Time flies faster than all fairies and all witches. Especially if you have fallen off-track. Which is why it helps to have a self-reporting structure in place. These Stakeholder Reports are mine. I like to write a long-ish update + send it to every single person I know. Last month’s report is here.

Each edition has the following:

1. Updates from the previous month
2. Bonus for the month: Three ideas that have stayed with me
3. Goals for the coming month + what I will do to achieve them
4. A short list of things I need help with

This one is laid out in the same manner.

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Updates from the previous month

We hosted Decoding Draupadi’s second event – in Pune

On the night of DD’s first event, I knew I want to do a 100 more of these. Bring that feeling of safe spaces + belongingness to as many as I could. And et voila – few days later, we were organising one in Pune. A women-only open mic.

A couple of notes from this whole thing.

One. Got a chance to hang out with the DD Team. Saranyaa and Simran and Chandni and I. I find it funny how I had worked with Saranyaa + Simran for a couple of months now, but only met them in person a day before the event. Which, by the way, we also managed to plan out remote. Yay?

No matter how many Zooms and E-mails and Voice-notes you do, nothing replaces a hug and a handshake. I was able to know my colleagues better. Know their quirks. Dine with them. See what’s the first thing they do when they get off a call. Laugh out loud and sync our tempos.

And for a kid raised on the Internet, this was a STRONG case to go meet more people. IRL.

Two. We had a lineup of 12 performers, some 30 guests, a lot of passing fries and coffee, a tiny dance party in the end. Magical. But, honest confession – I think I could have done this better.

Yes, we had a great turnout. Especially for a rainy evening. And most people stayed till the end. Which is my greatest signal for whether or not people are having a good time. And finally, DD made some good friends in Pune. But, I know in my heart there were things I could do better. Stuff I should have thought of earlier – factored in that this was a new + different city. Took some lessons and I’m hoping to do it better the next time.

Happy to show you more specific notes + get your thoughts. Drop me a DM?

Three. Decoding Draupadi was on a magazine — yayyy???? That we launched at our event. Vidhi from The Atom had asked me if we’d like to chat for a tiny feature. And before we knew it, I was holding a Decoding Draupadi edition for the magazine in my hands. We had our pictures from Show, Don’t Tell on the cover, curated articles + picture galleries from our community and of course, a showcase of all that DD has been up to. Plus where it’s going. Oh, and how much I love rice.

My personal joy was putting custom DD stickers to each edition that we handed out. And having a tangible, published, way-more-real-feeling work-than-my-blogs published article on this edition. It comments on how women often save leg piece for the men in every time there’s chicken for dinner. Read it here.

What could be India’s next Unicorn?

This one’s interesting. I spent a weekend with 8 super-sharp minds – some from C4E, some friends of friends, some strangers (now friends :p). Locked away in a villa. In Alibaug. With no phones whatsoever. Brainstorming over what could be India’s next billion-dollar startup. Before you ask me: No, I don’t have an answer just yet. Or maybe I do – ask nicely and I’ll tell.

A couple of thoughts on this.

One. That I had never done something like this before. So, that was new + exciting. I was exposed to a lot of new ideas, different lines of thinking, how people operate, new ways of doing things, etc.

Two. The format was interesting. There were people of ages 19 to 40s. From multiple backgrounds. With pretty varied outlooks on life. Each had a three hour slot to present their ideas and research. We’d all then, as a group, first ‘build’ the idea into a bigger and more concrete business. And then, all of us would together ‘kill’ it.

What I really appreciated was the honest chance we gave to each idea. And the fair stress-testing we put each through. Because in a room like that one, dismissing things or not having an open mind is easy. And it was great learning just being there.

Three. Working on these ideas was also quite nerving. A few friends and I stayed up the night before of the workshop, researching for the most reasonable ideas one could find. I mean, I don’t think of billion-dollar ideas on a day-to-day basis. Which made me realise that maybe I should. Maybe it’s DD itself?

You definitely take some bit of pressure upon yourself to deliver something meaningful. Even if it doesn’t add the most value. Especially with a lot of people involved. You would not want to borrow people’s time and attention to waste it with lousy work. So that.

All in all, it’s beyond my imagination the rooms I sometimes I get to be in.

I think I failed this month

I did not put in my 100% to anything I did. Maybe a 55% at best. I can see a ton of open projects. Very little progress or action on most of my goals. That I had myself set for myself. And, it’s been gnawing at me. But I know better than dwelling. So, I’ll be more mindful and do better. Thank God August is here.

However, in my life today, I do not have someone questioning my inaction or failures. Which I always thought would be a brilliant life to have but apparently not. Or maybe I did not make the best of it. As I say on multiple occasions – I am super grateful for the life I have. And it would be a shame if I slacked. Never again.

The lessons from this is simple. Choose better. That’s literally just all.

Two years of C4E

#NothingOfficialAboutIt. In my one year post, I talked about how I found MY people. And how C4E is my artist’s colony. And about all the crazy adventures I’ve had. Truth is: Another year later, it all remains the same.

Yes, I know more and I’ve grown and learnt new things and done a lot more. But all supported by the same old promise – really good people + a great adventure. I know it’s really hard to have consistently delivered on it. But apparently, we do at C4E. And for that, I’m super grateful.

Someone asked me recently: How did you decide C4E is home?

I can tell you exactly what I told them. That I don’t know. Somewhere along the line, it has just grown to feel like it. It’s got all that I care for. To build the life I’ve always dreamt of – Trust. Kindness. Choice. Support. Warmth. Fairness. High-energy. And a playground to make mistakes. I’ve seen and been offered each of these values in action. If you’re sharp + ambitious at 22, what else do you need? Maybe that’s why I decided C4E is home. Or maybe it’s the unlimited Starbucks.

But here’s to two years of capitalising all my c4e’s to C4E on WhatsApp. And not more – let me go set up text replacement for that.

Getting healthier and all that

After years of midnight-motivation-to-fix-my-life and elaborate exercise routines and absurd diet plans, I have finally arrived the patient + sustainable way to go: Eating proper ghar ka khana + moving my body.

It’s a slow thing. But I’m okay to wait. And do the good thing instead.

God bless habit-stacking, color charts and meal plans that fit my life and preferences, I think I’m doing okay. Honestly, it has only been a week of this but I can make it might stick. Because I have no complaints at all.

A very obvious realisation: Stack your habits with things you anyways already do. It’s easier to follow through on the new ones.

My summer break bucket-list

There were only two fun things I wanted to do this summer. For fun. Chill in a pool with some friends and do a tiny trip with a dear friend. And both happened. The tiny trip was just staying over at the friend’s place for a few days in Pune. And the pool happened in the workshop at Alibaug.

Funny thing is how I did not plan for either. In fact, I really wanted those but I’d dismissed them into a ah-maybe-not-this-time.

Ps: Go to Chul Mutton if you’re in Pune. You’d definitely have a good time.

Three ideas that have stayed with me:

One. Finding time through the week.

It is just this picture. Found it on X. To me, it says: There’s time in your week. Find it. And that showing up could look different on different days. And that it’s hard, but that’s just how it is.

Two. When a woman leader leaves.

Got a chance to meet Mansi, a senior leader in finance, for brunch. We talked about – among a myriad of thing – how women at every level of an org should be trained + mentored for whatever comes next. Otherwise, when a senior woman leaves, there’s often no woman who’s ready to be next in line. Leaving them all wondering, “Omg! Where did all my diversity go?”

Someone asked me recently, What have learnt in the last two years of leading conversations through DD? And one of those things is this – Being on such tables where I can learn and borrow from the lives of other women. That are so much bigger than mine. And so, so different.

Three. Eat what you crave – but stop when you’re done.

I met with Shravan for lunch where we talked about fitness, sports, music events, wearable tech and more. Really rich conversation. We were talking of food cravings and he said something like – Eat what you are craving in the moment, but stop right when the craving has been satisfied. Don’t just give into unhealthy amounts of hogging. He said it better. Somehow, it clicked.

Right after that lunch, I got myself some Baklava. When I took it home, every time I’d open the box, this was the only thing I thought of. To stop right when the craving has been satisfied.

So, for two weeks, Baklava was the only sweet-treat I ate. And very tiny portions of it. Which acted as brilliant training in avoiding sugar and controlling impulses.

Thank you, Shravan 🙂

Goals for the coming month + what I will do to achieve them

AK Goals:

1. I will write fan mails/cold DMs to 5 new people every day. This will be the last thing I do before I keep my phone out of my room every night. (Habit stacking is a brilliant thing, btw.)
2. I will do 25+ days of my healthy habits. These are: Meditate, workout, eat healthy, sleep and wake up at the right time. The best way to do this is to not miss on anything more than one day in a row.
3. I will write a LinkedIn post every day. I will schedule this the night before. 10 AM. Everyday.
4. I will update my notes regularly. The simplest way is to keep a tab open at all times and do it mindfully. And review first thing in the morning, for the previous day.
5. I will be very particular with my time + calendar. I will do a daily reflection on what got done each day + what was not best way to spend my time.

DD Goals:

1. Execute 4 new mini-projects in each of our 4 verticals – health, career, finance, relationship. I do not know what it is today. I should, in the next 5 days. And then work on executing it.
2. Record and publish 10 new podcast episodes this month. This means a complete cycle of record, edit, make YouTube cuts, make Instagram cuts, put them out. This remains an unsolved challenges in the last few months. But if Pocket Aces can figure out assembly line for content, DD can too.
3. Build a greater following for all DD socials. Instagram is at 844 today. I want to be at 10k in August. Current strategy is the Gary Vee way: Quantity > Quality.
4. Send the DD 2025 calendar to print. Because we have done it before, I am entirely convinced this is a one month job. The 2023 Cal was a 6 month job. For the next, I am ready to find out!
5. Find a partner to build DD’s personal branding vertical. This is just a lot of looking on the Internet. Needle in the haystack 🙂

A short list of things I need help with:

1. I want to set up a campus chapter for DD. The current challenge is this: We have not been able to get a college kid’s attention in the competition with clubs, online courses, NGOs and UN Foundations, and all the thrilling things college life has to offer. Thoughts? Anyone?
2. So, I’ve realised every time I make a tiny trip or take a break, it takes me at least a week-ish to get back to regular programming. How do I fix that for myself? No upcoming trips but I’d generally like to fix that for myself.
3. If you spend time with me physically OR you are one of the people on my WhatsApp-group-of-40-close-friends, PLEASE push me to stick to my rules and routines. And point out when I defect. On DMs, private chat, publicly, anything goes.
4. As always, point gaps in my thinking + give thoughts on this report. This is essentially all I am up to in life, how I am thinking, all that. So, this will be super helpful!

It’s salt-air season, finally!

Let’s go <3

Kaafi sincerely,

Anshika Kushwaha