Book Recommendation: Soft Skills–The software developer’s life manual by Jon Sonmez

I got interested in this book when I looked up Jon’s profile after watching a pluralsight course on Android Development Fundamentals.

I got hooked by the table of contents and ordered it from Sapna Online (Amazon and Flipkart were not having this book then – I have never considered amazon India as option like amazon worldwide, But Flipkart – Is Flipkart loosing it? Common flipkart).

It is completely worth your time and money. I wish I had this book 10 years back. No other book covers the breadth of topics like Jon does.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book. Specifically I enjoyed Jon’s advice on Career options and investment. I was trying to correlate with what I had written about Career Path in my previous incarnation and in the recent past.

I used to refer  to a couple of titles before on this

https://pragprog.com/book/cfcar2/the-passionate-programmer

http://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Code-distinguish-yourself-simple/dp/1590791029

But none of them are close to the breadth of topics Jon covers.

Not that I agree with Jon’s opinion on every topic, but then hey people are different. I will post about my thoughts on these topics soon. I will also post a detailed review / notes soon.

Highly recommended to every developer.

Don’t let hate consume you–Will Smith–Quote

Throughout life people will make you mad, disrespect you, and treat you bad. Let God deal with the things they do, ‘cause hate in your heart will consume you too.

– Will Smith

Source and Credits: https://plus.google.com/116330375433045461044/posts/JVHsaJiCtHr

Stay near a critic

Here is a short anecdote on critics, criticism.

Long time ago there was a great king in the Raghukul dynasty (Lord Rama also belonged to the same dynasty). He was suffering from leprosy. He fell on the feet of his master, Guru Vashishtha and said: "Oh Master! So much of suffering… ?"

The master kept his hand on his eyes and asked him: "Look far. What do you see?"

"A huge sparkling golden mountain. And another black coal like mountain."

"One is the mountain of your good karma which gave you your kingdom, richness, power & fame. Another is the mountain of your sins because of which you have the painful disease, worries & troubles."

"Master! Is there a way to get relieved of these?"

"Eat up that mountain."

"Oh lord! Eating that mountain is out of my control."

"Then eat up the pile of garbage lying behind your palace."

"Oh great soul! I will not be able to eat that. Please tell me a simple way."

For a few seconds Guru Vashishtha made his mind peaceful and thought of a solution and said: "Sleep in a bed placed near main door of the palace of your widow sister-in-law everyday at 6:00 PM."

The king of Raghukul dynasty… In the palace of widow sister-in-law… ? What will people say? But there was no other solution. The king did as his master told him. Whoever passed by commented on the bad character of the king and humiliated him. People even used abusive language. At ten o’ clock in the night the king silently went back to his palace. The next morning he saw that a part of his body was cured. The next day the disease was further cured. In this way his body was getting cured day by day. His mind was also more peaceful now. On the fourth day Vashishtha ji kept his hand over his eyes and asked him to see again. This time he saw that the golden mountain of good karma was as big & sparkling as earlier but the black mountain of sins became very small.

Vashishtha ji said: "All those who spoke ill about you & criticized you have taken the portion of your sins. Now they’ll have to suffer the consequences of your bad karma. You have become pure."

After two days that black mountain was reduced to a small pebble. The king was totally cured except for a small mark on his face.

"Oh Master!The big mountain has vanished and a small pebble is remaining now. There is a small mark on face now and a little grief in the heart."

"The remaining part is mine. Why should I commit the sin of criticizing & blaming an innocent & pure man and then bear the consequences? You bear the remaining yourself."

Moral of the story: Never criticize anyone, When someone criticizes you, thank them, for they are taking your bad karma away.

Source and Credits: http://www.reocities.com/Yosemite/2021/spirit_stories/critic.html

Set up a life you don’t need to escape from

“Instead of wondering where your next vacation is, maybe you ought to set up a life you don’t need to escape from” – Seth Godin

Source and Credits: http://www.strikingly.com/avenue via google image search

Storms of life

 

When the "storms of life" gather darkly ahead,
I think of those wonderful words
I once read.
And I say to myself
As threatening clouds hover,
"Don’t fold up your wings"
And "run for cover."

But like the eagle,
"Spread wide your wings"
And "soar far above"
The troubles life brings.

For the eagle knows
That the higher he flies,
The more tranquil and brighter
Become the skies.

And there is nothing in life
God ever asks us to bear
That we can’t soar above
"On the wings of prayer."

And in looking back over
The "storm you passed through,"
You’ll find you gained strength
And new courage, too.

For in facing "life’s storms"
With an eagle’s wings,
You can fly far above
Earth’s small, petty things.

– Helen Steiner Rice                                                   

 

Source and Credits: http://www.gobeehappy.com/2013/04/blog-post_5424.html

Success–Ralph Waldo Emerson

“To laugh often and love much;

to win the respect of intelligent persons and the affection of children;

to earn the approbation of honest citizens and endure the betrayal of false friends;

to appreciate beauty;

to find the best in others;

to give of one’s self;

to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition;

to have played and laughed with enthusiasm and sung with exultation;

to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived

– this is to have succeeded.”

– Ralph Waldo Emerson

Image source and credits:

http://www.michaelnoyes.com/gifts/by-genre/literary-quotes/success-ralph-waldo-emerson via http://susiesheartpathblog.wordpress.com/2011/10/19/more-from-wise-%E2%99%A5men/

Broadening our identity beyond religion–An anecdote

This is a short story which I heard in a discourse by Suki Sivam on Bhagavad Gita.

A group of doves are living in a temple tower. The temple’s renovation works begin and many people start frequenting the temple tower. The doves leave the temple tower and move to a church tower. There are a few doves which were already staying in the church tower and they are happy to have new friends. The doves heartily welcome the new doves and they start living together happily.

After a few months it is Christmas time, they start painting the church and many people start frequenting the church tower. The doves leave the church tower and move to the tower of a mosque. There a few doves in the mosque tower and they too happily welcome the new doves and share their place with the new doves. All the doves are now living happily in the mosque tower.

One day a group of people below are fighting in front of the mosque, below the tower. A little dove gets curious and asks his mother to find out why they are fighting. The mother dove explains they are different groups of people and that’s why. Some of them go to the mosque and they are called Muslims, some of them go to the church and they are called Christians and some of them go to the temple and they are called Hindus. They are fighting amongst each other as to who is right, who is great.

The little dove really gets puzzled and asks the mother dove, we were living a temple, and then the church and then the now we live in the mosque. We are all still doves we did not change to something other than doves because we live in a different place, how can it be so different for humans. The mother thinks for a while, lets out a sigh and then responds: that’s why we get live in a place where God lives and humans cannot live here, they have to be visitors. And that’s why we live above the humans and they live below us. Once they realize that regardless of the church, mosque, temple they all are humans, they will join us as doves.

The thin line between passion and stress

Source and Credits: https://plus.google.com/+ParkeMuth/posts/MAVmVrerWB1

Work hard, Have faith, Keep Walking

The following post has quotes from a forbes.com article / blog post. Please see below for source / credits

What happened in 2009?

In the middle of 2009, Brian Acton was the software engineer that no one wanted to hire. Despite a dozen years of experience at Yahoo and Apple Computer, he got turned down by two of the Internet’s brightest stars at the time.  First Twitter said no in May. Then Facebook rejected him in August.

What Brian Acton did in the years to follow?

When Acton couldn’t find work at another big-name company, he took his chances on the start-up route instead. Teaming up with another Yahoo alum, Jan Koum, he helped build WhatsApp, a Mountain View, Calif., start-up that has become the king of cloud-based messaging.

Hard luck, persistence — and vindication

WhatsApp is in the headlines this week because Facebook has agreed to buy the company for a stunning $16 billion in stock and cash, along with as much as $3 billion in restricted stock units  for the founders. With at least a 20% stake in the company, Acton is headed toward a $3 billion net worth once the transaction closes. That rebound isn’t just good news for him. It’s certain to become a legendary story of hard luck, persistence — and vindication — among job-hunters worldwide.

A lesson to hiring managers

It’s also likely to cause recruiters and hiring managers some anguish. Hiring the right people is a chancy exercise even in the best of circumstances. But no one at any big company want to become famous for having let “another Brian Acton” slip away.

What an inspirational story, never get disappointed with what happens to you. Whatever happens, happens for a reason. Whatever happens, happens for good. You never know what’s in store for you, in the grand scheme of things. Work hard, Have faith, Keep Walking.

Source and Credits: The quotes are from a post by George Anders  http://www.forbes.com/sites/georgeanders/2014/02/19/he-wanted-a-job-facebook-said-no-in-a-3-billion-mistake/

New beginning–letting go

Source & credits: http://www.facebook.com/mybuddhaquotes via http://www.volkerballueder.com/buddhist-thought-new-beginning/