My Journey Over the Last 6 Days

 The title is misleading and I am honest when I say I’m lying about it. There’s a pre and post journey (life long, hopefully) associated with this post and is not limited to just the last 6 days.

Everyone in this world has the same amount of time with them. How one uses (abuse/misuse being some options) it is completely up to the person :) The greatest investment one can do is invest the time they have is by constantly learning. Returns on this investment vary on the disciplined effort put in.

Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to attend several training programs and workshops. The feedback form is the only thing that has remained constant. Key metrics include structure, relevance, and fluency of the content presented. While most programs were/are great, a minute error here or there tends to get magnified (we are human and are programmed to spot the defects first). I realized there’s no time like NOW to correct/improve myself first before providing feedback to others.

The art of imagining stories and storytelling has been around for generations (remember the Gurukul system? remember how Ramayana and Mahabarata were passed on?). What separates good from great leaders is being able to narrate a story and captivate audiences across any medium. With so much data and content going around, it is no wonder that this is one of the most wanted and premium skills to possess.

Little known fact: Public speaking along with death would possibly rank among the 5 greatest fears.

I fell prey to the Facebook Marketing campaign of Content Vidhya and decided to formally take the plunge. To be honest, I had zero expectations. This usually translates to zero disappointments.

Uma Madhavi mentioned that all of this is available on Google (and free!) but what separated these sessions was the rigor and structure. For me, a live session works better than a recorded session. Timings suited me perfectly. (Loved the punctuality even more). Communication through emails and the WhatsApp group was great. Instructions were clear, crisp, and concise.

Content shared as part of the sessions (live and post) can be a lot better. More live examples will add teeth to the program. If this means no break day, then so be it. Participants will value it.

I would treat this as a great starting point knowing what, how, and where to look for a bunch of things that were discussed. This is a model that can be easily replicated to other courses (e.g. data visualization, digital marketing) to be able to find your niche and write about it.

Next steps — Improve my writing by implementing key concepts learned and applying them in an area outside of my current working environment. Explore and exploit all the tools discussed. And hopefully, monetize this in the weeks/months to come.

Thanks, Content Vidhya — Uma and team for rekindling my interest in Grammar!

Identifying Your Niche in a Post COVID Era

 “Never risk what you have and need for what we don’t have and don’t need.” ~ Warren Buffet

COVID has been one of the greatest levelers of our time, if not THE greatest. Apart from everyone being equally ignorant about this pandemic, the pandemic refuses to spare anyone — across race, religion, countries. If there was ever a silver lining, we can take solace in the fact that “IT” is not discriminatory.

Fear of dealing with the unknown is extremely difficult to overcome. Plans have been derailed and many of us are forced to reassess, recalibrate, reprioritize several things. We have come to realize the things that we often take for granted and are truly redefining “essentials v/s non-essentials, needs v/s wants”.

As we adjust to the new normal and new ways of working, some of us may also be using this time to introspect on a few things. This could be involuntary in case of being laid off, or voluntary as you re-skill for a post COVID era.

From my limited experience in various industries, these are some of the roles that could probably stand the test of time. I’ve always aspired to be a digital nomad and this list below is skewed towards filters that work for me — geographically independent roles, skills that can be acquired relatively easily (and mostly free of cost)!

• Content Writing — Good writing is always appreciated and welcome everywhere especially since there seems to be a shortage of quality content writers for every platform.
• Graphic Design — A good design is almost always proportional to the sale of a product or service. If you have a good aesthetic sense, this probably should be your first choice and a no brainer. Great designers command a premium in the market and have even greater flexibility with their schedules.

Content writing and Graphic design can open up a plethora of opportunities in the eLearning space. There seems to be an appetite that has developed across the world for learning solutions (schools, colleges — pre-university, graduation, post-graduation to name a few). No dearth of subjects or opportunities for sure.

• Business Continuity Planning — An easy domain to enter into with the right training and certifications. Businesses across sizes have been found wanting with contingency plans, not in place or ill-conceived plans. This could be because of a lackadaisical attitude with not enough emphasis laid on this all-important aspect of the organization.
• Business Operations — Although roles like a project assistant or a virtual assistant may not pay that much initially, there’s plenty on offer to get a steady income streaming in as a side hustle.
• Teach English as a Foreign Language — Take a TEFL or TESOL course if you are passionate about the English language and dream of living in SE Asia for a good part of the year.
• Cybersecurity — There’s no denying the fact about the scale and speed of everything in daily life going digital. While the jury is out on the rate of adoption across industries (Google v/s an oil rig in a remote part of the world), ignoring getting onto the digital bandwagon would be detrimental to one’s business and at one’s peril. Managing the security and privacy of humongous amounts of data is a known risk. This is where in-depth knowledge of cybersecurity policies and governance models that revolve around them becomes crucial and critical.

Customers and end consumers (sometimes both end up being the same) expect zero downtime and a glitch-free environment. This opens up opportunities for fraud and fraudsters are waiting to pounce on and cash in on any such opportunity — big or small. Fraud is bad for the entire system. It causes people to lose trust and encourages crime. It incentivizes nonethical behavior with immense monetary gain and/or imbalance of power in society. Pursuing a role in Cybersecurity ensures you are on the TEAM ETHICAL.

Cheers to acquiring new skills, non-stop LEARNING, and non-stop EARNING !!! I hope to provide specifics for each of these options in the coming weeks.

Nature will always be one up against humanity and the ever-growing greed of humans. We will have to look at this like any other earthquake, volcano, hurricane, tsunami. All we can do now is to be grateful for what we have. Events like this bring out the best or worst in humanity and all we can do is be hopeful.

Speak Up (Vocally or Otherwise) — Let’s spread positivity!

 The fact of the day is that we live in a highly polarised world where the space for well-informed debates is rapidly shrinking. Social media has unfortunately played the role of a villain (more than a hero) by giving a platform for several who can shout & scoot, thereby accelerating the decline further. The voice of those who shout the loudest is amplified further by bots (and with the help of a few agencies who “provide strategies” to make content “go viral”).

So what is the alternative to counter a one-sided narrative? Ever heard of “Actions speak louder than words”?

This phrase is even more relevant now and gains importance in the current scheme of things, with no shortage of issues facing countries globally.

You’re probably thinking, among other things -

1. My opinion or voice doesn’t count
2. Issues don’t affect me or worse my opinion doesn’t affect the outcome
3. Nothing is going to change (hoping that they change for the better on their own)

Here are a few things you can do

1. Fact check.
2. Either counter it yourself or through like-minded folks.
3. If you’re an introvert like me, design slogans or messages that can be
4. Printed on merchandise like T-shirts — for example, connect with Chimp Tribe.
5. Converted to something that is web-friendly and catches the attention of many — will exponentially increase reach.
6. Order one of the many T-shirts from Chimp Tribe and flaunt your style
7. There are plenty of themes and messages that would echo your thoughts. Wear your style as you travel, go to the gym and attend any PRIDE events. Don’t underestimate the impact this can have as people read (and maybe even acknowledge/appreciate) what you’re wearing.

Mastering the Art of Being a minimalist in parallel

Would you buy a relatively cheaper piece of fabric that doesn’t last very long or would you think of buying a more expensive piece of clothing that is highly durable (treating it like an investment)? There is probably no right or wrong answer to this. If I have to draw an analogy, it is perhaps similar to what came first — the chicken or the egg.

Global warming is real and is staring at your face at this very point in time. If there was ever a silver lining from the disaster of COVID, it was how the planet could mend itself. Being mindful of our daily lifestyle and actions (lesser air travel, lesser vehicular pollution, lesser hotel occupancy translating to lower water wastage) goes a long way.

It is easily understood if it is viewed from a supply and demand perspective. The lower the demand for easily disposable goods would mean lower manufacturing and reduced wastage. Smarter operations would lead to lower inventory costs and almost zero wastage.

Chimp Tribe’s philosophy is to contribute to society in as many (even little) ways as possible. Things to focus on are engaging with vendors and partners that share our vision (minimising the use of plastic, recyclable packing, ethical and sustainable labor practices, and actively engaging in CSR initiatives).

I hope I’ve got you thinking and humbly request you to pay it forward. Be the change you want to see.

The Work-Travel balance

Thank you, Ranga for this ever relevant piece ! (First appeared in 2014)

The desire to travel and “see the world” is inherent in most of us. We look enviously at pictures from National Geographic and wonder when we will be able to travel to all these exotic places.

Most of us do manage to do quite a bit of travel in our lives. Some of us use our savings judiciously to travel on a regular basis, some of us find jobs that allow us to travel, while many more of us work the extra yards in the hope that we can do all the travel that we want once we retire.

Any which way you look at it, there are challenges and compromises to be made. How much we manage to travel depends on how well we manage certain aspects of our lives.

1. Managing expenses

One of the first issues that come up while discussing travelling is the dreaded question of the expenses.

To understand how much money we really need is a huge task. A lot of us can barely explain how much we exactly spend out of our incomes. Some of our expenditure is fixed — rent, EMI, School fees etc while some of it is quite variable — dining out, clothing etc.

One of the key aspects of planning a travel-friendly life would be to identify exactly how much money you need in order to keep going. While the fixed expenses are pretty easy to quantify, it is important to look at the variable expenses more critically? How much do you need to spend on food and drink in a month? How much of this can be cut down without significantly impacting your life-style? Surely, you don’t want to end up being a skinflint who constantly looks at every penny that is being spent, but at the same time, you also don’t want to be spending too much of your money on things that don’t really matter.

2. Generating income

The other big question that crops us when it comes to travel is generating the income required to sustain ourselves. A lot of us have steady income jobs and have trained ourselves to think that way.

However, in the new economy, multiple avenues have opened up for flexible working. Geographically independent jobs are now more common than before, thanks to improved technology and connectivity. As more and more companies start looking at work-from-home options, it is not too far-fetched to think that jobs can now be managed from any location. Not just back-end, manual heavy work, even high profile roles like project management and product development are now being managed on a remote basis.

With a bit of effort, it is possible to reinvent existing job roles to make them geography-independent. And more travel-friendly !

3. Working for travel

Another development in recent times has been the availability of travel-friendly jobs. English teaching across non-English speaking countries is now a fairly lucrative job option for travel-inclined people. Such a job gives people the option to travel across and experience local cultures, while making a good living.

Transferable skills like project management, marketing, or even code-writing, can be harnessed into non-traditional job streams to create travel friendly career options. Options that did not exist earlier

4. Giving up the idea of job-security

Since the big economic meltdown of 2008–09, the concept of job-security is pretty much obsolete. One of the key attractions of a “regular” job was the security that it provided. However, once you get past the need for job-security, it is possible to embrace the idea of being a contract-worker. It is already an established concept in many developed nations and is increasingly gaining acceptance in the developing world as well. Going “freelance” enables you to manage your time better and devote more of your efforts towards travel. The 5-day week is slowly being replaced by the 9-month year, wherein people are increasingly finding ways to spend 3 months of the year travelling. The key is to be open to the idea of contract work and develop skills that continue to be relevant in a changing world.

What do you think? Are there any other aspects of your work-life that you can manage differently to enable you to meet your travel need? 

Transitioning to a Digital Nomad — Learnings from my journey

I’ve been blessed with friends who introduced me to travel, and barely a few trips later (within & outside India), I enjoyed it more than I expected. About a decade ago, 2 domestic trips & 1 International trip didn’t seem too far-fetched. Sixty trips (before I turn 60!) were the ultimate aim.

Then came a crucial aspect of taking time off for these travels and funding it. The annual 20-day vacation to force-fit holidays didn’t sit well with me (more like ticking boxes).

At the time, location-independent roles were scarce, and the concept was still relatively nascent. But Remote year was something that I stumbled across. Due credit has to be given to this portal for being the eye-opener and the first step in gaining immense clarity on what I was working towards. Escthecity.org was another portal that was a pleasant surprise with the roles on offer.

Cut to the present world, a post COVID world to be precise, where there is a surge in remote working and the rate of adoption has been phenomenal. What was previously thought impossible now seems like the new normal, albeit with a pause and considerable dip in travel.

Having worked remotely for more than a decade, it was something that came naturally to me. Having said that, few and far remote roles suddenly exploded into so many more available, and now a matter of finding your niche (sustainable at that!). Experience can be additional baggage that you end up paying for much more than what you initially bargained for.

Without stagnating further, I decided the logical next step was to translate ideas into action.

From my limited experience, I would have loved for it to be broken down like this a few years back -

Pre transition
1. Significant research required — translating to investing a lot of your spare time, also may mean having to sacrifice binge-watching TV series, reading the latest best-seller, having to say NO to a couple of social events)
2. Matching your areas of interest with something that makes sense commercially
3. Understanding the risks involved and having a fallback plan in case things go down south rather quickly
4. Setting aside funds and being prepared for zero income while in the transition phase for a set period that works for you
5. Acquiring skills/re-skilling in an area of your choice (for example, digital marketing, product marketing)
6. Connecting with folks in your area of choice on LinkedIn and Social Media
Trying out internships and volunteering to gain actual experience via Indeed, LinkedIn, Upwork

Actual transition
1. Take a sabbatical for about 4–6 months from your current role and put to practice the skills gained.
2. Experimenting/trying out co-working spaces in the current location or other locations based on budgets and the need for change in the environment
3. Either via freelancing or on contract — this is when you would actually start earning money and sustain yourself.
4. Continuing to re-skill / up-skill and keeping up with trends in the chosen field

If you are ever thinking of transitioning roles and doing something completely different would suggest reaching out to Arjun Prakash — PIVOT

Post transition
1. Share learnings
2. Help others/pay it forward
3. Keep collaborating
4. Specialise in a couple of areas, if you can

Hopefully, I’ll be able to cover much more with specifics on how I started from scratch learning Social Media/Digital Marketing with plenty of links.

Lastly, never stop enjoying what you do. Life’s too short to be lived with regrets and transient to be spent thinking, “What could’ve/might’ve been?”.