Fortunate Life

I think there are many people like me - productivity is often worn like a badge of honor. The more tasks I check off, the more proposals I send, the more sessions I deliver—the more I feel like I’m doing well. But here’s the hard truth I had to face: being busy isn’t the same as being productive. I’ve had weeks where I packed my schedule to the brim—back-to-back training sessions, proposals sent late at night, deliverables squeezed in between family obligations. From the outside, it looked like I was thriving. But inside? I was running on fumes. My body was present, but my mind was stretched thin. The passion that once fueled me started to feel like a burden. That’s when I realized: productivity without boundaries only leads to burnout. Finding balance isn’t about doing everything. It’s about doing the right things at the right time. I started asking myself: Does this task really matter, or am I just doing it to feel “busy”? Am I saying yes to too many projects out of fear of ...

When I first stepped into training, I thought my role was to teach. To stand in front, deliver content, and make sure people understood. But over time, I realized that the best trainers aren’t just teachers—they’re also learners. And the key to thriving is something called a growth mindset . A growth mindset is the belief that skills and abilities can be developed through effort, feedback, and practice. The opposite—a fixed mindset—believes that talent is set in stone: you either have it or you don’t. In those early days of training, I wasn’t as confident as I seemed. Inside, I was battling racing thoughts, shaky hands, and the nagging fear that some of my students might outshine me. My palms would feel damp, my chest tightened as I spoke, and I’d silently wonder if I was good enough to stand in front of a room. But little by little, things shifted. Students would tell me that they clearly understood my explanations, that the sessions were helpful, and that they appreciated the way I g...

When I look back at my freelancing journey, I often think about how different it is from the world I prepared for in school. Don’t get me wrong—education gave me a foundation, but freelancing? That was the real crash course in growth. Schools taught me about theory, deadlines, and following instructions. But freelancing taught me lessons that no classroom ever covered: how to handle silence after sending proposals, how to manage irregular income, and how to keep showing up even when rejections pile up. Here are some of the biggest lessons freelancing has taught me that schools didn’t:  1. Rejection is part of the process, not a verdict. When I first started, every unanswered proposal felt like a failure. I thought it meant I wasn’t good enough. Over time, I realized rejection is part of the freelance cycle. It doesn’t mean you’re not capable—it just means you haven’t found the right fit yet.  2. Time management is survival. In freelancing, no one chases you for deadlines...

I came across something today that really made me pause — it’s called The Empty Boat Theory . Imagine this: you’re peacefully rowing a boat in the middle of a quiet lake. Suddenly, another boat starts drifting toward you. You call out, try to steer away, but it keeps coming closer — until it’s about to crash. You feel your anger rising. “Who’s this person? Why are they so careless?” But then, you notice… the other boat is empty. And just like that, your anger dissolves. Because there’s no one to be angry at. No one to blame. That’s when it hits you — most of the things that upset us in life are like that empty boat. We get angry, offended, or hurt, thinking someone intended to do us wrong. We make up stories in our minds: “They’re ignoring me.” “They said that to insult me.” “They did that to make me feel small.” But what if… they didn’t? What if it wasn’t about us at all? How much of our suffering is self-inflicted — born not from what people actually do, but from what we thin...

  We live in a world that loves quick wins. “Overnight success,” “instant results,” “fast growth.” But the truth I’ve learned, both as a trainer and a freelancer, is that real growth rarely happens overnight. It happens slowly—sometimes so slowly that you don’t even notice it until you look back. I still remember my first few training sessions. My hands would sweat, my heartbeat would race, and self-doubt would whisper, “What if your students know more than you?” As an introvert, standing in front of a group felt overwhelming. But then something happened that I didn’t expect. Students started telling me that I was good at what I do—that they understood my explanations clearly, that my sessions gave them confidence. Those words felt like a huge accomplishment. Because in those moments, I realized that what felt shaky and slow to me was actually growth in progress. It didn’t happen in one day, or even one session. But with patience, each small step—each class delivered, each stud...

I’ve always been someone who loves making plans. I map out projects, set timelines, and try to anticipate every step. But life, as it often does, doesn’t always follow the script. I remember working on a freelance project that I thought would be a perfect match. I planned my schedule, adjusted other commitments, and even visualized how I’d deliver the work. Then—suddenly—the project didn’t push through. The client changed direction, and all the effort I put into preparing felt like it was for nothing. In moments like that, frustration is real. I caught myself thinking, “What’s the point of planning if it keeps falling apart?” But over time, I’ve learned that failed plans aren’t wasted—they’re redirections. Sometimes they save us from misaligned paths. Sometimes they create space for opportunities we didn’t see coming.   What I’ve Learned About Failed Plans Flexibility is a strength. Planning is important, but holding on too tightly can make setbacks feel unbearable. Staying...

Hard times magnify everything. Disappointment feels bigger, silence feels louder, and setbacks feel heavier. I remember a season in my freelancing journey when rejections piled up. Proposals went unanswered, projects slipped away, and I started questioning if I should even keep going. Every “no” felt like proof that I wasn’t enough. But then I had a conversation with a fellow freelancer. Instead of asking, “Why is this happening to me?” she asked, “What is this teaching me?” That single shift in perspective changed how I looked at my own situation. Instead of seeing unanswered proposals as a failure, I began to see them as practice—each one sharpening my clarity, my confidence, and my voice. Instead of thinking, “Nobody wants to hire me,” I reframed it into, “The right client hasn’t found me yet.” The situation didn’t magically improve overnight. But how I carried it did. And sometimes, that shift is what keeps you steady until the better days arrive. Practical Ways to Shift Per...