On the 8th of November at around 8 pm Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made an announcement stating that from midnight onwards on the same day currency notes of Rs 500/- and Rs 1000/- denominations would be rendered redundant. They would lose their value as currency per se, but could be exchanged for newer currency over the next few weeks.
Even as his address was being relayed live the nation went into panic mode, and messages on Twitter and Whatsapp started flowing furiously. The emotions ruling that night were largely confusion and anger. I panicked too, as we were supposed to be traveling to Jaipur the day after for a wedding and the cash I had withdrawn for the same, from the ATM the previous day, was in Rs 500/- and Rs 1000/- denominations. Instead of paying attention to the PM’s address I was busy reading updates on Twitter and messages on Whatsapp that did nothing except unnerve me.
A few days into the change and I realized that I’ve learnt some lessons while others have just been reinforced, due to this move of Demonetization. And what’s more, these lessons I share apply to life as well;
Don’t Panic: When you see, hear or experience a thought, idea or visual that comes as a surprise, your first instinct is usually panic, which stops you from absorbing what is actually happening and most probably mess up. What works is to calmly let the new idea or thought settle as you wrap your mind around it, after which you can try to understand it in your own way and at your own pace.
Don’t believe everything you hear or see: So I concentrated more on updates on the social media rather than listening to the PM’S address which lead to unrequired panic. The media kept flashing images of huge queues snaking towards ATM’s and banks, people fighting for change and the likes. We debated about going to the bank the next day, but since we were traveling we had to, and the orderly queues and bank officials working at a furious pace surprised us.
Help others: My maids were completely unaware of the truth about this move. They had people feeding them wrong information and offering them to change their money for them for ‘a cut’, with plans of fleecing them no doubt, so I sat them down and told them exactly how the process works and the paperwork they would need to change their money. I even offered to accompany them to the bank and/or give them a day off so they could change currency.
You have all you need, question your wants: I realized that we haven’t spent a single extra rupee since the 9th of Nov. We traveled to another city, wandered in the market and came back only having spent Rs 50/- on a huge glass of Jaipur’s famous Lassi. Even the bill at the end of a trip to the supermarket once we got back home surprised me, thanks to sticking to the list of requirements and no extra purchases. Time to identify and differentiate between Want and Need.
Change is good: This move shook the nation but then a sudden change almost always does. My limited knowledge about these things and what I read tells me that the timing though is just right to stop the circulation of black money. Yes, we will wait and watch but it is apparently a good change so far. It pays waiting for the big picture to appear rather than fretting over and coming to conclusions over small developments and details.
Don’t hoard: As much as we like keeping a little away for a rainy day, demonetization taught me that little should mean little as suddenly a bunch of currency saved for a rainy day is now redundant! This affects all walks of life, from land prices dropping, so on and so forth, showing that that what you think is precious may suddenly be rendered useless. See that you have enough, and just a little more than that. Enjoy what you have and use our trusted banks to save your money for you.
Be honest/No secrets: I had squirreled away a bit of money, from what I earn and from the monetary gifts I receive, to get myself new Tattoos and for The Husbands upcoming birthday and for a few other indulgences, without his knowledge. Even though I had done nothing wrong, when I had to tell him about the small amount of money I had stashed away I felt terribly guilty. Luckily, he laughed it off.
The most important lesson that was reinforced is Wait and Watch: Don’t jump to conclusions about a new idea or move . Give it time, test it out as almost always everything happens for the best and for a reason. So let us do our bit, to help our PM and our Nation, and work towards a brighter future.
All valid points, Mayuri. Ceiling on desires is a mantra I follow and I’m not that big on spending anyway. Plus I steer clear of WhatsApp. I find it draining. I’ve found myself become even more conscious about the little that I have in hand and am managing to get by for the last week or so on that, debit card and paytm use. I do understand the constraints faced by other people who are in the lower economic bracket and we must do all we can to help them out. Media, well, the less said about it, the better.
Thank you, Shailaja 🙂
Wait and watch helps in all life’s decisions.
I too have felt that we have survived the money rasing and still blogged everyday.
Still went to work .
Less shopping.
Maybe only Daal chawal.
But luckier than money .
Praying for understanding about what is important in life.
Yes, Amrita. All that you said is so true:)
When we take it easy, find solutions, things get better. Very nicely penned down the important aspects of the move 🙂 Keep writing.
Thanks for dropping by, Ashu. I so agree with you.
These lessons are so important ,Mayuri. And all in all help is always around. Although the drastic change caused inconvenience it helps not to panick. You did awesome by educating your makes of the situation.
Thank you, Ramya. Yes, patience is the key.
Love the post Mayuri. Each point is valid and so true. Wish more pople would take your cue and wait, watch and see the outer and inner merits in every thing before jumping up and down and going crazy 😉
Thank you for dropping by and sharing your thoughts, Sunila. People have become impatient and demand instant results for everything. Knowing very well that any new change takes time to adapt to and prove it’s worth.
Makes so much sense. My first reaction was panic! It’s only a little later that i realised I didn’t really need to worry thanks to net banking and credit and debit cards. That bit about helping others is also very important.
Don’t blame you at all for panicking, Tulika. The jhatka this announcement gave us all was severe:) Thanks for stopping by!:)
Bravo, Mayuri! I was nodding all way through your points. I had few 500s and 1000s with me, for the so-called emergency. P didn’t know about it. And when I told him now, he laughed if off. Thank God for that!
And yes, instead of hating the idea or curse it, we should stand united and do our bit by helping the people.
Help others and don’t hoard are especially true…. So easy to freak out and forget about others and hold on to cash “just to be on the safe side”.
Frankly, I haven’t been affected by the demonetization at all because now I realize how much plastic money I use. All my needs are met via online payments/transfers. Though I’m happy I’m not adding to the melee, I am scared at how dependent on technology I seem to be.
Yes, this dependency on technology is scary! If i even as much as misplace my phone I am lost and panic as all the important stuff is in there! Thanks for reading:)
I agree with all the points. I listened to the address and was completely convinced that the plan was good. Yes, the poor are facing issues and that’s where I am beginning to think if it could have been executed better. But learning – I have the same. Steer clear of forwards and get the information straight from the horse’s mouth.
I listened to the entire address only after you asked me too, on Twitter, Parul:) Yes, it could have been executed better though.
Thanks for writing about this personal account of how you handled the situation and the important lessons learnt in the process. I have been disgusted by the way some selfish politicians and media folks have been creating panic and fear among public. They are not only doing a big disservice but also revealing their stand on corruption. Time will tell how the measure pans out but so far the results are already positive – terror funding dropped considerably, fake currency industry in tatters, money going for trafficking and drug trade almost becoming useless, and many other things. Sure next few weeks could be difficult in some ways, and particularly for some people. But already signs are there that people are moving on to cashless transactions. All this positive change will be good in the long run despite some short-term inconvenience and difficulties for some people. I just wish people would stop believing and forwarding all sorts of rumours about this.
I so agree with you, Beloo. Instead of creating panic, they could spread positive messages to put people at ease.Change is difficult to adapt to, but not impossible to, right? Thanks for dropping by and sharing your thoughts:)
Mayuri completely agree with each and every point. The social media especially WhatsApp creates nuisance with updates and leads to so much necessary Panic. Its a measure I believe would benefit us. We all should help. The banking officials have been working non stop and helping people. The people I understand their frustration but if they panic less it would be much much easier as its a united problem and not an individual one. All are in it together
I so agree with you on all the points, Mayuri! The announcement indeed made things difficult in initial days but things are taking shape slowly now and I believe that in long run it’s going to pay a great deal. Also, the banks had no money earlier to invest in other things and thru this liquidity will also benefit the banks to run and do justice to India’s growth. Wonderful post! 🙂
Thanks for dropping by and sharing your thoughts, Saumy. I wish people were more patient and helped each other to get things done faster!
People were panicking like there was no end. I also wrote my own thoughts just yesterday on demonetization. All your points are very valid. I believe it is a huge step but yes we will have to wait and watch to see how everything unfolds.
Mayuri , we literally saw the worst of demonetisation coz we travelled to an off the radar hill station the very next day for my kid’s birthday and it was crazy! But I guess most things just sort them out over time .. Thankfully we are from the more privileged lot and all your suggestions apply to us .. I can still see a lot of people who’s life just changed irreversibly and it’s sad .
I think I need to write a follow up post, as post experiencing it I echo your thoughts, Chandni.Thanks for dropping by.