warikoo Wanderings

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THE JOURNEY OF HELP

Before you read this segment, I have to share something with you.
What follows is a very personal journey between a student and me. I asked for his permission to share it and he gladly agreed.
The story will also come across as pompous and me bragging about how awesome I am. Unfortunately, there is nothing I can do to avoid it, while still trying to get the message across. So my request is for you to stay with the story in its true essence.

(Almost) every Friday I conduct a live session on Instagram. This is my way of connecting with my audience and I love it.
I invite people to come live with me and they are selected randomly. No pre-planning whatsoever.

8th April 2022
I was about to finish the session, when I invited Ankan, to come live with me.
I had no idea who he is and what he does.
It turns out that Ankan is a 10th class student, from West Bengal.
And was struggling to pay his school fees, because of which he might not be able to sit for his exams which were starting April 26th.
Check out the conversation here, starting 58:00 mins

I offered to help him with his school fees.
You can see his expression in the video. He couldn't believe it.

As the session came to an end, I was quite emotional.
Seeing someone struggle so hard to fulfil their desire to study, is heartbreaking.
And a harsh reminder of the privilege me and my family enjoy, where we take such things for granted.

I asked him to send me an email and he did, the next day.

The fees was paid. However, this was for his Class 8-10th, which he hadn't been able to clear because of financial troubles.
He still didn't have a way to study further.

In what I imagine must not have been an easy thing to do, he asked me if I could help there as well.

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Of course I agreed.
He used to wonderfully keep me updated on his progress.

And then, came the news on July 23, 2022

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It was such a wonderful moment.
Can you imagine how his family would be feeling?
How he would be feeling?
He was acknowledged on the school poster, which made him so happy :))

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Money is a very weird thing.
It isn't the most important thing in the world, but it surely buys the things that are important.
A good diet, health, education, experiences.
And I know what it is to live without money.
At some level, most of us have had that experience in life.
But it takes such an incidence to remind us again of its importance.

That is why I spend so much of my time speaking about money.
To not have money in your life, especially because you did not know how to make it work for you, is such a shame of your capabilities. Because look what a little bit of money can do.
Who knows, it might produce the next big scientist, the next big doctor, the next big artist.
And that's the good thing about help as well.
Help always flows forward. It never stops.
You help someone when they needed it. Because of that they will always remember to help someone else.
The power of help is beautiful.

One of our business income streams is affiliate revenue.
Where we share links of brands that we have partnered with, in the hope you might find value in considering them for a purchase.
If you end up making a purchase, we earn an affiliate income through it.
Last year Jan-Dec 2021, we earned Rs. 36,00,000 (36L) as affiliate income.
And I had decided, when we started the business, that 100% of this affiliate income will be used to sponsor the education of kids who cannot afford to do it themselves.
53 kids were helped last year, through this approach.
So, in your own small way, whenever you buy anything from a link I share, you contribute to so many more Ankan's who value our help.

I share this story to remind you that you have the power to help.
Whether through money, whether through your experience, your time, your empathy.
Help, because you can.
Help, because it flows forward.
Help, because you too will need it one day.

Thank you for helping me help Ankan.
And so many others kids who stories you may not know if. But they remain just as thankful.

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BOOK I AM READING THIS WEEK

I am still reading
​The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact​
The book is about how humans remember moments and what makes them memorable.
I have got so many ideas on how to make such memorable moments. For example, a batchmate of mine messaged me yesterday that her sister is a big fan of my content.
So instead of just thanking him (and her) - which would have been expected, I recorded a small video for her. Since this would be unexpected and positively so - it would register as a moment.
Took me 20 seconds!
But might make someone else's day!

My book DO EPIC SHIT is now available in Hindi, Marathi and Tamil.
Of course, also in English :)
150,000+ copies sold.
3 more languages coming up! (Including Portuguese)

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QUOTES TO SHARE

You can't convince them. You can only convince yourself and let your work do the convincing!
​​(Share on Twitter)​​

Curiosity + Patience = Clarity
​​(Share on Twitter)​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Act on the thoughts that keep you up at night.
​​(Share on Twitter)​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

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RESPONSES TO LAST WEEK'S QUESTION

Last week I asked you:

Where do you watch your movies/TV series?

1. Netflix
2. Hotstar/Disney+
3. Amazon Prime
4. Voot/Sony Live/Zee5 and others
5. Cable TV
6. Do not watch movies/TV

Here are the responses:

• Netflix wins! Since it's paid, it is not surprising that it grows in share as one grows in age! Similar trend for Amazon Prime.
• Quite surprised by the "do not watch movies/TV" - didn't expect it to be as high a number. My guess - these folks are watching entertainment on YouTube/Instagram.
• Cable TV still a thing when you are young (because no money, parent's home, etc.), but declines rapidly.
• There were some folks that said they download their movies/TV and do not want to pay for it. That segment is not included here.

My response?
I only watch movies (no TV series, unless it is highly highly recommended). And most of it happens to be on Netflix. Or Hotstar.

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PICTURE OF THE WEEK

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Last Sunday's heritage walk was at the Sunder Nursery, which is a beautiful park in South Delhi, and also full of historical moments mostly from the Mughal era.

Here is one more pic, of me happy after a rich game of tennis :))

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QUESTION OF THE WEEK

How many hours do you spend on your phone every day?

1. Less than 2 hours
2. 2-4 hours
3. 4-6 hours
4. 6+ hours
5. Do not have a phone

​​Click here to let me know your answer (anonymously)​​​​​

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CONTENT I SHARED THIS WEEK

Podcast:​
Title of episode: How I spend my day
​Spotify, Amazon Music, Google Podcast, Apple Podcast, JioSaavn, Gaana or YouTube.

YouTube:​
Conversation with Morgan Housel ("Psychology of Money" Author)
​You can watch it here.​

Instagram:​
STOP caring about these things
​You can watch it here.​

Twitter:​
Beginner's guide to stock market investing
​You can read it here.​

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You can, of course, always write to me by simply replying to this newsletter.

I love reading all your emails, even though I may not be able to reply to them all.
Yes! I READ ALL MY EMAILS. ALL OF THEM.
​​​(Aam ki badalti varieties ki kasam)

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