The Modern Fable

When I first saw the quote, ‘the only competition you have is yourself', on Instagram, I did feel inspired. Like wow, now I don’t need to compare myself to others. But this doesn’t drive away the problem. Rather it shifts your focus to comparing yourself to your past. Because when you are competing, you think that your competitor has to be defeated and constantly compare yourself to them. The competitor becomes who you were. You develop an almost paranoid fear that if you remain the same, something will be utterly wrong. You are thrown into another vicious cycle of comparison and weighing the odds of how much you have changed and most disappointing, how much you haven’t. Topics covered in this post: • It adds you to the cycle of comparison. • You can overcome your obstacles but that’s it. •Hinders growth. It has hidden limits before you even start. •The reason for self comparison •A possible way out. The cycle of comparison  The key to productivity is not to shift your fo...

How to use Psychoanalysis to engage more with what you read? Even if it's Shakespeare  I used to be confused about which major to focus on, Literature or Psychology? Initially I thought there was something wrong with me for I had such varied interests. I recalled what I knew about literature: It was frivolous and more often than I liked to recall, I had been called impractical and childish for expressing my inclination towards it. Before I had researched more about it, I brushed it off just as other people around me had done. My other interest gleamed in its empty place. Psychology! Psychology was as practical as you could get. It is the reason you are able to understand any of this. It’s breadth gave me freedom and depth excited me. In contrast to what I learned about Literature, was that it was a girlish pass time and nothing substantial could yield from it. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Literature, as I am starting to learn, is the representation of human ...

You want things.  I want things. I hope you know what you want. I have begun to know that about myself. Only if doing was as easy than knowing it, then I wouldn’t be writing this article. And perhaps, if you had figured it out then you wouldn’t be reading this. Here are some possible reasons you have the fear of failure or become crippled with anxiety when starting something new. You don’t want to be bad at what you do. There are many other reasons like fear of embarrassment, loss of resources like money and time but at the core, is this single sentence. What if I’m not good enough? What if it doesn’t work out?  Sounds familiar? Well, it’s not your fault. So don’t beat yourself up. Here are  some things I tell myself that might help: Stop trying to be right all the time. Given the innumerable ways to approach a situation, statistically speaking, there is a huge probability that your way is not the most efficient. Instead of asking ‘What if I’...