I hope you all had a healthy and momentous start to 2021. I think it’s safe to say that we all faced many challenges and changes in 2020, and I am hoping that the new year will bear the fruits of the resilience we’ve gained. I’ve taken quite a lengthy break from writing here, mainly because I’ve been facing imposter syndrome. Rather than forcing myself to write, I started to question many of my desires. Really digging into what I want in life to truly understand why, and understand the root of my motivation. Whether that be relative to work, health, learning, social, or spiritual.

No matter what kind of person you are, we all have desires, goals, plans, and motivations. The root of our motivations form the intentions that govern our daily routine and habits—what takes us from one day to the next… ultimately creating our life design. Hindu philosopher Bhaktivinoda Thakura describes four fundamental motivations.

1. Fear. Being driven by “sickness, poverty, fear of hell or fear of death.”

2. Desire. Seeking personal gratification through pleasure, success, and wealth.

3. Duty. Motivated by gratitude, responsibility, and the desire to do the right thing.

4. Love. Compelled by care for others and the urge to help them.

In Think Like A Monk, Jay Shetty says, “To live intentionally, we must dig to the deepest why behind the want. This requires pausing to think not only about why we want something, but also who we are or need to be to get it, and whether being that person appeals to us.” This made me question: are the things I desire flowing from who I am, my own ethics, and my own dedication to things that are important or sacred? Are my desires rooted in intrinsic motivation, or extrinsic validation? Asking this question helped me with attaching a motivation to my intentions, and weeding out the desires that don’t foster my greatest potential.

Not that there is any perfect or “right” pair of intention to motivation, but questioning the association helped me align who I am and want to be on the inside, with who I am trying to show on the outside. That’s really the best way to keep the momentum going, if what you do truly resonates with who you are today, and who you’re trying to be tomorrow.

With gratitude,

A

2020 Life by Design In Review

• Sydney Stein, the founder who taught me having an intention simply isn’t enough. Do the work. You have to take action for “manifestation” to actually come to fruition. Sometimes that means doing something with no perceived return, just so you can learn and grow.

• Serge Efap, a true leader who’s voice helped me through the low points of the entrepreneurial journey. “Don’t bask in your losses, and don't over celebrate your wins.”

• Maxwell Cohen, the international businessman who exemplifies how being proud of what you do and who you are radiates into something greater.

• Ryan Laverty, the self-made young entrepreneur who embraces competition and growing pains.

• Lauren Lee, from ballerina to CEO, how discipline and focus can ignite new passion.

• Rolf Leer, an exquisite curator sharing with the world the power of vulnerability, curating personal growth through life experiences, and the art of communication and intuition.

• Nicholas Stone, the high-performing founder who dovetailed three very different careers successfully by being inquisitive, having a relentless focus on learning, and being open-minded.

• Ifi Akpandak, the thinker turned founder who builds innovative software.

A Curated Playlist

I put together this Spotify playlist that will hopefully expand your horizon of artists and tunes. I think it’s a great way to unwind after work. Favorite it, if you like the curation. ✨ 

You can also click on the image below to navigate straight to the Spotify app.