In Search of Excellence

There is immense knowledge hidden in the scriptures; knowledge that is eternal.

Here is a gem of a shloka (couplet) from Purva Mimansa written by Jaimini many centuries ago (exact timeframe not known).  

Purva: Previous Mimansa: Investigation, research or examination 

Here it is: 

Upakramopasamharo abhyaso-purvata phalam
arthavadopapatti cha lingam tatparya nirnaye 

Meaning of the couplet This couplet prescribes a review process. This process should be used to review articles, books, white papers etc.

It says that to analyze, understand, conclude (tatparya nirnaye) and learn from a piece of writing one must look at seven things (lingam).  

First, read the beginning (Upakram) and ending (Upasamhar). The beginning and ending tell us the purpose for writing the piece. Understand the purpose first. 

Then look for repetition (Abhyas). What is reiterated in this article many times? Make a note of it.  

Now look for novelty (Apurvata). Is there anything in the article that is new or unprecedented? Understand that.  

Next, look for result expected (Phalam). Find out what will you gain as a result of this article. The author will use sentences like “If you do it this way, ….”, “If this continues, …”  in the article look for them. 

After this, look for exaggeration or glorification (Arthavad). Leave it aside as that part serves no purpose.

And finally look for logical and appropriate arguments (Upapatti). Look for logically developed arguments, references, relevant examples etc.

Great prescription, isn’t it?

Here is an excerpt from Harsha Bhogle’s talk at one of the IIM’s. IT gives an insight into Sachin’s mind and an insight into why he is one of the greats.

 Mohammed Ali Quotes

Muhammad Ali said and I quote, I think I quote this quite often but it’s a favourite quote. He says “Champions aren’t made in gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them- a desire, a dream, a vision, They have to have last minute stamina, they have to be a little faster, they have to have the skill and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill.”

 

“The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses – behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights. “

Indian cricket team just won test series in England. This was done by collective team-effort and without a coach. So after the debacle in the world cup, the team seems to have improved for the better. But Indian cricket team does this often: loose badly, then win a little.

Why does not the Indian team win consistently? I came across an article about the ‘Center of Excellence’ run by Cricket Australia. After reading the article I am actually wondering how does the Indian Cricket team manage to win even a single match?

Here is the article:

http://www.livemint.com/2007/08/17235811/Stay-on-the-edge-by-looking-fo.html

Let’s look at BCCI. Indian team does not have a coach right now. BCI does not believe in technology (not even a laptop). Players are selected based on the regional quotas not on performance. Many members (if not all) of the selection committee have not even played a single international game.

Now look at Cricket Australia, they are running a ‘Center of Excellence’.  They have 5-6 people doing research on “How to reduce injuries’ and ‘How to improve performance’. these guys first found out that if 2 fielders run after a ball there is a possibility that a run can be saved as one fielder can pick up and scoop the ball to the second fielder who in turn will relay it back to the wicket keeper. They are now working on creating a vertual warm-up machine where the batsmen can face the rival team’s bowlers before facing them for real.

 Winning in sport (or in any field for that matter) is about living on the edge and constantly pushing the envelope. Winning as a team requires good processes, practise routines, use of technology to help every member of the team improve.

The Indian team wins because of one or two extra ordinary contributions instead of team efforts. BCCI certainly has nothing to do with it.

Milind

I recently came across a beautiful poem, ‘Two Tramps In Mud Time’ by Robert Frost.

Here are a few lines from that poem: 

My object in living is to unite
My avocation and my vocation
As my two eyes make one in sight.
Only where love and need are one,
And the work is play for mortal stakes,
Is the deed ever really done
For Heaven and the future’s sakes
———- 

Sitting in my office, staring at my monitor at well past bed time, fighting to meet a deadline, I have wondered many times, “Am I enjoying this? how did I end up in this line of work? Why me? Why?

Yes, I have wondered. I bet you that I am not the only one. I am sure just like me, you have also fantasized about being a painter (replace your dream profession here), working on a masterpiece, locked in a room for days with no sense of time.

Common admit it..

Ok, now that we are on the same page.. let’s talk about ‘Enjoying work you get paid for’.

There are a few people (ok.. really really small population) who knew early on what they enjoy doing and are working in a career of their liking. Good for them.. Most, if not all of us don’t belong to this category, so let’s move on…

Then there are some people, again a small population, who did not start with a career of their liking but who now immensely enjoy the work they do. Again, most of us don’t belong here as well, so let’s move on…

Ok.. let’s talk about the rest of us now. How did we end up here? Some of us were influenced by our family, friends and the social pressure. Think 10′th and 12′th standard and you will know what I am saying. We were all supposed to go to medical college or engineering college (I won’t talk about the sub-caste system, you know.. IIT, then government, then paid seat.. ok.. ok.. I will stop.. painful memories..). If we were not ‘Good Enough’ for admission to medical or engineering colleges, then we were asked to go to commerce. You get the picture.. if not commerce then arts etc..

How many of us pursued our dream careers? Ohh. I know the standard answers..”I came from a poor family and I had to first make sure that I get into a career that pays me well”. “It was my grandmother’s dream that I become a doctor”. Before you blame everyone else, please answer this question, “Did you feel passionate about a particular profession?” I thought so.. I don’t think we had enough self-awareness and maturity to have a clarity and focus to know what we wanted to do.

Now, our education system and Indian mindset may be responsible for this but that’s not relevant for this article as it doesn’t help our current situation.  :-(

Our work puts bread on the table and we have to do it. But since we don’t really enjoy it, it doesn’t provide us job satisfaction. Can we at this time drop everything and pursue our ‘dream’ profession? The answer for most of us is “No”. We may not have enough financial stability, we may not have enough time because our family needs us, and in most cases we may not have enough grey cells left to train ourselves for a new career. We may have a ‘dream profession’ but it doesn’t mean we have the talent or resources to make a switch.

I am not helping am I? Ok.. so is there no hope for us? Is there a way to enjoy our line of work?

Yes there is.. The key is in our attitude and the way we look at our job. No.. don’t run away yet. I am not toeing the useless management line.. “Just learn to enjoy your work.”. I am presenting a different approach.

Unite your dream job (avocation) and your current job (vocation)

We view the professions as distinct compartments that have nothing in common. Nothing is further from the truth. Let’s take my profession. I am a Senior Manager at MindTree Consulting. I truly enjoy writing, sketching, painting, playing sports, traveling etc.

Now, if I can do things I enjoy at work I will start enjoying my job. Simple? Ok.. not so simple.. but not so difficult either. All I need to do is look at each of my interests and see if I can use them at work.

Take writing. I write numerous emails every day, I write comments in performance reviews, I write design documents, I even write articles for MindTree’s intranet portal. Writing that authors and novelists do when they write books and short stories is not really different. Books have a purpose, a storyline, and characters. So do my design documents and emails.

Ok, now lets take sketching and painting. Is sketching a portrait or a landscape really different than the architectural diagrams, doodling when taking notes, drawing on a whiteboard in a meeting?

Ok you may say that this is too simplistic and will not hold when I will compare 2 professions really different from one another. Lets try..

Lets say you wanted to be a doctor but are stuck in the software industry. Ask yourself why did you really want to be a doctor? what does a doctor do? Ok. So you wanted to help people. You wanted to treat people and make them better. Or you wanted to find new treatments. All right. Doctors need to be good listeners. Doctors must be good at asking the right questions to reach correct diagnosis. Doctors must be good at giving comfort. Doctors must be good problem solvers. We in the software industry face similar issues every day. We solve production problems. When an application/website is down we find the root cause and fix it. We interact with users who need help (I know…some of them are really sick..  ). We have to ask the right questions to figure out what exactly do they need. If they are screaming, crying we have to show compassion and give them comfort.. Right?

You see it is all in the lens we use to look at the world. What we love doing is applicable in one way or another in every profession. We just don’t realize it. When we unite work we enjoy with the work we do for a living, we get true job satisfaction.

Here is the poem in its entirety:

A short guide to the poem: The narrator who is affluent is chopping wood for fun. Two tramps want to do his job for money and that becomes a conflict. There is both pride and enjoyment in how he was doing the job. Watch for the description that conveys how he is enjoying the task. I could not understand the last 2 lines. So if anyone can provide some explanation I would really appreciate it.

Robert Frost – Two Tramps In Mud Time

Out of the mud two strangers came
And caught me splitting wood in the yard,
And one of them put me off my aim
By hailing cheerily “Hit them hard!”
I knew pretty well why he had dropped behind
And let the other go on a way.
I knew pretty well what he had in mind:
He wanted to take my job for pay.

Good blocks of oak it was I split,
As large around as the chopping block;
And every piece I squarely hit
Fell splinterless as a cloven rock.
The blows that a life of self-control
Spares to strike for the common good,
That day, giving a loose to my soul,
I spent on the unimportant wood.

The sun was warm but the wind was chill.
You know how it is with an April day
When the sun is out and the wind is still,
You’re one month on in the middle of May.
But if you so much as dare to speak,
A cloud comes over the sunlit arch,
A wind comes off a frozen peak,
And you’re two months back in the middle of March.

A bluebird comes tenderly up to alight
And turns to the wind to unruffle a plume,
His song so pitched as not to excite
A single flower as yet to bloom.
It is snowing a flake; and he half knew
Winter was only playing possum.
Except in color he isn’t blue,
But he wouldn’t advise a thing to blossom.

The water for which we may have to look
In summertime with a witching wand,
In every wheelrut’s now a brook,
In every print of a hoof a pond.
Be glad of water, but don’t forget
The lurking frost in the earth beneath
That will steal forth after the sun is set
And show on the water its crystal teeth.

The time when most I loved my task
The two must make me love it more
By coming with what they came to ask.
You’d think I never had felt before
The weight of an ax-head poised aloft,
The grip of earth on outspread feet,
The life of muscles rocking soft
And smooth and moist in vernal heat.

Out of the wood two hulking tramps
(From sleeping God knows where last night,
But not long since in the lumber camps).
They thought all chopping was theirs of right.
Men of the woods and lumberjacks,
They judged me by their appropriate tool.
Except as a fellow handled an ax
They had no way of knowing a fool.

Nothing on either side was said.
They knew they had but to stay their stay

And all their logic would fill my head:
As that I had no right to play
With what was another man’s work for gain.
My right might be love but theirs was need.
And where the two exist in twain
Theirs was the better right–agreed.

But yield who will to their separation,
My object in living is to unite
My avocation and my vocation
As my two eyes make one in sight.
Only where love and need are one,
And the work is play for mortal stakes,
Is the deed ever really done
For Heaven and the future’s sakes

Sukumar’s latest blog entry asks “Can passion be taught?”  

Let’s start with a real life experience…

In one of my projects, the client manager raised a concern regarding communication skills of 2 of my team members. Both of them had similar education, family background and experience. Both were also ‘Excellent’ in their technical skills. They were falling behind their peers only because of their poor ‘English’ and poor written and oral communication.

Along with giving them the customer feedback I also offered to help.

After about one year one of them improved by leaps and bounds (from 1.5 to 4 on a scale of 1 to 5). The other showed very little improvement (may be moved from 1.5 to 2).

Why did one person turn things around completely and the other remained the more or less the same?

Well, it was simply because one person was more passionate about improving his communication skills than the other.

It was apparent in the things they did after the feedback was given to them. One person worked religiously on reading the suggested books/newspapers, presenting on different topics and seeking feedback. He even found the ‘Toastmasters’ organization on his own and became a participating member of the local chapter. He now mentors others in the area of communication skills and is constantly looking to get better himself.

Here are the things that set them apart:

1. Being honest to yourself (knowing and accepting where one stands)
2. Seeking help and creating a plan.
3. Putting in the hard work.
4. Seeking frequent feedback and keeping track of the effort and the progress.
5. Finding out new ways to get better.
6. Teaching and mentoring others.

In general when you want to improve on anything, these 6 things will be extremely useful. But these are not the steps to bring out the passion. These are things you do when you ‘passionately’ want to get better at something.

So why did one person become passionate about improving while the other did not? Was it possible for me to teach the second person to become ‘Passionate’ about improving his communication skills?

This brings us to the question posed by Sukumar: “Can passion be taught?”

Every person is passionate about something. But where does that passion come from is the question.

To try to answer it, I thought about some of the things that I am passionate about. Obviously I was not born with a passionate for these things. So why am I so now? What is my earliest memory of being mesmerized by it? What triggered it?

Let’s see…

Gazhal

My uncle, Appa Mama is a fan of Gazhals. He understands Urdu, appreciates the music and particularly likes the great Gulam Ali. I remember listening to Gulam Ali gazhals at his house. He always used to tell us what some of the Urdu words mean, what are different types of gazhals. I remember listening to the same gazhal recorded at different concerts with minor variations and my uncle rewinding and playing the pieces again and again to point the differences. I was hooked. Now I really love gazhals.

Golf

When I worked at Cendant, I used to report to Linda Mason. Linda is a golf fanatic. She always used to talk about golf and try to get me to learn the game and I was not really into it. So, one day after a resolving a critical problem, she gave me a starter golf set (100$) and 4 half hour golf lessons (150$) as a gift. So I had no choice but to go for my lessons.

I thought that golf is a boring game that does not need a lot of skills. I mean what does it take to whack a ball by a stick? Right? So I went to my first lesson. The instructor said, “Here is a golf club and here are some balls. For the next 5 minutes just hit the balls whichever way you can.” To my amazement, most of the times I could not even connect the club to the ball, forget about hitting it. Then my instructor started teaching me the fundamentals of the swing. By the end of the 4’th lesson I was completely hooked. I have went on to break a 100 (score less than 100) in one year (a big deal.. many people take 5-10 years) and now I routinely score around 90-95.

For all the things that I am passionate about; I realized that it always started with a trigger. Nobody taught me how to be ‘Passionate’ about Golf or Gazhals but there always was some trigger that ignited the passion.

Now, what will happen if I introduce someone to golf the same way Linda introduced me? The same trigger will not work for everyone.

So trigger is important but the same trigger may not work for everyone.

In my opinion, passion cannot be taught; but an environment that breeds passionate behavior can be created.

So when it comes to igniting passion at the workplace, the organization must create an environment that will provide the ‘Triggering’ mechanism. Here are some things that can be done to create such an environment:

1. Introduce the intricacies and nuances
   1. Help employees understand the bigger picture. Give them overview of other departments within the company and the industry as a whole. Provide them with opportunities to learn how well the competitors (internal and external) are doing.
   2. Example: Let a developer work in ‘Performance testing lab’ for a week testing the application code for stress test. As a result, she will definitely write more efficient code.
2. Provide opportunities to observe ‘Excellence’
   1. Create opportunities for employees to observe the best talent at work. Provide them with the reports that rank individual projects within the company on various parameters. Let them know where they stand on the ‘Bell Curve’.
   2. Example: Arrange on-campus Java coding competition and invite people from other companies.
3. Create positive feedback mechanism
   1. Reward ingenuity, innovation regardless of the magnitude.
   2. Example: Make ‘Innovation’ part of the annual ‘Goals and Objectives’ for every employee. Innovation in a minor part of the project life cycle can go a long way in increasing the team’s efficiency.
4. Promote healthy and open competition
   1. Make all project reviews easily available. Publish a list of best performers in all functions within the company.
   2. Example: Create standard ranking system for rating Java developers and publish the top 10 names every quarter.

Another question Sukumar asks is: “What is the connection between passion and one’s core strengths/capabilities? Can someone who is not good at a particular skill become passionate about it? For example, if I want to be a musician and I know I’m not good at it now, can I become a great musician by becoming passionate about it?  Or should I simply pick the things I am good at and become passionate about it? “

Passion can be as a performer or as an appreciator. Both have a scale and as a result both require effort. So let’s assume that being good at something need not mean being a good performer, it can also be as an appreciator.

Here are my questions that will provide the obvious answer:

Can you be passionate about something but not good at it?

Can you be good at something but not passionate about it?

I will leave the interpretation open and invite feedback/comments.

Milind Sathe

Milind: Kobus is one of the closest friends I have. He sent me this note after reading the recent blog entry on my blog. Here is a glimpse of Kobus for you:

1. He created a portable laser light show on a wall after watching professionals do it on a mountain face

2. Created antennas, radios and listen to 911 traffic and ATC-pilot conversations

3. Cooks really well

4. Can tear down entire basement,  build dry-wall,  do electrical wiring, and do plumbing 

5. Buildt computer servers from cratch

6. Went to India to attend a friend’s wedding (it was my wedding).

7. Has visited at least 20 countries.

8. Has camped in the wild in South Africa many times.

9. He is a Guru in web development and manages a technology team as a Technology Officer.

Kobus is from South Africa and currently lives in New Zealand.

Here is the note from Kobus :

————————————————————————————————————————

Arguably in its essence “excellence” is a measure of quality, state or any other quantifiable value comparative to another. Isn’t excellence then the upper limit of the comparative from the perspective of the comparator or must there be an ultimate truth that defines why one quantity is more or less excellent than another?

I rather subscribe to the notion that a measure of excellence is a perception or simply one’s own point of view as to what makes one measure of excellence higher than another. In demonstration:  the execution of jihad with martyrdom attains the ultimate of excellence in one point of view while in another draws scourge and utter condemnation. Another would me Michael Jordan being unhappy with his performance even though he hooped all his shots in a game, claiming that he had to think about it. For me, four out of five would be excellent, but there are more opinions about this than my own and thus: I would theorise that a measure of excellence, beyond individual perspectives, comparative to morals are defined by a collective agreement of families, affiliations (Religious or otherwise), nations, races and possibly even species. As an example: Antony Hopkins thus far in his acting career received more than 60 awards and nominations for excellence in acting. Was it not for the collective agreement on what excellence in acting was, there would have been no Oscars, Saturns, Emmys or Globes.

From this principal view one could argue that excellence in a particular comparison, as in the topic of Milind’s Blog, relates to the actors and comparators  within scope of that comparison. Thus each comparator will make the comparison based on their own perception over a backdrop of what they believe everyone else’s comparison comes to. As a reiteration of the example, the more individuals that express Antony Hopkins’ abilities as excellent, the closer that measurement appears as an ultimate measure of excellence, in this case for acting. Saying that, one is entirely free to conclude that Antony Hopkins and Sylvester Stallone are on par.

In order to reach a conclusion on what is excellent and what is not, one has to decide what the measurement criteria are, and of course use approximation to compensate for the differential in criteria between individuals, groups and so forth. If excellence was a scientific experiment with predefined, weighted and ordered criteria, defined inputs and outputs and a definition of incremental or diminutive value, the answer would be empirical. In practice however, the criteria used by individuals for judging excellence is far from universally defined, weighted, ordered or un-clouted by personal perceptions of self and others. This of course on  a sliding scale of individuals who may be very objective to instinctive or even utterly ignorant.

So could it then be that excellence is the upper limit of a comparison based on the personally attributed, weighted and ordered criteria, approximated to the value perceptions of an individual, superimposed on their perception of the greater criteria and values held by others, comparative to a previously approximated measurement or subconscious intuitive value?

To demonstrate: If two individuals go to a restaurant for dinner, both have individual criteria, which they have built up over their sum of their experiences, for what constitutes the sliding scale of their dining experience. Within the  comparative collective (the two diners) each will have unique criteria, but there will also be common criteria which they may have by accident, but most likely acquired from a greater collective (family, affiliations, race, etc). It is safe to assume that both diners would rate the dining experience as non-excellent if the presented food was rotten, which is nearly a universal criterion unless of course you are starving. Even though both diners may have common criteria for judging the excellence of their experience, the weighting of criteria may be totally different. For instance one diner my rate the speed of service more important than the breath of selection on the menu, while the other may not care about the speed but rather that their selection contain every ingredient they desire and none they don’t. In both cases the taste may be utterly satisfactory, but yet the measurement may have two widely differing outcomes in terms of excellence. Case in point, this example shows just how subjective this measurement can be, seeing that the act of eating in its simpler form seems more relevant to the taste of the food.

In order to make comparisons for the sake of determining the excellence “factor” for an approximated set of criteria, one has to have done this before. In the absence of comparative data everything must be excellent. Not entirely true. Because most individuals initially relate highly approximated or esoterically connected criteria as a reference for comparison and can come up with a positive or negative result without having a real second data reference point.

A clear example would be if a teenager drinks beer with their friends for the first time. It is statistically likely that they would rate this experience as excellent even though they have no real frame of reference. In some way they must have inherited this reference in order to make the comparison. In this case it may be easy because teenagers are part of the greater collective where drinking  is cool, hence beer is excellent.  As the experiences pile up this individual will expand and refine the criteria set that defines their understanding of an excellent drink.  Typically the more experiences one has to relate to, the more empirical the result. In the drink example: that may mean that the comparator dissociates the social connection with the comparison and adds aroma, brand, aftertaste, colour and cost to the criteria list. Essentially this behaviour is characterised as being cultured, refined or most of all an expert.

To conclude then on the ultimate meaning of the term excellence, couldn’t one conclude that it is a process by which a single or a collective of individuals strive for new experiences, while changing the “context” and refining the comparison criteria in order to attain the highest approximate excellence value, for their sphere of influence or visibility. Similarly the term “strive” could also imply judgment of others without necessarily striving for excellence one self.

I believe there are four types of excellence. Personal excellence, self comparative excellence, dissociated excellence and collective excellence.

Personal excellence is of course the act of repetitively gaining experience until we cannot detect a perceived positive differential between this and another similar comparisons for ourselves.  I would argue that this is a fundamental component of being or doing anything excellent. The excellent factor will ebb and flow as one refines the criteria and changes the context. Ultimately one will have an opinion about one’s own excellence point with diminishing improvements over time. Excellence can of course pertain to one’s abilities as well as one’s physical possessions.

Self comparative excellence is where one compares  one’s own excellence point for a specific comparison to that of another person or group of persons. Depending on state of mind, statistically one is likely to pick highly approximated or even imagined criteria so as to favour oneself or one’s possessions as the more excellent. This self favouring is much harder if the result is empirical,  say ‘n boxing match, year end sales result or the BMW model number. Self comparison is a major driving force behind personal excellence and probably the main reason why we “strive” as Milind put it. To me “strive” means with effort, struggle and determination.

Dissociated excellence is the upper value of comparing two individuals, groups or things where the comparator may have a highly approximated understanding of the criteria, and at no point do they include themselves in the equation. For argument sake, any couch potato can conclude that Hopkins is better than Stallone without comparing their own acting skills or that Rolex is better than Casio without owning either.

Last but not least, collective excellence is born from a common agreement that something, some act or someone has attained excellence. In many cases this is handed down dissociated excellence and judgement. On smaller scales it could be relatively refined and precise. For example: Einstein was a genius. It certainly is quantifiably true at MIT, less so on Fox News and much less on MTV, but yet everybody knows it, and for most of us,  without having any grounds or skills for evaluating it.

So to get to Milind’s workplace excellence discussion and my view on his thought provoking questions:

1.      I agree that excellence is “striven” for. We approach excellence by doing something again and again, every time further refining the criteria, manipulating the context and comparing the result. A better result drives excellence.

2.      As I theorised, there are many types of excellence. Self excellence is dissociated from groups or organisations, but individuals within groups or companies may compare themselves with the perceived excellence of others for self comparative excellence. This in turn will drive dissociated and collective excellence to some extent based on the culture and structure of the organization.

3.      I believe that excellence is a process, and the apt term “Strive” also hints that it may be unattainable. Once you get there excellence is one improvement away. Luckily for our human ability to approximate and inherent forgetfulness we perceive excellence far more often that we approach it.

4.      Everyone can be personally excellent. In fact this is our natural disposition true or not by the facts. Growing up and gaining experience and growing old invariably makes us all personally excellent. Learning to walk, talk, drive a car, flip burgers or cure cancer. Self comparative excellence is harder, although with approximation and pure ingenious imagination we can get through life believing we are special, although we all know that there is someone better out there somewhere. Approaching dissociated or collective excellence is much harder because we may have to work really hard to win, be seen and be lucky enough to get other people to believe one’s own abilities. Or ultimately to have a collective excellence where the reality may well be dwarfed by the collective perception.

5.      I believe every living human, and possibly every other living being, can approach personal excellence. At smaller scales, self comparative excellence is approachable for most humans, but at larger scales and contexts become harder, but we are protected by our own sense of superiority. Dissociated excellence is reserved for fewer of us for narrower scopes of comparison, but still common on smaller scopes and scales. Collective excellence is elusive and is approached most of the time people we have no way of judging or at least personally comparing to our own level of aspiration.

6.      Workplace excellence is mostly self comparative. We tend to judge excellence by our own abilities, all be it heavily tilted in our own favour. There is of course dissociated and collective perceptions of excellence in the work place, more prevalent at the executive or management end of the scale.

7.      Better and outstanding are sliding points on the excellence scale. They are by no means an equivalent or alternative to excellence and hence cannot be compared as the questions states. For argument sake, better and outstanding may just be the point closest to excellence. Better I would argue indicates a positive or negative approach to excellence, while outstanding could indicate an approximated result that falls in the same high end range of success as previous attempts.

In the spirit of this blog, I would like to leave you with my own number of provoking statements:

1.  Excellence is in the mind of the comparator.

2. There is no ultimate measure of excellence.

3. Unless the data is universally empirical, excellence is progressively less tied to reality (Loosely defined to avoid another debate) 

4. Excellence is not the secret to personal or company success (Duck for flying tomatoes)

5. Excellence achieves 20% result for 80% effort

 

Andre Agassi retired after the 2006 US Open. He won his first 2 rounds and was eliminated in straight sets by a certain Mr. Becker (No.. not the Boris Becker). He played the first 2 rounds with a bad back. He took an injection before each match and won by stretching himself and his body to the maximum. He had decided that the 2006 US Open will be his last tournament.

I saw his last match. He was much focused, very professional and devoid of any emotions. That is until the match was over. He shook his opponents hand and tears stared flowing. He gave a very touching speech at the end of the match.

Everyone remembers the bratty, egoistic, self-centered, flashy young Andre Agassi at the beginning of his career. Looking at him play for the last few years with Steffi Graf and his kids watching him from the stands; you can’t but feel amazed at how much he has changed over the years.

He was able to last for so many years (he retired OLD considering the average Tennis careers) because of the sharp focus and the hard work he put in over the last few years. He lives near Las Vegas and there are many stories out there on how he used to run uphill and on how many hours he used to work out in the gym and on the practice court. These stories are truly inspirational.

But more than the runs, workouts, practice sessions and what not, the most notable aspect was his charity work, his humbleness, his maturity and his attitude. And it was very evident in his post-match interview. I have saved it as a reference for I read it every now and then as a pick-me-up.

So, here is the set up. Andre has just lost his 3′rd round match in 2006 US Open and has officially retired from professional tennis. He had a room packed with journalists for his post-match interview. I am going to quote from some interesting answers from this interview and write about the inspiration and teaching I get from them.

The interview is great to read from 2 perspectives:

1. Insights into Andre’s pursuit of excellence and his transformation to such a wonderful person over the years.
2. What does a truly great sportsman (or any great professional for that matter) feel at the end of their career?Here are some questions about his feelings at the end of his career…

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Q. How was it compared to what you imagined?
ANDRE AGASSI: I tried not to imagine too much. I didn’t know how much would be emotional, how much would be sort of disappointment or sadness or how much I would feel, in a sense, liberated. You know, I mean, I don’t know. I wasn’t sure what to anticipate.
I don’t think it was sadness. It was a beautiful feeling combined with a real excitement for the future.

Q. After all these comings and goings, this long journey, are you a man now that’s at peace? Have you left everything out there?
ANDRE AGASSI: I’ve spent a lot of time over the last few months knowing that this would be the end, this tournament. I’ve had a lot of time to think about it from many perspectives.
I look at young guys who are talented who make us aware of life’s endless cycle. I look at the life ahead of them, the journey ahead of them. It’s so evenly balanced between me seeing how many great things they have to look forward to, at the same time how much I wouldn’t do it again.
It feels like a balance that leaves me very clear and at peace.

Q. In what ways wouldn’t you do it again?
ANDRE AGASSI: Because I did it (laughter). Because I did it.  

Q. You seem quite happy that it’s over now. Is that true?
ANDRE AGASSI: Yes, it is. You know, it’s a transition. There’s been a feeling, like I expressed, of a bit of sadness saying good bye. I mean, the part that makes this so good over the years is the fact that it will come to an end, the fact that there is an end and a good bye makes you really take in what you get to share and experience. The pain of the good bye really lifts the joy of the experience. I’m very much at peace with that.

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Here are questions regarding his achievements. The important message is that he takes ‘pride’ in the applause from his peers and pushing himself to be better each day. He talks about the process and not the results. And he talks about getting better each day and not how many tournaments he won or the money he earned.

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Q. For 36 years you’ve known tennis. It’s been your life every single day. Can you tell us what the new challenge will be in your new life?
ANDRE AGASSI: Well, I don’t know. You know, I mean, it’s hard to say specifically how things will play out. I can say that it’s nice to sort of do things now without a sort of built in cost, whether that’s time with the foundation or whether that’s time out with your friends. It always comes with a cost. You’re not doing something. You need to be resting. You need to be training. You need to be going somewhere. Everything you do has come with a sacrifice; it’s come with a price tag, whether it’s physical or mental. You’ve always had to be somewhere and be thinking about being somewhere else.
I look forward to being wherever I am. 

Q. Is it special for you that not only the fans give you this respect and love, but all the other players, your competitors, give you this enormous respect?
ANDRE AGASSI: Yeah, when I went into the locker room afterwards, they all were standing, applauding me. I tell you, you know, the greatest applause that any person will ever receive in their life is that which comes from their peers. It’s not like we’re a company who’s working together to accomplish something. We’re people that succeed, in some cases, at the demise of the other. To have them applaud you is the ultimate compliment.  

Q. You competed against many generations. How do you look back at these match ups against many champions?
ANDRE AGASSI: Well, I take pride in competing against so many great champions. It means a lot. It’s been a great experience over the years. I don’t know what to say, but it’s pushed me to be better. You can play a great career and you’re not guaranteed to play the best ever. I’ve hung around long enough to do that.  Q. You think a lot about the points in the matches that you’ve played, you recall a lot of that. When you step away from this Open and the game, what will you remember the most about the Open? The Baghdatis match? Today saying good bye? What stands out?
ANDRE AGASSI: It will be that applause, the applause from the fans, the applause from my peers. That was the greatest memories I’ve ever had, memories I’ll keep with me forever.

Q. If a 16 year old tennis prodigy at the US Open asked you for some words of wisdom, what would you tell him?
ANDRE AGASSI: What would I tell him? Just use every day as an opportunity to get better, not just on the court.

Q. Do you ever step back and stop feeling humble and say, I’m really proud of myself, I’ve done a lot, I’ve attained a lot of goals?
ANDRE AGASSI: Well, I don’t think my pride comes from the accomplishment. The pride comes from the striving, what’s in front of you, how you’re going to get through it, how you’re going to connect to it, care about it. I take pride in that. I take pride in people saying they’re going my peers telling me they’re going to miss me. I take pride in that. But I also aspire to live up to that.
You know, I can’t sort of take too much stock in it because I feel like you miss out on what’s happening right now. That’s the good stuff.

Q. During your speech, you said there were low points in your life. At one point you were ranked in the 140s. What was the source of motivation to make you come back? Seems like the fans attached themselves to you after that.
ANDRE AGASSI: My motivation was just wanting it to be on my terms. I didn’t know I would be able to get back to the top. I knew that I would try to get the most out of myself every day from that day forward. That was my commitment.
That never stopped. That’s probably something I take the most pride in.

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Question on ‘Legacy’.

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Q. How do you see your legacy to the sport of tennis? What would you like it to be?
ANDRE AGASSI: I don’t have an objectivity on that. Like I’ve answered this before, you know, it’s important for me to leave this game better off. I hope they’re better off for having me, because it’s me being much better off for having them. So that’s my hope. I don’t know what it is. Everybody needs to see it through their lens. You know, for me it’s been about trying to give more than I take.

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Here are some questions about his charity event. Notice that in spite of all the money he has earned, he still knows the value of money… 

Q. I know it’s still a few weeks away, October 7th is a big night. Can you imagine this will be the most emotional moment of your retirement?
ANDRE AGASSI: Well, listen, if I could leverage anything I’m going through here to make more money for the children, to bring them more opportunities, I’m open to ideas. If I can inspire people to give more as a result of anything, that’s a good thing. That night is a huge night.
I think actually this will be the first event, because that’s a perfect example of what I look forward to. In years past, I’m not playing in
Europe because I’m doing this for the foundation. I’m not training, I’m not playing, but I’m doing something I really care about.
This year I’ll get to just do what I care about without that sort of price tag with it. It will be great.

Q. Do you think it will be a bigger event as a result, though?
ANDRE AGASSI: I don’t know. Last year we raised $10 million. A couple years ago $12.6 million. Those aren’t easy numbers. I don’t lose appreciation for how much money that is and what happens with those children’s lives as a result of that money.
We’re talking about millions of dollars that are going to get raised. I’m going to be thankful for each one.

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Finally, here are some funny and emotional question/answers:

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Q. How are you going to explaining to your children what their daddy did?
ANDRE AGASSI: Well, my first goal is to explain to them why I was crying. It was pretty upsetting to them to see me cry because I suppose they don’t realize that dads do that.

Q. Looking at the number of media here, do you really want us to track you down?
ANDRE AGASSI: It depends if I liked you or not (smiling).
No, I would love to see all of you again.  

Q. Do you have any questions for us?
ANDRE AGASSI: Are you guys going to really miss me or are you just acting like that?
(Standing ovation.) 

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Lessons:

1. Focus on process and not on results. Think about how you can leave your profession and the world better from your contributions. 

2. Push to be better every day.

3. The best appreciation comes from your peers.

4. Never forget the hard times and the value of money.

5. Give your best, be a fierce competitor, be humble, be good to people, do something for the society. This is the way to live a fuller life.

6. When you finally say good bye to your career, be happy about the transition and look forward to the new tomorrow.

Here is the link for you to read the entire interview:http://2006.usopen.org/en_US/news/interviews/2006-09-03/200609031157324998765.html 

“Excellence”

We all have come across this word many times. We have read about it, we have heard about it, and we have even talked about it. But be honest, how many of us really understand what does it mean?

I for one am totally confused. I have a sense of what excellence is. Over the years I have read a few books (like ‘In search of excellence’) and I have heard prominent people talk about it.  But the true meaning of the word still eludes me.

What is Excellence and how does one go about achieving excellence? There are no simple answers.

Here are some thought provoking questions:

1. “We must strive for excellence.” I am sure no one disputes this statement. But how do we “strive” for it?
2. Can it be achieved only organization as a whole? Or can it be achieved by individuals? If it can be achieved by all (or most of) the employees, does the organization become excellent?
3. Is it the product or a process? Is it a static goal that once achieved is attained for good? Or is it continuous improvement?
4. Can everyone be excellent?
5. Can a person (or organization) excel in everything he/she does? Or it can be practically achieved in a few things that a person does? (This by extension applies to our work as well. Can someone be excellent in everything he/she does at work or can excellence be achieved in only a few categories?)
6. When someone excels at work, who are we comparing the person against?
7. What is the difference between better, outstanding and excellence?

Going through my notes on various newspaper articles, books, speeches etc, I have attempted to compile my thoughts and try to answer these questions.

Dictionary meaning from two sources:

Excellence:

Meeriam-Webster DictionaryMain Entry: ex·cel·lence
Function: noun
1 : the quality of being excellent
2 : an excellent or valuable quality : VIRTUE American Heritage Dictionaryex·cel·lence 
n. 1.               The state, quality, or condition of excelling; superiority. 2.               Something in which one excels. 3.               Excellence Excellency.

Synonyms

Here are some synonyms for excellence: fineness, brilliance, superiority, distinction, quality, merit. (Note: None of these truly capture the essence of ‘excellence’. It is like the elephant story. Every description is correct yet incomplete)

By reading different definitions and synonyms we can deduce the following:

1. Excellence is a quality.
2. Excellence is also a state.
3. Excellence is being significantly better than average.
4. From the group under consideration only the top few can be considered ‘Excellent’.

Examples:

Here are some examples that are quite different from each other but collectively I think they capture the essence of the word ‘Excellence’.

My new bag

I needed a new bag. Specifications: It should carry my laptop, should not be bulky, and should have room for my lunchbox, coffee cup, wall-street journal, pen and a notepad. I bought a new bag last week. It is by ‘Kensington’. The model is: ‘Contour Terrain Notebook Case’.

 

Average

-          It is good looking.

-          It is sturdy but not bulky.

-          It has a laptop compartment.

-          It has room for everything I want to carry with me on my commute to work.

Better

-          It has a front pocket where I can keep water bottle or my coffee cup for easy access.

-          It has padded handles and comfortable, adjustable shoulder strap.

-          It has water and stain resistant materials.

What makes it excellent?

-          The back of the back is contoured which brings weight closer to the body to increase comfort and reduce fatigue. Most of the bags I have used, slid from the shoulder (especially when I am wearing a jacket). The reason: the place where the shoulder strap rests on the shoulder is not in line with the bag itself. This bag doesn’t slide from the shoulder because of its contoured back. This makes it excellent because it does something that none else has done yet (at least to my knowledge).

-          It is an in-between bag. It is neither a laptop bag (which is useless to carry the commuter stuff) nor it is a commuter bag (cannot carry a laptop). This bag can be used even when you are not carrying a laptop.

Tiger Woods 

Average

-          He is a very good golf player.

-          He is extremely athletic.

-          He has great motor skills (hand-eye-coordination)

Better

-          He practices golf really hard for more than 5-6 hours almost every day.

-          He works out in the gym for 1-2 hours every day.

-          He has a very mature head on his shoulder.

-          He has never lost a tournament while leading after 54 holes (three rounds). He has won all 12 tournaments when he was leading after the third round.

What makes him Excellent?

-          At the height of his career, he changed his swing completely. Why? Because he felt that he could de-construct his swing and construct a new swing that will be significantly better.

-          Tiger putting is one of the best. While watching his game on TV he noticed a flaw (that no one else noticed) in his putting. He corrected it within a few days just in time for a tournament.

-          He is far above the rest of the golf professionals. Some pundits say that Tiger drives the spirit of competition out of the game as when Tiger is playing well (which is most of the time) he relegates his opponents to simply compete for the second place.

Jeffery

I commute by train. Every morning Jeffery, a mobile coffee vendor sells coffee along with other goodies from his van just outside the train station.

Average

-          He sells decent coffee.

-          Coffee is hot.

-          Price is fair.

Better

-          He is at the station every day.

-          He always has change no matter what note you give him.

What makes him Excellent?

-          He always has a smile on his face. He tells jokes while preparing coffee.

-          He remembers names of all his regular customers (he has more than 60 regular customers).

-          He remembers how his regular customers take their coffee. Light, dark, black, milk/cream and how many sugars.

-          He knows the train time table. He does not just stand by his van; he is always on the lookout for his regular customers. If the train is about to arrive and he sees you running to the station, he keeps your coffee ready. If you don’t have enough time to pay him, it is ok to pay him the next day.

How can we relate it to our work? 

Know how to rate your work

-          We need to know how to rate ourselves. This is not related to the goals and objectives set by our manager for us. This is our own evaluation.

-          Many have an inflated view of their own performance. Every person has three personalities. One, how the person sees himself; second, how the person wants others to see him; and third, how the others really see him. Only when all these perceptions are close to being identical, we can really evaluate ourselves. Excellence can only be achieved if we evaluate ourselves truthfully.

-          We need to review our performance frequently and make adjustments to our goals and objectives accordingly.

Achieve the ‘Average’ state first

-          Once we know where we stand, we need to achieve the ‘Average’ state; if we are not already there.

Achieve the ‘Above Average’ state next

-          After achieving the ‘Average’ state, we need to now become better than average.

Continue to work at ‘Above Average’ state

-          After reaching the ‘Above Average’ state, we need to consistently perform at ‘Above Average’ level.

-          We also need to understand that ‘Above Average; should and will become ‘Average’ and we will need to keep raising the bar.

Figure out how you can take your work to ‘Excellence’ state

-          We can start this process only when we are consistently at ‘Above Average’. You can’t be learning J2EE environment and become ‘Excellent’ at Java architecture.

-          Put yourselves in your customer’s shoes. What are your customer’s needs? Categorize them into Vital, Essential and Desirable buckets. By being ‘Above Average’ we are already taking care of the Vital and most of the essential needs. Can we satisfy the ‘Desirable’ needs?

-          Understand the customer’s technical, architectural and business knowledge. Should we be “Consulting” the customer on any of these areas? Are we going beyond being ‘Order Takers’?

-          Are we truly thinking what is right for the customers? How are we resolving the conflict between what is right for us and what is right for our customers? We should be resolving this conflict in favor of the customer. It always results in more business from the customer in the long run.

-          Maintain a ‘Value Register’ top keep track of the true “Value” we are adding for our customers. The things logged in this register should be truly above and beyond the “work” that is assigned to us.

Re-define your ‘Average’ or ‘Above Average’ state to the newly achieved ‘Excellence’ state

-          Once you have achieved ‘excellence’, know that very soon this will be the new ‘Average’ or ‘Above Average’ state. In other words, it will become the job description. To illustrate this point, you remember when the first Indian IT company achieved CMM-Level 5? That was excellence. Now almost everyone has achieved that level and achieving CMM-Level 5 is not ‘Excellence’, it is a requirement.

Continue to redefine what ‘Excellence’ is for your job