WEEK 52 - Five (5) Messages I have for the Close of this Season

Week 52 and it will be the new year. At the start of 2021, I started this challenge to get into the habit of writing more - more regularly, more authentically. And as I thank all of you all for joining me on this ride, here are the five main messages I’ve learnt over the year:

Try, Fail, Try Again

Fail forward because you will get “older” anyway.

Examples?

“I don’t know if I want to go back to school, I’m going to be 42 when I’m done.”

“You’re going to be 42 regardless, whether or not it’s with added value is up to you.”

The only way to not fail is to not take action, but that’s already, by default, failing. Failing to try and failing to live.

Redefining Control and it Importance

We never truly have control over most things - only what we do and what we think. Does this mean we give up on “improving” or “being the best we can” since we cannot control outcomes anyway?

Usually, I answer this question with another question - “Do you then only seek knowledge or study if there’s an exam?”

It was a struggle for me to understand the concept of balancing drive and letting the pieces fall into place. However, I heard this line, which made this issue about control a lot clearer for me:

“You can care about the outcome of your processes and work, but ultimately, it’s none of your business.”

Let me then break it down:

It’s normal to hope and anticipate for the best in all that you do. However, obsession over the result, which is often hinged on an external circumstance (that you cannot control) tends to bring about an “ends justify the means” kind of mindset. Personally, that does not sit well with me - if I am doing my best to attain my goal, I’d better be doing it the best I can (instead of obsessing over gaming the system while actually not “working”).

Solution?

Focus on your processes and your day-to-day - How are you working to attain your goal? Is it the most aligned way? Can you stand behind how you work when you attain the result you want? What’s going to happen if the outcome does not happen the way you want it to? - Because at the end of the day, a great book launch may give you a great deal of joy, and life will still continue.

Do you want to “suffer” every day in hopes of a future undecided or live each day with joy and celebrate more when you have wins to celebrate along the way?

So let me reiterate - are you only going to study if there’s an exam?

Rest is not a Reward

“I think you never stopped since you started your Masters.” - this was something one of my friends said to me recently. I might have taken some leave and off days here and there, and those were promptly filled up with social activities and setting up my creative projects. The outcome from all this hustling, however? Exhaustion.

If I had time, I had no energy.

If I had energy, I had to devote my time to other responsibilities.

And when I had both, I was scattered - because I wanted to do everything yesterday.

Again, the outcome became Exhaustion.

So how?

REST.

No, really. Rest. Do nothing or “mindless” or “boring” things for a while as you dive into yourself. I learnt about this during one of my coaching calls, when there was encouragement to spend some time resting and experimenting, before we decide what to do next.

So sure, it’s always good to take action. However, remember that rest is essential, not a reward - We are humans, not machines. And even machines need to recharge.

Irony of Universal Workings

The moment we stop caring about the opinions of others, is the moment we start attracting what’s good for and aligned to us.

The more we truly take care of ourselves, the better we can help others.

The tighter we hold onto our goals and desires, the more what we desire does not come.

We don’t need examinations to be better or strive for improvement.

Thank You All

And last but certainly not least, thank you all for joining me on this 52-week adventure of weekly writing and ideas. Thank you all for your comments, your likes, your messages, your reads. This newsletter will definitely continue, but I will be taking a bit of a break to refocus and align this platform. Do let me know what you’d like to see more in the comments and stay tuned!

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And that’s it from me. See you all… when I see you all =)

Once again, thank you all for staying with me on this journey. I’ll definitely be writing here again - with more focus, more intention, and with more

What else would you like to see on this platform moving forward? Let me know in the comments!