Sanjay’s Musings

In this episode, I discuss the way I perceive the Clubhouse platform, and the challenges that I see for the platform, in its current construct.

Resuming my podcast after a long break, I share my views on impactful events (such as the current pandemic) and the scars they leave, or rather the life long lessons that they give, and which actually make us the better for it!

One of the things that I am most grateful about, in life, has been the opportunity that I have had to travel, from an early age. And travel is a great teacher if you keep your eyes, ears and mind open.

Over last few weeks / months, I have been fascinated to dive deeper into the world of value investing. And in that pursuit, I have started an online course and have discovered this really amazing podcast too. Sharing some early experiences!

One more birthday, and one more occasion to think about life, to introspect, and to share some of those thoughts that come to mind at this point!

I happened to attend a two-days extremely powerful conference called The Mindfulness India Summit, and sharing herewith some of what I picked up over those two days and how it's leading me into a world of mindfulness.

So after many years of resisting it, I finally succumbed and got myself an Apple Watch. And with it begins my experimentation of quantifying myself, my health parameters, my sleep, my workouts and what not. Sharing my initial thoughts around this..

What goes behind a success? Whether an individual, a sports team, a film, a business venture? I am always intrigued by the background story - the early days of a successful person, for example. I love to know about this, love to read biographies, see biopics, and learn more about these..

Far from the politics of things, my views on why the abrogation of Article 370 spells the best hope in decades for Jammu and Kashmir, for its people, and for the nation at large!

The trigger to this episode was a conversation that happened on one of my Whatsapp groups, after many of us had seen the documentary, The Great Hack. Yes, it triggered also a slowly increasing concern around Data Privacy issues!

There was one very fundamental difference in the two digital start ups that I co-founded, viz. the “timing” of their start! In terms of the year, in terms of the economic environment at that point. How did that make a difference? That's what I cover here..

How often do we end up distracted, or getting presumptuous, being interruptive, while listening to another person? And how we may be missing out, due to that? So this is about becoming a better listener.. !

My take on professional and personal networking. How it happened for me, how it's worked well, and how it's come naturally to me.

At the recent WPP Stream event at Jaipur, I hosted a discussion on Embracing Minimalism. Very interesting perspectives came up. Sharing some of those here.

Good, bad or ugly events in the early stages of life can leave long term impact on life. If one sees these as a potential challenge, one needs to work on them and turn the tide around, to prevail.

A visit to the Passport Seva Kendra brought out a very interesting understanding about how a simple technology combined with well-defined process and a trained team, can create wonders and deliver amazing efficiency!

While walking a tight rope, it is a matter of comfort to know that there's a safety net below. However if you keep thinking only of the safety net, you are not focusing on the walk, and you would lose balance and fall into the safety net. How do you really use the Safety Net? In life..?!

For most people who will probably listen to this podcast, there is far more good to cheer in life, than there is bad! And yet, as human beings, we tend to embrace negativity more. Change that attitude, I say! Go smell the roses! It makes for a wonderful positive change in life!

The first episode for the new year is around the need for resolutions, and sharing how I see mine, for this new year!

Doing this episode from Hampi, a holiday destination in Karnataka. Has been an awesome experience, this is a wonderful town seeped in architecture amongst the ruins of a great rich capital of Vijaynagar! Secondly the stay here at Evolve Back (earlier known as Orange County resorts) has been a fantastic experience and made me wonder about customer centric culture at this hotel group!

Discussing here the culture of the Taj Group of hotels and how every individual takes pride in their work, and how they strive to deliver a great experience to their guests!

Going through some launch events related to our recently released book, “If I Had To Do It Again”, we have been frequently asked these questions: why did we write the book, and how did we go about doing it. I try to answer these questions here..

We just released our new book, “If I Had To Do It Again”, a story of our first startup, Homeindia.com, and the significant entrepreneurial learnings from those days. Here I share a little glimpse of why that period had all the elements of a great story that needed to be told. And should you be interested in the book, head to Amazon and find it there!

The many moments in life where you get something out of a stroke of luck or destiny, starting from the family in which you get birth, to the many more - and how those are turning points in your career! You need to be grateful for those..

I attended the premier Salesforce.com event, Dreamforce, at San Francisco recently. It was an absolutely amazing experience. Sharing some thoughts from the same.

On a short work trip to the US, I find myself needing a laptop bag urgently. My experience going and shopping for the same, and ultimately how Amazon turned out to be such a superior experience, is what I share here!

From few hours a day on B&W TV, to a plethora of content offerings to choose from, the consumer of content in India, has come a long way! The providers of content and the enabling means, have all come a long way, to make it happen. Some views on this new world of rich content!

From the era of the erstwhile textile mills with huge disparity of wealth and power and respect, from those days of servitude in workers, to a partnership and mutual respect oriented working environment today, Indian businesses have come a long way!

A weekend visit to the local cobbler, and the series of thoughts that flowed out of the observations there. Shared here. Points to this amazing city of Mumbai where such contrasts exist and continue to thrive!

There are some fundamental changes that have happened in life, in society that make our lives busier, more demanding, and with multiple new avenues of engagement. Is Nostalgia even relevant at such times? What do you think?!

An unusual topic, for a change. What government programs around birth control could not achieve, mobile phones may yet deliver! A reduction in the population growth rate. That's my hypothesis. Listen on to find out what leads me to this conclusion..

More often than not, one tends to have sudden lapses of concentration, or a loss of focus when one is in a winning position, either causing delay in ultimate victory or sometimes, an unexpected loss too!

There are some fundamental principles that one follows on a sports field which are relevant to be understood and used even in life itself.

As you hit 50 and cross it, you've probably reached a certain state of stability in life, the kids have grown older and become independent, and you have time on hand! The need to reconnect with friends surfaces like never before..

DISASTER!! Is the one word I can use to describe my experience using Quikr.com. For once, this is a rant of a podcast episode. I don't rant on this podcast, but have to make an exception to ensure others don't fall prey!!

So in the days of hardsell in-your-face marketing messages urging you to buy more and more, how can one leave it all, and lean towards a life of minimalism? What does it take??

Do you slip into a sense of complacency due to the safety net? Or does it provide you with the desired calm that comes out of not being insecure, and drives you to better performance??

The pace at which digital usage is growing, it has given new users no serious time to learn, adapt, get comfortable, make small mistakes, etc. Instead they are thrown into stormy waters while they are still learning how to swim!

Catching an interesting trend at the right time, and figuring a product or service idea around it, creating and executing the same, can lead to potential riches!!

Inspired by this story that came in the Hindu Business Line and where I was mentioned, I address the issue a little more in depth, in this episode. https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/specials/people-at-work/the-founders-who-stayed-on/article24212404.ece

Everyone expects higher compensation. But one needs to appreciate that compensation is directly connected to the value your work creates!

Travelling across the globe has enough stress points for most people, and especially so for those who don't travel very frequently. And that's one people that is not getting solved still...unfortunately!

Some of today's most successful startups fundamentally provide us with convenience that leads to time saved for us. Time is a scarce resource for all of us. How I manage to make the most use of my time? Check it out..

I happened to be at an investment opportunity event yesterday and my observations led me to further reaffirm the belief of immense opportunity for wealth creation in India.

What does it take for India to produce ventures which are not only successful, but can in fact be world-beaters, like a Facebook or. Twitter or even Dropbox, say? Does India have what it takes at all or not? My views on the subject..

An awesome success for the founders and investors of Flipkart, an opportunity for Walmart to continue to challenge Amazon in the e-retail space.. what more? My views on this transaction and thereafter..!

When the founder is hesitant to go and sell, and he'd rather just do the dev work, or when one hesitates to aggressively chase on the collections, these can become serious existential threats!!

When the heart rules over the head. When emotion scores over logic. Yes, that's the concept I am talking about. And how it plays out in all walks of life. Listen on, and let me know what you think about it..!

There are lots of US television shows that have a strong presence of the US President as part of the storyline, and you see different shades of characters shown, in these portrayals. Are these a reflection of the society at that time?!

So when a stroke of bad luck hits you, or some unfortunate event, small or big happens to you, do you have a tendency to ask, “Oh God, why ME??”! Is that question even justified? Listen on for my views..

Do you tend to put off tasks that you need to do, but find extremely boring?? Or you do them but hate every minute of the time you are spending on those? I've found a way to handle these and not feel as bored either..