Latest Post
The Hardest Test of Leadership
The best tonic for your mental health is having a kind boss. Even in the most high-profile assignments, when my bosses have been bad, I have hated the experience. And when I had good bosses, even mediocre work felt worthwhile. If you lead a team,...
Recent Posts
How Discipline Breaks Down
How does discipline break down? Answer: One exception at a time. But then, how can we be 100% consistent or never make exceptions? That it true --...
Life Is Finite – Don’t Wait to Live It
Last year, I lost three friends who passed away unexpectedly, including an ex-boss I was close to, whose passing made national news. When you lose...
All our good habits are subject to entropy
As a consultant, I have helped companies cut costs. But 3-5 years later, many of these costs come right back up. In fact, most company initiatives...
Reinvent or Stagnate
One of the consultants at McKinsey I worked with, is today leading McKinsey's digital initiatives. You might say -- naturally, an engineer can't...
More Articles
Change Your Defaults, Change Your Life
When you wake up, unthinkingly, you grab your phone and check messages or some social apps. You are doing it for just one reason -- it is your default behavior. Next, whether you work out, grab a coffee or just snooze, it is again driven by your...
Attention Is the Scarce Resource – Not Information
When I was a kid, finishing books was so effortless! But today, it feels much harder even though I spend a lot more time reading. The problem is this: When you read a book today, there are countless other books, newsletters, podcasts, and...
Conviction – The Real Secret to Success
The secret to making money is out in the open. On websites like Trendlyne, you can find the stock portfolios of India's best public market investors, starting from that of the late Rakesh Jhunjhunwala. And since these guys are super successful,...
Critical Feedback vs Confidence Management
The most damaging thing you can do to an employee: Give them non-stop critical feedback for even the minutest of things. This claim may sound plain wrong. After all, without critical feedback, how would people improve? True. Honest feedback,...