Book Review - Himalaya by Michael Palin

Have you read my review of Himalaya by Michael Palin yet? No? What are you waiting for? Read it here => Himalaya - Book Review. Let me know what you think of it. Your feedback will help me improve my reviewing skills. I am still struggling with this art, you see.

Working Hard Working Smart

I recently received a newsletter from Psychotactics on Why Working Smarter, Not Harder, is a Myth.

Here's my take on hard work versus smart work.

Working smart has three aspects. at least that is the way I see it.

(i) Assume you study real hard, burn the last-minute midnight oil and are now ready to take on the next day's maths exam. You reach the examination hall all confident to crack the exam. You open the question paper and you discover today is actually English. Not Maths. If only you had bothered to check your date sheet once before you started off. Working smart is therefore planning well and working to the plan.

(ii) In a rocket going to the outer space, the engine works the hardest. It burns furiously pushing out burnt fuel in order to escape the gravitational force of the Earth. However, that is not sufficient. You need the feedback system to continuously correct the path taken by the rocket. Both the engine Merely working hard is therefore not sufficient. You need feedback to move in the right direct. Working smart is therefore taking feedback either continuously or at discrete points.

(iii) You are asked to dig a hole. You can use your nails or you can use your spade. Spade is what is called a Simple Machine. It works on the principle of leverage. Leverage helps you do more for less. Working smart is therefore using leverage to achieve more.

To summarize, working smart is working to a plan AND taking feedback AND using leverage. Most important it does not replace hard work. It is complements hard work.

Picture courtesy: Michal Zacharzewski

A review page each for all the books I read

This, I thought, was the only way I could keep an account of all the books I read. Right now I am putting up a lens for each of the books that I have in the house. Then I need to find a way of getting hold of all the previous books. Ambitious? What is life without ambition?

Meanwhile here is a list of books that I have already finished reviewing:

The Calendar

Survival of the Sickest

Air Babylon

Himalaya

The Blind Watchmaker

Eats Shoots & Leaves

Now, here is what I need from you (I am sure I can start making demands by now), please visit these lenses and tell me how I can improve these.

I never knew reviewing books will be so difficult. So I certainly need constructive feedback.

Thanks.

Picture courtesy: Sanja Gjenero

Time Heals, But Not Always

Time heals.
But can it also result in a disaster?

Next time two kids fight, observe.
"He started it."
"No, he started it."
The funny thing is both could be right.
How?

Most interactions are not instantaneous. It involves an element of time.

When I do something and you react and then I react and then you ... you get the idea ... these don't happen immediately.

More often than not the sequence goes as follows:
I do something ... time gap ... then you react ... time gap ... then I react ... time gap ... then you react ...

These time gaps make it seem like linear causal effects resulting in statement such as, "I did this because you did that."
The truth actually could be: "I did this because you did that because I did something else because you did yet another thing ..." So it is actually cyclic. Human brains can only trace the loop back to a few spirals.

This is a classic case of things spiraling out of control. One action feedback into the next and so on. This becomes even more pernicious because we are not even aware that we are reacting in a cycle. This could become disastrous when his cyclic interaction involves parties with lethal weapons.

We can safely say that most of the conflicts and wars begin from accusations and counter-accusations that are made from a linear perspective either because the elements (read, politicians, military, hawks, etc.) involved either do not understand or deliberately choose to ignore the cyclic aspects of interaction.

By the way, this is also true of all dysfunctional families. Also true of all divorces.

So are we condemned to live in a continuous downward spiral. The answer is a reassuring no. The same cyclic interaction can also turn positive. And once that is done things improve at rapid speed. One good turn begets other and so on till things never seem better.

What is required is to break the cycle.

Here's how it works:

You: You told lies.
She: You make me tell lies. If I tell you the truth you jump to conclusions.
You: That is because you never tell the full truth.
She: The last time I told you the full truth you could not take it.
You: That is because you have a history of cheating.
She: Actually it you who first cheated.

Wait! Hold on. Break the cycle.

You: Can we make a new beginning? Now onwards, whenever you see me jumping to conclusion, remind me of this conversation.
She: Sure. And I will tell you the complete fact as it happens.
You: This relationship is important to me and I will do whatever it takes.
She: You know that I love you more than you do.
You: That is not true. I love you more.

The above dialog is contrived but you get the idea.

The lesson: Always look out for the vicious cycle. And break it.

I wish I could claim that the above is my original contribution human understanding. It is apparent but I first got to understand when I read The Fifth Discipline: The Art & Practice Of The Learning Organization by Peter M. Senge. This simple impact of time lag resulting in a vicious cycle is one of the many brilliant take-aways of this book. The Fifth Discipline gives you tools to analyze any situation and these tools provide you with simple solutions to produce maximum impact.

Strongly recommended.

Note: The picture used belongs to Carlo Scherer (see gallery)

Blogging - 7 Things That Work For Me And 1 That Doesn't

Having blogged almost continuously for about 4 months now, I am getting a feel of what works for me. I haven't yet figured one that doesn't.

Here's the list of what works ...

1. Using a neat template ... Too much clutter is a no-no. The attention span of a visitor is short. Need to capture and keep the visitor for a long time.

2. Using pictures ... Pictures capture attention. Not too many of these. But definitely above the fold-line. And the best place to get royalty free pictures is Stock Xchng. Remember to leave a message for the photographer thanking him/her - that also ensures that one extra person will visit your blog. Also remember to credit the photographer in your blog.

3. Blogging My Mind ... I know it is good to focus, great for traffic, etc. I have other blogs which are extremely focused. But you got to have one for fun. Where you can blog your heart out. So that even when no one is visiting your blog, you are driven to blog continuously.

4. Being a Good Citizen of The Blogosphere ... It is fun to make virtual friends. It also means that people in whose blog I have left a comment visit mine. I make it a point to leave comments in at least 5 blogs per day.

5. Welcome Text ... I think my hit rate increased after I introduced a welcome note for my visitors. In any case, it is nice to greet strangers. I read somewhere long ago in Reader's Digest:

A stranger is just a friend you haven't met before

6. Non-linear narrative ... I get more visitors to the posts that do not follow a plain, straight line narrative.

7. Asking For Feedback ... Asking for feedback of like minded friends you met on a forum is a great help.

Here's the list of what I still need to figure out ...

1. How do I ensure quality advertisements on my blog that interests my visitors? Blogging is in my control. But how do I get my visitors to become interested in the ads.  I wish I had the creative control on the advertisement on my blog. Meaning, I wish I could design them.

But then that would mean that the advertisements would look exactly like my blog!!  Is that a good thing or a bad thing? You decide.

Note: The picture used belongs to jaylopez (See gallery)