In a noisy world, it is easy to miss the signals that you get from within. Listening to the self requires us to detach, slow down and be intentional about listening to our internal dialogue.

Acting on your intuition may require you to go against the tide of expectations that world may have from you.

Listening to your intuition requires stillness. Acting on it requires courage.

You can do trivial things as if the world runs on your shoulders. Or you can do mighty things in spirit of playfulness.

It is our awareness that matters. Awareness enables us to choose our discretion towards our work.

Great work is always a reflection of joy that the creator pursues.

This quote by Ram Dass is a powerful reframe of how we see our work and life.

In a world of instant gratification, be someone who plants seeds – of effort, of generosity, of making a difference to the self and others.

The rewards may not be instant and it doesn’t matter.

The mindset of planting seeds versus reaping rewards is a powerful one in itself.

When you consistently deliver more value than you get, the universe finds a way to deliver more value back to you.

It’s not linear.

There is no instant gratification.

But it works.

Enough.. eludes us if we are blinded by ego and everything that feeds it (money, power, status, followers…).

Knowing what’s enough is the key to contentment, satisfaction and possibly happiness.

“Never mistake motion for action,” said Ernest Hemingway.

The fact that we remain busy through the day doesn’t mean we are progressing.

Positive movement requires that we ruthlessly prioritize, step back to reflect, seek feedback from people we trust and act purposefully.

Handwritten notes from my journal

As a kid, I once adamantly demanded some stuff that my friends had. My mom took me to the balcony and pointed at a nearby construction site where kids of the laborers were playing bare feet in scorching heat, and were still smiling.

I was taught that when our mind is clouded with comparison, look carefully at what we have and be grateful about it. Understand that each of us has been bestowed with unique gifts. The paths we take, our context, the way we look at life, our conditioning – everything is different. How can our destinations (and the speed at which we reach those destinations) be same?

In a world driven by comparison, be compassionate. Comparison steals the joy. The act of comparing is the act of undermining ourselves.

Less Comparison. More Compassion. More Gratitude.

It may be that when we no longer know what to do

we have come to our real work,

and that when we no longer know which way to go

we have come to our real journey.

The mind that is not baffled is not employed.

The impeded stream is the one that sings.

– Wendell Berry