Amrita Tripathi

Change is very much in the air – That’s the nip of Delhi winter setting in, and yes that invisible but omnipresent, unformed mass of chaos, relief, worry and nerves? That’s Change.  

While laughing off the concern from friends questioning the decision to put an ellipsis (if not full-stop) to a 9 yr career in TV news – and it’s a testament to how high-intensity, sleep-deprived and all-round stressful the job is, that most peers and friends *did* feel it was about time to step on the brakes – I knew I was only postponing the final reckoning.

I knew it would hit home at some point… that it might pinch to think about or see shows / discussions/ stories I’m not part of. But in the euphoria and the bustle, that hadn't sunk in, really. Not fully. Not till, well, this week!

I guess two months is going to be enough to know whether I miss it too much – and let’s not forget it can be a pretty awesome job…The exposure! The people you get to meet! The visibility!

(Sigh)

But then again, the flip side is the way the job itself has changed – and across the industry too. There’s such major upheaval, it can’t hurt to wait to see which way the chips fall.

Waiting, patience, a longer attention span – all things I need to work on. Even as I look to get some balance back. When was the last time I wasn’t rushing around? The last time I had regular weekends? Or time to think? Not to mention, time to write? It feels like I was in a one giant “Pause” of a moment, I don’t even know when / how I forgot to re-set! 

So here is my reminder. When I have those moments of doubt (about this specific decision) let me not forget that it’s also a major project to get my life back on track, in terms of all the other priorities I let slide over the past decade – whether through lack of interest or time (management)… This is it. This one’s on me.

So yeah, I’m looking forward to the next few months, and not rushing … standing quite still for the moment, but if I look closely, there’s progress.

I don’t know how this will go, clearly – it’s an ongoing project. But…learning new skills? Always a good thing, no? How are you challenging yourself in the few months we have left this year?