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At 29, I was jobless, with no money, recently married, confused, clueless.
Had no idea where I will be in life.

To all those who think they haven’t done anything in life, and have wasted so much time.

It is not about the years gone by. 
It is about the years still left!

A famous sculptor wanted to sculpt his final masterpiece on top of a hill and he wanted it to be his best work ever.

He worked, day and night, creating patterns and bringing the mountain stones to life.
And when it was all over, he asked a friend to come and see the end result.

The friend saw a stunning piece of art, from the foot of the hill and knew instantly that this was indeed the sculptor’s best work ever!

And so he climbed the hill, to congratulate his friend.
Once he reached, the sculptor insisted that the friend take a closer look and admire the finer aspects of the sculpture.
The friend noticed a crack and reported the same to the sculptor.

The sculptor paused for a minute. Stared at the crack.
One could see his expressions changing.
Without any warning, he took his hammer and destroyed the entire sculpture.

The friend was shocked. What just happened!

“Why did you do that?
No one would have noticed that crack from such a distance.
People would have still liked it!”

“But I noticed the crack.”

Most often we ask ourselves, “Will people like my work?”
But we often forget to ask ourselves, “Do I like my work?”

When we have choices in front of us, we also have a preferred one.
We always know of it.
Accepting that we know that choice, is the first step.

Step 2.
The next step is imagining the worst-case scenario once we have taken the choice.

Step 3.
And then, all we need to see is, if we are comfortable with that worst-case scenario.
Once we realize that we are comfortable, even with the worst, we are mentally prepared to go for it.

You get up every morning.
You show up.
You do the right things.
You work really really hard.
Don’t cheat, don’t steal, don’t beg, don’t lie.

Here is the honest truth – People don’t care!

People don’t care if you are doing the right thing.
They only care if you are doing the right thing for them.

Nothing changes your life in 30 seconds.

The world would want you to believe in shortcuts.
5 easy ways to do X.
2 simple steps to do Y.
Change your life in 30 days.
Change your life in 30 seconds.

But the harsh truth is, there are no shortcuts.

What will it take to be successful?
It will take everything!

How many times in a day could you laugh at the same joke again?
Once?
Twice?

But after a point, you stop laughing.
You know the twist. You know the punch. You are aware of the story.
And there’s nothing new that could surprise you.

Here is another question for you.
How many times in a day could you get upset at the same situation again?

If you don’t laugh at the same joke again, how is it that you complain about the same situation again?
That you cry over the same issue again?
That you feel hurt about the same thing again?

Once you trick the mind into believing that your life is a “joke”, you will stop reacting to stories long after it’s over.

Most entrepreneurs end up building a company.
A company has rules.
It has a hierarchy.
It has restrictions.
It might also have good food.
And, a founder that sleeps peacefully at night.

But is it a place where people love to work?
Is it a place where they feel challenged?
Beyond a point, people stop working for money. They would want a larger cause to work towards.
The day that cause stops existing, they would leave.

When people stay back in your company despite mediocre conditions, your company isn’t a company anymore.
It has become an institution.

The biggest challenge while building a large company is communication.

How do you ensure everyone is on the same page?
How do you ensure everyone is working towards the right goals?
How do you communicate information rapidly and effectively?

The trick lies in realizing that every hop will lead to a 50% reduction.
In clarity. In direction. In all good things that matter.

The first hop is the most critical layer and finding your first hop will be your most critical decision.
It doesn’t matter what you tell them. What they tell others defines the story of your organization.

I placed two bricks on top of each other, wrapped a cotton cloth around them and created a sling knot.
Every day, I walked from home to the gym with this knot held between my jaws.
The idea is to put pressure on the cheekbones. And if you also move your head up and down, it works well for your neck.

People gave me looks.
Their responses were quite funny, ranging from “Is he mad?” to “Wow! Look at him.”

The attention I got was unusual and amusing at the same time.

Except, my cheekbones were still there.
It took 2-3 months for the effects to show up.
No effects at all was also a possibility.

Unusual things always get a lot of attention.
And we continue to measure the success of the outcome by the attention our work gets.

Attention makes us believe that we are on the right track.
But it’s never the attention that influences the outcome, it’s only our work

Ever shared your ideas in a meeting to which the reply was,
“Let me get back to you on this?”

This statement forms the basis of most conversations in a large company.
And the reason why this is acceptable is, these big companies are tolerant of excuses.
Excuses for not being able to deliver.
Excuses for inaction.
Excuses for not deciding then and there.

Whereas you will rarely hear this at a startup. Startups are fast. They take action. Their work is outcome-based. They make decisions quickly in order to move forward, wherever and whenever necessary.
And for the same reason, large companies are so slow to move forward.

A“let me get back to you” free world can only be created if you don’t accept excuses.

An excuse tricks us into thinking we don’t have any option, even when we have many!