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Attach your ego to the right thing
During my stint in the police, I was once overseeing a jampacked swearing-in ceremony for some new ministers at the Kerala Raj Bhavan (Governor’s official residence). The crowd was in a celebratory mood and hard to control. So when the Chief...
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These are Your Key Assets
When I quit my job to become an entrepreneur, it felt a bit weird, but not for the first time. Years earlier, to do my GMAT and MBA prep, when I...
The role of struggle in achieving success
During my days working in private equity, I once met an entrepreneur who manufactured orthopedic implants (typically used in surgery for fracture...
Consistency is the key
Starting in 2018, I have been writing nearly every day, for almost 1,000 days (on Linkedin, Quora, HabitStrong blog). Writing per se was not the...
Managing Social Expectations
My most terrifying moment at McKinsey was not handling some really tough client, but the invite I got to attend the New Year’s ball, a fancy...
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You Fail Only When You Quit
Every once in a while, an old back injury of mine flares up with excruciating pain, wrecking my workout routine for a week or two. And once the routine is broken, the momentum is gone. With every passing day, you feel even more like a failure, and...
Fixing Exam Formats
When I first decided to write the Civil Services exam, I was horrified at: 1. How sub-par the syllabus was. 2. How random the marking was. 3. How unbelievably opaque the system was. For my optional subjects (Maths & Physics), supposedly at B.Sc...
Quitting is not an option
Whenever I struggle to persevere while doing something hard, here is what I tell myself: Slowing down is an option. Taking a break is an option. Modifying your goals is an option. Reprioritizing is an option. But if you really care about something...
Mind Over Matter
During my stint as a consultant with McKinsey, late nights were the norm. However, after a lot of generalist work, to pursue my passion for finance, I opted for a 3-month rotation with a Corporate Finance specialist group in New York. This new...