What doesn't kill you makes you stronger ~ lessons learnt from 2020..

 

2020 definitely deserves a blog post. What a year it has been! Extraordinarily long, exhausting, unpredictable, annoying, sometimes boring, and overall rubbish. I still dont know what sins we have all done to deserve a year like this? 😐

2020 was supposed to be a year of milestones for many. Remember that 2020 corporate strategy that you were working towards? Or that blockbuster product launch? Or that 2020 mass hiring plans? Well, most of such plans died as a slide deck. The world only saw more redundancies, revenue losses, and complete shift in business strategies to "survive", not thrive. Don't get me wrong, some businesses did well too, but those are few and far in between. 

Personally for me, it has been a roller coaster too. I absolutely HATE when my plans fail, even though I always have Plan B, C, D ready in the tray. But how can Plan A fail in the first place? Doesn't that mean that I am a bad planner? Well in 2020 none of that matters. I'm sure there are many like me who've had to go through the same emotions. So lesson #1 learnt is: "Your perfect plans can go haywire too, just accept it." 😉

What this year has really taught me is that whatever is meant to happen, will happen. There are divine streaks everywhere, and there is someone superior to you who is the "real" captain of the ship. 

Autumn 2019 when I got an admit to the Global Leadership Program at Harvard, I had signed up for the June 2020 session. June in Boston is lovely, and I was really excited to visit Boston after 10 long years. We were also thinking of making it a family trip as the weather would be nice. BUT, mid-December I had received an email from HBS inviting me to the February 2020 cohort as they felt the class profiles were much stronger and I would benefit greatly from the experience. Okay so Feb in Boston is cold, dreary, grey and all sorts of dull! But I decided to go for it. No family, just me, my books, and my dreams. It was an experience of a lifetime minus the sun. I remember meeting the CEOs of Novartis and Medtronic in the class and we discussed about this novel corona virus that might shake up the world. 

Come March, and the world had changed already. Covid-19 had become a part of our vocab. Even the kids knew about it. And guess what, that June 2020 session never happened. In fact, no further classroom sessions are planned for the forseeable future....

The holy Bhagavad Gita says "Whatever happens always happens for the good". So that's my lesson #2 learnt 😇

Early 2020, Maddy (my husband) & I were thinking of whether or not to expand our family this year. We were in two minds as we also had certain career aspirations to chase. And doing both the same year would be logistically impossible. Covid-19 made the decision easier for us (thank you!). 

The pandemic managed to shake up all companies and sectors in some capacity. But one sector emerged as a clear winner - not only because of the tremendous opportunties but also the HUGE impact that it has on people/society/humanity. I decided that my next gig would be in Healthcare!

Since leaving Babylon Health in 2016, I had almost lost touch with HealthTech, but the pandemic enabled me to get back to it and also gave the opportunity to be part of something bigger and tremendously impactful. In summer 2020, I joined myGP as their Chief Product Officer and became a member of the tiny elite club of female CPOs in the UK & globally. 

That brings me to lesson #3: "You can't choose your destiny, it chooses you!" 😊

My heart goes out to all those who have lost their loved ones due to the pandemic, and all those who are still recovering from this deadly virus. I hope and wish that when I read this blog after 12 months, Covid-19 would have become a thing of the past, and the world would have moved on.....

2020 has definitely made us stronger, more resilient, and more hopeful..

On that note, wish you all a Happy New Year 2021 !!

Onwards & Upwards ✌✌

Rest in Peace, Anumama!

I lost my beloved Anup Mama on the 2nd of February, 2020.

‘Anumama’ - as we used to fondly call him, was one of the kindest persons I have ever known. He had a big heart and he loved everyone unconditionally. I have never seen him bitter or unhappy about anything in life. When we were little, Mama used to visit us in Silpukhuri almost everyday. Quick visits just to see me and Dimpy and to buy us goodies. He spoilt us so much! Whenever he came we knew we will get new stuff. We would take a stroll in the neighbourhood and even the shops knew that they will be making a sale. This ritual continued throughout our childhood years.

Anumama was liked by all, he had very good people skills. Everyone knew him, and he knew everyone. I still remember going to North Guwahati to meet our Ranjula Mami for the first time. We were kids then. Everyone liked her instantly! I loved Mami’s hair and told Mama that he should definitely marry her, he was very happy with that comment and smiled coyly. We had so much fun at his wedding. I still remember every bit of it.

Anumama was very sad when he lost his mom (our Aita). He was very close to her and I think losing her left a permanent dent in his life. She used to take an active part in his business, and when she was gone he lost his greatest advisor. After her, his closest ally was my mom. Mom and Anumama were very good friends. They had so many funny stories from childhood that mom used to tell us. We would laugh and laugh. That friendship continued till the very end. If mom wanted something, Mama would attend to her in no time, no matter how busy he was. I don’t have a brother but it was really sweet to see such a beautiful relationship.

He cared for my Grandpa (Kaka) a lot. They were opposite personalities, and the dynamics were sometimes funny to watch. But they loved each other a lot. Kaka was always worried about him, and Mama was never able to understand why. I fondly remember all our family parties - Bihu, Durga Puja, Birthdays, Anniversaries etc etc.

Anumama loved to eat out. Every Bihu or Puja, he and my mom would be planning where to eat. We were a big family so it was a lot of fun. Our Aita was also the same, always game for a family party! Their celebratory nature was infectious. As kids, we loved it. Anumama also cooked very well. He would cook up a storm during our family parties, always smiling, always giving. He played a big role in both mine and Dimpy’s weddings. He helped mom a lot in all organisational activities. We will always be indebted to him for his immense help.

Anumama’s health started deteriorating around 2016-17. He lost lot of weight and became frail. But his spirit remained high. He spoke as if everything was perfect. When I saw him in 2017 I was very heart-broken, but I thought he would recover. He was still young and very positive. He was very excited to see my son Rey when we visited Guwahati in 2018. He was equally excited to see my niece Sara, and loved her a lot. I feel happy that we were able to show him the next generation. It’s a blessing!

Mama cooked for the last time during New Year’s Eve 2019. Mom says that he was so excited to cook for everyone, even though his health had given up. Such was his mental strength and deep love for his family.

They say that parents cannot see their children suffer for too long. As a parent I can attest to it. When I got the news about Mama’s death I cried and cried. It was early morning in London and my tears didn’t stop the whole day. I didn’t know what to do, whom to console. But I also felt that maybe our Aita took him away to free him from all the pain and suffering. And maybe they are together now talking about us, and reminiscing the good old days just like we do.

I will always miss you Anumama! You are a beautiful soul ~