May your love (poem)

May your love have sparks like fireworks
But may it also glow like embers
That keep you warm in the harshest winter

May you always be by each other’s side
Though the ups and downs of this wonderful ride
But may you also give each other space
Knowing when to let go and when to let the other be

May you read each other like an open book
But may you also sometimes be swept off your feet
By occasional tricks up other’s the sleeve

May you be the wind beneath each other’s wings
And help each other soar up high
But may you also be each other’s rock
To keep the other anchored during stormy seas

May you admire the other’s positive traits
But I hope you also enjoy each other’s quirks

May you never try to change each other
But inspire each other to be better every day

May you grow old together with abundance of love
So that when you look back, you may feel
That life was meaningful and worthwhile just because
You had this special someone sharing it with you…

An Ode to my Mentor

It all started when I got a call from the Deloitte recruitment team asking me to come for an interview at the Bangalore office. It was at a short notice, and I didn’t know who I would be meeting, other than it was a Director. I had no idea what to expect from the conversation. At the office, I met this simple yet vibrant woman, and in a few minutes of talking to her, I was charmed. It was far from an interview. I felt like I as meeting an old friend and the conversation just flowed. I went back from that interview feeling energized, inspired and nervous (I wasn’t sure if I would get through, because we never talked about work) After a few days of suspense, I got the offer, and in a few weeks, I was “Deloitted”.

The Director I met that day was Vidhya Visweswarababu - a veteran at the firm who had risen through the ranks and had recently taken up the Offering Portfolio Leader (OPL) role for Customer & Marketing (Deloitte Digital). She was the first woman leader to take up an OPL role in India. I did not realize what a bigshot she was until I was a few months old in the firm. Vidhya’s humility blew me away. Regardless of her huge title and role, Vidhya was always an inspirational and approachable leader, who I could look up to and reach out to for advice. Although we were at different locations, I kept in touch with Vidhya, updating on what I was up to and seeking her inputs on whatever I did. I always found comfort and encouragement in her words. I remember excitedly sharing my English communication test result with her when I got the Mastery level across the board. I sent Vidhya a note saying that I was too excited, and that it might be silly, but I wanted to share it with her. Vidhya promptly responded back saying she was happy to see my score and was glad that I shared it with her.

Despite her hectic schedule, Vidhya always made time for me whenever I asked for it. It meant a lot to me. Whenever I felt lost or confused in this large firm, she would always say or do something that would help me feel anchored again. Whenever I got an opportunity to see Vidhya in action as a practice leader, I would always observe her and take notes on how she would clearly lay out the priorities, call out things that needed to change, and find a way to connect with the audience.

During my association with Vidhya over the last 5 years, I have learnt many things from her – some consciously, some unconsciously. Here are my top 5 learnings from Vidhya:

Culture of courage

I have seen Vidhya always encouraging people across levels to speak up, to voice their opinion and take a stand if something isn’t right. While I personally haven’t had a challenge being the person in the room who would ask the question that everyone had on their mind but no one would ask, yet Vidhya’s constant push on building a culture of courage gave me the license to openly encourage my team members to be bold and vocal. With a leader like Vidhya behind me, I have gone all out to build teams where people feel comfortable being themselves and speaking up. I realized that it not only creates stronger teams but also helps run projects more smoothly.

Feeling empowered

“What do you need in order to feel empowered to do what you think should be done?” During my first year, Vidhya often asked me this question, when I expressed frustration or helplessness about things that I wasn’t able to navigate. Over time, I realized I have made “empowerment” a core value, both for myself and for my teams. I have learnt to challenge assumptions like “There is nothing I can do about this” and I am constantly trying to find ways to make my team members feel like they are the ones in control, and that they can change things that aren’t right. This simple concept has made work more meaningful for me, and I hope for others too.

Leading with empathy

Vidhya is one of the most empathetic leaders I have ever worked with, and it has profoundly shaped the way I lead as well. Observing Vidhya, I have learnt that leading with empathy requires you to drop your own agenda, put yourself in someone else’s shoes, and then guide them on a path that you believe is the right one for them. Leading with empathy doesn’t mean you are “soft” or that you “compromise” on fundamentals. It just means that you treat people as people before anything else. You accept their differences, their emotions, their ideas, without having to agree with all of them. Empathy arguably is the most important leadership skill, and thanks to Vidhya, several of us may have become better at it over the years.  

Tackling challenges head on

If there is one camp that believes in “letting sleeping tigers lie”, Vidhya is certainly in the one that believes in “taking the bull by its horns”. I have never seen Vidhya shy away from a challenge or a difficult conversation. I vividly remember when Covid situation was just starting to unfold and there was extreme uncertainty about work, Vidhya set up this call simply titled “Coronavirus updates”. With the widespread anxiety around the situation, the call received such unprecedented high participation that for the first time we maxed out on Zoom attendee count! In fact, Vidhya even joked that we should use the same subject line for all our meeting invites going forward! During the call, Vidhya acknowledged the high degree of uncertainty in the situation, she answered questions patiently and calmly, and the gave people the assurance that they could have hoped to get during that time. I was full of admiration for the dignity and courage Vidhya showed during that time.

Supporting other women

“As a woman leader, what do you do to support gender diversity at work?” After I became Senior Manager, I increasingly faced this question, and I realized that I had conflicted thoughts on this. I was fortunate to get wonderful mentors and role models across genders throughout my career, and I was very conscious of inadvertently doing or saying something that felt exclusive or favorable to one gender. I was starting to feel a sense of responsibility, but I wasn’t sure how to fulfill it in a way that felt authentic to me. As a strong advocate, Vidhya constantly talked about this, and the two things that she said that resonated the most with me were - 1) Be intentional about supporting women. 2) Just because you may not have faced bias, doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Whenever I struggle on this topic, I think back to these as guideposts, and it helps simplify my decision or action.

To conclude, I firmly believe that there is no such thing as a “self-made person” and that our career is an amalgamation of support, mentorship, and kindness from others, apart from luck and hard work. I seem to have had more than my fair share of luck when it comes to mentors both within the firm and prior to it, and for that I am very grateful.

I have been fortunate to work with Vidhya and benefit from her tremendous mentorship. Her influence on me can be gleaned from the number of times I have quoted her to my peer group and teams, all these years. As a famous person once said – “We must find time to stop and thank those who make a difference to our lives” – I believe this is my way of thanking Vidhya for everything she has done, and for helping me become a better version of myself. I hope I can pay it forward, because “we rise only by lifting others”…

 (Article originally published at: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/ode-my-mentor-neha-verma/) 

Stuck (Poem)

You wake up in the morning
You look out of your window
You think about your day ahead
But don't know what to hope for

You start to go through the motions
But your mind and body feel out of sync
You reach for emotions in your heart
But you come up empty-handed

You can't find pain or sadness
Mostly a void, maybe some despair
You try to search for a reason
But it only slips away further

Life seems to be an endless loop
Like a TV commercial playing on repeat
Like walking on a treadmill
Like a maze that doesn't seem to end

It feels like living in a monochrome
Like hearing sounds that are muffled
Like a bad aftertaste in your mouth
That just refuses to go away

But every now and then
A tiny crack of light appears
An unexpected shower of rain
Greets the dry parched earth

You find these little sparks of joy
You remember all your blessings
And while you know you are stuck
You keep on moving anyway...
 

Who stole my mojo - Lessons in recovering from burnout and rediscovering the joy of work

I was constantly exhausted and irritated. I felt like there was no joy left in my life. I was snapping at those I cared the most about – my family. My team members started to notice and remark that I sounded tired all the time. I felt that I no longer had what it took to be successful at work and started contemplating taking a sabbatical. In all this, could not put my finger on what went wrong. For the longest time, I didn’t even acknowledge that I had a problem. But I finally realized - I had BURNT OUT!

Back in 2020, I’d shared my journey of growth and fulfillment at Deloitte. 18 months down the road, I found myself struggling; despite a great team, highly supportive leaders, a plethora of opportunities, and recognition. Nothing seemed to have really changed on the surface, yet somehow, I found myself in a place where I felt like I could not go on.

I asked myself – “How did I get here?” Saying that the pandemic contributed to it would be stating the obvious, but there was more. With businesses around the world forced to go fully digital, our workload increased significantly. This combined with “the great resignation,” put even more pressure on our teams and us. Besides delivering projects at a fast pace, by somehow trying to get people to work on it when there was no one available, there was just a lot to handle.  Dealing with people leaving mid-way and trying to hire and assimilate new hires into the practice and the projects added to our woes. Without realizing, I kept taking on more and more. At one point I was serving 7 different clients across different industries and technologies, in addition to driving several other initiatives for the practice. I had spread myself too thin. That combined with the mental strain of the pandemic, my children being out of real school being on-screen for a prolonged period of time, with no outlet in terms of vacation or socializing, also took its toll. I guess, it was just a matter of time before things became completely unsustainable for me, and then they finally did.

Once I acknowledged my burnout, I decided to ask for help. I set up time with my leaders and spoke openly about how I was feeling. They showed tremendous empathy and helped me realize that it wasn’t just me. It was also the situation. They coached me to focus on fewer and more important things and helped me my teams do more. When I said “Noone forced me to do anything. I took all this up on my own, and yet I ended up here”, a leader gave me an analogy, that resonated with me. He said that I had a table for collecting wonderful things, and I kept collecting them, until there was no space on the table. My table had reached a point where things had started to fall and crash. I needed to take a hard look and let go of things that were no longer needed.

Before I created a plan to get things back on track, I needed to reset and get mental space. So, I decided to take a short break. I took off for a week with my family to a place where I could spend time outdoors and completely disconnect from work. The break really helped, I came back to work more clear-headed and ready to tackle my challenges.

My first move was to create an inventory of everything I was doing. After a series of discussions with my leaders, we agreed that I will not take on anything new, no matter how tempting, for the next few months. We also identified things that I had to let go of completely, and things that I needed to continue doing but with much less involvement. I then created a detailed plan, identified people to transition to, had some candid conversations with my direct reports, and started to set things in motion.

After weeks of sustained effort, my work started to evolve from a frenzied, frantic, and chaotic state to a more steady and manageable state. I started to reflect more on what I was doing and how I could create a higher impact without burning out. I thought about reconnecting with my passion which revolves around helping companies grow by leveraging and growing my marketing knowledge, while also helping people grow professionally.

To stay true to my purpose, I had to learn to say ‘no’ more often, ignore FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) and resist the temptation of taking on something new and exciting that didn’t quite fit within my top priorities. This change in perspective ensured that I work with the right people and invest in them so that they could manage things, instead of needing constant direction from me. The time I was able to claim back, I kept trying to reinvest it in building and using my marketing knowledge and coaching people.

I found my enthusiasm and energy levels going up again. I started to feel in control, and found myself coming up with new ideas. I learnt to focus on fewer things at a time and push myself to do more intense and potentially impactful work instead of easy and busy work. I am still learning to embrace the philosophy of doing more with less. What may not be obvious from my experience is that I was fortunate to get the right environment of trust, empathy, and support that empowered me to take these actions. Had that not been the case, I may have been one of those who quit their work during the pandemic.

As I shared my story with my peers and team members, I realized that several others were struggling too. Over the next several months, the topic of burnout became a leadership priority, and there were open discussions on multiple forums to set things right. Many people came forward to seek support, enable change and ended up consciously changing the way they worked.

As I came to terms with and turned around my professional crisis, here is a summary of what I learned from this experience:

• Work in a place with leaders who are supportive, and a culture that aligns with your values, needs and purpose.
• Acknowledge when there is a problem and ask for help.
• Ensure there is more to your life than just work, and take regular opportunities to disconnect and recharge.
• Periodically take a step back and audit what you are doing. Accordingly, let go of what you no longer need and what no longer needs you.
• Always prioritize doing what is most meaningful to you, for your long-term happiness and success in the long-term.

Finally, you may want to know, while I may have rediscovered my joy of work, am I more successful with this new approach?

Well, only time can tell. Stay tuned for part 3 of my story in another year or two to find out!

(Article originally published at: https://www2.deloitte.com/ui/en/blog/life-deloitte-blog/2022/who-stole-my-mojo-lessons-in-recovering-from-burnout.html )

Relationship with Adversity (Poem)

One day, I found myself in
A relationship with adversity
It came into my life by force
And turned it upside down
I tried to resist it, stop it
I fought with it, screamed at it
But it refused to budge
It battered me, exhausted me
It took away my joy
It shook my core, clouded my hope
I cried and begged it to leave me alone
But it just ignored my plea

I took a deep breath
I searched for my faith again
In the depth of my heart
And I decided to let things be
I looked at adversity in the eye
And I said that I know
You will have to leave one day
I know it’s only a matter of time
I know that this relationship
Can never be permanent
And one day, just like that
Adversity left me
Sunshine came through
The dark cloud lifted
Leaving behind a beautiful rainbow

NFTs – Hype or Game changers in marketing?

If you have spent your entire 2021 without hearing about NFTs even once – Congratulations, you must have achieved digital ‘Nirvana’! If you have heard about NFTs, depending on where you are on the spectrum from “Huh, do I need to care about it yet” to “Wow, this is where the future is”, read along to find out if your position changes!

Let’s start with the basics – What is NFT? In simple terms, NFT is a digital collectible. NFT stands for Non-Fungible Token. Non fungible means something that cannot be replaced, or in other words is unique. A Non-Fungible Token or NFT is a blockchain based, cryptographically authenticated digital file that allows collectors to uniquely own limited quantity digital artifacts. An NFT can be anything digital, but typically it includes art, music, video game items, trading cards, sports moments, Memes, virtual fashion, and other digital collectibles. 

While the first NFT was created in 2014, it wasn’t until 2021 that NFTs truly dominated the news. If Jack Dorsey’s first tweet that sold as an NFT for $2.9 Mn, Beeple’s NFT art piece titled “First 500 days” that sold for $69 Mn, or Nyan cat animation that sold for $600,000, left you scratching your head, you are not alone! While NFTs are far from mainstream, we have seen several brands jump on to the bandwagon. For example, Taco bell sold Taco themed gifs and images as NFTs, where all the proceeds went to the Taco Bell Foundation. Nike has started using NFTs to confirm the authenticity of its shoes. When you buy Nike shoes, you will also get a digital version of the shoes in your digital locker. Coca Cola also launched an NFT auction of digital collectibles with the proceeds going to Special Olympics.

With top brands getting into NFTs, the question that arises is whether other brands should start paying serious attention to NFTs or treat it as a passing fad.

Even with the hype surrounding NFTs, I believe that NFTs present a real opportunity for brands. NFTs tap into the human needs of exclusivity, ownership and authenticity. If used well, NFTs can help create unique brand experiences, increase brand awareness, encourage customer engagement, and create more interest in the brand and products. For brands, this is could be an opportunity engage a core fan base by creating exclusive experiences, turning users into investors, and generate additional revenues.

Brands can use NFTs to:

• Provide personalized gifts and vouchers to their customers
• Collect data, reward crowd funding, or source ideas and co-create with customers
• Programmatically distribute mobile advertising campaigns across various digital platforms
• Create and distribute limited digital memorabilia for milestones
• Collaborate with and support artists and charities
• Run lead generation contests and memorable ad campaigns

Brands can really elevate the customer experience, by using NFTs creatively in their marketing. Here are a few ways in which they can do that:

• Brands can include an element of surprise in their NFTs. This can drive up both anticipation and entertainment for the users. In fact, the concept of NFT mystery boxes may be catching on. A mystery box may have an NFT with variable rarity levels, keeping the element of surprise.
•  They can link the release of their NFT to an important date captures a key moment in the brand’s history. By letting fans own a piece of it, they can let their users collect items that have both emotional and artistic value.
• Brands can turn physical products into limited edition digital versions to create additional revenue stream.
• They can combine physical gifts with digital artwork or vice versa to delight consumers. Many brands offer physical products or services bundled with their NFTs, driving up the utility value.
• Brands can link NFTs with a social cause to raise funds in a way that would not only reinforce brand image, but also drive higher engagement and loyalty.
• Brands can do exclusive airdrops for their loyal communities to create buzz and chatter.

Despite the initial promise, NFTs have their challenges. Since NFTs are bought with cryptocurrencies, which consume high amount of electricity producing huge carbon emissions, the environmental impact of NFTs may be at odds with the sustainability efforts of brands. Further, the collectibles market may end up being a limited use case, which may not be a game-changing opportunity. High minting fees, unclear laws around ownership and taxability, and volatility in the crypto market may further add to the woes.

So, what should brands and marketers do at this point, when it comes to using NFTs for marketing?

Brands can start small, to minimize their risk, yet capture early mover’s advantage. They must clearly define their objective and use a test and learn approach for their NFT campaigns. Being open to experimentation and being agile in their marketing efforts will be key. They should also tie their campaign to the brand purpose, and use the NFT campaign to tell their story, and live up to their brand promise. This would ensure that their campaign yields long term benefits instead of looking like a mere publicity stunt.

In summary, we can all agree that we can’t ignore NFTs at this point. While NFTs by themselves may not seem like a big opportunity yet, but with the rise of blockchain, metaverse and web 3.0, we might have an entire ecosystem and uncover many more use cases. There are already several communities and influencers evangelizing NFTs. In fact, we have an entire generation growing up, that is willing to spend more money on digital assets than physical ones.

We don’t know what the future for NFTs holds, but if you are a brand or a marketer, I would suggest that you dip your toes in the NFT waters.

(Article originally published at: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/nfts-hype-game-changers-marketing-neha-verma/)