Relocation dilemmas

Dilemma #1: Location of the house

At the outset, it is important to realize that you travel 5-6 days a week to your workplace (unless you freelance or consult!). Therefore, if you want to save on time and money is not a constraint, take a place as close to your office as possible. However, let's not dwell in the realm of idealism. There are several other factors that are important while making the location decision - a) accessibility of the location, b) availability of public transport (if you don't have your own vehicle), c) quality of neighborhood, d) safety, e) amenities, recreation, and conveniences (health club, theater, home delivery, etc), and f) location of friends and family. If you have a choice between 2 locations, one close to your workplace (within a radius of 15-min driving distance) and the other an hour away, I'd suggest compromising on some of the a-f elements to save valuable time and get peace of mind. When it comes to rentals--and this is where people get stuck--weigh the incremental rent (if applicable) against the other costs (commute for example), and time and effort saved. Living close to office also improves work-life balance and possibly increases your productivity at the workplace.

Dilemma #2: Furnished vs unfurnished apartment

Again, several factors affect this decision as well: a) furnishings/assets you currently own, b) newness and quality of furnishings in the apartment you are considering, c) estimated duration of stay in the new apartment, and d) who are you moving in with, just to name a few off the cuff. If you are well established in your career, know where you want to be, have a family, and already own a refrigerator, the unfurnished option might work out better for you. Else, just go for the furnished one, boy. You're better of paying a slight premium for a furnished place instead of assuming the costs and hassles of buying/renting, maintaining, servicing, and disposing assets. Also, ownership of assets can become an issue: if a group of 3 friends stay together and have bought the assets jointly, who claims ownership to them?

Dilemma #3: Own vehicle vs public transport

Use public transport - you not only save on substantial money and effort, but can also feel good about the fact that you are a socially responsible citizen (remember, go green by saving fuel!). When deciding to buy a car, do me a favor - don't just look at your EMI. Open your eyes to reality and look at the lifetime cost of owning the car - upfront payment + EMI + fuel + maintenance + driver salary + depreciation. Also, don't forget the hassles of car wash + parking and the possibility of breakdown at the most unwanted time in the most unreachable location. I can guarantee you that the monthly outflow of owning a car will be 3-5x the outflow if you use public transport.

Exceptions: If you have a family (including a baby), live in a location where public transport is not easily accessible or is exorbitant, or already own a car, you might want to consider otherwise.

Learnings, the hard way

An organisation undergoing transformation / restructuring / reorganization should keep the following in mind to ensure flawless and speedy execution:

1/ Top management commitment: The vision of the changed organization should be developed at the top. For an objective and outside view, consultants / mentors might be employed as well. These third parties could also be used to facilitate discussion and ideation.

2/ Communicate, communicate, communicate: The top management should communicate the new vision, plan, and events to all in the organization since employees tend to be insecure during the usually turbulent period of restructuring. They could have open houses to allay fears and concerns and obtain feedback and suggestions.

3/ Inter-departmental coordination: All affected (and non-affected) departments should not only be kept in the loop, but also involved in the decision-making process. This will help minimize any roadblocks that might arise at the time of implementation due to lack of inter-departmental participation.

4/ Meticulous planning: It will do organizations good to thoroughly think through ideas in terms of execution hassles, effort, time, and money as also risks involved. A great idea without a detailed, executable plan and the right resources is useless.

5/ Estimate impact and then measure it: Many ideas might come up at the time of brainstorming. It is important that these ideas be considered through several lenses - immediacy of impact, magnitude of impact, alignment with vision/strategy, and practicality just to name a few. Pilot some of these ideas and then measure their impact rigorously before full-blown execution.

I am glad I am learning some of these things the hard way :)

Just hustling along.

Is it really that important to have a clear goal and direction in life? The problem often lies in the way we define goals, be it in terms of money, a job, or a life partner. We do not realize that these our simply means to achieving an end state - happiness. The goal is dynamic as one moves from happiness to more happiness and so on. Therefore, even though we are happy, we might not be content. As long as people measure contentment in relative terms, there will always be discontentment. But one might also argue that contentment could lead to complacency, which is an enemy of progress and change. One should guard against that - not adapting will make you redundant.

I am just hustling along, wanting to find myself in the process. There are so many things to learn and so many experiences to soak in. Therefore, once again I ask: Is it really that important to have a clear goal and direction in life?

I have come to realise that it's indeed a small world. I have bumped into and seen several acquaintances / friends / relatives in the most random places since I came to Mumbai a month back. To put this in context, Mumbai has a population of 14,000,000 and is spread over 600 sq km!

I have also observed that I may be a bit psychic. I tend to get the time of the day right 4 out of 5 times. I tend to reach my apartment at 18:00, 20:30, 00:00, and other such hours. The most whacky was when I dreamt of receiving an email from a particular person at 03:33, and when I checked my mail the next morning, I had indeed received an email from that person 03:33! It completely freaked me out.

Thought for the day -

Network of relationships: I have learnt that as we grow up, the outer group becomes bigger but the inner core becomes smaller! 

Some more quotes (written 2-3 years back):

1. There is always a gap between ideas and funds and by the time the funds come in, the idea’s gone out.

2. As one grows older, one's creativity is suppressed by dull, egoistic adults and the rigid norms of society.

3. People are either not open to change or are not willing to implement and manage it till a dynamic competitor comes in.

4. Money is required to survive; satisfaction is required to sustain

This piece is dedicated to some of my beloved friends in Chennai!

Amit Jain a.k.a AJ: Don't be fooled by his lean frame. He can take on anyone with his guts and 12" muscles! Has an amazing presence of mind. He can stay awake long hours reading equity reports, but a novel will put him to sleep in a flash. I like his adventurous nature (he goes off every other week to some place or the other).

Vineet Mehta a.k.a SMS king: You'll find him on the phone (actually 2 phones!) for about 12 hours in a day. Fantasizes about bikes. Has a solution to every problem. The closest he has come to IIM Ahmedabad is having samosas outside the campus gates. Great guy overall!

Niladri Ganguly a.k.a NN: Sits next to me in office and keeps passing wise cracks (that are not appreciated by any one around!). Has a huge fan following on Orkut. Great fun jamming, with me on the guitar and him on the mouth organ and both of us on vocals. Has a great sense of humor (can also make fun of his own race!)

Saubeer Mann a.k.a SS: Walks 3-4 miles a day in his bermudas and t-shirt-converted-vest. Loves to dabble in new things - currently learning to ride his new bike, to play the guitar (his gurudakshina to me is due). Introvertish, but extra talkative once he gets to know you. Desperately on the look out for people to use his credit card so that he can win points. Can you help him?

Nikunj Agawaral a.k.a Niki baby: The angry young man - Has fought with a local cricket association personnel and a motorcycle rider! Loves watching movies. Has mastered the art of talking on the mobile and driving simultaneously in the intimidating Chennai traffic. Carries 3 (am I right?) gold credit cards and threatens that he will discard them if the providers don't upgrade it to platinum!