“Crossing the boundaries”

March 14th 2012

My life My Choice

Let’s get started… The most important work that you will ever

do is on yourself as a human being.

AND

The biggest boundary you will ever cross is your own mind.

My life My Choice

Is this you? I am in my forties- I used to love challenges-

but now I fear whether I can pick up new skills and build new networks?...

I seem to have good team in place- but why is it that the decisions that we take go wrong many times?

I have a location constraint and I do not speak Hindi but otherwise I am topping in my job.

I am a woman – but I consider myself a professional first. I wonder whether there is a glass ceiling out there?

My life My Choice

Defining ‘boundary’ When was the last time that you did

something for the first time in your life?

My life My Choice

What is common across?

Salman Rushdie

Mother Teresa

Sonia Gandhi

Narayana Murthy

M S Dhoni

Vidya Balan

YOU CANNOT CROSS THE SEA MERELY BY STANDING AND STARING AT IT..

My life My Choice

The Professional Continuum..

Consequences of poor boundaries

Role un clarity

Compassion fatigue

Potential for ‘splitting’ on teams

Client professionalism compromised

My life My Choice

Consequences of tight boundaries

Communication suffers

Risk averseness sets in

Low motivation to perform

Limited opportunity to learn new things

My life My Choice

Mid life Choices

My life My Choice

Middle age is the time when…

We feel we understand ourselves better…

We feel we have probably achieved our initial set of professional and financial goals..

We feel we are in the process of building a stable family structure…

It is also the time we can ‘re-set’ the agenda for the rest of our lives.

TIME TO CROSS SOME BARRIERS…

My life My Choice

How did we choose our first careers?

Did we ‘choose’ at all?!

Decision based on salary and perks opportunity rather than basic understanding of one’s own strength or passion areas

So once these goals are met, what next?

But the question remains- is it too late to try something new?

My life My Choice

Not as easy as it seems..

Evaluated myself in terms of :- What have I been good at- What do I enjoy doing- What do I need at this point of time in my life

Self –assessment by Marcus Buckingham

Analysis and communicationInfluencing people

My life My Choice

Career options… Public Relations Role

Sales and Marketing Role in a company

Training and Consultancy

Teaching

My life My Choice

TEACHINGMy Mid life Career Choice

Professor and Head of Department-Chennai Business SchoolMy life My

Choice

Why teaching? Utilises my natural strengths the best-

academics and communication

Takes forward my work experience

Allows me flexible time as a home maker

Am more of myself at work..there is no divide

My life My Choice

Teaching- boundaries to be crossed?

Work environment( team versus individual)

Social life setting

Lifestyle/ Pay

Student relationship building( task versus people)

‘Staying updated’ on my specialisation area

Gender bias versus corporate

My life My Choice

My journey… As a student- Analytical skills

-Engineering to Management

As a sales and marketing professional-Adaptability-Gender ratios-Age biases-Travel-Food-Language

As a home maker-Empathy-Religion-Culture

As a teacher- Sharing knowledge-Action to knowledge

My life My Choice

Which boundaries to cross?

Those you believe will take you forward as an individual

Challenge is exciting

Self belief driven

Least abrupt in process

Consider this… ‘Lack of ability to implement new learnings’- one of top

three reasons why new products fail..

‘Flatter world’- one of the pre requisites to globalisation of companies

Diversity- one of main agendas in all international conferences today

Corporate - looking for correcting gender ratios

‘Global Etiquette’- part of educational institutional curriculum

Market research agencies- increasing usage of eclectic groups for new concept discussions

‘Blink’ and ‘Bonsai Manager’- Power of intuition

Boundaries are.. Meant to be crossed.

Crossing them makes you stronger and more skilful.

Always learn the lessons on the journey while crossing.

My life My Choice

Ships are safest in the harbour but

that is not what they are meant for..