Closer Than You Think

For those who know me, I was in Dubai for the past two weeks and not for a vacation. 

It wasn’t planned. It wasn’t romanticized. It wasn’t the “I’ve always wanted to go” kind of trips.

It just… happened.

A work call, a few confirmations, a flight booked almost casually. On Thursday, I was in my usual routine, and on Saturday evening I was standing in a place where everything felt bigger, faster, sharper and brighter.

Dubai is one of those places that doesn’t gently introduce itself to you. It overwhelms you in the best way possible.

And somewhere between the endless skyline, late-night drives, and back-to-back meetings, something subtle shifted in me.

Not fascination. Not envy. Something different.

Possibility.

One evening, I was sitting in a cafe, exhausted from the day but oddly energized. It had huge glass windows, and outside, the city lights looked like ambition captured in architecture.

And it hit me:

This place is proof that someone once said “Why not?” And then didn’t stop.

Nothing here looks like it was built by people who believed in limitations. It looks like it was built by people who refused to assume that big dreams require slow timelines.

I realized something about myself in that moment.

A lot of us don’t lack ability. We lack environments that stretch our sense of “how soon.”

We’re taught to be patient to the point of self-delay. We’re told life takes time, success takes time, dreams take decades.

And yes, sometimes they do. But sometimes, they don’t.

Sometimes life moves faster than your belief system. Sometimes a door opens earlier than you think you deserve it. Sometimes you’re not “too early”—you’re exactly on time.

Dubai didn’t make me want more. It reminded me that more is possible sooner.

That ambition doesn’t always have to apologize. That momentum isn’t arrogance. That wanting a bigger life isn’t greed—it’s honesty.

And strangely, it didn’t make me feel inadequate. It made me feel capable.

Being in that city didn’t say, “Look at what you don’t have.” It quietly whispered, “You could do more than you think. And you don’t have to wait as long as you believe.”

Two weeks is not a lifetime. But it was enough to rewire something fundamental.

I left with gratitude for my life. With love for home. With grounding.

But I also left with a new thought lodged firmly into my mind:

What if the better version of your life isn’t “far away”? What if it’s just waiting for you to stop assuming it requires years?

What if, just maybe. 

You’re closer than you think.

Love,

Dhruv