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There was a time when to be considered well-educated and cultured, you had to be able to recall facts, figures and preferably, whole passages from notable books verbatim. Today, all that is considered old hat and unnecessary. Barring one or two, I don’t know any people under the age of 50 who could recite a poem from memory. Forget poetry, I’d be surprised to meet someone who can dial more than 4 cellphone numbers, belonging to people they speak to regularly, without diving for their mobile. The externalisation of our memories got us to this point. ... and most of the them aren't responding! From phone numbers and email addresses to birthdays and anniversaries, it’s all saved on our phones or on some faraway cloud. There are people who believe that in the hectic, information-overloaded lives we lead, it makes sense to let external memories take care of these small potatoes for us. But is the externalisation of our memories only about freeing up our grey cells for more lofty matters? Or is it a move to pronounce memory a relic in our post post-modern or metamodern times or whatever else folks are calling the decades we’ve lived through in this century? It's been fashionable for some time now to disparage all kinds of memorisation in education as rote-learning. The slow disappearance of memorization in classrooms has its philosophical roots in Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s 1762 novel, Emile: Or, On Education. It was a book about a child raised by means of a “natural education,” learning only through self-experience. Rousseau abhorred memorization, amongst other statutes of institutional education at the time. “Reading is the great plague of childhood,” he wrote. While there is no doubt, I’m sure, that the educational ideology that Rousseau so disliked was genuinely mind-numbing and called for improvement, I’m not so sure that reading is such an evil so as to be compared to a plague. In today’s context, maybe calling it a pain in the neck would be more like it! Jokes apart, I agree that children learn more from growing plants than memorising scientific classifications of plant species. Therefore, should all facts be tossed out of the window? There are those who consider the learning of dates and events in history to be pointless since we can just look them up on the internet, within seconds. Sure, you could, if you knew what you were looking for. For instance, if I asked you when the Great Depression began, you could just google it. That’s very well, if the question is specific. But what if we were talking about the Second World War? Could you have made the connection between the impact the Great Depression had on Germany’s already-strained economy culminating in Hilter’s elevation to the top job, leading eventually to the outbreak of World War II if you’d never read about the Great Depression of 1929? Making connections requires, at the very least, a basic understanding of what happened, when and why. The precise dates don't matter but the broad timelines of events do. Without that, it’s like walking through a fog. Don’t believe me? Then you’ve clearly never searched for the word ‘ouija’ in a dictionary only on the basis of its pronunciation without having the foggiest idea of its spelling. I assure you, it’s not for the easily-frustrated! Another opinion one hears a lot nowadays, is how schools should be teaching students how to think, not what to think and therefore, the focus on learning about too many ‘boring things' should be minimised, and out-of-the-box thinking encouraged. I’m a big fan of people possessing critical thinking skills but I’ve never known anyone who can think coherently without having the ability to recall at least some facts and having a fundamental knowledge of how things came about in the field being discussed. A certain grounding is essential. It’s very rare that reasoning ability, creativity and independent thinking, let alone revolutionary new ideas, emerge without at least, some learning. Most of us are not Srinivasa Ramanujam and therefore, need some help before we can begin to expound. The key, I believe, lies in focusing on understanding ideas and the correlation and causality between things, not memorizing minutiae. Speaking of bright people, have you noticed how people who know a lot about a lot always seem to be able to remember the new stuff they learn faster than others who don’t know as much? Why is that? Is it possible that like in the case of money, it takes knowledge to gain knowledge? I mean that in order to understand new things, one needs a conceptual framework, a lattice of ideas and concepts, if you will. New information sticks faster and better if you have something for it to latch itself onto. Obviously, this lattice is not built only of information found in books but also grows out of experiential learning and one’s interests. But the point is, that it needs to be remembered in order to be useful. One way to foster inquisitive, knowledgeable people is to give them, in some measure, the basic signposts that can guide them through a life of learning. Creativity is the ability to spark connections between what you know from memory, what you see in the present and what you’d like to create. I read somewhere that Mnemosyne, the Goddess of Memory, was the mother of the Muses. This is one of those times when Greek mythology gets it right on the money! For me to have added this delicious little nugget here, I had to remember it because there is no way that I could’ve googled that, without first having, at least, an inkling of the myth. Educational reform that sets off to vanquish evils such as memorizing may make school more pleasant for students but will it really help them think more critically or creatively? That’s a question we need to think about before we start demonising everything that needs to be remembered. Before I end, I want to share that when I was writing this post, I passed by my father’s study and he was listening to We didn’t start the Fire by Billy Joel. It’s always been a favourite of mine and it got me thinking. If I hadn’t read or heard about the events and people mentioned, would I have appreciated the song?

I picked up Days at the Morisaki Bookshop expecting a cosy read about small joys and the life-affirming pleasures of forging human connections in a fast-moving world. Sadly, that was not to be. What I got instead was a book that devolved into a corny Hallmark movie with conflicts that practically resolve themselves and characters who are barely even one-dimensional. Satoshi Yagisawa’s debut novel, Days at the Morisaki Bookshop  is about a heartbroken 25-year-old woman, Takako who ends her relationship with her boyfriend because he was coolly two-timing her with a colleague. Given that they all work in the same office, Takako finds staying on at her job untenable and hands in her resignation. Depressed, alone and unemployed, she spends her time mostly sleeping in her rented Tokyo apartment. After a month of hibernating like a miserable bear, Takako receives a voicemail from her uncle, Satoru, who runs the Morisaki bookshop which sells second-hand books. He offers her free lodging in the room above the shop in exchange for opening up and manning the bookshop in the mornings. That gets the ball rolling. The protagonist, Takako is not much of a reader but starts reading out of boredom, finding solace in second-hand books. Her uncle, Satoru introduces her to the neighbourhood of Jimbocho—home to the largest number of second-hand bookshops in Tokyo. So far, so good. However, if you were looking for a relatable protagonist, it’s best to stop looking. Takako is bland and uninteresting and remains so right upto the last page. In fact, all the characters in this book, including Satoru and his estranged wife are underwritten with conflicts so half-baked they’re indigestible. The subplot about the relationship between Satoru and his wife and why she left him takes up almost half the book and yet, has such a tepid and incomplete resolution that I was left wondering if I had missed a couple of pages. I hadn’t. For me, Days at the Morisaki Bookshop read like a not-too-good Young Adult novel even though it isn’t. For a story with a narrator who is at least 28 years old when she begins narrating the story and has been through some life changes, her expression and perspective lack maturity. Add to this, writing that is sorely lacking in specificity, and there’s very little left to enjoy. However, there are some genuinely relatable portions that I would’ve liked more of, like these lines about the special joy of reading second-hand books. “At some point in the past, someone reading this book had felt moved to take a pen and draw a line under these words. It made me happy to think that because I had been moved by that same passage too, I was now connected to the stranger. Another time, I happened to find a pressed flower someone had left as a bookmark. As I inhaled the scent of the long-ago-faded flower, I wondered about the person who had put it there. Who in the world was she? When did she live? What was she feeling? It’s only in secondhand books that you can savour encounters like this, connections that transcend time.” Sadly, the theme of the refuge that books provide is not explored enough. Neither are the concepts of urban loneliness or the importance of choosing one’s own path in life really allowed to develop and add depth to the story . As a result, Days at the Morisaki Bookshop ends up being an underwhelming read.

Leo Tolstoy famously said, “If you want to be happy, be.” Is it truly that easy? Surely, everyone wants to be happy. What is happiness? It’s tough to agree on a single definition except to say that it is subjective. And if you know what makes you happy, do you know how to achieve the conditions that contribute to your happiness? For instance, if your idea of happiness includes being reasonably healthy, then you need to do the basic stuff that promotes good physical and mental health. Yeah, that boring stuff like eating healthy, exercising 4-5 times a week and getting enough rest and preferably, not endangering one’s well-being by going bungee-jumping with sub-standard gear, driving while intoxicated or reading a Chetan Bhagat novel. There’s no coming back from that last one. It’s fatal! GIVE IT A THOUGHT Literary warnings aside, I believe it is important to spend some time with oneself to ask questions like: what makes or would make me happy? Are there aspects of my life, behaviour or routine I need to change in order to facilitate my well-being and contentment? Is there something that once felt important or made me happy that no longer does? The benefit of such questions is that they pull us out of our usual pathways of thought. Introspection helps clear the dead wood. Personalities are dynamic, changing with time, experiences and one’s stage of life. No wonder our idea of happiness evolves throughout our lives. The key element here is honesty, which is why I recommend an audience of one. It is easier to be completely transparent when you’re the only one listening. It may be tough to admit to a family member that a promotion makes you happier than spending weekends with family. MAKE AN EFFORT All of this thinking is very well. But no source of sustained happiness comes for free. There is usually a mindset or some kind of effort required. When you’re making a list of what makes you happy, do also examine what factors or efforts (both from your and others’ side) make it possible. A gregarious young woman may derive happiness from having a large circle of friends. Is it simply the luck of the draw or does her friendly, helpful nature win her friends wherever she goes? I bet if she moved to a new city and turned into a grouch, her luck with friends would run out really fast. As would the warm feeling of being liked. At other times, our happiness is creation of someone else’s hand – a favourite meal cooked well or a shirt kept ironed for an interview. Noticing and appreciating these little gestures regardless of, and in fact more so, when they’re part of the routine is a favour we do ourselves. THE HUES OF HAPPINESS There are many types of happiness. One is the boisterous joy of a win, achievement of a milestone or a reunion. Another is derived from the satisfaction of a job well done. There is also a sort of happiness that feels deeper because it remembers the sacrifices made to get you where you are. It’s poignant because it is happiness with a drop or two of sadness, loss and memory stirred in. Another quieter sort of happiness is when the thought that life is good floats into your mind while doing something mundane. It feels like being wrapped up in a warm blanket on a cold day. HAPPINESS IS A MINDSET Many people are bright, beautiful and talented but there are few talents as valuable as the talent for enjoying your life and being happy. It’s a special kind of person who enjoys the big and small gifts of life, cherishes what they have, focuses on the positive instead of moping around like their buttered toast falls face down in the dust every day. Being cognisant of one’s blessings and being grateful is the surest way of leading a happy life. MAKE YOUR OWN HAPPINESS The idea of the Observor Paradox or Observor Effect in Quantum Mechanics states that we live in a world of our own making. In other words, since what is observed is affected by the observer, it means that reality, or at least our perception of reality, exists in a state of potential. It is our observation — our attention — which brings one or the other outcome into being. In a way, we choose our reality. You may, dear reader, think like I’m forcing too grand an idea into too small a mould but for creatures, on a small planet in the backyard of a galaxy, with lifespans too short to achieve anything of importance on a grand scale, perhaps all ideas are equally big or small. After all, the universe mirrors itself in big and small forms. Aren’t all creatures on Earth made of the same elements found in the largest of stars? We’re all made of stardust and so, maybe, just maybe, life was always meant to shimmer. As long as you look at it from the right angle. Millions of years from now, when the Earth is swallowed up by the dying Sun, (which will only be a few years after I manage to clear my Gmail inbox) who says a happy life will not weigh the same as an award in particle physics? And so, I recommend being happy.

Some books stay with you long after you turn the last page. Fragments of evocative or witty phrases, soaked in the novel’s atmosphere cling to the recesses of your mind. Often, these lines are spoken by characters that feel real enough to have a conversation with. Their presence outlasts the story. Bring up the Bodies  will reside in my memory for its wit and the deep, dark and inscrutably enigmatic character of Thomas Cromwell. This is the second book in Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall Trilogy. It won the Man Booker Prize in 2012, following its prequel, Wolf Hall which won in 2009. The trilogy charts the emergence of Thomas Cromwell from the grimy streets of Putney. The son of a blacksmith, Thomas tried his hand at many a trade— mercenary soldier, roadside card sharp, wool trader, and banker, before clawing his way to becoming Cardinal Wolsey’s protégé. Following the Cardinal’s death, Cromwell rose through the ranks at court to become arguably the most powerful man in England after the King. In a passage about Cromwell refusing to adopt a more illustrious family’s heraldry, Hilary Mantel shows us not just the swiftness of Cromwell’s rise but also his sagacity. “He has no ancestors, of course: not the kind you’d boast about. There was once a noble family called Cromwell, and when he came up in the King’s service the heralds had urged him for the sake of appearances to adopt their coat of arms; but I am none of theirs, he had said politely, and I do not want their achievements.” Bring up the Bodies  opens in the year 1535. Thomas Cromwell is 50 years old and occupies the position of Master of the Rolls and Master Secretary to the King alongside several other minor offices. Manoeuvring the exit of Queen Anne Boleyn, of whom King Henry VIII is beginning to tire, is amongst Cromwell’s primary goals in this volume in addition to arranging the king’s third marriage and avoiding war with Spain and France. Catching a spark of interest in Henry’s eye, Cromwell places Anne’s polar opposite, the demure Jane Seymour in Henry’s path as a suitable replacement to give Henry the son he craves, thereby securing the future of the Tudor line. Mantel’s narrative is a third-person omniscient perspective focussed so closely on Cromwell that it reads almost like a first-person narrative. The use of present tense adds a rawness and immediacy to this riveting historical fiction, showing us just how high the stakes were. And not just the ones used to burn heretics and political opponents! Most people reading this book are likely to be aware of the broad historical details of the Tudor era, especially Henry VIII’s tumultuous reign. The historical Cromwell, however, is a rather opaque figure with precious little known about him. That is precisely what makes his character an ideal place for history to meet fiction. Mantel is masterful in her use of imagery and dialogue to portray a diplomatic tug-of-war, the intrigues of desire and a constant wrangling for power amongst the courtiers. In the midst of all this, stands Cromwell—an agile political survivor with more enemies than he can count, kept at bay only by his razor-sharp intellect, incisive understanding of human nature and Machiavellian manoeuvres. “Every day as Master Secretary he deals with grandees who, if they could, would destroy him with one vindictive swipe, as if he were a fly. Knowing this, he is distinguished by his courtesy, his calmness and his indefatigable attention to England’s business.” Mantel paints Cromwell’s character in contradictory hues. This is a man proud yet humble, ruthless yet merciful, opportunistic yet loyal and practical yet sentimental. And most of all, brilliant beyond contradiction. It is this reputation for intelligence and a prodigious memory that Thomas Cromwell uses to intimidate people. Every now and then, he allows the glinting edge of his intellect to catch the light. People’s imaginations do the rest, resulting in ever more tales of his brilliance. There is a wonderful scene where Edward Seymour asks Cromwell for a rematch of a game of chess they played three years ago, complaining that he'd lost only because Cromwell had distracted him. Cromwell offers to align the board exactly as it was when Edward lost his train of thought. It’s a psychological trick at best, but effective nonetheless. Mantel portrays Cromwell as an excellent judge of character, generous with his advice and help, extremely observant and blessed with the incredibly useful ability to bite his tongue when required. He holds grudges but refrains from immediate retaliations. Instead, he serves his revenge cold. “If he had a grievance against you, you wouldn’t like to meet him at the dark of the moon. His father Walter used to say, ‘My boy Thomas, give him a dirty look, and he’ll gouge your eye out. Trip him and he’ll cut off your leg. But if you don’t cross across him, he’s a very gentleman. And he’ll stand anybody a drink.’” What sets Bring up the Bodies , in fact the entire Wolf Hall Trilogy, apart from other historical fiction about the Tudor Era is that it doesn’t cast Kings and Queens as protagonists. In this tale, Cromwell is the hero and we see Henry VIII only through Cromwell’s eyes. As a result, readers sees Henry’s dithering, his extreme dependence on his advisors, his gradual decline into paranoia, and an absolute lack of accountability for his own decisions. It is left to Master Cromwell to do what the King wants and needs done. “He knows the king is devout and afraid of change. He wants the church reformed, he wants it pristine; he also wants money. But as a native of the sign Cancer, he proceeds crab-wise to his objective: a side-shuffle, a weaving motion.” Regardless of the age he lived in, Hilary Mantel’s Cromwell is a man of surprisingly modern ideas. With an egalitarian bent of mind, given his own humble beginnings, Cromwell keeps abreast with the problems of the average man and woman instead of restricting himself to court and his country home. His concern for the future of England and the upliftment of her people comes through. “It is better not to try people, not to force them to desperation. Make them prosper; out of superfluity, they will be generous. Full bellies breed gentle manners. The pinch of famine makes monsters… England needs better roads, and bridges that don’t collapse. He is preparing a bill for Parliament to give employment to men without work, to get them waged and out mending the roads, making the harbours… We could pay them, he calculated, if we levied an income tax on the rich… In a generation everything can change.” Bring up the Bodies  allows readers into Thomas Cromwell’s mind, feeding us nuggets from his past and revealing the rationale behind his political and diplomatic moves. Yet, after all, he remains an enigma - unpredictable and unknowable. Mantel’s Cromwell is like a figure walking down a partially-lit pathway, not entirely visible but enough for an observer to form an impression. I recommend you take a look.

He Who Drowned the World is the culmination of battles fuelled by a desire for survival, power and revenge. Published in 2023, this is Shelley Parker-Chan’s second book in The Radiant Emperor duology. It opens a few months after the close of She who Became the Sun and carries forward the stories of the major characters from the first volume . The book’s first chapter has Zhu Chongba—having ‘stolen’ her brother’s destiny and fought first, for survival and then, glory— attempting to strike an alliance with her southern neighbour, Madam Zhang as part of her larger strategy to replace the Great Yuan as the next emperor. Her insatiable ambition for greatness and penchant for excavating opportunity out of every obstacle remains unchanged. “I spent the first part of my life being told I was nothing. The world, never seeing my value, would have thrown me away without regret… nobody would lift a finger to change the world for us. To make a place for us. What choice did we ever have, but to do it ourselves?” Viewing herself as a force for positive change, standing up for the oppressed and ignored, Zhu has adopted a name of imperial ambition, Zhu Yuanzhang, styling herself as the Radiant King; and proclaiming her possession of the Mandate of Heaven. But she is far from being the only one with the divine mandate. There’s Wang Baoxiang, a surging ocean of spiteful darkness roiling at being disparaged his whole life. Starved of love and humiliated for falling short of the Mongol masculine ideal, Wang, the new Prince of Henan, seeks to wreak havoc at the Great Yuan’s court. Wang’s opening move on the chessboard of courtly cunning is to risk humiliation at the hands of his enemies merely to plead for the lowly position of a vice-minister. With a strategy so serpentine and manipulative of others’ deepest desires and insecurities, nobody sees him coming until it’s too late. “The most dangerous person in a game is the one nobody knows is playing.” Shelley Parker-Chan’s primary characters all have more or less the same aim – the downfall throne of the Great Yuan. Yet, each of them pursues this goal in varied ways, and for reasons peculiar to them. Wang uses his bookishness and effeminacy, going against the tenets of Mongol masculinity, while Zhu Yuanzhang is inventive and flies by the seat of her pants. On the other hand, Madam Zhang is an ice-cold puppet-master, manipulating the minds and hearts of the men she uses. “They were all pieces for her to use at the right time, to serve her own purpose. And when they’d reached the end of their usefulness, she would discard them… She was a courtesan and a queen, and one day she would be an empress.” The other contenders for the throne, given their possession of the Mandate of Heaven are Madam Zhang’s brother-in-law, General Zhang and Chen Youliang, the former leader of the Red Turbans who has old scores to settle with Zhu. Both Chen and General are skilled military tacticians, with the former being more politically astute. Another prime mover on this battlefield is General Ouyang, the self-loathing, tortured eunuch warrior. He burns in a constant fire of self-recrimination for betraying his lifelong friend, Esen even as the embers of his father’s killing and his own humiliation continue to scorch his soul. Unlike the other characters who hope to usurp power by killing the Great Yuan, Ouyang seeks to “…have his revenge upon the one who had written his and Esen’s fates into the pattern of the world and stolen from them their choices in how they lived and died. With the murder of the Great Khan, that one final act of Ouyang’s life, every awful thing he had done—everything he had suffered—would be worth it.” Parker-Chan uses multiple perspectives to portray not just the viewpoints, emotional stakes and motivations of the primary characters but also illustrate the story’s sweeping scale as a historical fantasy. Switching between perspectives also builds suspense and pace. The core of He who Drowned the World,  similar to its prequel, are its characters whose arcs are integral to the plot. Furthermore, almost all the primary characters in the books are foils to each other. Zhu and Ouyang mirror each other with their complicated gender identities and overlapping experiences of being considered worthless. They share the ambition of deposing the current monarch but their view of what lies beyond it, is as different as could be. Being master manipulators is what links Wang Baoxiang and Madam Zhang even if their internal monologues result in the reader having greater sympathy for one than the other. Compared to its prequel, He who Drowned the World  is more expansive in its world-building with characters moving through varied locations and settings including the court of the Great Yuan in Khanbaliq. Shelley Parker-Chan uses the metaphor of a lantern to depict the dangers of opulent echo chambers for a dynasty in decline—engaged in petty squabbles and too myopic to see the uprising of the rejected and shunned. “Inside the Great Khan’s sheltered world of the Palace City was like the interior of a lantern: light so endlessly reflected from its own surfaces that it was impossible to see what was happening outside. The court of the Great Yuan sat feasting, without any idea of their own coming destruction.” Power, identity and gender are recurrent themes in He who Drowned the World  and manifest in kaleidoscopic forms in the characters’ lives, impacting many destinies. Even though I enjoyed this book, I felt a bit let down by its protagonist. Even if one ignores Zhu Yuanzhang’s unbelievable propensity to routinely overcome armies larger and more skilled than her own, it’s hard not to view her trouncing the forces of nature and paranormal activity as a case of plot armour. There’s author-backed and then there’s plot-protected. This is the latter. Furthermore, Zhu’s weakness as a character is her lack of weakness. It makes it hard to root for her. Even the losses she faces don’t really have a lasting impact, making her one of the most static characters in the series. Her internal conflict never feels real, like that of General Ouyang or Wang Baoxiang. And while she often harps about wanting to create a fairer and radiant world, there’s not a single instance of her elaborating on how she plans to do so. The climax too was a bit disappointing, in my opinion, both in terms of the plot details as well as the mood it evokes. It left me feeling more invested in the vanquished than the victorious. All in all, He who Drowned the World  is an intricately woven tale that has you holding your breath in suspense and sympathising with some of its broken characters even as you’re horrified by the extent of their Machiavellian ruthlessness. A lot darker and more violent than its predecessor, He who Drowned the World is a gripping read with characters that leave an imprint.

Set in England in the year 1819, The American Boy is a gothic historical fiction that unravels slowly into a tangled murder mystery. The protagonist and narrator of the story is a young man, Thomas Shield. His involvement in the affairs of the Frant and Carswall families begins with his appointment as an usher at a boarding school in Stoke Newington, near London. Here, he comes into contact with two new students, Edgar Allan, a precocious boy adopted by an American couple and Charles Frant. It is Charles’ parents, Henry and Sophie and their relatives, Stephen Carswall and his daughter Flora that are at the centre of this web of greed, power and treachery. Placed as he is, in the grey area of being neither a servant nor a gentleman, Thomas has a unique vantage point from which to observe the shady manoeuvres of the two banking families, hidden behind a façade of wealth and gentility. Thomas gets sucked into a mire of murder and cheating by his actions initially in service of Henry Frant and later, Stephen Carswall despite not fully understanding the significance of his actions until much later. As a man with a new job, a small inheritance and not much else going for him, Shield looks to curry favour where he can. That’s not all though. His desire for both Flora and Sophie also contributes to his eagerness to participate in this family intrigue which ends up threatening his livelihood, reputation and life. It takes about 100 pages of this 480-page book to get to the first major event in the novel, the brutal murder and disfigurement of a man on a building plot owned by Henry Frant’s bank. Given that this is supposed to be a mystery, 100 pages seems like a tediously long wait to get to anything that constitutes a mystery. While Taylor does toss in many teasers that foreshadow future happenings, it is still likely to be a bit too slow for readers who prefer to get to the quick a bit faster. In this, The American Boy  is different from Andrew Taylor’s other novel, The Scent of Death even though they have many similarities such as privileged, enigmatic female characters with husbands who aren’t what they seem and male protagonists-cum-narrators finding their way through changed circumstances. The latter established a murder right from the protagonist’s first day in New York which made it a great deal pacier. Despite Taylor’s relaxed approach to cracking open the mystery at the heart of The American Boy , his atmospheric rendering of the jam-packed slums and foggy nights of London as well as the rolling hills of the Carswalls’ country estate with its ice house and abandoned abbey, is both evocatively gothic and immersive. The major characters are well fleshed out, even if the motivations of some characters are tougher to comprehend. Especially the attraction that Thomas Shield holds for the major female characters in the novel, Sophia and Flora, because frankly, he comes across as quite colourless and passive. I can’t imagine what he had going for him to attract these worldly women apart from being the teller of his own story! The protagonist’s depiction of class differences and the role that money and status play, even in his own mind, is well-done and has a lived-in quality. "For the first time in my life, I was about to be a man of substance, the absolute master of £103 and a few shillings and pence. The knowledge changed me. Wealth may not be happiness, but at least it has the power to avert certain causes of sorrow. And it makes a man feel he has a place in the world." Andrew Taylor deftly uses Thomas’ first-person narration to reveal not just the attributes of a person being described and assessed but also, the narrator’s own ideas, prejudices and deepest desires. A great example of this is Thomas’ assessment of Henry Frant when he first meets him. “I envied him: here was a man who had everything the gods could bestow including an air of breeding and consequence that sat naturally upon him, as though he were its rightful possessor. Even now, God help me, part of me envies him as he was then.” Taylor imbues the dialogue with the formality and restraint of the late Georgian Era. In the author’s note,   Andrew Taylor spoke of his deep interest in researching the vocabulary in use during the period in which he has based The American Boy . All that research appears to have paid off. That said, the repeated interruptions during key conversations to create cliffhangers feel more than a bit contrived. Around the time a second dead body is discovered, Thomas realises he was a mere pawn in the hands of powerful people and that his own future and reputation are now at stake. “It seemed that I had acquired a past I did not want and the possibility of a future I did not desire.” Before I end, I must add that I can’t fathom why the title of this novel is The American Boy. The only American boy among the characters is Edgar Allan who would grow up to become the famous writer, Edgar Allan Poe. But he is, at best, a side character in this drama, remaining off-stage for much of the book and with little direct connection to the central plot. Broadly, The American Boy  is well-written in terms of style and atmosphere but too convoluted to be believable in terms of plot. There are portions in the book, especially towards the climax, that are needlessly intricate without sufficient pay-off.

The Indian cricket team won the World Cup on the 2 nd of November. This was a first for the women’s team. Sadly, I did not watch the match. In fact, I haven’t watched a cricket match in more than a decade. I watched the highlights of the match and snippets about the individuals that made up this great team. Photo Courtesy: JioHotstar Many of them come from modest backgrounds and have braved financial challenges, social ridicule, and sporting disappointments that would’ve broken most. There’s Amanjot Kaur, a 25-year-old all-rounder hailing from Mohali, Punjab. Her father, a carpenter, carved a bat for her and saved up money to buy her a scooter so she wouldn’t miss her training sessions. Shafali Verma, born and brought up in in Rohtak, Haryana, Verma cut her hair short, disguised herself as a boy to enrol in a cricket academy that didn’t admit girls. At 17 years of age, Shafali was the youngest player, male or female, to represent India in all three formats of international cricket. Each of these cricketers and their families, coaches, and well-wishers deserve all the accolades and good stuff coming their way. Even amongst all these stirring stories of the grit and discipline shown by these young women to become world champions, there’s another story that resonated with me. That of their coach, Amol Muzumdar, a cricketer who, despite being a great talent and scoring a tremendous 11,167 runs in domestic cricket, was never picked to be part of the first-rung Indian cricket team. Photo Courtesy: JioHotstar Muzumdar’s story shines a light on the strange, winding ways of destiny. I’m a believer in destiny that is powered by hard work. However, there is something even more powerful than destiny – timing. It is said that what is destined for you, will come to you. However, there’s a catch that is not always stated. Fate or destiny arrive in their own time. For ordinary mortals striving to achieve something we’ve set our hearts on and working toward, the chasm between the effort we put in and the results staring us in the face can often range from disappointing to utterly heartbreaking. THE CHANCE THAT NEVER WAS Amol Muzumdar’s talent was spotted early by Ramakant Achrekar, a legendary coach on the Mumbai cricketing scene. Achrekar famously coached Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli who burst into the national spotlight with their 664-run partnership in an inter-school tournament. On the sidelines of that sparkling partnership stood a young Amol, all padded up, waiting for his turn to bat. That turn never came.   Tendulkar went on to scale incredible heights in his career while Kambli’s star was a short-lived one. But unlike Kambli who at least had his chance, Amol Muzumdar never got called up despite checking all the boxes expected of any cricketer hoping to make the national side. There is no logic to it except what can be found in the German philosopher, Arthur Schopenhauer’s words, “Fate shuffles the cards and we play.” IN CONTENTION In his first-class debut for Mumbai, Muzumdar scored 260 runs against Haryana during a Ranji Trophy match in the 1993-94 season. This record remained unsurpassed until 2018 which tells us something about the quality of that knock. And yet, he didn’t make it to the national team even though he played for the India A team alongside greats like Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly. In 2002, he considered quitting the game but eventually, decided to persevere. In 2006, he was appointed captain of the Mumbai team. Mumbai won the Ranji Trophy that season. After stints with the Assam and Andhra Pradesh teams, Muzumdar retired in 2014, never having played for India. Reflecting on his career, Muzumdar remarked, “Cricket gave me everything, except the cap.” THE SECOND INNINGS However, Muzumdar’s association with professional cricket continued. Coaching gigs with India’s Under-19 and Under-23 teams as well as international assignments with the Netherlands and South African teams followed. In October 2023, Amol Muzumdar was appointed head coach of the Indian women’s cricket team. Two years later, he stood in the middle of a roaring stadium in Mumbai with the World Cup-winning captain of his team, Harmanpreet Kaur touching his feet in respect. With fireworks lighting up the sky and an overjoyed crowd on its feet, chanting and cheering, Muzumdar planted the Indian tricolour on the pitch. Destiny may have taken her own sweet time showing up but you can’t say she lacks style. Photo Courtesy: JioHotstar Perhaps, Muzumdar was always destined for greatness, just not in the way he thought. Three decades in the making, what a priceless moment it must have been for him. Isn’t it grand that a synonym for priceless in Hindi is Amol? Many of us, at times, feel bogged down by a lack of tangible results and the encouragement they bring. Such moments can break many a resolve. That is exactly why Muzumdar's story, humbling and uplifting as it is, strikes a chord. His story shows us that there are infinitely many kinds of success stories and that sometimes, the best thing to do is what we can and let destiny come around when it does. With that, I extend my heartiest congratulations to the Indian women’s cricket team on their stupendous win as well as doff my hat and wish a very happy birthday to Amol Muzumdar, the architect of a triumph that has crossed the crease straight into the history books!

She who became the Sun is a historical fantasy novel about desire, destiny and the desire to alter one’s destiny. Published in 2021, this is Shelley Parker-Chan’s debut novel and the first book of The Radiant Emperor series . She who became the Sun is a reimagining of the rise to power of the Hongwu emperor, better known as the founding ruler of the famed Ming dynasty. The twist in this reimagined tale is that it is the story of a girl who is foretold a life that will amount to nothing while a glorious future is predicted for her brother. This girl, who remains unnamed (in a deft touch by the author), so little does she matter, goes on to survive, then thrive and eventually conquer. All this, while she fears the wrath of Heaven for stealing her brother’s destiny. I surmise that Parker-Chan was influenced by elements of the legend of Mulan which is the story of a girl who disguises herself as a man to serve as a soldier during the Northern and Southern dynasties era (4th to 6th Century CE) of Chinese history. Though the similarities end there, the plot of a woman literally fighting her way through a man’s world lends itself well to talking about identity and gender roles which is something that She who became the Sun does well without being preachy or unmindful of the time period depicted. As in any work of historical fantasy, world building plays an important role in She who became the Sun . It helps readers get a better understanding of the characters and their circumstances as well the rules and laws under which they operate. Though this is not the kind of fantasy which has flying dragons and other mythical creatures, we still need to be able to imagine a world far removed from anything we’ve seen. The descriptions are immersive without being excessive and precise while being fresh. “The feasting and drinking had begun several hours ago, and the air was greased with the aroma of stone-roasted lamb.” An image like that is evocative with the kind of sensory specificity that makes all one’s senses come alive to conjure up the scene. She who became the Sun is a very engaging tale spun expertly. Shelley Parker-Chan’s novel is spread over decades and varied locations and is narrated through the perspectives of multiple characters. Add to this some pithy lines and you’ve got a historical saga on your hands. “To win a hundred victories in a hundred battles is not the pinnacle of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the pinnacle of skill.” To me, these lines sound like they just stepped off the pages of Sun Tzu’s military treatise, The Art of War , bringing with them the atmosphere of that era as well as establishing She who became the Sun as a tale about the battles of life and empire. One of the primary perspectives in the novel is that of Zhu Chongba (the unnamed protagonist who adopts her brother’s name). Incidentally, Zhu means ‘red’ in Chinese which is the colour of good luck while Chongba refers to ‘double eight’, another good luck charm. Zhu is resourceful and a quick learner with the good sense to hide her searing ambition under a shroud of detachment and humility befitting a monk. Her journey takes her from a starving child to a monk to a soldier and eventually, a commander in the rebel army of the Red Turbans fighting against the Yuan emperor’s rule. The other POV characters in She who became the Sun are Yuchun, a common thief-turned-soldier and Ma Xinying, a woman whose future appears to hold not much more than being the wife of a commander even though she is a natural diplomat and tactician herself. The perspective, however, that holds a sway equalling that of Zhu Chongba, is that of General Ouyang, the eunuch general in the army of the Prince of Henan who fights for the Yuan emperor. The character of General Ouyang is a fascinating one – a man with the beauty of a woman who fights alongside Esen, the heir of the Prince of Henan. Esen's father had massacred Ouyang's family and left only him alive but castrated, to serve as his son, Esen’s slave. In terms of backstory, General Ouyang is reminiscent of Shakuni, the conniving uncle of the Kauravas in the transcendent Indian epic, The Mahabharat . The characters of General Ouyang and Zhu Chongba act as foils to each other with the threads of destiny pulling them ever closer, both to each other as well as to the ends that each of them believe is their predestined fate. One of the strongest elements of She who became the Sun is the dialogue. Parker-Chan uses it exquisitely to reveal character, especially of those who hold their cards particularly close to their chests. Sample this exchange between Lord Wang, the Prince of Henan’s adopted but barely tolerated son, and General Ouyang. “Lord Wang, who relished his own pain, had always known how to wound others. When Ouyang didn’t respond, Lord Wang said with a bitter kind of understanding, ‘My brother’s an easy person to love. The world loves him, and he loves the world, because everything in it has always gone right for him.’ Ouyang thought of Esen, generous and pure-hearted and fearless, and knew what Lord Wang said was true. Esen had never been betrayed or hurt or shamed for what he was – and that was why they loved him. He and Lord Wang, both in their own different ways. They understood each other through that connection, two low and broken people looking up to someone they could never be or have: noble, perfect Esen. ‘He was born at the right time. A warrior in a warrior’s world,’ Lord Wang said. “You and I, General, we were born too late. Three hundred years before now, perhaps we would have been respected for what we are. You as a Manji. Myself as someone who thinks that civilization is something to be cherished, not just fodder for conquest and destruction. But in our own society’s eyes, we’re nothing.’ …But Ouyang and Lord Wang were alike. For a moment they stood there in bitter acknowledgement of it, feeling that likeness ringing through the space between them. The one reviled for not being a man, the other for not acting like one.” In this exchange that takes up little more than a page, Shelley Parker-Chan fillets two characters to reveal their innermost desires and regrets while alluding to the strengths of a third. All this, while each character stays consistent to their nature. In some books, but more often movies, one gets the feeling that certain bits of dialogue are being spoken only for the reader/viewer’s benefit. A sort of artless dumping of information to get the reader/viewer up to speed. In contrast, the dialogue in She who became the Sun is a fine blend of characterization, exposition, cultural attitudes and genuine conflict between characters, making the exchanges feel real rather than performative. Likewise, the themes of identity, gender roles and destiny are woven in seamlessly as the warp along the weft of the plot in the fabric of She who became the Sun. There are quite a few strong female characters who manage to outmanoeuvre the strait-laced paths set for women, thereby creating their own spheres of influence. And of course, there are the obvious parallels of the dual identities of Zhu Chongba, a woman disguised as a man and General Ouyang, a man who has been robbed of his masculine identity. I thoroughly enjoyed She who became the Sun and do recommend that you get your hands on a copy. I look forward to doing the same with the concluding part of this duology, He who Drowned the World . I’d like to end with a morsel of information that caught my eye. Parker-Chan worked as a diplomat in South-East Asia, where she became addicted to epic East-Asian historical TV dramas. To feed that obsession, she searched for English-language book versions of these stories. She didn’t find any and so, decided to write her own. Thus, emerged She who became the Sun . Gentle Reader, let it never be said that watching shows or movies won’t get you anywhere. The webs of one interest can often tangle with those of another to form a third. And some may call that destiny .

Have you ever begun something with the belief that you were going to enjoy it? Like a dance class, a movie or a part-time gig. Maybe you tried it at a friend's recommendation or because a small detail struck a chord. Either way, you experienced a feeling of positive expectation. How did it turn out? Your answer to this question depends on the gap between the experience you had and the expectations you went in with. In other words, for you to have to enjoyed it, your experience needed to either have matched your high expectations or exceeded your moderate ones. A couple of years ago, I watched a Netflix adaptation of Jane Austen’s Persuasion. The novel, one of my favourites, is a quietly moving love story tinged with the heartache of lost chances. I was excited about the film. What followed was a massive letdown that had me writing a rant masquerading as a blog post to express my disappointment. While Netflix’s Persuasion was a certifiably bad adaptation, I’m partially responsible for my own disappointment. I was simply expecting too much. Research confirms that expectations have a profound impact on happiness. Unrealistic expectations are among the most effective killjoys. So, while being unrealistically excited only to be terribly disappointed by a movie isn’t exactly high stakes, there are other things like careers, relationships, financial decisions where a bitter disappointment can take a toll on one’s sense of well-being. TEMPERING EXPECTATIONS One way to have reasonable expectations from stuff weightier than a concert or film is to differentiate between necessities, preferences, goals and expectations. Only necessities are a must-have. Everything else is something that may or may not work out in your favour without it being the end of the world. The Stoic philosophers   have an excellent expression for the things we want that are only slightly different from what we don’t – ‘preferred indifferents’. The word ‘indifferents’ is used here in the same sense as insignificant because it makes very little difference. I might prefer a Volkswagen Beetle to a Hyundai and that’s okay. I’m entitled to my preferences. But it’s more important to note that these differences are ultimately unrelated to my long-term happiness. After all, any car gets me to where I want to go. MUST GOALS BE PRACTICAL? Even with goals, it’s great to have them as long as they are at least a couple of milestones short of the one marked “Never gonna happen”! I’m not recommending pessimism here. Just realism. Many of us set goals that are unrealistic. The reason they’re unrealistic is not because they’ve never been achieved by anyone but because given our current skill set, position or circumstances, they’re simply not feasible for us. In which case, it makes sense to break up this ambition into smaller goals that will act as building blocks towards the grander objective. Let’s say, my goal is to write the greatest novel of the century. That’s quite a dream for a someone who has never been published. So, someone as wise as you, my reader, may recommend I write and publish a few short stories before pursuing my ambition of blazing literary glory! THE PSYCHOLOGY OF REFERENCE POINTS Expectations aren’t always positive. One could be anticipating a loss or a disadvantage. As someone who trades in stocks, I’m familiar with the concept of loss. Though I must admit that it has yet to cure me of my chronic optimism , at least in the long run. Now, let’s talk about what is a loss. A loss, according to Risk-Value Theory, is when a person winds up worse than their “reference point.” What was a reference point? Put simply, your reference point is the point from where you started. A loss, therefore, is when you end up worse than your status quo. That’s the theory. But things are usually a bit more complicated in the real world. Let me illustrate this with an example from The Undoing Project  by Michael Lewis. It takes us into the minds of people as far from being content as is humanly possible – Wall Street traders! If a Wall Street trader expects to be paid a bonus of one million dollars and he’s given only half a million, he considers this a loss even though he’s richer than he was yesterday. This is because his reference point is an expectation of what he would receive. As hard as it is to sympathise with stock traders, let’s try. He was expecting a million and received only half that. That is disappointing. What if I tell you that there is a way in which he would be unhappy even if he did receive what he expected? Here’s how – a trader who expects to receive a million-dollar bonus, and who further expects everyone on his trading desk to be given the same, will not maintain the same reference point if he learns that everyone else just received two million dollars. In his mind, he would be back in the domain of losses.   Expectations, even our own, shouldn’t be taken too seriously. The same holds true for reference points which are the hooks on which we hang the hats of our expectations. They are often put there to manipulate us. Let me paint you a picture. There is an air of anticipation, tidbits of gossip being whispered and meaningful glances being exchanged between colleagues. It’s appraisal season. Like clockwork, the stench of ‘job cuts’ wafts through the corridors of the organisation. Many employees fear losing their jobs. This fear of being jobless and without a monthly paycheque becomes their ‘reference point’. Appraisals eventually come along with phrases like ‘poor quarterly earnings’ and ‘sluggish market’ garnishing the paltry serving of peanuts also known as a raise. But you accept it, consoling yourself with the thought that, at least, you have a job. That’s how expectations are moulded by reference points. At the end of the day, expectation is a psychological state – best controlled by yourself. GREAT EXPECTATIONS It’s not all bad though. Expectations can also lead to some really great stuff. In 1965, the American psychologist Robert Rosenthal conducted an experiment in schools. Teachers were told of a new test that could identify students who were on the verge of an intellectual spurt. They were referred to as ‘bloomers.’ In truth, there was no such test. 20% of students were randomly selected and classified as ‘bloomers.’ Their teachers didn’t know that. They remained under the impression that the ‘bloomers’ were indeed high-potential students. After a year, Rosenthal discovered that these students had developed much higher IQs than other children in the control group. The teachers’ actions were subconscious. Unknowingly, they probably devoted more time to the bloomers, and consequently, the group learned more. This is known as the Rosenthal effect or Pygmalion effect . CONCLUSION Expectations are intangible, but their effects are real. They have the power to change reality but also, disappoint despite no real loss. Luckily, you get to choose your expectations.

Tuesdays with Morrie  is a memoir about an old professor, his former student and the lesson of a lifetime. The professor is diagnosed with a terminal disease at the beginning of the book but that’s not what Tuesdays with Morrie  is about. It’s about how Morrie lived and what each of us can learn from it. Let’s start at the beginning. The author of this book, Mitch Albom was a student of Morrie Schwartz’s in the late 70s at Brandeis University in Massachusetts, USA. Theirs was a bond of mentorship instead of the usual teacher-student equation. But then, Morrie wasn’t the usual kind of teacher. Less concerned with grades and assignments, he cared more about sharing ideas and celebrating his community. At his graduation, Mitch promised his professor, or ‘Coach’ as he called him, to keep in touch. He didn’t. Life and the usual rat race got in the way. Fifteen years pass before Morrie is diagnosed with ALS or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis—a degenerative disease which results in the patient slowly losing control of their organs and limbs as the disease progresses, leading eventually to death. There is no cure. “Morrie would walk that final bridge between life and death, and narrate the trip.” Upon finding out about Morrie’s condition, Mitch, by then a thriving sports journalist, visits his professor. He finds their bond unchanged, but realises that his former teacher needs him more than ever. Thus, begin Mitch’s Tuesdays with Morrie. Morrie is the sort of teacher we all want in our lives – one who believes in our gifts, helps us navigate the paths of life and face life’s eternal questions. One can’t help but envy Mitch for his beautiful relationship with such a generous and wise teacher. Albom’s words about his good fortune in finding a teacher like Morrie encapsulates their whole relationship, "Have you ever really had a teacher? One who saw you as a raw but precious thing, a jewel that, with wisdom, could be polished to a proud shine? If you are lucky enough to find your way to such teachers, you will always find a way back. Sometimes it is only in your head. Sometimes it is right alongside their beds." Sadly, in Mitch’s share also fell the regret of missing so many years with Morrie and the grief of his loss. Tuesdays with Morrie has short chapters dealing with specific life lessons about aging, love, and death. These are interspersed with Mitch’s memories of his college days and other exchanges with his teacher. Tuesdays with Morrie is narrated by Mitch but Morrie is the hero—one whose courage and grace shine through its pages. To be honest, large portions of the book that are too simplistic to be pithy, running the risk of being condemned as trite. However, the fact that it is based on the life of a real person dying of a terribly debilitating disease gives it a gravitas that a piece of fiction wouldn’t have had.  Morrie remains, till his last breath, a positive and generous teacher, keen to discuss other people’s problems and help in whatever way he could. It’s what makes Tuesdays with Morrie  both uplifting and touching. Spouting some spiel about living a simple life and appreciating others is neither novel nor challenging. We have WhatsApp forwards for that! But living each day in that spirit, especially during tough times, is a rarity. My favourite chapters were conversations about how to deal with self-pity and the importance of community and creating one’s own culture instead of blindly following what society tells us is valuable or worth pursuing. In Morrie’s words, “Devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.” Tuesdays with Morrie was published in 1997, spending more than four years on bestseller lists. It remains a much-beloved book for many people across the world perhaps because it makes you pause. It makes you want to reassess your priorities in life, be more present, and take less for granted. It makes you wish everyone had a teacher like Morrie. And it makes you grateful his wisdom was immortalised in this book.

If you and I share similar algorithms on social media then you’ve probably come across the term ‘Old Money Aesthetic’. It refers mainly to a style of dressing that calls for high quality, natural fibres, muted colours, tailored looks and almost no prints apart from stripes and the odd polka dot. And most importantly, no loud brand logos. It’s a great look if it works for you, even if it's a bit too formulaic. However, like all good things, it needs a dash of individuality to be truly stylish. The same holds for other things as well. Somehow, following what everyone else is doing may be trendy but it’s never memorable – be it in the jewellery you wear, how you entertain, your interests or even the things you value. I consider a bunch of different attributes and abilities as quiet luxuries. Here are a few that come to mind – people who still write with fountain pens, send out invitation cards for their get-togethers, know the names of flowers, birds and trees, pursue hobbies like woodworking, embroidery or pottery, and people who can sit in silence for at least five minutes without diving for their phones. Then, there are those who know how to have a great chat – listening and speaking in turns, or people who still wear beautiful analog watches instead of smartwatches that are just short of being able to launch a rocket into space! But all these attributes are only chic when they also effortless and not looking to be noticed or applauded. They just are the way they are, because they wish to be. In the words of Giorgio Armani, “Elegance is not about being noticed. It’s about being remembered.” Cramming every last corner of our lives with noise, content and a false sense of urgency only serves to suck out the joy of everyday life. People who enjoy the passage of time mindfully even as they go about the routines of daily life as we all do, have an underrated elegance about them. Unsurprisingly, they appear more relaxed because they allow for leisure, pleasure and boredom. In my opinion, privacy and the leisure to be bored are the last true luxuries. Frankly, if they were stocks in trade, I would buy in, based purely on their diminishing availability. If you think about it, there’s something so calming and effortlessly cool about being unrushed and getting off the hamster wheel of mindless busyness. So many of us spend so much of our time recording and measuring every aspect of our lives, that we may well be bypassing the living part. Choosing to take your time when you can is about taking ownership of your time, and using it for what you consider important and valuable, rather than scurrying around chasing prizes or goals defined by someone else. So, that’s that regarding leisure and pleasure, but what’s so chic about boredom, you ask? Well, what may look like boredom to an outsider is down-time for our overloaded brains. Also, being okay with getting bored is the sign of a person comfortable enough to sit with their thoughts without looking for a way out. You may think I’m overstating the issue, but let me tell you about an experiment conducted in 2014 . Harvard psychology professor Dan Gilbert asked his subjects to sit in a room for 15 minutes with nothing to do. Their belongings including cellphones, books and writing implements were taken from them. The only thing in the room was a button they could press to give themselves a painful electric shock. Rather than just sitting there with their thoughts, the majority of participants chose to jolt themselves by pressing the button. The duration they were supposed to just sit in silence was 15 minutes and the majority struggled with it. Think about that. Preferably without giving yourself a shock! It is important to understand that boredom is not a bad thing . It is merely the feeling we experience as we transition into a lower level of stimulation. These transitions or breaks between activities are founts of creativity, lateral thinking and problem-solving. Our devices and constant distractions don’t just derail our focus in the moment . Over a period of years, they reduce our ability to think deeply about anything without reaching for a distraction. Equally important, however, is how feeling a sense of boredom is essential for our brains to unwind and relax. What a person gains, when they choose to sit in peace at a traffic light or just observe things around them while waiting for a train set to arrive in 4 minutes, is a calmer mind. And that’s always chic!

The Global Financial Crisis of 2008 was a rude awakening for me to the ways of the world. At the time, I had been working for about five years and it had been a time of growth and progress, for me personally, the media industry and India’s economy. Good times are seldom fertile grounds for introspection. 2008’s Global Financial Crisis and the Recession that followed got me thinking about work, my personal life and money. Here are some of the life lessons I learnt from it all. 1. EVERYTHING IS CONNECTED The Global Financial Crisis was triggered by the bursting of the housing bubble in the United States. It impacted banks and insurance companies based mostly in the United States but the tremors were felt in every country that did business with the US – which is, practically everyone. I saw people lose their jobs in a media organisation that had nothing to do with any of it. The economic slowdown that followed in India (though thankfully, India avoided a full-fledged recession) saw job cuts running into the millions and a great deal of unemployment and diminished growth. This taught me that globalisation isn’t just a buzzword for investment summits. It’s real and, like everything else, it has its negatives as well as positives. 2. DON’T LET JARGON SCARE YOU It’s important to be aware of the big stories in the business and financial worlds. The stuff you don’t know could still upend your life. It’s best to know what’s going on. Don’t let the acronyms and numbers scare you away. Try and understand the story and the direction in which it is headed. The direction matters more than the numbers and jargon. 3. FOLLOW THE MONEY Figuring out the direction in which the money flows can tell you a lot about the lay of the land - the real motivations behind what people do, where their loyalties lie and as a consequence, how seriously you should take them. For instance, don’t take a financial influencer too seriously when they start recommending a company’s stock as the greatest thing since the steam engine, if they'd interviewed the chairman of the company a few weeks. Whether they received payment in cash, kind or views is immaterial. You need to remind yourself that it is sponsored content even if doesn’t say so. And that you need to treat it as such. This is as true for TV shows promoting cryptocurrency, as it was and is for the rating agencies who gave AAA ratings to junk bonds because they are paid by the banks selling the junk. 4. POLITICS AFFECTS EVERYTHING So, you think that just because one political party fighting an election against another or which Bills they table in Parliament doesn’t interest you, it won’t affect you. Let me put it plainly. Are you interested in how much money you are able to spend or save from what you make at your job? Or who you can marry? Or what your kids are taught in school? Or whether or not you can afford that vacation to Croatia next year? Everything you care about is affected by politics. And yet, you delude yourself into believing that it doesn’t matter. When you choose to stay ignorant and apathetic, the only thing that doesn’t matter is you and your concerns. 5. GETTING A PINK SLIP ISN’T A REFLECTION OF YOUR WORTH There are a lot of factors involved, most of which have nothing to do with your work. You could be the one getting the sack due to any old reason like: Your department is being downsized or eliminated. New technology has made your field of expertise less relevant. You earn a little more than others doing the same work as you. Your boss doesn’t like you. If you do get fired from your job, try not to weigh yourself down with feelings of unworthiness. Learn what you can from it (there is usually a lesson or two), dust yourself off and make your move. 6. DON’T SPEND MORE THAN YOU EARN An ever-increasing number of businesses want us to buy their wares. They hire advertisers and influencers to sell us the idea that life is somehow incomplete or at the very least, a tad paler without the latest threads, cellphone or car. However, at the end of the day, money is numbers. In a literal sense, there isn’t much difference between someone who makes 30,000 bucks a month and another who earns a lakh if both end up saving only 5,000 every month. Or worse, if they're both in debt. If it happens once in a blue moon and due to unforeseeable circumstances, it’s understandable. But if expenses exceeding your income is your standard operating procedure, you’re tempting fate. 7. CAREFUL WHAT YOU TAKE ON DEBT FOR Speaking of debt, you might say that sometimes one needs to live beyond one’s means. In truth, yes. Except that it pays to remember that a loan is about borrowing from the future . In which case, it is best that whatever you'll be paying for in the future also be of use to you in the coming years. Please be warned, over-sized blazers in fuchsia do not fall into that category! I must confess that I’m terribly averse to taking out loans but I do concede that they are necessary at times. All of us aren't sitting on a nest egg to buy a home or invest in a business venture. However, before you sign on the dotted line, I suggest you ask yourself whether you’ll be building an asset whose value is likely to appreciate like the price of gold or depreciate like a car or an air conditioner. For instance, if it’s a home you’re buying, let it be one you can move into with an EMI that isn’t more than double your monthly rent. There’s a reason why it’s called a starter home. It doesn’t have to be the castle of your dreams! 8. YOUR JOB ISN’T YOUR LIFE While we're talking about homes, how about you spend some time there? Have a life beyond your work. I’m sorry to be the one to break it to you but if you work in the private sector, you never know when you could be handed the pink slip. I've known a fair number of folks who acted like their organisation would crumble to dust if they took more than a week off work. If only they had. They would know that things went on just fine without them. Sometimes, even better! Let’s get real. When you leave or are escorted out, there isn’t a job or boss in the world who wouldn’t replace you before you can even exit the building. So, make sure that work isn’t your sole contribution to the world. Spend time with people you like and doing things you enjoy. It makes for a happier and healthier you. It’s the kind of investment that never fails to pay dividends. Also, when you go through tough times (whether due to work or otherwise) it helps to have friends and family that you haven’t ignored while chasing the hustle train . 9. DON'T EXPECT HELP FROM POLITICAL LEADERS Believing that a politician will fight for what is due to you even if you take your foot off the pedal is fantasy. Even the cool ones, like Barack Obama, who claimed to stand for the average person and pretended to need crowd-funding, will disappoint. Don’t expect them to do you any favours. When push comes to shove, they’ll stand by the guys who helped pave their way to the office they hold. Just in case, you believe you're one of those ‘guys’ because you voted for them or argue with random strangers on social media in support of their policies, let me tell you a secret. You aren’t. The guys who bankrolled their campaigns and the ones who are in the position to do so again are the ones they’ll stand by. And you’ll be left holding a banner proclaiming, ‘Yes, we can’. Don’t fall for poll promises. Keep up the pressure and vote for action, not dramatics. 10. DIVERSIFY YOUR INVESTMENTS Don’t park all your earthly belongings in one basket. Split them up into high risk, high return and low risk, low return based on your requirements. Distribute your investments over different sectors – real estate, mutual funds, stock markets if you like, gold bonds, fixed deposits, etc. Make common sense investments in different baskets. And if something sounds too good to be true, it’s usually a scam or worse, a pyramid scheme! 11. MANAGE YOUR EXPECTATIONS I’m usually an optimist but not to such a degree so as to ignore what stares me in the face. And so, I would recommend not trusting individuals or institutions to do the right thing if doing the wrong thing brings them a lot more money or power, with little or no risk of retribution. Barring a few noble and notable exceptions, that’s just human nature. 12. HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL Yes, I know the title said 11 lessons. But Life surprises us and I thought, so should this post. The greatest lesson I learnt from the Recession is to not give up hope and wake up to all the wonderful stuff in my life that I may have ignored and wasn’t grateful for. And to remember that disappointments aren’t always dead-ends. Often, they’re a fork in the road that forces us to make a choice. The path we choose can make all the difference.