While they have certainly enriched our lives in many ways, tech needs to be used judiciously.  They can make or break lives.

Many of us rue our habits of checking email so often through workdays, late evenings, weekends & holidays, being addicted to music on the go, getting mired in gadgets for day-to-day activites from sports to entertainment to education. Increasing tech adoption is changing habits, for good & bad.

Intensive gaming is said to make people less social. Compulsive browsing & ready access to online knowledge reduces time, incentive, need & inclination for constructive & active thought. Many of us are alarmed at the way social networking is invading privacy and re-defining how we connect with people, but are compelled to go along as we fear being left behind.

We don’t think twice about interrupting an interesting conversation with a good friend, to pickup a call from an unknown caller, sending out a few SMSes, checking email a few times. Perhaps the friend is doing these as well.  Less effective meetings with people busy with their laptops & phones are common.  Modern homes have a profusion of gadgets that have taken over family time. Family members are deeply engaged with their own phones, gaming consoles, home theatres, tablets & computers. Typical family time is reshaping as being togather but engaged separately.

Such addiction is pushing us into the shallows. Our thoughts, relationships, skills, & lifestyle are being besieged.

Gadgets are tools, just like the stone-axe, steam engine & aeroplane.  They need to be used with caution.

Is it foolish, dangerous, or impossible?  Lets think through and see where it leads.

Adoption may not be the right word.  Lets call it partnership, in enlightened self-interest.

Some rich countries, with high per capita income, are seeing their economic engines slowing down.  Growth has more or less plateaued.  Governments struggle to increase the pace of growth.  But years of searing growth seem to be over.  Japan is an example.

Such rich countries face internal constraints which limit growth which, in the long run, may result in slow down & decay.  Aging population, high life expectancy, low birth rates, dwindling workforce, saturated domestic market, low & decreasing natural resources etc. are some such constraints.  Reducing labor productivity is another big threat to growth.

To grow further, they need more workforce, more natural resources, and newer & bigger markets.

Immigration helps, but to a limited extent, because of cultural and protectionist reasons.  Rich countries lacking natural resources can buy mines, oil wells & agricultural land in other countries, but beyond a certain point, they are suspected of new age colonialism.  Newer & bigger markets may invariably mean exports, but this alone may not solve the problem.

We also need to address the social issues of ageing population, reducing productivity, low birth rates & so on.

Now, lets look at the idea of a rich country partnering a poor one.   As a complement to other approaches and policies.

We start with the partners being culturally similar, perhaps from the same region.   The rich country brings funds & knowledge transfer.  The poor country provides workforce & new markets.  There is no question of exploitation.

This is already happening in a multi-lateral, confused way.  But many countries are trying to partner with many others.  They loose focus & energy as time goes by.  Priorities change.  If some progress is made at all, its slow & painful.

Why don’t we try a long-term partnership, a marriage of nations?  It may facilitate equitable growth in both countries.

Japan with Cambodia.  Australia with India. US with a few latin American countries.  Singapore with Vietnam.

2. Most pain & suffering can be reduced by lowering expectations & practicing detachment.

3. Sex is overpowering. Controlling it is wise.

4. Health & fitness are key to a fulfilling life.

5. Simplicity makes life easy. Want & keep as few things as possible.

6. Read often & widely. Knowing helps & satisfies deeply.

7. Learn from other people’s mistakes.

8. Be wary of following the crowd. Being contratrian can be wise, healthy & profitable.

7. Learn music.

8. Be inquisitive. Cultivate eclectic interests. Learn throughout life.

9. Be yourself. Avoid comparison.

10. Religion is not mandatory.

11. Control anger.

12. Talk less, think & do more.

13. Just do it, now.

14. Don’t repent. Move on.

15. Practice discipline.

16. Eat to live, not vice versa.

17. Change, improve.

18. Make a difference, in small & big ways.

19. Love all, hate none.

20. Make the world a better place.

21. Travel & learn.

22. Practice charity. Giving is deeply satisfying.

23. Follow interests, not money.

24. Earn money to give, not indulge.

25. Being social & connected helps.

26. Live, love, give.

The first ever Youth Olympic Games has taken off smoothly, organized by super-efficient Singapore.

The upcoming Commonwealth Games in India is mired in corruption scandals and administrative chaos.

The scales are quite different….the YOG budget is $200 mil, whereas the Commonwealth Games budget is ~ $10 bil.

But then, that cannot be an excuse.

The Indian Government machinery can learn much from the Indian Industry which has worked miracles in the last decade.

The instinct for self-protection was so high that few parties were willing to give way.  Multi-party negotiations don’t achieve much.

As with most aspects of life, the right incentives are missing.  Almost all countries believe development cannot happen if they battle climate change.

Enlightened countries & leaders can do something different.  Instead of struggling with what others can do, they can cleanup their own backyard, and this may not be difficult.

Competitive markets can achieve much, when they have the right incentives.  We can do more towards taxing carbon emissions & other kinds of pollution, and provide incentives for clean energy.  Incentives should support both innovation & usage of clean energy.

Currently, this is being done in small ways, in a begrudging way, as an afterthought, or as a PR campaign to shore-up the country’s or company’s planet-friendly image.  It doesn’t seem to be a priority.

It needs strong momentum for visible change.  When Quality became the No.1 priority in the last few decades, miracles happened.  Services, products, companies & people transformed.

Competitive markets can do the same for improving climate & our lives.

Invariably, you start with applauding the neat layout, spacious & friendly ambience, and pleasant efficiency at Changi Airport. The drive from the airport, with greenery all around, smooth traffic, & clean roads, confirms what you have heard and read about Singapore. You can’t wait to explore and know more. Singapore has hooked one more lover.

After spending a few years here, I have become a fan. I can’t help admire. At times, I catch myself boasting about Singapore to visiting friends & family.

Singapore has indeed achieved much in its short history. Accolades pour in every week from all over the world. Smart city. Green city. Best schooling system. Efficient government. Low corruption. Foreigner friendly. Business friendly. Clean city. Innovative. Must visit tourist spot. Vibrant arts & culture. Very rational government. Meritocracy. Future city.

Singapore was almost an afterthought, after Malaysia didn’t want it. It was forced to fend for itself. With no natural resources, it had to depend on human talent & ingenuity to survive & progress. Even sand & water had to be imported.

Fifty years on, Singaporeans are justifiably proud. They have done very well indeed. Their per capita income puts them in the league of rich countries. Many countries, both developed & developing, study Singapore’s policies, systems & ideas, aspiring to do as well.

I often wonder if Singapore can sustain. And for how long? Was it luck? What can trip Singapore?

We must start with the good people who founded Singapore. They were unique, visionary, driven, and more importantly, were able to amass popular support for their ideas & policies. Most of these were progressive, which of course have led to the creation of modern & successful Singapore. Singapore is not a typical democracy. One party has ruled all these 50 years. You don’t see or hear of opposition much. The vast majority of the populace don’t seem to be bothered, as long as they have jobs, shopping malls, roads & trains, and the government doesn’t interfere in their personal choices & lives.

So, we have an unique situation where a few good men have ruled wisely. This is an anomaly, something which doesn’t happen often. Its good fortune or luck. History may perhaps have a handful of such successes.

Of course, to give it full credit, Singapore does try to institutionalize luck. All ideas which have led to successful outcomes are studied, analyzed & followed fervently by upcoming politicians and bureaucrats. The old guard have not faded away and linger around as philosopher guides.

But reality has to acknowledged. Over time, circumstances & people change. Ideas evolve. New thinking will happen. New politicians, bureaucrats and citizens will support new ideas & policies. The Primordial Soup which created a successful Singapore will see a marked difference in its ingredients.

Whether this will lead Singapore to greater heights is an open question. However, reversion to mean is bound to happen at some point.

Setbacks will happen.  Sooner or later, Singapore will fumble, stumble, mumble, tremble, crawl…..and will have to swallow its pride.

The challenge is to continuously strive to raise the average standard of performance and living, such that the occasional setbacks don’t reset the clock back to zero.

Sex is a natural urge. I am not surprised by the alleged affairs of Tiger Woods.

Lesser souls, scientists, writers, thinkers, politicians & actors of course, and other common men haven’t been able to restrain themselves. History abounds with stories of scandalous affairs of respectable men, & women. Some speculative, others authoritative. Some vociferously denied, some boldly admitted, some silently acquiesced, others sincerely repented.

Genetic & evolutionary science say life is driven by the urge to reproduce. Genes are selfish, bent on passing on their traits to the next generation. We compete to survive & procreate.

Men are by default polygamous. Given a chance, most men would bed more women than they would care about. This may not apply to most women. Women seem to prefer loyalty, stability, & protection, than variety.

Society and civilization designed controls like families & religious values to contain men’s urges.  Perhaps the alternative would have been unbridled in-fights among men & women, disease, little child-care, and growing instability within groups & communities. These, of course, would have impeded progress.

Coming back to Tiger Woods and his kind, it does seem men are designed to stray. Before, now & always. More so, when are they come with bells & whistles – fame, money, glamor etc. When kittens fawn, thou cannot resist.

Sex is fun.  So, as the Woods’ logic goes, why not more of it?

I’d like to meet the man who invented sex and see what he’s working on now. ~ Author Unknown

All of us know of richer, or happier, or more competent, or better performing, or more blessed, people.  From whatever angle we may wish to see, some people do better than others.  And so is the case with institutions, sportsmen & teams, companies, governments etc.

Is it luck or skill?  This is quite intriguing.

The concept ‘reversion to the mean’ (RTM) is useful to understand this.

RTM is based on the fact that, in most human endeavors, the outcomes are a combination of skill & luck.   Of course, some (like chess) are based on pure skill while others (like casino games) are based on pure luck.  But the vast majority fall somewhere in between.

In cricket, for example, a batsmen can lash with great skill, but yet he may score low because of chance events. Companies with great success streaks stumble (New coke). Political leaders adored in their ‘growing-up’ years prove to be disastrous failures after landing the top job.

The reverse also happens.  The unseeded tennis player wins the championship.  An upstart company startles the market leader.

RTM is a statistical concept which says everything hovers around an average.  This means that things tend to average over time.  This is because, by definition, luck is a chance event and not permanent.  Luck comes & goes, only skill is constant.  An amusing way to look at this is,

Success = some skill + luck
Great success = some skill + lots of luck
(this can be restated for failure as well)

We need to sort skill from luck, when contemplating people, or institutions or entities.

Tending to average doesn’t mean becoming mediocre, because skill is a individual or entity-specific characteristic.  The average performance, over time, of a vastly talented sportsman will continue to be superior to the average performance, over time, of his lesser talented colleagues.

RTM also means that good and bad times don’t last for ever.

From a personal point of view, focusing on improving skills is more important, relevant & easier.

Luck also can be managed.  Good exposure to positive events, people, books, locations, groups etc. can lead to delightful serendipity.

But skill first, luck next.

Developing nations want the developed ones to share the lion’s burden of the costs to manage climate change.  The logic being developed nations have become so by polluting away to glory.

Developed nations are obviously reluctant to oblige.  What’s in it for them?  There is no free lunch.

The underlying premise of these debates seems to be that climate change and development cannot get along.

This is interesting.

Is development equal to wide-spread industrialization & unbridled consumerism?  Most of us seem to think so.  Then, we may not have a definite solution to climate change.  We will debate, plod along, make half-hearted attempts, and eventually perish.

What about sustainable development?  The way this is defined currently is like going forward a few steps, and then stepping back a few.  We will end up going nowhere, or go somewhere too late.

The corporate which is polluting in its home country tries to makeup by planting trees in another.  The executive who conscientiously avoids using the car for his daily commutes and tracks his monthly carbon footprint doesn’t think hard about having that exotic fish for dinner, replenishing his wardrobe every month, or analyzing his wastage pattern.

We are just sweeping dirt under the carpet, or smartly dumping it on the neighbour.

A new model of development is needed.

Till then,  lets hope individual effort & ingenuity keeps the world safe.