30 Pearls of Leadership Wisdom from Robin Sharma

Reading a variety of self-help books, attending technical, or, non-technical, management and self-productivity & improvement courses and networking with like-minded individuals are a couple of "must do" things for someone who wishes to progress in life. Otherwise, you stagnate and die. As simple as that. In my personal collection of over 3,000+ books (yes, I…

Entrepreneurial Lessons that MBA Schools Don’t Teach

Unforgiven. Produced, directed by & starring Clint Eastwood. A movie that I love from thousands in my collection. Besides portraying many different true facets of life, this movie is a must-watch and classic cause it de-romanticizes the commonly believed folklore. There's a special section in the movie that I can now relate to post working…

Set High Expectations

Set High Expectations. In Personal Life. In Professional Life. For yourself. For your girlfriend. For your lives together. For your friends, colleagues and network. Setting high expectations results in the Pygmalion effect, or Rosenthal effect, which is the phenomenon in which the greater the expectation placed upon people, the better they perform. The effect is…

Reinvent Yourself. Designed In California.

The 2nd week of June, thus far, has been exciting. First - I traveled to Kovalam from 7-9 June. Kovalam is a beach town by the Arabian Sea in Thiruvananthapuram city, Kerala, India, located around 16 km from the city center. Was a guest speaker at the first ever International Conference on Travel Technology (ICTT), India organized…

Citibank, Professionalism and Moron

Haven't been called a "moron" since a long time. Been ages. A CEO and Global Transformational Leader recently called me one. Also - how not to loose cool on a social network and threaten someone online. My salary account with Citibank lies with them dormant for over a year. Giving many lame reasons, they don't…

Jump The Curve. Attend #DataOnCloud.

If you're in London // New York // Seattle on 9 May, 4 June & 5 June respectively, and wish to understand, brainstorm and define a Strategic Solution Roadmap for  Cloud adoption for your organization, then here's a series of Cloud Events NOT to miss. Microsoft and Aditi is pleased to invite you to "DataOnCloud",…

DNA of Apple – so rightly put by Bono

There are dreams that you Search for. There are dreams that Search for you. Some adore Steve Jobs. Some despise him publicly. But what most companies try and fail - is to emulate the core DNA of people & innovation that represent Apple. I had written an earlier blog post on how to 'Fight Off…

iPhone saved the Day

Important con-call. Skype call in fact. We couldn't connect with the guy from our DELL laptop running Windows. Some issue with the microphone or the speakers. But the call had to be taken. 3 souls desperately trying to connect. Suddenly, one of my colleagues suggested - "Hey Subhasish, don't you have Skype on your iPhone? Let…

Word of Caution: Questions to Ask Before Joining an eCommerce Startup in India

A word of caution for job seekers in India. I do get messages from time to time in LinkedIn - with people asking for advice. Should I join this startup? Should I take this offer? Will this eCommerce startup survive? Is this Daily Deals company worth joining and so on. I try answering all -…

Fight Off the Bozo Explosion; Hire for Attitude

Steve Jobs had an apt saying. "One bozo gets another bozo. Soon, you're surrounded by bozos. This is called a bozo explosion". Till Steve was alive, the best of the best of the best worked at Apple. Still does; and thus, its one of the most valuable and respected companies (read: Global Brands) worldwide. Bozo…

The Honest Advice.

Whether you're a CEO of a Fortune company, or a startup, or of a small Unit, or just a professional trying to move up the career (and monetary) ladder, here's a simple advice. Straight from the Heart of Steve Jobs to the newly become President & CEO of Nike, Mark Parker in 2010. Easy to say,…

Indian eCommerce Bust – Why has it come so SOON?

It was always predicted. It was always on the cards. But it would come so soon - probably, no one had predicted. Anyways, out of the 200 or so eCommerce startups founded in India in 2012 - 100 so far have gone bust. Most of them finished (read burnt callously here) the amount of capital…

Types of Social Media Adoption in Companies

Caught up with Goldee Udani, Founder & CEO of Social Media monitoring and Insights platform, Beevolve earlier today at the Ulsoor CCD for a chat. Beevolve aspires to become the Constant Contact of the SME/SMB Social Media realm. Not many are competing in the SME space - and the ones which are competing with Beevolve,…

Blogging: Art or Science?

Bloggers. They are everywhere. Writing on every topic under the Sun. Have met some awesome ones. Have met some terrible ones. So what's the difference? What differentiates a Blogging rockstar from a dud? Believe it or not - a good blog post has nothing to do with style of Writing. Your level of Written English…

Grow a Thick Skin Before Launching Your eVenture

Jugez un homme par ses questions plutôt que par ses réponses, Voltaire once said. In English, 'Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers'. Unfortunately, many Indian eCommerce startup CEOs have crucified Voltaire at the alter. Too many probing questions are never entertained; and they loose temper and calm at the slightest…

Mashable – The New Look: Love OR Hate?

Was always on the cards. Finally happened. Am glad it happened. A cleaner UI and an infinite-scroll from Mashable.com. Clean. I like clean things - websites, UIs, a form, or my iPhone. To me - "less is more" rather than "enough is more". Mashable has made a good effort to clear off unwanted waste from…

Thanks Amit@ELITIFY; for the Surprise Birthday Gift

A pleasant surprise from ELITIFY. Indeed. On 24th November - my birthday, received a surprise gift. Had a lovely leather card holder, courtesy of Amit Rawal, CEO & Founder of ELITIFY.com, based out of New Delhi. One brand that is making a sincere effort to stand out from the current eCommerce clutter in India and create a…

A Lesson in Accountability: Difference Between the Janitor and the Vice President

I've often wondered the reason why some people make it to the top; and a few don't, eventually, I mean. Is it the lack of qualifications, degrees from top colleges, or is the interest level in their professional lives that eventually dies out, or is it lack of 'do what you love' Steve Jobs philosophy...…

iOS App, eCommerce Store OR Digital Agency?

If given a choice of becoming an entrepreneur and opening your company, which one would you opt for - - an iOS app that makes an effort to solve a problem in a known domain; and commercialize it OR - open an eCommerce store selling (say, CD/DVDs, books, mens/womens/kids clothing) OR - open a digital…

JustEat.In – Horrible User Experience & Customer Service

Hungry we were. Very very very hungry. Earlier today. One of my colleagues and myself. Having worked on a project for a long long time, finally, we decided to take a break - and enjoy some good Chinese food. And since its raining here in Bangalore since past few days, cause of a cyclone build…