10 years and counting...

Some reflections from the meandering over the last decade

1 Feb 2016 - The day I moved from EgonZehnder to set up my own Advisory practice. After about 15 years across KPMG (UK and India), McKinsey (US) and EgonZehnder (India), I had decided to venture out on my own. It wasn’t clear whether I would be able to set up a meaningful practice. I rented a desk at the AWFIS (a co-working space) near Churchgate station near Eros and Oval Maidan and got started on this journey. All I had was a laptop, a notebook and a small idol of Ganpati given to me by my colleague Shiraz Mistry.

Fast forward 10 years, I truly feel grateful for how the journey has played out over the years. I just thought it would be useful to pause and take stock of the journey and share some of the reflections from it in case it is useful to some, especially those who are on the path of being a solopreneur/independent advisor. Its a little long, I am afraid. You can skim the 10 headlines if you are strapped for time!

Pic above: Day 1 at AWFIS where it started. Feb 1 2016. I was there bright eyed and bushy tailed before even the chowkidaar showed up.

1. Be a needle for a balloon

This was something I learnt from Sandeep Singhal of Westbridge Capital, when I went to get some guidance from him while moving on from EgonZehnder. He nudged me to start with a clear niche rather than being a generalist.

When I thought about it, I felt that as a search consultant, I noticed that every candidate conversation was a career transition conversation and every client conversation was a leadership transition conversation.

That got me to start with Transitions as a clear area of focus to start with. When I look back, I feel it was useful to have a sharp positioning early in my solopreneurial journey.

2. What platform are you standing on

Early in my journey, I went and met Prof Ashish Nanda, who was then the Director at IIM Ahmedabad. When I went and told him, I was setting up something on my own, he looked me in the eye and said “Deepak, many of my classmates went on this path at around a similar time in their life. What they discovered was that the depreciation curve of irrelevance was steeper than they anticipated”. He expounded that when you belong to a platform like a McKinsey or EgonZehnder, the platform does the hard work of staying relevant and replenishing itself. Somebody in EgonZehnder- London is probably working on the latest interview methodology that somebody in EgonZehnder Mumbai could use. Somebody in McKinsey New York is perhaps working on a Strategy framework that the consultants in India could use.

He went on to say that if I just focused on the “Operations” of my business without adequate attention to replenishing myself, I could be going down the curve irrelevance faster than I could imagine. This impetus got me to start the “Play to Potential” podcast which, over time, has developed into the legs on which my platform stands (as things stand today).

3. Playing the role of a CEO and COE at the same time

I started out as a solo-preneur but soon realized that even though I was one person, I still had to perform all the roles of a Corporation (Sales, Marketing, Operations, Finance and Tech). I realized that I was the Chief Executive Officer but the Company’s Only Employee (COE) at the same time. OB could mean Organizational Behaviour or Office Boy at the same time! It was frustrating to context-switch so much in a day but I also realized that there was interesting learning and over time, I learned to find a rhythm where I found a way to spend time across the various themes without over-indulging on one.

4. Leadership is lonelier when people are solving for themselves

We have all heard the term - Leadership is lonely. There are no peers and everyone interacting with you has their own agenda to pursue. However, I have found that XYZ, the person is lonelier than XYZ, the CEO. The CEO, when he or she is looking for advice, can lean on a range of Advisors (Board Members, Strategy Consultants, Marketing Agencies, Lawyers et al) to have sparring partners for various facets of their business.

However, I find that these leaders are juggling various identities and have questions across these that they are often navigating themselves. Questions such as:

• I have had a successful run in the current role over the last few years? How should I think about my journey for the next 5 years?

• Should I be on this treadmill or slow down and spend more time with my children?

• I just made Partner and had a baby soon after. How should I prioritize across the various elements?

• I am the MD of a PE listed business. I have just signed up for a full Marathon. It keeps me healthy but am I overdoing it?

They often do not have some one who understands the full context of their lives across their various dimensions! That is the space where I have had an opportunity to engage with a few of them and it has been fulfilling to be of value as a trusted sounding board helping them play to potential across the various facets of their life!

5. Be intentional about shape of the pursuit

A few years into my journey as a Coach and Sounding Board, I remember catching up with my friend and former colleague, Vivek Khemka. That was around the time where I had been on my solo journey for a few years and was at cross-roads. Should I hire more people and build an Advisory Services organization? Or should I stay small? When I was discussing this with Vivek, he looked me in the eye and said “Deepak, I think you have an artisanal mindset.” That line stayed with me and has guided many of the choices I have made since then. Many people talk about following your passion. But I believe the manner in which we pursue it matters a lot in the way we experience the journey. You might be passionate about doing something in the field of Education. But you could be a teacher, a principal, a school builder, an investor investing in education, a board member or something else.

I realize that I enjoy the process of helping people towards their potential. But I do not enjoy the process of building an Advisory Organization and scaling it. Being a Surgeon in my field gives me greater joy than building a Hospital where many professionals could come and contribute on the platform. That feedback from Vivek has helped make many choices in terms of the shape of what I plan to pursue. I have noticed that people often pay a lot of attention to the domain they want to focus on but under-appreciate the importance of solving the “how” of engagement!

Sometimes, I wonder if I have a built a cage and have limited myself. When I asked one of my clients for feedback, he asked me “Deepak, do you think you are playing to your potential”. I guess, that is a discussion for another day!

6. Contentment and Ambition could co-exist

I remember speaking to Prakash Iyer at the Play to Potential Podcast many years back. I admire Prakash for his ability to tell stories that are engaging, entertaining and insightful in equal measure. At some point in our conversation, he narrated the story of the writer - Joseph Heller, the famed author of Catch-22.

The story goes like this:

Heller was at a lavish party hosted by a billionaire hedge-fund manager on Long Island. Another writer remarked to Heller:

“Our host makes more money in a single day than Catch-22 has made in its entire history.”

Heller replied: “Yes, but I have something he will never have.”

When asked what that was, Heller said: “Enough.”

It was one of those “Mere paas maa hai” type lines that stayed with me.

I have also come to realize that being content does not mean that one is not ambitious. It might just mean that one is patient about what is yet to come. I have discovered that people often applaud visible short term ambition that is restless but do not often notice and appreciate the version of ambition that is patient about the outcomes.

Over the last few years, I feel bringing in contentment has helped me sleep better at night and show up in a more meaningful way to the various people around me.

7. Potential is uniformly distributed while opportunity is not

The term “ovarian lottery” was coined and popularized by American investor Warren Buffett. He uses the phrase to describe the inherent randomness of birth and how circumstances beyond an individual’s control—such as the country, era, family wealth, and natural abilities they are born into—significantly dictate their life outcomes.

I have noticed that while the distribution of opportunity might be skewed, the distribution of potential is quite uniform. I got a glimpse into this during some of my work with Akanksha Foundation (uses high quality education to unlock potential) and Antarang Foundation (bridges the gap between education and employment).

However, I have gotten a visceral sense of this given my journey with my two colleagues - Akash Deore and Arman Bansod, both alumni of Antarang Foundation. Akash is the Chief Product Officer at the company (taking care of the Podcast Membership, Journals and other elements of the Play to Potential ecosystem). Arman is the Editor at the Podcast. They came with absolutely no prior background in this space but today are some of the leading professionals in this space (if I may say so myself).

They bring undiminished curiosity, a “can do” spirit and a first principles thinking approach that has helped me grow as a person in the work I do. Working with them reminds me that with the right attitude, one can learn anything. Grateful for their support and companionship over the years. Also reminds me that how much human potential can be unlocked if people are willing to take a leap of faith and place trust in these “diamonds in the rough”.

Pic above: Arman, Akash and I practicing to hit our targets

8. Align what you are doing with who you are being

I have come to realize that for a long time, we organize our life into “To do” lists at different time scales. It could be a Vision over 10 years, a Strategic plan over 2-3 years or just a daily or a weekly check list.

Over the last few years, I have come to realize that while “doing” represents the P&L element in our life, “being” represents the balance sheet aspect. Doing things often is depletive but being yourself is regenerative (courtesy Raghu Ananthanarayanan; Link here). The last few years have also been a journey of aligning what I am doing and who I am being at various points in time.

Over the years, I have tried to lean away from elements that are de-energizing (team facilitation exercises, one-off interventions etc) and leaned in towards what brings me joy (pursuing thought leadership, creating value additive content, being a sherpa over long journeys etc.).

More than the impact it has had on my professional front, I feel it has changed how I show up at home with my family. I (would like to believe I) am less drained, more present and playful. I have come to realize that aligning being and doing is a bit like aligning your swimming with the water current or adjusting your sails to the wind.

9. Coaching is often like the 9 3/4 platform in Harry Potter

When I was writing the book - “Play to Potential”, I decided to work with a Coach who could act as a sparring partner in helping me refine my thoughts. I decided to work with Shweta Mani. She is a certified Leadership Coach, has a passion for story telling. It also helped that we have been friends for 25+ years since IIMA days.

The book initially was meant to be a collection of essays which were a distillations of my learnings from the Play to Potential Podcast. Shweta pushed me hard on what the core message was and why my book was different. That got me to the point that I wanted to talk about potential in a holistic sense (across the various domains of life) and that eventually led me to coming up with the FLAVOUR-ful life approach that I discuss in the book. I would not have gotten here if not for the provocations from Shweta! I have come to realize that coaching, often, is not about getting 10% better or 20% better at something. If done well, it can be transformative and can take you to a place that even you didn’t anticipate. A bit like the 9 3/4 platform in Harry Potter.

10. It is often about the photographer, not the camera

This is a phrase I heard when I was at a training programme in during my days at EgonZehnder. The programme was for consultants to raise the game in being a trusted advisor to clients. The core insight was that we were the “product”, not the tools we use! Our job was to suss out the client need and do whatever it takes to solve the problem. One of the faculty members eloquently told us that if it is a wedding of a loved one in the family, you would focus on getting the right photographer for the event. You wouldn’t sweat whether he/she uses a Canon, Nikon or a Sony camera?

I see that in the space I operate in. There are life coaches, performance coaches, wellbeing coaches, business coaches and many such! My mission is to help people play to their potential in a holistic sense. Sometimes, it requires me to be a brainstorming partner. Sometimes, it is asking a question that provokes reflection that sets off a chain reaction. Sometimes, it is connecting the person I am working with with the right resource. Sometimes, it is sharing a story from my journey that could help them. Sometimes it is about sharing a podcast nugget. Whatever it takes.

While I had learnt about the photographer and the camera when I was at EgonZehnder, I have come to realize the value of that advice over the last several years!

Overall, it has been a fulfilling 10 years. Look forward what lay ahead in the next decade!

Thank you to all those that trusted me as their coach and who gave their time and attention to the content I have put out over the years (whether it is the articles, podcast, book or the journal).

Truly grateful for your support and wishes.