Google Maps – I have a problem.

Google Maps problem

Google Maps has now become an important part of my daily life and I am sure of millions others. I use it to know how much time it will take to reach a particular destination, what is the traffic situation and possible alternative routes. I used it almost 10 years ago when I traveled from … Read more

6 Golden Rules That Lead to A Comfortable Retirement

Amidst all the things that are happening inour life on a daily basis, retirement planning often takes a backseat. In most cases, people don’t realisethe importance of planning for their older self until they turn 35 or maybe 40. The key to a safe and relaxed retirement is planning it from as early as possible. Remember, the primary … Read more

Book Review – Factfulness – See the world afresh in 2019

I chanced upon this book, Factfulness – 10 reasons we’re wrong about the world – and why things are better than you think, because it was on the WhatsApp DP of one of my phone contacts. Then I saw another review on Linkedin about this book.

I had a feeling I should order it and now that I am done reading, I want you to read it too. Why?

Read on.

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“I am making night photography better with NoctaCam app” says Vaddadi Kartick

NoctaCam app for night photography vs iPhone camera app

Were you intrigued by the picture that you just saw above? Well, that is a work of Vaddadi Kartick and he is working on NoctaCam, a camera app for iPhone.

Kartick is based in Bengaluru. He loves photography and understands cameras and apps, much better than many of us. Better than me for sure!

Kartick earned an M.Tech. in Computer Engineering at IIT Bombay. He worked at Google for almost 9 years, on most of the important products, like Google search, Youtube, Gmail, Google Sheets, Google Docs.

I have known Kartick as a very fertile, curious mind with amazing clarity of thought. I believe the same reflects in his work too.

Today, we are going to get Kartick to share about his story and his creation – the NoctaCam iPhone camera app.

All set Kartick!

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Behavioural alpha, Debt funds and Trust

Behavioural Alpha

Behavioural Alpha

Someone on Twitter mentioned that index funds create alpha. I don’t know how is that possible but what is certainly possible is that you can create investment alpha with your own behaviour.

It is a known fact that the returns of an investment instruments (say mutual fund) and the actual return of an investor vary significantly.

Why is that?

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How I got off the hedonic treadmill?

Hedonic Treadmill - How i got off?

In pursuit of happiness

When I started working 14 years ago, all I had was a bag of clothes, many books, little money and a big will to achieve something.

God knows when my ‘will to achieve’ turned into a desire to earn more money.

As I earned more money, my desires grew too.

Before I realised, I was on this hedonic treadmill.

I bought a car, one more car, a time share, traveled places, bought expensive stuff and worked to raise my standard of living. More money needed.

I thought I was getting happier only to realise that the happiness was short lived.

More stuff and more stuff.

I became an excess user of credit card and weekend shopping became my pastime. What I didn’t realise I was betting my future income on my current desires.

What I forgot to stop and ask was  “Am I making myself any happier than I was already?”.

Anways, life went on.

And then, 6 years ago, I quit my job to be on my own. 

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