Shillong: Lawyer and author Kartikeya Vajpai visited IIM Shillong this Sunday to discuss his book, The Unbecoming. He sat down with Patricia Mukhim, Editor of The Shillong Times, to talk to students about leadership, purpose, and ambition. He warned that people often hunt for external solutions to internal problems. He told the audience, "The outside world is a mirror reflection of your inside world."
Vajpai emphasized the power of undivided attention. He argued that people mistake a lack of focus for a lack of time. Ten minutes of total presence beats four hours of distracted time. He applied this to professional life, claiming that deep attention makes a worker more effective.
The discussion shifted to the traps of ego. Vajpai defined identity as a cage of the known. He told students that carrying a past identity into a new task kills creativity. He pointed to his own life for proof. He has worked as a professional cricketer, an MBA holder, a marketer for the ITC group, and a lawyer. Each career shift demanded he drop his old habits to learn something new.
He critiqued the modern urge to constantly become something. This hunger, he noted, often stems from ego and an unhealthy attachment to outcomes. True awareness requires shedding those labels. He defined karma as stored memory, not fate. He drew on the Bhagavad Gita to explain that real performance comes from focusing on the current task rather than the result.
Vajpai introduced his concept of Rest in Action. He argued that athletes and dancers perform best when they combine stillness with movement. He urged the students to move beyond memory-triggered reactions. Instead, he wants them to build awareness through daily practice. He concluded by discussing Meghalaya, noting that while identity provides a sense of belonging, it should never become the driving force behind politics.
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