A Chronicle of Enlightened Citizenship Movement in the State Bank of India

A micro portal for all human beings seeking authentic happiness, inner fulfillment and a meaningful life
==============================================

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Contribution Project: SSI Finance Branch, Suklia Indore

CITIZEN SBI INTERVENTION-2
CONTRIBUTION LAB 
22ND TO 27TH NOVEMBER 2010

CONTRIBUTION PROJECT

Name of participant and present branch / office:           
DINESH AYACHIT, RM, RBO, Khandwa

Name of the branch where project was undertaken:              
SSI Finance Branch Suklia Indore    

Brief description of the project:
To turnover the state of affairs of the branch.

Why the need for the project arose:

i)                    Business of the branch was declining year to year and came down to almost 50% within 4 years.
ii)                   Poor customer service resulted bad image of the branch/bank.
iii)                  Staff was adequate but under-utilized / undisciplined / no work culture.
iv)                No focus on SSI/SME customers / borrowers inspite of having huge potential as branch is situated in industrial area.

How it was implemented and results:

1.       Did it involve many people from the unit? What kind of teaming/team work took place?

          Reasons / causes for dismal performance were analysed and staff meeting was conducted.        Customer feed back from various segments including representatives of an big corporate   account having good deposits with the branch was taken.  Equitable distribution among    the staff was ensured.  Each member was given importance to cater different tasks.

  2.     How did it energize the people in the unit?

          Entire staff was taken into confidence.  Members started involving into the work and      responds to the customer needs.  Cash Department took initiatives to take receipts etc.   lots loans also.  F.O. marketed some SME proposals initially.

3.       What kind of fulfillment did it result in for the collective involved (team members and customers)?

          When the things started improving, every member experienced self satisfaction and      encouraged when improving the image of the branch with better improved customer          service.  Resulted collective results.


4.       How did it enhance the interaction with the customer community?

          Since each member of the staff was assigned to focus on different segment customers, daily interaction resulted customer satisfaction and reinforced relationship.

5.       What were the sustainable results of this Contribution Project in the unit?

          Team work and improved customer service at the branch and outside of the branch        resulted achievement of all the budgeted parameters of the branch within 6 months.       Every member of the staff was elevated and good growth in SME segment was registered. 

Sunday, November 28, 2010

CONGRATULATIONS!

Citizen SBI Blog, its readers 
and contributors congratulate 
its founder Shri Jagat Singh Bisht 
on his much deserved elevation 
as Assistant General Manager in the Bank!!!

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Contribution Lab at SBLC, Indore

(22-27 November 2010)



Mr Dinesh Ayachit, Regional Manager, RBO Khandwa and his team of Branch Managers, along with Mr Jagat Singh Bisht, Nodal Officer; Mrs Nirupa Joshi, Master Facilitator and Mr Arun Kalway, Citizen Facilitator

Monday, November 15, 2010

A meal for the soul

Top chef Narayanan Krishnan who quit his cushy job to serve the needy, is the only Indian to be nominated for a major award

By Jayanthi Madhukar

On a blistering afternoon in Madurai in 2002, Narayanan Krishnan had his life-defining moment. As he was taking a stroll,  he saw an old man eating his own faeces. Shaken, Krishnan quickly went and bought idlis for the feeble man. In return, he just looked back with teary eyes. There was none of the expected ‘thank you’ or nandri.


At that time, Krishnan was a top award-winning chef, drawing at least Rs 1.5 lakh a month. Another drooling offer was on its way from Switzerland. But life was no longer the same for the 22-year-old.

TURNING POINT
Had he thanked me for my gesture, Krishnan says, I would have been still in the catering industry.

“I could not concentrate at work after that. I thought how people waste so much money on buffets and on one side, there are destitutes without any food. I got the clarity on what I should be doing and I quit my job,” said Krishnan, who took his hotel management degree from Madurai Kamaraj University.

Ever since, he has been silently feeding the impoverished on Madurai’s streets. Now, television channel CNN has nominated Krishnan for the Top 10 CNN Heroes from across the world.

Effusive in praise, the channel said, “Narayanan Krishnan brings hot meals and dignity to India’s homeless and destitute – 365 days per year – through his non-profit Akshaya Trust. Since 2002, he has served more than 1.2 million meals.”

Krishnan, now 29, is proud to represent  India and hopeful that with his nomination “others will get hope and confidence. I do not know who nominated me. I just want to give a humane touch through Akshaya.”


A DIFFICULT TASK  
Laurels and such modesty aside, it is no easy task. Krishnan’s day begins at 4 am when he starts cooking breakfast. 

Assisting him is a team of six — three staff and three volunteers.  

By 8 am, the breakfast is over. Then he purchases vegetables and other ingredients and by 9.30 am, it is time to cook lunch. By 12 pm, he goes for the lunch distribution round that gets over only by 3 pm. By 5.30 pm, it is time to get back to the stove for dinner. The dinner distribution finishes by 9.30 pm and only then he eats with his team. After that, Krishnan takes care of admin work, using the time to answer any pending mails or letters as well. And yes, he sleeps in the kitchen to be closer to his place of work.

Krishnan’s distribution rounds vary according to the whereabouts of the needy. “Beggars are not entertained as we do not promote laziness. The feeding is for those abandoned or left uncared-for, especially the mentally ill,” said Krishnan, who has also picked up haircutting skills.  “I am a Brahmin but I learnt to cut hair, as a barber would frighten and disturb the mentally-ill.”


SUPPORT FROM PARENTS
For Krishnan’s family it was a tough decision to comprehend. “They were thinking of taking me to a psychiatrist,” he joked. Krishnan’s request to them was simple, he asked his parents to “come to Madurai and see what I am doing. If you both still don’t want it, then I will leave.” His parents came and Krishnan took them along for the distribution round.

“Whomever I introduced them to, told them I am getting to eat only because of your son. When we got back, my mother told me ‘Till I am alive I will support you.’ Their support meant a lot to me,” said Krishnan.

Akshaya Trust is in need of donations. Says Krishnan, “We have survived because of our donors and credit that our suppliers give us. I am now building a rehabilitation centre. Five out of the eight blocks are underway. Lack of funds has  stalled the work. This is why I hope my countrymen will vote for me.”

When CNN took note of Krishnan, a blogger commented, “If we (Indians) haven’t yet heard of Krishnan then it is a collective failure.” As Indians, we may have failed Krishnan, but he has not failed the destitutes. 


BangaloreMirror.com

Saturday, November 13, 2010

MINING LESSONS IN LEADERSHIP

Able leadership and team spirit kept the 33 trapped miners focussed on the goal of escaping from their underground prison…..

On August 5, 2010, a portion of the San Jose copper mine in Chile collapsed leaving 33 miners trapped at a depth of half a mile from the surface. With no communication links with the external world, the miners' whereabouts could not be ascertained, leading to doubts about whether they were alive. It was a traumatic wait for the helpless families of the miners even as the world watched anxiously.

The first sign of hope emerged on the 17th day when a communication link showed that all the 33 miners were alive. Thereafter, a meticulous rescue plan was initiated with international help, culminating in the rescue of the entire team, ending a 69-day underground ordeal.

How the 33-member team fared during the 69 days is of immense interest to the world. Information on the miners' story may trickle in, in bits and pieces over a period of time, or till a consolidated version comes out as a book or a movie.

Surviving the first 17 days

Social science research indicates that in any crisis situation threatening survival, animal instincts such as individual survival, dominate empathy and collective spirit leading to inter-personal conflict and intra-group dynamics, especially in sharing resources for survival.

A five-member sub-group employed by a different contractor was initially on its own exploring escape routes, but ended the division on advice from the sub-contractor boss. There were also unconfirmed reports of a few incidents of fist-fights.

Planning and preparation for rescue

Shift leader Luis Urzua seems to have played a critical role during the 69 days. He built the team, nurtured it, optimised all the available resources, and engaged all the members fruitfully towards the common goal of survival and escape.

He helped maintain their morale against all odds, acting in a single voice with the rescue team and in reassuring the anxious families.

Leading by taking charge and by involving all members

If every member had wanted to be in control of the situation instead of listening to one leader, the miners would never have survived. As Jena McGregor explains in her column in the Washington Post: “Everything was voted on ... We were 33 men, so 16 plus one was a majority, said Leader Urzua.”

Leadership by credibility

According to a former employee, Robinson Marquez, Urzua had credibility as a protective and caring leader for his team. The miners, at Urzua's urging, reportedly ate one teaspoon of tuna and a half-glass of milk each 48 hours, proving that followers would make any sacrifice if their leader had credibility.

Leadership by sharing leadership

Urzua organised work assignments for the crew, assisting with the plan to get out of the mine and ensuring that no one ate a meal until everyone received their share. The oldest miner, Mario Gomez (63 years), attended to the spiritual and mental health of the men in constant consultation with psychologists on the surface. Yonny Barrios, based on the nursing training he had received 15 years ago, administered tests and health screenings for his friends on behalf of the doctors monitoring the situation above the ground.

Leadership through a common mission

Urzua constantly emphasised that all of them had a common goal — that of getting out together and surviving till then. He made everyone eat their paltry rations at the same spot at the same time.

By the end, none of them cheated and the miners had bonded so well that they asked their rescuers if they could all remain on the site until the last man was brought to the surface.

Leadership by belief in self and in his team

Urzua had a strong belief in self and in his team's ability to attain the goal. In addition to rationing food, he had the men use the heavy equipment in the mine for fresh water. This equipment was used sparingly because it could foul their air. He also had men map their tunnel and build a toilet.

Leadership through hope

‘Let us be patient and wait with hope and trust in God.' — That seemed to be the mantra. The miners' strong faith-based values guided them through the ordeal. Urzua, who never used to pray earlier, started praying. “There are actually 34 of us (and not 33), because God has never left us down here,” as Jimmy Sánchez, a miner, said.

When a shaft to provide them relief materials was completed, the men asked for religious items, including Bibles, crucifixes, rosaries, statues of the Virgin Mary and other saints. Pope Benedict XVI sent each man a rosary.

Leadership by sharing credit

After their rescue, rather than hogging the limelight, Urzua made another miner narrate the experience. While miners in and out of the shaft talked about Urzua's leadership, Urzua himself spoke about the skills and welfare of his men.

Leadership by honest communication

The miners were told that their rescue would need time and the miners accepted it. Honest communication regarding the progress of the rescue effort and the possible dates helped in boosting and nurturing the morale of the miners.

Leadership by example

Urzua led by example at every stage, culminating with being the last miner to be rescued, after his entire team was moved from its underground prison.

Global leadership

The Chilean rescue was truly a multinational and multidisciplinary affair with contributions from a variety of companies and institutions around the world. The rescue capsule was designed by an Austrian firm. The cranes used in the rescue were from China and experts from NASA and other American agencies helped sustain the 33 miners while they were underground and an American company from Pennsylvania supplied the drills that bored through half-a-mile of rock. Geologists, psychologists and other experts from several different countries offered advice.

The rescue phase

Urzua came up out of the mine last, not only because he insisted on it but also as the miners decided on a system where the strong and more experienced would go first to help pave the way for the others and tackle any unforeseen problems. The weakest would go next so that they could be helped and rescued by those behind them and those ahead. This was to ensure that there would be a human safety net for those who were the weakest. Unity helped the miners survive for 69 days underground, including more than two weeks when no one knew whether they were alive.

Post-rescue phase

The media interest and attention the miners have received so far is likely to die down with time. The spectre of unemployment may gradually stare them in the face due to the closure of the mines.

P V R Murthy
(Courtesy Anup Sen)

Friday, November 12, 2010

FIND YOUR OWN PATH TO FULFILMENT

From composer, musician, and philanthropist Peter Buffett comes a warm, wise, and inspirational book that asks, Which will you choose: the path of least resistance or the path of potentially greatest satisfaction?

You may think that with a last name like his, Buffett has enjoyed a life of endless privilege. But the son of billionaire investor Warren Buffett says that the only real inheritance handed down from his parents was a philosophy: Forge your own path in life. It is a creed that has allowed him to follow his own passions, establish his own identity, and reap his own successes.

In Life Is What You Make It, Buffett expounds on the strong set of values given to him by his trusting and broadminded mother, his industrious and talented father, and the many life teachers he has met along the way.

Today's society, Buffett posits, has begun to replace a work ethic, relishing what you do, with a wealth ethic, honouring the payoff instead of the process. We confuse privilege with material accumulation, character with external validation. Yet, by focusing more on substance and less on reward, we can open doors of opportunity and strive toward a greater sense of fulfilment. In clear and concise terms, Buffett reveals a great truth: Life is random, neither fair nor unfair.

From there it becomes easy to recognize the equal dignity and value of every human life--our circumstances may vary but our essences do not. We see that our journey in life rarely follows a straight line but is often met with false starts, crises, and blunders. How we push through and persevere in these challenging moments is where we begin to create the life of our dreams--from discovering our vocations to living out our bliss to giving back to others.

Personal and revealing, instructive and intuitive, Life Is What You Make It is about transcending your circumstances, taking up the reins of your destiny, and living your life to the fullest.

Peter Buffett
(Courtesy Anup Sen)

PULLING TOGETHER : RULES FOR HIGH PERFORMANCE TEAM WORK

Lessons from the Geese

Consistent application of rules of high performance teamwork ultimately generates trust, respect, unity and power within any team. Conversely, consistent violation of any one rule destroys this bond. While the author of the following is unknown, "Lessons From the Geese" is a powerful illustration from nature of the rules of high performance teamwork. As you read about the natural unity that exists among this species remember — this same unity can exist in your organization!

As geese flap their wings, they create an uplift for the bird following. By flying in a V formation, the whole flock adds 71% greater flying range than if any bird were to fly alone. If we share a common direction and a sense of community, we can get where we are going more quickly and easily because we are travelling on the thrust of one another!

Whenever a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to fly alone, and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird immediately in front. If we have as much sense as geese, we will stay in formation with those who are headed where we want to go, and we will be willing to accept their help as well as give ours to others.

When the lead goose gets tired, it rotates back into formation and another goose flies at the point position. If we take turns doing the hard tasks and sharing leadership as with the geese, we become interdependent with one another. The geese in formation honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep up their speed. If we "honk," we need to make sure it is positive and encouraging.

When a goose gets sick or wounded or is shot down, two geese drop out of formation and follow it down to help and protect it. They stay with it until it is able to fly again or dies. They then launch out on their own, with another formation or catch up with the flock. If we have as much sense as geese, we too will stand by each other in difficult times, as well as when we are strong. Let us all try to fly in formation and remember to drop back to help those who might need it!

Behold the Power of Teamwork

The greatest accomplishments in life are not achieved by individuals alone, but by proactive people pulling together for a common good.

John J. Murphy
(Courtesy Anup Sen)

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Hearty Congratulations



HEARTY CONGRATULATIONS ON THE OCCASION SIRJI!!!


Ramesh Ramnani

CitizenSBI Blog completes one year..



CitizenSBI Blog completed one year on the 7th November 2010.

It has been quite a fulfilling journey. The blog has been able to touch many a lives across the globe. It is fascinating how people find great value in simple concepts and small stories.

We thank all our readers and contributors on this occasion.

Once again, we invite all Citizens to share their experiences in the citizenship journey.

Wish you a belated happy birthday, CitizenSBI Blog!

CoolBisht / Indore

Friday, November 5, 2010

Work is the way we add value to the world..



Work is the way we add value to the world, and it is immaterial whether we are economically compensated for it or not. When we create value for the world around us, we discover a unique value within ourselves.

Our workplace can become  an altar, and our work a meditation that connects us to that which is beyond boundaries and limits.

- Dr Shantanu Nagarkatti

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Happy Diwali..



CitizenSBI Blog 
Wishes All Its Readers 
A Very Joyous And Sparkling Diwali..



Monday, November 1, 2010

जंगल में मंगल

सफलता की यह कहानी की शुरुआत उस बियाबान जंगल से शुरू होती है जहाँ ७० से अधिक शेर खुले आम घूमते -फिरते है ,हजारों की तादात में हिरणों के झुण्ड अठखेलियाँ लेकर हवा में ग़ुम होते है , मेघों की गरज के साथ हजारों मोर-मोरनी के जोड़े नाचते नजर आते है , ११२० वेर्ग किलोमीटर में फेले इस बियाबान जंगल में दुनिया के पहले सफ़ेद शेर ने डरती पैर यहीं पहला कदम रखा था , ........ हाँ , यही है दुनिया का प्यारा -निराला नेशनल पार्क बांधवगढ़ जहाँ टाइगर रिजर्व के कोर इलाके में बैगा -गोंड जाति के लोगों के घास-फूस के टोले बसे होते है एवं हमेशा ही इन घरों में घुस कर शेर अपना शिकार करता है इनके गाय- बकरी ग्घर से उठा लेना उसकी आदतों में शुमार होता है ।

ऐसे बियाबान जंगल में पी -सेगमेंट में रुपया १४२० लाख का जमा संग्रहण की सफलता की कहानी कुछ इस तरह से शुरू होती है........ बैंकिग में जब गला-काट प्रतिस्पर्धा का दोर चल रहा हो और पी-सेगमेंट जमा के टार्गेट हासिल करने में एडी-चोटी करने के बाद पसीना आ रहा हो तब सच्ची लगन ,सोच में परिवर्तन एवं आत्म-विस्वास के साथ सुन्दर ग्राहक सेवा से सभी कुछ हासिल किया जा सकता है , इसका आभास स्टेट बैंक उमरिया का देखिये ----

प्रदेश के सबसे पिछड़े आदिवाशी इलाके उमरिया जिले में बियाबान जंगल से २-४ माह में रुपया १४२० लाख जमा एकत्र कर लेना इस बात को साबित करता है कि,
"सोच बदलो सितारे बदल जायेगें ,
नजर कोबद्लो नज़ारे बदल जायेगें ,
कश्तियाँ बदलने की जरूरत नहीं ,
दिशाओं को बदलो किनारे बदल जायेगें ,"

टार्गेट हासिल करके कुछ नया कमल कर दिखाना , निरंतर समर्पण भाव से ग्राहकों की सेवा करने में निहित है ,पी-सेगमेंट में दुसरे प्रतिद्वंदी बैंक से रुपया १४२० लाख छुड़ाकर अपने बैंक में लेन की सफलता की कहानी हमारे बैंक की ताकत और हमारी तरक्की की तस्वीर है । अवसर बार-बार नहीं मिलते , जब अवसर मिले तो सच्ची लगन एवं समर्पण भाव से मिले अवसर को हथिया लेना ,सफल होने की निशानी है । नए साल में अपने महत्वपूर्ण ग्राहकों को बहुत अपनेपन के भाव से उनके ओफ्फिस या घर में शुभकामनायें देने से शाखा के तरक्की के दरवाजे कुछ इस तरह से खुले , बांधवगढ़ नेशनल पार्क के प्रोजेक्ट ऑफिसर श्रीपाटिल ने नए साल की शुभकामनाओं के साथ रूपये १४२० लाख का तोहफा दे दिया ।

श्री पाटिल ने बताया कि टाइगर रिज़र्व में मानव जाती का दिअरेक्ट जीविक हस्तछेप न रहे एवं वन्य प्राणियों के अस्तित्व के संकट से उन्हें उबरने के लिए सर्कार ने यह कदम उठाया है कि वन्य प्राणियों के बचाव एवं संम्वर्धन के लिए यह आवशक है कि कोर एरिया में बसी मानव जाति का पुनर्वास कर कोर एरिया को जीविक दबाब से मुक्त किया जावे ,इसलिए कोर एरिया में बसे हर गाँव के हर परिवार को एक मुस्त रूपये १० लाख कि रहत राशी दी जाये ,मानपुर ब्लाक के कल्ल्वाहः

एवं कुम्र्वाहः गाँव के करीब १४२ परिवारों को उनके गाँव में ही बैंकिंग सुविधाएँ दे जाकर रुपया १४२० लाख एकत्र किये गए , प्रोजेक्ट के प्रथम चरण में बियाबान जंगल में बसे कल्ल्वाहः गाँव एवं कुमार्वाहः गाँव में उमरिया शाखा की टीम के श्री मल देवांगन , श्री शांतनु दो और लवकेश सिंह ने डेरा डाला ,प्रोजेक्ट ऑफिसर श्री पाटिल और एनी अधिकारी भी साथ हो लिए ,बैगा और गोंड जाति के परिवारों से गहरी आत्मीयता एवं विश्वास के साथ बैंक वालों की बैठकें हुई गांववालों को जमा योजनाओं के फायदे बतेये गए ,शाखा कि टीम ने उनकी भाष्हा और उनकी सभ्यता को सम्मान देते हुए बहुतही अपनेपन के भाव से उनके दिलों में स्थान बनाया ।

प्रोजेक्ट के दुसरे चरण में शाखा की टीम ने प्रोजेक्ट ऑफिसर कि अनुमति लेकर कल्ल्वाहः और कुमार्वाहः गाँव के परिवारों के खाते खोले और पास बुकों का वितरण किया जिसमे जिला प्रशन के आधिकारियों ने भाग लिया और ट्रेजरी से चेक जरी होने के साथ रूपये १० लाख के सावधि जमा के रसीदें जरी कि गईं , उनके सभी कार्यों के निबटान तुरंत किये गए , इन सभी कार्यों में रिजनल ऑफिस के श्री जे दी मजुमदार समप्र , श्री आर रघुरमण ,श्री वसंत खादायत और अस्बीई ग्रामिन्स्वा-रोजगार इंस्टिट्यूट उमरिया के निदेशक श्री जय प्रकाश पाण्डेय का विशेष योगदान रहा ।

पुरे प्रोजेक्ट को सफल बनाने में अनेक दिक्कतों का सामना करने का होसला बुलंदी पर था और मनोबल बढ़ाते हुए इस काम से सभी को अहसास हुआ कि .......
" आखों में मंजिलें थीं ,
गिरे और सभालते रहे ,
आधियों में क्या दम था ,
चिराग हवा में भी जलते रहे , "


जय प्रकाश पाण्डेय
निदेशक ,
ग्रामीण स्व-रोजगार ट्रेनिंग इंस्टिट्यूट
उमरिया
मो- 9425852221

The Smile Project

A short history of the start of this simple social movement – by smile project founder and Let’s Laugh Chief Happiness Officer, Bron Roberts.



The Smile Project was born on Facebook on July 1, 2010, but our story does not begin there. It’s
the child of an idea formed in a moment of madness in January 2005 and the descendent of a
random gift passed between 2 strangers in a poorly lit hospital stairwell on September 21, 2003.

My first eureka ‘get them to smile’ moment arrived on a blistering hot January day in Perth,
Western Australia, when I was waiting, with my family, for the pedestrian lights to turn to walk
on the corner of King and Murray Streets. We were sharing a much needed holiday and making
our way to Science Museum. Without giving much thought to what I was about to do I turned to
a stranger standing nearby and asked “what would you do if I suddenly said g’day to you”.

Possibly surprised by what could be seen as a rather odd question, the stranger replied “I’d
probably say g’day back”. “Well then” I said “G’day!”. “G’day” replied the stranger. The
lights changed to walk, and we parted, smiling and wishing each other a wonderful day.

By the time my family and I were heading back to our hotel at days end the ‘Say G’day’ project
had been formulated, but its time had not yet arrived. How would the ‘Say G’day project’ ‘go
global’? How would it be marketed at all? Effective social networking was a thing of the
future. Face book, just 7 months old, was yet to reach its full potential, and personal networks
were few and far between. By holidays end the ‘Say G’day project’ was back packed away in
the secret zipper compartment of my favourite handbag with the yellow post it note smiley that
had brought it to life.

But, our real story begins 16 months earlier.

On September 21, 2003 my mother died. At 82 years of age, a widow for over a decade, the time
had come for her to join her beloved Colin in the world beyond.

I sat with her for most of her final hours. Nursing staff attended her on a regular basis, but,
armed with the knowledge that she was in her final stages of life, or rather, what they negatively
referred to as the final stages of death, their attitude was one of professional grief and try as I
might, conversation, and even eye contact, was non-existent.

At one point I asked about the possibility of getting something to eat. I was told, in a tone
befitting one who is talking to a naughty child, that meals were not provided for family, and that,
as my mother was clearly not eating, due to her terminal condition, meals would not be provided
to her room. Food I was told, should I feel the need to leave my mother at this tragic time, could
be bought from the hospital canteen 3 floors below.

With a heavy heart and an empty stomach I told my mother I would not be gone for long. The
walk to the canteen took an age and the canteen was more than full when I finally arrived. Did
all the staff really take their breaks at the same time? I looked around the crowded, noisy
cafeteria and longed for someone to make some sort, any sort, of contact with, but it seemed that
eye contact with strangers had been trained out of those who work in this particular ‘care’
organisation. Unable to find so much as an empty chair, let alone a table to sit at, I ate my
hospital food standing in a corner. At one point a woman in blue hospital scrubs bumped into
me. With what seemed the usual no eye contact communication she told the floor near my feet
that she hadn’t seen me. “No” I said quietly. “No one can see me. My mother is dying and, as
family and not staff, I’m just an inconvenience than must not be recognised”. I realised then
that I had become invisible.

Food eaten, eyes filled with tears, and heart filled with sadness, I chose to take the stairs up to
mother’s room. An elderly gentleman descended the stairs toward me between the 2nd and 3rd
floors. When he reached me he stopped, looked directly into my eyes, and said “You look like
you could use a smile”. He smiled, a gentle and caring smile, handed me a yellow ‘post it note’
and walked on. The post it note had a smile drawn on it, nothing more, just a simple curved line
that clearly made a smile. I turned to thank him but he was gone.

His smile brought just the hint of lightness to my being, and the hint of a smile to my face.
Suddenly I realised that in the 28 hours I’d been at the hospital, this crowded place that had made
me feel more alone than I have ever felt, he was the only person who had so much as looked me
in the eyes. In 28 hours, this stranger, this gentle man, was the only person who had actually
taken time to acknowledge my existence and connect with me. I put his smile in my jacket
pocket.

3 hours later my mother was gone. I was told to leave her room while the staff did what ever
staff do when a patient dies. As I stood in the hall, tears streaming down my face, totally
invisible to passing staff, I fingered the smile in my pocket. I had often felt lonely, but at no time
before or after had I ever felt so deserted, so isolated, so utterly alone.

I took the smile from my pocket and looked at it, a single tear dropped onto the paper where any
eye would have been. I remembered the elderly gentleman, and realised that, if I kept his smile
with me, I might never be alone again. With this smile in my possession, where ever I went, the
memory of the gentle man in the stair well would travel with me.

The months that followed were the most difficult I had ever experienced. Attitudes of caring
become attitudes of distance. Death becomes the elephant in the room that no one dares mention.
Conversations go unfinished and important things remain unsaid.

With everything that goes with the loss of a life, that small yellow piece of paper gave me
energy. That simple smile became the thing I turned to when nothing else seemed to matter or
everything seemed too difficult.

Time, they say, heals all wounds. Wills were read, probate granted, property divided. 9 months
after her funeral my mother, her property, her life, was laid to rest. For safety’s sake I put the
now grubby, crumpled and tear stained ‘post it’ note it in a plastic zip lock bag and placed it in
the secret zippered part of my favourite hand bag. There it stayed until the afternoon when I
stood at the traffic lights on that hot day in Perth.

And so our story moves forward.

In May of 2010 I started a Social Inclusion Leadership Program being run by Uniting Care
Community Options. Invited to apply for the program by a friend, the brochure and preceding
interview highlighted what promised to be an exciting and educative experience, the culmination
of which was to be that all participants would design, develop and ultimately implement a
program designed to meet the needs of those who are isolated in our community.

Program weeks passed quickly, and the time to develop the project was looming large. I sat in
despair as the page in my brain where my project was to appear remained totally and
unchangeably blank.

My problem with developing a program was that it could not relate to my business. My
business, which has been running for almost a decade, involves sharing, through humour and
laughter, basic and clinically proven skills for emotional resilience, teaching the fundamental
building blocks of health and well-being and helping others to help themselves. Based on my
passion for providing community organisations with the high quality services that normally only
corporations can afford, my business is founded on a true ‘profit for purpose’ formula. The fees
paid by my corporate clients allow me to present high quality programs for either free or for a
nominal fee to community clients. Every week I volunteer my time to speak with at least one,
often more, community groups about simple strategies for a happier life, and as one of
Australia’s first fully certified Laughter Leaders I run a popular weekly community Laughter
Club, now in its seventh year. I founded and administer the Global Laughter Network, a popular
social networking face book site, and every year, travel to the USA to update my skills and meet
with members of my ever expanding happiness network.

A childhood friend once told me that when the planets align fate will take you by the hand and
guide you to where you need to be, and that when the planets align, amazing things are possible.
I’m not sure about the astrological alignment but it was certainly fate that took me re-visit my
now discarded, one time favourite, old hand bag. It was fate that took me to open the secret
zippered compartment, and fate that re-united me with the crumpled, tear stained, yellow ‘post it’
note smiley and the memory of the gentle man on the stairs.

The leadership course included much discussion on the causes of social isolation; nationality,
language barriers, age, gender, violence, illness – both physical and mental. The list went on.
For most of the group the topic quickly turned to discrimination, or the rather more politically
correct, inclusion and exclusion. In all the discussion one word stuck in my mind: invisibility. I
didn’t voice the word, but it was as clear as if it had been said by the person sitting next to me.
To me, and, I had no doubt, to many others, social isolation means invisibility.

Personal experience had also taught me that social isolation is not an issue solely reserved for
those who might be house bound or lack the language or social skills to be an effective member
of their community. It effects even the busiest of people. A lack of social skills or the
combination of a demanding home life and full or even part time work can create social isolation
in even to the most socially well intentioned of people. This, combined with self esteem issues,
necessary or perceived financial considerations and limitations, or just a lack of time or energy,
effects the choices of those who are most at risk of social isolation, and not every one is able or
willing to join a group, attend a program, or sign up to something that means a commitment to a
regular, no matter how infrequent, program.

Even for those who do get out into society, it’s a sad fact that we are taught to ignore one
another, to avoid eye contact, to avoid connecting in any way with the ‘other’s’ who might
invade our day and steal our valuable time, and to distance ourselves from those who do not fit
into our particular world. We spend our time plugged into MP3 players, texting instead of talking
and social networking instead of connecting. To me at least, the major cause of social isolation
is the lack of social interaction and the feeling of invisibility.

Having said that, for those who feel the effects of social isolation, social networking can be a
saviour. The one saving grace during all the difficulties that followed my mother’s death, I was
raising a family, working part time, and dealing with all that comes when closing up a life that
has ended, was the internet. While social network sites were still a thing of the future, surfing
the net became my contact with the outside world, and many a late night was spent outside the
reality of my busy life, on-line. The one thing that kept repeating in my ‘what is my social
inclusion project going to be?’ mind, was a way to connect with those for whom traditional
community connection techniques was not appropriate. The invisible army that would prefer to
connect anonymously before making, what can for some, be a giant leap into traditional society.
7 years ago, just 3 hours elapsed between me receiving the gift of a smile and my mother dying.
It was just 3 hours between my second eureka moment, the moment when fate took me to revisit
the yellow post it note smile, and the launch of the Smile Project on Facebook. We all know the
saying ‘just do it’. That’s what I did. Just 3 short hours after the launch of the Smile Project
Facebook page, 15 people had clicked the ‘like’ button. 15 quickly became 30 and today,
October 27, the page boasts 560 members, and that number is increasing every day. We’ve been
promoted at the Montreal Just for Laughs Comedy Festival, and in 6 locations around the planet,
celebrated 10.10.10 as ‘International Share Your Smile Day’. Highlights of the Melbourne
celebration can be found on You Tube in our ‘Share Your Smile Day – 10.10.10’ video.

The Smile Project might not be the type of project that the providers of the Social Isolation
Leadership Program envisaged, but, I have never been one to fit neatly inside the expected
square. Over the course of the leadership program the project leaders have told us to recognise
and use our individual skills and talents. As the carer of a parent for over 30 years, I know all
too well the meaning and feeling of social isolation. I know what it is to be invisible and I know
the difference something as simple as a smile can make. The Smile Project uses my particular
and unique skills and talents, my ability to inspire others to action and to share the excitement of
something so simple that could make such a difference to so many people.

The Smile Project might yet be a tiny grass roots social movement, but the thought that a smile
can change the day of people all over the world is starting to take hold.

Join us on face book - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Smile-Project/106745079376856 - and
help us in our mission to change the face of the planet to a smile and the attitude of the planet to
one of social inclusion. Our page is the one with the square yellow sticky smiley face!