With India all set to hit a networking boom and the future being predominantly mobile, the Government of India has finally come out with a draft Social Media Framework and Guidelines.

The draft is aimed and designed to engage with all its stakeholders (especially citizens) in real time to make policy making citizen centric. The guidelines have been developed for all eGovernance projects under the National eGovernance Plan.

With social media transforming the way people connect with one another on a 24×7 basis, and with its viral ability for exponential spread of information by word-of-mouth, it is redefining the way organizations and people communicate.

Taking a cue from this, Governments across the world are taking to social media to interact with their citizens. In the US, for example, The White House has its own Facebook page and Twitter profile. In Victoria, Australia, the prime minister’s office uses YouTube, Facebook and Twitter as well as Live Chat and blogs to interact with its stakeholders.

In India, many Government organizations are already using social media in a limited manner. The Delhi Police, for example, uses Facebook and Twitter to ease handling of traffic related issues.

The Public Diplomacy division of the Ministry of External Affairs made its debut recently on Twitter with the ID IndianDiplomacy which was used recently very successfully during the recent crises in Libya and the Middle East.

One of the prime reasons for backing off from your responsibilities, I believe, is the lack of confidence, the other is being lazy, for which there is no cure but self-determination. Either way, we might find ourselves entangled in a maze, lost in thoughts of ‘Can I do it?’ or ‘nah, I’ll give it a pass, let someone else take the trouble’. But what really holds us back is something we need to ponder upon.

I have to admit that I was one of the ‘no’ people, but that’s just the past. Everything changed for me from the day I laid my hands on a motorcycle, a ‘Royal Enfield – Classic 500’ to be specific. So how does a motorcycle really change a person? Isn’t it just a mode of transport for the less fortunate who cannot afford a car? Well, that’s what everybody else thinks at least. But for all they know, a motorcycle is a window to the world out there. It lets you explore, dream and discover. For me, it is my soul reviver.

Look back at your past and you will wake up to a rude shock that people just threw muck at your true potential by institutionalizing your whole life. Twenty years of schooling and they put you on a day shift? Is that the real you? It’s time to think beyond and break free to the other side. Rediscover yourself.

A casual meeting with my friends last Thursday evening sparked the excitement for yet another road trip. “So, guys, we have been riding to all the popular tourist destinations, why don’t we push our limits and ride a thousand kilometers in 48 hours flat? Let’s ride to the Western Ghats,” suggested both Diwakar and Prajwal. “Are you out of your mind? Its monsoon and it rains 24/7 there, plus Western Ghats means off-roading without tarmac!” replied the rest of the gang. I said, “Why not? Let’s get some excitement” and lo! The road trip to Kodachadri was on.

Most companies, whether big or small, face one common but widespread problem – that of their keywords not ranking high in Google. Ranking on page 2 or subsequent pages sharply reduces the chances of being seen by potential visitors, so the question is not really “to rank or not to rank” but “how to rank” on page 1.

With competition intensifying, each company wants its keywords to rank on page 1 of Google but most do not know how to go about the process of improving the ranking.

There are two methods of improving ranking- On-page and Off-page optimization. This blog talks about On-page optimization.

One of the basic tenets of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is that each web page must have proper meta tags in place in the source code. These are the title and description tags that one may see in well designed pages (by pressing Ctrl U on either Firefox or Chrome.) Yet, it is amazing that a very high percentage of companies either do not have meta tags in place or have defective meta tags. The starting point therefore is to use a competent digital agency to analyze the meta tags on each web page and get them to insert proper tags.

There are also many cases of large companies whose website has grown explosively and who are then at a loss as to where to start optimizing their web pages.

What makes the field of creativity exciting is its essential nature of constant innovation. Every creative leader brings with him his unique experience to the table and that’s what keeps the creative core fresh forever.

Rahul Bose, an actor, Chetan Bhagat, a writer and Prahalad Kakkar, the veteran ad guru came on stage together last week in Bangalore to speak about guts and entrepreneurship. Different ages, different approaches, different disciplines but held together by the common thread of creative urge.

While Rahul Bose is driven by what he terms his inner moral compass, Prahlad Kakkar is driven by the sheer force of creative instinct, whereas Chetan Bhagat lets his self belief and the breaking of assumptions drive him.

This triad energy of soul, body and mind defines the nature of each creative leader, marking a signature style to creativity. For what else can it be but the soul that gives direction, mind that applies intelligence to seize opportunities and bodily instinct the survivor’s only tool to rely upon when everything else fails?

The Csuites are finally talking about creativity’s role in leadership of an organization.

When I read IBM’s global study titled Capitalizing on Complexity, I couldn’t help smiling because this means that they have finally recognized that creativity plays a crucial role in leadership quality.

Why is creativity the topic of interest all of a sudden in the Csuites? Because the business challenges that they are seeing today is something that they have not anticipated in the traditional business models.

Everything around is interdisciplinary and calls for diverse skill sets. Too many cooks spoil the broth is an old dictum, today they come together from distant geographical boundaries to produce a distinguished broth that tingles the taste buds of the hungry audience around the globe. Yeah, consumer taste buds have changed; we can’t feed them the same old recipes.

The crucial leadership skill required today is that of innovation on the go, perhaps with Spartan resources which, calls for the spirit of collaboration and sharing of available resources, of being able to deliver with whatever we have in a complex environment.