The 4 steps I take to turn my words into action. — I’m a writer. My work revolves around reading, thinking and typing out words. Currently, my interests include climate change and cryptocurrency. I know; they are two very different areas of knowledge. But I’m seeing a potential bridge between them. In terms of climate change, the lifestyle change I’ve made has…

Like dating another person while being in a committed relationship, most people start freelancing in between their full-time jobs. I was not like most people. Cultivating the Skill of Negotiating My Terms I started freelancing by convincing my ex-boss to change the terms of my employment from a full-time employee to a freelancer. Big guts, I know. …

Do they know what or who they actually want? — I’ve been on a halal dating app for a few months now and I’m disappointed. The men there are either too desperate or too boring. Most of them don’t know what or who they want in life. They lack integrity. And that’s a major turn-off for me. In Islam, it’s…

7 months of work-travel balance is not easy — In January, I hopped off a plane at LAX — with a dream and my backpack. The dream was to leave Malaysia and travel to the Western part of the world. I wanted to challenge myself as a crazy not-so-rich Asian to live the digital nomad lifestyle. You’d often see…

It was not through Upwork or LinkedIn. — I’m the type of person who would always find a way to reach her goal. The moment I set my mind on something, you can be sure that it will happen sooner or later. Within my first year of working, tasting the sweet and sour air of adulthood, I decided…

Join in the fun! — Over the past week, I had been seeing tweets that looked like this.

Save your sanity and overcome PTSD as soon as possible. — Getting scammed is a traumatic experience. I don’t care if people think I was stupid, naive, or not thinking straight. I was in an emotionally vulnerable state and the scammers played with my mind like psychological rape. I Got Scammed And Cried For 3 Days Straight It was a normal working day at home until my phone rang.diyanathewriter.medium.com

It was a normal working day at home until my phone rang. Well, it didn’t ring because my phone had always been on silent mode. But somehow, in that particular moment, my eyes caught the screen flashing an unknown number. I don’t usually answer an unknown number. But that day…

Spoiler: Freelancing is not the end goal; it’s a journey. — August marks my freelance anniversary. It’s been 2 years since I’ve been out of the 9-to-5 and into a “risky” and “unstable” venture, which has provided me with more moolah than I had ever got in my first 3 years of a typical working life. The following 2 years of…