" 2022 is 4 months away and I am yet to process 2020😭"
I came across this tweet the other day, and it made me stop. Stop and think about the time before March 2020 and the world we're in right now. Life seems to have become this endless loop that we've forgotten to count. We follow the cycle of every day and wake up to start it all over again.
It also brought back many emotions of what could have been and what is across the world and in my life, work and everything in between. The feeling that this is how things are started to overtake my mind.
And at that moment, I turned to my daily practice of running through things I've highlighted, bookmarked, screen-shot'ed and saved to get back to for moments like this. And a particular quote popped up. This particular one has been one of the core drivers of keeping me centred over the last year and more.
"The Chief task in life is simply this: to identify and separate matters so that I can say clearly to myself which are externals not under my control, and which have to do with the choices I control. Where then do I look for good and evil? Not to uncontrollable externals, but within myself to the choices that are my own"
- Epictetus, Discourses, 2.5.4-5
These lines always remind me about the reality of all our existence. We're a small cog in the overall machinery of humanity. And while every cog has its importance, the potential for greatness and ability to effect change, what is most important to remember is to focus on what is under our control rather than worry about what is not. And doing this shift in our minds makes us happier and more centred as individuals and allows us to do good for those around us.
Because our actions drive the world forward, not our worries and wishes, we can only act on what we can reach and control.
Weekly recommendations
➡️ Kicking off with an intriguing chat between Ryan Holiday and Brad Field connecting Nietzsche and entrepreneurship
➡️ Then an episode of my recent podcast discovery with the best name ever “Metaphysical Milkshake” digs into “being a good person”.
➡️ This is fast turning into a David Perell fan newsletter but his deconstruction of James Clears process for success is a great watch.
➡️ And a video we must all watch ( as hard as it might be) because its gives us the reality of our foreseeable future.
➡️ Closing off with a Self-plug episode of “The Varun Duggi Show” where I talk about how I create my Goal Board in Life by answering four simple questions.
✌🏽
Control and choice + Weekly recommendations