Looking Back At 2017

Let me just capture the highlights

We finally relocated

The plans were in progress for a couple of years. We finally moved from Bangalore to our home in Kolkata early this year. We still have to visit Bangalore at least twice a year to wrap up things we still have there.

Project leaders identified

Moving back to Kolkata was for a reason. I wanted to tie up with potential resources to give shape to a few pet projects. In the second half of the year, two BECKON Aspirants were identified to bring life to the following initiatives

Indriyaah, the morning home salon

Chalte Chalte India for Eco tours, retreats and home stays

While it has been initiated that two other resources from the virtual team will be engaged to support me to write white papers in 2018 along with pitching for new assignments in corporate world, however the blueprint of the strategy is not quite ready yet.

BECKON Aspirants

The target for the year was to engage a hundred minds to the BECKON Framework. I however succeed to personally share the idea and the opportunity to just over sixty people only, which triples my work this year to meet the numbers.

The books I read.

I read Paul Minor’s book summaries only.

1] Deep Work, by Cal New port

2] Tools of Titan by Tim Ferris

3] Essentialism by Greg McKeown

4] Liminal Thinking by Dave Gray

5] I had begun reading the full book for Hot Groups by Tom Peter

6] Today I finished, The Five Second Rule by Mel Robbins

7] The Slight Edge by Jeff Olsen – This was paid reading for a client

Cumulative Count

Virtual team: Over ten members

Clients: Over 75

World domination: 6%

Industries covered: Energy (Biodiesel), Real Estate, Learning and Coaching, Mobile App, Retail, ICT (Information, Communication and Technology), Affiliate Marketing, Marine services, Hospitality, Food, Entertainment etc.

Readiness for next level

Pitch Deck for BECKON Software

Angel investors list

My lowest Budget travel

Arunachaleshwar in one day – INR 500/-

New Learning

I learnt all kinds of facial from a government institute in just one month and practiced my competence on my sister. I am ready for the world actually however for Indriyaah, I opted for experienced professionals.

Failed Attempts

Reaching Universities authorities through email blast to brand BECKON Framework – I realized I need to work on my copy writing as it did not evoke any response.

My morning routine is absolutely jeopardized. It is almost 3 AM now and this has been my sleeping time for the past few months. This has to change in 2018

Small Wins

I do short trips without a phone

My evening walks  

Towards minimalist lifestyle

My meditation time

Quality time with family, friends and relatives

I am trying different recipes - I am beginning to enjoy cooking.

Looking back is like a quick recap so that things are in perspective now - Do you have yours ready?

Part 3: The Whole Nine Yards Of Authoring A Book

Pre Launch Reviews: You want your book to be read by all, not just professional editors and reviewers. So while you adhere to the standards of grammar nazis and literary pundits, also get ordinary readers to share perspectives. I shared the synopsis of a novel I just concluded with a friend of mine for her feedback. She hardly reads books and yet pointed out a flaw that made me re draft the synopsis. There were many names in the synopsis and she asked me to retain only the key names – that was not a reader’s advise, an analytical mind’s perspective. So get as many pre launch reviews you can.

Readiness: Your book is ready content wise duly edited by a professional. You are done with ISBN – now rewind your life and remember all those who assisted you in this journey. Do they deserve mention in your acknowledgements section? Who do you want to dedicate the book to? Do you want to include an inspirational quote that kept you going? Do you know someone of repute who genuinely liked your book and is willing to write a foreword? Depending upon the kind of book you wrote, do you need to insert references and bibliography, for further reading and to allow readers deep dive into your source points? Take those vital calls

Book Promotion:Now that you are clear why you want to write and why you are keen to publish a book, which audience you want to cater to, you really have to work out a strategy to promote your book. You want to rely more on social media, create pages for awareness, give free books, establish readership base through your blogs, plan a book launch, be member of online portals– regardless of what strategy you adopt, be prepared for both appreciation and criticism – simply put bouquet and bricks. If you want to build your credibility as an author – consider these different stages as milestones and don’t get stuck by any of them. If you are not a best seller due to poor marketing strategy or quality of book, that still does not rob you of your identity as an author.

Remember why you wanted to write in the first place – use this learning experience as a catalyst to refine your writing and strengthen your motivation. The process will be much simpler and easier now and going forward.