#SoG – 922

On writing (from my newsletter)…

Wrote this in today’s edition of my daily-ish newsletter. Subscribe here. Thought it deserved a wider subscription.

What I write, to be honest has nothing to do with my book or the film. Neither it inspires any of my readers to do anything extraordinary. But to me, writing is about writing for the sake of writing. You know, getting some words on paper (or keystrokes on a laptop) is like the best thing that can ever happen to me. I mean, I can’t paint. I don’t have the ability to hold attention. I am not well-read (ok, I read a lot but I haven’t read deeply about things – you know, have merely scratched the surface). I cant doodle. I am not funny. I have two left feet (so dance is out). I am the greatest bathroom singer to have ever walked the Mother Earth and thus I must never sing outside. The guitar and the Uke are rotting in some corners in the house. Bicycling is not my thing. Clubs are boring. I’d love to take photographs but requires way too much patience. Video games were a thing when I was younger – now, I don’t have the reflexes. I would watch TV when I had more time but with attention spans getting shorter and time becoming increasingly rare, I tend to pick other things to invest my time on.

So, I am left with writing as the thing to find an escape. And to find inspiration. And to try and get to salvation. Of course, I am yet to reach a point where I can say that I am good writer, the point, ladies and gents, is, writing is what makes me happy and makes me forget the fuckeries and vagaries of the world around me. And you know what, I am grateful about it. I just need to do a lot more of it!

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Originally posted in today’s edition of my daily-ish newsletter. Subscribe here.

Hello, themes!

Good afternoon!

So, as I write this, I have just spent one hour of almost uninterrupted time on book2 and trust me, it was HARD. For someone like me (who has an attention span of a Goldfish). It sucked to not reach out for the phone every 1 second. But I am happy that I could do an hour on #book2. Today was the second day when I could work on it. If I go at this rate, I will probably have the bible ready in a month or so (that is what I am hoping to achieve). And why? Because a talent agent has asked me to write the bible – it apparently interests them enough to go pitch to some production houses. Yay to that!

Like I’ve been saying, the ability to write (and remain unfazed with negative feedback) has been the largest thing to me. These letters and my blog is ok – these are consumed by friends and family and thus I get immense support. But what I write in my books is for the world at large. And the world at large is anything but kind. I mean the world is kind as well. But there are enough and more that would not cut you slack. But then, those people expand my universe and get me ahead. So, it is worth the grind.

So yeah.

What else? Yeah… apart from this two-day streak of working on #book2, yesterday was a special day. I saw my name on a screen for the first time yesterday, as a producer. Of a short film. The only other thing that I’ve done before this is helping a musician friend with this music video.

No, can’t say much about the short film at this point in time, there are a lot of open ends. But we should be able to talk about it in less than a month. Hope it happens sooner. Can’t wait! It is a step in the direction of where I want to move with the theme of storytelling. And been wanting to move for a while.

Theme. Themes.

I think I have finally found a universal word to describe the method in my madness. I like knowing about many things and I love to talk to many people and I want to learn as much about things as I can. There is so so much that I want to do, stand for, push, etc. But I never had the word to describe those things. And often I would get trapped in my own head. And of course, no one would understand what am doing, let alone what am hoping to achieve. I was dancing to a song that no one else could hear.

Not anymore. I have the words to express what I am hoping to do. I call it themes.

Themes.

So, some themes that I have in life are…

Storytelling / Entertainment
Relationships / People
Long-term thinking / Compounding
Longevity
Abundance / Wealth
Enabling
Ambition
Give back / Pay it forward

Of course, this is an indicative list. There has to be more. There is. And then, once I have a largish set of themes to work with, I will reduce these themes to less than 5.

The list remains WIP. Like I said, with time I will refine these in a manner that they’d make more sense to me (and to the world). The point is that each thing I do must fall under a certain theme.

Write books? The theme of storytelling, entertainment.
Travel? The theme of exploration.
Mt. Everest? The theme of adventure, ambition, inspiration.
Teaching? The theme of giving back.

Think of these as tags. Each thing I do can now fit under a particular “theme” and with time, I will refine these.

Makes sense?

What are some of the themes that you relate to? What can I help you with?

Originally written as a letter to some friends on SoGv2.

Thank you, Rana Sir!

Post 5 of #sg100peopleToThank. More about this series is here.

Thank you, Rana Sir!
I don’t know how to introduce Rana Sir. Apart from his work, he is a mentor and a bounding board to I think at least a 100 people. I am lucky to be one of those 100. Lucky would be an understatement. There is no one else who’s opinion I hold higher.

Here’s a story from my first EVER meeting with him. First ever. He did not know who I was and what I was capable of. And he definitely did not know if he’d meet me again. I met him at Oberoi Mall for a coffee or something. I was trying to get my startup to work, I had this book (which became The Nidhi Kapoor Story) and I was going through this really tough time personally and professionally. I needed a guardian to tell me that things would be alright and I just needed to continue to walk.

And sir did exactly that. Without me telling him that I was seeking an answer like that. In fact, he was so good, such great at making conversations that it felt as if I was the only one talking. I think, in the meeting that lasted an hour or so, I would have spoken for about 58 minutes. The other 2 were Rana Sir asking me questions that I was trying to respond to.

Ok, I am digressing.

At some point, he asked me what I was up to. This is how that thread went on…

RB: So what do you do when you are not worrying, young man (till date, he calls me a young man).

SG: Sir, am trying to write a book!

RB: Book! Wow! What kind of book is it?

SG: Sir, it’s a Bollywood crime fiction. An actress gets murdered and there are these cops that are trying to chase the killers.

RB: Sounds interesting. Is it done?

SG: No sir. I am at some 35K words and I need at least 55K more to go.

RB: And when do you plan to get those done?

SG: Um… I am not sure. I am at that phase in the book where I am not sure if I want to work on it. I am thinking I will quit it midway and think of something else.

RB (without missing a beat): Ok, and how much do you want to price it at?

SG: Sir, I think 99 bucks. That’s what most first time writers get for their books.

Again, without missing a beat, he flipped his wallet out. Took a 100 rupee note, handed it to me and said, “Young man, you will finish the book and then you will get me the first copy of the book. This is the advance”

And tears welled in my eyes when that happened.

He did this to me in our first meeting. It dawned onto me that he is special and I MUST get him to spend more time with me. And I did whatever it took to get him to give me his time. To date, I continue to hound him for his time and often he can’t respond. But whenever he can, he is generous and affectionate.

Can I also say that Rana Sir is one of those few people that has made this hard city of Mumbai a tad more tolerable? And just for that, I can’t stop thanking him! And I can safely say that if not for Rana Bawa, the book would NOT have happened. And I would have been a far different person than what I am right now.

Thank you, Rana Sir. For your time. And for your advance. And for all the support. As promised I will do whatever it takes to get to MCA, 100 crores and 120 years!

Others posts in this series: 1, 2, 3, 4

PS: Fast forward a few months (after the first meeting with Rana Sir). I actually finished writing the book and got it published. And when I got the first preview copies, I went to his office at midnight and delivered the copy that he had ordered.

And, here is a page from the acknowledgements part of #tnks.

Shot from my first book, The Nidhi Kapoor Story (website)

In life, if you meet some guy called Rana Bawa (its a very uncommon name), please get him on your side. Over and out for the day.

Thank you, Tim!

Post 4 of #sg100peopleToThank. More about this series is here.

Thank you, Tim Ferriss!
Of course, you know who Tim is. Apart from the 4-hour series (work, body, chef and I don’t know what all), he is more famous for his blog and podcast. I don’t know when I first heard about him but I do know that I was amazed at his ability to get past the gatekeepers and get access to some of the busiest and most difficult to reach people in the world. And not just access, he had and continues to have a ringside seat as these people do wonders. He is an early investor in companies like Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon, Evernote, and Uber and others. To be able to put money there, you don’t need access to just capital but to deals when they are being structured and even thought of.

This insider access is what I crave the most. And not because I want to be famous. But because I believe it allows you to grow as an individual. And why would you want to grow? To be able to serve! The way Tim is. With his blog, podcast and other appearances.

While I’ve never met Tim, I have an Eklavyasque relationship with him. I never had access to his time but I do have access to what he’s taught. And from a distance. That’s the beauty of the Internet. It allows you to literally reach anyone, anytime and on any device. You no longer have to go through the grind to reach these teachers. In fact, Tim’s work reduces friction all the more. And that is what I would want to do as well. The SoG series attempts to do just that (educate, inform, spark a debate/conversation and other things).

With the remote access that I had to Tim, I have been able to learn so much about so many things. Definitely more than all the schools, colleges and other places that I have been to. You know, if I were in my 20s right now, I would spend all my time chasing content on Tim’s blog. And touch nothing else. That body of work itself will allow me to get ahead. And fast. Tim has done the hard work on extracting the greatest lessons from the greatest lives already.

Thanks to him, his life and his work, I know that what I aspire to do (make a billion dollars and inspire a billion people to do better) is not impossible. Of course its tough af but what fun will it be if it weren’t tough ;P

I will do a Tim Ferriss with my career. I mean I love talking to people. I love listening to their stories. I love to tell these stories in my own language and I love to add whatever colour I can add on top. Someday (soon, hopefully in 2019), I will start talking to inspiring, amazing people that Tim has been able to talk to. And tell their stories from my lens! Wish me luck 🙂

And, for the umpteenth time, thank you, Tim!

Oh, random trivia. Tim is one of those few people who’s website comes up higher than their Wikipedia page on Google!

Others posts in this series: 1, 2, 3

Thank you, Ashima

Post 3 of #sg100peopleToThank. More about this series is here.

Thank you, Ashima!

I went to MDI with Ashima. Among all the 150 odd people that were in the batch, Ashima was one of those that ignored my ignorance and tolerated me. And continues to tolerate me after all these years. And even though it’s been almost 14 years, she remains my shrink, my doctor, my advisor, my bounding board and my fitness consultant. Every time I have a thing that requires me to goto a doc, I just call Ashi (that’s what I call her) and get help. And it works every time. I think, in one line, I can say that she’s an integral part of my support system!

What makes Ashi amazing is that she is one of those few people that had the guts to take the tougher path (I wish I could write more about this – this is a public platform) and choose her fitness, her life over everything else.

I don’t really have too many words (I wish I could write more) but I do have mad respect for what she stands for and what she does for me. Ashima has taught me what amounts to being friends. She has been like a rock that has stood by me through thick and thin. And for that, and for more that I cant write about here, Thank you, Ashi.

Others posts in this series: 1, 2

Thank you, Harshit

I started a new project yesterday. Each day, I plan to write a post acknowledging people that have helped me become who I am. This idea has been inspired by Shatrujeet‘s series, a100peopletothank. This is post 2 in the series. My series has the tag #sg100peopleToThank.

Thank you, Harshit.

I first met Harshit (Instagram) some 3-4 years ago (I don’t recall how we connected but I do remember it was about a startup he was planning) at Starbucks, Powai (where else?). When we met, I am not sure if I were impressed by him but I did realise that he has this, unbound, ambition. I do remember that I tried to poach him. But he did not fall into my glibness and he said no.

We lost touch for a while and then out of the blues, he asked me to meet him.

Of course, I never say no to meeting new people (as long as meet me in a 3 KM radius of where I live). He volunteered to come to the office and we sat and talked and talked. Yet again, I did not think much of him.

Among other things, in this meeting, he talked to me about his admiration for Shahrukh Khan. And anyone that loves SRK is automatically a blood relative! Harshit went so far as to narrate word-to-word SRK’s now famous speech (video, text) where he equates poverty with failure. SRK said, “I equated poverty with failure. I just didn’t want to be poor.” I take inspiration from this piece. And so does Harshit! And we could’ve left that meeting on this shared ~~fandom~~ obsession for SRK, but no.

While parting, Harshit asked me about things that I needed help on. I told him that I needed someone to do tech for an idea I was working on at the time and I needed someone to help me with growing business at C4E.

And without expecting anything in return, he connected me to Abhinav (who has now become a close collaborator on most projects). And he helped me meet a few potential clients (I could not convert any – not his problem).

As things moved along, we started meeting frequently and I realised that he is one heck of a conversationalist! To a point that I started sharing my deepest secrets with him. And instead of making fun of me or something, he started to offer help. He started to badger me to do more. And like a great pupil, I would continue to ignore. He became this persistent voice at the back of my head that would not leave me alone if I did not deliver!

Then one day he called and said that he wants to throw me (and some others) a challenge to do 100 pushups over the next 30 days. I said I can’t do anything to do with fitness and I volunteered that I’d rather write 1000 words a day. He agreed and asked me to write a 1000 words and post them on a public forum.

Even though I accepted the challenge, I kept dilly-dallying. And he did not stop her badgering and pushing me. I hated him from the bottom of my heart. And I felt miserable about not being able to work. Here is one snippet from my notes about a meeting with him…

This is from my notes. I started writing the SoG series from the 27th of Oct, right after this note! Guess I’ve had enough of Harshit and Krishna chasing me!

Eventually, I gave in and I started to write a 1000 words a day. Those words took shape of Shoulders of Giants (#SoG), a series of letters to select friends where I would share whatever I learnt in the day gone by.

I sent the first letter on the 27th of Oct 2018 (a copy is located here). Since then I have written a few (archived here). Oh, I can’t write about SoG and not write about Krishna. While Harshit gave me the push, it was Krishna that helped me give shape to the thoughts and idea behind the letters. More on these some other time.

As I end this, I HAVE to say that the thing that I relate most to him, and what I’ve learnt from him, and what I respect him for is perseverance. He has this maaaaad perseverance of an obsessive, maniacal person. If he sets his eyes onto something, he gets it. Case in point? His Crossfit training. Since he moved to Lucknow, he is doing whatever it takes to become super fit and compete in the Crossfit games. He wakes up before 4:30 (which is inhuman), goes to the gym and sends one inspiring quote EVERY day! Every day! An archive is on his Instagram feed. That’s some consistency and commitment. If I had that kind of commitment, I would reach my lifeGoals faster and sooner!

Oh, and Harshit is a clear example of a connection that I would’ve never made if I did not go out of my way and told the Universe that I wanted to meet more people. And it wouldn’t happen if Harshit wasn’t the same! Apart from being a friend, Harshit is superconnector (has connected me to some really interesting people) and a believer in me.

Lesson for me? And others? Go out, meet more people. And while you are at it, see this TED talk that talks about what makes a good life. Like they say, it helps to hustle 🙂

In the end, thank you, Harshit. For inspiring me to push myself harder. And specifically for nudging me to create SoG. I sincerely wish you were in Mumbai. I would’ve loved to spend more time with him. Maybe sometime in future. I remain hopeful 🙂

Others posts in this series: April 1

#untitled – 28Mar19

This is an excerpt from #SoG130.

What is SoG?

A series of letters that I write every day where I talk about ideas that can help us become better. Subscribe here. You would not regret. Promise.

Here goes…

I did not send the letter yesterday. Even though I could. I had the time. I knew what I wanted to talk about. But I did not. In fact, not just the letter, last few days have been tough for almost everything. To a point that I am unable to write. And I am unable to even think. Or operate. I have no clue why. Maybe its all the heat in Mumbai? Or maybe its something else? Is it all the work on my plate that is keeping me occupied? Or because I am not working out? The worst part? I can’t seem to find time to workout! Oh, workout for me means a leisurely walk for 10 minutes.

Also, I am not doing so well in my head. In the sense that thoughts are swirling and “flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup, they slither while they pass, they slip away across the universe. Pools of sorrow, waves of joy are drifting through my open mind, possessing and caressing.”

I am actually at that point where I am questioning if I want to write these. One part of me says I must – each letter is an opportunity to write and thus, an opportunity to read. Plus writing every day is one of those discipline things that I must have in life. This is the thread that could define my life. Heck, define me.

And then I read how Picasso lived for 33,403 days and has 26,075 published works (see this tweet and this post). And I realised that if I can’t write a letter a day, how am I going to get closer to my mission of inspiring a billion people?

On top of it, I got this message from a stranger (on Twitter) that said that he would like to subscribe to my letters. I don’t know if it was a random act of kindness but it did make me smile. I know that these letters touch a chord and thus the resolve to write every day got stronger. Thank you, Mr. Shah. I hope you are reading this.

Oh, and of course responses to this letter affect my writing. And my sanity. And of course people, things, incidents, circumstances and all that affect my sanity as well. There are a few things that I can control. And a lot that I cant. Writing is one. Feedback, readers, subscribers, unsubscribers, I cant.

So yeah, I am committed to writing these. Let’s see when the next jolt comes in. Do let me know if you would want me to write something specific.

Thank you for reading and staying with me! Here’s to 1000 True Fans.

#SoG42 – Personal Fitness

This is one of the emails that I send to some friends and strangers. The emails are based on one thing that I learnt in the day and how that could be applied to becoming better versions of self. If you want to get these emails, please lemme know (on twitter).

#SoG 42 – Personal Fitness This one comes at the request of one of the readers. She says she’s saturated with all the “heavy” things and needs something lighthearted. And thus, this one is aimed to be that.
Lemme start with a question.
When was the last time you threw up? And what did you do that made you throw up?
Most common answer would be, after a party. Some months ago. After all most recipients on this letter are sane!

When did I last threw up? Today morning! I dont know if I have mentioned this earlier but one of my #lifeGoals is to climb the Mt. Everest.
And then if that goes well, probably goto other peaks.
But Everest to start with. And I WILL do it before Jan 1, 2026.

This means that when I take the shot at it, I need to have about 60K USD + inflation + whatever else is required, 3 months of free time where I can make the attempt and most importantly, be in the prime of my health! Health means fitness, stamina, will power etc.

And that is what I have started to work on from this December.
I am on Keto Diet (to help get back in shape).
I ensure that I walk 8 KMs everyday.
And finally, today I started with Cardio. HIIT.
Went to a class and all that.
At 6 AM. In the morning.
Like a hipster – in Decathlon shorts (black), black Nike training shoes and a black Nike dry-fit tee.
It was so black that my bald head was reflecting the mood of the moon.
Blacker than the blackest black you’ve ever seen.
Thats not the point.

Point is, we started at 6.
Did some warm up and while doing do, I was sure that I will kick ass of everyone else around.
It seemed so easy.

Till we reached a point where the trainer asked us to do burpees. Now burpees is nothing too difficult. We’ve seen enough and more people do it on them youTube videos. No? All you do is jump, kneel down on all four and extend your legs backward. Then up get up again, jump, kneel, leg extension. In that order. Over and over again. Its that simple. Try it. Its like a cake walk. I knew I could do a 100 of those if I had to.

I was like, bring it on.

First one was great. I jumped so high I touched the clouds. Kneeling was easy-peazy. I suck at push-ups (throwing my legs back to stretch seemed like a push-up to me, so will use push-up to talk about it) but I did that one fairly easy. I was feeling good. The best day of my life! I could see the Mt. Everest.

Second was even better. I jumped and I felt like Icarus. And I think I did the push-up faster than you can say push-up. I could see myself as Farhan Akhtar doing those 100 reps. I was on my second. 98 more to go.

And on the third, I was going to launch myself out of the space with the jump. Which I think I did. And I went down to prep for the push-up. And… and, I passed out.

Well, not really. But I knew I’ve had enough.
I couldnt continue.
And I took the permission from the trainer and sat.
And I promise you, the gut was in my mouth and I was this —> <—- close to throwing up.
And may be I did. I dont know if I did.
I was in that delusion-ary phase where you just want to lie on your back and gasp for air and nothing else matters.

Ladies and gents, in less than three burpees, I was dead.
People around me may have done 5. Or 50. We’d never know.

But I have not lost hope. I will prevail. It was Day 1. And I hate stasis.

Wish me luck! See you tomorrow.

Thanks,
@saurabh