The Anecdote That Changed My Coaching Practice I’m nervous every time I take an Uber or Ola. In 2021, an accident. A distracted driver. Since then, I talk to every driver to keep them alert, engaged. “What are your working hours? How many hours daily? Do you send your children to school?” One afternoon, a […]
Why That Uber Driver with a Master’s Has No Job: India’s Credential Crisis Explained Read More »
In January 2026, CBSE did something rare. It acknowledged, in writing, that Indian schools are not just academic factories. They are emotional pressure cookers. The mandate was blunt: Every CBSE-affiliated secondary and senior secondary school must appoint two full-time counsellors. One for socio-emotional wellbeing. One for career guidance. Ratio: 1 counsellor per 500 students. Timeline:
Two Counsellors, One Deadline, and a System Holding Its Breath Read More »
It was 2014-15. I sat across from the registrar of a top university, sipping chai, dreaming up ways to spark startup fever on campus. We laughed about young dreamers pitching wild ideas. Then his face turned serious. “Mark my words,” he said, “the middle rung of jobs—those steady 9-to-5 doers—will vanish. Only top strategists and
From Tata’s Job Cuts to Your Career Pivot: Escape the Middle and Thrive Read More »
It was an ordinary evening until my phone rang.One sentence erased nearly two decades. “Ma’am, you were right.” There was no excitement in his voice. No relief either. Just steadiness.The kind that comes when a career stops demanding justification. It was Anku. Back in 2006, Anku was already earning well. Fresh out of college, he
₹80,000 Today or Power Tomorrow? The Question Every Career Decision Must Answer Read More »
A Research-Backed Analysis of Why the Teaching Profession Deserves Better Than Ideals The Question That Unsettled the Room: A B.Ed Classroom During a recent panel discussion on employability and professional readiness at a B.Ed institution, a fourth-semester B.Ed student posed a question that momentarily unsettled the room—but deeply resonated with many: “Why are teachers not
When Passion Is Used as Payment: A Reflection on Teacher Compensation and Conditioning Read More »
From Svyambhu to FutureIcons: How Self-Reliance Became a Living Movement Big change rarely begins with big money.It begins with a simple question: what if people already have what they need, and we just help them see it? That question sat at the heart of Project Svyambhu, when our founder Dr Akshita Bahuguna first called for
Beyond Unicorns: The India Built by Pico Entrepreneurs Read More »
India’s startup ecosystem achieved the impossible: 2.09 lakh recognized startups, 1.66 million jobs, $131 billion raised, 119 unicorns. Yet beneath these spectacular numbers lies a structural fragility that threatens the ecosystem’s long-term relevance. On January 16, 2026, as India celebrated a decade of Startup India, few noticed the uncomfortable truth: the ecosystem has optimized for
National Startup Day 2026: The Uncomfortable Truth Behind India’s Startup Boom Read More »
Last week, someone slid into my inbox with an exciting opportunity. Not for my work.Not for a project. For my thinking. They wanted to “handle my social media” and “position me as a thought leader.” Monthly packages. Weekly deliverables. Guaranteed visibility. Apparently, my ideas just needed better lighting and a posting schedule. I stared at
When Ideas Went on Sale (Limited Period Offer!) Read More »
A few months ago, I caught myself doing something deeply ironic. I was preparing for a training session on deep learning and critical thinking. My laptop had more than twenty tabs open. Research papers. Articles. Videos. Quotes. My phone buzzed constantly with updates that felt important. After two hours, I had gathered an impressive volume
Infinite Access. Finite Reflection. Read More »
A New Way to Think About Teaching and Learning We have it backwards. For decades, we’ve talked about teaching as content delivery, with classroom management as the mechanism to maintain control so that teaching can happen. We’ve added mental health support as an afterthought—something counselors do, or something we address when crisis strikes. But emerging
The CLO Teacher: Why Mental Health Must Be Your Foundation, Not Your Add-On Read More »
