Source- Amazon
Management and Problem Solving as we know are the core elements important to lead a smart and successful life. Practicing these skills help to achieve goals, make you feel confident, good, more productive as well as efficient at your work.
It might also seem like some are just born with strong skills of management and problem solving, but there are strategies that anyone can use to learn or improve them. And this book will provide you with some for the same.
Introduction
Book’s Name - Solve Your Problems- The Birbal Way
Author’s Name - Luis S.R. Vas & Anita S.R. Vas
Genre - Non-fiction & Self-help
Language - English
Synopsis - Spoiler Alert!
The stories with management morals at the end unravel in the Court of Akbar (once prince, now the Emperor to former emperor Humayun’s kingdom) where the leader’s sagacity and problem solving acumen of Birbal are illustrated.
These problem solutions are said to be thought of by someone which were then used in stories for kids to make them as clever as the character Birbal.
Emperor Akbar was the first to inaugurate a Golden Age in India, an age marked by extensive inventions and discoveries in science, technology, engineering, art, literature, logic, mathematics, astronomy, and philosophy.
Out of the nine exceptional men (Nava Ratna) of Akbar that were known to be gifted and talented, Birbal was his favourite who was noted for his cleverness, generosity and sense of justice.
Since then Birbal became one of the beloved characters in the folklore of India and for generations his stories have delighted both children and grown-ups across all regions of the country.
The authors encourage the readers to pause just before the solution of the problem is given in the story to build the reader’s way of thinking of their own solution to the problem, highlighting it as ‘the effective way’ to honing one’s own creativity.
Readers are also encouraged to sharpen their creativity by thinking of additional management ideas than these stories evoke in the book.
About the Authors
Luis S.R. Vas is an Indian prolific author from Mumbai who writes on New Age themes. His works include biographies as well as secular humanistic approach of psychology to his books and has been a regular contributor to India’s leading New Age journal ‘Life Positive’.
He has authored a dozen books and some 500 articles during his decades long career in feature writing, publishing and corporate communications.
Anita S.R. Vas has also co-authored many books with Luis including ‘The Joy of Natural Living’ and has done courses in personal counselling and cosmetology. She also conducts Portuguese and English speaking classes.
About the Book
The book retells some of the Birbal stories with each pointing out the Management Moral of the narrative. The stories have been divided into two simple structured segments, easy to understand for kids as well as old people. The first segment consists of the problem; the second part provides Birbal’s solution to it.
At the end of the book the authors have also devised a technique they have termed as ‘Birbal’ (an acronym) which readers can use to solve their own problems. Along with this, the book also provides some short readings on topics like - Skills for Excellence, Success Secrets, Secrets of Leadership, etc.
Themes Involved
Source- 99Designs
Although it’s much evident that the book revolves around two important themes- Management and Problem Solving, it doesn’t end only on that. The book has successfully suggested and portrayed a deeper psychological and sociological reason behind the Birbal stories.
They tend to show to the people that although the Emperor is enlightened and virtually powerful, his minister, Birbal coming from the subject stock, is the clever, wiser man, getting the Emperor out of all kinds of difficulties and outwitting him in debate. The tales served to boost the morale of subjects of the Mughal Empire and their descendants.
Source - Penguin Books
“Humor is an important part of life. People need to laugh and laughter reduces tensions. It is the very quality of invoking feelings of amusement. Simply put, it is the quality of being funny.”
Humor - Through many research studies it has been concluded that humor helps children to engage with the stories and language that is used to create them. It makes them familiar to kids literature and hooks those that are reluctant or less confident readers.
In the same way this book offers Birbal’s solutions in a humorous way to attract the interest of parents and their kids. In addition, the book has included some illustrations that would help in enhancing the quality of humor.
Famous Quotes
“Look for wisdom in the most unlikely source; that is where it is most likely to be found”.
Don’t act impetuously. Think carefully of the consequences of your action before taking an important decision.”
“Usefulness is the key in everything.”
“There are no guarantees in life.”
The Bottom Line
The book has effectively offered the ‘feel good’ factor for all readers. The stories are interesting and seem completely fictional. Though they urge us to think of our own solutions to enhance creativity every time, I suggest you to not task yourself too much. Instead, enjoy the book leisurely piece-by-piece, only then it will hit you and make reading it a joy.
My ratings for the book - 4 on 5
Get your copy from Amazon - Solve Your Problems - The Birbal Way
Written By - Umme- Aiman
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