warikoo Wanderings

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Hey everyone. Hope 2021 has started well for you. In this edition I speak about a very basic human flaw, the book that I am reading, share an exciting update, some quotes, responses from last week’s poll and ask a new question.
So let’s get started :)

PS: You can now share this newsletter on WhatsApp. Click here to do so (no sign up will be required for them)

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WE DON'T KNOW WHAT WE WANT IN LIFE - AND THAT IS TROUBLESOME

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So this story is several years old. A current student from ISB calls me, on the first day of ISB placements, sounding frantic and utterly confused.

"Ankur, I am in big trouble. Need your help. I have offers from Google and McKinsey and cannot decide which one. What should I do? This is such a difficult spot to be in! OMG!"

As I heard him speak, in my head I was like, "bro, if this is a difficult spot in life then I wish this difficulty for everyone in this world!"

But I engaged, "ok. That is a hard decision to take. Tell me something. What's is the one thing that you want most from life, right now?"

Poor guy. I guess he was expecting my answer - pick Google, pick McKinsey. Instead, I am going all gyaan baba (hindi for an extremely boring old uncle) on him!

"Ummmm. It is learning. Learning is the most important thing for me in life right now."

Oh what a cliché :)

"Ok. Learning it is. Tell me something. Is learning so important that you are willing to work for peanuts, in a horrible company, in a toxic environment with no work-life balance, but you are getting to learn a lot everyday?"

"Nooooo!!! That would be horrible. Why would I do that?"

"Well, in that case, learning is not the most important thing you want from life right now. Try again!"

"Ummmm. Ok, I admit. It is money. You know the ISB loan and all."

"Ok, fair enough. Thank you for your honesty. Tell me something, is money so important that you are willing to work for a company no one knows of, under an uninspiring boss, doing poor quality work, but it pays you a lot?"

"Nooooo. That sounds horrible. Why would I do that?"

"Well then, money is not the most important thing you want from life right now. Try again!"

"I will have to think about this. Let me do that and call you back."

Of course, he never called back!
Last I checked, he had joined Google.
Good for him!

The lesson is interesting, though.

We all encounter tough spots in life. Tough decisions to make. Tough choices to consider from.

And whenever I am in such a spot, I always ask myself the same question - "What is the one thing that you want most from life, right now?"

3 parts to it
1. One thing you want - not also want, not somewhat want. THE thing you want. The one thing
2. In life - taking everything into consideration. It needn't be about work. It could be parents, partners, solitude, anything!
3. Right now - this one thing will keep changing, as you live life. So we are focused on right now.

And here is why this question is important.

Humans have a very weird characteristic. If we do not know what the one thing that we truly want from life right now, the next best thing that we want is - everything!

And that is where the problem starts.

Because we do not know what we truly want, we suddenly money and a good company and a good family and a good work-life balance and a fancy office and vacations and that big car and that fancy house and fame and respect.

So wherever we go in life, we are also under-serving that one need of ours, in the desire for everything.

If we truly want money, we have settled for something that is a poor mix of everything. And our need for money is under served.

If we truly want stability, we settle for something that is a poor mix of everything. And our need for stability remains under served.

You get the drift.

So the hard work is to be constantly aware of what is that ONE THING that we truly want from life right now.

The answer isn't easy to find. But it is necessary to find!

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THIS WEEK'S BOOK READING

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Started reading Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need To Know About Global Politics​

What a fascinating book. Basically, talks about the world and why the politics of it is the way it is, through a story of geography. If you are interested in geopolitics, this is a must read, if you haven't already. I am frankly blown away. Can see this already in my top books of 2021.

So this year's count is 3 books
​Being Mortal by Atul Gawande​
​Non-obvious Mega Trends​
And prisoners of Geography

PS: Please do not EVER make the number of books read as a metric of success. It isn't. I am a fast reader. You don't need to be. And if you aren't that doesn't make you any lesser.
You are enough.

Repeat after me.
YOU ARE ENOUGH :)

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THANK YOU

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​My YouTube channel touched 100K subscribers this week. The reason it is special is because this one took a lot of effort and a lot of changing styles.

Two months back we decided to make some dramatic changes to the channel
1. Shift to Hindi (from English before)
2. Shift to themes which are more relevant (personal finance and startups, as against motivation and inspiration)
3. Speak to a much younger crowd and help them (so 18-25 predominantly, as against 25-35)

It worked. We learnt a lot along the way. Were helped by a lot of wise people and my team did such a terrific job.
​If you haven't yet subscribed to my channel, this is a selfish request to do so.

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QUOTES FOR SHARING

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If you feel compelled to keep the world perpetually in awe of you or your life, then they own your life!
​(Share on Twitter)​

I get the most replies to my newsletter whenever there is a typo in there.
This isn't true for just newsletters. This is true for life!
​(Share on Twitter)​

You are in the wrong career if the only reason you are in it is your salary.
​(Share on Twitter)​

Ever wondered how much of what you call success was never defined by you? Instead, imposed on you?
​(Share on Twitter)​

Courage is possibly the most important quality of all. Courage not so much to win, but courage to be okay even if you don't win!
​(Share on Twitter)​

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RESPONSES TO LAST WEEK'S QUESTIONS

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Last week I asked all of you

Which one will you choose and why?

1. Die rich and famous
2. Die rich but not famous
3. Die famous but not rich

Very very interesting results. And different from what I expected.

I expected most people to go for option 1, followed by 2 and then 3

However, most of you opted for Option 2 - die rich but not famous. And that is SUCH A WISE CHOICE to make. Being famous frankly doesn't bring anything. Making money helps you do a lot of things - that you really don't need to talk about or brag about. You could be running a successful foundation, creating employment though your business, helping fight global problems or anything else.

Almost 50% of you voted for option 2.

Another 35% or so voted for option 1 - which is die rich and famous. And most of them said "why not!" :)

And only 15% said die famous but not rich. To their credit though, most of them used famous interchangeably as a means of creating impact. Which doesn't need to be the case.

For instance, due to the recent WhatsApp privacy issue, a lot of you are moving to Telegram and Signal.

Do you know who owns Signal? And how?

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THIS WEEK'S POLL

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Let's say that you could afford to pay only Rs. 99 a month for a service. Which service would you chose?

1. Facebook with no ads
2. YouTube with no ads
3. 5GB more data
4. Netflix for Rs. 99 a month

To answer, simply reply to this email.

I read all my emails. ALL MY EMAILS.
​(Chole Bhature ki kasam!)
​(no english translation even possible!)

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