Getting Meta

When I floated the idea for this show on Twitter last year, more than one person wrote in saying I should definitely have him on the show. And that was a good idea - Dhimant was called, by one of those people, as the “most productive person I know”. Apart from running these two seemingly different companies, he also has a lot of outside interests - theatre, reading, the startup scene in general, quantum physics… all in all, great guest material for my humble little show.

How one's upbringing can really shape what they do in the future

Finding your own work style (Dhimant, admittedly, is not a calendar-oriented person)

How his company dealt with the pandemic and overcame several odds

His various interests: from PASCAL to quantum physics. 

Twitter :- https://twitter.com/dhimant

LinkedIn :- https://in.linkedin.com/in/dhimant

The companies he founded

Dhimant’s article about surviving and thriving as a business during Covid-19

Dhimant’s thread about how he imbibed empathy from his dad

The Pomodoro Technique, which Dhimant references, but doesn’t necessarily espouse

Dhimant’s love for quantum physics can be seen in some of his Twitter threads - here is one, on one of the most famous equations of all time 

Twitter :- https://twitter.com/dhimant/status/1293591687910981633

The books of Brian Green

Mindscape - Sean Carroll’s podcast

Arrow of Time - Sean Carroll’s post

Dhimant’s blog

The first post he wrote on it, which is referenced

An article your podcast host wrote about The Better Home in The Hard Copy

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Pallavi would absolutely hate it if I said something like "fitness influencer", so let's just say that she's very much into fitness, is a nerd about knowing her own body, is authentic about what she shares on her social media. It’s equal part relatable and inspirational for anyone trying to live life a little fitter every day. 

But she’s much more - she’s the head of marketing and operations and HRX and I have never seen anyone embody a company and its ethos more than her. She's also done several other things that have shaped her, and has been through enough ups and downs in her personal life, to draw lessons from. And the most exciting part is that she’s still WIP - and is looking to do a lot more, including a PhD.

Why discipline is the foundation of everything else in her life.

How she found fitness as a way to tackle depression and loneliness

How she inadvertently but successfully became a key opinion leader for her brand, HRX

Her dreams and things that are WIP

How she uses running time to work out scripts and choreography! 

LinkedIn : https://in.linkedin.com/in/pallavibarman

An interview on running during the lockdown : https://hrxbrand.com/blog-details/24/Staying-Motivated-Amidst-The-Lockdown

The Attributes by Rich Divine

The Four Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

Getting Meta links:

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Consciously aiming for free time and how to work it into one's life

How hobbies and other interests can actually help the work one is doing

Why money should not be the primary consideration for a hobby

Taking control over your life from tech companies!

Everything Krish Ashok

His book, Masala Lab

His website, which houses his many projects

website : https://krishashok.me/

Soundcloud : https://soundcloud.com/krishashok

A TEDx talk he did in 2011, around hobbies

Ashok and I wrote some parody songs together for Cricinfo long back. Here’s an example

Ashok featured as a guest on Amit Varma’s The Seen & The Unseen podcast.

TED video of the guy who builds a toaster from scratch

The learning pyramid Ashok references towards the end : https://www.educationcorner.com/the-learning-pyramid.html

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/40Vo30aQilVrxEOkoSmDjx?si=pCOPeJlcR0uN_g2ZZs8iLQ&dl_branch=1

Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9zdGF0aWMuYWRvcmlsYWJzLmNvbS9mZWVkL2dldHRpbmctbWV0YS54bWw

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“There are no new destinations, only new ways of seeing”

Utsav Mamoria is a market researcher by training and profession, and a slow traveler by passion. If that sounds familiar, that’s because you’ve heard him say those words atop his podcast, Postcards From Nowhere. In this show, Utsav talks about slow travel - the practice of appreciating and building memories rather than checking off a box. And in many ways, that philosophy could be extended to life itself.

Utsav was the perfect guest for Getting Meta. He’s deeply passionate about his job (market research), something that’s a rarity in today’s corporate world. He’s a passionate traveler, but not for him the Insta-perfect vistas and the beaten path - he’s all about the stories, the people, the unexplored, the offbeat, with no guarantee that things might even go right. Basically, slow travel. And he’s also a delight to talk to as he brings points from all his various passions and experiences together, often drawing parallels from market research to travel.

In this episode, Utsav and I discuss:
Optimism and acceptance of privilege
How his profession really is just an extension of his nature (understanding people and the world around him)
Delightful stories from the field: Including when someone confessed about their condom habits to him in a mall
How to find the future (and job) that is right for you
The three things that you need for good travel (a selfie stick is not one of them)
Making connections between various dots that come out of experience and stories
Good financial advice = good travel advice = good life advice

Utsav and I are good friends and we’ve spent many conversations joking about - but this was one of the more serious and intense conversations we had. We’re pretty sure you will like it and get something out of it.

Everything Utsav Mamoria
His podcast, Postcards From Nowhere (Website | Spotify | Apple | Stitcher | Google)
His Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whywetravel42/
His Twitter:

References made during the show, not in order:
His post on questions to ask yourself:

Utsav has appeared on my other show, Simblified, many times: To talk about market research, taking a sabbatical, and traveling on a desi budget. All of those can be found here:

A game designer who analysed QAnon:

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Mohan Krishnamoorthy is one of my oldest friends - and I mean that in both senses of the word. He has many facets: He’s an accomplished academic (currently Pro Vice-Chancellor at University of Queensland, Australia), an active trekker and cyclist, and is an aficionado of several things, including board games and Indian classical music. But more than anything else, I wanted to speak to Mohan because I feel he leads the kind of life many of us would aspire to at his age (he’s close to 60 at the time of recording) and in a word - is “sorted”. I knew he would make an excellent guest for this show, and he did - I was beaming for the whole day after recording with him in the morning. I hope you enjoy this long chat that has as much anecdote and humour, as it does life advice. And if anyone would like to conduct research on left-handed koalas, please get in touch with Mohan.

In this episode, Mohan and I discuss:
Life lessons from the various things that he's done: From academics to climbing mountains
The importance of having a sense of humour, especially in a "serious" profession
How he was a "log in a river" and what questions helped him take certain paths, in his long academic career
Learning from failures, including several of his own: From academics to music
Fitness and motivating yourself
The love for the mountains and trekking
Music, charity and board games
Happiness at large and what has helped him get there

As you can see, this is an incredibly wide-ranging conversation - where we went from mathematics and research to Peter Gabriel and the Beatles; from trekking to Twitter; to reforming education to pop culture

Everything Mohan Krishnamoorthy:

Twitter :- mohank

Instagram :- https://www.instagram.com/mohank_/
LinkedIn :- https://www.linkedin.com/in/mohankaus

His professional profile on the University of Queensland website
https://about.uq.edu.au/pvc-rp

His lovely article about the allure of trekking: The mountains are calling, and I must go :- The mountains are calling and I must go

I had Mohan as a guest on Simblified, way back in 2016! That’s still worth a listen :- https://ivmpodcasts.com/simblified-episode-list/2016/5/16/ep-19-with-mohank-holy-wow-we-have-a-phd-in-mathematics-on-the-show

References made during the show, not in order:

Humour, Seriously: Why Humour Is A Superpower At Work And In Life, by Jennifer Aaker & Naomi Bagdonas Goodreads :- Humor, Seriously: Why Humor Is a Secret Weapon in Business and Life by Jennifer Aaker

Amazon :- https://www.amazon.in/Humour-Serious-Business-Superpower-Work/dp/0241405939

The Twitter thread by Prof. Nathan Hall that Mohan references, on going back to your young academic self
Twitter :- Nathan C. Hall on Twitter

Progressive rock band Thaikkudam Bridge’s album, Namah
Spotify :- Namah

All other platforms :- Namah by Thaikkudam Bridge

A channel to help you fall in love with science all over agan: Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell
YouTube channel :- Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell

The Australian comedian & radio host Adam Spencer website :- Adam Spencer

The Australian professor and science commentator, Karl Kruszelnicki Website :- https://drkarl.com/

Neil Gaiman - Make Good Art
YouTube video :- Neil Gaiman - Inspirational Commencement Speech at the University of the Arts 2012

Transcript :- "Make Good Art" | James Clear

Although what was referred to in the episode is a small comic version of the same
Goodreads :- Art Matters by Neil Gaiman

Amazon :- https://www.amazon.in/Art-Matters-Neil-Gaiman/dp/1472260082/

Getting Meta links:
Spotify: Getting Meta

Apple Podcasts: ‎Getting Meta on Apple Podcasts

Google Podcasts: Getting Meta

IVM website: "Getting Meta"

Twitter: twitter.com/chuck_gopal
Instagram: instagram.com/chuckofalltrades
Email: [email protected]

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cats.

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References made during the show, not in order:

• James Clear - Atomic Habits (Goodreads | Amazon)

• Ali Abdaal (YouTube)

• The TikTok star - Metallica story (article)

• And of course - the Narendra Shenoy Selfie Stick! (image)

Newsletter https://indiauncut.substack.com)

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Follow your host Deepak Gopalakrishnan on below social media handles:

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Welcome to Getting Meta! This is a small intro to the show before we kick things off properly next week. Stay tuned!

Getting Meta is a show where Deepak Gopalakrishnan (or Chuck, as the world calls him) speaks to some very smart people to unravel their habits, thought processes, tools and mental models - which can then be applied by anyone, from any field. Chuck speaks to authors, entrepreneurs, entertainers, and just people who lead that elusive "sorted" life. The show focuses less on their achievements or field, and more on them as a person and their ways of thinking - hence, getting meta with them. Because of the nature of the show, these are questions some of the interviewees have never been asked before - ranging from the personal to the professional. Each episode aims to inspire, entertain and leave you with things to ask yourself, frameworks to apply and good content to check out.

There will be an initial season of 10 interviews, and this is Chuck's third podcast, following Simblified (comedy + topical) and The Origin of Things (trivia + storytelling). As a freelancer who's constantly looking for ways to hack his own productivity and get more out of life, this is Chuck's new passion project - especially since it gives him the chance to speak to people he admires and dig deeper into how they think.

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Instagram: instagram.com/chuckofalltrades
Email: [email protected]

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