Zoom In, Zoom Out

Rishi Vasudev, who just raised $36 million for his start-up G.O.A.T. Brand Labs, takes us through his journey from being a Fabric Salesperson out of college to navigating the fashion industry and going on to be the CEO of Calvin Klein, the Head of Fashion for Flipkart and Myntra, and the CEO of Lifestyle. He talks about his systems for success, building relationships and networking, and continuously unlearning and adapting yourself to a fast-paced world. Rishi shows us his definition of success and failure, and why he decided to create his own start-up after phenomenal success in the corporate world. He also takes us through his impressive fitness habits, running 2000+ km in a year, and explains how he sets goals and pushes himself to achieve further. A must watch for anyone interested in entrepreneurship, working in large corporates, or personal development and career development in general. Rishi's Links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rishivasudev/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/RishiV G.O.A.T. Brand Labs: https://goatbrandlabs.com/ Contact Us: Akash Shroff: https://linktr.ee/akashvshroff Arihant Choudhary: https://www.arihantchoudhary.com Parth Behani: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parth-behani Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:17 - Early Career Right Out of College 02:53 - Comparisons with Your Peers vs Building your Own Path 05:13 - Reinventing Yourself Continuously; Unlearning, Relearning, Growing 08:27 - Systems for Success; First Principles Thinking, Journalling, Relationships 13:02 - Reputation and Appearance 15:37 - Creating a Startup after Large Corporate Success 20:09 - Breaking Out of Your Own Ego 23:43 - Defining Success and Learning through Failure 27:49 - Adapting to the Tech Age; Combining Old Experiences 33:26 - Fitness and Sports; Running 2000+ km in a Year 36:19 - Accountability and Goal Setting 38:29 - Pushing Yourself to Continue after a Failure Week 42:14 - Guilty Pleasures and Productivity Slumps 45:41 - Conclusion

Shayantan Rahman, an Oxbridge alumnus and educational consultant through his own company, CollegeLab, takes us through his journey through college, research, and the Indian education industry! He talks about his experiences as a student at Oxford; sharing valuable insights into exploring and figuring out your own priorities in college, finding a community, and time management. He also takes us through setting up a Kolkata hub of the Global Shapers - a network of young people leading change-making efforts. He shares his methodology in uniting people behind a cause, and his failures and learnings along the way. Shayantan's Links: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/collegelabofficial Email: shayantan@collegelab.in Contact Us: Akash Shroff: https://linktr.ee/akashvshroff Arihant Choudhary: https://www.arihantchoudhary.com Parth Behani: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parth-behani Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:12 - First Year at Oxford 02:49 - Running for Oxford Student Union 06:20 - Understanding your Priorities in College & Finding a Community 10:26 - Balancing Sleep, Social Life, Studies at University 13:25 - Managing and Investing Your Time 17:18 - Switching from Academia to the Education Industry 23:20 - Setting up a Modern Mentorship Firm in India 26:49 - The Global Shapers Hub: Social Changemakers in Calcutta 31:40 - Building a Organisation or Company: Creating a Vision 34:45 - Eliminating Productivity Slumps and Creating Longer Term Goals 38:44 - Parting Message and Conclusion

Mahima Dhoot, an incredible food blogger (@diningwithdhoot) takes us through her content creation journey - from starting and how to choose a career path, to going viral, and how to organically grow your audience. Having studied her Masters in Gender, Media and Culture at LSE, Mahima goes through the journey of finding jobs in niche careers and how she landed upon her current endeavour. She passes along numerous insights from her journey as a content creator, from starting out, to content burnouts, to adapting to your audience, to getting brand deals, to dealing with online hate, to keeping one's content honest. This episode is a must watch not only if you're planning on creating content of any kind, but also for those looking to explore non-traditional career paths or start anything of their own - be it a business or blog. Mahima's Links: Dining with Dhoot Insta: https://www.instagram.com/diningwithdhoot/ Anjali's Episode: https://youtu.be/KRmB885qdf4 Creator's of Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/creators Contact Us: Akash Shroff: https://linktr.ee/akashvshroff Arihant Choudhary: https://www.arihantchoudhary.com Parth Behani: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parth-behani Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:23 - Studying in a Niche Field and Unlearning 02:49 - Wanting a stable, "Serious Profession" 05:29 - Getting into Food Blogging 07:55 - Tips on Finding Non-Traditional Career Paths 09:08 - Initial Reception to Blogging & Comparing Yourself to Others 11:30 - Consistency in Social Media and Putting in Your All 13:07 - Getting Brand Deals at a Small Following Size 15:05 - Adapting your Content to your Audience 16:48 - Decolonizing Your Content 18:31 - Going Viral! Chai Biscuit Popsicle 20:28 - Dealing with Online Hate and Sexism 25:15 - Don't Undervalue Yourself and Your Content 28:57 - Quantity, Quality, & Honesty for Instagram Content Creators 31:56 - Resources to Improve Instagram Skills 33:48 - Plan for the Future 35:56 - Content Burnout, Slumps, and Guilty Pleasures 40:57 - Parting Message on Content Creation 42:12 - Conclusion

Join us in another special concept episode where your three hosts talk about drawing comparisons, be it through social media or in daily life. We take you through why our brains fundamentally use comparison, when this becomes an issue and how to rid yourself of the anxiety it can cause. Filled with examples from our daily lives, we provide you with techniques from temporal comparison to documenting success and building confidence to make the impact of comparison positive and healthy in your lives! Resources: The Art of Comparing Yourself to Others: https://students.ubc.ca/ubclife/art-comparing-yourself-others Scarcity Mindset: https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinecastrillon/2020/07/12/5-ways-to-go-from-a-scarcity-to-abundance-mindset/ Study on Relative Income and Happiness: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/43348242_Money_and_Happiness_Rank_of_Income_Not_Income_Affects_Life_Satisfaction Study on Brain Mechanisms of Social Comparison: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4222713/ The Fall of Icarus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X75Roe_davA Contact Us: Akash Shroff: https://linktr.ee/akashvshroff Arihant Choudhary: https://www.arihantchoudhary.com Parth Behani: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parth-behani Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 02:05 - Why Do Our Brains Compare 03:10 - Scarcity Mindset 04:05 - Social Media Comparison 05:31 - Healthy Competition and Accountability 07:34 - Disguised Unhealthy Relationships and Self Worth 10:30 - Using Process-Based Comparison to Push Yourself 14:14 - Hedonic Adaptation vs Temporal Comparison 17:31 - Documenting Your Success and Building Confidence 21:37 - Finding Value and Things You Enjoy 23:40 - Favourable Comparisons - Quick Fix or Viable? 24:57 - Identifying What and Why You're Comparing 27:54 - The Fall of Icarus and Conclusion

The founder of FullStopp and incoming freshman at Stanford, Anjali Surana speaks to us about activism as a young adult, dealing with online hate, overcoming rejection, and making an impact! She takes us through the activities of her non-profit organisation, Fullstopp, which is trying to change the way menstruation is perceived by society through access, awareness and advocacy. Apart from this, Anjali throws some light on her own struggles with online learning through this pandemic. She talks about her college application process and developing a mindset in which one can enjoy seemingly stressful tasks. Sprinkled with intriguing discussions on privilege, passion, and perception, this episode is one that you don't want to miss! Anjali's Links Anjali's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anjalisuranaa/ Fullstopp Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itsfullstopp/ Fullstopp Website: https://www.itsfullstopp.com/ Contact Us: Akash Shroff: https://linktr.ee/akashvshroff Arihant Choudhary: https://www.arihantchoudhary.com Parth Behani: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parth-behani Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:15 - About Fullstopp and tackling Menstrual Inequality 04:08 - Being Taken Seriously as a Student 10:29 - Dealing with Stigma and Online Hate 19:05 - Struggles of Online Learning 22:46 - Challenging your Self-Perception 25:14 - Exploring your Systems for Success 28:17 - How to Enjoy College Applications 33:00 - Passion and Doing What You Truly Want 36:58 - Dealing with Rejection; Chasing Dreams 41:17  - Guilty Pleasures and Privilege 46:04 - Conclusion

Meet Arnab Chatterjee, a 21-year-old award-winning filmmaker and student at the MetFlim School in London. He's won 39 international awards, was acclaimed as the Global Young Filmmaker of the Year 2018 by Global Film Awards in LA, and is regarded as the youngest acclaimed filmmaker in India by the Times of India. He was recently covered by Filmfare for his wins for his upcoming film starring Indian acting legend Soumitra Chatterjee. He takes us through the struggles of starting a film business as a teenager in India: navigating school work, societal pressure, and government bureaucracy, while managing time and money in this capital intensive endeavour. He shares some insight into his storytelling process and intriguing yet humorous behind the scene incidents. Arnab's Links Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/acjeeofficial/ Vertex Duo: https://youtu.be/q-VdijR0K-I Unsaid: https://youtu.be/_aNXRGyXJkI Contact Us: Akash Shroff: https://linktr.ee/akashvshroff Arihant Choudhary: https://www.arihantchoudhary.com Parth Behani: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parth-behani Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:30 - Getting into Film Making 04:03 - Early Films with Friends 06:41 - First Awards and Storytelling 11:21 - Abandoned Projects 15:49 - Using Failure to create Success 20:07 - Time & Money Management 24:30 - Navigating Bureaucracy as a Young Adult 30:48 - Creating an Entertainment Company 34:00 - Working with Soumitra Chatterjee and other Professionals 42:26 - Navigating Imposter Syndrome 45:49 - Guilty Pleasures & Parting Messages

Listen in for a special concept episode where your hosts Akash, Arihant, and Parth talk about procrastination. Being teenagers who have tons of experience with procrastination, they share relatable stories, chat about what procrastination means, what causes it, and how you can hack your brain with techniques that have worked for them! Importantly, throughout the episode, they provide you with a framework via the 'Procrastination Equation' through which you can identify your particular kind of procrastination and how you can do something about it. Resources: The Procrastination Equation by Piers Steel - https://www.amazon.in/Procrastination-Equation-Putting-Things-Getting/dp/0061703621 Self Worth Theory - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-worth_theory_of_motivation Yes Theory Ironman - https://youtu.be/tG678spaEm0 Eisenhower Matrix (Urgency vs Importance) - https://www.eisenhower.me/eisenhower-matrix/ Atomic Habits by James Clear - https://jamesclear.com/atomic-habits Self Control - https://selfcontrolapp.com/ 2 & 5 minute rule by Ali Abdaal - https://youtu.be/yBP1VjO9RSE?t=267 Two Day Rule by Matt D'Avella - https://youtu.be/bfLHTLQZ5nc Procrastination Equation by the College Info Geek Podcast - https://youtu.be/V0neHmyws3I Previous Episodes Kevin Wong - https://youtu.be/hc1MyOfcpo4 Jin Chow - https://youtu.be/c-_iejBilm4 George Philip LeBourdais -  https://youtu.be/UDMaFQZsy1c Contact Us: Akash Shroff: https://linktr.ee/akashvshroff Arihant Choudhary: https://www.arihantchoudhary.com Parth Behani: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parth-behani Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:46 - The Procrastination Equation 04:43 - Expectancy and Fear of Failure 06:57 - Self Worth Theory 08:50 - Yes Theory Iron Man 11:18 - Value and Meaning 14:22 - Urgency vs Importance 16:26 - Impulsiveness and Choice Points 19:13 - Analysis Paralysis and Unequal Decisions 22:11 - Mechanisms to Block Distractions 24:06 - Delay and Deadlines 26:14 - Cold Showers and The Discipline Muscle 28:35 - 2 & 5 Minute Rule - Ali Abdaal 30:59 - Scheduling Fun! 33:36 - Motivation vs Habits, The 2 Day Rule 36:57 - Have fun with it mindset! 38:57 - Final Thoughts

Meet George Philip LeBourdais, who also goes by GP, and is a Stanford Ph.D. in the History of Art & Architecture. He's also studied aesthetic judgement on a Fulbright Grant in Switzerland and curated the Stanford Digital Humanities lab for two years. He's currently the Head of Partnerships at Polygence, a research academy dedicated to providing high school students with research opportunities. GP shares fascinating stories from his dissertation, from challenging the norm by applying new computational methods to Art History to actually exploring the Arctic Circle. He talks through instances of self-doubt and systems he's built to overcome them, including free writing, transcribing dreams, and meditation. He breaks down the principles he lives his life by, from being in the moment to not getting affected by external circumstances and how he's reached a place of contentment. Listen to the episode to gain some truly insightful and powerful techniques to living a more meaningful life. Resources: The Five Agreements (Ruiz): https://www.amazon.com/Fifth-Agreement-Practical-Self-Mastery-Toltec/dp/1878424610 Icebergs and Creativity (GP): https://thepointmag.com/criticism/icebergs GP's Links Website: https://www.georgephiliplebourdais.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/glebourd (@glebourd) Email: gp@polygence.org Contact Us: Akash Shroff: https://linktr.ee/akashvshroff Arihant Choudhary: https://www.arihantchoudhary.com Parth Behani: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parth-behani Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:07 - GP's Art History Dissertation on the Arctic Circle 08:43 - Experience with Climate Change and it's Narratives 13:40 - Systems for Productivity and Overcoming Self-doubt 19:35 - Sacrifices and Contentment 25:04 - College Life, Triple Majoring 27:20 - Time management and Scheduling 33:20 - The Power of Boredom, Productivity Slumps 39:54 - Guilty Pleasures, VR Games 44:03 - Parting Message & Finding your Sense of Purpose

Meet Jin Chow: co-founder and COO of Polygence, a cutting edge ed-tech startup, and a current Stanford PhD candidate. She's fluent in 6 different languages and was the valedictorian of her graduating class at Princeton '17 where she studied Comparative Literature. Jin describes her journey through academia from rejection to success, detailing the systems that worked for her and the trade-offs she made along the way. She discusses focus, discipline, and her approach to risk-taking all while providing us with a glimpse into her relatable idiosyncrasies.  Time Stamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:32 - Rejection from Stanford 07:16 - Polygence and Project-based Learning 10:35 - PhD vs Start-up 16:34 - Systems for Success 18:52 - Becoming a valedictorian 23:12 - Language Learning 25:21 - Productivity Slumps and Guilty Pleasures 31:30 - Parting Message Jin's Links:  Email: jin@polygence.org Polygence: https://www.polygence.org/ Jin's Resume: http://bit.ly/zoom_in_ep3 Contact Us: Akash Shroff: https://linktr.ee/akashvshroff Arihant Choudhary: https://www.arihantchoudhary.com Parth Behani: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parth-behani

A senior electro-optical engineer, working on US Missile Defence Systems at Lockheed Martin, Kevin Wong studied Physics at UC Berkeley (class of 2016). He's a member of the US national Taiji team and has won several international championships. Kevin breaks down his personal growth from struggling in college to working with satellites. He talks about his original vision of his life getting shattered and after that finding out what he's truly interested in. From rescuing a satellite which was minutes away from failure, to dealing with imposter syndrome, to spending years learning Taiji, Kevin's journey is sure to inspire and teach us all a lot. Kevin's Links Kevin Wong: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-wong-51618698 Kevin's resume and failure resume: http://bit.ly/zoom_in_ep2 Contact Us: Akash Shroff: https://linktr.ee/akashvshroff Arihant Choudhary: https://www.arihantchoudhary.com Parth Behani: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parth-behani

Listen to 3 woefully underqualified friends discuss our views on failure and how it has helped shape our respective personal growth and success journeys. We discuss about how failure is an ongoing process, no matter how knowledgeable you might be, and how some of the most intelligent people alive today use failure as a tool for growth. Trying to see what failures truly teach us, apart from motivational speakers telling us that “failure is a stepping stone to success”, we introspect on how failure, unfair advantages, and hard work coming together to achieve success. With a dash of stoicism, a couple of book recommendations, and our own personal journey's, we hope this episode gets you thinking about how you can utilise failures in your own lives, setting the stage for our upcoming interviews. Contact Us:  Akash Shroff: https://linktr.ee/akashvshroff Arihant Choudhary: https://www.arihantchoudhary.com Parth Behani: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parth-behani