control

I keep hearing about the challenges our country is facing. We have become the most populous. There is a sharp price rise. From healthcare to education, everything has gotten costlier. The concept of the middle class is fading.

We can think nothing is going our way. We blame the government for all the failures. It feels like our society has become a fight club. Vices like anger and cheating have taken over empathy, love, and joy.

We feel stressed and live in isolation, or take things in our control and work on our strengths. We can create jobs and feed many. Every adversity also throws opportunity.

happy

Do you know what makes you happy?
The moments you would like to cherish: the birth of your child, marrying your sweetheart, winning a lottery. It could differ for each one of us.

Not everyone is lucky enough to think for a moment. Some run to make a living like a robot. Just having food on the plate is everything.

Our needs and wants are different. We have increased our hapiness goalpost.

Planning

It’s been closer to two months for me in Dubai.
The city gives me goosebumps.
The buildings, roads, and other public infrastructure are mind-blowing.
I understand that the country has oil.
It has money and a migrated population.

The process, planning, and governance have been the real reason for the success. Who would have imagined a city in the desert housing a cosmopolitan?

ship

You have to internalize as a leader about your sail.
Swimming in the ocean is not easy.
It comes with it’s challenges. But it’s the team, and grit keeps sailing against all odds.

In the end, a lot depends on the captain. He brings unlimited optimism and belief with trust in his team.

progress

Humanity has come to a new high. We were animals. We got civilized with society coming this far. It was a gradual process. We learned from our mistakes, iterated, and progressed.

The same applies in our lives or at work. Everything takes time to come to a level of progress. Our physical and mental formation evolved with surroundings and climatic changes.

Calling

We all have our calling. Some get lucky early on, while others take ages to find out. This continuous itch within to go to the very next keeps us alive. We inspire ourselves, get lost, and wander while on the journey of finding out.

The guys starting KFC and McDonald’s took 50-plus years. So our calling can come anytime at any age. It means we have to continue with our journey, not give up.

blame

Why do we blame others? Could it be because we are unhappy with ourselves? Somewhere deep inside, we have that lingering urge of unfulfilled love.

Can we see the world clearly with a void inside? When we are broken and fighting every morning within. When we are hating ourselves within?

others

Do you know what your cook, co-passenger, or chauffeur is going through? Mostly not.
We are so engaged in our world that thinking outside is the last of our concerns.
When was the last time you called your parents or grandparents?

We migrated for better living to other cities and countries. The large families ended up becoming nuclear. On top of it, our cost of living increased, and we had to work harder and more hours to survive.

The sense of togetherness and belonging to a community is getting eroded. We are now on ourselves. Our individuality has taken over. The urge to own everything and be the best at everything is only blinding us.

We are so lost in seeking validation from others that we have no clue about others or who we are deep within.

cost

People will do favors for you because they like you.
The world we live in has a likeability quotient.
We are part of this community or cluster or a tribe.

We have to ask ourselves how much others matter to us.
At what point do we change ourselves to be liked by others?

We should have our guiding principles. Something that keeps us sailing in the worst of times.

I am not saying we should not change. But what I am saying is, at what cost?

work

We imagine a perfect world.
Our list of wants is unending, and we have to earn it. We also need to work hard for it. Dreaming can only take us to one place. But the real magic happens when we start executing.

Our ideas are worth a dime, something we should remember. In the end, it’s the result. What matters in the end is how you deliver.

All speak, and no talk can temporarily elevate your stature. But it will be short-lived. As a rule of thumb, let your work speak for itself.