Stefan (@stefanthurairatnam) was working for a leading financial institution for 5 years when some life altering events gave him a different perspective on life. It allowed him the chance to re-evaluate and reflect on his life; he was given a second chance. He was given an opportunity to become an ambassador for Luxury World Traveler (@luxuryworldtraveler) and he decided to quit his 9-5 corporate job and book a one-way flight to wherever his finger landed on a spun globe. He turned his passion into his lifestyle. Through his learnings and experiences, he has successfully started his own marketing and social media consulting company, LuxVision Media Group (@luxvisionmediagroup) as well as licensed travel company @Destinationandleisure.
He joins Ara on this week’s episode of The Tamil Creator to discuss quitting his job and ‘retiring’ at the age of 28, getting FREE hotel stays at places where people like Britney Spears (@britneyspears) and Michael Jordan have been at, how he built a following of more than 145,000+ followers, why he has ZERO insecurities, and so much more – this is an episode that is not to be missed!
**TAKE THE QUIZ – “What Type of Creator Are You?”**
Follow Stefan:
– Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/stefanthurairatnam/)
– LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefanthurairatnam/)
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Timestamps
00:19 – Ara introduces this week’s guest, Stefan Thurairatnam
04:34 – Stefan’s beard serving as a great conversation starter
07:26 – How Stefan built his brand as a content creator
10:42 – Initially collaborating without the intent of making money but rather to touch on his passion
14:26 – Using his media kit as a digital resume; selling his template to others and seeing it breed success
16:18 – Figuring out a formula to reach out to high-end brands
18:31 – Staying at hotels costing CAD$130,000 for FREE and having a half a million dollar trip in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and the Maldives FULLY EXPENSED for his 30th birthday
20:05 – The difference in experience between wide-ranging hotel prices
21:22 – Building a following of over 100,000 followers on social media; quality versus quantity?
24:41 – Selling preset lighting filters
26:02 – Stefan’s favourite country (Maldives) to travel to and projects (Heineken) he’s worked on
27:15 – How has COVID impacted Stefan’s travel (both personal and business); revamping his brand to now having 32 million impressions per month
32:03 – The future of travel; will a crazy boom occur once COVID finally passes
38:25 – His parents questioning his objective initially; partnering with Sri Lankan airlines to gift his parents taking his parents two anniversary trips
42:05 – Stefan’s vision for the next 3-5 years
43:26 – How does Stefan want to be remembered by friends and family
45:09 – Stefan’s biggest insecurity?
46:35 – Advice for 16-year-old Stefan
48:30 – How has the Tamil community impacted Stefan – not at all; hate comments, threats, and negative energy
54:55 – Advice Stefan has for fellow aspiring Tamil creators
58:10 – Creator Confessions
1:02:47 – The Wrap Up – why TamilCulture was started
Intro Music
Produced And Mixed By:
– The Tamil Creator
– Yanchan
Written By:
– Aravinthan Ehamparam
– Yanchan Rajmohan
