For me, the best time to self-reflect is after a good vacation. I had one of those recently. Just unplugging from work and general rhythm of life is a huge game changer for me. I came back with some perspective on what has been working for me and things I need to change about myself. The most important realization I had was that my life doesn’t suck as much as I originally thought despite the pandemic. Have a wonderful family, switched to a new job that keeps me challenged and busy in a good way and of course, there are things that are not going well that I need to work on. Warning: This post is going to seem like a collection of menial things in life but I prefer not to underestimate them. It is important to acknowledge and to work on the basics sometimes, as collectively they make life interesting

What is going well for me

I have a consistent morning ritual

I have a what I would call a mini morning routine. My body automatically wakes up at 7:30-7:45 without an alarm clock, make my bed, make a cup of cappuncino and a bowl of cereal and after a shower, sit in my office room to kick start the day at almost exactly at 9 AM. This morning routine helps me separate out personal time from work time and has been a game changer for me during the pandemic to balance work/family time. Most of the days, I finish my work at 5 PM and I leave the office room and zone in to my personal time.

Task and time manager

For the last one year, I have maintained a task manager in some shape or form. In the beginning, I just added all my priorities as a numbered list in a txt file. Surprisingly, it worked for me for a long time. Then, recently I reluctantly switched to notion knowing that it is yet another tracking tool but after about 4 months of usage, I quite enjoy tracking my tasks there. It is simple and quick. We also started tracking our family monthly expenses there and it has been a game changer.

Challenging work

I have a leadership role in the organization I am in and to me it feels like a good opportunity to bring everything I have learnt to the table and I am not talking about the technical chops but more of the leadership skills like asking the right questions, enable but get out of the way of achievers, help charter a course for the future with smart engineers.

Mindful spending

Recently, my partner and I have started practising mindful spending habits. We budget things at the beginning of the month for things we need and then prioritize buying them. This has helped us in multiple ways. By putting things off to the end of the month and not doing impulse buys, we tend to do more research and also gives us an opportunity to sit and discuss about all the things we “need” rather than the things we “want”.

Things I need to work on

Physical health

I don’t have a set routine for some physical activity. When the pandemic started, I used to prioritize running everyday and that lasted for nearly 6 months but over time I lost it to the busy work. I want to bring that back. Knowing that no matter what, I have a set time everyday for a physical routine was a game changer and I think it is long overdue. Apart from running on treadmill everyday, I also want to connect with nature and be out in the wild once in a while and I think that will help keep my sanity.

Will power

I have always thought about will power as a finite resource during the day. The more I rest at the end of the day, the more it replenishes. However, I have also come to realize recently that it is like a muscle. I feel that because I priorize and do few but important work, my will power / muscle has withered slightly. The impact is that I have lost touch with friends and certain family members because it takes will power and I have depleted them for work. I want to think of things that don’t have a “goal” or an end game and focus on them as well. I am currently listening to the audible book - The infinite game by Simon Sinek and have realized the importance of focusing on things that don’t necessarily have a finite objective. This has shifted my perspective a little bit. Instead of asking, whats my goal in life, I ask, how can I be the best I can be for myself and for others.