My Earning Journey: I Just Wanted to Make Good Use of My Holidays

My earning journey technically started because I had too much free time.

After my 12th, I had a long vacation before college started, and I really wanted to make “good use” of it. So, naturally, I spent a lot of time watching YouTube videos about how to make money.

Of course, I eventually realised that watching videos about making money doesn't actually make you money. I had to do something.

That’s when I came across UGC (User Generated Content). I hadn't heard much about it before, which immediately made me curious.

So I thought, why not try it?

I created an Instagram account and started making faceless videos reviewing products I already had at home.

At the same time, I started DMing and cold-emailing A LOT of brands asking if they wanted to collaborate. Most of them obviously didn't reply.

The ones that did were either asking me to pay upfront for a product and promising to “refund me later” or seemed suspicious in general.

My First Proper Income

Then I found Fueler, a platform where I could apply for jobs and internships.

I came across a UGC Creator opening and there was an assignment as part of the application.

I submitted it and then did what every student does after submitting an important application:

I prayed.

Thankfully, I got shortlisted for the next round. Then came two rounds of interviews, and somehow, I got the job.

I was OVER THE MOON.

I had just turned 18, and my first proper income was ₹8,000. That number felt huge to me at the time.

And the best part? It was a remote role, so I could manage it alongside college.

Two months later, my stipend increased to ₹10,000.

Then I Got Bored

I stayed in that role for about five months and then I started noticing something.

My work was becoming repetitive, and I didn't feel like I was learning much anymore.

So I quit.

My first semester ended, I had exams, and then I had another vacation. So I started applying again.

This time, I had something I didn't have before:

Experience.

And a line on my resume that said I had actually worked somewhere.

Enter: The Job Market

This time I started looking through LinkedIn and that's when I realised something very important:

Getting a job is hard.

Very hard.

I was interested in marketing, and I figured the best way to learn marketing would be to actually work in marketing.

So I started applying.

I got an opportunity as an Event & Marketing Coordinator. This job was completely different from my first one.

It was hybrid, so my schedule basically became:

College in the morning → office in the afternoon → assignments somewhere in between → repeat.

I was also pretty active in college at the time, so balancing everything was… interesting.

But I learnt A LOT.

I got to work on events, marketing, sales, leads, content, Canva, filming, editing and a bunch of things I hadn't really done before.

More importantly, the job pushed me out of my comfort zone multiple times.

I stayed there for around three months. Then my final exams came up, followed by another long vacation, and I was heading back to my hometown.

So I left.

And Then I Did It Again

After my vacation, I started applying again.

By this point, I had already worked in UGC, marketing and events, so I had a much better idea of what I liked and what I didn't.

I was offered two internships that were both genuinely good opportunities.

And I rejected both.

Eventually, I chose the opportunity I'm currently working on, a Founder’s Office internship at Polygnan.

And honestly, I'm really glad I did.

I've been loving this internship so far.

It's also an on-site role, which means I'm back to juggling college and work.

Although, if we're being honest, I'm not exactly attending college as much as I probably should be.

Let's not tell my professors.

What Earning Early Actually Taught Me

People often talk about how earning early teaches you the value of money.

And it definitely does.

When you start earning your own money, you become much more aware of how difficult it is to make it.

But for me, the biggest thing wasn't the value of money.

It was the freedom.

There is something really nice about being able to buy something with money you earned yourself. Not having to feel guilty about “wasting” your parents' money.

Being able to decide what you want to spend on and how much you want to spend.

Of course, I also learnt that just because I can earn money doesn't necessarily mean I'm very good at keeping it.

That's a separate skill.

We're still working on that one.

But earning early also gave me something I didn't expect

confidence.

Every time I applied for a job, sent a cold email, attended an interview, took on something I had never done before or walked into an unfamiliar environment, I was basically forcing myself out of my comfort zone.

And every time I survived it, I became a little more confident.

I also learnt a ridiculous amount simply because I was willing to try things.

The First Step Is The Hardest

Looking back, my earning journey hasn't been about finding one perfect job or one magical way to make money.

It's been about trying things.

Some things worked.

Some things didn't.

Some things taught me skills.

Some things taught me what I don't want to do.

But every experience gave me something to take into the next one.

And I think that's the biggest thing I've learnt from starting to earn early:

The first step is the hardest.

I started because I had a long vacation and wanted to make good use of it.

I stayed because I realised I really liked the feeling of earning something myself.

And now?

I don't think I'm going back.