Neeraj Jain, 02 August, 2007

I would like to share one incident on ‘change’ management
that took place in my life around 4 months back. I had to go to meet a
relative. The place is around 120 km from Delhi.
Therefore, I was planning to go by unreserved class in train. I checked in at
the New Delhi railway station unreserved class booking counter.
All the counters were crowded as usual. However, my train
was one hour late; thanks to Lalu and Indian Railways. So I stood in the line
completely relaxed. When my turn came, I handed over a Rs. 100/- note to the
booking clerk. The fare was Rs. 42/-. The clerk asked me for a change of Rs. 2.
I was not carrying any change and told the same to the clerk. The clerk looked
at me coolly. Then in his usual babu style, he handed me a Rs. 50/- note. I
asked him to return Rs. 8/- also. Much to my surprise, he asked me to bring Rs.
2/- and take away a Rs. 10/- note. I was surprised and dismayed. I knew that
lots of change come into his counter and he was doing it knowingly so that he
could get his share of Rs. 8/-. Had my train been on time, I would have donated
my Rs. 8/- to him and walked away.
But fortunately or unfortunately, my train was not on time.
I decided to manage Rs. 2 change. I also made up my mind that I would use my skills
and not buy anything to manage Rs 2 change. I was fully determined. I passed my
hand over my pocket to search for loose notes and found a Rs. 10 note. I went
over to a magazine shop nearby and asked for two 5-rupee coins. Then I went to
the Northern Railway cafeteria and asked for two 5-rupee coins. He asked me to
eat something and get the change. I refused. Then I turned towards a STD booth
owner. I was confident that he must be having the change because a large number
of people make low-volume calls. However, he also refused. Then I went to a
juice shop. He blankly told me that he was not having any change. Then I
decided to move to the opposite end of the railway station. There I asked the
STD booth owner for the same thing. He was kind enough; took my 10-rupee note
and gave two 5-rupee coins.
I was happy. Now my next task was to get change of 5-rupee.
I moved out of the railway station. There some men dressed in ordinary clothes
confronted me with offers. They told me that they could get a cheap and good
hotel for me. I jokingly asked them to give me change of 5-rupee. They were
taken aback and laughed. Then I turned towards a water trolley. I asked for
change. He told me to drink water and get the balance Rs. 4 change. Since I was
determined to get the change without spending anything, I refused. Then I
humbly asked the panwallah sitting nearby on the pavement to give me change. He
was as good as a God messenger. He promptly gave me two 2-rupee coins and one
1-rupee coin. I felt on top of the world. My task was complete. Without sparing
a minute, I headed straight for the booking counter where I gave the 2-rupee
coin and asked for Rs. 10. The babu was taken aback. He had never thought that
I would be able to manage a 2-rupee coin in Delhi.
His chances of making a quick buck were gone. Hesitatingly, he handed me a
crisp 10-rupee note. I had learned a lesson.
If you are determined, you can win any battle.
If you were in my place, how would you have handled this
situation? Give your comments because I want to hear from you.

Love,