A Conversation To Remember

Late December, I had a very interesting conversation with Steve.

Steve and I had been trying to meet up for months. Unfortunately, we couldn't. After months of email exchange, I was finally able to put a face behind his name. Steve, is a remarkably interesting person. We chatted for 1.5 hours on varied topics - India, China, Venture Capitalism, Design, MBA, Tea...and many more things.

Apparently, Steve went to India on an exchange program about 25 years back and can still speak some Marathi and understand Hindi. Wow! He had very interesting stories to share. It is refreshing to hear someone else's point of view on India; country where I spent 21 years of my life. Of all the informational meetings, I have conducted, this particular one is quite memorable.

His most important piece of advice for my me was," Shalu, people in Northern California do not go anywhere...it is about the journey", which in my head translated to: The job search is not about a race to bagging the best job! It is about making an impact. The advice is such a contrast from my MBA life, which was about race to literally everything!

Thanks for sharing your perspective, Steve.

New Year, New Decade, New Aspirations

I do not like the word - resolution. I would like to give it a positive tone and call it - aspiration.

The word, aspiration does not sound like work in my head. Plus, it is positive enough to motivate me to follow through my aspirations :p

My 7 aspirations (in no particular order) for 2010 are:

1. Talk Slow: I think I talk really fast and sometimes loud (on the phone, when the person on the other end is also loud!).In my last two social gatherings with new people (on two different occasions), I discovered two people, who talked extremely loud, so much so that I got a headache after being in the room with them for 5 minutes. The problem is that most people think that being loud will get their point across. I had to sit far away from these two people, which is not good, because a) I did not interact with them; b) I was annoyed all the time; and c) Loudness is all I remember about them. The experience got me thinking that it must be quite annoying for others as well when I talk fast AND loud!
   
2. Learn to Surf: Hitesh and I love water sports. We took surfing lessons in Maui in December. Gosh! I have been missing all surfing fun all this time. Both of us loved it. We intend to be able to surf in Santa Cruz over Summer this year.
   
3. Learn to Swim: I know! I know...swimming, should technically, be a precursor to surfing. However, not being able to swim does not stop me from being in the water. I have taken swimming lessons thrice in my life. Something is wrong with my legs. Oh wait! I am making excuses - I, obviously, did not practice enough to be able to swim properly. Well, it changes this year and starting, January!
   
4. Start My Own Something: I have many-many interests and passions, which have not helped me focus my 100% attention on any particular interest. Starting this year, I am going to "start my own something". My biggest strength (that I can leverage easily) is that I am hyper-observant, and excellent at talking to people and building relationships. I have to focus my energy in meaningful interests and get on with it this year. I have gradually come to realize that owning your own something (that you are passionate about and good at), is the way to succeed.
   
5. Become More Involved Within Non-Profit: I am a huge fan of people, who focus their attention within non-profit sector. One such non-profit, started by a friend, and based in India, is "chotti si asha", which means 'a ray of hope' in English. I blogged about Liza's efforts in 2008. I hope to be able to help Liza more with her initiative, make it sustainable, and make "chotti si asha" profitable (Yes! MBAs do think about profits)
6. Exercise Regularly: I do exercise 3 days a week. It would be amazing to step it up to a 5-day regime. Most importantly, it will help me stay healthy and stress free.
7. Travel More: I have a confession - prior to traveling to Mexico, I used to think that Mexico is a dangerous place to visit. I am ashamed of my perception. I am quite open minded and do not usually have preconceived notions about anyone, or anything. I am not certain how I developed this idiotic misconception. In December 2008, Hitesh and I visited Mexico and boy! I was surprised. Mexicans are extremely friendly people. I had a fantastic time on that trip. The trip changed my point of view about Mexico. Travel, does open your mind. It makes you comfortable with the unfamiliar places and situations. Although, I already love to travel a lot, I hope to do more of it this year.

Oh, and most importantly: invest in relationships, reconnect with friends, and speak with friends & family more often this year.

I read somewhere that people, who write down their aspirations tend to achieve them than people who do not.

I plan to revisit this post at the end of 2010 and see where I am at.