Reader, I can't believe how time flies–it's almost the end of 2024! I'm writing from a farm in the Scottish Highlands, where I've gone in search of quiet solitude far from the familiarity of my apartment and my day-to-day life. My cabin just outside of St Andrews Last week, I wrote about a new way of planning for the New Year that shifts the focus from hitting metrics. It instead builds and reinforces our values and our identities. I deeply believe that that is the path to self-growth that is...
4 months ago • 1 min read
We are at that time of the year where it is natural to pause, reflect on the past months, and look ahead to the new year. But to be honest, Reader, New Year’s resolution don’t really work for me. Mostly because I know goals or outcomes really don’t motivate me. For example, I go to the gym consistently because I value well-being. I have no specific goal but honoring the commitment to a healthy lifestyle. The process itself is part of who I want to be. I suspect there are other people like me...
4 months ago • 1 min read
Key moments in my life have been shaped by exceptions, instances where rules were set aside. There were times when I didn’t meet typical age requirements or certifications, yet someone decided to make an exception. However, I’ve come to realize it was unhelpful to talk or to write about these exceptions, because there’s no formula to them. They’re unpredictable and largely dependent on factors outside my own control. At one point exceptions can be made and in another, not. Progress is often...
8 months ago • 1 min read
A few months ago, I listened to Seth Godin discuss how NPR had a golden opportunity to dominate the podcast market. And could have built the very infrastructure for podcasting. They were already the best in radio. They had the people, the talent, the resources to make it happen. It was aligned with their mission Yet, they didn’t seize the chance. Why? They were defending the spectrum–the status quo–those familiar dials turn to find an FM channel (millennials will relate). A portable AM/FM...
8 months ago • 1 min read
Reader, It’s easy to look around, ask what is trending, and hop on it. But it can be difficult sometimes to do what isn’t popular although it aligns with our values and aspirations for what we want to create in the world. I’m not talking about social media trends…I’m talking broader cultural, social, or even career trends. But let’s talk about social media trends—it’s a good example for the point I want to make: During the pandemic, we saw a lot of trends on social media that garnered...
8 months ago • 1 min read
Reader, I was scheduled to lead a storytelling workshop at 11 AM a few weeks back–a session I’ve conducted countless times over the past couple of years. But at 8 AM that morning, my perfectionist drive kicked in. I suddenly decided I needed to create something entirely new: fresh images, different colour schemes, better font choices. I wanted to introduce cool transitions to make it even more sophisticated. In retrospect, I didn’t need to reinvent the wheel, I just needed minimal...
9 months ago • 2 min read
Reader, I met with a friend recently, one conversation led to another, and we arrived on the topic of introversion vs extroversion. She wanted the line between these two personalities blurred, cleaned off, and not talked about anymore. She thought it was unhelpful to make such distinctions that box people, and thought it was ultimately unhelpful and restrictive—especially for introverts. But I disagreed! Introversion and extroversion simply signify where individuals derive their energy....
9 months ago • 1 min read
🎧Listen to this week's letter as a podcast Reader, yesterday, I was in the Scottish National Museum and what struck my imagination more than any other was the Apple 1. Apple 1 Locked behind a glass box, the very first Apple computer was a briefcase of circuits; a detached keyboard that looked more like a typewriter; and an ancient TV box. I’m currently writing this essay from a MacBook, and it’s simply phenomenal to witness the power of iteration. Most things don’t appear fully formed. They...
about 1 year ago • 1 min read
I had a flashback early this morning to one night in 2012. It was about 8pm, just after dinner, and I had to rush to my room. I was in my second year during my undergraduate studies and needed to prep for my exams the next day. The exams I had to take was Philosophy of Mind, and I hadn’t read a thing the whole semester. I sat there in the centre of my room with papers, books and essays strewn all over. I was trying to attempt something crazy! I wanted to cover the entire semester the whole...
over 1 year ago • 2 min read