One of my favorite ways to celebrate my birthday each year is to spend time reflecting on what I learned over the past year (and years) of my life.

This activity allows me to acknowledge and celebrate my successes, learn from my mistakes, stay grounded in my truth, and set goals for my next year.

Similar to a Year in Review exercise, this is a simple way to come back to yourself. Setting aside time and space for reflection is an important component of aligned introspection.

Knowing yourself is a powerful tool that will fuel you on your journey to living your purpose, and by taking the time to consider how you’ve grown each year, you’re sending a message to the Universe that you’re ready for more.

At this point in your journey to finding and living your purpose, you may start to notice that some folks don't understand what you're doing.

It could be your family questioning your new path or your friends who haven't found their purpose criticizing your work.

Living your purpose is hard. It's uncomfortable.

Some people will love you. Some people will disagree with what you're doing. You're not for them, and that's okay. (Even if it is your family!)

The beautiful thing about the world is that we all have different beliefs and values that guide us.

We can be true and centered in who we are AND learn and grow and evolve.

Growing up in India, which is still a largely patriarchal society and having worked in corporate technology in the United States for 13 years, which is still a largely male-dominated industry, I often wondered what made a woman a power to reckon with, you know, a Fierce woman.

I would come across terms like ‘she is so brave’, ’so dominating’, ‘a total ball-breaker’ when describing a female leader or an emerging bad-ass-babe. And while those terms don’t necessarily equate to being loud, aggressive or unfeminine, there seemed to be an implicit agreement in both the eastern and western cultures I encountered, that these attributes were prerequisite for a woman to be a powerhouse.

And to clarify, I absolutely adore that loud, aggressive and/or unfeminine woman, if that is her true authentic nature. You go girl! Here though, I want to speak to that other woman who may be soft-spoken and erroneously considered a pushover by those around her or even by herself!

They say there’s this “seven-year itch,” where couples who’ve been together for seven years start to re-evaluate their relationship.

It’s a commonly held belief that at the seven-year mark, couples tend to fall into a slump, they start to get dissatisfied with their partners, and they start to question their feelings about the relationship.

I’m not a relationship expert, but I always thought this was an old wives’ tale or a myth made popular by the Marilyn Monroe movie of the same title.

So, as I approach my seventh year of marriage, and as I sat down to write this article, I did a little research.

I’ve always lived by the quote, “Do one thing every day that scares you.” It’s shaped my life in so many ways – from being the first person in my family to go to college, to negotiating my first salary and being called “entitled,” to leaving my lucrative corporate job to run my coaching business full time.

Doing scary things helped me become more confident, advocate for myself, expand my comfort zone, learn new things, and help other women navigate similar circumstances.

Those scary things weren’t always easy, and they often came with mistakes, uncertainty, change, fear, overwhelm and self-doubt. But they always came with a lesson that helped me grow as a leader.

I’ve been reading since I was 3 years old. That’s not an exaggeration.

My mom and dad used to read to me every night. Sometimes my dad would make up something in the story, and I would say, “that’s not how it goes, Daddy!”

Books have always been a huge part of my life.

I have books piled in my nightstand, on bookshelves, on coffee tables. I can never have too many books.

There’s nothing quite like the feel and smell of a new book, bursting with possibility, just waiting to be opened.

I always share what I learn in books with my family and friends, and I love giving books as gifts, especially when I know a book can make a difference in someone’s life.

My life is better because of the wisdom of countless books, and in honor of World Book Day, I want to share some of those books with you.