Skill as a currency is an inescapable necessity. Quantifying those skillsets can create a new self-aware economy that can facilitate connection and trading of those skills. Stay On Skill does the same, by providing a platform for homeowners to offer a place to travellers with expertise on skills they are interested in learning.
To boost this initiative further, the startup is organizing a first-of-its-kind TravelX Talks on April 15, 2018 at Amritsar, with the aim to facilitate a unique gathering of a community that is open to learning about different skills from some of the top influencers of India, sparking conversation and initiating connections in the process.
After two successful meetups in Dharamshala and Manali, the founders of Stay On Skill, Arjun Tuli and Rajshree Bothra, understood that experiencing a trip with fellow skilled experts from different domains was a far more enriching experience than travelling with known faces, friends or colleagues. By swapping stories and life-changing experiences, people can actually apply best practices to their own challenges and overcome them.
Founders Rajshree Bothra and Arjun Tuli
A picture from Stay on Skill’s Manali meetup
That inspired the duo to provide a platform where a panel of curated experts could share their daily hustles, challenges and solutions on various topics, and inspire people looking to take a similar path in life.
The speakers for the event include TEDx speaker Heena Raheja; Jony Jindal, the youngest Indian to do a solo tour of the country; BBC filmmaker Yashi Malviya; full time travel blogger and photographer Himani Chhabra; videographer Sahil Singh; artist and graphic designer Niharika Arora; entreprenuer, vlogger and musician Satyam Aggarwal; and Yogesh Mankani, a successful public speaker and entrepreneur.
The topics will range from building strong networks in different cities while travelling, to tips and tricks of travelling freely across India, and from creating videos that engage people, to learning how to travel while being jobless.
The event will be held at Cafe Chokolade in Amritsar and is a free-of-cost entry. City On Pedals is the travelling partner for the meetup, while Nomads Hostel is the stay and food partner.
The idea of trading skills for free travel accommodation is not new, but mostly involves doing some work in exchange for free food and stay.
“People travelling for vacations in great places don’t necessarily want to spend hours on work that is boring or monotonous,” says Arjun Tuli. So the founders decided to focus on homestays and on refined skills and knowledge like music or yoga, coding and writing, which guests could teach in their spare time while also enjoying their vacation.
“Most of them do a barter – a substitute for manual labour. However, here you are teaching something you are very passionate about. That is the gap we are trying to fill with our initiatives,” he added.
So far, more than 150 trips have happened through Stay On Skill, and people have saved over INR 9.5 lakh in stay expenses. Read more about Stay on Skill’s initiatives, here.
