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 Deepika Dahima for an exclusive interview with us. She is a Leader, Entrepreneur, Counselling Psychologist, Coach, Mentor, Consultant, Influencer and Change Enabler. Deepika is the Founder of Yellow Turquoise. Let’s learn more about her incredible journey, her background, and her advice for our growing community!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Deepika:
We are aware of your contribution to the ecosystem, talk us through your background and your journey, please;
I did my schooling from Tagore International School, East of Kailash and further, pursued Bachelors of Psychology from the prestigious Gargi College, University of Delhi, New Delhi.
I was a passionate & determined individual from the beginning and always aspired to be one of the youngest achievers by delivering high performance in all walks of life. I was fortunate to bag various Merit awards in my school life for various competitions in Dance, Debates & Oratory skills.”
To add to my skills and knowledge, I also pursued Bachelor’s of Education from Kalka Institute affiliated from GGSIP University, New Delhi which is the essential base degree to be in the field of education.
I was an enthusiastic and initiative taker to all opportunities in my academic season. As a result, I was awarded the Best Paper Presenter Trophy on ICT & Education in a National Seminar in 2011. Then I pursued my Masters’s in Psychology from North Campus, University of Delhi. It was a marvellous and insightful journey of experiential learning & training in a different skill set.
During my college days, I took part in major contests and competitions since I was an all-rounder in studies & cultural activities.
What made you passionate about ‘Psychology’?
I was introduced to this subject in grade 11 and since then this subject and the concepts involved have my heart.
Assisting others through their insecurities, fears and grey areas is truly my passion. My goal is to guide my clients to find & create their true self and find solace and strength within to achieve anything they wish to.”
I believe we all are capable of making any change we desire for ourselves. Whether you are dealing with anxiety/phobia, pain, limiting beliefs or weight issues, therapeutic assistance can enhance your ability and to help you change what’s holding you back from repeating negative thoughts, self-sabotaging or negative self-talk habits and more.
‘Yellow Turquoise’ 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?
Yes this name has been intriguing to a lot of people and so it’s derivation. This name symbolizes 2 major chakra energies –
> The solar plexus which is yellow in colour & signifies the powerhouse of energy to sustain confidence, self-esteem, motivation, work strength, sense of purpose, focus, determination.
> The throat chakra which is turquoise in colour & signifies intensity and level of communication, self-expression, ability to speak one’s personal truth.
As a psychologist, I feel these 2 energies occupy the apex position to navigate through emotions & mental strength to create a personal & professional balance. As a person also my strengths have been in these 2 areas since my childhood and later at my work as well so the organization gets its name from the same.
How do you manage to keep going despite the challenges? What drives you?
The journey has been challenging yet amazingly insightful. Creating meaningful boundaries and communicating them has been the backbone principle to keep going at every step. Understanding clients with a broad outlook and empathy has let me create a bond of trust, hope and motivation to act upon during the discussion of the hardships faced have been another vital aspect of this journey.
Feeling Empowered with client experience and challenging the myths, stereotypes about one’s mental & emotional wellness to let my clients have self-awareness and courage to opt for therapy to live a life of respect, dignity and treat others with the same ethical principles is my drive to work in this field.
Please share with us, how do you motivate your clients?
Every Client walks in with their own set of beliefs, challenges, fears, insecurities, doubts and self-limiting beliefs; the first thing is to accept their views as their reality without thinking of any judgements and biases. When you do that, you give strength to the hope element of the therapy and it enables you to read between the lines much better.
It gives an idea of the issue and the coping mechanism of the client and thus, you can easily navigate through the ways to motivate the person with real-life experiences or with social examples either with emotions or with logical views depending on the person’s personality.
I feel motivating a person is easier when you know the person’s ideology and choices behind the same.”
Who do you believe has been the biggest source of motivation in your daily life?
The strongest motivation has been my faith in god and my parents & mentors who have always believed in me to create something meaningful and impactful in my personal capacity and my professional choices.
Apart from them my client’s trust and hope in me keeps me on my toes to bring about the qualitative difference with their support & acceptance to share and receive.
What about your journey makes it satisfying/exciting?
My journey has been challenging, exciting and gratifying all over these years. It gets tiring but still going back home with a relieved mind and a hopeful heart is the best takeaway each day.
What are some of the strategies that you believe have helped you grow as a person?
There are a few:
(1) My Morning Meditation
(2) Yoga
(3) Being a vigilant observer
(4) A patient listener
(5) An effective communicator
(6) Taking ownership and responsibility for my actions
(7) Ability to take calculated risks
(8) Mindful Living
What are the business mantras you have embraced as you sought to establish your success story?
I feel the best business mantra is to keep up the qualitative work along with the right intent, willingness and insights.
I feel having an effective and efficient team is another very important element for any business to grow.”
Being a genuine leader embracing the ups and downs of the organization and offering understanding and motivation to all the team members by leading through one’s own example is the best way.
You are always positive and motivated, what keeps you going?
My Attitude to soak my head and heart in Gratitude every day keeps me in good positive spirits and helps me rise above obstacles and see beyond. My habit of offering prayers to the almighty and keeping undeterred faith of seeing light and hope in everything I do. Also I am a person with a solution-oriented approach that helps me see everything with possibilities and a progressive thought process.
In your opinion, what are the keys to success?
– Determination
– Persistence
– Habit of Reading
– Effective Communication
– Mindful Listening
– Patience
– Articulate Planning Strategizing
What advice would you give to students and young professionals who want to have a successful career?
I would like to suggest that young professionals to start with small steps and keep up their persistence efforts to achieve targets one by one. Making Mindful choices and planning work accordingly on your pillars of strength and having a critical analysis of your improvement areas to work as an effective team is very important.
Having a progressive mind approach to create and sustain opportunities is also an integral part of achieving success.
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.
