SG's Meditations - Issue #54
Hello! Morning Evening!
I am writing this from an empty Starbucks at Koramangla, Bangalore and I love it. I mean I love the fact that I have a table and a chair to sit on, the AC is at 22, I have a venti glass full of water, I am listening to Khudgharz, and I am typing away to glory.
What else could you ask from life? I mean I can ask a lot. But this is close to perfect!
So, without further ado, let's go!
PS: A lot of what you read here will be inspired by the recent Apple event.
PPS: This will be a short one. Not for the want of time but for want of content. Last week was incredibly busy!
📸 Photo of the week
This is not really a photo but a piece of text that I saw on Twitter last week. This is part of the Steve Jobs archive.
It's been more than 10 years since he's gone and there is hardly a stretch of time when I dont think about him or try and become him. Of course, my friends and all tell me that I ought to become a Saurabh Garg and not someone else. But then, I really dont have any other ambition, but be a shadow of Steve. And a shade of what I am.
But then, I dont know who I am. You know, Bulla Ki Jaana Main Kaun!
Thing is, Steve may not have been the best boss out there but he ensured that his people did their best work. As a leader, he pushed his team and he got superlative work created from them. And that in itself is an achievement.
In fact, one of the things that I have been thinking about is how as a learner, I have wanted to submit to a Guru like Steve and I could never prove myself as a worthy enough pupil to get the attention of someone like Steve. I have chased validation of someone great and I have wanted to submit to them and learn from them and hope that someday I would be where they are. I was willing to give everything I had. Drop my life, my whims, my personality, my quirks to have someone who'd put their confidence in me and mould me.
Of course, now it's too late. And it's ok.
I do have Steve and other gurus that I could be an Eklavya to. In fact, as I write this, I can't stop thinking about how I've wanted Anurag Kashyap to be my guru. And how I am inadequate to even get his attention, leave alone get under his tutelage.
Ok, this is getting into a sad rant. We shall move on. To good thing of the week.
😊 Good thing from the week
So the WA group where I send marketing updates seems to be doing ok. Thanks to hard work by a few young people, I reach more than 300 people now and they seem to be enjoying it enough to NOT quit the group. So that's a great thing! You may join it as well, in case you want to. Here - https://chat.whatsapp.com/JpGMHIaBN7rFACrbkmLlfW
Here's a snippet of the post that I sent yesterday...
Again, it features AK :D. And in case you'd like to join in, welcome!
🗣️ Quote of the week
I saw this on this tweet and I was like, WTF!
"If you crush a cockroach, you're a hero. If you crush a beautiful butterfly, you're a villain. Morals have aesthetic criteria" - Nietzsche
Think about it. It's fascinating. It makes you question your morality. I mean, in the world we live in a cockroach is a pest, an undesirable thing, a loathsome creature that inspires fear (even disgust) and the instinctive reaction is to swat it out.
But then, in terms of evolution, popular culture tells me that cockroaches are the things that would even survive the nuclear winter. These creatures are probably the best of the lot when it comes to evolutionary biology! No?
And yet we routinely kill em and buy expensive sprays to keep em out.
Now, extrapolate this to everything else that society has taught us. I mean each "beautiful" thing that we try and preserve, what if you had a rational (or even an emotional) reason to not preserve it and you acted on it, you would probably become a villain!
Taking a leap to the work I do, I can increasingly see the importance of making things with a very high aesthetic value. So far, I've been unable to do this. Largely because I dont understand design myself. Other things in the communication business, well, I think I am adequate. I mean I can be better but I am ok.
So, design. My Achilles Heel.
If you know anyone that can help C4E get better, please make intros!
💭 Thought of the week
This is a sort of rant, TBH. About my work. Something that I rarely get into. But here goes.
So, with one of the clients, I am having a tough time. To a point that I am thinking a lot about it even when I am on other things. You know, it's living rent-free in my head. And it's started to affect how I think and feel on a day-to-day basis. I think it's time to move on.
While a previous version of SG would have moved on already (I operate from the heart than from head), this newer me is thinking about it. To a point that I am unable to think of anything else. I am unable to operate. I am unable to do things that make me, me!
And I dont like this part. I of course dont like to think. I want to. I want to create movement. I operate in the ready, fire, aim mode. Action is where my salvation is. And I am unable to act. And thus I need to do something.
What, I dont know.
So that.
And there is more. But then, no point in ranting. Without context. So, I shall leave this hanging and move on. To the random thing of the week!
🔀 Random thing of the week
So this is probably a life-changing opportunity if you use it well. I am not exaggerating. Read on.
One of the best writers on the internet, David Perell runs this cohort-based course on writing for the internet (called the Write of Passage). I have seen his work and I am in awe of what and how he writes. And I have spoken to someone that has taken his course. And I think it's worth putting in time and energy.
In fact, I really think that if there is one skill that you must acquire in life, it has to be writing. It is an evergreen skill that will ensure that you dont die hungry or poor.
And trust me, it can be learnt.
This course could be a starting point!
I know that for people in India this could be expensive but they are offering up to 10 seats as scholarships. Here is the link to the application.
Oh, I am applying and you must too!
PS: Here is my application in case you want inspiration.
And this, ladies and gents brings me to the end of this newsletter.
I hope it was a fun read!
And if you enjoyed reading this, please share this with your friends and family and help me expand the reach of my weekly newsletter. It will mean a lot to me :)
Over and out! 👋
- SG / 11 Sep 2022 / Bangalore