Dancing with fear Fear makes us behave in ways that don’t make sense. It takes the form of perfectionism, procrastination, distraction and whatnot. It makes us feel that we are not ready. It wants us to leave our work and do something else, anything else. If we wait for the fear to
Finding ourselves again. When we are on our creative journey, there can be times when we lose our connection to ourselves. We feel lost, especially when we don’t have a map for the terrain. Alone, in our minds, it is very difficult to find our lost connection. This is where writing helps.
Listening to the author. I love audiobooks. There is something wonderful about your favourite authors whispering wisdom in your ears. Yes, you need to build a taste to listen to audiobooks but it is definitely worth building that skill-set. — If you liked reading this, consider subscribing. If you are already a subscriber, do share
In search for light. There are days when we get engulfed in darkness. The darkness creeps up on us slowly and at times it is difficult to stop letting it take control. Even though it may be tremendously difficult, we should try to find even the smallest flicker of light that can lead us
Talk it out. It’s not necessary that what you think or what you feel is right. Sometimes, it makes sense to talk to others and listen. Our mind is not necessarily kind to the work that we do and does not necessarily understand the impact that we create. — If you liked reading
Making space for solitude. It is more difficult in today’s time than ever. But solitude is where we do good work, we make good art. Because solitude is where we connect with ourselves and find our voice. — If you liked reading this, consider subscribing. If you are already a subscriber, do share with
Going back to the list. It is quite usual to feel lost during the day, especially when we are working alone. What can help is to create a mindful list that we can follow. To arrange the tasks in order, to mindfully add the details so that when we sit down to do the work,
What you don't know. What you don’t know is where there is an opportunity for growth, for curiosity. It is not something to run away from, but something to seek. What new can you learn, what can surprise you today? — If you liked reading this, consider subscribing. If you are already a subscriber,
The work that only you can do. When you do that work, you become unfungible, irrelaceable. You create value that is idiosyncratic and generous. It takes effort to find the work that matters but it is worth the journey. — If you liked reading this, consider subscribing. If you are already a subscriber, do share with your friends.
Acting as if. As a professional, we are expected to show up even if, or especially when, we don’t feel like it. In that moment, it may feel inauthentic to do our work with intent. It might make sense to us to wait until we feel better, more in the zone. But
Me, me, me. It’s very important to get out of the “me, me, me” mindset. It leads to selfish behaviour and a feeling of victimhood. A better way to work through your day is to ask, “How can I be of use?”, “How can I help?” The more we get away from
Busy is not productive. Productive is getting things done, moving forward. When we feel busy, we are rarely productive. It makes sense to take a pause and identify what needs to get done and what done looks like. The work can be effortless if we allow it to be. — If you liked reading this,
Maintaining the status quo. It’s a busy job and it never gets done. If you are waiting to get your ducks in order before you take action, you will never be taking action. Changing the status quo is different. It requires us to focus on the minimum action that will change things for
A pinch of positivity. I attended a wonderful session by the wonderful Shreya Chauhan today. Simple gestures like sharing about how our day went, how we had pleasure with our different senses and what we are grateful for made me release all the stress in my body. These are things that we can do
Minimum Effective Dose (MED) Tim Ferriss talks about Minimum Effective Dose in his book ‘The 4-Hour Body’. It’s the minimum effort needed to achieve a given outcome. Anything over the minimum effective dose is not only wasteful but harmful. It takes our attention away from the necessary and towards the frills. — If you
The magic within us. It needs us to trust ourselves. It needs a safe space. It needs us to be courageous. It needs us to show up. If we show up, the magic will show up too. — If you liked reading this, consider subscribing. If you are already a subscriber, do share with your
Understanding the dip. The Dip is one of the shortest book written by Seth Godin. If we understand the dip, we can go through it with intent. Anything that’s worth doing has a dip where the efforts we put do not show results for a period of time. Whether it is doing
What's next? Forget passion, tell me what’s next for you? What are you scared of? What are you running away from? That’s what’s next? Start doing that. — If you liked reading this, consider subscribing. If you are already a subscriber, do share with your friends.
Getting used to the pain. When we adjust to the status quo, we become quite used to the pain. We start rationalising it. We start accepting it. And getting out of the situation becomes even more difficult. What we need to do is to start becoming serious about changing the status quo. To visualise it,
Writing a blog. Why? Why should one write a blog. Because we have to express. Because when we express, we become creative. We start looking around at the world, at our day with curiosity. We take our experiences and convert them into a readable story for someone, maybe even ourselves, to learn from.
Hours, not years. It’s the hours that matter, not the years. The hours you have spent building the skill, practicing it, mastering it. It could have been through reading, through writing, sketching, watching movies, creating music and whatnot. But the things that come naturally to you, those are the things in which
Send that email. There’s no point delaying it. It is not going to become magically better later. Let the other person say no. Don’t reject yourself. — If you liked reading this, consider subscribing. If you are already a subscriber, do share with your friends.
Solitude and loneliness. Loneliness happens when we feel alone in a group of people. Solitude happens when we are connected with ourselves. Being alone is a good way of finding solitude. Creativity thrives in solitude. How can you find and create more space for solitude in your life? — If you liked reading this,
Being a professional. Being a professional entails self-discipline. The discipline to start work at a pre-set time and to end work at a pre-set time. The discipline to cut short the momentum of Resistance. The discipline of sleeping well and on time and of waking up on time. A professional is not concerned
Doing the difficult work. The work that can change the status quo, can make things better, can make things effortless. That’s the work that brings about Resistance at its worst. It’s almost impossible to sit down and do the work. Everything else seems tempting. But to do the work, despite all the
