Book Review: Smart Phones Dumb People? - Parthajeet Sarma

People are getting dumber while phones are getting smarter. It’s a known fact. A funny saying these days goes such – “It’s important for man to be honest. Even phones are smart these days.” I had blogged about this here. The author, Parthajeet Sarma, looks to address this notion. Or so it seems by the title of the book – Smart Phones Dumb People?

Parthajeet Sarma is a fan of free markets and technology. This is evident from what he writes about. The author has slotted his thoughts into 5 main categories:

• Technology

• Innovation

• Entrepreneurship

• Priorities

• Corruption

The author’s writing seems inspired by Gurcharan Das and the likes. He presents a holistic view of India and its citizens in each chapter and provides relevant examples to justify his view points. He reminds us of how lucky we are because mobiles phones and vehicles are affordable today viz-a-viz 2 decades ago. He focuses on how technology is being leveraged to make common man’s life easier. Examples include travel portals, e-commerce websites, banking and ATMs (which he predicts may turn mobile soon) and more. He laments over the attitude of students joining IIT (simply to adhere to society’s or their parents’ norms); how Facebook has reduced the amount we interact with real friends. He does this in anecdotal ways – some funny Facebook updates and incidents between his friends and him.

Smart Phones Dumb People?

Parthajeet Sarma believes innovation occurs mostly in the west and not in India. I would beg to differ. Jugaad Innovation points out how innovation is increasingly gaining speed in emerging nations (including India). The western world spends millions of dollars on innovation and invention with precious little gained from it. On the other hand, Indians invest lesser money and achieve results to address issues plaguing their people more effectively. Resource usage is optimized in India and other emerging nations more than in western countries today.

While the author talks about using 21^st century tools to address 19^th century issues, I wish he would focus more on how smart phones are hampering productivity of man today. He could have touched upon more aspects relevant to the title of the book. While some humans have used technology for the enhancement of society, most of us are distracted by it. E-mails, chats, Social media and more keep us so distracted that we refuse to spend even a few minutes by ourselves. In fact, someone I know wants m-indicator, an app which suggests train and bus timings in Mumbai, to start suggesting which trains we should catch to reach work on time. Our increasing dependence on technology is scary. The book can also do with more concise writing. We Indians are guilty of framing long sentences; trying to put too many points in one sentence. That, however, adversely impacts the attention span of the reader. I’m sure, with time, Parthajeet Sarma will become more adept at writing (or he’ll find a better ghost writer ;) ).

The book is a breezy read; one that can be finished in a few hours. It doesn’t beat around the bush. Instead, it briskly covers a lot of points. ‘Smart Phones Dumb People?’ is a good read for youngsters who would like a bird’s eye view of how India has progressed over the ages. However, voracious readers may find it a little wanting in language. I wish Parthajeet Sarma all the best and hopes he keeps coming out with better books.

What is Wrong With Us Men?

• Earlier men discussed women, cars and bikes; now they discuss smart phones.
• Earlier men held doors open for women; now they expect women to hold their bags.
• Earlier men were chivalrous; now they like being cocky and humiliating women.
• Earlier men were upfront and direct; now most are manipulative and twisted.
• Earlier men sporting a stubble were considered macho; now they’re considered unkempt.
• Earlier men got their hands greasy tinkering with stuff; now they’re concerned about complexion and finger nails.
• Earlier men were ‘petro’sexuals; now they’re metrosexuals.
• Earlier men displayed power by establishing empires; now they show off their phones.
• Earlier men argued in front of each other; now they bitch behind others’ backs.
• Earlier men made love to women and pampered them; now they rape them.

Malboro Man? Anyone?

Earlier men were men; now I’m afraid they'll soon start sprouting boobs. Wonder what has gone wrong with us. What do you think?

Image Courtesy: Google Images

The Real Story Behind the Biggest Revolution in Indian Politics...

Manmohan Singh did not free the Indian economy; P.V. Narasimha Rao did... Let's get that bit straight... I’ll tell you how.

A human bomb killed Rajiv Gandhi in 1991. Narasimha Rao was just about to retire from politics, but the Congress had other ideas. They wanted to make the – according to them, 70 something, unassuming, dull, and balding – politician to be the ‘stopgap PM’ of a government no one thought would last the whole term. But Narasimha Rao unleashed India’s biggest revolution since 1947 during his stint.

He understood India was bankrupt. Yes, WE WERE BANKRUPT! Our currency reserves wouldn’t let us buy oil for more than 2 weeks, especially with crude prices skyrocketing. There were talks of a bailout from the IMF like some EU countries are offered now. Gold reserves worth $2.2 billion had been flown from India to London as collateral for the bailout! The day after he was sworn into office, Rao stated that the government wanted to ‘remove the cobwebs that come in the way of rapid industrialisation... make India internationally competitive, taking full advantage of... opportunities offered by the evolving global economy’. Rao hired non–politicians to do the job – Manmohan Singh as FM and P. Chidambaram as Commerce Minister.

P.V. Narasimha Rao - our nation's hero

Singh devalued the Indian currency by about 20% in 2 days and proposed to abolish export subsidy, which reduced the fiscal deficit by a mammoth 0.4%. Chidambaram, a Harvard M.B.A. graduate, spent a week burning the midnight oil understanding the major issues India faced. Then, with MMS and Montek Singh Ahluwalia, he dismantled the 40 year old ‘Licence Raj’ in about 8 hours. They hurried to Rao’s house at 9 p.m. and he signed the policy. Rao wanted to further delicence all industries except the sensitive ones related to security. But he didn’t go the whole hog immediately. Instead, he arranged for reforms to be released in a phased manner. He had Chidambaram and MMS reword the policies so they seemed in continuation of Rajiv Gandhi’s work. He had friends in the opposition, whom he covertly convinced to support the new policies. He provided incentives to industries for progress. Consequently, India survived an embarrassment and is today viewed as a potential superpower.

It pains to see Rao not credited for the work he did in liberating the Indian economy; the Congress is always mum. Most experts don’t know the names of cabinet ministers of that time. That’s because Rao held those portfolios himself. If it wasn’t for Rao’s grit, political suaveness and in–depth understanding of India’s problems and their solutions, we would all have been neck deep in crap. Neither Manmohan Singh nor Chidambaram or Ahluwalia could have pulled off what they did without backing and support from Rao. No one else could’ve done what he did. Not Gandhi, not Nehru, not his daughter and neither her son.

Here’s a salute to the visionary named P.V. Narasimha Rao; one of the best things that could happen to India. Thanks to him, today we drive good cars, own fancy gadgets and watch English channels on widescreen TVs. India needs more leaders like him to grow, indeed.

Why We Are Silent Now...

Ramya had gone to a restaurant with her friend. On the adjacent table sat 6 guys who were barely conversing. Strange! Why? They were busy with their mobile phones. One must have been playing Temple Run, one must have been on WhatsApp, one on Facebook, one tweeting, and so on.

Silence engulfs a lot of gatherings these days. We’re lost in our smart phones connecting with people who are not in front of us and neglecting those who are. We prefer WhatsApp and Facebook chats to face – to – face conversations. We inform our friends of changes in our lives via Facebook instead of phone calls. “You didn’t know about it? I put it up on Facebook.”

I’ve been keeping a low profile on the web lately. So a friend called and asked “Where are you these days? You’re not tweeting, no Facebook updates, no blog articles, no WhatsApp messages...” “Well, you should’ve called,” was my response. “Aah! That slipped my mind,” he sheepishly grinned.

Smart phones were meant to supplement us, just like PPTs are meant to supplement our presentations. But just like we let PPTs drive our presentations, we let smart phones control our lives. Internet connections must be on until the battery runs low; switching off our phones feels like a bigger catastrophe than 21^st December 2012; most ads are now about mobile phones; we’ve lost count of the number of apps there are... wait, we never had count of them anyway!

We can't spend a minute without Smartphones

Tyler Dunden had said “Shut down Facebook and Twitter servers. People will make real friends when they come out on the streets rioting.” It is said that we cannot have more than 150 friends in our lives. But 150 friends on Facebook is nothing short of a shame, right? It doesn’t matter if only 10 of them interact with us regularly.

We agree that we need to spend more time in real life than online, right? Let’s extend that lesson to our phones also. Let’s meet people in real world than in the virtual one. Let’s make it a point to call at least one friend a day and speak for 5 minutes. Let smart phones make our lives easier, not become our lives. Let the conversation flow at dinner or lunch rather than on WhatsApp. Reduce playing Temple Run and take a dip in the pool. Stop looking for mobile phone apps and catch a snack with a family member instead. Stop listening to your iPod on a walk. Let your mind wander; you’ll be surprised at what it comes up with. Let’s remember we are humans, not robots; let’s live like them.

Book Review: Lean In - Sheryl Sandberg

Wife and husband, they entered their house after a long gruelling day. “God, I’m exhausted” said the man. The woman, without batting an eyelid, entered the kitchen. She cleaned up the kitchen and the rest of the scattered house. By the time she started getting ready for bed, half an hour had passed and her husband was already snoring.

I read her speech at Harvard. I heard her TED talk. Both were spectacular. So when I saw her book Lean In as a new launch on Random House Publications, I knew I had to get my hands on one. So I did!

Sheryl Sandberg (COO of Facebook) has found her calling, her higher purpose. She wants to make the world (mainly us men) aware of the hardships women go through at work and at home. She exhorts women to tide over them and have faith that they can do it all [though asking for (no, demanding) a little help is always useful].

Sheryl has not written this book to count her accolades or blow her own trumpet (she does admit though, that it’s necessary to blow your trumpet in today’s world). In fact, she sheds light on how her life progressed right from school (where she wasn’t athletically oriented) to the present day. She states that during her pregnancy days, it was her husband who pointed out that pregnant women had reserved parking spaces at Yahoo. Until then, even Sheryl hadn’t given it much of a thought, while pregnant women before her must have silently suffered. She still has women coming up to her who say they want to give up a promising career because they want to start a family. It’s nothing new that women are the gender that is always ready to make sacrifices for their partners; vice versa is generally unheard of. Sheryl encourages women to go against the stereotype if they choose. Believe that they are worth more and focus on their careers instead of feeling guilty that they're bad mothers for not spending more time with their kids.

Lean In - Sheryl Sandberg

The author has dedicated an entire chapter to the importance of having a partner sharing responsibilities at home. Sheryl had a very difficult first child delivery. In fact, she pulled a tendon after delivery and had to walk on crutches for the next 8 days. The bright side for her was that her husband learned how to change the baby’s diapers before her. She’s really happy to have found a supportive partner in him, who actively participates in taking care of the kids and helps in household work too, apart from being an entrepreneur. She cites examples of friends where fathers are just as involved (if not more) in child rearing and domestic chores. Studies say that children in those households develop fastest. There is not much of a difference between children whose mothers stay at home or are working. But actively involved fathers certainly boost their children’s development.

There’s nothing I don’t like about this book. This is Sheryl’s first attempt at writing a book; this is her facing her fears (she wouldn’t have written a book otherwise); this is her trying to bring about a change; this is her leaning in. I spoke to a few women praising her resolve. The women retorted that it’s easy to do something like this once you’re a CXO or something. That’s not the point. Sheryl had this resolve of trying to make things better for women since long. It’s the person’s character that matters, not the designation or power.

Sheryl believes that equality in both genders will not only be reached when there are more women leaders in the corporate, but also when men share 50% of the household work. Good point. A mere 5% of the Fortune 500 companies are headed by women. This skewed statistic has to change. Just like whites were needed to support the revolution for rights of Afro – Americans, men must support the revolution to empower women. But more importantly, women must believe they are worth more. This book is a must read for men and women alike. I used to think that I won’t let my wife work after we have kids. After reading this book, I feel a change; one which will ensure I support women in whatever they want to do regardless of their circumstances. Thank you for sending me this book, Random House Inc.