Monthly Archives: August 2009

tips, zone

Getting into the zone!

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Have you ever experienced being in “the zone”? You might have experienced for sure – but never noticed it. Once you are able to notice how it is to be in the zone – you can plan to get into the zone more often – for better productivity and happiness.

What is the zone?

The zone is a state of mind when time stops, creativity flows, your breathing is relaxed and steady, new ideas spring up and it leaves you energized wanting for more. In spite of working for hours at a stretch, if you are in the zone – you never feel tired.

Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance, Anna Karenina – are two books that I have read where they talk about this state of mind. Zen book says about getting into the zone on any activity that you do – could be washing dishes, could be fixing a motorcycle, could be writing a blog post. In Anna Karenina, one of the characters – Levin goes to cut corn along with his laborers – this chapter in the book is a masterpiece. Leo Tolstoy beautifully describes how it is to be in the zone – proving why he is one of the greatest brains of all time.

It took some time for me to discover this “getting into the zone” thing. Whenever I am in the zone the code that I produce is beautiful and bug free. New ideas, hidden potential bugs show up and I squash them even before they get a chance to show up.

How to get into the zone?

You need a ritual. Here are some of the things that I do to get ready to go into the zone

1. Music

Either classical music or some movie songs that I have heard a million times before – mostly AR Rahman songs – so they wont distract but will quieten the outside noise.

2. Clear out the feeds and empty inbox

I clear out all the feeds in bloglines, and also empty my inbox – so there is no thread running silently in the head draining resources.

3. Busy status in IM

IM is a big distractor. I educate my buddies not to disturb when I am on busy-status. If they do not respect – I either block them temporarily or sign off from IM.

4. Load up with water

I keep a big jug of water and keep sipping. It will keep the brain hyderated for the upcoming power session !

After this – when I hit the editor I will notice that time would have stopped, and the things around me will disappear and I will not even hear the music. It will be just me and the editor – and things will start flowing. Because now I will be in the zone!

What is your ritual to get into the zone?


health, tips

5 simple tips to fight Flu

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The media is doing what it does best – spreading fear and panic. So here is my little post which is an anti-dote in these scary times. Some tips for increasing your immunity – so when flu gives you a visit, it knows it is not welcome.

1. Orange Juice & Fruits.
Fruits have become really expensive – nowadays Doctors are cheaper than Apple ( the fruit 😉 ). However packaged juices are cheaper than fruits if you do the Cost benefit analysis.
Try and get juices that claim they have no sugar and no preservatives. I do however remember reading that Vitamin C by itself does not help fight flu – but there are other good things – anti oxidants, Vitamin C, fiber – so over all it is good for a healthy you – and it is tasty too.
2. Japanese Shower
Take a hot bath and once you are done – in the end – take shower in the cold water. While taking a hot bath the pores open up and blood flow circulation increases in the skin. When suddenly cold water hits your body, the pores start contracting, and blood is forced to rush deep into your system – carrying with it nourishing oxygen and anti bodies. This is very effective and fun.
3. Pranayama
It takes 2 minutes but this is the most effective of all – I do this while reading the headlines of the newspaper in the morning.
Remember the 10-10-10 rule.
First set : 10 times breathe slowly but firmly through left nostril with right nostril blocked. Repeat with right nostril.
Second set : 10 times breathe a little more faster and with more force through left nostril.Repeat with right nostril.
Third set : 10 times inhale through the left nostril, exhale through right nostril and reverse.
4. Stay away from fries and chaat
8/10 times whenever I ate those delicious fried bajjies, or paani poori outside I have caught cold. You can try rice bran oil for frying ( but do not reuse ) and relish the same sinful stuff at home – cheaper and comparatively healthier.
5. Wash hands constantly
I once heard a NPR podcast about the correlation between number of heartbeats and the lifespan of an animal. The only species which defies this is humans – whose number of heartbeats is less, but their average lifespan is disproportionately higher.
The reason they gave was that humans wash their hands. Simple as that. All the epidemics enter through hand-mouth/eyes route.
Have soap dispensers in all the basins – and yes, you should use anti bacterial soap – just washing hands with water is not going to be of much help.
6. Bonus – Aerobics

This is the panacea to not only fighting flu – but to most of the ailments which might trouble us. If you think about it there is no way of fighting flu alone – your whole body has to be healthy – that will ward off lot many things – bad cholesterol, back aches, stiffness, excess fat build up.
So friends let us not wait till New Year to get healthy, this is the right time – we are being brainwashed with Swine flu scares by the media. Instead of reading reports and worrying, let us hit the healthy lifestyle button.
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JK Wedding video & more

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I know I should not be writing about this video – according to Wired’s How to Behave : New Rules for Highly Evolved Humans.

But I have to – this post is for my not-so-wired friends about a phenomenon that took the net world by storm. It is a video of a wedding party that makes its entrance dancing to a song ( thanks to this video the song- Forever by Chris Brown – went to the top in iTunes ).

Here is the real video :

And here is the spoof from college humour -Unexpected Divorce Intro – which takes things a little too far..:)

Enjoy !