This Isn’t Advice

Live on purpose, or be lived by default.

Table of Contents

Introduction

I came across a thread on X by @gaxrav, and it hit hard.
Not in a “motivational quote” way, but in the sense that it echoed the things I knew I should be doing but hadn’t put into actions.
Or rather, hadn’t admitted loudly enough.

So, I rewrote it. For myself.
To remind myself what it means to live on purpose.

This isn’t just advice.
It’s a challenge.
A reflection.
A life experiment.

Rejecting Digital Rot

Turn off the notifications.
Unfollow trolls.
Eat your meals without a screen.
Leave your phone at home.

So much of our daily chaos comes from chasing digital dopamine hit via loops—scrolling, reacting, consuming.
I’ve wasted hours “doomscrolling” and called it “staying informed.”
But I wasn’t. I was numbing myself, buffering against boredom and meaning.

So I started turning off notifications. Not all of them, just the ones that felt invasive. For sure turning off notifications of MS teams might end up realy crazzy.
I unfollowed accounts that thrived on drama, noise, outrage.

The silence was shaking at first.
Then it became peaceful.
I could hear myself think again.

I could sit at the dinner table without a screen.
I could walk without a podcast.

It’s strange how unnatural that feels at first, but then it clicks.

Rediscovering the Analog

Read old books.
Watch old movies.
Visit bookstores.
Look for 1800s novels.
Experience art.
Read ancient scripts.

There’s a different kind of presence in analog things.
I picked up a dusty old book from archive.org.
No algorithm told me to read it. No one I knew had posted about it.
And that made it better. Personal. Timeless.

The older I get, the more I realize that progress isn’t just forward.
There’s immense wisdom in going backward.

In the pages of Seneca or Dostoevsky,
in the brush strokes of Van Gogh,
in the silence of a temple.

We were not the first to feel lost.
Not the first to seek.

Sometimes I sit with a bottle of perfume inspired by a vanished world and just try to smell what it meant.
That feels more honest than most digital noise I consume in a week.

Building a System That Works (Sometimes)

Have a calendar.
Maintain a to-do list.
Plan for 15 minutes.
Execute.
Organize your desk.
Systemize your day (or don’t).
Journal.

I’ve tried every productivity system.
Most fail.
Or rather, I fail at maintaining them or you say, I procrastinate.

But I keep returning to basics.

Nights are calming.
I open my notes application, reflect on the day, and write few things that gave it meaning.
Sometimes they’re small. Sometimes I forget to notice them in the moment.
But writing them down changes something. It reminds me that even in the quiet, the day mattered.

Some days, I don’t want structure. So I allow chaos.
But I make a deal with myself: I will return to structure soon.

That’s what matters. Not perfection.
Consistency. Returning.

Creating and Connecting

Write.
Write more.
Create art.
Learn to code.
Train without music.
Walk with intent.
Talk to strangers.
Help people.
Be kind.

I don’t want to just consume anymore, cause I’m done with just consuming.
I want to create now.

So I write.
Even when I don’t feel like it. Especially then.
I write nonsense, poetry, essays like this one( hope it’s helpful ).
I try to learn things that stretch me.
I break things in code and slowly rebuild them.
It’s frustrating, but it’s alive.

I say hi to people on the street again.
Some smile. Some look confused and see strange faces which is okay.
Either way, I feel human.

Becoming Someone I Respect

Refine your speech.
Stay calm.
Act sincere/Be genuine.
Be real.
Don’t talk shit about people.
Live with integrity.
Take something seriously.
Sit and spend some time alone.
Do something with your life that matters.

I realized one day that I respected people who said less, but meant more.
So I stopped gossiping.
I stopped overexplaining.
I tried to mean what I said.

I started taking myself seriously.
Not in a prideful way, but in the sense that I matter.
My time matters. My energy matters.

If I don’t treat it like it does, no one else will.

Alone time became sacred.
Silence became fertile ground.
I stopped fearing being alone in public.

Now, I take myself to lunch everyday.
I sit in the public places.
I watch the world go by.

I’m becoming someone I can look in the eye.

Final Thoughts

What do you want to create?

That question sits at the center of all of this.
Not because you owe the world something.
But because you owe yourself something real.

You don’t need to be hyper-productive.
You don’t need to read five books a week or train like an Olympian.

But you do need to care about how you spend your hours, about the mark you leave, about who you are when no one’s looking.

Some days, I fail. I waste time. I scroll. I eat like trash. I doubt myself.

Then I remember:

Rejections aren’t permanent.
Invite what aligns.
Accept what does not.

This list isn’t a checklist.
It’s a compass.

Let it guide you somewhere real.

— Het

Whether it’s an idea, a question, or just a email me or send a DM. I’d love to hear from you.