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By:

Divyaa Advaani 

2 November 2024 at 3:28:38 am

Your Brand Is Losing Business

Right now, somewhere in this city, a highly accomplished professional is losing a room — and has no idea it is happening. Not because he lacks knowledge. Not because he lacks credibility. But because nobody has ever told him the truth: that the way he communicates is quietly costing him business, trust, and opportunity — one conversation at a time. I know this because I sat across from exactly such a person not long ago. Decades of experience. Multiple leadership roles. A genuine desire to...

Your Brand Is Losing Business

Right now, somewhere in this city, a highly accomplished professional is losing a room — and has no idea it is happening. Not because he lacks knowledge. Not because he lacks credibility. But because nobody has ever told him the truth: that the way he communicates is quietly costing him business, trust, and opportunity — one conversation at a time. I know this because I sat across from exactly such a person not long ago. Decades of experience. Multiple leadership roles. A genuine desire to give back, to guide, to create impact in a new chapter of his career. When he spoke, you could feel the depth. And yet, within minutes of any conversation, something would shift. The other person would grow quiet. Questions would stop. Follow-up calls would not come. He could not understand it. I could see it immediately. "His problem was not what he knew. It was that he could not stop sharing all of it at once." This is what I call the knowledge trap — and it catches the best people. High-achievers, founders, senior professionals who have spent decades accumulating expertise. In conversation, they give everything. Every insight, every example, every caveat. The intention is generosity. The impact is overwhelm. The listener does not leave inspired — they leave exhausted. And they do not come back. Think about the last high-stakes conversation you had — a pitch, a partnership discussion, a client meeting. Did you walk away certain it went well, only to hear nothing for days? Did you find yourself wondering what went wrong when everything felt right to you in the room? That silence is not coincidence. More often than not, it is a personal brand problem wearing the disguise of a business problem. When we began working together, I did not start with his online presence — even though it badly needed attention. I did not start with his positioning or his profile. I started where every personal brand must start: the inside. Specifically, his communication — the gap between what he intended to convey and what the other person was actually able to receive. He resisted at first. Like most accomplished people, he found it difficult to accept that the very habits that had built his career were now working against him. But when I showed him the framework — and more importantly, when he tested it in a real conversation and felt the room respond differently — something clicked. He called me shortly after and said: "For the first time, I felt in control of the room — instead of just being in it." "The goal is never to empty yourself into a room. The goal is to make the room want to come back for more." That is the exact moment a personal brand begins to work for you. Not when you know more than everyone else. But when people feel understood by you — and sense there is more where that came from. Once that foundation was solid, everything else followed. His online presence — scattered, confusing, unconvincing — was rebuilt around a clear and authentic narrative. Inbound enquiries, which had been absent, began arriving. He stopped chasing conversations and started attracting them. Here is the question I want to leave you with — answer it honestly: when you walk out of a room, do people feel energised by the exchange, or quietly relieved it is over? If you hesitated even for a second, that hesitation is your answer. And it is costing you more than you realise — in deals not closed, partnerships not formed, and opportunities that quietly chose someone else. Your personal brand is not your logo or your LinkedIn headline. It is the impression you leave in every room, online and offline, before you have said a word and long after you have left. Building it right — from the inside out — is the highest-return investment a founder or business owner can make today. The founders who invest in their personal brand stop chasing business — and start attracting it. I offer a free 30-minute Founder Brand Audit — a focused, no-fluff conversation where we identify exactly where your personal brand is working against you and what one shift can change. I take on a maximum of four of these calls each week. If this article made you stop and think, that is reason enough to book yours before this week's slots close. Book your free session here: calendly.com/divyaaadvaani/founder-brand-audit (The writer is a personal branding expert. She has clients from 14+ countries. Views personal.)

Indian Shipbuilding A Must Win Marathon

Shipbuilding

With a coastline of 7500 KM, it is hard to imagine, that for the first 20 years (1947-1967) India had no ‘shipping ministry’. In 1967 a Shipping ministry “coupled” with ROAD transport was established. Since then, this ministry has been on a name changing ride, not once, not twice but six times. In 2009 the “ROAD Transport and Highways” was de-coupled and ‘Shipping’ ministry was formed. Turning point came in 2015 with a clear maritime vision for 2030 and 2047. Ministry was re-christened, aptly to Ministry of “Ports, Shipping and Waterways” in 2020.


Why is Shipbuilding important for a country?

a. A Shipyard becomes an opportunity hub and like a queen bee requires the support of an industrial colony to manufacture machinery and equipment.

b. National Shipyards support fleet renewal needs of the Navy.

c. Contributes to national GDP, increases inflow of FOREX.


Korea shipbuilding is 8% of GDP. Japan’s automobile industry is 2.9% of GDP. India’s shipbuilding a meagre 0.000578% of GDP. In context, India’s pharmaceutical industry, ranked third largest in the world is 1.72% of India’s GDP.


International Shipbuilding Market

The market is estimated to reach around USD 200 billion by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 4.84%. While India is at bottom with 0.07% of world share, behind Philippines 1.5% and Vietnam 1%, however on the positive side, India has done well in taking care of its defence needs, with 37 of 39 Naval ships being built in India yards. Rear Admiral S Shrikhande researching on maritime as a Fellow at Wollongong University, Australia, says “Shipbuilding in India needs both, serious incentivisation and dogged determination and not harping on being a big ship breaking country. That Garden Reach shipyard has a $54 million order for merchant ships from a German owner, is a good sign.”


Were Shipyards of 20th century in Flight mode?

Prominent shipyards in India were built in the colonial period. Mazagon Dock 1774, Garden reach 1884, Hindustan shipyard 1941 to cater to British navy and merchant fleet needs. Cochin shipyard 1972, Adani Katupalli 2013, Reliance Naval and Engineering, Rajula Gujarat 1997 and others have limited capacity, hence a lot more work to do. Capt. Subhangshu Dutt (Singapore) a mariner and now a shipowner, says “GOI should hold hands in any collaboration till the marriage with the foreign entity is reasonably stable. He also suggests that “new shipbuilding sites should be given to existing successful shipyards since they have decades of experience and talent. Consortium of 3 or more parties may also be good idea”.


Shipbuilding GOLD

As per SPLASH report the demand for LCO2 carriers could reach 2,500 ships by 2050. As per other estimates, 40% of global fleet of ships could have wind propulsion by 2050. A surge in such vessels is due to an unparallel waves of decarbonization in the shipping industry. Demand for ships with ‘carbon neutral’ badges, such as Dual fuel, Wind assisted, Nuclear fuel ships, Hydrogen powered ships, Liquified CO2 (LCO2) carrier, is outstripping supply. A must in the ‘bucket list’ of every Shipyard. Pinning down a standard ROI in shipbuilding is not easy, but experts suggest it could range from 4% to 15% for the high demand ‘carbon neutral’ ships. While an LNG new build vessel could cost US$ 250 million upwards.


International collaboration

On China’s shipbuilding success story, Manoj Pandalanghat (Singapore) a mariner and ship owner believes that “China has around 50 active Shipyards. Each have a few large dry docks. In each dock two or more large vessels are built simultaneously. Thus, a single yard is able to roll out 2/3 vessels/month, 36 vessels/year and 50 shipyards roll out 1800 vessels/year”.


China could be a jaldi-5, but India needs a sturdy Mount Fiji. Besides technology, Japanese bring the most important hand baggage of soft-skills and culture, essential for success from keel laying to delivery. Maruti’s is a standing example.


Food for thought for New Delhi

a. Expertise: Hire Naval Architects and shipbuilding experts with current international experience.

b. Government assistance: Land, Financial support, subsidies and timebound clearances.

c. Monitoring: PMO should monitor the first 5 to 10 years till Shipbuilding takes-off on this long-haul flight to destination 2047.


India’s Shipbuilding is expected to grow to $237 billion by year 2047. On a back of the envelope calculations this works out to about 4% of India’s 2047 projected GDP of $ 5 trillion. While cars are driven on roads, however the Ministry of roads and transport has little to do with “Automobile manufacturing”. On a similar note, ‘Shipbuilding’ as an industry has little to do with Ports, Shipping and Waterways, thus it may be worthwhile to consider a separate ‘Ship-building’ wing in the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways headed by a dynamic cabinet rank minister. Since 2047 targets are stiff and an uphill task, so in all probabilities, the officials in Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways are likely to push beneath the carpet, delays and failures of Shipbuilding with sweet success stories of “Ports, Shipping and Waterways” and if this does happen then India will not only miss the Shipbuilding bus of 21st century but a lot more from a national security and strategic perspective.


(The author is a Shipping and Marine consultant. Member Singapore Shipping Association and empaneled with IMO as a specialist consultant. Views personal.)

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