Learnings from Nitin Pandey

Always apply first principles thinking.

Thinking through - starting with the end/goal in mind. To articulate & work in a goal-aligned manner.

Experimenting faster but going deeper.

Not fearing failure. Failing is absolutely fine but mistakes shouldn't be repeated.

Learning by self and learning through people - both are good ways to learn. But, if you always rely on someone to teach you, you limit your growth opportunity.

If you don't apply your judgement, and always rely on someone else's judgement in order to prevent mistakes, how will your judgement improve?

Not everyone has all the answers. Not everyone is right all the time.

Use interactions with people as learning opportunities. Don't use "people" as learning opportunities. Otherwise, your expectations from people will always be very high and it will crash sooner or later.

Learning from people is teacher-based / classroom learning. But, where do we learn the most? Outside the classroom - in the real world - tinkering with real stuff.

In classroom learning, we are not allowed to fail, we get penalized for mistakes / doing something wrong. However, in the real world it's a boon because every mistake and its' corresponding reflection is a learning opportunity. You learn - iterate - move closer to your goal each time.

If ego comes in b/w learning, that's when learning stops. In such a scenario, it's better to laugh at yourself, accept your mistake and erase the board like a child does. Then start again from scratch.

Never give up. How do you defeat a person who never gives up?

Being committed v/s being interested. To play the game for sometime and remain committed to something for a while (setting at least medium term goals).

When it comes to work /commitment - to not force/push myself towards something and instead let it pull me towards it. 

Whenever you want to disengage with someone / an organisation / a group / a party - always talk in person first, don't email. Esp when the relationship is important to you. Otherwise the other person /party will think that you're not valuing the relationship.

After every activity, always reflect. What worked well? What could have been better? Wisdom comes from reflections.

If you have a big problem to solve for, break down the problem into smaller pieces and then solve.

Positive stress v/s negative stress. There is no growth in life without pain / discomfort. Positive stress is when you're committed to the journey and constantly thinking about how to achieve what you've set out to achieve. Negative stress is when you're constantly seeking validation, worried about what people will think of you if you fail, pissed when someone says something to /about you.

Doing good by making money > Making money by doing good. Money is important. Wanting and prioritizing for money can be good, as it enables you to do more.

-----

People pay to go and watch Iron Man in the theaters. I've been lucky to work with one in real life :)

Happy Birthday, Nitin! Keep Rocking ?? 

22.04.2020