Ravikant is famous as a writer. But in the United States, he is more popular as a Venture Capitalist, motivational speaker and founder of many start-ups in the Silicon Valley.
According to Bloomberg data, Kamal Ravikant heads California-based RevNetics Inc as its founder and CEO.
Ravikant’s first book Love Yourself Like Your Life Depends On it has an important message that loving oneself truly and deeply would lead to the complete transformation of that person’s life.
The American writer’s latest book: Rebirth: A Fable of Love, Forgiveness and Following Your Heart has that idea reverberating yet again.
Vani is a well-known author and columnist in India. This former Times of India journalist published her debut novel The Recession Groom in 2015 and received widespread critical acclaim.
Vani contributes regularly to Quint, Scroll, and Huffington Post. More about Vani can be seen on her website www.vaniauthor.com.
EXCERPTS
What is it like to truly and deeply love yourself?First, it is a practice. Like going to the gym, brushing our teeth. Call it a focused practice. The results are that one is naturally lighter, happier, and life just works better. At its very essence, it is living in the flow and magic of life.
And then again -- a book about loving oneself! -- Do you think a theme like that needed a book?Yes. I wrote the book I wish someone had given me when I was down. No fluff, only actionable and practical truths.
Don't people already love themselves?
I haven’t met many. If they did, the majority of their personal dramas wouldn’t exist. With respect to the exercises you share with the readers (looking in the mirror, meditation etc), do you think these techniques really help? These are what I came up with when I was bottom to literally save myself. They worked for me. I shared them with friends. The exercises worked for them. I shared them in my book. I have thousands of emails from readers sharing how they work for them.All the exercises are simple. Doesn’t matter how old you are, what your color or religion is. What matters is that you’re human. We all have the same monkey minds. Thus, solutions that work effectively are simple and work for all.
Do you believe that if a person just loves himself, he can turn around the environment that surrounds him? How does it change anything? How can it not? Try it. You’ll find yourself making better choices in your life easily and naturally; ones that serve you. And as you get better, the world around you gets better. Things just work that way. That’s what I’ve learned. How many days did it take you to write this book? It took me over a month to write this book. That was full-time from waking to sleep writing. I cut out 90 percent of what I wrote. I edit with an axe. My goal was to share only the truth that saved me and some thoughts on it; just enough to get the reader to try it. Then, the journey is theirs. How has the response been? Life-changing. I get so many emails, tweets, and reviews from readers all over the world. That’s the power of sharing your truth - the ripples have far greater effects than you can imagine. I’m extremely grateful for it all. Would you not like to write a book for women. They are trained from their childhood to keep their family/husband/father/brother etc first, before themselves. We see it in our homes all the time. I once watched Maya Angelou, an amazing African American poet, and writer, give a talk. She quoted a Roman poet from centuries ago. She said, “I am a human being, therefore nothing human is foreign to me.”I wrote a book about fundamental human truths that apply to everyone. Women, men. It doesn’t matter. We all needed to love ourselves truly and deeply.
As a writer, I want to write fundamental human truths that apply to any reader. Does loving yourself mean lack of fear?No. You just don’t pay attention to them. Or, sometimes you laugh at them.
Does it mean that one become selfish?
Depends on how you define “selfish.” It does mean that you tolerate less garbage from others. It does mean that you remove what doesn’t serve you in your life. It does mean that you make choices that are for your good. If that’s considered “selfish,” I’m ok with that.
Can it help conquer doubt?Doubt is just a shade of fear. Let it come. Let it go. The monkey mind plays its games. When you love yourself truly and deeply, these affect you less and less.
Make a person more self-confident?How can it not? Self-confidence is a belief in oneself in a healthy way. If you loved yourself truly and deeply, you would naturally give yourself that.
Any practices that you could suggest -- aside meditation, of course -- that could help create loving thoughts/feelings about oneself?
Life is simple. It is the mind that makes it complicated. What I’ve learned is that instead of the mind-wrecking havoc, it’s better to focus and use it instead. So any focused attention on what can make you better - gratitude, loving yourself, loving another, etc. - all can be vehicles for helping create loving thoughts and feelings.
Could you tell our readers a bit more about your forthcoming title? Is it available in all formats?My novel, Rebirth, was published last year. It tells the story of Amit, a 26-year-old Indian American who travels to India with his father’s ashes and then ends up in Spain. There, he walks an 11th Century 550-mile long pilgrimage. Along the way, he meets other pilgrims and they share with him the stories and lessons of their lives.
Ultimately, it is a story about love, forgiveness, and following your heart. It is based on my journey after my father passed away.
I’ve woven many of the lessons I’ve learned in my life so far into the novel. It is available in all formats (hardcover, paperback, electronic). I hope that it serves you well. Thank you for interviewing me.
