In this age, where the globe is connected, and no time lag between one location and another, the expectation on performance is so tight that we cannot afford to miss a small detail, cautions Preeyan. An exclusive for Different Truths.

It’s a tough world out there and we are looking at a generation where you can do almost anything and everything online. Speed of now computed in nano seconds. When we were kids, we only knew kilometers per hour (Kmph). As we grew up people started taking meters per second and now its meters per nano second. All this has been possible only by those ever-moving targets that we have set for each other. In this age, where the globe is connected, and no time lag between one location and another, the expectation on performance is so tight that we cannot afford to miss a small detail.

Performance is just not about the money we make or the numbers we produce, it is now a complicated calculation of time, resource and cost involved to get there.

Performance is just not about the money we make or the numbers we produce, it is now a complicated calculation of time, resource and cost involved to get there. There are so many variables involved in today’s performance calculation that it lets me sometimes wonder where do we go next. What is the next new variable that is going to come?

Salesmen can no longer just check that month end number of theirs, they will not have to equate the return on investment (RoI) basis the money he gets paid.

Salesmen can no longer just check that month end number of theirs, they will not have to equate the return on investment (RoI) basis the money he gets paid. It is really astonishing to study in detail these parameters.

Now, why I am dwelling upon these things is to sight a reasoning for why we need to keep moving our targets up. We can say that it is the hunger for satisfaction. Ask a person who is walking on the street he will want to be able to use affordable public transport, ask someone using the public transport they will want an affordable car, ask a person using a car he will want affordable house, so on and so forth. It only keeps growing in dimension. So is the hunger for performance. It is not greed that creates this, there are other positives as well.

I work at a garment manufacturing setup. Here is what happens here, we do well, our vendors of cartons and fabric do well. And on the side, the waste collection vendor, the food supplier, the recycling company and all the other small vendors like sticker makers, printer supplier, ink, paint, maintenance, civil workers, daily labour and many others

We are working in a system today that everyone is interlinked. I work at a garment manufacturing setup. Here is what happens here, we do well, our vendors of cartons and fabric do well. And on the side, the waste collection vendor, the food supplier, the recycling company and all the other small vendors like sticker makers, printer supplier, ink, paint, maintenance, civil workers, daily labour and many others, which link among itself and it is endless. All this is just because our planning was spot on and we are doing well.

I remember in our school we had a canteen contractor who used to sell small time stuff at school in those days I can count it out – Some candy, chocolate, Aerated drinks, samosa, egg bonda and for lunch parotta and gravy. I heard he started as a street vendor, got the school canteen contract and from there he is now an owner of a hotel and multiple school contracts are with him. Today he is what he is because of his aspirations. Yes, there are chances of failure and now the probability will keep increasing towards failure, but it is that aspiration that brings the different. If we want to grow, we have to keep raising the bar on the targets.

How do we push this with our team?

It is necessary for us to talk of the vision of where we want to go. It is necessary to ensure that the story is inspiring and there is something in it for them.

It is necessary for us to talk of the vision of where we want to go. It is necessary to ensure that the story is inspiring and there is something in it for them. This

inspiration is what is going to get acceptance for the ever-growing targets.  The reward need not be in terms of money all the time but should be to create a difference in the way we live. Something that is going to create a small spark in me to fire to the next level of performance.

We need to also be creative in the way we increase our performance targets. It can either be in numbers or by saving cost. This is going to help move forward and sustain.

Sustenance is a key word that needs focus, focus on this and the probability of failures decrease drastically. We need to be able to get the alignment in the best possible fashion and ensuring that we are able to maintain the standard over a long period.

Sustenance is a key word that needs focus, focus on this and the probability of failures decrease drastically. We need to be able to get the alignment in the best possible fashion and ensuring that we are able to maintain the standard over a long period. Its abstract but it is what it is. If we apply this in any field it will work and it has to either as individuals or as teams.

I have seen ups and downs. The ups happen because of the right things and the downs happen because of the wrongs. Both have made me only wiser and it feels good to say that the wisdom comes only if you realize and know what is it you did right and what is it that went wrong. Acceptance of this is 50% of the battel won. My boss keeps saying that if you accept your fault and realise and know why it went wrong, you have 50% of the answer. The balance is to figure out how to do it right.

Keep growing, get wiser and become rich.

Cheers!

Picture design Anumita Roy