Harish Bhat on new book 'Office Secrets' and the joys of being able to laugh at ourselves

With increasing corporatisation across all sectors, there has never been a greater need to hold on to human truths, the fulcrum that keeps offices going and professional relationships thriving.

In the last decade, Harish Bhat, presently the brand custodian at Tata Sons, who has held diverse roles with the Tata Group over the last 35 years, has emerged as a prominent voice dispelling corporate and marketing myths, making navigating professional workspaces easier, helping countless employees live fuller lives.

The author of five books including the bestseller Tata Stories, he is out with his latest, Office Secrets, which is a repertoire of 50 nuggets of wisdom to help you excel at work and in life. A page-turner, it highlights the importance of daydreaming, listening, writing, kindness, taking quick breaks after every hour, using notebooks, and praising others. While at it, Bhat also generously doles out handy, useful mantras no one talks about but everyone needs to succeed—how to recover from unending meetings, ask questions that matter, find the hotspot for ideas, what to wear when, and what to do when you fly.

In this exclusive interview, Harish Bhat talks about all of this, his love for writing, and gives valuable advice on the healing power of doing nothing, not taking our corporate avatars too seriously, and finding balance in the age of hustling.

I love narrating stories. I love the written word. I enjoy the ring of words as they drop in together to form a beautiful phrase. Most importantly, when I write, I feel really happy. For me, writing has been an internal impulse, something that has been an area of great interest since my school days. Positive feedback from readers encouraged me to write even more. In the past several years, writing has also become an important way of contributing something meaningful to the world around me. This is very much the case with my latest book Office Secrets which narrates 50 human truths that have the potential to help all of us who work in offices.

Over a decade ago, when I wrote my first book Tata Log, I had it all mapped out in my mind before I commenced the actual process of writing. The ideation had already happened within me, and the structure of the book was very clear. In contrast, with my later books, the structure has been somewhat fluid when I begin the process of creating the book. There is of course a core idea to begin with, and then I permit the book to evolve—through the organic progress of writing, personal reflections, and discussions with my publisher and editor.

Each of the 50 chapters in this book is a favourite. Because they address diverse themes that are all equally relevant. But if I were to pick one chapter that impacted me most as I wrote it, it would be the one on kindness. Kindness is such an important yet underrated aspect of our workplaces. It is a foundational human truth. As I explain in this chapter, kindness is a brilliant stress buster, it builds beautiful relationships, and it makes people feel really good. Kindness should not be mistaken for being soft—some of the best leaders I know have been genuinely kind people, but they have been tough taskmasters as well.

Generosity, kindness, and hard work. I learned these office secrets early in my career from my first boss, the late R.K. Krishna Kumar, who was a legend of the Tata Group. In fact, I have dedicated this book to him. I would like to add a fourth office secret that has also helped me greatly—which is to always take our work seriously, but never to take oneself too seriously. The ability to laugh at ourselves is very important, and many of the essays in this book are written in this happy spirit of light irreverence. That is why this book is likely to make you laugh out loud, even as you resonate with its themes.

To be honest, I am rather intense at work and do tend to take my corporate avatar quite seriously. However, I find that personal and fun conversations with friends and colleagues on subjects that lie outside the boundaries of work—such as books, movies, sports, and food—ensure that I tone down my seriousness. In particular, long and highly engaged chats about food take me very far away from my corporate self, because I am such a foodie at heart. Food really gets me going as a person.

Whether working from home or from the office, one of my top tips is to minimise digital distractions. To ensure deep focus on work, the mobile phone is best kept far away. Digital benefits us in so many ways, but these devices also constantly distract us if we are not careful. That’s why I have postulated new rules for the workplace, such as the Mobile Distance Axiom and the Group Disruption Theorem.  You will enjoy reading these rules and many more of their kind in Office Secrets. The other tip I would like to offer is to get up from your seat at least once an hour and walk around a little bit. That rejuvenates me hugely when I come back to my work table. I have written about this too in Office Secrets.

Doing nothing is one of the most challenging things to do. Let me tell you what typically works for me. I find that I can do nothing when I am at ease with myself, without any undue agitation cruising through my mind. I also find that on days when I stop feeling guilty about doing nothing, then I can really do nothing. Sometimes, soft and relaxing music also helps greatly in doing nothing. But then, of course, I am listening to music, so technically I am doing something, though actually, this is helping me do nothing.

For me, being curious is the best way to stay creative. When I ask questions, try to discover new truths, seek exposure to new things, and engage in stimulating and open-ended conversations on a range of subjects, all these acts of curiosity stoke my creative brain. That, in turn, leads to new ideas evolving in my mind.

The motivation to do better every day comes from being inspired by the best in the world. For instance, with respect to writing, when I read the works of masters such as Gabriel Garcia Marquez or R.K. Narayan, I ask myself – what can I learn from them today, and how can this learning help me take my own next step towards becoming a better writer?

The hustle culture has become part of many of our lives, regardless of our age. Hustling is Gen-agnostic, if you ask me. One good way of striking a balance is to try to excel in whatever you do, without constant comparison with others, and without seeking to impress others. In an interesting story in Office Secrets, I have referred to this as JEDI – which is an acronym for Just Excel, Don’t Impress.

I have greatly enjoyed my long career with the Tata Group, and I continue to relish my current role as Brand Custodian at Tata Sons. The Tata group has provided me with a wonderful professional home, for which I am truly grateful.

But over the years, I have realised that two professional passions excite me and drive me—marketing and writing. I love both these areas, and they keep me intellectually alive and kicking. Therefore, I hope to continue to actively engage in both these passions during the years ahead. At this stage in my life, it is also very important to me to add value to my colleagues, particularly to young people. I try my best to do this today and will keep this objective firmly in mind for the future as well.