At BrilliantRead Media, we always strive to bring some of the meaningful and powerful stories from India and around the world to empower and motivate our growing community of entrepreneurs, investors, management students and aspiring entrepreneurs. This weekend we invited yet another passionate entrepreneur Abhijeet Kulkarni for an interview with us. He is on a mission to help people overcome anxiety, stress, depression, insecurities, worries and enable and empower them to live a stress-free, happy, positive and a high achieving professional and personal life. Let’s learn more about his inspiring journey and his advice for our growing community!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Abhijeet:
We are aware of your contribution to the ecosystem, talk us through your background and your journey as an entrepreneur/coach, please;
I completed my schooling from Nasik, Maharashtra, India and after completing my 12th grade in Science, decided to pursue a Bachelor of Arts since I was drawn more towards Arts than Science.
I studied General Psychology for 3 years. Only completing Arts graduation was a risky career option as per the general opinion then, hence I supported my career by completing a Diploma in Software Engineering(1998) and MBA in Marketing(2001) from Pune.
I worked in Sales & Marketing, Finance and Mortgage industry with companies like Standard Chartered, Axis Bank and HDFC Ltd.
I was soon hired by Oracle as a Business Analyst. So here I was, formally a Bachelor of Arts, with an MBA in Marketing and Software Engineering Diploma holder working in Sales & Marketing, Financial Institutions and now entering the IT world with a global conglomerate.
After working in Products and Services, in different profiles from Business analysis, testing, Consulting. I also worked in multiple countries experiencing different cultures, varying work environments. Leading a team of Business Analysts, leading testing teams and UAT teams gave me solid leadership exposure as well.
For a less stressful and more rewarding life, I moved to Australia and was soon working in Sydney with an Australian company and worked hard for my way up.
All through these years, however, I had a constant feeling of stress, anxiety and worry about my career, my finances. I felt insecure about my future in spite of doing very well in my life.
And then my job got redundant due to my Company’s financial crisis and I was left in a lurch. I decided to utilise this as an opportunity and work on resolving my stress and anxiety challenges and underwent multiple transformation programmes. With a lot of consistent efforts, I set myself up the path of pivotal mindset shift like never before.
That’s when I also realised,
– I never seriously looked back at my life for enough learnings.
– I realised all through my career of more than 20 years in a variety of sectors, I was always mentoring and helping people, whether it was their work, work relationships or personal life.
– That working in a variety of sectors, different cultures & ethnicities, hierarchies, several types of work environments had enriched me with unique capabilities! That I had experienced and faced several types of pressures and incredible situations!
– That I was a guide, mentor, confidante for people around me and my colleagues found me very helpful, always approachable, reliable and trustworthy.
It became crystal clear to me that by continuing to work in a job, I wasn’t doing enough justice to my tremendous potential, my passion, skills, creativity and the constant desire to help others.
The idea of quitting my corporate career and becoming a full-time Stress & Anxiety Coach was born there. After completing multiple pieces of training, certifications and lots of rigorous practice, I finally started my own world-class coaching business.
It gives me immense pleasure and extraordinary satisfaction to see peoples’ lives changing because of my coaching and the way their families experience these amazing changes!
What attracts you towards entrepreneurship instead of a corporate career?
I have always wanted to make an impact on peoples’ lives. And by becoming a full-time Coach, I knew I could not only create a huge impact but also reach significantly more number of people compared to a corporate career.
As an entrepreneur, I have the freedom to choose my time and efforts for coaching my clients.
Another reason was that after working in corporate for two decades, I realised I did not feel satisfied with what I was doing. It did not make me feel proud of myself and my life.
I knew I was meant for something else. I had found my calling.
I felt amazingly powerful after starting my own business and felt even more powerful when I saw the mindset shifts & powerful changes happening in my clients’ lives!
When not just the clients, but even their life partners thank you for changing their own lives along with their partner, it feels very satisfying and a true feeling of accomplishment. I could achieve this much more powerfully as a Full-time Coach rather than being in a Corporate job.
‘Exuberant Coaching International’ is such a unique name; talk us through more about it, please. Our audience would also love to know what kind of problem you are solving with the help of your startup?
The biggest force in human life is energy! The most impactful energy is the Youth energy and that’s what Exuberant refers to. The abundant youthful energy that is created through my coaching programmes to power your life like never before!
You can achieve anything with this when channelised in the right direction. I help people overcome challenges in their professional and personal life due to Stress, Anxiety, Insecurities(financial/career/personal), fears, negativity, lack of motivation, lack of purpose in life and depression and help them live a happy, successful, impactful, supercharged and wealthier life.
The programmes vary depending upon the issues a person is facing, what kind of customised solutions are required and the duration required.
During this COVID-19 crisis, what are the measures you have undertaken to continue your business without disruption?
There are more Stress and Anxiety amongst people due to Covid.
But honestly, these demons have been present in our ultra-busy lives since long.
Due to the nature of my coaching programmes, they can be done completely online with my 1-on-1 coaching and there are no geographical boundaries in place. So I have the freedom to engage with clients from any country on the planet, as long as they own a phone.
So it is even easier not just for me but for my clients to sit back relaxed in their homes and enjoy this incredible process.
How do you manage yourself and keep on going despite the challenges? What drives you?
My passion and my mission is to help millions get rid of the stress and anxiety and live an abundant, powerful life. This becomes my fuel whenever I am faced with challenges in my profession.
I have learnt to keep myself positive, solution-oriented and driven using easy, practical techniques which are part of my subconscious now. They keep me going, always!
On the personal side, I enjoy spending time with my family, doing fun activities, playing badminton, listening to music and meditate.
Please share with us – what has worked well for you so far?
Go-getter attitude – When you want it, you find ways to get it. You could face dilemmas, hurdles but you start finding answers with that attitude.
Quick decision making – Never overthink & analyse too much. It kills the spirit, fun and the idea itself.
If your heart tells you it is something that will add value to your life, jump on it and grab it with both of your hands without giving your mind a chance to paralyse it.
In your opinion – what is more necessary: Idea or a good team for a successful startup?
These two are not substitutes for each other and in fact, complement each other. They are a couple of essential ingredients amongst many for a successful business.
I believe that a business keeps evolving with several tiny ideas. You can have a fixed goal but your journey progresses through everyday ideas experimented daily and course-correcting depending on the situations that arise.
I believe that these ideas bear fruit when you believe in your team and your team believes in those ideas!
For me, my clients, my friends, my family and the entire world is my team. I see everyone as my team member and I work towards making that person part of my team!
You are always positive and motivated, what keeps you going?
I have fallen in love with what I do. I love it when I see my clients can see the stunningly positive side of their life.
That fires me up! After my own struggle with negativity earlier, I have consciously worked towards my positivity until it became my subconscious.
When I face negative emotions, I know all I need to do is tap into the powerful positive ways of my subconscious.
We would love to know your advice for all those starting out as an aspiring entrepreneur?
Direction – Where do you want to go? Do you know what you are doing? Be clear on them.
Focus- Once you know your direction, set an eagle-eye focus on what you want to achieve. There will be plenty of distractions, temptations, downers, Naysayers. Don’t let your focus move
Consistency – Small drops make an ocean. Keep on it, until you become successful in your own eyes!
Nothing can stop you If you stick to them, victory will be yours!
BrilliantRead is committed to bringing stories from the startup ecosystem, stories that reshape our perspective, add value to our community and be a constant source of motivation not just for our community but also for the whole ecosystem of entrepreneurs and aspiring individuals.
Note: If you have a similar story to share with our audience and would like to be featured on our online magazine, then please write to us at [email protected], we will review your story and extend an invitation to feature if it is worth publishing.
