Over the Christmas break, I found myself in London, surrounded by family. It was a rare gathering—my daughter flying in from New York, my son already in London, my sister, my brother and his family, and even my niece with her newborn.

A few days before and after the new year, what would make 2025 a great year was playing on my mind. Then Rumi’s ‘The Breeze at Dawn’ poem gently poked me.

Writing has always been more than words on a page—it’s a way to connect, inspire, and make sense of the world around me. My blog has become a canvas for exploration, creativity, and expression this year.

I’m up at 5 am, and before I’ve even had my coffee, my mind is buzzing, and my heart is racing. Not only am I travelling in a few days, but we are also a few days from the end of the year, when I review my year, both accomplishments and regrets.

It was the second day of the six-day Salkantay trail to Machu Picchu, and it was the most challenging. At an elevation of 4,800 meters (15,750 feet), though I was fit enough, I struggled to breathe, stopping every few minutes to take five deep breaths.

After a devastating family tragedy, I was forced to reexamine everything I thought I knew about success and happiness. In this conversation, I share the six surprising catalysts that helped me transform my life—from the timeless wisdom of Leo Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Ilyich to Brené Brown’s groundbreaking TED Talk on vulnerability.

“Can you please please buy my book for under a dollar and give me a review when you’ve read it? Of course, it would help with Amazon’s algorithms and push it to become a No.1 bestseller in specific categories.”

Are you in the rat race, want to get out and find yourself? Are you finding yourself at midlife and realizing you want a more fulfilling, authentic life? You are not alone.

The Midlife Shift shares my journey from a wealth-focused businessman facing crisis and burnout to someone who found real satisfaction and meaning by looking within. It’s a story of transformation, as I grappled with life’s toughest questions and found a new path to fulfillment.

My last book, The Shift, was purely Self-Help. However, after being inspired by so many memoirs, I felt that people would resonate if I stopped telling readers what to do and instead shared my own life, experiences, and stories, precisely how they happened.

Discover how my experiences with writing, running, and reflection have guided me towards a more fulfilling life. Learn about the importance of embracing vulnerability and simplifying life to enhance self-awareness and personal growth.

I decided to gobble up the remaining hundred grams in the bag. My impatience and striving were kicking in, even when I was meant to relax and revere the experience.

The procrastination was not circumstantial but was deeper, masked by the many fears lying in my subconscious. During those arid writing months, I’d get my laptop out and proceed to spend the next few hours doing nothing but staring at the blank screen, followed by much ruminating on why I couldn’t write.

Money is a bad value because you can’t always control it. Creativity or industriousness or a strong work ethic are good values because you CAN control them–and doing them well will ultimately generate money as a side effect.

The Rooster Coop is a metaphor for describing how oppressed the poor are in India. The caged roosters at the market watch each other get slaughtered but can’t do anything about it.

This idea of self has been developed rigorously over our developmental years between childhood and adulthood. Unfortunately, it’s characterised by masks, labels, images, and judgments handed down to us by parents, teachers, media, friends, and society.

We have an inner need to belong and connect. Relationships are the bedrock of our emotional well-being. No matter how strong we feel, we need relationships that nurture and sustain our strength throughout our lives.

He explained how his father set him early on the path of reading. Starting when Anas was eight years old, his father would give him a book every month, a literary one—Camus, Tolstoy, Faulkner, etc—and expected him to summarise it over dinner. He told me how he hated the practice at first but was incredibly thankful now.

I’m all for self-care and self-love. I’ve written many times about how, without self-love, we are incapable of loving anyone else. I understand and appreciate that many of us are brought up with a reluctance to take care of ourselves before others.

I was unconsciously letting go of all the resentment, anger and judgement I held inside of me. It was me saying to myself, though it’s true that I had messed up in many areas of my life and that I was in no way living up to 40% of my potential, it was okay.