A life on autopilot
It all began on a cold December night in Dallas, Texas, in 2016.
It was another ordinary day. Nine to five at work, home, dinner, Netflix, sleep. Rinse and repeat.
But that night, just before bed, I was scrolling through Twitter and landed on a few motivational posts. I had read words like these many times before. This time, they hit differently.
I suddenly saw my life for what it was: a routine without meaning. I wasn’t creating anything. I wasn’t inspired. I wasn’t proud of how I was living.
And in that discomfort, a strange decision arrived:
“Tomorrow, I’ll wake up at 4 a.m. No matter what.”
I didn’t know it yet, but that one small decision would change the course of my life.
The hidden treasure
At 4 a.m. the next morning, I had no plan. Unsure what to do, I searched online for books successful entrepreneurs read. One title showed up everywhere: Think and Grow Rich.
Until then, I had never read a single book from cover to cover. This one I read like scripture. Every line felt as if it had been written for me.
For three mornings straight, from 4 to 7 a.m., I devoured it. And in those quiet hours I realised I had stumbled upon a hidden treasure. Not wealth. Not success. Knowledge.
Once I found it, I couldn’t stop. The library became my second home: self-help, business, spirituality, anything that stretched my mind. My soul, starved for years, was finally being fed.
Chasing success, still feeling empty
Armed with all this new wisdom, I leapt into entrepreneurship. Between 2016 and 2019 I tried almost everything: e-commerce, real estate, telecom, importing from China, digital marketing, stocks, crypto.
From the outside, it looked like success. On the inside, I was restless, anxious and drained. Despite the hustle, the businesses and the late nights, something fundamental was still missing.
The secret hiding in plain sight
While studying high performers, I noticed something surprising: almost all of them meditated.
Could it really be that simple?
Curiosity became obsession. I read about meditation, practised it, and explored the teachings of Sadhguru, Eckhart Tolle, J. Krishnamurti and many others. Then came the book that cracked me wide open: Autobiography of a Yogi. When I learned that Steve Jobs, a man I deeply admired, had arranged for copies of it to be given out at his memorial, I knew I had to read it. It opened an entirely new dimension of my journey.
The questions only grew louder:
- What is the meaning of life?
- Who am I, beyond my roles and achievements?
- Is there a force guiding this universe?
- What is consciousness, really?
Ten days of silence
In 2019 I signed up for a 10-day Vipassana silent retreat. Ten days without speaking. More than twelve hours of meditation a day. No phone, no books, no distractions. Just me and my breath.
And in that silence, something extraordinary happened. It felt as though a dam inside me had burst. Insights, clarity and wisdom came pouring out all at once.
When I got home, I couldn’t stop writing. Every morning at 4 a.m. I meditated, then captured the words that flowed through me. They took the form of letters, letters to my unborn son.
Those letters became my book, Wisdom Worth Spreading.
Living what I wrote
Publishing the book forced an uncomfortable question: was I actually living what I was preaching?
Honestly? Not fully.
So I let go. I stepped away from most of my businesses and chose simplicity, presence and freedom. My wife and I sold most of what we owned, and with our children we travelled widely and lived spontaneously.
In 2022, I left a high-paying job in America and moved back to India. I spent months wandering the northern mountains, visiting spiritual places and finding solitude in nature.
It wasn’t easy. Society doesn’t always celebrate people who choose a different path. There were doubts, ridicule and plenty of uncertainty. But with my wife’s unwavering support, and a heart that refused to ignore its calling, I kept going.
What I discovered
Looking back at that night in Dallas, I feel deep gratitude: for the questions, the struggles, the risks.
Here’s what I have learned:
- Fulfilment doesn’t come from accumulating more.
- It comes from giving more than you receive.
- From living authentically, in line with your values.
- From daring to question, explore and discover who you really are.
Why I share this with you
I don’t tell this story as a guru with secret formulas. I tell it as a fellow traveller: someone who has wrestled with restlessness, faced uncertainty and found meaning through exploration.
Maybe my journey sparks something in you: a whisper, a curiosity, a restlessness of your own.
Because your journey is waiting too.
Life is too short to waste. So enjoy it!
Where to go from here
Start with the letters themselves: read Wisdom Worth Spreading, chapter by chapter. If you would like help on your own journey, I would love to talk.