I'm Arjun. This is my digital garden.

A friend recently reached out to me and sought my advice about a new job offer he had received. Good, reputable firm, decent hike in compensation, same role but elevated title. The role required him to move from Bangalore to Mumbai, but the company was ready to pay for the relocation expenses. The only caveat was that they wanted a confirmation from my friend by the end of the day. No stress, should have been quite a no-brainer to take this job. Or was it? While making decisions, especially when we are restricted by time and with too many unknowns thrown in front of us, we instinctively turn to bounded rationality for aid. Bounded Rationality is the idea that our decision making is limited by the information we have, the cognitive limitations of our minds, and the finite amount of time we have. We also let our cognitive biases influence our decisioning. The new employer can try to anchor our decision by offering a higher title or by offering a higher compensation 'as per ind

Earlier last week, I signed up to volunteer for our community RWA's Covid-19 assistance efforts. The community where I reside is one of the largest in Hyderabad, India with 14 towers, each having 14 floors and anywhere between 8-10 apartments on each floor.  A rough back of the envelope calculation shows -  * Around 1500 - 2000 apartments  * 4500 - 7000 residents We have one grocery store, one store for vegetables and one medical store. All are brick and mortar set-ups with counter based point of sale systems. No Apps.  Expectedly, all three stores started seeing a massive surge in footfall as soon as the national lockdown was announced earlier this week. None of them were equipped to manage the surge of customers, who were anxious to stock up on essential items.  A crowd of people during a lockdown, especially one with the mantra of social distancing, is a terribly bad outcome. The uncertainty around the movement of essential items was leading many residents to hoard -

What is the easiest way to become an influencer on LinkedIn? Find a collective from corporate which everyone loves to hate, and go at it.  Two most common such collectives are - Managers and HRs. Oh, do we love to hate our bosses! Common narratives: 1. I'm sour because I wasn't treated well by the boss. 2. I'm hurt because the HR didn't deal with me nicely. 3. I'm bitter because the boss and HR colluded and didn't give me the raise that I so deserved. We see ourselves as victims in these scenarios because we're often on the other side of the table from Managers and HRs. Many of us are terrible in interpersonal negotiations because we're not able to disconnect our emotions from the conversation. Next time you're in a conversation about a promotion, raise or employment, try this - a. Introspect - Know what your ask is before walking in; and what's your walk away point? b. Listen - You have two ears and one mouth. Use proportionately.