Charmee Nune

  What thought has influenced me today? Somewhere, back of our mind we always ask this question. What do you want in life? At a high level, I want a perfect blend in my life. A successful career, healthy body and mind, harmonious relationships. While I know what I want, then what am I doing to achieve it?   The answer was, I am trying. That is true. We all try not just today. Every day, every week, year after year. Try to maintain a balance. I came across something written on an online forum by S. Raghuwanshi. The content really struck a chord within. Life is about making decisions. Decisions helps to achieve the balance. The economic concept of opportunity cost when understood right can make life simpler. Opportunity cost is the benefit lost by selecting a particular option over other in the decision-making process. In simple words, one pays for giving up on the alternatives which were not selected. This just fits so perfect. I binge watch Netflix. Opportunity cost = Parentin...

  How is my self-talk influencing me today? It has been fun recording myself and giving an additional dimension, a new voice to the inner monologue. A positive pep talk sets the tone of the day. I never realised the importance and influence self-talk can have on one’s mind. The thought which is driving my day is ‘Saying’ and ‘Doing’ are two different things. We friends have been saying for many occasions to meet up. It may be over 18 years we three friends have not met together. Given we are miles away, in different countries and raising young family, catching up did not take a priority. Some other aspect of life always seemed more important. But today, I was thinking, it may also be lack of initiation. One of us must extract that time and plan to make it happen. While the idea was presented and welcomed, I want to see how far we go this time? Will the plan materialise this time? It is a long while from today, but a plan is important to execute it.   I want to be the influen...

  What influenced me today? I was browsing through one of the reels on Instagram and I stumbled on an interview on traits of successful billionaires. Internet is flooded with such topics. One interesting fact that was discussed was how selective these successful people are on what they read. The thought that stuck to my mind was they priortise reading of non-fiction book. You never know which idea can translate to a business opportunity. This week while I was walking through the isles of the library, I returned my fiction novel and intentional browsed through the non-fiction section. I picked this one up “Morning Rituals”. I like being a morning person. It resonated with me. It is a small book, small step at a time. The ideas or not revolutionary in here, but a refresher. I tried two things today. I started my day by ‘ Drinking warm lemon water’ . And the next was ‘ Arriving in Your day’ . Wherever you are landing yourself after a big morning rush whether it is office desk or home ...

  What influenced me today? Hi.. I am Charmee. It is 3 rd of May 2024. Today I want to embark on the journey to record my Self-talk. Self-talk is quite natural. We all talk to ourselves. That is one way to motivate ourselves, we refine our thoughts. It is our decision-making tool. Whether a thought is positive or not, whether it needs to be pursued further or needs to be discarded. What thought can be translated into an action. This churning happens during self-talk. In the digital world we are presented with so much content. Our cup is filled with umpteen motivators and distractors. I want to slow down and hold on to one thought. I want to pursue one thought for the day. Let me record this one thought and aim to see it through the day, through week or month. Who knows some may eventually translate into a habit, so may have its natural exit. The most important thing is, I want to give it a try. Let’s keep hearing - What influenced me today?

  For generations the Vedic knowledge of waking up at Brahma Muhurta, roughly an hour predawn, has been passed on to Indians. I remember my parents always mentioning to sleep early and wake up before sunrise. If you study during Brahma Muhurta , you will remember much better. It is the ideal time where the universal energies are at balance. This calm state will help you accelerate your spiritual and creative growth. Recently, I stumbled upon a book, The 5 AM club by Robin Sharma. Of course, it got my attention, and it rekindled the teachings of my parents.   To be honest, I have always been an early riser. Waking up by sunrise or just before that is still a routine to ensure I reach office on time, get Vivaann ready for school. However, waking up at 5 AM every single day is taking it a notch higher.   This is something which needs to be cultivated as a habit. I need to schedule my sleep early to get up at 5 AM. Immediate question that comes to my mind is what ...

  Learning never ends. As a parent, your learning is rapid. There is an opportunity to learn something new everyday. We know that collective nouns for animals are drawn from their appearance, or their movement or sounds made by them. Something which was interesting to learn was a group of zebras is not just a herd, it is called  a dazzle .  The black and white stripes can be used to camouflage. It is named for the motion  dazzle   effect  created by a group of running zebras.  Vivaann is developing his own taste for books. We love to purchase age appropriate books which we can read. I stumbled upon this really interesting book written by Sarah Creese. The book introduces the children to lots of different collective nouns which we do not encounter on regular basis. Here are some  fascinating ones.   A bask of crocodiles A crash of rhinoceroses A band of gorillas A tower of giraffes A school of fishes A business of flies A knot o...

  “Mother’s lap & Nature’s lap are the only places where we feel free from world’s hustle and bustle.” I could not agree more when I came across this quote for the day in social media. As a family we enjoy travelling and exploring new places. Being in a country like Australia, relaxing on a serene beach watching over turquoise blue water, venturing on a walking trail, a stride in a park are simple activities which are accessible, economical, and easy to incorporate in daily lifestyle. Being amongst the diversity of the living organisms and experiencing the natural terrain is a feast for soul. As parents, Santosh and I always want our child to form his bond with nature. Letting our child feel the moistness of the beach sand under the feet or trickles of the dew on the grass were our ways of giving him experiences to be one with nature. Every opportunity we get to step out, we opt to be outdoor, being in nature. As the child grows so should the experience. Is there a better way t...

To me, words that are crafted well will always leave a lasting impact . Words form impressions. Words influence my thoughts and action. Therefore, I always seek for a good read. It keeps me happy, motivated, and focused. Today, I will share some powerful sentences from my treasure cove which has influenced my lifestyle, parenting style till date. When I digress, when I don’t have answers, I revisit these. The quotes resonate my approach. My top 5 influencers for 2021 are:   Be Organised! Organise your physical space, financial space, kiddo's space, and your head space .   Never do for a child What he/she can do for himself/herself. A “ dependent ” child is a demanding child… Children become irresponsible Only when we fail to give them the opportunity to take on responsibility.   Children don’t listen. They observe . When a flower  doesn't  bloom , you fix the  environment  in which  it  grows, not t...

  The expression ‘ go fly a kite’ in English may relate to telling someone to go away. It literally meant if a person had to fly a kite, he or she would need to walk away to do so. If the expression is uttered in a family with an Indian ethnic background, it simply means a family fun day and literally involves flying kites. Being born in India, especially in a gujarati family, my association with flying kites goes back to my early school days. In olden days flying kites may have served  different purposes in different countries like healthy exposure to early morning sun for Vitamin D, measuring distances, calculate and record wind readings or a form of communication similar to ship flags. However, the Indian festival ‘Makar Sankranti’ or ‘Uttarayan’ is celebrated on January 14 every year to mark the celebration of the harvest festival or change of wind, end of winter. It is indeed a picturesque view in most Indian cities; a sky filled with hundreds of bright kites, terrac...

I am fortunate to have a mother who encouraged me and trained me in my childhood to participate in myriad opportunities for reciting poetry, elocution, speeches in school and in community or participating in forums where we can share thoughts on a topic. My mother has surely excelled in her perseverance. Today, my sister and I are confident conversationalist with and ability to speak in public forums. Last week I got a call from mom who lives in India at a random hour. “There is an event for grandkids organised by the retired bank employees’ association. You need to prepare Vivaann so he can recite a poem on “Sun” to help celebrate ‘Sunday’. I know it is a short notice, but you have 48 hours to prepare the video and send me the link.  Reciting poetry is crucial in mastering speech. He begins school next year. This is a great opportunity”. In my mind, opportunity for a four-year-old literally means a test for the parent. This is the role my mother plays in my life. She chal...

  Welcome four! When my boy turned four, I would ponder. Will it be fabulous four or furious four? A few months into the year and I can feel a shift in my parental role as a facilitator. Gone are the toddler days. Here is a big boy! A young mind ready to soar.  Something certainly is different about being four. Being independent, assertive, exploring new activities. Trying is all about being four. Can I put together a puzzle? Can I button up? Can I fetch my own snack? Can I balance my bike? It is next level DIY. Of course, this newfound independence is coupled with random tantrums, screaming, jumping, storytelling and naming.  A parental mind goes at war, constantly walking the tight rope of independence versus defiance. The struggle is real while finding the real balance.  There are no wrongs or rights, surely a few fights. When you have successfully hurdled three years of parenting journey you can see a tantrum coming. When you have poured too much of milk or not e...

Sydney - With a New Perspective  I have a penchant for exploring newer destinations. And now on my target is Sydney. While browsing  I have a penchant for exploring newer destinations. And now on the target is Sydney. While browsing through a local newspaper The Sydney Herald, I came across an advertisement on the city talk show “The Art of City Making”. The subject was captivating and more so it was being hosted at State Theatre. I could see a twin objective being fulfilled; Visit to an interesting theatre hopefully coupled with some creative talk. I feel they were sufficient reasons for me to be there. The speaker, Mr. Charles Landry, raised few fundamental questions on the aspects of city making. In spite of being naive to the subject a simple thought did arise in my mind as well. Why are some cities more vibrant than the others? Adjectives like creative and interactive when get attached to a city name, adds a feather to the city’s cap. Sydney is already one of the pop...