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The purpose of the Personal and Professional Identity Narrative is to provide you with a working
document that will help you to orient yourself as you make personal and professional decisions in the
course of your life. If you take the process of reflecting on your life seriously, the PPIN can help you to
better understand the key events of your life and their continued influence, and to explore possibilities
for the future.

The PPIN will be describing:

(a) where you have come from, i.e., the central influences—people and events—in your life,
(b) where you are now in the course of your life, and
(c) the general direction in which you feel you are headed, i.e., your sense of a provisional life plan,
however indistinct it might truly feel.

It is especially important that the narrative covers material of a personal nature, and includes
rich examples, for example, descriptions of significant events in your life, the people involved,
and your emotional reactions to them.

The accent for the Narrative should be on the personal rather than the professional. It is not a curriculum
vita, although you may include some professional background and future career intentions. A curriculum
vita represents our persona, i.e., the mask that we all wear and that we prefer to reveal to others. The
PPIN is concerned with the real person behind this mask.

The PPIN is an integral part of the PDLP, and we strongly encourage you to answer those questions
and to use it beyond the program as a reference for your personal and professional development—as
well as for periodic clarification of your respective goals and responsibilities during your evolving
personal, family and career life. Taken seriously, the PPIN can continue to be a valuable point of
orientation for personal and professional development over your lifetime.

It is helpful to illustrate any general statements you wish to make about yourself and your life with
examples—rich descriptions of events, the people involved, and your thoughts and feelings about it all.
While we encourage you to feel free to follow any structure you feel fits you best, it is usually more
interesting to consider and write about the influence of emotionally significant people and events, and to
look for and describe patterns occurring in different periods/areas of your life, rather than to follow a strict
chronological flow.

Thank you and we hope you enjoy this exercise!

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In the questionnaire, you will be invited to consent that your anonymized data be used for research
purposes. In any case, your PPIN will be shared with your assigned PLDP coach after Launch Week.

2. Some questions may require longer answers than others but overall we expect that your PPIN
be between 3000 and 5000 words.

3. Deadline to complete the PPIN is 10 August 2024.

4. At the end of the survey, be sure to download your response summary.

Rename this file as "PPIN_Your name" and then upload it on the Personal and Professional Identity
Narrative (PPIN) - Mandatory assignment page on LMS.

5. Please note that this assignment is mandatory but will not be graded. If you fail to submit your PPIN,
your PLDP coach will not be able to prepare for your coaching sessions after Launch Week.

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My Personal Identity
Question 1 out of 8

Who am I? Where did I come from? What’s important? What is not important? Where am I now in my
life?

My family background: How did I experience my family life growing up? What are the important family
stories?

I am a product of my experiences growing up - my inherent likes and dislikes as a

child, my interactions with my parents and wider family, interacting with friends and
peers, and the wider society. I grew up in a hyper-social environment around people
who worked hard but all prioritised quality of life. That has impacted my worldview as
well. I grew up in a joint family with my sibling, parents, and grand parents. Living in
such an arrangement provided me with security and also taught me the importance of
family, how to behave around different age groups of people, and draw from the
wealth of experience that my grandparents possessed. I began my education in a
missionary school where discipline was utmost priority and I did well academically
and well as in co-corricullar activities. Where I lacked at the time was doing well in
sports, and that continued for the next 15 years of my life before I started going to the
gym and then started doing well in sports as well. What is important has been shaped
by my experiences thus far. I value hard work, but I also value time spent unwinding,
playing a sport, spending time with family and friends etc. I feel these activities
revitalise me and are important for me to excel in my job. At the same time, I feel I
need to be appreciated while at work. If I feel I am doing well I usually excel at the job
and go the extra mile. If I feel I am under appreciated I usually slack further and don't
do well. Right now in my life I am at a place where I need to lay the foundation or the
next 30 years of my professional life. A life that I want to be fulfilling professionally,
and that can support me and my future family. Growing up, my family provided a
nurturing environment so that I could fully develop as a person. My family consisted of
me, my parents, my grandparents, and my sibling all staying together in our home in
New Delhi. Family stories revolved around hard work, having fun, and spending
family time.

Question 2 out of 8
Describe those events that had the most profound impact on your life. Illustrate them and include their
emotional effect at the time, and their continued influence.

I believe the most important events of my life were the passing away of my
grandfather, my undergrad at Singapore Management University, my internship at
The Cohen Group, and my exchange program at Sciences Po Paris. My grandfather
passed away when I was only 12 years old. That incident illustrated to me that life is
fragile and loved ones can pass away suddenly. I recalibrated my relationships with
others and started treating time as a finite resource. The other major experience for me
was my undergrad at SMU. It was important because I started learning what I did not
like. The kind of city I did not like being in, the kind of people I should stay away from,
the kind of live I do not want to lead overall. A break for me came in he form of my
study abroad experience at Sciences Po. Suddenly I felt my interests being
channelised, me not feeling like an outcast, and making a steady group of friends,
while staying in a place that I liked. Similarly, at The Cohen Group, for the first time, I
felt that my professional skills were being valued and the gave me the confidence to
pursue my interests wholeheartedly.

Question 3 out of 8
Describe the significant relations in your life —important people and your relationship to them—including
their emotional impact in the past and in the present. What regrets do you have, i.e., things you wish you
hadn’t done, or things you wish you had done but didn’t?

My important relationships are those with my parents, my sibling, and my

grandparents (both maternal and paternal). I would classify my relationship as cordial
with all group. Starting with my paternal grandparents, both of whom are now
deceased, I had a great relationship when I was younger. But as I started approaching
my teens, my relationship with them soured because their sour relationship with my
mother spilt over to my relationship with them. I started spending less and less time
with them and often we would argue. When my grandfather passed away, it was the
first major passing of someone close to me and I was deeply affected. I realised that
people can pass away suddenly and I should spend more time, especially with my
grandparents. I rued how I could have learnt so much more from him but did not
because of the problems in your relations. I did spend more time with my paternal
grandmother over the next 5 years till she passed away as well. My maternal
grandparents are both alive. I have a healthy relationship with them. although I did not
stay in the same city as them I visit them frequently and they visit me frequently. We
talk on the phone frequently as well. They don't have the best relationship with my
father and that sometimes bothers me but I try not to affect my relationship with them.
The relationship with my father has gotten better substantially over the last 3-4 years.
As a child, I was deeply distrustful of him and did not feel happy in his presence and
never used to be at ease. I used to be scared of him and did not feel close to him. This
changed however when I started my first job. I noticed a change in his attitude. He
became a different person and I started enjoying time spent with him including on
topics such as sport and politics. He has been a supportive father and has helped me
both professionally and financially. As a child I was very close to my mother. I used to
confide in her about everything. But my relationship with her is on an opposite
trajectory as my father's. I feel I am not as close to her as before. I feel she sometimes
does not understand me now. It was different when I was younger. I definitely
rue/regret not being able to be on the same wavelength with her as before. I have not
had the best relationship with my sister. Even as a young child, I was distrustful of her.
That feeling has permeated my interactions with her even today. Although we both
speak with each other fondly however I do not trust her completely and we regularly
quarrel over little things.

My Professional Identity

Question 4 out of 8
Describe in one sentence what you do professionally. Then elaborate on your feelings about work. What
do you like about it? What don’t you like about it? What would you rather be doing? What other roads do
you wish you had taken? Give an example of a time when the work you were doing went very well
because of you and another where the work went very badly because of you – how do you make sense
of these experiences? Please do not use the space to simply list achievements and progression but
rather to illustrate your personal experience of yourself at work.

I provided strategic advice to social impact organisations to help them scale their
impact. I realised that while the problem statements were interesting, every project
boiled down to the core consulting toolkit and your knowledge about social impact did
not really matter. I liked the people I was working with. They were smart, motivated
individuals. I liked the interesting problems I was solving. I did not like the
unstructured environment in his consulting firm along with the blue sky thinking that
was happening. It felt almost unreal and unimportant. I disliked the fact that we spent
all day doing desk research and never went on the ground to solve actual problems. I
would rather spend time doing field research and then distil insights on slides. Once
during a project with The Cohen Group, it went very well because I possessed deep
subject matter expertise. The team looked towards me to provide direction and overall
my approach to solve the problem won praise. The client was very happy with the
product. However, at Dalberg, once I was struggling on a project despite have subject
matter expertise. This was the case because the approach to problem solving using a
hypothesis based lens was new for me and I could not deliver work products to the
satisfaction of my manager and partner. This let to significant dissonance as part of
the team. I think it is very important to understand the value proposition at every
workplace. At Dalberg, I initially misunderstood the value proposition leading to
challenges. Further, application of the hypothesis led approach gave me challenges.
However, once these are overcome, working can become smooth.

My Leadership Journey

Question 5 out of 8
Where are you on your leadership development journey? In answering this question, you might describe
capabilities, behaviors, values, or mindsets that seem key to being a leader.

I believe I possess a leadership style that balances both leading and following,
depending on the context and expertise required. When I have a comprehensive
understanding of a situation, I am confident in stepping up to lead, leveraging my
knowledge to guide my team effectively. Conversely, I am equally comfortable taking a
supportive role when I trust that another person’s expertise and leadership will yield
superior outcomes. This adaptability is crucial in dynamic environments where the
collective strength of the team depends on recognizing and utilizing each member’s
strengths. To become a good leader, I think knowing how to drive consensus is
incredibly important. A leader must foster an environment where all team members
feel heard and valued. When team members know their opinions and insights matter,
they are more motivated and committed to the team’s objectives. Achieving
consensus doesn’t mean that every decision is unanimous, but rather that all voices
are considered, and the final decision reflects the collective input. This inclusive
approach not only boosts morale but also enhances the quality of decisions, as diverse
perspectives often lead to more innovative and effective solutions. However, while
consensus-building is essential, a good leader must also remain clear-headed and
willing to make tough decisions. There are times when, despite differing opinions, a
leader must stick their neck out and make a definitive choice. This requires a balance
of assertiveness and empathy, ensuring that decisions are made with the team’s best
interest at heart, even if they are not always popular. Clear-headedness helps in
navigating complex situations, allowing a leader to remain focused on long-term goals
rather than getting bogged down by immediate challenges or conflicts. Ultimately,
effective leadership is about striking a balance between inclusivity and decisiveness. It
involves knowing when to lead and when to follow, driving consensus while being
prepared to make the hard calls. By fostering an environment of mutual respect and
collaboration, while also providing clear direction, a leader can guide their team to
achieve superior outcomes. This balanced approach not only strengthens the team but
also enhances overall productivity and success.

My Self

Question 6 out of 8
Describe things that are of deep interest to you personally thatdo not involve your work or your relations
with family and friends. What do you like to do only for yourself and your own pleasure?

I would not be painting a complete picture of myself if I didn’t convey how deeply I
have immersed myself in all activities that I have participated in – including my
hobbies, intellectual curiosities, social entrepreneurship ventures, and travels. I was a
curious child and was first fascinated by the engravings of different American
Presidents on the $1 presidential coins while travelling to the US when I was eight.
From here began my journey as a numismatist, as I started assiduously collecting and
reading about coins. As my interests evolved, I specialized in ancient Indian coins. It
fascinates me that these coins are like a piece of history in my hands and would have
been held by merchants several centuries ago in a world that would be so different
from today. Beyond just being a hobby, numismatics has become an alternative asset
class, with my portfolio giving on average 20-30% return year-on-year. At Singapore
Management University (SMU), I learnt about business at a practical level, but I was
intellectually curious to understand the role business plays in the larger universe
consisting of government and society and how the private sector can promote social
good. It was then that I became passionate about the intersection of policy and
business. With limited flexibility in course choice at SMU, I availed the opportunity to
study abroad at Sciences Po Paris for a semester, which helped me understand
geopolitics and policy deeply through courses and informal discussions with the
international cohort. In addition, I pursued “non-traditional” internships to understand
how nation-states interact and how policies formed impact ordinary citizens.
Perspectives developed at these internships helped me in my career. During my final
semester at SMU, I took “Sustainable Finance” and explored emerging topics like green
bonds and impact funds. The course intrigued me as it showed how finance can be
used to solve development challenges. I delved into additional reading beyond my
coursework and received an opportunity to make a mark when I convinced a
researcher, Dina Azhgaliyeva, at the Energy Studies Institute (ESI), Singapore, to co-
author a paper on scaling green bonds in ASEAN. This paper was published initially in
ESI’s quarterly journal but Dina was so impressed with my abilities that she suggested
expanding and publishing it in a peer-reviewed journal. Subsequently, I was invited to
present my findings to policymakers at the Asian Development Bank Institute, Tokyo.
My research was also discussed in the Indian Parliament. I have also been deeply
involved in my social entrepreneurial venture, Pushti, and have made a difference to
North India’s pollution, primarily caused by the burning of stubble, a by-product of rice
harvesting. I started researching solutions to curb stubble burning while I was at SMU.
Subsequently, my work with Parliamentarian Manish Tewari gave me the opportunity
to visit his rural constituency several times. While interacting with farmers there, I
learnt that existing solutions to curb stubble burning were financially and logistically
unviable. After research, I identified in-situ mushroom cultivation as the most scalable
solution. Mushroom helps decompose stubble, and its sales augment farmer income.
Pushti has established a network of 90 farmers who were previously burning 72
tonnes of stubble but have since given up stubble burning after adopting our model. I
have spent a significant time outside of my hometown in Singapore, Paris, and Berlin,
which allowed me to travel widely. During these travels, I have immersed myself in
the culture of the place I visit. In addition to sightseeing, I make it a point to
understand the area’s ethos by speaking to locals, eating local cuisine with them, and
going to offbeat places. My travels have also instilled a global outlook and ensured I
thrive in multicultural teams. I successfully led a multicultural team of economists by
tailoring my leadership style to author research on climate finance. Along with a
global outlook, I have a distinct Indian viewpoint, developed through my upbringing in
urban India and work in rural India. I have taken a path less traversed, which has led to
unique life experiences. And while I have a destination in mind, I enjoy my journey.
 My Vision

Question 7 out of 8
Describe a picture of your future: Where are you headed in life? What are you attempting to do? What
are your concerns? Try to imagine not only what you would like to ―do, but also what ―lifestyle you
would like to have, i.e. what do you want your life to ―feel like? How are you spending your time?

In life, I strive to work hard to create something meaningful while maintaining a high
quality of life. Balancing professional success with personal well-being is important to
me. I am dedicated to investing time and effort into my career, aiming to build
something impactful that can make a positive difference to the underprivileged. This
drive for meaningful work fuels my daily efforts and long-term goals. Simultaneously,
I prioritize healthy living and enjoying life’s finer pleasures. Eating nutritious food and
working out are essential parts of my routine, ensuring I maintain physical and mental
well-being. Exploring gastronomy is a passion of mine, as it combines my love for
healthy eating with the joy of experiencing diverse culinary delights. To harmonize
these aspects of my life, I seek a living environment that supports my lifestyle choices.
A place with access to quality food markets, fitness facilities, and a vibrant food scene
would enable me to seamlessly integrate my personal interests with my daily life.
Such an environment not only makes it easier to stay healthy and active but also
enriches my life with new experiences and inspirations. Ultimately, my goal is to
achieve a balanced life where hard work and a high quality of life coexist, allowing me
to thrive both professionally and personally.

Question 8 out of 8
Describe the role that business plays in the world according to you

In today's interconnected world, businesses wield significant influence and power,

necessitating a role that transcends mere profit-making. To be a force for good,
businesses must embed social and environmental considerations into their core
operations, ensuring their impact extends far beyond traditional corporate social
responsibility (CSR) initiatives. Corporate social responsibility has long been the
standard by which businesses measure their contributions to society. However, CSR
often operates as an ancillary component, detached from the primary business
objectives. For businesses to genuinely be a force for good, their ethical and social
commitments must be woven into the fabric of their day-to-day operations. This
holistic approach ensures that the drive to achieve good is not merely a supplementary
activity but a fundamental aspect of the business's identity. Achieving societal good
through everyday activities involves a multi-faceted approach. First, the products and
services offered by a business should contribute positively to society. This could mean
developing sustainable products, creating technologies that address social issues, or
ensuring that products enhance the well-being of consumers. Additionally, businesses
must create gainful employment opportunities within their facilities. This involves not
only fair wages and safe working conditions but also opportunities for personal and
professional growth. By investing in their employees, businesses foster a loyal,
motivated, and productive workforce, which in turn benefits society at large. Moreover,
businesses should actively engage with the larger community. This can be
accomplished through partnerships with local organizations, supporting community
initiatives, and fostering economic development in underserved areas. Such
engagement strengthens the social fabric and builds a foundation of trust and mutual
support between businesses and the communities they serve. To operationalize these
principles, businesses must adopt the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) framework, which
emphasizes the importance of balancing economic, social, and environmental
responsibilities. By measuring success not just by financial performance but also by
their impact on people and the planet, businesses can ensure that their daily
operations contribute positively to society. This commitment to the TBL approach
requires transparency, accountability, and a willingness to innovate, ensuring that the
pursuit of profit aligns with the broader goal of societal well-being. In conclusion,
businesses have the potential to be powerful agents of positive change. By embedding
social and environmental considerations into their core operations and adopting the
Triple Bottom Line principles, businesses can ensure that their daily activities
consistently contribute to the greater good, fostering a sustainable and equitable future
for all.

You have now completed all the questions of your PPIN!

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On the following page, download your response summary.
Rename this file as "PPIN_Your name"
Upload it on the Personal and Professional Identity Narrative (PPIN) - Mandatory assignment
page on LMS.

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