As we wind up with 2020, I look back at this year and how each and every day and month just passed by, the learnings that came it, the hardships, the dark days faced.
In all, I'm grateful for 2020, a massive year of my life, that brought change which maybe would have happened over 5 years or more or may not have happened too.
There was so much to learn, so much to experiment on, which also had with it, its failures. There was just so much to tackle, especially in times of a crisis, such times bring more clarity and more awareness to your mind, you think about everything differently, you act differently. And it's only when you give your thoughts the space it deserves, you realize there's so much to uncover and deal with.
One of the things I'm glad for, is the fact that right from my daily calendar series, my blogs and podcast, even the weekly series, The Last 7 Days and this recent addition of the newsletter - all of this made my 2020 so much better, helped me reflect upon so much, go in-depth on a number of topics, able to understand myself better and most of all, it's almost like a journal for me, when I look back at any of it, I'm able to recollect those days, like its a navigation tool for me.
But, apart from this journaling and content, also came the prioritization of mental and physical health for me - both so essential to life, and the deeper I dug, the more I understood how we as a society act and the reality behind so much of it. Right from meditation, to breathwork, to asanas, to getting rid of the junk/ unhealthy food and eating the right kind of food that helped me grow and evolve, amongst other things.
Every element of 2020 was unlike any other year before, and as fortunate as I am, and grateful for everything that I have and everyone that I have around me, I'm glad 2020 happened, because life wouldn't have been the same if all of this didn't occur. (I'm now thinking to go a bit deeper on this topic, coming soon on my blog :) )
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PODCAST: We have goals in life, we have ambitions in life. We have desires to fulfill and live that lead up to those ambitions and goals. However, the bigger question that we often forget to ask ourselves in this fantasy, is a question of ability vs desire.
To understand that, listen to this episode of Mindset Marketing Movies. Listen to it below. (P.S. There’s a part two to the episode as well)Check out the other episodes from the week on any of the platforms that interest you – Spotify|| Apple Podcasts || Breaker|| JioSaavn || PocketCasts || Google Podcasts
BLOG:
• Personal before Professional. Read here.
• Headlines, Social Media, and YouTube Thumbnails. Read here.
• Your Previous Work. Read here.P.S. I write a daily blog, read the other posts from the week at https://rth24.com
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YOUTUBE: How to successfully set your new year resolutions? Watch here.
A to Z of Building your Mind - a series where every letter of the alphabet represents a letter, character trait, or a skill that you can use to build your mind. You can follow the episodes here.
Edition 41
my weekly recommendations of What To Read, What To Listen, and What To Watch.
What To Read:
Barack Obama shares his favorite books, TV shows, and movies of 2020.
Check it out here.More Indians now hiding real identities on Facebook, YouTube. Read more here.
Billionaire Ray Dalio: Quit these 4 bad habits to start actually achieving your goals. Read it here.
What a Crisis Teaches Us About Innovation. Read here.
Free advice: Turn your phone’s damn battery percentage off.
Read here to know what it means.
What To Listen:
On the School of Greatness, Rhonda Byrne (author of The Secret) discusses life, the universe, the power of thought, the Law of Attraction, and so much more.
Listen to it here.Check out this podcast, The Big Shots – Dosa King. An epic drama about the exponential rise of P Rajagopal, the founder of Saravana Bhavan, and the shocking scandal that led to his fall. Check it out here.
On the Akimbo podcast, Seth Godin talks about the persistence of technology. What will fade next? Listen here.
In this conversation with Outside Podcast host Michael Roberts, Tim Cook talks about both the incredible promise of technology to enhance our well-being and Apple’s duty to help us use our devices more wisely. Listen to it here.
Shawn Mendes joins the Armchair Expert to discuss the results of finding success at such an early age, where the main source of his fears and anxieties stem from, and how lockdown has forced him to figure out his own identity. The two explore the ways society is conditioning people to want more and more, how social media has made everything need to be quantified and the isolation of a musician. Check it out here.
What To Watch:
How does the Internet work? Check it out here.
Virat Kohli & Steve Smith talk cricket – about their love for the game, batting techniques & having more to life than just cricket. Watch here.
World’s first lightsaber build (this was so amazing to watch) Watch it here.
If you do watch it, then watch this as a follow-up.Mukesh Ambani and Mark Zuckerberg share their excitement about India, and how digital can accelerate economic progress. Watch it here.
The Actor’s Roundtable 2020 ft Saif Ali Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Rajkummar Rao, Pankaj Tripathi, Jaideep Ahlawat, Kunal Kemmu, Divyenndu Sharma, and Pratik Gandhi. Watch here.
You can check out the previous editions of The Last 7 Days – here.
In the world of TECH:
Twitter tests 'humanization prompts' in an effort to reduce toxic replies
There’s now a Google Reader-style RSS feed for your newsletter habit
In the world of MARKETING:
Facebook building tool to let fans pay celebrities for Face Time
Twitter launches its voice-based ‘Spaces’ social networking feature into beta testing
Facebook is reportedly building a tool called 'TLDR' that will read and summarize news articles for you
Facebook publicly launches its collaborative music video app, Collab
In the world of BUSINESS:
WhatsApp officially debuts its payment service in India after overcoming antitrust concerns
Dunzo launches ‘Food Court’, where you can order from multiple restaurants in one order
Inspired by Elon Musk’s Tesla, this EV startup is building superbikes for India
Razorpay launches app store and a slew of products; targets TPV of $50B by 2021
In the world of POP CULTURE:
‘The Dark Knight’, ‘Shrek’, ‘Blues Brothers’ and More Added to National Film Registry
HBO TV Channel Signs Off Forever, Sets Stage For HBO Max India Entry
Biopic on hockey legend Dhyan Chand announced, Abhishek Chaubey to direct the film that will hit theatres in 2022
Dhanush lands 2nd international project alongside Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans & more in The Gray Man
“When we give cheerfully and accept gratefully, everyone is blessed.” #MayaAngelou
People will always judge you, no matter what. No matter how good you become, or bad, or high in the social status, or low, or on any other scale, the judgment is never over. The better thing to do is to avoid it and focus on yourself. It takes a lot, a lot of practice, calling out yourself when it starts to affect you and then get back on track again. And the outcome is that much beautiful, when you feel more calmer, and more free with your choices and decisions, that now you truly take for yourself.
Thank you for your time, honestly and I shall see you next week with the 19th edition of the newsletter.
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