Aswath Krishnan

We are in the midst of a relentless wave of layoffs.  It's really sad how normal and mechanical it is becoming to business leaders, investors, and all of us.  Sudden job loss is among the top 5 most traumatic events in one’s life and compared similarly to the death of a loved one, major illness, or divorce.  That might be hard for most folks to viscerally comprehend. But I know it and believe it as I experienced this firsthand and I have talked to 100+ people who were laid off recently. It’s heartbreaking to see the level of suffering and the emotional cocktail of shock, anxiety, shame, guilt, resentment, sadness, uncertainty, and loss of identity and community, that most people cycle through day after day, over a long time.  This may be an unfortunate reality of our corporate and market system, but we can do better. If you were laid off -  This is extremely hard, and everything you are feeling and going through is valid and rough. So please take care and give ...

I had a life-changing epiphany on a recent excursion in the comforts of my own house and surroundings. It was a snow day. I bundled up and went outside to my backyard, something I usually avoid on cold or rainy days. Instead of the usual mind wandering, phone scrolling, or book reading, I was fully present and observing aimlessly. The trees stood out to me more vividly than ever before; I noticed and felt the details and intricacies in their trunks, branches, and leaves and how majestically they all came together. The Holly tree, with its dark green spiky leaves and its sheltered center that provides refuge for numerous little sparrows on rainy or windy days. The evergreen tree, its flat, soft leaves, and almost fake to touch. I marveled at how they had responded to the season - one had shed all its leaves, and others had somehow stayed evergreen.  My attention was also similarly captivated by the moss and mushrooms that had grown on and around those trees, the charming wildflower ...

After a four-year hiatus, I finally returned to India on a 5-week trip, spanning 3 southern states and more destinations than ever before. It was great to be back home and spend time with family. Sharing a few observations (both subjective and limited) - 1. Indian cities are vibrant and a feast for the senses. The streets are a symphony of vehicles, people, and shops. The malls are packed, even on a weekday afternoon, and the streets and restaurants are bustling even late at night. You'll find more life in one Indian city than in most American cities combined, except maybe New York and LA.  2. But the constant bombardment of rough and loud sensory inputs - noise, traffic, dust, pollution, smells, crowds, and chaos - can be overwhelming and tiring. Many tourist destinations, like the Abbi waterfall in Coorg and the palace in Mysore, were also too crowded to be savored. Even if you stay home, there seems to be an incessant stream of visitors (helpers and vendors). It made me more app...

You may sometimes feel stumped by the mystery of reality and your role in it. You may feel we are pointlessly pursuing trivialities without knowing fundamental answers. You may feel there's something more than what meets the eye. You probably got here either through some suffering, feeling underwhelmed after an achievement, having enough, or through prolonged contemplation.  If this rings true, then congratulations! This a sign that you have surfaced , at least momentarily, from the grips, fog, and hustle-bustle of reality (Maya or Samsara in Hindu and Buddhist terms).  So, what next? This line of questioning and disorientation has the potential to be your first step on a spiritual path toward a more awakened or enlightened consciousness -  a  state of  dramatically higher lucidity, stillness, blissfulness, aliveness, and awareness. The state itself is not the answer but getting there can help you unlock answers (or the next question). Just like  ...