A mix of topics in this week’s selection covering the state of Asian corporates, how to work through an ‘off’ day, tips to write better and one of the most thought-provoking and inspiring articles I have read in a while.

Corporate Asia: A Capital Paradox – A detailed look at the state of Corporate Asia. It does not, unfortunately, paint a very pretty picture. “…capital-intensive Asian companies are not necessarily generating economic profit; this may not be sustainable in the long-term.” Looking forward to reading more in this series from McKinsey & Company.

Sloggy Days – When You Don’t Want To Do Anything – Most of us, I am sure, would have gone through days in our lives when we just do not feel like doing anything. It happened to me last week after a relatively hectic weekend of traveling and work. Rather than fight through it, I just decided to take the afternoon off and have a nap. It really helped. I accept that I am lucky in that I possibly have far more control over my daily schedule than a typical ’employee’. In case you are going through one of such days, you might find this article helpful.

Turning a Passion into a Profession – I have also enjoyed writing. And for the past 18 months or so that I have been maintaining this blog, I have given myself liberty to express myself on topics that catch my fancy. I do not consider myself a very good writer, but my belief is that you can only get better with practice. Please read this article if you would like to explore the creative side of your personality, or indeed have a desire to get better at something. And while on the topic of writing, you might also want to check out this video on ‘3 Ways to Write Better‘.

Stay Weird – A powerful article on the tendency of most corporates to demand conformity from their employees, leading to group think and the killing of individuality. The solution – Stay Weird. In this day and age of ‘diversity hiring’, the real need of the hour is for corporates to celebrate the diversity of thought within their ranks., thereby enabling employees to bring their ‘best selves’ to work every single day (except maybe when they are having a ‘sloggy day’ :-)).