#WOTY – Word of the Year 2024
I know I am very late in posting about my ‘Word of the Year’ as we are into February as I start writing this. Fact is, I had decided on the word in 2023 but I took the month of January to analyse what it would really mean; start living in accordance to that and see whether it is something I can carry on not only for this year but for rest of my life. Whether it is something truly feasible and sustainable.
I have always been proud of the fact that I can see multiple perspectives in a situation. I may not truly understand each of them, but I do see them and try to understand them. When I got this Tattoo, it was to remind myself that there are multiple perspectives in every situation and that it doesn’t make my personal experiences wrong or insignificant. That I had every right to believe in my own perspective of my experience. That my feelings weren’t wrong just because someone else couldn’t see it nor were other people’s feelings wrong because I couldn’t understand it.
Back then I used to take pride in the fact that I could see the perspective of the person in front of me and cut them slack because of it. Yes, you read that right. I USED TO take pride in that. I no longer do because I came to realise that while I was trying to be kind and understanding towards other people - it meant (most of the time) being unkind and unfair to myself. I was the collateral. When I realised that late last year, I turned inwards and started being kind to myself instead. It wasn’t a conscious decision - it just started with ‘I don’t want to deal with this negativity anymore’ and it has brought me more peace than I expected.
In a world that constantly demands our attention, it's easy to lose sight of our own needs and desires. I want 'Perspective' to offer the opportunity to shift the focus inward, creating a space for self-reflection and introspection. I realised that my life is filled with noise. So is your’s, I am sure. If you stop and take stock of the responsibilities, the expectations of others, societal pressures, the constant influx of information, the general confusion and lack of focus around us - you’ll see how exhausting and completely useless it really is. And, your personal growth is often stunted due to it.
So, this year I have started to turn the lens inwards and ask myself - ‘do I want/need this’ and ‘is this good for me’ very consciously about every single thing. Whether it is good or bad - everything will be questioned and acted upon. I will slowly filter out the unnecessary and hone in on what truly matters to me and my own well being. Instead of being overly critical of myself, I will try to view my experiences through a lens that acknowledges my handwork, learnings and growth. I will continue to learn more things and subjects so that I can use it to understand myself better and make my own life better.
I know that I am going to disappoint a lot of people around me and am ready for people to start calling me selfish for not giving them time, space and understanding any longer. And, that’s okay.
