Yet again?

Yet again? 

Feels like just when things were seeming a recovery and of fresh breeze, the lessons do not seem to be over. Did we not take the course fully last time? Maybe not.

Yet again? 

The entire human race seems to be on its knees and there is fear, anxiety, despair everywhere. It's gloomy everywhere quite literally. Hmmm Mental health? Don't ask. 

Yet again?

Livelihood seems to have hit a roadblock with 'just living' taking precedence. What do you currently want? Healthy life or those bigger aspirations? Just basics.

Yet again?

Its just like the sudden rain in the city splashing on your new dress and dampening the spirits. New year and new goals. But yet again going just with the flow? Certainly uncertain. 

Yet again?

What can even do? Apart from holding to the only friend we ever know who helps. HOPE. Who else do we go out for help? Not that he will do any help. But it is still comforting

Yet again?

Let's hold onto this one branch like it's the last resort, like it's the only way forward, like it's the only thing we as humans can do. Will it help? Oh!! We survived last year.

Yet again?

Let's just Hope...

-Naveen Nagaraj

Two years later...

        It's two years to the dream we first set our foot into. April 6th 2019 was the beginning of the journey into the unknown with nothing already in place except a clear vision. As we complete year 2 and move into the next it seems like a baby which is growing in its infant phase. Each day seems new, each experience seems new and each small step calls for a celebration. It has been the same feeling for us. What started with two individuals now has thirteen of us striving to work with the clear vision of 'being concerned.'

        2020 which goes into the history as an unusual pandemic year, has taught us a lot. The year had a lot of emotional setpoints and a lot of ups and downs at every juncture. When we drew out a three year vision and action plans for the firm during March 2020, that is when the world got into a serious threat caused by an unprecedented event. Nothing ever mattered to any of us except for the safety and wellbeing of everyone and the families. Almost 6-7 months went by working from home where "Are you able to hear me now?" was the only constant :P

        This year has been about holding onto our beliefs much tightly like its the only way forward for us. There is always a reward for holding onto your beliefs which comes only in the end. Despite of this being a tough year, we have taken much tougher decisions in the best interest of the organization and that only helps us sleep peacefully at night. Stronger work ethics, professionalism and working on everything with utmost concern is what we strive for every single day.

        We are proud of the clientele we are associating ourselves with and we are so thankful to each and every client who have believed in us. We are thankful to our team that we are really proud of, for choosing us. We are thankful to everyone who has wished nothing but the best for M S N A and the way forward is to only spread good vibes in each others' mutual growth. We whole heartedly thank everyone who are part of this journey with us and everyone who has wished us good from far apart. 

        Cheers to another year of learning and new challenges in the entrepreneurial journey...

Gratitude and Love,

Naveen S N 

2020: An year our generation will always remember...

2020 ➡️ 2021

2020 has been a roller coaster year to the entire human race on this planet. It isn't about one single person but this year has tested almost everyone of us. This will be a year that goes in the history books on how there was one virus that bought the entire human race on its knees and showed them how life is about the BASICS. This year had lessons throughout.

2020 bought in a lot of uncomfortable changes to a lot of people's lives. The lockdown reiterated the fact that how blessed we are to have a few essentials in our life and pushed us to a miniature lifestyle for a long time though. My sincere prayers and thoughts with all those people who suffered a lot, lost their loved ones for the pandemic or even worst not making it to the end of 2020 alive.

If we are alive TODAY reading this, it's a reminder to us to mend our ways and live a sustainable life🌍. There are a lot of blessings from 2020 for which I can't stop thanking the Universe. 2021 shall be about going with the flow of uncertainties with all those wonderful lessons learnt all these years of my existence. 2021 shall be as always to live a life in tune with my purpose of life. 

Cheers and best wishes to everyone for the new year. Let's take it one day at a time. 🌌

Love and light,

Naveen Nagaraj

Some Birthday Musings

Every birthday brings out the same excitement in me like years before when I was a kid waiting for October 11th to show up on the calendar. The excitement of the birthday has been a constant always and I hope it will stay for time to come. 

Birthdays are super special to me for the reason that this is one day I get to feel extra special about myself. This is one day where I get to connect and talk to so many special ones. The constant vibration of the phone for every message coming in and those beautiful conversations throughout the day makes it worth waiting for. 

Needless to forget those besties who take time out to make it extra special just by meeting that day. Birthdays make you feel so special about your existence on this planet. I just cherish the conversations on this day and this day can only be complete with wishes from all those special people.

This day also marks an year to this personal blog of mine. Live Life 360 Degrees is my Mantra for this life. I will continue to write about my life experiences, my thoughts, my reflections in this blog till I reach my very end. 

I will continue to share love, light and positivity because that's what I am; 'A Hopeless Optimist' Thank you so much for all the love and affection on this day. Thank you for reading this.

Indian Matchmaking-Busting the Generalizations

Its been quite some time writing here. There have been multiple thoughts running in my mind for quite sometime but never could write here. Every other piece found solace in my personal diary. Indian Matchmaking series on Netflix had invited so much debate on social media on the way it portrayed the concept of arranged marriages in India and there were so much discussions on the generalizations the show had. This post is not a review of the series but this one got me thinking. I have always been a thinker and there are so many thoughts I feel like sharing with the world. Human relationships have always been my personal favorites and it has never failed to fascinate me.

When I get to think about love, relationships, marriages, emotional attachments etc., the way I feel about them have matured with time. The way I was thinking about love at 21 is way different than how I feel about them at 27 now. As time passes and as life introduces you to various experiences, our perception keeps changing and refining. Few very important reflections which I strongly believe in are what I write down below: 

1) 'Being clear' is not equal to 'being stubborn' 

'Being clear' about the kind of life partner you need to spend your life with cannot be equated to 'being stubborn.' Being clear about the kind of life partner you need comes from a very deeper space inside where you are clear about the kind of person YOU are primarily. It is not superficial and is always towards foundational values. You can be clear about the basic values your partner must possess and that is for God's sake not too much to ask for.  

2) Taking time to decide the one is not 'missing the bus.'

Relationships are surely about accommodating. It could be about sacrificing that window seat for a lifetime, sharing your favorite chocolate forever, taking more photos of your partner than getting clicked or getting up early so that your partner is not skipping the breakfast, etc. These things are not easy and they do not happen overnight. They seem effortless only when you start liking the other person. Else it is a constant tug of war and a competition between each other. A relationship takes in time, effort and energy and it is ABSOLUTELY okay to take some time to decide. 

3) Right person is not about 'Yeh best profile hai...'

Many a times we are striving to meet that right person to share life with. But maybe it does not work like that. The key is about striving to 'be the right person' for the other. It is about creating a cozy space for the other one so that the person who comes in gets to see the better version of YOU. More importantly the efforts to be the BEST for the other one should be directed INWARDS.

4) Your right time is not about Seema Aunty's 'right time' :P 

Marriage is not a race and the one who gets married first probably won't be given a medal. It is not about being early or getting late. We all have our timelines and they are DIFFERENT. We shall be at peace when we realize that we can only think about what's in our circle of influence.

5) Horoscope matching is not insurance coverage for a marriage :P 

Matching it or not matching it, either of it shall not determine the success of a marriage but the two individuals involved do. Marriage or any relationship is a constant effort and the effort needs to be from both sides. One person can contribute less sometimes and the other one has to make up for it and sometimes it is the other way around. Maintaining the balance is not anyone else's duty but of the two people involved. 

6) The end is a new beginning 

Change is the only thing that is CONSTANT which is a biggest cliche these days fits appropriately everywhere. After all these when we finally decide in and say 'Yes' to a marriage, it is not gonna be about,  'This is it...!! This is how it is going to be." With time, with circumstances, with life lessons everything may change. With time, your life partner can change, you may change, your belief systems may change, habits can change and even characters can change. When life is a journey, nothing shall be constant.        

There is so much to write about this and this topic is never ending and ever evolving. But I loved sharing these thoughts which I firmly believe in. 

Let me know what you feel :) 

Much Love,

Naveen Nagaraj

A year already to our dream...!!

                 As I write this post today, I feel blessed and it fills me with joy that a dream that we four friends saw together sometime back has seen the light of the day and the baby is a year old already today. April 6th 2019, on the auspicious day of Ugadi, we launched our firm and told that we have commenced our operations. A year later, this is not just a dream that is confined to the four of us but a dream that has become a part of nine of us. Something that started as a leap of faith is now taking its baby steps and slowly steering ahead. 

              Entrepreneurship is a journey into the unknown and every day is new, exciting and just leaves you hanging with the hope that something better is awaiting you. No day has been the same since we started this journey. There are some days where we are down, tired in anticipation, disappointed and then there are days where we are fully charged up, excited about something about to happen and cannot stop counting how blessed we are. One thing we have realized as a team is to not force an outcome onto something. If something happens, let it and if something doesn't happen there must be a higher purpose for the same. 

               The biggest challenge for any entity in their year zero is to find its first team, to get people on board who believe you and the idea, people who are ready to risk and take a leap of faith with YOU. Whatever is the idea, it could never reach its intended purpose if the team does not really care about the organization's 'Why?' Our idea has always been to build a workplace where the team comes in to the office excited, goes back home fulfilled and work with a clear vision of 'being concerned' and we aspire to build such a work space. 

                   With this post, we thank our initial clients who believed in us and trusted us with their requirements. We thank the wonderful team we are blessed to have with us who inspire us to aspire more. We also thank everyone who have just wished us good and have helped us keep our morale up including our families, friends, well-wishers etc. As we enter into another year of unknown, I must say we are eagerly waiting to see the path that would unfold in front of us... 

Gratitude and love,

Naveen Nagaraj 

Women's Day 2020

Something that will make you smile as soon as you read this:

Dear Women, 

It is something that we men always forget doing, something that we have missed from times immemorial, something that we take it for granted and something that you no longer expect: A thank you with a gratitude... 

For the roles you play in our life or say in the universe, will just a 'thank you' do? A cute little baby, a friend, a classmate, a cousin, a supportive colleague, a best friend, a sister, a spouse, a working women, a homemaker, a mother, a grandmother and it still does not end there. As if born to multi task, when you can handle so many things at once with ease and leave us in awe, we still do not acknowledge that fact thinking you are just discharging your responsibilities on yet another day. 

As a mother when you had dedicated your life to us, maybe we had forgotten that you were once a young lady and you had dreams in life too. But you had taken a U-turn from a dream life of yours and chose to take care of me instead. As a wife, when you once came in to offer your suggestions for the business, we did not really take it seriously ignoring the fact that you were once a topper and had an entrepreneur in you who got burried later. When you left your family after marriage and came home, we did not take it very seriously thinking it was your duty & societal norms to do so.

Why should we tell you a thank you? Is it for being that crush who made our life beautiful? Is it for being that English teacher who made life beautiful with stories in an otherwise boring school? Is it for being that one and only mom who thinks 24/7 only about our family? Is it for being that ungettable girl who showed us  void in our life? Is it for being that cute grandma telling stories of 1960's? Is it for being that always bankable best friend who would bring us back to track? Is it for being that colleague who helped us with SAP before getting fired? Is it for being the wife who understands everything that was spoken in the way she wants? :P

Yes!! We are sometimes insensitive by not acknowledging things in the regular way but we do it in a way so subtle that you may never get it. When we tell you, "Mom, do not cook today. It's a Sunday. Let's go out" we care for you. When we tell you, "Text me when you reach back home" we care for you. When we tell you, "I pity your husband. I am sure he will not be able to tolerate you even for two days" we care for you. When we tell you, "Don't walk down home. It's already late. I will pick you from busstop" we care for you. When we tell you, "I hate you. Don't talk to me" we care for you. But we don't tell that maybe. 

As we move forward and understand women empowerment is the talk of the town, we believe there is nothing that you are incapable of. Sometimes the empowerment can be scary especially when it pushes you to extents wherein you start feeling we are so independent now that we can live without men. When that happens there will be a huge disconnect and we may stop believing that we are humans first and again go back to the same root problem from where it started. 

As we end this letter, we just want to reiterate the fact that you are special and you will stay loved and respected. A formal Thank you...

Love, 

Men.