What we learned together this week

We look forward to launching “Shakespeare and Startups” for you starting tomorrow. It is part of our ongoing endeavor to combine useful insights from business and literature to help you think through complexities of life. We begin with Hamlet.

“To be or not to be”

Isn’t this the most important question we attempt to answer everyday in different shapes and forms? Dr. Anamika will address your questions and provide you with a strong understanding of this complex play. No prior knowledge is required.

Taking stock of the week gone by - what did we learn:

1. Nagging solves nothing. COVID-19 will take a while to go away. The numbers are not encouraging in most parts of the world. While there are glimmers of hope, the picture isn’t rosy. Complaining about it, counting numbers and coming up with conspiracy theories won’t help. Since we all need to get used to working remotely, there is absolutely no need to begin every phone call or conference call with generic nagging about how difficult life is. Negativity spreads fast so it behooves us to be stoic. No one is asking us to be chirpy and excited.

2. The art of saying NO to Bill Gates. Bill Gates tried to hire Luis von Ahn (founder - CAPTCHA, Duolingo) at Microsoft Research several times. He always said no. They both are good friends today and often exchange notes on education and AI. The reason Von Ahn said no was that he wanted to build something, not work for someone else…Even Bill Gates.. Read on for more.  

3. Technology, politics and the Chinese Dragon. Public policy is overused and often abused term used nonchalantly. In an insightful memoir, Jash shares what it takes to make a policy career work, how impact measurement operates in nebulous areas and mental models for thinking about public affairs. Read more here. 

4. Career Principles of Fashion Model turned Sociologist, Dr. Ashley Mears: We are delighted to share that Dr. Mears will be conducting a masterclass on Network Capital TV. If you have questions, let us know. We will include it on our list. Her sociological lens helps us explore the world of fashion. Read on

5. Khaled Hosseini: Physican, Author, Kite Runner: Hosseini gave up his medical practice at the age of forty to become a full-time writer. Follow your curiosity. The adventure will be worth it. There is absolutely no need topressure on yourself with meaningless age-centric deadlines. You need to escape competition and create a category of one. Read on  

6. The Fault is in our Stars…or is it, really? Tarot card readers, psychics and ‘quack’ psychologists (pseudo-psychologists) are not qualified to provide real diagnoses to people. Sometimes, people even believe supposedly accurate personality quizzes which have no real scientific basis or research behind them. Perhaps the reason why astrology or other pseudo-sciences work is because of the fact that as humans, we love categorizing everything, sometimes even ourselves, which works in their favor. Read on to understand the Barnum Forer Effect.

7. What do you do when Elon Musk asks you to get out? You crack a joke like Dr. Laura Huang and revel in the ridiculousness of the moment. Thereafter, employ the EDGE framework.

8. Mental models to understand the call-out culture: a. Pick your battles. You cannot get outraged by everything. At the same time, don’t become so robotic that you are outraged by nothing.b. Stop obsessing over ideological purity. Remember Obama’s mental model.c. Being loud, sure and wrong is the worst combination. Avoid it. It is ok to have doubts sometime.d. What you do is who you are. Saying the right things is important but insufficient. The world won’t change an inch people keep parroting cute buzz words and do nothing about it.Read on for more. Reading Recommendations:

   1. Why the French don’t show: Not only is ‘Je suis excité’ not the appropriate way to convey excitement in French, but there seems to be no real way to express it at all. Ever wondered why, on average, the French are never excited and Americans are always on? This article will explain why.

   2. Lessons in Flânerie: The Fine Art of People-Watching in Paris: Few things are more French than the artful interplay of voyeurism and performance that takes place at a Parisian café. People-watching is, after all, among the most entrenched of Parisian pastimes. In the 1800s, as industrialisation transformed Paris into one of the world’s great metropolises, flânerie—a word meaning to stroll around aimlessly but implying an attention to passersby—was raised to an art form.

   3. John Lewis, Towering Figure of Civil Rights Era, Dies at 80: Read it and consider observing a moment of silence. Have a rejuvenating weekend. Your INSIDER Team,

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