End of 2016, when my attempts to find a
match via various matrimony.coms weren’t bearing significant fruits, I decided
to invest in myself; in more than one way
Start of 2017, I started using Healthifyme
and Duolingo, as part of new year resolution. It is now end of 2020, and I
still use both the apps with great discipline. While I might have given too
much personal longitudinal behavioural data to Healthifyme, it has ensured I
kept my protein and fibre intake in check and never let my weight go over a
certain integer. I allow myself to cheat on fats and carbs because I am
genetically blessed, may not be true for everyone. However, the limited point
is, it doesn’t take too much to take control of what you eat; less than 2 mins
per day to track
Languages fascinated me, like a true
engineer. They just weren’t coding languages! Zindagi na milegi dobara sowed
the Eurotrip seeds in most Indian millennials. Well, a few many years into our
20s, we managed to go on one. Hence, basic hi-hellos, left-rights, yes-no, good
day, bye-bye, sir-ma’am was what we wanted to learn before we hit Madrid. Secret
girlie plan was to get dos chicas to start talking to guapo hombres ;)
4 years of Duolingo for less than 5 minutes
daily has ensured that I can read and understand Spanish language to an extent.
Native speakers are too fast for me to comprehend but I am happy that I can
appreciate a language that a good amount of humanity speaks. I can occasionally
shake a leg on Despacito while I sing along!
In Dec 2019, I switched jobs and my manager
gifted me a fitbit. I parked it for a month but as a part of ‘being active’
resolution I started using it from Jan 1, 2020. It has been 12 months and I
have gotten used to meeting my exercise goals. I occasionally become the
amusing person who gets up and starts walking in the middle of a seated drinks
session with family and friends; to ensure I clock my 250 steps for an active
hour :D
The black swan year of 2020 gave us many
avenues to revisit our priorities in life. Boundaries between work and life,
weekdays and weekends collapsed for people who had jobs. Many lost jobs and
most never received an interview call to their endless applications
With the negativity and stress levels so
high, it was difficult to breathe easy. Weekends were spent in heavy lifting
household chores. After a point in time, I hated weekends because I couldn’t
sweep any longer! That’s when I took the paint brush and started painting. In
the last 8 months, I have created 3 canvases and the bliss of creating
something is always incredible. A genuinely mature and encouraging husband has
been the biggest icing on my cake and we have done some of these many things
together
This year has taught us a very important
lesson to take care of ourselves. Care is not limited to avoiding a virus. Peace
of mind and a state of positivity can alone lead to better physical health and
holistic oneness. I strongly believe that investing in oneself is more
important than people perceive it to be. A happy person will be able to make
efforts towards making his loved ones happier. Pursuing my hobbies, interests,
personal fitness goals, learning from coursera certainly helped me get more
control of myself and kept me positively occupied when the pandemic (or Teams
calls) was getting too much
It is genuinely not that difficult to do
new things in a middle of a busy routine; it just needs a bit of dedication and
discipline. I urge you all to make commitments to yourself and follow them
through. A few years later when you look back at how you have grown, it will
inspire you to only become better! They say only bite as much as you can chew;
but most of us hesitate to take a bite in the first place. The few who take the
bite, forget to chew
Let’s make every day count people! To a
happier 2021!!
P.S. I resolved to start writing a diary
back in 2010 and I still do it, don’t think I have missed even a single day
P.P.S. I resolved to not let my blog which
was started in 2008 to be dead, so I at least write 1 entry per year
P.P.P.S. Collectively my diary, duolingo
and healthifyme takes 10 minutes in a day; don’t tell me you don’t have 10 mins
for yourself!!
