Reader's Digest India July2020

JULY 2020 `100

‘WHAT IFSTAMINGTHE
’
Worryyionugcisannasttuorpal but

The Woman
Who Won A
Pot of Gold!

DRAMA IN REAL LIFE

‘Scammed By

My Best

Friend’

TALK TO AN EXPERT How To
Sound
New Rules of Smarter
the Job Game



Reader’s Digest

CONTENTS

photo by joleen zubek Features 58 64

42 health 74

cover story What Goes In, kindness of strangers
Must Come Out
TAMING THE Night Without End
‘WHAT IFS’ Healthy bowel
movements mean A narrow escape from
We can’t run from a healthy you. campus violence at a
our worries, but we Delhi university.
can keep them from by lisa bendall
running our lives. with naorem anuja by sanskriti rajkhowa
Here’s how.
64 78
by jill buchner with
ishani nandi drama in real life bonus read

54 ‘I Was Scammed Tracking the
By My Best Friend’ Tiger Butcher
other lives
An expert con artist Tigers are being farmed,
The Woman Who Won is brought to justice. killed and trafficked in
a Pot of Gold Laos. One man hunts
by johnathan walton down those responsible.
A serial contest winner
shares her secret to by terrence mccoy
hitting the jackpot.
readersdigest.in 3
by indu balachandran

Reader’s Digest

9 Dear Reader good news news from
the world
10 Over to You 26 Period Leave for of medicine

everyday heroes Men and Women, 34 Breast Cancer
Churu’s Waterman in Men, Games
14 There’s Always and more to Beat Stress
Room for Kindness and the Best
by v. kumara swamy Way to Get the
by v. kumara swamy Right Sleep

points to ponder money

Conversations 28 Jhumpa Lahiri, 36 An Insurance
Hanif Kureishi Cover for
COVID-19
18 A Doctor’s Duty and Mitch Albom
by amit chhabra
in Today’s World
how to
by dr prof. k. srinath reddy Better Living
that’s outrageous 38 Sound
health Smarter,
22 We Threw Our with Expert
Workers under 30 Never Miss Help
the Bus Breakfast Again!
by lisa fields and
by maitreesh ghatak by naorem anuja brandon specktor

talk to an expert food

24 Rules of the Job 32 Drink to Beat Back
Game: Learn Summer Heat
and Upskill
by mohini mehrotra

by abhijit bhaduri shutterstock

32

4 july 2020



Reader’s Digest

Culturescape The Genius Humour

interview with Section 12
jaideep ahlawat All in a Day’s Work
106 Surfing for
96 A Hell of an Actor Brainpower 21
Humour in Uniform
by anna m. m. vetticad by daniel t.
willingham 50
rd recommends Laughter, The Best
110 Brainteasers
98 Films, Watchlist, 112 Sudoku Medicine
Books, Throwback 113 Word Power
and Funny People 115 Quiz 73
116 Quotable Quotes As Kids See It
review
94
102 A Worthy Follow-Up Life’s Like That

by shougat dasgupta

studio

103 Louis Pasteur by
Albert Edelfelt

by saptak choudhury

me and my shelf

104 Manjula
Padmanabhan’s
Top-10 Reads

96 left: pravin talan, top: life on white/getty images

On the Cover

cover design by Nilanjan Das

Taming The ‘What Ifs’ ............................................................... 42
The Woman Who Won a Pot of Gold!..................................... 54
‘Scammed By My Best Friend’ ................................................ 64
How to Sound Smarter ............................................................. 38
New Rules of the Job Game...................................................... 24

6 july 2020



VOL. 61 NO. 7
JULY 2020

Editor-in-Chief Aroon Purie
Group Editorial Director Raj Chengappa

editor Sanghamitra Chakraborty IMPACT (ADVERTISING)
group creative editor Nilanjan Das publishing director Manoj Sharma
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group photo editor Bandeep Singh mumbai: senior gm (west) Jitendra Lad

senior assistant editor Ishani Nandi bengaluru: gm Upendra Singh
assistant editors V. Kumara Swamy, kolkata: general manager (east) Kaushiky Gangulie
Kritika Banerjee
BUSINESS
consulting editors Naorem Anuja, group chief marketing officer Vivek Malhotra
Saptak Choudhury
gm, marketing & circulation Ajay Mishra
editorial coordinator Khushboo Thakur deputy gm, operations G. L. Ravik Kumar
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Published at K–9, Connaught Circus, New Delhi–110001. Editor: Sanghamitra Chakraborty (responsible for selection of news).

8 july 2020

DEAR READER Sanghamitra Chakraborty V. kumara Swamy Sadhana Moolchandani Saptak Choudhury

Taking Your NaoremAnuja Khushboo Thakur Ishani Nandi Aindrisha Mitra

Leave Keshav Kapil Kririka Banerjee

PHOTOGRAPH BY ANAND GOGOI, HAIR & MAKE-UP BY ROLIKA PRAKASH; SHUTTERSTOCK W hen I came to work for the times, as is normal in most families.
India Today Group,14 years With a wonderful team and amazing
ago, as the editor of a health
magazine, my son was an infant— support from the India Today Group
today he is all set to fly the nest. Even and RD International, we have been
when I took over at Reader’s Digest, able to bring RD into the 2020s—fresh
he was a middle-school boy. Where columns, new voices, a bold new
did the years go? design and all. I can say with a bit of
pride now, my job is done.
Working with RD, and serving you,
has been an incredible privilege. I have I leave behind a team that I love,
had the opportunity to shape the ‘little whom I will miss sorely. But they will
magazine that is a big read’, to make it be around, to work with the brilliant
worthy of you. I often got teased about Kai Freise—a friend and journalist I
how I should learn to relax and treat it look up to—who will take over as the
more like a job. My brother would new editor, to keep the RD flag flying!
say, “Quit, come back home (to As I take your leave, I must also thank
Calcutta), we will grow old
together.” I wish he was around all my seniors and colleagues in the
to see this day. After serving as group, not to mention our contribu-
editor of this wonderful maga- tors, columnists and experts, I have
zine for almost five years, I am had the opportunity to work with
finally moving on. and learn from.
Let’s all wish Kai and the
Above all, I am grateful to team well, and keep reading
you, dear reader, for every- the Digest.
thing. You invited me into Goodbye for now!
the RD family, shared your
ideas and feedback, your Sanghamitra Chakraborty
warmth and good editor
wishes and also
some frank disap- Send an email to
proval, some- [email protected]

readersdigest.in 9

OVER TO needing the money for
YOU himself, had the heart
to help a family in need.
Notes on the
April issue These stories remind
us that one does not need
The Man with a Heart of Gold to be rich, or of a certain
age to be charitable and
The courage and conviction demonstrated by strong-willed—it is just
Dinesh Talapada in refusing to press charges what people are made
against a young boy involved in an accident, of. Selfless and unsung
which resulted in the loss of life of his beloved heroes like them are
cousin, proves that such kindness requires not only rare but restore our
a generous heart but, perhaps, one that has been faith in humanity.
shaped by the experience of living with hardship. Moushumi Bhagawati,
Most people, finding themselves in a similar situa- via email
tion, would have resorted to legal action against
the boy. Talapada’s extraordinary act of kindness— Dear Reader
giving away a large sum of money to a needy family,
who were almost strangers, is quite remarkable. It The coronavirus
makes one wonder if one must be born in poverty pandemic has revealed
that most countries
to understand giving and the joy of receiving. around the world
—M. Rajeswari, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh have focused far too
much of their efforts
M. Rajeswari gets this month’s ‘Write & Win’ prize of ₹1,000. —EDs developing and building
a large arsenal of arms,
Good News and generosity in the while paying scant
world. Caroline not attention towards
The stories of Caroline only displayed bravery improving infrastructure
Malsawmtluangi and and saved a kidnapped for health care and the
Dinesh Talapada (in minor, but generously delivery of medical
‘The Man with a Heart shared her award money services. Even a global
of Gold’) are much- with her as well. power such as the US
needed reminders of is feeling the pinch,
the existence of goodness And Dinesh, despite with a large number
of COVID-19 causalities.

One is tempted to
argue that nature is
getting back at us,
and our only solution

10 july 2020

Reader’s Digest

is to hide away in our regardless of wealth, Wake Up Your Brain
homes in fear and worry. the poor are the most
affected due to long- Boredom causes exhaus-
However, these testing standing problems tion or impatience in
times have also brought such as segregation by many of us because one
along some positive income, race and gender, is resigned to performing
changes—our environ- reduced economic dull tasks or being stuck
ment is much cleaner, mobility and the high with nothing to do.
we can hear birds chir- cost of medical care.
ping again, we have Here are some more
been compelled to It is undeniable that suggestions on how to
adopt healthy habits, low-income communi- avoid such a situation:
we are back to eating ties are far more likely to Try to find new things
home-cooked meals be exposed to the virus, to do. Start small—for
and spending time sur- face a greater mortality example, pick a different
rounded by our families. rate and suffer financially genre of books from what
as well. In times of an you usually choose to
Perhaps this is a good economic crisis, these read. Small changes can
time to make a resolution vulnerabilities become add up to make signifi-
to continue these positive even more pronounced cant transformations.
habits, keep the healthy for marginal groups. Be in touch with your
choices going and refrain emotions—identify your
from harming the planet The government state of being and try to
any further. needs to engineer a get to the root of negative
—Manjeet Singh Ishar, response that prevents feelings and work on re-
Mohali people from having solving them.
to choose between a
Corona Takes missed pay cheque Boredom can grow
the Crown and risking their own into a problem, if we
health as well as their don’t actively work on
The COVID-19 out- family’s. The govern- fixing it. If nothing else
break in India has put ment should also works, talk to a friend
a spotlight on economic target its economic who can cheer you up
inequalities and drawn stimulus packages to with their company.
our attention to our communities that Beena Mathur, Pune
fragile social safety net will be hit first and
that leaves vulnerable hardest, and ensure Write in at editor.india@
communities to bear an adequate standard rd.com. The best letters
the economic brunt of of living for all. discuss RD articles, offer
this national crisis. —Sanjay Chopra, criticism, share ideas.
Mohali Do include your phone
While the virus number and postal address.
blindly infects people

readersdigest.in 11

All
in a Day’s

WORK

Teachers shared with “Before you tell me about your diet, I should
reddit.com the most warn you—I follow you on Facebook.”
questionable questions
they’d ever been asked: that requires getting to the best in the news
an airport before 7 a.m. business. Here, they
Ê“How old was the — @tressiemcphd point out the not-so-best:
average 18-year-old correction: “In yester-
in 1942?” Marriage vows should day’s jazz albums
be rewritten as “to have column, we incorrectly
Ê“What are those and to hold and to listen referred to Don Rendell
pyramid-shaped things to stories about your as a ‘terrorist’ when
in Egypt called?” workplace drama until it clearly should have
death do us part.” been ‘tenorist’.”
Ê“If the patient has — @copymama advertisement: “One
a brain haemorrhage, of the greatest gifts
can we tie a tourniquet The Columbia Univer- you’ll ever give
around the neck to sity School of Journa- your family may
stop it?” lism often points out be your funeral.”

Cashier: I think I know
you from somewhere.
Customer: I have a big
following on Instagram.
Cashier: Don’t you
work at the car wash
on Third [street]?
Customer: Yes. It could
also be from there.
— @realoverheardla

I’ve never wanted to be
the kind of successful

12 july 2020 Cartoon by Scott Masear

headlines: Reader’s Digest
) “City Manager
Tapes Head to I asked the kids in my nursery school
District Attorney” class what they needed in order to
) “Netflix Misses grow up nice and strong. One little
Subscriber Mark” girl answered, “Birthdays!”

As a brainwave —Abigail George
technologist, I often
ask post-operative WHAT’S UP WITH THESE 911 CALLS?
patients to smile to
make sure their facial Not all emergency calls to the
nerves are intact. It
always struck me police are real emergencies.
as odd to be asking
stefano spicca/shutterstock this question right ÊAn Oregonian came chances. She called 911
after brain surgery, home, heard rustling after opening an Amazon
so a colleague sugges- sounds from inside a package at home that
ted I ask patients to bathroom and could was filled with peanuts—
show me their teeth. see a shadowy figure
moving about under- packing peanuts.
Armed with this neath the closed door.
new phrase, I said The resident called —People.com
to my next patient, police. They arrived,
“Mr Smith, show me drew their guns and ÊEscape rooms are a
your teeth.” ordered the prowler to popular craze where
come out with hands participants solve puzzles
He shook his head, up. Receiving no res- and clues to free them-
in staunch refusal. ponse, they burst into selves from a locked room.
“The nurse has them,” the bathroom, where, Many people find them
he explained. according to a deputy, fun, but not one burglar
—Emily Murphy “We encountered a in Vancouver, Washington.
very thorough vacuu- He broke into an escape
Reader’s Digest will pay ming job being done room after hours and be-
for your funny anecdote by a Roomba robotic came trapped. He even-
or photo in any of our tually figured out how to
humour sections. Post it vacuum cleaner.”
to the editorial address, leave. He called 911.
or email: editor.india@ —5newsonline.com
rd.com —ravemobilesafety.com
ÊPeanut allergies are
nothing to sneeze at,
and one mother whose
son is highly allergic
wasn’t taking any

readersdigest.in 13

EVERYDAY HEROES

When the nationwide lockdown left thousands in
despair, these conscientious people showed that ...

There’s Always Room
for Kindness

By V. Kumara Swamy

Residents of three buildings owned Reader’s Digest. That was in early April.
by 41-year-old businessman Bala Lingam came to Hyderabad
Koduri Bala Lingam, from
Hyderabad’s Balanagar, were in trouble. from Sircilla, in Telangana, in search
Most of them contractual labourers, of a job in 1995. “Only 16 at the time, I
they were neither in a position to came to Hyderabad to escape poverty.
pay their rents, nor certain how they I started with odd jobs, including that
would feed their families, as factories of a table-cleaner in a bar,” he says,
and commercial establishments recalling his early days of struggle. To-
started shutting down, following the day, he runs a welding company that
nationwide lockdown. employs scores of people. “I now lead
a comfortable life, but I cannot forget
When one of the tenants approached my past. I understand that these people
Bala Lingam with a request that their are going through what I experienced
rent be deferred until their earnings when I lived hand to mouth,” he says.
resumed, the landlord decided to
go one step further: “I told 70 of my Driven by the desire to put his
renters that they did not have to pay for hard-earned prosperity to good use,
that month or the next,” Lingam told Bala Lingam waived nearly ₹3.5 lakhs
worth of rent. “Money does not matter

14 july 2020

Reader’s Digest

his tenants followed the rules, even as
he, the landlord, assumed responsibility
for their needs. Some have started
paying their rents as they have
returned to work, with the easing of the
lockdown. “Many tenants are yet to get
their jobs back. I have told them not to
worry. I am happy that I could do my
bit and will do more if I need to,” says
this Good Samaritan.

Stepping Up for
the Needy

photo courtesy: koduri bala lingam Koduri Bala Lingam When you have a heart and want to
give, all it takes is a bit of empa-
in times like these. I had to stand by thy and the will to be selfless. That is all
them—and that’s all I did,” he says. Vikas Kumar Jaiswal did.

Many of his tenants are from Bihar It all started when Jaiswal, deputy
and currently without jobs. They would superintendent and circle officer of the
have tried to return home, as thousands Sadar area of Agra, was put in charge
of other migrant labourers across of monitoring the movement of mi-
the country had done, with tragic grant labourers along the highways
consequences, when the lockdown under his jurisdiction. “Our job was
was announced. to maintain law and order and ensure
that the migrants followed social-dis-
“I was horrified by the images of mi- tancing norms,” says Jaiswal. He saw
grants struggling to reach their homes thousands of exhausted men, women
and assured my tenants that they need and children, walking, in the absence
not worry about their rent or food. My of any other means of travel, to reach
only condition was that they stay in- their villages. Heartbroken by their
doors and maintain social distancing predicament, Jaiswal felt compelled
to defeat the coronavirus,” he says. to help and urged his colleagues to join
him in the effort. “I noticed many of the
Without doubt, Bala Lingam women and children were either bare-
succeeded in his mission. Each one of foot or in worn-out footwear, walking
on the metalled roads in the scorching

rreeaaddeerrssddigigeesst.ti.nin 1050

Reader’s Digest

Fatehabad and Shamsabad, where
the travellers stopped over. Volunteers
manning the tents invited the migrants
to try on and find shoes that fit them.
Soon, around 3,000 pairs were distri-
buted. Each migrant paused, picked a
pair, thanked the police personnel and
moved on, smiling in relief. Besides
footwear, this group also distributed
masks, food, water and other essentials.
“This is the least we could do for them.
Their smiles were the biggest blessings
we got,” Jaiswal says.

Vikas Kumar Jaiswal The Ant That
Moved Mountains

WHEN YOU WANT TO Saisri Akondi from Pune was visiting photos courtesy: (left) vikas kumar jaiswal; (right) saisri akondi
GIVE, ALL IT TAKES IS a friend in Manipal, Karnataka, just
before the lockdown. Trapped by the
EMPATHY AND THE travel ban, the 23-year-old researcher
WILL TO BE SELFLESS. found herself frustrated at not being
able to help during a national emer-
heat. They were clearly in pain, but had gency. Back home, her colleagues at the
to continue their journey. That’s when National Chemical Laboratory worked
we thought of providing them with on innovative methods to deal with the
decent footwear,” says Jaiswal. pandemic, and she itched to contri-
bute in her own way. Soon, she spotted
The department could offer little another opportunity to be useful.
help to support the cause, so Jaiswal
and his colleagues pooled in money On the evening of 11 May, she came
from their own pockets. Their generous across a group of 50 migrants be-
donations went a long way in procuring ing stopped and questioned by the
necessary supplies that could sustain police. Akondi learnt that they were
the poor migrants on their long trek. railway construction workers, aban-
doned by their contractor after the
Jaiswal and his team then set up lockdown, and were making their way
stalls along the roads in Gwalior, to Mahabubabad in Telangana, more

16 july 2020

than 680 kilometres away. “I instantly Saisri Akondi
thought of helping them, noticing there
were 10 children and a pregnant lady through crowdfunding, pay for the mi-
among them,” recalls Akondi. grants’ travel back to their hometowns.
On 19 May, just seven days since they
Her first task was to register the were intercepted, the happy group of
group on a government portal to help migrants were bidding a tearful good-
them get movement passes within the bye to Akondi, and, happily, by 20 May,
state. Then, with the help of a group they reached their homes. “Some of
called the Humanitarian Relief Soci- them still send me pictures of them-
ety, Akondi arranged for food and con- selves and their families,” she tells us.
vinced the railway authorities to let the
migrants stay at the Udupi station until Afterwards, instead of leaving Mani-
their transport was arranged. pal once the lockdown eased, Akondi
stayed to help other stranded mi-
Akondi next turned her attention grants—around 3,000, in fact—reach
to the women, arranging for folic acid their homes in Assam, Jharkhand, Uttar
and vitamins for the pregnant woman Pradesh, West Bengal and other states.
as well as sanitary pads and UTI medi- Even as the world came to a standstill,
cation for the others. Alongside the this large-hearted woman became the
arrangements, she continued to make ant that moved mountains.
frequent posts to the social media
handles of the Telangana chief minis-
ter’s office, the Karnataka government
and others, seeking their attention and
help for the migrants. There was no re-
sponse for days, but she did not give up.

Her relentless efforts paid off—
Akondi was able to secure funding
from the Telangana government and,

What Are the Chances?

In Belgium’s St. Symphorien Military Cemetery, the grave belonging
to the first British soldier killed in World War I directly faces
the grave of the last British soldier killed in World War I.
The placement was completely accidental.

THE MIRROR

readersdigest.in 17

CONVERSATIONS

A Doctor’s Duty
in Today’s World

Compassion, courtesy and information sharing are some of the
key attributes of a physician, even in a tech-intensive world

by Dr Professor K. Srinath Reddy

‘To cure sometimes, Good clinical assessment is essential
to relieve often and for interpreting a diagnostic-test result
comfort always’ is an or in choosing between treatment
aphorism of uncer- options. That is because context
tain attribution by matters in analyzing and applying
Hippocrates. It has evidence from research to individual
been quoted widely, patients. Proven treatments may
with variations, since still need consideration for patients
the 15th century. This who have contraindications or are
description of a physician’s mandate non-responders. Tests can yield false
is valid even in this era of technology- positive and false negative results.
intensive medical care, where pictures A well-proven mathematical model
of beeping screens, organ scans and called Bayes’ Theorem explains that
‘miracle’ pills have replaced the kindly a post-test probability is the product
doctor everywhere. of the test result and pre-test (prior)
Technology supports but cannot probability, and not of the test result
substitute a competent and alone. Clinical acumen comes into
compassionate health-care provider. play while estimating prior probability.

18 july 2020

Reader’s Digest

A good doctor must
also be an ethical and
empathetic caregiver.

shutterstock Knowledge of quantitative and quali- families seeking care are vulnerable—
tative research methods is essential, to as the asymmetry of domain
conduct, analyze or apply products knowledge makes them dependent
of research. A good clinician should on the doctor’s decisions. Information
be able to assess scientific publica- sharing, to enable patients and families
tions—both for valid research metho- to participate in some key decisions, is
dology and applicability of the result a doctor’s duty. A good physician must
to a specific patient. Even as artificial possess the attributes of care, concern,
intelligence is racing to develop diag- compassion and courtesy, while
nostic and treatment algorithms, their dealing with patients or their families.
application in specific situations will be Communication skills, which enable
context-dependent, requiring the lens information sharing and providing
of human intelligence to be interposed. comfort, are essential for a doctor, who
For this, a doctor has to be a lifelong must maintain human contact and not
learner and keen observer. hide behind a machine.

Beyond scientific astuteness, a good Health care, in most settings, is
doctor must also be an ethical and delivered by teams rather than as a
empathetic caregiver. Patients and their solo effort. Fellow doctors, nurses,

reardeeardsedrigsdesigt.ecsot..iinn 1393

Reader’s Digest Conversations

technicians and other people are also health

allied health professio- issues. As the 19th-cen-

nals are involved in tury pathologist, anthro-

collectively delivering care pologist and statesman

in a hospital setting. In Rudolf Virchow said,

primary health care, non- “Physicians are natural

physician health-care pro- attorneys of the poor.”

viders are an important Universal health

part of the team. Dismant- coverage is a health

ling false hierarchies and A DOCTOR MUST system issue that is ad-
building congenial wor- dressed through political
king relations among BE BOTH THE priorities and financial
commitments. Who else
team members is an PROPONENT AND

essential requirement, for PROPELLANT OF can make the case better
increasing efficient deli- than a doctor who sees
very and quality of care. HEALTH AT THE people being denied
INDIVIDUAL, treatment or driven to
A doctor is a teacher COMMUNITY, poverty by costly care?
too. Not only for medical

students, but also layper- NATIONAL AND In my view, a health pro-
sons, family caregivers, GLOBAL LEVELS. fessional has to perform
the general public, media many roles: alleviator,

and even policymakers. caregiver, teacher, elu-

Demystification of knowledge, through cidator, researcher, advocate, policy

jargon-free communication, boosts the enabler and—if need be—agitator, as a

ability of the whole community to pro- concerned citizen for essential reforms

tect, preserve and promote health at in- in health and social systems.

dividual and population levels. As fake Health is the best summative in-

news floods sloppy social media, this dicator of sustainable global deve-

role becomes even more important. lopment. A doctor must be both the

Since many of the determinants of proponent and propellant of health

health are social, economic, environ- at the individual, community, na-

mental and commercial, a public spi- tional and global levels. I have tried to

rited doctor must also argue for poli- live up to that ideal in my life. I hope

cies that enable health and oppose young doctors will do so as well, with

those that erode health. Tobacco, junk greater vigour and success.

food and polluting industries are ob- shutterstock

vious examples, but climate change and Dr Prof. K. Srinath Reddy is President of

economic inequities that dispropor- the Public Health Foundation of India.

tionately heap illness on disadvantaged The views expressed here are personal.

20 july 2020

Reader’s Digest

gustavo rodriguez Humour in injured man with a carbine for my first shot.
steering wheel embed- “Good news and bad
UNIFORM ded in his chest?” news,” my instructor
said. “The good news:
During a combat medi- Nervous and unsure, You got a bullseye.”
cal training class, the I blurted out, “Drive Before my head could
topic was blast injuries. him to the hospital?” swell too much, he
At one point, our very added, “But it was in
intimidating instructor For some reason, somebody else’s target.”
pointed at me and the rest of the room —Gene Newman
said, “There’s been found this hilarious.
a jeep explosion. —Greg White Reader’s Digest will pay
What would you do for your funny anecdote
if you came upon an It was our first day on or photo in any of our hu-
the rifle range at Lack- mour sections. Post it to the
land Air Force Base. editorial address, or email
I felt confident as I us at [email protected]
aimed and squeezed
the trigger of my

readersdigest.in 21

THAT’s

OUTRAGEOUS

We Threw Our
Workers under

the Bus

The injustice against our distress and intolerable hardship— shutterstock
migrant workforce will linger approaches the 1,000 mark (according
in our collective conscience to a public database).

By Maitreesh Ghatak At a time when the entire country
was at a standstill, our migrants had
There was blood on the tracks—a to do the moving—not in hope but
few rotis and personal belongings in desperation. A survey of 5,000 self-
strewn around. Sixteen migrant employed, casual and regular wage
labourers were sleeping on the rails, workers across 12 Indian states, con-
exhausted from walking for hours on ducted between 13 April and 23 May
their journey home in the gruelling by researchers of the Azim Premji Uni-
heat, assuming trains were not running. versity, found that two-thirds of those
They were run over by a freight train on surveyed lost work, and those who
8 May near Maharashtra’s Aurangabad. didn’t had their earnings drop by more
Then there was the child trying to wake than half. Nearly 80 per cent of them
his mother, lying dead on Muzaffarpur were eating less food than before.
railway station, on 25 May. She had
reportedly died from extreme heat, Also, nearly two-thirds of the respon-
exhaustion and lack of food and water. dents in urban areas did not receive
any of the cash transfers announced
These searing images will linger in by central and state governments. No
our collective memory in a way that wonder the migrant workers decided
no statistical analysis or reportage to head home. They grabbed a few per-
can. While the COVID-19 toll has sonal items and some dry food for the
crossed 24,000, the reported deaths journey—rotis and biscuits (the only in-
due to the lockdown—caused by dustry where sales peaked during April
accidents, starvation or financial and May). Ironically, the government’s
economic package, that did very little
for them but was grandiosely called

22 july 2020

Reader’s Digest

Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, provided labourers, with no security of income
the perfect title for their odyssey. or employment and no benefits such
as paid leave, health care or social se-
Migration is all about mobility, and curity that are a given in ‘proper’ jobs.
yet, when they desperately needed to The number of casual workers in urban
move, our migrant workers were left areas is around 19 million, according to
stranded, without access to transpor- government labour-force studies. Con-
tation. And, some of them didn’t make servative estimates place the number of
it. Such as those 16 who were run migrant workers who were part of the
down by a speeding train—a symbol of first wave of reverse migration from ci-
movement and progress and ‘India ties during lockdown at 5 to 10 million.
shining’—like a ritual sacrifice.
THE ECONOMY ENGINE
At the heart of migration is the de- RUNS ON THE FUEL OF
cision of people to move from villages MIGRANT LABOUR. IT
and towns in search of work and a bet- CANNOT BE SWITCHED
ter life, in order to support their fami- ON AND OFF AT WILL.
lies back home. In the dry language of
economics, economic activity occurs Perhaps the human tragedy in-
when factors of production—land, la- volved here and its scale will not move
bour and capital—combine to produce everyone equally. But the engine of
goods and services. But it is labour that the economy runs on the fuel of mi-
does most of the physical moving— grant labour and cannot be switched
from sectors where productivity is low, on and off at will. Migrants will make a
such as agriculture, to those where it choice once again when things norma-
is higher, such as manufacturing and lize a bit. The scarring experience du-
services, in urban or semi-urban areas. ring the lockdown may mean that they
will not be in any rush to return to the
Of our total workforce estimated at cities that threw them under the bus at
about 500 million, a whopping three- a time when they were most vulnerable.
quarters are self-employed or casual
It will take time for the bloodstains
on the tracks to be washed away.

Maitreesh Ghatak is professor of 23
economics at the London School of
Economics and an elected Fellow
of the British Academy.

readersdigest.in

Reader’s Digest

Talk to an

EXPERT

Rules of the Job Game:
Learn and Upskill

In a changing job market, adapt by building skills the
marketplace needs—don’t wait for another similar role

By Abhijit Bhaduri

Hindustani classical music Businesses that have lived for more
has ragas designated for each than a century such as J. C. Penney
hour of the day. There are ragas (1902) and The Hertz Corporation
that are sung at dawn and dusk—the (1918) have filed for bankruptcy.
twilight zones when darkness and light Millions have lost jobs, taken salary
wrestle with each other. When the sun cuts and seen their savings disappear
wins this battle, it signals a new day. within weeks.
When the darkness takes over, night
comes. We are going through a similar The world of work will never go
twilight zone in the world of work. back to the Before Corona days and
it is time you look at your skills port-
A Time of Churn folio. Continuous learning, risk-tak-
ing and living with ambiguity will be
The world of work had a Before standard features now.
Corona (BC) era and what we will
now see is the After Disruption or 1How to Plan Ahead
Destruction (AD) era. We are going Think skills, not jobs: Hiring
through a time of churn. Any industry across sectors will be muted for a
that brought people together has while, but there is a high demand for
collapsed—aviation, car rentals, hotels, several cutting-edge skills in every
restaurants, conference providers, sector, especially tech. If you have been
entertainment and event managers. impacted by the recent slowdown, stop

24 july 2020

waiting for another job to replace the wanted to start a YouTube channel
one you lost. Think of your skills and or teach someone a skill. Create a
who can benefit from them. Talking to marketing plan to launch brand ‘You’.
a career coach can help you identify Build a personal brand that tells po-
possibilities. Recraft your LinkedIn tential buyers about your unique-
ness. I know of a recruiter who left a
2profile to appeal to those employers. stagnant career in a large IT firm to
Invest in learning new skills: become a stand-up comedian. And a
Talk to search firms and head- doctor, who is now a famous singer. A
hunters and ask them about the skills martial-arts sensation left a thriving
in high demand. They can also tell career as a marketing head of a large
you which sectors are hiring for skills firm to pursue her passion. You could
that you have. Educational degrees be the owner of a boutique café or a
and previous experience are beco- dance studio or become a fitness guru.
ming less valuable than the ability to
learn. There are online courses for Each one of us is now in the twilight
just about any skill that you wish to zone of our careers. We can choose to
build. Invest in skills that the mar- see it as the dusk when the sun begins
ketplace needs. Be prepared to step to set. Or, a dawn when the darkness
out of your comfort zone and change starts to fade as the eastern sky signals
cities or sectors, or take a pay cut if that the beginning of a new day.

shutterstock 3helps you get started on a new path. Abhijit Bhaduri is a life coach and
Become a freelancer: Think of author of the upcoming book
your hobbies and all those plans Dreamers and Unicorns.
you made over the years. Maybe you
readersdigest.in
25

GOOD NEWS
for a
Better Planet

Beyond the along with some undergraduate top left: the better india
Call of Duty and postgraduate medical students,
who were not in direct contact with
service It’s not only those front-line COVID-19 patients, came forward to
health workers facing COVID-19 who donate blood themselves. Within a
should be hailed as heroes. Listen to week, the hospital bank collected
this story: The staff at Bengaluru’s Vic- about 35 to 40 pints of blood with
toria Hospital found that blood banks over 20 doctors donating. When
were running low since they could times are tough, every bit counts.
not function amidst coronavirus fears
during the lockdown. With only six The Waterman of Churu
bags of blood left in their bank, the
doctors at Victoria Hospital realized kindness Sujangarh in Churu,
they had to find a solution—and fast. Rajasthan, is one of the hottest
There was a dire need for safe blood spots in the world. Despite the
for thalassemia and anaemia patients terrible weather, Mohammad Aabad
as well as pregnant women all over has taken it upon himself to quench
the state. So, the resident doctors the thirst of this town. He is seen
going around on his auto, modelled

26 july 2020

Reader’s Digest

Sources: Service: The Indian Express, 15.06.20; Kindness:ew Dainik Bhaskar 03.06.20; Equality: National Herald, 17.06.20; Heroes: Matrubhumi.com, 16.06.20 as a hut, inviting people to come and has launched a unique initiative. It has
drink his refrigerated water. He makes decided to offer menstrual leave, not
it clear that the water is entirely safe, only to its women employees, but also
as he buys it directly from an RO wa- to their married partners in case they
ter-processing plant. Aabad started need care and support. The two-day,
this service to honour his brother paid menstrual leave for women (one
Mohammed Seth, who passed away day for men) has been welcomed by
in a road accident. This extraordinary many, with multiple people wishing
man provides his water-service other organizations would follow
through the summer and it costs him suit. Horses Stable is clearly an equal-
₹2,000 per day. Barring the occasional opportunity employer. The scheme,
donations he receives, most of the ex- ‘Nay to Yay,’ is reflective of an organi-
penses are borne by him. We doff our zation that is not only sensitive to-
hats to this kind soul. wards women, who may need time
off to manage their pain and discom-
Period Leave fort, they are encouraging men to be
supportive to their partners during
equality A Bengaluru-based media this stressful period.
production house, Horses Stable,
—COMPILED BY V. KUMARA SWAMY

HEROES oxygen cylinders to hundreds of fami-
The Benevolent Businessman lies. We can only hope there are more
such heroes, who will stand up and be
Mumbai-based businessman, Shah- counted, in these difficult times.
nawaz Shaikh has sold his SUV to buy
oxygen cylinders to be distributed
among coronavirus patients. A lover
of fast cars, Shaikh took this decision
after his business partner’s pregnant
sister succumbed to COVID-19 out-
side a city hospital. Apparently the
young woman could have been saved
had she received oxygen in time. This
tragic incident prompted Shaikh to
sell his Ford Endeavour (with a special
number plate—007) and with the
proceeds of the sale, he distributed

readersdigest.in 27

POINTS TO PONDER from left: shutterstock (2), alamy

What a quality of innocence people have when they
don’t expect to be harmed.

Hanif Kureishi, author

Families are like pieces of art—you can make them
from almost anything, any kind of material. Sometimes
they look like you and sometimes they don’t. Sometimes

they come from your DNA and sometimes they don’t.
The only ingredient you need to make a family
is unconditional love.

Mitch Albom, author

... never think that war, no matter how necessary,
nor how justified, is not a crime.

Ernest Hemingway, author

Hanif Kureishi Mitch Albom Ernest Hemingway

28 july 2020

from left: shutterstock (2), rohit chawla Reader’s Digest

If you go through life without connecting to people,
how much could you call that a life?

Tom Hiddleston, actor

Do yourself a favour. Before it’s too late,
without thinking too much about it first, pack
a pillow and a blanket and see as much of the

world as you can. You will not regret it.
One day, it will be too late.

Jhumpa Lahiri, author

Now that ‘woke’ Indian celebrities and the
middle class stand in solidarity with fighting
systemic racism in America, perhaps they’d see

how it manifests in their own backyard?

Abhay Deol, actor

Tom Hiddleston Jhumpa Lahiri Abhay Deol

readersdigest.in 29

BETTER LIVING

Never Miss
Breakfast

Again!

To kick your day off to a
healthy start, try these

easy options

By Naorem Anuja

Breakfast is widely considered
the most important meal of the
day, but it is also the one we are
most likely to miss. Morning nutrition
is vital as it replenishes your glucose
levels and boosts energy levels, so you
can start your day right. Here are some
quick, nutritious breakfast ideas for
your busiest mornings.

 Eggs This superfood, packed with

disease-fighting nutrients such as
lutein and zeaxanthin, is a power-
packed breakfast companion. Offering
seven grams of high-quality protein, a
single egg is 75 calories, which makes
it a great choice for those looking to
eat right. Whether you whip them

30 july 2020

Reader’s Digest

into a veggie-loaded omelette, or oxidants, which scavenge free radicals
bake them into muffins, eggs are a from the body, as well as prebiotic
smart and versatile choice to fuel your fibres and polyphenols, which promote
jam-packed day. digestion. Yogurt is an excellent source
Quick tip: For easy scrambled eggs, of protein and, as a fermented food,
coat a microwave-safe mug with some contains more added benefits than
cooking oil or spray and crack two eggs milk. Ease your mornings by stocking
in it. Add salt and pepper to taste and up on these natural, no-fuss, nutrient-
scramble with a fork. Microwave for 45 dense foods.
seconds, flip the partially cooked eggs, Quick tip: Blend a fruit of your choice
cook for another 45 seconds and serve. along with yogurt for a quick and deli-
cious breakfast fix. Add in a spoonful
Oats This health hero is packed with of flaxseeds or chia seeds to pack in
omega-3 fats into your smoothie.
fibre, helping you stay full longer. Oats
also help lower cholesterol levels Southern comfort Traditional
and keep your heart fighting fit. This
nutrient-dense grain is gluten-free, South Indian foods like dosas and
making it a great option for those idlis are a great breakfast option,
with gluten intolerance. You can cook delivering a punch of carbohydrates
them into a porridge or add into the and proteins. Made from fermented
batter for traditional Indian breakfast cereal- and legume-based batter, the
favourites like chillas, dosas, idlis lactic acid bacteria and yeasts add to
or uttapams. While choosing oats, the nutritional profile of these breakfast
remember that the less-processed meals. The fermentation process makes
varieties are more nutritionally dense, these foods rich in probiotics, aids
although this doesn’t mean that easy digestion and boosts the immune
instant oats are a poor choice. system. What’s not to love?
Quick tip: For a power breakfast that Quick tip: If you are pressed for time,
you can prepare in advance and take opt for ready-made batter. This can
it to go, the night before serving, put considerably cut down prep time.
the oats in a jar and pour in milk/water
all images: shutterstock and soak all night. Next morning, add
in fruits of your choice, a dash of cin-
namon and top off with honey.

Fruit and yogurt bowl Both

fruit and yogurt are understood as
components of a healthy diet. Fruits
are an abundant source of anti-

readersdigest.in 31

FOOD

Drink to Beat Back
Summer Heat

These 5 easy-to-make healthy refresheners will keep
you hydrated when you need to cool off

32 july 2020

Reader’s Digest

all images: shutterstock It’s that time of the year when step- Literally meaning ‘cold’, thandai is
ping out even for a few minutes is prepared using a mixture of almonds,
punishing—you come back dripping pepper, rose petals, cardamom,
with sweat, craving something cool to vetiver seeds, saffron, milk, fennel
quench your thirst. Be it aam panna seeds and sugar.
or thandai or a glass of cold coffee, a
refreshing beverage can get you back COCONUT WATER
on your feet almost immediately. And if
you are pressed for time or too tired to High in water con-
make them from scratch, you can stock tent and packed
up on instant versions too. with vitamins and
minerals, coconut
SYRUPS water should be your
go-to drink before
Concentrated fruit juice or syrups you step out on a hot day or right after
are a quick and easy option that is you are back indoors. It instantly reple-
both flavourful and energy boosting. nishes fluids lost through sweat without
Add a spoonful or two of the syrup adding many calories. This also makes
to cold water or chilled milk and you it the ideal post-workout drink. Coco-
are done. And there are plenty of nut water is also great for your skin.
flavours to choose from: orange, lemon,
pineapple, rose—the list is endless. ICED TEA

AAM PANNA Many tea enthusiasts prefer switching
to the iced version of this perennial
Made with raw green mangoes, aam favourite during the hot months. Brew
panna is a delicious and nutritious old yourself a cuppa using flavoured tea
favourite. Other than helping you fight leaves or go for an instant mix. Iced-
dehydration, this sweet and tangy drink tea mixes are made by drying the tea
is packed with vitamins B1, B2 and C, as leaves and then powdering them. You
well as essential minerals such as po- can make a strong or a mild cold brew
tassium, magnesium and calcium. You based on your preference.
can stock ready-to-drink bottles or use
an instant aam panna mix to make COLD COFFEE
yourself a quick refreshing drink any
time of the day. Switch over from your regular mug of
cappuccino to a tall, frothy glass of cold
THANDAI coffee. Besides making it the traditional
way, you can also keep a few packs of
While you may associate thandai with cold-brew mix in your kitchen—all you
Holi, this drink is a super-nutritious need to do is add milk and ice and your
cooler that’s perfect for a hot day too. chilled beverage is ready.

readersdigest.in 33

Stressed Out?
Fire Up a Game on
Your Smartphone

News From the The Internet is shutterstock
filled with programs
WORLD OF designed to help ease
MEDICINE your mind—mindful-
ness meditation apps,
BREAST CANCER they’re called. But a
MORE DEADLY FOR British study suggests
MEN THAN FOR WOMEN that playing an enjoy-
able game on your
Of the approximately 2,79,000 breast phone will help relieve
cancer diagnoses in the United States each work-related stress just
year, fewer than 1 per cent are in men. But as well. Participants
in a study of more than 1.8 million subjects, in the study spent
male patients had a 19 per cent higher death 10 minutes a day over
rate than female patients. Researchers believe five days with either
that undertreatment of the disease in men, a shape-fitting game
along with differences in clinical characteris- (similar to Tetris) or a
tics between male and female patients, meditation app. Their
accounted for the higher mortality rate. recovery from work
strain was measured by
how relaxed, detached
from work, capable
and in control they felt.
The meditation app pro-
duced more relaxation
on day one, but the
game offered increasing
benefits over time, per-
haps because players
were getting better at
it, which added to their
enjoyment. So spend a
few minutes with your
favourite game—it’s
good for you!

34 july 2020

Reader’s Digest

tatiana magoyan/getty images Hypertension Help SHIFTING The Most
Is a Group Effort SLEEP Hydrating Drink?
CYCLES It’s a Surprise
Most hypertension
patients get treatment Night owls taking part in Researchers at
from only one person: a trial published in the the University of
their doctor. In an ex- journal Sleep Medicine St Andrews, Scotland,
periment conducted were able to adjust their studied 13 common
in Colombia and cycles by an average of beverages to see
Malaysia, more people two hours within three how much water
were added to the weeks. Each day, they the body retained
support team. Half got up earlier than two hours after they
the patients received usual, had breakfast, had been ingested.
traditional one-on-one took in as much outdoor
care. For the other half, morning light as possi- Surprisingly, plain
doctors shared some ble, ate lunch at a set water (still and spark-
tasks (e.g., counselling time, avoided caffeine ling) was near the
patients, monitoring and napping from late bottom of the list.
treatments) with non- afternoon onwards, The winner: skimmed
physician health wor- ate dinner before 7 p.m., milk. Its sugar, protein
kers. The researchers limited light in the eve- and fat slow down the
also recruited ‘treat- ning and went to bed emptying of fluid from
ment supporters’— early. This routine saw the stomach, and its
friends or relatives them performing better sodium acts as a
to accompany these and feeling less sleepy, sponge, keeping
patients to health less stressed and less water in the body.
appointments and depressed. A similar
encourage them to schedule can help Oral rehydration
take their medication avoid jet lag. solutions are effective
and follow lifestyle in keeping water in
advice. After a year, the body as well. Colas
the patients who and juices, with their
worked with a team higher concentration
saw their overall of sugars, also empty
cardiovascular risk more slowly from the
score decrease almost stomach than water.
twice as much as However, the body
those who saw pulls water into the
only their doctor. small intestine to dilute
the sugars, making
them less hydrating.

readersdigest.in 35

Reader’s Digest

MONEY

An Insurance Cover
for COVID-19

With the pandemic still raging, there are new guidelines in
health insurance to keep you and your family covered

By Amit Chhabra

One of the rare positive outcomes with a plan to upgrade the policy later,
of the ongoing pandemic has when financial situations improve.
been the rising awareness
about health and how to stay safe. New IRDAI Regulations
The galloping infection rate has led
to worries about treatment costs, in In light of the prevailing conditions,
addition to the escalating medical costs the Insurance Regulatory and Deve-
in general. The importance of keeping lopment Authority of India (IRDAI)
yourself safe with an insurance cover has drawn up several new regulations.
at the earliest cannot be overstated. Keeping consumer welfare in mind, the
Also, that health insurance can be IRDAI has directed insurers to process
the best possible means for financing health-insurance claims within two
any future health-care expenses is the hours from the time of receipt of an
writing on the wall. authorization request. What’s more,
they have allowed coverage for health-
Besides the rise in demand for insurance policies for medical consul-
health insurance plans, the COVID-19 tations via telemedicine. Also included
outbreak has boosted a demand for in the regulations are guidelines for
such plans with higher sums insured. introducing a standard COVID-19-
However, for salaried individuals who specific health-insurance plan—a
have experienced lay-offs or salary cuts, fixed-benefit one, where the insurer
it is best is to buy a basic health-insu- will be liable to pay the entire sum
rance cover, with sufficient sum insured insured, if the insured person tests
to stay protected against COVID-19, positive for COVID-19.

36 july 2020

A BASIC HEALTH
INSURANCE COVER,

WITH A PLAN TO
UPGRADE THE
POLICY LATER,

WHEN FINANCIAL
SITUATIONS

IMPROVE, IS THE
RIGHT WAY TO GO.

shutterstock Buying a COVID-19 Plan Therefore, it is important to have
insurance coverage with an adequate
While choosing a health insurance sum insured. Do check if your policy
policy covering COVID-19, it is has a co-pay clause and the quantum
important to be aware of the following required for it.
key factors. It has been observed that
several COVID-19 patients only need a In COVID-19 cases, a large part
diagnostic test and basic medication of the treatment cost is the hospital
at the outpatient department (OPD) room rent, especially if the insured
instead of a hospital admission. person is treated at a private hospital.
Before buying a health plan, ensure Ask your insurer questions regarding
the policy has an OPD cover so that any room rent sub-limits that the
these expenses are taken care of. Most policy may have, since those could
insurance policies will cover expenses result in large out-of-pocket expenses.
if hospital admission is necessary. Make sure that your health insurance
covers the cost of consumables too—
According to reports, the average items that are intended for one-time
claim by a COVID-19 patient under- use—largely due to reasons of sterility
going in-patient treatment is expected and infection prevention. You should
to cost between ₹2 lakhs to ₹5 lakhs. remember, most health insurance
Moreover, due to its highly infectious products do not cover consumables,
nature, chances are that more than whereas they could make for a
one person in the same family may major part of the hospital bill during
contract the virus. If you are a senior COVID-19 treatment.
citizen or are buying insurance for
one, keep in mind that they are more Amit Chhabra is head of the health
susceptible to COVID-19 and treatment insurance division at Policybazaar.com.
costs are significantly higher for them.

readersdigest.in 37

HOW TO

Sound Smarter,
with Expert Help

Trying to impress the boss, the kids—or a date?
We looked at scientific studies and boiled down

the best insights into these quick tips

By Lisa Fields
and Brandon Specktor

38 july 2020

Reader’s Digest

heepishly, Kevin Adkins instead of intelligent. Using big words
admits that when he’s insecure, may also confuse listeners. “People
he uses big words to appear associate intelligence with clarity of
expression,” says Oppenheimer. That’s
Ssmarter. “Only when I need especially true when it comes to the
to impress the person,” says written word. A study in Applied Cog-
the 45-year-old. “Dates with women? nitive Psychology found a negative rela-
Definitely. At the grocery store? Not so tionship between complexity of writing
much.” A few years ago, when flirting and judged intelligence: The more
with a stylist, he asked her to give him writers tried to sound smart, the less
a “symmetric” haircut instead of just intelligent they were perceived to be.
asking for an even trim. And when he
gave an attractive woman directions, he Why should we believe that experts
made a point of telling her that the two are correct in recommending simpli-
options they’d discussed were “equi- city in writing? One theory that predicts
the effectiveness of straightforward
distant” rather than saying that both writing is that of processing fluency.
were the same distance. Simpler writing is easier to process,
and studies have demonstrated that
Adkins is among the myriad processing fluency is associated with
Homo sapiens who suffer from a variety of positive dimensions, accor-
periphrasis. Translation—many ding to research from Princeton Uni-
versity in New Jersey. So what can you
of us use longer words in place of do to sound smarter? Speak clearly and
shorter ones. Because folks know, directly. Leave the dictionary and the-
consciously or unconsciously, saurus at your desk. And follow these
tips from behavioural psychologists
that others form impressions of (and other very bright people).
them after a glance or a short
conversation, and they work 1 Plan Ahead
harder to give the ‘right’ impres- Whether you’re in a private conver-
sion. “People think, if I can show that sation or at a company-wide town
I have a good vocabulary, I’ll sound hall, the most important thing you can
smarter,” says Daniel Oppenheimer, do is make yourself heard, loud and
PhD, a professor of psychology at clear. This can be daunting for an in-
Carnegie Mellon University. trovert—and for the rest of us. The key
The problem with this plan is that is preparation. If you’re interviewing
it can easily go wrong. “It’s almost a for a job, review the posting and take
game that two people are playing,” says advantage of the whole googleplex of
Eric R. Igou, PhD, a social psychologist information about your prospective
at Ireland’s University of Limerick. “If
the observer, person B, doesn’t have
the same theory, it can backfire.” Per-
son A may be perceived as pretentious

readersdigest.in 39

Reader’s Digest

company. If you’re attending a staff mental and emotional advances of oth- previous spread: luis molinero/shutterstock (man), vipman/shutterstock (books)
meeting, check the agenda. Going on a ers. Openness can convey confidence.
date? Plan some talking points, even if To project self-assurance in a meeting,
they’re just about favourite TV shows or adapt an open, expansive pose. Sit up
movies. Feeling prepared will put you straight and leave your arms widely
at ease and boost your confidence. spread on the table or at your sides.
(This also works if you’re trying to at-
2Make Eye Contact tract someone’s eye.) If you’re wor-
If someone looks at you while ried about projecting confidence, run
you’re talking, you’re more likely through a couple of power poses—such
to think he or she is smart. “Good eye as standing with your hands on your
contact means the other person is hips or using them to lean on your
responsive to what you are doing or desk—in private beforehand. Research
saying,” says Bogdan Wojciszke, a from social psychologist Amy Cuddy
professor of social psychology at the has shown that holding these postures
University of Social Sciences and Hu- for just two minutes can lower stress
manities in Poland. “If he is not respon- and increase feelings of power.
sive, this means that either you are dull
or he is dumb. With such a choice, most 4 Eliminate Pauses
of us prefer to think that he is dumb.” Confidence is as perceptible in
Researchers at Brandeis University in your voice as it is in your body
Massachusetts, USA, found that con- language. As you have probably no-
versationalists who maintained eye ticed from watching any political
contact scored higher on IQ tests than panel show or business meeting with
those who avoided someone’s gaze. multiple speakers, the ‘winner’ of the
talk is usually the person who speaks
3 Strike a Power Pose most energetically and fluidly. Too
Here’s a telling bit of business many pauses make you sound unsure
science: Researchers at Massa- of yourself. If you are unconvinced by
chusetts Institute of Technology Media your own ideas, why should the rest of
Lab concluded that they could accu- the room be convinced? Theoretical
rately predict the outcome of any ne- physicist Leonard Mlodinow points out
gotiation, sales call or business pitch 87 the impact of this bias: “If two speakers
per cent of the time without hearing the utter exactly the same words but one
conversation. How? By observing the speaks a little faster and louder and
speaking–listening ratio, interruption with fewer pauses and greater variation
patterns and body language. How open in volume, that speaker will be judged
or closed your posture is conveys how to be more energetic, knowledgeable
open or closed you are to the physical, and intelligent.”

40 july 2020

How to

studiovin/shutterstock (books), jocic/shutterstock (megaphone) 5 Restate Others’ Lancashire, UK, evolutio-
Smart Points nary psychologists describe
Because of one humour as a “heritable trait”
that signals mental fitness and
of those unfair-but- intellectual agility to prospec-
true mental quirks, tive mates. In studies of attrac-
the person in a tiveness, both men and women
meeting who sim- rate funny people as more at-
ply summarizes the tractive, and cite having a good
good points made sense of humour as being one
by everyone else will of the most important traits in
often be better re- a long-term partner.
membered than the
people who came up So you can use humour
with the ideas in the as a hard-to-fake cue to your
first place. If you are intelligence. Just don’t forget
struggling to get a word in at your next the punchline!
staff gathering, take notes on the best
comments your co-workers deliver. 7 Curb Your Content
Near the end of the meeting, restate While some believe that it is best
these ideas in a concise, matter-of-fact to provide multiple perspectives
way. Even when giving credit to your and cover more content, there might
co-workers, you will sound smarter. be benefits in keeping it simple, and
in delivering a single-focused mes-
6 Tell Some Jokes sage. Says Dr Varsha Singh, associate
A French study published in the professor of psychology, humanities
journal Psychological Reports and social sciences, Indian Institute
found that women find men they over- of Technology, Delhi, “In a 2012 study,
hear telling funny jokes to be smarter we observed that the participants who
and more attractive than those heard received a singular-focus direction
talking about mundane topics. Other were better at making long-term deci-
studies have shown that funny women sions than those who received a dual-
similarly appear smarter to others. focused direction. Also, findings from
There may be some validity to this, a 2013 study showed that single focus
because a certain level of intellect is was less demanding on attention and
required to consistently make clever cognitive resources. Therefore, keeping
remarks. According to an article pub- a conversation focused on a simple and
lished in The Conversation by Lowri single agenda might elicit greater atten-
Dowthwaite, lecturer in Psychological tion and deliver a stronger impact.”
Interventions, University of Central
—WITH INPUTS BY MOHINI MEHROTRA

readersdigest.in 41

Reader’s Digest
42 july 2020

COVER STORY

Taming

‘Whthae t

Ifs’

We may not be able to run away from our
worries, but how do we keep them from
running our lives? We asked a handful of
experts for tips on how to get a grip in
these challenging times

By Jill Buchner with Ishani Nandi

illustrations by Josh Holinaty readersdigest.in 43

Reader’s Digest

Defining Distress will come from future events or
from the outcomes of occurrences
We often use the terms that happened in the past.
‘worry’, ‘stress’, and ) Stress involves your reaction
‘anxiety’ interchan- to pressures placed on you. You
geably, but they aren’t feel spread thin or are overwhelmed
the same. Each has unique qualities, because life is demanding too much
and identifying which one is pla- of your limited time, energy or
guing us will help us better address some other personal resource.
it. Psychologist Kristin Buhr, co- While worries are thoughts,
author of The Worry Workbook, stress is a feeling.
breaks down the differences. ) Anxiety is your mental and
) Worry is a negative thought physiological response to a perceived
you have about an uncertainty in threat. It’s like the body’s smoke
life. Worries tend to focus on the detector—it senses danger and
assumption that something negative signals your body to rev up to deal

THE WORRY METER

Are you cool and collected or a total worrywart? Find out if your
concerns might be exerting too much control over you

When you have a big You regularly worry You go about your day
meeting at the office, you about everything from without consistently
forgetting to take your thinking ahead, but you
get so worked up that medication to meeting still get nervous when
you often have trouble deadlines to being late for
sleeping or you might a date—but that will drive a key event comes
even call in sick. When you to set reminders for along. When you do
something’s uncertain in yourself and be proactive think about the future,
your life, you usually jump about your to-do list. you usually believe it
to a worst-case scenario.* will turn out okay.

44 july 2020

Cover Story

with it. While worry takes place trigger anxiety when your mind
only in the mind, anxiety can have perceives imagined ‘what ifs’ as
physical effects, such as speeding up real threats.
your heart rate. Worry can, however,
While worry, stress and anxiety
are normal, intense and frequent
anxiety can become a problem.
You might have an anxiety disorder
if, for instance, you have recurring
sleep issues or you’re skipping out
on your customary activities.

Excessive anxiety can be focused
on a fear of something specific,
such as social gatherings (known
as social anxiety) or a host of
experiences (known as genera-
lized anxiety disorder).

Why Worrying Can Be Worth It

1It protects you what’s important and & Coping tracked the
“If you’re not at all con- might actually move you worries of university
cerned there could be to prepare,” says Buhr. students and found that
danger, you’re not going they were often solving
to take precautions,” says 3It promotes problems while they were
Buhr. That voice of worry problem solving agonizing. So, while it
can remind you to put on A 2006 study published in feels unpleasant, worry
your seat belt or check the journal Anxiety, Stress can be productive.
that you turned off the
stove. It keeps you safe.

2It motivates you
Whether you have a
speech to deliver or a
home renovation to
tackle, thinking about
what could go wrong
can spur you to get to
work. “A little bit of
worry lets you know

readersdigest.in 45

Reader’s Digest

Ditch ‘What If ’ trouble is, you can’t avoid uncertainty
entirely, and the more you try to, the
If you’re an excessive worrier, scarier it will seem. Fortunately, most
you probably have trouble dealing of the time things turn out just fine,
with uncertainty because you’re but telling a worrier this is unlikely to
concerned it will lead to a negative calm their nerves.
result. What’s more, you likely believe
that you won’t be able to manage The best way to get comfortable
that outcome. with uncertainty is to expose your-
self to it and see that those imagined
Buhr says that’s why most worriers worst-case scenarios rarely happen.
develop generally negative “safety Even when something does go
behaviours” to help them avoid risks, wrong, you can handle it.
such as opting out of situations that
scare them or asking for affirmation So, if you tend to worry about
from others when they’re unsure. The being late for appointments and
always leave 30 minutes earlier than

What Are Indians Most Worried About?

A ccording to the May online among adults country we are headed
2020 edition of the between 16 and 74 years in the right direction, a
monthly global study of age in 27 countries seven per cent surge
What Worries The World around the world. from the previous month.
conducted by the multi-
national market research However, certain wor- Another pan-India
company Ipsos, the top ries, such as those regar- study titled Understan-
three sources of worry ding corruption—finan- ding Public Sentiment
among Indians include cial and political—and During Lockdown by IIM-
the current coronavirus crime and violence have Lucknow’s Centre for
pandemic, which leads each seen a five per cent Marketing in Emerging
the list at 65 per cent; decline compared to the Economies found that
unemployment, cited by April 2020 survey. Also, while 79 per cent of the
49 per cent; poverty and the majority of surveyed respondents were worried
social inequality—31 per Indians—72 per cent— and feeling fear (40 per
cent. Each of these saw an feel optimistic that as a cent) and sadness (22 per
uptick from the April poll cent), 60 per cent felt con-
with unemployment fident in India’s ability to shutterstock
showing the biggest emerge from the current
rise of the three at 11 per crisis citing government
cent. The survey was held measures and individual
safety protocols.

46 july 2020

Cover Story

necessary, Buhr suggests doing compromising or failing to succeed.
away with that buffer. You’ll see that “Re-examine and, where possible,
you do make it in time or, if you don’t, scale down expectations. Acknow-
the person you’re meeting will likely ledge and accept the new normal,
be understanding. and until things change, create new
definitions that align with the new
After starting with simple changes, reality. A pristine house could mean
work your way up to bigger risks— a once-a-week instead of a daily deep-
such as a career shift. clean; family dinners can be a quick
soup and sandwich, instead of a
How To Tackle Worry three-course feast, for instance,”
Dubey suggests.
Learn to let go
Try to unplug
We all multitask but when job lists
run long, it can overwhelm you. When chaos and turmoil surrounds
“Worrying about how to manage us, our natural reaction is hypervigi-
five or six things perfectly at the lance. We pore over every news up-
same time, and trying to do so, will date and scroll incessantly looking
only lead to frustration or burnout. for the latest tweet or post, regardless
Be honest and reasonable about of whether it affects us directly or not.
what absolutely must be done and While it’s important to stay informed,
prioritize those. Learn to let go of, the resulting information overload
or at least postpone, the rest,” says can lead to what experts call ‘crisis
clinical psychologist Dr Vandita fatigue’ and escalate our worries.
Dubey, who runs online emotional
well-being workshops. “If you have “Stay informed but steer clear of
the option to delegate responsibility dwelling on events and circumstances
and tasks, do so,” she adds. “People that are not under your control. Draw
have a hard time with this because up a list of things you can be on top of
they like to do things a certain way, and take charge,” says Dr Jai Ranjan
but letting go and allowing others to Ram, senior consultant psychiatrist
do things their way will leave you and co-founder of Mental Health
more capable of focusing on your Foundation, Kolkata.
own tasks.” Bottom line: It’s more
important that some jobs get done,
rather than how.

Reset goals and expectations

Setting the bar too high can make
you feel like you are chasing an
unattainable goal and that you are

readersdigest.in 47

Reader’s Digest focus, prioritize and keep the fight
going, because you’ll be tapping
Look within into your deeper motivations, your
reason to get up and go every day,
When stresses accumulate, it’s easy and micro-tasks will feel less frus-
to lose sight of the ‘why’ in your daily trating,” she adds.
life. “Every person, whether con-
sciously or not, has something they Stay present
deeply value,” says Dubey. “Whether
it’s financial independence, being a All of us have certain triggers that
good parent, taking care of elderly set us on the worry spiral—an im-
relatives or rising up the ranks pro- pending job loss, negative feedback,
fessionally—certain goals are prime or a health scare. “Once that cycle
motivators. Knowing and remembe-
ring those goals can allow you to

How Mindfulness Meditation
Can Be An Antidote To Worry

Emily Thring, founder grounds you in the mo-
of the Quiet Company, ment, reducing that anxiety
a meditation studio in of what’s to come so you
Toronto, Canada, that can be more present with
seeks to foster mindful what’s happening now.
experiences, shares the
basics of mindfulness and How should one get Thring recommends a
how it can counter worry. started? simple breathing exercise
called box breathing to slow
What is mindfulness Meditation isn’t something down your mind and help
meditation? you do once and then feel a you feel more in control.
tremendous change in Here’s how: Inhale for a
It’s focusing on your your life. It takes consis- count of four, hold for four
breathing in the present tency and commitment. seconds, then exhale for
moment and connecting Begin with a few minutes four and hold again for four
with how you’re feeling at the same time every day, seconds before starting
and what you’re experien- and joining a local group again. Repeat this for
cing, without judgment. can help you face potential two minutes, working
challenges as you practise your way up to longer
How does it target more frequently. spans of time as needed.
worry?
Exhale your worries
Worrying is about future
scenarios. Mindfulness When you’re overwhelmed,

48 july 2020

Cover Story

begins,” says Ram, “We catastrophize Buhr. Adds Ram, “Even if a trusted
it, imagining disasters about the confidant cannot offer solutions,
future that may not be real at all.” there is still great value in simply
sharing what we feel, because in the
Break the cycle by focusing only process, we are also, in a way, talking
on the present, on what actions can to ourselves.” Speaking out the worry
be taken here and now to manage an or expressing the fear out loud allows
existing problem. Living mindfully, you to perceive it objectively. Some of
which means staying rooted in the them may turn out to be less severe
present moment and doing as well than it seemed in your mind.
as you can, is key. “Solutions are un-
likely to emerge from overthinking Shift perspective
about what could happen three or
six months down the road—there Worries can compound to the point
are too many unpredictable events where one feels isolated and alone,
that might happen. What you can adrift in a sea of problems. “Never
control is the now,” Ram adds. forget that anything you may be fee-
ling—anger, resignation, disappoint-
Seek joy ment—are all very natural reactions
to a complex and unpredictable
“Identify and list out the things that world. This not only means that there
make you happy. Do one thing from is nothing wrong with you, but also
that list every day within, of course, that you are not alone, others feel the
the limits of what is possible. Con- same way too,” says Dubey. “Ask your-
sciously thinking about the things self, ‘Five years from now, how impor-
that bring you joy will allow you to tant will this be? What impact will it
notice the positives amidst the have?’ In the larger scheme of time,
doom and gloom, be grateful for some things are not worth worrying
things you may have taken for about,” she explains.
granted and ensure you appreciate
what you have,” Dubey says.

Get it all out

Telling a friend or family member
what’s worrying you, or even saying it
aloud to yourself or writing it down,
can allow you to gain some perspec-
tive. “It’s a little easier to challenge
worries when your worries are on
paper or said out loud rather than
floating around in your head,” says

readersdigest.in 49

LAUGHTER

The best Medicine

A garden gnome is busy I just love mischief! he went to check it danny shanahan/everyone’s a critic/courtesy princeton architectural press
destroying some plants And what, may I ask, out. The horse’s owner
when suddenly a house creature are you?” said, “It’s easy to ride
cat appears. him. Just say ‘Praise
The cat thinks for the Lord!’ to make
“What are you?” a moment and says, him go and ‘Amen!’
asks the cat. “I guess I’m a gnome.” to make him stop.”
—newbloggycat.com
“I’m a gnome. I steal Bill got on the horse
food from humans, I A Christian guy named and said, “Praise the
kill their plants and I Bill saw an ad online Lord!” Sure enough,
raise a ruckus at night for a Christian horse, so the horse started to
to drive them crazy.
Æ
50 july 2020