At BrilliantRead Media, we always strive to bring meaningful and powerful stories from India and around the world to empower and motivate our growing community. As part of this endeavour, we invited Debalina Chakraborty for an exclusive interview with us. Debalina is an Etiquette & Branding Trainer, Soft Skills Coach and Founder at The Melhor Consultation & Melhor Media. Let’s learn more about her background, journey and her advice for our community!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Debalina:
Could you please talk us through your background and your journey?
My professional journey counts up to 15 years approximately. I started off as a student trainer with UNICEF and gradually moved forward to explore avenues like media training, etiquette and branding training, corporate training, teacher training, etc.
Like everyone else, COVID-19 was a turning point in my life when I finally thought of developing a business model that would cater to people with functional and inexpensive consultations on soft skills, lifestyle, grooming and communication.
I completed my Bachelor’s degree in International Hospitality Administration from Edinburgh Napier University. Along with that, I am a qualified TESOL and PoSH instructor. Currently, I am a personal branding and etiquette trainer specializing in international protocols and appearance management.
How did you discover your passion?
It was in the year 2010 that I came across a newspaper ad that said “Teach and travel job opportunity”. That intrigued me into researching about this concept because all that while I was under the impression that if you are a teacher, you teach in a school and go back home! There is only a commute in between which cannot be considered as travel as the ad had promised.
My research led me to a whole different world of teaching community where I saw educators travelling to different parts of the world and teaching English as a second/foreign language. At first, it was the travel that made me enjoy the process. Gradually, I realized educating was something that I really enjoyed. Rest is history.
Despite the challenges, what keeps you going when things get tough?
I always believe in something- preach what you teach. As a trainer who is always motivating her clients and students to transform for the better, I keep reminding them that life is an uphill battle. You win some, you lose some.
However, you need to move forward and let go of any twisted thoughts or any sunken feelings. It only backfires.
I am a go-getter and I always feel that the way we use words in our heads, they creates the narrative of our lives. I feel stubbornness, restlessness and impatience can be positive if that means you are always looking forward to what’s next. I believe these things keep me going when things get tough.
What are the three most important lessons you have learned in your life?
I have always had a very comfortable life and for most of my academic years, I was unknown to the daily challenges that people face. I think my life changed when I went to university where there was a rush of cultural exchange and that opened my eyes. I learnt the importance of empathy.
Next up, when I started working, life humbled me even more because I was suddenly co-working with people double my age. Handling professional dynamics and at the same time grabbing opportunities for myself made me realize the importance of being social and observant simultaneously.
Finally, I feel when I started developing my business, I understood that everyday is a learning. Everyday you meet different people with similar needs rooting from completely different problems. So having an open mind with no preconceived notions became a very important lesson that I learned.
In your opinion what are the keys to success?
Success is subjective. There are no parameters. However, the feeling of success is quite similar on all planes. The first, accepting the process of failure and rejection. We are classically conditioned to believe that failure is taboo. This holds us back to take the leap of faith and design our lives the way we want it to be.
Once you acquire that quality, you definitely need some tangible literacy in planning, being consistent and executing without a definite hope of return in your head.
Another key which is mostly overlooked is to look the part. When we say success is a feeling, it can be only be felt when you believe that you can be successful.
Taking care of your image, how you appear, your basic grooming, your non-verbal communications and interpersonal skills, these psychologically influence you into taking that necessary step ahead in the game.
What advice would you give students and young professionals who want to have a successful career?
Being an educator in the field of personal and professional development, I always advice my students and clients to not compare themselves. Everyone has a different journey, values and ethics. To have a successful career, this is definitely the first step. Being grounded and having a mindset to learn can take one to heights. Additionally, one must cultivate good habits, financial skills and mindfulness.
Last but not least, what about your journey makes it satisfying/exciting?
I started working as a trainer while still in college. After 15 years, what I have realized that my journey has phases. There was a time when I was training non-native speakers who were mostly daily wage expats.
Then I worked extensively with celebrities and public figures. After that, I rolled into the world of corporates and finally hopped into my business wagon.
It has been a learning curve and every phase taught me so much. However, if I have to talk about the most satisfying part, is my global clientele. I am proud of my community of people all around the world who has given me numerous more-than-a-paycheck moments when they acknowledged and recognized the power of transformation that I had directed them to follow.
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.
