#BestSummerEVER . Together.

We had our first all hands at Shunya today. During the last two weeks in particular, I have deeply thought about our goals for people who have put their faith and trust in us.

And, after all that distilling, this is the #SagarMathan of who we are and what we want to create

Creating a future that possibly wouldn't exist otherwise.

For our People, Customers & company.

Building a company is hard. You are trying to sell your vision, with just a deep conviction that you can SEE how it looks in the end. Much like an artist, effortlessly filling the interplay of colors in the canvas, you think that those compositions will form beauty, form, fluidity and a life of its own, in motion.

A few days back, I wrote this post on the taboo on free work, and how we shortchange ourselves for little tidbits. In many ways, that is the reason for all copy cats, horizontal progress we see in the world. We want things fast, We want structure, blueprints. Safety. Cushion of having plan B, C & D, but without the thoroughness in PLAN A, and Build that A team.

It is not an individual attitude. It is our collective denial of chasing someone else's dream, let alone having the courage to listen to ours.

The unwillingness to look beyond the simple interest, and compound the learnings no matter what it pays. Because we know that in the end, it all evens out. Because what grows in you, GROWS you.

But, Just because you aren't "actively" applying it, doesn't mean you can not internalize the learnings

In these last few weeks - I extensively coached people, thought about the culture and PEOPLE I wanted to build, and the other bifocal nuances of Business continuity (we only have our people for the current accelerator cohort for ~8 Weeks). Sometimes the 30 minutes conversations would become 1+ hour, and often a 1 hour, would be done in 15 mins, as I showed them the "process" to find the answers. In days that followed I got occasional reflections of Thank you notes that reflected how I used to think, too.

In this, I was taken back in time to a conversation I had in Circa August 2018, and I remember our group CTO Ravi Krishnaswamy trying to re-wire how we thought and built Technology. During that time, he did a lot of 1:1's across the horizontal tracks, managers, managers of managers, architects(all levels) - and I couldn't understand why he was spending time talking to "me"(and others in similar cognitive ability spectrum) - instead of spending that time with Customers. I vividly remember the first conversation which was for 30 mins, and over shot to 40+ mins - and his Executive assistant came twice into the room, and he went on with the passion of a great teacher, helping me see "my individual role" in making the technology. I also vividly remember telling him "..But you have so many leaders and the whole 200+ team report to you." To which he replied, "You know what is my role, it is just an orchestrator - you lead by Influence and not by title". I took it to heart, though I could never fully apply it. The time hadn't come, fully.

We often hear "If you want to build a ship, don't drum up people to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea." - but I understand this only in hindsight, as I try to lead myself.

On bi-focal vision that Ravi often used to say. Care for today, but especially for tomorrow. Because it will come sooner than we think it will. Great leaders build other leaders. PERIOD.

Remembering the most wonderful and unusual leaders & mentors I have had. And the grounded composure, they have left from their work in me. #PayingItForward.

One final note.. But it's COVID

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, …”

-- Charles Dickens, The Tale of two Cities.

While others are docked at home, cringing, cursing, waiting, shrugging, hoping for something external to change their circumstances, we are bullish that we will create a technology that hasn't been imagined to be used in intuitive ways. We will live a dream. That we will not be timid even when we don't see the goalpost. Let alone know how to make the goal. That in that ambiguity, we will find the composure and grounded-ness that a life that had to be lived well, is being lived. Right now.

Let's make it this BEST possible summer, EVER, with our PEOPLE.

Invest in us with your time .