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Almost every office room meeting place has a table. Rooms of different sizes gets filled up with tables of comparable sizes barely leaving enough space for the chairs and some people to move around. Using the right tools for the right job is necessary, the same way the right meeting room setup is necessary for different types of meetings. A typical conference table usually creates a perception in the attendees that either there is a head of the table or sub consciously it is a Us vs Them debate. If a lot of collaboration is required in the gathering then the table in between the people does not help.

Anything in between people is a barrier, unless people are trained to overcome that. Tables are usually designed to fit the room such that the periphery is a usable space. A typical conference is room is bigger length wise, trying to focus on one side of the room where the presenter or the head of the table is. I have observed in many of the meetings when we need to have a huddle or a focussed discussion then most of the people leave their seats and crowd around a corner to put their ideas together and come with a common picture. Every person in the room has to shift to some other side leaving the comfort of their seats to get something done.

Increasingly we use workshop/brainstorm style meetings which requires frequent huddles and group interactions. By having a large almost square shaped room without tables to occupy the free space, we will be able to promote free movement of people. Also the square shape will not plant a thought in people’s mind that the conversation is unidirectional. The times I have tried this approach of having sessions in large rooms and easy to move furniture, I found good level of participation from everyone.

Table is definitely an important furniture but filling rooms entirely with a table for convenience will make people just too comfortable in their zones.

Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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In the book Pragmatic thinking and learning, the author while explaining about Dreyfus model introduces the martial arts term Shu Ha Ri to help learn something new and become an expert.

Shu – Copy and imitate exactly like how it is taught. Follow a recipe and practice by just copying. This helps to get introduced to new terms & concepts; imitating something means we are doing it the right way. In this phase it is more important to be right than be original, just like an artist learning brush strokes with various brush tips or a musician trying to play every note in her instrument. The advantage of imitating something is that brain subconsciously develops motor memory for the given task, it will soon proceed to a state where the instincts take over the conscience for the same task.

Ha – As a result of learning by imitation the motor memory could have become strong enough such that the new tasks are performed with less mental energy. This gives rooms to experiment with newer settings, like a new cook trying to tweak the recipe to her needs. Changes from the recipes in smaller increments greatly enhances the visibility of the subject and promotes more deeper understanding. Deliberate practice to understand the shortcomings and great areas will widen the scope of experiments.

Ri – This is the stage where one becomes the master or the practitioner of the art. If the skill involved is non verbal then almost no thinking would be involved in performing a task. Top sportspersons, artists, musicians fall into this place; as mentioned by Malcolm Gladwell in the book Outliers people would have spent considerable time practicing the task to become a master or an outlier.

Keep in mind these simple steps Shu-Ha-Ri when beginning to learn new things. It will help us bring focus to our learning and cut out the fear of failure.

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Most of the times when it comes to a mid-week party I observe that some of my peers follow work hard and party harder style and end up skipping the first session of work the next day or not turn up at all. Indulgence is a key part in everyone’s life, it gives a sense fulfillment and at that moment of gratification the feeling is indescribable. The flip side of indulgence is that after the sense of fulfillment it creates an even more bigger void such the next time we need more of it. I dont know why but our brain and mind always likes to have a negative balance. The moment something is achieved then the bar is raised higher; this is what drives the economies and civilizations, it is deep within us.

Hara Hachi Bu – I came across this term when I was in school reading about why many people in Okinawa, Japan live very long (more than 100 years). I forgot what the term was but the message stayed on my mind. The message was that stop eating if you think you can take one more serving to feel full. The beauty of that message is that it is not true just for eating, it is true for anything we do. If we stop indulging in something before we feel satisfied then the negative balance already exists and there is no compensation done by the body and the mind.

Thanks to the book Presentation Zen, I was able to recall the term again. In the book it is mentioned that the same applies for presentations, finish the presentation at a place where it will leave the audience wanting for more. If done that way, the curiosity will drive people to dive deeper into the subject or to reach back to the presenter. Sports stars also have an unwritten rule that they retire at the peak of their career.

Deferred gratification is the key to help us have a self control. The cause and effect are not immediately related but there are long term case studies like the Standford Marshmallow Experiment which shows that deferred gratification is a good trait for a happy life and career. Hara Hachi Bu.