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Thursday 26 December 2019

3 Short Reads on CHANGE


CHANGE is the only constant in life and yet we struggle to cope with it when it occurs. Most of the times, when we struggle to adapt to the change, the reason is our refusal to move out of our comfort zone into something new and unknown. Here's sharing in this post about 3 easy-to-read and interesting titles on Change. These reads are like a joyride for the readers, as they embark on their journey to understanding and embracing change.

WHO MOVED MY CHEESE by Spencer Johnson - An all time bestseller on the subject of CHANGE, the beauty of the book lies in its simple approach to connect with the readers. This parable/ fable is about 4 characters - 2 mice, Scurry and Sniff and 2 "little people", Hem and Haw, who are living happily in their maze, regularly getting their supply of "cheese". Things get tougher when one day they find the cheese missing. This is precisely where the things get interesting and the book traces the journey of each of the characters in how they respond to this unforeseen situation. The book may be a short (sub 100 pages) but has immense lessons for us regarding dealing with change. For me, the biggest lesson was to always be ready to adapt to the situation and be willing to move out of our comfort zone if it leads us to better and/ or favourable opportunities. The "cheese prompts" in the book act as wonderful pointers that guide us during the process of change. 

THE SHARK AND THE GOLDFISH by Jon Gordon - Here's another wonderful, though ultra short read on CHANGE. Imagine yourself being forcibly pushed out of your comfort zone by a wave of change, how would you respond ? Would you crib and play the blame game or would you try to adapt to the new situation as fast as you can by learning the tricks and tips of surviving ? This book is precisely about provoking us to think whether we tend to become a goldfish or a shark, when pushed into unknown territories. This fable is about a goldfish, a freshwater fish, who lands up in an ocean and is scared about how to survive in salt water. This is when an elderly Shark handholds and guide the Goldfish about what surviving in an ocean entails. The book is interspersed with pieces of advice that the Shark provides to the Goldfish. The key message of the book is to stay positive even when the going gets tough for us. 

OUR ICEBERG IS MELTING by John Kotter - If the above two mentioned books are about individual change, here's a one that talks about addressing change at an organisational level. This book is a fable about a colony of penguins who discover that the iceberg they are living on is melting. The book beautifully captures the dilemma that different team members face while confronting change. The fable in the book captures the emotions of fear, confusion, indecisiveness, and the similar very nicely and the readers can easily draw a parallel with their workplace. While reading this wonderful i almost started mapping the characters against the Innovation Diffusion Curve and it was real fun. The book is a must-read considering that the author, John Kotter has spent years researching the topic of change and flashes of the same can be found in the book too, with reference and mapping done to the 8 Step Process of Successful Change. A thoroughly enjoyable read and quite visually appealing too. 

Hope you like the above recommendations and here's ending this post with a wonderful quote on Change by Mandy Hale 

"Change can be scary but you know what's scarier ? Allowing fear to stop you from growing, evolving and progressing"

Tuesday 24 December 2019

Library in a Salon - Pan Mariyappa, A Reading Samaritan !



A good samaritan for encouraging reading and learning can appear in any avatar. Here's sharing about a soul who is championing the cause of promoting reading among his folks. The champion's name is Pon Mariyappa, a barber running a salon in Thoothukudi district of Tamil Nadu. The key idea behind setting up mini-library is to encourage people (of his district) to read more. The sincerity of this initiative can be gauged from the fact that there's no TV installed in the shop (which is generally a trend in barber shops), the customers are not allowed to use their mobile phones. 

The icing on the cake being - "30% discount to the customer who reads a book".

Hats off to such crusaders who are contributing to the cause of spreading knowledge in their own big/ small way and inspiring us all to do the same in whatever ways we can !

Mentioning below few links covering/ capturing  the story of the Samaritan 

https://www.mynation.com/news/tamil-nadu-barber-installs-mini-library-salon-encourage-reading-pnf1i9

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZvNOchNVdMM

Wednesday 11 December 2019

Book Review - Unread

Book Title: Unread

Author: Platform For Artists

Book Review 

A wonderful anthology of literary that takes the reader on a wonderful journey of a range of unabated emotions and feelings. Whether it's love, romantic love, heartbreak, relationship, patriotism, life's struggles, the reader feels it all through the 99 literacy pieces (by different artists) put together as a whole. The book is free-flowing in nature and the multi-lingual aspect of the book makes it all the more interesting. It's amazing to see and get to read so much of variety in a single volume. If, as a reader, you want to enjoy the book, then just be "Unready" for it, in the sense that leave aside your expectations and anticipation and just go with the flow of the book. At times, you may find yourself on a see-saw ride while at other time, it becomes a "roller coaster" ride. The intensity in each of the pieces brings forth the passion of the writer. Few of the writings may appear basic while few others may occur repetitive (in theme/ feelings) but there will still be plenty that will touch you deeply. There were few hindi pieces that moved me immensely.

In a nutshell, the book is like an exciting adventure and an appreciable attempt at bringing something  different and interesting for the readers !     

Note: The above review is part of the Blogchatter Book Review program,  https://www.theblogchatter.com/book-review-program-from-blogchatter