Posted by It’s June 2020 in Delhi, India. The coronavirus is still at large, people are fighting for equal treatment and basic civil rights in the USA, and migrants in India are trudging back to their villages in deplorable conditions, some even walking for hundreds of kilometres. We have just entered “Unlock 1.0”- the phase where the country is opening up after over two months of a complete shutdown. A cyclone knocked on Mumbai’s door, our business capital; swarms of locusts attacked Jaipur, the capital city of Rajasthan; and Delhi, facing frequent seismic activity, is gearing up for an earthquake.
The world may seem like it’s coming to an end, but unsurprisingly life keeps moving. By focusing on staying positive, I believe every adversity can be turned on its head.
The lockdown presented me with a plethora of opportunities, most of which I’m still exploring and working on. While I announce every activity on my social media platforms, I sometimes forget to update them on my blog. So, this is that update. Perhaps I’ll do one every month- a candid record of events in my life. Every month won’t be as eventful as this one, but we’ll take it as it comes.
In no particular order, here goes:
- MY BLOG RANKS 14TH IN FEEDSPOT’S LIST OF BEST LIFESTYLE BLOGS IN INDIA
Last month, I was overwhelmed and honoured that Feedspot ranked me in their Global List of Lifestyle Blogs. Just yesterday, I received an email allotting me the 14th rank for the Indian lifestyle blogger’s list! Woot woot!
Check out the list here: https://blog.feedspot.com/indian_lifestyle_blogs/
- MY BLOG RANKS 18TH IN FEEDSPOT’S LIST OF BEST LIFESTYLE BLOGS IN THE WORLD
Though I was ranked 19th on this list initially, I’ve moved up a spot to rank 18!
Check out the list here: https://blog.feedspot.com/lifestyle_blogs/
- I’M WRITING A WEEKLY FEATURES COLUMN IN THE ONLINE NEWSPAPER “THE DAILY GUARDIAN”
Ever since I started blogging, I had nurtured a dream to write a features column in a newspaper or magazine. I finally have that opportunity with a weekly column in “The Daily Guardian”. My posts will be published every Saturday. Here’s the first one on avoiding conflict situations at home during lockdown:
https://thedailyguardian.com/5-ways-to-avoid-conflicts-at-home-during-lockdown/
- I’M HOSTING A WEEKLY TALK SHOW WITH THE 1947 PARTITION ARCHIVE ON THEIR FACEBOOK PAGE
The 1947 Partition Archive documents the stories of survivors of the partition of India. Having collected over 9300 stories so far, they are racing against time as the affected generation is dying out. They have been unable to proceed with their regular methods of preserving stories during the lockdown, but to keep the conversation alive, they are conducting weekly Facebook Live sessions called “Sunday Stories Live”.
Eminent personalities whose work focuses on the partition, are invited as guests and I’m the host for the event. For the first episode, I spoke to Urvashi Butalia, writer and publisher, on her book “The Other Side of Silence: Voices from the Partition of India”.
Watch the episode here:
- MY SHORT STORY HAS BEEN FEATURED IN THE ANTHOLOGY “THE WOMAN THAT I AM”
Deeply affected by the religious riots in Delhi earlier this year, I penned a short story called “The Turmoil Within”. It has now been published as part of an anthology of works entitled “The Woman That I Am”, released during the Blogchatter E-Book Carnival. Edited by Rashi Roy and Manas Mukul, this anthology stands apart from others as it’s a unique collection of fictional works, poetry and opinion pieces, in Hindi and English, with the only common thread being womanhood.
Download it for free for a limited time here:
https://bit.ly/TheWomanThatIAm
- I RECENTLY REVAMPED MY WEBSITE AND JOINED LINKEDIN
Making good use of the extra time on hand, I finally tackled some of the tech stuff I usually put off! I’ve revamped my website and made it more user-friendly, and I’ve joined LinkedIn.
Subscribe to my website here: https://nooranandchawla.com/
Connect with me on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/noor-anand-chawla-64117a1aa/
- THERE’S LOTS HAPPENING OVER ON MY INSTAGRAM PAGE
I have finally begun enjoying Instagram because I’m finding my feet on it, and creating content I enjoy. I have daily Insta Story updates, weekly TV show/movie reviews of the latest releases, and I’ve recently started dabbling in personal beauty and styling posts.
If you’d like to check my page out, visit here:
- I WROTE MY FIRST POST FOR THE IWSG AND CONNECTED WITH A BUNCH OF COOL WRITERS
In an effort to revamp the blog, I have begun reading and interacting with a bunch of cool bloggers whose work I was earlier unfamiliar with. I recently wrote my first post for the Insecure Writer’s Support Group (IWSG), where writers are encouraged to share their fears and successes without judgment. The prompt for this month was to share some writing secrets.
If you’d like to read five of my writing secrets, visit this page:
https://nooranandchawla.com/5-writing-secrets-i-hide-from-the-world/
- I’M CONDUCTING MONTHLY BLOGGING WORKSHOPS
Perhaps the biggest development of all has been that of my business model! With two successful blogging workshops under my belt and the third one around the corner, I’ve realised how much I enjoy teaching what I know and spreading knowledge. The workshop is aimed at people who are new to the blogging world, or people who find the subject intriguing but don’t know where to begin.
If you’re interested, sign up for the next one here, which is slated for Saturday June 20 from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m.:
https://www.queensbrigade.com/learn-to-monetise-your-blog-with-noor.php
- I’M MAKING WEEKLY SELF-CARE VIDEOS FOR FACEBOOK GROUP MOMMY A-Z
I have been an active member of parenting peer group Mommy A-Z for a long time, and I was delighted to work with them on a weekly video series, where I share useful and practical self-care tips. You have to be a member to watch the videos, but if you’re interested, here is the link to join:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/mommyatoz/
That’s a lot of shameless self-plugging I know- please forgive me! But if I don’t share what I’m doing with the world, who will?! I wish you well, and I hope this period helps you to become stronger and more determined to achieve your life goals.
If you read this entire post till the end, thank you so much, from the bottom of my heart.
_____________________________________________________________________________
*This is not a sponsored post.
**Copyright in pictures and content belongs to nooranandchawla.com and cannot be republished or repurposed without express permission of the author. As I am a copyright lawyer by profession, infringement of any kind will invite strict legal action.
Awesome! Kudos to you for all the amazing things you are doing. Definitely an inspiration to many. Keep up the great work.
Thank you dear Rashi! It’s wonderful to have meaningful connections with people like you 🤗
Congratulations Noor! You are on a roll!
Thanks Sonia 🤗🤗
Wow! That’s a lot of feathers in your cap. Kudos to you! Well done 🤗
Thank you Shweta 🤗
My pleasure 😊
😊
I don’t think you’re busy enough. So many things to do. 🙂
Hi Noor
I’m really happy you are experiencing all these successes. Keep going. You’ll hit the top 10 spots soon.
Talk with you soon
Stu
Stu you are so sweet! Thank you so much!
Yes let’s talk soon 😊
You’re an inspiration!
Thank you 😊
Awesome stuff Noor. All the best!!!
Thanks dearest Arushi 🤗