Most of us are busy setting a gameplan for 2016 -- all the things we'll do, all the places we'll visit, all the successes we'll accomplish. But as I contemplate how 2015 treated me, I find myself resolving to not do certain things this year. To break certain patterns that have not served me well and to see where this takes me.
1. I will not procrastinate
I am an out and out winner when it comes to putting off things that I resolve to do. "Time and tide wait for none" is not one of my favourite dictums. The Charvaka philosophy of eat, drink and be merry was something I relished in the philosophy class. But, alas, life is not so easy and one has to do things and not just think about doing them all day long and then put them off for the mythical "first thing in the morning". So, well, yes, less of procrastination for me this year.
2. I will not brood over things
Yes, I am a brooder, as in a serial brooder. I brood about why so and so has not answered my call yet, why my daughter did not wave goodbye to me while going to school, whether I handled something too harshly or too leniently and on and on. Excessive brooding has not done any good to my brain cells. So, I pledge to do less of it and live in the moment.
3. I will not care so much about what people think
I like to be liked. I bet everyone does. But in a bid to win people's approval I often go out of my way. Remember that Aesop's fable about a man, a boy and a donkey? The moral is that it is practically impossible to please one and all. I have wasted oodles of time and energy in an attempt to please people. But this year I will not succumb to the pressures of public approval. I so hope I stick to it.
4. I will not be rigid about accepting the changes in my life
Yes, another year flew away on a "winged chariot". The only thing that is constant in life is change. Things are changing every second. Our priorities keep altering. We are aging (or better, growing up). So, this year I want to accept changes and embrace them with open arms.
5. I will not spend hours on social networking sites
The day is not far when there will be a de-addiction centre for people who are besotted with the internet -- social networking sites to be precise. I have also fallen prey to the world of "likes" and "shares". Checking my phone every now and then for a new "update" has led me nowhere. So this year I hereby pledge that I will strive to be present in the real world more than the virtual world.
This is an edited version of a blog first published here.
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1. I will not procrastinate
I am an out and out winner when it comes to putting off things that I resolve to do. "Time and tide wait for none" is not one of my favourite dictums. The Charvaka philosophy of eat, drink and be merry was something I relished in the philosophy class. But, alas, life is not so easy and one has to do things and not just think about doing them all day long and then put them off for the mythical "first thing in the morning". So, well, yes, less of procrastination for me this year.
2. I will not brood over things
Yes, I am a brooder, as in a serial brooder. I brood about why so and so has not answered my call yet, why my daughter did not wave goodbye to me while going to school, whether I handled something too harshly or too leniently and on and on. Excessive brooding has not done any good to my brain cells. So, I pledge to do less of it and live in the moment.
3. I will not care so much about what people think
I like to be liked. I bet everyone does. But in a bid to win people's approval I often go out of my way. Remember that Aesop's fable about a man, a boy and a donkey? The moral is that it is practically impossible to please one and all. I have wasted oodles of time and energy in an attempt to please people. But this year I will not succumb to the pressures of public approval. I so hope I stick to it.
4. I will not be rigid about accepting the changes in my life
Yes, another year flew away on a "winged chariot". The only thing that is constant in life is change. Things are changing every second. Our priorities keep altering. We are aging (or better, growing up). So, this year I want to accept changes and embrace them with open arms.
5. I will not spend hours on social networking sites
The day is not far when there will be a de-addiction centre for people who are besotted with the internet -- social networking sites to be precise. I have also fallen prey to the world of "likes" and "shares". Checking my phone every now and then for a new "update" has led me nowhere. So this year I hereby pledge that I will strive to be present in the real world more than the virtual world.
This is an edited version of a blog first published here.
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