First Wedding Anniversary Special!!

Didn’t knew that, time will ran out so soon and we are celebrating our first wedding anniversary. So do u think this journey was smooth..Has it been a cake walk so far… think again ,  Of course as everybody knows ” Marriages are made in heaven but so is lightning and thunder”.

I always wondered how on earth , a boy and a girl will decide their life partner in 30 minutes sitting  in cafe parlor corners.  Man,when the same thing happened to me i was clueless, what can u say or ask  in 30 min…This is called arrange marriage where our elders will make sure that everything matches right from horoscopes to their respective status.

Many would try to relate Arrange marriage to Gambling which i strongly disagree, in gambling u dont have control over end result whereas in the latter u have a complete control and its left to us on which side we have to be. Of course there would be a lot more misunderstandings, lot more to share, to care, to fight for….and its quiet common for a couple who have grown up with different background and different family values.  As expected the same thing happened with us as well and we broke all the “Rules Of Engagement”  which we had during the “30 minutes” first meet. There are times where we hardly converged but we accepted the fact, console each other and move on… thats how life should be….No marriage is without conflict

Most of the things were new for both of us, as we went into this marriage with idealistic mindset than a realistic one.  Due to this mindset we were hurt many times as our expectations were not met and this is where the “understanding” term comes into play. This whole one year has taught me so many things and one of the most important is  “Not to take one another for granted” .

Each time we had issues, we emerged stronger and tried to understand each other better and together look forward to new hopes and joys for a beautiful tomorrow..

-Sunil

Life demands change!!

OK.. after  a quiet period of close to 9 months…. am here again. Lot of things happened in last 3 quarters, finished quite a few assignments which provided me a platform to learn, lead and experience the Cisco XR test process. I even had an opportunity to be audited by KPMG (Cisco external auditor) which gave some insight on the Cisco’s Software audit process, right from PRD (Requirement) to FCS (Shipment).

I didn’t read even a single book nor did i blogged during this whole 9 month period,  if i say i didn’t have much time then it would be inappropriate rather i have to blame myself for my planning and prioritizing skills (thats what even my manager thinks.. )

One fine day my innerself  from nowhere awake and sighed “huh… dude, enough is enough, look for a change”. First it sounded me what crap he is talking about.. i am one of the most important member in our team (atleast i thought so),  i can have my say here, leading a team of 5 people and am all settle.. what’s that made him to think like that?? ..

Yes.. My innerself had a reason and rightfully he was right, i was in my comfort zone where hardly exciting things happens.  My biggest weakness till today is my comfort zone, as it makes me too lazy to try and experiment with  new things in life.  This is not the first time, it happened when i was with netsol and again with Huawei as well… each time  i had to look for something new. It might be a new work or a new place or new people or a new offer (for this skilled slave as many would call) . This “new” thing always kicks me in, just like alcohol do for alcoholics

I decided to unsettle myself from the team and looked for a change within Cisco but on a different role. Cisco has his one beautiful thing where it provides you an opportunity to work for any vertical segment you wish, afaik very few companies has this kind of facility, rather i would call it as a talent retention tool. After 5 days of searching in Cisco intranet site i found a few openings for Network Consulting Enggs (NCE) and applied for it. NCEs work Primarily involves in providing Prepare, Planning, Design and implement services  to our so called Esteemed Service Provider customers (AT&T,BT,BC..list goes on). Next day I got a call for interview and  i cleared (dont ask me how i did it….bcoz even i donno ). My Manager was so co-operative that i didn’t find any difficulty in convincing him on why i need this change and blah…blah !!!… i think he already listened my innerself voice through Cisco wi-fi network i guess

Now am working as a so called NCE for Cisco Advanced Services Team from last 2 weeks, in the hope of doing some plan, design and implement stuff.  Now am keep telling myself  “Lets  keep this “NEW” thing going for me in this team for a while , otherwise …….”

I am signing off with the below 2 contradictory quotes on “change” .. Now, Are you looking for a change??

The man who looks for security, even in the mind, is like a man who would chop off his limbs in order to have artificial ones which will give him no pain or trouble.  ~Henry Miller

All change is not growth, as all movement is not forward.  ~Ellen Glasgow

–Sunil

Back to Business…after IPL,Lotus Blossom and much more!!

Huh.. it has been long time since i wrote my last post. well i cant tell i didn’t get enough time to post anything for that matter, but certainly yes i do have time constraint as i am tied up with too many things to take care.

As i am leading one of the project (3 member team though) i have to work harder to achieve those unexpected(!) results and as per my this year resolution i need to complete CCIE Lab. These all things will happen only if i stretch myself a little bit. literally am going through a very tough time and at the same time am trying to enjoy whatever am into as it helps me in busting my stress factor.

Lot of interesting things happened in my life in the last one and a half month. I got engaged to Veena, who is pursuing her MBA from VTU (Final sem) and it needs one big post to tell about her which i will do it in some other day. Btw my close friend Nagendra got married and living a happy life.

I have booked my lab date on oct 3 (to be precise 120 days left for this D Day). Cleared ccie written a month back and slowly picking up on the lab topics. Am planning to post daily updates on my CCIE Prep as it helps me in analyzing my strengths and weakness.

Having said that this post wont be complete without mentioning IPL’s successful saga and story of Lotus Blossom in karnataka. These were the most likely important event happened for this year, Though i was busy with my work, i made it a point to watch some of the important matches esp. after RR’s unexpected dream run. They were written off even before the start of the tournament but still they managed to lift the cup, what an inspirational personality Warne is. .. and IPL find —-Yousuf Pathan!!

Again Politics is one of my interesting field and i do keep a tab on day to day activities, this time Lotus Blossom and it is one of my long term wish to see BJP coming to power in karnataka. The decision to support BJP (Yedyurappa) might appear a biased one, as i am from the same constituency Shikaripur. I grew up seeing him and in our early days we used to watch him closely and debated a lot about his potential of becoming a CM. We even predicted that he will become CM one day, and the wish came true. Time only can tell how well he manages to run the govt and shows his prowess without buckling to mining and Real estate lobby.

Hope this govt will do better .. and i wish them all the best!!

-Sunil

How to get Motivate and stay Motivated!!

A very difficult question to answer indeed…

I know motivation is not something which i can get from outside, it should come from within and there should a some strong urge or desire to drive that. From past 2 weeks i am feeling like lethargic and no mood for anything feeling like going nowhere. I think this might be becoz of the nature of the work which i am doing now, sometimes feels monotonous. I wonder why me.. bcoz when i look back now for the work which i did in the past 6 months or so, i shouldn’t feel like this.

I successfully learned new technologies and aligned myself to a new project which is completely different from what i was doing before, did CCIP in less than 10 weeks, executing the assigned project within schedule, had a nice time with my family and friends and sometimes i do blogging and so on. Wondering how it can happen for a person like me who is enjoying his life so well both personally and professionally,but again it is a matter of time i believe.

After much consulting and research i came to know that this is just a transient phase which can happen to anyone. The only thing is you need to be focussed enough to get rid of this so called transient phase. Now question is how to come out of this, answer is self-motivate. To get motivate does not makes me great but stay motivate does matter a lot.. Thats how i think i can overcome this devil. huh……..but how to get motivate and stay motivate.

Everyone knows there is no magic formula to get motivate and be successful in life, when i do observe all the successful people around me, one common thing which they share among them is, they are all doing what they love and they love what they do…! as simple as that.

Sadly for most of us we dont know what we are good at and what we love, bcoz people who love their work, they do it passionately for 18 hrs a day that makes them ticking. In my case i do love my job which i am doing now but struggling to get a start. As i said earlier it is very difficult for one to be get and stay motivate all the time, there should be some strong force is needed to drive that motivation.

The force can be anything, it may be ur own dream company,car,home blah.blah….. for me the inner force is to achieve CCIE which i am planning to start my preparation from next week. Hope this urge of getting CCIE should make me ticking and stay motivate at least for sometime now.

Here are some of the key points on how to stay motivated:

* We must define success for ourselves.

* Be aware of our own strengths and weaknesses

* Your personal solutions lie within you.

* To sustain motivation, do better than in the past.

* Motivation often comes from a challenge.

* It is necessary at times to make a positive out of a negative.

* The most important thing for an achievement-orientated person is to have a clear goal.

* I believe motivation is closely tied to purpose.

Courtesy: How_to_Motivate_Yourself_and_Stay_Motivated

Hope this will help somebody to realize their potential and be a champion in their own world…… My 2 Cents!!!

My First Resolution which was not just on paper!!

It was in 2007 Jan, when i made some resolutions for that year. Again it was as usual, getting up early for jogging, visiting new places, Reading new books . But one thing that silently added into my list of resolutions is to have atleast one Cisco Certification this year. It was indeed one resolution which i always told to myself throughout the year to accomplish that. But somehow i strongly made up my mind not to keep this resolution just on paper.

Seven months passed but nothing happened, And one fine day (may be in Oct) just like that it came to my mind to do CCIP Certification. Even i went ahead and bought a book also (Thanks to my friend Suresh who actually got this book from Ganagram’s, it was BSCI book). For this to happen i am sure that i need to dedicate 3 hrs daily for preparation and i actually did that, and i really felt the essence of dedication.

After one month of prep i gave my first exam BSCI and i cleared with 957/1000, and somehow my subconscious mind is closely working towards other 3 papers. Thank God,By the end of December 2007 i was able to get my CCIP certification.. Amazing isn’t!!

If i look back now for the work which i have done in the year 2007, i feel much more satisfied. Year 2008 is here and this time i have not made any resolutions so far, am in a dilemma whether to get a wedding ring or not.

If i am not going to tie knot this year then my this year resolution would be CCIE. In either case i wil be very happy bcoz both will have ton of new things to learn and cherish for a lifetime!!

Wish you all the best for the year 2008!!

What is your resolution.. think upon it!!

Cheerssssss

Finally Cleared MPLS 1000/1000…..WoW!!

Aah relaxed a bit, this is one of the exam which i always wanted to write not bcoz i will get CCIP but more of self satisfaction. Having worked on this technology nearly for 1 yr or so,  somehow i found it little difficult to clear this exam, esp the MPLS-TE part which i had never worked before. Overall a very exciting technology to learn if your into Service provider networking domain. This is one of the assignment which i planned and executed in a very nice fashion in recent times.

My Journey towards CCIE has become shorter one mile with this exam!!

Is Politics, the only profession to serve society?

Last night i had a privilege to go through one of the best article in recent times by Vishweshar Bhat in thatskannada . Article is very well written and it came right on a block hole when our power hungry politicians are just indulge in money making business and forgetting their responsibilities. One common belief among us ” Politics is the only way to serve this society, where you can reach people and understand their grievances ” but in reality thats not true. The above article has just done that, it clearly tells how each of us can make difference to this world.

Am ready to make the difference….. are you??

The Myths and Facts of Protocol Testing…

I always wanted share some of the thoughts of so called Protocol Testing, thanks to web log which has provided me a podium to share this. Forget about common man, many in the IT arena itself, professionals think that protocol testing is hard to understand and that is the only reason people tend to obstinate from pursuing this as their favorite career. Let me clear some of the doubts for those people who wish to pursue this as their long term career.

Myths:
Am not from CS/EC engg background and hence this is not my cup of coffee. Its hard to learn. Should know every TDH of Computer Communication. Done software testing course and know only application software testing and hence finding this as difficult. Don’t know what the heck this protocol means. Should be expert in scripting languages like Perl, Tcl, etc. Should be sound in C Programming. Have sound knowledge in Protocols but don’t have testing experience and hence my profile doesn’t match the requirement. Not finding any institutes offering this course….. and the list goes on…

Facts:

Though CS and E&C background is necessary for this profile it is not mandatory, I have seen many guys from Electrical, Mechanical,IT, streams who are doing very well in this field. I think it is just a matter of preference. You don’t have to know every networking concept on this earth, Networking basics would be suffice. you can find all the necessary networking basics information from the following link http://cisco.com/en/US/support/tsd_documentation.html.

I have been in this field for more than 3 years and i never find it difficult to learn albeit nothing comes without hard work. If you are already did your software testing course then you are half done, now read all the networking basics and put in your resume. You don’t have to know each and every protocol in networking technology just make sure that you know at least 3 protocols (like RIP,OPSF,ISIS,BGP,SNMP,IPSEC etc). You don’t have to be expert in scripting but atleast brush up the Tcl/Tk basics, i think it will take around 3-4 days if you know C program.

Even if you are not good in programming don’t worry, all good programmers will be there to write codes. We are here to test and for testing you don’t have to know programming although it helps in exploring new test cases. I have seen many people complaining about don’t having testing experience but knowing in and out of protocols functionality, my advice for them is to get enroll in one of the testing course institute. I know, not many institutes are offering protocol testing course. My suggestion is just hang on with Google you will get everything, again it entirely depends on acumen of your searching.

Cisco Certifications do matter a lot if you are planning for a long term career. Certifications not only helps you in enhancing your skill/knowledge but also get you recognition which is priceless, esp when you did with your Certifications such as CCIE,CCSP..etc.

Finally, knowing all the above said things will sometimes puts you in soup, unless your CV matches the requirement. At this point of time i urge you to write your resume with utmost care, get sample resumes from Google do lot of groundwork before coming up with your final resume.

I have tried my best to clear some of the doubts, do let me know your comments if you have anything to suggest/share.

India @ 60

Come this Wednesday, India will be celebrating her 60th year of Independence with much rejoice. For many of us it has become a ritual rather than a tribute to our nation.

At the age of sixty for many of us, life will be a full circle, But for our Nation @ 60 is just started off. she is slowly and steadily marking her presence on the global arena.

India is resilient as she has to survive Moghuls, British and yet she is still strong enough to overcome any problems. Someone rightly said India is not at all a country, it is an imagination and the power which is running this imagination is the Democracy.

If you ask me which is India’s biggest strength then i would say Democracy. India is the world’s biggest democratic nation. In fact people lost faith in this very whole process when Indira gandhi imposed emergency in 1975 which sent all prominent politicians into prison and they even snatched fundamental rights of our citizens which our constitution provided.

After this unfortunate event everybody has thought India would no longer survive, But again after the fresh election held in march 1977, Indira gandhi and then congress won with full majority. That incident proved Indian’s have full faith in Democracy.

Some people will always have a tendency to compare India with US,UK, Australia.. etc.
India is unique from all the above said countries. India is a nation where you can get to see different culture,food,language for every 100 kms. India doesnt have one official language as they have, India has 22 official languages. with all these stated differences India believes in unity in diversity.

From the past 60 yrs India is suffering from all problems, Be it poverty, unemployment, Bureaucracy, Terrorism, Corruption, etc With all the stated problems India is growing at an average of 9% GDP. Incredible isn’t it?

India is the only nation where you can win elections sitting in a prison, India is the only nation wherein cities like Mumbai can woke up so peacefully a day after the Blasts as if nothing has happened to it. India has every problems on this earth, at the same time it has the potential to absorb all these evils and still showing the bright way for a millions of youngsters like us.

India is making her mark in all sectors be it Manufacturing, Service, IT, Finance, Agriculture..etc.Its standard are on par with MNCs. Indian companies have literally come of age in buying foreign companies. For example take TATA, Wipro, Infosys etc all are globally proved themselves and even they successfully managed to buyout foreign firms.

Slowly but steadily India is sending strong signals of development to every nook and corner of the earth in every aspects.

I am proud to be an Indian… Don’t you?

Our former president Abdul Kalam’s Developed India will soon be a reality…i wish we will be living in developed India very soon.

This article is solely based on my personal opinion. You are free to express your thoughts on this article.

ChakDe INDIA!!