In conversation with Ajita Mahajan

Shivendra  Misra : Yogi, writer, marketer, and entrepreneur [The Collector's Podcast Ep. #12]

(The Collector’s Podcast — Episode 12) Shivendra Misra is a yogi, writer, marketer, and entrepreneur. We discussed his spiritual journey, writing process on Medium, his advice to someone who is disheartened, and his book recommendations. FEW HIGHLIGHTS FROM OUR CONVERSATION: My spiritual journey began when I was working on my startup and things were not going the way I desired. I started exploring the spiritual journey of great entrepreneurs and came across Steve Jobs who visited India to learn meditation techniques. But I got serious in 2019 when I started practicing Kriya Yoga which was taught by Yogananda [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paramahansa_Yogananda]. And his book Autobiography of a Yogi became a turning point in my life. It’s ironic to say but my most famous articles on Medium are the least researched. I ideate regularly to never run out of ideas and form a basic outline of my article using the mind-map technique. Sometimes it works but sometimes it doesn't. I write my first draft using this amazing app called Cold Turkey [https://getcoldturkey.com/writer/] that converts your laptop into a typewriter and gives you a set target to write say 800 words without getting diverted. Then I do multiple rounds of editing, get feedback from my peers, and cite the references. I felt hopeless when my startups weren’t working and I could see my future crashing down. My advice to the person who feels disheartened and motiveless is to get out of the hustle-bustle of life and tune in with yourself. From a yogic perspective, I feel it’s important to have a free flow of energy to channelize yourself in the right direction. If there is only one book I could read, I’d choose The Essence of Bhagwada Gita by Paramahansa Yogananda and Swami Kriyananda. This book has a word of God and that’s all you need. If you would read it again and again, this book has all the right tools and techniques to excel in life. I don’t form long term goals rather go with my intuition. In the future, I don’t necessarily see myself as a great entrepreneur but I’d definitely see myself growing spiritually and using writing as a medium to share my experiences. BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS * Autobiography of a Yogi [https://www.amazon.com/Autobiography-Self-Realization-Fellowship-Paramahansa-Yogananda/dp/0876120796/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Autobiography+of+a+Yogi&qid=1612727433&sr=8-1] * The Essence of the Bhagavad Gita [https://www.amazon.com/Essence-Bhagavad-Gita-Paramhansa-Remembered/dp/1565892267/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=the+essence+of+bhagwad+gita&qid=1612727196&sr=8-3] * Deep Work [https://www.amazon.com/Deep-Work-Focused-Success-Distracted/dp/1455586692/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=deep+work&qid=1612727230&sr=8-1] * The Surrender Experiment [https://www.amazon.com/Surrender-Experiment-Journey-Lifes-Perfection/dp/080414110X/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=surrender+experiment&qid=1612727293&sr=8-1] * Conversations With God [https://www.amazon.com/Conversations-God-Uncommon-Dialogue-Bk/dp/0340693258/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=conversations+with+god&qid=1612727382&sr=8-1] BOOKS PUBLISHED BY SHIVENDRA * Bend Reality [https://reinventyourself.biz/bend-reality/]

Anangsha Alammyan: Author, writer, youtuber [The Collector's Podcast Ep. #11]

Anangsha Alammyan is a published author, top writer on Quora and Medium. We discussed her published novels, incredible journey on medium, and the book recommendations. FEW HIGHLIGHTS FROM OUR CONVERSATION: How I used the quarantine to the best of my abilities. Work from home has given me more time and flexibility to concentrate on my writing. Though I keep juggling between my full-time job and my passion, I try to make as much time as possible for my writing. The aim of my novel What Did Tashi Do was to make people aware especially women about cybercrime and the sensitive personal information we share online. Although my novel is fictional, it is based on the real event that happened to me when my Facebook account was hacked and the hacker got access to all my personal images and messages. One of my Medium articles crossed $100 in a week. I started writing on Medium in early 2020 and did not pay much attention to my work. But when one of the articles got published in a big publication and earned a good amount of $$$, I realized the potential on Medium and wrote every day for almost 4 months consistently. Now, I earn passively through articles I already wrote and concentrate on writing premium pieces. The Book Sapiens have made me more forgiving by applying cold logic. Another book that stood out for me is The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy which is a science fiction and narrated in a funny tone. This book deals with the constant dilemma of the human race to think about what would life would be if we would have chosen another road. And whenever you try to do something different, people around you will try to pull you down and project their own insecurities. But believe in yourself and keep learning. BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS * Sapiens [https://www.amazon.com/Sapiens-Humankind-Yuval-Noah-Harari/dp/0062316117/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=sapiens&qid=1612722958&sr=8-1] * The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy [https://www.amazon.com/Hitchhikers-Guide-Galaxy-Douglas-Adams/dp/0345418913/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=The+Hitchhiker%27s+Guide+to+the+Galaxy&qid=1612722988&sr=8-1] BOOKS PUBLISHED BY ANANGSHA * What did Tashi do? [https://www.amazon.com/What-did-Tashi-Anangsha-Alammyan-ebook/dp/B07NKDDQLY] * Stolen Reflections [https://www.amazon.in/Stolen-Reflections-Some-Stories-Verse/dp/1643240862/]

Dr. Rebecca Ruth Gould: Writer, translator, and Professor [The Collector's Podcast Ep. #10]

Dr. Rebecca Ruth Gould [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebecca_Gould] is a writer, translator, and Professor of Islamic Studies and Comparative literature at the University of Birmingham. Her poetry and translations have been nominated twice for the Pushcart Prize. You can check out her almanac of reading log [https://rrgould.hcommons.org/what-im-reading/] too. FEW HIGHLIGHTS FROM OUR CONVERSATION: I have done a wide variety of work but my most lasting experience was my stay in Tbilisi [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tbilisi] from 2004 to 2006. I was a Russian literature undergraduate and did research that very few people had seen. Other than this, I love writing about fiction and poetry. The fact that I’m free to explore different genres in writing helps me to love what I do. Each time I visit Iran, I’m blown away by the vibrancy of the culture. Although people in Iran are very well-read, there is a scarcity of intellectual jobs in Iran. While I was in Iran, I saw a theatrical play that resonated with Iran; the protagonist was highly educated but felt superfluous in the society. I recorded the play and it inspired me to write Watching Chekhov in Tehran. I went to Chechnya in 2003 on my own to know more about the Chechen. It was a war zone and I had to stay in the refugee camp with the Chechen family. As an American, I grew up in a homogenous society and could not study different languages or cultures of different parts of the world. When I went to Berkeley, it was a transformative moment in my life. Literature was already my first love and I loved reading novels from Dostoevsky which aroused my interest to know more about Russian culture and history. Reading poetry is therapeutic and I love to do that in my free time. BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS * Illuminations: Essays and Reflections [https://www.amazon.com/Illuminations-Essays-Reflections-Walter-Benjamin/dp/0805202412] BOOKS PUBLISHED BY DR. REBECCA * Writers and Rebels: The Literature of Insurgency in the Caucasus [https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01L7SSDDY/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=rrgould-21&camp=1634&creative=6738&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B01L7SSDDY&linkId=905f25abcac9ef27824e07d5371ad465]

In Conversation with Kate Lee 'Emerald'

Hello Everybody, This is the final episode of The Collector's Podcast Season 1. We invite writers from all over the world to write for our writing publication on Medium. Check out the guidelines here- https://medium.com/the-collector/how-to-contribute-to-the-collector-d93a03be1302?source=friends_link&sk=350190fea0abe5d6b1fb244c8834bda1 For any further questions, please email to collector.medium@gmail.com This time we invited Kate Lee 'Emerald'. She is based out of Seoul, South Korea, and is the founder and CEO of Life of Emerald. A mental health advocate, a visionary, and a humanitarian.  The mission statement of Life of Emerald- I empower you You empower others We uplift humanity together Kate's company (Life of Emerald) runs some exciting courses on cultivating happiness within you- https://30dayhappiness.com/. We talked about the vision of her company, the taboos around mental health, and her recommendations on the best online courses one can look out for if you're interested in entrepreneurship.

In conversation with Ajita Mahajan

Hello Everybody. Welcome to episode eight of The Collector's Podcast. This time we had a conversation with Ajita Mahajan. Ajita is a content creator who writes fun, inspirational, and travel stories from her personal experiences. Before switching into this profile, she worked with Amazon and chose her passion over a paycheck. We discussed how she pitches for freelance work and markets her personal brand, her traveling experiences, and what is her short term goals. Ajita is a writer on Medium. https://aj91.medium.com/