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 Shivani Agarwal for an exclusive interview with us.
Shivani is an Entrepreneur, Leader, Motivational Speaker, Coach, Mentor and Change Enabler. She is invited to various prestigious events and forums to deliver motivational talks in different cities in India and abroad.
To name a few – social organisations like the Rotary Clubs, FICCI FLO, YFLO, RUCHIKA, Jyotirmai, Inner Wheel; metro clubs like Bombay Gymkhana Club, Bengal Rowing Club, Calcutta Swimming Club; corporates like The Bharat Chamber of Commerce, ASSOCIATION OF CORPORATE ADVISERS & EXECUTIVES, IIT BHU Alumni; institutes like Excelsior American School, Sri Sri Academy, Gyan Bharti Delhi, and even multinationals like DELL Technologies. The dimensions are multifold.
Shivani believes in Miracles and her story is full of them. Let’s find out!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Shivani:
Could you please give us a background of your upbringing and formative years?
I was born and brought up in Kurseong, Darjeeling, in a small nuclear family of four, comprising of my parents and my sister. I come from an educated background, my father being a Lawyer and my mother, a lecturer in English at Loreto College, Darjeeling.
I had an upbringing that emphasised intellectualism and humanitarianism. I graduated with Honours in English from Loreto College, Kolkata and got married and settled in the ‘City of Joy ‘.
Please walk us through some of the roles and responsibilities in your trajectory.
I got married to an Advertising and Marketing Consultant, who was extremely broad-minded and had a very modern outlook, a rarity in the patriarchal, conservative Marwari society. We teamed together in the Advertising Agency and had the opportunity to work with big corporate brands like Boroplus, Kesh King, Fast Relief, AMRI Hospitals, South City International School, Heritage School, Sarda Plywood, to name a few.
The nature of work presented us with various opportunities to work directly with ace advertising gurus like Alyque Padamse, Bugs Bhargava; Ad film directors like Raju Hirani, Anurag Kashyap, Imtiaz Ali, Rahul Bose; stars like Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif, Kangana Ranaut, Ali Fazal, Sania Mirza to name some.
Taking the agency marketing vertical forward, I established the BTL wing in my company equipped to handle BTL promotions in Pan India. The canvas and the exposure were phenomenal. It propelled my creativity, vision and piqued my interest in the study of human behaviour.
Meanwhile, in my personal life, I had two boys in quick succession and thereafter, it was a rollercoaster ride to strike a fine equilibrium with work, children, social obligations and growth. Eventually, the boys left home, to pursue higher education abroad and are currently living in America – the elder an Aerospace Engineer from the Georgia Institute of Technology, currently a consultant with ‘Price Waterhouse Coopers’ New York. The younger son is a Computer Engineer from Carnegie Mellon University and is currently based in San Francisco. They are young adults leading their independent lives abroad, yet grounded and connected to their homeland.
Progressing with the journey, I now had ample time to study, to explore, to delve into the world of Spirituality. The hunger in me was deep, insatiable and I wanted to do something more meaningful as I was yearning for a deeper purpose in life – something that was soul-fulfilling. Do tell us about the incident that further propelled you into this path of spirituality. How did you create the platform ‘ A Journey With Gratitude’?
Post a prolonged traumatic period of ill health, I was diagnosed with advanced Tuberculosis. To add to that, the MRI detected a node in my Thyroid gland – suspected to be cancerous. It was surgically removed and tested and by God’s mercy, it was benign. However, there was something terribly wrong – I could not speak- I had lost my voice.
Upon further investigation, it was discovered that in a freak accident, the surgeon had inadvertently slit the nerve of the left vocal cord, it being in such close proximity to the thyroid gland. The left vocal cord was paralysed – for life. All hell broke loose. There were frantic visits to various doctors, but all in vain. All that came out of my mouth were hoarse, inaudible, mumbles. The doctor’s verdict – a nerve once slit cannot be rejoined. But then Miracles do happen and my life has been full of them.
A close friend visiting me from Chennai had a common cold and on her return flight hurt her eardrum due to air pressure fluctuations. She casually visited an ENT nearby and he turned out to be Dr. Mohan Kameshwaran, a Padma Shri, founder of MERF- Madras ENT Research Foundation.
To cut a long story short, he treated me in such a manner that I got my voice back. No medication, no further surgery – just his unique expertise. By massaging the right vocal cord, he made it so flexible that it could stretch and touch the stationary left vocal cord and enable it to emit sounds. Post two months of treatment I could speak- again. Since then I am Unstoppable. I want to use the power of the spoken word to spread positivity. I strongly feel I was given my voice back for a reason- it had to serve a higher purpose. I, that shy, timid tongue-tied girl have metamorphosed into a charismatic, powerful public speaker.
I started a platform called ‘A JOURNEY WITH GRATITUDE’ that has snowballed into a big tribe of like-minded people from around the globe, who seek my guidance and mentorship. My services in helping people overcome the trials of life have been pro bono, as I strongly believe that one needs to take responsibility, think beyond one’s self. I am presently a Life Coach, a Certified Belief Clearing Practitioner, An Angel Coach, a Pranic Healer, a Law of Attraction coach, a Motivational Speaker, a PechaKucha speaker.
Talk us through what you do and how do you manage to strike a fine balance between all your passions?
As an Advertising and BTL Agency co-head, the exposure and experience I’ve gained is unparalleled. The brainstorming of ideas and its creative rendition has been both challenging and rewarding. In another dimension, as a Certified Belief Clearing Practitioner, I motivate people to tap into the Power of their Subconscious Mind, training them to release their negativity and the ‘limiting beliefs’ embedded deep within. Techniques that erase manifestation blocks and calibrate one to the frequency of the abundant Universe.
As a Motivational speaker and Life Coach, I propel positivity. I emphasise on ‘Mindful Thinking’ and on the miracles of gratitude. Mine is ‘A Journey “With” Gratitude’ , gratitude being my companion and we walk together, hand in hand. I often proclaim –‘I’m not a Motivational speaker, I am a MOTIVATED speaker.”
What makes your journey satisfying and exciting?
My life’s journey has been really satisfying, particularly since I’ve started this platform on which I share my knowledge and expertise with all.
It is my passion, my purpose – I have found my “Ikigai”. I feel blessed when I get so many acknowledgements expressing gratitude for having made a positive difference in their lives. It serves as a daily reminder that I am on the right path. I feel I am very much a happier person and an emotionally fulfilled human being now.
In your opinion what are the keys to success?
I feel the key to success is first and foremost understanding that we create our own reality and that we can manifest a phenomenal life with the power of our mind. We are capable of extraordinary things once we rid ourselves of the limiting beliefs we’ve unconsciously imbibed.
There is no substitute for hard work, I agree, but having the correct Mindset – that of abundance, positivity, self-love, self-confidence, compassion, resilience – is equally imperative in attaining a successful balanced life.
What are the three most important lessons you have learned in your life?
(1) The ultimate solution for every problem is Gratitude! Being grateful inspite of the extenuating circumstances of life. Being grateful for little things that we take for granted.
(2) You have to Give in order to Get. It is our duty to think beyond ourselves. Give – by virtue of your time, money or experience – it can be anything. This changes the entire dynamics and triggers the law of attraction.
(3) Lastly, I’d like to repeat – Believe in miracles. Not just believe but rather Expect Miracles.
What advice would you give to our readers? Your message to them?
“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”~ Albert Einstein
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