The Comfy Chair

In a discussion with some friends yesterday, this poem came up. I first heard it when a professor discussed this in class. It was a computer science class. Yes, he was that kind of a professor.

The poem was written by Avtaar Singh Sandhu (Pash), a revolutionary Punjabi poet.

Sabse Khatarnak
Mehnat ki loot sabse khatarnak nahi hoti,
Police ki maar sabse khatarnak nahi hoti,
Gaddari, lobh ki mutthi sabse khatarnak nahi hoti.
Baithe bithaye pakde jana bura to hai,
Sahmi si chhup me jakde jana bura to hai,
Par sabse khatarnak nahi hoti.
Sabse khatarnak hota hai murda shanti se bhar jana,
Na hona tadap ka, sab kuch sahan kar jana,
Ghar se nikalna kaam par, aur kaam se loutkar ghar aana,
Sabse khatarnak hota hai,
Hamare sapno ka mar jana.

Most Dangerous
Most treacherous is not the robbery of hard-earned wages,
Most horrible is not the torture by the police,
Most dangerous is not treason, or the fist of greed.
To be caught while asleep is surely bad,
surely bad is to be buried in silence,
But it is not the most dangerous.
Most dangerous is to be filled with dead peace,
Not to feel agony, simply bear it all,
Leaving home for work, and from work returning home,
Most dangerous is
the dying of our dreams.

[Adapted from the translation by Dr. Satnam Singh Sandhu.]

Robert Cringley’s latest essay certainly has an arresting title. In “The Final Days of Google: It is going to be an inside job,” Cringley describes why he believes that Google’s model of employee retention is unsustainable.

His basic argument is simple. Put thousands of the smartest people in one place, and give them complete freedom to spend 20% of their time on a project of their choice, and you have one of the most entrepreneurial experiences in Silicon Valley today. However, he claims, because of the inherent inability of Google to focus on the tens of brilliant ideas that will get churned out of this process each year, frustrated employees will take their ideas and vested options elsewhere to start the Next Big Thing.

Much of the next influx of ideas to Sand Hill Road will come not just from former Google employees, but also from groups of former Google employees who are planning their future companies over free sushi and Diet Coke late at night in Google cafeterias.

Of course, the cyclical nature of employees in the valley mean that the most successful companies of the past have inevitably been breeding grounds for the next generation of businesses. Sun, DEC, Microsoft and several others have supplied the smartest brains at the current crop of successes. But Cringley’s claim is that Google has gone too far out in promoting free thinking. Regardless of whether he is right or not, the essay presents an interesting argument, and is well worth the read.

Hamish Fraser, an MBA student at Stanford, has a series of well-written articles on FT about life at the GSB. In what is perhaps his last in the series, he talks about why he thinks an MBA is a worthy investment. Except, as he puts it, the gains from the experience are harder to quantify than people initially expect.

After two years with a fair share of classes in finance and modeling, I am still not able to value the opportunity to come to Stanford with an ROI spreadsheet. How do I plug in an unforgettable experience? Which cell do I link to meaningful friendship? What value do I assign to a change in perspective?

In my case, the decision to apply to business-school is better described as a whim than part of a well thought-out plan. I don’t dislike my current work, nor do I feel poorly equipped to progress in said career without an extra degree. I love my workplace, and the excellent work-life balance it affords. The money isn’t bad either. So what drives people to leave a perfectly satisfactory life to try something completely different?

I strongly dislike ‘About Me’ pages, because they force me to introspect. I do not like introspection.

However, there comes a time and place in every authors life when they need to describe their motivations, inspirations and aspirations. For me, that time has come and gone. I’m going to avoid repeating myself here, but indeed, a brief introduction is in order.

Engineer by day, heavy sleeper by night. Runner, sports junkie, reader of obscure tomes, and a newly-minted husband. Dog lover, vegetarian, politically disillusioned and hopelessly cynical. Budding sailor, golfer and astronaut. Currently designing enterprise server software in Silicon Valley, and about 4 months shy of quitting to join business school for an MBA.

Several people have asked me why I wish to go back to school. While I apparently did a good enough job of convincing the admissions committee about my motivations, explaining them to friends and family is much harder. Over the course of writing this blog, I hope to touch on those reasons. And more. Much more.

All this for you, dear anonymous reader. Now don’t you think you owe me something in return?