RESOURCE UTILIZATION

RESOURCE UTILIZATION:

A key factor which adds value to performance is complete utilization of resources. Following is a powerful illustration.
This story is on Buddha and his principle of using the available resources to the fullest extent possible.
Sure, you will find it to be interesting!

Buddha, one day, was on deep thought about the worldly activities and the ways of instilling goodness in human. The following is the text of conversation between him and his disciple.
One of his disciples approached him and said humbly " Oh my teacher !
While you are so much concerned about the world and others, why don't you look in to the welfare and needs of your own disciples also."

Budhha : "OK.. Tell me how I can help you"
Disciple : "Master! My attire is worn out and is beyond the decency to wear the same. Can I get a new one, please."
Buddha found the robe indeed was in a bad condition which needed replacement. He asked the store keeper to give the disciple a new robe to wear on. The disciple thanked Buddha and retired to his room.
Though he met his disciple's requirement, Buddha was not all t hat contended on his decision. He realized he missed out some point. A while after, he realized what he should have asked the disciple. He went to his disciple's place and asked him "Is your new attire comfortable? Do you need anything more?"
Disciple: "Thank you my Master. The attire is indeed very comfortable. I need nothing more"
Buddha: "Having got the new one, w hat did you do with your old attire?"
Disciple: "I am using it as my bed spread"
Buddha "Then.. Hope you have disposed off your old bed spread"
Disciple "No.. No.. Master. I am using my old bedspread as my window curtain"
Buddha "What about your old Curtain?"
Disciple "Being used to handle hot utensils in the kitchen"
Buddha: "Oh.. I see.. Can you tell me what did they do with the old cloth they used in Kitchen"
Disciple: "They are being used to wash the floor."
Buddha " " Then, the old rug being used to wash the floor...???"
Disciple "Master, since they were torn off so much, we could not f ind any better use, but to use as a twig in
the oil lamp, which is right now lit in your study room...."

BUDDHA SMILED IN CONTENTMENT AND LEFT FOR HIS ROOM.

If not to this degree of utilization, can we at least attempt to find
the best use of all our resources INCLUDING HUMAN @HOME AND OFFICE 

How Families Can Reduce Financial Stress

There are 4 stressors that impact almost every family: parenting the children, nurturing the marriage, sharing household responsibilities and managing family finances. Each of these stressors has the potential to cause a family an enormous amount of grief. But, well-functioning families make sure that:

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both parents are a team and cooperate with each other regarding the children

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the marriage is a priority and time is set aside for being a couple

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responsibilities for running the house are shared

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the adults work out how to handle family finances

Strategies for reducing financial stress

These strategies can help a family work together to reduce financial stress.

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Look at each new year as an opportunity to set financial goals for the coming year.

Vacations, a new roof, a widescreen television, new clothes for the family and other major items need to be prioritized. Few families can afford to have everything they want when they want it. Decide ahead of time what you want to spend your money on in the next year.

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Create a plan for handling unplanned expenses.

 

A problem for families is the unexpected expenses that pop up out of nowhere. Your plan should include staying calm and setting aside time to explore your options to handle this new expense. If you are stuck, consult with a seasoned accountant on how to cope with financial problems. Make sure you include seeking professional advice as part of your plan.

 

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Don't rely on credit cards.

 

Instead, use a debit card or apply for a loan where you will not be paying an excessive interest rate each month. A good way to discourage use of credit cards is to calculate how many years it will take to pay off your current debt. This information often is shocking and may help you decide to buy things only when you have the money.

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Ask your partner how much money he needs to have saved in order to be comfortable.

Compare your amounts and come up with a plan. If you're a saver and your partner is a spender, then come up with a middle ground you both can agree on.

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Teach your child about money.

 

Since children are very concrete in their thinking, put on a practical demonstration regarding income and expenses. Use play money to show your child how a certain amount of money comes in every month as earnings. Then draw pictures to illustrate the various expenses the family has and place that amount of play money on each drawing. This demonstration will help when your child asks for things the family cannot afford.

Best Democracy in the World - INDIA

The election dates for 15th Lok Sabha have been announced. True to it being the best democracy in the World, here are some highlights of the election.

 

• When India elects a new parliament in April-May, one polling station in Gujarat will have just one voter.  Chief Election Commissioner N. Goapalswami told reporters that this will be located in Junagadh district in Gir forests, home to the Asiatic lion.
• There will also be one polling station for two voters in Chhattisgarh, and three stations in Arunachal Pradesh will have three electors each.
• The commision also said that 40 lakh civil staff and 21 lakh paramilitary forces will be requisitioned to conduct the polls.
• Photo electoral rolls have been made compulsary in these polls. Photo electoral rolls will be used for the first time
  in 522 out of the 543 constituencies. The forthcoming polls will have 8,28,408 polling stations which will require 11 lakh electronic voting machines.71.4 crore will be the number of eligible voters, an increase of 4.3 crore over the 2004 figure of 67.1 crore.
• "All candidates will be required to file two affidavits along with their nomination papers. One affidavit will pertain to information on the criminal antecedents of the candidate and the second affidavit will pertain to assets including moveable and immovable assets of the candidate and his family including the assets owned by the candidate's spouse and dependents," Gopalaswamy said in a statement. The returning officers have been asked to display copies of these affidavits on notice boards and make the information available to the public. 

 

Delhi-6 Rocks

Hey Friends,

Its 11:08 PM Eastern Standard Time. Just returned from the premier show of Delhi-6. Its rocking guys. Rakesh Omprakash Mehra follows up superbly from Rang De Basanti.

 

Abhishek as usual is the cool dude. Outfits are great. Nice shades for a fair part of the movie. He is catching up on his late start. After Dostana different kind of role but nicely played. Abhishek and Sonam appear as a nice pair. Takes us back to Salman-Bhagyashri in Maine Pyar Kiya.

 

Sonam Kapoor. Looks like debut film for her. Though I am a great fan of Sanjay Leela Bhansali, no wonder she didn't get a great start with Sawariya as there were hardly any lights in the movie. She looks gorgeous in the movie. She feels very comfortable carrying both Indian and Western clothes.

 

There is quite a long list of supporting cast - Waheeda Rehman, Om Puri, Rishi Kapoor, Vijay Raaz, Pawan Malhotra, etc. They all have done a fabulous job.

 

Sr. AB comes up in CAMEO. Supports well in the climax.

 

Above all, A. R. Rehman has once again belted some nice scores.

 

I would recommend the movie, can't miss it in the world. Real story of India.

 

**** - 4 Stars.

--
Mihir

A R Rehman does India proud

Yes, he has done it again. After bagging The Golden Globe for Best Original Score, our very own A. R. Rehman does it again. He has got 3 Oscar nominations for:

 

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)

• "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Alexandre Desplat
• "Defiance" (Paramount Vantage), James Newton Howard
• "Milk" (Focus Features), Danny Elfman
• "Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight), A.R. Rahman
• "WALL-E" (Walt Disney), Thomas Newman

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)

• "Down to Earth" from "WALL-E" (Walt Disney), Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman, Lyric by Peter Gabriel
• "Jai Ho" from "Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight), Music by A.R. Rahman, Lyric by Gulzar
• "O Saya" from "Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight), Music and Lyric by A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam                  
  

Here's hoping that come 22nd February 2009 (Hirni's birthday by the way) he will make it BIG.

 

Watchout AB, AR is the BEST. 

25 mis-spelled words - Try It

Hi Folks,
Check this out.

I scored 67 %  (Fair ranking with 18 correct) on this one and I thought I was a good speller.  Try your test and let me know your score.

 http://www.businesswriting.com/tests/commonmisspelled.html

 

 

 

Click here: The 25 Most Commonly Misspelled Words

Don't be afraid of the space between your dreams and reality.
If you can dream it, you can make it so.

 

Mihir

 

THIS IS AMERICA

Violinist in the Metro
From The Effective Club

A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousands of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.

Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule.

A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk.

A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.
The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.

In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.

Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston and the seats averaged $100.

Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of an social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people. The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?

One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be:

If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?