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warikoo Wanderings

But I am like this only

Published about 3 years ago • 4 min read

warikoo Wanderings

Welcome to another edition of Wanderings. I encourage you all to be like water (sorry, what?), share 10 habits that have helped me, share the book I am reading, some quotes, responses to last week's question and ask you a very interesting question.

So let's get started :)

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WHAT IS YOUR IMAGE OF YOURSELF?


For the initial part of our growing up years, we see the world through our eyes. But we have no idea about who we are. We don't know how we look, what our face conveys, how tall or short are we. And frankly, at the age of 1 we couldn't care less!

And then we see ourselves in the mirror for the first time.
And we are like WOW - who is that super cute person? OMG, I am in love with this face. Somebody stop me! :)
This is the first time we see who we are.

And that starts a rather extraordinary journey.
That of seeing ourselves.
We realize, everything is now a mirror.
We see ourselves not only when we stand in front of an actual mirror, we are also constantly trying to see ourselves through the eyes of someone else.

"They must think I am stupid"
"I am sure they think of me as pretty or handsome"
"Oh god, now they know I am dumb"
"Don't give me that look, that tells me you think I am crazy"

Pause for a second here.
And think of HOW MUCH TIME we spend in trying to see ourselves through someone else's perspective.
It is our ENTIRE LIFE!

And because of this image we think people have of us, we begin to do everything to fit into that image.
Oh, people think I am strong, so I have to be strong.
People think of me as pretty, so I have to be pretty.
People think of me as a hard worker, so I have to constantly work hard.

People think of me as __________, so I have to do everything to make sure they keep thinking of me as _________.
(Fill in the blanks)

Free yourself!
You are not some box, with boundaries.
You are water.
Water that is free. Water that can take the shape of the vessel it is in. Water that flows. Water that cannot be held, yet can be felt.
Be water, my friend.

And when you begin to remove these boundaries that you force on yourself, that existed for no reason except to fit the image you thought the world had of you, you realize all that you are capable of.
You become powerful!

And once you realize how powerful you are, you will laugh when others try to put you in a box.

Life, will never be the same again!

10 HABITS THAT HAVE WORKED WONDERS FOR ME


I am a person of habits. I have reasons to believe that I am NOT the most hard working person out there, definitely NOT the smartest one as well. If anything, I am a result of immense luck, privilege...
...and habits.

Last week, I wrote about 10 such habits that have helped me immensely.

You can read it on Twitter, or see it as a PDF.

BOOK I AM READING THIS WEEK


I started reading Think Again: The power of knowing what you don't know, by Adam Grant.
Adam is a master storyteller, but he is really a teacher. And that is why I have always loved his books. He is not prescriptive. Instead he just explains. And leaves the interpretation to the reader. Wonderful author.

If you have never read him, his other books are a masterpiece. Start with those
Originals: How non-conformists change the world - BRILLIANT BOOK!!
Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience and Finding Joy

QUOTES YOU CAN SHARE


A meaningful job need not be one that completely consumes your whole life.
(Share on Twitter)

You don't find your passion.
You grow your passion!
(Share on Twitter)

Find it hard to say no to people, when you know you should?
It's mostly because you worry about what they think of you.
(Share on Twitter)

Over time, I have realized that what we fear the most is usually what we most need to do.
(Share on Twitter)

He has the most who is content with the least.
(Share on Twitter)

RESPONSES TO LAST WEEK'S QUESTIONS


Last week I asked all of you:
What is the one GOOD thing you learnt from your parents, that you hope you'll never forget?

The answers were so so precious. Each one of you had such lovely things to say. There were some honest admissions from people who did not have a happy childhood yet they found something positive to take away from that experience. Which is commendable.
Most of the responses were around

  • Be nice to people / help people
  • If you do good, good will happen to you
  • How to be content / happy / at peace
  • How to work hard / be positive

For me, the one thing I learnt from my parents was "how to give even when you have nothing".

We grew up in very difficult circumstances, with almost no money, never owned anything like a car or a house or jewelry, almost always in debt.
And despite these circumstances, my parents never stopped giving. Never stopped helping. If it wasn't money, and mostly it wasn't money, it was their time, their attention, their love, their commitment.

I am definitely an output of that upbringing.

THIS WEEK'S QUESTION


Which one would you choose and why?

  1. You have a job of Rs. 10,00,000 per annum and EVERYONE else in your network (friends, colleagues, family, etc.) has a job that pays them Rs. 5,00,000 per annum
  2. You have a job of Rs. 15,00,000 per annum and EVERYONE else in your network has a job that pays them Rs. 20,00,000 per annum

Just reply to this with your option and reason.

I read all my emails. ALL MY EMAILS.
(Rajma Chawal ki kasam. Pyaaz ke saath!)

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All previous editions of this newsletter can be found here.

warikoo Wanderings

by Ankur Warikoo

Entrepreneur, Author, Content Creator with 9M+ followers across platforms. I share this newsletter every Friday around personal growth, books, quotes, pictures - it is the most personal version of me online.

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