At BrilliantRead Media, we always strive to bring to our community some of the finest stories from the entrepreneurship world. As part of this endeavour, we invited yet another passionate women entrepreneur – Harpreet Kaur Narula for an exclusive interview with us. She is an Entrepreneur, Leader, Life Coach, Mentor, Change Enabler and a Psychologist. Let’s learn more about her inspiring journey, her background and her advice for our growing community!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Harpreet:
Talk us through your background and your journey, please;
I always wanted a job where I was of service to others, but I didn’t know how to channel that into a career until I had a conversation with my own therapist, that instantly made me think about what would it be like to be on the other side.
I loved the idea of helping people find a solution for all the life problems they are dealing with and help them implement the shift to create a new way of being and help them find balance within themselves, what they had been seeking outside themselves.”
As for my qualifications, I am Masters in clinical psychology, specialised as a couple and relationship therapist, psychotherapist and hypnotherapist.
What made you passionate about coaching?
“Grow through what you go through” – is one of the quotes I live by. I went through my own set of traumas and bad experiences in life which led me to where I am today.
In order to live fully, I had to bounce back from each setback and learn to focus on the things I could do as opposed to the things I could not do.”
I was fortunate in that I had lots of support from my family, friends and mentors so this helped me to focus more on finding ways to move through and beyond the challenges I faced.
I keep doing whatever I do because it is so rewarding to get to see clients grow, change and become the people that you always knew they were, that something was just maybe holding them back but they were able to process through it, that whole experience is just what makes it so amazing and wonderful.
What gets you out of bed in the morning i.e. what’s your source of motivation?
First and foremost, I absolutely love what I do and would never want to do anything different. My clients are my source of motivation. As privileged as I feel being a therapist, being one is also an everyday challenge and I love being challenged as it makes space for me to grow.
I am challenged to learn more, do more and uplevel myself. if I am going to refer something to my client or if we are going to try new techniques I make sure I know inside out and make sure to read as much as I can. It helps with my personal growth as well as who I am as a therapist.”
I feel very grateful to have a career in which I can be of assistance to others and do something meaningful to me. I think I have grown more from my work with clients than I have from anything else in my life.
I believe that if I can impact 1 life positively in a day, I fulfil my purpose.
How do you manage yourself and keep on going despite the challenges? What drives you?
I am big on self-care and development because I believe when I am at my best I can help others to be their best. One of the most important things that I do for my professional self is being mindful about work-life balance.
So, I take my morning routines very seriously, at the start of the day I set my intention of how I want to show up for the rest of the day for which I meditate for about 40 minutes write my gratitude journal and workout/ dance so it sets the pace for the whole day.”
It is a challenging job but there is nothing better than being a part of giving a gift of insight to somebody else. What drives me is my passion for helping people.
The thing I love the most about my work is that people are very real and very raw, they come in at a place in their life when they are ready to make changes, they want to be self introspective and they want to learn more about themselves and most of them want to authentically live better lives and enhance their quality of lives.
It is so inspiring to see people want to make a change to their lives and they don’t want to continuously keep this veil up themselves like a plastic face and fake smile pretending things are going great when they are not and that authenticity is so important.”
My work is really fulfilling and at the end of the day, It feels that I am living my purpose.
Please share with us, how do you motivate your clients?
I believe we all have the ability to make changes that we desire for ourselves, whether it is anxiety/phobia, pain, stress, depression, limiting beliefs leading to self-worth issues, therapy can enhance your ability to deal with them and give you the tools you need to help you change what’s holding you back from reaching your desired self.
When the clients come to me I like to see It like they are in a dark room and my job is to turn on the light and open up the window to let the light in. The client already has whatever they need, my job is just to navigate the conversation, become a facilitator and provide a safe space as they uncover their truth.
Which of the strengths that you bring to the table do you think is most important in your job?
I believe that my natural interest in people’s life stories (and human behaviour in general) makes me a good listener and observer. Good listeners are actually pretty rare outside of the therapy office, in my opinion.
If you can cultivate the ability to slow down and really attend to others with an open mind, suspending judgment, this may be an advantage to you in many different careers.
In your opinion what are the keys to success? What advice would you give students and young professionals who want to have a successful career?
You set your own standards. You set your own standards for the universe, the clients and yourself.
Be constantly committed to up-levelling your craft, tools and to always do your homework that is read books and get personal development in. “Be the change you want to see in the world.”
Also, Have patience, be humble and open to new experiences, and ask a lot of questions. Don’t be afraid to seek out information and advice from those who have gone before you. I would recommend talking to people and taking opportunities to learn and gain experience in the field before. Making connections and building on those connections is vital in building any career.
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.
