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Whether through serendipity or through design, now that you have reached this far, I hope you take some time to look around and get to know each other a little better.
Since my birth in 1963, I have spent most of my childhood going from one mental hospital to another. No, not because I am a lunatic (back then they hadn't recognized that in me), but because my dad is a shrink (psychiatrist), and quite often we lived in or around the campus of psychiatric institutions. Endless dinner table discussions over the nature of man and related matters made me more curious, at least so I can hold my own at the dinner table. My sister, on the other hand swore she would have nothing to do with psychology and took to literature instead.
Franz Kafka once wrote a story of how a man changed into a cockroach. I have often felt the transition within me. In many ways I feel a kinship with cockroaches. Like roaches, I too live in the shadows and cracks between things. During my Ph.D., I lived between the cracks of Psychology and Critical Theory, between Personality Studies and Healthcare. In my current job, I live in between work and family, between Organizational Behaviour and Consumer Behaviour. From my vantage point, the world appears very different from the way it appears to most people. I prefer living in the shadows, venturing out at night. I enjoy exploring the refuse of human civilisation, whether they are people or ideas. I may not sound like much, but if humans do start a nuclear war, do you want to take a bet on who surives. Despite this, I am a pacifist and against any form of physical aggression. HEY!! WATCH WHERE YOU PUT THAT FOOT OF YOURS! LIVE AND LET LIVE…
Business Management
Among the various hats I wear, one involves teaching Business Management to Graduate Students. I have a bad habit of asking questions, and I couldnt help asking questions about business administration, either. I then found ways to classify my questions and I realized that there were three root questions under which I could place many of the other questions I have. The root questions are "WHAT" "HOW" and "WHY". I call them root questions because they are not really questions, but roots out of which questions can be framed. For example,
- What do I need to set up this business?
- What do my customers/competition say?
- What What kind of process is best suited for manufacturing this item?
OR
- How do I optimize my process?
- How do I reduce fixed costs in order to compete?
- How do I find out what my customers have to say?
The first set of questions refer to the facts about business and the second set, to the skills required. More and more, I find myself concerned with the third, the root "WHY". What are the WHY questions of business? Are they important? How does one answer them?
If you have enjoyed reading the stuff above, there is a small possibility that you may enjoy reading my "Random Thoughts" published now and then. Why dont you check out for yourself at http://mathaifenn.blogspot.com ?
Dr. Mathai Baker Fenn Ph.D.
The Talkshop, 1st Floor, 1st Main, Koramangala 8th Block, Bangalore 560095.
Mobile +91 9980051414, Email: m a t h a i @ f e n n . n e t