New Beginning

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All right then. I’ve been gone for a bit and now I’m back!

New Country! New Life! New People! New Home! New Friends! and of course a Brand New Ravindu (Rav) Peiris.?

But why did I say a brand new Ravindu (Rav) Peiris? What has changed in my #life over the last few months?

I’d probably say so many things. After being stuck overseas for years without being able to arrive in Australia due to the #Covid-19 pandemic, finally I was able to take my flight to Melbourne on the 15th of December 2021. Yes, I’m writing this 9 months after I arrived here. But over the last 9 months, I got to experience so many things that helped me to identify who I really am and they showed me the potential that I got.?

I never thought I could maintain good grades in uni while doing more than 1 job. To be mentioned, I am taking a full load of units while doing these jobs too. Not going to lie, the first week of doing jobs while studying was horrible. I so badly wanted to quit. I was thinking to myself “why am I doing this?”. Because when I was back in Sri Lanka, I thought I am a real hard worker. But after coming here I realized most of the things were offered to me on a silver platter and now only I’m doing the real hard work. I remember a piece of advice given by an employee who worked with me at the place I first got a job in #Australia. This was not a fancy job, and it was pure hard work. He told me “brother, first this is not easy. I agree with you on that. But never quite. Keep working hard, one day you’ll realize how much better you’ve become”. Unfortunately, that job did not work well for me for many reasons and I had to leave. But I left with whatever he told me in my mind. I started working in a few other places after that non of them was easy. But I made sure, I keep on working and giving my best at whatever I do. Right now I am proud enough to say I am working here in Australia while I am studying and I am no longer depending on my parents. I cover all my living expenses, university fees, and other expenses by myself. Okay that’s a bit of an #achievement. But what did I actually learn??

The answer is so many things.?

#Time #management - I am a full-time student and part-time worker and on top of that, I am living by myself managing everything at home. But 9 months back I was Rav who was just a full-time student. Once again, it was not easy. There were more than enough days that I was stressed and did not know what I am supposed to do. I was thinking to myself “How on earth am I gonna get all of these things done?”. Then I realized the only way I can overcome this is just by planning what I am going to do every week and how I am going to do them. I started making a timetable for the week alongside a must-do list every week and I was trying to keep myself on track by working along them and it worked. It’s not that there were not days I was not able to complete what I wanted to do. But then I started adjusting things with what I missed and what I have to do during the rest of the week. I am still following this till today and it has made my life so much easier and better.?

Managing the #finance - After arriving in Australia, for the first time in my life, I had to manage all my incomes and expenses just by myself without anyone’s help. Handling your money properly is something that can change your life completely. Managing it well can teach you many things while not handling it well can ruin your life completely. How much am I going to earn this month? How much expense am I going to have this month? How much #money do I have to save each month? were some of the main questions that I started asking myself when I started managing my finances.?I always made sure that I do not spend money on unnecessary things. By this, I did not mean that I am not enjoying my life. I am enjoying my life and I am always having a budget for entertainment every month I make sure I stay within that limit while enjoying myself as much as possible. Another important thing that I learned during this time was the importance of keeping a buffer for the unexpected things that could come your way. If this was not done and if you come across something unexpected, you might not know what to do and actually, there might be nothing you could do about it by yourself. I had to face an unexpected situation like this and I was safe because I always kept a buffer for myself with money on top of my income and expenses.?And as I said earlier, by managing my income, and expenses, and saving well, I am now completely independent and?manage all my expenses by myself.?

#Balancing #life - Yes, it is tough. Studying, working, and also managing everything in life is not easy. But when you do manage it, you can always look back and be proud of yourself thinking I did it. As I mentioned earlier there were enough and more days I was thinking to myself “why am I even doing this?”. Then I always think about my end goal and where I want to be in a few years' time. That keeps me #motivated and keeps me up and running. At the same time, I never forget to enjoy myself a bit and be around my friends as much as possible because it is always not just about working hard. You have to enjoy your life too. However, as if now, I am living happily in #Melbourne and I enjoy my life here.?

Is that all? No! But I am going to stop from here. That was a bit of a #recap of what has been happening in my life over the last 9 months and what I learned over that period of time. I hope you enjoy reading it and I hope some of you find it helpful for yourselves too.?

Good luck to everyone and thanks for reading this !!!?

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