Anuradha Sridharan

One of the very significant years for me is coming to an end. 2011 is the year where I got a special promotion - from a wife to a mother. I'm so grateful to my daughter for giving me this honor. Her little smiles make the somewhat jerky pregnancy journey worth it. The first trimester brought in a lot of expected surprises, with severe nausea and evening sickness, making me hate the sight and smell of food. As a result, I lost considerable weight and was looking weak. But the decision to quit my full time busy job as a product manager turned out to be very helpful for me to recover from this weight loss. The ultrasound experiences were so memorable. I still remember the first scan when my daughter was just the size of a peanut. The radiologist showed me a blinking light which was the heartbeat. With subsequent scans, I saw her tiny hands and feet take shape. The second trimester was so relaxing and peaceful. I started enjoying the sunny afternoons when I had my apartment all to...

A few months ago, I came across an interesting article which highlighted the fact that our day-to-day activities can be categorized into three buckets: we create something we consume information  we connect with others These three categories need to be balanced in order to feel productive and happy. While I was working, this balance was somewhat intact. But in the past few months, I have been noticing that this balance has gone haywire for me. The "consume" part has consumed most of my available time. The available time for myself has gone down considerably ever since my daughter arrived. Not that I'm complaining. Motherhood has been a delightful experience and is teaching me a lot which I was totally unaware of. The limited time which I get is spent on reading different articles which people share in my social (twitter, facebook, linkedin) world and the numerous RSS feeds to which I have subscribed in Google reader. These articles and blogs give me many p...

I came across an interesting article a few months back on the difficulties that startups face in hiring good developers. I think " retaining " good developers is also equally important, given the scarcity and attractive offers from large organizations and other startups. I want to address the trivial-but-often-overlooked issues that make a lot of difference in the long run. These issues and suggestions will be applicable to startups with a defined business model and an established core team that is already into execution mode. The new developer should feel "at-home" right from the first day. HR/Admin in-charge should ensure the IT requirements are addressed before hand so the person has access to his desktop/laptop right from the moment he steps in.  A designated space should be made available based on the team members with whom the new hire is supposed to work with. "Sit where there is space" kind of an attitude by the hiring manager could be a turn-o...

I was reading this interesting article on overcoming procrastination. Though I don't procrastinate everything that comes my way, I do procrastinate tasks that are not urgent but important. Time plays a critical role in determining what I decide to do next. As a result, my urgent tasks get processed fine while the important ones get piled up. This article talks about a few important points to overcome procrastination such as 1) Break the project into smaller concrete tasks 2) Treat deadlines as windows of opportunity 3) Create accountability and be committed But the aha moment occurred to me while reading the final point - "Work on the project a little bit each day". The linked article talks about subconscious information processing. "once your brain starts working on a problem, it doesn't stop. If you get your mind wrapped around a problem with a fair bit of time left to solve it, the brain will solve the problem subconsciously over time" How true this sta...

A huge craving for aapams on a Saturday evening took me and hubby to South Indies in Indiranagar. We used to like the aapams in Coconut Grove but the Koramangala branch has moved to a new location and we were in no mood to go searching for it. South Indies has an interesting culmination of cuisines from the four Southern States of India. We perused through the menu and couldn't really decide what to order along with the aapams. The waiter came over and asked us if we preferred a light or heavy dinner. We were hungry and told him that we would prefer a medium dinner. He suggested us to go for a "set meal" which was a fixed four course menu. It was a good option since we got to try many dishes. First, our appetite was teased by a plate full of fryums (vathals in Tamil) with three different chutneys - coconut, mint and tomato. It's a herculean task to stop eating them and wait for the actual meal. The soup was green apple pepper soup which was just too spicy for our ta...

The last few weeks have been a huge change from my usual routine. There were periods of complete relaxation, exciting new experiences, anxious moments, emotional ups and downs. Thankfully, the World Cup cricket provided the much needed distraction. Now that the world cup is over, the mixed bag of emotions were back. I thought to myself "What should I do to come out of this shell?". I decided to take it step by step. Cleaning always gives me a sense of direction to begin with in such situations (no wonder, I can easily relate to Monica of FRIENDS). My desk was cluttered with so much junk with just enough space for my tiny netbook. For over a month, this cluttered space was a hindrance to my productivity. I didn't have the energy or the inclination to set it straight. I knew deep down that this was only a temporary phase. The jinx was broken a few days back. I decided to clear out the working space and throw away the non-writing pens, highlighters and papers. I cleared ou...

The title of this book piqued my interest - "The leader who had no title" . Having liked Robin Sharma's "The monk who sold his Ferrari", I picked up this book sometime last year. After reading around 30 odd pages, I wasn't eager to continue simply because of the similar plotline to begin with - A guy who is down and out meets someone who has really made a difference to his career and life. A different start would have made this book much more gripping. I have this reputation of being a good finisher. I can't leave unfinished books behind. I don't know if it's a good attribute to have or not. But I decided to give this book one more try. After crossing the initial hurdle, I should say that this book is one of the simplest books on leadership. The protagonist Blake meets Tommy who in turn takes him to four unique leaders - a housekeeper of a hotel, a skier, a gardener and a massage therapist. Leadership can be exhibited by anyone, not just by p...

உருவ கண்ணாடியை விட்டு விட்டு  உன் உள்ள கண்ணாடியை உற்று  நோக்கு உலகக் கண்ணாடியில் உன் முகம்  தெளிவாகத்தெரிய உழைத்திடு  

வேண்டுதலுக்காக முடிந்து வைத்த சில்லறை இன்று கள்ளுக்கடையின் முருகன் படத்தின் மேல் மாலையாய்