Rising patriotism – leading India

I was so pleasantly surprised today that it filled me with a great anticipation for the future of my country, India.

I went to watch a movie in a theatre. There was this short feature on the Indian army specifically placed in the glacier filled areas near the country borders. It lasted a little over four minutes, the time to sing our National Anthem and the background score was the Anthem itself. The Anthem was played solely on instruments to suit the snow-filled visuals.

Now, the best part is, the whole crowd stood up in respect of the Anthem from its first till last note. Honestly, I’ve not expected this sort of reception to our Anthem in a theatre. I could see everyone standing in unison without even a single exception, an overwhelmingly welcome attitude towards the country. With elections round the corner both at the center and state level, this patriotism should induce one and all to put their right to vote to its rightful use.

The current campaigns of various organizations across the country to motivate Indian citizens to utilize their right to vote are also worth a special mention. Personally, I’ve never seen such a unanimous momentum among the country citizens to actively involve themselves in politics. The patriotic fervor shown in the theatre, if taken to be true across the country, along with the intense intention of realizing a corrupt-free working Government in the country hints at a fantastic future outlined for the country. I hope the fire ignited within each soul to ensure brighter days for the future wouldn’t fizzle out... JAI HIND!!!

Customer satisfaction – the key to a company’s success

I never really wanted to do this. But as it turns out that I haven’t had a post for this month till now I am forced to write this. It’s never really my cup of tea to write on software applications and their benefits and blah… blah…blah on them.

The other day I had a discussion with one of my friends that ended with Customer Relationship Management (CRM). The discussion started with Personnel Relationships and branched into CRM (my friend is into Software stuff). He was all technical with his points, which by default went over my head. It took some time for him to understand that I was barely listening to him. Though he was a little cross he pegged back his ire and asked why I have a cold shoulder for technical stuff. I gave him this answer.

I went to Hyderabad to attend a conference. The conference was spread over three days. I was booked into a hotel for the days I need to stay there till the conference gets over.

I am a man of apprehension. It takes some time for me to get comfortable with new surroundings. So, I was hoping to finish the trip at the earliest and reach back home.

But by the end of my stay in this hotel, I was a little reluctant to vacate the hotel, much to my surprise. The enthusiasm of the employees for service and the service itself caught my imagination. The last thought I had at the time of leaving was, “When will I get a chance to stay in this hotel again to enjoy their hospitality?”

I guess a lot of people would have come across such a situation. The gentle alarm call, warm greetings along with the breakfast, a precise time sense, custom culinary skills, an overwhelming hospitality and a natural gift of keeping the customer thoroughly satisfied – all these made me believe that this is the best place on earth to stay. The first impression was made and strong it was.

This is what outstanding customer service can do to anybody. Though there are a hundred and twenty other hotels surrounding the area, I’d still prefer to come and stay in this hotel alone, if ever I get another chance. Additionally, this experience made me recommend to a lot of my friends to book their accommodation in this hotel whenever they visit Hyderabad. I guess a lot of visitors would’ve come to this hotel the same way – through recommendations by people like me. Who wouldn’t love to be pampered – being served with all requirements to your convenience?

This hotel naturally attracts a lot of visitors and in all probability they retain them with their hospitality. People like me bring added business to them. What more would a hotel need to be a market leader? This is exactly what a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) can do to any company in any industry. Is this what you are trying to tell me?

I made my point and he also believed that he made his.

Nadal brought down to tears in Australian Open 2009

Confused??? Everybody knows that it was Roger Federer who was all tears after he lost the Finals to Rafa. And who can forget the now famous words “God… its killing me” by Roger during the presentation ceremony, after which he couldn’t control the stream from within.

The audience on that day witnessed something incredible – the two best tennis athletes on the planet fighting it out till Rafael Nadal ended up victorious. The efforts of both the players who put their heart and soul, and everything else that an athlete could squeeze out, are worth inspiring scores of generations. I would even go to the extent of that becoming “a legend” in the days to come. But unfortunately, the cruel side of sport surfaced. Only one of them can win and the other has to wither down for that moment.

It so happened that Roger had to bite the dust this time as well as Rafa once again proved too superior. It was really heartening, though soul-wrenching, to see Roger break down during the ceremony. It showed how dearly he wanted to get hold of the magical figure of 14 grand slam titles, sharing space with the one and only Pete Sampras and the amount of dedication he put in to achieve. To go with Roger, he hadn’t done much wrong till the fifth and the deciding set. He played a tremendous game and at times he surpassed his own standards. But alas! It wasn’t enough against an inspired Rafa who desperately wants to prove that he is equally supreme on all kinds of surfaces and not clay alone. Who best than Roger to prove that point against? And he did exactly that.

Now, you must be thinking – why in the hell did I use such a title for what I’ve explained above – right? In fact Nadal was brought down to tears, but that happened in his semi-final match against compatriot Verdasco. He confessed with the media after that epic victory saying, “I was crying on the court”. It happened and I stand witness to it. That was the last game of the match and Nadal had three match points on Verdasco’s serve. One point was brilliantly saved and that was the moment when Nadal started to crack. The second point was also saved with another exceptional winner, one of 95, from Verdasco and Rafa cracked. It’s a pity that a double fault brought home victory to Rafa.

It’s the train of thoughts that goes within that makes anybody on the field. Nadal, in the semis, used all his powers to win and Verdasco seemed to have answers to break free and push the match further. Similarly, Roger, in the finals, used all his powers to win and Rafa seemed to have answers to break free and push the match further. The only difference is that Rafa’s effort paid off in the semis and ended up winning – the reason why we haven’t seen physical tears in his eyes and on the other hand Roger’s effort fell short and he ended up losing the match – the reason why he couldn’t control the emotional turbulence.

When somebody puts her/his heart and soul and are prepared to go any distance to achieve something s/he desperately wanted. And if there are hurdles not in their control stopping them time and again from achieving it, the agony is excruciating and if the hurdle is the same each time, the pain is all the more harder. And that’s exactly what happened to Roger and that’s exactly what Rafa meant when he said “I can understand what you are going through” to Roger during the award ceremony on the podium. Because, Rafa too felt the same agony during the semifinals.