To date - this has been one of the hardest post for me to have ever written.
Why I Started Writing these blogs on Financial Education?
It was just another evening. The kind you don’t expect will shatter your life forever.
My sister had made dinner - dosa for her husband - and was cleaning the kitchen. But her mind was elsewhere. A demanding client. Endless expectations. Shame she wanted to avoid. And the tug-of-war between work and dignity. The only part of her life that seemed negotiable anymore… was herself in burning out.
She didn’t ask for help. High achievers rarely do.
She was in accounting. Month-end wasn’t a period on the calendar - it was a battlefield. She was waking up at 6 AM and often working till 2 AM, day after day. She would occasionally fall asleep at her desk - in her chair - barely allowing herself the dignity of rest. The relentless pursuit of deadlines was eating her from the inside.
Later found out from her manager that the client she was reporting to had a history of being highly demanding, often placing unrealistic expectations on those working with them. The manager knew it - but like most things in corporate life, the burden was quietly passed down the chain.
That night, everything in her mind and body reached its tipping point.
She complained of a blinding headache, the kind that tears through your core. She collapsed. Her husband caught her just in time, and she whispered in pain, “My head… my head is aching.” Then she said, “I need to go to the toilet.” And he, not knowing what was coming, comforted her, “It’s okay, we’ll clean up later.”
She started vomiting. Not just from her mouth - but from her nose too.
He called the ambulance. The situation was spiralling fast.
By the time they reached the hospital, it was Code Blue. Code Blue. Alarms. Machines. Doctors scrambling. And then, silence.
Brain aneurysm. A burst blood vessel in her brain. No warning. No second chance.
And just like that… she was gone. GONE!
The void that she had left with is irreplaceable.
As a parent - to see your kids pass away is the worst punishment that one could have.
As a loving husband to see your wife pass away and leave you with lifeless soul is indescribable.
I don’t think I’ve ever hit rock bottom that hard in my life.
Mrs. admitted in the hospital for her pancreatic surgery - second time. What she had gone through up until that point is a big whirlwind. Knowing that I will have to manage two kids at home with Mrs being in hospital is something that I’ve embraced for already - but at the very same time Mrs had her surgery - getting to hear that my sister passing was completely blew me out in ways words cannot describe.
I didn’t know where to turn. My children, innocent and confused, asked, “Daddy, why are you crying?” My wife, in pain and vulnerable, needed my strength. And there I was - stuck in the middle, trying to be everything for everyone while silently falling apart inside.
That pain and agony is a constant echo. I keep waiting for someone to shake me and say, “Wake up. This is just a nightmare.” I keep hoping that message would arrive. But it doesn’t.
Even in her last WhatsApp message she enquired how my wife was doing and reminded me to “Eat well, stay strong. then only you can take care of her and kids.”
Even at the end, she was giving.
Her salary? ₹25,000 a month.
That's what she was sacrificing herself for. ₹25,000 - money that, truthfully, was already within the family’s means. She didn’t need to go that far. She didn’t need to break herself to earn what didn’t need earning. But the pressure to prove to show by action to live by deeds in doing more, being more, giving more, not letting anyone down - it just consumed her.
And that’s the thing with our working life and or when we try to balance so many things at once.
It consumes us quietly.
Deadlines replace daylight. Feedback becomes self-worth. Recognition becomes oxygen. And slowly, we forget what enough feels like.
“The unexamined life is not worth living.” - Socrates
I carry that line in my bones now.
If she had paused to examine her life - if she had just asked herself:
What am I chasing?
Why am I pushing so hard?
What cost am I paying for what I’m pursuing?
Is this life even mine, or am I just playing a part someone else wrote?
Maybe - just maybe - the story could have been different.
Many a times - I'm sad or angry with the God that may be - just may be she should've had a bad health issue admitted in hospital for a few days and back to home. Which could've possibly been a rude waking up call than consuming and taking her all away.
This is why I write. This is why I started this blog.
Not for likes. Not for numbers. Not for claps.
But for awareness. For pause. For reassessing our pursuit.
For the chance that someone, somewhere, might read this and choose to live life differently.
That they might look at their to-do list and say, “Not today.” And or be brave to ask for help.
That they might question if the title, the salary, the next promotion - is worth the chase.
That they might reclaim or at least be mindful of what we all so easily surrender: time, health, peace, presence.
This mission is no longer just about money. It’s about awareness and purpose.
If even one person pauses to rethink their path - even for a moment - then I’ve honoured her memory. Then her story might save another and so on.
While I’m still a corporate employee - I’ve come to terms to agree on what is enough, what I want to trade my life energy for. It’s impossible to not get sucked into the mayhem of our day to day work life - but at least having this perspective makes to go in with eyes wide open and realise when to say no and stop.
But deep down…
I’m still that brother, begging the universe.
Please wake me up and tell me this was all just a bad dream.
This also, helps as a powerful reminder to myself - to reflect back. And on those hard slog days to come back to this and ask myself these questions:
What am I chasing?
What am I giving away in pursuing this? Is it the time, energy, physical energy, mental energy and is it worth it?
Why am I pushing so hard?
What costs I’m paying for what I’m pursuing?
It doesn’t matter where you are reading this from - may be on your commute to or from work or may be at your desk - and after reading it - you may still have to go back to grind - I have to, you have to my Mrs. have to. But at least let’s go in with knowing we do have options - we do have ability to work out in knowing how much is truly enough. What’s our needs and what are our wants? And may be the life that we were all sold with working till 60 years and wait for retirement is not that something we have to pursue - but rather take situations and control in our hand at some point. May be not right away - but with action, with plan with discipline. One step at a time!
So here’s my simple ask to you:
Writing this wasn’t easy - made me spiralled into the thoughts with tears rolling down the cheeks as I typed some of the words. But, here is what I request off you!
If this story moved you - share it.
With a friend who’s burning out.
With a colleague who’s questioning their worth.
With a loved one who’s stuck in the grind.
Forward it and help someone!
You never know whose life it might quietly change.
And if you haven’t already - pause and ask yourself:
What am I chasing?
What am I giving up for it?
Is it truly worth it?
Because sometimes, the wake-up call doesn’t come with warning signs. Sometimes it comes when it’s already too late.
Let’s not wait for that moment. Let’s live better, now.
Let’s live examined, intentional lives - for ourselves and for the ones we love.
Thank you for reading. From the deepest part of my heart. 🙏🏼
Since I began writing, I’ve been deeply moved by the number of people I’ve crossed paths with - colleagues, acquaintances, even distant connections - who’ve reached out just to say thank you. Knowing that these words are resonating, offering comfort or clarity, has been incredibly rewarding. There’s something powerful about serving others with no expectation in return - it fills the soul in ways that nothing else can.
And thanks to many phone calls and people reaching out personally!
Just like we build roadmap, vision, mission and purpose at our work place - here is my version for the way I want to see this community grow - if at anytime I fail to withstand it’s values - please call me out! After all to Err is Human!
Mission - Share Financial Education!
To help everyday individuals and families gain clarity, confidence, and control over their finances by sharing real, relatable stories and simple, practical tools - rooted in lived experience, not theory. To simplify and demystify Earning Money, Saving Money and Investing Money.
Vision - Live Intentionally!
To build a community where financial education is not overwhelming or elitist, but empowering, honest, and deeply human - where people learn from shared mistakes, grow with purpose, and design lives they don’t need to escape from.
Goals
Educate through personal storytelling, lived experience, and practical frameworks.
Empower readers to ask better financial questions (be it to your partner or a service provider) and take intentional, meaningful actions.
Simplify complex financial topics into relatable and digestible content.
Support readers at different stages - from beginners to those pursuing FIRE.
Sustain this platform as a mission-driven service, while honouring time and energy through fair, value-aligned offerings.
Donate generously most or part of the money earned through these services for noble causes.
Very touching Soms. Thanks for sharing this. And more power to you and ofcourse my hugs.
Thanks for sharing this Somu, good meaningful read and really have a lots of meaning. Sorry and I can feel the pain..
Akka is still with us, just little bit far away and watching you and family.. stay strong..