At BrilliantRead Media, our aim is to bring to our community some of the finest stories from the startup ecosystem. As part of this endeavour, we invited a passionate women entrepreneur – Divya Mehta for an exclusive interview with us. She is an Entrepreneur, Leader, Coach, Author, Consultant, Change Enabler and Influencer. Let’s learn more about her exciting journey, her background and her advice for our growing community.
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Divya:
Talk us through your background and your journey, please;
I did my schooling from The Army Public School, New Delhi and further did my graduation in Political Science from Sri Venkateswara College in Delhi. Once when I was in 12th standard, there was a talk in our school about Travel & Tourism as a career option and I found that really interesting.
So after graduation, I decided to pursue Post Graduate Diploma in Travel and Tourism Management as I was quite passionate about it and also loved travelling.
Thereafter I worked in the travel industry for more than two decades. Out of which 11 years were with the travel division of American Express catering to travel needs and arrangements for corporates.
Gradually I stopped enjoying my job and even had some health issues. So quit my job after pondering a lot over it, took a break for a year and a half and then worked in a startup for a few months in 2020.”
By then the pandemic had already started and I was looking for something which I would enjoy doing and at the same time would give meaning and purpose to my life and that is when I decided to explore Coaching as a career option.
What made you passionate about ‘Coaching’?
Before I started my coaching journey, I had never coached or given any sort of training to anyone. So this was a totally new domain for me. However, I loved helping people, transforming my, as well as people’s lives for the better and working for the happiness of oneself and others and coaching would give me the opportunity to do all that.”
Secondly, when I started doing this amazing program to become a certified life coach, I found great mentors who supported, guided, inspired and showed me the way on this new journey of life.
Besides this I also found this wonderful community of coaches who are always ready to help, encourage and sometimes we even coach and push each other to take action.
How do you manage to keep going despite the challenges and problems?
I practice Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism and that is what keeps me going despite the challenges.
Buddhism teaches us that we are responsible for our own happiness or unhappiness This practice which consists of chanting ‘Nam-myoho-renge-kyo’ empowers me to increase my vitality or life force, face any problem, challenge my weaknesses, contribute to society & environment, transform my karma and become a happy person.
Today we are living in a society which is full of hate, crime, war and destruction. There is a need for philosophy which contributes to world peace and our organization based on Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism serves that purpose as well.”
Who do you believe has been the biggest source of motivation in your daily life?
There are many people who have been a source of motivation in my daily life. All my mentors- spiritual, life and coaching mentors have always inspired me and motivated me to become the best version of myself.
My parents, my brother and my immediate family have been very supportive and they have never stopped me from doing whatever I want to do in life. I am also fortunate to have friends who uplift me and encourage me to achieve greater heights.
What are some of the strategies that you believe have helped you grow as a person?
Some of the strategies are:
(1) Being compassionate
(2) Never giving up or getting defeated
(3) Taking responsibility for my actions
(4) Living in the present moment
(5) Perseverance
Could you please share with us a little bit about your books, please?
My e-book “Guide to Happy and Joyful Life – A Key to Life of Fulfillment” which is available on Amazon talks about what is true happiness and what exactly leads to inner happiness and peace which is of utmost need in today’s stressful world.
You are always positive and motivated, what keeps you going?
There are some practices which keep me motivated and full of energy so that I can give my best every time:
– Morning walk for a clear mind and energy all through the day.
– Self care and loving myself
– Incorporating activities in my daily schedule that I enjoy doing or I am passionate about.
– Reading self-help books and about great people keep me inspired.
– Praying and chanting every day helps me maintain my peace of mind and keeps me grounded.
– Traveling relieves stress, anxiety and keeps me happy.
– Practicing gratitude and contributing to society.
– Lastly when you help people transform their lives for the better, it comes back to you in many folds and the happiness that you get from it is priceless
In your opinion, what are the keys to success?
From what I have experienced main keys to success are:
> Believing in yourself.
> Setting clear defined goals or outcomes
> Determination
> Discipline and consistency
> Persistence
> Being resilient
> Taking Action – This is most important as there is magic in action
What advice would you give students and young professionals who want to have a successful career?
As a transformational and happiness coach, I would like to tell students and young professionals to have a growth mindset “that is” be open-minded and keep evolving constantly.
Look at challenges as opportunities, don’t get discouraged by failure instead ask yourself What did you learn from that experience? Celebrate the success of others and stop seeking approval or validation from others. Then only you will feel happy and be successful in life.
I would like to end with this quote by Maitree Tailor, “Be limitless. Break all boundaries you have. Build in your mindset. Give wings to your dreams. Let it be free and fly high”.
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.
