Throughout my career, I have never believed in keeping separate lives for personal and professional fronts, as people say. One big reason for this might be that I started my career in a startup, and have worked mostly with startups where the work culture and environment was uber-cool and the person sitting next to you was a friend first and colleague later.

There have been times where I have been advised to keep my personal and professional lives separate, and to think and act only professionally while at work. I myself have thought (for a brief duration) that keeping this separation was the way for peak performance, but I have failed miserably whenever I have tried that. In this article I will share my views about why this separation between personal and professional life no longer works. It might have worked a few decades earlier, but in this age of facebook and twitter, I don’t think peak performance is possible if we keep our personal self at home.

1. Sharing our Feelings Bring People Closer
It is no secret that honestly opening up to another person and being authentic about a situation taps to the deepest levels of… Read the rest

दुनिया से ना मांग तू हर कदम इज़ाज़त
हर ठोकर पर ना ढून्ढ सहारे की चौखट
शर्त यह है कि सीने में आग जलनी चाहिए
झुकती है दुनिया बस झुकाने वाला चाहिए

दोस्तों से ना मांग दोस्ती का सूद
यारी से ना पूछ उसकी ऊचाई का सबूत
शर्त यह है कि सीने में आग जलनी चाहिए
निभता है याराना निभाने वाला चाहिए

ज़माने में ना ढून्ढ तू अपने हसने का कारण
मन ना भी हो तो तू हसना सीख जबरन
शर्त यह है कि सीने में आग जलनी चाहिए
हस्ता है पत्थर बस हँसाने वाला चाहिए

घर सुन्दर सजाना हो तो नहीं लगता पैसा
दिल की दूरिया हो कम तो कुछ नहीं उस जैसा
शर्त यह है कि सीने में आग जलनी चाहिए
बनता है आशियाना बस बनाने वाला चाहिए

काम है तेरा कठिन ना कर तू यह शिकायत
उसी काम से करना सीख तू मोहब्बत
शर्त यह है कि सीने में आग जलनी चाहिए
पिघलता है पर्वत बस पिघलाने वाला चाहिए

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Around two years ago, I wrote an article on the importance of keeping faith in life and how it is very important to have faith, especially when the times are tough. I wrote about how these tough times can be life’s tests which will only make us stronger and wiser with time. In this article I want to write about why and how having faith requires courage.

To live faithfully means to live productively, but having faith is an act of courage which must be repeated hour after hour, day after day. Faith allows us to take risks in life, to go in the direction where the paths are unknown, and that is not easy for most of us. Faith also makes us ready to accept some pain and disappointments knowing that everything will turn out the best in the end. And it requires courage to all this.

This courage comes from deep within the soul, and not from any kind of power or knowledge. It is the courage which is accompanied by a calm attitude, and is different from the courage required to declare a war on someone. It is not required to be physically strong or have a gun to have this courage,… Read the rest

There lived a fish so wonderful in the ocean that the tales of its beauty has reached far far lands. Her name was Flash. It was vibrantly colored with a tail called the “half moon“. All the other fish were envious of Flash for its long finned tail and brilliant colors. Its “D” shaped tail with sharp and crisp edges form almost a 180 degree angle. Flash also had the proud heritage of belonging to a rare family of fish who could breathe directly from air (apart from water).

But Flash had a worry. She was worried about and constantly looking for this thing called the “ocean“. She had heard about it and how beautiful and vast it was, but she couldn’t find it. She wandered all around the water, looking beneath the rocks and beyond the danger area where predator fishes reside, but to no avail. Her life was perfect in so many ways, but yet the meaning of ocean eluded her, and that spoiled her days.

She looked worried and anxious at all times due to this never ending search, and it started to impact her beauty too.

Word came one day to Flash that there was… Read the rest

तुझे देखा तो यह माना
की तू सोने की मूरत है
तुझे जाना तो यह पहचाना
कि तू कितनी खूबसूरत है

मैं तो हो गया हूँ घायल
जबसे देखी तेरी नजाकत है
तेरी निगाहों ने कर दिया है कायल
बस एक ये ही शिकायत है

देख के तेरा चेहरा इतना भोला
सूझे मुझे भी पल पल शरारत है
जिस रोग ने बना दिया मुझे दीवाना
वोह तेरी याद ए मोहब्बत है

इतना इंतज़ार न करवाओ
कि अभी दूर वो शुभ मुहूरत है
बस जल्दी से तुम आ जाओ
कि अब मुझे तेरी जरुरत है

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There are some traits we should all have – like being helpful, confident, proud and humble, and enough has been written about them. What I want to touch upon in this article are some traits which we should aspire to have but not go too far in that aspiration either. It is very important to maintain the right balance in the extent to we have these traits. By focusing on these things in this article, the aim is only to become the best version of ourselves, and not to become better than anyone else.

Path 1 – Be Proud and Confident but not Arrogant and Cocky

The balanced man is sure, secure and certain but never has an exaggerated sense of one’s own abilities. He doesn’t need to have a victim to become victorious. He knows his strengths and weaknesses well, and knows when to seek help. If he has a good idea, he shares it with the world rather than keeping it to himself. He takes action regularly towards his objective, and these actions doesn’t need to put anybody else down. He has ‘real’ confidence, which is authentic and genuine, and doesn’t let his insecurities translate into over-confidence…. Read the rest

“Oh no, not again today. Why do these last minute tasks keep coming up at just the wrong time”, Vivek thought as he rushed out of his office in a hurry. The watch read 5:15 pm. “I might just escape the evening traffic.”, he murmured as he started his car.

He had traveled around 15 minutes and the traffic was smooth.

“So far so good”, he uttered as he approached a traffic signal, knowing that a real busy stretch was about to commence. He waited for the signal to turn green, which happened after around 90 seconds of waiting. But alas, even as the signal was green, the car in front of him didn’t move.

“What the …? What’s wrong with this …?”, he shouted as he rolled down his glass windows. “Why do people take their cars out if they don’t know how to drive?”, he said, his voice getting louder.

It has been 15 seconds now, and was only 30 seconds before the signal would turn red again. He honked, and then honked some more but to no effect. He decided it was time to give the driver an earful and got out of the car.

“Can’t… Read the rest

सुबह सुबह जब आँख खुले
पल पल जब तक रात ढले
यह दिल तुझे ही महसूस करे माँ
और यह आँखें तुझे ही ढूंढें माँ

तेरी दांट मुझे अक्सर याद आये
प्रेम से पड़ी मार आज मुझे रुलाए
यह कान तेरी ही वाणी ढूंढे माँ
और यह आँखें तुझे ही ढूंढे माँ

तेरे हाथो का स्पर्श नहीं भूला मै
तेरी गोद की नींद नहीं भूला मै
यह मस्तक तेरा ही आँचल ढूंढे माँ
और यह आँखें तुझे ही ढूंढे माँ

तेरी ममता की चादर बहुत बड़ी है
तेरे प्यार की बोछार एक निरंतर झड़ी है
मेरा हर शब्द तुझे ही हर पल पुकारे माँ
और यह आँखें तुझे ही ढूंढे माँ

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