APP / TRAVEL SPECIAL... Convenient apps for compulsive travellers

Convenient apps for compulsive travellers   Nine services to help you work, efficiently and without delay, from anywhere in the world Imagine this: you are travelling around the world, staying a month at a time in new and exciting cities, all without watching your bank account dwindle down to nothing. That dream might have seemed too good to be true a few years ago, but with the growing popularity of worki ng remotely and advances in budget travel options, it's never been easier. With a certain set of apps and services, and a little imagination, more and more people are finding ways to live out their travelling fantasies without breaking the bank. These nine apps can help you work while on a beach and connect you with locals who will show you around the city. Remote jobs anywhere in the world Remote OK is a daily aggregator of remote jobs that is useful for those in the tech industry. You can find jobs in web development, design and sometimes, a few nontech jobs. Remote OK can be a goldmine for a techie looking to see the world while staying afloat financially. Price: Free (web) Affordable housing -even up in the trees Airbnb has become an international phenomenon and is swiftly replacing hotels for many travellers. The company has 6,00,000 listings in over 34,000 cities and is often more affordable than hotels of similar quality -though without the room service.Depending on your luck, your host might also be willing to share tips like the best places to get public WiFi. And you can even stay in creative abodes like a treehouse. Price: Free (iOS, Android, web) Free public WiFi When you are working in unfamiliar territory, it's always good to have a list of available public WiFi spots. WiFi Finder is an app to do just that. If you are curious about which cities around the world have the best WiFi, New York, Tel Aviv and Taipei top the list. Price Free (iOS, Android) Changing your foreign currency If you are earning a living while travelling, you are going to need a reliable app for converting currency.Currency Converter not only shows the `buy' and `sell' prices, but also factors in the typical ATM or credit card premium you'll have to pay on conversion. Price Free (iOS, Android) The best tool for booking hostels Hostelworld is the best app for booking hostels or lowcost hotels. If you like the communal vibe of living with other travellers, this app will help you find the best places. Hostel workers are also often decided-to stay-travellers themselves, and can offer a wealth of information about temporary jobs in the area. Price Free (iOS, Android, web) Deciphering a foreign language Google's translation app is the best free option currently available for figuring out what the heck someone is saying in a foreign country. Now you can simply point your smartphone camera at things like signs,  in foreign languages, and Google will morph the text into your own language. Price Free (iOS, Android) Make new friends in a foreign city `Party with a Local' connects travellers to locals and expats nearby who want to, well, party. You can even check their profiles and reviews. This app makes it easy to know which random strangers around you are actually open to grabbing a drink and showing you around for the evening. Price Free (iOS, Android) Explore which cities are the best for expats Nomad List tells you where the cheapest places are to live and work as a digital nomad. You can filter the options by factors like WiFi access, safety and weather.And Nomad List easily tells you the cost of living in each place. Expat havens in Thailand like Chiang Mai, Bangkok and Phuket, rank high on the list. Price Free (web) Tracking down the best local cuisine Foodspotting is essentially an Instagram service that lets users share delectable restaurant dishes they've sampled along with details of where you ate them.Naturally, the app is a good barometer of what is the best food that is being served at any location. Price Free (iOS, Android) .

businessinsider.in

ETP21OCT15

GADGET GIZMO REVIEW Samsung Tab S2

GADGET GIZMO REVIEW  Samsung Tab S2   Samsung revamped it's tablet range with the Tablet S last year and now they have launched its successor -the Tab S2. The Tab S2 is the world's slimmest tablet at an impressive 5.6mm uniform thickness. Weighing just 392 grams, the Tab S2 is also one of the lightest Android tablets with a 9.7-inch display. The weight has been kept down at the cost of materials used.While the sides are metal, the overall body is plastic. However, the matte finish and the champhered edges give it a high-end premium feel. Up front is the gorgeous 9.7inch super amoled display with a resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels. In our opinion this is the best display we have seen on any tablet -viewing angles are great, colours really pop and the brightness is excellent.Underneath the display is the home button that incorporates a fingerprint sensor along with back and recent touch sensitive buttons. The right side has a SIM slot, microSD slot, power button and volume keys. On the bottom edge is the MHL port (you can connect to a larger display like a TV or projector).Overall we feel the placement of buttons is ergonomic and the slim and lightweight design makes it great for travel. Specifications include Samsung's own octa core Exynos processor with 3GB RAM and 32GB storage. Inspite of the slim design, Samsung has managed to include a microSD slot for expansion which is impressive -we wonder why couldn't they do the same for the S6, S6 Edge or Note 5 too.Performance is superb as expected. Games such as Real Racing 3, Need for Speed: No Limits as well as 4k videos ran without any issues. What further impressed was the battery life -a single charge lasted over 3 days with an hour of video watching every day , half an hour of gaming, browsing, social media, two email accounts and camera usage. In standby, the battery discharges by 1012% a day -impressive. As with most tablets, the camera is the weak point of the Tab S2 also. The rear and front camera both suffer from visible noise. The image quality is acceptable to share on social media though. Video recording is done in 1440p resolution and is actually good enough to view on a large screen TV . The speaker volume on the tablet is also average -volume is good enough for personal listening only . You get Android 5.0.2 on the tablet with Samsung's TouchWiz user  interface. The TouchWiz is similar to one you find on the newer Galaxy smartphones, i.e., there is less bloatware and it is fast and light.Samsung did announce that the Tab S2 will receive the Android M update soon, so you dont have to worry about being stuck on an older version of Android.You also get 4G connectivity and voice calling support which adds to the overall value of the Samsung Tab S2. It's not often that a tablet impresses not just on its hardware but also design, performa n c e a n d f e at u re s. T h e Samsung Tab S2 is one such tablet. The only issue is that it is overpriced compared to competition like the Lenovo Yoga tablets. Samsung needs to work on their pricing to make the Tab S2 a success. If you are on the lookout for a premium Android tablet and dont mind the price, the Tab S2 is highly recommended.

karan bajaj ET21OCT15

PRODUCTIVITY SPECIAL ..................GET THINGS DONE

GET THINGS DONE   Handling multiple tasks a day, is not only daunting, but can also affect your productivity and the way you manage your time. THE 1-3-5 LIST Entrepreneur Alexandra Cavoulacos --founder of the career guidance site, Muse--believes that people have unrealistic expectations when  it comes to what they can get done in a day . And, according to her,  the secret to productivity is prioritizing tasks properly . Your daily to-do list, she advises, should not exceed nine items. And these nine items need to be divided: One big task, three medium tasks, and five small tasks. The 1-3-5 List, if you will. Fill this list every morning. If you are the type of worker whose daily routine isn't set, then leave one medium task and two small tasks empty ­ those will be filled in the course of the day .But otherwise, at any given time, you will have a prioritized `to-do' list that tells you what's important and what isn't, so you will be able to get things done. Tools You Can Use...  135 List for the Web: 135list.com Laterbox for the Web: laterbox.co TIMEBOXING & POMODORO Timeboxing is the idea of setting a specific amount of time for a task, instead of continuing work till the job is complete. But, for that specific time, you do nothing other than the intended task ­ no answering calls, no checking e-mails, or anything else. The most popular form of timeboxing is the Pomodoro Technique invented in the 1990s by author and developer Francesco Cirillo, and named after the tomato-shaped kitchen timer that he used when he was a university student. The idea is simple: Cirillo says that the human brain isn't primed to concentrate for long periods. So he developed a system where  you work with intense focus in short bursts. Divide each half hour into 25 minutes of work followed by a five-minute break. Those total 30 minutes are “one pomodoro“. After every four pomodoros, take a long break of 15 to 30 minutes. Then start pomodoros again. The 25-5 isn't a rule set in stone. In a survey, timetracking app DeskTime found that the most productive people worked in spurts of 52 minutes followed by a 17-minute break (on average). The basic idea is to work on a task for one focused burst and then follow it up with a break where you do something that isn't work at all. Tools You Can Use... Tomighty for Windows and Mac OS X:  http:www.tomighty.org DON'T BREAK THE CHAIN Comedian Jerry Seinfeld was recently crowned the richest entertainer  in the world. So, if a productivity method works for him, you should pay attention. Years ago, when asked how to get better at anything you do, he had a simple answer. Seinfeld's advice was to get a large wall calendar and do one definitive thing every day . In his case, it was writing a joke; for you, it could be learning a new language or talking to one new client. But every day, do that one thing, and then mark off that day in the calendar. Soon, you will find yourself working with momentum and the visual accomplishment of your marked days starts serving as a motivator. Your “job“ stops being writing a new joke or talking to a new client, and it turns into “don't break the chain“. Your hard work is right there for you to see, and you wouldn't want to waste that momentum. Starting with one task is ideal, but you could expand that to two or more. But never overload your daily to-do list. The idea is to make your task simple and realistic to complete. Tools You Can Use... Don't Break The Chain for the Web: dontbreakthechain.com Streaks Daily Habit Tracker for Android: http:www.pilanites.comstreaks Habit Streaks for iOS: habitstreaks.com THE KANBAN METHOD This is the productivity method that drove Toyota to its engineering success. “Kanban“ ­ developed by Taiichi Ohno, a Japanese industrial engineer who is considered to be the father of the Toyota Production System ­ literally means signboard in Japanese, and the technique is all about a visual representation of your tasks and their progress. The Kanban system uses multiple columns, where each column represents a crucial process in a task. For example, the columns could be, “Waiting“, “In progress“, and “Completed“. Each task is written on a single Kanban card. The card is then put in the appropriate column, depending on its current status. Electronic Kanban systems make it much easier to use the process for individuals as well as teams. The digital board of all tasks serves as a great overview of productivity, and makes it easier to choose which task to do at any point, and even take a task back one step if needed. Tools You Can Use... Trello for the Web, Android and iOS: trello.com  KanbanFlow for the Web: kanbanflow.com DAVID ALLEN'S GTD Productivity guru David Allen wrote the book Getting Things Done in which he describes a productivity technique by the same name. The GTD phi losophy, at its core, believes in a rigid set of guidelines. Allen breaks down the process into five steps...  1 Capture  (Write down any task that comes up) 2 Clarify (Write every single action needed for that task to be finished) 3 Organize (Write a due date and prioritize the task by its importance) 4 Reflect (Figure out your time availability and your current energy level) 5 Engage (Based on your to-do list and current status, pick a task and  start doing it) It sounds simplistic, but in action, the GTD system is much more complex to execute than the other systems.The clarification  and reflection, especially, are difficult when you start off, but you'll get  better at them over time. Given GTD's requirement of having to capture tasks anywhere, expand on them, and set deadlines and priorities, you will need to use apps that are cross-platform, which allow for easy text writing and editing, and which feature colour-coding for importance. Tools You Can Use... Todoist for the Web, Android, iOS, Win,  and Mac OS X: todoist.com Evernote for the Web,  Android, iOS, Win, and Mac OS X: evernote.com

Mihir Patkar TOI17oct15

PERSONAL/CRITICISMSPECIAL... Criticism Is the Price of Success

Criticism Is the Price of Success

One of the most surprising and disappointing things about reaching an important goal is that many people won't share your happiness when they hear about it. Some will even criticize your achievement. This has happened to me a lot in my success-driven life. The criticism always hurts - but it hurts less now than it did when I was younger.  Moreover, I've learned to profit from it. You can too. What's important, I've found, is not the criticism itself but how I react  to it. Praise motivates me to do more of what I'm doing. Criticism – which used to make me want to quit - spurs me to examine what I'm doing and see if I can do it better. This happened just recently after I published an article in my newsletter  about the economy. Two of my most esteemed colleagues read it, didn't like it, and chastised me for bad writing. That set me aback.  I consider myself to be a pretty good writer, but they made me wonder if I was really just a shallow-minded pundit of mediocrity. After doubting myself for a few days, I set to the task of profiting from their comments. I reread what they said and made notes on those points I thought were valid. I circulated my notes to Jason, Suzanne, and Judith,  my editors. That began an ongoing discussion about how we could improve our newsletter. And we came up with a few good ideas. I then wrote to my two friends who were nice enough to honestly critique  my article. I thanked them for helping me make the newsletter better.  And I meant it. Like or dislike - it still works! In What Got You Here Won't Get You There: How Successful People Become Even More Successful, Marshall Goldsmith talks about how important feedback is to success:  Feedback is very useful for telling us "where we are." Without feedback... we couldn't have results. We couldn't keep score. We wouldn't know if we were getting better or worse. Just as salespeople need feedback on what's selling and leaders need feedback on how they are perceived by their subordinates, we all need feedback to see where we are, where we need to go, and to measure our progress. Goldsmith acknowledges that negative feedback "can be employed by others  to reinforce our feelings of failure, or at least remind us of them - and our reaction is rarely positive." Worst of all, negative feedback can sometimes shut us down - "we close ranks, turn into our shell, and shut the world out." When Goldsmith was a child, his mother told him he had no mechanical skills.  He went through high school believing that, and, when he was 18, scored at the bottom of the entire nation in a test given by the U.S. Army. A few years later, a professor persuaded him to take another look at his mechanical abilities. That's when he realized his mother was wrong, and he was "just living out the expectations [he] had chosen to believe." So that might be the first thing to say about profiting from criticism. Recognize that a negative comment about you or your abilities cannot damage you unless you let it. Goldsmith says that he wasted years, convinced that he was mechanically inept. But he didn't blame his mother. He blamed himself. "I was the one who kept telling myself, 'You can't do this!' I realized that as long as  I kept saying that, it was going to be true." Here are some useful techniques for profiting from criticism. Remember that criticism is the price of success. As writer Elbert Hubbard said, "Criticism is something we can avoid easily  by saying nothing, doing nothing, and being nothing." So if you do something, you're going to be subject to criticism. President Obama gets criticized. Clint Eastwood gets criticized. Even Mother Theresa was criticized. The more success you have, the more criticism you will engender. Some of it will be helpful. Most of it will be useless. But don't be afraid of it. It won't kill you. It will only make you stronger. Dump your failure-support group. This group includes jealous friends, professional enemies, and habitual  critics. These people get their kicks from kicking you when you are up. They want you to be down where they are. Don't go there. Just ignore them. If you can't ignore your critics, frame your responses strategically. Sometimes, you won't be able to ignore your critics - if, for example the criticism is coming from your boss or your family. That's when you need to stay calm and respond strategically. In Self-Esteem, Matthew McKay and Patrick Fanning recommend a   technique they call "clouding." "Clouding involves a token agreement  with a critic. It is used when criticism is neither constructive nor accurate.  When you use clouding to deal with criticism, you are saying to the critic,  'Yes, some of what is on your screen is on my screen.' But to yourself you  add, 'And some isn't.' You 'cloud' by agreeing in part, probability,  or principle." Agreeing in part - finding one part of your critic's comments to agree with  or acknowledge. The Criticism:  You're not reliable. You forget to pick up the kids, you let the bills pile up  until we could lose the roof over our heads, and I can't ever count on you  to be there when I need you. Your Response: You're certainly right that I did forget to pick up the kids last week after their swimming lesson. Agreeing in probability - acknowledging that there's a possibility your  critic could be right. The chances may be a million to one against it,  but you can truthfully say, "It's possible you're right." The Criticism:  Starting a business now is a terrible idea. The economy is in the crapper,  and you're just wasting time and money. Your Response: Yes, it's possible that my business won't work out. Agreeing in principle - acknowledging the logic of your critic's argument, but not necessarily agreeing with his assumptions. This clouding technique  uses the conditional "if/then" format. The Criticism:  You're really taking a chance by claiming all these deductions you don't have receipts for. The Income Tax department is cracking down. You're just asking for an audit. It's stupid to try to save a few bucks and bring them down on you like a pack of bloodhounds. Your Response: You're right. If I take the deductions, I'll be attracting more attention to myself. And if I get audited, it will be a real hassle.’ Take helpful criticism seriously. Helpful criticism is sometimes harsh but it's always well intended. It's not hard to identify it. The hard thing is to accept that it is helpful and use it to improve yourself. Thank your critics. I make it a habit to send a personal "thank you" to anyone whose criticism has helped me do better work. Solicit criticism - from people you respect - while there is plenty of time to make changes. One of the most successful publishers I know does this regularly. When considering the launch of a new product, he sends a memo to a small group of more experienced publishers explaining his concept and asking them to poke holes in it. By getting their criticism early, he doesn't feel its sting. After all, it's not  his baby that is being criticized. It's just an idea. And ideas, as we all know, are not worth anything until they are put into action. Another benefit - and this is a big one - is that it saves him time and frustration. By getting input on an idea before he's done a lot of work on it, it is much easier for him to make changes. COMMONSENSE LIVING BY MARK FORD

FOOD/TEA SPECIAL...MOVE OVER DIP TEA AND KULHAD CHAI, EXOTIC VARIANTS ARE HERE

 MOVE OVER DIP TEA AND

KULHAD CHAI, EXOTIC

VARIANTS ARE HERE

As the morning air turns nippy , and the thirst for a steaming cuppa  over a lively adda grows on you, give your good ol' milk tea a rethink. Yes, the Darjeeling, Assam and Nilgiri varieties will always be around, but when did you last sip international teas like Silver Needle, Smoky Chinese Lapsang, Mate and the likes? Now you'll say these are not available in Kolkata stores. True, but they can be easily bought online.  So, here's a look at the options you have... BUBBLE This Taiwanese drink contains a tea base, mixed with froth or milk and chewy tapioca ballspearls or even fruit jellies. Usually served cold, this tea has a slushy consistency and is blended using ice. It is available in fruity or milk tea varieties. In India, however, this tea is popularly sold in flavours such as green apple, mango and tapioca. PRICE: `150 to `200 for one sachet of a flavour plus tapioca pearls SILVER NEEDLE This Chinese variant of white tea is also one of the most expensive varieties. Lightly oxidised and best brewed in mild boiling water, it has a sweet, vegetal and delicate taste and is mostly opted by those who are not too fond of drinking strong teas. Silver Needle should not be brewed for more than five minutes and should be left in the water for about three minutes before poured into a cup. PRICE: `500 to `900 for 10 tea bags GENMAICHA That’s the Japanese name for green tea, though this variant comes with roasted brown rice as an ingredient. Often referred to as  ‘popcorn tea’, this variant is brewed in way slightly different from the usual green tea. It has to be boiled and not dipped, with the brewing time not exceeding 30 seconds. The tea has a mild yellow hue and has several health benefits like improving skin texture and cardiovascular health. PRICE: `300 to `500 (for 16 tea bags) SOUTH AFRICAN RED Also known as Rooibos, this herbal or bush tea is typically consumed in South Africa. The leaves are oxidised and thus get a reddish-brown colour. Though it’s a variant of the popular green tea, it has a malty and slightly grassy flavour and is typically consumed without milk. Apart from tea, the South African Red also has its variety of coffees, which are served as red lattes or cappucinos. PRICE: `450 to `550 for 250 gm MATE Mate or Yerba Mate, as it’s popularly known, this South American caffeine-rich drink that’s consumed especially in Argentina, is traditionally prepared by brewing dried leaves of yerba mate in hot water and is served with a silver straw. However, one can also prepare it by boiling it in water for about 20 seconds. The health benefits of this hot beverage are many — it increases blood circulation and prevents gum and tooth decay. PRICE: `450 to `800 for 250 gm

Meghna Mukherjee

TNN 21OCT15

PERSONAL/PERSISTENCE SPECIAL ...................6 Powerful Ways to Become More Persistent (And Never Quit Again)

6 Powerful Ways to Become More Persistent (And Never Quit Again)

Most of us are great at setting goals, but not at achieving them.

Whether it’s starting a new business, learning a new language, or mastering an instrument  —  we love to start things without finishing. One of the biggest reasons why we never achieve our goals is due to a lack of motivation and persistence.

We start out with an abundance of optimism about the journey, without being fully prepared mentally  for the inevitable obstacles ahead. As Tony Robbins says, “Success in anything is 80% psychology, and 20% mechanics.”

Let’s uncover the six powerful ways to become more persistent, so you’ll never quit again.

1. Have a vision outside of yourself

It all starts with this first step.

Without a bigger vision and purpose that is greater than yourself, you’ll quit at the initial stages of difficulty, as you will inevitably be knocked down. In contrast, when you’re achieving something for a purpose outside of yourself, the pressure of accountability alone will push you further than a purpose that is self-centered.

For example, if you’re learning a language in order to have a deeper connection with your life partner, you’re much more likely to persist because your relationship is on the line.

Or, if you’re trying to lose weight, think about how confident, joyful, and happy you will feel. But more importantly, think about how that will affect the loved ones around you.

Shifting from a self-centered goal to a bigger purpose that affects those you love helps you focus on what you will get out of it, instead of how hard it is.

2. Build a support team

As the popular saying goes, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

The top performers in the world all have a support team to keep them motivated and persistent, from personal coaches, employees, assistants, mentors, accountability partners — the list goes on.

More importantly, you should surround yourself with individuals who have already achieved what you want to achieve. Not only will this affect your speed of learning, but science has shown that it will impact your persistency and resiliency when things get difficult. When you have a clearly-defined purpose, with a state of certainty that you can achieve it, you influence a system in our body called the reticular activating system (RAS), that helps our brains decide what information to focus on and what to delete.

In summary, your mind starts to focus your energy on achieving the goal at hand, instead of unhelpful distractions like doubts and fears.

3. Have a growth mindset

In order to achieve our goals, we often have to get out of our own way.

The author of Mindset, Carol Dweck, spent twenty years researching how our mindset affects success. The research claims that individuals have on of two mindsets. Perhaps you possess the growth mindset, where you thrive on challenges to achieve success. Otherwise, you own a fixed mindset, where you think you were born with whatever talents you have, and there’s not much you can do to change them.

In other words, we should focus on celebrating small wins and progress, knowing that we are continuing to improve, rather than having lofty expectations.

4. Schedule it

The most successful people in the world, including billionaire entrepreneurs, Olympic athletes, and world-class learners, all use schedules to prioritize their day.

Why a schedule as opposed to a simple to-do list?

According to a researcher Kevin Kruse, there are a few key weaknesses of a to-do list:

A to-do list doesn’t account for time. When we have a long list of tasks, we tend to tackle those that can be completed quickly in a few minutes, leaving the longer items left undone. Research from the company iDoneThis indicates that 41% of all to-do list items are never completed!

It doesn’t distinguish between urgent and important. Once again, our impulse is to fight the urgent and ignore the important. (Are you overdue for your next colonoscopy or mammogram?)

To-do lists contribute to stress. In what’s known in psychology as the Zeigarnik effect, unfinished tasks contribute to intrusive, uncontrolled thoughts. It’s no wonder we feel so overwhelmed in the day, but fight insomnia at night.

Instead, we should focus on scheduling our priorities, such as reviewing your Spanish common words, practicing the drums, or writing 500 words for your upcoming book.

What doesn’t get scheduled, doesn’t get done.

5. Teach Others

Have you ever taught something you learned to someone, and found it easier to remember in the future?

This is because when we teach something to someone, our brain is able to register the information more effectively than simply reading about it.

As research shows, it turns out that people retain:

5% of what they learn when they’ve learned from a lecture.
10% of what they learn when they’ve learned from reading.
20% of what they learn from audio-visual.
30% of what they learn when they see a demonstration.
50% of what they learn when engaged in a group discussion.
75% of what they learn when they practice what they learned.
90% of what they learn when they teach someone else to use the information immediately.

This research finding is especially relevant for those wanting to master a new skill.

If you want to learn how to become a better speaker, don’t just watch others do it. You need to immediately use what you’ve learned; then try to ‘teach’ someone else what you’ve just done.

If you’re learning a new language, instead of using one-sided interactions like audio tapes or mobile apps, work with a language teacher or conversation exchange partner to practice what you’re learning.

The key to learning with persistence is to use it (or lose it).

6. Have stakes

Why are we less likely to be late to a business meeting than a meeting with our friends? Because the former could get us fired. As humans, we’re naturally more motivated to commit when there is a consequence or a stake, even if it’s a friendly one.

Research shows that we are three times more influenced by negative consequences than positive consequences, so stakes such as losing money are powerful incentives to use against yourself.

You can make a friendly bet with a friend to keep you honest. Or, try using a program like StickK, where you can set a specific goal with a referee to monitor you, and donate money to a charity as a consequence for not succeeding.

The key is to get someone involved from your support team, and share your goals publicly. The social pressure of affecting your reputation alone will push you further than you can imagine.

BY SEAN KIM

http://www.lifehack.org/321649/6-powerful-ways-become-more-persistent-and-never-quit-again?mid=20151015&ref=mail&uid=687414&feq=daily

ET AWARD STARTUP SPECIAL.....and the award goes to ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR

`Mega Plans' to Disrupt Indian Ecommerce   ...and the award goes to ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR KUNAL BAHL Cofounder, Snapdeal The Entrepreneur of the Year award went to Kunal Bahl, the co-founder and CEO of online marketplace Snapdeal. Bahl, along with another contender for the award, Bhavish Aggarwal, the cofounder of Ola, were part of the jury, but went out of the room when the rest of the jury deliberated the category. One juror said Bahl had demonstrated remarkable maturity , got top talent for the company and recently raised money at a valuation of $5.5 billion (about `35,000 crore) from top global investors. One jury member quoted a senior bureaucrat as saying “Kunal is the next Sunil Mittal.“ Bahl, a Wharton graduate -who alongside childhood friend, schoolmate and IIT Delhi alumnus Rohit Bansal, founded Snapdeal in 2010 -has over the last two years, increasingly shifted the online marketplace from being just another ecommerce company to building a complete ecosystem of goods and services. “It is a phenomenal feeling that validates the many years our team has invested in building a platform that changes lives of millions of small businesses in India. This is surely the highlight of our entrepreneurial journey , one that encourages us to only aim higher and create significant impact for our country ,“ said the 31-year-old in response to being chosen as The Economic Times Entrepreneur of the Year 2015. From snapping up mobile recharge platform Freecharge for about $400 million in March to getting about 2,50,000 sellers to transact on the Snapdeal platform and then providing them with access to cheap capital, Bahl has been a man on a mission. When he decided in 2011 to change Snapdeal's business model from a group buying site to an online market place, he had to face numer ous naysayers. However, his decision proved prescient, with Snapdeal comfortably topping its target to sell fashion products worth $2 billion this fiscal. The challenge is even big ger now, as the company embarks on creating an cosystem that will not only ecommerce ecosystem that will not only provide products ranging from electronics to yachts and apartments, but also services, including utility bill payments and mobile recharges.  “I always knew he had fire in the belly,“ said Vinod Dham,  father of the Pentium chip, whose venture capital fund was an early investor in Snapdeal. The Snapdeal co-founder said the company achieved $4 billion (about `26,000 crore) n total value of goods sold (gross merchandise value or GMV) in August. Given the current landscape, the CEO probably puts it best when he says,  “The plans are mega!“ ET19OCT15