Why I cannot stop writing

This write-up materialised to express my gratitude to my wonderful colleagues who brought out the best in me. I was told that this should be posted as a blog post. So here it goes. Let me know what you think.
 
Ever since I forayed into the art of writing, a lot has changed inside me.
Initially I used to think that writing would bring me fame while paying the bills as well. I ended up getting a job starting afresh as a content writer. Little did I know that the discipline that goes into crafting that perfect page would spill over to other areas of life.
While at my job, I was responsible for several projects. The one I stuck with the most during my 10 months was cataloging. When you looking to buy something online, you see the description and various features of the product on the website. I was responsible for writing these descriptions for each item that was provided to us by the client.
While the part of cataloging is often boring and mundane for many people. It gave me a great way of tracking my daily progress. When I started out, it took me an hour and a half to complete a single product, that would come out to around 4 products in a day. As my skills improved, I was able to complete 10 products on my best days. This made me the go-to person on the team whenever priority work was needed. I am a strong believer that your biggest competition is to outdo yourself day after day.
Not everyone can say that they are thrilled to work every morning. Where each day you wake up on time, get ready and cheerfully head for your work. A major part of this journey was thanks to the amazing people that I found at my office. They were incredibly friendly and welcoming. They would always invite you to participate and would help you feel important on your darkest days. Ordering lunch would frequently be a collaborative effort as most of us were living away from our home. All the meals that we shared together brought us closer together to a point where it would not be outrageous to call them family.
Events were fun. We used to have open-mics where one could showcase their talent in the form of singing, heart-felt write ups, poems and even standup comedy. I got a chance to step out of my comfort zone and face the audience. It made me realise a couple of things – I really need to work on my singing voice and the second, it’s not as scary as you thought.
I know that most people would think that most jobs are like that when you are in the honeymoon phase, it was your 4th job, how can be so different from your previous ones?
To explain this, I’d like to convey a chunk of my previous work history. You see, in all my previous jobs, I was surrounded by co-workers, suppliers and clients who were in their early forties or elder. It’s a completely different demographic. Though I did learn a lot of lessons from them, they had their life goals figured out and had already decided what they want to do for the rest of their lives.
Here, I got to meet people who were my age and several among them were working their first job. It was new for them and I appreciate their world view which helped me learn several things from their unique point of views.
You guys made me feel a part of the tribe and I will forever be grateful for the lessons I learnt here. My team leaders taught me the art of chilling when I would stress like crazy over work. I can happily claim say that this mixed approach allowed me to never miss a deadline. In fact during my last two weeks of work, I made a promise to myself to complete all the pending tasks before I go, the image editing team was on leave, so I learned how to use Adobe Photoshop and complete virtually all the pending tasks til it was my time to go. I felt an immense sense of achievement.
Writing is zen, writing is meditation where instead of focusing on your breath, words are used.
Farewells are never happy though in my case I couldn’t have asked for a better way to go. When I got the chance to read the excel sheet where everyone gave me a parting message, it moved me. It rarely happens that the world that you have created inside you perfectly matches how your other people see you. For the math experts reading this, LHS definitely equaled to RHS.
All good things come to an end. The venue of the farewell party was the same place I used to hang out after work. From moving to the tunes to indulging in booze, it really created a wonderful atmosphere where lasting friendships were forged. Though I felt nervous while delivering my final message to each one of you, my biggest worry being that I’d miss out something important. I would like to thank everyone for being so nice to me. It’s been 7 months since I left the office and I know that life goes on. I would encourage everyone to stay in touch. As we ride these tides of change and build our careers and personalities. This is a gentle reminder that you will always be etched in fond memories.
This write up would not have been possible without the incredible support and patience by you guys that helped me become a better writer. The plan to visit Mumbai was sudden and I couldn’t have been happier to get to see you guys in that office before you embark on your respective journeys. May everyone reach their highest potential in life and beyond. I will keep sending good vibes your way.
I would like to end with my favourite quote from a PC game called Skyrim.
“May your feet lead you to warm sands.”
Karan Balwani

5 thoughts on “Why I cannot stop writing

  1. Wow Karan. Thank you for this post. It means so much. I must admit here although we didn’t interact, I found your presence at LexiConn quiet heartening. You were very sincere, helpful and kindhearted towards others. Thank you for being such a wonderful human being. All the best for your future endeavors. 🙂

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