Interrelationship of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation Essay

In the article â€Å"Interrelationship of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation† by Jerry Dermer, there are three different assumptions about the interrelationship between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation from three different researchers. Firstly, Deci, E.L. stated that an extrinsic performance-contingent reward reduces people’s intrinsic motivation. Secondly, Hofstede, G.H. supported that intrinsic motivation is a necessary co-requisite for extrinsic rewards to be motivating; however, intrinsic motivation is not reduced in the occurrence of extrinsic rewards. Thirdly, the general assumption of many motivational researchers believed that intrinsic and extrinsic motivations are unrelated. The purpose of the study was to firstly determine if there is a relationship between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation, and then to help management in resolving the dilemma of whether or not they should provide rewards based on performance. The study conducted a questionnaire which was distributed to 81 department store managers in a large department store chain. The questionnaire included measurements for extrinsic and intrinsic motivation. For extrinsic motivation’s measurement, the questionnaire listed seven statements for managers to rate on the Likert scale. The budget performance in these seven statements was linked to seven extrinsic outcomes: recognition, advancement, job security, better peer relations, better supervisory relations, increased responsibility, and increased salary. For example, â€Å"‘exceeding budgeted performance will lead to more responsibility’† (Dermer, 1975). For intrinsic motivation’s measurement, the questionnaire only listed three statements asking the managers to rate the level to which higher order need satisfaction is affected by good performance. For instance, â€Å"‘Doing my job well gives me a feeling of accomplishment’† (Dermer , 1975). In order to have a fair and accurate result, both statements were presented in Likert format. Managers needed to rank the statements from strongly agree to strongly disagree. Also, the questionnaire was intermixed with other random statements to minimize halo effects and hence increase the accuracy of the result. The result reinforces Hofstede’s statement and overthrows Deci’s and the general assumptions. This research showed that the higher a store manager’s intrinsic motivation, the greater his responsibility, recognition, pay and motivation for advancement. The main finding was that intrinsic motivation was an essential co-requisite for extrinsic motivation. Meanwhile, extrinsic reward would not reduce workers’ intrinsic motivation. The research found out that the higher one’s intrinsic motivation, the greater his motivation for extrinsic rewards. Therefore, based on this concept, management should implement some strategies to stimulate workerâ⠂¬â„¢s intrinsic motivation. During the hiring process, the hiring manager of the organization should inquire about the interviewees’ interests. The main purpose of doing this is to make sure that the interviewee does like the job. The goal of the interview is to hire people who are intrinsically motivated because these individuals are more willing to learn and to accept challenges. Depending on the nature of the organization, the human relations department should carefully select candidates that fit the job requirement, as well as to consider one’s personality. For example, a hospital requires nurses to be extraverted and agreeable. As the employees achieve the person-job fit, which is defined as the workers finding the job that fits their values the most, the employees will have a higher level of intrinsic motivation. For example, when a patient is recovered, the nurse will be proud of herself, hence her intrinsic motivation will increase. Besides, management should work to increase the level of organizational commitment of the workers. The higher the affective commitment, the higher the level of job performance the workers achieve. The reason is that if the workers have high affective commitment, they are more motivated to stay in the organization and is happy to devote their time and energy in benefiting the firm. High affective commitment implies these workers are intrinsically motivated because they love their work. To increase the level of organizational commitment, management should provide a fun workplace and encourage them to think creatively. Moreover, managers should permit workers to have great autonomy and encourage new ideas at the workplace so that workers will be more willing to think about ideas in a greater depth. However, promoting intrinsic motivation may lead to several potential costs. Firstly, a long period of time is needed to foster each worker’s intrinsic motivation. Secondly, the strategies to nurture intrinsic motivation vary from person to person. Even though there are potential costs for promoting intrinsic motivation, the potential benefits resulting from intrinsic motivation are much greater. Firstly, an organization will be more profitable and efficient as its employees are more self-motivated and satisfied with their job. The more self-motivated the employees are, the higher their efficiency. Also, workers will be more motivated and will not need continuous supervision if they like the job. Another benefit from having intrinsically motivated workers is that these workers are less likely to be late as they like their job. Also they are more likely to excel at their jobs. Hence, the organization’s efficiency will be improved significantly. To conclude, the article â€Å"Interrelationship between Intrinsic Motivation and Extrinsic Motivation† by Jerry Dermer is informative in explaining the relationship between two different types of motivation. The reason is that Jerry found three different authoritative researchers and compared their views. Instead of taking away from the research, readers should think about Deci’s and Hofstede’s statement critically because Jerry Derman also talked about the saving grace of Deci’s statement. Lastly, the recommendations for management practices are appropriate as all of the organizations highly demand intrinsically motivated employees. Reference Dermer, J. (1975). The interrelationship of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. The Academy of Management Journal, 18(1), 125-129. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/stable/255630?&Search=yes&searchText=Motivation&list=hide&searchUri=/action/doBasicSearch?filter=jid%3A10.2307%2Fj100040&Query=Motivation&Search.x=0&Search.y=0&wc=on&prevSearch=&item=20&ttl=1206&returnArticleService=showFullText&

Letter to Editor-Conservative View-Sci/275

SCI/275 Environmental Science Letters to the Editor (Conservationist) Dear Editor: As is evidenced in recent world news and events, taking steps to energy independence is paramount to the continued survival of the United States as a Nation. Growing increasingly dependent on the natural resources in other parts of the world further compounds the possibility for this independence. As a conservationist, it is my belief that we as a country can begin to develop the means required to carefully and sensibly manage our natural resources in an effort to usher in this independence.For instance, the Bridger Teton National Forest houses 3. 4 million acres of land that has gone untouched, and undisturbed by increases in population and industrialization. As such, the resources here have gone untapped. Consider being able to provide incentives for the local industries such as forestry, and mining in the area, to use more environmentally friendly technologies to not only increase the effectiveness of harvesting in these areas, but to also minimize the damaging effects of this harvesting to the surrounding landscape and ecosystems.The implantation of environmental taxes requiring those businesses that take advantage of this opportunity, to pay an amount equal to the harm they cause on the environment will further increase the use of more eco-friendly technologies. A(n) tradable permits system is also a consideration, limiting the total amounts of pollutant that can be released, allowing both persons and businesses to buy and sell rights to emit and reduce emissions at the least cost to them.These efforts will not only prove useful in making us the independent, nation that has been the basis of our existence, but will also provide us the means to sustain the natural resources required for our continued existence, and ability to support the ever growing human population. We MUST consider more effective means to tap into the natural resources that the earth has provided us as its inhabitants, without focusing on the monetary gain from the same which will lead to a harmonious balance of both conservation and economic independence as a nation. Sincerely, Concerned Citizen

Journalism Essahe

Critically evaluate the extent to which the key economic/technological challenges facing political journalism in the UK democracy are undermining the ability of the quality news media to play the role demanded of them within competitive and participatory democracies (as defined by Stromback). The quality of the Uk’s new’s media is often scrutinised and mocked for their unashamed bias political opinions, going back to the fundamentals of journalism and the diversion of right and left wing politics, it was inevitable that quality news would disintegrate into a playing field for them to dig the opposition.However, the cause of this could be down to economical and technological challenges facing the news media today, along with the decrease in political interest came the rise in commercialisation. Competitive and participatory democracies include a range of requirements from journalists to act a certain role in society.As described in The Future of Journalism in Advanced De mocracies â€Å"a competitive democracy requires of journalism the following: it should act as a watchdog or burglar alarm† giving the public the honest and truths within politics for them then to make and adequate decision based on sufficient information. A participatory democracy â€Å"requires that journalism should mobilise the citizen’s interest and participation in public life† it also states that journalism should â€Å"focus on the solving of problems and not just the problems themselves. (Anderson & Ward, 2006: 47) There are a range of economical factors, which have affected the quality of news and the role in which they are depicted to play in competitive and participatory democracies, as defined by Stromback, therefore, these have effected the roles in which journalists play in society. Increased Leisure has become a challenging factor in competing with other entertainment provisions; the various opportunities such as Sunday shopping have proven a ne gative impact on Sunday newspapers.Sunday has always been a day of rest, therefore before technology had evolved people would spend this time reading newspapers and conforming an opinion based on the quality news provided, â€Å"if we are to understand what media communications people are actually exposed to and what message content they actually receive, it makes sense to ask how people come to pay attention to a particular medium; in short, why are people moved to watch, listen to, or read a particular program or story? † (Alger, 1995: 33) ince this as drastically changed it has resulted in the commodification of news media and undermining the quality of news by selecting stories and information which attract the public’s interest and not necessarily stories of important and prominence. â€Å"Journalism has always entertained and as well as informed. Had it not done so, it would not have reached a mass audience. But today, say journalism’s critics, the instin ct amuse is driving out the will, and depleting the resource, to report and analyse in depth. (Hagreaves, 2003: 104) In addition to this, social fragmentation has multiplied and caused a decline in cohesion; at one time it was clear that there was only a limited number of views, which brought together a large number of people who had the same ideologies and preference. Now, due the increased number of major media corporation and accessibility to over-seas news there has been a massive break down in social groups.This gives the market only to options, to either supply to a niche market, targeting a particular social clad which would cause a massive loss in profit and interest for the media corporation or, to continue to target the mass market and conform to commercialization and sensationalism to attract the reader. Large corporations need the funds to run the ‘business’ and without this would simply mean a decline and eventually a complete collapse and therefore they ha ve to rely on either readers or sponsor each wanting a certain type on context.Further economical challenges facing journalism today include that increased wealth has led to the ‘culture of contentment’ theory written by Galbraith. This has resulted in the lower-class, those with fewer beneficiaries has caused a lack of interest in news media, this is due to the under class choosing to almost ignore the current political situation as it does not affect them for any good reason. â€Å"Many of the national papers are overtly and emphatically partisan.The ownership and editorial orientation are overwhelmingly toward the Conservative party and ideology, and the trend toward ownership concentration over the past couple of decades has intensified the press skew towards the Conservative party. † (Alger, 1995: 408) This shows that the upper classes fail to think about the future consequences of political decisions, as all of the UK’s news corporation are privately owned it means that the ball is in their court, however, due to the decisions being made and the lack of public interest displayed in the news media today it has unintentionally ‘shot itself in the foot. This has then led to a reduction in political interest, due to the â€Å"compression of the gap between right-wind and left-wing politics† (Anderson & Ward, 2007: 27) this occurred as a result of commercialization, as news media started to concentrate on market values rather than the role they where traditional made for it became apparent that editors where increasing the number of stories which aligned with their political stance and more so, they would glamourize this by omission of important information.It system became blurred and peoples views on politics had changed, the traditional bonds and conformations had broken down. The under class would consider the future benefits of their decisions, they would condone things which in the long run would serve them greatl y however the upper class ignored the future consequences of their decisions and this led to a collapse in political conforms. Today is the perfect visual representation of the extent to which this has occurred; the current coalition government is a product of the news media and the lack of adequate and sufficient information.Other change that evolve and continually challenge political journalism are technological and at the fast pace it is moving news media is finding it difficult to conform to traditional news values and keep the quality of news among the most popular. The development in multi-channel television has created fragmented viewing habits for the audience; this has led to a decline in some of the highest forms of quality news such as, The 10 O’clock News.This has led to conglomeration and concentration of ownership, which creates a dominated market of privately owned corporations. Although this plays an essential part in reducing costs and pressures of news media it often conforms to market driven attitudes that are in complete opposition to the roles depicted by competitive and participatory democracies. â€Å"Murdoch’s orientation towards his newspaper â€Å"properties† is a centerpiece of the current trend. As he has said: â€Å"All newspapers run to make profits†¦.I don’t run anything for respectability†. Therefore, today’s quality newspapers â€Å"have descended to the slimy and sensational- a process that might better be called Murdochization. † (Alger, 1995: 408) This also led to the declining diversity in news provisions, as competition increased it was soon wiped-out by the conformation of large corporate companies which where then driven away from their traditional role to act as a watchdog and instead, more often than not, conform around commodification such as Murdoch’s. The most nfluential and fast-paced form of technology affecting the quality of news media has to be, the birth of the Internet; this offers unlimited access to news providers all over the world and outside of the journalism profession. â€Å" ‘What the hell were we all smoking that weekend? Is the question now asked at Time Warner, according to Rupert Murdoch, reflecting upon the decision by Time Warner to sell itself into a merger with American Online at the very peak of dotcom valuations, with the result that it inflicted huge, medium term misery on it’s own shareholders. (Hargreaves, 2003: 237) The Internet was curated by news media and only to be the destroyer, since the birth of the Internet the quality of news in traditional newspapers and television has plummeted only to become the start of another line of challenges facing journalist’s everyday. The internet expanded the news media market excessively creating a mass amount of jobs, â€Å"there were so many jobs, it became difficult to recruit people into journalism training courses† (Hargreaves, 2003 : 236) Newspapers where now battling not only with their paper based competition, but a whole new level of news media.As the online market grew at a phenomenal rate its affects on newspapers included trivialisation and commercialisation, as they had to compete for the readers. Newspapers where in decline â€Å"fewer people are reading these newspapers and circulations continue their steady decline from the peak year of 1989 reflecting, at least in part, the expansion of local radio, the spiraling costs of newsprint and growing access to the internet. (Allan, 2005: 140) Journalists ethics where thrown out the window and instead superiority was given to market values, again this moves away from the traditions of the news role in UK democracies. However, without the internet, news media would have never reached the mass audience it has. It became possible to communicate all over the world which led to word news, â€Å"the global nature of the new communications network means that ind ividuals can consume journalism all over the world. This allows journalists to, in one sense increase their skills to act as the watchdog role over society, â€Å"journalism today is a two-way street or rather a multidirectional process of boundaryless space† which gives them the ability to give us information which has prominence to us. Although this has created massive opportunities in some respect, it will always revolve around profit hungry organisations, one would not exist without the other. With the increase in technology an increase in a journalist skill also applies, the newsroom requires a multi-skilled journalist to be able to source and construct relevant stories.However, due to the decreasing news media market journalism has been led to ‘downsizing’ therefore, journalists are now required to do more, with this comes a failure in the idea of democratic media, omission being one of the key factors undermining todays news media quality. As journalists b ecome pressured it is apparent that a lack of important information can be an accidental mistake, â€Å"Evidently more journalists than ever are feeling alarmed about their professions credibility problems with the public, due in part to their perception that standards of accuracy are in decline. (Allan, 2005: 6) With an endless amount of content, this is inevitably going to apply to news media if they continue to make cuts; this in itself proves the undermining role of quality news in todays democracies, they are willing to sacrifice the important information and acting as a watchdog role, over making cuts to increase on profits. As the internet continues to build a news media empire, newspapers are inclined to follow suit and this is where the lack of journalist ethics appears. Editors, pressured by intense competition for readers, demand that staff cut ethical corners; and competition among staff encourages some to respond† (Hargreaves, 2003: 221) with the pressures to dow nsize journalists are forced to reconcile their role in society and conform to the multi-news corporations and their needs for increased profits.This has also resulted in a decline in independent journalist sources, newspaper are now relying on PR material to build a sustainable story, however, this causes the quality of news to disappear completely, they are building a headline to attract the viewer and then using bogus, second-hand information and sources to build the context. â€Å"The majority believes that the news media pay too little attention to complex stories. † (Allan, 2005: 7) This is a result off multi-corporate news organisations who often ignore the role in which journalism should play in the UK’s democracies defined by Stromback. Journalists in a commercial setting are primarily working for their shareholders’ profits† (Hargreaves, 2003: 178) as a result the quality of news has decreased and it merely concentrates on entertainment news. To conclude, quality news has decreased as a result of technological and economical challenges. The extent to this bares down to the journalist and their ethics, most of which have conformed to different ideologies by large news corporations.The role in which Stromback demands of the UK’s political journalism is highly unachieved in today’s society; this is due to the increased pressures from large competition in the global news media market today. â€Å"Underlying this global expansion are specific economic factors, First, media products have relatively low reproduction costs. Second, they can be resold without requiring any additional outlay by producers, and hence once production costs are covered, they generate pure profits for their owners. (Curran & Gurevitch, 2005: 94) It has become an unavoidable need to concentrate on the market values due to the high number of privately owned news corporations, as a result of this journalist ethics and intentions within a democ racy, outlined by Stromback are completely ignored. The news media is now in a situation where it coexists with market values, it is unavoidable and an inevitable fact that this has resulted in the commercialisation and sensationalism of quality news. British local press is characterized by a sustained decline in the number of published titles, publisher’s readers and circulations although, paradoxically, this decline coexists with robust and expansive advertising revenues and profits. † (Allan, 2005: 141) it is now unavoidable and can not be undone, without multi-channel television or the birth of the internet would not have come this global force which allows the public to explore willingly, the news media, whether it is written professionally or not. 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American University and the Best Realization of the Desires Essay

American University and the Best Realization of the Desires - Essay Example In process of my study at AU, I also want to take part in AU abroad activities which will allow me to study in China during my undergraduate program. AU also will give me a good ability to study customs and traditions of other nations, especially China – it will help me understand deep economic, social and cultural processes taking place in China and in the rest of the world. I am also going to graduate from American University with honours. After graduation from AU, I am going to obtain a Chinese Law degree, and I suppose that American University will give me a great ability for my professional development. American University will expand my educational and personal horizons and help wide my real-world learning experiences. American University will also give me the ability to become a part of the generation of highly educated leaders who have gone through such intensive, prestigious and useful educational institution as American University. In addition to that, I have some pr ofessional and personal traits which will help me achieve success in my study at AU and make an appropriate career in the fields of my interest. I am a steady and stable person, and I know my goals and purposes rather well. In addition to that, I am rather thoughtful and concentrated for my educational and professional goals, and American University will provide the best realization of my desires. I want to take part in the China Project. After graduation, I also plan to return to the USA to pursue a Masters in Law degree.

Barriers to Meaningful Instruction for English Learners Research Proposal

Barriers to Meaningful Instruction for English Learners - Research Proposal Example On the other hand, there are non-verbal languages, which entail the way a person, stands or carries themselves, and behaviors such as holding of their hands and arms during a conversation and facial expressions, and these cues have a significant effect on the communication. For instance, there are difficulties involved in a conversation where someone has their arms closed across their chest since this signifies a defensive pose. Therefore, in order to solve problems associated with cultural and non-verbal barriers, there is a need to use several mediums of communicating with people. Furthermore, I have identified them to focus on the medium used in communication while communicating with people since each situation suits a certain medium such as face-to-face, over the phone, through text messaging or emails. Therefore, I have learned the role of determining the medium, which suits a certain message in a given situation, for instance, a one should not avoid face-to-face communication b y using text messages or emails; instead, they should focus on selecting the medium that suits every situation. Critical thinking Skills I am seeking to improve my critical thinking skills, which are applied  constantly  in my life and they have  various  benefits and  significance. It is  indispensable  for everyone to learn about critical thinking skills and their  applications in order to make better decisions. Critical thinking involves  mental  processes of analysis, discernment, and evaluation. It entails the possible processes for the reflection upon the tangible and intangible to  form  a judgment that is  informed  and  solid  to reconcile the  scientific  evidence involving common sense (Ennis, 1978, 321). I understand that as a critical thinker, I will have the ability to gather relevant information from  various  senses, both verbal and written expressions, experiences, reflection, reasoning, and observation. According to Elder (20 08, 43), the process of critical thinking involves thinking about a  certain  problem or  subject  in order to get to a point of the improvement in the quality of thinking through skillful analogies. Therefore, the application of critical thinking in various aspects of life has  numerous  benefits in the process of decision making Language Skills English is like an international language spoken worldwide, and it is accepted  in a way that everyone  is expected  to learn to speak English as a tool to be applied in bridging "in international divides and borders". There are various reasons for everyone to consider having English as a second language. There are those who  learn  a new language in  various  ways, the most profound  way  of learning is through the internet.

Decision Making Case Study Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Decision Making Case Study - Research Paper Example The first step is to create a question that has no judgment in it. according to Rundall et al. (2007), the question must be to the point and not too broad or narrow. In this case, the question that may be appropriate is, "Which programs that we have now are most used by our patients?" This question would get to the heart of the problem. When program managers need to cut services they sometimes cut across the board instead of looking at the changes that can be made without interrupting services. In this step, the manager gathers information from a variety of sources. This means they are not only paying attention to their department, but they are gaining knowledge form the people who are using services as well as suppliers, colleagues, and anyone else who has a stake in the organization. This should also include the board members. According to Gudes, Kendall, Yigitcanlar, Pathak and Baum (2010), involving major stakeholders and users of services in decision making insures that information comes from diverse sources and encourages strong collaboration between those interested in the organization. Also, this collaboration insures that change is an ongoing process instead of a series of one shot deals. In a clinical setting, having several people to give information allows for an understanding of the full picture, which is very important when services must be cut. I found that the websites in this section were very good for funding information on a global level. They provided current research that could be used to compare and contrast specific information to see the bigger picture for Medicaid and situations in a clinical setting. Rundall et al. (2007) suggest that in this step, the organization must take a deeper look at the evidence and make sure that it is "accurate, applicable, actionable and accessible" (p. 336). This is an important step because after step 2, there will be a wealth of information

The Taika Reform Edicts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

The Taika Reform Edicts - Essay Example During this time, the empire experienced great concord with less fractiousness among the people. After a period, common clan names such as Omi, Muraji and Uji took over the titles of Gods and emperors. â€Å"In recent times, however, the names, first of the Gods, and then of the Emperors, have in some cases been separated (from their proper application) and converted into the  Uji  of Omi or  Muraji, [common clan names in Japan]† This separation resulted to some consequences and strong partisan bias among the people in the entire country. The monarchy system was centralized, and the clans seem to be an obstacle to this system hence pushing for decentralization of the ruling system in the Japanese state. This decentralization is in the form of selfish interests by the clans. The minds of people have become unsettled, which has made the government unable to carry on with its functions. Japanese elites such as Muraji 12, Omi 11, Kuni no Moyakko 2 and Tomo no Miyakko 5 came up with a set of their own vassals (Varley, 2003). These vassals have been compelled to labor at their arbitrary pleasure (Varley, 2003). Moreover, the seas, hills, ponds, rice fields, woods and plains have been cut off and assigned them to their provinces and to themselves (Varley, 2003).. This has resulted to some kind of contest among the elites and the leaders. It is evident also that the elites have gone further to make people pay taxes to them instead of the government. They first take their share and later take the leftovers to the central government. The Japanese state had few people, in regards to the whole population, and instead of benefiting from their own land and resources; they are cut off and sold to them at high prices. The resources that had been shared by the clans are regulated, and an elderman appointed in each ward. In addition, the population is registered and re-granting of land distribution provided to the

Global climate change is responsible for the increasing frequency of Essay

Global climate change is responsible for the increasing frequency of severe weather - Essay Example The message from top climate scientists who gathered in Japan is louder than ever. In a statement issued by the National Center for Atmospheric Research, Patricia Lankao warns of the dangers of thinking that the climate changes in the polar region is a danger just to polar bears in a far land. According to the scientists, climate change effects are nearer that imagined. It is now beyond melting ice, endangered animals and plants, it has escalated to more real issues such as droughts, hunger, diseases, and refugees (Borenstein par 5). The report further states that the present situation as observed by scientist is due to the increase in heat waves across continents such as Asia, Africa, North America and Europe. This increase has led to severity of damaging floods like the one experienced in Mozambique that displaced 90,000 people in 2008. Such floods have increased in Africa and Australia much as there is an increase in down pour felt in Europe and North America. Changes in the climate have also impacted on the change in livelihoods of people living in Northern Canada (Borenstein par. 7). According to Chuck (par. 2), the livelihoods of the Inuit (Indigenous people living in the Artic circle) are changing. For example solid ice that used to serve as a road for the hunters have become unpredictable in recent years as it has melted into water. Now they have to use their dogs to pull boats into the water instead of sledging through the ice as before. As explained by Box who has been studying the Arctic in the last 20 years, the amount of ice discharged into the ocean has double in the past 10 years. This melt down is not just experienced in the arctic region but also in other areas such as the Alps, Himalaya and Peru. The burning of gas, oil, and coal releases heat trapping green house gases such as carbon dioxide, leading to warmer

FALL PROTECTION PROGRAM RELATED TO SCAFFOLDS Research Paper

FALL PROTECTION PROGRAM RELATED TO SCAFFOLDS - Research Paper Example The vibrant insinuation of this is that dipping scaffolding linked construction calamities will condense injuries and save thousands of lives. Developing and implementing a suitable fall protection plan will reduce deaths and injuries in the construction industry and guarantee that construction workers operate in a safe environment. Pandemonium took the best of the city on the morning of 24th September 2013 when a painter, john Hawkins, fell from scaffolds while working on the walls of Marinablue building in Miami, 10 feet above the ground. He tumbled onto strident erected staves of 2.5 feet that were erected by constructors who were redesigning the floor area of the verandah. The worker died proximately while workers who were bricklaying beneath the scaffold sustained somber injuries. The constructors who were on the site were amateurs and could hardly administer any reasonable first aid to the incapacitated contractors and an ambulance had to be called to ferry them to the infirmary where the paramedics would administer the proper medication. The cause of the fall remained uncertain but high on the list were employees who might have tempered with the outriggers that supported the poorly erected the fabricated frame scaffolds and the derisory working area. Garnet (2000) recaps that between 2008 and 2013, 25% of the disastrous falls in the construction sector were from roofs, scaffolding contributed to 18%, ladders 16% while structural steel and girders contributed to 8%. In all cases, the construction fatalities are associated with poor structural laying and maladministration of the fall protection systems and/or programs. Construction workers working on roofs continue undergoing lethal work-related injuries. Workers contracted by small organizations, immigrant workers, and residential construction workers and Hispanics are more

Mangroves and sea grasses in Florida Research Paper

Mangroves and sea grasses in Florida - Research Paper Example They usually form mangrove forest that is often inundated by tidal salt twice a day. Sea grasses are grass-like flowering plants that are totally submerged in estuarine and marine waters. These habitats occur throughout the coastal areas of Florida, however, most are found in Florida Bay, and the region between Tarpon Springs northward to Apalachee Bay. Types of Mangroves in Florida There are three species of Mangroves found along the coastal region of Florida: black mangrove, white mangrove, and red mangrove. Black mangroves survive in slightly higher elevations than red mangroves, while white mangrove grows upland more than black and red mangroves. Red mangrove grows along the water edge (Saenger 289). Red mangrove is identified by its branching and arching drop roots from branches, prop roots from trunk. Black mangrove is identified by its pencil-like roots that grow up through the soil. The white mangrove is identified by its more rounded leaves than the leaves of black and red m angrove (Saenger 289). Importance of Mangrove in the Ecosystem Mangrove ecosystems are essential habitat for fish production. They provide breeding and feeding grounds for shell fishes and many fishes. Besides fish, it also supports a variety of wildlife such as crocodile, snakes, birds, deer, insects and fishing cats (Saenger 289). The mangrove forests also protect the coast from floods, fury of cyclone, coastal erosion, UV-B radiation, wave actions and sea level rise. Mangroves act as sinks for nutrients, and traps for sediments (Saenger 289). How do Mangroves Reproduce? Mangroves are flowering and seed-producing plants. Their seeds are larger as compared to other seeds produced by other trees and plants, and they usually begin germinating while still attached to the main plant. When the seeds drop from the tree, they float on water for a short period, and then they sink to the bottom (Gleason 21). They float for a short period while being dispersed to areas where they can grow: t hey can only grow in tidal water. The rate of growth depends on mineral availability and climate. Health of Ecosystem Occupied by Mangrove These ecosystems are free from the deleterious impacts of UV-radiation. Mangrove trees produce flavonoids, which serve as UV-screen compounds. Shores and coastlines with mangrove forest are protected from cyclones with tremendous speed that severely disturbs and destroys coastal ecosystem. This makes it a potent nursery and breeding ground for many fishes and other wildlife (Gleason 21). The mangrove roots prevent erosion of the coast, and attract suspended sediments making these regions fertile grounds for cultivation. They also support the growth of planktons, which is a source of fish food (Gleason 22). How Mangrove deals with Salt in the Water Mangroves eliminate salt at the root level, and mangrove trees can tolerate high salt levels in their tissues more than normal plants. Most of the salts are eliminated at the root level through Ultra fi ltration process. Any salt that passes through the roots is stored in old and dry leaves, which are later shed (Gleason 42). A few mangroves can tolerate high salt levels in their tissues, and the excess salt is eliminated through specialized cells in their leaves. For example, Avecennia is the only tree that survives in hot and salty regions. Florida Laws that Protect Mangroves The Florida Legislature passed the Mangrove Trimming and Prevention Act to protect mangrove forests. The act

Your Brain on fiction and The Mighty Mathematician Youve Never Heard Essay

Your Brain on fiction and The Mighty Mathematician Youve Never Heard Of - Essay Example This paper illustrates that Annie Murphy Paul wrote the first article and it was published on 17 March 2012. It was entitled Your Brain on fiction. Despite, the evolution of digital devices, the fiction that is derived from reading novels is not completely dead. There is a group of individuals who have completely devoted themselves to the understanding of fiction through neuroscience. Annie writes that they have developed brain scans that reveal what happens in the brain when people read detailed information in the books or even articles in the newspaper, evocative character or an emotional exchange between characters in a movie or a book or even a magazine interview. Stories have affected the way people act or even the way they view certain situations in life. It was discovered that some of these stories stimulate the brain in a manner that directs the brain to do certain things in accordance to what it was stimulated to do. Researchers and scientists have always known the Brocaâ₠¬â„¢s area and Wernicke’s area as the regions of the brain responsible for interpreting motor speech and written data respectively. However, it has been noted over the past few years that other brain parts are also stimulated when one reads a book, by so doing making the experience of reading feel very real in the eyes of the reader. According to scientists, there are words such as lavender, perfume or cinnamon that may stimulate the parts of the brain responsible for smelling.... udy, a cognitive scientist Veronique Boulanger, claims that the use of sentences such as â€Å"Terry grasped the object† or â€Å"Peter kicked the ball† stimulated the motor cortex which is responsible for the coordination of the bodily movements. What’s more, the brain seems not to differentiate the experience it gets through reading and real life, this is because the same neurological regions are stimulated in each case. A University Professor of Psychology at the University of Toronto stated that the reading produces stimulation of reality. These fictional stories and novels are just are essential in describing life’s social and emotional situation (Dwight 65). Most importantly, Annie wanted to bring out the idea that most of these stimulations that the brain receives have been evident by reading about them in books that have good descriptions of the movements, smells and actions of characters in the books or articles. Another article is The Mighty Math ematician You’ve Never Heard Of, which was written by Natalie Angier and published by the New York Times on March 26, 2012. This article talks about a mathematician who has been almost anonymous for over a decade for a theory that explains so many other theories in physics. Einstein also described her as the most significant and creative female of all time. She invented a theory that unites two very common theories in physics, which include the Theory of symmetry in nature and that of the Universal laws of conservation. Noethers’s theory has been classified as important as that of by Einstein (Theory of relativity). Despite the significance of her works, she has remained unknown to the people. A physicist in Drexel University has carried a research and written about her works. He did a poll that he noted many

The development of evil and its effect in the play Macbeth Essay Example for Free

The development of evil and its effect in the play Macbeth Essay Unnatural deeds to breed unnatural troubles. Trace the development of evil and its effect in the play Macbeth. Shakespeare wrote his plays during the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I (James IV of Scotland) who succeeded Elizabeth in 1603. He was a Scot, interested in witchcraft and supported the theatre. Macbeth was written during his reigns as king. The main topics of Macbeth are regicide and witchcraft. During the Elizabethan period, people were thought to have lived life according to a hierarchical structure. At the top was the king (who was Divinely Appointed by God) and the peasants at the bottom. During this period, people started to question the hierarchy. In Macbeth, regicide comes into the play. Regicide is when someone murders the King and breaks the order, defying God. This then led to the thought of unnatural things happening (i.e. witches). Shakespeare tries to use the play Macbeth as propaganda and to show that people should follow the rules of hierarchy. Regicide was considered the worst possible sin. James I also had an interest in witchcraft and the supernatural element in life. The theatre was a good way of entertainment for the King, and James asked Shakespeare to write the play for him. Even from the very beginning of the play, there is a sense of mystery. It is mostly created by the witches. Fair is Foul, and foul is fair, Hover through fog and filthy air. (Act1, Scene1 The witches) The first line is a contradiction and already shows the violation of natural order. When the witches speak, the lines only contain seven syllables, but all the other characters use ten syllables in a line. There is also the use of alliteration, with the constant repeating of F. Shakespeare is setting the witches character as different and spooky compared to the rest of the characters. The witches prediction of Macbeth gaining power, are correct but is seen as evil by the audience. This is because the witches dont tell Macbeth the price hed have to pay and the consequences hed have to face. Beware Macduff; Beware the Thane of Fife (Act 4 Scene1 Apparition one) For none of women born shall harm Macbeth (Act4 Scene1 Apparition Two) Macbeth shall never vanquished be, until Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane Hill (Act 4 Scene1 Apparition Three) These apparitions make Macbeth feel stronger and more confident because he thinks that all men must be born from a woman, and that the woods can not move. Macbeth doesnt feel threatened by Macduff either. He feels he can not be harmed by Macduff. Macduff: What need I fear of thee? (Act4 Scene1 Macbeth) Macbeth feels if Macduff becomes a concern he can just kill him. This shows how he grows in fear over Macduff as the play progresses. It is seen in Macbeth that the witches And the apparitions are worse than unnatural and are supernatural. Banquo calls the witched Instruments of the darkness (Act 1 scene 3). This basically means they are being referred to the workers of the devil. Nature also seems to get upset by the evil deeds. Thou seest, the heavens, as troubled with mans act, threaten his bloody stage (Act 2 Scene4) This quote means that the actions of men are threatening natures land scape. The animals are also acting unnaturally too. Tis unnatural, even like the deeds that done. On Tuesday last, a falcon towering in her pride of place was by a mousing own hawked at, and killed Rosse: And Duncans horses a thing most strange and certain beauteaous, and swift, the minions of their race, turned wild in nature as they would make war with mankind OldMan: Tis Said, they eat each other (Act 2 Scene 4) In this quote, an old man is talking about his experiences of seeing an own eating a falcon where normally the own is the prey of the falcon and Duncans horses eating each other. In act 3 Scene 4, Macbeth sees Banquos ghost. Our graves must send those that we bury back He is scared by the ghost, no one else can see the ghost except Macbeth. Earlier on in the play, Lady Macbeth is the strongest character, while Macbeth struggles with his conscience. Later on in the play, her conscious catches up with her, she cant cope with it and goes mad. Lady Macbeth keeps referring back to washing her hands in the hope that she can wash off her conscious as easily as she washed the blood off after the Kings death. In the end it gets to her so much that she kills herself. Go, get some water, and wash this filthy witness from you hand. (Act 2 Scene 2) Lady Macbeth is telling Macbeth that a bit of water will wash it all away and make things beter. Out, damned spot! Out, I say! What, will these hands neer be clean? (Act 5 Scene 1) Lady Macbeth is struggling with the guilt of the murder, she is obsessed with washing her hands and trying to clean them. When Lady Macbeth tries to convince Macbeth to kill King Duncan, she calls upon the spirits and the supernatural to help her. Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts (Act 1 Scene 5) Lady Macbeth wants to get rid of her femininity. Unsex me here and fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty She wont kill the King herself, because she believes a man should do it, which is why she wants to make the spirits make her a man so she doesnt feel guilty. Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth to look happy and cover up the plans of there murder schemes but putting on an act. Look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under it (Act1 Scene 5) Lady Macbeth feels the guilty, but doesnt show it, she is not afraid of the conciquesnces at this point in the play. She is cold hearted. My hands are of your colour; but I shame to wear a white heart (Act 1 Scene 5) Macbeth is the main character in the book. In this play, the supernatural stuff affects him the most. He sees a dagger when hes going to kill Duncan, and hes the only one that could see Banquos ghost. Is this a dagger I see before me (Act 2 Scene 1) Macbeth knows that he is seeing things that arent really there. He then goes on a says how it was pointing in the way to kill Duncan. In Act 1 Scene 3, Macbeth makes a link with the witches as the first thing he says. So foul and fair a day I have not seen This echoes the first thing that the witches say and immediately suggests an evil link between the two lots of characters. At the end of Act 1 scene 7, Macbeth echoes what Lady Macbeth has said. False face must hide what the false heart doth know. This means, he doesnt show his feelings, and puts on an act, and doesnt let anybody know his plans of murdering the king. During the play, Macbeth seems to get a very guilty conscience. The first signs of this is in Act 2 Scene 2, where Macbeth says: As they had seen me with these hangmans hands. Listening their fear I could not say Amen when they did say God bless us Macbeth knows he has done something really bad, broke the rules and violated the order of God. He begins to feel guilty. Lady Macbeth manages to convince Macbeth to kill King Duncan at the begeining of Act1 Scene7. Macbeth We will proceed no further in this business This shows that at the beginning of this scene he didnt want to kill the King, but by the end he slowly changes his mind. I am settled; and bend up each corporal agent to this terrible feat (Act 1 Scene7) Along with Lady Macbeth, Macbeth refers to washing his hands, as a way of getting rid of his guilt. Will all great Neptunes ocean wash this blood clean from my hand? No This hand will rather the multitudinous seas incarnadine, making the green one red (Act 2 Scene 2) Macbeth is saying that no water can wash the guilt inside of him away from him. I am in blood stepped in so far that should I wade no more returning were as tedious as go oer (Act 3 Scene 4) This quote from Macbeth is saying that he has done the murder now, and its hard to go back to the way it was before, because now he is living in constant fear and guilt. Just before Macbeth is about to get hung, he makes a speech. In this he says: Lifes but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more. It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. (Act 5 Scene 5) In this, Macbeth talks about how life is just a journey to death and how hes isolated, he believes Duncan is better off than he is. In this point in the play, he has lost the will to live, and in this quote, he is very emotionless. Macbeth realises that Banquo was right. To doubt th equivocation of a fiend, that lies like truth He doesnt trust witches like what Banquo said. The witches promised theyd take him up in life and make his life better, but instead they brought him down. Gradually, the other characters in the play, realise that Macbeth is not a true king his evil actions have betrayed him. Scotland is described as being sick under Macbeths rule. In Act 4 Scene 3, Malcom says that every day a gash is added to her wounds. Even Macbeth recognises there is something wrong with Scotland and calls it a disease. If thou couldst, doctor, cast the water of my land, find her disease, and purge it to a sound and pristine health. (Act 5 Scene 3). But, in Act 5 Scene 2, Cathness describes Malcom as the medicine that will cure Scotland. Meet we the medcine of the sickly weal, and with him pour we in our countrys purge each drop of us. In Act 5 Scene 9, Macduff turns up with Macbeths head. Malcom makes all the Thanes into Earls to reward them for helping him. Then Malcom invites everyone to him coronation, as he is soon to be the new king.

Financial Inclusion for Inclusive Growth in India

Financial Inclusion for Inclusive Growth in India Amartya Sen (2000) convincingly argued that poverty is not merely insufficient income, but rather the absence of wide range of capabilities, including security and ability to participate in economic and political systems. Franklin Roosevelt, the popular president of United States of America in 1932, referred to the American poor as the forgotten man at the bottom of the economic pyramid. Today the term `bottom of the pyramid refers to the global poor most of whom live in the developing countries. These large numbers of poor are required to be provided with much needed financial assistance in order to sail them out of their conditions of poverty. Joseph.E.Stilglitz opines that, if economic growth is not shared throughout society then development has failed. Accordingly, there is felt a need for policy support in channeling the financial resources towards the economic upliftment of resource poor in any developing economy. This study is an attempt to comprehend and distinguish the significance of Financial Inclusion in the context of a developing country like India wherein a large population is deprived of the financial services which are very much essential for overall economic growth of a country. Our understandings and analysis on the topic are presented here below in the following sections. In Section-II, the importance of `Finance for economic growth has been established with adequate literature review. In section III, Inclusive Growth and its significance for achieving sustainable growth is discussed. Section-IV brings to fore the Financial Inclusion and its dimensions in detail. In Section-V, the importance of financial inclusion for achieving Inclusive Growth in India is detailed with a statistical analysis. Section-VI contains the Recommendations and the Conclusion is presented in Section-VII. II. FINANCE AND GROWTH The earlier theories of development concentrated on labor, capital, institutions etc as the factors for growth and development. The leading works hardly include finance as a factor for growth. Since then there has been numerous research analyzing how financial systems help in developing economies. A wide agreement exists among economists that financial development prompts economic growth. According to Rajan and Zingales (2003), development of the financial system contributes to economic growth. Empirical evidence time and again emphasizes the relationship between finance and growth. According to the works of King and Levine (1993a) and Levine and Zervos (1998), at the cross-country level, evidence indicates that various measures of financial development (including assets of the financial intermediaries, liquid liabilities of financial institutions, domestic credit to private sector, stock and bond market capitalisation) are robustly and positively related to economic growth. Other st udies also establish a positive relationship between financial development and growth at the industry level, like the one by Rajan and Zingales (1998). Since the groundbreaking contributions of King and Levine (1993a, b), economists have shown renewed interest in the finance-growth nexus. It is indeed irrefutable that considerable part of the differences in long run economic growth across countries can be elucidated by disparity in their financial development (King and Levine, 1993a; Levine and Zervos, 1998, Demirguc-Kunt and Maksimovic (1998) and Rajan and Zingales, 1998). Beck, Demirguc-Kunt, Laeven and Levine (2006) use Rajan and Zingales (1998) approach, which provides supplementary evidence that financial development increasingly props up the growth of smaller firms which constitute largely the priority sector lending in the case of Indian Financial sector. Recent survey evidence suggests that access to finance has a direct nexus with faster rates of innovation and firm dynamism consistent with the cross-country finding that finance promotes growth through increase in productivity (Ayyagari, M., Demirgà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¡-Kunt, A. a nd Maksimovic, V, 2007, Levine, 1998, 1999). Further, it has also been revealed that financial development plays a significant role in moderating the impact of external shocks on the domestic economy (Beck, T., Lundberg, M. and Majnoni, G, 2006 and Raddatz, C, 2006). Besides debate concerning the role of finance in economic development, economists have also debated the relative importance of bank-based and market-based financial systems for a long time (Golsdmith, 1969; Boot and Thakor, 1997; Allen and Gale, 2000; Demirguc-Kunt and Levine, 2001). Joseph Schumpeter argued in 1911 that banks play a pivotal role in economic development. According to this view, the banking sector alters the path of economic progress by affecting the allocation of savings and not necessarily by altering the saving rate. Largely, the Schumpeterian view of finance and development highlights the impact of banks on productivity growth (Schumpeter, Joseph A, 1934). Banking sector can wield a positive influence on the overall economy, and hence is of broad macroeconomic importance (Bonin and Wachtel, 1999, Jaffe and Levonian, 2001, Rajan and Zingales, 1998). It is established that better developed banks and markets are closely associated with faster growth (Levine, Loazya a nd Beck, 2000; Loayza and Ranciere (2002); Christopoulos and Tsionas, 2004). Improved functioning of banks can be able to boost resource allocation and hasten growth (Boyd and Prescott 1986; Greenwood and Jovanovic 1990; King and Levine 1993a; Levine, R. and S. Zervous 1998). Correspondingly, by aiding risk management, improving the liquidity of assets available to savers, and by lowering trading costs; banks can enliven investment in potential economic activities (Obstfeld 1994; Bencivenga and Smith 1991; Greenwood and Smith 1997). Banks do exercise significant and causal impact on productivity growth, which feeds through to overall GDP growth. The long-run association between prioritised banking and both capital growth and private savings are more tenuous (Levine, Ross; Loayza, Norman; and Beck, Thorsten, 1999). It is also ascertained by some researchers that the size of the banking sector can be safely considered a good predictor for future growth, especially when focusing on lon g term projects (Andrea Vaona, 2005). The research so far has not only looked at how finance facilitates economic activity but also social aspects like poverty, hunger etc. The consensus is that finance promotes economic growth but the magnitude of impact differs. Financial inclusion is intended to connect people to banks with consequential benefits. Ensuring that the financial system plays its due role in promoting inclusive growth is one of the biggest challenges facing the emerging economies. We therefore advocate that financial development creates enabling conditions for growth through either a `supply-leading (financial development spurs growth) or a `demand-following (growth generates demand for financial products) channel. Access to safe, easy and affordable credit and other financial services by the poor and vulnerable groups, disadvantaged areas and lagging sectors is recognised as a pre-condition for accelerating growth and reducing income disparities and poverty. Access to a well-functioning financial system, by creating equal opportunities, enables economically and socially excluded people to integrate better into the economy and actively contribute to development and protects themselves against economic shocks. III. INCLUSIVE GROWTH Development economists and states have often been for a long time interested in the relationship between financial development and economic growth especially in the period which is known as the era of the Washington Consensus. A growing GDP is an evidence of a society getting its collective act together for progress. As its economy grows, a society becomes more strongly organised, more compactly interwoven. Growth is good, Sustained high growth is better and Sustained high growth with inclusiveness is best of all. Inclusive growth in the economy can only be achieved when all the weaker sections of the society including agriculture and small scale industries are nurtured and brought on par with other sections of the society in terms of economic development. The major development challenge is to make the growth inclusive. Policies for inclusive growth are vital components of majority of government strategies for sustainable growth. Commission on Growth and Development notes that inclus iveness-a concept that encompasses equity, equality of opportunity, and protection in market and employment transitions is an essential ingredient of any successful growth strategy (Commission on Growth and Development, 2008). Three pillars of inclusive growth are; (i) Maximise economic opportunities (ii) Ensure economic well being and (iii) Ensure equal opportunities to economic opportunities (Ifzal Ali, 2007). An inclusive growth strategy encompasses the key elements of an effective poverty reduction strategy and, more importantly, expands the development agenda. Developing inclusive financial systems which are financially and socially sustainable, as a poverty reduction strategy, should be given priority (Amit K. Bhandari, 2009). Levine, (1998), (1999) and Beck, Demirguc-Kunt and Levine (2007) have noticed a positive effect of finance on poverty reduction. Economies with higher levels of financial development experience faster reduction of poverty. This has been explained by an extensive body of literature including Deininger and Squire (1998), Dollar and Kraay (2002), White and Anderson (2001), Ravallion (2001) and Bourguignon (2003). In an often cited cross-country study, Kraay (2004) proves that growth in average incomes explains 70 percent of the variation in poverty reduction (as measured by the headcount ratio) in the short run, and as much as 97 percent in the long run. Lopez and Servà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¡n (2004) suggest that for a given inequality intensity, the poorer the country is, the more vital is the growth component in explaining poverty reduction. Thus, equitable growth is indeed an imperative for inclusive growth. IV. FINANCIAL INCLUSION Importance of financial inclusion arises from the problem of financial exclusion of nearly 3 billion people from the formal financial services across the world. The review of literature suggests that the most operational definitions are context-specific, originating from country-specific problems of financial exclusion and socio-economic conditions. Thus, the context-specific dimensions of financial exclusion assume importance from the public policy perspective. The operational definition of financial inclusion, based on the access to financial products or services, also underscores the role of financial institutions or service providers involved in the process. Furthermore, the operational definitions have also evolved from the underlying public policy concerns that many people, particularly those living on low income, cannot access mainstream financial products such as bank accounts and low cost loans, which, in turn, imposes real costs on them -often the most vulnerable people (H. M. Treasury, 2007). Thus, over the years, several definitions of financial inclusion/exclusion have evolved. In the Indian context, Rangarajan Committee on Financial Inclusion in India (2008)) defines it as: Financial inclusion may be defined as the process of ensuring access to financial services and timely and adequate credit where needed by vulnerable groups such as weaker sections and low income groups at an affordable cost. The financial services include the entire gamut savings, loans, insurance, credit, payments etc. The financial system has to provide its function of transferring resources from surplus to deficit units but both deficit and surplus units are those with low incomes, poor background etc. By providing these services, the aim is to help them come out of poverty. Measurement of Financial Inclusion is not universally the same. Different countries adopt different indicators to measure financial inclusion. Definitional Aspects of Financial Inclusion / Exclusion and their indicators as recommended by United Nations, World Bank, Committee on Financial Inclusion in India (Chairman: C. Rangarajan), Asian Development Bank [ADB] and Treasury Committee, House of Commons, UK are presented in Table-1 in Annexure-1. Global Experiences In the developed countries, the formal financial sector serves most of the population, whereas in developing countries, a large segment of the society, mainly the low-income group, has modest access to financial services, either formally or informally. Consequently, many of them have to necessarily depend either on their own sources or informal sources of finance, which are generally at high cost. According to Peachy and Roe (2004) developed countries have experienced good levels of inclusion (99 per cent in Denmark, 96 per cent in France, 96 per cent in Germany and 91 per cent in the USA) have bank accounts. However, it is reported that (ADB, 2007), in the developing countries, formal financial sectors serve relatively a small segment, often not more than 20-30 per cent of the population, the vast majority of who are low income households in rural areas Recent data (Table-2 in Annexure-2) shows that countries with large proportion of population excluded from the formal financial system also show higher poverty ratios and higher inequality. Further, it is observed that, often countries with low levels of income inequality have a propensity to have lower levels of financial exclusion, whereas high levels of exclusion are associated with the least equal ones. According to Kempson (2006), for example, While in the case of Sweden, lower than two per cent of adults did not have an account in 2000 in Germany, it was around three per cent. In comparison, less than four per cent of adults in Canada and five per cent in Belgium, lacked a bank account (Buckland et al, 2005). Countries with high levels of inequality record higher levels of banking exclusion. To illustrate, in Portugal, about 17 per cent of the adult population had no account of any kind in 2000 (Kempson, 2006). Policy Response to Financial Exclusion Country Experiences The policy responses to such exclusion have been varied. Two major kinds of policy responses have been implemented by central banks in response to financial exclusion: codes of practice and specific legislation. Table-3 (Annexure-3) presents the financial inclusion initiatives in different countries. Table-4 (Annexure-4) illustrates the extent of financial inclusion in some select countries. Initiatives for financial inclusion in India The broad strategy for financial inclusion in India in recent years comprises the following elements: (i) encouraging penetration into unbanked and backward areas and encouraging agents and intermediaries such as NGOs, MFIs, CSOs and business correspondents (BCs); (ii) focussing on a decentralised strategy by using existing arrangements such as State Level Bankers Committee (SLBC) and district consultative committee (DCC) and strengthening local institutions such as co-operatives and RRBs; (iii) using technology for furthering financial inclusion; (iv) advising banks to open a basic banking `no frills account; (vi) emphasis on financial literacy and credit counselling; and (vii) creating synergies between the formal and informal segments (Thorat, 2008). V. FINANCIAL INCLUSION AND INCLUSIVE GROWTH IN INDIA The importance of this study lies in the fact that India being a socialist, democratic republic, it is imperative on the policies of the government to ensure equitable growth of all sections of the economy. With only 34% of population engaged in formal banking, India has, 135 million financially excluded households, the second highest number after China. Further, the real rate of financial inclusion in India is also very low and about 40% of the bank account holders use their accounts not even once a month. It is universally opined that the resource poor need financial assistance at reasonable costs and that too with uninterrupted pace. However, the economic liberalization policies have always tempted the financial institutions to look for more and more greener pastures of business ignoring the weaker sections of the society. Some of the features of financial exclusion in India are captured in Figure-1 (Annexure-12). It is essential for any economy to aim at inclusive growth involving each and every citizen in the economic development progression. It is in this context that a study has to be made to understand the importance of priority sector lending in ensuring the inclusive growth in the Indian context. Select macro-economic and financial indicators of Indian economy are presented here below in Table-5 (Annexure-5). Analysis Based on the well accepted approaches for evaluation of the coverage of financial inclusion and to assess its impact on inclusive growth the study endeavors to analyse the following: Spatial Distribution of banking Services Regional Distribution of Banking Services Impact of Financial Inclusion on Inclusive Growth 1. Spatial Distribution of banking Services In order to analyse the spatial distribution of banking services in the country, data for the periods 1991 and 2005 has been verified. Further, bank offices in the country have been classified into Rural and Urban areas. This has been considered in order to get a clear understanding about how the spread of formal banking services has been affected in different parts of the country. The total number of saving accounts, considered to be a better indicator of banking penetration than other deposit accounts, as per cent of number of households, was 137 in rural areas and 244 in the urban areas on the eve of reforms in 1991. By 2005, despite the reforms, the differential continues to be similar. In the case of credit accounts, the situation have deteriorated for rural households while showing significant improvement in the urban areas (Table-6 in Annexure-6), corroborating the very significant increase in retail credit. 2. Regional Distribution of Banking Services An effort has been made to analyse the extent of financial inclusion in different regions of the country such as Northern, North-Eastern, Eastern, Central, Western and Southern regions apart from All India level. A purposeful analysis is made by comparing the data for the period from 1991 to 2005. Further, this data has been further split into rural and urban areas in the country in order to get an exact view about the distribution services in these areas. Further, the analysis is made in terms of population coverage per bank office, Number of Savings accounts per population of one hundred and Number of Credit (loan) accounts per population of one hundred. Table-7 (in Annexure-7) captures the data related to Financial Inclusion, Poverty levels, Population density and Literacy. Table-8 (in Annexure-8) presents the data related to Bank Branches, Workers, Population of Scheduled Castes and Percentage of Households with bank accounts in India. This data is largely sourced from the websit e of Census India and Reserve Bank of India publications. In terms of financial broadening, the scope for improvement remains. Table-9 (in Annexure-9) illustrates the level of financial inclusion in India with region wise statistics. It is discernible that Southern and Northern regions have population coverage below the national averages. All the other regions in the country have coverage well above the national average calling for urgent improvement in the population coverage of the population. Again in terms of rural and urban areas there has been a distinct progress in the coverage of the population by the bank branch offices. Table-9 provides further clarity by providing a break-up of the deposit accounts. Both the deposit and credit accounts are lower in rural households than urban households. Hence despite the rural-push, the rural population has not come forward and avail even basic banking services Impact of Financial Inclusion on Inclusive Growth In order to involve a comprehensive measure of financial inclusion in the Indian context, we consider Priority Sector Lending as a measure of financial inclusion. We are of the opinion that, mere opening of bank account would not be a true indicator of financial inclusion, but availment of financial services, more importantly; the much needed credit for the excluded sections of the society would definitely depict the measure of financial inclusion. Further, this measure would meet the requirements of the definition for measurement of Financial Inclusion provided by United Nations, wherein it is said that the indicator should measure the Access to credit, insurance, savings and payment services. Priority Sector Lending as an indicator in our study addresses all the above aspects. In view of this an attempt has been made to establish the relationship of priority sector lending (as a measure of financial inclusion) with the indicators of inclusive growth such as rural poverty. Rural pov erty is considered to portray inclusive growth as more than 70 percent of India lives in rural areas. The required data for the analysis is obtained largely from the most reliable and official sources such as Reserve Bank of India website, NABARD website, India Development Report 2008 and other related sources. Economic Reforms in Indian economy were initiated in the year 1991-92. As such, to cover equal number of years of priority sector lending and inclusive growth during pre and post-Liberalisation period, data for the period from 1974-75 to 2007-08 has been analysed for understanding the trends. For the purpose of analysis the most popular statistical measure Multiple Regression (OLS) Analysis is used (Andrea Vaona, 2005, Andrea Vaona and Roberto Patuelli, 2008 have also used the same kind of analysis for similar studies). The objective of this section of the paper is to recognize the determinants of Inclusive Growth which can be captured in Rural Poverty (RU_POV) (measured in percentage against that of the total population in rural areas and these figures are provided by the Census of India data) in India and ascertain the impact of Priority Sector Lending (PSL) on rural poverty in India. Priority Sector Lending in the Indian context refers to the bank credit under the directed lending towards the private firms and individuals which is an important parameter that determines the measure of development that can significantly contribute to inclusive growth (Andrea Vaona, 2005). Domestic Savings (SAV) (measured in Rupees in Crores) is included as a determinant in order to account for the argument that savings propels economic activity in the system at large and helps in inclusive growth process (Beck, Levine and Loayza 2000). Rural Employment is one of the significant measures of economic development and consequently of inclusive growth. A greater level of rural employment can be taken as evidence of greater economic development (Cole Shawn, 2007). In recognition of this argument, Employment in Rural Primary sector (EMP_RP) (expressed in million numbers) is included as one of determinants to study their impact on inclusive growth. Agricultural Production is another important determinant that affects the inclusive growth process in rural India. As a large population of weaker sections of the society still depends to a large extent on agriculture, Agricultural Production (AGRI_PRO) (expressed in Kilograms/hectare) determines their upward movement in the income ladder (Andrea Vaona, 2005 also considered production as an important variable in a similar study). Accordingly, agricultural production is also considered as a determinant in the analysis. There is also an indisputable argument that overall credit has profound impact on inclusive growth process (Andrea Vaona, 2005). In view of this, Credit to Gross Domestic Product (CRED_GDP) (measured as a ratio in percentage to GDP) is included as a determinant. If there is an increase in Per Capita Income (PCI) (measured as per capita NNP at factor cost expressed in Crores in Rupees) there certainly will be an increase in inclusive growth process. As such, Per Capita Income (as used as a determinant in a similar analysis by Andrea Vaona and Roberto Patuelli, 2008, Srinivasan 1994, Streeten 1994, and Sugden 1993) is commonly accepted measure of standard of living of people and consequently is a major factor that enhances inclusive growth and hence it is included in the analysis. The regression model can be; Y = à   + à ¡1X1 + .. + à ¡nXn + à ¦ -> Accordingly, Rural Poverty can be better explained and estimated with the following version of equation; RU_POV = f (PSL, SAV, EMP_RP, AGRI_PRO, CRED_GDP, PCI) + à ¦ > In order to control for other factors associated with economic growth not linked to financial development, the regression results are presented by using a simple conditioning information set, including the constant, the logarithm of all explanatory variables. Due to potential nonlinearities, the natural logarithms of the regressors are considered (Levine, Loazya and Beck, 2000). Accordingly, when we log-transform this model (also called a log-log, double-log) we obtain: Log (RU_POV) = à   + log (PSL, SAV, EMP_RP, AGRI_PRO, CRED_GDP, PCI) + à ¦ > `à   represents the `Y intercept, à ¡1,?n represent the respective regression coefficients for explanatory variables X1 .. Xn and `à ¦ represents the error term. Where, `Y represents the `RU_POV , i.e, Rural Poverty and `X1, `X2 , ., `X14 represent the predictor variables and `à ¡1 , `à ¡2, .., `à ¡n represent the partial regression coefficients of `PSL i.e, `Priority Sector Lending, `SAV-Savings, `EMP_RP-Employment in Rural Primary sector, `AGRI_PRO-Agricultural production, `CRED_GDP-Credit to Gross Domestic Product and `PCI-Per Capita Income respectively. `à ¦ represents the `error term. The results of analysis are presented in Table-10 (Annexure-10) for the period from the year 1977 to 2007. Inferring from the results of this analysis, it can be concluded that Priority sector lending has significant impact on rural poverty. Graphical presentation of the trend of priority sector lending in the pre liberalisation period from 1974-75 to 1990-91 and post liberalisation period from 1991-92 to 2006-07 is illustrated in Figure-2 (Annexure-13). It is clearly evident from the figure that priority sector lending has taken a gradually upward moving curve indicating a steady rise in the post liberalisation era. Further, the Nature and strength of the impact of the various determinants on Inclusive growth are captured in Table-11 (Annexure-11). A graphical presentation of the trend of the inclusive growth in India is presented in Figure-3 (Annexure-14). It is orchestrated by the rhythmic forward movement trends of the above discussed determinants during the study period. Rural Poverty is on a declining trend more pronouncedly during the post liberalisation period. Findings of the Study The study found that Priority Sector Lending has a very high significant impact on inclusive growth, which is in line with the findings of Kraay (2004) and Beck, et all (2007). Domestic Savings (in line with the conclusions of Levine, Ross; Loayza, Norman; and Beck, Thorsten, 1999), Credit to Gross Domestic Product (as established by Ayyagari, M., Demirgà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¡-Kunt, A. and Maksimovic, V, 2007, Narasimham, 2002, Obstfeld 1994; Bencivenga and Smith 1991; Greenwood and Smith 1997) and Per Capita Income (as stated by Levine, 1998, 1999) are found to have significant impact on reducing rural poverty in India. The model developed in the study explains the trend of rural poverty (Lopez and Servà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¡n, 2004) to the extent of 93.5 percent involving the important determinants such as Priority Sector Lending (Rajan and Zingales 1998), Savings, Employment in Rural Primary sector, Agricultural Production (Andrea Vaona, 2005), Credit to Gross Domestic Product (Andrea Vaona, 2005 ) and Per Capita Income (Andrea Vaona and Roberto Patuelli, 2008, Srinivasan 1994, Streeten 1994 and Sugden 1993). Further, it is also demonstrated (Figure-2) that financial sector reforms have indeed had a positive impact on reduction of rural poverty. VI. RECOMMENDATIONS AND POLICY CHOICES Based on the outcome of the above analysis, we present here below our recommendations. Strategize the Provision of Bank Credit Need is felt to strategize the provision of bank credit to the rural farmer households. Majority of the marginal farmer households are not at all covered by the formal finance. As such public sector banks and the co-operative banks in the rural areas have to sensitize about the need for provision of timely and cheaper credit to these segments. Reserve Bank of India in consultation with NABARD should come out with a comprehensive strategy for revitalizing the quiescent rural credit mechanism. Cover the Poor It is imminent to encompass the tenant farmers, oral lessees and share croppers, marginal farmers with small un-economical land holdings, agricultural laborers, rural artisans and people involved in making handicrafts and also majority of weavers in handloom Sector. Extensive use of Co-operatives The large number of PACS and primary cooperatives under the parallel Acts located in rural areas are not functioning effectively. Many of these cooperatives are in districts where the DCCBs are defunct or moribund. Such PACS could provide valuable services to their members if they get access to a commercial bank. In view of these there is a need to revitalize these cooperatives as per the Vaidyanathan Committee recommendations and use them extensively for financial inclusion in the rural areas. Undoubtedly a Greater Role for NABARD NABARD ha to play a pro-active role by partnering with the rural credit institutions in the field and identify new initiatives that will contribute to effectively improving the extent of financial inclusion involving SHGs, MFIs, etc. Procedural / Documentation Changes It is inevitable on the part of the regulators to find out an easy way of procuring the documents for opening of bank accounts and availing loans. The present guidelines are more tedious and result in huge costs for the poor in accessing the banks for any kind of services. Exemption from Stamp Duty for Loans to Small and Marginal Farmers, Simplifying Mortgage Requirements, Saral Documentation for Agricultural Loans. Proactive Role of Government State Governments should asked by the Centre to play a pro-active role in facilitating Financial Inclusion. Issuing official identity documents for opening accounts , creating awareness and involving district and block level functionaries in the entire process, meeting cost of cards and other devices for pilots, undertaking financial literacy drives are some of the ways in which the State and district administration have involved themselves. A role for Rural Post Offices Post Offices in rural areas can be asked to provide their services in accelerating the financial inclusion activity. In view of the postmans intimate knowledge of the local population and the enormous trust reposed in him post offices can be good use in the process of financial inclusion Effective use of Information Technology Solutions Financial Inclusion initiatives. Adequate Publicity for the Project of Financial Inclusion In a huge country like India, there needs to be huge publicity for popularizing the concept and its benefits to the common man. In this direction, a comprehensive approach has to be developed involving all the concerned at all levels to impress upon the need for financial inclusion for accelerating th

Barack Obama, Dreams From My Father

Barack Obama, Dreams From My Father Barack Obama in his first book Dreams from my Father A story of Race and Inheritance takes his readers to a beautifully crafted journey of self-discovery. His first book was published over a decade ago and is recently re-published by Random House. It is a compelling story of not only race and culture inheritance but also of personal growth, human experience, life lessons and human nature. Obama tells his fantastic life story in a very thoughtful and reflective way. I feel this is a story of a very wisely examined life. The fact that readers, regardless of social background, cultural heritage or skin colour could find themselves in the story reminds me that as human beings as well we all share plenty of similarities and differences. About a few months ago in a very strange incident when the Republican presidential and vice presidential candidates stood on stages around the nation asking who was Barack Obama? They had a very easy access to their own question if they would have read Dreams from my father. If they would have read the story they wouldnt have enough knowledge about the man who would serve as 44th president of the country but more about themselves as well. THE STORY The autobiography tells the story of the life of Barack Obama up to his admission in the Harvard Law School. He was born in Honolulu, Hawaii to Barack Obama Sr. Of Kenya, a black African and Ann Dunham of Wichita, Kansas, a white American, who met as students at the University of Hawaii at Minoa. Obamas parents separated from each other and got divorced in 1964, when Obama was just two years old, and the reason behind the divorce was Obamas father went to Harvard to pursue his PhD but did not have money to take his family with him. Obamas father later on returned to Africa to fulfil his promise to the continent. A kid without his father, Obama formed an imaginary image of his absent father from the stories told by his mother and his grandparents. He could see his father one more time in 1971 when Sr. Obama had come to Hawaii for a month long official visit, without knowing death could be just a few away. Obamas father died in a car accident after 11 years in 1982. After the divorce Obamas mother remarried to Lolo Soetro an East-West Centre student from Indonesia, and then moved to Jakarta. When Obama was just ten years, he returned to Hawaii to get better educational opportunities available in Hawaii, under the care of his grandparents and later his mother. He was enrolled at Punahou School, a private college-preparatory school, in fifth grade where he was on of the only six black students at the mostly white school. Obama attended the school from the 5th grade until his graduation in 1979. Obama in his writes For my grandparents, my admission into Punahou Academy heralded the start of something grand, an elevation in the family status that they took great pains to let everyone know. In the school Obama met Ray who introduced him to the African American community. After finishing high school, Obama moved to Los Angeles, where he enrolled at Occidental College, he describes his life there to be a party lifestyle with the drug and alcohol use. After two years of his party life at Occidental, he transferred himself to Columbia college at Columbia University, in Manhattan, New York, where he majored in political science. After graduation, he started a business for a year, which did not go very well, he then moved to Chicago there he worked for a non-profit community organizing in the Altgeld Gardens housing project on the South side of the city. He recounts the difficulty of the experience, as his program faced resistance from apathy on the part of the established bureaucracy and entrenched community leaders. During this time Obama first visited the Chicagos Trinity United Church of Christ only to be motivate himself to do something grand in his life. Obama decided to visit his relatives in Kenya before joining the Harvard Law School. Obama uses the experience Kenya to be the setting for his books final emotional scene. Relating the story with Obamas life the book includes a great deal of reflection on his own personal racial experiences with the Americans in the United States. A FEW RACISM FACTS I ceased to advertise my mothers race at the age of 12 or 13, when I began to suspect that by doing so I was ingratiating myself to whites this is a quote from the introduction in the book Dreams from my Father. This gives the very first glimpse of the racial discrimination and racial issues faced by Barack Obama right from the age of 12 or 13. Obama still had the thrive to continue and achieve everything that he aimed for. There was something about him that made me wary, a little too sure of himself, maybe. And white. This is during the time when he describes a job interview with a man in Chicago. It seemed that race had been a part of their discussion as the white had a certain air about himself seeing Obama being a black, but instead of getting de motivated and upset about the behaviour from the white Obama took it as an opportunity and showed what his true talent was. And at the end he was able to win the person, which was one of his many passions. It remained necessary to prove which side you were on, to show your loyalty to the black masses, to strike out and name names. Obama discusses this part of his life when he talks about his childhood and his schooldays in Hawaii. Though having a white mother Obama faced too many racial discriminations in his school days, which made him vulnerable to the whites. I never emulate white men and brown men whose fates didnt speak to my own. It was into my fathers image, the black man, son of Africa, that Id packed all the attributes I sought in myself, the attributes of Martin and Malcolm, Dubois and Mandela. This statement shows that though being a black, Barack Obama did not get emulated with his fate to have born a black, he made it his strength and walked ahead instead of walking backwards and run away from the hardships. Despite having faced so many incidences of racial discrimination and underlying authority Barack Obama had only one thing that was unbitten and that was his never dying spirit and courage and this is what i think undoubtedly defines his leadership quality. LEADERSHIP Recently I happened to read an article on leadership qualities and how is a person fit to become a leader. To test the article I decided to experiment with few of my friends, on a casual discussion I asked them who do you think can be a leader? to my amazement the entire discussion turned into an argument whether a leader is born or made. Later on after giving the entire argument much thought I decided to jot down few of the qualities of a leader I could figure out during the discussion. The first thing that I noticed was during the entire conversation there was one friend who did not even attempt to get into the conversation, later when asked he said I dont think thats even a discussion, it was so pointless, Id rather spend my time reading Barack Obama then deciding whether a leader is born or made it is always going to be debatable, thats when I realised that a true leader never gives too much time to such discussions he rather concentrates more on developing his own leadership qualities which he thinks are necessary for his success. One of the other things that I noticed was in a group theres always a person who leads the discussion, gives it a proper flow and concludes it, this group had a leader as well, but the quality i noticed here was a leader always has followers, you take the case of Hitler, Mussolini, Barack Obama, Mahatma Gandhi anyone in that case, they are perfect examples of Leadership and one thing that is common among all of them is they all had th eir own set of followers. Which I think is one of the biggest qualities of a leader, what is the point of leading a group when you do not have anyone to follow? Summarizing the entire incident i could come up with Five qualities that a leader possesses. They are as follows: A leader should be Intelligent Clarity in thought Forward looking Ethical Inspiring Now the important job for a leader is to display his skills or the five qualities mentioned above and at the same time inspiring people to follow. Below is a story of a great leader who doesnt have a name in history, hasnt made it big yet she is a motivation, a role model and has all the qualities for an entrepreneur mentioned above. How often do you get a chance to motivate? How often do you get a chance to touch peoples lives and make them better? Well i just came across a teacher who made it all possible, they called her Miss G. Miss G was a happy, and a fun loving human being, happily married and a perfect husband made her confident, and lively. She came from a political background and as her father she too wanted to do something for the society, she had tried a couple of things already but somehow did not interest her, or rather the work did not approve her, not getting de motivated Miss G joins the Long Island school, Long Beach to try her hands on teaching, little has she thought of what she was getting into, she would have had night mares before step forward to take the job. Her father did not approve of her becoming a teacher, he thought it was too low a profile to work in, she didnt pay attention to it, as she knew she would be able to make her father agree to her choice eventually. She started off her first day as a teacher with a group of students majorly African Americans, who were engaged in gang wars, drugs, fighting etc. She had a hard time even talking to them as they had a typical attitude to the way they lived. They were freshmen at school and obviously hated the fact. The first day she experienced the enmity amongst the students with the issue being the colour of their skin. She has a hard time controlling their fights, but gets hold of it eventually. When she walks out after the school she sees that the whites are on one side of the ground and the black on the other none of them even bothered to interact with the other colour. The very next day she mixes the different colour students within the class to break the ice amongst themselves. That doesnt work very well as many of them feel offended of their colour and stop coming to the class. She tries to figure out for days together what is it that is stopping 13 year kids to talk to each other and discriminate amongst each other due to their colour in modern America. And one day something happens that teaches her the real reason, a boy gets killed by one of the whites just because he was black, she learns the fact that one of her students called Eva was also involved in the incident. She wanted to confront the girl about it but was warned by the administration of the school to not to do so as it was against the policy of the school. She still tries to confront and learns that the blacks are ill-treated by the American cops for no reason, they were bitten up, shot and jailed just for being a black. Miss G didnt realise what to say when she was confronted with a truth like this. She knew the students wouldnt speak to her directly in the class, but she wanted them to take all their pain and sufferings out so that she could heal them and make them better human beings, because she knew, she had hope in them that they werent as bad as they were made out to be. She then came up with this really amazing idea of making them keep their journal, she asked them to write any of their experiences that were close to her heart. She told them she wouldnt read their journal unless and until they would allow her to. She offered them a closet to leave their journals if they wanted her to read them. And to her surprise everyone wrote in their journals and left them behind for her to read it. The administration of the school was strictly against all the activities that she was doing and wouldnt support her or help her even with the material she required for the class. Miss G didnt give up on the kids, she worked double jobs just so that she could provide them with the materials that they needed. But in all of this her personal life, her happy marriage had started to go on the rough track. Thus she was losing support both from her working environment as well as her husband. But with her determination and passion to make a difference to those kids lives, she continues to teach with all the hurdles and difficulties that she was facing. With all the efforts she was putting in she succeeded in making the class room a home for all the kids she was teaching. Her husband left her, the administration didnt agree with her efforts and the people around her tried every possible way to de motivate her. But she was a warrior princess despite having an emotional breakdown, the threat to lose the job, no home she never gave up or rather never bowed to the situations, she kept fighting. During the entire mess up she was going through for the first time her motivating force was her father. Her father told her I am jealous of what my daughter is being able to do, she did what I had dreamt for myself, which I think in itself is a driving force for any individual. And with the warrior she was this just added to her strength. She motivated the kids to keep their own journals, this time she motivated them to convert their journals into books. The kids already following the footsteps of their teacher readily agreed to it, and after months of rigorous work they came up with their own individual books with their own stories. Their own stories of struggle and their own stories of survival, she had succeeded. This motivated Miss G to write her own book for the kids and the experience with them. She amazingly called them the freedom writers. My Learning It is not necessary that you make it big if you are an entrepreneur, it is not necessary that the world should know what a big personality are you. The satisfaction comes from within. One if the question that i came across while reading the book was why doesnt everyone have a name in history? What is so special about the people who have made it big? the answer to the question was their intelligence. Imagine what if everyone had the same wavelength, what if everyone was as intelligent as Mr Narayan Murthi of Infosys, Mr Warren Buffet the investor, Mr Bill Gates of Microsoft, there would be a new Infosys and Microsoft coming up every day in every different corner of the world. There wouldnt have been any uniqueness in their ventures. Thus intelligence plays a vital role in what you do. Intelligence plays a vital role in what you do but intelligence without clarity of thought cannot be put to the best use. Imagine Bill Gates having an idea of launching Microsoft but doesnt know where, when and how, i think without a clear vision he wouldnt have been able to do any of it. And lastly having a vision of where you want to be sums up to all the things that are needed to be a leader. Thus a mixture of an intelligent, forward looking and clear minded individual makes it to be the best leader. Conclusion Whether its Miss G or Barack Obama, both of them had their own share of hardships and struggles one thing that kept them going was their never say NO attitude to life. This is what has made them a leader, an entrepreneur and a satisfied human. At the end of the day it is not what you do or what you make out of what youre doing, it is the learning that life offers for the present and the future. Lions sleep 18 hours a day if hard work alone was the secret to success, then donkey would have been the king of the jungle.