Swetha's Musings

The session on 10/11/2020 was slightly different from the other sessions because it seemed to begin with a pop quiz to ensure that we are all alert and focused on the class. We were given a time period of 10 minutes to answer and this led to a lot of frantic activity on our end where we were scrambling to remember what the right answers were. However, to our surprise, at the end of the exercise, Professor Viji mentioned that it was merely a test of our ethics. Would we copy given a chance to copy? Would we have cheated on an exam that was easily google-able? The exercise was a wonderful way to simulate an important discussion on ethics and principles and morality. Following the activity, we entered a period of discussion wherein we discussed what it means to make moral choices and whether there can ever be a situation where exams can be taken without invigilation. Would human beings choose to be good when they don't have to be? We discussed the ideas of Doping and justification of

Six Thinking Hats was written by Dr. Edward de Bono. "Six Thinking Hats" and the associated idea parallel thinking provide a means for groups to plan thinking processes in a detailed and cohesive way, and in doing so to think together more effectively. This is Wikipedia's understanding of the Six Thinking Hats. However, the session by Mr. Shiva Subramaniam  Chief Innovation Officer, Gopalakrishnan-Deshpande Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (GDC) at IIT, Madras  provided a deeper and more functional understanding of what the Six Thinking Hats mean. One of the key takeaways from this session for me, was the idea of creativity and how it can be understood and better measured. Mr. Shiva Shubramaniam mentioned that Creativity is important. That creativity makes sense if we use it for larger purposes and not define it into a narrow process. Creativity gives meaning. He asks, "How can we use creativity for having a meaningful life. Can we have creativity to solve

  An interesting idea that was discussed in the previous class and in this one is playing to our strengths. For me, this began with learning what my strengths were and what qualities of myself that I consider to be outliers. Ikigai  ( 生き甲斐 ), a blissful intersection between what you are good at and what you love doing – while also being able to add value. There was a sense of peace in the class even at the discussion of the Okinawan principle allowing one to jump out of bed each morning due to their Ikigai . We began by writing down these four basic principles: What you love (your passion) What the world needs (your mission) What you are good at (your vocation) What you can get paid for (your profession) The answers to these questions came by after some thought. It was challenging to perhaps ascertain value to the hobbies I consider merely that – an activity to pass time with. After thinking a little while longer, I was able to come to the following conclusion: 1. What I lo

Joining the Department of Management Studies, IIT Madras was a dream come true. The first quarter in, I felt like I had managed to achieve a significant amount of experiences ranging from being part of the Placement Committee to being chosen as a co-ordinator for Writers' Bloc. The journey was exciting and nourishing, and the quarter sped through in a blur. The second term in, especially after a hectic first term final, brought with it a pleasant surprise. The opportunity to learn more about myself and the world I live in, through interactions felt like a gift in the tumultuous time of my life - having contracted COVID. IDIO or Individual Dynamics in Organizations, course MS5121, provided me from the very first class, the insights I strongly needed to better myself and to learn about myself.  Class 1: Introductions and Analyses HR and Heroes! We began by exploring the idea of HR, how we strive for meaning and purpose, flow perfection, excellence and fulfilment. Although this was do