I know I know…there’s so much you want to do – live long, be happy, buy a bigger car & a bigger house, make lots of money, follow your passions and so on…the list is long!
I know I know…you’re hectic schedule starts with a snoozed alarm, then you get tossed around daily chores – various meetings, phone calls, emails, kids school, laundry, grocery, car servicing, bill payments, traffic jams, family functions, relatives, tax filing, official travel, powerpoint presentations, health issues, doctor’s appointment, shopping and so on.
I also know…the latter list is much longer, more over powering, more urgent and unrelenting.
I also know what you keep telling yourself ….”Things are all messed up, I’m running pillar to post. Where the heck, is the time to sort this out. Where the heck, is the time to do what I really want to do!” Where the heck is the time to even think, what I really want to do!
Modern life is too demanding and enervating. We sometimes know what needs to be done; it’s just that we’re made to run around so much by the modern day chores that we’ve no time or energy left to do what we really want and need to do. We get more & more occupied and start taking health, relationships, wealth, and wisdom for granted. In the end, we just look for some magic – magic food to lose weight, magic holidays to refresh, a magic formula to make money. There is no time to stand in the Sun, so we seek vitamin D pills. We eat junk, seek calcium, magnesium and vitamin pills. So on & so forth.
So, I’m giving you some magic pills, some quick fix solutions. These are “the least you can do” magic pills. They are not a perfect solution for what you really need, but will keep you hanging in there…
“The Least You Can Do” Magic Pills:
- If you’re struggling to give enough time to your loved ones (your spouse, mother, kiddo), the least you can do is: Just for 5 minutes a day, keep your mobile aside (absolute prerequisite!), as your loved one an open ended question. As they answer, listen with a smile and full eye contact.
- Stop looking at prices in terms of EMIs. With the exception of home for living, buy something, only if you can afford it in full down payment.
- Park all your money that you do not need for at least 10 years, in equity MFs, or index funds.
- If you’re a middle level salaried person, always have an SIP and Insurances – Life, health etc
- Find your me time in your daily/weekly schedule. Talk to yourself (mostly listen). Just you, not even your cell phone!
- Sleep well
- Do not eat anything for around 12-16 hours a day – 8 hours of sleep plus two hours of fasting on both sides…that’s it!
- Shun or reduce sugar and packaged food. The least you can do is to not keep the packaged food at home.
- If you find reading books difficult, try audiobooks. Search for videos by the author – Most of them have spoken about their books at stretch somewhere or other.
- Stairs instead of lift
- Stand & walk most of the time. Don’t sit for long at a stretch
- If you’re struggling to visit the gym, or do morning walks, or play some sports, the least you can do is 5 minutes of body weight exercises (push ups, squats, lunges, surya namaskar etc) in your bedroom, before you take shower.
- If you have kids, the least you can do is spend some time with them. Nudge them in the right direction.
- Stop watching daily News Debates. Call you mom instead, or play with your kids, or listen to a song.
- Keep distractions like mobile phones away while doing some creative or constructive work.
- Follow batch processing for social media.
- Keep a desired self image in your mind – a fitter, richer, happier you. Imagine yourself running, climbing mountains; imagine a life with no money constraints; visualise yourself spending time with your loved ones on a beach. Visualisation gives you a sense of direction in life.
- Stop self-deprecating. If you do not receive respect from yourself, You”ll receive it from no one else. Give yourself a pep talk.
These are some of the little things that will keep you going off track….just the bare minimum to keep you hanging in there, with the skin of your teeth.
These are random thoughts presented in random order. I could have spent some more time on these by sorting and presenting them better…but for the paucity of time, I thought, this is the least I could do!