25 things I learned being 25
I turned 26 a few days ago.
The entire 25th year of my life was lived in the midst of a pandemic. A year that paradoxically passed by incredibly slowly yet also quite rapidly. A year I’m grateful to have had, as the lockdown way of life pushed me to learn some things I’m not sure I would have realised for quite a while.
So — I’m sharing some of these random ‘nuggets of wisdom’ that I learned over the past year. I hope you can relate or take away something from them too.
On doing things
1 — Do before you think (this can prevent overthinking and before you know it, you’ve finished what you needed to do). This has been especially helpful when finding motivation for exercise or chores — instead of thinking about it, I just get straight to it.
2 — If it’s a priority you’ll find a way, if it’s not, you’ll find an excuse. I’ve found this to be useful when trying to figure out what actually matters to me.
3— 30 mins is a powerful amount of time. It’s short enough to not feel like too much commitment, long enough to make an impact. Do the things you want to do but don’t always ‘find time’ for in 30 minute focused bursts
4 — Notice the things that make you feel alive. Incorporate them more into your life. It can be as small as sipping on hot chai, spending time with a specific person, or going for a walk by the water.
5— “You are what you do — not what you say you do” (this one’s from Carl Jung). I’ve realised we often create a persona of ourselves in our head, but there’s a big difference between thinking you’ll do something and actually doing it (regularly).
On cooking / food
6— Making fresh dal and using a pressure cooker is not as hard as you think. No more excuses for ‘not having enough time’ to make a nutritious Indian meal.
7 — You can pretty much make any meal and cuisine you want if you follow a recipe. It almost feels like a cheat sheet.
8— If you have the chance to grow your own fresh produce, do it. I was lucky enough to go back home for some time where we grew our own vegetables and herbs — it felt so wholesome.
On cycling in London
9— It’s not as scary as you might think. After hearing some one-off horror stories of cyclists in London, I avoided it altogether, but this lockdown pushed me to go for a few rides. And I’ve never gone back — it feels so good.
10 — Get. bike. insurance. (I started with Santander bikes. Bought a bike. Bike got stolen. Back to Santander bikes)
On work
11— Remote working is possible. And it opens up so many new job opportunities.
12— It is possible to ‘fake it till you make it’, but it can be very difficult and saps up a lot of energy, so make sure it’s something you really want.
13 — Leaving a job can sometimes feel as hard as finding a new one. Comfort zones are tempting but a nono.
On health
14 — Listen to your body. It usually knows exactly what you need.
15— There are ways to make you nearly instantly feel better. These include healthy food / exercise / meditation / taking 5 deep breaths / naps.
16 — Feel grateful for your good health. It’s easy to sometimes forget we’re in the middle of a health crisis.
17 — Stretch every morning. Even for 5 minutes. It makes a difference.
On friendship
18 — It’s okay to not reply to each message/call immediately. It’s usually your closest friends who understand if you don’t reply for a while.
19 — Use opportunities to show people you care. Small gestures like sending surprise mail or recording a voice note can complete change someone’s day.
On what I’ve realised about myself
20 — It’s important to know how to be alone. And to enjoy it.
21 — I learn more about myself everyday. There’s no constant state — I’m perpetually evolving and growing into my skin.
22 — I have the power to end a sh*tty day if I want to. I just go to bed early.
23 — It’s okay to let my hobbies just be hobbies. Not everything needs to be productive / a side hustle.
24 — Don’t take life so seriously. I’m still working on this but it’s slowly taking a load off of me.
On human behaviour
25 — Something I’ll never forget — people really can’t live without toilet paper.
