Maximise Potential

October 27 marks the birthday of Theodore Roosevelt, one of America’s most dynamic and resilient leaders. Born in 1858, Roosevelt transformed from a frail, asthmatic boy into a symbol of vigor and determination—a man who embodied what he called “the strenuous life.” As the 26th President of the United States, he reshaped the nation through action, courage, and conviction. His achievements—from trust-busting to the creation of national parks—stemmed from an unyielding work ethic and an insistence that true greatness comes from daring action rather than passive comfort. Roosevelt articulated this belief powerfully in his iconic Sorbonne speech of 1910 when he said: “It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, becau...

Robots and automation are going to take over or replace a lot of the jobs. We hear this phrase all the time, but the more pertinent question is how humans will find meaning in life. On the other hand, AI is rapidly transforming industries, from healthcare and transportation to finance and entertainment. On the positive side, AI has the potential to save lives. For instance, in healthcare, AI-powered diagnostic tools are improving the accuracy of detecting diseases like cancer. Similarly, self-driving cars, if implemented effectively, could significantly reduce road accidents and fatalities. Machine learning models are helping to predict natural disasters and optimize supply chains, bringing efficiency and safety. We are now witnessing a new wave of AI evolution—generative AI models like GPT-5 and Gemini Advanced are writing, coding, and even generating visual content with near-human intuition. Autonomous AI agents are being built to perform continuous tasks without human intervention, ...

We all have champion qualities. For example, the book Talent is Overrated by Geoff Colvin clearly shows that genius is due more to deliberate practice than natural gifts. He persuasively argues with data that even superstars and child prodigies became great through relentless practice and hard work. His main argument is that this insight gives us fewer excuses for why we cannot be great. The two things Colvin says you need to be a total champion are: 1. You need to know what you want. In other words, the only way you are going to be committed is to know exactly what you want. It is not a “maybe” but a clear set of goals for which you are totally committed. This is the only to get your grit muscles working for you. 2. You need to decide if you believe you have a say in it. This means, do you genuinely believe that if you put in the necessary practice, you will attain your goals? If the answer is yes, then, as per the research, with consistent practice, your goals are attainable. Here ar...

It is amazing what the Olympics can do for all of us. It is a true triumph of the human spirit in action. Anyone who participates in the Olympics deserves our applause because of the amount of preparation they put in before an event and the type of trials and tribulations they undergo even before they have the privilege of participation leave alone the winning of the gold medal.  I was interested to see what we can learn from the Olympians and how it can help us get the most out of ourselves. I have expanded each letter of the word Olympian so that we can awaken the Olympian within.  O for Optimism – Just to participate in the Olympics athletes have to put in a minimum of 4000 hours of preparation. This requires nothing but complete optimism on the part of the athlete which only a few people are willing to do. It has been researched that a lot of us suffer from learned helplessness. The way to overcome this is to develop an overall optimistic view towards life and always beli...