Note: This write-up is not to bring anyone down or hurt any particular nationality or people.
I was raised in an
environment where our father used to reach everywhere (and most of time with
all of us) much before time. So much so that many occasions there was not a single
person in the wedding function where we reached at 8 PM (the time specified on
the wedding invitation). While many others were irritated by this habit of my
father but somehow it got into my genes and I started following it fully.
In last 10-12 years I had a
chance to interact with more than 40 nationalities; including India. These include
people from different walk of life:
- Ministers
- Actors
- Educationists – Teachers/ School Leaders
- Corporate Leaders – CXOs and across levels; business owners
- Service providers – a carpenter to the large companies including airlines, food companies, online shopping companies, telecom etc
- Hyped professionals – trainers, preachers, experts etc
Its amazingly and very
shocking data to share how we Indians (in India or even outside India) – except
for very few – understand & implement the Value of time. I read somewhere
that as human – what you really have is time (that’s the only resource you
truly have).
While dealing with most of
the "hyped best" from the above list – no where I found that people valued your
time or for that matter time at all. No commitment is honored w.r.t TIME. School
leaders and teachers; CXOs; trainers/preachers who regularly talk to others
about Time – were never on time and did not meet without delay (there were few
exceptions whom you can count of fingers). Most of the children just follow what they observe and then grow with this quality and it goes on in a large nation like India. So we have to remind everyone for the timelines/ deadlines - its true for all level/strata/location of our people.
To share some examples
(without naming or shaming people) – I was with a friend who is CXO of a large
company and had a fixed meeting with someone. When the secretary came and
informed that person has come on time and it’s the time for the “fixed meeting”.
He told – “Let the person wait for some time – else he will feel we are jobless”.
And he actually made the person wait for 1 hour. This was a shock to me. But
soon I realized that the importance of time in India and for your designation
is “ how much you make others wait”. You recognize and appreciate those employees who sit late
in office.
In past I have left two of my senior level jobs as I found the HR
practices to be just in papers and Corporate Values were for employees (to pull them up)
rather than being displayed by the top management.
This has become part and
parcel of the life of Indians. The same people then preach about Time
management and Work-life balance and so many big concepts - Never walk the talk. So neither we are
productive nor we spend time with ourselves and family well. Everyone seems to be just busy and most of the time people "do not have any time for themselves - to think, contemplate and be at peace with themselves".
The experience in western
nations and few asian nations have been very different – where almost all the people from all the
walks of life are extremely cautious of their own time and your time. Truly
Time is seen as Money and very dear to their life. I was fortunate to meet a Minister of Education in a country and when he offered tea to me - and I said ok - he took me to the pantry where he and me both made our own tea.
Someone recently asked me why
I am always on-time or before time – with a smirk on his face. My answer is
very simple – this is how I am and I feel really sad when in another country a
comment is made “Indian Stretchable Time (IST)”. I respect time - first I do this for self – as I
don’t like to wait myself – so I do not make others wait. This is also how I
project my country with my actions or inactions to others :-)
I do not wish to claim that I
am great or very unique – as there are so many others doing this. But I wish to
highlight that time is really what you have and one day you will realize
that you do not have that too. So better act now than be sorry! Soon you will
find a lot of spare time for yourself. I am never too
busy – I keep remote of my-TIME in my hand (leveraging the time given by God to me).
Please Respect TIME as your time is limited on earth!
