You never know how things go. And most such things, you don’t plan.
There always comes a point when you ask yourself a difficult question. Is it time for a RESET?
Not if something is good.
Not if people appreciate it.
Not if you are capable of continuing to do it.
But whether it still deserves the space it takes up in your life. So naturally it calls for a Reset.
In 2014, I started with a one-off article that became larger than I had imagined. After a few, I committed myself to a weekly column, deadlines, reader messages, relevance, and public scrutiny. Appreciation from industry friends, colleagues, and strangers helped.
And before I realised it, writing a weekly column had moved from a choice to a habit to an addiction. Every additional week pushed you more to keep going. I remembered celebrating the 100th, 250th, and 500th weeks. And then, like the baba sanding at Kumbh on a single leg, the ego, the appreciation pushed one to continue, there was no walking back.
For more than 652 uninterrupted weeks, across platforms, publications and my own blog, I wrote. More than 1200 articles later, it surprised me more than anybody else.
I know some pieces made sense. Some merely filled space. Some were written with strong conviction. Some were purely from the discipline of being there every week. And a few under the pressure of “something has to go this week.”
That is the truth about consistency. The world applauds the visible output, but the pressure of constant observation, mental load, conviction, and POV in trying to make sense of changing people, brands, behaviour, politics, society, culture, faith, emotions, and life itself takes a toll. There is never a lack of subjects to write about.
But writing is not typing; it is emotional processing.
And somewhere along the journey, I realised I was spending too much time carrying thoughts that did not necessarily deserve permanent residence inside my head.
Not because I lack enthusiasm or have run out of subjects. And certainly not because there is inertia pr a writer’s block
In fact, curiosity is still alive. Maybe sharper than ever.
But age, stage and situation teach you something brutal and important: every life eventually becomes a leaky bucket list.
There are only so many hours in a day. Only so much attention and focus one can give to a subject, and only so much emotional bandwidth to play with. More so, when it is not your professional but one of the many passionate ideas within the work ecosystem.
And therefore, prioritisation becomes survival. And sometimes survival requires a reset.
I have never believed in “halal closures”; the slow, stretched, endlessly negotiated endings. I have always believed in “jhatka”; one clean cut. Decisive. Sharp. Final. Be it personal or professional, family or friendly spaces.
Ironically, I discovered I am unable to do that here. Maybe I am too invested in it.
Maybe because writing has given me too much. Maybe my loyal readers have stayed too long.
Maybe because, somewhere along the way, this weekly engagement became less of a column and more of a companion and a reflection of my POV, I could express unhinged.
So no, this is not a dramatic goodbye. It is a thoughtful reset and recalibration.
I will not write every week anymore.
I will write when I genuinely want to write.
And yes, I will be writing less on marketing, brands, and services, and shift focus to life, emotions, experiences, journeys, people, silence, mountains, faith, festivals, legends, mythologies, behaviour, and memories.
You may not find me at MXMIndia every Wednesday anymore, the platform that first gave me the confidence and opportunity to write consistently and fearlessly on any subject. For that, I remain deeply thankful. Very few platforms allow independent thought to survive for this long without interruption. My gratitude to MXMIndia is immense.
But you will continue finding me from time to time here at MXMindia, on my blog, SanjeevKotnala.com, and occasionally at Free Press Journal.
At this stage of life, time is a constraint. Focus is hazy and selective.
And unfinished dreams have started demanding attention.
I want to complete a few pending projects and books from my leaky bucket list.
I want to deliver one more meaningful edition of Pahaadi, the short story contest that remains close to my heart, and perhaps even expand it globally in a different avatar.
I want to doodle more, paint more, read more, travel slower, and observe more deeply.
Sometimes the most meaningful journeys require a reset before they continue.
And I want to keep sharing stories, legends, experiences and forgotten details of Devbhoomi Uttarakhand. The place that continues to shape my inner conversations more than boardrooms ever did.
What exactly I may end up doing or what would still click with my readers, I honestly do not know.
But I do know this:
For years, my readers encouraged me, and they kept coming back to read. They reacted, argued, shared insights, guided and channelised my writing. They appreciated and, at times, tolerated.
And somewhere between your reading and my writing, a relationship quietly formed.
I hope that the relationship continues, even if the frequency changes.
And if what I write still connects with you, then do subscribe to my blog and continue walking alongside. Not every week. But whenever the heart genuinely has something worth saying.
It has been a nice journey. A very meaningful one.
BLOG/42/2026/661/1205 To connect, send an email . Twitter S_kotnala
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