Namaste. One of the traits most admired amongst Indians is their humility. From the “Namaste” greeting with heads bowed to their “Haa Ji”, which means “Yes Sir”, it seems like we are an extremely humble and polite people.
I too was a believer of this idea. Until recently, I began to look at it a little closer. And realized that maybe there’s much more to it than meets the eye. And what I found was extremely interesting to put it mildly.
If you study the patterns, you will notice that the “Namaste” or greeting normally doesn't reach the eye. There is a Smile, and a folding of hands. More like a mechanical gesture. Like the salute in the Military. Whilst its meant to convey respect, more often than not, it doesn't. It’s a rule that the juniors need to salute the senior officers, and so they do. With no hint of respect. It’s a motion. Similarly, the Namaste has become a motion. And the classic example of its motion can be seen on Air India flights at the entrance to the aircraft. The folded hands, the mouthing of the word Namaste and a bored look, “Why are you here ?”.
And then there’s the famous “Haa Ji’. I’ve rarely heard a fellow Indian, say “No”, or “I don’t know”. Its always “Yes”, or “Haa Ji’. That would have been a great trait, provided it was meaningful. In most cases, they are words that have been mouthed without any meaning. If it was a task you wanted completed and got a “Haa Ji’, the chances are pretty high that a week later, you’ll get the exact same answer to the same question, “Haa Ji, it will be done”. We don’t seem to mean what we say.
Recently, I was on the phone with a client. It was a Saturday afternoon, and I was at home. At the end of the conversation, I told him that I would be e-mailing the relevant details in the next couple of hours. The client wanted to know if he would get it before Monday. I said “Yes, I just told you, I’ll be sending it to you in the next couple of hours”. He once again confirmed the same, and I got a little irritated. It seemed to show in my voice, because once I got off the phone, my daughter who was close counseled me. She said, “Why are you getting irritated ? It’s not their fault. In most cases when people say they’ll do something, they don’t.”. Interesting observation, but a poor reflection on us.
And finally our obsession with believing we know everything. From directions to queries to solutions to problems. And on the occasions when we are told we are wrong, we don’t accept the feedback. We just assume that the person who has corrected us is an obnoxious Idiot who knows nothing. I find this trait the most dangerous. The problem is that when we do not accept that “We don’t know” or “We haven’t made a mistake”, then the possibility of us learning or correcting ourselves becomes “Zero”. A number we Love, since we invented it. And we seem to think that just because we have done something for a large number of years, we know it perfectly. That’s not quite true. When you have done something exactly the same way for a large number of years, your ability to do it “Consistently” will be high. And that means if you were doing it incorrectly, you will continue to do it incorrectly for a long, long, time.
In my mind, and in all “Indian Humility”, I think that if we are able to correct these three aspects of our behavior, we can go places and be a force to reckon with globally. As soon as our “Namaste” reaches our eyes, Our “Haa Ji”, is said when it means “Yes”, and finally, we accept the fact that there are several thing we don’t know, but are willing to learn. And until then the few who can adopt these aspects are likely to outperform their peers who don’t.
Namaste ! :-)
I too was a believer of this idea. Until recently, I began to look at it a little closer. And realized that maybe there’s much more to it than meets the eye. And what I found was extremely interesting to put it mildly.
If you study the patterns, you will notice that the “Namaste” or greeting normally doesn't reach the eye. There is a Smile, and a folding of hands. More like a mechanical gesture. Like the salute in the Military. Whilst its meant to convey respect, more often than not, it doesn't. It’s a rule that the juniors need to salute the senior officers, and so they do. With no hint of respect. It’s a motion. Similarly, the Namaste has become a motion. And the classic example of its motion can be seen on Air India flights at the entrance to the aircraft. The folded hands, the mouthing of the word Namaste and a bored look, “Why are you here ?”.
And then there’s the famous “Haa Ji’. I’ve rarely heard a fellow Indian, say “No”, or “I don’t know”. Its always “Yes”, or “Haa Ji’. That would have been a great trait, provided it was meaningful. In most cases, they are words that have been mouthed without any meaning. If it was a task you wanted completed and got a “Haa Ji’, the chances are pretty high that a week later, you’ll get the exact same answer to the same question, “Haa Ji, it will be done”. We don’t seem to mean what we say.
Recently, I was on the phone with a client. It was a Saturday afternoon, and I was at home. At the end of the conversation, I told him that I would be e-mailing the relevant details in the next couple of hours. The client wanted to know if he would get it before Monday. I said “Yes, I just told you, I’ll be sending it to you in the next couple of hours”. He once again confirmed the same, and I got a little irritated. It seemed to show in my voice, because once I got off the phone, my daughter who was close counseled me. She said, “Why are you getting irritated ? It’s not their fault. In most cases when people say they’ll do something, they don’t.”. Interesting observation, but a poor reflection on us.
And finally our obsession with believing we know everything. From directions to queries to solutions to problems. And on the occasions when we are told we are wrong, we don’t accept the feedback. We just assume that the person who has corrected us is an obnoxious Idiot who knows nothing. I find this trait the most dangerous. The problem is that when we do not accept that “We don’t know” or “We haven’t made a mistake”, then the possibility of us learning or correcting ourselves becomes “Zero”. A number we Love, since we invented it. And we seem to think that just because we have done something for a large number of years, we know it perfectly. That’s not quite true. When you have done something exactly the same way for a large number of years, your ability to do it “Consistently” will be high. And that means if you were doing it incorrectly, you will continue to do it incorrectly for a long, long, time.
In my mind, and in all “Indian Humility”, I think that if we are able to correct these three aspects of our behavior, we can go places and be a force to reckon with globally. As soon as our “Namaste” reaches our eyes, Our “Haa Ji”, is said when it means “Yes”, and finally, we accept the fact that there are several thing we don’t know, but are willing to learn. And until then the few who can adopt these aspects are likely to outperform their peers who don’t.
Namaste ! :-)
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