ILLUMINATION Writers
Interview with Rasheed Hooda
Featuring creative writers of ILLUMINATION
Purpose of the Story
In this story, I share with you an interview that I conducted with Rasheed Hooda. I have been following Rasheed’s insightful and engaging stories in other publications before starting ILLUMINATION.
Therefore, as soon as I set up our publication, I invited Rasheed, knowing that he would be a perfect fit for my chosen group. I felt privileged and honored by his acceptance of my invitation.
Rasheed is not only submitting many high-quality stories to our publication but he is also contributing to the vitality of our writing circle.
His leadership and entrepreneurial skills coupled with creativity and unique writing style made Rasheed famous and followed by many of our writers and readers.
I always learn something new and gain different perspectives from Rasheed’s stories; his writing prompts are my brain teasers. In short, Rasheed is a gem for our publication supporting our writers and inspiring our readers.
Let’s discover the fascinating background of this successful and engaging writer of ILLUMINATION.
Tell us a bit about your background, Rasheed.
I was born in India and when I was 11 years old, my family moved to Pakistan (as a result I am always fighting with myself).
This move created a massive confusion for me because suddenly all my heroes were villains, and all the bad guys were good guys.
As if that wasn’t enough, I moved to the US when I was nineteen and found out that everything I was told about the people and the culture of the West was not true.
I remembered one of the lessons I learned from my dad was to verify everything you learn before you accept it as the truth.
It felt weird because sometimes I can go along with what everyone said, and other times I couldn’t. That’s how I came to be Mister Weirdo. I see and define the world differently than most people. For example, I am a bum, but not the kind that you might think.
You can read about my guiding spiritual principles in the following story.
Why do you write on Medium?
I was a reader on Medium for a long time.
When they went to the subscription model, I resisted it, but eventually, I joined and became a member in April 2019.
When Medium changed the way they compensated writers from claps to read time, I felt that it was a fair system and started writing on the platform.
What are your values as a writer?
I am an entrepreneur, and I believe that if you are willing to provide more in use value than you receive in cash value from your customer, you will be a success. It’s a principle I learned from Science of Getting Rich by Wallace D Wattles. So as a writer, first and foremost, I look to create value for the reader.
What are the top three books that affected your life?
As many of the writers you interviewed mentioned, it is hard to narrow it down to just three books because before we were writers; we were readers. However, here are the three books that have changed the way I think and look at life.
In 1983, I came across Ideas and Opinions by Albert Einstein. It was originally published in 1954, the year I was born. The book is a collection of essays and speeches by Einstein that he supervised as they were curated into a book form. I wanted to read his essays on Science and Religion, which were eye-opening, but I also found his ideas about world peace and his thoughts on relativity fascinating.
A few years later, I stumbled into Illusions: Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach. Having read and enjoyed his Jonathan Livingston Seagull, I was intrigued. It caused a paradigm shift for me. Einstein’s ideas and a couple of other books I had read paved the way for the shift. It was also in congruence with the Indian philosophical idea of Maya. If you haven’t read Illusions, I highly recommend it. It is a short and easy read, but it will either challenge, or validate the way you think.
Then, in 1993, I came upon Amit Goswami’s The Self-Aware Universe. It combines three of the most important fields of study in human knowledge — science, religion, and psychology. The author had a dream that lead him to write the book. It was a natural extension to Einstein’s Ideas and Opinions, and Bach’s Illusions. Some people consider it more of a new age book than a comparative study of sciences.
I must add Wallace D Wattles’ Science of Getting Rich as an honorable mention book. It’s simply the practical application of all the things I learned in the other three books. Even though he wrote and published it in 1910, I didn’t come across it until 2004.
What are your hobbies?
Over the years, I have enjoyed various hobbies. As a child, I collected stamps and coins. As a teenager, I collected matchbooks and wrote to pen pals.
Currently, I have three hobbies; Photography, Travel, and Public Speaking.
I bought a 35 mm Minolta XG-1 in 1981 and spent almost 50% of my paycheck every week on photography. I still have my Minolta, and a medium format Yashica camera, besides my Panasonic FZ-70 digital camera that has a built in 60X optical zoom lens that goes from 20 mm to 1200 mm, with a 2x digital converter that allows me to shoot at 2400 mm.
I love to shoot nature and street photography. I have several stories on medium relating to my photography. One of those stories was curated in Creativity and Writing, but ironically, not in Photography.
I also wrote a story about how your perspective plays an important role both in photography and writing. It has some of my pictures that I am proud of.
My other hobby is travel. I like to see the world at the see-level. I am not a big fan of air travel. I have always enjoyed traveling by buses, trains, and cars so I can enjoy the vistas. I also love roaming the woods and finding waterfalls.
A few years ago, I decided to hike cross-country and walked from Chicago to Santa Monica along the Historic Route 66. It took me six months; I met more than two thousand people and captured over three thousand photographs. I combined two of my hobbies into one trip.
When I was 12 years old, one of my teachers volunteered me to be in a speech contest at my school. I got hooked to public speaking, and I have been doing it for more than half a century.
In 2002, I joined Toastmasters. It’s an organization that is dedicated to helping people become better leaders. Their Website claims that Toastmasters is Where Leaders are Made. We have a saying: “If you like to get all you can out of Toastmasters, You’ll never get out of Toastmasters.” That’s why I am always promoting Toastmasters wherever I go.
How do you connect with your readers?
I have learned over many years of blogging that the best way to connect to your readers is to write from your heart; be authentic and avoid BS. I speak directly to the reader as if I am having a face-to-face conversation with them, and usually, in the end, I would invite them to participate in the conversation. When I was blogging independently, I would ask a question at the end and ask them to weigh in with their comments.
Here on Medium, I have found that when you tag other writers who are reading your stories and ask them to write on the same or related topic it keeps the conversation going, and also provides you an opportunity to write on subjects you may not have thought of when they invite you to join in on the fun.
When someone appreciates your work and leaves a comment, make sure you respond to them; this converts your readers into fans. Your fans become your word-of-mouth advertising machine.
I also provide them an opportunity to receive my newsletter as a way of connecting with them at the end of my stories on Medium.
Rasheed Hooda is a published author and a regular contributor to ILLUMINATION, a writers’ community on Medium where writers support each other.
He is a self-proclaimed weirdo who lives a Freedom Lifestyle and writes about related topics — Travel (a top writer), Personal Growth, Freedom, and entrepreneurship. (Get the Newsletter)
“You can let others tell you what it means to be successful, or you can decide it for yourself.”
Why did you join ILLUMINATION and how do you find it so far?
I joined ILLUMINATION because I had the honor and privilege of receiving an invitation from you. Since joining Illumination, I have almost exclusively done all my writing for Illumination. It has been a marvelous experience in terms of exposure and personal and professional growth. This is a significant community of writers who support each other in every way.
Who are the top ten writers you follow on ILLUMINATION?
This was the question I knew I was going to detest the most. We started out with almost a hundred writers from day one. Many wonderful writers have joined since then, and it makes it practically impossible to limit myself to just ten, but here you go. In no particular order of preference, they are:
Julia E Hubbel is in a class by herself. I love her straightforward shoot it from the hip writing style along with her killer sense of humor.
Dr. Rosenna Bakari (Rosennab): The woman is a goddess, in my opinion. I was fortunate enough to come across one of her stories in a connect the dot experiments that I run so often and I invited her to take a look at Illumination. I am honored that she accepted it.
Henery X (long): I love his heart, and his art. He has a unique style of writing prose that is almost like poetry. Sometimes it seems like I am reading the lyrics to a rap tune, not just an inspirational story. Keep doing your thing, bother.
Chris Hedges is a giver. Not only has she been a terrific writer and editor for Illumination, she has contributed so much to promote the publication/community with her knowledge of Google and all things SEO.
Paul Myers MBA: I enjoy Paul’s stories about business and leadership. He writes with authority, but also with a sense of humility. I can feel his stories because they come from his heart, even when they are about practical matters.
René Junge: Rene’ is an accomplished writer. He has published several books. He knows how to work the platform, and I have learned a few tricks of trade from reading his stories.
Kathryn A. LeRoy, Ph.D. is my hometown girl, if I may use such an endearing phrase without offending her, which I feel safe in doing. We “met” here on illumination, but learned that we are practically neighbors. Someone once told me that Houston is so big, that you can go from the bedroom to the kitchen and put a hundred miles on your car. Yeah, we’re practically neighbors.
Timothy Key is just a genuine human being with a heart of gold. His stories are fun, and he does so much for the community. I love his initiative to introduce new writers that join Illumination so we can all get a chance to read their stories. He is also always on the ball to get the stories published without delay. Thanks for all you do, buddy.
Desiree Driesenaar: I connected with Desiree because she and I share a love for nature, and we see the Universe as a humongous multi-dimensional jigsaw puzzle. Each piece is needed and has its own place. Even if one piece is missing, the puzzle is incomplete. We are all unique and we are all interconnected. I love her writings and everything she does for the planet.
I know I have left out at least 50 others whom I would have loved to mention and highlight here. I hope they don’t hold it against me.
What are your top five stories that you want to share with your audience and why?
Given that I have published nearly 250 stories on Medium, to choose just five is like asking a parent to pick their favorite offspring.
One of the earliest stories I published on Medium was a story from my book Life: It’s a Trip. It’s a personal story about a lost wallet and my younger brother’s death. It is also my first story that was curated by the Medium editors.
The next story is near and dear to me for two reasons. First, it talks about my understanding on how and why we need to take care of our health, and secondly , it was the first story I published on ILLUMINATION.
Before Illumination came along, I used to work hard to get on the Major Publications to get exposure. I finally got a story published in The Start Up. It is the only one I have submitted to them because I soon learned that I not only get better exposure on Illumination, but I find the readers here to be much more engaging.
Another “major” publication where I had several of my stories published was The Ascent. This story was curated in Self.
And finally, this story I wrote for Illumination last week about what I learned from committing to and carrying out writing every day for 31 days using a different prompt. It was an amazing experience. I must thank Amy Marley for introducing me to it.
When You Accomplish What You Want To Do
What I learned from completing a 31-day challenge
medium.com
What are the success factors for you as a writer on Medium?
I write because I enjoy writing. I am a teacher and a communicator at heart. Writing is one of the ways through which I can create a heart-centered life. When you live from the heart, your life is filled with joy.
However, it doesn’t mean that everything will always be smooth sailing. Life is full of challenges and we must learn to face them in order to be successful. Writing and publishing practically every day can bring out the imposter syndrome in you. Learning that success and failure go hand in hand is the key.
What do you recommend to the new writers on ILLUMINATION?
If you have been writing on Medium, but you are new to Illumination, I would say Welcome! Get ready to be surprised because your writing experience is about to change.
If you are simply interested in writing without engaging with your readers, you’ll find it overwhelming because people will engage with you in this community. But, if you’re seeking engagement, you’ll find yourself in Writer’s heaven. Get involved, read and respond to the stories of other writers, and you’ll find that your work will have more fans who do more than just clap.
If you are new to both Medium and Illumination, I recommend that you invest some time in educating yourself. Learn about what makes Medium different from other platforms. There are many stories that are highlighted on the editor’s corner on Illumination. They are about how to format and follow the rules of Medium in order to create the most attractive stories, and to keep yourself out of trouble.
I have written a story about the top three factors necessary to get the readers to click on your story, because if they don’t click on it, they can’t read it.
The most important thing to keep in mind is to have fun.
What are your future plans as a writer?
I am currently working on converting my daily blogs while I was walking Route 66 into a book.
I intend to continue to write on Medium and enjoy playing tag with other writers, particularly here on Illumination. One of the people who is exceptionally good at getting others to write by sharing ideas and tagging them is my friend Sherry McGuinn. I have written a few stories in response to her prompts and dares. Here is the latest one of them.
I will continue writing on Medium in general, and Illumination in particular for as long as it is fun. I plan to go on a solo walk around the country as soon as I consider it safe to do so. That will provide me with a lot of opportunities and stories to write about.
Finally, I want to thank you, Dr Mehmet Yildiz for giving me this opportunity to express myself. I am blessed and honored to be a part of such a significant community, and I commend you for taking the initiative to start this journey of Diversity, Synergy, Fusion, and Serendipity.
Thank you for your valuable time and generous responses Rasheed Hooda. This interview was informative for me. I enjoy reading your inspiring, informative, and engaging stories in eclectic topics on ILLUMINATION. Your writing style, entrepreneurial thoughts, and strong collaborative approach are invaluable and much appreciated in our writing and reading community. I appreciate your support to our publication, writers, and readers. Your content inspires and illuminates our publication readers.
You can also check interesting writing bio of Rasheed Hooda from the attached story from his pen.
If you are a writer on ILLUMINATION and would like to be interviewed, please send a request via this link with title of “Interview Request”.
Other Interviews
You may also check other interviews I conducted with inspiring writers of ILLUMINATION recently. These stories can provide a great opportunity to know more about our creative writers and connect with them.
Timothy Key
Desiree Driesenaar
Holly Jahangiri
Dr John Rose
Ming Qian
P.G. Barnett
Jill Ebstein
Bill Abbate
Terry Mansfield
Ann K Frailey
Woei T
Charles Roast
Julia E Hubbel
Aric D Mayer
Chris Hedges
Paroma Sen
Jeff Hanlon
Besom & Bletherskite
Sherry McGuinn
Sylvia Love Johnson
Maïa Belart
Henery X (long)
Chowa Sekai
conny manero
Sumera Rizwan
Karen Madej 💛
Anita Lesko
Marianna Saver
Suntonu Bhadra
John Cousins
Annelise Lords
Tree Langdon ♾️
Aisha
Aurora Eliam, CMP
Martine Weber
Sharon Hurley Hall
Angel Joy
Kevin Buddaeus
You might check more interviews in the attached collection.
You can find inspiring profiles of ILLUMINATION writers from this story.
Thank you for reading my perspectives. I wish you a healthy and happy life.
As a new reader, you might check my holistic health and well-being stories reflecting on my reviews, observations, and decades of sensible experiments.
Sample Health Improvement Articles for New Readers
Defeat Metabolic Syndrome and Slim Down Waistline with Three Tips
Why 442 Million People Live Diabetic and What We Can Do About it
Six Tips to Prevent Brain Atrophy and Lower the Risks of Mental Disorders
What Can We Do About NCDs Killing 41 Million People Yearly?.
Reduce the Risks of Neonatal Disorders to Prevent Infant Mortality.
Reduce the Risks of Major Diseases with Healthy Lifestyle Habits
In addition to self-improvement, leadership, technology, and health, I also enjoy writing about essential molecules such as:
Urolithin, taurine, citrulline malate, biotin, lithium orotate, alpha-lipoic acid, n-acetyl-cysteine, acetyl-l-carnitine, CoQ10, NADH, TMG, creatine, choline, digestive enzymes, magnesium, hydrolyzed collagen, nootropics, pure nicotine, activated charcoal, Vitamin B12, Vitamin B1, Vitamin D, Vitamin K2, Omega-3 Fatty Acids, and other nutrients that might help to improve metabolism and mental health.
About the Author
Thank you for subscribing to my content. I share my health and well-being stories in my publication, Euphoria. If you are new to Medium, you may join by following this link. You can join my publications as a writer requesting access via this weblink.
