Boulevard of Broken Dreams

Normalising not accomplishing goals that we hope to achieve within rigid timelines.

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I have been thinking a lot about broken dreams recently. At the start of each year, I write down a list of intentions ('resolutions' as many people call it) for the new year. But it goes without saying that most things in life don’t go as planned. 

We expect life to lay down a smooth path for us as we walk ahead, but it doesn't.  

We expect hard work to be the coupon that guarantees success, but it doesn’t.

We spend years delaying joy from engaging in simple things, thinking we can “pick up where we left off anytime”, only to realise later that the time may never come. 

Amid this chaos, ambitions that are unrelated to career lose value in most people’s lives. In the last few months, many people have told me that they desire the stability that I have at this stage of life. What they don’t see are the dreams that appear to be broken right now. 

None of us live a consistent, perfectly balanced life. On the other hand, who says that you still can’t achieve the things you thought you would have accomplished by now?

Your broken dreams are not the end of the world. Stop chaining yourself with rigid timelines, thinking that “achieving everything under a set timeline is what success is.”

-Don’t forget to look up-

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Here’s everything I wanted to achieve in the first half of 2024 but couldn’t:

Read More Books i.e. expand my knowledge horizon.

In 2022, I challenged myself to read one book every month, and it is fair to say that I aced it in the first two years. This year, however, I failed miserably. For me, the sole purpose of reading was to slow down and learn about the things that intrigue me. However, the stability that people see in my life has come at the cost of sacrificing simple pleasures that no longer fit into a consistent routine in this season of life. 

Travel More

People who know me know how badly I want to travel the world. But so far, circumstances have not been favourable. 

Pursue A Hobby Seriously i.e. live a balanced life.

Looking back at your childhood/teenage years, what was one hobby you wish you could hold on to even as an adult? As someone who fears that a single life may not be enough time to explore all the hobbies and places this world has to offer, it can be frustrating to see how we let adulting push parts of us that dared to dream deep down into the unknown. 

-Light and Shade, 2022-

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I see the above list as a reminder of all the intentions I have not achieved yet. These are the dreams that weren't meant to be experienced in this season of life. But there is a season, somewhere in the near future, that embraces these dreams in abundance.

I will leave you with some words I frequently remind myself of. I hope these encourage you to keep the pressure of timelines aside in your life and move forward with hope, tranquil and eagerness in your eyes.

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THIS WEEK’s RECOMMENDATIONS

• A Slow Summer Guide by

  Emily Male
  . A perfect guide for you to take actionable steps towards slowing down this summer.

• Behind the scenes of co-authoring a book by

  Claire Venus
  . If you are a fellow writer who wants to grow your publication on Substack, Claire and
  Russell Nohelty
  ‘s new book ‘How to Build a World Class Substack’ launches in less than 2 days!!

• A Short List of Things I Never Learned to Do by

  Chris Guillebeau
  . Chris concludes this piece by saying, “What should we take from this? I guess the first thing is: it’s never too late to learn!”  and I am here for it!

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If you enjoy reading Unwind, I would love it if you consider recommending the publication to your readers. Simply go to your dashboard > Recommendations > Manage > Add recommendation > Unwind.

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Lessons From June

Honoring Kindness