In this article, we examine the higher purposes that drive us as Entrepreneurs and how we can think about them. The Indian Dream is a weekly newsletter that gives you latest Business Ideas, Opportunities and Trends direct to your inbox. Join 1,500+ other entrepreneurs looking for their next big business!
Today’s newsletter is not going to be the usual The Indian Dream style.
We’re not going to explore a business trend or a side hustle to make you more money. Instead we’re exploring my own thoughts and motivations towards business and how they’ve evolved during this ongoing Covid Crisis.
Please leave a comment once you’re done reading if you liked this style of writing. We’ll get back into our normal routine from next week. This is what we have in store for the next two weeks:
Deep Dive on Space Tech
Using Leverages to Accelerate your Business & Career
Why Am I Writing This?
A few weeks ago I completely lost my motivation towards work. I stopped writing this newsletter and I started questioning everything I was doing in my professional life. I couldn’t see any reason to get on calls to discuss sales figures, budgeting sessions for FY22 or record any more podcasts.
I could see no reason to continue working. My mind was paralysed and numb from the horrors I was seeing on the news.
I felt like I was lacking purpose.
I know this situation is not unique to me. I’ve spoken to friends and family who are having the same thoughts given the crisis we’re facing right now. Siddharth and I have also had conversations regarding the situating and how it’s affecting our mental state. Hence, I hope that by sharing my journey of working through these thoughts, it will help someone facing the same issues and lack of motivation.
After sharing these thoughts with a few people, a good friend and one of the smartest people I know, Abhishek Goel, shared an article he wrote in 2020 called ‘Driving a car, Driving a company, Driving a life’. This quote from his article stuck with me and its the same consclusion I reach:
After all, isn’t travel a waste if the only thing that matters is the destination?
The rest of this newsletter is a stream of consciousness I wrote during my monthly review.
Stream of Consciousness
I have been in a low productivity and negative mood for the past two weeks - I'm just not optimistic about the year ahead and have found my motivation flagging.
Right now, it feels like I'm living life for the sake of it - days come and go and merge into each other. I don't realise when one week moves into the next. I'm moving on auto pilot and doing the bare necessities to keep growing and moving on. I find that I’m constantly asking myself,
What's the point of all of this? What's the end goal? Why am I doing what I am doing? Is my life just the pursuit of money?
It feels like I'm missing a purpose in my life.
I know that people find their life’s purpose in different ways. I could:
Find purpose in Religion.
Find a Higher Purpose in the service of others.
Be motivated by the pursuit of money.
Be happy in the moment.
Being Happy in the Moment
As I write this, I realise that I am currently pursuing happiness in the moment - I get tremendous feelings of love and joy when I play stupid games with Lola (my dog) & Manmayee (my wife). Chasing Lola around the house and sharing memes with Manmayee, hanging out with friends and talking to my parents - all of this brings me joy and is enough motivation to keep me going.
Do I even need a higher purpose? Do I need to know where I'm going to be in 10 years and know exactly what I want to do?
Or is it okay to just find happiness in the moment?
Optimise For Joy & Love without Forgetting the Long Term
I think the answer lies in a mixture of the Long Term & the Present.
A higher purpose or a long term goal provides structure and direction to my life. Without this higher purpose, I wouldn’t know where I’m going and I would just lead a hedonistic life.
But getting obsessed with that long term goal is also unhealthy - a single minded focus will get me stressed, cause health issues and eventually make me forget, or even lose, what brings me joy in the moment. This is exactly why I quit running - I got so obsessed with the long term goal that I forgot to find joy everyday.
Sorry if the answer seems obvious at the end - I wrote this down as it came into my mind. I need continue finding and creating joy in everyday moments while still moving towards a long term goal without obsessing over it.
But most importantly, I should never let go of the love of my family and friends - that's what really brings the day to day motivation to keep reaching towards those long term goals.
This is why:
Moving back to India was the best decision I've ever made.
I'm closer to family and even the way friends express love in India is much warmer than Americans/Europeans.
Joining the Family Business was another great decision.
It’s provided me clear long term goals and a structure to work with.
Choosing a long term partner with a similar sense of humour works so well for me.
Without the constant goofiness, jokes, play fighting that Manmayee and I share with each other throughout the day, how would I motivate myself to do another SOP review?
Choosing to adopt a dog brings me so much joy everyday.
The un-complicated love of a dog can motivate anyone to live their best life.
I feel at peace with myself after writing this. I feel like explored a part of my mind that I've never explored before and I know what I need to do next.
I just wanted to share this hoping that it would help somebody else in the same situation.
We’d love to hear from you about your thoughts regarding this piece - please comment! And if you like it, or want to make fun of it, please share it with your friends and family.
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Wanted to share my 2 bits about it.
1. By writing that article itself you have been able to reflect your feelings & thoughts,we may have it in our minds often but when put down in writing it makes a big difference. You feel those emotions.
2. These are difficult times for all,but I still try to detach myself from the negativity and just do my bit in helping whoever I can. Doesn’t have to be something massive,something as little as helping 1 or 2 people with medications or contacts or vaccines etc is good enough
3. Don’t attach your happiness to only limited things,keep figuring or learning something new. You are already doing all this.
4. As for lack of purpose,that’s a feeling I think we all are going through,but just little progress everyday should make you content.
5. Last but not least- as in running or in life- It’s not about the result,it’s the process & journey that matters. So just enjoy that.