Gratitude 2024 : Embracing Perfect Imperfections

I start with immense gratitude for the year 2024 - This year was filled with lot of learnings,? amazing opportunities, adventures and a rollercoaster ride of emotions with one of the biggest learning this year - ‘Be comfortable with the uncomfortable’.?

As the year draws to a close, I see that a lot of my carefully laid plans did not come to fruition. And yet, with deep gratitude, I can say this year worked out more fortuitously than I ever could have imagined. This year was definitely a year of personal growth for me - I was challenged in a lot of ways. And this year, I learned to truly embrace myself with my imperfections.?

This year I learned to ‘Be comfortable with the uncomfortable’ - The more I accepted this, the more it became easy for me to face the challenges.? Life is not going to be smooth always and I feel comfort is overrated anyway.? I have learned the more we stick to our comfort zone, we are not stepping towards growth. Its important to accept and embrace situations that are outside of the comfort zone with confidence and courage. Embrace the chaos, take calculated risks, be okay with the uncomfortable and embrace imperfections, is how I define this year.?

My key reflections of the year 2024:

Embrace imperfections

Its okay to be imperfect. Its important to accept that we cannot to control every event. When we accept us and the moment of just embracing the here and now, we realise that perfection comes from imperfection, which results in a more natural flow state for happiness. There are no judgements and we start to accept all our uniqueness. One of the greatest moments of my journey came when I began to see my imperfections not as my weakness but as a characteristic of who I am. Embracing imperfections meant embracing imperfect part of my life? - the failures, the insecurities, the setbacks, the vulnerable moments. This helped me open myself to new opportunities, experiences and perspectives leading to a journey of growth and purpose.?

Challenges are inevitable

Challenges are an inescapable part of life. Regardless of one’s efforts to effectively deal with the challenges, sometimes all that can be done is to seek to find meaning in the experiences as we patiently endure them, as well as come to terms with them.? Every challenge, every so-called failure, seemed to close a door, leaving me questioning, But what I perceived as failures were, in fact, redirections. They brought me into a flow of events I could never have planned, opening doors to opportunities that aligned with my dreams- my purpose.?

Cultivate Resilience

If recent years have taught me anything, it's the importance of resilience in the face of uncertainty. Building resilience—both emotionally and professionally—is crucial for navigating the ups and downs of personal development. This includes embracing flexibility in my life goals, career plans, learning from failures without being defined by them, and maintaining a support network for encouragement and advice.

Focus on oneself?

While we all understand the importance of focusing on oneself, this year I actually started putting this understanding into action. I stopped caring so much about what other people think about me and I just let myself be ‘me’. I have realised that carrying a strong set of values and being just who I am is imperative to not lose myself in the process. I was being unapologetically myself - which meant letting go the need for external validation and finding validation from within. In that process I learned that I’m actually stronger than I realized.

The Power of the Pause and the ‘ME’ time?

I realised its okay to slow down, Its okay to not succeed, its okay to let the failure and challenges sink in - My frequent breaks from my personal and professional responsibilities wasn’t just about taking time off, but was also about creating space for positivities and possibilities. The most undervalued or looked down upon ‘ME’ time is actually important for us to rejuvenate, reenergise and realign which further directs us to our bigger purpose.?

To me, the year 2024 had moments of achievement, moments of celebrations, moments of tumblings, moments of uncertainties, moments of emptiness. But what mattered was in each of it, I was present and tried to reside in peace with my heart filled with immense gratitude to each and everyone who were part of my journey.?

As we welcome the year 2025, it's natural to look forward with a mix of anticipation and aspiration. No matter how we enter this year, whether we are running into a bright season, whether we are limping across the finish line or crawling our way out of a tough calendar, let us embrace our imperfections and let us believe that the dawn of the new year will be amazing - a year of unlocking limitless possibilities, a year filled with purpose and it will present us unparalleled opportunity to reset, redefine, and rejuvenate our lives.?

With Gratitude, here’s wishing you all a new year full of love, happiness and peace!