A day in my life as a TCP/IP Visa Resident-My journey as a SAHM

10 min read2 days ago

‘A high-end Mac, a large cup of coffee, meticulously crafting designs, and scribbling notebooks with creative ideas for next meeting with clients.’ This is something we envision when someone says ‘Designer’, right?

But what if I say, ‘Imagine someone in comfy pajamas, sitting in bed and singing lullabies to their baby while going through the review reports and user feedback.’

This scenario might have been unbelievable a few years ago, but in the post-covid era where Remote work is the new norm, it’s not surprising. Yes, Designers come in all shapes and sizes, and they come from all corners of the world.

Why Ranchi?

A lot of people might know about Ranchi (yes, it’s the hometown of former cricket captain M.S. Dhoni). For those who don’t, it’s a hill station based in Chota Nagpur region and also, the capital of Jharkhand. It is known as the ‘City of Waterfalls’ and is surrounded by lush green forests, rivers, dams, hills, valleys, and of course, many waterfalls.

But I didn’t choose it just for the captivating views. It is my hometown and my family was there, including my grandparents. And nothing hits like home.

My journey as a Freelancer

I started Freelancing back in 2019, while I was living in Delhi, often switching fields and working on projects related to Content Creation, Product Designing, and Software Development. It all came to a halt when I took a break to embrace motherhood and became a Stay-At-Home Mom(SAHM). Last year, when I decided to start freelancing again, I chose to relocate to my hometown.

Having prior experience as a freelancer helped me a lot as I was familiar with quite a lot of things and had worked for some amazing clients through Upwork, LinkedIn, and Reddit. A few of them approached me again with their project requests and I found them too good to say No. With that, my freelancing journey started again.

So, here’s a sneak peek into my life as a stay-at-home Mom and a freelance designer, working remotely from the scenic town of Ranchi.

My daily routine

Morning

My day begins around 6 AM with a cup of coffee. My baby wakes up soon after that and we play for some time. After breakfast, baby’s grandparents take charge of him and I hit my desk to start my work for the day.

I’m currently working as a Freelance Designer with a US-based startup where I’m helping them with UI/UX design and Research.

My major tasks include -

Conducting research and analysis for creating user personas
Developing wireframes and low-fidelity prototypes
Designing mockups and creating UI components
Building interactive prototypes
Conducting A/B Testing to gather user feedback

And the list goes on.

I start by creating a to-do list of tasks that need to be done before the EOD. And then, I switch into my Figma-Wizard mode(Not all wizards wear hats.) Mornings are the best time for brainstorming and designing, so I try to complete the most difficult chores first.

My workstation consisting of my laptop, a diary and pen

This is my workstation and I prefer it minimal. I always keep my diary handy to jot down ideas to implement them later on.

Afternoon

By afternoon, a lot of major tasks are finished, leaving me some time to unwind with lunch. My lunch consists of rice, cooked lentils and vegetables, curd, papads, and chutney as side dishes. I eat along with my baby who has recently started weaning and then, we have a post-lunch power nap that leaves us refreshed to deal with the remaining half of the day.

Evening

As the evening nears, my productivity gradually decreases and with most of the tasks done for the day, I tick off items that have been completed, check the final progress, and share the updates with the team, along with the files.

Most of the houses in this area have a backyard where all the family members gather for evening tea. It’s like a daily ritual and I have very fond memories of my childhood where the children used to play in the backyard and the elders munched on homemade snacks while sipping their tea, something that is still prevalent now. I try to wrap up the remaining tasks of the day to join everyone for evening tea.

As the sunset nears, the weather becomes really pleasant to go outdoors. I usually go for a stroll in the neighborhood with my baby and en route, enjoy some lip-smacking street food.

Night

The nights here are peaceful and the entire family hits the dining table for dinner, where we all share how our day has been, along with some news updates and cricket scores. I have occasional meetings once or twice a week with my clients where we discuss project updates and any necessary changes. After dinner, we go to our terrace for a light walk and stargazing and then, back to sleep.

At times during weekends, I try to contribute to my side projects. One of them is an interactive app designed for Visually Impaired people, in collaboration with a Delhi-based NGO while the other one is more focused on Product Designing for a Design Firm.

A little bit more about Ranchi

I’ve shared enough details about my life as a remote designer and SAHM. Now, I’d like to give you a glimpse of life in Ranchi.

Culture and Festivities

This city fosters a closely knit society of vibrant communities and dynamic neighborhoods, with its residents from states of West Bengal, Orissa, Bihar, Nepal, and Northeastern states.

Different festivals are celebrated round the year and on many occasions, you can see the beautiful tribal dance and cultural rituals of the natives.
Be it Durga Pooja Pandals, Chhath, Saraswati Pooja, or Sarhul, you’ll witness a beautiful amalgamation of diverse cultures and ethnicities.

Food

Be it Delhi’s Tikki Chaat or Momos, Mumbai’s Pav Bhaji and Vada Pao, Kebabs of Lucknow, or Biryani of Hyderabad, every city has a specific food item it is known for — something that becomes its regional identity. It's true for Ranchi as well. This city is known for its tasty and tangy street foods including Dhuska, Aaloo Chop, Veg Chilly, and Phuchka to savor and entice your taste buds.

Besides that, it is also home to many authentic Bihari cuisines such as Pitha, Dal Pithauri, Litti Chokha, Adauri-Sukhauta, Rasiyaw, and Ghughni which will make you feel cozy with these warm home-cooked meals. It is also famous for ‘Khaza’- a crispy, wafer-like snack slightly sweet in nature, often enjoyed with evening tea.

Travel

Ranchi is a city surrounded by a lot of forests, waterfalls, and dams. Thus, you get a lot of options to explore and travel, within the city and beyond —

Some famous spots include -

Temples- Pahadi Mandir, Jagannath Temple and Sun Temple
Parks- Tagore hill, Rock garden, Nakshatra Van, Biodiversity Park, Birsa Zoological park
Dams and Lakes- Dhurwa dam, Kanke dam, Ranchi lake, Patratu valley
Waterfalls- Dassam falls, Panchghagh falls, Jonha falls, Sita falls

In Delhi NCR, people prefer travelling to Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, or Punjab for weekend getaways to escape from their monotonous schedules. Here, you don’t have to wait for the weekends.

If you’re planning to explore some nearby places, you can visit-

Mckluskieganj (Mini England of Jharkhand)
Netarhat (Queen of ChotaNagpur)

You can embark on your journey to nearby states and visit beaches(Orissa and West Bengal), hill stations(West Bengal and Northeastern states), religious places(Bihar, Orissa and West Bengal), and much more. You can also travel to Nepal and Bhutan from here, without any hassles.

Pros and Cons

I’ve compared the pros and cons of this city against a metropolitan one to offer you a more balanced perspective on what life here really feels like.

Pros -

Everything is cheaper — From homes and real estate to clothes, groceries, and day-to-day essentials, everything is cheaper when compared to metro cities.
No traffic rush — Traffic jams here are a once-in-a-blue-moon type of thing. You can travel from one end of the city to another in less than 30 minutes.
Full of scenic beauties — Going to any part of the city is a visual treat, especially during spring.
No pollution — Pollution is almost nil here. No more passive smoking every time you want to breathe.
Mini hikes every day, anytime — Since the town is based on hilly terrain, you’ll likely find yourself hiking in almost every aspect of life here. Whether you are going for shopping, work, or even for a quick walk around the neighborhood.
Pleasant weather round the year — The weather here remains blissful throughout the year with no harsh extremes to deal with. The summers are cool and you’ll get plenty of sunny days during winter.
Good connectivity — From markets and malls to dams and waterfalls, everything is barely an hour away, including the Birsa Munda International Airport which is approx 15 km away from the heart of the city.

Cons

Limited access to Blinkit, Zepto — Though these have started their services in some zones, there is still a large chunk of area left to be covered.

Commute might be an issue — Though cab services are easily accessible here, a lot of people still rely on Public buses and Autorickshaws (popularly called Tempo here) to commute as they find it more economic and pocket-friendly.
Nightlife culture is not the ‘popular thing’ here — A lot of themed restaurants, cafes, and bars have opened up recently, catering to late-night customer demands but despite that, it’s not really popular here. Maybe in the future, it could gain momentum but considering the present scenario, it’s still a far-fetched dream.
Less IT exposure -There is not much visibility for tech-crowd as compared to tier-I cities. So, very little scope for community meet-ups, workshops, or hackathons.

Major challenges that I have faced -

Freelancing v/s a stable job — Given the challenging job market right now, I knew my journey was going to be difficult. Though, freelancing has its own set of challenges and lacks the stability of a full-time job, but at this point, it was the best thing for me, given that I have a baby to take care of.
Achieving work-life balance as a SAHM — It is one of the biggest challenges that I face and to achieve this, I always ensure that the fine line separating my personal and professional life does not get blurred.
Navigating through an Identity crisis- Postpartum identity crisis is no joke. At times, I felt clueless, not knowing what I’ll do next but with proper peer support, it gets better with time.
The guilt of not giving enough time to my baby — ‘Mom Guilt’ as we call it, is a real thing that just never leaves you after you step into motherhood. On several occasions, it becomes difficult to deal with it when a deadline is approaching and the baby is not keeping well. Thankfully, my family acts as my savior.
Staying up-to-date with the latest market trends and technologies — With my current schedule, I find it really challenging to stay up-to-date with trending technologies. I recently started exploring Blockchain and web3 ecosystem and found it quite fascinating. I’m trying to dive deeper into it one block at a time.

Despite having prior Dev experience, I chose to stick to the Design and Content Creation domain after a long break because they felt less chaotic and I was able to catch up with work despite a career gap. Also, with a baby by my side, I can no longer pull an all-nighter to work on fixing the bugs or adding a new feature before the update goes live. With this huge metamorphosis in my life, I’ve slowed down to embrace this new phase and I don’t want to miss it and trade it for something else. This remote ecosystem has given me the flexibility to work at my own pace and my own comfort, something that wasn’t really an option a few years ago. This remote ecosystem has opened doors for me that I didn’t even know existed before.

The best part for me is that I’m close to my family. My baby has a village to grow up with. I always dreaded sending my baby to Daycare and I’m glad that I don’t have to. I’m able to balance my personal and professional life without straining myself or compromising my responsibilities as a mother.

My journey has been unconventional but I feel that this is something that sets me apart from the crowd, and I would not exchange it for anything else just to fit in a particular role. Sometimes, the roads less travelled by often lead to the most beautiful places. And to be honest, it is never about the destination but rather, about the journey. Embrace it and it will transform your world. If I can do it, you can too…