The Fury of the Flooded River

As we are getting ready for bigger challenges, we will be encountering innumerable hurdles. There will be moments when we may feel disheartened, down, bashed around, etc. But we musn't lose hope and optimism; hope is the strongest foundation we can have, besides a will to succeed.

As I was thinking of the challenges we face and strong will to succeed, I came across a poem titled "The Fury of The Flooded River", which was penned a few years back by a close one, which is reproduced below. Read on.

The Fury of the Flooded River

The flooded river flows down with all its fury.

No one in its way is spared.

Even the mighty rock is crushed to pebbles and dust.

There I am ......

Trapped in the flooded river.

Desperately trying to keep afloat,

My head above the water.

Battered and bruised I am...

My face cut, my body aches.

Weary I try to find my way to the banks....

I hope the woes would end soon...

"My feet will again kiss the sand on the bank"

I put in an extra effort at this thought...

The mighty river with all its momentum moves on.

It hits me back the harder I try to move to the banks....

I let out a cry of pain....

"God help me - Get me out of here"

I avoid a rock,

Pass by a whirlpool...

I heave a sigh of relief...

"Thank God I wasn't sucked in"

Forget all the pain and weariness for a moment...

I move with the flow....

Gradually, the force reduces, calmness and normality returns....

I begin to see the bright sunshine,

And hear the sweet song of the canary.

I make my way to the banks....

Once again my feet feel the firmness of the bank.

The warmth of the sand energises me.

I take a deep breath and bow my head in a Prayer

"God, Thanks for the strength to survive the ordeal"

I move on.....

For life has dreams....

Dreams to be fulfilled!

Foundation of a Living Team!!

Today is May 3, 2009 and I have just completed 60 days at Aircel. Joining Aircel was like home-coming for me, as Telecom has always been my passion. Like I always say, its natural that one does land up following his/her passion in life. It is only in our area of passion where one gets the energy, positivity, and the internal self-drive to create something larger than life. The Aircel, Mumbai launch was slated for March 27th and we had a handful of days left with us. I still remember my first day at office when I was doing everything apart from just filling the joining formalities-getting introduced to the team by Sapriya, interviewing the candidates, understanding the status on the appointment of Channel Partners for Post-paid with the team and chalking out the plan of action, all back to back.

I never felt that I was new to this organisation. I saw myself getting into the market, something which has been my first love, on the second day itself, meeting the prospective Channel Partners.

Being the 8th operator, we had some challenging but genuine objections to face like why Aircel??, how will it sell in this severe competition??.. These questions used to be extremely exciting for us to answer!! I remember such discussions getting spread over hours and ending on positive notes. For some people, these questions could be frustrating and de-motivating, but like I always tell the team, we have to take these questions 'Head-On'. Why shy away from them?? Also, since the team was working for a common goal, I guess the perseverance to handle these questions came-in automatically!!

Each Channel partner meeting was like a case-study for us and infact later on, towards the launch, when I was conducting training session for the team, I hand-picked three to four of them to be shared with the entire team. All these meetings had some exciting and funny moments, which the team still enjoys talking about. Our conversations during the lunch, or otherwise, used to be in telecom language, making it more enjoyable. I still remember making 3 ARPU levels in the team and taking inspiration from Archana Puran Singh's TV show of yesteryears to call it HS (HNI), MS, LS. Hahahahaha!! Whoever has seen the show will understand what am referring to. Despite the tough challenges, these meetings helped build the team camaraderie, which is an invaluable asset for me.

As we moved into the launch, the feeling of being a part of the Aircel family kept becoming strong and finally I started feeling proud of the organisation. The feeling of being a family got reinforced when, based on Sudha's suggestion, the entire team visited ISKON Temple, Juhu, on the day of commencement of post-paid business.

A Living Team is made of people, by the people, and exists for the people. In order to deliver in the tough marketplace, we have to be a Living Team. And that can only come from passion; passion for the industry, the organization, the team and the customer! It is only this passion that helps the individual engage with the work he/she is doing, which is the most important element of effective, winning teams!!!!!!