Yesterday and today were one of the most productive days in a while.
I did not conquer the world, or work for eight hours straight.
But there’s this really good thought that I came across in this article ““101 Additional Advices” by Kevin Kelly. (Full disclosure, I came across this article on Tim Ferris’s 5-Bullet Friday, one of my favorite email newsletters)
It’s an article filled with small tidbits of life advice, over a hundred of them. There were several that resonated with me, and I’d encourage you to go through the article yourself, and let me know if something stands out to you.
However, one specific advice that came to my mind as I set to write this article was this:
The surest way to be successful is to invent your own definition of success. Shoot your arrows first and then paint a bull’s eye around where they land. You’re the winner!
This might seem dumb to people, but I do feel this is one of the easiest way to actually feel good on a day to day basis. While having mighty goals helps, it’s as important, if not more, to actually enjoy the process.
Choosing tiny milestones as a call for celebration isn’t bad. It might even increase your overall levels of satisfaction and boost your morale. Here are a few of my small wins for the past few days.
For one, I finished an exam self-assessment that I had partially completed. I haven’t really begun studying for the exam yet, but some basic concepts are the same as an earlier exam I studied for.
Alhamdulillah, I got more than I expected, and just having the discipline to sit for it and finish it, despite no obligation to do so, makes me feel better about myself.
After all, what’s self-confidence except knowing you’d be able to bring into reality the things you intend to do, God Willing. The best way to build it, is to set out to do things and do them. Over and over again.
As Poet of the East, Allama Iqbal said:
ḳhudī ko kar buland itnā ki har taqdīr se pahle
ḳhudā bande se ḳhud pūchhe batā terī razā kyā hai
“Elevate yourself so high that even God, before issuing every decree of destiny, should ask you: Tell me, what is your intent?”
and
koi qabil ho to hum shan-e-kai dete hain
dhoondne walon ko dunya bhi nayi dete hain
(On him who merits well I set the brightest diadem,
And those who truly questing come, a new world waits for them.)
In the past two days, I did focused work on writing some freelance articles for around 2-3 hours each day. It was a difficult feat for me, because it’s challenging for me to sit at a place, researching and writing about a topic that I know nothing about, for few hours in a row.
I, usually do random things in between and keep writing the article. However, it certainly takes a toll on focus, and definitely takes more time than needed. I’m so glad at having done an extended focused session once, because it makes doing it a second and a third time much easier IA.
I was also able to go the gym today, after a small hiatus due to an Umrah trip. While I wasn’t able to do a lot of exercises, it certainly helped put a check next to this habit, and will help resuming it from tomorrow.
To sum it all up, I wrote this blog post as well. And I might go public with the blog soon. It’s a good start to the week. Let’s hope it gets even better, IA.
Ending Note
I’m still afraid of going public with this blog. I mean, it’s already public. But no one really knows it’s back up again. The same as “If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?”.
The only comments that I get on this blog are spam comments which I have to mark as spam and delete whenever I log into the website to make a new post. Hey, at least someone’s reading?
I know people I know might start reading the blog, and maybe sign up for an email list that sends out an alert regarding a new blog post. At least the people who’re close to me, and are always there to support me. Their appreciation means the world to me. But yeah, it’s always scary putting your work out there. Even if for the nth time.
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