Tips for Financial Planning And Safety during Pandemic

The last 1.5 years since beginning of 2020 had been an extremely difficult time for people all over the world.   Pandemic did not spare anyone.   Rich, poor, religion, creed,  haves, have-nots, white, black, brown...nothing -  the Corona virus impacted everyone equally.   Unfortunately,  it did effect the economically struggling class more rapidly than others who fortunately could avail medical facilities with insurance, investments or personal savings.   

This pandemic had been a great eye opener for all of us and it is very important wake up call to address emergencies not just this one, but anything going forward.  However, handling the crisis and managing emergencies for many during the last many months, have made me repeatedly emphasis on adequate financial planning and staying safe during these unprecedented times.

Here are few of the learnings that I would like to share:

Using Digital banking for all financial needs

It may sound silly, but cash had been the biggest carrier of the contagious virus and carrier during the times of Corona crisis as it changes hands quite rapidly.   The risk of contamination is very high when it comes to handling cash for transactions.    Using internet banking, online tools like PayTM, GPay, Pockets is effecting for goods and transactions from the comfort of our homes and staying safe during pandemic

Adequate Health Insurance

It is very important that we have enough insurance coverage to handle crisis during this pandemic.  It is very important to have sufficient medical insurance cover for you and your family to safeguard your financial state in case of a medical emergency and also to avail required medical facilities.  Having the details of the insurance card,  government provided medical insurance using Aadhar Card and company id card and manager / insurance desk contact numbers handy and informed to all members in the family is a must.   Take Top-up cover in case you have any morbid conditions that may require additional medical support

Life insurance Details

Indians especially have this mind-block when it comes to talking about death and planning in case we are gone.  It is very important that the family should not suffer financially when the emotional and physical trauma of a bereavement is there in the family.   So insurance policy details and insurance helpline numbers,  agent details, and original policy documents available place details should be shared with all the family members.   Life insurance is the biggest protection to the family even after we are gone

Nomination Details

Many times, we are so selfish that we fail to update and keep track of the nomination details to our holdings, be it bank accounts, lockers, insurance policies,  investments, shares, trade documents or planning of WILL for our immovable assets like buildings, farms and houses.   The struggle of the legal heirs is unimaginable when the nomination details are not updated for these investments.  So it is important to update nomination, keep a copy of the investments and keep your family or the nominee informed with the legal documents so claims become easy for them when the situation happens

Emergency Funds

Many of us in the rat race for survival forget to keep aside funds to manage unpredicted emergencies.  There should be funds kept aside to manage anywhere from 3 to 6 months during the crisis,  In case of any incapacitation due to Covid or any disease or loss of job due to the economic splurge that is happening, these funds will help you meet the basic needs of survival of your family and opportunity to bounce back both physically and financially without losing confidence

Being ALERT is Important

It is very important that we stay alert of the fraudsters on Internet during this pandemic.   Having very unpredictable passwords only known to family is important for all online login ids and also it is very important to have an add-on debit card in the name of a spouse or a child for handling emergency.  It is also important that you keep your ATM Pins and cards safe and ensure you key in 000 after you finish you withdrawals in ATM to ensure the keypad don't record your PIN.

Do not share your passwords or PINs to anyone on phone/ email or calls / google docs/ links/  or to even to those who claim are from Bank, Insurance company, Govt or IT agency / RBI/ Covid care centers or even if some personifies like a relative or friend. Or tries to create a panic situation where you share everything in emotional vulnerability times.  Do not transfer money in those panic situations especially to any individual accounts.   Being ALERT is important not to end up bankrupt

Stay Home!  Stay Safe!  Stay Secure!!! 

Personal Branding - How it is important for your career and professional growth?

 As a extrovert who is always keen on building people network and sustaining relationships,  I became an expert speaker on 'Personal Branding'  at few events and online webinars.  Someone who slowly but steadily created a vibrant digital persona, have been many a time asked is it important?   Yes is one word answer.   Why is a little longer post given below!!!

Today, what we are an what is reflected in the digital world and the presence of the digital footprints we create denotes who we are!!! It is a direct relativity to our though process, networking abilities and real YOU!   Unless you are true to what you are consistently,  you cannot be showcasing the REAL YOU in this world that can verify and validate at the tip of the fingers in the search crazy world!

Sharing Achievements and Awards

1. It is very important we communicate our achievements

2. Why these achievements are important to share is to reflect on your skills and performance

3. Verified achievements are testimony to your hardwork

4. Important to create your own personal brand

5. First step to connect with likeminded people and to people who inspire you

6.  Effective networking doesn’t happen over night

7.  Consistent achievements and awards leverages you at the level you ought to be

Networking is the new currency

1.  Connecting with right people is very important for career growth

2. Observing and reaching out to people 2 levels above you will inspire to grow to their level

3. People who are successful can guide you with their learnings and mistakes

4. connecting with right stakeholders,  people who are key to influence in the organization etc will help

5. Connect with people in industry and industry bodies like NASSCOM, eWIT, MSME, STPI, etc related to your field

6. Follow people whose career path you want to succeed in

7. Identify and reach out to those who can be your sponsors, coaches, or mentors

8. Plan on what you can do for those in your network in terms of value addition

9. Plan and meet regularly in forums, social events, seminars, workshops, and conferences etc

10. If you believe in yourself, do not hesitate to reach out and ask for recommendations or introductions

Using Social Media effectively

1.  A very reliable LinkedIn Profile is the key

2.  Make it powerful by keeping the data with information

3.  Use key words to introduce your skills and strengths

4.  Never use a vacation picture, use professional looking photo

5.  Do not use nick names or short names-  Use proper professional names to identify you

6.  Create a powerful professional headline using all 100+ characters to clearly define you

7. Do not forget to update your location, industry vertical and customising your profile URL

8.  You need to be active in the platform sharing your knowledge and interacting with industry peers

9. Do not hesitate to showcase your certificates, proprietary work, accolades etc

10. Give endorsements and do not hesitate to ask for recommendations

11. NO longer volunteering is considered as an add-on but as part of formal work responsibility

12. Getting connected to your colleagues and professional connects is important

13. Keeping your contact information available - at least by email is required

14. Trust and credibility is achieved slowly and steady based on people in your network

15.  Keeping in touch with your previous organizations and ex-colleagues is a strength

16. Do not hesitate to join recommended and relevant LinkedIn groups.  This helps to follow industry news, updates and keep in pace with trending conversations

17. Publish major achievements, milestones, and changes in professional career in your profile updates as needed

18. Share your LinkedIn URL link in your email signatures

19. Check your profile settings to make your profile visible publicly

20. Use keywords that make your profile appear in search engines

Personal Branding is Key

1.Your activity on social media indicates the 'Digital You'

2. Consistently making your presence creates much needed virtual visibility

3. Promote your work and achievements - No one else will do it for you

4. #hastags provide relevance to your posts for people to follow, comment and connect

5. Involve in healthy discussions in the topics of your expertise

6. Important to stay in touch with stakeholders and relevant groups

7. Do not involve in any radical, religious, controversial, political and any other discussions that may affect the sentiments or hurt others

8. Participate in surveys and polls and give your genuine feedback

9. Sharing knowledge is also gaining more of it.  So do online sessions, Knowledge sharing sessions and participate in industry forums

10. It is important to respond than react to queries and share your views

11. The content you once create in digital space is permanent, though you may delete later, it will have a copy somewhere.  So be careful of what you post

12. Participate in events that enrich your learning

13. Share only what you are sure is good for others

14.  Regular posts will improve your engagement in social media

15. In case you are posting something copied, please give due credits and references

16. Spend time reading Newspapers, whitepapers, case studies and other people's recognitions

17. Remember to create original content that will always have more value

18. The audience of your posts is important.

19. Having individual strategy on what you want to be identified as is very important.  The contact you post, the stories you tell, the personal experiences you share, the media visuals you use, everything will grab attention and remember you are closely watched

20.  It is very very important that we get the social validation for who you are.  It may happen with one viral post or slow and steady progress you make.  There is no magical wand for this to happen. 

Successful people are those who leave behind a legacy!

Today, successful people are those who leave behind strong and sensible digital footprints!!!

Images are from Internet.

 

 

What Makes YOU a GREAT Leader? Key Factors contributing to Successful Leadership

With the UN Theme of Generation Equal this year 2020,  What makes you a great leader is not having years of experience alone and talents but lot more things that you need to be aware of!

As you move from being a Manager to a Thought Leader,  there are few things you should be focusing on!

1. Focus on what you want to do

It is very important we identify all things we do,  like in every single day., organize and prioritize and focus on the things that need top most attention.  You should be able to assess this at the beginning of the day so that you can make the best use of every work day.  It is very important that we do not procrastinate on things that need to be finished that day.   A good professional is one who is able to manage multiple things and still work effectively.   That is possible only when you are able to compartmentalize your day according to the priorities and stay focused to complete the tasks in hand.  

2.  Are You Executive Material?

First you need to do a deep  self-introspection on what takes it to be a Senior Executive or a Thought Leader in a Organization.   It is very important that you enable yourself with upskilling/reskilling and preparing yourself to be a great Executive.     Self-assessment to identify the needs of the Top Layer of the Organization and preparing yourself to get there is key for your success.  Years of experience will not take you to the top always.  What brings more revenue and business to the Organization and what makes you the face of the leadership is what will give you the advantage to get to the top.  Getting there is not easy but not impossible if you have the confidence to be the Executive Material.  Believe in it and prepare for it and don't believe in luck

3.  Identify the mistakes that may sabotage our growth

Today in the digital era, what you are in the Social Media reflects on what you are as an individual persona.    Your thought patterns, your emotional balances, your reactions/responses, everything is under scrutiny when it comes to professional growth.    Gone are the day people rely on the resume or experiences or the ratings within the Organization.   In the rat-race to win everywhere, there is a strong competition.  So be very cautious of your social media posts, your ideologies that may reflect on your professional behavior,  your people skills that may show up in your references and also your emotional and social wellness matters a lot.    

Next, it is very important that we learn from the mistakes of similar professionals around us and we do not get caught into the same situations.    Stop being overeager to explain all things for a simple reason that you cannot please everyone.   Also ask for forgiveness if you make a mistake and give a reassurance that you will not do it again, and move on.   Do not stay in one single troubled situation and whine over it for long.    

4.  Be Assertive -  Learn to Say No

Always saying YES is not an acknowledgement of accepting things as they are.  Sometime , the situations may demand to say NO.  So say NO firmly when you have a reason to say so.   Do not hesitate to say no just because it may strain a relationship or give up on a business opportunity.  In the long run your firm decisions may not only benefit you but also the Organizations.  So being firm and strong and having a strong reasoning ability, analytical thinking and logical reasoning is very important for a good leadership

5.  Stop making couching statements

It is very important we keep our statements brief, precise and clear and avoid making couching statements that can be interpreted in any way others want.    Sometimes saying negative comments in couching statements may be pleasing for others, but its not always practical in a work environment.    We should not making deliberate statements that can hurt others,  mislead businesses and may impact negative work environment.      It is always advisable to have clear communication, in simple sentences that are non-ambiguous or non-provoking and hurting sentiments, triggering wrong emotions and causing confusions at work place.   

6.  Self- Motivation to be a Leader

No one will make you a leader if you are not ready.  Leadership is not something that will crowned on you unless you make conscious efforts to reach there.  Make every effort to make yourself worthwhile to the change in life.   A good leader is one who takes utmost responsibility of his/ her actions as well as be ready and accountable for the actions of the team.   A leader is respected for what they do, instead of what they preach.   One thing to remember is that every leader is closely watched, followed, admired, inspiring someone or people can even have a negative impact of jealousy and fake friendships due to your position and success.   It is very important to be conscious and take success to heart and not to head resulting in egoistic behavior that will destroy your success.   Being humble, approachable and setting yourself as an example are key traits of successful leaders

7.  No need to be liked all times

You cannot please everyone every single time.  It is ok that your actions may disappoint others when their expectations are not met.   However, you have to be clear and consistent in your work,  stay focused and be sure that the outcomes are what matters in business and take every effort to achieve the objectives of the work you do.   Integrity,  Trust and Consistent Hardwork has no parallels and you can actually see these qualities in any great leader around you.    There are no short cuts to success.   As you climb the Corporate Ladder, always remember there is less crowd up there and there are chances that you can get really alone and miss the fun of being in the crowd.  But once you become a leader, your perceptions and growth mindset will make everything else insignificant and trivial.   As a Professional you will standout, when you can overcome your emotional imbalances.   

8.  Stop letting people waste your time

Do not give time or attention when someone walks to your desk and calls you for a coffee..For them, it may be a break, but you may be in midst of something really important.  Learn to politely refuse niceties that no longer necessary.   Grapevine helps but unwarranted gossip doesn't.   So do not indulge in political, religious discussions and reacting to every single negative current affairs happening around us.   Without you even realizing, you will be spending more them on these non-productive activities at workplace which in turn may push you to work late into the night to finish your priorities.  It is OK to burn mid-night oil to learn new things or focus on innovation and creative things that benefit you as professional...but not for useless chatting, overloaded push of unwanted forwards on social media.  which actually may negatively impact you.   You  should be strong enough to filter out what is needed and act accordingly.      

9.  You are a leader not a MOM at Workplace !

We all love our families and friends.   We all have Gods and faiths that guide our lives.  Keep that private and limited to your homes.  Do not decorate office workspace like a living room.  Having religious texts or pictures at workplace can add sentimental value to some..but in reality it is better to avoid any kind of religious marks at workplace.   Today we are talking about a much inclusive society and being equal.   We respect all faiths and we as a Nation are far more secular in the world today.  However, keeping our work places out of any of these sentiments is worth giving a thought.   And also stop feeding people at work just because you are a great cook and a great mom.   Celebrations and team bonding is always fun and productive.  But going out of the way, to keep pleasing your team is not necessary.   It is ok to be professional and productive and learn to draw a thick line between being a good friend, a great person Vs Great leader or a strong professional.    Don't bring emotions and attachments that may impact promotions, assessments,  ratings and appraisals.  

10.  Miracles don't happen

Have Faith. Faith in the possibilities and power behind the veil.   But don't expect miracles to bring you success.   Rome was not built in a day.  A great leader is also not made overnight.    Being a successful leader is like a penance.   It takes years of learning,  skill enabling,  hard-work,  perseverance,  handling challenges, going through difficult situations,  handling various types of people and business situations,  focusing on innovation,  keeping your creative juices flowing to find new improvements, experience,  focusing on health,  team work,  various soft skills and then the leadership factors.   

Great leaders are those who have

•  Own Strong Personality
•  Personal Branding and Image Management 
• Make Statements that matter to business outcomes
• Who are ready to take the stage - for both success and failures
• Being fearless and unafraid of your beliefs.   

So go ahead,  become those leaders who are ready to be real change makers in this world.  The World need strong leaders!     Get yourself there sooner than later!   God bless! 

 

Six Steps to Resolving Project Problems

Having a structured approach to solving problems will help you resolve them more quickly and directly. Guessing the cause of the problem rarely works. You want to not only resolve this particular problem, but you also want to understand the problem well enough so that you can identify the root cause and ensure that this particular problem does not occur again. 

Use the following general process to identify and resolve problems.  
1. Identify the problem or symptom
You should not assume that everyone knows the problem already. Take the time to document the problem in clear terms that everyone can understand. If you cannot clearly document the problem, it will be difficult to solve it. Make sure that you also explain the impact of the problem to the project.
2. Identify the root cause (or causes)
This is the most important step, since you do not want to spend your time resolving a symptom that you think is a root cause. Instead you should be very clear on the root cause and explain how the root cause ultimately results in the problem. If you cannot track the root cause to the perceived problem, you have not taken your investigation far enough. There are a number of issues management techniques that describe how to focus in on the root cause.
That being said, it may be that the root cause is not within your power to resolve and you may be forced to try to solve a symptom. However, you want to still be sure to identify the cause(s) of the problem to make sure you understand if you are solving a cause or a symptom.
3. Determine alternatives and impacts
The project manager may assign one or more people to determine alternatives. For each alternative, they should also address the impact to the project.
4. Select the best alternative
The project team and appropriate stakeholders can all be involved with determining the best alternative. This may include members of the project team only, or outside stakeholders.
5. Resolve the problem
A plan is put into place to address the problem and implement the chosen alternative. This could just be one activity or it could be a complex plan of resolution. These activities should be moved into the project schedule to ensure that they are performed
6. Validate the problem is resolved
The situation must be monitored to ensure that the problem is resolved as expected. If the problem appears to be resolved you are done. If the problem or a related symptom still exists, you have more work to do. Return to step 1. 

Source: Method 1 2 3...empowering managers to succeed! 

Suicide Story Calling for Hope and Help

Expression of life with smiles and cheers

The loud laughter’s for such silly jokes

Confidently standing beyond arrogance

False countenance nonchalantly reticence

As I pulled over the mask to show different me

So fake and so conflicting to nonexistent inner glee

Not with intentions to cheat everyone around

But disguising with pretense to one thyself

Murky gorge of reality without an escape

As my skull becomes evil’s warehouse

It is nothing but a curse being titled strong

For the actual struggle hidden all along

Swinging precarious between hope and surrender

Hiding tears and fears battling scary bearers

Consummating the artists within in disguise

Desponding alive in growing stronger 

Unable to eat, sleep, travel or wander

Trying to slip into the little dodging slumber

Absolute frames of absurd thoughts derider

Hugging the lifeless pillow to cry aloud

Of falling into the valley deep into the grounds

Running behind the leaving train

Waking up with a jerk and disdain

Succumbing to the loneliness of the chest

Sweating unusual than on a wilder trek

Where is my inner strength disappear

And the ardent faith ruled over by devils

Cries in cowers laid to rest in corner

The provocation to die chanting over life

Darkness and death looking alluring

Life be uphill struggle and non-fetching

Scared of another day and survival

Everything looked repulse and pointless

Hearing my fore-fathers calling me to the shore

Another life, another time, welcoming to meet

Where is the hope that made life everything?

Heartache, emptiness of the inner soul

Lost merry, life easy, trading my nothing

The curtains are ready to be brought down

The drama of life is ready to sure end

Free from the masks of public appearance

No more delving in pity of others around

Time to put an end to the corrosion of mind

Beyond the layers of wisdom thick to grind

Depression is never seen till it’s too late

Death can seem to be the only solace

Finding the Story of Suicide around,

Look again, think and stop by for a second

Give them a hug, hope and helping hand!

That moment, may bring them back to life again!