"The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Balancing work, job search, etc

I was recently asked by my brother about my recent experiences with balancing research, job search, etc

Some of the lessons learnt are as follows.

Lesson 1: "Plan, Plan, Plan -- As they say, failing to plan is planning to fail"

Have a plan of what you want to do next, today, this week, in a month, etc. Plans help you focus and structure your goals. They also allow you to gauge if certain tasks are possible.

Lesson 2: "You should leave the urgent to attend to the important"

Often times you'll find yourself in a situation where you won't be able to do all the tasks. If you decide to undertake them all, you won't be able to do them well, especially the ones that matter to you the most. So learn to Prioritize! and do the important things first.

Lesson 3: "Don't forget the power of small steps -- it is these steps that result in longer ones"

Lesson 4: "To Caesar What Is Caesar's To God What Is God's"

Appreciate and acknowledge that not everything is under our control. This will help relieve undue stress and focus your attention on things you can control.

Lesson 5: "Relax, calm down, listen to some good music :-)"