I was watching a promo podcast for Kota Factory (a popular Indian series) on Netflix when comedian Biswa shared a funny anecdote from his college days at IIT. They used to call the roti (Indian flat bread)in their mess “Negative Calorie Roti,” because they joked that chewing it burned more calories than the roti provided.

That was hilarious and made me laugh. Brought back memories of my own hostel days and mess food. It made me realize that there are many “Negative Calorie Rotis” in our lives as well.

Metaphorically speaking, we often pursue endeavours in our careers and personal lives without fully understanding their costs and benefits. It could be something as simple as going to the market to find a better bargain on groceries instead of buying them online. Or switching jobs for a 40% raise only to find it negatively impacts our health and happiness.

Similarly, there’s a lot of oil in the ocean, but it’s so inaccessible that the cost of drilling and retrieving it is always unprofitable.

Do you have any “Negative Calorie Rotis” in your life? Maybe it’s time to re-evaluate them!