Head on over at Sal’s to read my first ever guest post over at Everyday Thoughts From Life where I have the honor of being Sal’s first guest blogger.

If you’d like to know what a nut case I am these days, head on over and read Sometimes, You Just Gotta Breathe. The post is personal, unlike my posts here. Since Sal’s blog is personal and more about his life than his work, it seemed appropriate to write something along similar lines.

Sal has also given me one of the best introductions I could have asked for. And he’s linked to all three of my blogs! 

In short, the man is amazing. And not just because of the awesome introduction or for giving me my first guest post. He’s awesome for reasons that I’m saving for something special.

Till then, enjoy the post and do leave a comment on his blog! 

P.S: If you find any errors in the post, they’ll be all mine. Sal payed me the ultimate compliment by publishing my post as is.

Technorati Tags: Blogging, guest post, personal

You know how everyone says blogging requires passion? Well that’s not the only thing blogging requires. I’ll be expanding on this thought sometime later. For now, here are the links for your reading pleasure for this week.

The Writing Journey came back around the end of March writing about blogging. Bob tells us The Number One Rule of Blogging  and then went to takes on Copy Blogger. Nah – nothing that scandlous. Don’t Blog If You Suck At Writing disagrees with a guest post on copy blogger about how to be a successful blogger if you can’t write. Both sides raise valid points. Whichever side you agree with will largely depend on your experience of blogging

Daily Blogging Tips answered a question about blog commenting. Daniel responded with a detailed answer. Interesting read: When Do You Stop Commenting on Other Blogs?

Blogging without the blog went Smashing The Myths About Blogging for its two year anniversary. Barbara got it right on all counts. If there are other myths that you discoevered, do tell!

Blogopolis BluePrint is my new favourite blog. Apart from the usual content, Eric and Sean do videos – which is nothing new. But their videos are conversations. They’re two guys talking business and having a ball discussing their favourite topics. Doesn’t get better than that. In this video, they’re talking about The Highs and Lows of Blogging.

Technorati Tags: Blogging, commenting, link love, Writing

Dubai at Night. View from Dubai Marina.

Photo Credit : Faceymcface1

I was wondering the other day how many of you know that I’m based in United Arab Emirates. Then I got wondering if you guys know what a great place it is? Sure, it’s a middle of a desert and the temperature hits 50 degree celsius in peak summer but it’s also a beautiful and extremely picturesque country. 

It’s extremely ‘green’ for a country, is home to beautiful mosques and amazing architecture – especially the older buildings. Their corniche is beautiful and easily accessible. On any given day, you’ll see yatchs out and people jet skiing. The people are friendly and UAE is a nation of picnic lovers. The minute the weather turns slightly cool, you’ll see hoards of picnicers at the corniche. So much so that finding a parking space is going to be a problem!

Of course, it has some serious issues, but what country doesn’t? 

I’m not much of a photographer, (actually, I’m a pretty lousy one) but I never tire of taking pictures whenever I’m out.

Beginning today, I’ll be posting a picture every Friday that I either took myself (Yes I’ll put you through the torture of mediocre pictures) or came across online. I’ll be adding a little info whenever I can about it and generally give you a glimpse of my life in UAE. 

If you’d like to take a deeper look into my life in UAE, you can follow Cuppa Life where I blog about life as an expat.

Technorati Tags: Dubai, Dubai at night, Dubai Marina, UAE

Trials:

The past two months have seen me at two ends of the spectrum. February was the driest month work wise I’ve had so far. So much so, that I was pretty down in the dumps for a while. That’s pretty much all that happened in February.

In March, the only trial I faced was a lack of a proper workspace. Sometimes, in search for perfection, I come in my own way. So for now I’m still working off my dining table till I find the perfect desk.

The toughest part however was setting up this new place and scheduling a month’s worth of posts. I’ll be leaving for India on the 8th and won’t be back for three weeks. Combine it with the regular work I was getting, along with my idiosyncrasies related to The Base’s maintenance in my absense and I was a bundle of nerves!

Triumphs:

Even though February was bad work wise, somehow I was able to keep my chin up. Yes, I count that as a triumph. In March, the freelancing gods smiled on me. I got regular work thanks to a fellow freelancer. I also got my first post published for another blog and got a bunch of work inquiries.

Even though they didn’t work out, I knew people were noticing me as a freelancer and considering me enough to contact me. That’s a triumph in my book.

It’s been uphill ever since and I couldn’t be more thankful. 

The important thing to remember is that dry spells will come again. Next time however, I’ll be prepared.

Technorati Tags: freelance business, Freelancing, Freelancing report