My family used to live in the US, and my mother endured the unimaginable — losing a child and the pain that must have come with it. Then, I was born, but some time after, we moved abroad, where she raised my sister and me on her own until we had grown and returned years later. In a society where women rarely have an equal voice, she protected us with quiet strength and relentless courage. In short, my mother lost her son and, later, her husband, but her resilience has always inspired me. Because of her, I carry a deep and lasting respect for women, especially mothers.
To all the mothers who carry the world quietly on their shoulders — thank you. Happy Mother’s Day. ❤️
We all mess up—but what happens after shapes your trust, your team, and your growth. Here’s why apologizing with sincerity can be your greatest leadership move.
Your team relies heavily on you to complete specific tasks. But then—you just made a mistake! It feels awful at the moment, but know that it’s okay. You are human. What happens next makes you who you are, or can be.
If you realize you made a mistake, admit it and learn from the experience. It won’t cost you your dignity. In fact, acknowledging one’s mistakes makes one highly reliable as a human being.
The more you linger around the error, the worse it is. The more you work around a solution, the better it is. Your team will be confident knowing that you are their resource and you are on it.
I made tons of mistakes in my career, but it is always difficult to accept our shortcomings. But what truly helps me is offering instant apologies and working on a solution. Such behavior always has a positive effect on my team members and seniors.
Mistakes made me much better at work. At the same time, we aim for perfection to do better, not to be perfect!
Let us accept seeing mistakes at work as normal and promote focusing on the solution. A simple “I am sorry! Let me handle this!” will make your day better than any defensive statements.
Forbes Coaches Council highlights that sincere apologies can improve trust and strengthen relationships, leading to better collaboration and partnership. (Forbes Coaches Council, 2019).
Mistakes don’t define your worth—what you do after them does.
How do you navigate through mistakes at work—or perhaps, anywhere in life?
Forbes Coaches Council. (2019, July 24). Leadership means having to say you’re sorry. Forbes. https://lnkd.in/eDkuiWCD
Skype’s retirement on May 5, 2025, marks the end of an era!
I have not used it extensively, but it left us. And I feel a sudden void.
Skype was one of the first video messaging apps I had dived into — and one that made video calls fluid before it was cool.
I also remember using Skype for around 6 hours, to study for my Psychology exam with a classmate on the night before exam. Guess what I got? An A!
I am sure many of you remember the sound of someone calling on Skype — tong tong tongtongtong tong tong tuitong — takes me back to the wave of Nostalgia.
I used it with friends and for some classes.
Looking back, Microsoft missed a real opportunity by not rebranding Skype into something more than just being a personal messaging app. It kept its eye on Teams, which is fine.
I believe Microsoft could have developed Skype as the next leading messaging app to battle today’s giants like WhatsApp or Messenger. There is so much potential there.
Now, I am sure all those sole Skype users isn’t getting on Teams but instead going to alternatives.
Why, must you say? Because Teams feel too professional of an app and less personal. Evidence? Just look at your company!
In a world full of Slacks, Teams, Zoom, and WhatsApp, Skype walked so others could run.
I’m not feeling this way alone. According to the latest findings, Statista projected 2.27 billion registered users by 2024, a testament to its global reach.
Notably it’s the 18–34 age group that represents 54.83% of the user demographic. Additionally, over 51% of Skype users earned more than $100k, indicating a user base of a higher buying potential. (Think Impact)
If I were an investor of Microsoft or Venture Capitalist, I would have preferred a creative team to market it to the billions and have them re-think to leave their current apps for Skype.
Despite this, Microsoft announced the retirement of Skype in Feb 2025, transitioning users to Microsoft Teams. This move potentially overlooks a significant segment of users who preferred Skype for its simplicity and features. I sure loved them!
What’s your favorite memory of Skype as a user, and what would you have done if you were an investor?
Let’s honor Skype’s legacy — share your story and vision for its future.
Yesterday was President’s Day! And I took some time to reflect on certain aspects of the history of our first president, George Washington.
Mr. Edward, our tour guide, is an author, ex-writer of “Tonight Show,” and speechwriter of a former president.
We visited several places associated with the extraordinary life and times of George Washington, from his teenage years as a surveyor through his generalship in the American Revolution to his time as President. And we also happened to see some Civil War sites.
Incredibly, Washington wanted to commercialize America and make it a strong nation; he had also decided to free all the enslaved people he owned on his deathbed.
He contributed to the free nation in its infancy. And we cherish the way he governed it in his time that led to how progressive the country has been over the centuries.
Right from the start, this cartoon adventure hooked up when the boy felt lost, and he found a friend, the mole.
The mole is an intelligent ally who guides the boy along his path, using beautiful symphony quotes that could touch any lost person; it certainly did me.
Then came the fox whose behavior wouldn’t necessarily contradict a real fox if it faced one, at least from its initial interaction with it.
Later came the horse whose uncanny patience and wisdom led the boy into wonders around the land and then something that would surely excite you through the mystery.
If you got Apple TV, check out this incredible adventure cartoon movie! My mom and I loved it from the get-go! 😊
ChatGPT is a chatbot that uses natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning to understand and respond to natural language conversations. It is an AI-powered conversational platform that enables businesses to improve their customer service, reduce churn, and provide personalized experiences.
ChatGPT is trained to understand interactions and conversation context to accurately respond to customer inquiries and understand the intent behind customer conversations. It uses conversational AI to understand customer queries and accurately respond to them with appropriate solutions. The AI-powered platform is designed to help businesses automate customer service operations, simplify customer interactions, and provide more personalized and proactive customer service experiences.
When customers interact with ChatGPT, the platform analyzes their conversation and extracts key information, such as context, sentiment, and intent. It then uses this information to generate accurate and personalized responses. ChatGPT can also identify customer sentiment and provide proactive suggestions or specific product recommendations, helping businesses build stronger relationships with their customers. Disclaimer: This entire article is generated by ChatGPT in one sitting.
Just like a cake that crumbles when it’s not perfectly baked, life, too, can appear flawed and messy at times.
We feel it. But then we see how our dreams and hopes for a better life keep us moving forward with our heads up high.
And when we have positive people around, it only adds up to our life’s many visions. We feel things aren’t too bad after all.
Then, we must realize that life isn’t so good for many others. We are yet to develop empathy towards one another and have humility within as they both reflect in our behaviors.
We learn and work on ourselves, cause we can—we are human beings, nonetheless.
As privileged as I am in many ways, the least I can do is acknowledge it and feel for those who are not.
Despite the struggles you face, I would still say to you, ‘Keep going. I hope your life gets better.’
Thanks to my family, friends, and colleagues for making my day more meaningful, especially those who wish me well, not just on my birthday but also in general. You are precious to me and I wish you well too. Take care and please keep me in your prayers. ❤️
The Fourth of July became an important day in American history ever since it declared independence from British colonial rule by signing the Declaration of Independence, giving birth to American freedom as it dawns upon us all.
It was 1941 when the then government decided to hold this auspicious day as a public holiday. In modern times, people would cherish it by hosting public or private gatherings and keeping everything else aside—enjoying the freedom with their loved ones—be it through traditional food like hot dogs, hamburgers, and s’mores and indulging in boat races and whatnot. In short, people love to have a good time.
In 246 years, America has become one of the most successful nations in terms of providing quality of life in food, healthcare, education, infrastructure, etc. The country has produced or been a place of abode for some of the world’s finest and most interesting personalities, with the likes of Abraham Lincoln, Nicola Tesla, Martin Luther King Jr., and Muhammad Ali among countless others.
And, when you compare it to any other nation, you will see that it has been a safe haven for the entire world. Here is what George Washington, one of the founding fathers, said about the nation: “I had always hoped that this land might become a safe and agreeable asylum to the virtuous and persecuted part of mankind, to whatever nation they might belong.”
It could be simple like your voice, acting, receptiveness, calm nature, or even confidence.
In many ways than one, it boils down to your personality and how you make the world feel around you.
Owning a real estate or a BMW helps you in life’s many places and they make you privileged. But they do not make you special.
It’s your personality with humility and empathy that truly distinguishes you from the rest.
Empathy shows how you acknowledge your blessings and others’ struggle and humility shows how you treat others who have less or are not as privileged as you are.
At the same time, we also need to hold on to our own. So, let’s be confident but not arrogant, and humble but not weak.
There is no age in developing. So, the idea of maturity with age is outdated because you can always work on yourself.
When you develop, some might laugh at you, some might envy you, but there will be people who will cherish you.
Hence, it’s the effort we put in that brings out the result in the end.
Focus on ‘You’ and what works best for you as a person. And think of others the same way.
Feel it. You’ll respect the ones who are improving themselves too.
