The Sonance Behind My Silence

     I still remember that day like yesterday. The December chill had set in, and so had my long Christmas vacation. The date was December 18, 1995, and I accompanied my maternal grandparents to Dr. Vaidya’s Maternity Home, Thane. I was aware of what had happened the night before, at 9:30 pm, but I was still as excited as a 4-year-old, probably because I WAS 4 years old.      Dad was standing outside the maternity home, flashing a wide beaming smile. I walked softly towards the ward where my mom was resting, and saw a cradle next to her. I walked even slower towards the rocking cradle, careful not to disturb who lay within, my excitement level reaching its zenith. My mother smiled at me weakly, but her face exuded satisfaction and happiness. For a moment everything inside the room had disappeared, save for me and the cradle.      I was too short to see what was inside the cradle. I remember standing on my toes, peering into the crad...

     Starbucks Corporation, doing business as Starbucks Coffee, is an American global coffee company and coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington. It is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, with 23,187 stores in 64 countries. Their products are: roasted and handcrafted high-quality, premium priced coffees, tea, fresh food items and other beverages. They also sell coffee and tea products and license their trademarks through channels such as licensed stores, groceries etc.      Starbucks primarily operates and competes in the retail coffee and snacks store industry. The core competence of Starbucks has been its ability to effectively leverage its cornerstone product differentiation strategies by offering a premium product mix of high quality beverages and snacks. Their brand equity is built on selling the finest quality coffee and related products, and by giving each customer a unique “Starbucks Experience”, which is supreme cust...

     I woke up with a start. Outside, the night had still not lifted its dark veil yet, the birds had not started chirping yet, and I lay wide awake in my bed. It is often said that when you have your mind set on achieving something, day and night that’s the only thing you can think of. It doesn’t let you sleep, doesn’t let you waste a single moment of your time frolicking around, and makes you feel guilty if you do something that isn’t in line with this goal of yours. And what follows your relentless efforts is something we all know as ‘success’.      Now, the dictionary meaning of ‘success’ is ‘the accomplishment of an aim or purpose’, ‘the attainment of fame,   wealth , or social status’ and a lot of other tautologies. But in fact, it originated in the mid-16th century : from the Latin word   successus , from the verb   succedere  which means 'come close after'. So, success is more or less, an outcome. That means, whether y...

     My friends know about my love for consumer psychology, and I believe that's one  prerequisite  for the profession I'm in - marketing. I'm a huge fan of Malcolm Gladwell and Martin Lindstrom, and aspire to be a consumer psychology expert myself. Speaking of experts, Prin. L. N. Welingkar Institute of Management Development & Research, Mumbai offers a genius in the form of a professor - Prof. Victor Manickam. His methods may seem crazy to you for a professor at first, but he grows on you slowly, and ultimately bowls you out with his perfect guess (?) about your personality. And he doesn't need to know you well for that. One input from you and boom! He knows you.      So here I am with the learnings from his consumer buying behaviour lectures, which may seem disconnected and impossible for you, especially if you consider the fact that it was a marketing class. But nevertheless, I've given it a try!      The lect...

     In the world full of billions struggling to make their mark somehow, there are only handfuls that succeed. Businessmen, actors, athletes, artists and others become exemplary beacons of triumph for the less fortunate of the masses. They're touted as heroes, idols, and inspire many more to at least come close to, if not achieve the same amount of success as themselves. Half of everyone's life is spent searching for that one perfect idol to call their own. I consider myself exceptionally fortunate to have been born in the same house as that of my idol – my father.      I've modelled my career path keeping him in mind. I've grown accustomed to a certain lifestyle now, and I hate to admit it but if I've to maintain it, I need to toil harder than I possibly can. Luckily I've my idol guiding me, scolding me, and as a bonus, loving me, in my own house. I've seen him struggle, I've seen him fail, but eventually rise with renewed vigour. He doesn't ...

     What is happiness? How is it different from the other feelings we get? Why do different things make different people happy in different situations? As for me, enthralling my readers with my writings makes me happy. For you, may be, your favourite dish served hot in front of you makes you happy. Speaking of food, I’m sure you can recollect twirling those long strands of spaghetti in your fork and savouring them with the zesty sauce that comes with it. So what I am going to talk about today is a little different from what I’ve talked about before - the reinvention of spaghetti sauce. This is credited to the famous American market researcher and psychophysicist – Dr. Howard Moskowitz.      A doctorate from Harvard University, Dr. Moskowitz had a consulting business in White Plains, New York, and one of his very first clients was Pepsi, back in the early 70s. This was a time, when the sugar substitute – aspartame was getting increasingly pop...

     When my friends asked me to download WhatsApp some years ago, I had never thought that the green icon would soon be part and parcel of the smartphones of almost 450 million people. The app is quick, easy to use, and attractive and is downloadable free for everyone except iOS users. All-in-all, it is a really convenient to use fun app which does away with the woes and fluctuating rates of SMS, pervading the barriers of distance. As long as you have access to internet and a smartphone, no one can stop you from staying in touch with everyone.      But have you ever wondered how this company makes money? One way that is the most obvious, of course, is the subscription fee that it charges its users. WhatsApp allows its users to enjoy the services for free for the first year after installation. However, after that it charges $0.99 for continued service. But till date, I have not heard of a single person who has paid for this extension of servi...