First Newsletter 🌟

Reading Time: 4 min

🤝🏼Introduction:

(Only the first newsletter has an introduction)

Hello, welcome to Ana Thinks, my weekly newsletter. I have wanted to start writing and sharing my thoughts publicly for a long time, but the fear of ‘being seen’ or ‘criticized’ always got the better of me. Thanks to Ali Abdaal, I could finally get over this and start this series of writings. Anyways, it’s lovely to have you here; I hope you enjoy what I brew ;)

Some brief information on why I decided to start this newsletter:

1. I think, ‘A LOT’: This is where I will express my views on the topics that made me ponder. I will ensure that it’ll always be something engaging ;)

2. I like expressing myself: I wanted to give my reflections a proper synchronized space and time, hence this newsletter.

3. I want intelligent conversations: I consume a lot of media in the form of articles, books, videos, documentaries, music, and sometimes podcasts. So this newsletter will be a way to converse with people on any new idea or theory I come across and brainstorm things together.

Coming to the first and this week’s issue:

🤪Short Life Update:

I am happy to share that I completed my Digital Marketing Certification from the Delhi College of Arts and Commerce. It was a hell of a ride, commuting from Greater Noida to South Delhi every other day, but I made it, lol.

I have been into Sharks and romance fiction (don’t judge) lately. It’s been a long time since I could do anything that I liked (without school buzzing on my head), and now as I have some ‘pre-college-free-time,’ I decided to indulge in the world of fictional boys and marine biology lmao.

So, Me doing a full-fledged Udemy course on Sharks and binge-watching Ocean documentaries is a way of connecting with my lost interests (which can now fully bloom in the time of Vella-Pan)

📖Book of the Week:

The Highly Sensitive Person’s Guide to Dealing with Toxic People by Shahida Arabi

My Thoughts:

In the social media age, we throw around the word ‘narcissist’ like confetti, but they’re not some ‘selfie obsessed humans’ but abusive people who take a toll on the mind, body, and spirit. The way psychologists use this term is entirely different. The best example we know is that of Johnny Depp’s ex-wife, Amber Heard.

Narcissists result from a turbulent childhood, sometimes due to a lot of neglect or attention. Relationships with them are the most dissatisfying. Call them out on their toxicity; the villain is now you, and they’re the victim, a practice known as gaslighting.

The book provides action plans and case studies to deal with such people.

Takeaway: Get out of the way when you identify them as a Deep Narcissist.

🎥 YouTube Video of the Week:

Stop Trying to Get it, and You’ll have It: The Backwards Law

~How do we get what we want by not trying too hard for it?

The backward law does teach us not to be fooled by the idea that the pursuit of happiness leads to more happiness.

Human beings constantly live in a ‘sense of lack.’ Even if we reach our goals, the same discontent as before will persist, and therefore a chase for that ‘something more’ will begin again.

Accepting and being grateful for all the abundance you currently live in is the best way to strive for it. Anything more than what you now possess will only be a cherry on the cake. Brianna Weist also mentioned this in the book ‘101 Essays That Will Change the Way You Think’. She argued, “The path to a greater life is not “suffering until you achieve something,” but letting bits and pieces of joy and gratitude and meaning and purpose gradually build, bit by bit.”

Takeaway: Keep a Gratitude Journal

🪄Quote of the Week:

My Thoughts:

Too often, our lives go by without living consciously and inventively. Our reactions towards certain things result from a vast and complicated ancestorial history with a complex psychological map (like people-pleasing tendencies, sexism, imposter syndrome, fear of abandonment, etc.) When we take time to recognize these patterns and connect them to our childhood, we may find a reason and subsequently heal those parts of us.

We owe the next generation not only a healthy planet but also a healthy family where vulnerability is not frowned upon but embraced with open arms, where a difference of opinion is not a threat to the culture but is actively welcomed.

🤔An Interesting Fact:

Did you know that there is a fish with a literal saw-like head? I’ll add a photo here:

Unfortunately, they are now critically endangered. With such a vast Rostrum, aka Snout, they get easily entangled in the fishing nets (sometimes due to by-catch). Recently one of them was found on our shore of Karnataka, all tangled up in the finishing net.

📄Article of the Week:

Biodiversity: Why Should Business Care? by INSEAD

🎶Song of the Week:

🐶Dog Picture of the Week:

For those who don’t know, we have two pet dogs: Max (German Shephard) and Shiro (Pomeranian). You’ll be seeing an awful lot of pictures of my dogs in this newsletter XD.

🎨An Art I came Across:

The House of Shadows by vaitsis_triantafyllos on Instagram

I hope you liked the very first issue. See you next week!

👋🏼 Sayonara~

Anamika

PS: Make sure you add this email address (anathinks@substack.com) to your address book. This way, you won’t miss a single newsletter.