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 Nidhi Saini for an exclusive interview with us. Nidhi is an Entrepreneur, Coach, Leader, EQ Practitioner, Trainer, Influencer and Change Enabler. She is the Founder of YourEssence with Nidhi Saini. Let’s learn more about her incredible journey, her background, and her advice for our growing community.
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Nidhi:
Could you please talk us through your background and your journey?
My life journey as well as my professional journey has been really interesting. Even though I had humble beginnings, there wasn’t any lack of basics as my parents did all they could to provide us.
Being over-protected, I think I never had the hunger to do anything great in life (even though dreams were monumental). Life kept happening & I kept moving alongside with no plans.”
My professional journey started in 1999 in the Textile & Fashion Industry & went on for the next 15 years as I didn’t know anything besides it, neither did I have the urge to know any-thing else.
But then life was happening side-by-side and was hitting me hard and I was clearly unhappy with what I was doing. In those 15 years I had launched and run my own Home-Décor brand successfully for 5 years, but I wasn’t happy.
And then one fine day, even though work was rising, I closed down everything & made a huge professional shift. I didn’t know where I would go, but all I knew was that I didn’t want to be where I was.”
Totally unsure, I took random advice from my father. He said, “Try Teaching.” I could never imagine myself as an educator & had always rejected this idea. But that day I didn’t reject it. I enrolled myself into B.Ed & simultaneously searched for jobs.
That was the time when my stars were surely changing. I got the best opportunity to start this new career as an Educator & I turned out to be an amazing one (to my surprise). I enjoyed it thoroughly & my learning started.
I felt I had found my place & I wanted to be here, but in a way that I can add more value. I moved out of being a full-time educator to become an independent Trainer-Educator-Mentor & by 2018 I was into it. People questioned my moves but I never really cared as I had found my happy space.
Over the next few years, I upskilled myself, attended various programs, became a learner alongside my work that took off. In 2020 life hit another low & I landed up in a program to be coached out of it. My experience of coming out of my mess, made me realize how much more I could do to help people. That’s when another feather of being a certified Coach was added to my cap.
Today, I have found a part of my purpose in life (I have a lot more than just this to do in life). I enjoy what I do I’m helping individuals become effective communicators – externally as well as internally.”
I’m a Corporate Facilitrainer (Communication Skills & Soft Skills), an Emotional Clarity Coach, an EQ Practitioner, and also an author.
I feel totally blessed that God chose me for the work I do. Why? Because I never had plans to become what I am today, but this work chose me. And now I am giving it back in my own little way.
How did you discover your passion as a ‘Coach’?
I never chose COACHING as a career, rather it CHOSE me. And that’s how I strongly believe. I had no idea about a career like this until a few years ago when I was at my most vulnerable & broken self.
At a personal level, it was the lowest I could have ever been. I found myself sitting in front of a psychiatrist seeking the help of medicines to pass through days.
A chance conversation with a friend shook me back into my senses, when I realised how people around me looked up to me for my strength and courage & that I was much more than what I was at that point in time. I had a son for whom I needed to be a positive example.”
To cut the long story short, that’s when by chance I enrolled myself into a program to get coached, or should I say to come out of the mess I was in. The program worked wonders & made me realize that if a strong person like me could break down to pieces, then there are thousands like me who might need help & I could be the medium.
That’s when I went in for a Coaching certification. And all through the journey (even now), I’ve seen myself transform. I noticed how I could help others come out of their turmoil & untangle their knots.
The journey that started casually and my casual stint with social media to share snippets of life through my experiences started touching other people’s lives. Unknowingly I had started impacting lives & that brought in a lot of contentment within me…..a lot of peace. ….and I found my purpose.
And I discovered that I LOVE this part of my work. It brought in Gratitude. That’s why I say that Coaching chose me…God chose me.
How do you manage to keep going despite the challenges? What drives you?
I’m a huge believer in Karma. Not that I always was, but a few events in my life slowly made me understand the importance of my energy vibrations, universe, karma. This is my little understanding of spirituality.
Life has been a true roller-coaster for me. I’ve been on the side where I used to blame others for what I was going through, to crossing the bridge to accept every obstacle as an opportunity.
Noticing how my own fears and demons became a reality turned me towards understanding the strength of my thoughts. And that’s how my faith, resilience, willpower, perseverance grew.
I have understood that I have the strength to create my own destiny & irrespective of any challenges, if I keep moving forward I will find a way out. Sometimes it happens sooner while at times it takes really long.
I also, have my own fears working on me still & they will. But Faith is my biggest driving force. I don’t give up easily on anything.
Who do you believe has been the biggest source of motivation in your daily life?
There was a time when I would feel entitled to everything & would find a reason to complain if things didn’t go as planned.
But the unconditional support that my family – my parents, my brother & my son, have provided me during the worst phases of my life, has changed me. They are my biggest source of motivation.”
Also, when I notice that unknowingly I am impacting other people’s lives through my work, that in fact is another motivating factor for me. I want to do good work & add value for these people in my life.
Having said that, I am also a highly self-motivated person with an internal drive to move forward.
What are some of the strategies that you believe have helped you grow as a person?
There have been times in the past when I didn’t want to do anything…there was no drive….no dream…no vision….no mission. But ever since I’ve found a direction, I’ve also grown as a person.
What has helped me is:
> Listen to yourself, listen to others
> Accept responsibility of yourself- take ownership of your life
> Be a learner in any form possible
> GIVE to others in some way possible
> Make a change
> Add value to other people’s lives
> Be Grateful for what you have- even the little things/actions
> Take risks to come out of your comfort zone
> Love & Respect yourself
> Accept that you’re human. Love your flaws.
> Give your 100% to whatever you do – personal or professional
> Accept Failures & learn from them
> Keep Moving & Take Action
> Don’t keep many expectations.
In your opinion what are the keys to success?
Whatever I answered above are actually all my strategies as well as keys to success. But besides the above if I have to talk about skills that could help, then those would be:
(a) Responsibility
(b) Self-Belief
(c) Curiosity
(d) Positive Attitude
(e) Consistency
(f) Resiliency
(g) Openness
(h) Confidence
(i) Determination
(j) Awareness
(k) Adaptability
(l) Patience
What advice would you give to our readers?
Make plans in life, but be open to change. And if you wish to be successful then get out of the comfortable space & hustle.
Don’t look for fast results, but work hard to ensure those results are long-lasting.
Most importantly, be patient & don’t give up upon one downfall. If something is really important to you, then keep moving & you shall reach your destination. This applies for work as well as personal life.
Last but not least, what about your journey makes it satisfying/exciting?
The most satisfying aspect is that I am able to add value to other people’s lives, through my work. I feel it is my moral responsibility to leave behind a positive impact on this world. I’m literally enjoying my work, along with enjoying my life.
Another exciting aspect is that today I’m living my dreams & nobody else’s. I am happier & more content than I ever was.
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.
