1The job: I love the dynamic nature of the online space ? it necessitates thinking on your feet as well as thinking ahead. TripAdvisor?s mantra of ?speed wins? keeps things exciting and rewards focus and fast decisions.
2The weekdays: The day begins at 6:30 AM with a cup of tea, a short reading of the Gita and some meditation, followed by a workout at the gym. Once I?m at work, I grab a coffee, fire up my laptop and check emails first thing ? responding to the most urgent ones for an hour or so. I then plan the rest of my day amongst the areas I?m responsible for and go about with my meetings and work for the day! I always take time to read The Economist magazine and reading some market reports which I download.
I have a great team, and love the mix of perspectives they provide, their different backgrounds, natures, personalities and ambitions. After I end at around 8pm, I head home on most days of the week, and try and catch up with friends at least once or twice a week. I love shopping for groceries and can lose myself in the aisles of Le Marche for a good hour sometimes!
The TripAdvisor senior management team under Steve?s leadership is an incredibly talented one ? I have loved working with them, and just observing and learning from their different leadership styles. I also love interacting with peers from the online space ? one of the reasons I?ve stuck around within the space is the incredibly smart and talented people one encounters.
3The weekend: If it?s a long weekend, I try and plan it well in advance so I can travel. Obviously, I love the process of travel planning, researching destinations, reading TripAdvisor reviews, honing in on the most interesting things to do, etc. The actual ticketing is always a chore, but the journey makes it all worthwhile. Photography is one my favourite pastimes and I?ve practically got my SLR in my hands throughout the day once I?ve reached my destination.
On weekends if I?m in town, I definitely catch up on a movie or two at home, put in longer workouts at the gym, catch up on reading, catch up with friends, and of course, catch up on grocery shopping.
4The toys: Some gadgets I use a lot are Apple devices (my iPhone, iPod, iPad, Apple TV). I?ve recently started loving these small Bluetooth speakers (I love my Beats pill as well as the Beats headphones), my Canon SLR camera, LaZboy chairs, home theatre and playstation.
5The logos: I?m not particularly loyal to any clothing brands, but some brands in other product categories I have no qualms about mentioning are: Apple devices, Opera handmade potato chips, Tong Garden Wasabi peas, Ecco Shoes, Casio G shock watches, Cleartrip.com, Singapore Airlines, etc. But I guess my favourite brand would be BMW ? for the incredibly tight driving experience it gives me everyday.