This is a question for those who have already achieved something significant in their lives and become remarkable as people – “Before you reached where you are now, way before you had those accomplishments – do you remember anyone recognizing your potential?” Every time I ask this question, I get a positive answer. People always… Continue reading
Post Category → Distinguish
Ways to distingish yourself – #59 Avoid passive resistance
I have always said that if you want to do something great, work with a great team. Working with an “A” team has a ton of advantages but there are some problems too. One problem is that it’s not easy to reach a consensus sometimes. Each person has an opinion and will have valid reasons… Continue reading
Ways to distinguish yourself – #58 Understand the law of the bucket and the glass
Okay – there is no such law. I made this up based on an advice by one of my mentors. Imagine an empty glass where you can pour water or any liquid. It’s ready and willing to get filled. Imagine a bucket filled with water. Now, start pouring the water from the bucket into the… Continue reading
Ways to distinguish yourself – #57 Focus on the last mile
There is a saying in the software development world that “it takes 90% of the time to complete 90% of the project and another 90% of the time to complete the other 10%.” Think about it – how many of your projects are almost complete? If a few projects come to your mind instantly don’t… Continue reading
Ways to distinguish yourself – #56 Craft a compelling elevator pitch for yourself
I wrote recently about being ready to win the boxing game. Lot of you wrote to me to expand on the topic. So here is what I have got. Elevator pitches are quite common in venture capital industry. If you are an entrepreneur in the valley (Bay Area) one of the first things that you… Continue reading
Ways to distingish yourself – #55 Commoditize your work at regular intervals
For those of you who are following the series you know that distinguishing yourself is not a destination but a journey. It’s a life long journey that you need to commit to. This means that once you achieve distinction in something very soon there will be many people who will catch up with you and… Continue reading
Ways to distinguish yourself – #54 Expand your "100% Trust Network"
I am sure you have a lot of close friends. The question is how many of these folks are in your “100% Trust Network.” A person is in your “100% Trust Network” if you trust him come what may. It is not a simple “trust” that you extend where it really means “I trust you… Continue reading
Ways to distinguish yourself – #53 Always be ready to win the boxing game
Have you participated in a boxing contest before? I bet most of you will answer “No” to the above question. That’s if you take the question literally. This was of course a trick question. Let me explain why we play and mostly lose in the boxing contest almost everyday. When you meet someone for the… Continue reading
Ways to distinguish yourself – #52 Continue to gain respect from people close to you
One of the questions in a recent interview was “What is your yardstick of success” and I remembered the above sentence and that was my answer to the question. (Disclaimer: It’s not me who coined this phrase but I don’t remember who said it first) Think about that for a second. Most of the time… Continue reading
Ways to distinguish yourself – #51 Work on your "Mile High Factor"
Go back about one year ago in your life. Imagine this scenario – you put all the smart people (remember SMART!) that you know and can influence on the ground. You go up on a plane about one “mile high” in the air. If you look down from there, you will see an area covered… Continue reading