I read if I wanted to become a better writer, I had to write every day. In response, I had written at least one 1000-word article each of the last 18 days. After conquering my fears, I submitted one of those pieces for review.

Three days later, an editor gave me some good feedback on it. He apologized for leaving thirteen comments on my article, while he pointed out what I did wrong. Valuable feedback. But even better, a real turning point.

With my tail between my legs, I went to bed, vowing to bounce back stronger. After tossing and…

As hard as I tried, I couldn’t shake off the thought of another stream of income meandering into my cash pool. The excitement bubbling up within my mind swallowed all the doubts I had. High on excitement and big on promise, I dove head-first into the side hustle hole.

That was in mid-2017 when the spark of the flash lured me to the photo studio. I wanted to be like a colleague who shot weddings every other weekend. He persuaded me I could even divert into architectural photography, which, for a real estate surveyor, was music to my ears.

In…

If the last 15 months were a chef, we’d say he’s mostly served us some damn bad meals that have left a sour taste in our mouths.

If the last 15 months were a teacher, we’d say she’s taught us one excellent lesson: the importance of relationships.

No, not necessarily the relationships with love bubbles in the air and exotic treats to Paris.

I mean everyday relationships with friends, colleagues, neighbors, and family.

Healthy relationships are the hinges on which the doors of many people’s happiness revolve. We’re happy and relaxed when our kith and kin are.

Is it any…

One in three Americans has a side hustle, 50% of US millennials have a side hustle, and 24% of Americans plan to start a side hustle in 2021.

Many believe having a side hustle is the new normal, but few talk about how a side hustle could distract people from their jobs in the short term and their careers in the long term.

When I first hopped on the side hustle train, I faced lots of distractions.

While at work, I often scrolled through Instagram for the hottest trends and the red hearts on my latest picture. At the slightest…

Writing advice comes a dime a dozen it’s hard to parse through them all and know which ones pass as credible. Despite our differences, I suppose you’ll agree that a lot of the writing advice leaves many writers confused, wouldn’t you?

So when a writer reached out to me for my views on some writing advice he saw recently, I felt I had to wade in. Often, I defer to the experts — those writers who’ve been writing longer than I’ve been breathing. But not this time.

I perked up and read every word of his request. As usual, he…

All of life is a school, and we’re but learners.

Like most people often did in school, you only need to steal a glance at what your friend is doing and try your hand at it.

By doing that, you take a leaf out of their playbook and trace what’s on that leaf of paper onto your own page. Or book. What could happen?

One of two outcomes: You fall short, or you rise above their level. Right? Wrong. There’s an even better outcome. It’s often unexpected.

When we all flipped our calendars to April, I thought I’d give David…

We were big dreamers as kids.

Growing up, many of us licked our lips at the prospect of feasting at the table of adulthood. We dreamt of living a life we could be proud of.

And who could fault us, when many movies portrayed adulthood as a bed of roses — a nice car to drive, exotic destinations to visit, and a happy family to return to?

Then time flew by and brought a mean sidekick: the beast called reality that can bite hard. …

Over the last decade, very few topics on the corporate corridors have divided opinions sharper than remote working.

Some thought remote work was threatening the foundation of the future of the office, or certainly shaking the walls of the traditional office.

Some companies dismissed it as a fad that would soon die a slow death. Others were content to wait and see what the jury decided.

Then, lockdowns forced several companies to upgrade remote work from possibility to reality.

Now physically separated from our favorite cubicles, corners, and colleagues, we’re suddenly interested in how to set up our homes for…