Here & now - October 2019

The last 4 weeks were easily the busiest days I've ever had in my life. I'm glad how they turned out to be as I learnt plenty of practical lessons on time management. September went quick but October wouldn't wait. Though the number of things I'm involved with remain abundant, I wish to plan some moments to relax between the constant flow of work.

“ The time to relax is when you don't have time for it.”

― Jim Goodwin

TEACHING I have been assisting design sketching and product dynamics courses for a month. I realized that I learn more deeply when I am responsible for teaching it to someone. Spending 3 days a week on these courses has given me a great opportunity to revise some engineering topics and practice sketching.

DUTCH B1 This quarter, it has been difficult to catch on with the pace of the Dutch course. With hundreds of new words being blasted at me every week, I feel the need to spend more time to prepare for the lessons and revise past ones this month. It is a time-demanding task but is absolutely necessary to reach my proficiency goals for the language.

IDE ACADEMY Along with two fellow students, I conducted the 3rd edition of our Graphic Design workshop for 60 master students in the first week of October. I could see that the structure, composition, and imparted learning from the workshop went up every time we did the workshop and we are pleased to receive positive feedback and rating for the it.

DESIGN CONSULTANCY PRACTICE This course I started last month has left me startled as I discovered the plethora of nuances behind running a consultancy. The business side of design is something I am yet to explore and my group-mates who study Strategic Product Design facilitate me to do this.

GRAD PROJECT It is only after 4 months that I would start my graduation project. It is quite a big deal as this is not only an opportunity to freely do what I want but will also give a significant push and direction to my career. By the end of November, I'd like to come to a decision regarding where I would do this project and under whose mentorship. I plan to do some groundwork for this this month.

MMID I'm happy to say that I still continue to work at MMID every Friday after the end of my internship. It is a bonus that I get to go there on the best day of the week. Moreover, I'm glad that I will not lose touch with my colleagues over the next months and still be a part of MMID.

AMAN A DALAL D&E Finally I got around to registering as a company last month. This allows me to work in the Netherlands for clients and make invoices but comes with the added task of filing my VAT/BTW and income tax. These are untrodden grounds for me and the fact that all the information and communication is in Dutch makes it slightly challenging. I will, however, deal with this and set things right by the end of this month before my first VAT declaration deadline.