Originally published in July 2017. Revised and expanded in July 2026.
Revisiting an article written nearly a decade ago, with reflections from the present day.

 

I first wrote this article 9 years ago when I was just 24. When I reviewed it to brainstorm what I want to write for July motivation, I was surprised to find that many things my younger self wrote a decade back are still relevant today.

So instead of writing from scratch, I thought of building on top of it because of its timeless relatability.

What struck me the most is that while I am grateful for so many things in my life and I have made something out of it, I still feel the same way I did when I first wrote this piece.

It’s the feeling that I haven’t done enough.

I feel that sting even more prominently because I am now 33, turning 34 soon. The 40s seem like they are just around the corner.

As a generation, it’s not new for us to be shocked by how fast we have grown up.

I got the same feeling about the passing of time while going through this article that we get when we go through our old social posts.

I found myself asking, “Have I really given my dreams everything I’ve got?”

In my 20’s, I had all the drive, optimism, and idealism of the age, along with its naivety; I thought I could take on the world.

In my 30’s, life has matured me, for the better, I can say, and after seeing the various dramatic faces of life, I will admit that much of the enthusiasm of my 20’s has now simmered down.

I quietly wonder, when am I actually going to do my best work and live my best life?

I believe I share that sentiment with many people across all ages.

And while all of this is a perfect storm, the important question now is, “Do I want to live the rest of my life this way?” Do you?

I don’t for sure.

And I think before we jump into another fiery round of ambition and goal-setting, it’s worth taking a moment to understand a few things.

This is what this post is about, and in it, I am going to lead with the maturity of age and finish with the enthusiasm of the youth. Together, they should help you get going as they have helped me.

 

Know and Define Your Truths

 

For the longest time, I wanted to be a literary writer, but in search of employment, I first went into content writing. Simply put, and other nuances aside, it emphasizes a style of writing that’s meant to work for search engines.

It’s a helpful skillset, no doubt about it, and one that taught me a great deal. But I always knew it wasn’t where my natural voice lived.

In an attempt to make my website work and build a career, I gradually spent more time developing that skill and less time cultivating the one that came most naturally to me.

Looking back, I realized there was always a certain friction between the work I was doing and the work I felt most drawn toward.

You might have also felt this friction in one or the other areas of your life. That friction is a question for self-discovery.

I have now understood that I am a literary writer who enjoys the impact of evocative writing and its resulting contemplation. A style that is very human and natural.

That is what excites and inspires me. It’s this sense of inspiration that’s always been the most obvious sign of my true passion.

Sure, passion doesn’t always pay the bills, and not every meaningful part of life is exciting. Some responsibilities simply need to be carried. But you should still know what naturally pulls you in and gives you a sense of purpose.

You must have received similar indications for a variety of things in your life.

I have always known this fact, but it has taken me a full decade to understand what I must do with this information.

That’s the difference between knowing and defining your truth.

Secondly, although I have never chased external validation and I have always been vigilant about the type of company I keep, the type of goals I chase, and the kind of things I want, I have still realized deeper, similar truths about them as well.

I have understood that I am not about a life of excess. I just want a quiet life where I can peacefully pursue my interests, live a meaningful life, do good with the time I have, and contribute to the world in whatever capacity I can.

In the pursuit of more, we are often left chasing irrelevant things because of the tendency of humans to borrow desires from their surroundings. We even have a term for this tendency called Mimetic Desire; it’s the idea that we often learn what to want by observing what others want.

In our modern world, through social media, everything and everyone is now in our surroundings. It’s more important now than ever to truly understand who you are and what you want. Not how the world is labeling you or trying to fit you in a box.

There’s another idea called the Arrival Fallacy. It’s the false belief that lasting happiness awaits us on the other side of a particular achievement. The promotion. The salary. The recognition. The milestone.

Yet when we finally arrive, the satisfaction often fades more quickly than we imagined, and before long, we’re chasing the next big thing.

This race for status, labels, and symbols of success can easily keep us chasing things that aren’t truly ours.

That is my truth, and I am willing to live with its trade-offs.

Your truth will be different. Just make sure you are willing to live with the trade-offs that come with it.

If you take some time to understand who you truly are, what you want to be, and what your truth is, you will save yourself a lot of headaches.

It will declutter your self-image so much that you will be able to actually focus on building a life that is meaningful to you.

You might not be able to do it today for various perfectly practical reasons, as I had mine, but you should definitely plan for it.

As it’s said, the best time to plant a tree was 15 years ago, but the next best time is today.

 

A Change in Direction Is Not Time Wasted

 

Life is a learning process, there’s no doubt about it, and we have to pay for wisdom with time.

Time is the most valuable currency on this planet, and so wisdom must be its worth. Isn’t it?

If you are now consciously thinking about the direction of your life and the kind of life you want to build with what you have learned, then you are making good use of it.

As someone once said, you cannot connect the dots looking forward; you can only do it looking back.

Most things only make sense in hindsight.

Sure, some of our shortcomings were circumstantial, but dwelling on them rarely changes anything. What matters now is what we choose to do with what we’ve learned.

It is how we frame it that determines whether a lesson arrived a decade too late or a decade early.

Most people never even discover who they really are or whether what they are chasing is truly worthwhile to them.

By the end, they are left wondering where all their time went and what they were thinking.

Our learning and experiences have brought us to this point, and now the important thing is that we stop drifting. We must get intentional and focus on building the life we want.

Whatever pain, hopelessness, or discomfort we are experiencing right now, it has jolted us awake.

Let’s stay awake, pay attention to what this moment is trying to teach us about ourselves.

Clarity does take time, and with time, our vision gets even clearer, but right now, we must start moving as far as we see.

With that said, here’s what my younger self had to say.

 

The Younger Perspective

 

I maintain a diary of my goals, and in it, I have marked most of my goals until July as complete. Yet, somewhere deep down, I feel I haven’t given them all I have got.

The burn is real. You might share this sentiment with me, or in your case, maybe you haven’t even moved a muscle.

You, however, are not alone in that stationary boat that is being rocked by the blue waves of hopelessness and dismay.

At this time of the year, social media is flooded with messages like, “Half the year is over and you are still in your PJs.” Yeah, it was funny in school, most of us giggled at it, but as grown-ups, who want to make something of ourselves, it’s troubling.

So, you can either be mad about it or do something about it. What do you choose?

 

Get Your Priorities Straight

 

Find yourself a physical diary, sit down, and start writing. Writing, as opposed to typing, stimulates a different response in our brains, which is conducive to creating clarity of thought.

Don’t write a novel in it; simply some bullet points and comments.

Here’s how I do it –

  • Begin work on the short film on July 1st and finish it by July 30th.

Do this for the entire year, add comments to those bullets when you make some progress or waste more time, and use it to analyze the areas you need to focus on and work harder on.

Always give yourself a start date and an end date; otherwise, you will fall in line with Parkinson’s law.

Hey, don’t worry, mid-year is a good place to start because aren’t you fully aware how waiting for another New Year works out for you. 6 Months is a lot of time, and it can be transformative. Get to work and realize that.

So, for all your goals, fitness, career, education, etc., make time for all of them. One is not more important than the other. Together, they make up all of your life. Write them down and strategize a plan to work on them.

Insight from my younger self that’s still relevant:

  • Get your priorities straight and write them down.
  • Analyze the areas you are falling short in and address those issues.
  • All goals are important; it’s your life.

Something I would add now:

  • Life is seasonal; some areas will demand more than others. Get comfortable with that idea.
  • Consistency matters over perfection.

 

Fail Terribly if You Will but Get Moving

 

Success isn’t guaranteed, and you cannot learn without failing. Let things get messy, and plans be half-baked, but get moving fast.

A phoenix rises from its ashes, and things can fall apart before they come together. Accept that reality.

You might have to let go of your current way of life, and going in a new direction will need laser-like focus. Risk ruffling some feathers if you must, change is uncomfortable.

Drop that FOMO, think about what you are getting instead of what you are losing. Personal growth has always demanded sacrifices.

If you are already in an unsatisfactory place, what are you afraid of losing? Ask yourself, do you want to continue living the rest of your life as it is now?

Just imagine the life you will live if you successfully pull off what you are planning.

Insight from my younger self that’s still relevant:

  • Analysis paralysis has failed many great minds, even before they took a single step.
  • Failure is inevitable, and your best learnings will often come through it.
  • Do not make approval your compass. The life that is right for you may not make sense to everyone else.
  • FOMO is momentary. Each age has its own. Do not let it stop you from building a strong foundation for your life.

Something I would add now:

  • While working on what you want, be grateful for what you have. Let gratitude be your fuel.

Other than that, nothing. This insight is timeless, and I actually plan to double down on it.

 

Start With Things That Are in Your Control

 

At any given point, you have some things in your control and some out of it.

In that case, you can either work on the things that are in your control or waste time and energy by worrying about things that are not.

I have seen people postpone important work for issues that only time can resolve.

Ideal situations are illusory; there will never be a perfect moment for you to start doing something.

You have to do your best with what you’ve got.

A Few Things that Remain in Our Control:

  • Health and Fitness
  • Learning and Development
  • Your POV – Is it growth-oriented?

Those three might seem generic because they are widely discussed, but consider their popularity a signal of how important and time-tested they actually are.

Insight from my younger self that’s still relevant:

  • Health is a non-negotiable. Not body-building but health. Physical and mental both.
  • Time spent learning is never wasted, and a growth-oriented mindset is nurtured through it.

Something I would add now:

  • While you start with the things that are in your control, you should also manage your expectations and tailor your plan of action to what you can realistically achieve with certain resources.

 

Conclusion

How fast this year has gone by. It’s already July.

Before we know it, it will be December, and then another year will have quietly passed. Life has a strange way of doing that. When we are young, the future feels distant and endless. Then one day, we realize that time moves much faster than we ever imagined.

That is why it is important to become conscious of how we spend our days.

Learn. Grow. Build. Explore. Love. Create.

Work hard, but make sure you are working toward something genuinely meaningful to you.

Life is too short to spend drifting toward destinations you never consciously chose.

So, take a moment. Reflect. Realign. Then get back to work.

The rest of the year and life are still yours to shape.

 

For further reflection, I’ve curated a collection of quotes below. May they help you deepen your understanding further.

 

July Quotes on Purpose, Alignment, Meaning, and Living Intentionally

 

P.S. Everything highlighted in orange links to related content on Soulo for this post’s theme. Do check it out for further exploration.

P.S.S. I also often recommend a few core Soulo articles to help you recharge and deepen your reflection—Pranayam, Intuition, Sound Healing. Other than that, the monthly motivation series so far has covered the months of December and January. Their topics are ever relevant regardless of the time of the year. Exploring these topics will strengthen the foundation in areas beyond your conscious control. Do consider giving them some time. To continue receiving such content, make sure you subscribe to Soulo’s newsletter from the form on the right or by following on a social network of your choice.