For the Love of Languages

This is a pretty short post. How many languages do you speak? Do you think that languages can make you a better thinker, giving you a broader dimension in which to analyse and to communicate ideas? Well, you could explore adding more languages to your repertoire. See you on the other side of the tongue.

The Courage to Do What Is Right

Yes, you're happy you did what you had to do then. And it's paying off now! You braced up the challenges and the criticism, though it wasn't easy. Now you have your wife, you won her back. You quit that job that took all you had. You cleaned house of friendships that weren't helping you. You set your priorities straight.

What Do We Want? Money, Power, ...Or Happiness?

People have spent many years learning. Others, countless hours working in the day and at night. And some have stolen and even killed.

The cost of  'Success' is rising so high I'm afraid we might be spent in its pursuit. But what is it we are really looking for? The literal dollar bills or power just for its sake? I doubt it.

We are looking for happiness. A very high dose of it.

The big mansion, the yacht, the high profile event, the spacious office, are means to an end. A drug-like end. We get it. Addictions can be hard to break.

Who is entitled to the so-called success? The intelligent? The educated? Royalty? And what about the man who has non of these? Now it's getting twisted.

Everyone has a right to happiness.

The man on Wall Street makes his money out of his briefcase, and the criminal unleashes mayhem on society to get his own means.

Can the world contain all our 'success' chasers?! Or let me rephrase it. Can the world contain all our happiness chasers?

Why has happiness been so elusive?

Could we be looking in the wrong direction for happiness? I think so.

The Amusing Nature of Complexity

The Cambridge dictionary defines complexity as "the ​state of having many ​parts and being ​difficult to ​understand or ​find an ​answer to".

Taking a closer look at entities, we find that they compose of many layers. Do these layers hold the secret to complexity? May be.

On descending to the innermost layer, we find a 'dumb' simple structure. This is where it begins to be funny. 

Complexity is a composition of simple structures.

The Future of Business

A bank welcomes a customer and he has a headache. A doctor employed by the bank is called in to make a quick diagnosis with some medicine dispensed to the customer till he sees his doctor.

Another customer walks in and she's hungry. She's kindly shown to a restaurant within the bank before she does her transactions.

Both customers smile as they leave their bank. Enter the modern business! Though this is exaggerated, the business of the future is not so different. All businesses would blur their lines to become almost anything to please their customers. A balance is what would be struck to ensure profitability. But watch closely and you see that many businesses are already beginning to transform to this model. They are becoming 'Emotional businesses' -- wildly creative to provide services and perks not related to their core business -- they are stealling hearts!

Any competitors that don't follow suit, would be doing so at their own peril. Companies would budget larger funds for customer pleasing. And who wins in this courtship? Both customer and company. The customer is happy to receive love and care which are priceless, and she gladly empties her purse to the company. Let's hope this affair turns out well.

Intelligence vs Wisdom (I)

The Oxford English Dictionary defines wisdom as "Capacity of judging rightly in matters relating to life and conduct; soundness of judgement in the choice of means and ends; sometimes, less strictly, sound sense, esp. in practical affairs: opp. to folly".

Wisdom is not fully taught in the university. And many who claim to be authorities have contradicted one another on the best path to follow when we are at crossroads. Our modern culture seems to place more emphasis on making a living than on making a life. The media is awash with stories begging for wisdom.

Are You Cut Out to Be an Entrepreneur?

This is a difficult question as it depends on what cuts you out. Lets look at a few ways in which people have become entrepreneurs, though the list is not exhaustive:

1. They were 'born' entrepreneurs, that is they have wanted to be and have successfully acted as entrepreneurs from childhood.

2. They lost a job, sought another but couldn't find one.

3. They were inspired by an idea or others while on the job and they left.

4. They were heirs to a family business and had to 'learn' entrepreneurship.

5. They were unemployable in conventional jobs.

Now lets discuss each of the ways in detail, as it may determine how successful one would be.

1. The 'Born' Entrepreneurs

You have heard of the kid that baked and sold cakes while his peers where playing at the parks and upgrading their video games. These people have a thing in their genes that gives them a little push that the average individual doesn't.

Greg Davies, head of behavioural and quantitative finance at Barclays Bank noted that there is a surprising amount of entrepreneurial success that can be attributed to genetics or personality development in early childhood. “It’s pretty obvious it isn’t 100% either way. You can teach someone to be better at anything,” said Davies – who has studied entrepreneurial characteristics extensively. “You can teach someone to play the piano but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re going to be a concert pianist.”

2. The Job Losers

These include your neighbour that worked at an insurance company and lost his job, searched for another for three years and failed, and is currently a business owner. These people can be quite successful sometimes. What accounts for their success? Emotions are a strong element of entrepreneurship - the thought that you have no options - real or imagined.

People have an enormous capacity for change, admitted Doug Richards, founder of School for Start-ups and former investor on the TV show, Dragon’s Den. As they grow and undertake new tasks, they become more confident, he added. There is also a significant amount of information that can be learned through lessons. And as that knowledge expands, other intangibles such as ability to calculate risk, perseverance, resilience and desire also grows, he said.

The question may be if you have such emotions.

3. The Inspired

Some have been inspired by an idea or successful peers. Many entrepreneurs get started on their path when they come up with ideas and are prevented from implementing them. Jamal Edwards, founder of SB.TV, an online youth-oriented broadcaster, said he worked at HMV when at school and was frustrated by the chain of command that separated his ideas from implementation.

Success will depend on how good your ideas are, and on your implementation skills, as an idea is just an idea and not a finished product.

4. The Heirs

This category of entrepreneurs are nearly destined to be entrepreneurs. Your family owns the Hilton Worldwide and your parents are old and about to pass away. Or your family has a winery in Spain. The first son or daughter or even children are being groomed to take over the business.

This may seem easy on the surface to many but there is more to it. The size of the business matters. If the business is big, then there is a lot of learning the ropes to be done. The kids may take the business down.

5. The Unemployable

These guys are bad for employers of labour. They are too independent or too sick to hold down a job - they have tried and failed! They are an odd mix of overly creative and overly independent personalities and ADHD and Aspergoid personalities pushed too far beyond Google's doors.

The former type are very driven and go on to start a number of businesses. The latter partner with others that complement their social and business skills while they themselves bring the brain that builds the products as they are often comfortable with complexity.