At BrilliantRead Media, it is our constant endeavour to identify and share some of the unique and compelling stories from the startup ecosystem. As part of this, we invited Bhawana Sharma for an interview with BrilliantRead Media. Bhawana is a Certified Yoga Instructor, Coach, Mentor, Wellness Consultant, Influencer and Change Enabler. Let’s learn more about her background, her inspiring journey so far and her advice for our growing community!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Bhawana:
Could you please talk us through your background and your journey?
My inclination kept shifting from wanting to be a doctor, to a teacher, to an artist, to a nutritionist/dietician and then to an English content creator.
People with too many varied interests find it very difficult to find that dream job which would truly satiate their soul.”
I actually wanted to be a Doctor, first, but when that didn’t materialize, I chose to pursue a graduation in Zoology, Botany and Chemistry. My Mom was a teacher and on her insistence, I did a Bachelor’s in Education.
I got married early in life and since my husband is a defense officer, who was then posted to a remote place I couldn’t pursue a master’s in Science. But since I was also inclined towards English as a subject, I decided to get a Masters in English, instead.
I thoroughly enjoyed the transition from Science to English as it gave me a much needed break from the monotony of studying science and also kindled my creative interest. Due to this interest, I managed to top the university and was awarded a Gold Medal.”
I got into teaching, wherever my husband got posted, I would find a school and teach there. Though I enjoyed teaching, but constant transfers of my husband made it very difficult to establish myself in my field.
Later, as with most workplaces, I started to pile on a lot of stress at work, sometimes due to bad work culture and at times due to politics and toxicity at the workplace, the constant juggling between home, kids and job made it even more stressful. That was when I could feel my physical and mental health deteriorating.
By then my children had reached board classes and I also started to feel the need to be relaxed and be by their side during this stressful stage. That’s when I quit teaching completely and became a full-time homemaker.
Until my children got into their desired fields, it was good. But once they got busy in their own lives, needing my attention less and less, I had more time to myself and found a hollowness creeping into my life.
Struggling with a midlife crisis, I experienced mood swings and a feeling of being less productive and sidelined from the mainstream. Looking for avenues to find my true calling and resources and means to improve my own and the health of my family members I reached the choice of pursuing yoga.
How did you discover your passion?
As I mentioned earlier, I wanted to be a doctor since the idea of leading and helping lead a healthy life always resonated with me. I thoroughly enjoyed cooking wholesome nutritious meals and liked to go for long walks.
But after you cross 40, just doing this isn’t enough as you start to get stiffness in the joints as well as aches and pains. As far as mental health is concerned, that too takes a hit at that age due to midlife crises and hormonal changes.
All this made me feel low on energy and motivation, that’s when I signed up for an Art of Living Happiness program. During the course, I got a reality check about my health status and felt the need to do something about it urgently. I joined a Yoga class to do daily practice and within a few days, I could see the positive changes. I felt motivated to do better and better each day. Receiving appreciation for my progress from my yoga teacher encouraged me more.”
My instructors were so happy with my progress that they started allowing me to conduct classes with their guidance. Now I felt that I had found something which I was so desperately searching for. I enrolled myself in Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga in New Delhi and did all the courses that I was eligible for, one after the other.
After doing 700+ hours of training, I got myself certified as a yoga wellness coach from the Yoga Certification Board. Initially, I conducted classes free of charge physically to create awareness about yoga, but then Corona happened and everything shifted to online mode. Now I conduct only online classes both in groups and personalised.
How do you manage to keep going despite the challenges? What drives you?
Empowering people to take control of their lives holistically is nothing short of pure joy. Seeing diseases disappearing from the lives of my family members and from the lives of those whom I coach, is such a big motivation for me to keep going and keep doing this good and noble work.
In the fitness industry, sometimes your own body becomes a challenge, as there are times when your body isn’t in its best form to perform. This could be due to various reasons, for eg late night, disturbed sleep, heavy meals at night or some body ailment.”
But we have to be performing without any excuses and keep doing it despite the need for rest at times.
Yoga instils a sense of discipline in you, which won’t even allow you to take an off or do your work without commitment.
Waking up each day early in spite of your social commitments and obligations, showing up consistently even when you are going through a rough patch and keeping the smile and motivation intact can be challenging at times. I believe in sharing health and joy, and this precisely drives me and ignites my passion each day.
Who do you believe has been the biggest source of motivation in your daily life?
Despite being quite mindful and careful of the health of my family members, some issues related to health kept coming up. I won’t say the matters were of a serious nature but they were nagging issues and reducing the quality of life.
When one member of the family is unwell, the whole family bears the brunt. Frequent visits to doctors, unnecessary wastage of time, being less productive due to health issues made me feel that I really need some sure shot tool which can minimize chances of falling ill and give me more time and energy to focus on more important and productive things.
The benefits that Yoga has to offer also made me consider the need to give it a try. This was the biggest source of motivation to start. But once you started, then you don’t seek motivation because the benefits you receive automatically drive you to it, every single day.
What are some of the strategies that you believe have helped you grow as a person?
There are a few:
> Being mindful of my health with things like body posture, right breathing and a wholesome diet
> Always being resourceful and ever hungry to learn from all sources
> Positive mindset and ability to believe in myself
> Not limiting myself to one field but doing all that I love
> Not being too materialistic
In your opinion, what are the keys to success?
I will say it straight that there are many factors but if you really have to have the key elements then to me these are the ones:
– Accepting & Loving oneself
– Keeping physical and mental health at the topmost priority
– Consistency and patience
– Resourcefulness
– Curiosity
– Positive Attitude and self-belief
What advice would you give to our readers?
I would advise everyone that never ever take your health for granted, either physical or mental. On observing the first signs of health deterioration, take corrective action. The absence of disease isn’t counted as good health.
According to WHO, you are counted as healthy only when you are physically, mentally and socially healthy and not merely by having an absence of disease or infirmity.
It’s important to note that all dimensions of our health need equal attention. In fact, I would suggest that as soon as you observe behavioural changes, temperamental changes and emotional changes in yourself, do address them as soon as possible because these changes are indicative that your mind needs attention and if not given, the effects will soon be visible in the body.
In the quest for success and money, never trade your health. without good health, you can hardly enjoy anything that life has to offer.
You may consider going on walks, gymming, swimming, aerobics, Zumba or anything else, but along with it at least practice yoga for 3 days per week. The benefits that yoga has to offer are far superior as compared to other workout because it works not only to manage your physical health issues but also your mental health issues and prevents newer problems from cropping up.
Last but not least, what about your journey makes it satisfying/exciting?
Getting great feedback from my clients is the most satisfying part of my journey. Seeing the positive impact of yoga on the health of my family members and myself makes me believe more in what I do, day after day.
The exciting part is that yoga is a work in progress. you will never reach a point where you feel you have mastered it all and reached the destination.
There is always something new to learn and work upon and discover not only about this discipline but also about your own self. It’s a journey of self-love, self-awareness, self-exploration and self-connection.
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.
