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The One Thing First-Time Managers Often Forget
I became a 'first-time manager' on the day 1 of my first job, when I took charge as Assistant Superintendent of Police in Karunagappally, a suburb of Kollam district in Kerala. I had two police inspectors and seven police stations under me. And...
Recent Posts
How to Know If Your Idea Is Real
Early in my startup days, I used to sometimes wonder -- am I doing something real or am I just fiddling around, fooling myself? How do I know this...
The Secret of Confidence: Focus on What You Know
As a rookie consultant at McKinsey, before the final client presentation, I used to feel very jittery. No matter how much work I had done, there...
In Investing and Life, Patience Beats Luck
My friend Vinod Thomas and I have together been investing in public equities for the last one year. So are you ready for some investing wisdom?...
When Focus Feels Like a Battle, Step Back
Yesterday, when I was doing some focused work, after some time, I felt so agitated and restless that I desperately wanted an escape -- check the...
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Life Comes Without a Map – And That’s Okay
I often hear 25-year-olds say, "I don't know what I want to do with my life." Heck, I am so much older, and even I don't know that! But one thing I do know -- I don't want to waste my life doing meaningless stuff. If something doesn't make sense, I...
Why Staying Up Late Doesn’t Mean You’re Working Hard
On day 1 of my last job with a private equity fund, I wanted to know whether they worked late nights routinely or followed reasonable work hours. But how could I ask? In prestigious post-MBA jobs like consulting, banking, and investing, talking...
How to Survive the Avalanche of Advice
I am afraid you will become a victim. Not a victim of some scam, but of all the well-intentioned advice, frameworks, and exhortations you will find on LinkedIn, blogs, podcasts, and videos (some of it coming from me 😊). The problem is not that the...
When a Blunder Turns Out to Be a Blessing
When writing my Wharton MBA application, I was working right until the 2:30 am deadline. I was frantically working on my application essays in a Word document, saving the edits every few minutes. But in a last-minute panic, I mistakenly overwrote a...