What a week! I’m writing this from Mumbai, having spent the last 4 days here for a work conference and some exploring. I’ve loved it here, the food is amazing, the city bustling, and the conference attendees energetic and ready to learn and grow. I hope to be back soon, but now on to the list!
What I listened to this weekend
I’ve been a big fan of Korean-American chef and entrepreneur, David Chang since I first saw him on Mind of a Chef. I’ve been a loyal listener of his podcasts and even went to Momofuku Ko in NYC before it closed. Often his podcasts are filled with hilarious and informative tirades on food, restaurants, parenthood, or culture and society. This week’s episode contained a hilarious ten-minute exploration of “the platonic ideal of a breakfast burrito” (starts at about 33 minutes in). Well with a listen if you are as passionate about breakfast as I am.
Best viral post I saw this weekend
I first saw this clip on Instagram, but it is being shared all over LinkedIn as well. People all over the world are impressed with a discussion in the Singapore parliament on AI and upskilling workers to remain competitive. The difference is striking when compared to the questioning of TikTok CEO, Shou Chew last month in front of the US Senate, when the US Senator appeared not to understand Singapore isn’t part of China.
What I learned at my first conference in India
Having spent the past 8+ years focused on Southeast Asia with only some time spent on the China and Australia markets, I was excited to hold my first work event in India. I wasn’t disappointed. In some ways, the energy of the delegates reminded me of Indonesia, with everyone being very curious to learn and eager to implement solutions to help them grow. Other than the interest in talking to us and seeing our solution, the other thing that stuck out was the style of sessions at the conference. I always feel that sessions like fireside chats or panels are more engaging than solo presentations, but I would say most times I only see 20-30% of the sessions being something without slides. Here it was completely the opposite, not only were there 4 panel sessions (plus my company’s fireside chat), all of the panels were huge, with 5-to 10 people on stage sharing their expertise. This makes things way more engaging for the audience and it was great to hear from so many CFOs and Heads of Treasury from both India-born companies and MNCs.
Best LinkedIn hack I worked on this weekend
LinkedIn launched the Community Top Voice badge last year, rolling it out to selective users who are able to contribute to Community Articles and earn a badge in various topics. After seeing these contributions start to pop up in my feed, I took the plunge and started contributing as well. After less than a week of contributing to 2-3 articles a day, the “Top Lead Generation Voice” badge appeared on my profile yesterday. I think this is a good way to engage on LinkedIn, because most people don’t ask questions in their own posts, so you can really share your expertise and read what others have to say.
Blog post I’m excited to share
Using ChatGPT can still be a bit of a touchy subject. On one hand you have all kinds of influencers and solo-preneurs sharing how you can build businesses just by using AI tools and get rich quickly. On the other hand, people are cautious about using it for their work both from the fear it could make them replaceable, and because they don’t want to seem lazy or put out low-quality work. In this post I share some practical ways I use ChatGPT that doesn’t compromise my work and allows me to save time and get more done.
Coolest place I visited this weekend
I decided to get out of the city and see another side of India, and I’m so glad I did. Lonavala is a Hill Station about two hours from Mumbai. There are incredible historic and natural sites in the area. My favorite was Lohagad and Visapur forts, which tower imposingly over the plains below. The forts have been occupied by various empires over the last 700+ years and were an amazing sight to see. It was a great reminder to get off the beaten path when traveling. I planned the excursion myself and was the only non-Indian I saw there. The total of around 6 hours getting there and back wasn’t very fun, but it was totally worth it in the end!
That’s all for this week, have a great week folks! I hope you had a great weekend and a productive week ahead.