Last week, an Indian Tech Gaint’s Lead HR Manager dropped me a message on LinkedIn.

They are working on an AI model and need writers to craft quality answers to different questions so their AI can use these inputs and learn to respond.

When I first heard about the project, I was all excited for two reasons:

• Big company: It’d have been wonderful to have their name on my portfolio.

• The project seemed interesting: I should train AI to replace me. Nice.

Although the project showed promise conceptually, the tasks were a turnoff. After understanding my role, I felt it was not something I could do for a long time.

Plus honestly, with all due respect, I felt it was way below my skill level, and I could use my time for better contributions to the content world.

My biggest friction to say no was the money. They asked how much I earn per month and were ready to push their upper limit. In fact, they clearly mentioned they don’t have any budget issues and I can share my expectations (Of course, I had to show some income proof that justifies my quote.)

I can’t say how much above a lakh they were offering here.

But what made it easier to say no was it was a full-time role with no defined work scope. I’ll be assigned tasks as long as I am online, and I have to allocate 9.5 hours per day, including breaks.

I have my current projects I can’t abandon. Plus, I run three newsletters.

I tried my best to see if this job fits my lifestyle, but I don’t think it would be wise for me to take the job.

I explained my situation to the project manager and lead and said I wouldn’t be able to join. I discussed this with the Gang to understand if they had a different POV.

What’s upsetting was my narrative: Telling myself, “1-2 more clients and I can earn 20-30% more than what they were offering.”

I didn’t like the idea of “This would happen if I did that.”

It’s all in the head. There is no action, leading to no results.

I was upset that instead of getting to a place where I earned what I thought I deserved, I was telling these sweet stories to myself that I just needed a client or two to hit targets. It might be true, but it’s not reality (for now)

Good thing is I didn’t slip into a bad mood or a negative thought spiral. I was just more pumped to drive more action.

Vidya’s suggestion is a big learning

After all this was done, Vidya asked me if I messaged the person who approached me on Linkedin.

“He is in a senior position at the company, and it would be wise to reach out to him, let him know about your decision, and thank him for the opportunity,” she said.

A good way to treat prospects, I thought. I’ll remember this for a long time.

That’s all from today’s issue.

I’ll continue doing long-form case studies, but I want to publish more.

So I might drop micro essays like this more often.

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