Things to Remember When Heading for a Meeting


A meeting provides a platform to portray one’s prowess and talent.
However, your pet peeve to overlook certain aspects may just flounder your career. The aim of this article is to help you negotiate with certain blunders that could leave you abashed.




Switch off cell phone

This is the most common mistake which can neutralize your reputation and it is essential to pay heed to this issue. If the phone rings in between the meeting then your professionalism becomes questionable. The last thing you would want is to draw unreasonable attention and appear to be penitent about it. It would be best to eitherswitch off the cell phone or keep it in silent mode while entering the meeting.



Documents and Laptop



As the maxim goes, “It is better to safe that be sorry”. When one volunteers for such meeting then it is pivotal to be prepared for them. Thus, you must make sure that all the pertinent presentations and documents are at the desktop. You should also not squander time fishing information. If the way of working proves to be sloppy, you might miss out on a possible promotion.



Sleep Well the night before

The above statement may be a hyperbole, but one cannot discount the fact that turning up late for a meeting is suicidal. It will relegate all your efforts. All your praiseworthy work will be taken with a pinch of salt. So it is critical to leave home well in advance to avoid the tag of a latecomer.



Be a good Listener

 This is one of the most overlooked aspects of a meeting. You must acknowledge that no matter how intelligent you may be, if you speak out of turn or remonstrate without any justifiable cause, then your career may be heading in the wrong direction. It is vital to realize that, in an effort to prove the point you cannot be invective or condescending. A notepad to pen down the Minutes of the Meeting (MOM) is recommended. This will help in perceiving the main agenda of the meeting.


Be Assertive

Last but not the least, it is critical to leave a mark of oneself in the meeting. The objective of the meeting is to reach a resolution. You need to be assertive to make your presence count. You simply cannot afford to be diffident at such a crucial platform. You need to make the most out of the meeting as it would help determine your future role with the company.

5 Secrets to Become a Great Leader

Each of us has an inherent liking for leaders. People who exhibit authority and charisma and lead others often engage our attention.

If you too crave to be a leader at your office or develop better leadership skills, the following information can be really useful:

Communicate with Transparency

Communication is the biggest tool that you can use to turn into an effective leader. Being a leader doesn’t mean being born with extraordinary skills. A leader too needs to commit mistakes, pay his dues and learn along the way. If you are open to honest conversations, including giving & receiving feedback, you qualify as an upfront and capable individual—an impressive trait that would make people trust you with responsibility. Many employees complain about their team leaders or managers not being sensitive to their problems. Even worse are instances when managers seem aloof and unapproachable. These are all examples of leaders who have poor communication skills.

Be Proud Not Egoistic

Leaders need to have a commanding aura, clearly establishing that they are in control. Having self-confidence and some degree of pride are associated with most leaders. However, this blend of qualities shouldn’t include ego. When a person becomes egoistic, his leadership starts oscillating between arrogance and being smug with authority. None of these traits are liked by people. If you truly want to become a leader, you need to gain a bigger understanding on issues. This means looking at things from somebody else’s perspective too but an egoistic person is incapable of doing so. A proud leader can still maintain an open mind and gain advice from others. An egoistic leader is prone to distancing himself from his well-wishers as he cannot digest the smallest bit of ridicule. Once a person loses that vital vibe of understanding with his inner circle of confidantes, his leadership becomes short-lived.

Lead by Setting Examples

People often question how to establish authority and ensure that people look up to you. Perhaps, the easiest way of doing so is leading by example. This is the easiest form of leadership since an active and capable leader doesn’t need to explain much. His actions alone prove his credibility. Consider the example of a king leading his men in the battlefield, riding at the front. Tactically, hundreds of soldiers converge upon the enemy, in front of the king, when war is declared. However, the mere presence of the king riding with the pack and leading it, establishes his valor to his subjects. It instantly snubs any challenge to his influence.

Appreciate & Reward

People entrusted with leadership positions often forget to encourage their team members. The biggest way of boosting tempo of an employee/team member is to appreciate his or her efforts. Appreciation in person can work wonders to uplift an employee or the entire team. It is the biggest psychological stimulus a person needs to continue working hard. If along with appreciation, you can combine some sort of reward, no matter how small, the appreciation is further driven home. Management gurus often quote the examples of iron-fisted leaders who put forth incredibly-high incentives. This ensures that a team member has the biggest motivation to accept the hierarchy and work better, i.e. money.

Don’t Ridicule but Rectify

This might be slightly confusing but there is a huge difference between correcting somebody and ridiculing. Many times, we combine the two and believe that pointing out a mistake invariably includes some degree of ridicule. However, correcting someone without being animatedly angry, making defamatory remarks or hurting sentiments constitutes Rectification. This establishes you as a patient and effective leader ready to invest time and effort in your team.

Things To Keep In Mind While Naming Your Company

First of all, congratulations on wriggling out of the rat race and having the courage to start your own company.

Now that you’ve decided what business you want to get into, naming your business appropriately is equally important. It is not JUST a name. It is much more than that. It is going to be with you forever. It represents you and the product or service you wish to offer. I was recently chatting with a friend who started his digital marketing firm last December. When I asked him about how he arrived at the name for his company, he said, “We spent week after weeks deciding on a name that will make us stand out. There came a point where we grew so frustrated, we stuck to the first name that we could come up with. After all, the kind of work we do matters more than the name, right?”

While this thought process holds merit to a certain extent, it is not necessarily the right approach. Some serious thought has to be put into naming your company.

How to come up with a name

Decide what you want your company name to say. It could represent the product or service offering, or could speak of your core competency. For example: Xerox, or LIC, or The Dollarama (the dollar store in Canada). Make sure the name is clear and concise. It shouldn’t confuse your customers. You don’t want to name a company selling artificial grass, “Grass”, which could be misconstrued as Marijuana. Be creative, but don’t be eccentric. You want your company to be meaningful and convey exactly what it is about. A perfect example would be Kentucky Fried Chicken – the company sells friend chicken.


It should sound right

Just because you’ve opened a restaurant serving Vietnamese food, you can’t call your restaurant “Món ăn Việt Nam tuyệt vời nhất”, because you think you serve the most awesome Vietnamese food. Make sure it sounds right and is easy to pronounce. It’s like those really intelligent, creative ads on TV, where people remember the ad and the characters, but cannot recall the brand that was being advertised for. Bounce the name off of a few people and get their opinions. You don’t want people to say, Well the food at that restaurant is brilliant but I can’t for the life of me recall the name. Don’t get too flowery or too exotic with the name. Although coined brand names like Google, Kodak, Mercedes, Yahoo, or even Hotmail have done tremendously well for themselves. See if you can come up with a cool name like some of these companies did


Will it hamper when you expand

You don’t want a restrictive name that hampers your company when you’re looking to expand. When you’re deciding upon a name, think of both the present and the future. Think of all the possible verticals, products, or regions you might expand into. Tata is a great brand name. They can pretty much attach it to any business area they wish to enter: Tata Steel, Tata Salt, Tata Consultancy. But supposing they had named it Tata Steel to begin with, they might have looked something like this today: Tata Steel and Salt and Consultancy. Just an example.

Cashing in on a hot trend

Trends or fads are like a passing train. One goes and another comes. It is highly risky to name your company based on a current trend. When the millennium fever had taken over, lot of people got car number plates with 2000, or used the number in other ways. A year later, it looked stupid and irrelevant. You want your company name to last forever. A good example would be, Löwenbräu, German for "lion's brew," which is considered to be one of the world's oldest brand names. The first beer was brewed by the proprietor of Lion's Inn, in 1383.

Research

OK, so you have come up with the most ingenious name ever. But before splashing it everywhere, make sure you do a thorough research. You don’t want to be spending months coming up with a name and then finding out that there’s a porn company by the same name. Google is a good place to start. Also check if a domain name is available to go with your company’s name. One other important thing to consider, if you’re planning to expand to overseas markets, is that the name shouldn’t mean something completely different in the local lingo. For example, when a hotel owner was looking for names for his newly-opened Thai restaurant, he came up with a Thai phrase that he thought meant, "Welcome and see you again", but in truth it meant, “Go Away and Don't Come Back".

So there you have it. Now that you have named your company, go and make some money.

Top 10 Non-corporate Jobs that Pay Well

For most people there is nothing more satisfying than climbing up the corporate ladder.
However, for many others, a 9 to 5 job paints a weary picture of a world filled with boredom. This lot is the type that would go to great lengths to get personally and creatively satisfying jobs that do not adhere to the norms of a typical desk job. Non-corporate jobs fit the bill as they do not serve the regular dose of work limited to a cubicle. While corporate jobs do guarantee some big bucks, there are some jobs outside 'corporate' logo that match up to them in terms of the money.
Listed below are the top 10 non-corporate jobs that pay you well enough.


10. Army Officer

Its a proven fact that women love men in uniform. Apart from that, serving the army is a great opportunity to put your love for the nation to use. Along with the good enough pay packet, the job adds a great deal of dignity to one's personality. An Army officer is always looked up to with respect. For some, there is nothing that gives a greater high than being the upholder of the faith of an entire nation, and if you are one of those, you should join the Army.
Once you've graduated to being a Captain or a Major, you can earn between Rs. 40k to 60k which will go up as you climb the rankings.
Eligibility: Clearance of defense exams like the NDA and a physically sound body.


9. Freelance Writer

As a writer, it becomes majorly difficult to adhere to the strict norms with respect to the content creation. The independence that a writer seeks is offered only by a handful of organizations. The best way to keep yourself and your content free from the shackles of the corporate setting, is to become a freelance writer. After all, freedom is the key to creative thinking.

A professional freelancer with a good reputation can easily earn up to Rs. 70,000 a month

8. Teacher

 Any person who derives joy out of sharing knowledge is bound to make a great teacher. It is considered to be one of the most respectable professions and you can even fondly teach your way till old age, which is not quite possible in modelling. The importance of a teacher is crucial to our society and this importance is well recognized today.
An experienced high school teacher, in India, earns up to Rs. 80,000 per month.


7. Photographer

For most people, photography is a hobby in which they indulge in their free time. For some others, getting behind the lens is a passion. If you are one of those few, just go ahead and make a profession out of that passion. Most photographers start as amateur and it is their constant zeal for clicking amazing pictures that takes them to the top. In case you wish to learn the technical aspects of photography, you can take up a short-term or a long-term course in it.

A good professional photographer earns Rs. 60,000 and above each month.

6. Doctor

There's a valid reason why parents in India, and all over the world, want their children to become doctors. It is because it is one of the most reliable and well paying jobs. Being a doctor, also seems to attract parents of girls who would be more than willing to give away their daughter to you in marriage. Thus being a doctor not only ensures a fat pocket, but also your shot at impressing girls (and their parents of course).
A doctor can easily earn between Rs. 1.5 to 2 lakhs.


5. Model

If being in the spotlight is all you desire then you are cut out to be a model. A world of glitz and glamour, modelling is already one of the most sought after professions in the country amongst the youth. Though being in this profession has a lot of struggle involved in the beginning, nothing can stop you once you hit the target. Fame and money will follow your way once you get your act right.

4. Pilot

There is something about pilots that makes women go weak in their knees. Whether it is the crisp uniform, the unmissable charm or the fat paychecks, the life of a pilot is always up in the air. Meanwhile, there is also the exhilarating feeling of being the person in command of the mean flying machine. While this high-flying life may give you a thrill in the beginning, the stress of traveling all the time might prove to be a spoiler.

In commercial airlines, a pilot's salary starts from a lakh and can go up to Rs. 5-7 lakhs with experience.

3. Chef

While the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, the way to success is through his own two hands. Not too many people are aware about how well paying this job is. If you're someone who loves creating new recipes, it's time you take your personal kitchen secrets out for the whole world to see and taste. The chef is responsible not only for churning out great dishes but also for planning the menu, getting the required foodstuff and managing the kitchen staff. However, the most essential quality in a chef should be a divine love for food.

The average salary of an executive chef in the country starts from Rs. 2 lakhs and can go up to Rs. 20 lakhs.

2. Fashion designer

 Fashion designing is also quite a lucrative profession, on the lines of modelling, and can be quite an exciting journey once you've made your mark. The Indian fashion industry is booming and is open for anyone who is creative, talented and hard working. While the beginning in the fashion world can be a tough one, there is the possibility of having the world at your feet once you've established yourself as a designer of class and repute.
Once you've become a known player in the fashion scene, you can command anything in the world.


1. Build Your Own Start-up

At the end of the day, there can be nothing more rewarding and satisfying than owning your own company. The process of building a company from scratch can be a humbling experience while watching it move towards prosperity would be an equally proud moment. If you find yourself scared of taking the big plunge, think of those leaders who started their vast empires exactly from where you're planning to start it. Sure, there will be failures at some points but you should be able to rise from them and turn a brand new leaf towards success each time.

Importance of Teamwork at Workplace

One of the most commonly-used jargons in the management world describes the word “TEAM” as an acronym where T represents Together,
E stands for Everyone, A signifies Achieves and M indicates More. This just underlines that businesses realize that though individual performances can lead to sharp spikes in their growth, it is teamwork and a healthy work environment that can sustain a progressive, sky-facing trajectory of growth. This isn't surprising since most of us realize that Teamwork or working together in a cohesive manner raises our individual and the organizational performance. The following are some of the most established and sometimes-ignored benefits associated with teamwork at a workplace:


Teamwork Helps in Uniting Employees


Functioning in unison to pursue a common goal is what team members abide by once they understand how to work in a team. This kind of working atmosphere brings together employees in the most fruitful manner. Despite their differences, egos and even dislike for a team member, they are forced into situations where trusting and working with others cannot be avoided. This acts as the most efficient form of team bonding. No management seminars or formal training can put employees at ease with each other like teamwork. There are many employees who are not familiar with the concept of working in harmony with others. For such folks, the presence of team members they can depend upon and the collective spirit of working together acts as a motivation to modify their approach towards work and become more cooperative.

Teamwork Raises Overall Quality of Output


Working in a team has its most transparent advantages in the form of people being able to complete assignment faster. The issue of being unable to meet deadlines is diluted once teams at workplace start performing like a well-oiled machine. Once a proper team structure is established, delegation of work, conducting quality checks, getting accurate updates and accomplishing more volumes on a daily basis is easily accomplished. Since work-related tensions are shared, responsibilities are not shrugged-off and there is lesser insecurity about being honest with one’s performance. As a result, the overall quality & speed of work tend to gallop ahead.


Teamwork Helps Employees Share Workload


A team which ensures that the workload is shared equally across its members is perhaps the best example of Teamwork being actually put to use. Office work usually means targets and deadlines. Owing to personal or professional causes, everybody tends to get side-tracked at some point. This is when the utility of teamwork becomes more apparent. The team is ready to share the burden of the team member. Once work is smartly distributed, all the team members realize that doing it competently is the team’s goal. Helping-out a team member is just one instance where teamwork helps to share the workload. There are many other workplace situations when sharing responsibilities and delegating duties helps to get things done quickly and satisfactorily.


Teamwork Contributes Towards Creating Workplace Synergy


Workplace Synergy is discussed a lot by business managers and CEOs but it seems that not even a fraction of organizations are actually able to achieve it. The challenge is often misunderstood where people assume that by removing constraints in performing more effectively and making the organizational communication transparent, synergy can be established. On the contrary, synergy at the organizational level can be achieved only when a simplistic way of work is combined with a happier workplace environment. Once the work distribution, execution and reporting structure is leaner and the hierarchical roadblocks are removed, people feel less challenged at their work. This is when employees can contribute beyond their defined role. This is when the concept of a ‘happy employee’ becomes more realistic. These objectives can be achieved by creating smaller, effective teams rather than investing in individualistic employees.

Teamwork Infuses Competitiveness without Negativity


With effective teamwork, the risk of failure or committing mistakes is shared across a greater pool of people. This doesn’t mean that people become lax in their outlook. Instead, it infuses a sense of healthier competition among the team members. Since, all team members are collectively responsible, their attention is shifted towards doing work in a more impressive manner. The decreased threat of blame helps to shift their energy towards creative pursuits at work, stimulates their ability to think outside the box and gives them the incentive to take upon self-improvement endeavors.
There are many other advantages associated with teamwork such as helping employees gaining a sense of belonging, teaching employees about collective accountability and helping employees become more accommodating towards constructive criticism. However, it takes time to weave and establish a pattern of efficient teamwork and thus, organizations should accept it as an inherent, achievable aspect of their work culture and not a philosophical goal.

7 Signs that You are Over-Working

There are times in life when our aspirations tend to transcend the limits of the body.
Such a high degree of dedication often comes at the expense of overworking. Thus, If you are experiencing any of the below mentioned issues then are bargaining with your life. Here are 7 signs that might be overworking.

Ignoring the family


You must confess that irrespective of what position you are working in, the objective is to make a handsome living for the family. Thus, it is vital that you must not refrain from participating in family issues in a bid to excel in career. If you fail to spend ample of time with the family; over working is the main reason for it. You should look out for the following symptoms too:
1. Avoiding shopping/movies.
2. Not being able to help the kids for Homework.
3. Romance is elusive in your life.
4. Not anchoring for responsibilities.

Excessive smoking and drinking


“Smoking a cigarette will make you regret”. This may be a mere platitude, but if an inclination towards smoking and drinking is increasing manifold in order to de-stress yourself then it may not be a wise decision. It is gratuitous to ignore your health to make a dream career. Your health must hold paramount importance. Any lapses in this department may prove to be catastrophic.
Sleep Deprivation
This is the most common sign of over-working. If you happen to be excessively stressed, then insomnia is inevitable. At times, sleep deprivation can lead to a nervous breakdown. Such an issue is of grave concern, which can hold your burgeoning career hostage. It is best to avoid such circumstances where one has to take a capsule to put the mind and soul to rest.

Prolonged sickness


If you happen to suffer from lasting body ache or perennial cold, then there are chances that you are going overboard with your work. This can create carnage in your healthy life. By going on a vacation, you can rejuvenate and replenish your body.


Committing silly mistakes


One often tends to become negligent in other areas of life when he becomes too serious in work. It is critical not to capitulate under such circumstances as they can prove to be costly. Do not let work govern your moves in life. This will cause one too many faux pas.

Getting Angry and frustrated

If you're getting petulant and irascible, it could be due to the heavy work load. It is essential to keep yourself free from any work trauma as this creates a lot of friction with other members in the family. It can fetter the relationships in the long run.

Copious caffeine intake

If you're drinking close to about a dozen cups of coffee or red bull, then it is high time you start hitting the Gym. The body cannot afford such an addiction as it reduces sleep and causes insomnia.

Star Siblings who made it big in Bollywood

There are very few sibling duos in Bollywood who have achieved equal amount of success. The usually seen norm is that one amongst the two is the more successful one. The less successful one has to remain content with being so and so’s sister/brother. With the swarm of star siblings making a foray in the tinsel town, let’s see who have already made a name for themselves.

 1. Karisma & Kareena Kapoor

This pair is the only one that defies the fact stated earlier. Both of these actresses have been equally successful. While Karisma now is married and has a family, she was one of the biggest actresses of her time and is even making a come-back with the movie called 'Dangerous Ishq'. And we all know how successful Kareena Kapoor is or has become, given the exorbitant fee she charges for her films. The elder Kapoor sister has to face many hurdles to launch her career in bollywood while the younger got her way easily. None the less both have proved their mettle in acting without letting their common profession turn their sisterhood sour.

 Farhan & Zoya Akhtar

This sibling duo is the most versatile one. Farhan has already shown his multi-talented personality in terms of acting, singing, writing, direction etc. ('Rock On', 'Dil Chahta Hai', 'Don'). And his little sister has also followed in his footsteps and has dabbled successfully in direction & script-writing ('Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara' & 'Talaash' respectively). This is one sis-bro duo who don many a hats successfully

 Farah & Sajid Khan
This choreographer turned director & host turned director duo are known for their over the top, total filmy & boisterous films. Though Farah has managed to make better & far more successful films than Sajid ('Om Shanti Om', 'Main Hoon Na'), he still has managed to find his calling with masala films like 'Housefull' & 'Heyy Babyy'.

 Lata Mangeshkar & Asha Bhonsle
This sister pair has changed the bollywood music industry as people knew it. Both are extremely successful in their own styles of singing and have a huge fan following. While Lata is known for her sweet & melodious voice, the younger sister Asha has more modern & contemporary appeal.

 Saif & Soha Ali Khan

These are the royal siblings with Saif as the elder brother. He took a little while to make a mark in the film industry but now he is amongst the hot property in bollywood thanks to filma like 'Kal Ho Na Ho' & 'Omkara'. And he has even turned producer now though he hasn’t tasted much success in his latest avatar. Soha came late in bollywood but given her unconventional looks, she took a few offbeat roles. She has some good roles to her credit like 'Rang De Basanti', and though it might take some more time to call her a star, it is a known fact that she is a great performer and will get her due sooner or later.

Sunny & Bobby Deol

This jaat duo is sired by none other than the famous yesteryear star, Dharmendra. Sunny made his debut with successful action movies and has been appreciated for his raw action in films like 'Gadar', 'Ghayal'. He has been away from the limelight for quite a while after some of his last series of flops, but is now returning with 'Ghayal' remake and we can only wish him all the best for his second homecoming. Bobby on the other hand, made a very successful debut with 'Barsaat' and had a number of hit movies to his credit during his heydays.l

 Salman, Arbaaz & Sohail Khan

Salman is no doubt the biggest star amongst the three and also in the industry. He has been immensely successful throughout his career and has always been in the news if not because of his movies then due to his alleged controversial affairs. Arbaaz & Sohail haven’t enjoyed the same status but if we know one thing about Salman, it’s his helpful nature. And he has done the same with his 2 brothers too. Arbaaz has forayed into production with 'Dabangg' and Sohail with 'Ready' (both became blockbusters). We can safely say that all three brothers have tasted success in Bollywood.

Sadly, the sibling of an already successful actor/actress isn’t able to achieve the same heights as the former did. Maybe because people see them as the shadow of their sibling and that doesn’t allow them to make a mark for themselves. Well, all we can do is hope that there come some equally talented siblings of successful stars so that we realize that this is nothing but a myth.

From a different view point

We normally bring you pictures of celebs facing the camera - now we bring you another perspective.

New mom Lara Dutta stepped out in style. She wore a backless maxi to the release of prenatal yoga DVD recently.

Can you guess who this Bollywood A Lister is? We spotted her recently at an event. If you cannot identify her click to the next slide

Katrina Kaif wore a backless dress too - for the launch of a jewellery line.

This one is a bit old, taken in 2004. Can you guess who the one in the middle is?

What Ash wore to Cannes in 2004, is still considered on of the most revealing dresses she has ever worn on the red carpet. It may take her a long time to get back to this shape, but well, it remains in our minds.

It is Aishwaray from 2004 Cannes Film festival red carper along with Actors Gong Li and Laetitia Casta

 Now, this picture is one which was shared by many.

Rihanna flaunted her well toned body at the Battleship premire.

We hear that she has signed up for the sixth edition of Fast and Furious. Will she take the oomph level higher ? We wait.

Freida Pinto in a backless dress from an event.

Asin looked a typical Kerala beauty - and just see how perfectly she has draped the traditional sari.

Walking the red carpet is an art - and so is facing the camera. Here's how Deepika has scored brownie points.

Kangna looks perfect - and her new hairdo does justice to the tattoo she has on her nape.

Kareena and Saif came hand in hand for the party. And the camera just could not pan away from Bebo as she passed by. 

Controversial star Mallika Sherawat strikes a pose.




Priyanka Chopra wore a gown at a recent do. But for the pleasant light colour - it was very much similar to a gown Frieda Pinto wore to the Doha film festival. Neither the camera nor us for that matter could take our attention off from this sexy lass as she passed by. And that smile had our pluses racing.  

This picture is not a new one - but it is one we just can't keep aside. The sisters have the poise, the elegance and the seductive charm - which makes them the queens before the camera.

Sushmita Sen looked tall and elegant in an off white saree - and if you look very very closely, you can spot one of her favourite tattoos on her back - and in case you are wondering what the tattoo is – it is a tiger cub

Vidya Balan looks prim and proper in this saree - but have you taken a look at her blouse?