can be punishing and can lead to various effects of freezing. For Manoj, the temperatures did not matter tonight. His mind was fixed on his long cherished aim of flying his Attack Helicopter in the high altitudes. 

As he finished his study and lay in his creaky bed for the night rest, his mind drifted off to the days when he was passing out of the National Defence Academy (NDA). Manoj had the opportunity to enter the portals of the Maker of Men (The Motto of NDA) twice. He has had the great fortune of getting trained by some of the best that NDA had produced. His thoughts wandered towards his Squadron Cadet Captain in the Foxtrot Squadron 2^nd Lt Arun Khetarpal, PVC who was already a folklore. In his dreams he saw a young lean and mean guy in a white T shirt and back drawn hair standing in the Central Lobby of Foxtrot Squadron with two stars made on the breast pocket of his T shirt. Under that was written Jaat in a slant and an underline drawn. The handsome Sherwoodian, Jaat looked like the Clint Eastwood of the Foxtrot Squadron.

Manoj dreamt about his NDA experiences the whole night. He has had the fortune of passing out of NDA twice due to his change of service from the Air Force to the Army. It had become his plus point. He understood the DNA of NDA even better. Jaat took Manoj under his wings and trained him relentlessly after Lights Out for perfection of exercises like High Horse, Scissors and Back Flips. As they trained in a Guru-Shishya format, Jaat would impress upon Manoj to match up to the perfection levels.  Robinhood was reborn as Jaat. Always ready to help a guy in distress, costs did not matter to him. If you were not doing well in the Out Door Training at NDA-go to Jaat. If you have changed your Medicine-on-Duty Category to Rest –In- Cabin Category and the Training Officer is looking for you, back to Jaat for help as he was a savior of sorts. He was an epitome of Perfection in whatever he did. On that night, Jaat was re-visiting Manoj to affirm that perfection has been achieved and Manoj was now a rookie Attack Helicopter pilot of the Indian Army. Manoj slept with a smile on his face and an assurance that he had trained well to match that perfection which seniors like Jaat had always sought from him.

Waking up early, Manoj ran his mind on the sortie that he would be flying. He was in Command of the Cheetah Helicopter of the Indian Army’s Aviation Corps. In 1984, the Indian Army's Northern Command had inducted the HAL Cheetah into the Siachen Glacier. The pilots were put to the ultimate test professionally and also in terms of human endurance. In 1986, the "Air Observation Post" units were transferred from the Indian Air Force to the Indian Army to form the Army Aviation branch. Using nine helicopter squadrons, Army Aviation was supporting ground units by carrying men and material in the highest battlefield on earth, culminating in the conquest of the entire 72 km of the Siachen Glacier. Innumerable skirmishes and confrontations have taken place in the in the Siachen Glacier and the Army Aviation Corps was to provide the required support for sustenance of the Indian troops.

Manoj had understood his mission well. Strapping up his cockpit, he gazed towards the white snow-capped mountains that stood firm and tall on the horizon. Powering up his chopper’s blades, Manoj felt the thin atmosphere getting cut by the motion and the throttle could now feel the lift. The chopper lifted effortlessly and he shaped Course. It was a perfect lift off and the Station Commander watched the young pilot in his first independent flight taking off. His mission was taking him today to heights to drop supplies and to pick up an injured soldier.  Flying airliners at altitudes of 35,000 feet is routine. But helicopters, with their relatively small rotary wings, struggle in thin air and Manoj’s Cheetah was no exception. Manoj’s mind was trained to achieve perfection. He moved the Cheetah with minimal load to the high snow clad ranges and spotted the injured soldier. Lowering his supplies bag, he hovered the Cheetah in a steady position and evacuated the injured soldier with perfection and returned to the base. As the casualty moved away in a Field Ambulance, Manoj inspected his machine before calling it a day. He looked skywards and remembered his affable seniors like Jaat and Arun Khetarpal at the Military Academies who had drilled the ideology of achieving perfection in him. His mind was tuned to race towards perfection whenever a challenge emerged.

Perfection is a key attitude of successful humans. Ever wondered why a Sherpa keeps climbing the great height again and again? He has achieved the levels of perfection which are required to scale the unpredictable heights. He fights against Mother Nature, his own chemistry and pulls up against gravity. He only looks up and goes for the kill each time he gets a window of opportunity. All that weighs on his mind, maybe, is to meet the challenges of his mission. He meets the same with Perfection. There is nothing left to take away at times, but that does not deter the Sherpa from climbing again and again.

A young boy heads to sea with his father. He has no sea legs but he matches the vagaries of the sea under the watchful eyes of his father and the boat’s crew. No body teaches them how to sail across the oceans to earn their livelihood. It is an art which is passed down the generations with hands on training. Soon, the boy catches the first catch of fish on his own and as the father fades away, he takes over the command of the boat. Nothing is possible without making an attempt, at least. Perfection is elusive and can sap the best of the energies. However, the search for perfection does begin the race. How far the race goes depends upon the will power of the humans. No one but the runner has to decide the distance he wants to run and how much ground he can cover. Perfection meets each human in its own way, albeit in a percentage which he has bargained for himself. 

Efforts must continue to meet perfection. The dare devil inside does come into play when humans try to achieve perfection. The fight to reach the desired goal is intense and rough at times, but, the brave hearts continue till they have scaled their aims. Perfection demands an exact matching. Who then stops us from trying and to achieve perfection? It is our own free will to train ourselves and to match the perfection.

Do you have it in you is a commonly used dialogue in most tense situations. It does evoke responses from humans. So, what is your response to this question? Go for it and match Perfection- to the hilt because you never know what percentage scale you achieve.