IRCTC - Tatkal

Booked a ticket for Sunday night from Chennai to Bangalore on Tatkal.Its on Waiting list.I am not sure of the logic behind it. What are the chances that a passenger cancels after booking on tatkal.Even if there are cancellations use the normal waiting list. Why create another waiting list for the same births. Just a small way for the Railways to make some additional money.The idea behind Tatkal was guranteed Tickets at the last minute for a price.For one you are opening it up 5 days in advance. And now a waiting list.It is Crazy.

I am in Limbo now whether to go ahead and cancel it or wait another day.

October

Another week closes and its the end of the month.
A month of ups and downs.
Yesterday came across data that the worldwide squeeze may last 2-3 years.The economy contracts for such a long period of time.How is that going to impact the recruitment scenario. Best is to go from day to day.The max time frame I can forecast is 3 months.For Those 3 months We are comfortably placed. Thats a good way to start a bad period.Whats the point in Breaking my head beyond that.

Infact I have reduced our targets drastically.As long as we break-even its fine.Why ask for more at this point in time. Guys have been sent out.Perhaps we could do something for them?

Additionally looking at adding clients from other engineering sectors. Automotive might rebound in 9-12 months time but a few other sector companies in our clientlist might provide a good cushion. Wont be easy adding clients during these times.So that is one more hurdle to jump.

There was this scary article I read today. 40000 Trucks - No takers. No wonder they(VOLVO) are closing plants.

Have decided to go ahead with the office in Pune. The decision has been long coming and I am going to stick with it.

Chaos

Been reading a lot of Stuff relating to the economy & to the markets in general. The underlying faith still holds but is getting peppered with a lot of doubt. Today was reading this article from Steve Levit on Freakonomics - which I actually thought was positive - but as it turns out it gives out another bleak sound out for bad things to come in 3-4 months down the line.

India is expected to do 7+ growth rate which is pretty decent - but I need some more data on the sectors that will grow more and where can we expect a freeze.All said and done one can'y associate ones clients recruiting needs to the countrywide sectoral performance.But, still impacts cannot be discounted.

As I keep telling myself there is going to be a definite slow down - the economy which was going at 60 - may now go at 30 - but go it has to. And we need to be at the right places. Its like being a fruit picker - picking in a dense fog on treacherous hills.We need all the insite possible to keep a firm foothold.

All this macro thinking has to happen on one plane - parallely I am going ahead with targetting the guys who are recruiting - its as simple as that - the eagles dont know whether the economy is growing or sliding they just look out for live food. 

The economic stuff can help me in forecasting 6 months down but for the 3 month stuff I have to just trudge to the market and reach out to candidates.

Get off your ass man.

My Jottings

For You

This

Is for you

Because they told you

You’d never be able to fly without wings

And here you are

Soaring

Without a wing

Or a feather

In sight.

Submitted by Johanna Berliner

Blog Action day - Poverty

Poverty throws up a lot of images of shrunken kids from Ethiopia or Sudan, skeletons with skin, being carried around by their moms, or their slightly less famished elder brothers or sisters. Our own country is not very far off in terms of poverty and the irony is that, though there is visible affluence spreading across towns and cities - there is a section of our society which is just going to miss it.

The other day as I stood in a Road side restaurant having a cup of tea I was pondering over some of the cooks and other workers employed by that joint, sitting nearby. How would they relate to a twitter or a Web2?.Social media,Networking, what does it all come to, for these people who would be making not more than 2000Rs a month. And, statistically they cant be termed poor. 

The real poor are the ones who leave their villages and towns to come in search of jobs & shelter in the larger cities like Bangalore and Chennai.Spending the night on the platform or on the steps of some shuttered shop. The ones begging on the streets. 

Nothing new about that. Poverty exists, has been their all along - like a parallel universe, its there in our conscience, and we are unable to do anything about it, as we have yolked ourselves to our jobs/professions. We have made ourselves secure. And,we dont want to be reminded of this ghastly otherworld which keeps bumping againt us every time we leave our home.

From time to time we appease our conscience by making sundry donations to charitable institutions and trusts who are there to do the dirty work.

Our, conscience clear, we go on to, business as usual, wearing our poverty filters.Just like we have glasses to filter UV radiation - our Brilliant Brain has developed internal poverty filters which allows us to be unaffected by the continuous rays of poverty that emanate from all the roads and streets of cities like Bangalore or Chennai. Somehow, I hope that this small Blogging effort helps me to take some more interest / put some more effort, in actually doing something significant to the life of just one poor person.

Its a Hope.

Girl on Bicycle

Turn up the volume wait

startups

Have always belived that undue importance is being given by the media and the VC's to Technology startups. There are too many of the so called me 2 technology startups that go belly up after the first round of funding.Mind over matter does'nt deliver ( not always) . Came across this intersting article on another successful startup in a low technology product( you cant get lower than this) chk this out.

Its about a chain of outlets called the Jumbo King. Their main product - Vadapav.

Have a good weekend.