In 1923, the German thinker Eugen Herrigel, hoping to master Zen philosophy, visited Japan and immersed himself in archery. He wrote in his classic study “Zen in the Art of Archery”: “Archery is not practiced solely for hitting the target; the swordsman does not wield the sword just for the sake of outdoing his opponent; […]
There is no controlling life. Try corralling a lightning bolt, containing a tornado. Dam a stream and it will create a new channel. Resist, and the tide will sweep you off your feet. Allow, and grace will carry you to higher ground. The only safety lies in letting it all in — the wild and […]
Our train to Chandigarh encountered heavy fog on that winter morning. At one point when visibility was less than 100 meters, I thought the train will not move forward. We had little choice but to stay put and trust that things will start moving. And it did, although quite slowly. It was an interesting […]
Treading along in this dreamlike, illusory realm, Without looking for the traces I may have left;A cuckoo’s song beckons me to return home;Hearing this, I tilt my head to seeWho has told me to turn back;But do not ask me where I am going,As I travel in this limitless world,Where every step I take is […]
Always we hopesomeone else has the answer,some other place will be better,some other time,it will turn out. This is it. No one else has the answer,no other place will be better,and it has already turned out. At the center of your being,you have the answer:you know who you are andyou know what you want. […]
Nicolae Tanase is the Excellence Reporter who asks thought leaders from different walks of life a single question: “What is the meaning of life?” This is one question that I secretly hoped no one ever asked me. I have been thinking all the time about business related topics and any question that did not have […]
Listening to the “On Being” episode with one of the greatest living poets Mary Oliver truly made my day, especially the following poem. Who made the world?Who made the swan, and the black bear?Who made the grasshopper?This grasshopper, I mean-the one who has flung herself out of the grass,the one who is eating sugar […]
In the analog world where I grew up, I had formed a habit of maintaining an analog journal. A joint effort between me and my father, the journal was enriched with wise words, poems, quotes, thought snippets and articles from great thinkers – all hand written! Occasionally, my father would also ruminate on life using […]
I created a series of sketch notes for Tiffani Bova’s “What’s Next” podcast where she meets brilliant people to discuss customer experience, growth and innovation. Tiffani Bova is a Global Customer Growth and Innovation Evangelist at Salesforce. I will post sketchnote versions of selected podcast episodes that enlightened me. Tiffani is also the author of […]