Perhaps the most common word in management
jargon and fairly easy to implement when someone else bears the losses of the
consequences. This was the thought process which was going on in his mind when
he was thinking about his past, present and probable future.
“We have to live in the present,
forget the past and not bother about the future”; this is what his old father advised
him notwithstanding that he himself used to always tell him about his good old
days in the youth and keep on calling the Lord asking him why he was still
delaying in calling him to his abode
Often he used to ask me “Why is it
that people give lot of advises most of which they never practice themselves?”
to which I would answer “Probably because it’s easier”
Rajesh was a fairly successful person
till now at the age of 45 he had built his own dwelling in a plush city
environment and also had roamed the world and known some of its intricacies and
hypocrisies. He had a fairly good bank balance which would take care of necessities
and emergencies if they would arise, used to go around in a premium car and
used to send his kids to the best school in town.
Now he had a serious problem. There
was a business which he had started with a friend, a real estate venture for
which they had borrowed heavily. These were the times when flats were being
sold like hot pakodas and land prices were quite high. He had invested in the land
at that time and started construction of the flats with bank finance. And then
the recession arrived without much announcement and the dreams of multiplying the
money invested seemed to vanish in thin air as bookings started plummeting.
This was the time when he needed help
real solid help in terms of money and all he used to get from relatives and
friends was free advises about how to live life and the famous quotes of great
people and how they faced adversity.
He had come to me with the notice
from the bank wherein the property was being threatened to be auctioned and if
there were further dues personal properties were also at risk. This was real
trouble which could not be solved with the help of Proverbs and Quotes.
It was a catch 22 situation, whether
to save the property or let go of it? Whether to take the risk of taking
personal loans? We did several SWOT analysis sessions with Rajesh and his
partner where we analyzed in depth the consequences of each of the decisions
which could be taken
Plan A – Go for a compromise with
bank – Get maximum reduction on interest – pay the amounts after taking
personal loans or Mortgage Loans – Try and sell the flats and redeem the
personal loans
Probable Consequences – If flats
cannot be sold then it’s only a transfer of loan from the company to personal
name
Plan B – Let go of the property –
Await for bank auction – Let bank appropriate the money towards repayment of
loan
Probable Consequences – Loss of
Name/Prestige - Probability that auction may take place at a very low price –
Loss of prime property
After weighing the pros and cons we
decided to approach the Bank for a compromise and after several meetings and
deliberations we managed to get a good waiver of interest payments after which
the loan was paid in full by Rajesh and his partner. It was another matter that
Rajesh and his partner had to take personal loans in their names after
mortgaging their personal assets to meet the repayment deadlines, but they made
it eventually.
Luckily after this they also managed
to sell of three flats to some overseas buyers who wanted office space.
I met Rajesh next in a housewarming party
which was hosted by one of his relatives and he looked relaxed and happy. It
made me feel equally happy to see my friend having a drink with a smile on his
face.
And then came in his uncle who had
learnt about the clearing of all problems from the talk in the town and started
thumping Rajesh on his back and saying “Great work my Boy, I knew you would do it!!
After all it’s our family that you are born in!!” after which he also gave me a
wry smile
Rajesh, just looked at his uncle then looked
at me and gave me a smile and walked away without saying a word to him
" Silence is Golden" you remember the old proverb uncle? I said with a laugh
