Stuff I believe. Stuff I practice. Stuff I write.
Category Error
What connects “how heavy is Tuesday,” “what does green feel like,” and “save the planet”? Category error, one of the hidden reasons our decisions fail to deliver results.
33 Seconds
Better decisions aren’t dramatic life turns. They’re often 33-second pauses that have the power to prevent unnecessary regret in everyday life.
Where Is The Mind?
A short exploration of embodied cognition: why the mind isn’t confined to the brain, how the body co-creates thought, and why ancient ideas like pratītya samutpāda echo modern neuroscience.
Day 365
One year into a startup journey is a mixed bag. Some things feel rushed, others never seem to move. You question whether you’re chasing a mirage or making real progress. But hey… I am moving ahead.
Ready To Flip Your Coin?
A thought experiment on sunk cost and opportunity cost, and why learning to subtract – not just add, may be the smartest decision-making move you’ll ever make.
Prompt-by-Prompt, We Forget to Think
A thought experiment on cognitive recession: the hidden cost of AI that could reshape human thinking in the decade ahead.
Cognitive Recession
Dementia cases once showed a hopeful decline. But are we blind to a new cognitive recession—one that might reverse decades of progress?
Passing Thought: Inaction Paradox
Inaction Paradox reveals the hidden power of doing less — how deliberate non-action sharpens clarity, deepens presence, and accelerates meaningful progress. Explore this mindful approach to productivity, which reframes stillness as a strategic action.
Peak Performance at $0
Most upskilling costs time and money. But one free, science-backed tool consistently boosts performance, creativity, and learning. A guaranteed roadmap to peek productivity… What I call the $0 miracle!
Day 250
On Day 250 of building my startup, the product is taking shape with features, designs, and user flows, along with training the AI engine. The journey so far has been exciting and encouraging. What lies ahead???
Measuring Decisions
We often judge decisions by their outcomes. But what if there’s a better way? This article explores an idea that rethinks decision-making by comparing it to vacations: it’s the journey, not the return, that truly reveals alignment.
Rigidly Flexible
This article explores how rigid systems thinking falls short in life and well-being, and introduces a new mindset: rigid flexibility, as a more biologically aligned way to think about balance.
Always On, Never Done
“Always-on” work culture isn’t just stressful, it’s an evolutionary mismatch. This article examines why our brains weren’t designed for constant mental stress, and what you can do to safeguard your well-being.
A Mantra For Money Anxiety
A simple post-spending mantra that rewires your money anxiety into clarity and calm. It’s rooted in mindful productivity and intentional decision-making.
Day 225
225 days into building my startup, the product design phase is nearing completion. As I gear up to bring it to life, I’m excited to begin hiring designers to shape the final experience.
Skill Is A Pill
From ancient verses to modern philosophy, sages and thinkers have long tried to distill the truth about busyness. Yet the bias for action continues to trap us in motion without meaning. Until now that is…
Mindful Productivity Skills: Your Corridor to Decisions
Mindful Productivity doesn’t tell you what to decide; it helps you see clearly before you choose. Like a corridor lined with doors, each decision is yours alone. This article explores why Mindful Productivity skills is simply structured thinking without ever prescribing outcomes.
Change: It Isn’t Switch, It’s Skill
Change isn’t instant. It’s a learnable life skill. Explore how awareness, not willpower, drives lasting change through simple, mindful practices rooted in skill.
Big or Small, Every Decision Matters
From work to personal growth, STOP framework simplifies choices. It’s not about forcing action but choosing with clarity and confidence.
Vagus, Wine, and the Science of Slow Breathing
Discover why slow breathing calms the mind through the surprising science of the vagus nerve, a wine-named brain cluster, and the only body function you can control at will.
Better Decisions
Better decisions aren’t about perfection or praise. They’re about clarity, conviction, and long-term alignment with your values.
Language Shapes Reality
Words shape who we are and how we live. When you call something “emotional,” “rational,” or “healthy,” it’s not just how you feel. It’s what you’ve learned those words mean. This article explores how the meaning we’ve learned to associate with words shape the story we live by.
Belief. Ego. Change.
Nobel laureate Linus Pauling’s devotion to a disproven idea reveals a deeper truth: when beliefs become ego, change becomes nearly impossible.
Learning to Unlearn
Unlearning isn’t delete. It’s new learning that rewires the brain. Change, what we call “transformation” begins when we question what we once believed. This is where the neural understanding of change becomes interesting.
Why We Struggle to Unlearn: A Case for Socratic Unlearning
Why unlearning is harder than learning, and what we can learn from the tragic story of Dr. Semmelweis about letting go of outdated beliefs. A case for Socratic Unlearning skill.
Mindful Eating
What if how you eat matters more than what you eat? This article shows how a quiet shift in attention could change your relationship with food and yourself.
Practicing Change? Begin With Skills
To change how you live, work, or lead, don’t begin with values or abilities. Begin with skills. They’re where meaningful transformation starts.
The 7 Biases of Highly Ineffective People
Learn the 7 most common cognitive biases that derail your decisions, and how to interrupt them with practical questions that build clarity, not confusion.
Bias: A Blindness Made Worse By Risk as Feelings
Our perception of risk is shaped less by logic and more by emotional shortcuts called cognitive biases. This article explores how theory-induced blindness and risk as feelings quietly distort our thinking – and how we can begin to regain clarity.
Risks As Feelings
We often assess risks not by data, but by how they make us feel. This article explores how emotional reactions shape workplace decisions and why understanding risk as feelings is key to overcoming cognitive bias.
Probability Vs Possibility
Many decisions are shaped by emotional possibility rather than rational probability. This article explores how shifting from fear-driven urgency to long-term clarity can change the way we live, think, and plan.
Why Do Regrets Hurt?
A short reflection on why regrets hurt, how society shapes our decisions, and how to choose the right regrets to make better, more value-aligned decisions.
The Good, Bad, and Ugly of Delaying Decisions
Not all delays lead to clarity. This article explores three kinds of decision delays – and why only one supports better, mindful decision-making.
Abundance, Focusing Illusion, and Better Decisions
How the illusion of abundance shapes our decisions and why building mindful decision-making skills matters more than ever in an abundant future.
“Always performing actions here,
The Upanishads
one may aspire to live a hundred years.
Thus for you there is no other way than this,
whereby action will not cling to you.”
Day 150
On Day 150 of my startup journey, I’m sharing the cause that drives me – seeking believers who resonate with it and want to support the mission.
The Edge of Our Knowing – Knowledge Horizon
Intelligence expands when we question what we know. This article explores unlearning, knowledge ceilings, and the idea of Socratic inquiry as a skill.
Why Great Processes Are Sculpted, Not Built
Discover why great processes aren’t built – they’re sculpted. This article explores how subtraction, not addition, drives efficiency and creativity through mindful decision-making and process design.
Mindful Productivity Training at Orotex
I recently had the chance to work with the mid-management team at Orotex – India, exploring alternative ways of thinking and decision-making. It made me wonder: what kind of leaders actively seek out this kind of training?
Fear and Laziness
What’s holding you back? You say “fear” – fear of failure, fear of judgment, fear of the unknown. But are you sure? Quite often another force goes unnoticed, because it doesn’t feel threatening. It feels comfortable. And that’s exactly the problem.
Passing Thoughts: Losing Mind and Believing Answers
What should you do when you lose your mind? How do you believe in answers, whether they come from AI or a fellow human?
Passing Thoughts: Recognition, Purpose, and Light
When does recognition shift from effort to reward? And, what do light and color have in common with purpose and decisions?
Step 2: Trace – Labeling the Emotion
Discover the transformative power of labeling emotions. Learn how to label emotions accurately using the STOP framework to improve decision-making and productivity.
Step 1: Sense – The Foundation of Mindful Productivity
Feelings come before emotions. Learn how to sense and interpret feelings using the STOP Mindful Productivity Framework, backed by neuroscience and interoception.
How Emotions Are Made?
Your emotions don’t just happen – you construct them. Discover how the theory of constructed emotion explains why the same situation triggers different feelings in different people and how refining your emotional concepts can transform your decision-making and well-being.
Emotional Granularity: The Words That Shape Your Feelings
Emotional granularity is the ability to precisely label emotions, helping you navigate feelings with clarity. Expand your emotional vocabulary with nuanced words from around the world and learn how naming emotions can transform your well-being and decision-making.
Stoic Triskelion of Self-Mastery: Prosoche, Prohairesis, and Phronesis
Discover how the Stoic Triskelion: Prosoche, Prohairesis, and Phronesis – redefines self-mastery, mindful Time management, and moral virtue, guiding you towards wise decisions and a life of purposeful action.
Six Application Areas of Mindful Productivity
Discover six essential areas – Agency, Time-Management, Intelligence, Relationships, Adaptability, and Leadership – where mindful productivity and the STOP framework transforms everyday decisions, leading to a fulfilling, meaningful work life.
Mastery of Time – A Stoic Guide
Explore how Stoic philosophy reshapes time management with ProProPhro Circles, guiding you to align daily activities with virtue and live a harmonious life.
99 Days of Entrepreneurship: What I’ve Learned & Where I’m Headed
The biggest highlight of my 99 days of startup journey has been the STOP framework. As I reflect on productivity – beyond busyness, beyond hustle, from mindless work to mindful impact – I also look forward to my next phase.
To change how you live, work, or lead, don’t begin with values or abilities. Begin with skills.
They’re where meaningful transformation starts.
STOP Framework in Action: Real-Life Decisions Made with Clarity and Confidence
We make countless decisions – some small, some life-changing. STOP is a framework that helps cut through emotional fog, making choices with clarity and confidence. In this article, I share real-world decisions where STOP helped me move from hesitation to action.
When Kids Say ‘I’m Bored’ – A Parenting Dilemma
“I’m bored!” – a phrase every parent hears. But is boredom a problem to fix or an opportunity for growth? Discover why letting kids sit with boredom fosters creativity, resilience, and self-awareness.
Mindful Breathing
Breathing shapes everything – your energy, clarity, and even your decisions. But are you breathing in a way that truly serves you? Discover the art of mindful breathing.
Frequently Asked Questions on the STOP Framework
The Why, How, and What of the mindful productivity framework – STOP.
STOP: The Science of Better Decisions
One of the most common questions I encounter in my surveys on decision-making is this: Why is mindful productivity a better alternative? Mindful productivity works because it’s rooted in science. This post offers a glimpse into the three sciences that form its core.
Reflect (Ponder) – The Fourth Step to Mindful Productivity
By reflecting on your emotions after decisions, you can turn confusion into clarity, align outcomes with goals, and embrace meaningful change. In this article, discover the power of the fourth step in the Mindful Productivity Framework: Reflect (Ponder).
Day 75
It’s been 75 days since deciding to start-up. My journey so far…
Willingness, Openness, and Acceptance
Learn how mindful productivity habits like willingness, openness, and acceptance create the mindset for groundbreaking innovations like DeepSeek.
Act (Orchestrate) – The Third Step to Mindful Productivity
The third step in the Mindful Productivity Framework, Act (Orchestrate), is about bringing full presence and intention to your work, fostering clarity, creativity, and transformative thinking.
Hero’s Path: Understanding and Change
Why do we fear uncertainty and resist change? Discover how understanding and two simple steps of Mindful Productivity can help you embrace radical transformation in life.
Labeling (Trace): The Second Step to Mindful Productivity
Discover the transformative power of labeling emotions – step two in the Mindful Productivity Framework. Learn how tracing feelings into words helps you make intentional, wise decisions free from emotional bias.
Recognize (Sense): The First Step to Mindful Productivity
The Mindful Productivity Framework is a simple, four-step approach to fostering clarity and purpose in your work. Here we delve into the first step – “Recognize” or “Sense”, and its transformative power.
Am I Productive?
Regularly practicing Mindful Productivity helps you reflect on the work you’re doing and its deeper purpose. Understand Mindful Productivity, how it will help you, and how to practice it.
System 2 Thinking and Mindful Productivity
Discover how Mindful Productivity strengthens System 2 thinking, helping you balance reason and emotion, mitigate biases, and make thoughtful decisions amidst uncertainty.
Kinetic Illusion
Kinetic Illusion uncovers the paradox of unseen progress – how life propels us forward in extraordinary ways, even when we feel stuck. Explore this mindful productivity philosophy that clarifies your journey beyond the visible.
STOP is a simple yet powerful framework for navigating decisions – big or small, personal or professional.
Whether you’re an entrepreneur making high-stakes choices, a leader striving to lead with clarity, a student developing self-awareness, or someone looking to bring more intention to everyday decisions – STOP helps you think clearly, feel balanced, and act with confidence.
Forgotten Connections & Dystopian Future
Is dystopia a distant future or the reality we live today? My reflections on the forgotten connections with nature, humanity’s path, and a question that might make you pause: Are you too in a dystopian reality?
The Reasonable, Emotional, and Wise
Discover how the Wise Mind approach from DBT practice blends reason and emotion to help you make thoughtful decisions you won’t regret. A simple yet transformative practice on Mindful Productivity.
Breathing Slowly To A Longer Life
Slow, mindful breathing can improve your health, lower stress, and even extend your lifespan. Learn a simple technique to transform your breathing habit.
Feelings Before, Clarity After
Discover how naming your emotions can transform distractions into focus, helping you approach work with clarity and purpose.
Day 30
30 days into starting up, I’ve embraced a slower pace, navigated tech hiccups, and rediscovered the joy of writing. Gratitude, mindfulness, and meaningful work – here’s what the journey feels like so far.
Meaningful Work
Discover how Mindful Productivity transforms work into meaningful engagement by connecting emotions, focus, and awareness.
Focusing Illusion
Becoming the Buddha or The Rock of your own life is about applying first principles. Use the technique in the blog to nudge yourself into living a good life.
Healthspan Proxies
Nine time tested principles to help you cultivate a long life of vitality and mindfulness. Pick anyone of these simple practices to begin today.
Life Metrics
What gets measured, gets managed. Unfortunately, we measure only the immediate and easily quantifiable metrics. Metrics to measure a well-lived, happy, and mindful life do not exist. Are there alternatives?
Pursuit of Happyness
The pursuit of happiness isn’t a destination. It’s a daily practice of balancing between two important hormones that are deceptively similar.
Stories Are The First Product
Understand why storytelling works and how we are wired for narrative bias. Also, get to know the best platform that teaches you how to create storyboards.
The Norm Is To Jump
Get to know a quick hack for mindful intelligence. Intelligence that matters and is good for the community. It’s a surprisingly simple practice.
Mindful Intelligence
What is Mindful Intelligence? Why does it matter? How can you become a practitioner of mindful intelligence?
Mindful Productivity
What is mindful productivity? Why does it matter? How can you practice mindful productivity to avoid burnout and exhaustion?
Day 1
What does day one feel like when an entrepreneur decides to start-up? Here is what I felt when I decided to purse building a start-up focused on mindful productivity and mindful intelligence.
Nikhil Kabadi 