Getting Meta

Welcome to the first second of Ask Meta, the bonus segment of this podcast where I answer your questions on careers, freelancing, productivity and whatever else you think I am qualified to answer!

This week, two questions on finding freelance work, and two questions around personal content creation!

I'd love to answer your questions. Just ping me below and I'll take things ahead from there!

Instagram ->

instagram.com/chuckofalltrades
Twitter-> twitter.com/chuck_gopal
Email -> [email protected]

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to the first second of Ask Meta, the bonus segment of this podcast where I answer your questions on careers, freelancing, productivity and whatever else you think I am qualified to answer!

This time, questions about side hustles, choosing jobs, and figuring out what one is good at.

I'd love to answer your questions. Just ping me below and I'll take things ahead from there!Instagram -> instagram.com/chuckofalltrades
Twitter-> twitter.com/chuck_gopal
Email-> [email protected]

See you next week with more Ask Meta!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to the first second of Ask Meta, the bonus segment of this podcast where I answer your questions on careers, freelancing, productivity and whatever else you think I am qualified to answer!

In this episode, I answer questions from Aishwarya (on planning for future work as a freelancer), Shehzad (about the value of an MBA and building a career in the creative field) and Akshay (a thoughtful question about growth as a freelancer).

I'd love to answer your questions. Just ping me below and I'll take things ahead from there!Instagram -> instagram.com/chuckofalltrades
Twitter -> twitter.com/chuck_gopal
Email -> [email protected] you next week with more Ask Meta!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to the first episode of Ask Meta, the bonus segment of this podcast where I answer your questions on careers, freelancing, productivity and whatever else you think I am qualified to answer!In this episode, I answer questions from Abhijit (on moving to another country), Vaishnavi (on why I got into digital marketing / freelancing), Prem (on how to build a name as a content strategy consultant) and an anonymous question (on when to quit a job). Great first set of questions to kick this series off, and I hope my answers make sense!

I'd love to answer your questions. Just ping me below and I'll take things ahead from there!

Instagram -> instagram.com/chuckofalltrades
Twitter -> twitter.com/chuck_gopal
Email-> [email protected]

See you next week with more Ask Meta!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I appeared as a guest on my own show, Simblified! I chat with my pals Naren, Srikeit and Tony about Getting Meta. How it came about, what my learnings were and our own takes on productivity. It was a deeply personal chat with the gang I usually joke around with and I hope you enjoy it!

Ask Meta!

Have a question for me? Something related to careers or productivity or mental models I could help answer? This is a new segment I'm going to try out in a couple of weeks. Mail me any question at all you have (don't worry about how you structure it, we can figure that out). Mail me at [email protected]. I look forward to hearing from you!

You can also reach out to me on:

twitter.com/chuck_gopalinstagram.com/chuckofalltrades

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I appeared on Ashdin Doctor's excellent podcast, The Habit Coach to talk about Getting Meta and why I decided to start it, along with a few learnings from there. We did two episodes and I'm sharing them both here (cross-promo!). The interviews first aired on The Habit Coach in August 2021. This is the second of a two-part series, and the first part was out last week.

If you enjoyed the interviews on Getting Meta till now, I'm sure you'll enjoy these, and you should also check out The Habit Coach as it's an excellent podcast about habits and improving one's life in meaningful ways. It was an honour for me to be on the show!

Ask Meta!Have a question for me? Something related to careers or productivity or mental models I could help answer? This is a new segment I'm going to try out in a few weeks' time. Mail me any question at all you have (don't worry about how you structure it, we can figure that out). Mail me at [email protected]. I look forward to hearing from you!

You can also reach out to me on:

twitter.com/chuck_gopalinstagram.com/chuckofalltrades

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I appeared on Ashdin Doctor's excellent podcast, The Habit Coach to talk about Getting Meta and why I decided to start it, along with a few learnings from there. We did two episodes and I'm sharing them both here (cross-promo!). The interviews first aired on The Habit Coach in August 2021. This is the first of a two-part series, and the next part will be out next week.

If you enjoyed the interviews on Getting Meta till now, I'm sure you'll enjoy these, and you should also check out The Habit Coach as it's an excellent podcast about habits and improving one's life in meaningful ways. It was an honour for me to be on the show!

Ask Meta!

Have a question for me? Something related to careers or productivity or mental models I could help answer? This is a new segment I'm going to try out in a few weeks' time. Mail me any question at all you have (don't worry about how you structure it, we can figure that out). Mail me at [email protected]. I look forward to hearing from you!

You can also reach out to me on:

twitter.com/chuck_gopalinstagram.com/chuckofalltrades

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the season finale of Getting Meta 2021, I am absolutely thrilled to have Srini Swaminathan as a guest. Srini is extremely active in the social service space - having organised several fundraisers, Covid reliefs, was on-ground for the farmer protests, was a part of Teach for India, and so so much more. But even if you exclude that, there is so much to talk to him about - he’s an active marathoner, he’s cycled from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, and Kutch to Guwahati. He is also just an incredible guy. Eternally optimistic, lots of stories… He started life in poverty but he’s led a very rich life. He’s recently written a book on sustainability as well, which happily, coincides with the release of this episode.

In this interview, we speak about:

His childhood and how that shaped him

Asking why - and how that has driven everything that he’s done

His motto for social service - Show up consistently, serve, share genuinely.

How he himself changed: From a sheltered life in poverty, to a dauntingly huge college, to oil fields in Venezuela, leaving a lucrative job to become a teacher, to endurance sport.

Learning from bad experiences.

Starting with an expiry date in mind & planning for worst case scenario

Near death experiences - four of them (!) and what he learnt from that

How he went from having asthma to finishing 28 full marathons

And finally… Staying positive

Everything Srini:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/srini091Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/srini091

AboutMe: https://about.me/srini091

His book about sustainability: https://amzn.to/2UIU7h4
References made during the show, not in order:

“What will I do about it” an Instagram post: https://www.instagram.com/p/CA8PM6EJxOx/

On his cycling trip across the country: https://yourstory.com/2018/03/srini-swaminathan-marathon-solar-schools/amp

Getting Meta links:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/40Vo30aQilVrxEOkoSmDjx?si=pCOPeJlcR0uN_g2ZZs8iLQ&dl_branch=1Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/getting-meta/id1573882113Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9zdGF0aWMuYWRvcmlsYWJzLmNvbS9mZWVkL2dldHRpbmctbWV0YS54bWwIVM website: https://shows.ivmpodcasts.com/show/getting-meta-y2rb-RtSzWNdzZ8i99R2Q

Follow your host on:

Twitter: twitter.com/chuck_gopalInstagram: instagram.com/chuckofalltradesEmail: [email protected]

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I speak to my friend and someone whose work I’ve admired for a long time - Lavanya Mohan. Lavanya, who many might know as lavsmohan, used to run one of India’s funniest blogs about a decade ago, called ChutneyCase. Since then, she has transitioned into a very interesting niche - personal finance from a woman’s point of view in India. In between, she has also been a freelance writer for several publications, on topics ranging from culture to humour to finance.

For me, it was a pleasure to speak to her since it wasn’t just a great conversation with lots of insights, but also a chance to catch up with a Friend.

In this interview, we speak about:

Storytelling and how that was the root of everything that followed in her life

How her writing evolved

How the biggest shift in her life happened quite unexpectedly

How not to be scared of money or finance (especially looking at finance through the lens of something you are already passionate about)

Building niches, but trying whatever you can

Taking advantage of your situation, and not being bummed out you’re not being where the action is

How “explain it like I’m 5” is the ultimate test of whether you’ve understood something

Productivity, routine, setting personal goals, and finding your “creative best time”

How audiences determine the content - direct, even! - that a creator might do

Everything Lavanya Mohan:Her Twitter: http://twitter.com/lavsmohan
Her Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lavsmohan
The website on personal finance she runs, Penn Money: http://pennmoney.com/
The articles she wrote for The News Minute under the moniker Rupee Rani: https://www.thenewsminute.com/author-articles/Lavanya-Mohan
References made during the show, not in order:Narendra Shenoy’s old blog: http://narendrashenoy.blogspot.com/
What is Bullet Journaling: https://bulletjournal.com/pages/learn
The case study I wrote about the protein bar brand, The Whole Truth: https://thehardcopy.co/and-nothing-but-the-truth/
Getting Meta links: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/40Vo30aQilVrxEOkoSmDjx?si=pCOPeJlcR0uN_g2ZZs8iLQ&dl_branch=1
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/getting-meta/id1573882113
Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9zdGF0aWMuYWRvcmlsYWJzLmNvbS9mZWVkL2dldHRpbmctbWV0YS54bWw
IVM website: https://shows.ivmpodcasts.com/show/getting-meta-y2rb-RtSzWNdzZ8i99R2Q
Follow your host on:Twitter: twitter.com/chuck_gopalInstagram: instagram.com/chuckofalltradesEmail: [email protected]

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, I speak to Meeta Malhotra, someone who dons many hats. Currently, she is the founder and editor of The Hard Copy, an excellent publication on branding and design which I write for, and through which I have gotten to know her well. But before that, she made a name for herself as a partner at Ray & Keshavan, India’s once-premier design agency, before it was sold to advertising conglomerate WPP in 2013. From then, Meeta has been a serial investor, entrepreneur and mentor. I’ve had some excellent conversations in the last two years with Meeta thanks to the work I’ve done for her publication, and I count myself fortunate to be able to do so, benefiting from her wisdom and experience. I was very keen to have her on this show not only to get her insights but also to talk about something apart from what we always end up talking about!

In this interview, we speak about:

How if fundamentals are in place, everything else works out.

How to charge a premium beyond having technical skills.

How to not be scared of making mistakes

On the two methods of reading - the rabbithole and the hurdle race

Building the ability to zoom out and looking at the larger picture

The power of compounding and how to go about “networking”… And what IS a network, in the first place?

Two things that you need to survive over the next few years - adaptability and resilience

Everything Meeta Malhotra:

Her Twitter: http://twitter.com/meetamalhotra
Her Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meeta_malhotra
The Hard Copy, which she edits: https://thehardcopy.co/

Her personal website: https://meetamalhotra.com/

A talk she did in March 2020 on awareness: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0L282QAC6Kg

References made during the show, not in order:The Great Influenza by John Barry (book): https://www.amazon.in/dp/B08CGSJT44

The article on The Hard Copy on virtual concerts: https://thehardcopy.co/the-future-of-live-entertainment/

Getting Meta links:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/40Vo30aQilVrxEOkoSmDjx?si=pCOPeJlcR0uN_g2ZZs8iLQ&dl_branch=1

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/getting-meta/id1573882113

Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9zdGF0aWMuYWRvcmlsYWJzLmNvbS9mZWVkL2dldHRpbmctbWV0YS54bWw

IVM website: https://shows.ivmpodcasts.com/show/getting-meta-y2rb-RtSzWNdzZ8i99R2Q

Follow your host on:Twitter: twitter.com/chuck_gopalInstagram: instagram.com/chuckofalltradesEmail: [email protected]

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.