Essential.

One of the greatest pleasures of my life is reading books. It not just open the minds to new thoughts, it takes away any prejudice one might have. And any good thing in life is as much about knowing what not to do than obviously knowing what to do. Over the last 30 days, i have kind of covered some ground in terms of reading great stuffs. I am writing this blog to throw some light on 3 books recently finished. All three are intertwined in terms of scope at times, but very different in issues each address.

Tools and Weapons by Brad Smith: President of Microsoft in his book talks about the current challenges of the technological era. He speaks from his experience at Microsoft as the Legal head, how we are to navigate the wired world we live in. We have reached an inflection point when world has turned information into both a powerful tool and a formidable weapon. This inflection point should give way to a new rule of law to govern the world of AI/Robots/Machine Learning. Mr. Smith advocates greater responsibility from the companies that build greater technologies. Challenges in no defined order including Cyber crimes, social media and ethical issues with AI will need to be dealt with more holistic approach to governance from lawmakers and CEOs. Challenges to democracy are high due to these technologies, and the impact of it can be seen in the world. This is not the glorification of Microsoft, but how Microsoft 2.0 (Satya Nadella’s era) is trying to strive a right balance between technological advancement and ethical technological use. To paraphrase the author these issues are bigger than any single person, company, industry or even technology itself, it’s about fundamental human rights.

The Tech Whisperer by Jaspreet Bindra:  On digitization and digital transformation. "Digitization involves standardazing business processes and is associated with cost cutting and operational excellence, whereas digital transformation involves rethinking the company's value proposition not just it's operations". Author sets out to define how the advent of technology has gone ahead and changed (or is changing) the whole business model/ customer experience/ culture of the society along with the company. The impact the companies like Uber, Airbnb etc have had on how their respective industry is working.  It grapples which the question of how data, accessibility of it, ability of the companies to mine information out of it has changed the way businesses will operate. This book is a professorial course on how technologies like AI/Blockchain is making every company a technology company. It delves on IoT (Internet of Things) which is coming up as new product lines. And lastly  it has a chapter on AI written by an AI. Very interesting to know how it came about.

Tim cook by Leander Kahney: With the passing of Steve Jobs in 2011, Apple had lost its charismatic CEO. The baton was passed to an Operations guy named Tim Cook. For a person who loves what apple does, it is finest read on how the company was moved forward from there. Tim Cook’s background and early life helped forge the company into a more ethical, environment friendly, bringing in values of diversity and inclusion and above all of that keeping the flag of innovation high. Apple was the first company to reach the trillion dollar in market cap, it has come along with great products, from the culture of empathy, drive towards societal commitments not only financial commitments. Books sheds light on how different CEO’s impacts world differently, case in point Steve Jobs and Tim Cook. It will always be Jobs’ company but what Apple is today is very much Tim Cook’s making. 

"Technology advances could have made human life care free and happy, if the development of the organising power of man had been able to keep step with his technical advances, instead, the hardly bought achievements of the machine age in the hands of our generation are as dangerous as a razor in the hands of a three-year old child" - Albert Einstein.

Battle Royale XXXIX

39th career meeting. Nadal leads 23-15. 5th meeting at Roland Garros. Nadal leads 5-0. Nadal has not won the last 5 meetings, and not beaten the maestro for 5 years. These are just numbers. Just numbers. But Federer-Nadal or as is called ‘Fedal’ is the rivalry that cuts across tennis history and dare i say any sport.

Starting way back in Miami, 2004 a teenager in 3-quarters with biceps brooding over came up trumps against a guy who had opened his account GS records with a couple in bag and was destined to write history books. Nadal won that one, but who would have thought that during the next 15 years it will become the cult match that it supposedly is. In the inital few years, both were a regular feature at the business end of any major but especially French and Wimbledon, they went loggerheads in finals in 3 occasions in as many years. Nadal has troubled Federer in the dirt to an extent which made him question if he is even good enough to win this, and Federer was trying really to save his fort in SW19 but he lost the crown in the dream final of 2008.
Nadal’s top spin to Federer’s backhand has had him in lot of troubles which has given him an absolutely runaway advantage on Clay court, but Federer’s game suited best to fast courts has won all but Nadal’s game.

What makes this match special is not the talent they show off on the court...but the charisma they have off it. They are the best examples of a sporting rivalry. You can think of any generation and name Ronaldo-Messi, Tendulkar-Lara, Joe Frazer Vs Muhammad Ali, Michael Schumacher- Hill, Armold Palmer-Jack Nicklaus but nothing when compared to gladiators on the court trading blows baseline to baseline, corner to corner. Its been 15 years, but dare i say passion has diminished. That hunger, that zeal to have one extra point, one more break chances, one more game, one more set, one more match and hence, one more championship is what these nerves of excellence has been built upon.

Federer’s decision to return to clay after 4 years at the sunset age for tennis players of 37 was definitely applaudable for tennis fans across but if someone had a bet that he will play French Open semis against Nadal would be a rich guy today. Not sure how many out there would bet for it. Federer has acknowledged that road to Clay’s glory goes through Nadal and that is a testament to Nadal’s phenomenal record on this surface (11 French Open).
But, and this is a big but, this rivalry has surprised everyone at some point of the career, even at 37, Fedex has the game to surprise Nadal. Now, that is a testament to Federer’s longevity coz he still commands that authority he cannot be a pushover even in the dire scenario especially against his arch nemesis.

The hallowed Parisian clay will witness one of the strangest matches in the history, let alone they will witness the history. This is Nadal’s territory, pressure will be on him, but Federer at 37 may have some new tricks up his sleeve (his renewed early take up on backhand has made Nadal not that a potent force against him post AO Final in 2017).

NYT writes “What is clear is that dueling from the baseline and the baseline alone would not have worked against Wawrinka on clay, just as Federer knows it won’t work against Nadal. But when you have played someone 38 times, there can be few surprises.”

The battle, perhaps, is not on the court as much it is on the nerves and the mind. We are ready for #39. Vamos Rafa for me!

Attention-distraction

Few days ago while on a bit of recess from office work, i scrolled through my twitter feed. Read the following tweet from Pico Iyer, a well known writer “I check my messages once an hour and then wonder why I’m feeling so restless and distracted. If ten new messages are lying in wait for me, i feel burdened; if none at all, i am crushed. We run from where our happiness lies and then ask ourselves why we’re feeling confused.” Comments to this had a link to New York Times article titled “A texting driver’s education”. I read that article. What i found inside the article was a gold mine.
A deadly wandering by Matt Richtel is one important read of my life. Reggie Shaw, a teenager on the morning of September 19, 2006 hit the car with two rocket scientist in it while texting and driving on a highway in Utah, United States. This book is his redemptive journey - from denial to acceptance and ultimate realization- post this accident, and author’s brilliance in explaining the science behind this. This book is not just a one off story of redemption, but a social tale of void technology has created.
Richtel not only describes the series of events in the life of Reggie Shaw (Teenager), families of the victims, family of the accused, but looks at the entire history of cognitive neuroscience. From the origins of World War II, helping pilots and radar operators save lives by not being overwhelmed by the technology to later MRI brain studies of multi-tasking and what came to be known as attention science. The writer elaborates how distraction and attention is a null-set. They do not marry. And also that, distraction is borne out of our own desires. We are distracted because we want to be.
The book talks about two types of attention “top down” (what we want to focus) and “bottom up” (what takes us by surprise). We live in a world of smartphones, inherent nature of it is seductive and which uses both of those approaches.
The driver in the story, is from the generation of smart phones. It takes about 2 years for him to accept that fact that he was actually texting while driving and how - after a doctor’s testimony in the court- he was distracted by the same which led to the wreck and killing. He, then accepted blame. His floodgates open. He cries incessantly. He starts his redemptive journey well before court has sentenced him. He goes about describing the harms of text and drive and the importance of having a law. He speaks about it in the state congress to very much awe of the law makers. Looking at this, judge comes to a conclusion of only 30 days of jail for negligence and community service which is subsequently reduced to 18 days seeing his behavior in jail. He lives his life, thereafter in trying to say what is right and explain what he did was wrong to save any lives he can against 2 lives he lost.
Richtel summarizes the harms in the use of technological seduction in a world we live. Our bodies love the little hit of dopamine we get each time we check our phones for something. Too much technology can corrupt our soul he says. Anyone interested in attention science as a branch of cognitive neuroscience should read this book, it is one of its kind.
Technology companies, social media are built on these premises of human psychology. We crave for what we enjoy. The dynamism of these devices/applications makes it unique. This book is a seminal work on the need for society to understand the harms of these more than the good it brings. We are being emotionally hijacked by our drug-type crave for instant gratification.

Letter to younger self.

To, 

My Younger self,

I wish to write to you telling you what might come in your future.

You are only 17 years old. You were born with a differently abled heart which has been made perfect medically. You have gone through crests and troughs of a different making. You have been tested all along. There have been tough situations and will continue to live with it. But remember, you will be able to give your best only when you keep your head above the shoulders and do not let success get into head. 

You are in Ninth standard, and you are facing one of the most difficult period in life. Your school is getting de-affiliated and with you having to face tough choice. You will have a choice either to repeat one year of your school life or pass Class X with National Institute of Open Schooling. Again something not of your making. You will choose the latter. You will feel let down. You will feel embarrassed. You will feel disgruntled. Because you never thought that is the choice you ever had to make in life. Never had to face things which are not meant for yourself. But still, you will keep your head high. You will believe. You will believe what you chose is the best possible thing you can do.

You will spend a year thinking I do not belong here. I am better than this. I deserve better. But you will have no choice as usual. You cannot run away. You continue to persist. You continue to thrive. You near your finals exam when you face another daunting task. You do not get your admit card. You wait till one day prior to exam but you don’t get it. You get it only on the day of your exam. Your heart will be in the mouth all the time, but you will still believe that there may be good things inshore at the end of the day. You face the worse after the exam. When all your friends see the results your roll number will be displayed invalid in the computer screen. You will feel the filth. You will feel the dirt on your body. You will feel that my only choice is to die. Die to relieve yourself from this pain. Pain of last 2 years. You will be disheartened. But remember, there is light at the end of the tunnel. You will get the result 2 days after everyone sees it. 2 days of mayhem. 2 days of solitude. 2 days of foodless life. 2 days of cursing. 2 days of panic attacks. You will feel let down. But you carry on, with tears in your eyes and belief in your heart somewhere thinking “This too shall pass"

You got to be strong.

Life will throw you bouncers, you will know how to duck. Life will throw you beamer, but you cannot go to an umpire and complain. You need to get up and be ready again.

You will get into a proper school but offered Commerce as against your first choice Science. Your dream of becoming a doctor will be squashed. Your passion to learn about heart is will forever be damned. School will only offer you commerce without mathematics as one of its subject. You will fight. You will argue. Your will win your rights. You will get it. 

You work hard. What people get without a fuss you get with a pain. That will be the difference between you and your entire group of peers. You will struggle to find a reason why you always, but God will always have a special plan for you. You need to remember that always. 

You get through school with decent marks and enrol yourself in Chartered Accountancy, again not one of your first choices. You want to be an Economist, but marks did not allow you to pursue that. You will join the firm for internship. You will be thrown in the corporate mud with not so matured head. You will travel alone outside your home city. You will have to manage your stuffs for which you always had the back of your mother. You will feel alone in the battle of minds. You will be taught to “Open your ears more than mouth” and you will keep this lesson along with you forever. 

You will become mentally strong. You will become guarded. You will become self-aware. You will go onto become a CA by toiling, sweating, allowing tears to roll through. You will make your parents proud. You will make yourself a person who can stand and say to life Vamos!

You will work for one of the respected companies in the world. You will get the job on the 2nd day of placements. And fastest on that very day. But you will never own that place. You will feel I could be at better place. You will leave the job on your terms. Without an offer in hand. You will live your life on your own terms. You will survive. 

Never restrain yourself to anything. Believe in life always. You will be bogged down more than you think you deserve. You will have to fight for your rights always. You will never get things dished on a plate. You have to snatch it at times. Be rigid. Work hard. Be determined. Be thoughtful. Be respective to the situation. Take care of your parents. Read more. You have a future ahead of you. You will face situation crying mercy, but you will come out of it stronger.  You will be asked thousands of questions by life, in life, from life, but you need to find answers within. You need to find a reason to be positive. Because that’s all is meant to be.

At the end of the day always remember these lines from your favourite poem “If” - “If you can meet with Triumph and disaster And treat those two imposters just the same; Yours is the earth”

Joy

I must admit i cried yesterday. Cried after seeing india rejoicing in the series victory in Sydney. That was a surreal moment in our history, and in our lives. Remember, growing up in Winters in all of India tours to Australia only to sleep back after seeing India 70/4 or 100-0 before lunch. That was a routine. We were half-hearted in our approach, in our strength, and we sometimes showed up just to compete. A century here, 10 wickets there was like a glimmer of hope to arouse only to be shoved back in that speed of time. We never had the quality to beat Australia in their own backyard, to put it simply. As a fan, it was annoying, disgusting to see the country loose without a fight, without a spine every single time. 2003-04 we came close to winning, i remember getting up on the last day of the Sydney test hoping to feel what i feel now. A series win in the offing. But a certain Steve Waugh batted like he wanted to do everything before its curtains on his cricketing career. He denied India the victory. 2007-08, we became guilty of faulty umpiring, some tough calls, we lost the series. We were not good enough on the next 2 tours, a team was finding its feet with new players coming up the ranks. 

Come 2018, a passionate captain, a character to envy for, energy to die for marched his troops and India won the series here. I repeat, India has won the series in Australia. More than the numbers of it, it is emotional. It is something we have dared to dream for 71 years, it is that rivalry which can be compared only to Ashes. This was the dawn of a new cricketing team. Indian team which believed in fast, pace, grit, determination, hunger, desire, and as Ravi Shastri said “even willing to jump a cliff to make the country win”. That was missing. In a team sport, character of the team rubbing off on each individual defines how far you are going to go sometimes. Pujara batted like his family resides in the pitch and he wanted to be with them forever. Bumrah bowled with immaculate strength. Kuldeep Yadav in last test match, showed the art of wrist leg spin still alive. All these special feats, special display of talent was enough to carry the entire team on its shoulders.

I have lived all my life to be able to experience this. Comparing this team to any other indian touring side would be a dis-service to this as well as past tours. They were different. You cannot compare Sachin Tendulkar with Virat Kohli. That’s just not on. Styles different. Era different. As a fan, we need to cherish what’s been served. This feeling, this poignant emotion of invincibility doesn’t come often. This is not just the victory of a cricket team, it is such that nation has won its long standing cricketing battle. It cannot be better than this. Team sport as in any sport is battled in the mind first, and what happens on the field is just a reflection of what your mind is at. That is exactly why, this is special. India conquered its mind first, to win its battle on the field. Upwards and Onwards.