Keep it simple and be rational: Tushar Malhotra, Bisleri International

For Tushar Malhotra, Director, Sales & Marketing, Bisleri International, keeping things simple, being rational and stress-free are his simple tips to strive for a near-perfect work and life balance. Follow these tips, things will fall in place sooner or later are his mantra.

On the concept of tackling personal and professional burnout, Malhotra says, “Some situations are in your control, and some aren’t. But as long as you remain calm and you get the big picture, things will fall in place and life goes on.”

Edited excerpts from the conversation:

What are your favourite quotes on marketing and leadership?

I start with the premise that the function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers. — Ralph Nade

Creativity is intelligence having fun – Albert Einstein

A pessimist sees a difficulty in every opportunity, an optimist sees an opportunity in every difficulty – Winston Churchill

Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. The value of an idea lies in the using of it. – Thomas Alva Edison

The best advertising is done by satisfied customers – Philip Kotler

Change before you have to – Jack Welch

Raise your words, not your voice. It is rain which grows flowers, not thunder. – Rumi

What kind of marketing-related content do you consume?

Storyboard18 is one place that I always go to to know what's happening in the Indian marketing circuit. I also follow a lot of global content. For example, Hypebeast tells you of all the collaborations and campaigns that are happening globally. It’s always important to learn and get inspired by good work, which is happening across the fraternity.

Where do you get your social media fix from?

It’s LinkedIn and Instagram. From a social media perspective, there are content creators such as Ankur Warikoo on LinkedIn, who give good information. Instagram keeps you up to speed with what content creators and influencers in India are doing. You need to keep yourself updated with what your consumers are consuming online.

What is your sport, fitness or well-being routine like?

I’m a fitness freak, and hit the gym five-to-six days a week.

I have a trainer who is an MMA (mixed martial arts) fighter. I do kickboxing for at least two to three hours. Then, I have a proper weightlifting and gyming routine. So, I follow a very strong fitness regimen because I think in this day and age, it’s essential to remain healthy and physically fit, which impacts you mentally as well.

How does your routine weekend go? What does your favourite kind of weekend look like?

I have a five-year-old son and I like spending a lot of time with him. I take him out to Paul. Usually, I have coffee and he has orange juice and croissants. That's how I begin my weekend. Then, I make Legos with him for the next couple of hours followed by catching up with some reading. I like a nice jazz evening. There are a lot of places in Mumbai, which are my kind of frequent hangouts. Fitness and family are the primary focus on my weekends.

What have you been watching on weekends?

I'm watching Mad Men and it kind of got me hooked on the 1950s and 1960s era because I especially like how people dressed up. I'm always in a suit.

Any work or life hack you swear by?

Keep things simple and get the big picture. You don't need to complicate life. You don't need to complicate a work situation. Be rational and don't stress. Eventually, things will fall in place.

What are you reading these days? Any recommendations?

I've gone back to the classics. I have been reading the works of Fitzgerald, Hemmingway and Bukowski, The Art of War – Sun Tzu.

I read a lot of business books like Blue Ocean Strategy, The New Strategic Brand Management - Kapferer. But there are autobiographies of Richard Branson, Jack Welch, Elon Musk, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, which you keep reading again and again. There is a lot of inspiration in these books. You learn a lot from these personalities, who have achieved so much in life.

What's your advice to avoid personal and professional burnout?

Keep things simple. You can do it without stress. Some situations are in your control, and some aren’t. But as long as you remain calm and you get the big picture, things will fall in place and life goes on.

What’s a piece of professional wisdom you would like to share with GenNext marketers?

From my perspective, I think it’s simplicity in your thought process. A lot of clutter is doing the rounds. Such clutter reaches consumers as well. Once we get what we want to do, no such confusion prevails.

What's the best advice you have got or heard?

I think, listen to understand and not react. Often, when we are talking to a person, we are thinking of what we are going to say first before we process all the information and analyse them. On several occasions, we react to a situation. Whether we are working in an organisation or in our personal relationships, it’s important to listen first, understand and communicate rather than react straight away. All in all, we need to react less and be more understanding in life.

Read More: Jim Stengel’s ‘The CMO Podcast’ helps refine my understanding of the role : Amit Doshi