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How to meditate: A complete guide
How to concentrate better
In a world full of distractions, how do you get an important task done on time? But worry not. In this article, we will give you a step-by-step roadmap to building concentration.
A comprehensive guide to preventing depression
Hereditary factors play a role in depression, but good news is that it is not all genetics and destiny – we can do a lot to prevent depression.
HabitStrong Newsletter by Rajan Singh
In this fortnightly newsletter, Rajan shares inspiring lessons and stories from his career as an IPS officer, McKinsey consultant, investor, and now, as a startup founder. Join 25,000+ subscribers.
Categories
How to finish the online courses you have been procrastinating for years
Productivity, High-Performance, Flow
During my summer break after class 10th, I hit upon a treasure – the Air Force library in the unit where my father was posted. It is from the yellowed and brittle old pages of the books that I found there, that I first learned calculus, the history of Arab-Israel...
A complete step-by-step guide to waking up early and building a morning routine
Waking up early changed my life. So, should you too wake up early? The call is yours – but let me try to help you make an informed choice. And if you choose to build the habit of waking up early, I will give you a step-by-step guide for that. I first started waking...
How we obsess over what we don’t have
I have never envied anyone more than this guy I met one evening in 2008, near New York City. He was the brother-in-law of a friend, who introduced us. This guy was the textbook definition of brilliance: Undergrad from Wharton, business analyst at McKinsey, followed by...
Are we diluting something meaningful?
Productivity, High-Performance, Flow
Growing up in remote towns without access to packaged milk, one chore I truly hated was having to trek to the milkman’s house daily, just to fetch milk. Now, it is not that milkmen wouldn’t deliver to your house. But they would, quite naturally, dilute it liberally...
Do you get nervous?
Build Confidence, Overcome Failure
A few months after I moved out of the US, just near my erstwhile apartment building, a plane landed in the Hudson River, near New York City. The US Airways flight had a complete engine failure due to a bird-hit and had no power left. Yet, Captain Sullenberger, a...
It’s okay not to be okay
Years ago, when I was a civil servant, a young IPS officer was briefly posted under me for training. A sensitive guy, he was struggling with some mental health issues. Unfortunately, his anxiety got aggravated, resulting in a near breakdown. A few days later, I...
Our best life moments are not the ones we imagine
My Indian Police Service training started with a 4-month Foundation Course, common to all Civil Services such as IAS, IFS, and so on. Its most brutal part was a 9-day trek through the Himalayas. Every day, we trekked more than 20-25 km through thick jungles, in...
RDX or Detonator?
If you set fire to a lump of RDX, it does not explode - it just burns harmlessly. To unleash its killer explosive power, all you have to do is - hook it to a detonator (a thin pencil-like explosive device). Similarly, to achieve our life goals, we often already have...
How the smartphone is destroying you from the inside
Smartphone & Social Media Addiction
I used to work long hours as a consultant at McKinsey — 12-14 hours a day. Even though I worked long hours, I was highly focused and productive. Just two years later, when I was in private equity, this changed. I was still working long hours but I was distracted and...
2 AM Warriors
Productivity, High-Performance, Flow
In IIT hostels, most of us were 2 am warriors. We would be routinely awake till 2 or 3 am, and the canteen would be crowded after midnight. That may sound heroic, but hear out the rest of the story before you decide. Since the night was infinitely long (in our mind),...
Looking for a miracle habit? I found one
A few years ago, I noticed a very strange pattern. Whenever I would do an intense workout, especially long runs, it instantly flipped how I perceived life. Now, at first blush, it may not sound all that remarkable - after all, it is pretty well known that an intense...
The Real Mastery is Over our Mind
In 2002, after becoming President, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam was visiting VSSC (Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre), Trivandrum, where he had worked earlier. In a conference room, he and the scientists were busy, talking like old friends. As the Trivandrum City Police chief, I was...
HabitStrong Newsletter by Rajan Singh
In this fortnightly newsletter, Rajan shares inspiring lessons and stories from his career as an IPS officer, McKinsey consultant, investor, and now, as a startup founder. Join 25,000+ subscribers.