Cog

In my training workshops, I use the video ‘Cog’ to rationalize roles in teams. The ‘Cog’ is an advertisement made by Honda in 2003 to promote the Accord car. It opens with a transmission bearing rolling down a board triggering a domino chain of reactions between a gear wheel cog, camshaft and pulley wheel, automated water sensors, wiper blades and other parts of a disassembled Accord.

The interactions grow from simple collisions to ziplines made from cable, scales and see-saws constructed from carefully balanced parts. The sequence ends when the button of an electronic key fob is pressed, closing the hatchback of a fully assembled Honda Accord on a carefully balanced trailer. The car rolls off of the trailer, while the narrator asks ‘Isn't it nice when things just work?’

As the video concludes, I point three types of parts in a car: functional ones which make it move effectively; comfort ones which provide relief to the occupants and aesthetic parts which give the vehicle an attractive look. Similarly, teams have members who are the drivers of the team, the ones who provide for logistics as well as those who make the working environment a beautiful place to be in.

A cog is a tooth of a gear or cogwheel. It is also used to refer to the gear itself. A cog engages with another cog and motion in one results in motion of the other. Similarly, we see teams work like a cog if team members engage with each other and set in motion other members, by influence and inspiration.

Things work nicely if everyone plays their part in the cog! However it is important to recognise that though we may play greater or humbler roles, but it is collectively that we add value to our teamwork. After all, the value of the car is not dependent only on its functional forte or aesthetic looks or comfort quotient... it is together that all parts in the cog determine the worth of the vehicle.

Members determine the worth of a team
By playing their part in the cog scheme!

- Pravin K. Sabnis

Can’t circumvent

Every visitor to Pedro’s college was treated to the spectacle of his special ability to jump over ten steps from the mid-landing of the staircase to the landing below. However, one visitor was not amused. He was an athlete and sought to prove that Pedro’s feat was ordinary.

Pedro pleaded with him not to try it out. It was not prudent for a winner athlete to consider an ordinary person’s feat as a challenge. But the athlete would have none of it. He went up to the mid landing and jumped off only to fall spread-eagled on to the last three steps.

Pedro helped him to his feet and told him an enduring lesson. Pedro had initially started jumping off the fourth step. After a few days he moved to the next step. One step at a time over four months, he was able to develop the skill of jumping from the tenth step. Pedro asked the athlete, ‘why did you go straight to the tenth step?’

Things are not always as easy as they seem. It is pertinent to note that we cannot circumvent the journey to acquire the abilities of those who make it seem easy. We can cover ground faster by putting in more effort and following a well planned process. But things will not happen immediately.

Even if we are better equipped, than the achiever, we cannot circumvent the distance by taking shortcuts. We get better only by aligning to a process that requires time, thought and most importantly confidence that is not clouded by conceit.

Slow and sure... one step at each instance…
we can’t circumvent the journey’s distance!

- Pravin K. Sabnis

Imitation

An Aesop’s fable was set at a village fair. A mimic made people laugh by imitating the cries of various animals. He finished off by squeaking like a pig to a thunderous applause. But a man intervened to say: ‘That’s not a pig's squeak! Give me till tomorrow to show you a real one.’

Next day, he appeared on the stage, and putting his head down squealed until the spectators booed him and asked him to stop his lousy imitation. He held up a real little pig that had been making the squealing sound.

So often, so many of us applaud an imitation and ridicule the real thing. We are aloof from real experiences and we end up indulging in imitations. We push ourselves to the point of accepting the fake for the real and treat the real as fake.


We are born with an open mind. Our observations are keen and insightful. But as we grow up we tend to become restrictive in using our senses sufficiently. On the other hand we are fast to jump to conclusions and hence easily get swayed by the illusion of the senses.

So often, so many of us jump to conclusions and mistake imitation for reality. We must escape the illusion behind various imitations by using an open mind and alert senses. Otherwise we will be taken for a jolly ride whether in history or economics, personal or social life, real or virtual world.

We deceive our imagination
By seeing validity in imitation!

- Pravin K. Sabnis

LOVE... REALLY?

I had a friend who would always talk about his mother’s greatness. After the untimely death of his father, she had gone through severe hardships to ensure his education. He kept talking of his dream to give his mother a better home and a better life. His love for his mother was obvious every time he spoke of her!

Once I happened to speak with my friend’s mother, in his absence. I decided to make her feel good by telling about her son’s respect and love for her. While speaking I was stunned to see the disbelief on her face. When prodded, she confided that her son had lied to me. He actually despised her!

It was a strange state to be in, for I knew both had spoken the truth to me!!!

In my interactions, I follow this story with a poser, ‘if both are speaking the truth, whose certainty matters?’ Eventually, after exploring all possibilities the reality is unravelled: my friend was telling the truth about his love for his mother but as it was not reflected in his actions, she was unaware of it. In fact, his mother found hate and spite in his behaviour and hence she was right to say that her son did not love her.

Now replace mother with any other relationship or team or even motherland. Is our love just in genuine intention or reflected in committed and consistent action that confirms our emotion. So often, so many of us mean well... but without aligned actions, such emotion is meaningless. In fact, for some it is a disguise to avoid actual action by just talking without walking the talk.

Love is sterile as an internal emotion
Ensure that it results in visible action!

- Pravin K. Sabnis

Ride more boats

‘Don Voddeani paim dovrunk zaina’

-       Konkani proverb (you cannot keep your feet in two canoes)

This proverb was referred to by the poet with the silver mane in 2001, at the International Goans Convention. Manoharrai Sardessai was always an inspirational muse to scores of the loyal fans of his poetry, prose and philosophy. On that day, he referred to the Konkani quote but unveiled a new paradigm… the ancient Goan tradition of combining two boats to create a larger platform called ‘sangodd’.

Today marks 10 years of celebrating his birthday in his absence. His take on things, both, Goan and global, continues to hold immortal inspiration. Manoharrai’s message of the harmonizing dimension of ‘sangodd’ has greater relevance in today’s times when every question arouses diametrically extreme viewpoints that spark off bitterness and hostility. His own life reflected the ‘sangodd’.

He wrote mature political ballads as well as delightful songs for children. Besides writing in Konkani, he also indulged in the mastery of Marathi, French, English and other languages. As a teacher he never gave up studying. He wrote about rationalism and socialism and simultaneously penned prayers to Shantadurga and Jesus. He published his books in multiple languages and scripts.

We can ride many canoes, if we build a larger platform across them to create a sangodd. In fact, when we ride single boats we confine ourselves to restrictive moats. But when we build the harmonising sangodd over diverse boats, we equip ourselves to ride greater seas and greater challenges... like the immortal inspiration of Manoharrai Sardessai!

Build the unifying sangodd, ride more boats

Diversity helps cross the confines of moats

- Pravin K. Sabnis

Yet another Stain!

YET ANOTHER STAIN

First claim victimhood
Then cry as if in pain
Speak of offended pride
Hide the past stain…

Hide the past stain
Threaten violence again
Unleash the hate venom
Drown voices sane…

Drown voices sane
Ride the pride train
Shout loud and louder
Flush peace down the drain…

Flush peace down the drain

Blow venom for the foe
Human venom is a blaze
flames will further grow…

The flames as they grow
they burn every side
In the heap of the dead
Buried will be puffy pride…

Buried will be puffy pride

Until resurrected again

And cacophony will repeat

As human plays insane…

Human will play insane

And cry as if in pain

Victimhood and venom

Will leave yet another stain!

Pravin Sabnis

poem written by Pravin on 5 January 2016 about those who cite victimhood as justification for their venomous violence against humanity

Auspicious

A son built a new house for his mother who had gone through immense struggle to nurture him, after the untimely death of her husband. Even though the new home was ready, he waited for an auspicious day to move in. Sadly, his mother passed away the previous day. His mother never stayed in the home built for her, due to his unnecessary wait for the auspicious day!

We wait for the New Year to put into action desirable resolves that we plan to implement… or we wait for some other auspicious day. And if we fail to do so on that chosen day, we reschedule our commitment to yet another propitious occasion.

Listing all such procrastination would clear the air about the real culprit of inaction. Looking for an auspicious occasion aggravates a perilous suspicion of confidence in self. It sows the seeds of doubt in our mind and transfers the probability of success to damaging superstition.

It is not the occasion that decides the action… it is the action that defines the occasion. If the action is good… so is the moment. Every moment can be the beginning of a new year in our lives only if we choose to initiate new actions…

Resolve to quit waiting for an occasion auspicious …
Success comes to the initiator, not the suspicious!

- Pravin K. Sabnis
Goa, India.