COVID-19 has and is shaking the world with one of the most devastating catastrophes in our history. We’re forced with furloughs and retrenchments and drove many to close some of the businesses we grew up with. We’re grieving for the family and friends that this pandemic took. And we’re trying our best to survive even with all the uncertainties.

The impact of COVID-19 is crippling. But this pandemic also paved way for us to adapt. It allowed us to see the feasibility of remote work, it gave us back some of the time we usually allot in waiting for trains and travel time, it enabled many organizations to innovate their business models, and it permitted us to explore other ways to earn, be it freelancing or investments.

While this pandemic doesn’t seem to end, it has influenced my life and positively affected me in some ways.

I’m blessed with my career

When COVID-19 demanded the country to impose community quarantine, that significantly affected one of my career decisions. I resigned a month before the first lockdown happened and was supposed to move to a different company with a better role and compensation. But due to government-imposed protocols, that option didn’t fit my best interests anymore. Fortunately, I was blessed to be part of another company with permanent work-from-home arrangements.

Now, I’ve decided to move to another company for another great opportunity that I couldn’t let pass, and I’m starting fresh in January 2022.

I’ve learned to drink water

Before the pandemic, I almost never drank water. I resorted to colored drinks like coffee, juices, and soda for my daily intake. When lockdown in the Philippines struck, I was privileged to be working from home, and that let me embrace drinking water more. I still drink coffee, juices, and soda, but my water intake has become more regular and with heavy consumption.

I’m blessed to earn more

Not commuting to and from work on a daily basis meant I was able to allocate my time and energy to more productive things. One of which is freelancing. Freelancing is one of the things I’ve been consistently doing even prior to COVID-19, though I was doing it irregularly due to the amount of time I needed for my master’s degree. I recently graduated, and because I don’t need to travel for work, my spare time after office hours and weekends are allotted to earning more income from my side hustles.

I started a passion project

Earn from Freelancing is a passion project I started this year. It’s my way of giving back to the freelancing community that took care of me when I needed the extra cash when I was younger. Earn from Freelancing a resource hub for aspiring freelance writers to learn how to get started and get better. It’s open for contributors if you’re also interested!

I’m in a long-term relationship that’s stronger every day

Dane and I were friends for a decade before becoming a couple three years ago. We’re in a good place and stronger than ever despite not seeing each other regularly plus all the challenges in a relationship in a pandemic. COVID-19 may be a challenge for some couples, but I’m happy it isn’t in our case.

I’ve rested

School for the past four years while working full-time took away a lot of my spare time after office hours and weekends. When the final straw of my last semester ended in June, I was able to rest—doing literally nothing on hours at a time and even off to bed at 10pm. I caught up with freelancing gigs after a few weeks when that rest bored me to death. Now, a month before I move to a different company, I decided to take time off again so I don’t get culture shock and overwhelmed with my new role come January 2022. It’s exciting and I feel well-rested, albeit, pretty bored, what do people do for fun?

We’re nowhere near back to normal but we’re off to another year.

Happy holidays, guys!