The Courage to be Disliked
And the courage to find joy
Hello!
Back again like every Sunday. I spent this week thinking a lot about the place within me that brings me joy. It has become the place that I operate from nowadays. I hope you find that within you as well!
Learning & Questions for the week:
The Courage to be Disliked
This one’s tough. It is going to challenge your thoughts. If you’re reading this, go into it with a blank canvas in your mind. You will surely learn & feel challenged.
I’ve put into practice a lot of things already in the book for some time now. So here are some quotes from the book and questions from me for you to ponder upon:
1) People can change any time regardless of any environment they are in. You are only unable to change because you are making the decision not to.
What such decisions are you making every day? What desired changes have remained just that, a desire?2) When one can think, “whenever I am with this person, I can behave very freely”, one can really feel love. One can be in a calm and quite natural state, without having feelings of inferiority or being beset with the need to flaunt one’s superiority. That is what real love is like.
I’m a big believer that horizontal relationships are always the most fulfilling, whether in a family, between friends or in a romantic setting.
What kind of relationships do you see in your life? What would it take for you to feel truly equal as the other person in them?3) Your unhappiness cannot be blamed on your past or your environment. And it isn’t that you lack competence. You just lack courage. One might say you are lacking in the courage to be happy.
It does require courage to be happy. More than that, it requires courage to accept that your past & your environment can be separated from who you are, and that you can act on making this person happy.
What is the story you tell yourself about yourself? What would it take for the story to be a happy one for you?
I would love to have a conversation with you about everything above.
DM me on Twitter or IG!
Next Read:
What are you reading? Drop in suggestions!
Mental Wellbeing tip for the week:
It is easy to get lost in the world of comparisons, especially with the endless scrolling on social media where everyone seems to have a perfect life.
Find a way to detach yourself from this race.
The change is usually the opposite of now & that scares us.
Just like anything that creates a positive impact, change takes time as well. Speaking to Dusan, a friend from Serbia this week about his country and how the world is possibly at the best state it could be makes me hopeful.
Read our complete conversation here.
What brings out the best in you?
Let me take this space to say STOP judging yourself if you aren’t actively engaged in a physical routine or a fad “diet”. You do you!
PS.: My updates aren’t polished to look perfect. You’ll see me fail. I hope you stick by anyway!
My reflection for the week:
I’ve come to find joy in running over the past couple of months. It helps me push for more every time I go out. It helps bring out the best in me.
I wanted to run 8km under an hour this week. Around the 7km mark, I always start thinking I can’t. The other day I reached 7.95km at the hour mark and it made me start laughing in the middle of nowhere (probably looked strange to a passerby!).
Tt was one of those moments where you do something challenging, fail, and still in that moment it hits you that what you’ve been trying to do is possible.
Pushing myself to do more of what brings me joy has made me realise how important it is to find such small moments that become highlights for the day or week.
What brings out the best in you?
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Mushroom Garlic Sauce & Pasta:
Here you go! I’m a big sucker for garlic and mushrooms. The end result turned out so delicious, I wish I could share with you all. But you can make it yourself and let me know what you think! :D
Snippets from my personal thought journal
What are you not letting yourself be because of your own fear?
What work are you not putting out because of your own judgements?
When you do what truly makes you feel alive, you will find joy.
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I had the opportunity this week to be the Chairperson for a Local Conference that AIESEC in Bengaluru hosted. I’m an alumnus of AIESEC and spent 7 years working with the organisation, but I’ve never imagined that a whole conference lasting 3 days could be hosted virtually. We certainly live in exciting times.
I’m grateful to see that the organisation I invested so many years of my life is now in good hands. I’m grateful to the leadership team of AIESEC in Bengaluru.
What were you grateful for in this past week? I urge you to express it.
Thank you for reading & talk to you next Sunday!
In the meantime if you like this, show some love & tell your friends! ♥️