The Curious Corner / Issue #6

There are these weeks in the year when you crave for sunshine. You welcome every stray ray that makes it through the overcast sky. And you try to soak it in the best way you can. And you hope its warmth will stay with you.

I try to do that by throwing myself into reading. But now you know what cloudy skies can do - they can threaten to turn my newsletter into freestyle poetry (I know it's nowhere close!). But worry not - here are the reads that piqued my interest in the last week -

• Growing up, if there was one type of garment I did not associate the words "comfortable" and "fun" with, it was definitely the saree. I dreaded the school farewells that we associated with all girls having to wear sarees. It was a pain to wear, to handle, and I personally did not find the form flattering at all. But I am so happy women today are having fun with the saree - reinventing it, pairing it with accessories, pushing the envelope and actually championing it. This read about how brands in India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan are putting their own spin on the saree was a really interesting read. I do see so many women around me experiment with the saree. I'm here for it! :)

"Narratives around saris embedded in religion, marital status, colour and body shape exist till this day, and this is what we are trying to combat" – Aiza Hussain?

• I've been in situations where people have hyped certain individuals for their ability to be 'tough' - especially in leadership positions. Tough has come to mean different things - resolute, unruffled, ruthless, uncaring, resilient, detached, dispassionate. It has also meant we have dehumanised a lot of people around us and praised them for the wrong things. I really liked reading this old piece written by Tanmoy Goswami about what the celebrated Cricket coach Paddy Upton has to say about mental toughness and why it's overrated. So insightful and human. (especially for Cricket fans)

At some point during our conversation, Upton says something that has resonances far beyond the cricket field: "Anxiety and depression start breeding in the gap between who you really are and who you pretend to be."

• If you have many unopened tabs in your web browser, this one's for you. The average adult has a woefully poor attention span but it can be aided. You attentional system can be trained by will. From work to relationships to health, every aspect of life can be bettered by working on one's attention. This read on the attention economy and our attentional system was helpful in gaining more perspective on my own blind spots when it comes to attention.

"But the modern world has hyper-charged these forces beyond the tipping point of usefulness. Stress has become distress, negative moods have become chronic melancholy, and threats are overrepresented. There are many reasons for this hyper-charging, but a prominent one is the attention economy."

• Remember the time when the perfume industry would go all out on direct themes like attraction and sexuality? Well, you would say that is still the case with Indian brands. But globally, the perfume industry is undergoing a change in the way it communicates. It is now more about sexuality, identity and gender more than the usual themes of attraction. It is more about personal journeys instead of narrow definitions of gender and power. And that's refreshing! Check out this read about how changes in cultural landscape have meant a change in communication styles for perfume brands.

“Romance is not necessarily passé,” Ms. Herz said. It’s the representations of romance that are more abstract, she explained, because “things are less defined heterosexually” than they were a decade ago.?

• One sad thing shaping our current culture has been the continuing free-fall of women's participation in the workforce. Things were bad before the pandemic, but they don't seem any better even now. This is something I personally want to contribute towards and I am glad more people are speaking up about this and rolling out policies and initiatives at their workplaces to make sure women get a chance to get back to work. But the real problem is not just getting women back to work, but getting women sustainable, well-paying jobs. This read about the current situation that women in India face gives you a lot of data and trends.

By the end of 2020, the labour force across India had shrunk by 2% for men; 13% for women, according to an analysis of CMIE data by Nikore. But among recently unemployed men, 67% were actively looking for paid work and among women, only 37%. “There simply weren’t enough jobs that paid decent wages. Women just gave up the fight to look for decent work,” said Nikore.

Over the last week, I was glad to read a really fun, warm book by Zoe Chance about how to think about personal influence. Turns out, so many things we know about influence are just not true. it is so much more intuitive than you think. And more influence helps you push for great things and outcome where everybody wins. We can all use some tips and tricks from this book and leap higher, dream bigger. Recommended read!

As always, some quotes to end this issue -

“Courage is only the accumulation of small steps.” - Gy?rgy Konrád?

“To listen is to lean in softly with a willingness to be changed by what we hear.” - Mark Nepo

“A surplus of effort could overcome a deficit of confidence.”? —Sonia Sotomayor

Until next week. Stay curious!