"We must all spend 10-15 minutes before falling asleep in silence" - Vaishnavi Ray

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1. Tell us about your background and journey.

I come from a very humble background and still stay firmly bound by my roots. I was raised in the town of Vijayawada that has evolved into a beautiful city over the years. My love for writing sparked from my early obsession with reading.

Everybody identified with what I wrote and always wanted me to come up with more. So, the motivation factor has always worked in my favour! Over the years, my writing has scaled a diaspora of topics - ranging from stories of my childhood to issues that plague the world. 

2. What led you to take up this career path?

Initially, I wanted to be a doctor. But you know the drill of the average Indian career-path choices. My mom only gave me one: ENGINEERING. I was upset with her decision obviously, and I had to make sure that I was at least pursuing a hobby that I loved. So I took to writing letters and emails to friends and family. 

I poured out my heart and soul into each letter I penned and eventually got into the habit of writing everything I felt deeply about. For me, it was a smooth transition. In fact, it came very naturally!

3. What is Life Basics all about and the ideology and brainstorming behind that?

LifeBasics was my baby project in college. Similar to my transition from reading to writing was my evolution to speaking and teaching. I realised that a large section of the society appreciated listening more than reading - since it doesn’t need too much patience. Reading is a rarity for a hobby in this age of digitalisation and gadget addiction, right?

People would rather watch a TED talk or a movie than read a book that says the same thing. That’s why adaptations and storytelling sessions are the flavour of the season. So in my effort to make my views more resonant, I took up hosting and public speaking in college. I was also part of the Drama Club, and that took me a long way into practising bold speech. 

I’d attribute the ideology to the potpourri of experiences I was exposed to in college! Felt there was a need for everybody to be able to speak what they actually felt, that is how and why LifeBasics was born: to help people express!

4. How can people practice mindfulness?

To be very honest, I don’t understand why people are so anxious these days! Alas, how can you think of a solution to your problems if you are stressing about it? And why would you want to ruin your health over trivial matters that we supposedly give priority to? To be mindful has become an art because we, as humans, have complicated our lives with greed and unrealistic expectations. 

We are never satisfied with what we have. We don’t spend methodically. We aim for too much. First, that needs to end! We must all spend 10-15 minutes before falling asleep in silence, NOT on the phone or watching TV! 

Those fifteen minutes that you spend reflecting on what happened through the entire day, how wonderfully you dealt with life and how you can better the things you didn’t do well - shape your entire perspective about life!

5. Could you please enlighten us of your experience as an author?

I don’t really consider myself worthy of being called an ‘author’ yet. It all feels so surreal! Never did I imagine that my essay would be selected into the anthology. If I have to be brutally truthful, I must admit that I didn’t even meet the deadline. 

I saw the notification that one such nation-wide competition was being held and then I just wrote my views in under 45 minutes, and clicked ‘SEND’, only to notice that the deadline had passed. I sent it, nevertheless. 

And two months on, I received an invite to the book launch with a congratulations letter. I was simply elated! My confidence had touched the skies! As humans, nothing can delight us as much as rewards, right? So that’s how my journey and experience has continually been! Rewarding!

6. As a corporate Trainer, what are the biggest challenges you face, also what are the learnings from that?

The biggest challenge has always been the motivation behind the learner’s inclination. Most people attend personality development sessions only because they’re afraid of how other people perceive them! That’s the first thing I correct in all my sessions! 

I tell them that unless they get their motivation and learning priorities right, this won’t work! I ask them to stop learning in fear of expectation or because they want to please someone - I tell them to do it for themselves! 

Because knowledge, unlike the commercial product it has been made off late, is unending - and the pursuit of knowledge is what gives meaning to our lives! 

7. How according to you can one manage stress? 

Stress is superficial! I always tell my students and friends that managing stress is the easiest thing there is! Just “stop stressing!” because that’ll get you nowhere. Tell me, don’t you think it’s stupid that we stress about stuff, lose our sleep over it, start binge-eating, ruin our relationships in the process and what not...and then, 

even if we end up finding a solution to the problem that actually stressed us in the first place, we will start stressing about our health that we ruined in the process, or our weight gain that was caused due to overeating - and then we’ll take to spirituality and astrology in the hope that it will solve our problems! NOOOO! End that today! 

Sit back and take a deep breath! Start journaling! Once you put all the issues and tasks bothering you on paper, everything will seem simpler. That’s what I do!

I have a bullet journal. I pen down my tasks for the day accordingly -

1. Important and Urgent: I do them myself and immediately. 

2. Important but Not Urgent: I schedule these tasks for the days to come!

3. Not Important but Urgent: I try and delegate the task to someone who can do it for me immediately!

4. Not Important and Not Urgent: I do these at my convenience, i.e. only if I have the time! Such tasks are a luxury!

Anybody can do this! It barely takes ten minutes, and ends up relieving you of all the stress! Try it! Works wonders!

Interview by- Vishal