Life, Lemons and Lemonade!

It was just 5 days ago that I had stepped into the wrong side of 20’s (my 26^th birthday to be precise) and I was sitting on this beautiful pier overlooking the backwaters of Kumarakom surrounded by pure solitude. There is something about solitude you see; it triggers your brain cells into retrospection and introspection. So I was just thinking then about how my recent birthday brought with it feelings of anxiety, anticipation and gratitude. The rosy tinted notions about a fairy tale life had finally met pragmatism and the challenges in building a strong career, a happy home and a better self became more apparent. I had to come to terms with the fact that any moment now, life can flip like a coin – for better or for the worse. But it will neither be same nor stable as before.

I was thinking then that life often swings between feeling like you have it all figured out and sometimes – knowing nothing at all. And fortunately for us, all the varied experiences (however good or bad) have something important to teach us. All we got to do is hang on-adapt-enjoy. I had around 2 hours to while away at the pier so I just started scribbling about the lemons that life had thrown at me. Little did I know that I know that with those notes I would be able to script a related post.

So below are my two cents on what I have learnt in my 25 years:

 

1.  Life is short and it’s now. Our best moments are never in front of a computer screen. The selfies and the instant messaging can be skipped for a while and the FOMO syndrome can rest. We must all try to disconnect from the social media and enjoy the gorgeous sunsets, savor our food, smile at strangers and laugh at people’s jokes. We can never bring time back hence must enjoy every moment as it is. At the same time, we must make most of life now. We have to overcome the fear of failure and work towards what we want to accomplish. It is never about how it ends but what we learn in the process.
2.  It doesn’t pay to put wealth above health. In the race that we all seem to be partaking in, a lot of driven individuals are having hard time in creating work-life balance and end up burning out quickly owing to health issues or excessive stress. This crazy world is a constant reminder that we need grow our retirement corpus but our body and mind should always be our number one priority. No amount of success can replace health. It is much easier to adopt a healthier lifestyle than frequently recovering from illness (the productivity loss accompanied). A healthy and consistent food and exercise routine works wonders. And let us not forget our annual medical check-ups as well. Unfortunately, I had to learn it the hard way.
3. Embracing change is good. We all will agree that embracing change is no fun as most of us fear the unfamiliar. Resisting change is natural but in the long run the consequences are rewarding. It is a driver of (personal and professional) growth and adaptability as it breaks the monotony and pushes us out of our comfort zone. This transition brings out our strengths and increases our flexibility. Hence, without a doubt, change is a harbinger of opportunities and unlimited possibilities.
4. We have to keep learning. We all must cultivate a burning desire to continually upgrade our knowledge base. In this fast moving world, self-growth is the key to have a fulfilling life and build a successful career. Obviously it is easier said than done but the benefits are too good to overlook it. It keeps our mind agile and memory sharp in addition to boosting our confidence and making us more humble and grounded. It also helps in professional networking and makes us an indispensable team member.
5. Saying Yes or No? It is your decision, yes; mainly because you do not have to prove anything to anyone. You should be able to tell that pesky gossip-monger colleague of yours that you want no part in the gossip-vine or turn down your best bud’s invitation to go clubbing if you want to just laze around in your PJs. You deserve to unwind the way you like to and a friend will always understand. But at the same time, please do not deprive yourself of all the fun because of work stress or like in my case -laziness. Say yes to the occasional beer-binge or shopping haul or the long awaited road trip whenever you feel like you deserve a break.
6. Lose the baggage. Let go! Barring few lucky ones, it is something most of us learn the hard way. Be it relationships, friends, opportunities or ego, letting go of anything that bogs you down at the right time is extremely important. What is meant to be, will be. What is meant to stay, will stay.
7. It will hurt. And it is going to hurt a lot. Not landing that dream job, that heartache after a failed relationship, losing close friends over time, and staying away from family or something as serious as not being able to afford that gorgeous pair of shoes displayed at the luxury brand outlet will definitely tug at your heart strings. But you will have to graciously face this hurt because this will only make you stronger than you were before. And at the end of it, you will realize that it was all worth it.
8. Optimism is sexy. A lot of things do not go as planned. But just because something is not happening instantly doesn’t mean that it will never happen. Sometimes, we have to be patient and things will definitely fall into place at the perfect time. They say hope is an extremely powerful force; it fills you with positivity and courage and fuels your confidence. Like Martin Luther King Jr said, “We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”
9. Believe in miracles. This is something we all seem to have forgotten in the fast-paced-hence-overly-practical world that we live in. If I was asked my opinion; I would say that these are everywhere, just waiting for the right moment to take us by surprise! Miracles dwell in the invisible. And we’ve just got to have a little faith in them.
10. And it is going to be okay. We have already gone through 25 odd years without giving up and we’ll do great in the coming years as well. We should be open to meeting new people, traveling to beautiful places, picking up new hobbies , making new mistakes and trust ourselves to be okay at the end of the day. I doubt anybody has life completely figured out or knows what their purpose in life is, so we definitely aren’t alone. I guess that is the beauty of life – the mysterious ways it unravels itself. So relax, it is going to be okay.