Fish, Faith, and Filter-less Teams
Learning from unlikely places: health advice and hiring calls
The year was 2008. The month was March. I was diagnosed with chicken pox.
It’s not an uncommon occurrence-this happens to many during that time of the year. Now, chicken pox has a religious angle in West Bengal (and probably in a few other pockets in India). It is often attributed to the blessings of Shitala Ma (one form of Durga).
After being diagnosed, one generally avoids non-veg food for 8-10 days. The whole household follows this custom. And for a middle-class Bengali family-those who can afford to eat fish every day-not eating any non-veg is a big deal.
So, when I had chicken pox, my mom visited the doctor. The doc prescribed the usual diet and a few medicines. My mom asked him whether eating non-veg during this time is bad for health. He smiled and said it’s actually great if someone does, but he doesn’t suggest it to patients since it’s considered a religious event. He just advised cooking with less oil.
I never followed a strict veg diet during that time and rejoined school in 5–6 days. Though I remember one distinct feeling-when I was climbing the third stair on my first day of school, it felt like I was in someone else’s body.
Anyway, coming back to current times. Last year, I visited a dietitian after a blood test showed high cholesterol. I had to watch my food intake and lose a few kilos. My mom was skeptical when I told her I was visiting a dietitian here (in Hyderabad). She kept insisting that they would give me a veg-only diet, which wouldn’t suit me at all, and suggested I contact someone from our hometown instead. But I was adamant-it was 2024, there was no way someone would do that.
To my absolute surprise, I was prescribed a strict veg-only diet. The average calorie intake was around 1200 per day, and the protein intake was around 10 grams daily—which was significantly low for me as I’m very active in day-to-day life. It felt like the dietitian had a very myopic view and was only catering to a certain demographic.
I came back home, started counting calories, and adjusted my meals. Six months later, I had lost around 9 kgs (I think I’ve gained a few back in the last two weeks—but well!) and my cholesterol levels were much better (still a bit high but huge reduction). My average protein intake during this time was around 100 grams per day. All the scientific literature highlighted that protein- and fiber-rich meals are crucial for weight loss-and it paid off.
Now, coming to the main point of this post:
Diversity is an essential element when it comes to solving problems. And this, more often than not, might not come from the usual DEI programs.
Both my doctor and dietitian initially suggested remedies shaped by their exposure to a less diverse set of people. But my doctor was wise enough to know the science behind it-and that prompted him to suggest something that was considered rather radical.
For corporate teams-especially tech teams-to succeed, you need people from diverse professional backgrounds. And the best way to achieve that is by setting the bar high and not putting up unnecessary filters like “Only B.Tech grads” or “Only Tier 1/2 colleges.” Instead, ask for proof of work and evaluate that. Let their work speak for itself.
The most diverse team I was a part of in my short (~4 years) career was also the most effective and high-performing Analytics and DS team I’ve encountered. We had people from all sorts of backgrounds: Mechanical + Operations Research (me), Economics, MBA-Finance, Computer Science, Statistics, BBA, Mathematics, etc. The only missing piece was Biology-and I’m sure if we had come across someone good from that domain, we would’ve taken her in.
And not surprisingly, the team had people from all over India.
We had only one filter: be good and efficient.
I guess that’s still the best way to build a diverse team.
Maybe someone in your circle needs to read this too.