The Branded and Gilded Life

Go to your profile page on the LinkedIn app on your mobile and you can record your name.Just like the dictionary tells you how to pronounce a wordSo, when you meet a foreign prospect, check out what their name sounds like.And surprise them by saying it right the very first time.What it tells the other person is that you made the effort.You took care of the small details. And those things matterIt's touchy. People are sensitive about their name.They may not tell you straight off but the wrong signals

Photo by Markus Spiske on UnsplashWith most chatbots, you know you're talking to a machine. But what if you didn't know?That was the fascinating premise of a book written about a decade ago called 'The Most Human Human'There's a competition held every year to figure out how far chatbots have progressed.On one side are three people selected to be judges.One the other are two chatbots and a human The judges have to figure out if they are chatting with a bot or a human.A five minute conversation has to

You can send email to anyone in the world. Easy.But getting them to read is impossible.Anyone can make movies these days. But you'll have to lock audiences in to watchPhotography has become easy.But even selfies aren't holding our attentionIt's easy to wash clothes in washing machines.But they still have to be dried, folded and stacked.Attending classes on parenting is easy.But bringing up children is hard.Planning a vacation is easyGetting through it is work.There are hundreds of solutions to

What was the riskiest thing you've ever done?Left home late to catch a flight?Or invested in shares, not mutual funds?You're living totally in your Comfort Zone.So why is it a trap?Because it doesn't give you the space to try new thingsYou'll find it applies to the smallest behaviors.Walk into a 2 day seminarOn day 1, you look for a place to sit. Then it becomes 'Your' place.It's very hard to change from there during the next sessionsPeople get offended when others sit on 'Their' seats.So what's the

The developer's work is always hidden. The copywriter's is mostly ignored.Developers write thousands of lines every monthCopywriters don't come anywhere closeWhen a developer screws up, users curse.When a copywriter screws up, the cat yawns.When developers hammer away on the keyboard, they're workingWhen copywriters look lost, they're working.Developers work on JavaScript, Ruby on Rails, Python and PerlCopywriters work on bootleg WordDevelopers dream of changing the worldCopywriters want the world

Success hogs the limelight. And failure must permanently remain backstage. Spoken about in whispers to a very small set of people.That's not how life plays out.The 100% result that pervades everything from school to social media is a sham.We need the myths around success to stay alive. Otherwise it would not be worth the effort.The trophies and wins are flaunted on social media.But the insecurities are buried in private.When did failure become a burden?Of course we have to give everything we're

No, it's not a startup focusing on paranormal experiences. But it's just as unbelievable.The original idea was to build an evolved blogging platform.But it has now grown into something else altogether.This post is not about the success story but a unique business model It's not-for-profit.  No shareholders. So, it can never be bought or sold. The code is open source and easily available to all those who want to self host it. They don't have to pay the company a rupee. Or a dollar.John O’Nolan, the