(A model for attention and agency) Imagine three circles around your life: one you control, one you can influence, and one that remains untouched by your worry. Opening Scenes of Misplaced Attention Coffee Shop I am sitting at a corner table sipping filter coffee. I see a bunch of men in their forties and older discussing animatedly the latest in Tamil Nadu politics—actor Vijay winning the election, fan clubs, youth
(Why chasing success never feels enough—and how to step off the treadmill without quitting life) This series documents the ideas, mental models, and practical lessons that helped me learn skills and build habits over the years. These insights come from people and ideas I’ve encountered over the years. The path was anything but linear. It involved trial and error, false starts, and long stretches of inconsistency. I don’t aim for
Why effort matters—and why it’s never the whole story This series documents the ideas, mental models, and practical lessons that helped me learn skills and build habits over the years. These insights come from my parents, teachers, colleagues, friends, and from books and blogs on self-improvement. The path was anything but linear. It involved trial and error, false starts, and long stretches of inconsistency. I don’t aim for perfection. I
Most of us have owned a version of our unused treadmill. It might be a guitar gathering dust, a DSLR locked away in a cupboard, or a course we started with excitement and quietly abandoned. We didn’t lack motivation—we lacked an understanding of how passion actually works. Most of us don’t fail because we lack passion. We fail because we expect passion to appear before effort, struggle, and competence. In reality, passion is
This series is my attempt to document the ideas, mental models, and practical lessons that worked for me while learning skills and building habits over the years. These lessons came from my parents, teachers, colleagues, friends, and from books and blogs on self-improvement. The path was anything but linear. It involved trial and error, false starts, and long stretches of inconsistency. I don’t aim for perfection. I go off track
“Memories. You are talking about memories …” – from The Blade Runner Growing up in 70s and 80s in Tamil Nadu, main entertainments were movies followed by festivals and books. Vacations during school annual holidays means attending marriage functions in hot summer, scorching heat. Going to movies were always family events. I carry some of the wonderful memories from those decades. Occasions and events got associated with movies we
Why does getting started feel so hard, but continuing later feels almost effortless? Why does discipline feel painful while habits feel natural? Understanding this difference changed how I approach learning, health, and personal growth. This series is my attempt to document the ideas, mental models, and practical lessons that worked for me while learning skills and building habits over the years. These lessons came from my parents, teachers, colleagues, friends,
Early in my career, I believed the right book could fix almost anything. Experience taught me otherwise. This series is my attempt to document ideas, mental models, and practical lessons that worked for me while learning skills and building habits over the years. These lessons came from my parents, teachers, colleagues, friends, and from books and blogs on self-improvement. The path was anything but linear. It involved trial and error,
Eldorado refers to a mystical city of gold in South America, sought by 16th century Spanish explorers. The term originates from the Spanish phrase el dorado, meaning the gilded one. Eldorado is a metaphor for any place that promises wealth or great opportunity. This is something about writer Sujatha I liked a lot. I started reading Sujatha’s short stories, novellas, novels from my high school days. He introduced scientific and
Writer himself is on a journey from Bangalore to Chennai in Brindavan express. Travel in first class. In Sujatha’s style of description of the environment we get to visualize the Bangalore city railway station. College age students wearing round spectacles with Hadley Chase novels in their hand surveying where young girls are seated. Bored passengers waking up and down the platform. Train needs to cross Cantonment before the coffee/tea/snacks/fast food/