Tribune Wired has launched a series of interviews of alumni of Digiskills.pk, a national Digital Skills Training Program across the country to offer one million training in the future of work using technology. The first interview was conducted with Nida Nadeem who got training from the DigiSkills.pk and earned $22,000 so far. It is pertinent to note that in the future tribune Wired will be featuring more success stories of DigiSkills.pk.
TW: Nida Nadeem share your educational background?
NIda Nadeem: I am an ACCA Qualified. I did my matric with science in 2011 from a renowned school of Sialkot. From an early age, I had a great interest in finance. I opted for I.COM and by the grace of Allah, I was the toper of my college. My parents decided to shift from Sialkot to Lahore with the aim to provide us quality education. I started BS (honors) Applied Accounting in 2013, and graduated with a 3.98 CGPA out of 4.00, achieving Dean’s merit list award and scholarship. Right after my degree, I started ACCA, and within 1.5 years, I managed to clear all 5 professional papers in the first attempt along with my full-time job.
How was DigiSkills.pk training beneficial for you?
Since the start, I have had a thirst to do something for my family and myself. I started freelancing in 2014. Initially, I worked with local clients, who used to pay very little, even I got Rs. 200 for 500 words. Slowly, I enhanced my skills sets by learning online and through critical responses of clients. In 2019, I started working on Upwork, and within a year, I earned more than USD 10,000, which was the biggest motivation for me to move ahead. In 2020, the COVID-19 hit our country, and orders started to reduce. It was the time when I needed a little push to explore new boundaries, that’s where the DigiSkills.pk stepped in. I saw DigiSkills.pk’s Freelancing course and by following the course, I managed to acquire the “Top Rated Plus” badge from Upwork.
What are the mistakes freelancing beginners should avoid?
Beginners should not go for the money in the initial phase. The only aim should be to learn, learn, and learn. Newbies do not take client’s feedback seriously, which may cause a loss of a client to them. Building long-term clients are the key to success in freelancing.
I will suggest beginners: “Work hard, not today but one day you will succeed”.
What do you think is the scope of freelancing in Pakistan in the coming future?
I believe that freelancing has a wide scope in the near future in Pakistan. If I look over the past five years, few people knew the meaning of freelancing, and now people have adopted full-time freelancing as a career and earning a handsome amount.
What hardships did you face during this journey towards success?
My biggest hardship was the lack of guidance, as there were no platforms like DigiSkills.pk, that thoroughly guides the students.
How did DigiSkills.pk training sharpen your skills?
DigiSkills.pk provided me some useful tips to attract new clients and deal with the situation of having no orders.
What are some of the ways through which you want to promote freelancing in your city?
I believe that there should be more awareness campaigns and events to promote freelancing. Also, Digiskills.pk must visit schools and colleges to motivate the students to explore different ways to earn online.
What are your plans and goals that you want to achieve through freelancing?
My goal is to excel in my field so that I can fully support my family. I want to buy a house for my parents from my freelancing earnings.
Would you like to share a few tips for those aspiring to be freelancers?
Yes, I will say that “Never consider a work small or big, just do it” and fully regard the clients by considering each task as your own personal task.
How much of your success would you like to dedicate to Digiskills.pk for their valuable training?
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I would like to thank DigiSkills.pk for helping me to move a step ahead of where I got stuck during my career.
