Butterflies in the stomach... When we start being our best selves, when we start shipping, when we show up, we start getting butterflies in our stomachs. This happens because we have created tension not only for others but also for ourselves. The tension is an indicator that we have taken action which might not
Getting to the other side. Shipping is like crossing the river and getting to the other side, the client's side. The heavier we make the stuff that we need to carry across the river, the more difficult it would be to get to the other side. What's the minimum that you
Do the hard part first. It's easy to get bogged down by urgent stuff and to say that I will do the important work later. But it never works like that. Once you give in to the urgent, it's very difficult to come back to the important. Instead, if you focus
Change happens through action. Whether it is about getting into a better shape or finding someone you would like to date or improving your income, everything is about creating change. Change is scary and there is a tendency to procrastinate when we seek to make change. Plans and discussions often give an illusion of
What did you ship last week? Yes, you had meetings. Yes, you made a lot of notes. Yes, there are a lot of drafts. Yes, you worked really hard. But what did you share with prospective clients? What went out in the world? What you ship can lead to an outcome, whether good or bad. But
Off the track. When we go off the track, it seems as if everything is slipping. The systems that we have put into place are no longer working. It seems that we need to do something radical to get back on track. But the reason the systems are not working are not because
Sometimes, it's not as bad as it seems... And many times, it's not as good as it seems, either. At every moment, we have the ability to make things better or worse. It's the choice we make, the action we decide upon and take, that determines where things will go from where we are.
Constraints and boundaries. What are the constraints that are affecting your decision-making and choice of project? What would you do if these constraints were no longer there? What can you do to ensure that these constraints get eliminated? On the other hand, what are the boundaries, the constraints that are there only in
Can we decide not to doubt ourselves? The universe will keep giving us signs that we are better than we think we are. There would be mentors, coaches, friends, clients, and even strangers who would come up to us and tell us how good we are. Yet, we choose to ignore them all and keep listening to
Anti-hustle. What would it look like if it were easy? How can we allocate things more time than we think they need? What can we do now that will make our job easier later? Hustle is about creating urgency and stress. Anti-hustle is about removing them and moving forward.
What's your schedule? When do you start work? When do you end it? When do you take breaks? If we don't respect the schedule, we build work habits that can't sustain us. If our day ends when we are done with our work, then it would never end until
Money and emotions. Can we ask "What is money for?"? Sure, it's to pay the bills and gain another month in our kitty. But, what is it actually for? Is money a constraint or a tool? How do we see it when we earn it as against when we
Being kind to yourself. Sometimes, it may not be you who's at fault. Sometimes, you can give yourself the benefit of the doubt. Sometimes, you can ask yourself to just be and let it go. It may not be easy. It may not feel natural. But, it may be worth trying.
Who's it for? If you are planning a date, would you choose to design it specifically keeping someone in mind? Would you choose the restaurant your partner likes to go to or the one where your friends like to hang out at? What about your work? Who would you keep in mind while
Who do you imitate? Choose a group where your desired behaviour is the normal behaviour. - James Clear, Atomic Habits We are social creatures and have a tendency to imitate those we surround ourselves with. This is genetically ingrained and extremely powerful. And we can use this to design and build the life we
"When you decide" determines "what you choose". If you decide what you will eat when you are hungry, you are more likely to eat what's near and convenient over what's healthy and better for you. If you decide what you will do when you are low on energy, you are more likely to
Making better decisions. When we make decisions, the status quo has a big advantage because change is ambiguous and scary. And hence, even when we need to make a decision, we many times choose not to or put it off for later. One way to counter this is to look at the status
Entering the dip. The Dip is the long slog between starting and mastery. A long slog that’s actually a shortcut, because it gets you where you want to go faster than any other path. ~ Seth Godin, The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick) First,
The skill of compassion. Compassion means making space for others to share things without judgement, without condemnation, so that they can work on their blind spots and become better. There are people who show up in the world with compassion and make it a better place for everyone. They help others in making their
The challenge of coaching humans. AI doesn't need a coach. It can set an objective and then follow that objective from point A to point B. The challenge which makes working with humans interesting is that we are emotional beings. And our emotions have a tendency to make us adapt and change our
Overcoming emotional labour. When we are good at something, when we know that we are good at it, emotions hardly play a role in how we approach it. On the other hand, when we struggle with something, the biggest challenge is to overcome the emotional hurdle. A student who is good at maths
Making way for your audience to reach you. As a creator or freelancer, you live in your reality, the place where you are certain about things and people, the place where you know your stuff, and the place where you know who you can trust. That's your sphere of reality. And for you, it is difficult
Keep writing. The voice in your head will keep doing its job. It will keep telling you that you are not in the right state of mind, that you should come back later to this, that tomorrow will be better somehow. But if you keep doing your job, if you simply take
Outputs and inputs. Outputs can help us in setting goals and also in checking whether we are on track to achieving them or not. But they do not help us in moving forward towards our goals. What helps in achieving the goals are the input metrics. That's what matters. If you
Possibility lies beyond reality. Reality is about the way things are and the way things have been. Reality is certain and predictable. There is a sense of comfort in rooting ourself in reality. But change and growth have nothing to do with the way things are or the way they have been. They are