Earning in Difficult Times - Just Believe in Yourself
by Surbhi Valia
(Mumbai, India)
My name is Nav and I live in Mumbai, India. My son is my only family for me and he just got married and we all stay together.
Well when my son was very young I lost his father due to an illness. At that moment I realised how difficult it is to bring up a child without father. From that day I had to fight for everything in life. One very important lesson I learned was that you realise who is your real friend and foe. It is true that difficult times make you realise who are your real friends.
I knew I had to bring up son with good culture, decent education so that he can become something in life and was the only person left in his life. For a decent living and to support his studies, my neighbour suggested that i can supply food packets to schools, banks etc.
I thought this could be a good earning source for me. So initially i started with the supply of food packets to banks in my own area (they knew me very well) as I am a very old inhabitant of this area. Then i started looking at other avenues for earning money. I took up invigilation (watch over examination candidates to prevent cheating) tasks at schools during exams. I had to be on my feet all day long and I used to get paid at the end of the month.
At that time even small earnings were a lot for me and my son. I started sewing clothes for ladies in my area like blouses, petticoats etc.
By doing these small tasks I helped my son become an MBA graduate and I am a proud mother today. I would only advice people those who are willing to earn a living should always believe in themselves and not in a degree. These tasks can be done without a degree; all you need is your will power and motivation. Today I am confident of facing any challenge that life has stored for me.
