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The Real Cost of Hostile Business Environments
Sensing an opportunity created by Karnataka's self-goal (the proposed reservation for locals), Kerala's Industries minister lost no time in inviting businesses to move to Kerala. And it was a truly heartening to hear that but here is a backstory....
Recent Posts
A Leadership Lesson in Prioritization
In my first job, what used to really piss me off was that whenever I got a task from higher ups, almost always, it would be urgent. And sometimes,...
Why One Hour Meeting Can Destroy a Workday
To understand this late-night-work mania, let us analyze what happens when we do a 1-hour meeting. 1. Let us say the meeting involves 6...
There Are No Shortcuts in Financial Markets
A few months ago, a youngster (in mid-twenties) working in a tech role asked me how to get a job in a PE fund. When I asked him why he wanted to do...
Why Nobody Tells the Truth About Their Jobs
One of the culture shocks I got on joining the corporate world (on transitioning from government) was that nobody tells you the truth about their...
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The Power of Youthful Ignorance: Why Naivety Sometimes Wins
Fresh out of college, in my very first job, I picked up a fight with a powerful figure in Kerala over a very small matter. Clearly, I had little idea about how the world worked. But at least I was fighting for a principle. And I escaped unscathed...
Why Action Is the Only Way Forward
This may be unpopular but let me say it. If you have to climb a mountain, at some point, you need to start climbing. Yes, you can watch all the videos on how to climb -- ice climbing vs rock climbing, and this technique vs. that technique. You can...
The Silent Shift Already Reshaping the Workforce
I am not hearing good things. From New York to Singapore, whoever you talk to, is talking about job losses. And the driving force is not economic recession, but almost certainly AI. We were debating whether AI will take jobs away. That debate is...
Prestige, Power, and the Hidden Costs
Yesterday, more than half a million people in India wrote the Civil Services exam, to compete for a few hundred jobs. From my firsthand experience, I can vouch that the kind of responsibilities these jobs give you while still in your twenties is...