Future IQ

Have you ever thought that doing hard things might actually help you more than doing easy things? In this podcast, we explain how some of the best lessons in life come from challenges, not shortcuts. We’ll talk about why easy classes or simple solutions might not help you learn as much as you think. You'll also find out why putting in effort, even when it’s tough, can make you stronger, smarte...

In this episode, we talk about why setting goals might not be the best way to be happy or successful. Instead of focusing on goals, we learn about something called "systems". Systems are like daily habits and routines that help you improve and get closer to what you want, without always feeling unhappy or stressed. Goals might make you feel sad because you haven’t reached them yet, but systems hel...

We learn that success doesn’t happen overnight. Many people think they can achieve big goals quickly, but the truth is it takes years of hard work and small steps to get really good at something. The podcast talks about how we should think about our goals for the next 10 years, not just the next few months. If you keep trying and don’t give up, you will see huge results over time. The podcast help...

In this episode, we talk about how money can make you happy, but only if you spend it the right way. People often say money can't buy happiness, but that’s not true. It’s not about buying things like clothes or phones, but about spending money on fun experiences, like vacations or concerts. These experiences make us happier and last longer. We also discuss how spending money to make life easier li...

You will learn real ways to be happier. We will show you simple things that are proven by science to make you feel better. You can learn how to stay away from stress and sad feelings, and make smart choices to be happy. We will teach you easy things to do to feel good, have better friends, and be in charge of your happiness. No need for expensive teachers or coaches, just real advice that works. W...

Did Jodhabai Alter the Course of Indian History? In this episode, we uncover the untold story of Jodhabai, a queen whose actions nearly reshaped the future of India. Known as Akbar's wife, her true influence stretches far beyond what most people know. From shaping Mughal policy to challenging European powers, Jodhabai’s strategic moves led to the rise of British power in India. Join us as we explo...

How often have you seen different pricing for the same products on different e-commerce platforms? Or how about different pricing for different people but for the same seat on the same flight? If you have also experienced this unfair differentiation and gotten frustrated about it, then you might find this episode interesting. This practice is nothing but "customer segmentation" that businesses fol...

Learn how an introvert who has managed to build a vast professional network over the past 15 years, shares the secrets to successful networking. We dive into how to approach networking without feeling like you're “schmoozing” or begging for favors. We explain the two main reasons why people are bad at networking: the discomfort of talking about themselves and the aversion to small talk. The decisi...

Universal basic income is a guaranteed paycheck to everyone in this world. Will it eradicate poverty in India? Will the world become a better place with everyone getting fixed amount of free money? In this episode, we dive deep into this topic and discuss what will be the pros and cons of UBI. Major schemes like PDS, a Public Distribution Scheme also famously known as the Ration Card in India, and...

Opportunity cost is one of those economic concepts that will change your decision-making forever once you understand it clearly. But it is quite difficult to grasp the concept if you just got to know the term. Therefore, we've brought you more than 10 examples in this video to help you understand it better.

Why is storytelling so important? Why do we trust stories more than facts and data? In this episode, we discuss why stories are so powerful and how they shape our minds. The ability to sell anything, be it a material thing or a narrative, simply with the power of words is both, a blessing and a curse. Stories can be captivating, inspire change and also be a danger to society in spreading misinform...

Are you a Baloo or a Bagheera? Sounds like a very silly question but has a deeper meaning to it. Should you try to rise in your current company or explore other companies? Should you get better at Java programming or pick up Machine Learning? All these decisions are related to the explore-exploit concept. We take up real-life scenarios and explain this dynamic concept. When should you switch from...

Which is the best city to live in India, or in the world, in fact? The popular opinion is that slums are a sign of a city regressing. Contrary to this belief, we discuss how factors such as increased traffic, slums & overcrowding indicate the growth of a city. While city planning is important, what are the long-term consequences of a planned city when compared to a non-planned city? What are s...

Everyone has been hearing that correlation is not causation. But this is not necessarily a true statement. The reality is more nuanced than this plane statement. And I have some real-life examples for you to understand the distinction between the two. Learn if there is a correlation between the terms correlation and causation from the phrase correlation is not causation and how this phrase can foo...

Should you work 70 hours a week or 40 hours a week? How does stress affect our work life balance? This episode highlights the popular 70 vs 40 hour work week debate, 70 hours rallied by Narayan Murthy and 40 hours famously supported by Satya Nadella, among several other big names. But what does science have to say in this debate, and which one should you choose? Listen to us elaborate on all these...

Marketing & Sales often use really strong psychological tricks in order to rope you in to buy more than you need. Indicating scarcity, inciting a fear of missing out and evoking a need for social validation are some such tricks used by Marketers. In this episode, we explain these tricks with the help of real-life examples. Loss aversion & endowment effect are some other psychological tacti...

Does astrology really work? Have you ever wondered where the study of horoscopes came from? What exactly is Jyotish Shastra, and when or why did we start reading Kundali charts? In this episode, we dive deep into the origins of Astrology. Is it a scientific branch of study or is it plain placebo? Listen to us elaborate on the tenets of Astrology and discuss its impact on everyday life in the ancie...

Success is always associated with luck and there's a way anyone can get lucky. Let us explain the four types of luck and how to increase each of them in this video. Find out the dependence of success on luck to understand why this is it the case. We will see quotes from successful and popular people, some concepts around luck and success, and a lot of interesting facts and information on how to ge...

Do you think that your opinion is different than everyone else? Are you afraid that your opinion might be unpopular? This thought itself is much more common than you think. We take a lot of decisions in our life assuming the opinions of other people, not realising how much this impacts our day-to-day life. But we may be thinking entirely wrong about how others think. In this episode, we have expla...

Is stress good or bad? We say it's lethal. And we have some good reasons to believe that. In this episode, let us explain to you the origins of stress, how it affects our physiology, and in what ways it can be dangerous to you. To do that, we need to understand what stress is and how it evolved in humans, why stress is useful to us or good for us in some cases and really bad for others. Let's diss...

Misinformation & fake news are wild spread in today’s day & age thanks to the ease of access to information that we have. Whether it is social media, or newspaper articles, misleading information & lies are rampant and they shape the narratives that we believe, and warp our perspective of the world. Is it possible to escape misinformation? How can we spot fake news and trust what is re...

There is a quick way of learning anything you want and most of us are already using it. The topic of discussion at hand today is learning by osmosis. How you can absorb information and behaviors of the people that surround you. Understand how you can employ this technique in your daily lives to become a better version of yourself, faster. Hope you enjoyed FutureIQ by Navin Kabra and Shrikant Joshi...

Some evil business tactics and strategies employed by corporations can help us get a perspective on how things happen in the corporate world and why it is individuals who mostly that get the worst out of it. Let's understand some such tactics from history when companies shifted blame to individuals, try to understand why they do that, and what can be done about it in this FutureIQ episode. Mor...

The advertising industry manipulates you in more ways than you realize. Let's understand the economic incentives of the advertising industry in this episode of the FutureIQ podcast. Find out how advertising encourages outrage and anger directly or indirectly. The reason you find only polarizing posts on social media and traditional media outlets is probably the economics of advertising. Learn...

Weddings are a total Rip-off and make no sense at all but we're still tempted to go through all the functions and spend lakhs, even crores on those occasions. Sometimes, a lot more than that when we take an example of events like Anant Ambani's wedding. Why does this happen? Is there any evolutionary reason behind this decision of ours? Let's discuss the reason why we spend so much mon...