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Work was always supposed to be only a part of life. Let’s reassess the space it is occupying in our heads.    

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My point isn’t about the ‘time’ that work is occupying, it is about the ‘space in the head’. Yup, that’s where the pain-point for us – the modern humans – is. When it comes to life, work should be EQUALLY important, not the MOST. It is not what life should revolve around – mentally or emotionally.

Sample this, now we call our holidays ‘getaways’. Why a ‘get-away’ from work, why can’t we call it a ‘get-towards’ something. Whatever it is – art, nature, family, or life in general – that is what is supposed to be in focus, not what we are getting away from. Well, such rephrasing needs ‘reassessing’.

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Yes, there is so much more to life. If only… we can ‘work it out’ 🙂

It’s amazing how you connect to some people so effortlessly, as if a part of you always knew them.

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With some people, conversation simply flows…there is no need to think of the next thread. Movement of current thought to next and then to the previous and then to other in connection to all the earlier ones is so seamless that you hardly realize it is happening.

It’s almost like a trapeze artist happily flowing from one swing to another. There is a rhythmic pattern of words, smiles, touches, chuckles. There is even an intuitive understanding of when to listen and when to speak…when is a pause a pause and when is it a passing of baton.

And all this happens because…

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…there is ‘total immersion and undivided attention’. 🙂

We are not gonna be around forever, so how about choosing what you ‘pay attention to’ in life!

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Not all of us are lucky to choose our experiences, and those of us who can can’t do it all the time. So whenever you have privilege of a choice, you should exercise that choice to choose what gives you ‘maximum happiness’ without depriving someone else of theirs.

When you do so, some of them will call you choosy, some of them aloof, and then some others will mock you for ‘living in a bubble’. Well, let them say it. That’s their choice. You just stay true to what you have chosen and give it your 100% attention. In the process, you will realize that…

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Life is not what happens to you. It is what you pay attention to. 🙂

When you will see life for long enough, you will find that there are no friends and foes…there is always a phase that comes and goes.

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Yes, when you will see life for long enough, you will stop thinking in terms of ‘types’ and ‘slots’. You won’t categorize people anymore.

You will see the best of your friends leaving you in lurch, and the worst of your adversaries defending you. You will see absolute strangers helping you out of nowhere, and your own people looking at your plight as a bystander. You will see indifference in the eyes of those for whom you slog day in day out, and you will see kindness in eyes that you thought were made of stone.

Well! That’s life – at its ironical, comical, whimsical and lyrical best.

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When you will see life for long enough, you will find that it is a puzzle that no one knows…there is just a stream of experiences that stutters and flows. 🙂

The most unfortunate thing in life is to become victim of your own imagination.

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As a person, sometimes we choose an underlying theme for our ‘life and self’. It comes in many forms – Misunderstood Manisha… Overburdened Ojas… Neglected Nitin… Dominated Daljeet… Adjusting Arjun… Ignored Ishaan… Deprived-of Dominick… Misinterpreted Mehrunisa etc.

After some time, this theme no more remains an inference of an experience but becomes the premise to see them through. Yes, we begin to reinforce the theme either by focusing only on experiences that align with the theme or by interpreting those experiences in the light of the theme.

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And that’s when…we begin to fall prey to our own imagination.

If you respect your morning, the whole day respects you.

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Unless you belong to the tribe of artists who get inspired at oddest hours or are one of the shift-workers who are resigned to their fate being governed by the planning department, you got to realize that the best way you can derive the best from your life is by giving your best to the early hours of the day.

With due respect to the temptation to squeeze every ounce from a day by staying up late, the fact is that the closest you are to almighty SUN’s schedule, the better it is for you – in terms of both efficiency as well as effectiveness. Yup! There is something about being in synch with the rest of the ecology.

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If you doubt, just try it for 45 days. Well! If you don’t find a difference, you can always sleep over it. 🙂

Even Santa doesn’t come without a Claus(e) 🙂   

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In life, very few things are unconditional. For most of them, there are clear conditions. Those conditions are tacit and unsaid, left to be understood on your own. And not surprisingly, as long as you agree to conditions, you enjoy the privilege.

For instance, when the world gives money, it often takes your time away from you…When world gives fame, it often takes away your privacy…When world gives love, it often takes away your right to object…When world gives authority, it often takes away your freedom.

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Well! This Christmas, let’s plan to at times give…and not take away much in return. After all, if not for my parenthesis, Santa still comes without a clause. 🙂

The problem with spotlight is that it often takes away your attention from what brought you into it.

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You start to do something for the love of it. Actually that’s why you do it well. But now when you do it well, you are spotted. And then come the perks – the recognition, benefits and repute. And gradually, your love shifts from ‘what you are doing’ to ‘what you are getting’. That’s the first nail…

Moreover, you now get addicted to being liked. So you care less about what you feel about your work and get more conscious about what others say about your work. Then this desire to ‘look good’ leads to wearing of masks that don’t feel good but help you sustain a persona. That’s the second nail…

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Yup, another problem with spotlight is that it forces you to hide your dark spots behind a makeup. 🙂

At times, there is nothing wrong with the other person. It’s just that you outgrow a relationship.

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When you enter a relationship, you do so in a particular set of coordinates – that of age, circumstances, priorities, maturity level etc. Now, the other person looks a perfect-fit on criteria or notions you have at that time. So you enter with a promise to stay forever, and no plan to ever exit. But you forget to factor-in one thing – change. Yup, both of you change with time.

However, as luck would have it, you two change differently. Yes, axis is same but curves are different. And that’s when you find it difficult to connect to the same person. Well! Of course, you don’t leave it there. You understand & wait…reason & explain to yourself. But you know what, right or wrong, the fact is that you’ve outgrown the relationship. And it’s time for two of you to…

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…sit, discuss, rework, and if required…decide.

There comes a point in life when you decide that now you won’t do anything you don’t believe in.

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Many times in the name of desperation, some times in the name of maturity, at times in the name of accommodating, and at other times in the name of stability, most of us keep doing either the things that we don’t feel convinced about or in ways that we don’t have complete conviction in.

And then, one day, suddenly you discover that you have had enough. At once, all reasons of holding back are no more as appealing or appalling, and force within is too strong for the rationalization to bear. In such moments, don’t just jump off the bus. Wait for storm to pass, and then…

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…crosscheck whether you are equally clear about ‘what you believe in’.