Loud Thinking

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.”

Robert Frost (1874-1963);
poet

@nayyarahmad: Mr. Zaka Ashraf must thank his stars that our PM, Mr. Nawaz Sharif didn’t sack him, while he was on board the … http://t.co/pzHWknc2AH

Three Tips for Motivating Your Customer Service Team

Scripting exactly what customer service employees should do in every situation drains the initiative out of even the most highly motivated workers. But when you set up a system that enables you to trust your employees to exercise their own judgment and learn from their experience, they may well deliver a far better customer experience.

Establish guardrails. People handling calls should understand where they have latitude and where they don’t. Within those guardrails, your team should be free to exercise judgment.

Seek feedback. Ask customers for feedback after each transaction. Circulate the comments to team leaders so they can see where they’re succeeding, where they still have work to do, and what, specifically, your customers point out.

Coaching and support. Free your supervisors and experienced customer care professionals from some tasks so they can devote time to coaching and getting new hires get up to speed.

Adapted by HBR from “Leading by Letting Go” by Rob Markey.

Mr. Zaka Ashraf must thank his stars that our PM, Mr. Nawaz Sharif, didn’t sack him, while he was on board the return flight to Pakistan.

At least, Zaka Ashraf was allowed to land.

This is called learning by experience..!

“There is nothing stronger in the world than gentleness.”

— Han Suyin

Mr. Zaka Ashraf must thank his stars that our PM, Mr. Nawaz Sharif didn’t sack him, while he was on board the flight to Pakistan. At least Zaka Ashraf was allowed to land.

“It is wonderful what great strides can be made when there is a resolute purpose behind them.”

Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965);
British statesman, prime minister, author, Nobel Prize winner

How to Build a Feedback-Rich Culture

Direct feedback is the most efficient way for people to understand their impact on others in working relationships — but few of us realize that interpersonal feedback is as much a product of the surrounding culture as of the relationship itself. To cultivate a culture conducive to feedback:
Start small. We miss opportunities to provide positive feedback every day because we think only big wins merit discussion. When you see any behavior you want to encourage, acknowledge it and express appreciation.
Make it OK to say no. A risk in feedback-rich cultures is that people feel obligated to say “Of course” when asked, “Can I give you some feedback?” If people feel free to postpone such conversations when they’re not ready to have them, they’ll feel respected and be more willing to listen when the conversations do take place.

Adapted by HBR from “Building a Feedback-Rich Culture” by Ed Batista.

“Sexiness wears thin after a while and beauty fades, but to be married to a man who makes you laugh every day, ah, now that’s a real treat.”

— Joanne Woodward

Dear Prof. Ahsan Iqbal Sahab,

AoA.

I really appreciate and admire the Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, in his selection of the right man for the right job, by giving you the most strategically important assignment of planning, for the future of Pakistan.

I am also glad that in this regard you are really doing a yeoman’s job (which is really something to sing about) and burning your midnight oil, for chartering a bright future for the coming generations of our motherland.

However, the problem is that under the current SYSTEM even if YOU are made the PM, things won’t change.

This SYSTEM is NOT designed for honesty, sincerity and for solving the issues and problems of the teeming millions of Pakistan.

As they say in the computer language, garbage in garbage out. Albert Einstein, also defined INSANITY as “doing some thing again and again, without CHANGE; and expecting a different result.”

For the CHANGE of the SYSTEM to save Pakistan, I am submitting my proposals as below, for your kind perusal and CONSIDERATION please.

How to save Pakistan..?

After 66 years, Pakistan is a more fragmented society than our forefathers could have ever imagined. The schism (division or disunion), is so intense that if immediate corrective steps are not taken, God forbid, this country, may see even more turbulent times.

The writing on the wall is clear for all to read. The decadence of Pakistani society in every sphere of life, be it political, economic, educational, industrial, agricultural, religious, law and order or any other segment worth naming, is abysmal, to say the least.

Hardly any day passes without reports of suicides, committed by the poor due to the economic hardships. Children did not not die in dozens, but in scores, due to the measles outbreak and; strangely enough, no soul moved; and not even a single person was held accountable.

Maybe, we have one last chance to stem the rot, to unite the people and to give them a prescription, to rise again and re-build the nation from the ashes; because, for the overwhelming majority, a time is coming that the masses may will be forced to think: NO LIFE NO NATION.

The current frame work, under which the country is being run will not take Pakistan any forward, even if it is allowed to continue as such, for another 100 years.

All small and big nations in our region and the world have overtaken us, in the basic fields of health, food security, education, justice, law and order etc.

All stakeholders must wake up, as the nation is moving towards destruction and business as usual, can do no good for Pakistan; our survival is directly linked with the existence of our nationhood.

Nationhood means, “the state or quality of having a status as a separate and independent nation”.

Pakistan needs a turnaround; for which the basic need is our adaptation and readiness for the CHANGE, not in the cosmetic, but REAL sense.

We need a COMPLETE CHANGE from one era to the another, like the one, witnessed by China, under Mao Zedong.

Hence, for all Pakistanis, failure is not an option but success is also not automatically guaranteed.

In this regard, I would like to suggest that we formulate a new social contract, for the common people of Pakistan, who always pay 100 percent bills and taxes and never defaults on their bank loans. Let us make a new Pakistan, which is redesigned to practically cater to the needs of the exploited masses.

Changes must be made in the constitution, to make it a presidential form of democratic set up. The election system should also be changed, so that the whole country directly votes for the president. However, before voting, the candidates of all political parties for presidential post, must notify a list of their MPAs, MNAs and Senators, who will be automatically considered elected, according to the percentage of votes cast, in favour of the main candidate for the top post of the country.

The decision for Pakistan’s charter of development for building dams and all other mega projects for the next 50 years should also be finalised, on which, later on, no politics should be allowed. In other words, the representatives of the nation should decide now, where they would like to see Pakistan, in each and every field of life after 50 years. This plan should be further divided into ten five years plans.

In order to decentralise and empower the maximum number of people, to enjoy the fruits of self-rule, we should convert every division of Pakistan into a province. This will also work as a panacea (an answer or solution for all problems or difficulties), for the eradication of linguistic and any other type of frictions and doubts about the hegemony of the one class of the people over the other.

In fact, it will work wonders in the speedy development and unity of Pakistan; and kill instantly, any secessionist or separatist activities, currently prevailing in some parts of the country.

With kind regards and best wishes for your sincere efforts, in chartering the future course for Pakistan.

Syed Nayyar Uddin Ahmad