At Brilliant Read 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 Jyothika Shetty for an interview with Brilliant Read Media. To say further, Jyothika is a Public Speaking & Communication Coach, Trainer and an Influencer. Let’s learn more about her background, inspiring journey so far and her advice for our growing community!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Jyothika:
Could you please talk us through your background and your journey?
I have spent nearly three decades in Dubai and been a banker and an entrepreneur. An MBA from Manchester Business School UK, I also hold an International Diploma in Compliance from International Compliance Association UK.
My expertise primarily lies in the area of financial and risk management. I have worked with a French Bank for over 11 years followed by our family owned construction business as its Executive Director in Dubai.
I started my public speaking journey in January 2014 following an incident that happened at my daughter’s dance school. I was once asked to speak in one of the event, on behalf of the parent community. Although I prepared briefly the moment I walked on stage and started to speak, I froze.
Somehow, I completed my speech but had the realization that knowing English and speaking on stage are two different things. To be an effective speaker one must Prepare, Practice and then Perform.
Subsequently, I joined an organization called Toastmasters which is a non-profit organization that helps individuals become effective communicators and leaders. Since then I have served in various leadership roles and won several awards in speaking. I am currently serving as the Division F Director in District 121 and oversee functions of 21 clubs with over 350 active members.
How did you discover your passion?
I discovered my passion by chance. I joined Toastmasters to make some friends and to also become an effective speaker. However, gradually I realized that being able to communicate effectively has a profound impact on your social, professional and personal life. It can catapult your overall growth in life which people seldom realize. Through continuous practice and exposure to public speaking, I started loving the stage. I realized that I am in my best element when on stage.
In my family owned construction business I used to regularly interview candidates for our company. While I met candidates with impressive educational qualification, when it came to expressing themselves they found it difficult. This led to the candidate either not being selected or even if they were selected, they would struggle to progress within the company.
I started to mentor people and really enjoyed see them grow. Thus, establishing my own public speaking coaching business did not come as a surprise. This is where I made it my mission to use my corporate background and public speaking training to help entrepreneurs and working professionals to become confident speakers.
An entrepreneur or a professional can build their personal brand by being able to articulate their expertise to their audience. They can even establish themselves as thought leaders giving them the edge over their competitors in their domain.
Effective communication helps you improve your interpersonal and leadership skills and an organization always prefer employees who are good leaders and effective communicators.
Personally, my passion for public speaking is not only made me a better communicator but also improved my interpersonal skills that directly impacted my social, personal and professional life.
Who do you believe has been the biggest source of motivation in your daily life?
I consider everyone around me as a source of motivation including my children. However, I believe that just external motivation is not enough. I make a conscious effort to be motivated from within.
This is first of all possible by liking what I do and having faith that my best is yet to come. I am a continuous learner and like learning and exploring new things. Also, being able to help others grow keeps my intrinsic motivation alive.
What are some of the strategies that you believe have helped you grow as a person?
Growing as a person is not a strategy but a journey. A journey of experiencing everything life throws at you. I have grown as a person because I am a continuous learner and have changed myself with time.
Adapting to new things, being flexible and living in the moment. However, my biggest growth as a person has been when I embraced spirituality as an integral part of life.
In your opinion what are the keys to success?
Success can mean different things to different people. My definition of success is being able to live a life which is personally, financially, socially and spiritually balanced.
I have realized that the following are the aspects that contribute to success:
a) Acceptance of the reality – you cannot move forward without clarity or by being delusional in life.
b) Being willing to change with time – A change is a change when you change so be ready to change with time.
c) Few good people in your life. This can have a profound impact in the way you think and do things in life.
d) Choose your battles wisely – you don’t need to win everything in life.
e) Patience – every good thing in life takes time.
f) Discipline – without which you are a lost soul.
g) Exercise – without health, nothing is worth it.
f) Self-Respect – how you behave with others is based on how you feel about yourself. Respect yourself first.
What advice would you give to our readers?
> Always be a lifelong learner as this will take you a long way.
> Try different things in life as no one starts with clarity.
> Be ready to accept failure – once you know how to bounce back from the failure, nothing can stop you.
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.
