Maslow and the Indian Guru

What is it about the Indian Guru that attracts multitudes? What really are the payoffs people seek, consciously or unconsciously, what role in life does the Guru play in an Indian’s life? A Brand Chakras* study on just this, done amongst disciples of various gurus revealed some interesting angles and insights.
In India, one does not go up stage by Maslow stage, only after each stage is satisfied. All stages can exist simultaneously, although in different proportions for different people in different stages in life – and this is not necessarily dependant only on how much money one has for day to day living, but on your inherent inclination and inborn characteristics. The study showed that a spiritual Guru actually helps in different ways across the hierarchy of needs.
The Guru as Survival Strategist: giving a sense of security and stability, reducing restlessness, encouraging persistence. “Spiritual gurus help more to deal with everyday life than to reach the beyond.” “You come back like a charged person. Now you are ready to face anything.” “He has given us the courage to face problems, difficult situations.”
The Guru as Problem Solver: “If I just close my eyes for a few minutes and tell Baba, now come on, try and give me the solution, try and give me the right light. Immediately I go back and something strikes up.” “He views problems in a different perspective. Whatever problems I put forward to him or discuss with him, he sees them in a different perspective and proves that every problem has got a solution.” “If there’s something to tackle…we just say, ok Guruji, you tell us what to do.”
The Guru as Temporary Escape: “The moment we see him, we forget everything. We live in such peace there, only after coming back everything comes back to our mind… our illness, our worries, our problems. As long as we are there we are at peace.” “I just say come on Baba. Let us sit and chat with each other so that I can disconnect myself from all these worries.”
The Guru as the Pleasure Principle: There are two aspects to this. One, proponent of “living in the now”: “He says live a natural life and enjoy nature. Enjoy the innocence, laughter of the child. Enjoy the birds. That’s something he talks about. And this is one aspect that influences me highly.” “He makes you feel, just relax and enjoy life.” The other, learning to depend less on material pleasures: “Spiritual powers overpower pleasures of life. There is no end to pleasure. Today no materialistic things allure me.” “At a younger age I thought earthly pleasures were more important, I thought making more money, was a pleasurable thing. Yes, I’ve achieved detachment from earthly pleasures after my association with my guru.”
The Guru as Performance Enabler: builder of confidence and self belief, giver of courage, empowerer of goals. “When I go to Baba in the morning, I feel I have shed off all my fears and insecurities and then I’m like a free bird to conduct my level best during the day.” “He empowers me in a way…Certain things that I cannot do, he makes me able enough to do”. “I never knew all the things I could do. I never used to think I could go on stage and talk. We have never been trained for all that…This is not something I believed I could do.” “We put limitations in our mind…but this becomes a limitless thing…you can do whatever.” “I do more and much more than a normal person would do. I do so much now.”
The Guru as Parent, giver of unconditional love: “He loves us, in spite of all our faults, in spite of the things he tells us to do and we don’t…we are not able to do…some people don’t even try. For me that is the greatest love.” “Guruji loves everyone. It’s unconditional love. It’s not like he loves you more or me more, his love is for everybody and its equal.” “It’s like a mother and child relationship” “I have felt that every relationship in life is a give and take. For him, its only give. ”
The Guru as Relationship Therapist: helps maintain relationships, accept people as they are, say the right thing at the right time, and face unfriendly situations politely. “Definitely, my attitude has changed. Within my relatives, I used to be a very arrogant person before becoming a Sai devotee… but now even they say that I have changed.” “He, by giving so much advice regarding behaviour of human beings, he gives us a different outlook in us by which we see other people totally differently.” “I used to expect a lot from a relationship…since I used to give in a 100% in my relationship, my expectations were very high, which now I have learnt to let go.” “Even when people behave in an erratic manner which is not acceptable to you, instead of getting upset, I sympathize and I try to guide them, counsel them, reform them. And that improves the relationship and my credibility also goes up.”
The Guru as proponent of Social Responsibility: brings out kindness and compassion. “I’ve been attracted to the service side… as it makes me feel good when I help someone out. The thing that I liked about this organization is that there isn’t much money involved… It’s more about personal involvement.” “In Puttaparthi… I was surprised to see, many of them… For example a scientist, a professor and a big organization’s head, who liked to serve in the canteen. ” “Sometimes we just live in our circle and what we can do for our children and what we can do for ourselves. He makes you get out of the comfort zone. Move out of your comfort zone and just go and do.” “There are other ways to help out. I want to do new things to help… It was there in me before, but it was in different style. Mostly in trying to show off to people, to make money or something like that. But now it’s mostly social work.”
And finally, the Guru as Catalyst of Self Actualisation: inner growth, learning that obstacles are stepping stones .“I have learnt to live with less expectations. Guruji says no expectations because expectations bring sorrow, no expectations bring joy. “ “I would rather be at peace with myself…connecting to god. There are times at night, when there are so many thought provoking things, now I’ve learnt to switch off.” “I feel that life is not only this…there’s something beyond.” “Life is about growth of your own self also.” “The stronger you become, the tougher lessons come in life. “Now I am trying to rise myself to a higher plane. ““Pleasure is inner happiness of mind, that is peace.”
Guru seekers are therefore in essence, solution seekers (Maslow’s safety – not necessarily physiological but mental and emotional), performance seekers (Maslow’s esteem), parent seekers (Maslow’s love and belonging) and inner peace seekers (Maslow’s self actualisation).

From reel to Real: India's changing relationship with Bollywood celebrities

Highlights from a JWT Brand Chakras study
The Indian film star is no longer only a hero of the silver screen; he is a beacon of inspiration
to his fans. Their on-screen portrayals are being given lesser importance and their off-screen
lives and personality have gained prominence, says the recent JWT Brand Chakras™ Study:
From Reel to Real Life.
The study reveals that film stars are no longer considered to be larger than life in terms of his
or her persona and lifestyle; they are now real individuals who have risen to extraordinary
heights. This shift in how celebrities are viewed is largely attributed to the availability of more
real time, wide spread knowledge of what the stars do off screen – be it television shows,
blogs, news controversies, or activism. While celebrities were once virtual prisoners of the
characters that they played on-screen, they are now seen as individuals whose personal traits
earn them as much admiration as their display of talent on-screen. His real attitudes and his
larger life story is where the opportunities for brands lie.
The study reveals: 1) a model of how consumers relate to celebrities, and therefore how
celebrity brands can be shaped; 2) the key payoffs that consumers derived from the three
celebrities studied (Shah Rukh Khan, Hrithik Roshan and Akshay Kumar); and 3) kinds of fan
relationships.
The Brand Chakras framework revealed that Shahrukh Khan operates mainly in Power and
Transcendence (leadership and vision) Chakras, while Hrithik Roshan was observed to be
operating in the Love and Creative Expression Chakras. Akshay Kumar, on the other hand,
was seen to be dominating in Survival and Pleasure Chakras.
The study also threw up three different types of fan relationships. The Entertainment Seeker:
the fan who derives nothing but entertainment from the film star - for him the celebrity is an
object of entertainment. The Fantasy Seeker: The film star serves as fodder for his fantasies;
he seeks the same looks and the material success. The Inspiration Seeker: for him, the film
star is a role model for what is possible in life, endorses a set of values and exemplifies the way
he should or wants to lead his life. Different fans would be deriving different benefits from
different celebrities.
The qualitative study undertaken by JWT was executed through Focus Group Discussions and
Depth Interviews in Delhi and Mumbai amongst fans of Shah Rukh Khan, Akshay Kumar and
Hrithik Roshan.

Mumbai: where "Survial is the Art of Living"/Published post in www.adage.com

“Indifferent sadness”. “Impotent love”. “No whining. Accept hardships and keep going”. “The show must go on”. These were but some of the comments from consumers during a JWT India study* on the character of Mumbai city just a few months ago.
In the aftermath of recent events, the value of the Mumbai-ites’ resilience became a subject of debate. Many were saying what one of the respondents had said “Riots, bomb blasts, floods… The city bounces back by forgetting and that I personally feel is a bad thing. The city should come to a grinding halt. That is when there will be considerable thought given to what led to these adversities and real steps will be taken to prevent these from happening”.

So what makes Mumbai the way it is?

*Day to day life is a struggle
”Mumbai is a draining city in a physical sense; one requires tremendous amounts of energy to get through the rigors of every day life in Mumbai”.
“Traffic is chaotic, most people have to spend 5 to 6 hours commuting.
Mumbai’s productivity is reduced by half due to traffic related delays”.

*City of opportunity
“Setting goals and achieving them is what people come here for and they focus on that”.
“Strugglers here continue to have their dreams despite their failures; especially in fields like media, films”.
“Mumbai has a culture of intense competition. The number and scale of opportunities available are immense”.

*Be competitive, reap rewards
“Survival calls for competitiveness as well as preoccupation with own matters; hence being self absorbed and indifferent is natural to the seasoned survivor in Mumbai”.
“People do not mind being right or wrong as long as they get ahead in life and achieve what they want”.
“Mumbai has no sympathy for the newcomer; he or she has to be ready to compete and work hard, suffer and endure to get going in this city”.
“Don’t resist the hectic pace, go with the flow, the current will carry you forward’.

*Therefore, there is no time to dwell on the difficulties
“If your car is bumped, then you abuse that person and move on. You do not get into terrible rage like in some other cities. They do not want to get trapped in such situations…it is smarter to move on.”
“If you are traveling in a train, there will be so many times that you will be trampled, jostled… but you have to pick yourself up and move on. That is the attitude that surviving in this city calls for…forget and move on “.
“Despite the frustrations, you do not find a lot of violence. If people are stuck in traffic jams for a long time. You might find a lot of horn honking but not physical violence.”
*Mumbai is often trapped in situations that it cannot control. “Terrorist activities are situations which Mumbai cannot control. Politician’s actions also trap Mumbai in a way”.

*Indifferent sadness and impotent love: helplessness and powerlessness
“Mumbai only feels sad; imagine a person hit by a train; people here will feel sad but there is not enough action as a result of the sadness because people do not either have the time or the inclination; they leave it at feeling sad; they will tide over the guilt of not doing anything by thinking that ‘I at least felt sad…so what if I could not do anything about it’”.

*People do not speak out
“The average person in Mumbai is not inclined to speak his mind out on controversial issues; the fear of repercussions as well as the ‘Mind your own business’ attitude act as deterrents.”
“They cannot afford to spend time on such issues. People generally refrain from making political statements openly. They want to avoid trouble, not get trapped in situations”.

*There is no “Voice of the City”
“Power is in the wrong hands. The sentiments of the political power does not necessarily reflect the views and sentiments of the larger Mumbai public”.
“Though Bollywood people are representing Mumbai, they are not doing anything personally for Mumbai”
“Though there are personalities in Mumbai, who appear in TV interviews, all these people have no power… nobody listens to them… they only cater to the elite class… people who are really affected, they do not have any voice. Whatever leaders that they have are those who try to take advantage of the situation”
“The social fabric of the city is quite complex. The class divide is quite stark. So you do not have people responding to or uniting on larger city issues that do not directly affect them”
“You will have a group talking about pedestrian spaces being misused and another group talking about the attack on open spaces in the city. But you will never find people coming together as one group and talking about larger issues like terrorism that threaten the city.”

*Mumbai does not have a vision of its future
“Mumbai lives in the present and does not think too much about the future. If they thought more about the future, then there will not be too much of dirt, filth lying around”.
“Those here do not have the time to plan for two, three years down the road. They do not think of planning for the future, think of larger causes like environment etc”

*Survival is the “Art of Living” (Art of Living refers to one of the biggest offerings in the new age “spirituality for wellness” domain in India.)

“Survival is the art of living in Mumbai… In Mumbai, it is difficult to survive and also easy to survive… you just have to be a little street smart”.
Now, even the definition of street smart has changed. For the people who will just honk and move on, for the people who just want to carry on with their goals, for the people who just want to live and let live, being street smart now means dodging bullets.


This article quotes entirely from "A Tale of Four Cities": A proprietary JWT India Brand ChakrasTM Study that set out to uncover the forces that make the character of each of its four metros: Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata; and understand how citizens relate to their cities. The qualitative study involved Depth Interviews with journalists, radio jockeys, psychiatrists, advertising professionals, HR consultants and Focus Group Discussions amongst citizens of each city, a mix of men and women, young adults and older, long term residents and recent settlers.

Chakra Watch 7/ Equanimity and enlightenment: can brands play a deeper role?

This first appeared as an article in The Brand Wagon, The Financial Expresss, August 5th, 2008

Survival, Pleasure, Power, Love, Creative Expression, Transcendence, Spirituality: these are the seven basic life themes - based on the seven major chakras in the human body - that drive all human behaviour.
Sahasara or the Crown Chakra is about enlightenment, wholesomeness, positive transformation, inner peace, enthusiasm and fulfillment. The seat of psychological maturity, it is said to develop when we face difficult choices in our personal lives and external challenges. The Brand Chakras framework calls this life space “Surrender to Spirituality: Mental and Intuitive Intelligence”. It does not require as was thought in earlier days, renunciation of the world. Rather it is about being aware of a higher force at work, balancing worldly pursuits and spiritual thinking, remaining grounded, and even healing and transforming others around us.

Strong crown chakra people have a clear idea of who they are and what they want to do, have no illusions about life, like to do things flawlessly, stay peaceful in any situation, and are in general, satisfied with their present life. Their strategies in life include acknowledging an inner voice, cultivating humility, disciplined living, an ability to tone down expectations and a willingness to put others before self. As a result they seek or experience a higher quality of living and being.

The classic crown chakra archetype is the guru, while the negative archetype within the same space is the egotist – excessive crown chakra can manifest as egotism, superiority, overly intellectual, intolerance of the spiritually immature, self denial or superstitiousness.

Traditionally religious and ritualistic, India of course became the spiritual fountainhead in many ways to the materialistic West. While in India we now have magazine cover headlines that say “Tango with God” and ads like the recent one of Tata Sky ad that takes a light hearted dig at spiritual channels and people who watch them. Advertising, in general has used spirituality in a lighter vein, or to strike an emotional chord - like the Reliance mobile ad in which the young lady connects with her grandmother by calling her so that she can hear the temple bell. The third type can be found more in serials and films - the fake guru or purohit, who every now and then, makes newspaper headline too. The endless scenes of prayer in our soaps, and the villains’ disregard for rituals underlines the Indian concept of “good people are religious and bad people are not”.

The larger point in India today is of course that spirituality has actually merged with day-to-day physical and mental health, and a search for achievement and realising potential as against a search for divine truth. The focus is on a greater sense of what we are capable of and a search or realization of what our individual higher purpose might be – and this is indeed a Spirituality Chakra focus.


Brands – or products and services - wanting to offer Sahasara payoffs can explore payoffs like: helps me to face life with equanimity; helps me to reach the divine; helps me achieve my potential; helps me to get my inspiration from within; helps me to resist pleasure. Brands that offer enlightenment, self realisation, actualisation, perfection, inner peace and infinfite enthusiasm, emotional healing and positive transformation will fall into this space.


The best examples of Spitiruality Chakra offerings would be books – from Deepak Chopra to Neale Donald Walsch to Rhonda Bryne, even Stephen Covey and Jonh Maxwell in their own ways. And a hundred others in between. Life skill courses, religious channels and magazines, and of course mythological serials and movies, all offer Sahasara payoffs. Holiday brands and spas too offer shades of equanimity, relaxation and peace, though not enlightenment.

The implication that emerges is: as brands proliferate should we be asking deeper questions of our brands to help differentiate? Each of us could ask of our brands questions like: Is there anything about the brand that seeks to connect with our soul? Does the brand have a spiritual quotient? Any possibility of a nobler association? Can associating with this brand bring about any transformation in our lives? Does the brand believe it has a larger mission beyond its apparent functionality or the more traditional “emotional benefit”? Given that stress is increasing in a hundred ways, can brands help to face life with equanimity? Given that all Indians are seeking to raise the bar on achievement, one way or the other, can brands help us to achieve our potential? Inspire from within? Help bring about transformation in the world around us?
Given that India is at heart a highly spiritual nation, have brands explored this space enough?

Chakra Watch 6: Inspire me, make me wise

This first appeared as an article in The Brand Wagon, The Financial Express, July 2, 08

Survival, Pleasure, Power, Love, Creative Expression, Transcendence, Spirituality: these are the seven basic life themes - based on the seven major chakras in the human body - that drive all human behaviour.

The Ajana or third eye chakra is higher up in the great Indian spiral, in the territory of active intelligence, wisdom, will power, and the ability to direct. Articulated as the Transcendence Chakra, this is in fact a much sought after payoff in India today.

India is moving away from the original meaning of transcendence – intense peace and tranquility, feelings of detachment, and strong emotions of tolerance and non-competitive co-existence. Today, there is a clear adaptation of spirituality for day-to-day living – a coping mechanism to manage stress rather than a true seeking of the divine. And more - from the merely neutral to the positive - a desire for mental evolution, in a way that inspires superior performance in the work arena, and takes you closer to achieving your potential. This has been both initially fuelled and further enhanced by spiritual leaders reaching out with more user friendly religion, as it were. This has been a big shift for India.

The roots of Transcendence people come from self awareness of a very high degree, an aptitude for spirituality, some life transforming experience. Ajana people have a maturity that belies their age, use the ability to be a witness to their own lives, have a keen knowledge of their own emotions, the ability to act in a measured manner, follow high standards of physical and mental discipline, and effectively use spirituality in day-to-day living. As a result, they seek equanimity, stress free living, look forward to being of moral guidance to others, are good with perspectives and therefore problem solving abilities, and have a higher intuition that guides their actions. Perfection, abstract thinking, will power, discernment, striking a balance among various facets of life characterize the Transcendence consumer.

Active intelligence in India today therefore needs to be seen as demonstrated by people who have clearly left the survival stage far behind, climbed through power, and now wish to use it all to shape a higher order contribution, give back to society and guide others. Successful and well established businessmen for example, who have run the race, are showing the urge to create something new and different, raise the bar, transform and inspire. People with strong personal vision are reaching out to others, from positions of power and leadership. Excellence in problem solving, right perspectives, intuitive leadership, and high quality living that does not necessarily rest on tranquility but starts on a path to pioneering and visionary work.

Another proof of communication that appeals to our Transcendence Chakra is the surfeit of column spaces like “God in Gucci” and the fact that Sunday papers and magazines are now full of articles urging you to live in the now, let go of past baggage, find spirituality in all activities - cooking, gardening or running a company. Books like The Secret, and the entire body of self-help books which urge us to develop the power to invite luck into our lives, offer this payoff.

Payoffs for brands in this chakra include : inspires me; appeals to my love of perfection; helps me understand deeper aspects of life; makes me believe obstacles are stepping stones; reflects my strong will power; reflects my leadership qualities; recognizes that I am a discerning person; encourages me to do things that have not been done before; gives me mental calmness; helps me make my own decisions; helps me realize God.

The Yin-Yang of Technology Payoffs, a Brand Chakras study with technology workers, revealed that they sought personal evolution and knowledge advancement even through technology gadgets. The study revealed that technology is no longer just about convenience and greater efficiency, its influence on the average individual is more profound and life defining. Technology brands could be a powerful agent of mental evolution and therefore offer Transcendence Chakra benefits.

“Cause brands” and “purpose brands” that seek to rise above the day-to-day and find a larger wave to ride, seeking to influence, change, and transform, operate in this space. The Power and the Glory, a Brand Chakras study on the global Indian revealed that brands that stand for more elevated, inspiring, larger life purposes, brands that aim to transform economies, societies, and the way individual lives are lived, will find greater relevance than brands that offer transient payoffs, or operate in the area of just reflecting his personality, attracting female attention or being a statement of style and achievement.
In fact, when asked what they want from relationships, global Indians clearly sought “inspiration” and “encouragement to do things that have not been done before” from every relationship – be it spouse, parent, employer, or friend.

Interestingly, consumer groups held up Abdul Kalam, and Manmohan Singh as examples of good Transcendence Chakra people, whereas Sage Viswamitra they said was excessive transcendence, because pride of wisdom and anger crept in!

The Yin-Yang of Technology Payoffs in Consumer Life

Efficiency and indulgence, refuge and escape, conformism and showmanship, child-like delight and intellectual growth, the payoffs from technology in personal life are dichotomous says the latest Brand Chakras™ study. In work life, technology can facilitate democracy or meritocracy, be a performance leveler or a performance discriminator, foster conformism or creativity. Technology can be functional and symbolic, in the temporary and immediate or in the permanent and the long term. It can help social anchoring or enhance social clout.

It all depends on your orientation. You could be looking to satisfy your need to belong or your need to be individualistic. At the very least, technology helps you celebrate life, but as you go up the ladder, it becomes a life-evolving tool. The study identified five types of technology mindsets.
The Doer: keen on upgrading quality of everyday life, with a thirst for ease and efficiency in day-to-day life, wants technology to maximize life and help balance different spheres.
The Connector: strong urge to nurture relationships and stay anchored.
The Indulger: fundamental need for fun and entertainment to cope with day-to-day pressures
The Discriminator: pressured to establish, redeem, conquer, catch up or breakaway to create a distinct identity and distance himself from the rest.
The Explorer: instinctive thirst for excitement through new experiences and keen to constantly add new facets to his life.

Technology is no longer just about convenience and greater efficiency, its influence on the average individual is more profound and life defining. Technology is now the most powerful agent of mental evolution. The power and worth of any technology will increasingly be evaluated in terms of its ability to unlock and express the power of the mind and the intellect.

The study was done through indepth discussions in Mumbai and Chennai with 25 – 35 year old early adopters, working in technology companies, and attempted to answer the question “what are the deeper payoffs that consumers seek and are getting from technology in their lives - both personal life and work life?” The study found that technology largely catered to Pleasure and Power chakra needs in our lives. And identified almost 20 payoffs that technology brands could use to connect with consumers.

The findings are particularly relevant for brands in the personal technology domain like personal computers, internet, connectivity, telecom, mobiles and visual imaging gadgets.

Unlocking Minds: Climbing the ladder of technology benefits

This first appeared as an article in The Economic Times, June 10, 2008

Clearly a section of Indian consumers are reveling in the new-found enjoyment of technology products – be it personal computing, internet, telecom services, mobiles or other visual gadgets. “Technology is encouraging me to live life king size; it is making the experience of living more pleasurable” said a young technology worker in a depth interview recently. With more and more Indians working in technology-creating companies, how will our relationship with technology change and what do brands have to do to translate technology benefits to emotional payoffs? What is it that drives early adopters, what creates the urge to learn and experiment and how does learning new techie tricks make you feel?

“The Yin-Yang of Technology Payoffs”, a recent JWT Brand Chakras study revealed that the tech coin has two sides. There is efficiency and indulgence, refuge and escape, conformism and showmanship, child-like delight and intellectual growth. But the dominating themes are Power and Pleasure. As a young BPO worker put it, “Technology helps to influence others in my friends’ circles, with the latest gizmos, I have the knowledge of technology that they do not have. This gives me a kind of power and helps me dominate.”

At a social level, there is an obvious celebration of the financial capacity to buy, “Technology is making my life more efficient, but that is more of a bonus; the main benefit is the social benefits. I now have to keep up the impression that I have the latest with me”. The theme of “makes me feel more intelligent than others around me” also dominates. At a personal level, a tech savvy amateur photographer declares, “My friend bought a new digital camera and he does not know how to use it; I just took it and showed him how to use all the features and I was able to create a positive impression before my friends”. At a business level it goes as far as, “Earlier customers used to bargain for discounts. But now though my product quality is still the same the gadgets that I flaunt in my office increases my clout in dealings” !


In work life, technology can facilitate democracy or meritocracy, foster conformism or creativity. It can be a performance leveler: “I have never stood first anywhere, in my second year of engineering, I dropped two subjects. But now I feel very powerful with these gadgets, I feel more positive about myself”. Or a performance booster: “I want technology to boost my spirit to enable me to go beyond the limits while competing with co-workers.”

How you use technology depends on your orientation. You could be looking to satisfy your need to belong or your need to be individualistic. At the very least, technology helps you celebrate life, but as you go up the ladder, it becomes a tool for intellectual evolution. The Brand Chakras study identified five types of technology mindsets. The Doer: keen on upgrading quality of everyday life, with a thirst for ease and efficiency in day-to-day life, wants technology to maximize life and help balance different spheres. The Connector: strong urge to nurture relationships and stay anchored. The Indulger: fundamental need for fun and entertainment to cope with day-to-day pressures. The Discriminator: pressured to establish, redeem, conquer, catch up or breakaway to create a distinct identity and distance himself from the rest. The Explorer: instinctive thirst for excitement through new experiences and keen to constantly add new facets to his life.

People who work in tech environments are particularly confident that their abilities will help them to make a mark wherever they go. They feel their tech knowledge gives them the confidence to face any new situation, reduces risk, increases experimentation, helps go beyond the immediate brief, takes them closer to perfection, and of course brings out creativity. As an animation specialist said, “With technology, now whatever I imagine, I can turn that into animation. It is easy to translate thoughts, plans into real form and this encourages me to think of new things, imagine freely”. Reflecting a deep desire for maximum utilization of inner resources and a sense of continuous improvement they say, “ Using technology , I would like to achieve something that has not been done in the past. I want technology to help me in my innovative thinking. I want technology to help me translate my innovative thoughts into real products. Technology can overcome the gap between my thinking and reality. I want to do things that have not been done before.”

Clearly, technology will no longer be just about convenience and greater efficiency. Its influence on the new techie Indian will get more profound and life defining. Technology is increasingly being seen as the most powerful agent of mental evolution. The power and worth of any technology will increasingly be evaluated in terms of its ability to unlock and express the power of the mind and the intellect. So while we all start by being Doers and Connectors, we’ll aim to climb the ladder and go on to being Discriminators and Explorers.