World

We are so engrossed in ourselves and our lives that it becomes our world. The dream is ours; our obsession takes us to new heights. The undaunting hard work of ours mixes passion, profession, and personal life as one.

As we run, move, skid, crawl to make our lives, we forget about everything else. In most instances, people and the world around us. Those pillars of our life in the early years take a back seat. The idleness and undoing get no importance. We become slaves to the world within. Many call it ambition and hard work, but I question it, though.

Our life, ambition, and world should all be intertwined. It can’t be that one gets on the back foot because of others. Something I am trying to get better at in my life as well.

Shortcut

The media glorifies jugaar methods of us Indians. While in the short run, we garner media attention, and the hype cycle gets us eyeballs. When we see it in the long term, it fades without any warning.

Our minds and media attention are limited to a short span. Everything that garners wide acceptance in the short run fades if it fails to deliver its value.

All the great things take time. The shortcut will get you likes, eyeballs, and demos. What works in the long run is adding value.

narrative

We are living in a narrative: a script presented before our eyes. Most of the time, it is promoted by a celebrity, influencer, or the media. That is how cinema once shaped our society.

After the cellphone and mobile internet revolution, we are living a reel life, not a real one. Everything around us makes us feel miserable: be it our looks, our job, or our relationships.

The fear of missing out has become primal. Every minute, we are running to become better than our peers or our competitors. In short, we are mirroring ourselves against the rest of the world, trying to become one of them.

future

Look around yourself, talk to your friends. Most people will have a bucket list, plans, savings, and so on for the future. Pick a newspaper, and you will find a section with future in stock tips and horoscopes. The same applies to business; everything is driven by future targets and milestones.

What do we observe? We are a civilization living in the future. Every other advertisement talks about making you better < of course, after you pay for the product, in the future>

The world of ours is to live moment to moment. It is about being here now, making the most of it. What have we ended up with? A world towards a better future, at least assured to have a protected future.

Our life is simple. We have to live in every breath of it. If we start leaving so much of it for the future, who are we now?

demon

In our minds resides a demon, it is full of pessimism and fear. It starts seeding our thoughts with why and whatnot, and ends by making us fearful. Most of us have surrendered to it. We have accepted our limitations and have let it rule over us.

There are some days in life when I realise how I got overpowered by this demon. Then I feel blessed and thankful for where I am now. The demon still tries to prey on my thoughts and makes me miserable. It is just that, with all the accumulated past experiences, I am better equipped now to tackle it.

Nothing

When you are in a state of accepting that you don’t know things, that is when curiosity kicks in and inner motivation drives you to learn things. We live in a world of recycled knowledge, where everyone claims to be an expert. What differentiates us then is working more than the rest and understanding the nitty-gritty of a system, process, and becoming a master at it.

We overestimate ourselves and technology in making us an expert. The advancement has significantly reduced labour and made us more efficient. But in the end, it is just an aid. We are working hand in hand with the machine; we are innovating, so is the machine.

The progress of humanity has come on the account of acceptance and accountability. It is not an overnight success, drawing us to the utopia. Many more unknowns rest in the deep, and we have to be humble enough to accept that we have absolutely no clue about them.

Writer

A writer’s life is a mixed bag: happiness, pain, melancholy, and celebration. The contents flow from the subconscious with real-world experiences. Another aspect of writing involves crafting stories and achieving personal desires via the story.

In many instances, the author’s failure becomes their arsenal on which they build the script. The wildest of the dreams, the author can craft and weirdest it can be in real life, becomes the plot.

When we read a story, we get into thinking about the imagination of the author, but in reality, it is the author’s frustration that becomes a story in its own. Why will someone with multiple failed relationships write a romantic novel, or someone leaving his or her family to pursue a writing career, talk about family virtues?

The struggle, pain, and loss of loved ones cement the pivotal moment in the author’s journey. It brings authenticity and leaves no room for fakery. It is when the masterpiece gets written.

Process

We get involved in the process at times. As a result, we forget the purpose. Our life is a collection of moments; we create it. The surroundings, people, and our thoughts play a key role in it.

We know where we have to travel. At many times, we get so obsessed with the plan that it takes center stage. We forget about traveling altogether. And when we realise it, we sulk and start blaming the planning again.

Time and again, I have seen people falling for the trap of planning without leading till the end. Who knows what the end is, who knows about the path? The quest to start should take precedence over everything else.

40

I recently celebrated my 40th birthday. With age, we become wiser because we have witnessed more ups and downs. It’s the scars we carry that make us more cautious. All these things are told by authors and philosophers.

What has changed for me is nothing. I am still the same, running around and breathing. I feel more competitive than before, and above all, my willingness to go all in has increased. In the end, what can go wrong? In short, nothing. I am competing with myself.

Our life is in our thoughts. Our thoughts are governed by people around us, what we see, and what we read. I am lucky to have reached here now to have my thoughts governed by me.

Many have written their 40 learnings in reaching 40. I have nothing to share. I am still young and as Bryan Adams says: 18 till I die.

Singularity

I heard about the singularity while reading The Singularity Is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology by Ray Kurzweil, whom I consider an absolute futurist.

Also, being a Star Trek fan, seeing androids in motion was a delight. As we are entering the new era of technological advancement in AI, the amalgamation of information and technology is leading to a new frontier. Many new frontiers are coming together, and innovation is going into a new paradigm. 

The singularity is the hypothetical tipping point where AI and technology grow beyond human control or comprehension, potentially reshaping civilisation or even humanity itself.

It has a dual impact, as many are predicting in job losses and economic distress. Some others are predicting the rich getting richer. One thing is sure, that many jobs will be rewritten and many new jobs will emerge. 

Another benefit I am witnessing is the sharing of tribal knowledge guarded by a few with the world.