Apu’s World

Considering that 98.5% of our genetic material* is identical to that of our closest living relatives, the chimpanzees - are we really as different a species from the rest of the world, as we’d like to believe? Some traits that we consider unique to us, and infact think of as defining humanity - how unique really are these traits such as language, art, tool use (eventually technology) and our social relationships and organization? 

Jared Diamond’s ‘The Third Chimpanzee’ is a book that takes the reader into an insightful analysis of each thing that we assume make us human and then, does a neat little twist on it to set you questioning. Every chapter starts off by stating how different a particular trait is from anything else that is found in the animal world, including in our cousins, the chimpanzees, gorillas or bonobos. But then - and this is where it gets interesting - it begins looking for similar or related behaviours in these species which could have arisen from the common evolutionary history that we share with them. For example, research has shown that chimpanzees do make and use rudimentary tools, although of course nowhere on the scale that homo sapiens have achieved.

Diamond gives us the gossip on various competing theories which explain why a particular behaviour evolved in humans, due to what evolutionary pressures, at what time and how such behaviour got more widespread over time. Besides the ease with which he makes complex research perfectly understandable to a lay reader, what is creditable is the way he brings together research from diverse fields -archaeology, paleontology, molecular biology, genetics and zoology to name a few.  He then goes on to demonstrate how while certain behaviours do have animal origins, their mainfestations in humans is entirely different. 

Next, Diamond looks at a few other behaviours which are not ‘positive’ or ‘negative’ in themselves, but are still quite uniquely human. These chapters look at the evolution of behaviours such as adultery. I was quite surprised to realise both that adultery is confined to human beings and that adultery is rampant among most societies. A study conducted for something quite different showed that 10% of the babies in a particular group actually had different paternity than what was claimed - anticipating the storm, the results were never published! 

But - it was a bit of a revelation that most another animal societies either do not or ‘cannot’ have adultery. Chimpanzees, male and female are completely promiscuous, so without ‘commitment’, there is by definition no adultery. Bonobos on the other hand are completely faithful to each other and mate for life, with no known cases of straying, while gorilla males mate with a number of females that don’t look at other males. Humans are actually the only species that profess commitment, yet look for opportunities outside the pair. The book analyses a number of theories on why adulterous behaviour would have evolved - and in this chapter, Diamond also scrutinises how some theories, especially older ones could reflect the biases of researchers themselves (usually reflecting a male-centric worldview).  

Not everything homo sapien is lofty, progressive or even neutral though; Art, language and technology may be, but self-destruction (as individuals or groups) and genocide are also uniquely human attributes, at first glance. Here too, Diamond shows how such urges (especially genocidal) also exist in our close relatives - chimpanzee groups, for instance have been shown to attack and even annihilate one another. Total annihilation of a rival group is however rare, unlike homo sapiens, where murderous attacks on entire communities and murder on a very large scale is not unknown. Variations in the technology and resources that different human groups can acquire, makes this possible - as opposed to animal societies where resources are more evenly distributed.

Finally, the book examines the self-destructive ways in which human beings behave, such as drug or alcohol addiction and on a group level, the destruction of habitat and resources leading to the death of an entire community. Commonly, most of us are inclined to think that ancient peoples were much better at conservation - we often idealise them as living in some kind of communion with nature. Yet, research on small communities such as the Easter Islanders reveals a history of excessive usage of natural resources and eventual depletion. Diamond demonstrates that environmental destruction is no modern phenomenon, even if the magnitude has increased. 

Reading the book, I felt that this is probably one of the areas where we are most different from any other species living on earth. I mean, we don’t see any other animal chopping down the rain forests or polluting the oceans, do we? While Diamond is cautiously optimistic about the possibility for change and that human beings will learn from the past, I wasn’t too convinced.

Overall, a great read for anyone who is interested in looking at the question of what it means to be human and how we got where we are today. 

* More recent research indicates that the genetic similarity is no greater than 94%, but I don’t know if that is the accepted version in the scientific community and not being knowledgeable enough to comment, I haven’t listed these figures. 

apu The Literary life

Mostly, not for women. Deepika Nagabhushan, over at Citizen Matters reports on her experience at the Karaga festival. The “price” that women have to pay, for being out at night at a public festival, is hideous. Most of us choose to self-censor ourselves and keep away from such places. She chose not to and realised first-hand the price women have to pay for it. I liked particularly her note on how such treatment will ever come to an end: 

Someone told me once that there are only two things that can stop men in India from behaving this way. One, either they get over exposed to women at an early age, bringing the frustration of having not expressed themselves sexually, down to negligible. Then they won’t go crazy when they see a woman in close proximity. Or two, their expression is suppressed by the rules of society so much that they dare not treat another human being, forget women, without respect.

apu Women & Feminism

A recent documentary on highly educated Indian women who go on to become ‘H4 wives’ i.e spouses who travel on dependant visas and therefore are ineligible to work in the United States, is making much waves. Many questions are being raised, including why the U.S sees it as imperative that spouses not be allowed to get into the job market. While many of them are engineers and there may be fears of them competing with local workers, that should apply to the primary H1B holder spouse as well, isn’t it? Also, there will be others such as nurses who can fill crucial shortages in the American economy. 

Leaving aside the question of why the U.S is so reluctant to grant accompanying spouses the right to work, my own question is - knowing fully well the legal situation in the U.S, what is it that makes highly educated Indian women, some with many years of work experience, so willing to take up the H4 role? And - if an educated and aware woman decides that the American dream is worth dropping her hard-won career for, does she deserve any sympathy when boredom and loneliness come knocking? 

From what I have seen of friends, relatives and acquaintances, I can think of a couple of reasons why someone with a career in India might be willing to drop it for the life of a housewife in America. Some women might think that with a kid in the near future (and kids are rarely not on the visible horizon, after marriage), they are anyways likely to take a career break or even stop working; so, stepping down a few years earlier is not such a big deal. Some might reason that the H4 is not an unbreakable trap - there are ways to upgrade your status and move to a H1 visa, including further education in the U.S, though this is no longer the guarantee it used to be. For such optimistic women, things sometimes work out, sometimes not - and when not, it can be a bitter experience.

Some believe that the husband’s career (and pay) is so significant, and the experience of living in the U.S so many worlds removed from life in India, that making this sacrifice is worth it. Some don’t see themselves as having a career, only a job - and genuinely believe that they will be more content as homemakers. A few, get married, without realising what life in the U.S really involves - being a housewife in the U.S is not the same as being a housewife in India - no family to call or visit, no friendly bai to chat with, few places you can walk to, in larger cities. 

Whichever of these (or other) reasons it is, these are highly educated women who should have no trouble understanding the terms and conditions of their entry to the U.S. When there are sufficient jobs in the Indian economy and yet, life in the U.S. looks much more enticing - well, in this case, it really is a question of choices, isn’t it? I have absolutely no hassle with anyone who chooses that life, but I do find it hard to be sympathetic to women who are so willing to give up their careers and then cry about it. I can absolutely sympathise with mothers who have small children and are forced to choose between a high-flying career and child care, but for H4 wives, no one is forcing them to make that choice; staying in your homeland and working is always an option. 

One could say of course that marrying a man based in the U.S. leaves you with little choice. On the other hand, what makes you marry a man at the cost of your career, or what prevents the man from relocating to a place where his wife doesn’t have to forego her career? 

As one of the commentors over at Feministe says, “the moral of the story is - if your career is essential to your personal identity and self-worth, don’t quit your job to immigrate on a non-working visa.” At a deeper level, what this also suggests to me is that marriage is still very much a holy grail for most of us Indian women and we will jump over hoops to gain it, whether or not on equal terms. Depressing? 

(Note: I know there has been a lot of noise recently about Indian men in the U.S being unable to find brides, but I think this is more recession-fuelled and less due to the career commitments of women, though that is naturally becoming more of a factor.) 

apu Women & Feminism

The last three weeks have seemed like a non-stop marathon run to me. My life seemed to have been taken over by a critical mass of events. It all started this way. We’d decided that our house needed painting. Six years since the last rather shoddy effort, the walls were looking distinctly shabby. If the walls were to be painted, we reasoned, why not finish up some of the pending electricals work as well? And with that we noticed other things too - the floor needed polishing, some roof tiles needed additional work, and - wouldn’t getting exterior wall cladding be a good idea?

I have been trying to get all this organised while completing a number of projects, juggling finances, figuring out some confusing bureaucratic and legal stuff - and trying to complete all of these before leaving on a much awaited and planned trip. The husband and I were to have left on a much longed for trip to Himachal Pradesh, tomorrow. Stopping at Shimla, then heading to the hills and orchards of lovely Kinnaur, before trekking and camping in the Great Himalayan National Park.

We were to have left - because - last night, I tripped while coming down the stairs, twisted my ankle badly and have now been diagnosed with a ligament tear and advised rest for 3 weeks. That is the grande finale to the critical mass of events, which of course, makes travel out of the question. One is forced to consider that Murphy’s Law may not after all be a myth.

——x—–x——x——x—–x——x—–

In connection with the words, ‘critical mass’ or the related ‘tipping point’, I am reminded of something else. I live on a street which is reasonably green - we have a number of different trees, plus almost everyone has some sort of a garden - whether it is rooted in soil or just potted plants. In the last one year though, perhaps because of the long rainy season we’ve had, the green has taken on a life of its own. Everything has grown rapidly, and some of the empty plots on our street are close to taking on a junglee appearance. Some of us have also expanded our gardens, adding more plants and in my case, spending more time on them. 

Perhaps there is a certain point at which things really start looking attractive for other creatures - we’ve now been having an explosion in the number of birds and butterflies visiting us. We’ve always had a few, but now, we are woken up by bird song every other day and there are so many varieties of butterflies dropping in - the simple lemon yellow variety, but also more fanciful ones with elaborate wing patterns and colours. Watching them flitting around is such a pleasure. It also reminds me that good things often happen when everyone adds their little bit. After all, every drop of water counts in making an ocean, etcetera etcetera.

Below, one of our colourful visitors.

apu In General

In Part I of Lessons from Being My Own Boss,  I discussed the transition to becoming an entrepreneur, the issues with project and client handling, and on the long-term value of clients. At which point I realised that I had more things to say, and decided to defer them to Part 2. So, here it is. 

On Pricing 

Contrary to what I imagined, getting work wasn’t the hardest thing I have had to do. Partly this is because I have adopted a scaled-down work schedule and am happy if I am doing good work, even for 30 hours a week and can spend the rest of the time working on other, personal writing. Partly, because of referrals from existing clients. 

Instead, one of the hardest things for me has been to get my pricing right. And I believe I am not alone in this, especially when you are charging for a professional service and not for a product where you can fall back on a cost-plus approach. Whenever I write a proposal, there are always these niggling worries in my head. Am I charging too high? Am I more expensive than what the market is willing to pay? Will this cover my time? Am I under-pricing? Will people not take me seriously if my prices are too low? And of course, what is my time really worth? 

I’m still not entirely sure about how to handle pricing, but I’ve found a few ways to work on it. It helps that I’m not an inherently competitive person where money is concerned and don’t compare my earnings with what batchmate X is making. But, some strategies include:

• Clearly writing down the various elements on a job and estimating how much time each will take. Sometimes, the results can be surprising. 
• Checking the current average market rate for a person with my experience and using that to arrive at a rough cost per hour. (Remember companies offer benefits such as PF, gratuity and insurance - all this should be factored in to the total package). 
• Networking with others in the field and finding out what they charge 

Beyond all this rational stuff, one of the most important things is to be aware of the value you bring and to be unapologetic about it. Initially, this was difficult for me, but I am gradually coming around to realise that a good communication plan is critical to most marketing efforts - and - it is not something everyone can do well. So, even if you are not a rocket scientist, there is no need for you to devalue your own services. 

However, it is ok to sometimes take on a project at a lower cost than you normally would - with a big IF. I’ve told myself that I will take on a project at a lower cost only if I can specify the reason (and benefit) to myself. Typically, this would be one of the following: 

• It will help me acquire a new skill.
• The client is a prestigious one, and listing them on my profile is likely to impress other clients. 
• The project is a long-term one - there is a clear need for further work over a period of time. (Incidentally, clients use this one a lot to get small companies to lower prices - so don’t fall for the generic ‘there’s more to come’ line, unless there is a clear reason to buy it). 

On Doubt and Self-Worth 

In the initial years after starting a business, there is bound to be a lot of upheaval, financially. Plus, if it isn’t a “happening” career (particularly if you’ve been a corporate go-getter), there may be some amount of doubt and even feelings of low self-esteem. There are times when I ask myself, what am I doing? Is this ever going to amount to something big?

Then, corporate perks once taken for granted, are all best forgotten if you are running a small business - air travel, casually booking cabs - everything gets pruned, at least in the initial years. Of course, seeing the indignities that corporate types are being subjected to in the name of the almighty recession, I don’t particularly miss that life! Still, when you see ex-colleagues and old classmates moving up the ladder, it is only human to feel a twinge.

There is only one way out of this - and that is for you to genuinely want to do what you are doing right now. There has to be a clear vision of ‘why am I in this’? It need not always be a burning desire to create your own multi-million dollar business. If your vision is to be able to able to contribute to society in a meaningful way and find enough time for volunteer work, and your business gives you the time to do that - then, it is still successful for you, even if not by the standards of many other people. Similiarly, if your goal is to do exciting work in your field and earn X amount of money doing that work, then so long as you meet that goal, it is fine - even if this X is 20% lower than what peers are making. There are trade-offs to everything, and your 20% less may mean that you have weekends free to spend with your family. On the other hand, there is nothing wrong either with a desire to create a multi-million dollar business, and the work as well as scale of work will vary accordingly. 

For me, I find that what helps is to periodically evaluate myself using a few measures: 

• Are my existing clients interested in working with me again? 
• Am I getting new clients?
• Am I satisfied with the quality of work I did over the last project? 
• Is my client satisfied? Do I have a note of appreciation to show for it? 
• Am I making more money than I did last year? 
• Do I have enough free time to do the other things I want to do? 

I have very little gyan to give on this subject, since my own time management could do with some improvement. When you have to do everything yourself or with a small team, i.e. bid for projects, market your company, do the work (including grunt work that may be done by ‘flunkies’ in a large company), ensure quality checks, hand-hold clients AND manage payments, billing and taxes - it can get crazy. Things tend to be forgotten, especially the ‘boring’ stuff like payments, collections and taxes, all of which can make a big difference to your life. 

apu Entrepreneurship