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First-time parents

I got an email yesterday

“What advice do you have for a first-time parent?”

Here are my thoughts:

1/
Kids are born with no other fear except that of falling.
Every other fear - they learn while living.
As parents, we are largely guilty of instilling those fears in them.

2/
They are born with the ability to immerse themselves. In play.
And focus is a superpower today!
As parents, we disturb this immersion by asking them to come and eat, go and poop, go for a bath, study, go for classes.
If only we allowed this immersion to continue.

3/
They are naturally born curious.
And curiosity can be killed. By repeating, “It's like this only”.
Give them the freedom to discover.
Even if the answer will leave them disturbed.
Don’t kill their curiosity.

4/
Don’t ever ask any question starting with, “Why did you…”
Don’t accuse them.
Don’t make them feel bad about mistakes they made that you could have made too.
Help them see through what happened. Not why they did what they did.

5/
To them, everyone is equal. And everyone is a friend.
How we, as parents, deal with people is how our kids learn how to differentiate between people.

6/
Kiss them, hug them, and say you love them for the rest of your life.
Express yourself.
That will tell them it’s okay to do it too.

7/
Build a routine with them every 2-3 months.
Something you do every day.
It will be a school for them.
It will be life memories for you.

8/
It's not what you tell them, but what you do that will stay with them.
They will learn by observing you.
You are a celebrity now.
Be aware of that.

9/
The most real definition of love will be developed by observing how you love your partner.
Make sure you love your partner with respect and all your heart.
That’s how your kids will come to see love.
And hopefully, love.

10/
Let them experience the world in its true, raw form.
Playing with dirt, falling over, singing aloud, bumping into people, making mistakes.
Don’t tame them.
The world will as it is do that to them.

As parents, free them!

Free Online Masterclass on Career

On Jan 5, 2025 (Sunday) at 6:30 pm, I am hosting a free online masterclass on careers.
The masterclass is designed specifically for students and young working professionals and will cover:

1. How do you decide which career to choose?
2. How to change your career?
3. How to make critical career decisions?
4. What frequent mistakes do people make in their careers?
5. The most important career skill in this rapidly changing world

​Click here to register for the free masterclass​

Book I am reading this week

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Finished reading Lifespan: Why We Age – and Why We Don’t Have To
The book got technical in parts, but I think I still managed it well. A lovely end to this year (don't think I will pick up any other book). In the next edition, I will share my top 5 books from this year.
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My 3rd book, Make Epic Money, has sold 1,35,000+ copies in India with a 4.4+ rating. You can buy it in Hindi, English, Marathi, Audio, and Kindle here.
The book has also been converted into a video course (in Hindi and English) - that you can check out here.
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My 4th book, Build An Epic Career, will be launching on Jan 20th, 2025 and I am conducting a free online masterclass on career on Jan 5th, 2025 at 6:30 pm. You can register for the masterclass here.

Here is an alphabetical list of all books I have shared in this newsletter so far.

Question of the week

How do you celebrate 31st December?

• Party outside
• Party at home
• Something different, but nothing major
• Nothing special at all

(and see the results of others, too)

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Results of last week's question

The younger ones have goals but not plans as yet.
Older ones have nothing as yet, haha! Too early, it seems.
​My response?​
No goals and no targets. For the past 20 years :))

3-2-1
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3 pics from last week

Went to a wedding in Goa - Supriya and Shobhit (founders of Josh Talks). What a setting!!

Make Epic Money won the Crossword Bestseller of the Year 2024 Award. Yayyyyy
Thanks to all of you :))

If you loved Do Epic Shit, you are going to LOVE the Do Epic Shit Journal. The best gift for 2025.

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2 quotes I wish to share

Start taking your life seriously and you start losing your friends.
Precisely the friends you should have never had.

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Sometimes, the fear of losing prevents us from ever winning.

1 new thing I learnt this week

There is a jellyfish called Turritopsis dohrnii; nicknamed the "immortal jellyfish" due to its extraordinary ability to reverse its life cycle. When faced with environmental stress, such as starvation or injury, this jellyfish can revert from its adult stage back to its juvenile stage.
WHAT!!!!
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🎙️ My top content from last week
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📹 YouTube:​ How to invest in Mutual Funds in 2025​

📱 Instagram: It is not desperate​

🐥 Twitter: I am from the future​

🎧 Podcast: Arranged marriage​
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You can, of course, always write to me by simply replying to this newsletter.

I love reading all your emails, even though I may not be able to reply to them all.
Yes! I READ ALL MY EMAILS. ALL OF THEM.​
​(Sardiyon mein dilli mein Lodhi Garden Picnic karne ki kasam)

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