By Jaisurya Das
And another one bites the dust…!
No, this isn’t a repeat of my last week’s edition. This is about my perception of why a dynamic RBI Governor decided to exit well before his objectives were achieved.
What a pity. Raghuram Rajan is known for his brilliance and economic acumen and we cut him short. For me, this is about our fraternity: the media that uses its power and prowess to build, criticise and break the strongest of people.
We have this unique ability to go for the jugular just when someone has settled in to achieving his core purpose. Even the most unassuming are often over-publicised to the extent that there is a fine lens examining each move they make. Every initiative, every statement is recorded and then the holes get poked at regular intervals.
You balloon an innocent professional’s life into public eye and go on to puppet them day after day. After all, we have a moral responsibility! Such gibberish is good for the books and journalism schools but in reality there is no accountability any longer. Media is just another industry that is trying hard to survive and make both ends meet. It’s just a handful of people that still believe that media is about social responsibility and truth.
I belong to this industry and despite all this, I am proud of it. However, I stick to my views on some of these issues. Media is often the killer and the pallbearer of some of the finest brains in our country..
It’s time we allow people to function without putting them in public eye minute by minute. Let the paparazzi wait!
There is work to be done in India. Allow it to happen, please.
Ramble time over. It’s time to cut to our Q&A for this 25th week of 2016.
Read on…
For the record, this week’s questions are from our readers in Pune, Chennai, Bangalore and Mumbai.
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And for the first time in our second season, we take five questions this week in recognition of the significance and importance of our reader concerns.
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I am a junior copywriter in a leading agency. Do you think it will be too much if I were to pay my own way and attend the Cannes Lions. Coz it’s unlikely that my agency will send me unless I get a little senior?
Hello and thanks for writing in to Dear MxM!
Sure, why not? Buy your way to Cannes. How does it matter if you are junior or otherwise? Cannes is an experience be it the Rivera or the selfie opportunity. But jokes apart, there is a huge amount of learning there and it makes all the sense to attend it and soak in the excitement!
I know it probably feels awkward to attend the Lions, considering your current role but all this doesn’t matter..
If you can afford it, attend it. It’s worth every penny. To hell with the critics.
Learning needs no justification ever.
Have a blast and be good, my friend!
Sir, I did a random survey of five leading newspaper organisations and I found that they do not have any committee for handling sexual harassment complaints. And even if they do, the women folk I spoke to were ignorant. As a woman this is reason for worry. I would like to report the matter to the authorities but since I have discussed the matter with my bosses, I will get identified. Please advise what I should do?
Oh. This is shocking. I suspect that the internal communication is to blame;
I can’t imagine a large organisation ignoring this legal requirement.
Well, if they have ignored this, it would be their folly as they can be dragged to court on this ground.
Anyway, I do not intend to masquerade as a lawyer or purport to be one, so all I can say is that, this is unacceptable in a professional corporate. They are playing with fire irrespective of how the organisation and its people view these issues. And if they do have a committee, bereft of communication and dissemination, its existence is of no relevance. My lawyer friends are requested to forgive me for any faux pas on this, but this is far as I can recollect of the “Sexual harassment in the workplace… Act! “
Sorry for digressing but your question warranted an explanation in the best interest of our readers. Coming back to your query, I would suggest that this is raised with the senior management at the earliest in order to ensure appropriate implantation of the law that is cited here.
I would imagine that your action on this is more than necessary.
Thank you once again for writing in to us.
Sir, shouldn’t it be mandatory for all offices to have a recreation facility? We work for hours on end in a media agency, and there is no way to unwind!
Good try buddy! No recreation and a relaxation facility isn’t mandatory. Those who offer this are the ones in the hallowed ‘best employers’ segment and believe me they are far and few.
Recreation unfortunately is a much abused term and can be exploited no end.This is one of the reasons why a lot of corporates don’t hazard this luxury.
I agree that in today’s high pressure work environs,this is a pre-requisite and ‘unwind’ time is imperative but difficult to provide.
I would imagine that staff strength would need buffering to ensure that there is a dedicated team to get people out of that ‘fun’ room back to work.
Yeh hai India mere jaan!
I know you are an aggrieved corporate citizen however may I suggest that you turn to more acceptable forms of recreation such as mindful meditation; This can be practised wherever you are and all it takes is focussing on the sounds you hear when you shut your eyes. I know this may sound ludicrous but I urge you to try it for a few minutes. relax your body (wherever you are) , shut your eyes and just listen to all that you can hear for a few minutes..
You will be amazed what this can do to you. You don’t need any special facility, my friend. Relaxation is nothing but a state of mind.
Your mind is yours. Take control of it!
Amen.
I am a junior marketing executive, having passed from a leading B-school. My boss asks me to make all his PPTs (powerpoint presentations), but I find that he passes them as if they are his own to his bosses. I am upset with him. My colleagues say that these are the ways of the world, and I will do the same when I get senior. Please advise what is a wise way to respond.
Aha! This one’s familiar and quite typical of the ‘I,Me,Myself’ boss..
They are the kind who will do anything for those extra brownie points from top management. Old school most often, they have command over a whip and nothing more.
Worry not, my friend. Life isn’t all about plagiarism and powerpoint presentations. You will be more than recognised despite an odd presentation that is stolen right under your nose. All the same, since you ask, here a few quick fixes for this problem:
1. If he’s using this at a meeting that you are attending, be sure to slip in a line ‘so when I was working on this presentation, I intentionally gave emphasis…’ Now, this is a surefire method to have him cringe while the big daddy gets the drift! I must confess that I have used this technique quite effectively in my corporate career.
2. Place a well-designed watermark with your name on each of the slides. Ideally have this replace the one on his machine when you are checking it before the presentation.This is one of those shockers which will see him duck below the podium instantly.
3. Have the presentation end with a thank you slide… This presentation is conceptualised and created by…. for Mr………….!! Thank you for your attention
4. If none of these make him realise, go for the kill. Water on his laptop.
Accidents happen.
All the best to you!
Sir, we really like your column but you have written about the new online project you are working on – Pune365. While one appreciates your spirit of enterprise, why blow your own trumpet?
Hmmm, Were you the one whose question’s I rejected several times????
Ok, now to answer your questions on trumpeting and so on. No, this isn’t about me at all. Pune365 is a great media platform and deserves praise no matter what anyone thinks!
Incidentally it may be prudent to go through our archives to read my earlier columns where I have talked about several ventures such.
As a brand professional, I value good work and acknowledge this wherever possible. It would be unfair on my part to keep a successful startup like Pune365 out of this purely because I am part of this venture.
I owe it to the acumen and effort of its co-founders to give credit where its due. And yes, I do dabble with musical instruments often but never the wind ones!
Now that I have the trumpets finally out of the way, I might as well move on with the rest of my life. Adieu, Ladies and Gentleman!
Have a smashing weekend and do take good care of yourself. As always, we will be back with you next with an all-new edition of Dear MxM.
Meanwhile do keep mailing us with your questions at editor@mxmindia.com with Dear MxM and your city of residence mentioned in the subject line.
Jaisurya Das, the maverick media-evangelist eats, sleeps and romances brands.. His cerebral consulting interventions are aimed at making brands powerful and sustainable. Incidentally he is also a co-founder of www.pune365.com; Need more information on his work? Do visit www.xanadu.co.in, Jaisurya Das is also Contributing Editor, MxMIndia. The views expressed here are his own. The views expressed in this column are his own.