Everyday Geeta

August 17, 2014 Only yesterday, I read the 1992 Playboy interview of Robin Williams . There is a wonderful quote there by Robin: “If you take the chance, sometimes you’ll find something so magnificent that it was worth dying for, and sometimes you’ll find nothing and have a horrible night. To go deeper with it, that’s the most interesting challenge.” I flashed back today to the news of Robin Williams passing during our Geeta study class. We were reading verse 1-32, 33. In these verses, Arjuna laments his existential crisis. "Why must I fight, O Kṛṣṇa?", he asks. "With the death of my loved ones, what is the point of winning a kingdom and gaining pleasure? Indeed, what is the point of living this life?" (Note: This is free translation, full verse and translation below). Robin Williams undoubtedly loved and was loved by his daughter, Zelda and wife, Susan and millions of fans. His accomplishments as a comedian and actor are legendary. Through the non-profit Comic R...

August 10, 2014 I was recently reading an HBR blog entry titled  "Why Smart People Struggle With Strategy"  by  Roger Martin . Maybe I am weird, but I could not help thinking of Bhagavad Geeta verse 2-47,(probably the Geeta's most famous verse; see below for the full text of verse 2-47). The post opens thus: Strategy is often seen as something really smart people do — those head-of-the-class folks with top-notch academic credentials. But just because these are the folks attracted to strategy doesn't mean they will naturally excel at it. The problem with smart people is that they are used to seeking and finding "the right answer"; unfortunately, in strategy there is no single right answer to find. Strategy requires making choices about an uncertain future. It is not possible, no matter how much of the ocean you boil, to discover the one right answer. There isn't one. In fact, even after the fact, there is no way to determine that one's strategy choice...