A letter to my alma mater, gratitude experiment and proactive communication
It’s 9.08 pm on the last day of June as I sit to write this. Wow! Half of 2021 is already over.
Let’s spend a minute to reminisce about the things we’re grateful for in 2021.
Among other things, I’m really grateful to each one of you who has subscribed. You motivate me to write.
Last week was crazy. I had to go to my college which is in Kanpur for some bank-related work. I visited the place after 5 years and what a whirlwind of memories it was.
Wrote a little letter to it in an attempt to express my gratitude. Here’s an excerpt.
…I was a noob when we met. You opened the world to me. You've seen most of my firsts. First injury, first heartbreak, first drink, first job and tons more. As soon as I saw you, all those memories flashed in the blink of an eye like it was just yesterday.
The late-night walks on foggy winter nights
The canteen food and numerous ‘29’ fights
The unending wing gossip…
You can check out the full letter here if you like — Letters to places #03
IITK is undoubtedly my most favourite place in the world 💗
This trip was extra special because coincidently, my best friend’s home is in Kanpur. So I got a chance to spend a few days with her before she flies off to the US in a month. We were meeting after 2 years. Spent time with her talking, cooking, watching movies, eating and just being together. Priceless!
Moment of the month — June
What is your fondest memory of college?
While the last few days were quite busy with work and other things, I’m sooo glad that I started writing this. I know I know I repeat it too much. Is twice too much though? 🤔 I’m just really happy with this decision ya!
I think committing really works for me because once I say that I’d do something, I give my 100% to keep my word.
I think delivering on a promise is really important to me. It puts me off when someone says they would do something and they don’t.
I’m not saying you have to do it come what may. But if you can’t for some reason, tell me.
I feel we don’t appreciate the value of proactive communication enough. It’s an important habit to build happy relationships both in our personal and professional lives.
When someone promises but doesn’t deliver on the promise it feels like they don’t care. It can be as small as, “I’ll call you back in a while” and they don’t. I have had a hard time coming to terms with the fact that that’s not true.
Why does it happen?
We forget the promise or do not get the time, or we try but there are some hurdles, or we just changed our minds.
How can we be proactive?
If there’s going to be a delay, communicate as soon as you realize it.
If you can’t do it, tell that you can’t do it because of whatever reason.
If you changed your mind, say (well ahead of time) that you don’t want to do it anymore.
If you forgot and the promised time has passed, apologize, give a new time and set a reminder.
Whatever be the reason, do not let the other person wonder what happened. Do not let them assume things. Give them answers.
A lot of misunderstandings and expectation breaks can be avoided with proactive communication. And it builds trust.
I’m sure all of us have been at the giving and the receiving end of this at some point.
What do you do to ensure proper communication in your relationships?
The idea is to learn and grow together. So please share in comments.
Since we are on the topic of communication, I wanted to share a small video of a gratitude experiment. It beautifully highlights how communication can make you happy. I promise this will bring a smile to your face.
Watch and decide whether you want to make yourself even happier ;)
And since the weekend is approaching, I thought I’ll share my favourite movie reco as well.
This movie has literally changed my life. I quit my job to travel after watching it in 2017. There’s a high chance you’ve seen it already but if you’ve not, please, please watch it over the weekend.
I can share my Netflix creds if you don’t have a subscription. Any other excuse?
That’s it for today. If you enjoyed reading today’s newsletter, please share it ahead.
And thank you for coming here.
If you wish to subscribe to receive the newsletter in your inbox every fortnight, do it here — https://kanak.substack.com/
See you on the 16th!
Shine on,
Kanak
