Understanding is the heartwood of well-spoken words.

I love country music, but I find it very hard to take it seriously. I also think a lot of country music is sung with the tongue in cheek, so I do it tongue in cheek.

In today's world of blogging and tweeting, conversation has become a bit more staccato. In many ways we're more efficient, but I think the amount of longer conversations that radiated more warmth may have gone down.

A nation's hope of lasting peace cannot be firmly based upon any race in armaments but rather upon just relations and honest understanding with all other nations.

We get to do business all over the world, and it's rare to have such a big economy [India], growing so fast, and creating so much opportunity for so many. We want to be part of the process to strengthen the country, to serve its citizens and to demonstrate that we're a trusted partner across all these dimensions.

Deciding to listen with open ears and an open heart brings us together. We need to seek to really understand each other. We need to demonstrate empathy. If we can make these individual connections, we can strengthen our communities and nation.