After my routine, long run that weekend, I was looking forward to the usual family breakfast tradition. However, that day, I decided to takeaway breakfast because COVID- 19 seemed to show signs of continued spread. I was being careful. As I was leaving the lobby of our apartment building for the car park, I saw an ambulance pull up. My heart skipped a beat. Is someone sick? Is this person...

March 25, "May I have a minute?" asked Singapore's National Development Minister Lawrence Wong in the parliament as he choked and teared up while acknowledging and thanking the healthcare workers and the unsung heroes all over the Island for all that they were doing to wage the war against COVID-19. It was equally uplifting to see MPs in the House thump their armrests in support of the same...

When I was growing up only credible people became popular. And to become popular they had to have done something in life. There was a strong barrier to entry in to the playground called, 'for popular people only" Social media changed everything, it now allows people to become popular without having done very much. Here are some new popularity tactics Vanity will make you popular Tell your...

For Yoky Matsuka, childhood was a period of confusion and blur. Growing up in Japan in the 1970's everything seemed laid out for her in advance. Her parents believed in the importance of sports in her development and pushed her into competitive swimming at a very early age. They also had her take up the piano. For other children in Japan it may have been comforting to have their lives directed in...

Up until a month ago I knew nothing about Amor Fati, what it meant, what was the origin or relevance but over the last one month I have tried to build a meaningful relationship with this term which is centuries old. It is one of those terms the power of which is witnessed when practiced not when explained. The great German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche would describe his formula for human...

There are many shops to buy fish from in a wet market but there is one that always has a long queue of people waiting. I have always thought to myself, why do people wait in a queue at this shop when there are many other shops selling an equally good product? [caption id="attachment_11661" align="aligncenter" width="500"] This picture is of the fish shop I mention in the blog[/caption] My...

As Juan Manuel Fangio exited the chicane before the blind Tabac corner in the 1950 Monaco Grand Prix, he stomped on the brake. It was a counterintuitive reaction for a racing driver exiting a corner — but one that likely saved his life. By slowing down he avoided plowing into a multi-car pile-up, which was just out of sight beyond the turn. In racing folklore, Fangio's evasive action is...

There are rare businesses that benefit from global pandemics like Amazon delivery, Zoom video communications, hand sanitiser manufacturers, food deliveries and face mask manufacturers. And during the pandemic mini situations like the government announcing the closure of all public areas for a certain period of time makes queues outside of Decathlon and Ikea long because people are preparing for...

Everyday we wake up to choices, a choice to scroll social media or a choice to read a book. a choice to respond to emails, WhatsApp messages or a choice to write something meaningful. a choice to get through a to do list filled with shallow work like pay bills, send message, call XYZ or a choice to create something. All the tasks we default to are the ones that require least effort, it is easier...

You decide, you are going to create a PDF document with all the information American's would need to holiday in India. You will research, combine it with your experience and put it online for anyone who needs it. So what will be in the document? A logical mind would develop the document keeping the traveller's experience in mind, VISA, flights, accommodation etc. When that logic is applied, you...

This blog is part 4 of 5 of blog series Storytelling: Women in Boardrooms. In this blog I share strategies to overcome Manterruption. If you want to know what is Manterupption please read our previous blog. It is important to start with an understanding of why is a man interrupting? Men often perceive women to take things personally and overreact as per Barbara Annis mentioned in her book Same...

Yesterday, I finished crafting a Narrative for a Life Sciences organisation on Digital Transformation. Of course, I don't work in the Life Sciences industry but I know how best to elicit information, shape a story and impart the storytelling skills to leaders of the organisation who need to manage this change. Whilst I was developing the Narrative, it was evident to me that my key source of...

I am sitting at an auditorium watching kids perform classical Indian dance. One after the other group of kids are coming on the stage and performing. Then one group suddenly starts to get a lot of claps. Every 2 - 3 mins people would clap and I would too but not because I thought it was good but because everyone clapped, I clapped, almost unintentionally. This experience left me puzzled and I...

I advocate using a word of emotion in organisational storytelling. For example, notice the difference when I say Statement 1 : " I ran a project in India and the project failed." Statement 2: " I ran a project in India, the project failed and I am devastated." Just because I have added the word devastated, you will now think that I must have worked very hard on the project and that is why the...

My Instagram feed, filled with quotes on insecurity, has done a brilliant job of equipping me with an ability to catch myself feeling negative emotions like insecurity, greed to do more, anxiety that I am not enough. I catch myself feeling those emotions and I say, " Stop it, you don't have to feel this way. " Interestingly though, the built awareness has not necessarily meant the frequency of...

Everyday, online and offline, I come across people who position their brands or brands they work for as, Sales Enablers. They make use of a certain type of a language, often infused with statements like Want to sell more? Want to make more profit? Want to drive leads? Want to close that dream lead of yours? Use of such a language signals a transactional approach. An approach we don't trust. What...

YEARS ago, while producing the hit TV series "The Shield" Glen Mazzara noticed that two young female writers were quiet during story meetings. He pulled them aside and encouraged them to speak up more. Watch what happens when we do, they replied. Almost every time they started to speak, they were interrupted or shot down before finishing their pitch. When one had a good idea, a male writer would...

We learn most from failures. So, we must share failure stories. But here is a mistake we make repeatedly whilst sharing failure stories of others, unknowingly, we blame the failure ‚Å£ ‚Å£ You did not study, you did not get the results ‚Å£ ‚Å£ You did not work hard, you did not get the job ‚Å£ ‚Å£ You did not exercise, you became obese ‚Å£ ‚Å£ You did not look at the market trends, you made a bad acquisition...

"Anjali, our incident report is filled with information on small accidents that happen everyday. People only pay attention to big accidents .As a result, small accidents occur in high frequency. It's this low consequence nature of small accidents that prohibit people from paying attention but these small accidents put together create high consequences."‚Å£ ‚Å£ This is what a factory safety officer...

I am working with a digital team of a leading MNC on making sure data we present is not dry and wrapped with a compelling story. The slide or the visual we are working with shows the trend of increase in PC demand over the last 6 months in their organisation. The presenter comes in front of the room and says, "can you imagine a situation when you don't have a PC to work with?" As soon as the...

Oct 2019, I am invited to speak on Stories about Cultural Diversity and Inclusion at an event. After my talk, I sit down to listen to the next speaker who is sharing key findings of Women in Workplace 2019 report. I see a term flashed on the screen Manterrupting : Unnecessary interruption of a woman by a man. I had never heard of this term before and if someone had asked me before my research on...

I have known Sam ( not his real name ) for a decade now. He is a good friend. In many of our conversations, I have tried to allure him to work for me. He is that good! Last year for family reasons Sam took a year off. He is now in the process of looking for a new job. He is clear on what he wants to do and I can't fulfil that need. But whilst he is waiting for the right oppurtunity I offered him...

Boardroom communication challenges for women, in a corporate setting is a less discussed topic. A lot has been written about ways women can find their voice on a stage. Prerequisites of an effective stage delivery are Credibility, that based on your track record and experience you are trusted to speak on the topic. Self confidence, that you yourself believe that you are the right person to speak...

You get an email, call or a message which states, "We are looking for someone to help us with XYZ. Can we discuss further?" You know you are the right person for the job. But then begins the process, the long process of convincing everyone that you are the right person for the job.The process of convincing, most likely will have the following steps, Submit a proposal Share your CV Have a meeting...

I can't possibly tell my 12 year old to not be on social media. Soon enough she will be there. But what I can do, is to teach her the best use of it as I am figuring it out too. One of the biggest downsides of social media, for young girls in particular, is this overwhelming pressure that comes from the commentary of others on the fancies of their own lives. There is plenty of research available...