God has interesting plans. I met Preethi during my #ThankfulThursday blog hop.

What interested me is this woman managed blogging and actually had written an Amazon bestseller .

How awesome is that.A blogger ,a published author ,managing home, life and writing with equal elan.

So when I got a chance to peek into the life of this amazing woman,I thanked my stars.

Inaugurating my 2017 blogging journey series with Preethi Venugopala. 

Read on to know how this lady does it all.

Hi Preethi so glad you agreed to this interview.

 

Tell me the back-story behind your blog

I began blogging in June 2013. It began as a platform to display my art: my acrylic paintings, sketches and digital painting. Writing was always on the back burner initially. Nowadays, art is on the back burner as writing has become my top priority.

 

Who is your target audience?

I focus on fiction, writing tips and self-help in my blog posts. So all those interested to read about these topics can find enough matter on my blog.

 

 How many blogs do you manage?

I have three blogs to be accurate. But I regularly update only one. I created a blog for my husband who wanted to begin blogging. On the other one, I blog in my mother tongue Malayalam where I have attempted to translate a few chapters from my debut novel.

Best blog design tips from your experience

I like to keep my blog user-friendly and simple. Simple dark fonts on light backgrounds works best for me. Too many widgets also just don’t seem professional.

 

 How do you manage family, work, and personal care? Give us your best time management tips.

Organizing and prioritizing helps. Not everything on your to-do list needs to be ticked off in the evening. I follow my intuition mostly. I do the thing that gives me a feeling of accomplishment rather than being just an easy item on my list.

 

What are the five Best blogging practices?

I think I am not the right person to answer that question, as I am not a very good blogger these days. But I think posting regularly, being honest in your posts, replying to comments and blog hopping are the most important practices that any blogger should follow.

 

Which email service do you use? Why do you like them?

Gmail. They are very user-friendly and as it is from Google the ID comes handy for many things.
Give us your top five ways of making money from your blog.

 

Which one is your favorite and why?

Bloggers can make money from their blogs through many ways. Some of them are writing paid reviews, posting sponsored listicles, interviews, sponsored posts, and advertisements. My favorite one is through sponsored posts. If the brand appeals to you, you can easily write a good post and earn from it as well.

 

Do you have any products? What’s special about them?

My books are my products. They will leave you with a feel good feeling when you turn the last page. It is all about positivity and love.

 

 Your inspiration and favourite quote.

“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent”

Eleanor Roosevelt

 

Tell me the story of your book getting published.

Writing happened by accident. The story came to me in a dream and in the morning, I noted down the names of the characters and the key incidents in my diary. Then I wrote it all down in a notebook. After the handwritten first draft, I typed it all out in a word document fleshing out the story further. After that, I found a few beta readers, editors and finally a publisher who gave my book the form it has today.

 

What resources would you recommend for getting own book published for budding authors?

Developing a disciplined writing practice is the most important thing to do for any budding author. There are many websites that can guide you towards accomplishing your writing goals.

www.Writetodone.com

www.Nownovel.com etc give many free resources and writing guidelines.

 

 Give me your best tips &message for struggling Bloggers

Just persevere. Don’t give up at any stage. I treat my blog as my writing workbook. You might find errors when I first post a blog post, as most are results of free-writing exercises. But I do go back and edit whenever I get time. It is not about perfection. It is about just showing up consistently and blogging. Some posts might get read more than others. It doesn’t matter. You grow as a writer with each word you write. Also join blogging platforms like Indiblogger and Blogadda.

Services+freebies for my audience

You can read my debut novel ‘Without You’, my short story collection ‘Love minuets’ and my kids book The Teddy who Ran away on Kindle Unlimited for free.

 

What’s your vision with this venture

I want to be a much-loved writer known for my light yet uplifting stories.

 

Are you involved in any charitable causes?

I do what I can through my writing. I was associated with the Do right campaign by Tata on Indiblogger and was able to donate my winning money of 20K to the Tirupur school of the deaf in Tamilnadu. I have also written for the AkshayaPatra campaign as part of Blogadda. Every post I wrote, fed a child for a year. I made sure I wrote the maximum number of posts allowed.

 

Tell us a little bit about your family. Who is your biggest support?

I am blessed to be born in a family, which venerates creativity. My husband supports me most in all my creative ventures. My brother and sister are the other two pillars of support. My mother is my inspiration and my late father is my inner voice. My son is my happiness.
About the author:
Preethi Venugopala is a civil engineer turned author. She is also a blogger, artist, and freelancer.
Contact her

www.preethivenugopala.com


Fb page link :

https://www.facebook.com/authorpreethi
Tweet to her @preethivenu

 

Did you love this interview.Comment below to let me know .

Don’t forget to say hi to Preethi. 

I love to feature female power.Want to be featured? Shoot me an email at dramrita@healthwealthbridge.com 

Money is divine energy .The trick is to attract its blessings, but not be a slave to it.

Since my childhood my mother has been a big influence in my budget habits.My father unfortunately, had terrible money habits .This caused humongous credit card debts.

No wonder, I am not a fan of those little plastic cards.I however love netbanking and the good twin ,the debit card.

Now just like health goals ,we need well-defined financial goals.

Making money ,saving it and growing it is something no one is taught.

In fact if I had my way, I would make all school have a compulsory money management course. If children learnt good money habits from a young age, they are less likely to be foolish about it. Sure, we might need less jobs from companies like North Shore Advisory Inc., but I think it’s worth it for a more responsible population.

The worst thing our children can grow up with ,is taking money for granted and not knowing how to manage it.

Some people say money is not important. If that’s the entire truth ,then none of us would need  it .Then no one would be bothered to earn it.

Ask any poor person whether money is important, then you will get the answer.

If I didn’t earn enough I wouldn’t be having my blog .That does take some surplus amount .Plus internet is not really free .

So what did I learn from my mom which helps me budget ?

This is top-secret.
I only tell people, who really want to be financially healthier.

The secret is .Pretend you actually have 10 to 20% of your combined salary  as  spending budget.

The rest you have to divide

• Money kept for protection
• Money kept  for savings
• Money kept for growth
• Fun Money

So how to use the budget planner?

It’s a pdf planner .

You print it out and use it.

You will need to make 12 copies of the monthly expense sheet.

Now the cover page has the space for  your name and favourite money quote “for motivation “.

The second page has a checklist of financial goals which you should be knowing .

Page three has the table for your

• Life insurance
• Health insurance
• One Sure Car insurance
• Home insurance
• Any other

It has the column for due date amount and any note.

Page four is for your savings

• Public provident fund
• Fixed deposits
• Recurrent deposit
• Mutual fund
• Any other

For each member if your family you can put in the account no., amount  and due date

Page 5 is for your recurring expenses which maybe monthly ,quarterly or yearly

• House EMI
• Car loan
• Credit card debt
• Any other debts
• Electricity bills
• Phone bills
• tuition fees
• Internet charges
• Car servicing
• Household appliances servicing.
• Membership or subscription fees.

While page 3 and 4 helps you keep track of money pit away for protection  and savings.

Page 5 is all about the money you need to give to other people .

Page 6 is going down to the nitty-gritty.

It’s the monthly money spent tracker.The place where you might cringe and smile at the same time.This sheet you need to one every month so 12 you need to print out.

It gives you a column for your budget and  the various daily expenses.

Keeping a close look on this sheet you will be able to plug those money leaks.

Page 7 and 8 are for your monthly and yearly accountability pages where you can put in your total expenses.

Money in savings protection and growth.

Page 9 and 10 helps you  keep all your financial data in one place .

This planner is made exclusively for my subscribers.

If you want it just enter  your  details in the subscription form below and you will get the password to my VIP Library

How do you plan your budget ?

Comment below to let me know.

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Writing this for #MondayMommyMoments

This is Day 2  UBC

I have always made resolutions .But not really very detailed ones.Just difficult ones.

It has come to such a state, that there are some resolutions, which I have repeated since some years.

 

But  that doesn’t make  me  give up on them .Rather I believe I am like my resolutions .A work in progress.If I don’t give up it will get done or at least I am an improved version of what I was.

 

Like I really want to stop speaking my mind.A childhood behavioural challenge  that I just can’t seem to give up.But I am better than my  6 years old self or for that matter when I was 16 .

 

Believe me I try .Every moment of every day I try.But when the moment comes to hold my tongue,seven times out of 10 my tongue wins.It’s disheartening.

My hubby insists that I really need  to work on this more.

 

Stop  giving people unsolicited  advice.

This one I am proud to say is turning out better .A close cousin of number 1 resolution  I can control this impulse five out of 10 times.

 

Suffering anxiety attacks during night duties .This again is better (better is my favourite word).It’s avoidable specially when I distract myself.So again five out of ten.

 

Stop eating ice cream ,avoid sugar and highly salted food .Avoid chocolate.

The last one I am still failing .Ice cream I don’t crave anymore.

Sugar cravings much less and salt too is considerably less in my food.Not too bad right.A  five again .The chocolate addiction is pretty bad.I tend to sniff chocolates out of their hidey  holes and eat them ,with zero guilt.That’s not good for fitness plans.This can actually topple the entire apple cart.

Walking everyday and strength training 4 days a week .This was pretty good .I did moderately well.The best part, I have started to feel  more energetic .But it’s still a long way.I tend to forget to get on the treadmill  some days and that’s to be strictly avoided.I think I can give me a six on this one.

 

My blog goals .These were interesting.

I wanted to write and I wrote  .Thanks to some wonderful friends I made ,blogging was a lot of fun.I am learning everyday. Making money  blogging on my own terms .The next part making it better.

So a six for my blog goals.

 

In 2017 I plan to get a ten out of ten in all my resolution. For that I have chosen one of my least favourite word .It’s also am unpopular  one in today’s  world.But one which is needed even more than before.

The word is patience.

High time I actively practiced this .Thankful Thursdays helped me to  find thankfulness .By  counting to 10 or maybe 100,  before I speak I will be able to prevent a lot of stress.

 

My favourite phrase of the year

“I am a work in progress “

 

My 12  favourite Quotes in 2016

 

There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.

Albert Einstein

You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.

Mae West

Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.

 

 

You’ve got to take the good with the bad, smile with the sad, love what you’ve got, and remember what you had. Always forgive, but never forget. Learn from mistakes, but never regret.

Unknown

Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass…it’s learning to dance in the rain.

 

 

Be the change you wish to see in the world.

Unknown

 

If you try, you risk failure. If you don’t, you ensure it.–Anonymous

The best time to plant a tree is twenty-five years ago. The second best time is today.-Unknown

Instead of wondering when your next vacation is, you ought to set up a life you don’t need to escape from.–Seth Godin

Be so good they can’t ignore you.–Steve Martin

 

My 10 most popular posts this year

pandemic?   

Why you should say no to tobacco:Yes to a healthy life

SPI PRO THEME & BLOG DESIGN :Mompreneur’s blogging journey & miracles

STYLOID PROCESS PAIN:WHAT YOU MUST KNOW

Soyabean,good bad and ugly:10 Truths why its not in my kitchen

7 Scary truths about Hidden salt diet ( India salt story )

Truth About Air Fryer :Healthy Lifestyle

Effect of Alcohol on Ear and mouth:Health Questions India

Mompreneur biz focus:Mayura Amarkant the soothsayer

EAR PIERCING : DON’T DO IT WITHOUT READING THIS!

Vitamin D deficiency :Is it a pandemic?

 

A very happy New year to all my friends and readers who visit my blog and are kind enough to share their views.

Do keep visiting. I have a lot ,planned for the year 2017.It’s time to give back.

Writing this for the Blogchatter prompt resolutions and linking up for word of the year  Laurel Regan @alphabetsalad

You can also link up using the submit button  below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

About 2016 I will always be confused.
Some dreams came true.Some didn’t.
New friends made and some relations lost on the way.
Clarity about a lot of things.
But the best part, I wrote .
Much more than I have ever written.

That to me is my favourite memory of 2016.
Even when I didn’t want to write .Didn’t know what to write.Didn’t have the time or strength to write ,I wrote.
Reading I love .But writing has been like my soul’s real home.The comfort food.Almost  like mind therapy.

It all started with #Dailychatter and Half marathon .Then MyFriendAlexa, UBC ,and NaBloPoMo challenges.
I realized something about myself again.
The very thing which made me start blogging.
I absolutely love difficult challenges.
2017 give me more of challenges.

Life really gives you the problems you can solve

I realized the opposite of happy is not sad .It’s boredom ,indifference.
So happiness comes from waking up every morning ,looking forward to doing something interesting. That will keep me so engrossed, that my mind chatter stops.
Learn something new everyday that’s my 2017 goal Even if it’s a new word.I will do it.

I fell in love with twitter .I adore Pinterest and Stumbleupon .But twitter is alive .It’s where you can be at your simplest without photoshopped images,and you can still have fun.Learning is a breeze when you are having fun.

 

I realized healthy eating and living is easier to preach when I make a habit of it myself. I was passionate about a healthy lifestyle before ,now I don’t stop.
Ask me about it and I will chase you till you decide to listen (even if just to get out of your hair)

 

People online or offline are the same everywhere .

Haters will hate .But if 7 people out of 10 say good things ,that’s not too bad .Right?
You can’t and shouldn’t try to please everyone.

Women everywhere are trying to do more.But.There’s a big BUT. It’s a struggle if you are not a mom,working mom , a SAHM ,WAHM .
It doesn’t matter .Women bully women,pull down other women and make it easier for men to make the glass ceiling higher.
The shackles are real.The more you try to break them ,the tighter they become.
The best way is to pretend they don’t exist and hope they will disappear.
Luckily I met some truly amazing ladies in 2016 .Women who try to do good , no matter what.Who help  always.
In 2017 I wish to meet many more such women .

 

Financial freedom and the journey so far.

The journey has been interesting .Being a doctor has given me a lot of freedom financial and otherwise. But it has also given me a lot of questions.To answer those questions I started blogging. Can blogging make people financially free?
This answer will need some more time.
But things look promising. Just like Charlie’s chocolate factory did.

Discovering the gold mines and landmines, that’s mompreneurs blogging journey.

2016 #Thankfulness list would be incomplete if I don’t mention my bet friend .My husband. I have bored  him about everything possible.But he has still believed in my dreams .Stood by me when things looked rocky .Encouraged me during small and big wins and is my  bigger supporter  and most constructive critique.

 

How did 2016 treat you? What lessons did you learn?
Comment below to let me know.

 

 

Linking up with the  December 2016 Gratitude Circle bloghop at Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles