Book Reading

Recently read couple of books. 'Stay Hungry Stay Foolish' by Rashmi Bansal, 'It happened in India' Co-authored by Kishore Biyani & 'High Performance Entrepreneur' by Subrato Bagchi.

Stay Hungry Stay Foolish is a story about 25 IIM Ahmedabad Graduates who have at some point of time in their career left their high paying jobs & taken a different path. To quote Robert Frost, they took the road less travelled by & that has made all the difference. This book is an outstanding collection of the real life experience of such entrepreneurs. How & why they did it, What problems they faced, What would they advise to others... Truly motivating and inspiring. If you have aspirations of doing something of your own, at some point of time in your life, like I do, this book is must for you !

Subrato Bagchi's book 'High Performance Entrepreneur' is another outstanding piece of Advise to potential entrepreneurs. Yes, the book has lots of instances about how MindTree was setup. But I think it delivers value on a much larger landscape. Subrato has dealt with every possible aspect & minutely. Well, he makes a point with provoking our thinking that it's not only setting up a business but setting up a truly Creative, Professional, Global & Energizing workplace, that really needs a lots of careful thinking & creating planning.

My interest in Kishore Biyani's Book, It Happened in India, started with interest in Retail. It's amazing to read his experience over years. Kishore narrates his experience right from his college days. It's interesting to see his perspective and his calculated bets. Again, he took the road less travelled and the rest, as we all know, is history. The way Kishore has done, in particularly, his speed of execution & style of doing business are very different. As an example, so many times he has gone against the common thinking and invested in say advertising. The way he makes deal with his business partner, seems remarkable to me. Book goes on to state Kishore's reputation in the real estate market. If Kishore likes a property and thinks that rates are reasonable, he says yes. If not, he says no & walks out. Period. Kishore does not bargain. Another interesting aspect the book has been written. In every Chapter, at every few pages, Book carries para or two written by Kishore's relatives, business associates, employees etc.

Regards, Rohit