Ankur Garg

When I appeared for my MBA summer placement interviews, I was super nervous. So much so that it must have shown on my face.

As I was walking towards the interview room, a senior said – don’t go in with that face. Smile, you will get this job.
 
We rarely spoke on campus. Yet, her words changed the way I approached the interview.

As a manager, whenever I have shown belief in someone, I have rarely been disappointed.

There is nothing more powerful than knowing that people around you believe in you.

#careers #management #personaldevelopment

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Once, I worked for someone who was a micromanager.

He checked in with me every 2 hours for progress, pointed out flaws in my work and my personality. It was so bad that after a week, I started reading every email on which he was marked 15 times.

Naturally, the productivity dipped. I spent 4 weeks on that project, ended up with a bad rating and shattered confidence.

It took another 2 months to get back to my productivity levels and I was fortunate to work with a better manager after that project.

It is easy to be critical, way more difficult to be kind.
True mark of intelligence is not the ability to be critical, it is the ability to control your emotions in the difficult of situations and be empathetic.

#careers #personaldevelopment #mentalhealth

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I was obsessed with General Management roles at IITD. The obsession shifted to Investment Banking when I joined IIMA, then to Consulting, VC and eventually to Start-ups. At each point in time, I strongly believed that one job was better than the other.

Over time, I have come to realize that it doesn't matter whether you are an investor, founder or an employee. Each role comes with its own set of benefits and challenges. What matters is what you get out of that role.

Personally for me, I believe I am at the right place if it is helping me
- Grow my skill sets
- Build great relationships at work
- Focus on my well being

Identifying your core objectives (values) is probably the best thing you can do for your career as well as mental health.

#career #mentalhealth #job #lifelessons

The head of the team in my first job would do a monthly check-in on the team morale, with a weird rating scale.
 
The scale had only 1,2,4 and 5. There was no '3'.

He used to say - If you are at a 4 or 5, I know you would recommend the place to someone else. If you are at a 1 or 2, I know there is work to be done to make it a better place. With 3, I can’t do anything.

No one truly is 'at the average' in organizational surveys. If someone is at 3, it means that they either don't care or haven't thought about it enough.

#leadership #management #careers

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Whenever you start a new role, switch to a new industry or get into a new company - Leave your ego behind.

Spend the first few weeks learning and unlearning instead of jumping to conclusions.

Observe others and understand from them -
1/ What is working well?
2/ What are the common pain points?

In the long run, people will respect your opinions because you approached from a point of understanding.

#careers #management #personaldevelopment

While preparing for IIT, our coaching institute asked us to fill a ‘timesheet’ every day.

The idea was to be self aware of how many hours and which subject we studied on a particular day.
 
I diligently filled it for 2 years. After the IIT results, I checked it -
1. I rarely studied more than 10 hours a day, in total less than 10 days in the entire 2 years (1% days)
2. However, I clocked between 6-7 hours almost every day (95%+ days) for 2 years
 
My parents still believe that I didn’t study enough because they never saw me pulling all-nighters or skipping my favorite TV show.
 
If ~5000 hours of pure IIT prep (365 days * 2 years * 7 hours) is not studying, I don’t know what is :)

#careers #growth #personaldevelopment

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I was not good at receiving feedback in the initial years of my career.

I used to get defensive in every feedback conversation and justify my actions.

Sensing my discomfort, in one such conversation, a senior leader told me – You know that our Asia Head also gets developmental feedback in all reviews. Taking feedback and working on it is the only way to grow.

Everyone, including you, is a work in progress. Seek feedback often. That’s the biggest service you can do for your personal growth.

#management #careers #personaldevelopment

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It is surprising to see how little people respect others’ time, especially those from whom they seek help.

1/ If you have set up time for a call at 6 pm. Call at 6 pm sharp.

2/ If you have said you will get back on 15th. Follow up on 15th.

3/ If you can’t make it on your scheduled date or time. Send a note ahead of time.

Do not ever take time for granted. Neither yours, neither someone else’s.

#careers #management #personaldevelopment

During my second project at McKinsey, the Partner on the study said something transformative. At the team dinner, we went around talking about our interests outside of work. Since I didn’t pursue any hobby actively, I usually said something generic like reading, writing or listening to music in such situations.

The Partner saw through my non committal response. After the dinner, he told me that I’d burn out if I don’t create interests outside of work. At that time, I didn’t pay much heed to his advice. I was fresh out of B school, had seemingly endless energy and wanted to build a reputation around being a great Associate.

Fast forward 6 projects and countless night-outs later, I started to feel my productivity dipping. I’d get defensive with mundane revisions on my slides or analysis. I stopped volunteering for efforts outside of my project. While I continued to deliver a basic level of output, it took me another 6 months to make tweaks in my daily schedule. I started going out for quick runs in the morning and spending time reading before bedtime. And these small tweaks ensured that I spent another couple of years consulting and delivering at my potential.

An overquoted and underapplied advice - Taking time off work actually improves productivity at work.

#licreatoraccelerator #habits #mentalhealth #productivity

9 years ago, this month, I received admission at IIM Ahmedabad.

I called my parents and girlfriend, and told them ‘I did it’.

They were kind to put up with my heightened sense of self. I realized much later that it wasn’t me who had achieved it.

I couldn’t have done it without their support, especially at times when things were not going well.

I would have given up at the first sign of failure – after my first CAT attempt where I screwed up my verbal section or the interview where my long-held values were challenged.

It takes a whole village to raise a child. Never forget that village.

#gratitude #mba #careers

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The more you travel, the more you realize that fundamentally people are the same in every country.

1/ The rich struggle for time, the poor struggle for money.

2/ Irrespective of power, wealth, and fame; everyone has their share of fears and insecurities.

3/ At their core, people are kind and helpful. All it takes is providing a bit of comfort on their fears.