Author: Pratha Nayak

Dreams and freedom are the same.
In order for them to be,
they come with a price.
– Criss Jami

A bird flying in the sky, fluttering through the wind, was living her life freely in the world. Her eyes getting a beautiful view warming her heart to the core. The feeling of opening her wings and diving in the air was magnificent. She sat on the highest branch of a tree for some time. She was enjoying the view from up there. Something caught her attention, as she squinted her eyes more, in a very long distance a beautiful castle came into view.

A castle so beautiful and shiny, it took her breath away. She wanted to see it from a closer distance but it was too far away. Deeper into the forest it was going to take a very long time for her to cover the distance and that’s when a dream took its birth. A dream that needed endurance, pain and patience to come true. It was time to cross many obstacles and bring the love to nurture the dream to grow. Her belief got stronger and she was ready to withstand any storm. Believing in her wings, she kept flying through the strong wind and kept going in the direction of the castle.

It took her months of hard work and struggle to reach the beautiful place. She was now looking at the castle from outside and was mesmerized by it’ beauty. She took a deep breath and slowly started flying into the castle.

The moment she entered the boundaries a new plant started growing around the castle climbing the walls and creating a dome-like structure all over the place. It appeared as if someone has decorated the whole castle with beautiful golden flowers and silver thrones.

The bird was enchanted with the beauty and luxury that was present within the whole place. Suddenly many more birds came from inside and started playing and feeding on all the different kinds of food and she joined them and played with them for a very long time. When the sun started setting down she gazed outside and took a deep breath. She was relaxed, happy and very satisfied by thinking where she was.

Few days went by and the bird was happily enjoying her days of living in the castle. One fine morning she thought of going for a fly around the place and stretch her wings. And that’s when the bird finally noticed the decoration over the place. It was beautiful but impossible to cross. Realization dawned within her, that she was actually trapped in the castle and it was actually a golden cage.

Fluttering her wings, she tried flying up and crossing the barriers and ended up damaging her wings by the silver thrones. She was deeply wounded. She looked up at the sky through tears and wondered how her pained efforts resulted in gaining more pain.

The castle was filled with everything to survive other than her freedom. The bird started scratching on the main wall of the castle using her beak and wrote, “All dreams and wishes come true, but with a paid price.”

I hope you like the story and enjoyed reading it. Please like and follow my page to get the future updates from my website and please write your suggestions below in the comment section to help me improve my posts.

Thank You!
Have a great weekend.

Sayonara!

Pratha Nayak

The future belongs to those who learn more skills and combine them in creative ways.
– Robert Greene

Are you also one of those who want to do freelancing work, make a side hustle but gave up because even after trying for days, you didn’t get a single job? Well, believe me, I was one of those as well. But as it is said, “When there is a will there’s a way.”

Well, the main issue is we want to get it all very quickly without even trying to learn the correct approach to it. I can say that one day you saw some video about freelancing or heard from someone about it and maybe just Googled about it and got started.
You might even have followed every step and in the end, got disappointed with the result.
You thought this freelancing is all about luck and it’s very difficult to do.

Well, that feeling is true. It is difficult, but nothing is easy in this world either. But with patience and hard work, anything is possible. Also, we need to believe that we can achieve anything. I am going to share with you guys what worked for me and how I got my first freelancing gig.

The first and the most important step is to recognize your skill. Freelancing is nothing but selling your skill at a negotiated price. And that can be done only when you have something to sell. And it’s not only necessary to recognize your skill but it is very important to hone it as well. You need to polish it till the point when it starts to shine.
Try to look for the kind of freelancing projects available in the market and try working on it just to know on which level do you stand. Practising on real-time projects prepares you to sharpen your skill.

The next step is to find the right platform. Nowadays there are multiple platforms for freelancers like Upwork, Fiverr, Toptal, People per hour and many more. All this platform works in different ways. Few of them charge you a fixed amount to use their platform whereas others might just take some percentage of your earning as a commission. You need to find the platforms that suit you the best. And you need to register on multiple websites to get more opportunities.
Nowadays even social media is providing scope for freelancing, like Facebook, Linked In and others, where they have many group pages. In these group pages, you can find many opportunities.

Once you have registered yourself in a few of the freelancing websites, the next step is to make a compelling profile. Your profile should showcase your skills and ability to take on challenging tasks and give a creative and unique solution. As I told you earlier it’s all about selling your skills. And to sell anything, your marketing strategy should be very strong. You should be able to convince your customer to buy your product instead of someone else’s. We already know there is too much competition nowadays, so you first need to understand the “Why” power. That is you need to explain to your customer Why they should trust you and give you a chance to work for them even though you don’t have any experience.

The real-time projects you took for practising can be shown as your experience too. Usually when you submit a proposal for any of the freelancing jobs or when you make a package of your service, you need to show some examples of the kind of work you can do. This gives the customer an idea of how well are you in your field and whether you will be able to provide the service they require.

Work for free. I know it sounds absurd. Why would anyone work for free? But in this case, working for free in starting might help you in the big picture. When you give your best and present the best result which customer is expecting then you might get a very good review on your profile. These reviews will attract more customers and get you more work. And then you can charge a good amount for your work and new jobs will keep flowing into your portfolio.

You can even ask for work within your known circle, like your old employer or a friend who has a small business. You can create a base for you to showcase them as your experience.

Patience.
Patience is very big in this process. You have to apply to many jobs daily and yet it might take months for you to get that first gig. The key is to not give up. Many times you will be approached and many times you will even get a gig. But even after submitting the work, you might not get paid and you might not hear from your customer again. But I would still suggest not to give up. You just need that first job. And to get that you just need to convince one person that you are good enough to do the job.

Last but not least. YOU GET THE FIRST GIG.
Once you get your first gig, make sure you give your best to this task. Make sure that the task is done as per the customer requirements and conditions so that you can get that Five-star rating on your portfolio. This is the only key to keep getting more jobs in the coming days.

Repetition is the mother of skill.
– Tony Robbins

I hope you found this post helpful. Please like and follow my page to get future updates from my website and please write your suggestions below in the comment section to help me improve my posts. Also if you guys want me to write on a particular kind of topic then please leave your suggestion in the comment section.

Thank You!
Have a great day ahead.

Sayonara!

Pratha Nayak

The only time a lazy man ever succeeds is when he tries to do nothing.
-Evan Esar

Do you guys also have those lazy days when you don’t feel like doing anything at all?
Especially in recent times, since Covid-19 we all have been locked inside our home. Staying inside the home, away from the world has made us sluggish and lethargic. We are working from home but our productivity has reduced linearly with time at the same time staying inside is necessary for our own good. So how do you guys manage to wake up every day and do the work that needs to be done? I guess you do it because you don’t have any other option, isn’t it? I mean we can’t take eternal leaves from our work. And the more you delay it, the more it piles up.

Honestly, I don’t like this feeling at all. Yeah, I do wish to take a day off and literally do nothing but at least on those days my mood is good and I end up spending the day relaxing by reading a book or watch a movie. The next day I feel refreshed. But when I feel mentally down and don’t want to move from one spot, it makes me more irritated. On those days I don’t even feel like getting out of bed. Now, this can happen because of multiple reasons. At times people have a medical condition which usually keeps them in a lethargic state.

But soon enough we realize that we do need to finish our work, whether it is related to our job or household chores. Can we overcome this state of mind and productively do our work? Yes, we can!

Follow the 2-minute rule–
The 2-minute rule says that if a task or work can be completed in just 2-minutes then do it immediately. There is no meaning in delaying a task that can be finished in such a short time.

Do the 5-1 countdown–
Anytime you get distracted or want to leave the work in the mid-process, count slowly from 5-1. It usually calms you down and makes you patient.

Try doing the easiest task of the day in the morning-
Usually, when we are not having the urge to work, it is better to do the task which takes the least effort on our side. Doing this will give you a sense of accomplishment and will change your mood a bit.

Mix the boring task with a bit of entertainment-
Suppose you are doing some household chores, you can play some music while doing the work. You can groove along with the music and finish the task in no time.

Keep distractions on the bay-
On the other hand, while doing the task that needs your complete attention, it is better to keep all distraction away like your mobile phone or TV. The Netflix series you want to finish will still be there when you will finish your task.

Ask for help-
It is okay to ask for help from the people around you, doesn’t matter whether you are at home or office. It is said that when you ask for help from your colleagues it increases your productivity because you get to learn from each other share those skills and special tricks you found out.

Reward yourself once in a while-
If you got out of your bed and got the job done even though you didn’t want to, then pat your own back and do something that makes you happy. Rewards motivate you to move ahead.

Focus on using your strengths-
Everyone knows their own strengths and weakness. We know what we are good at, so use that skill and target to finish the related tasks and get it out of your To-Do list. This will amplify your energy level and push you to finish the rest of the work as well.

Make action plans and To-Do lists-
Plan your day ahead. If you create a list of tasks that needs to be done and make an action plan on how to do it at least a day before, the next day you don’t have to stress much on how to do and what to do part of the work.

Stop going for perfection-
Trying to be perfect is not going to make you productive, it is only going to demoralize you more. Rather try approaching on doing a quality job.

Set realistic goals-
Break your bigger goals into smaller ones. And try keeping your daily goals simpler and doable so that you don’t feel overwhelmed about them daily.

Try giving positive enforcement to yourself-
When we are feeling down or lazy, we start negatively talking to ourselves. Like for example, “I am never going to finish this task on time.” Rather say to yourself that, “I will try my best to finish as much as I can.”

Take small breaks in between work-
When you take small breaks in between your work, you reset your brain and feel energized again.

Maintain a high-protein diet-
If you are feeling lazy for a longer period, it is better to keep a check on your diet. Eating high carbs diet can make you lethargic whereas having a high protein diet keeps you active for a longer time. Also, try avoiding processed food for some days.

Exercise 2-3 times a week-
Even if you are a person who doesn’t like to exercise or doesn’t have the time, try to exercise at least 2-3 times a week for 20 mins. This keeps your health in check.

Consult a doctor-
If after following all the above steps, you feel down and lazy then try consulting a doctor. It might be a medical condition that is making you feel so. In such a case, it is better to get the proper medication and treatment.

Idleness is the dead sea that swallows all virtues.
– Benjamin Franklin

I hope this post helps you in some way. Please like and follow my page to get future updates from my website and please write your suggestions below in the comment section to help me improve my posts. Also if you guys want me to write on a particular kind of topic then please leave your suggestion in the comment section.

Thank You!
Have a great day ahead.

Sayonara!

Pratha Nayak

There is no joy involved in following other’s expectations of yourself.
– Miriam Toews

Expectations- On today’s date, this word itself has become quite scary. And from whom do we keep this particular emotion? From those people who are very close to our heart or from people we trust to have the ability to bring the change that we want. The irony is we never do anything for ourselves. We never even think of living up to someone else’s expectations and yet we expect a lot from others.

Humans are called social animals. Why? Because we rely on others a lot. We rely on others to survive on earth. And this dependency goes to an extent where we depend on others emotionally, physically, mentally and financially as well. Being the social animals on this planet, within humans also there are a lot of variants. And the co-dependency is increasing with time. But there is always a point where we all start to have a lot of expectations from other people. Expectations that are unachievable, unfulfillable and unimaginable. But still, we have these precious expectations from those people because they are important to us and we think and want to feel important in their life as well. The definition of love, care and importance are quite different for everyone. It’s like apples and oranges for a few of them. But what surprises me more is the way they represent it and showcase themselves as the biggest person on earth.

Is it just me or do you also feel that having too much expectations from your near and dear one’s is spoiling their happiness as well as yours? How much pressure can someone take from your wishes? Will that person not burst out one day? What if that person breakdowns and loses emotional strength? It does happen you know. There are so many people in this world, who are suffering from this particular fear right now for not living up to terms.

It’s not that we only expect from others. At times we set very high expectations from ourselves as well. And when we fail miserably to achieve those, self doubt and anxiety takes birth. In this whole charades people die.

I often think, how many people on this planet live their life freely without having the fear of losing anything or everything they have. If we start a count, will we at least get a fair amount of numbers?

Yes, we would because slowly that generation is evolving at a very high rate where people are learning to be fearless and go for that huge leap. It’s a constant reminder though that, “You are on your own.” But it makes sense that freedom is worth it.

Whether it is your expectations from yourself or you having expectations from someone else or someone having high expectations from you, it might suppress your confidence. Some people do thrive being in that pressure but most people fall from the cliff.

But being social animals with brains that make big inventions and evolutions, we hardly ever understand this small thing, that is to “Live freely and let live freely”. If you love and care about someone, wouldn’t you want them to be happy, lively and having the best of life?

Loving and caring for someone should be with selfless emotions. Instead we impose our wishes and fears on them. It’s time to accept people in our life as they are and support them to achieve their life goals.

Everyone seems to have a clear idea
of how other people should lead their lives,
but none about his or her own.
– Paulo Coelho

I hope this post projects a different light to subject which we all go through but never actually think about. Please like and follow my page to get future updates from my website and please write your suggestions below in the comment section to help me improve my posts. Also if you guys want me to write on a particular kind of topic then please leave your suggestion in the comment section.

Thank You!
Have a great day ahead.

Sayonara!

Pratha Nayak