by Aseem Gupta | Jan 24, 2019 | Book Summaries and Analysis
Two workplaces in Seattle could hardly feel more different. On the third floor of a financial-services company, employees move through the day with little enthusiasm. The department is important, but its reputation is terrible. People expect delays, poor service, and...
by Aseem Gupta | Jan 18, 2019 | Book Summaries and Analysis
Most books about communication offer advice that is easy to admire and difficult to use. Be confident. Listen carefully. Show interest. Make a strong first impression. These principles sound sensible, but they rarely tell you what to do with your face, hands, voice or...
by Aseem Gupta | Jan 13, 2019 | Book Summaries and Analysis
When Gary Vaynerchuk published Crush It! in 2009, building a business around online content still sounded unconventional. Facebook was young, Twitter had not yet become part of everyday political and cultural life, and YouTube was widely treated as a home for amateur...
by Aseem Gupta | Jan 10, 2019 | Book Summaries and Analysis
Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist is short enough to read in a few sittings and simple enough to resemble a folktale. Yet few modern novels inspire such sharply divided reactions. Admirers see an uplifting story about courage, purpose, and learning to recognise the...
by Aseem Gupta | Jan 6, 2019 | Book Summaries and Analysis
Few books are quoted more often and understood less completely than The Art of War. Its most famous lines are usually presented as instructions for overpowering rivals, deceiving competitors, or treating every disagreement as a battle. This has given the book a...
by Aseem Gupta | Jan 3, 2019 | Book Summaries and Analysis
A story about four characters searching for cheese should not have become one of the world’s most recognisable books about change. The plot is deliberately simple, the characters are closer to symbols than psychologically complex individuals, and most of its lessons...
by Aseem Gupta | Jan 25, 2017 | Society, Culture & Demographics
India and China are home to approximately 2.89 billion people. Together, they contain close to 35% of humanity, even though they occupy only a relatively small share of the planet’s land. No other two countries come close. The immediate temptation is to explain this...
by Aseem Gupta | Jan 12, 2017 | Economics, Markets & Money
An engagement ring is a remarkably small object on which to place so much weight. It can represent commitment, security, social status and the promise of a shared future. It can also carry a four-figure price tag, even though the polished diamond at its centre may be...
by Aseem Gupta | Jul 24, 2016 | Biography, Lives & Historical Figures
The popular version of Wojtek’s story belongs in a war film: artillery explodes across the Italian mountains while an enormous bear strides through the chaos carrying ammunition for Polish soldiers. The truth is less cinematic, but no less extraordinary. Wojtek did...
by Aseem Gupta | Feb 14, 2016 | Relationships, Love & Human Connection
You notice someone across a crowded gathering. You ask mutual friends about them, dress more carefully when you expect to meet, and wonder whether a smile means genuine interest or ordinary politeness. Perhaps you send a gift, arrange another encounter, or rely on a...
