My last book, The Shift, was purely Self-Help. However, after being inspired by so many memoirs, I felt that people would resonate if I stopped telling readers what to do and instead shared my own life, experiences, and stories, precisely how they happened.

Discover how my experiences with writing, running, and reflection have guided me towards a more fulfilling life. Learn about the importance of embracing vulnerability and simplifying life to enhance self-awareness and personal growth.

I decided to gobble up the remaining hundred grams in the bag. My impatience and striving were kicking in, even when I was meant to relax and revere the experience.

The procrastination was not circumstantial but was deeper, masked by the many fears lying in my subconscious. During those arid writing months, I’d get my laptop out and proceed to spend the next few hours doing nothing but staring at the blank screen, followed by much ruminating on why I couldn’t write.

Money is a bad value because you can’t always control it. Creativity or industriousness or a strong work ethic are good values because you CAN control them–and doing them well will ultimately generate money as a side effect.

The Rooster Coop is a metaphor for describing how oppressed the poor are in India. The caged roosters at the market watch each other get slaughtered but can’t do anything about it.

This idea of self has been developed rigorously over our developmental years between childhood and adulthood. Unfortunately, it’s characterised by masks, labels, images, and judgments handed down to us by parents, teachers, media, friends, and society.

We have an inner need to belong and connect. Relationships are the bedrock of our emotional well-being. No matter how strong we feel, we need relationships that nurture and sustain our strength throughout our lives.

He explained how his father set him early on the path of reading. Starting when Anas was eight years old, his father would give him a book every month, a literary one—Camus, Tolstoy, Faulkner, etc—and expected him to summarise it over dinner. He told me how he hated the practice at first but was incredibly thankful now.

I’m all for self-care and self-love. I’ve written many times about how, without self-love, we are incapable of loving anyone else. I understand and appreciate that many of us are brought up with a reluctance to take care of ourselves before others.

I was unconsciously letting go of all the resentment, anger and judgement I held inside of me. It was me saying to myself, though it’s true that I had messed up in many areas of my life and that I was in no way living up to 40% of my potential, it was okay.

Quantum physics says we are made up of energy, and when we collide with another body of energy that is in sync, the result is constructive. However, when we collide with another that is not in sync, the opposite happens, and the results are usually destructive.

The alarm goes off, at 6 a.m.
The dread of choosing—shirts, shoes and belts.
He’s happy with fewer trousers, though.
It's Monday. He needs to look business-like.
He drives out at 7.30 a.m. and passes seven traffic lights,

However, as our anxiety and fears grow over time, most of the voices become futile and develop into sabotaging self-limiting beliefs. We start giving ourselves negative feedback, and our lives are now orchestrated by a despotic voice continuously putting us down.

I was the only one on the road—no cars, vendors, or stray dogs. I felt a chill run down my spine, and tears rolled down my cheeks. But I wasn’t tired and didn’t feel any of my usual running pains.

However, after journalling my feelings the next day, I still felt that the apology was insufficient to prevent me from repeating my behaviour. The truth was, after reflection, I always knew where I was going wrong, yet I kept doing it.

He went on to describe that though putting on socks and shoes correctly and meticulously was a small act, it prevented many injuries on the hard basketball floor and taught players the discipline and power of doing things correctly, small or big.

Padel is a racket-based ball sport that could be described as a mixture of squash and tennis. It is played within an enclosed space like squash but shares many similarities with tennis—a net in the middle, where players must pass a ball over the net into an opponent's side by hitting it with their racket. However, in Padel, the walls/fences of the enclosed court are firmly part of the sport's gameplay.

I returned to the drawing room, listened to Andrew Huberman's Podcast on Cold exposure, and understood that I needed to build up some resistance before attempting such a cold plunge.

I then recall a revelation in my journal a few months back. Instead of achievement, I now craved equanimity. I wrote that all I hoped for myself was to live with inner peace and calmness, good health, and freedom from anxiety and overwhelm while satiating my curiosity about life and the world. That’s all I want from the remaining years I have left.