April 2017
When someone recently asked me what advice I would have for my younger self, I remembered finding a five dollar bill on the street. And I wrote this to my younger self: You will be taught to work hard, to drive your destiny, to make something of your precious life. That's valuable,…
Read →April 2017
I'm not quite sure how Natasha and I originally connected, but two years ago, she came to the Gandhi Ashram for one of our Startup Service gatherings. Her parents, Viresh and Faye, joined too. They were quite deeply "moved by love" and were keen to help in whatever ways emerged.…
Read →April 2017
Chandni and Sonia have started The Goodwill Tribe in Dubai, that hosts all kinds of local events to "inspire human connection and kindness". Both of them very sweetly share with everyone, "There would be no Goodwill Tribe without ServiceSpace. They made us." It made me reflect…
Read →April 2017
Every moment can be a moment of connection. My cab driver for the event was a fellow named Masood. Earlier in the day, a big Sheikh had come to this conference via a helicopter and Masood was supposed to escort him; so I was teasing him how he was then downgraded to take care of me. :) We had a…
Read →April 2017
I spoke at a big ICAI event today, of chartered accountants in Dubai. The King's Uncle helicoptered in for the opening remarks. Many inspired speakers, like Major D. P. Singh , took the stage over the span of two days. Many were curious how a message of generosity would resonate with…
Read →April 2017
Today was my first day in Dubai. Ever. It is a land of superlatives -- biggest mall, tallest building, largest library. Home to Formula One races, Masters PGA events, and Corporate conventions. Just 500 thousand residents, and rest of the 4.5 million are on a kind of work visa. If you opened up the…
Read →April 2017
Almost twenty five years ago, our family of four met a Japanese mystic on a plane. We called him Shin . It ended up being a formative 8 hours together in my and Viral's teenage lives. Decades later, I would remarkably run into him again (on my last trip to Japan ). And today, life brought us…
Read →April 2017
Maki is one of the gentlest innovators one might encounter. With a keen intellect, she's a doctor by trade; with a unbelievably sensitive heart, her favorite activity is praying for others; and with a happy spirit, she's always found smiling and in service. You notice it in…
Read →April 2017
A while back, Gary Zukav had introduced me to Ken Honda. This morning, we met for breakfast with his daughter Hanah and secretary Sarah (who is from Texas, but fluent in Japanese!). Ken is very popular among the Japanese youth. In his twenties, he was very successful in the finance world,…
Read →April 2017
I arrived in Japan, and had all kinds of wonderful excuses to be with my wonderful Saionji sisters. Two days of endless laughs, deep conversations, and happy brainstorming. We had a circle with systems thinkers, a beautiful prayer event with the larger community, and various meetings in between.…
Read →