How to live

How to live

By Kunal GuptaEducationSelf-Improvement
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How to live episodes

  • Nostalgia
    In this episode, Kunal returns to Sydney and discovers that the nostalgia he felt wasn't about the place at all—it was about who he was when he lived there. Through uncomfortable Airbnbs, expensive breakfasts, and the contrast between memory and reality, he uncovers a powerful truth about how we carry our own magic wherever we go.
    Key takeaways:
    - The joy we associate with past places often belongs to who we were, not where we were
    - We're constantly changing, which means our relationship to memories and places evolves too
    - The qualities that made past experiences meaningful—curiosity, openness, wonder—can be accessed anywhere
    Subscribe to How to Live wherever you listen to podcasts and visit howtolive.blog for more reflections on living intentionally.
    Timestamps:
    (0:30) The visceral experience of returning to Sydney
    (1:20) When nostalgia meets uncomfortable reality
    (2:45) What made Sydney special the first time
    (4:10) The mechanics of memory and attachment
    (5:25) The realization: the magic was in who he was
    (6:40) Navigating constant change and letting go of past versions
    (8:15) Accessing those qualities without returning to the place
    (9:20) Building resilience through self-awareness
    7 min
  • The Concert
    In this episode, Kunal shares a surprising discovery: his most profound meditation experience happened not in his carefully curated meditation space, but in a plastic chair at an Ed Sheeran concert, surrounded by 70,000 people and eating potato chips.
    Key takeaways:
    - The infrastructure we build around presence—perfect conditions, quiet rooms, ideal timing—can become a form of control rather than support
    - When all exits close (no phone signal, nowhere to go, sound too loud to think), presence becomes effortless rather than something to achieve
    - We're already present; the real question is why we keep choosing to leave the moment we're in
    Subscribe to How to Live wherever you listen to podcasts and visit howtolive.blog for more insights on finding presence in unexpected places.
    Timestamps:
    (0:15) Introduction and the unexpected meditation at a concert
    (1:20) The infrastructure built around meditation practice over ten years
    (2:35) When perfect conditions become a form of control
    (3:45) How the exits closed—no phone signal, nowhere to go
    (5:10) The monastery and the concert: two different doors, same room
    (6:25) When volume becomes a kind of silence
    (7:40) Solitude in a crowd of 70,000 people
    (8:50) Stop choosing not to be present
    (9:45) Closing thoughts on infrastructure and presence
    7 min
  • Postcard
    In this episode, Kunal shares how four years of living with a stunning Lisbon view taught him that postcards stop being postcards when they become your everyday reality—and why the discomfort of difference might be exactly what helps us see beauty again.
    Key takeaways:
    - The extraordinary becomes ordinary without contrast—appreciation requires fresh eyes and comparison to maintain perspective
    - Difference usually registers as discomfort, but it serves a hidden purpose: revealing what we've stopped noticing in our familiar lives
    - Inviting visitors into your space lets you borrow their wonder and rediscover the postcards you've been living inside all along
    Subscribe to How to Live wherever you listen to podcasts and visit howtolive.blog to read the full essay and explore more reflections on seeing your life with fresh eyes.
    Timestamps:
    (0:15) Introduction and returning to Lisbon winter sunrises
    (1:05) The invisible building and postcard view
    (2:20) When extraordinary becomes ordinary
    (3:30) Why contrast is essential for appreciation
    (4:45) Learning to see discomfort as a mirror
    (6:15) Borrowing visitors' fresh eyes as practice
    (7:30) Expectation, disappointment, and gratitude
    (8:50) The practice of seeing what's actually here
    7 min
  • One Word For 2026
    In this episode, Kunal shares why he abandoned traditional goal-setting in favor of choosing a single word to guide his entire year. Speaking from Lisbon after reviewing his journals, he reveals how this practice shifted him from efficiency to effectiveness—from moving fast to moving in the right direction.
    Key takeaways:
    - Efficiency and effectiveness aren't the same: goals can make you move quickly toward things that don't actually matter
    - We control the "how" not the "what": your one word becomes a compass for the hundreds of daily decisions that compose your life
    - Leverage means focusing energy wisely: as we gain experience and lose youthful stamina, working smarter beats working harder
    Subscribe to How to Live wherever you listen to podcasts and visit howtolive.blog to read the full essay and discover Kunal's complete reflection on choosing "leverage" for 2026.
    Timestamps:
    (0:15) Introduction and the journal review ritual
    (1:10) Why goals create efficiency but not effectiveness
    (2:20) The one thing we actually control: the "how"
    (3:35) How a one-word intention serves you instead of the reverse
    (4:45) Last year's word "inspire" and learning to say no
    (6:10) The word "flow" and surrendering control of outcomes
    (7:25) Introducing 2026's word: "leverage"
    (8:15) The sleep insight that sparked everything
    (9:30) Evolution from adequate at many things to excellent at few
    (10:45) Working smarter with limited energy and greater wisdom
    7 min
  • How to Time Travel
    In this episode, Kunal shares a profound Sunday morning revelation about Daylight Saving Time that transformed his entire relationship with time itself. What starts as joy about gaining an extra hour becomes a deeper exploration of presence, attention, and why we always feel behind.
    Key takeaways:
    - Time feels abundant not when we have more hours, but when we fully inhabit the moments we already have
    - We often spend "extra" time trying to catch up with the past instead of inviting new possibilities from the future
    - Shifting from seeing time as a resource to viewing it as a relationship changes everything about how we experience each day
    Subscribe to How to Live wherever you listen to podcasts and visit howtolive.blog for more insights on living with presence and intention
    Timestamps:
    (0:15) The joy of gaining an hour from Daylight Saving Time
    (1:10) Realizing the extra hour was just borrowed, not created
    (1:50) Already planning to catch up instead of doing something new
    (2:45) Being in debt to time and constantly catching up
    (3:40) What if time is a relationship, not a resource?
    (4:35) How mindfulness and embodiment change our experience of time
    (5:20) The crossroads: looking backward or inviting the future forward
    (6:30) When time expands through presence and attention
    (7:40) You don't gain an hour—you simply notice one
    (8:25) Needing fewer reasons to escape the present moment
    7 min
  • How to Time Travel
    In this episode, Kunal shares a profound realization that started with a simple Daylight Saving Time morning—discovering that we never really gain time, we only notice it. What began as excitement about an "extra hour" became a meditation on presence, debt to the past, and the relationship we have with each moment.
    Key takeaways:
    - We spend our "extra" time catching up with the past instead of creating something new for our future
    - Time isn't a resource to optimize but a relationship to cultivate through presence and attention
    - The only time we actually gain is the moment we inhabit fully, not through rearranging the clock
    Subscribe to How to Live wherever you listen to podcasts and visit howtolive.blog for more insights on living with intention and presence.
    Timestamps:
    (0:15) The joy of gaining an hour and what it reveals
    (1:20) Realizing the hour was borrowed, not created
    (2:10) How we always spend gained time catching up with the past
    (3:15) Being in debt to time and living behind schedule
    (4:25) Shifting from time as resource to time as relationship
    (5:40) How presence and attention change our experience of time
    (6:45) The final insight: we don't gain hours, we notice them
    6 min
  • How to Time Travel
    In this episode, Kunal explores a revelation that came from gaining an hour through Daylight Saving Time—and what it revealed about his relationship with time, presence, and the endless feeling of being behind.
    Key takeaways:
    - Time scarcity is often a perception problem, not a resource problem—we feel time-poor because we're not fully present in the moments we have
    - The impulse to "catch up" reveals how we chase an impossible version of ourselves that's always just ahead, never feeling behind
    - Time expands when we inhabit it fully through presence, and contracts when we rush through our tasks trying to be productive
    Subscribe to How to Live wherever you listen to podcasts and visit howtolive.blog for more insights on living with intention and awareness.
    Timestamps:
    (0:15) The giddy feeling of gaining an hour
    (1:20) What time scarcity reveals about us
    (2:35) The endless race to "catch up"
    (4:10) When Kunal's relationship with time began changing
    (5:25) How presence makes time expand
    (6:40) Time as connection, not commodity
    (7:50) The realization: we don't gain time, we notice it
    (9:15) Finding abundance in the moments we already have
    6 min
  • How to Become

    On this Mother’s Day and her milestone birthday, I reflect on my mother, now living far away. Distance has allowed me to see her in a new light, recognizing her beyond just "Mom"—as a person with quiet strength and sacrifices unseen. As I've grown, her influence has become more apparent in my actions and instincts, showcasing how deeply she shaped me. I’ve learned that gratitude isn't just expressed in words, but in embodying the values she instilled in me. This realization has brought me closer to her, leading me to understand that to honor her is to become a reflection of her love and lessons.

    5 min
  • How to Blackout

    The author recounts a blackout experienced with their partner, contrasting it with a previous mild outage. Initially surprised and disconnected from the digital world, they gradually embraced the stillness by engaging in spontaneous cleaning and meaningful conversations. This disconnection from technology led to a deeper connection with each other. The blackout became an unexpected source of joy and intimacy, highlighting the value of being present without distractions. The experience prompted them to recognize the importance of intentional disconnection from daily life to foster connection and mindfulness, echoing practices from various cultures that prioritize moments of silence and retreat.

    7 min
  • How to Start

    The author reflects on the psychological barriers that can make seemingly simple tasks feel overwhelming, using the example of refreshing their AI newsletter website. Despite believing it would be a quick task, cognitive load—stemming from decision-making, expectations, and perfectionism—made the task feel heavy. They eventually found the determination to start while on a flight and completed the refresh in under an hour, realizing that resistance often arises from a protective instinct rather than laziness. The piece emphasizes the importance of understanding when to push through resistance and how to make starting feel easier by reducing cognitive load, sharing burdens, and cultivating self-compassion.

    7 min

About How to live

From the publisher's feed

This podcast is my public journal, where I share reflections on leadership, mindfulness, technology and culture.