Culture is the way a gathering of individuals does things together. It alludes to the mutual language, values, conventions, standards, customs, expressions, history, or foundations of a gathering of individuals. It is the standard convictions, social structures, and material attributes of a racial, strict, or social gathering.It is characterized as a unique procedure of encircling suspicions, information, and implications from another person’s experience which is not quite the same as our own and looks past “culture as ethnicity” to investigate the complexities of individual social perspective

Importance of Cultural Competence today!

Globalization has revolutionized societies around the world. Immigration has bought colossal changes and led to inclusions of diversity making culturally congruent an imperative obligation in an increasingly diverse environment with culturally diverse populations around the world. It is important to be culturally competent in an organization so that we can acquire much deeper self-knowledge and understand the basis for our own beliefs, actions, and responses toward others and we live in a world in which it helps acknowledge and respect a client’s beliefs to amplify the positive outcomes.

Why now?

A myriad of cultures are disparate and unique and by understanding the cultural genesis of our own and other's behaviours, and by remaining open to the idea that other people’s cultures guide them in the same way that ours guides us, we as humans will have a better chance of interacting positively with, and appropriately serving, people of varying cultural backgrounds. It allows us to analyze one’s own beliefs and be educated about the varying viewpoints. Such understandings are particularly important because cultural perspectives and beliefs profoundly affect us all.

Conclusion

Cultural Competence allows us to analyze one’s own beliefs and that of others and be educated about the varying viewpoints. Such understandings are particularly important because cultural perspectives and beliefs profoundly affect all aspects of people’s behaviour. It helps promotes inclusion and equality and make others feel secure and equal as their own customs and beliefs are included in mainstream practice hence making the business culturally competent.

Cultural competence is characterized as a unique procedure of encircling suspicions, information, and implications from another person’s experience which is not quite the same as our own and looks…

personaldevelopment

Personal Development

corporateculture

Corporate Culture

health

Health

communication

Communication

teamwork

Teamwork

Importance of Cultural Competence in Workplace…

The after-hours unwanted struggles of a salaried employee in 21 Century.Every one of us has received that one annoying email on a day off that we dreaded opening. With the advent of technology and the transition of our workplace from brick and mortar structure to that little corner in our house, there is no clear defining line where work ends. For a long time, many have let those after-hours communications slide but major changes are coming to ensure the grunts of your boss don’t reach your home, well at least not after hours.

Is there a Right to Disconnect?

All around the world, disgruntled employees have made it very clear that they do not wish to receive any work-related communication post-work. Governments are trying to table laws to please the common populace while employers have already either started falling in line or are working around the clock to circumvent the proposed changes by using diverse interpretations of the legal words.How does it concern you?If you are an employee and your workplace values you and your mental wellbeing, they should already have a written policy. Even if you are an employer then the reasons are same.

What's happening?

The new laws/policies, commonly referred to as the Right to Disconnect are been drafted but their implementation has been largely limited to countries in the European Union and a few South American nations. In some countries, especially in Europe, the right to disconnect is somehow incorporated into the law, but it may also be included in the policies of many large corporations. Many countries have tabled and passed bills of similar nature like Chile, Peru, and Canada (Ontario’s Bill 27), whereas others are struggling to pass the draft beyond the committee levels like the City of New York.

What’s happening across the globe?

<ul><li>If companies cannot negotiate an agreement with employees on the use of information and communications technology, they are required to adopt an employer-created “charter”.</li><li>It is not made with the new Hybrid & WFH (work from home) routines and is centred around the traditional workday.</li><li>It can not be applied feasibly to sectors where a routine workday can not be defined like healthcare workers.</li><li>These policies may make employers take a strict line with employees forcing them to take time off to attend to personal matters during work hours and work later without overtime pay.</li></ul>

What is not clear:

<ul><li>The act of contacting an employee in case of emergency can not accurately be defined as to what is considered an emergency and under what context would it be compensated.</li></ul>While the laws are surely a step in the right direction and aspirational, it doesn’t clearly differentiate between different job types, and sectors. It is open to interpretation and the possibility of future amendments. Further research on this ever-changing job market is required to implement future amends and provide employees with a healthy balance so they can exercise their right to rest, and privacy.

What's Not Clear:

The after-hours unwanted struggles of a salaried employee in 21 Century.

Every one of us has received that one annoying email on a day off that we dreaded opening. With the advent of technology and the transition of our workplace from brick and mortar structure to that…

remotework

Remote Work

career

Career

timemanagement

Time Management

Kurukshetra is not only a place in India, there is one in all of us today.The Bhagavad-Gita is considered by eastern and western researchers the same to be among the best otherworldly books the world has at any point known. In a lucid manner, the Supreme Lord Krishna depicts the study of self-acknowledgment and the specific interaction by which an individual can build up their unceasing relationship with God. As far as unadulterated, otherworldly information the Bhagavad-Gita is exceptional. Its characteristic magnificence is that its information applies to everyone, everywhere.

A Guru of Gurus:

The Chaotic life with the signets of stress, workload, rumination of the fear of losing has fuelled the mad race we all run. In the run, we the runners have forgotten to stop and reflect on our blessings and losses, like the ones depicted in “Keeping Quiet” by Pablo Neruda. We have forgotten the true meaning of being alive, the constant cacophony of the financial gurus and their long sermons of life being a race for money has shadowed our social handles and life. All group discussions are money centric, but what about investing in Mental health and wellbeing? Well, that one is never discussed.

Relevance Today:

<ol><li>Do not act upon anything with the greed of outcome as your actions have far reaching consequences that you can’t predict like a ripple in a pond.</li><li>Desires are bound to come as all, feelings and thoughts are born out of mind which leads to attachment. Desire and anger are the greatest enemies of a person</li><li>Commit an action with goodwill and duty in foresight and you will attain what you desire</li><li>Reshape yourself through the force of your sheer will. Those who enjoy vanquishing themselves live in harmony, the same in glee and gloom, recognition and failure.</li><li>Time is a human construct, soul is beyond time.</li></ol>

A Summary to get you thinking:

<ol><li>An individual’s best friend and enemy is he, himself; so a man must put efforts to be better everyday, because he is his greatest competition.</li><li>Detachment from materialistic pursuits brings attachment to spiritual pursuits like water on a lotus leaf. Ignorance of the real purpose is the root cause of attachment and with wisdom one can master detachment.</li><li>Silence is an endorsement of an action. If you stay silent when an injustice is taking place before you, you are equally to blame.</li><li>Your life might be besotted with difficulties, but it’s yours to live. It’s better to live your own unperfect version</li></ol>

Major Takeaways

As per Krishna, this life is only a fantasy of those spirits that have appended themselves to bogus things, to home, to a spouse, to the body, to the delights and to everything that means duality. When the spirit liberates itself from all shackles of connections and repugnance's, it achieves extreme liberation (moksha). Bhagavad Gita is a philosophical composition of Krishna’s life. It is an equation to freedom, information and BLISS. As I often tell all my students “I can not help you feel, everyone needs to feel the Divine for themselves”

This article does not propagate religion in any way as Gita is a philosophical text, that centres around humanity and karma. Many of you might not have understood the subtitle, allow me to explain…

philosophy

Philosophy

religionandspirituality

Religion & Spirituality

Bhagavad Gita- A Spiritual Treat!!

We all are surrounded by monkeys bossing us around with their monkey chatter, going about their monkey business at the expense of our toils, but there is an age-old trick to master this miserable monkey-human relationship.

Give the monkey what it wants!

The monkey is anyone who holds authority, power and designation. This monkey is someone you need approval from, someone who is giving you a hard time. It could be your interviewer, asking you questions that pinch (e.g. that time gap on your résumé) or your examiner, who is asking you the questions no one studies, or worse your manager, poised like a snake, waiting for you to commit a mistake so that they get a legit reason to bite.Remember, any monkey that you meet and want to get by, has few attributes. To simplify, these monkeys that we encounter will usually be self-centred beings.

Who is the monkey?

The monkey has a fixed mindset, they like to have things done their way. Monkey See, Monkey Do. They learn to do things by mimicry and often do not know the reason and logic behind the act so, what if you start mimicking the monkey’s style and flair?The monkey may or may not possess any theoretical prowess but being so long out into the field, the monkey does have practical wisdom. This wisdom gained over the years is difficult to beat in a one-on-one confrontation and gives birth to certain biases and stereotypes inside the monkey’s head.

What does the monkey think?

Simple question, even simpler answer, say it with me- the monkey wants the BANANA. So, what is this BANANA?The Banana in this article is not the fruit, although it would be nice if we could get solutions to our life problems at 0.80C$/lb. The Banana is the key to getting past the monkey, you give the monkey what it wants and go on with your life without the monkey bothering you.

What does the monkey want?

In reality, every monkey you encounter is different, hence the same is true for the banana. The banana in every scenario changes according to the needs of the monkey. To identify the perfect banana you need to understand the trifactorial of the monkey i.e. NEEDS, WANTS AND DEMANDS.For example, for the interviewer, a need is a candidate, a want is a candidate with desired credentials and demand is to have all above with 5+ years of experience for an entry-level job. But for the examiner, a need is an answer, a want is a correct answer of desired length and demand is to get all with examples.

What is the BANANA?

Firstly, understand the business at hand. Why do you want to use the banana and what is the outcome you want. Once that is established, make your move. Remember, Agreement yields better results than arguments. Play the monkey by using the monkey’s preset notions, bias, like and dislike to tilt the arguments in your favour. Once the level field is uneven the monkey feels inclined to fall for the banana and leaves you alone, e.g., the banana for the interviewer could be some excellent references on top of the required credentials. The banana for the examiner could be an outstanding answer.

How to give the banana?

Lastly, remember monkeys are monkeys, no matter how evolved they are, they always fall for bananas. The only key is to identify the best banana for the situation at hand and make the most of the moment you overcome a boisterous and raucous monkey. Godspeed!!

Summary:

We all are surrounded by monkeys bossing us around with their monkey chatter, going about their monkey business at the expense of our toils, but there is an age-old trick to master this miserable monkey-human relationship.

We all are surrounded by monkeys bossing us around with their monkey chatter, going about their monkey business at the expense of our toils, but there is an age-old trick to master this miserable…

productivity

Productivity

leadershipandmanagement

Leadership & Management

Most of you would answer that in a beat but are we doing something to be our own Bosses?With the advent of the lockdowns, I stumbled upon a simple yet powerful notion, that I always wanted to work with the best in the field rather than being the best in the field. And I think most of us have had the same thought process when it comes to the dream job. This Pandemic has accelerated the growth of startups and unconventional workspaces that has given a strong push to our mindsets to change and embrace the new normal.

Ask yourself, do you wish to be an employee or employer?

If you are employed as an employee and your knowledge can be traded off for a wage, then this is what you get. A salary generates income which enables one to live a good life. A salary is probably the only thing that guarantees your existence in this world. But what if I have more knowledge than you? Do you think it matters? Then answer me this…"What can you do for me to make me the best in the field?”Can you provide me with a wage for my knowledge and experience?If you're answer is no, then go ahead and run your business as an employer rather than an employee.

Salary Vs. Profit

Not every person can be an effective finance manager nor is it sure that a business visionary can be an extraordinary corporate leader. It is additionally false that having your own business is the lone way to monetary security since a corporate profession may likewise make you millions. It isn’t just a question of what you need to be yet in addition to a candid and careful evaluation of your capacities.&nbsp;Don’t&nbsp;limit yourself. As Mary Kay Ash said&nbsp;“Many people limit themselves to what they think they can do. You can go as far as your mind lets you. What you believe, remember, you can achieve!!”

With the advent of the lockdowns, I stumbled upon a simple yet powerful notion, that I always wanted to work with the best in the field rather than being the best in the field. And I think most of us…

entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship

business

Business

Being an Employee or Employer??

Introducing the 3 P’s strategy: Pedal, Preview, and Present.Your search for finding a means to end your exam blues has brought you to this article, or maybe you are a curious internet bypassed who found this worth your click. Either way, allow me to introduce the trick to master any language exam, But first; let’s talk about why you want to clear the exam.

Ace Any Language Exam

All languages have a similar testing structure like the CEFR i.e. Common European Framework of Reference for Languages such as level A1 where the candidate is tested for simple structures like alphabets, counting, beginner’s grammar, and small conversation. Then the A2 level where the candidate displays the use of common expressions. The next level B1 and B2 are intermediate where the candidate can understand complex and abstract thoughts and has to describe everyday experiences with fluency. The last level C1 and C2 are where a candidate can understand with ease virtually everything.

To get the desired result, the first step is Pedal. Pedal means active learning, or to put in plain terms learning by doing. In this phase, equal time is to be allotted to the four skills (reading, listening, writing, and speaking) and all the basics lessons are to be executed and incorporated into the daily tasks, for example, grammar and sentences learned do not make a conversation. You need to have a person as a shadow to practice those sentences and channel them into a productive conversation. In this phase, you learn, but understand the pattern of exams and prepare accordingly.

Pedal

In this stage, the candidate must understand the difference between broad and specific learning. In the previous phase, the learning was very broad spectrum as you learnt everything taught by your mentor, but in this phase, the learning has to be centric to exam preparation. Besides practicing specific learning, the candidate must understand the concept of the language. The candidate must make flashcards for exam topics to have a better grasp of the topics. To explain, the simple conversations that were done in the previous phase have alternative arguments and discussions that can be assessed.

Preview

The last step is to Present. In this step, language learning is halted, and the energy is diverted to presenting oneself before the problem. An example to put it into perspective is the Speaking test. When you are asked a question in the speaking test, answer it based on your previous learning and present it optimally to achieve the parameters set in the question. This step is the most important as many candidates, despite excellent lessons cannot give preponderance to it and do not get the desired results. Never let the ‘What If’ get in the way of what you do. Best of Luck!!

Present

Your search for finding a means to end your exam blues has brought you to this article, or maybe you are a curious internet bypassed who found this worth your click. Either way, allow me to introduce…

education

Learning & Education

Ace any language exam!!

Procrastination or intentional delay?Often people confuse the two, procrastination is the act of postponing a task. It can also be defined as the force that prevents you from following through. However, the intentional delay is more deliberate. For example, a student who has to hand in an assignment on deadline has started to do the dishes instead of working on the paper. This behaviour is an intentional delay, where a subject is deliberately delaying a task to either increase the pressure on self to perform better or to shift the focus to let the steam off.

Never Let The “What If" get in the way of what you do!

Procrastination and creativity go hand in hand:All creative ideas need time to trickle and filter into a working model. Procrastination offers your creative ideas a levelled playfield to test and develop further on those concepts, e.g. most people find that the best place to think and work on a scenario is in the washroom or the shower where the mind is preoccupied without any external hindrance but very few realize why that is the case, well now you know, you're welcome!!

Let’s breakdown the theory into practical: 

Often procrastination is the offset of Prioritization. It is an opposing force and acts as a couplet to neutralize the effects of Prioritization. In Healthcare we often quote the example of crisis du jour, i.e. crisis of the day, meaning there is one every day, so the workers get accustomed to the new normal and prioritize the work from urgent to important and the day goes on as it is. Procrastination takes the steam off the workload pressure from Prioritization.

Procrastination due to Prioritization:

While many may confuse procrastination to be transient and therapeutic, it most certainly is not. The sense of overwhelm feeds one of the common patterns that they struggle with: the perfectionism-procrastination-paralysis cycle. It’s our brain that is not buying our plan. For many, the idea of accomplishing a task in a less-than-perfect way may be grounds enough to say, “Forget it!” It may be a well-laid-out plan with a small flaw that may jeopardize the mission, so our brain stalls it further until perfection.

Piece of mind or Peace of mind?

A longitudinal study of the costs and benefits of procrastination, performance and stress found that “procrastination is a self-defeating behaviour pattern characterized by short-term benefits and long-term costs, including an increase in mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem”.

Mental Health issues are on the list:

Try to keep your tasks bite-sized. The smaller the task the faster the output hence less energy investment and higher returns on task accomplishment. While the world is drawn to SMART devices, be the one to form SMART goals i.e. (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Bound)

How to break the cycle?

Often in life, a single narrative formed by some so-called self-proclaimed genius gets in circulation and is repeated many times over that we fail to even check the authenticity of that narrative before implementing it. Procrastination is not necessarily bad. No one needs to give a justification for its use and overuse. It may yield optimum results if you use it carefully. But always remember this to get off that thought train:Never let the ‘What If” get in the way of what you do!

All my life I have always been an overthinker and on top of that Understanding Procrastination has been a part-time hobby and to be honest, I’ve been putting off writing this article for weeks, given…

problemsolving

Problem Solving

This approach relies upon perceiving the genetic, epigenomic, and clinical information that allows the revelations in our understanding of how a person’s unique genomic portfolio makes them vulnerable to certain diseases. It helps in predicting which medical treatments will be safe and effective for the individual patient. It is one of the growing fields where the physician can select a treatment based on the patient’s genetic profile which will automatically increase the positive outcomes and reduces the harmful side effects. PM may assemble the ampleness of existing meds and invalidate the regular issues identified with the non-PM approach. The different results identified with the experimentation approach incorporate medication harmfulness, drug cooperation, misdiagnosis, receptive treatment, drug toxicity, drug interaction, misdiagnosis, and patient dissatisfaction. This approach reduces the dependence on the non-PM trial and error approach for disease treatment.The goal of personalized medicine includes prevention and not the only treatment. Using molecular stratification of patients like an assessment of mutations that gave rise to resistance to certain medicines helps medical providers to make treatment plans accordingly for individual patients. Currently, the trend which is followed today is that when prescribed medicine is not effective, the patient may then switch to another medication which delays the effective treatment and can lead to the progression of the disease. Powerful utilization of PM depends vigorously on the accessibility of thorough indicative devices that take into account the ideal choice of restorative items to improve quiet results. As indicated by the FDA, the point of PM is to raise benefits and decrease dangers to patients by focusing on avoidance and treatment all the more viably. PM doesn’t try to set up novel medicine for patients, however, to delineate people into subpopulations that differ in their reaction to a helpful specialist for their particular ailment.Now the question is, if it is so holistic and beneficial then what’s stopping the healthcare providers from deploying it? Well, there are small hiccups in its execution like getting the right data to doctors, accessibility and affordability of next-gen sequencing for community hospitals, approvals from regulating body and a universal body to regularize and regulate the practice. Yes, the same old with all pathbreaking models.Although the approach is currently plagued by numerous legal and ethical bindings and dilemmas, if incorporated in traditional medicine, the future of personalized medicine will open many doors for pharmaceutical companies for developing molecular-targeted therapeutics and additionally will enhance the optimum use and repurposing of existing medications and combination therapies. It will alter the approach towards the diagnosis and treatment and will increase patient participation during and after the treatment process hence, help provide a tailor-fit delivery of care suited for individual needs, benefitting the practitioners and patients alike.

Hour of Personalized Medicine

Personalized medicine a.k.a precision medicine (PM) is a clinical model that isolates individuals into various gatherings — with clinical choices, practices, mediations as well as items customized to…

Importance of Cultural Competence in Workplace…

Is there a Right to Disconnect?

Bhagavad Gita- A Spiritual Treat!!

Give the monkey what it wants!

Being an Employee or Employer??

Dr. Anshul Mishra