visual – Page 2 – JJ's Commonlog

Living a fulfilled life

The key to a great life is to love yourself, love others, and love transcendence.

If you don’t love yourself, you’ll never do anything worthwhile since you’ll always think you’re worth nothing.

If you don’t love and respect others, you won’t partner with them. It’s impossible to do everything on your own. In this journey, you need others.

You’ll have a purpose in life if you have a sense of transcendence. It’ll keep you going when it’s cold and hard.

You’ll be unstoppable if you combine all three. The journey will be fun too.

December 25, 2023

Don’t solve loneliness with AI

Loneliness is the biggest problem facing the next generation, and technology won’t fix it. Or shouldn’t try to fix it.

While tech isn’t the solution, entrepreneurs will build a solution anyway. They’ll make addictive products, like social media, and become billionaires. Instead of solving the problem, these solutions will only amplify it.

Let’s take a look back at history. The Nokia phones launched with the tagline “connecting the world.” It was easy to talk to people anytime, anywhere. It was awesome. We found our classmates and collegemates on Facebook, reconnected, and shared our lives. Yet the same tech products amplified loneliness. These tech products helped us communicate with people thousands of kilometers away; but they also made us lose the ability to understand people right next to us.

Likewise, tech products will play a significant role in addressing loneliness, but we should be careful about which solutions we build. While tech billionaires want to build addictive solutions and keep users within their walled gardens, technology will only solve part of the loneliness issue. The problem can’t be solved completely by it.

We should use technology to build memories in the physical world with people we care about – this is how we can fight loneliness. Here’s an example from my own life: I’ve connected with two people named Krishna Kumar (KK) and Sathyanand in the last few years. We met online and got to know each other via Zoom, WhatsApp, and LinkedIn. Eventually, we met in person and formed deeper connections. Our virtual interactions paved the way for meaningful relationships. I met Sathya in Gudalur with my family in a holiday home. We walked through the fields and played in the nearby river, creating lasting memories. In the same way, KK visited us in Panchkula. Together, we hiked a trail near a dam. Once again, we bonded over shared experiences and overcoming challenges, which fostered accomplishment, happiness, and connection.

Although technology will be part of the loneliness solution, it’s not the ultimate solution. If we rely solely on technology, we will make it worse. Our goal should be to use it to build lasting relationships and make memories with the people we love.

(Tweet from Shaan Puri)

December 22, 2023

Talent Development with One-Page Profiles

An idea from a book can transform your life, either by giving you a new perspective on an old idea or by giving you a brand new perspective on something brand new. One such idea is worth the time and money invested in a book.

One of the ideas that shaped my approach to talent development came from Jack Welch’s Straight from the Gut book nearly two decades ago. This idea has helped me develop my team members.

Welch suggests managers create one-page profiles for each member of their team. The top of the page should have the person’s name, a photo, and a grid assessing their potential and performance. Performance measures a person’s contribution to a project, while potential measures their competency. It’s critical to look at both. If someone lacks potential, they should be improved or fired. If an employee has potential but is underperforming, they may require coaching and training.

Below the grid, list the individual’s strengths and weaknesses. You can add accomplishments, teamwork skills, and other relevant factors in free-form text. Update this one-page plan every year to track progress.

Managers must evaluate where each team member falls on this grid and give them feedback and training plans.

I’ve been using this method for my team members since I read the book. I’m forced to evaluate everyone’s abilities and performance. The method helps identify the root cause of someone’s struggle-be it emotional issues, misunderstandings, or personal concerns-and opens up a dialogue. Knowing team members’ abilities in detail helps me grow them.

If you manage a team, try it. You and your team will benefit from it.

December 20, 2023

Three ingredients of happiness

Happiness and its feelings are associated with three tangible phenomena in our lives that we can actually understand and manage: enjoyment, satisfaction, and meaning. – Arthur Brooks, Professor & Columnist

The first is satisfaction. True satisfaction comes from achieving something after a struggle. Cheating to get an A on an exam may get you the grade, but not the satisfaction. The challenge with satisfaction isn’t getting it, but keeping it. One achievement doesn’t guarantee lifelong contentment; one must always aim higher. Therefore, the path to genuine satisfaction lies not in having more, but in wanting less. Otherwise, you’ll be on a hedonistic treadmill, striving for more but never being happy.

Enjoyment is the second ingredient. It’s important to distinguish between pleasures and enjoyments. Pleasures are solitary activities – like watching movies or a cricket game – that don’t make you happy. You can turn enjoyment into happiness by combining it with social interaction and memories. Engaging in challenging activities with others makes lasting memories that contribute to happiness over time. Trying to find pleasure through solitary activities can lead to addiction and the endless pursuit of fleeting pleasures.

Lastly, there’s meaning. Think about why you’re doing what you’re doing and why it’s important. Understanding the purpose of your pursuits will help you achieve true happiness through satisfaction, enjoyment, and a sense of purpose. It’s hard to find meaning in life without asking lots of questions. There are many theories and schools of thought for discovering your essence, from atheism to theism.

In his seminal book “The seven habits of highly effective people,” Steven Covey suggests writing your obituary to find meaning. I wrote my obituary following that advice, and it really helped me find meaning.

These three ingredients must be present in abundance and balance: meaning, memory, and enjoyment. When these three elements are abundant and balanced, happiness naturally follows.

December 13, 2023