When less is more...

AGKSPEAK

... and why patience should be practiced as a conscious virtue.

What I've Liked
Step into the High ranges in Kerala and the first thing that crosses your mind is a deep sense of compassion for those not fortunate enough to call this place their home. Fortunately, man's greed has not yet despoiled this exquisite canvas of nature "" a fact demonstrated in the advertising for Kerala Tourism.

Beautifully crafted, lyrical copy verging on the brink of poetry sketches out word pictures of a land that has to be seen to be believed "" I bear witness since I visit Kerala regularly for my Sabrimala pilgrimage between October and January every year.

The ad has just about a dozen lines but its sheer eloquence captures an entire world of beauty "" saying much by saying little. It has been complemented by careful art direction that does full justice to the task at hand "" it must not have been easy trying to art direct nature's art direction!

But yet it has been done with imagination and reverence for a landscape that truly surpasses description. Together, both art and copy weave a magical tale of a fairytale paradise waiting to delight the nature-deprived city-dweller.

There is no question that the advertising has done its job. Now one can only pray that the tourists flocking southward would be overwhelmed by this majestic cathedral to beauty and abstain from desecrating it with their usual trail of neon junk food wrappers, soda cans and raucous music "" the inevitable fall-out of every successful tourism campaign.

Central Bank of India's ad is another one that I must talk about. It was an extremely good thought begging to be artfully crafted. The headline reads, "We are No. 2 because you are No.1."

Yes, I do know it sounds a trifle awkward but when you think about how Bernbach crafted a similar sounding thought for Avis with his legendary "We are No.2, so we try harder", you'll know what I'm talking about. Just goes to show that a diamond will remain a pebble unless it finds a master cutter with extraordinary skill.

What I've Learned
Patience pays
This is a lesson I learned from one of my colleagues Ramanujam Sridhar, Mudra South (through the late '80s and early '90s). One of the most unflappable people I've known, he possessed the uncanny knack of keeping his cool whatever the provocation was, or as today's generation phrases it "" he rarely got "hyper" about anything at all. It was a trait I admired, considering I used to have a notoriously short fuse. I insist on using the past tense here, because I am told that I have mellowed down considerably!

One of the little strategies that Sridhar employed was that he never responded immediately to anything. He would hear the other person out patiently and then enquire if he could get back to them the next day. There are two major advantages with this approach. First, he never flew off the handle however strong the provocation was, thus denying the other person the satisfaction of having unsettled him.

Second, and more importantly, was that by taking some time off he was able to view the whole situation from a more balanced perspective. Distancing oneself from the heat of the moment helps phenomenally in clarity of thought, whereas an instant reaction could unnecessarily close a few doors for one. Conversely, jumping excitedly to a proposition without giving it adequate thought could land one in hot water.

Patience is a trait some people are born with, but for those of us who are less fortunate it would be a good idea to consciously adopt it as practice.

Slowing down your response time is definitely a starting point. It gives the impression of studied thoughtfulness, even though internally you could be a riot of reactions! The pay-off for a patient response is that it builds your own confidence, decisiveness and gives you a rational outlook, that eventually leads to success. Level-headedness prepares candidates for future leadership roles. People look at such people for solutions to stressful situations.

The good news for the born impatient is that patience can be achieved through practice. Try it and watch your world slowly transforming into a more bearable place!

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