Zoom The World !!

Hello! from one survivor to the other. Congratulations on surviving through all the global crisis happening around us. Pat your back boys and girls. Well, on a personal note, year 2020 was “supposed” to be an important year for me personally and professionally. So many things were planned and lined up in each and every month. Usually, (if you know me) I am a very laid back person be it anything, but somehow on the New Year’s Eve (while bidding 2019 a goodbye and welcoming 2020 with open arms) I was full of excitement and was ready to bring massive changes in my life. Who knew everything was going to come to a standstill. Being a person who wants to learn or is always keen on taking away something positive from any situation that I am in, I started introspecting within myself about everything going on around me in this unusual time, while being quarantined. And as my title says, I did learn a few things, rather noticed that I have been ignoring or just taking some things for granted...

“Health is the greatest possession. Contentment is the greatest treasure. Confidence is the greatest friend.” ~Lao Tzu It’s common among overachiever types: We like to push ourselves. Sometimes it’s to get from A to B. Sometimes it’s to create the illusion of change when really, you’re just spinning your wheels. Sometimes it’s simply to avoid standing still and accepting the moment as it is. All that pushing can feel so smart and productive—until you’re exhausted, overextended, overwhelmed, or otherwise ready to snap. I’ve felt all these things before. There are days when I try to be everything to everyone and do more than I can reasonably accomplish, but I know there’s only so much my body, mind, and spirit can take. Since it never seems to work to shout, “Stop the world, I want to get off,” I’ve come up with a few simple ways to give myself a break when I need it. If you feel physically, mentally, emotionally, or even digitally exhausted, these tips may help: How to Gi...

Millions of Indians, in fact 22.5 million, needed treatment for drug or alcohol use disorders in 2014. Addiction is a well-researched field, with multiple treatment avenues available for those who are ready to ask for the help they need and want to lead a healthier life. But it also means that treatment options can feel overwhelming at first glance. How do I know I have an addiction? Technically the term “addiction” isn’t used anymore when it comes to getting a diagnosis. In the most recent study drug and alcohol addiction are called “use disorders” (i.e. Alcohol Use Disorder; Opioid Use Disorder). The three most common symptoms of a use disorder include needing more of the substance over time to achieve the same effect, experiencing withdrawal symptoms when stopping use, and being unable to quit even when you know there is a big problem. Use disorders can range from mild to severe, depending on the number of symptoms you have. These symptoms include: Being incapable of limiti...

“Fear makes strangers of people who would be friends.” ~Shirley Maclaine Up until a year ago, I saw the world as a place where very few doors opened for me. At first I thought it was due to being extremely introverted. But as time went on, I started to struggle with making friends. I didn’t have many of them—and opportunities only knocked a few times a year. That’s when I realized my problems stemmed from my passivity and fear of actually going out and talking to people. My few closest friends always told me to join a club or go to parties. People always told me where to meet people. But they never really showed me how to actually create conversation. On top of that, I never really liked going to big social gatherings. I’m an ambivert and sometimes tend to be overwhelmed when a lot of people are around. I like talking one-on-one. So I decided to do things my own way. I started talking to strangers on my travel trips and in the city, my work place, social gatherings...

Picture the scene: you have a job that you love, working for a great company. But, this has been your life for the past five years. Surely you need to be more ambitious? Perhaps now is the right time to be moving “onward and upward”? So, your boss recommends you for a manager role, which you take. But soon you seem to be spending all your time in meetings, and you have so much paperwork that you swear you can hear your desk creaking under the weight. Eventually you find yourself asking, “When did I become so unhappy?” Seeking progress for the sake of progress can often leave us feeling deflated, and even more unfulfilled than we did in a lower-ranking job. So, where’s the line? Is there a conflict between ambition and happiness? What’s Happiness Got to Do With It? For many of us, career success brings genuine happiness. But when this stops being the case, we need to re-evaluate what makes us truly happy. A promotion might bring more money and new challenges, but the trade-of...

Do you make New Year’s resolutions? Maybe the start of a new year is when you decide to get more exercise, work less, pay down debt, eat better, lose weight, or quit smoking. (If you don’t smoke, insert your vice of choice.) New Year’s resolutions are kind of like a drunk uncle. You know you shouldn’t take him too seriously … but you can’t help but laugh and play along when he comes around once a year. It’s become popular for people to make fun of New Year’s resolutions (they never work!) in an almost gleeful way (why don’t these fake January people get out of my gym??), but few people understand WHY these resolutions don’t work. The reason is simple: They’re too broad. January is a time to think about what you want to accomplish or improve in the coming year, and which good intentions are left over from last year. The trick with resolutions is finding ways to stick to them, to make good on your intentions after the January fanfare fades. Set Goals and Plan Ahead How to Achie...

A man’s life isn’t easy as people think, probably because our concerns just aren’t voiced out. So, it all begins when you own at least that one picture of you with your manhood, majorly captured to keep the family’s reputation boosted up. Ostentatiously showing off that picture that the mother produced a “baby boy”, is one of the seeds of patriarchy that have been sown in the society. Many boys have injured themselves, getting slapped by an aunt or the teacher. Many times they get wounded and have squealed with pain, tears rolling down our eyes. But, every time a boy complains of pain, parents castigate him with the famous overrated Hindi dialogue “ मर्द नहीं रोते ” (Men don’t cry) ? Our patriarchal society affects gender roles while we are growing up, thus building in a preference for “masculine” qualities and expectations in men. So it’s considered normal when a guy needs to find a very “professional and classy” job and earn a very high salary by having a profession su...

Perfect! Just the word used to make my skin crawl and my stomach churn, and it made my mind all bent out of shape as it would try to be what I thought I was supposed to be but could never be, because I was so damn human. Perfection used to sound like an impossible state that was only reserved for those other people who some divine being had so graciously graced with a perfection gene I somehow didn’t get, and couldn’t for the life of me seem to get my hands on. Most of my life, I strived to be a perfect being. I wanted to be a perfect daughter. A perfect student. A perfect sister. A perfect friend.A perfect girlfriend. I wanted to say the perfect things at the perfect time. I wanted to have perfect timing and to wear the perfect outfit. I wanted my make-up to be perfect, and for my skin to be perfectly smooth. I wanted my house to be perfectly clean. I wanted my squad to be perfect and I wanted so much to be perfect in my happiness and hipness and hotness—just perfectly and not ex...

It isn't often that I let you know how grateful I am to have you in my life. Just because I don't always say it, doesn't mean I don't think about it, because I do all the time. When we were little, I used to tell you that I wanted "to throw you in the garbage" when you annoyed me, and now I can't imagine ever wanting you out of my life. Time after time you have done countless things to annoy me, things that drive me off the wall, but you fight daily to protect and love me. Other than a parents love, I feel that there is no greater bond in love than there is between siblings. A lot of the things you have done for me goes unnoticed and at times i'm sure you have felt unappreciated by the gestures because of my lack of gratitude. We all tend to take the smallest things for granted, especially those we love. Because I know I haven't told you lately, here is the thank you letter that all brothers deserve every once in a blue moon. I want to first o...

Most everyone in today’s world wants a partner who is loyal; someone who is committed. But what does being loyal mean and why is it so important? Well, first of all, let me tell you that being loyal isn’t just about being able to resist sleeping around with other people besides your partner. Loyalty is about being reliable and trustworthy. Its about being faithful and true. Why Is Loyalty Important? Well, if we’re talking about romantic relationships, it’s all about being able to trust your partner even when you’re not around for days, because you know that they don’t want to deceive you. They are loyal. You want someone with whom you can talk for hours without them thinking about someone else because all of their attention is dedicated to you. Loyalty is also important in business as it is in friendships and marriage. If you have a loyal customer, you will give everything to satisfy him and keep him. That’s why all of us have our focus on loyal people in our lives. To make it m...

Millions go unnoticed like sand castles washed away at the beach, millions are attracted by the skyscrapers of Elphinstone, and millions are immortalized like the Elephanta-s. From Haji Ali to Siddhivinayak, from local trains to the Vada Pav, from the boulders of Bandstand to the sands of Juhu, from Mangeshkar to Tendulkar, from the Khans to the Bachchans, it is ‘Aamchi Mumbai’ all the way. From the trawlers’ struggle for fresh catch to the country’s top CEO-s’ meetings, India’s business capital doesn’t seem to sleep. With fruit juice at Rs. 5 a glass outside railway stations, to Rs. 200 a cappuccino at the Trident, life in Mumbai sails smooth with all its diversity. The night remains young from DJ jamming sessions to ek chaalis ki last local. It would sound very clichéd to call Mumbai the New York of India, but that is what describes this city of dreams the best. It depicts the place that is always up and about, a city with a spirit of gold and a determination to never say die, e...

Do you love your job? Not Really? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. According to recent studies, 48% of employees worldwide don’t even like their jobs, more than 80% of Indian workers feel stressed at the office, and only 30% feel “engaged and inspired” by their careers. These statistics sound depressing yet relate-able, don’t they? According to results from a 2012 Wakefield Research study, office employees are fed up with everything from participating in “optional” employee activities and having to listen to the office know-it-all to dealing with a snarky boss who thinks he’s hilarious. Here are the most common workplace frustrations psychologists have derived from numerous interviews and studies: Pesky Co-Workers Nothing is more irritating than having a co-worker who’s always whining about something. The constant complainer who would rather bash everyone’s ideas than come up with any of her own is a drain on everyone’s energy. In addition, listening to the know-it-all who won’t...

Dear Dad, I write to you not only as your daughter, but as one of many daughters who know the unique intricacies of the lessons only their fathers could teach them. I write to you because out of every helping hand I have received in this world, you receive the least amount of credit and praise for the things you do. You’ve always stood back and let me shine, only stepping in when I call for you knowing you can’t be more than a short distance away. It’s time I use these words to pull you and every other remarkable father into the light you so deserve to be seen in. It’s time that light radiates on the genuine and extraordinary love only you could have shown me. A father teaches his daughter many lessons about what it means to truly love and experience this life. One of the most critical understandings he can portray to the young eyes beaming up at him is the notion of how she should be treated. Dad, I remember everything. I remember being tucked in at night and kissed good-bye befo...

Some seasons in life are just more difficult than others. Period. Maybe it’s because of a project you’ve taken on, maybe you have lost a loved one , maybe you’re  worried about money  or you ended a relationship or maybe you’re in a relationship that is taking ton of your energy It’s inevitable. There’s no escaping it. Some seasons are just hard. But is it possible you are making things harder than they need to be—simply by having a bad attitude about it? Marianne Williamson says the key to transforming any situation is reframing it—looking at it from a different direction. If there are many ways to see a situation, are you looking at it from more than one direction? It’s like a kid on a roller coaster who closes his eyes and buries his head in his fear -crossed arms on parts that are most terrifying or most unexpected to him. His attempt to protect himself from the circumstance doesn’t actually save him. It just blocks his view. Lately I had ...