An interesting new book by a Malayali happened to catch my attention (since he sent it to me!). In The Winning Formula: 52 Ways to Change Your Life, KJ Alphons, former IAS officer, former LDF-supported Independent MLA, former BJP minister and now a member of the ruling party’s national executive, upends Sören Kierkegaard’s universally-accepted maxim that life is lived forwards, but understood backwards.

Reminding us throughout that we “are just one step away from being extraordinary,” and that prodigiousness is an attainable quality, Alphons encourages us to foster a formidable will. For if the sails of our life’s ship are propelled by the winds of resolve, we can chart out the entire course of our existence, all while striving on and on, our arms outstretched towards our loftiest dreams. Only when we lapse into complacency, Alphons seems to argue, when we are unwilling to step out of our comfort zone, are we constrained, as the Danish existentialist put it, to understand life backwards. But if we are willing to challenge ourselves, wage a battle against our own indolence and ignorance, then we are apt to succeed and soar -- as Alphons has, throughout his life.

Alphons’ has been a fascinating life, and fascinatingly does he narrate it. His is a saga to which not only every aspirational youngster and ambitious adult, but every spirited child, will relate. After all, here is a man who rose from being an indifferent school student -- who scored a derisory forty-two percent in his Class 10 Board Examinations -- to one of the toppers of the immensely competitive Indian Administrative Service examinations in 1979, thus becoming a jewel in India’s governmental crown. From here there was no going back: an impressive career in the IAS followed, first as the District Collector of Kottayam, which became under his stewardship the first town in India to achieve 100 percent literacy; and later as the Commissioner of the Delhi Development Authority, during which stint, as he vigorously sought to crack down on illegal constructions and organised crime, his family lived in the shadow of threats, all because Alphons showed the courage to effect meaningful change.

At fifty-two, realising that through politics one can herald revolutionary changes, Alphons resigned as the Land Revenue Commissioner of Kerala and leapt into the turbulence of electoral politics -- and, upon contesting an assembly election as an independent candidate with the backing of the Left Front, won at his first attempt. The trail he now began to blaze, which won him a best MLA award in 2009, whetted his urge to serve his fellow Indians (and not just fellow Keralites) on a larger scale. This catapulted him to the BJP and to New Delhi, where, in 2017, he became a Union Minister, with independent charge, of tourism, as also the Minister of State for Information Technology and Electronics, for three years.

Losing those positions was something he took in stride. "I believe that humility has to be at the core of a politician’s character," he writes while reflecting on his journey, "as the people have elected me to be their representative. It is a humbling experience. When God and the citizen entrust me with power and authority, how could I not be humble?" I could not agree more. There can be no greater satisfaction than knowing, when you go to bed at night, that you have served your country well. And this is the satisfaction that Alphons has known.

Yet at no point in The Winning Formula is Alphons boastful -- or preachy. Of hubris there is no trace in this book; indeed, Alphons writes in the Introduction that he is writing this book not to tell us that he is exceptional, but to convince us that he is not. "Yes," he says, "I have done things other considered impossible." But then he immediately adds: "Whatever I have done with my life, you can do it better than I did. Lot of people don’t believe in their abilities. You just have to believe in yourself and your destiny. Dream the big dream. You have to work hard to make those dreams a reality."

Throughout The Winning Formula, Alphons exalts numerous ordinary Indians whose heroic deeds made them extraordinary, urging us to follow their example. If he includes himself among their ranks -- and, have no doubt about it, he very much belongs there -- he does so not to toot his own horn but to crystallise the ideals he seeks to instil in us, for as he writes: "There are autobiographical elements in this book as I thought it would be easier for you to relate to my life... "

What a commendable range of lessons -- fifty-two of them, one for each week of the year -- Alphons has chosen to impart in The Winning Formula! So this volume runs the gamut from what changes we can make in our lifestyles to counteract climate change (in Jadav Payeng: A Beacon of Hope for the Planet) to how thinking outside the box (in With Them They Brought Light) is at times the only way forward.

Drawing on both his memory and the headlines, Alphons sheds much-needed light on the lives of some sadly unknown Indians who, hailing from different parts of the country and disparate socio-economic backgrounds, rose to serve their country and their compatriots, spreading love and laughter beyond the superficial barriers of religion and language; and, in so doing, served the cause of a peaceful and progressive India.

Sometimes playful, sometimes poignant, instructive and illuminating, Alphons’ The Winning Formula: 52 Ways to Change Your Life is bound to make you reflect on your thoughts and actions, and learn and unlearn in equal measure, paving the way to an inspired life which, in due course, will empower you to lead an inspiring life. For this we are much beholden to the author -- though I suspect that he will consider himself amply rewarded if we seriously engage with this enriching work, seeking to imbibe the ideals he outlines. Not everyone will support his political choices, but that’s a different subject. For now, Alphons the author deserves our attention.