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Why Life Is a Daily Event, Not an Achievement
LinkedIn posts from many successful Civil Service aspirants reminded me of the feeling one often gets on clearing the exam -- that you have arrived at the final goalpost. That there is nothing more to be done -- life will now be on cruise control....
Recent Posts
Why the Zero Inbox Philosophy Fails
If you follow the 'zero inbox' philosophy for email, I have some bad news for you. Zero inbox is great in theory but in practice, it fails. Here is...
The Hidden Truth Behind Motivational Content Online
I was once recording a video talk for a TED-like online platform. When I was preparing the script, the organizer asked, "Can you insert some...
Learned Helplessness: Why Good People Help Us Break Free
During my policing career, when interacting with very poor people, I would often notice an attitude of helplessness and resignation. Life had...
How Elimination Reveals What Truly Matters
A partner at McKinsey once told me about a massive cost-cutting project at a company that used to operate very lavishly. For example, on every...
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Why Deep Change Feels Invisible – Until It Transforms You
8 months after trying out another gym, I went back to my old gym recently. And I saw a familiar-looking guy, who used to be overweight and flabby. But now, he seemed quite fit -- most of his excess weight, including a prominent double chin, was...
Why True Confidence Comes from Hands-On Experience
When you first hold a rifle, shooting seems so easy -- just align the gun's foresight, backsight, and the target, and pull the trigger. But there is a challenge! Your eye is like a camera that can focus only at one distance at a time. So when you...
There Is No Single Mold for Success
A few years ago, I was at IIT Kanpur to give a talk. And the speaker before me was a brilliant entrepreneur, who had built a billion-dollar company from scratch, AFTER his retirement. And while this gentleman was talking, the students started...
How to Overcome Nervousness Through Exposure
Anyone can walk on a one-foot-wide path. But if it was a beam jutting out from a building's 100th floor, you would collapse before taking even one step. Why? In some sense, the task is exactly the same. But our peripheral vision can see the steep...