Challenging My Indian Middle-Class Mindset to Shift Careers At 28
How I gave up comfort to embrace uncertainty and saw 10x growth in finances and fulfillment.
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“That was the most intense two months of my life!”
I wrote this in my journal after finishing the first draft of my fiction novel.
All my life, I’d always wanted to be a writer. But until now, I’d only written short articles and stories all over the internet. When I dedicated myself to finishing my first novel in a set timeframe, I didn’t know the process would be so challenging. I went to bed crying on several nights because I thought I’d never be able to fix the plot holes and complete writing it.
But I persisted, and in April 2020, I finished the first draft of my magnum opus — the product of my sweat and tears.
At 87,548 words, I knew the manuscript was terrible. I’d poured my heart and soul into it, but it would require at least ten rounds of editing before I could send it to a publisher.
But finishing the novel helped me realize that nothing in the world makes me feel as alive as writing.
This was the time when the pandemic-induced lockdown in India had run into its second month. The extra “holidays” gave me a much-needed break from the hustle of my day job. I used that time to write, and in two months, my first draft was ready.
The process was so fulfilling that I immediately knew if I had to do only this for the rest of my life, I would be grateful.
These two months also made me realize that it’s been ages since I last felt this good while working on anything.
The life I always wanted
I started my job in 2016 as an Assistant Professor in Civil Engineering at one of India’s top-most colleges. Since then, I’d been working non-stop for four years. With my teaching job and my part-time Ph.D., I barely had time to devote to my lifelong dream of being a writer. I did manage to slip in a few hours on the weekends, but it was…
