Crucial Success Skills Forged Through My Journey
I began my journey with Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, with insightful experiences in Brand Management, Market Research and Corporate Communication. Thereafter, I worked with several esteemed organizations in Business Development, Faculty training, Trinity Exams, Voiceovers, EQ Coaching and Soft skills Training (NPTEL-IIT Chennai). In all these roles, my passion for Communication remained a constant which led to certifications in Communication & Emotional Intelligence (ICF), NLP and Extended Disc.
In this journey of constant change, I began to grow when I became more open to exploring different opportunities and doing the best I could with what I had. That, along with some amazing people who supported me, helped me focus more on honing my skills and enjoying my experiences without worrying too much about mistakes or outcomes. Strong people skills and subject matter expertise helped enhance confidence and problem solving skills. This helped me evolve as a professional making it easier to transition to an entrepreneur.
Crafting Creative Opportunities from Every Challenge
Over the years, I’ve understood that we cannot predict or prepare fully for any adversity (the covid being a case in point), however, we can handle challenges better if we work on building certain approaches and mindsets. My career plans faced several disruptions due to constant transfers, with my husband being in the Armed Forces. There was a career break with motherhood as well, making it harder to return to full-time job profiles. Moreover, the fear of taking wrong decisions was an emotional challenge, holding me back from pursuing new or unfamiliar ideas. Things began to change when I started to view challenges as opportunities to add to myself.
Also, there was a shift from focusing on the problem to focusing on finding the solution. This helped me handle and overcome several of my fears and continues to help me till date. Openness to new experiences, understanding the value of constant upskilling, building genuine and supportive relationships with people, remaining committed and accountable for my responsibilities and building a mindset of gratitude; helped me navigate through many personal and professional challenges.
My Impact
I believe It’s important for us to have conviction in what we do as that helps us commit fully and utilize our skills in the best possible way. This is how we can create genuine value for others. In the initial years of my career, I had witnessed the struggle of many individuals in expressing themselves and connecting with others. This helplessness was even more evident in the case of children. They would choose to remain silent rather than be mocked for their lack of confidence. This led to a dream to help people become more effective communicators.
My journey as a Communication & EQ Coach has been hugely gratifying having worked with over 3000 individuals from the ages of 6 to 60 years! All these positive experiences and the desire to reach out to more individuals, led to the launch of the communication training venture, The 5th Mantra, along with 2 of my partners. Each time I witness a person overcoming his or her hesitation and expressing with greater effectiveness, I feel hugely grateful for the chance to play a part in so many personal journeys of people.
Scaling New Heights in Personal and Professional Triumphs
As Maya Angelou had once said, ‘Success is liking yourself, liking what you do and liking how you do it.’ This quote has influenced the way I view success and the means to achieve it. I consider success as being able to strike a balance between enriching myself as a person and being able to create value for others as well. When we are willing to be patient and generous with ourselves, we find it easier to extend it to people around us. A life well lived cannot be one merely chasing materialistic goals or lived in isolation.
One principle I follow for self-care is not to wait for weekends! I take regular breaks even during weekdays with music, reading and standup comedy. I also enjoy browsing social media and having movie nights with my daughter. This helps energize me to give my best while working with people from diverse backgrounds, helping them build their life skills and empowering them to become successful professionals with strong social networks. Growth for self along with growth for others is success to me.
The Synergy Between My Path and Recognition Values
I believe that any idea or skill can become an opportunity to create value for others if we have a passion for it, develop an expertise in it and are able to execute it. My journey is testimony to a skill becoming a source of value purely based on conviction, commitment and consistent work. This endeavor wasn't undertaken with a view to garner praise or attention. The reward lay in helping others become more confident and building their success stories.
For every child who begins to believe in his or her potential, for every woman who discovers the power of her voice and opinion and for every man who understands the strength in emotional bonding and expression, I have found and celebrated my success. I believe this aligns with the spirit of this award to celebrate stories and journeys that have created value for people without the objective of seeking recognition.