Taking small steps to find clarity
We don't always need to ask the big questions, small steps can lead to massive breakthroughs in the long term.
Sending all my love to readers, and those with family & friends in LA right now ❤️
We are constantly re-discovering and re-connecting with ourselves. We know when something feels off, when we don’t feel excited or motivated for multiple days in a row, when everyday seems like a chore. On those days, I block out time to reconnect with myself, to listen to what I need more or less of.
Clarity isn’t about knowing what you want to do with your life, it’s about knowing what you want to do this week. - James Clear
One of my favourite quotes from James Clear, the author of Atomic Habits is “Clarity isn’t about knowing what you want to do with your life, it’s about knowing what you want to do this week.” This quote helped me so much when I was feeling unfulfilled in London. Although I was writing about sustainability issues and policy like I had hoped to, something felt off. That was when I knew I had to add back other things in my life that I loved.
Starting with small things to reconnect with yourself
Often, when we feel unfulfilled or stuck, it’s easy to jump straight to the big questions. What is my life’s purpose? Am I where I should be in life? What do I want my life to look like in five years? All of these are valid questions, yet they can be very overwhelming, especially in a world where there are unlimited options for everything.
In these moments, I’ve found it easier to reconnect with my intuition my asking myself the small questions: What workout feels good for my body today? Do I want a coffee or a matcha? What do I want to read about or watch?
Once I feel more connected to myself, I’ll ask myself How can I make next week feel better than this one? Even if the answer is a variety of unrelated things, this still gives me a better clue about what my body and soul is craving. I remember my London list included:
Photography
More bodyweight workouts instead of HIIT
Working in physical office space instead of purely remote
Eating fresh, natural food instead of processed plant-based foods
Pausing, reflecting and taking small steps
Every now and then, I ask myself questions like this to strengthen my intuitive voice. When I have a free morning or afternoon in the weekends, I ask myself what I want to do and then, I just listen, and do the thing.
Like what James Clear says, if we live one day or one week like our ideal self would, then it gives us a lot more clues as to how we’d like to spend the year. Of course, our desires might change, but alignment is about tuning in to the present version of ourselves and checking in constantly, to see if what we’re doing is true to us.
Here’s the list of question I use to check in every few weeks:
How would I rank my week out of 10?
Which people and places energised / drained me?
What moment(s) did I have the most fun?
Did I move my body in ways that feels good and sufficiently challenging?
What activity would I have done if I had more time (i.e tennis, painting, calling a friend)? Can I make time for this next week?
These questions always give me a good starting point to reconnect with myself when I feel overwhelmed by external noise!
There are certain things in life that we all have to do even though it’s a chore - taxes, dishes, bills etc. Although not everything in life is a ‘should’, I believe there are still some ‘shoulds’ in life - that’s what makes the fun things more fun, right?
If you enjoyed this piece and want to support my writing, you can buy me a coffee ☕
SUSTAINABILITY
Reading up on the sustainability of plant-based milks lately, I found that almond milk in particular isn’t as good for the environment as we think.
Almond milk is actually one of the most water-intensive plant milks
In a study comparing nine crops in Australia, Almonds had the highest water footprint compared to fruits like apples, peaches and cherries.
What plant-milks are better for the environment?
Hemp Milk: The hemp plant is sustainable because all parts of the plant can be used. Its' also a very resilient plant that can be grown in a variety of climates.
Pea Milk :Pea milk is native to areas high in rainfall, so they are naturally less water intensive to grow.
INSPIRATION
Conclave (directed by Edward Berger) is an amazing movie - one of the best I’ve seen over the past year! The mystery-thriller follows the election of a new pope for the Catholic Church. One of the most quoted phrases in the movie is one by Pope Lawrence, who says “Certainty is the great enemy of unity.”
To me, this is a reminder that most things in the world are not binary. From religion and gender to political views. Embracing unity is also embracing the greys and the diverse perspectives out there.