"The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world

are the ones who do."

Steve Jobs

John Gardner said, “We are designed for the climb, not for taking our ease, either in the valley or at the summit.”

- Nisaba Godrej

My 3 dreams are to:

#1 Be on top of Everest#2 Change education opportunities for 1 million girls#3 Make Godrej an ‘Antevasin’

My Dream: Seeing India become an agricultural superpower (via exports and food processing) in my lifetime

My story: I joined Godrej Agrovet in 2008 as the Executive Vice President (Strategy and Business Development). In 2010, I proposed that Godrej help launch India’s first venture capital fund focused on breakthrough technologies for food and agriculture. Omnivore Partners did our first venture deal (Skymet) in August 2011 and successfully raised INR 260 crore from outside investors including SBI, LIC, NABARD, and SIDBI. Today, Omnivore has 11 agriculture and food technology startups in its portfolio.

Mark KahnFounding Partner at Omnivore Partners

Scan to visit the Omnivore website

My Dream: Seeing Godrej Consumer Products become a leading emerging markets multinational company in its categories of choice and within emerging markets, to build Africa’s best loved brands by helping millions of African women look good, feel good and have safe, healthy homes.

My story: I joined Godrej in 2001 as a graduate chemical engineer in its Oleochemical business. I did my MBA in between and was Executive Assistant to our Chairman for about two years. Since 2008, I have been part of GCPL’s internationalisation journey through our 3 x 3 strategy. We have focused on building businesses in high-growth, large middle class markets like Indonesia, sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America in categories that have been core to us. We are already the global leaders in hair care for women of African descent and want to make that position even stronger. In Africa, we aspire to become the largest home and personal care business over the next decade.

Omar MominHead - M&A, Business Development and Africa

My Passion: My deep interest in Psychology was why I opted for a career in HR. While I enjoyed my work, I always had a nagging regret that it wasn’t close enough to my ‘core’ – my desire to develop deep expertise in Psychology. There was even a phase when I left my job to pursue a PhD in Psychology in the US. But I realised that I didn’t enjoy work that was only theoretical. So, I moved back to HR.

My story: I joined in a generalist HR role. When I attended a ‘Personal Leadership’ workshop here by Dr. Hitendra Wadhwa of Columbia Business School, I thought that this was the kind of work I could possibly explore. So, I designed my own workshop and piloted it. This opened up a whole new area of work. With incredible support from Godrej, I started to lead Talent and Leadership Development. I get to design solutions by studying Psychology and Leadership – work that is as close to my core as possible. The regret has completely vanished. Though, I must confess that now once in a while, I have sleepless nights thinking about whether my team and I will be able to do justice to the exciting work that lies ahead of us!

Shailesh DeshpandeHead - Talent and Leadership Development

My Dream: For India to recognise its LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) citizens, and offer them the same rights as that of other citizens, including the right to marry their partners of choice. I am so glad that Godrej is leading the way as one of India’s leading LGBT friendly companies.

My story: I joined Godrej in 2010 to set up the Godrej India Culture Lab, a new kind of public platform in the country where we could cross-pollinate academics, artists, business people and others in an ongoing conversation about what it means to be modern and Indian. Over the past few years, the Lab has been acknowledged as one of the most exciting experiments out of corporate India, and awarded with several honours including the 2015 India Today Award for Corporate Commitment to the Arts. I am also involved in various other leadership initiatives at Godrej – whether in LOUD, or our senior annual Godrej Leadership Forum, or in diversity and inclusion – and in all of these, I am fulfilling my dream of helping create a better India for future generations.

Parmesh ShahaniHead - Godrej India Culture Lab

Scan to visit the India Culture Lab website

BOOKS

The Power of Full Engagement - Tony Schwartz

Now, Discover Your Strengths - Marcus Buckingham

The Happiness Hypothesis - Jonathan Haidt

The How of Happiness - Sonja Lyubomirsky

The War of Art - Steven Pressfield

Turning Pro - Steven Pressfield

Man’s Search for Meaning - Viktor Frankl

Change Anything - Joseph Grenny

Ignore Everybody - Hugh MacLeod

Flourish - Martin Seligman

Authentic Happiness - Martin Seligman

The Fountainhead - Ayn Rand

Originals - Adam Grant

MOVIES

Jiro Dreams of Sushi

The World’s Fastest Indian

The Shawshank Redemption

Forrest Gump

Gandhi

Good Will Hunting

The Lion King

Kung Fu Panda

Fermat’s Last Theorem

Inspiration is everywhere! Here are some of our favourites. What’s on your list?

WEBSITES

www.gapingvoid.com

www.brainpickings.org

www.farnamstreetblog.com

www.viacharacter.org

www.theenergyproject.com

PSYCHOMETRIC TESTS

www.careeranchorsonline.com

www.gallupstrengthscenter.com

www.viacharacter.org

MICHAEL JORDAN

Nike - Michael Jordan AdvertisementPhoto by National Museum of American History

“Obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.”

The 1997 NBA finals was played as a best of 7 games between the Chicago

Bulls and the Utah Jazz. On the morning of game 5, Michael Jordan came

down with serious flu-like symptoms. He was advised complete rest and

asked to miss the game. Jordan wouldn’t hear of it. Utah Jazz had won

games 3 and 4 and were in high spirits. The Bulls needed Jordan. And he

rose to the occasion.

Despite being extremely unwell, he walked out to the court. He lacked his

usual energy, but was the highest scorer in the game. The Bulls went on to

be crowned NBA 1997 champions. This game went down in sporting history

and is remembered as ‘the flu game’.

4

Express YourselfLive out your dreams.Make them real.

J KROWLING

Source: www.bleedingcool.com

“Failure meant a stripping away of the inessential. I stopped pretending to myself that I was anything other than what I was, and began to direct all my energy into finishing the only work that mattered to me.”

Rowling wrote the first Harry Potter book while juggling a young daughter

and training to be a teacher. The rest, is history (and a little bit of magic).

She went from being “jobless, a lone parent, and as poor as it is possible

to be in modern Britain, without being homeless” to becoming the first

billionaire author.

Not one, but two of his businesses went bust. Then, he set up a lock company and what followed is the stuff of legends. Today, 1.1 billion people globally use a Godrej product. His perseverance is our inspiration.

In 1897, Ardeshir Godrej, founder of the Godrej Group, learnt the first lesson of success: failure.

WALTDISNEY

Source: www.newsweek.com

“If you can dream it, you can do it. Always remember that this whole thing was started with a dream and a mouse.”

Walt Disney’s dream started with a rabbit, not a mouse. Oswald the

Lucky Rabbit, as he was called, was hugely successful. But when Disney

wanted to negotiate another contract, trouble began. Charles Mintz,

his Universal distributor, revealed that he had hired all of Disney’s employees

and retained the rights for Oswald. Disney was left with nothing. 

Back to square one, he had to come up with a replacement for Oswald.

Then, Mickey Mouse ‘popped out of his mind onto a drawing pad on a train

ride’. Disney’s first two Mickey cartoons failed. “They don’t know you and

they don’t know your mouse”, he was told. But he kept at it. Steamboat

Willie, his third attempt, became the highest paid cartoon on Broadway. 

5 STEPSto living out your dream

My DreamTo visit automobile museums and factories in Italy

How I lived out my dreamEver since my childhood, I’ve loved sketching automobiles. Godrej LOUD gave me the opportunity to take this one step further. I went on a backpacking trip to the Terra di Motori (the motor valley) in Northern Italy, home to the factories of Maserati, Lamborghini, Pagani and Ferrari. I was in heaven! I also got to visit an Italian car design firm. It was amazing to see the nuances that go into automotive design. This trip comes closest to a pilgrimage for me!

My summer projectDuring my summer at Godrej, I worked on product testing and determining the marketing mix in the Wet Hair category in West Africa. It was an extremely exciting project and gave me a sense of all that goes into working on a new category of products. It was months of hard work and amazing learning!

(Akhil has joined us as a Management Trainee at Godrej Consumer Products.)

Akhil KaliaIIFT Delhi

My DreamTo explore India through a solo motorcycle ride from Kanyakumari to Kashmir

How I lived out my dreamBiking has always been a liberating experience for me. I’d been wanting to ride from Mumbai to Leh for quite some time. When I heard about Godrej LOUD, I decided to dream bigger. My bike ride would be from Kanyakumari to Kashmir. 6,886 km. 6 weeks. It was unforgettable and challenged me both physically and mentally, like nothing else has. I also collaborated with Safe City, an NGO which helps women in distress, to spread awareness through my journey.

What it feels likeThis experience has taught me that with a little faith and a lot of willpower, I can achieve anything I want to! Nothing, absolutely nothing, in this world is stronger than human determination.

Merryl D’souzaGodrej Properties

My DreamTo sky dive at the mecca of adventure sports - New Zealand!

How I lived out my dreamI’m an adventure sports enthusiast. I have checked most of them off my bucket list. The only one left was sky diving. Personally, this was a more special dream, as it came after my knee replacement. I’m a cancer survivor. Jumping off 15,000 feet seemed like a real test of (mental) strength. Post intense preparation, I finally lived out my dream. It was a transformational experience!

My LOUD thoughtI believe that if God gives you a dream, He also gives you the capability to achieve it. My journey was a reaffirmation of this belief. It is also a message to all cancer survivors that life does not end after cancer.

Jatin PanchalGodrej Consumer Products

My DreamTo undertake the treacherous Chadar Lake trek in Ladakh

How I lived out my dreamI’m an avid trekker. I’ve done over a dozen treks in the past couple of years. I’ve also been on two Himalayan expeditions. The high point of my trekking journey came through LOUD. The Chadar Lake trek was done entirely on the frozen Zanskar River. It was not just the ice that was challenging, but also the temperatures ranging from -15°C to -35°C! It feels very special to have done a trek that might not be open to the public in a few years from now.

My summer projectDuring my summer project, I worked on improving the efficiency at manufacturing plants in South Africa, Mozambique and Ghana. I thoroughly enjoyed challenging the notion of “traditionally accepted practices”. My project work taught me important lessons in problem-solving.

(Praful has joined us as a Management Trainee at Godrej Consumer Products.)

Praful LakheNITIE Mumbai

Our dream for Vikhroliby Pirojsha Godrej, MD & CEO, Godrej Properties

Vikhroli has been integral to the history of the Godrej Group. In the 1940s, my great grandfather Pirojsha Godrej dreamed of creating a modern and forward-looking industrial township. This was realised in a series of world-class manufacturing units that crafted hundreds of quality products. For the first time in India and as one of a handful of global examples, Vikhroli offered an environment where the workers building Godrej products could flourish and develop themselves. Housing, schooling and healthcare for all along with a well-planned and naturally beautiful location ensured that Vikhroli offered all Godrejites a unique and progressive environment.

It is now time for the next phase of this vision. It is time to build on the present and enrich the future. We will do this by developing Vikhroli into a progressive and integrated mini-city with a quality of design, planning and execution that has largely been missing from modern India’s urban life. Our dream is big and we have started on the first small steps towards it. Our first phase of development, The Trees, has the recently completed headquarters for the Godrej Group, Godrej One, and will also offer world-class residential, hospitality, retail, and cultural facilities to its residents. We understand that great buildings alone do not make a great destination. In the midst of a thriving urban metropolis, Vikhroli offers a natural oasis with mangroves

Vikhroli in the 1940s

thriving across 2,000 acres - nearly three times the size of New York’s famed Central Park - ensuring a lasting and deep connection to nature. We are totally committed to building on the natural beauty of the site, so Vikhroli testifies that urban life and natural beauty can exist in perfect harmony.

Three quarters of a century ago, it was important to our predecessors to build a progressive social environment to accompany the modern industrial development they had planned at Vikhroli. Similarly, creating a social fabric for a new age to go along the physical form is of paramount importance to us.

Clockwise from left: Godrej One; The Imagine Studio; Trees Master Plan

Watch the making of the Imagine Studio

Lavanya Naidu is an animator and illustrator, from Calcutta, who loves to tell stories through art. A graduate in animation film design from NID, she has worked with the likes of Cartoon Network USA, Turner Broadcasting, Amazon, Penguin and Tinkle to name a few.

All illustrations in this journal have been created by her.