ZindagiXP

Future XP

2006-12-08T23:34:00.000-08:00

I have had a better than average track record of making predictions about the future. I dont claim to have special powers to look into the future, but predictions have a better chance of being accurate if they are based on sources such as observation, related literature, and past events. Here are some of my predictions that I have already shared with those closest to me.

The period from 2008 to 2011 could possibly be the worst and the darkest for Pakistan; the depletion of our energy reserves, political upheaval in Balochistan, President Musharaff's grip on power (or lack of it) could all be the contributing factors.

Once all the previously-unheard-of pandemics like SARS, Bird Flu, the recent Dengue Fever that affected the whole country etc. subside, a new pandemic will sweep a large part of the globe causing wide-spread infertility in women, particularly in urban areas.

The current Pope Benedict, or the one who will follow him, will be assassinated by a Muslim. Amongst all the choas that will ensue after that, a new Pope will be named who would (or so it would be claimed) belong to Jesus Christ's bloodline.

We might live to see an imposition of Martial Law in the United States by the US Military, after much political infighting threatens the state of the union.

The institution of marriage as we have known it for centuries might change dramatically, or may also be shelved completely within 3 decades.

The next 2 decades will show a resurgence of India, as it goes on to become an economic powerhouse. As her commodity imports increase, and investment moves towards developing and maintaining infrastructure, the agriculture sector will be destroyed, leading to inequality and sharp increase in organized crime.

Britney Spears will commit suicide.

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia will die in a plane crash.

In my experience, one of the very good ways of stopping bad things from happening is to predict them before they happen. I try to do my part. ;)

Take your pick: Perfection or Harmony?

2006-07-23T23:24:00.000-07:00

The following text I got from a forwarded e-mail. Thanks Kat, for sharing it.

In a brief conversation, a man asked a woman he was pursuing the question "What kind of man are you looking for?"
She sat quietly for a moment before looking him in the eye and asking, "Do you really want to know?" Reluctantly, he said, "Yes."
She began to expound... "As a woman in this day and age, I am in a position to ask a man what he can do for me that I can't do for myself. I pay my own bills. I take care of my household without the help of any man...or woman for that matter. I am in the position to ask, "What can you bring to the table?"
The man looked at her. Clearly he thought that she was referring to money.
She quickly corrected his thought and stated, "I am not referring to money. I need something more. I need a man who is striving for perfection in every aspect of life." He sat back in his chair, folded his arms, and asked her to explain.
She said, "I am looking for someone who is striving for perfection mentally because I need conversation and mental stimulation. I don't need a simple-minded man. I am looking for someone who is striving for perfection spiritually because
I don't need to be unequally yoked...believers mixed with unbelievers is a recipe for disaster. I need a man who is striving for perfection financially because I don't need a financial burden. I am looking for someone who is sensitive enough to understand what I go through as a woman, but strong enough to keep me grounded. I am looking for someone who I can respect. In order to be submissive, I must respect him. I cannot be submissive to a man who isn't taking care of his business. I have no problem being submissive...he just has to be worthy. God made woman to be a helpmate for man. I can't help a man if he can't help himself".
When she finished her spill, she looked at him. He sat there with a puzzled look on his face.
He said, "You are asking a lot."
She replied, "I'm worth a lot."

I rewrote the above text to include the masculine point-of-view. Read below:

In a brief conversation, a woman asked a man she was pursuing the question, "What kind of woman are you looking for?"
He sat quietly for a moment before looking at her in the eyes and asking, "Do you really want to know?" Reluctantly, she said, "Yes."
He began to expound... "The point in life and career I am at, at this time, I would like to ask a woman what she has to offer that I can't get already. I have no shortage of friends, both male and female. I am never alone nor lonely. What I really want to ask a woman is, "What can you bring to the table?"
The woman looked at him. Clearly she thought that he was referring to sex.
He swiftly corrected her thought and stated, "I am not referring to sex, youth or anything of the sort. In fact, I need nothing. I simply need a woman who is striving for harmony in every aspect of life." She sat back in her chair, folded her arms, puzzled but intrigued, and asked him to explain.
He said, "I am looking for someone who is striving for harmony mentally, so that she does not rethink and redoubt every decision she makes on a day-to-day basis, including her decision to be with me; and because I need the reassurance that she is on the same wavelength mentally as I am. I am looking for someone who is striving for harmony spiritually because ideals based on tales and heros from novels and movies is a receipe for disaster. I am looking for someone who is sensitive enough to understand that, as a male, I too can get hurt by words but strong enough to accept that despite all my good traits and bad, I have limitations and shortcomings, just like her. I am looking for someone who respects me for who I am. In order for me to be always loyal to her, she must respect me. I cannot be loyal to a woman who always doubts my morality and loyalty to her. I have no problem if she does not want to act submissive; for me to be fully committed to her, she must consider me worthy of her trust and respect. God made woman to be a helpmate for man. I can't seek help from a woman who thinks she could have had a better deal with someone else".
When he finished his spill, he looked at her. She sat there with a puzzled look on her face.
She asked, "You are asking a lot."
He replied, "I can afford it. Now if you'll excuse me; Cindy is waiting."

Oink Oink!

2006-07-17T22:01:00.000-07:00

If you have ever wondered what pork tastes like, read below:

99% of the people I know do not know what pork tastes like; neither did I some time back. Out of curiosity, I just had to try it out. Its difficult to explain the taste to someone who knows exactly the tastes of beef, meat and chicken, as that is what they have tasted all their lives. Since I myself did not have karhaai-pork, aaloo-pork, or pork biryani, it makes my job of explaining it all the more difficult. Anyway, I tried the same dish that had been cooked with both; beef and pork, and lets say, to the average Muslim, pork would taste like having salt-less meat or beef.

My recommendation: Don't try it if you haven't tried it before.

Next on the To-try-out list: Booze, Sex, ...

Business XP (Part 2)

2006-02-19T11:26:00.000-08:00

Studies suggest that 70-80% of business fail within the first year of operations. Although the studies I am referring to don't actually mention the root cause for the collapse of new business ventures, I think that happens primarily because of 2 reasons: (1) Conflicts between business partners, (2) Too many expectation
s, too few results. There might be many other reasons, but my experience places these two above all others.

New ventures are very volatile, and relationship between the partners needs to be nurtured. In the previous part of Business XP, I had talked about forming business partnerships with people who you have studied with, since you understand each other better, and are more often willing to give
them the space they need. However, fallouts with partners do occur, and spell the end of the business, no matter how close the (business) partners are. Understand first and foremost that people don't come together in business partnerships to be good citizens or some noble reason; they are in it for the money. If the partners don't see eye-to-eye on policy and administrative issues, there would be a breakup. However, chances are that many business partners loose the trust and respect of the other as soon as their new business venture starts generating revenue. This happens primarily because of little or no initial planning of how the money would be retained as company reserve or re-invested into the business or what percentage each partner would receive of the generated profit. One common folly, and indeed a reason for breakup, is not deciding at the onset the responsibilities each partner would have. In the absence of such planning, as revenue starts to trickle into the business, and a profit is realized, each partner would want a bigger piece of the pie thinking that it was she/he who worked more than the others. Mostly, this leads to disagreements, loss of trust, and whatever little profit is realized is divided among the partners, with no amount going into company reserve.

Another thing often overlooked is that in many partnerships, there might be one partner who, although not actively involved in day-to-day management, is the owner or landlord of the premises the business is located in. To avoid the initial infrastructure costs such as rent etc., many startups agree to this arrangement of a lower-then-market-rate rent or paying-the-accrued-rent-in-future, when the business is profitable. While there is nothing wrong with such a setup, the one thing that needs to be kept in mind is that according to business laws in Pakistan, the partner who also happens to be the owner of business premises enjoys a greater say in the business no matter what percentage of share he has in the business. More often, she/he who owns the premises gets into a dominating position since he/she can literally throw the business out on the street. This is where initial planning and resulting agreement between partners come into play, as the partner who owns the property needs to agree to charge the rent only after company revenues have become steady. This also applies to agreement on rent increments etc.

Naturally, expectations run high as the struggle begins. Here again, too many expectations can prove to be fatal as many business objectives may not have been achieved during the first year, and the partners might decide on calling it quits and go their separate ways. On the other hand, having too few expectations is just as bad since it would not allow the partners and managers to formulate objectives and strategy.

The solution to building a sustainable foundation for business and forging a strong partnership is "Planning". Planning does not merely involve thinking and discussing the business strategies, fund allocation, and sales forecast. It involves asking some really tough questions, and subsequently answering them. While I would not underscore the importance of a concise business proposal which is a means for presenting your idea and outlining a strategy for the achievement of your objectives; business proposals tend to overlook many problems and issues since they are never used to test the soundess of business ideas. Are feasibility reports the answer then? Well, yes and no. Feasibility reports present facts, figues, and cash-flow forecasts, but I have often found them to contain ideal-case situations and scenarios without taking into account the management team's own shortcomings. This can lead to numerous I-told-you-so and You-should-have-done-it-my-way arguments the minute something gos werong, or even if there is a chance of something going wrong. The snowball effect of ineffective planning can ruin the business and the relationship between the managers/partners.

This is no template or formula for testing the soundess of a business idea. However, there are some questions whose answers can help you in formulating a plan of action.

To be continued...

Of Dwarfs and Giants [Rants++]

2006-01-15T11:35:00.000-08:00

Not so long ago, while traveling between the Lahore-Islamabad motorway, the honorable minister for Information Technology, Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Mr. Owais Leghari, was stopped and fined by a Motorway police officer because the motorcade the minister was traveling with was driving faster than the speed limit. On reaching his destination, the honorable(?) minister made sure that the cop who had dared to stop him loose his job.

Bill Gates, Chairman of Microsoft Corporation, and the richest person on earth was to deliver a lecture at the Computer Science Department of Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), one of the best, top-most, and highly respected Universities in the world. Just a day before the lecture, some students from the department, who were not happy with the Windows platform and Microsoft, painted messages on the building and fences. Knowing fully well what had happened, Gates chose to speak at the venue, ignoring the hooligan-istic choas that had ensued outside. You can read more about it and see the pictures here.

I had to conduct a Microsoft seminar at one of the leading institutions in the Islamic Republic, and one whose offer for a job as full-time faculty I had turned down in April 2000. The event was cancelled 3 days before it was to be held since the Dean's wish of having a high-ranking official from the Islamic Republic's Microsoft liasion office present during the event, could not be fulfilled. This wasn't the first time (and certainly not the last) when an event had to be cancelled for reasons pertaining specifically to the ego of a person at the helm of affairs at an academic institution.

While the minister's actions could be ignored, as after all, one would expect such behavior from an Islamic Republic's politician, but to see people from academia displaying the same traits as their masters in politics. Reminds of a saying, "Where talent is a dwarf, self-esteem is a giant".

My ZindagiXP

2006-01-08T02:09:00.000-08:00

I was asked by a blog visitor why I post my life-experiences on a blog, and my reasons for trying to influence people's minds by sharing my experiences. I think I should clarify that posting my life-experiences is in no way an attempt to influence people's minds or decision-making. I have always felt whenever I make a mistake or incur a loss if only I had prior knowldge of someone else's experience of the same situation, which would have spared me the loss. This blog is my attempt to share my experiences, both good and bad, so that those few who do read this blog may not make the mistake I've already made. Hopefully, through this endeavor, other people might be encouraged to share their experiences and lesson learnt for the good of others.

My experinces range from simple ones like "Don't hire a catering service who happen to own a restaurant as well" or "Don't hire an architect/contractor/plumber who simultaneously has a job within a 2 km radius", to real complex ones which I post here. I am glad that I was able to go through many experiences that most people go through much later in life.

Hope I've answered your question Sir.

I have learnt that my Pakistan is the most beautiful country in the world.

I have learnt that being patriotic means being compassionate, and being decisive means being successful.

I have learnt that no matter how much you plan, there would always be some situation that you are not prepared for.

I have learnt that the living for others is the biggest happiness in life.

I have learnt that eating a Rs. 15/- bowl of Chicken soup, Rs. 10/- shakar-kandi (suger-beet), or a Rs. 5/- plate of Kathiyawari cholay from a roadside-stand are far more filling than dinning out at the biggest, fanciest, and most expensive restaurants in town.

I have learnt that simply being passionate means nothing; it has to be backed by obsession.

I have learnt that all relationships follow the same life-cycle; all end in tragedy.

I have learnt that by exposing your weakness to even one person, no matter how trustable, you are making yourself more vulnerable.

I have learnt that the world never judges anyone by his or her character; you would instead be valued by how much you carry in your pockets, the labels you wear, the car you drive, the size of the house you live in, and your bank account.

I have learnt that sincerity is always rewarded by condescension.

I have learnt that loving someone means giving them the ability to hurt you the most.

I have learnt that wars within one's own-self never end, and you always live to fight another day.

I have learnt that each single person on earth has a story to tell, with one event in that story that changed them and their lives forever, for better or for worse.

I have learnt that one-fifth always remains untold.

Peter Keating

2005-12-08T08:38:00.000-08:00

Its always very important to know about the individuals you are dealing with in advance, so that you can spare yourself any loss or injury that they may inflict on you at a later stage, and you would always be prepared for anything thrown at you, be it relationships or business partnerships. There is no sure way or criteria to pre-judge people. You can only make use of the Accountability Matrix when you are dealing with individuals so that you know how the other person has been performing lately, however, with experience comes wisdom, which can allow you to categorize people at the very start of your dealings with them. I have, for example, realized that most of the people I was decieved/cheated by in business/work were either religious or had told me at some point in time that they considered me their son or younger brother. So, I would exercise extreme caution the next time I am dealing with a religious person or someone who tells me that I am like a son or younger brother to him.

There is one category of individuals I would refer to as Peter Keating. I came upon the name for the category after reading Ayn Rand's novel, "The Fountainhead". I was amazed how accurately Ayn Rand had written the character, and made me realize how many Peter Keatings I had come across in my life.
While you can go and read the book yourself to know more about the character, I would summairze for you how you can identify a Peter Keating amongst the people around you, and deal with him. A Peter Keating may display one or more of the following characteristics, and there is a high probability that you will find 90% of these attributes in the same person.

(For reasons of clarity, I would refer to the person as a male, however, in reality, a Peter Keating has as many chances of being a female as a male.)

0) A Peter Keating is very normal, friendly, and even helpful. Its strange that someone you trust can one day turn into Peter Keating and feel so threatened by you that he starts trying to cause damage to you. It can be triggered by you, should you un-intentionally challenge him by your very own creative efforts.
1) A Peter Keating is hungry for recognition. Being hungry for recognition and limelight, Peter Keating is always in competing mode, always on the lookout for competition, since he wants to hog all the recognition and publicity, and cannot tolerate people's focus and interest shifting to anyone else. Can Peter Keating really compete? Well, that brings us to point no. 2
2) A Peter Keating is not creative and resorts to plagarism. Since the end result of all his efforts is recognition, he doesn't really spend time in creative endeavors, but is instead looking for a shortcut, some sort of a winning formula, or even copying from others to get what he wants quickly.
3) Peter Keating is paranoid. You can very well imagine Peter Keating being paranoid of anyone and everyone who might take the limelight off of him. Dont confuse this with jealousy. He has nothing against you personally. He is paranoid for his own sake.
4) A Peter Keating would address you differently and with different tones in different surroundings/gatherings. Since its you he is out to get and beat, and show his superiority, his attitude and tone of voice towards you with vary, depending on whether he is addressing you publicly, with other people being part of the conversation, or in privately. When he communicates with you privately, his tone would be one of respect, admiration, and even envy, but once you are in a public gathering, he would use a condescending tone, make jokes about you, or belittle you, in order to show people that he is somehow superior to you.
5) A Peter Keating constantly seeks approval and reassurance. You are the last one he would seek approval or reassurance from. Since his philosophy revolves around gaining fame, he is constantly looking for people's approval, praise, support, and reassurance.
6) On the Accountability Matrix, Peter Keating looses all his points very quickly, and for all the wrong reasons. If you create an Accountability Matrix for such a person, you will find that he will loose all his leeway points very quickly, since his actions would always be focused towards causing damage to you, even though he would be gaining nothing from all those efforts, but he would be still be doing his best.

The best way to deal with Peter Keating is to NOT allow yourself to become like him. If you are creative yourself, you need not worry. He would eventually burn himself out and you would not be affected. The other thing you should do is to continually raise the bar, so all his efforts to match you would go to waste. Should you decide to get back at him, become Howard Roark (the hero of the novel), and sleep with his wife. ;)

Business XP (Part 1)

2005-11-11T21:34:00.000-08:00

I am no authority on the subject, but I guess I have made enough mistakes and lost enough money to be able to learn what business is all about (and advise people too). There is no easy way to learn business. Lets get one thing straight; Doing business is something that cannot be taught in business schools; you learn business by trying it out, experimenting, and by making mistakes. Books can teach you about marketing, economics, and finance, but they never delve into how you start from scratch. In his book "How to be a Billionaire", Donald Trump (yes, the guy from the TV show 'The Apprentice') talks about how and where to invest your money etc. BULLSHIT! All similar books make one general assumption, that you already have a large amount of cash in hand and that you can go around investing and hiring Harvard, LUMS, or IBA graduates to manage your portfolio.

In most of the cases (and in my case too), starting off was never easy. No matter what type of business you want to go in, 2 things are most important initially, some cash-in-hand, and a good, dedicated team. The little cash that you would initially have would enable you to meet the day-to-day expenses. But more importantly, the team that would be working with you is going to play the biggest role in your business's success or failure. At early stages in an organization's life, hiring an external team is impossible, specially for fresh starters. Usually, good team members are the people you have studied with and have been friends with for a long time, since you understand them, and vice verssa, and if they are partnering with you for the venture, they have as much stake and investment (time or monetary) as you, and you would not have to worry about paying salaries from Day 1.

That brings me to a very important consideration; balancing costs for startups. No startup can generate a profit from the very first day of operations. Anyone thinking of starting out on her/his own cannot afford to have a great office with all the staff immediately after starting. All great ideas form and take shape in houses or residential buildings where the Entrepreneur(s) is/are residing; HP, Microsoft, Google all humbly started from their founders' abode, and grew into billion dollar companies with time. Most startups are faced with the dilemma of coming up with investments to kickoff; and for any new venture, a large part of the initial revenues could go towards paying the cost of the premises it is housed in. The most advisable approach, therefore, is to start from your own home, or any place that would not add to the initial cost of starting up. REMEMBER, business is as much about making money as it is about controlling costs whilst maintaining a smooth flow of operations. Most startups are so pre-occupied with ways to advertise and reach out to their customers and generate a revenue that they seldom stop to think about their own organization's internal functions and operations. As soon as they generate a revenue, reality hits them in the face.

To be continued...

I was invited to talk on "Entrepreneurship for Engineers" during the IEE (Not IEEE) Career Counseling Seminar at NED University of Engineering and Technology on May 31, 2005 (read more about it here). The KFC branch in Gulshan-e-Iqbal (near NED University) had been burnt down by religious terrorists less than 24 hours ago, killing 7 people inside, and I was able to catch a glimpse of the smoke still coming out as I drove by. With so any Universities in Pakistan that I am connected to, I am yet to come across any student who would seriously consider starting a business on her/his own after finishing education. There are a number of reasons for this; the most important being the lack of any proper coaching/mentoring and the serious dearth of encouragement from any sphere. I will be talking to SZABIST students about Entrepreneurship tomorrow. Lets see if there is any gold in them hills!

The Deserving

2005-10-14T12:25:00.000-07:00

Maulana Altaf Hussain Hali (1837-1914), one of the great Muslim thinkers and poets of his time, wrote a stanza in Persian, the translation I m posting below:

If you ever run out of accomplices, DO NOT make friends with 3 people,
First: Uzbek, Second: Afghan, Third: Kashmiri

I've never had any contacts with Uzbeks, but I can say for sure that the Afghan and Kashmiri people are the least trustworthy of all, and will eventually stab you in the back once they get what they want from you. So its no surprise that after all that the whole country has done for them, the relief goods being brought to them are looted in mid-way, Army jawans being targeted and injured, and the (so-called) distressed people openly proclaiming (even now) that they hate to be called Pakistanis as they are only "Kashmiris". While the compassion and generosity shown by the people thought the country is a good thing, it must, however, be remembered that the people being helped will eventually bite the hand feeding them. So in case some of you might be wondering what they (the Kashmiris) did to deserve all this, well, my answer would be "EVERYTHING".

Me the Child ;)

2005-09-25T12:26:00.000-07:00

Saqu bhai's comment about me in an e-mail he sent from Lahore.

You know what I love about Adnan apart from his technical, enterpreneurel skills etc. Its his passion. The passion you see only in a child. The enthusiasm, the excitement. I see in him an excited child every now and then. Just wanted to say this for a long time.

Witness II

2005-09-13T15:52:00.000-07:00

At around noon today (approx. 4 hours ago), I was looking over the demolition work taking place at the Lasbela bridge, just at the point where Golimar ends and the flyover starts (dont ask what I was doing over there). The huge Hitachi excavator's mechanical arm was fitted with a drill, and would repeatedly strike and drill the concrete wall on the side of the bridge and a couple of construction workers would immediatlely clear the debris and metal rods inside the wall before the excavator's arm struck again. Since the adjoining areas are predominantly poor, a few children had gathered around the site to pull the metal rods from the place where the excavator had drilled, before the construction workers could do it, to subsequently sell the scrap metal off for a few Rupees.

I, too, was standing dangerously close to the site. At one time, when the drill struck the wall, a little boy of 7 to 8 years rushed to pull the metal rod from the debris even before the mechanical arm had moved away, which with a sudden jerk, caused one metal rod to puncture through the child's left eye. My heart sank as I saw the blood rushing from where the boy had an eye a few moments ago. A kid lost an eye forever, and for what? A piece of scrap metal which he would have sold for Rs. 50/- (less then $1). Poverty, injustice, indifference; common things for a country founded on the basis of religion.

"The Strong is Strongest when Alone"

2005-09-11T12:52:00.000-07:00

Golden words from the greatest leader and visionary ever to walk the earth, Adolf Hitler.

The month of August has never been easy on me. This year was no exception. I lost the only 2 people close to me to better opportunities in other cities; one was my BIG bro, "Bugga" as I fondly call him, who went to Islamabad to take charge of his new job, and the other was Saqib sahab, "Saqu bhai" as I fondly call him, now in Lahore to persue a PhD at LUMS. My mother was a little worried about how I would feel once both people left, a brother I have known all my life and the other, the only friend I made in more then a decade, yet its a surprise for may people how calm and cool I have been throughout.

I find myself feeling sick sometimes listening to people's anguish over being lonely or having to live alone. True, man is a social animal, and, therefore, understandable that it is an intrinsic need for humans to live in groups. I see Monophobia on the rise around me, something that manifests itself in the way people react when they are alone. Ironically, the thing all men (and women) are scared of the most is loneliness, even if they don't acknowledge it. People feel that being alone makes them weak and vulnerable without ever realizing that feeling this way makes them more dependent on others. Frankly, with all due respect, and without mentioning anyone, most of the (non-technical) blogs that I come across on blogspot are either people agonizing over their solitude, or people celebrating and rejoicing over not being alone.

This is the biggest and most important lesson I've learnt in my life. You can actually derive a lot of strength by being alone. No one's expectation to live up to; no one's well-being to consider, no one's decisions to repent. I miss both the people I mentioned dearly and sometimes feel lost when I need help, yet I feel I am stronger then ever, knowing that I am on my own.

I promised Saqib sahab that I would give him a gift that he would, one day, also show to his children, when I won't be around. The following poem is my gift to him, to honor a great teacher, mentor, and a dear friend.

FRIEND AT A DISTANCE

My friend at a distance,
seemed never so far away;
a friend I adored,
a solemn reassurance.
...
Though I've always been a loner,
I've never been as lonely.
I knew I had a friend,
a friend at a distance.
...
Who am I to turn to,
if ever I need someone,
the stranger close-by,
or my friend at a distance?

Witness

2005-08-14T22:28:00.000-07:00

I was witness to a guy getting shot during a mobile-snatching bid a little less than an hour ago. Its interesting to note that its nothing like what you see in the movies; means people getting shot. The guy took a gun shot to his abdomen, and unlike the movies where you see fountains of blood flying out, the oozing of blood was limited to around the areas where the bullet had struck, and he managed to keep standing for a few minutes until he was too weak to keep standing on his legs.

Happy Independence Day!

Hatred Overcome

2005-07-21T13:33:00.000-07:00

The following assertion was made by David Ben Gurion, the first Isreali Prime Minister (as printed in the Jewish Chronicle, August 9, 1967)

"The world Zionist movement should not be neglectful of the dangers of Pakistan to it. And Pakistan should be its first target, for this ideological State is a threat to our existence. And Pakistan, the whole of it, hates the Jews and loves the Arabs."

"The lover of the Arabs is more dangerous to us than the Arabs themselves. For that matter, it is most essential for the world Zionism that it should now take immediate steps against Pakistan."

"Whereas the inhabitants of the Indian peninsila are Hindus and whose hearts have been full of hatred towards Muslims, therefore, India is the most important base for us to work therefrom against Pakistan."

"Is is essential that we exploit this base and strike and crush Pakistanis, enemies of Jews and Zionism, by all disguised and secret plans."

During the first week of July, I had a chance to visit and see the country I have hated for the most part of my life. My war had started before the Kargil fiasco; even long before the Pokran-Chagai nuclear tests; a cold war that had become a life-long obsession for me; a war that led me to extensively study Indian Politics, Foreign Policy, Psy-ops (Phychological operations) and Phychological warfare as I went to great lengths to study my enemy's weaknesses; a war that I never could find allies for; a sort of personal war that I had waged alone; and a war that kept me from seeing the good things about the other side.

I was in India 2 weeks ago. I am changed man now. I am not what I was a week ago. Apart from finding people that looked and talked the same as us, I was amazed to see how optimistic they were vis-a-vis their future and the growth of their country. The optimism was entrenched in the mind of each one, from the top business executive to the taxi driver, primarily by focusing on peace (not just with their neighboring countries but also amongst themselves), with a drive to excel.

Seeing their progress inspired me to evaluate my own country's strength, and I returned home a Prouder Pakistani. Although I love my Pakistan more then ever before, I have also made my peace with India (until further notice).

What Women Want; When Women Won't

2005-06-27T12:43:00.000-07:00

Warning: Intended primarily for males; Post NOT suitable for everyone. Reader discretion is advised. (I hate it but I can be really blunt and brutally honest at times)

In December 2003, I was a complete dumbo when it came to understanding females. By December 2004, I was lecturing guys, some older than me, some married, some married wanna-be's, all having problems in understanding the fairer sex. Today, I can safely state that I can write 3 volumes on women (but I won't do it since I am pretty much stuck with .NET). How did this sudden surge in knowledge come about? Well, thats a secret. ;)

The truth is, we males are complete morons when it comes to understanding the opposite gender. Part of this stems from the fact that men tend to view all women in the same light. Trust me, there are as many female-types as there are females. The same goes for software too. No two are identical; different environments, different scenarios, different requirements, different experiences. Also, women dont speak their mind 95% of the time. Thats why women and software can be so unpredictable. Alright! Enough of drawing parallels between software and women.

Firstly, appreciate the fact that the average female is more intelligent than the average male. However, the average female also happens to be far more emotional than the average male, which is something that clouds her thinking and judgement in tense and demanding situations. The good thing about being a male is that we never have to carry the extra burden of meeting the expectations of people around us. We can dress the way we want, go whereever and whenever we want. Females in most societies, unfortunately, cannnot. This isn't so because of any restrictions (although in our society, that really IS the case), but because females are always being evaluated on how they carry themselves, how they dress, where they go, how they speak, who they talk to, even what they say. The average male would not hesitate to label an otherwise intelligent, sophisticated, articulate lady a 'slut' if he does not like what he sees or hears. Hence, it is very important to understand that females cannot and would not always say what they are thinking. So, If she says 'No', that might mean 'Yes', and if she says 'NOOOoo', that means, well, 'No'. Confusing, isn't it? :)

Also, men find it extremely difficult (read impossible) to control their eyes and mouth in presence of a female. That is something ALL males are guilty of, one way or the other. So be sure to weigh before-hand what you would utter in the presence of a female, specially when you want to leave a long-lasting (positive) impression. Show (at-least try) that you want to connect with her on an intellectual level, and that you are really interested in whats between the ears instead of whats between the legs. Remember, Security and Comfort-level are the top 2 things on a female's list, followed by Money, Sports Car, Good-looks etc. She can be the mother of your children, and yet not feel safe with you, or, you can literally rape her with your eyes. Honestly speaking, 80% men are jerks when it comes to making females feel secure with them (the statistics for South Asia males would be much higher).

So, without extending this post to 3 volumes, I would end it by saying that appreciate females for what they are, not how you percieve them to be. Understanding them requires a lot of appreciation and, most importantly, patience. Happy hunting ! ;)

Flash-back: In March 1999, while still a student at SZABIST, a Carnival was arranged where student groups were supposed to set up stalls for food items, gifts, etc. Since I dont know how to do anything else, my friends and I setup a stall called 'Cupid Corner', for which I developed a software that calculated matches between people according to the information they provided about themselves and their preferences. The stall was quite a hit and also created a little controversy in the days that followed. While I was sitting there during the Carnival entering people's information from paper forms into the system, the most beautiful girl I had ever seen of 20 or 21 years of age, accompanied with another (female) friend, approached the stall and asked for a paper form. Her friend casually asked her, "So, tumhe kaisa match chahiye?" (So, what kind of a match do you want?). Her reply was, "Frankly I would go for a 40 year old buddha if he is rich".

The Accountability Matrix

2005-05-31T13:06:00.000-07:00

Delegating reponsibility and accountability is one of the most important tasks in management. I have suffered the most losses in business not because of lousy decisions of my own, but because of the stupidity, over-confidence, and/or short-sightedness of someone in my own organization.

People you trust, value, and love have a tendency to hurt you the most through their deliberate or accidental actions. Question is: when do you finally decide to part ways with someone; be it an employee, friend, relative, or spouse. If there's one thing I have bitterly learnt in life, and that is, if you allow yourself to be injured or messed-with for a longer period of time, it might become a habit for the other person. Holding anyone and everyone accountable for their actions is, therefore, very important in conducting your day-to-day affairs, in business and in relationships. Let people know what specific action(s) of theirs pissed you off, and that you do not want that to happen again. But what if someone does it again, or even a third and fourth time? Do you just keep forgiving them in the hope that they will understand? No way. Trust me, I am not being obnoxious about it. Sure, everyone makes mistakes now and then, but if somebody's action go so far as to cause damage or loss to you, you need to take a note of that.

So, after much thought, I have come up with something known as 'The Accountability Matrix'. You can choose to call it 'The Relationship Matrix' depending on how you want to use it. The idea is to list down (generic) actions of others that you like and dislike e.g. assigned-task completed (2), lied about something (-3), disloyalty (-5) etc. and grade them on a scale of 1 to 5; 1 being least, and 5 being most; positive numbers to the likes, negative numbers to dislikes. Start off by assigning between 30 and 100 points to each indivial you want to maintain the statistics for, depending on how much leeway you would like to give to that person, the lesser the starting points, the lesser the breathing space, and vice verssa. Whenever that person does any of the things on your accountability list, add or substract the assigned weightage to that action from the leeway points. REMEMBER, the leeway points never exceed 100, and as soon as they reach zero or below, you will know that the time has come to let go of that person.

Most people would say, "Whoa! I dont have time to maintain multiple lists of people. I can't do it". I know most people are not blessed with a memory like mine where they can maintain the matrix in their heads. Well, have no fear. I am working to develop a software that would allow you to maintain separate people profiles and their matrix in your mobile phone. The world would be a lot better place if people knew that they would be held accountable here in this life as opposed to only in the afterlife.

NOTE: The Accountability Matrix is NOT to be used for everybody you know; and should mainly be used for Employees, or people you can easily find a replacement for.

Enemies are Eternal

2005-05-24T00:51:00.000-07:00

Today in History: May 24, 1999; 2192 Days (or 6 Years) to the day today; a day that, 2192 days ago, changed me forever; the 6th time I will remind MY ENEMY, and the 2193rd time I will promise myself, that I WILL have my vengence.

According to THE POCKET OXFORD DICTIONARY OF CURRENT ENGLISH
enemy. 1. n. Person hating another and striving to defeat or injure him; adversary, opponent (of, to), (be one's own worst ~, be nobody's ~ but one's own, be responsible for one's won misfortunes; the E~, the Devil); member of hostile army or nation; hostile force or ship. 2. a. Of or belonging to the enemy (enemy aircraft; destroyed by enemy action; ~ alien, person living in a country with which his own is at war).

According to me
A person who injured or harmed you once with a deliberate act, knowing fully the consequence of his or her action, never was apologetic about it, and who is most likely to do it again.

I was brought up to believe that I should be kind and helpful even to my enemies, because that would supposedly make them my friends. If you think thats true, you are DEAD-WRONG. The reality is complete different. It is absolutely absurd and rubbish to think that a person who once was locked in hatred for you, who was always ready to harm you either with words or actions, or in whose eyes you were the eternal thorn, could one day decide to be your friend. That is why I think that Pakistan's policy of engagement with India and Afghanistan is completely flawed. Remember this always: Once an enemy, always an enemy. The worst possible thing you could do to yourself is let your guard down with a person who, although, was once an enemy is now trying to befriend you. So, on this May 24, a day I would like to refer to as Adversary Day, I would post my poem titled 'To my Enemy...' on this blog.

There will be another time.
There will be another battle.
You'll meet your doom
and suffer the pain,
you'll bear the scars
when I'm through with you.
There will be triumph,
and there will be glory,
but all for me
and none for you,
for I will strike
and you will perish.
There will be a funeral.
There will be a grave,
Beneath it you would rot.
Above, I would rejoice.
Not one soul would mourn,
beside your decaying corpse.
There will be a consequence.
There will be a fatality.
Suffer you will, suffer you must.
Hail my words friend my foe,
'There will be another time,
and there will be another battle.'

Every Penny counts

2005-05-13T12:41:00.000-07:00

Ever wondered how much Rs. 1 billion is. Ask a billionaire and they will tell you. Its Rs. 1/-, a billion times. Take out even 1 rupee, and it would cease to be a billion. Thats how you accumulate wealth for yourself (not necessary a billion). Putting each penny together. Everybody does it, and you don't necessarily have to be in business to understand this. If you are cheated for even 1 rupee that you worked for, and you choose to ignore it, then you are most likely to be cheated a thousand times.

The first time I was cheated in business, it was for Rs. 22,250/- in 1999; I chose to ignore it and did not go after the guy who cheated me. The result was that the next time I was cheated for Rs. 2,500/- I thought "well, thats not such a big deal; why be distracted by such a small loss specially when I have lost a bigger amount before". The total amount I have lost to-date, as a result of my lax attitude, stands at Rs. 800,000/- (not much if you consider how much people loose at the Karachi Stock Exchange, but enough for me to learn my lesson).

So, it doesn't really matter whether you were cheated for Rs. 1 or Rs. 1 million, go after the person who did it. Keep in mind 2 things, "Its not personal, its business" and "Its the money you want; be sure to get it".

I have many friends who lost a month's salary when they told their employer that they would be switching jobs. It happens a lot here. Letting the employer get away with it encourages them to do it again. Thats exactly why this practice is so prevalent in this city. Remember, there is absolutely no shame in demanding (forecefully if you have to) what you earned honestly. My industry (IT) is marred with the same problem; many companies decide not to pay up once a software solution has been deployed at their premises. That is why I had a develop a whole Licensing application. But no matter what industry or sector you belong to, what you worked hard for belongs to you. Don't wait for God to help you out; Its you who has to take the matter into your own hands. If all else fails, drop me an e-mail.

Over-confidence Kills

2005-05-08T15:16:00.000-07:00

Success has a way of getting to people's heads. Failure has a far-higher probability of occuring after successive successes (I guess that how they coined the word 'successive') because people tend to become overconfident and make rash decisions in the process.

More specifically, the chance for a failure is highest after 2 consecutive successes. Also, the probability of failing, although ever present, has never been overlooked before, until the third challenge. Whats even more ironic is that once faced with defeat and failure, the mental devastation that follows after having tasted victory/success 2 or more times before, the individual plunges further into a downward spiral of mental disintegration chaos, something which is very difficult to get out of.

A person is in her/his best mental condition after the first success, because she/he has just had a confidence boost, while at the same time enkindled a passion to go through the same feeling again. Individuals at this stage tend to be more focused, dedicated, and above all, witty, because they want to succeed very badly.

Case in point:
In February 2000, a I had a chance to stand in front of the PTCL (Pakistan Telecommunication Ltd.) top brass of decision makers to make the case for a unified online utility bill payment system (my first business venture). After the 1 and a half hour presentation, the attendees were completely sold on the idea. My team and I came out of the meeting hall, rejuvenating our success and full of confidence.

We were even more excited and pumped-up for our next presentation a week later, at SSGC (Sui Southern Gas Company). We toiled to prepare ourselves for the queries and comments we were to face (since we now had experience of one public sector organization). The result: it did not take 1 and half hour this time. 15 minutes into the presentation, the SSGC Managing Director interrupted me and gave us the green-signal.

Two down, one more to go. My team and myself, full of confidence (read over-confidence) were ready to take on the higher management of KESC (Karachi Electirc Supply Corporation); and since we had done it twice, I did not feel a need to prepare myself for a third time. We were to make the case to a Pakistan Army Brigadier (when our Army officers are not busy raping lady-doctors in Sui, they are entrusted with the task of looking after out Utility companies). Anyway, the 30-minute presentation was hell for me and my team. Brigadier sahib just wasn't prepared to accept anything we said and told us frankly that he wasn't sure that a team of 20-somethings were capable of pulling this off. After being left at the mercy of another KESC official (civilian), who constantly kept repeating "betay ko kya pata baap per kya guzartee hai" (The son knows not what the father is going through), we walked out of the KECS office, battered, lost, and insulted. We never recovered. It was all downhill from there. Subsequent meetings with the Governor State Bank of Pakistan, MCB (Muslim Commercial Bank) top management, FASCOM, all resulted in failure. And so, one year, and Rs. 2 million (in expenses) later, we realized we were not going anywhere and decided to shelve the project that we were so much emotionally involved in. Inexperience? Maybe. Over-confidence? Absolutely.

Whats the workaround to this you ask ? How do you avoid going down the endless pit of de-motivation. Well, after every success, be sure to bring your confidence-level down a couple of notches through pessimistic thinking and by rigorously preparing yourself for failure. That way, even if you did fail, you wont be surprised, and it would just be business as usual.

"Its not Personal, its Business !"

2005-05-06T12:41:00.000-07:00

Famous line from the movie 'The Godfather'; used again in the movie 'You'e got mail' a quarter centry later, and now flashes on screen during the opening sequence of the reality show 'The Apprentice'.

The central idea behind the line is to tell people not to be emotionally involved in anything.
Ironically, the people I see around me are all emotionally involved either in work, their businesses, families etc. If you ask me whats wrong with being emotionally involved; my answer would be "Everything".

When you are emotionally involved in something, chances are, you would be overlooking any negative or adverse affects that thing, or human might be having on you. I see people holding onto jobs, busiesses, relationships and suffering the consequences simply because they are too much emotionally involed with them. Medical students are taught from day 1 not to become emotionally involved with patients otherwise that would hinder their ability to treat them.

People cling to businesses even though at the cost of suffering loses simply because they have an emotional attachment (read involvement) with it.

So dear reader, my advice to you is to always remain emotionally detached from most things in life, because it can greatly affect your thinking and judgement, and you will be surprised how clear and level-headed you will be once you have successfully detached yourself. I rememeber going to a relative's bypass surgery and stopping on the way to get a hold of the telephone numbers for the Khidmat-e-Khalq Maiyit bus service (Funeral transportation service) and the 'Ghusal kernay wala', not because I did not love that relative, but for the simple reason that you should never allow your judgement to be clouded by your emotional feelings, attachments, and involvements. After all, Its not personal, its business.

Disclaimer & EULA*

2005-05-03T00:14:00.000-07:00

* End User License Agreement

1) This blog would be a collection of my real-life (zindagi) experiences. I will quote specific instances, events, and sources where necessary. However, in some cases, to protect the privacy of some people, I will change names and places. You will have to accept things at face-value.

2) Everything here would be based on my beliefs, perceptions and baises. If you dont agree with something, click the 'x' on the upper right-most side on your window.

3) I love noodles (even eating them as I write this EULA). If you dont like noodles, I understand it perfectly.

4) You are under no obligation to learn from my experiences, and welcome to make the same mistakes that taught me important lessons in life.

5) Microsoft has nothing to do this blog, so don't go around blaming them for what I post here.

6) This Disclaimer/EULA is subject to change without notice.

Zindagi XP

2005-05-02T02:25:00.000-07:00

Its interesting to see so many people blogging about their Random thoughts, trips, issues they are faced with, or .NET (like me). So now, I am trying out my hand at writing something outside of the technology domain. This is a blog of my experiences in life, business, and profession, and what I have learnt from them. Hopefully, through this endeavour, people would learn and not make mistakes I have made. Lets start !