27
Feb

::An interesting reflection : Slow Down Culture ::

author: mixhar       category: Just Read

Here is an interesting mail which was forwarded to me by my cousin, I don’t like forwarding mails, I just read and reply. But this time I thought I will share it to you all this way. Enjoy reading.

 

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An interesting reflection : Slow Down Culture

It’s been 18 years since I joined Volvo, a Swedish company. Working for them has proven to be an interesting experience. Any project here takes 2 years to be finalized, even if the idea is simple and brilliant. It’s a rule.

Globalize processes have caused in us (all over the world) a general sense of searching for immediate results. Therefore, we have come to posses a need to see immediate results. This contrasts greatly with the slow movements of the Swedish. They, on the other hand, debate, debate, debate, hold x quantity of meetings and work with a slowdown scheme. At the end, this always yields better results.

Said in another words:

1. Swedenis about the size of San Pablo, a state in Brazil.

2. Sweden has 2 million inhabitants.

3. Stockholm, has 500,000 people.

4. Volvo, Escania, Ericsson, Electrolux, Nokia are some of its renowned companies. Volvo supplies the NASA.

The first time I was in Sweden, one of my colleagues picked me up at the hotel every morning. It was September, bit cold and snowy. We would arrive early at the company and he would park far away from the entrance (2000 employees drive their car to work). The first day, I didn’t say anything, either the second or third. One morning I asked, “Do you have a fixed parking space? I’ve noticed we park far from the entrance even when there are no other cars in the lot.” To which he replied, “Since we’re here early we’ll have time to walk, and whoever gets in late will be late and need a place closer to the door. Don’t you think?” Imagine my face.

Nowadays, there’s a movement in Europename Slow Food. This movement establishes that people should eat and drink slowly, with enough time to taste their food, spend time with the family, friends, without rushing. Slow Food is against its counterpart: the spirit of Fast Food and what it stands for as a lifestyle. Slow Food is the basis for a bigger movement called Slow Europe, as mentioned by Business Week.

Basically, the movement questions the sense of “hurry” and “craziness”

generated by globalization, fueled by the desire of “having in quantity”

(life status) versus  “having with quality”, “life quality” or the “quality of being”. French people, even though they work 35 hours per week, are more productive than Americans or British. Germans have established 28.8 hour workweeks and have seen their productivity been driven up by 20%. This slow attitude has brought forth the US’s attention, pupils of the fast and the “do it now!”.

This no-rush attitude doesn’t represent doing less or having a lower productivity. It means working and doing things with greater quality, productivity, perfection, with attention to detail and less stress. It means reestablishing family values, friends, free and leisure time. Taking the “now”, present and concrete, versus the “global”, undefined and anonymous.

It means taking humans’ essential values, the simplicity of living.

It stands for a less coercive work environment, more happy, lighter and more productive where humans enjoy doing what they know best how to do. It’s time to stop and think on how companies need to develop serious quality with no-rush that will increase productivity and the quality of products and services, without losing the essence of spirit.

In the movie, Scent of a Woman, there’s a scene where Al Pacino asks a girl to dance and she replies, “I can’t, my boyfriend will be here any minute now”. To which Al responds, “A life is lived in an instant”. Then they dance to a tango.

Many of us live our lives running behind time, but we only reach it when we die of a heart attack or in a car accident rushing to be on time. Others are so anxious of living the future that they forget to live the present, which is the only time that truly exists. We all have equal time throughout the world. No one has more or less. The difference lies in how each one of us does with our time. We need to live each moment. As John Lennon said, “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans”.

Congratulations for reading till the end of this message. There are many who will have stopped in the middle so as not to waste time in this globalized world.

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1
01
Feb

::The Maldivian Version of English::

author: mixhar       category: Just Wrote

It is been a long time since the Maldivian Version of English (MVE) came in to existence, most of us don’t even realize while we use it. I believe it came in to existence among friends; they started using it among them. It gradually moved from there to most of the society. I use to hear a lot of students communicate with the MVE with their foreign teachers, and it is no surprise to hear the same from the teachers either. Now I guess you are all wondering what rubbish I am talking about, and what this MVE is. To make it simple for you and me, I will just quote a few samples.

“I will be there ingey!”

“Please come ingey, If you don’t come we will be sad nu dho!”

Okay. I guess now you know what I am talking about.

I use to hear this a lot during my school days, those days I thought they talk like that within their groups and within class. But of cause school is the place which gives the training we require to move out in to the society and perform well in the future. And if we don’t correct these kinds of things there and move out with it, it stays with us. Because after we move out from school and get in to the society, we are too busy with work that we don’t get much time to devote for such things. Due to the work I do, I get a lot of opportunities to deal with different kind of people of different age group and culture. That’s where I admitted that what I thought during school days was wrong; I started noticing that a lot of Maldivian’s use MVE.

Let me also share an incident which I believe is very important to share with you all. I was going for tea with my colleague this evening, we saw groups of students being guided in to the Sultan Park by teachers, I am not sure which grade the students are of, but I believe they must be above grade 4 or 5, by judging the average size and discipline of the students (Hmm I did say I am not sure which grade). What surprised me was the way one of the teacher instructed the students. He used MVE, but what I could not digest is why he did that. I challenge him that all the students in his group could understand what he said even if he said it in proper English also. Then why did he mix it with Dhivehi? Now what are we teaching the students? What will happen to the standard of English of those students who are exposed to it every single day? This is becoming a big problem, school is the place where students learn the basics and the most important things in their life. It builds the foundation for their future. If they are mixed up with these kinds of things, they will never have the standards which they are suppose to have.

If you think that I am trying to criticize the teachers and saying that they are not up to the standards….then you are wrong (I love and value the work of my teachers, I don’t know how to thank them for their guidance in achieving what I have achieved). We have high standard teachers in Maldives we do have the necessary resources. What I am trying to say is that we as a whole community need to consider these facts and find ways to solve the problem before it is too late. If not we will have to keep on complaining about the standard of education in Maldives and yeah welcome the Maldivian Version Of English and start teaching and learn it.

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