Happy 2019!

Hello,

I wanted to wish you all a very Happy 2019!  I know I am slightly over a week late (wow! how the fast the days have flown!!) in my greeting but better late than never I guess.

I am still working on my goals for this year and putting a bit of a thought while defining them. Overall, I am looking for a more fulfilling 2019. 2018 was a good year- I say this because despite all the ups and down in life, we came out surviving and stronger and made it to 2019. I could not achieve all that I set out to do in the beginning of the year but I did get some direction on setting goals for this year. I love the phrase used by Stephen Covey- Live your life by design and not by default (well, something to that effect!) and there were moments in 2018 where I switched to a default mode, an auto-pilot  mode and would not want that for 2019.

Though 2018 had its share of stresses, it was not all that bad- I enjoyed my travels, I enjoyed my time with my family tremendously. I enjoyed reading the books that I did. I enjoyed preparing meals for my family. I enjoyed my job a lot. I loved the experience of watching the movies that I did. I loved the blogging that I did. I enjoyed going to several events. I enjoyed several experiences in Bangalore in the first year after my stint in Hyderabad. I enjoyed my morning walks and there were so many other great experiences. There were a lot of things to be thankful for in 2018.

I hope 2019 brings my family, my friends and everyone I know great joy and happiness. I hope everyone achieves everything good that they want to.

Wishing you all your best year yet!
- S

Bolton

This year I had the privilege to go to the UK for a vacation and this was the vacation that I have been referring to in my several posts this year. It was a nice 2 week vacation. My first stop during my vacation was Bolton, which is a suburb of Manchester. I visited my uncle and aunt here (actually my mother-in-law's sister and her husband). They were extremely hospitable and made me feel very comfortable. I will never forget their hospitality.

How I got there?

I took a flight from Bangalore to London and another one from London to Manchester.  The flight from London was extremely delayed and I was really glad when it took off finally. Uncle, aunt and my m-i-l who was already there for 2 months came to the airport to receive me. We then drove to Bolton. The most striking part of this drive was the uniformness of all the residential buildings- all same colour and look so similar. I couldn't tell them apart had it not been for the door numbers.

Things to See in Bolton

City Centre and Town Hall:

I really loved this area in Bolton. There is a lot of open space in the place and there are a lot of spots for people to hang out and just spend time. The day we went, there was a food and drink festival going on here along with a flea market. Though I did not purchase anything here, it was nice to look through the display.

Library and Aquarium:

The library had a nice reading room and to be honest, I did not spend too much time at the library. The aquarium was not very big but has an interesting collection of fish from around the world. Some pictures displayed below.

Took loads of pictures of the fish at the aquarium but I just loved the Neon Tetra a lot.

Shopping:

I went during the summer, so there was a lot of summer sale and we went shopping to several departmental stores- Debenhams, TK Max, Marks and Spencers etc. I also went to Primark but was not impressed with the quality of clothing there. I really like Marks and Spencers and all the stores in Debenhams. Bolton Market was another exciting place. I saw so many varieties of fruits and vegetables which are not easily available in India. I loved the fresh apricot fruits that were available. In India, we only find the dried apricots. The other thing which I loved is the inexpensive chocolates in a German supermarket called ALDI. I also liked the chocolates from UK's very own Thornton.

Ikea:
There was an Ikea which could be reached with a short drive. Ikea had not yet come to India when I left India for UK. It was a really nice place. I think we bought a spatula set and some lovely sheer curtains from there.

Knowsley Safari Park:
This is not really in Bolton but a short drive from it. It was kind of a drive-through safari where we can take our own vehicle and tour the safari park. We saw some animals in the safari. Most of them can be seen in India as well, except probably there Wildebeest. The safari was pretty ordinary to be honest. I think the Bannerghatta National Park safari is way better. The highlight for me was the sea-lion show.

Here is the link to a part of the Sea-Lion show- the finale!

Favourite Pictures of 2018

As we wind down with 2018, I thought of sharing some of my favourite pictures from 2018.  These are in no particular order and may be part of some of my other posts, Instagram etc.  Also, these are my favourite, not necessarily the ones shot the best.

So, let's begin.

Walk in the Park: I shot this during one of my morning walks in the park. These are the kind of sights which motivates me to get out of the bed, put on my shoes and march to the park. This is in the park, which is man-made- makes one believe that man is capable of creating beauty too.

Trekking at Puck's Glen: Puck's glen is really pleasant to the eye. I shot this during my picture during my trek there. The area is filled with so much beauty that the camera does not do enough justice to it.

Peering into the Atlantic: Well, it is the part of the Irish Sea which joins into the Atlantic. I love this picture as my family look out from the pier into the ocean. There is a sense of togetherness and calm.

Snapshot of the West Coast: This December, I visited my birth place and home town Mangalore after years. It was nice to be welcomed by beautifully lined coconut and palm trees. There are so many of them and they impart a sense of belonging.

The Prime Meridian: From here, the time and the world begins :-)

Palace of Westminster: Also, known as the British Parliament, this is a huge and magnificent building both inside and outside. I enjoyed the guided tour of the place thoroughly.

At the Temple Door: This beautifully ornate door/gate is from the Mangalore Sri Venkataramana temple. It is a classic door of any Sri Venkataramana temple in the South Canara district.

Chariot at Manjeshwar: I had the opportunity to visit Manjeshwar, in Kerala this year. This is a typical chariot in the South Canara district and adjoining areas but I love this picture in particular as this chariot really stood out as the sunlight fell on it directly during the afternoon and brought out the colours much more than any other.

Ikebana: This is a picture of one of the many Ikebanas, the traditional Japanese flower arrangements at Japan Habba this year. All of them were beautiful but I picked my favourite for this post.

Realistic Art: I love realistic art and this piece in particular. This was shot at Chitra Sante outside Chitrakala Parishat in Bangalore and while we were browsing through several paintings, this one, from a distance, looked so real. I actually thought, who could have got furniture from home at a place like this!

Work from home: I shot this picture on one of the days that I was working from home, towards the late afternoon, when I was taking a break and having a cup of something warm. I love this picture, as it reminds me of the stressful day on which it was shot and having something warm, instantly relaxed me. Also, as the sun streamed through our windows, the whole set-up seemed heart warming :-).

2018- End of Year Goals Update

Before I go into the specific goals, I would just like to quickly talk about my impressions of my 2018. I think overall, it has been a good year but not without a quarter or two of high stress. I know I could not meet all that I had set out to achieve in the beginning  of the year. After some reflection, I realise this is mainly due to how I chose to manage my time. I was working longer hours in the last 2 quarters of the year and ended up feeling too tired to work on anything else and also there have been some changes in my priorities. Professionally, I think it was a year of a lot of learning which helped me grow not only as a professional but also in my personal life. Though I may not have managed to achieve what I set out to do but I think I could achieve other things which I did not plan in the beginning of the year. So, I think I just replaced the activities in the time set out for working on my goals with other activities which were also quite important for my growth. I set goals to be a better version of myself and challenge myself to get out of my comfort zone. I think I have achieved this for sure.

Health: Keep up my daily exercise routine and ensure that I work-out atleast 5 days a week. Eat healthy meals every day- monthly once cheat day would be allowed. I would also go to bed at a pre-defined time and wake up everyday at the same time
Year end update: I started this year pretty strong, lost track somewhere in between but I did come back again pretty strong. I can still improve the number of hours that I put in but it is definitely much better than last year.

Sharpening My Culinary Skills: I have decided to not just cook regular homely meals but push myself to prepare more gourmet dishes. I have made some in 2017 as well but would like to take things to another level. I have decided to cook 10 gourmet savoury dishes and 10 gourmet sweet dishes in the year. I will be scheduling this in my monthly planner. It will take an effort to get the recipes and ingredients together. It is a little ambitious but I will do my best.

Year end Update: I started the actual work on this only in Q3 of the year and put an abrupt end to it half way through. However, when I now look back, I think I have exceeded my expectations compared to what I set out to do. When I look back, I did prepare over 10 gourmet dishes in each category. Also, the idea was to sharpen my culinary abilities which I have done, not only by preparing the dishes but also by pushing myself with respect to time. If you remember my mid-year update, I had mentioned, "In a span of 1 hour in the morning, I had to prepare an elaborate breakfast and a 3-4 course lunch for 3 whole months. I was amazed to find myself in the thick of planning and also rapid execution." I think, I should not ignore this dimension of my culinary ability.

Blogging: I have decided to blog once a week in 2018. I do not want to blog sporadically but keep to a schedule. I have been inspired by Mr. Vinod Ekbote who has been blogging for the last 10 years and has been posting every Friday on his blog without fail- click here to check out the blog. I just think I need to set time aside for it and do it every week. I have a diary that is full of things that I would like to put up on my blog but due to several reasons have not been able to do so. However, I am determined to do it in 2018.

Year end Update: I was hoping to have 52 blogs by today but that is not to be, unfortunately. I have been writing regularly but have not been able to publish many. I am happy that I am at least making the effort. I hope to be able to publish some today. I took 2 big breaks this year for travelling and I disconnected myself almost completely from the internet and I enjoyed myself thoroughly through these breaks. I do not regret not publishing all my writing. I also have been reading a bit about how people with full time jobs and working long hours manage to stick to a blogging routine. I have found some useful tips and hope to implement some of them in 2019.

Watercolour Art: I am enjoying learning watercolour art from various online resources. I would make at least 10 proper watercolour paintings in 2018. It just must be scheduled in my monthly planner.

Year end Update: I had mentioned in my mid-year that I have not focussed a lot. This is work in progress and I think I should be able to achieve it tonight :-)

Writing: in my journal everyday and at least one page a day. The goal I had in 2017 was to finish writing on all pages of the journal, which in the hindsight, did not make much sense. The goal for 2018 will not only ensure that I keep to my habit of writing, but also as a bonus, would help me finish writing on all the pages. I hope I will not get demotivated like 2017 and give up.

Year end Update: I have written consistently in the first half of the year but in the 3rd quarter, I just lost way. I must have written a couple of times and that is about it. I will be honest, I really did not focus on writing after mid-year. I really did not have anything to write about. I think, in 2019, I will focus on writing weekly probably. Daily, is quite unrealistic to be honest.

Reading: I have lowered the number of books to read in 2018 to 10. As you can see, there is a lot on my plate and I do not want to make the activity that I love so much to be one that induces stress. I would also like to read some good literature, and not just fun-light reading books. I think reading before bed works for me great and I think a good 15-30 minutes before bed would be great.

Year end Update: Though I have been on track and have been reading regularly and almost everyday, I was unable to finish all 10. This year though, for the very first time, I have read more non-fiction books compared to any of the previous years. I see that as a progress for myself as I always chose to read fiction. I have read non-fiction as well but I not anything like this year.

Travelling: It is my goal to travel to 5 different places in 2018. I better get started on my vacation planning soon.
Year end Update: I have definitely exceeded this goal this year. I took a vacation this year in August and went to several places in the UK and in my second vacation in December, I was able to go to my hometown in Mangalore, several places around it and also Goa :-)

Goals Update

Since we are so close to December, I was reflecting about my Goals this year. I think I have done quite okay but observed 2 of my goals in conflict with each other while working on them. I had a goal  of eating healthy and also one about cooking 10 gourmet savoury and 10 gourmet desserts. It took me a while to actually get started on this latter. I finally kicked off the latter goal in quarter 3 of the year. However, while I worked my way up to the recipe list, I realised that almost all of them are quite unhealthy and I had to prioritise which of those 2 goals are more important to me. I chose the former- leading a healthy life and eating healthy. This means that I will no longer work on my goal gourmet cooking for this year.

I love cooking up a good meal for my family and friends and I want to really cook gourmet food. I need sometime to come up with healthy gourmet recipes either myself or find them online. I will need some time to work on this. I feel pretty terrible about not working on the goal as it was something I was excited about and to be honest, one of the reasons I procrastinated on this particular  goal was the health factor. I really cannot punish my loved ones in order to meet a personal goal.

Having said this, I have been cooking regularly and have tried my hand at various cuisines- some of which have been big hits and some, huge misses. I am determined to work on this goal next year, maybe I will modify the numbers a bit. However, making the food I prepare healthy would be my priority.

Also, I had previously mentioned, I have sharpened my culinary skills this year by working under immense amount of time-pressure and I cherish that experience.

This is it from me- a small post with an update on a goal I will not be working on this year anymore. P.S: The picture put up in the header of this blog is my pumpkin soup and I came up with the recipe for it on my own and shared it with an aunt, who prepared and loved the soup.

Complications by Atul Gawande

I started reading this book earlier this year, during my vacation. I know I have been going about this vacation for a long time now but the blog posts about it would be published soon, I assure you.
This book belonged to my aunt  and unfortunately, I could not finish it during my vacation. Once I was back home, I went to Blossom's and got a copy. You can check out this post to see the other books that were a part of the haul.

This book is written by an Indian origin neurosurgeon based in the US and talks about how medical science is an imperfect science. The book is divided into 3 sections- Fallibility, Mystery and Uncertainty. The book consists of real-life events and incidents which have been conveyed through the lens of medical science but are very relatable in any area of work and personal life as well.

The section about fallibility discusses about how doctors could go wrong or how they get things right or wrong. One of the things that stuck with me from this section was an incident described by the writer from his personal experience where he couldn't get a procedure right and almost killed a patient. He practised a lot and somehow get it wrong ever single time, and out of the blue, one fine day, he does the procedure perfectly. It reminded me of the time when I had just started learning yoga- I could never bend down and touch my palms to the floor without bending my knees. I would try this at my yoga class every single day but could not do it. One fine day, I just do it without any difficulty, as though I have been doing it all my life. Similarly, there are various incidents to which I could draw parallels to. Some parts of this section, especially the one about 9000 surgeons, was quite hilarious to me.

The section about mystery describes several conditions like pain and nausea which is uncomfortable and inconvenient and in some cases, almost impossible to diagnose the cause of it. Sometime innumerable tests and imaging and all possible known sources to medical science are explored in the diagnosis and identifying the cause of certain conditions and everything seems perfect, yet the patient continues to suffer. Sometimes, all possible treatment options are explored but they fail. This section was a really interesting read.

The last section of the book is about Uncertainty. It specifically deals with the decisions that doctors have to take- should I do procedure x on a patient or not? should I tell a patient of all treatment options even if it means suffering and high risk to his/her life. Often we also face such a dilemma in our lives, especially where the pros and cons of a decision balance out each other and it is impossible to take a decision and would prefer someone else do it for us.

The book is written in a way that a layman can understand many things. Though there are several items which are medical, the author has tried his best to simplify or explain such medical terminology.  I really did not find it too difficult to read. It is quite an easy read and almost unputdownable. Note, the picture of the book in this post is the one from my aunt's edition. Mine is different- it is the one shown in the Blossoms' haul.

I would rate this book 5/5

Time Management and Productivity Tips that Work for Me

A friend of mine asked me how I manage my time and what method I use to organise my work. To be honest, I am probably one of the most disorganised people you will ever meet. I rely a lot on my memory and brain's storage and filing system. Over a period of time, with a constant pressure on my brain, I began feeling overwhelmed. I never thought that I needed lessons on time-management etc. However, during all those times that I felt overwhelmed, I reflected back on the time-management techniques taught at various trainings and to be honest- many of them never really worked for me, at least not in the way they put it. After a lot of trial and error, I devised my own simple method for managing time and staying organised at work. I must admit, that I am no expert and even now, many a time, I just find it easier to go with the flow. I resort to these techniques when I think I am overwhelmed or moving towards being thus.

None of my techniques are new, just an amalgamation of several techniques which helps me stay calm and get things done. As a warning, this post is going to be quite long, so hopefully it will be useful for those reading it right to the end.

I will start with the tips that do not work for me and what I do instead:

- Your daily to-do list must roll-up to your annual goals/objectives: This tip never works for me. It creates a lot of ambiguity and confusion for me. However, when I reflect on it in retrospect, I am able to explain/relate how my daily activities contributed to the bigger picture. I am not able to do it prospectively though and have to make up some really fantastic stories to drive home the point.

- Batch similar tasks together: I guess the theory behind this tip is that you pick up pace on some tasks. It does not work for me though, if each task takes more than 5 mins to do. I feel this tremendous kind of fatigue if I batch similar tasks together that I do not feel like doing anything beyond and end up procrastinating. So, it has the opposite effect of the desired outcome of a time management tip.

- Complete the most important/difficult task first: Well, if I am jolly and upbeat, I can do this. However, I am not the most upbeat person at the very beginning of the day so the very fact that I have to do something difficult first, just overwhelms me that I end up procrastinating. I like to be eased into the difficult tasks by doing something light or simple first. It feels good to have 1 item ticked off on the to-do list before launching myself to swallow the frog.

- Schedule time for reading emails: In my kind of profession and work, this is not something easy to implement. There could be some items that need my urgent attention and maybe the sender is not in a position to call or message me. So, I have distorted this tip to suit me. I look at the sender, the subject line and the importance marked on the email. Based on checking the 3, if I feel, the email warrants my immediate attention, I read it. Else, I leave it unread to read as soon as I finish the task at hand.

- Put a time limit on tasks: I do not do this in my professional life as I do not want things to be left half done. Suppose, I am writing an article and have set a limit of 30 mins and I am unable to finish it in that time frame, it is kind of demotivating and in addition, the tasks also remain half done. I must admit though that this helped me during my student life when I could put a time limit on studying a certain subject.

I will now move on to what actually works for me, but, before that, I would like to share my 4 tools which helps me on a day to day basis:

- Dated Diary: I make my to-do lists in a diary
- Email: Helps me prioritise
- Calendar: to block time for different tasks and make time for appointments
- Evernote/OneNote: To make notes and lists

What actually works for me:

- Reviewing calendar monthly, weekly and daily

At the beginning of every month, I like to take a look at my calendar to identify important deadlines or meetings for the month and if I need to prepare for the meeting, I check for the days when I am less busy and block time to prepare for the meeting or allocate the required amount of time to complete the task for the deadline.

Not a calendar that I use for my day-to-day work but this one does provide an overview of holidays. This one is from a device that I do not use often

At the end of every week, I like to see what is in store for the following week and the week after. I do this as by calendar changes everyday with some new meetings or tasks for me to do. I definitely cannot solely rely on what I planned at the very beginning of the month. After my weekly review, I go again block time as necessary for preparation.

I usually hate going to meetings unprepared if a contribution is expected of me. I feel stupid or feel I do not care enough about the time invested by others by going unprepared. If there is no information on the invite regarding the expectations from the participants for a meeting, I usually write back to the person who is inviting as ask for the expectations. There are some meetings where a preparation is not required but I need to listen to thoughts and ideas of others and these are okay.

I review my calendar daily to check what is needed on the given day and the day after- this helps me plan my other activities like lunch time, breaks, quick catch-up with colleagues etc.

The basic message is, if I have to be on top of everything I do, I have to review my calendar as frequently as possible.

- Making a daily to-do list

I jot down all that I need to do on a given day. I write this list keeping in mind that I might not complete all of it on that particular day- if I do- fantastic! I found how I write my to-do list very different from most others. I do not simply list down all the tasks I need to do on a particular day as shown below.

I write them down by project. Let us assume that I am a wedding planner who is managing 3 weddings. My to-do list appears somewhat like the image below. I feel this really helps me work find focus on the right projects and tasks.

- Working on my to-do list

I rank the tasks based on priority and work based on priorities. As I mentioned above, I do not like to do the toughest or the most unpleasant task first. I like to ease into these. So, usually, the number one priority on my list is usually something easy. However, it does not mean I do the least important or urgent task first. I just choose the easiest of the urgent/important tasks first. Following this, I launch myself into the toughest/unpleasant task from the urgent/important tasks.

Sometimes things do not work as planned especially if you are dependant on someone else and some tasks may get pushed to another day or may require follow-up on another day. So, I go immediately to the dated page in my diary to the date when I need to do the task and I make a note of it there so that I do not forget. All tasks that I complete are ticked off. In the picture I have used different colours to indicate a task that is pushed or tasks which are completed but in real life I do not colour code this.

- Managing e-mail

I use Outlook like most people for my email. I usually mark out important emails which need action or follow-up with the expected date of action or follow-up so that I am reminded of the same on the particular date. I review these marked emails everyday to see if something can be marked complete before the due date. I guess everyone does the same so nothing new here.

I go through my email as soon as they arrive. I have mentioned above on how I choose to review my emails based on sender, subject line and importance. I read all others in between tasks. If some tasks are taking too long to finish, I take an email break to go through my email.


- Blocking out distractions

I am as such not a big social media fanatic (anymore) so it came easy to me to keep of it. Apart from this, I try as much as possible to avoid getting dragged into conversations that do not help me professionally unless I am on a break. It also happens sometimes, that I am the initiator of futile conversations but as soon as I realise this, I put an end to it.


- Understanding priorities

One of my mentors gave me the ABCD on how to decide which task is a priority. The priority should always be ABCD, where

A= Apna Kaam or My work
B= Boss ka Kaam or Tasks the Boss wants you to do
C= Colleagues ka Kaam or Tasks for a colleague or helping out a colleague
D= Duniya ka Kaam or World's work- implies everything else

Though occasionally it is difficult to use this, 99% of the time I use it and it has proven to be very effective.


- Taking breaks at regular intervals

This is more of a productivity tip than a time management tip. Taking regular breaks from work helps me recharge my batteries and work with greater energy which in turn helps me do more in a given time-frame.


- Making Lists

I use Evernote to make several lists. Be it a shopping list or what I need to pack for trips,  I have a list for everything. As soon as I realise I need to buy something, I record it immediately on my shopping list. This helps me save time and put more thought into what I need to buy just before shopping.
For travelling, I have a standard list which I use for any and every trip with a list of items that need packing. It helps me pack more efficiently and not forget important things. Similarly I have a list of upcoming blogs that I intend to write, list of points I have to cover in some of my blogs, list of recipes to try out etc. I am planning to switch from Evernote to some other tool, will update you when I do so.


You might get the impression that I am a super-organised person by reading all my ways of working and believe me I am not. These are the only things that help me manage my time and stay productive. As I mentioned, I am no expert on time management and productivity. These are a few things which work for me but may or may not work for you. I believe, every individual has his/her working style and job requirements so it is not necessary that what works for one would work for all others. The very intention of this blog post is to help others and also if possible, learn from others.