Small Wins

Today was a great day.

I woke up at 5.30 AM to a dark and pleasantly chilly morning, the weather that Bangalore is so well known for turning up once more. A short debate of choosing between curling up in my bed under cozy sheets or getting out of bed to start the day ended up with the latter winning, and I jumped out to get ready for my gym.

The morning magic continued into the gym. I felt so much happier and more energetic, and maybe that's true for many people who are up early to get to their morning routines. Smiles and conversations were shared at the gym with strangers, and a fun workout later, I was back at home ready to tackle a surprisingly busy Friday involving calls, a presentation, and impromptu meetings.

I read somewhere a while ago (I could not find the exact article, but I believe it was by Ness Labs) that when you have a lot of activities present in your life, even if one of them (such as work), makes you feel unhappy on a certain day, there are a lot of other places to take wins from.

I could really see that come into effect today. Usually when making and giving presentations, I try to choose lightweight topics on which I can do plenty of research and preparation beforehand, and try to add an element of humor or fun to them.

Today's presentation, on a deep and interesting programming concept, couldn't live up to that, partially due to a lack of time, the complexity of the concept, and a lack of effort in my preparation. It ended up in a healthy discussion involving a lot of participants but was unlike the lightweight presentations I usually drive.

I was extremely surprised at how little it affected my mood throughout the rest of the day. I wasn't moping over what I could have done better, or making excuses for why it wasn't how I expected it to go.

Work done, I headed to my second trial piano class at an academy I have been scouting recently. I was niced by an auto driver who blocked the road to help me take a tricky U-Turn, and I passed on the good karma later by letting someone else go too. Picture the academy this way - big glass windows, wooden flooring, great lighting, and an abundance of greenery around the academy. Friendly faces, a really lovely session, and the magical weather all contributed to what I already could tell was going to be a great day to look back at.

I went home (as fast as I could in peak evening Bangalore traffic), and got everything I needed to go play badminton. A drive involving calming music and relatively emptier roads made it surprisingly pleasant.

I love badminton. I realize now, I definitely didn't play enough of this as a child. I spend so many hours every week now playing badminton, across various courts in Bangalore, with friends and colleagues, and I love how demanding the sport is. A tiring and extremely fun two hours later, I was finally on my way back home, where I'd end the night with a lovely video call with a couple of my closest college friends, and mom's homemade pasta.

Today was a great day, and I hope tomorrow will be too.