#140 - Notes on Music, Cricket and Watches
Education Coffee is 2xWeekly Newsletter on People, Ideas and Culture
In this newsletter, I share five inspiring web resources that I have curated after hours of research to ensure that you have the best education coffee in your inbox. In upcoming editions, I will focus on sharing insights, notes and realizations that I gather from people, ideas, books, films and podcasts.
1. Learning from People
On Episode 61 of #LearningStories we chat with Akshay Menon. He is a music composer, producer and pianist. He believes that music has the power to transport us to another time and place. Akshay loves to harness that power with a broad audience of fellow music lovers and passionate musicians alike and has found great joy and satisfaction in making music and sharing it with fans and people all over the world, with over 200 advertisements and innumerable music productions. Apart from being in the studio, producing music, he is also a trained pianist and has performed in more than 15 countries. You can find him on Instagram and Youtube and can listen to his music on his website.
2. Learning from Ideas and Questions
3. Learning from Books, Websites and Blog
I love reading cricket autobiographies and recently started reading two autobiographies of cricketers I admire. They were called, ‘Finding the Edge’ by James Anderson and ‘Head On’ by Ian Botham. They are both English cricketers and played in different eras of the game. Anderson is a fast bowler who played for England for 22 years from 2002 to 2024. Ian Botham is an all rounder who played for England for 15 years from 1977 to 1992. They had extended careers at the top of their fields. I am really enjoying these books. They help me see the years of effort and the extended support system needed to build a professional cricketer’s life. The county system (domestic cricket in England) had a pivotal role to play in developing their skillset as athletes. James Anderson played for Lancashire in the English domestic cricket setup. Ian Botham played for Somerset, Worcestershire and Durham in the English domestic cricket setup. They honed and refined their skills in the domestic setup over their professional careers.
It also shows you the many sacrifices needed to make it to the top of your field as an athlete. Cricket is an emotional and physical sport. The mental resilience of an athlete is extremely important for long term success as demonstrated in both these athletes lives. When you succeed the media will put you on a pedestal. When you fail they will beat you down at your lowest. Both these athletes showed me that you have to focus on your skill and stay grounded in the good and bad times.
4. Learning from Films, Videos and Shows
The Indian Premier League is a professional T20 cricket league in India organised by the Board of Cricket Control in India. Founded in 2007, the league features ten state and city-based franchise teams. IPL is the most popular and richest cricket league in the world and is held between March and May. This CNBC video tells you the story of the cricket league that changed how cricket is perceived all over the world. What team are you supporting this year?
5. Learning from Podcasts and Music
Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal from the Acquired Podcast have released another stellar episode on the story and history behind the watch manufacturing company, Rolex. They are privately owned and their uniquely designed watches still demand high prices. It is a 5 hour long deep dive episode. The hosts slowly peel layers to show you how passion, hardwork and imagination helped make this the most recognizable watch brand in the world. Here is a description of the episode from their website:
Rolex is a series of paradoxes. They sell obsolete and objectively inferior mechanical devices for 10-1000x the price of their superior digital successors… and demand is stronger than ever in history! Their products are comparable to a Hermès Birkin bag in price, luxury status and waitlist times… yet they produce over 1m units / year (roughly 10x annual Birkin production). They make the most universally recognized and desired Swiss watches… yet their founder wasn’t Swiss and didn’t start the company in Switzerland! If Rolex were publicly traded, they’d almost certainly be among the top 50 market cap companies in the world… yet they’re 100% owned by a charitable foundation in Geneva that (among other things) literally just gives away money to local people in the city.
Thank you for reading this edition of #EducationCoffee. I look forward to writing weekly editions of this newsletter this year. I hope to continue to share resources that will add value to your life. You can also review the archive of Education Coffee for free at this link (100+ newsletters here). You can email your thoughts, feedback or recommendations to abhishekashokshetty@gmail.com. I love connecting with other writers and learners on the Internet.
Abhishek