World's most indispensable CEOs

... and Lakshmi Mittal and Ratan Tata find place in the list. Go India :)

http://www.rediff.com/money/2007/mar/27tata.htm

Ben & Jerry's CSR Approach

In February I attended a talk by Jerry Greenfield, co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s. He spoke about his entrepreneurial experience and unique business model of corporate social responsibility. Jerry Greenfield got an undergrad degree in pre-med, but failed to make it to a medical school for two consecutive years. He then started Ben & Jerry’s with his close friend Ben, in Vermont. In spite of having no experience in the ice-cream industry and selling ice-cream in a very cold city, their small store managed to grow and become the ice-cream giant - Ben & Jerry’s that we know of today. Read more

What appealed to me most about his talk was the CSR approach of Ben & Jerry’s. For example, to make their ice-cream they do not use milk from cows treated with recombinant bovine growth hormone. (Treating the cows with such chemicals makes them prone to infection, which causes pain and suffering to the animal.) The company actually pays a premium to the farmers who provide them milk, if they promise to never treat their cows to this hormone!

Another interesting example was about their ice-cream, American Pie. The ice-cream comes with a special package. It has a pie chart of the US federal budget printed on it. Ben & Jerry oppose the large amount of money spent on defense & maintenance of the 10,000 odd nuclear weapons (How many does a country need? Isn’t 1 enough?). They think that the money would be better spent on things & so they just promoted this message with their ice-cream. How cool is that?

The company’s web-site also includes interactive games to educate people on similar issues. Before the talk I had never tasted Ben & Jerry’s ice-cream. The ice-creams are delicious and the company makes sense – a perfect combination of business and pleasure.

"Run Towards Your Fears"

I just read Robin's blog right now and I thought I should post something from it.

"Life's counter-intuitive. The things that we most resist carry the seeds of our greatness. The stuff that makes us feel uncomfortable makes us stronger. And the things that are hard to do help us get to our authentic power. Difficult is Good..." (read the rest)

So many times in life I have seen myself run away/avoid things under the pretext like "I don't like it" or "I am not in the mood", when actually the real reason is that I am simply afraid. It takes a little effort to accept that I am actually afraid. It's a feeling (like all other feelings) that needs to be acknowledged.

There is no question of whether "I should be feeling this?" or "is this right/wrong?" You are feeling it so that's that - acknowledge it. Feel it. A lot of times I realize what a unique situation I am in. I find myself secretly laughing at myself or at God's humor. If you resist the feeling then it is going to persist. Just like guy who tried to quit smoking 7 times before it actually became a joke.

Once I get over the difficult part of recognizing & acknowledging my fear, I find that the what's & the how's fall in place. Why is even simpler? Because if you "run towards your fears and a beautiful life will follow" (from one of Robin's podcasts)

Ayn Rand in one of her books says that if you find yourself at a fork in the road, just pick the more difficult option, you are bound to pick the correct one. It's an interesting point of view, and I think of it when I am stuck. I don't use it as a rational for/against argument, but it does help me check to what extent my emotions are playing a role in my decision making. Also importantly, it makes me smile in the situation.

Another effective tool that religions have used to help people fight their fears is to make them realize that they are mortals. We live life thinking "I" will live for forever. If you spend 2 seconds in the morning, even when you are brushing your teeth and remind yourself - "I am a mortal" then the trick is done. You would push yourself to lead a more fuller life. Suddenly it becomes easier to say "I am sorry", or "it was my mistake" or to admit to yourself that you am scared.

Two Amazing Movies

I just happened to chance upon these two movies. They weren't my first choice, but they are probably the best movies I have seen in a long time!

Pan's Labyrinth is a Spanish movie (but see it with subtitles!). It is an excellent mix of fantasy and reality, and the most amazing story telling.



Freedom Writers Diary

Another Hillary Swank! She always manages to pick amazing movies and she makes me cry everytime. This one is about racial discrimination and what a high school teacher manages to do in the situation. Most people I know would have fled, or turned a blind eye to it, but not the protagonist of this movie - she takes up two other jobs ... Just watch the movie. A movie of courage and drive.

Goo Goo Dolls and Augustana

Few hours of braving the cold winds, at -5 Celsius. Another hour inside thawing - along with high school children and their mothers :D but "Iris" was totally worth it.

The highlight of the evening (apart from Iris, slide, black balloon, give a little bit, among others) was a new band Augustana (http://www.augustanamusic.com/). I really liked their music. I must recommend Boston and Stars and Boulevards.

Excellent start to my spring break. The last Quarter just whizzed by – the pace of things has been crazy!