But these are just props to help him stay the cheerful, positive-minded person that he is. At then end of the day, when Khan looks at the negative parts of his life, he takes a breath and blows optimism into his open palm because he knows that this too shall pass.
-By Kanika Goswami
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Communication. It goes beyond boundaries, it bridges differences and it helps beat stress.
For Tamal Chakravorty, CIO of Ericsson India, communication is a weapon that can conquer stress. This is a lesson he learnt early in his career, while he worked with Cargill India. One of the group's companies, Cargill Seeds, he recalls, was being sold to Monsanto, a biotechnology company. "With the exchanges between the CEO and I over the sale of assets, it was an extremely stressful time. I felt I had done a fantastic job evaluating the company's assets and negotiating with Monsanto for a sell-off. But the CEO felt that we may have over-absorbed costs. That's when I realized that communication, and more communication is the only way to beat stress that may hit you later," he recalls.
That gave birth to his methodology of handling stress: a four-step self-communication mechanism. "Whenever a stressful situation presents itself, I ask myself four questions:
- What is the task that is creating this stress?
- How long will this task last?
- Do I have enough ammunition to handle this stressful task?
- How important is this task in my career building process?
"This methodology usually works for me," he says. Armed with answers, he proceeds with the task at hand. But what takes Chakravorty's battle with stress out of the ordinary is his love for football. He started the 'Delhi Merchant's Cup' a football tournament for corporates in Delhi. He has initiated soccer and cricket tournaments at every corporate he has worked for. It doesn't end there - he also takes to the field.
After all, they don't just say 'all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy'.
-By Kanika Goswami
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