New Twitter: Everything you should know

Twitter joins 'Facebook', 'Google Plus", launches brand pages for marketers. The new comprehensive designed Twitter or 'New Twitter' will help promote you and your brand better. Following are the things you should know about #NewTwitter.

 It’s just not four tabs  and a new brand page, but below is the detailed version of how the game changes for you via the New Twitter:

1. Changes in Home Page: Your home is where you access to the tweets of people you follow. The difference is the tweets of the people you follow comes on the right side of the page break and on the left you see the trends, who to follow, stats (Just viceversa to the old twitter, refer to the image below).  Photos, videos and conversations are embedded directly in Tweets so one can see the complete story of what you share.

2. Change in Mention: The new @mention is now called ‘@Connect’ feature which I like the most is instilled here too: You can Track your impact across Twitter. Interactions shows all the actions other people take related to you and your Tweets. See who follows you, retweets or favorites one of your Tweets, or adds you to a list.

3. Change in Hashtag Access:  Initially we searched for tweets and hashtags via the search tab, it has now been replaced with the term “# Discover” – helps you discover stories on the hashtag that comes with embedded conversations, videos and photos.

4. The New ‘Me’ page:  Me tab gives you an opportunity to showcase your interest, lists you have created, lists you are listed on, your favorites, following and followers ratio. The best feature of the Me tab is that you can now stay current on your direct message conversations too.

5. Changes to Tweeting Feature: The tweeting style, tweeting limits is similar just that the above value has added the feathers to the bird, which can now make your twitter experience better and help you fly high. The above changes will be reflected in your twitter profile on mobile phones too.

6. New Brand Page: Twitter is also introducing enhanced profile pages for the brands that can make twitter a hotspot for the brands.  The page is not competing with Facebook at any instance. This new twitter business page gives few value added elements to the brands from their usual tweeting experience.                          

7. Branding on the Brand Page: The Twitter profile page for brands allows marketers create an impression with a large header image for displaying your logo, tagline, and any other visuals (as in the picture )

8. Promoted Tweets: Marketers can control the message visitors see on the first visit on the brand’s twitter profile, it allows them to promote a particular tweet to the top of your brand page’s timeline. This feature helps marketers the most engaging and important content and bring more value to the brand by better connecting to the target audience.

9. Embedded Version: The promoted tweets on brands page gets automatically embeds conversations, videos or photos the marketers link to from the tweet, thus making your profile look richer and enhancing the value of promoted tweet.

10. Its Free: The brand page and the promoted tweets are not chargeable and is completely free of cost. As twitter says it’s Your profile page is your own – your colors, your logo, and your messaging

Everyone has three lives: a public life, a private life, and a secret life..Is it??

Quoted by Gabriel García Márquez "Everyone has three lives: a public life, a private life, and a secret life"

Some have even described it as establishment of a distinct ecosystem for cultivating and grooming who we are in public, private, and in secret.

Let us understand what each of these Lives or ecosystem mean

Public life -- that which any ordinary person can see of you.

Private life -- that which somebody with investigative skills/voyeuristic tendencies/obsession could find out. So basically it open to close friends, loved ones and family.

Secret life -- that which is kept to oneself (and sometimes even from oneself!)

 

While most of us will agree with Gabriel García Márquez, but I on other hand will beg to differ.

I see it as 'Three interconnected rooms in our minds' in the following order of Public, Private and Secret. The door to the first room (public) is suppose to always open. Anyone can enter and leave at any time.

On basis of trust and emotion we intentionally or inadvertently allow people to the second room(private) by opening that door for few. These happens when we want to feel special, share things, know what others think about us etc. Sometimes people overstay in this room and are needed to be ousted from the room while many times people themselves leave the room by their choice because they find it too suffocated.

There are times there is lot of external stress and fatigue affecting our inner struggle and we are forced to open the door to the third room. We allow someone through the door to the third room (secret) to know our concealed feelings, thoughts and action. We feel a lot better by sharing it.

I called it as three interconnected rooms because any fluctuation or damage in any of the room has a 'Butterfly Effect'. It result is in shutting of all the doors for time being. Making all the rooms secluded and concealed there by; all of them become secret rooms.

But in reality it is a mere illusion we have created. What is Public to someone is secret to the other and what is secret to some one can be public to others. 

We all were born with single lives. We had nothing called as public, private or secret when we were born. But over the course of time with our surrounding and experiences, we created these so called rooms/ecosystem/lives to assure ourselves we are unique and we are happy.

We have trained our mind "To accept the illusion as reality and reality as illusion". May be that is our formula to be happy or just yet another way to complicate our simple lives.

Payback Series or Deja Vu

India vs England series was billed as "payback" series for the miseries India suffered in England. Being one of the many Indian fans who went through a phase of severe depression during India's tour of  England 2011, I too wished that the English suffer the same Agony as India.

But as the series ended, the things I could relate between both the series was that, here in India, English Batsmen were Clueless, Bewildered and Confused dancing to the tune of the Indian Spinners on dusty subcontinent wicket. While in England it were the Indian Batsmen who hopped, jumped and ducked to the swing and bounce on the Green English wickets. If  young Suresh Raina seemed clueless against the swinging ball, then Jonathan Bairstow's expression after getting bowled by Jadeja was no different. If Indians after losing couple of matches started fielding like Donkeys, than English after losing first couple of matches fielded like one legged Donkey.

In fact the last time England won a series of any kind in India was in 1984-85; no matter how much they plan or how early they turn up, a tour of India usually seems to end up a discombobulating ordeal. In 2005-06 England lost the series 5-1, in the next tour the English were humiliated by 5-0, in the interrupted seven-match series in 2008-09. Here again in 2011, they are humbled by a scoreline of 5-0. So can we call it a Deja Vu?

In fact India in India are really strong with 27 wins in 36 over the last three years and only a single defeat in 16 home ODIs in the last 12 months.

There is no taking away anything from India's performance. They have been really professional and merciless with their spirited performance. But after all these, the series just proves only two things, one that India are exceptionally good at home and two that England are terrible on Indian soil.

It wasn't the revenge or avenge of their humiliation on the tour to England. It was not a Payback series. Some say that if the English had been whitewashed in the test series than it would have been the perfect Payback. 

But the "Payback if at all, has to be served to England in their den"

Till then Kudos to Team India for their dominating performance, Captain cool for retaining his form and tag, Ravindra Jadeja for his comeback and young Indian guns to keep our hope alive.

Poochne mein kya jaata hai???

I am sure all of you must have watched this latest Tata Sky Ad 'Poochne mein kya jaata hai'



The ad put the reality in front us in a simple and beautiful manner. The ad is built on the premise of "ask, why not?". I am sure almost most of you must have liked the concept of the ad. The ad shot to fame immediately because everyone of us could relate ourselves to the ad.

As kids we always use to pester our parents and teachers with endless questions that were stupid but yet inquisitive. In fact sometimes we even left our parents and teachers speechless with our questions and our inquisitiveness. We believed in what they answered, we learnt by asking.

But 20 years later, now we don't ask questions.

In Classrooms, we think what if everyone thinks that my question is stupid and everyone starts laughing on me?

With Friends, we think, If I ask him/her what shall he think about me? He will think that I talk to him when I need help. He will think of me as dumb. He will think how insensitive I am.

With Someone we love, We don't ask them out because we think 'What if he/she tells me no?

In Office, We think, our bosses might think we are unqualified for our job?

While shopping, we don't ask about discounts, because it harms our image.

We hesitate to ask help from strangers, we hesitate to ask for lift, , we hesitate to ask for direction, we hesitate to ask for more, we hesitate to ASK. We all know this but still we hesitate. All of us face this syndrome. We just don't feel comfortable to ask.

Because of this we lose our friends, loved ones, money, time and many other important things of life which we would have enjoyed, had we ASKED. The ad showcases it is better to try and fail rather than failing to try. You never know when the lady luck smiles on you.

To be candid, I got the very thought about writing on this very topic when I was talking on phone for work related purpose to some one and I was hesitating to ask for help, but some how I did and the opposite person really helped me to come up with a brilliant plan. So it is a matter just trying to come out of your comfort zone and ask.

The other ad that perfectly answers the situation is Airtel's 'Barriers break when people talk'




Let the curiosity in us come to the surface, lets learn and lets ask..coz 'Poochne mein kya jaata hai'

The confessions of 'The Unsocial Guy'

Many people I meet tells me that you are too social to be 'Unsocial' . Some even say that it is a publicity stunt you are trying to put together to garner some attention. I don't know how much right/wrong they are. In a world where everything from a smile to orgasm is faked, 'The Unsocial Guy'  believes in being candid.

Here is the candid Confession by 'The Unsocial Guy'

1) 'The Unsocial Guy' has never felt the comfort to share. He is afraid of opening up to anyone. Because people always prejudice and assume thing which are often not true. He doesn't like people helping him as people can consider that as favor and start expecting back from him. 'The Unsocial Guy' wants to be free of all expectation. So staying Unsocial helps him not to expect from other and more importantly others not to expect from him.

2)  'The Unsocial Guy'  lives by his own principles and philosophies. He highly disregards the Social Paradigms. He knows that if he becomes social, he cannot live his life on his principles. Hence he is 'unsocial' by choice and not by force.'The Unsocial Guy'  thinks that being social is being fake. He hates to carry those fakes mask of emotions, fake smiles, fake laughter. He believes in being candid and hence 'unsocial' by choice. 

3) 'The Unsocial Guy'  agrees with the assumption made by a friend

That people may use the unsocial tag so that they can befriend only those people that they are fond of and find similar to themselves and yet not be expected to be attached or close to them coz of their unsocialness.

Since any other social individuals will find his way of living as weird or something they haven't seen in the fake world. So being Unsocial helps the 'The Unsocial Guy' to stay aloof from people and allow people to stay aloof from him.

4) 'The Unsocial Guy'  has tried living the social life. But he doesn't understand the emotions of being together. He finds that Social world is selfish where people just want to fulfill their needs either emotional or physical. Being Unsocial helps him to avoid getting entangled in those emotional traps which might affect his decision process, action and inactions.

5) Although 'The Unsocial Guy' may be seen surrounded by people, talking to people or socializing, but in reality he wants to be alone or with people like him, who are candid, direct and believe in living in the real world rather than the fake one. He is just talking to them to know what people think, how people react under different circumstances and how people fake.

6) He believes that there are three kind of people in this world. i) Strangers ii) Known Strangers(Whom people call so called friends) iii) Special people( These are people for whom one doesn't see his/her calender). Since human nature is being selfish, difficult to find the third category of people in life of any individuals. This is just another reason why he feels the social world is fake.

The above confessions doesn't by any chance signify that 'The Unsocial Guy'  does not have any feelings, desires or wishes. But 'The Unsocial Guy'  is in a journey where he wishes to reach a state of trance called "Beyond Everything"

"Beyond Everything" to b honest it is a Zone..Where in he is not dependent on any one.He doesn't get affected by surroundings or any one's action or inaction in his life. He knows it is kind of philosophical. He believes that it is difficult but achievable.

I hate love stories

Reading  'Diary of a Single Girl' in 'Times Life',  one article really caught my attention. It was about the girl being getting an opportunity to complete her dream of becoming a Super Model. She was already a successful model. But getting into ivy league she would have require to don 'The Bikini'. So informed this to her Boy Friend. Her BF and she argued over an hour. The BF said, 'What would his family think of a girl who wears Bikini?'. At the end the BF told her, 'You have to decide one, Career or him'. This came up even when the guy knew that girl was a model when he proposed her.

Reading this article I realized this ain't only her problem. Everyone of us who has been in relationship associate ourselves with the above article. How many times in your relationship you have faced that awkward situation where you have to choose between 'Your Loved one' and 'Your Passion'. ?

'Love' is best when unconditional. The moment we start putting conditions it becomes more of a compromise. Why have we made it a complicated, messed up drama. So messed up that we have to say 'I Hate Love Stories'.

Imagine you fell in love with someone who is really good at talking. You loved the way he talked with you, your friends, your parents, your siblings and others around him. But once into a relationship you only stop him/her and tell her not to talk with some Tom, Dick, Harry or some Jane, Jennifer or Janice. The thing that made you fall you in love with your partner is the thing you want him/her to stop doing. Of course when that happens, the epic statement comes up saying 'You have Changed, you are no more a person whom I met couple of years back'.

How painful it is to give your passion for the only person who should be most happy to see you pursuing it?

How many times in relationship you have given up talking to your Best Friend because your partner didn't liked it?

How many of you have given up your dreams just because your partner was not convinced?

Love was meant to support you through your thick and thin and ride with you all life long to support you. But with all such pre-requisite , it is more of a burden that makes you slow down or just give up your journey. Why are you forcing me to scream 'I HATE LOVE STORIES'

Did India really deserve no.1 test ranking??

After the dismal performance in the current series against England, all the critics of Indian Cricket are out of the closet. Some blamed the team selection, some blamed the shot selection, some blamed it on cricket over dose.  

But the fact remains that India simply lost to a better team who were better prepared for this series. While on the other side India were riding high on World 2011 Victory and of course the mental & fatigue of the BCCI cash cow 'IPL'. As Ganguly said "You cannot just turn up and win Test series against good sides."

For the South African series, 5 players were sent to South Africa  to get acclimatised to the conditions, but only one practice match as part of preparation for the England series simply shows the seriousness with which Indian team took this series.

On December 6, 2009, millions of Indians were united in celebration as their team had ascended to the top of the ICC test rankings. But the with it came the responsibility to retain it.

West Indies were the undisputed king from 1975-76 to 1994-95, winning 72 and losing 21 of the 149 Tests it played. Australia, from 1995 to 2009, won 107 and lost 32 of the 166 Tests. Australia were officially ranked for eight long years, ever since the Test championship was introduced in 2001.

But India, since it became No 1, has played 23 Tests, winning 11 and losing six. In this period India has not played a series in Australia & New Zealand. While in South Africa we managed to draw the series(1-1) and against no.7 ranked West Indies, we managed to win the series 1-0 where the no.1 ranked team didn't even try chasing when the team required 86 of 90 balls. While against England we are starting at the White wash. Is this the sheer dominance that a no.1 team is suppose to exhibit?

When West Indies & Australia dominated the arena, they were merciless, brutal and other teams literally feared them. But for India, we are always the underdogs.

Apart from our famed batting line-up, our Fast bowlers sans Zaheer looks listless. We are called the country of spinners but Harbhajan despite repetitively failing to impress continues hold his position in the side. Forget about the dream of a fast bowling all-rounder and a genuine quick bowler.  Apart from this even if one player is injured we always have excuse that we didn't have our complete team.

Amidst all these BCCI would assert their dominance in their cricketing world using the power of Money. All of us know that technology is not fool proof but it aids in better decision making. But for reasons known to BCCI we don't use it. And people say that money doesn't speak. 

About the no.1 ranking I am sure BCCI will arrange a couple of series with Sri lanka & Bangladesh for India to retain it.

I am not against Indian Cricket just because they lost one series, but it is the way they played.

To be a Champion you have to have that might, which simply is missing whether we remain no.1 or not. We will never create the awe the mighty West Indies or the ruthless Australian team had.

Rajesh Chokhani: The Real Maverick

He started the meeting saying

' Tell me what is common between Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid & Anil Kumble?' 

I was asking to myself, how was the question relevant to meeting agenda. But still, I confidently replied saying that they were the three pillars of Indian Cricket. 

But the next statement from him completely flabbergasted me. 

He said ' Those three stalwarts can never win WC or IPL Trophy for team as a Captain.'

Being a player, fanatic & a follower of the Game of Cricket, I thought this was a mere joke my boss was trying to crack or there was some pun intended for sure. But he was in a no nonsense mood.

 He continued that "these players always have been calculative, meticulous and the calculation does take toll on their captaincy". He said that those things were important, but risk taking, surprising the opponents with unforeseen moves, shooting in air also are important qualities if the Leader trust his brigade."

There couldn't have been a better kick off to the Ideation meeting. It is the story about a person who always thinks across the boundaries, never gets bogged down by critics, never is afraid of trying. There were lots of occasion where he failed. But every time he fell, he rose again. Like those waves which fall, but only to rise again.

He never forced anyone to believe in his ideologies, People just bought those ideas seeing his confidence & belief. At the same time he also allowed & encouraged the people working under him to develop their own flair, thought process & thoughts. Lucky were the few who got chance to work under him or with him. He not only inspired but also perspired success.

He always loves to brag about numbers & inspired others to achieve it. But he always keeps thinking how to use these numbers for the brand, for the company. A role model would be an understatement for him.

Some of you might call all the above as a HYPE. But all those who know him or have known him will more than agree to each and every word written above. Every time he speaks there was some take away for all of us who were looking to learn & grow.

He is a real MAVERICK who has carved his own style and continuously keeps improvising it. I have never seen him working, coz he is so passionate about what he does, so he always enjoyed. If he doesn't enjoy he doesn't do it.

Today, at this juncture where he has decided to move on, I would like to thank him for all those words of wisdom he spoke knowingly & unknowingly. Thanking him for bringing out the best out of us without even us realizing it. Thanks for awakening the mavericks within us & making us think independently.

Thanks Rajesh Chokhani the Real MAVERICK for being a wonderful boss, great philosopher, guiding hand & awesome friend. Above all, thanks for being such a wonderful person who always lived his life for the others...

You may have bid adieu to the company, but you have left a LEGACY & RICH CULTURE behind you. Also you sure have left a Lacuna in the corporate space we work in & our hearts too.

Wish to take those enlightening sessions every once in a while from you to keep the Mavericks with us alive. 

HATS OFF TO YOU!!!

Yeh hai Mumbai meri jaan!!!

Aye dil hai mushkil jeena yahan

Zara hat ke zara bach ke, yeh hai Bombay meri jaan

The song dates back to 1956 from the movie C.I.D, but the lines seems to be apt even in 2011. 

26/11 terrorist attack, 7 blast & counting, the loss of thousands of innocence lives has completely shattered the image of this city. The city once known as city of dreams has become the city of nightmares. Hardly when we recovered from the trauma of one attack, there is another reminder ready to be served. The pain, the agony, the despair just refuses to subside.

While the world & the politicians can only condemn the blast, start the blame game & pour in their condolences, we Mumbaikars just like sitting ducks wait for another blast to rock the city. The world praises about our resilience and spirit with which we bounce back. Let be the 26/11 terrorist attacks, the 7/11 train blast or 1993 blast, Mumbai has always bounced back and moved on. The whole city is back to work the very next day.

But isn’t this making us a soft target?

While USA immediately beefed up their security measures after the 9/11 attacks, While India on other hand just keeps on setting up the inquiry committees.  We as Mumbaikars just pour out our anger on Twitter and Facebook.  We just sit back and hope that we are not the next.

Leave apart being Shangai, can we ever be a better Mumbai.

Couldn't agree more with the tweet "I Don't Wanna Ask Govt 2 Hang KASAB.. I Just Wanna Request Them 2 Protect Us In The Same Way As They Have Protected Him."

Even after writing & reading about all these, we all will just think about the apathy and forget it. Every time we say that 'This time I am not going to just watch and forget, I am going to take action and protest because if I still keep quite I will be taken for granted.I need a better life. I work hard for it, I pay taxes for it, you can’t finish my life'. But our outrage is very short lived.  Hope our lives are not. 

Hope prevails, hope survives. Hope for a dream and not a nightmare. 

The dark history of the terror attacks on Mumbai

March 12, 1993: Serial blasts rock Mumbai 257 killed 713 injured.

Oct 29, 1993: Blast in Matunga station, two killed, over 40 injured.

Feb 27, 1998: Blasts in Virar, Thane, two killed.

Dec 2, 2002: Blast in bus in Ghatkopar, two killed, 49 injured.

Dec 6, 2002: Blast in Mumbai Central Station, 22 injured.

Jan 27, 2003: Blast near Vile Parle Station, over 30 injured.

March 13, 2003: Blast in train in Mulund, 13 killed, over 80 injured.

July 29, 2003: Blast in bus in Ghatkopar, three killed, 30 injured.

Aug 25, 2003: Twin blasts at Zaveri Bazar and Gateway of India, 55 killed, over 150 injured.

May 3, 2006: Blast in Ghatkopar, one killed.

July 11, 2006: Blast in seven suburban trains, 189 killed, over 1,000 injured.

Nov 26-29, 2008: Mumbai terror attacks, 166 killed and over 300 injured. 

July 13, 2011: Three blasts rock south Mumbai, including Zaveri Bazar, 21 killed, 130 injured.

All we gonna do is sit & wait for the next one..Unless one that really hits us.