What a broken lift taught me
#134 - dance, music, cooking...and some Maths
Hi there,
A month to go to the Christmas holidays! It’s a busy 28 days ahead, but as the cold turns the dial-up, I hope to turn the dial of cheer up too 🎅🏾
It’s been a quieter week (in the evenings), probably a good thing ahead of these next 4 weeks. The modules turned to new chapters, as did the weather and my number of spring week applications - all riveting stuff.
Highlight of the week: getting back to dancing! I rekindled a talent from yore twice this week, auditioning for both the IndianSoc and the TamilSoc. Both dance shows are relatively high commitment but we await the decision on my ability to groove (very high 🕺)
Thank God for lifts - my room in halls is on the 10th floor, and if it weren’t for lifts, I would not be enjoying my time in London. However, I do have a slight qualm - one of our lifts decides to not work on my 10th floor button every once in a while.
It was one of these ‘once in a while’s yesterday when I was shooting up and down with laundry. As has been the customary way out of this problem, I sigh, press 9 and dread the walk up a flight of stairs - how cruel of the lift.
However, this time, I had a daring new thought run into my brain, “Why do I press 9 and go up rather than press 11 and walk down? That’s less effort! I can even gallop down the stairs if I’m not carrying anything?”
This mind-bending epiphany launched me into this blog post - aiming higher with ambition, only to come back down and end up getting to the destination. I’ll discuss three examples today, which might provide inspiration for areas of your life you can apply this concept. Next time, we’ll explore a few practical ways of thinking about this.
Musicians trying to tune - earlier last week at orchestra, the conductor asked the Double Basses to come straight on the note rather than vibrato (vibrating around the note). One of the players replied, “Darn it, that’s how I get into tune”. “I know, it’s cheating”.
It might be in the realm of orchestral music, but in other areas of life, it seems like a good plan - fiddling around till you find the sweet spot.
Finding a balance between studies and societies - this has been the theme of much of my first 2 months at university. It seems like both an art and science to get the schedule to marry up with energy levels and a good recipe of ‘work’ and ‘play’.
My attitude so far, particularly for the first 4 weeks, was "let me test it out, see how much I can cope with and then pull back where I need to. If I try everything there is, then when I need to cut back (some point next term), I’ll know which ones I actually want to do”.
It reminds me of the blog post about divergence and convergence when in a creative pursuit - there is a period of trying lots of stuff out and then taking your pick to work out what’s for you.
Getting Imperial over Cambridge - oh yes, we’re getting into the deep stuff, the first time I think I’ve properly tackled this on the blog.
Of course getting Cambridge was and is disappointing. But it is another example of setting your eye on the very best and dropping just short, at a place which is still very good. (in the end, Imperial has been ranked higher than Cambridge this year!)
This is not to say that aiming for Cambridge was too high, but to recognise the objective truth that it is difficult to get into. No matter what work I put in, the outcome was never guaranteed. However, the ‘byproduct’ of targeting the best UK university to do Maths was building an application good enough to get into the 3rd (after Oxford, technically).
As the famous quote goes,
“Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars” - Norman Vincent Peale
(And yes, I know, the quote doesn’t make astrological sense, given how far away the stars are)
There is merit in overshooting your limits or going further than you need to, because then you know where your green zone is. You should set lofty goals to motivate yourself, knowing that working towards them will mean you end up with something great - or at least something you can make into a great opportunity. 🌠
Remember to read next week’s edition for a couple of ideas on how to do this - beyond being clever with a broken lift.
Podcast of the week🎙️
Modern Wisdom: #865 – Matthew Syed – How High Performers Build An Unbreakable Mindset
Quite a bit of music listening this weekend, but I did find time for this wonderful conversation
Thing I’m grateful for this week 🙏
Yogesh and Maya, two people I met at one of the dance auditions, who helped to make sure I get my charger back after I left it in the audition room (what a wally 🤦♂️)
Quote of the week 💬
The greatest mistake we make is living in constant fear that we will make one. John C Maxwell
An exciting week ahead, I hope you enjoy your week too 👍
Adi