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 Shreya Mehta for an exclusive interview with us. She is an Entrepreneur, Leader, Coach, Consultant, Mentor, Influencer and Change Enabler. Let’s learn more about her incredible journey, her background, and her advice for our growing community!
Excerpts from our exclusive interview with Shreya:
Could you please talk us through your background and your journey, please;
I come from a family for whom education and kindness go hand in hand. So, we started early on: studies and “being a nice human being” were our main goals. Making decisions was an option but only if that served either of these two purposes.
I like carving my path rather than just following people blindly. I have changed careers, moved cities and countries, tried different industries; all of this with one thing being constant: perseverance.
My parents and siblings provided far beyond what they could, just to give me the life I have. Early on I was titled as an insurgent: My 2 tattoos and cartilage piercing are tangible examples of me being a rebel girl from the 80s.
After my initial education in my Hometown Chittorgarh (Rajasthan), I went to MGD for 2 years and then to Mumbai. The dreams were shaping into reality already.
I moved to the US after living in Mumbai for 8 years, where life was filled with Love, Experiences, and Lifelong Friendships. My world turned upside down, as I was starting from scratch in the US; it looked scary and uncertain.
I have been a Talent Acquisition Partner with companies like MS, TikTok and Amazon after my professional MBA. Currently, I am working with Uber in Seattle. Being an immigrant is rewarding and challenging. And I believe that life has a way to take you to places where you learn and serve the BEST!
How did you discover your passion as a ‘Coach’?
I never discovered it. I noticed that through my conversation and presence, I was impacting people’s life in a positive way. Since my days in India, I have been coaching people on different aspects.
I worked at Mewar University for a year, it was then that I realized I have resources and knowledge that people can benefit with. There, I found a purpose. Life took a pause with my move to a different country, although with my Professional MBA, I got myself a title: A Professional Growth Coach.
I help clients with their Professional Growth and Transition Journey. I wouldn’t have been here without the help of people and resources, so I serve and work with everyone who has Ambition, Vision and Passion
How do you manage to keep going despite the challenges? What drives you?
I love talking about this. What keeps me going is the thought that “I AM NOT DONE YET” and I have so much more to give, to share and to learn. The idea that in this lifetime we can be only one thing is bogus to me.
I try to not let any society or my own mind restrict myself. A journey without speedbumps can be monotonous and boring. We got this one life, so why waste it on usual things: invest it in unusual.
“Gratitude” keeps me going as I have this passion and chance to make a difference in this world.
Who do you believe has been the biggest source of motivation in your daily life?
Motivations come from different factors: people trying to fit you into a box coz you are a woman or an immigrant or too loud or too opinionated. And then the other side of it is “you are enough”.
For me, it came from the idea that I want to be everything I am capable of. I have so much more to learn and experience. So, the motivation is to live my idea of me.
All that being said: My Family. Since the very beginning of my journey, they have been my cheerleaders, supporters, and motivators.
They navigated the best and I can never be where I am without their love and greatness. FOREVER GRATITUDE FOR THEIR CONSTANT PRESENCE IN MY LIFE.
Currently, I am motivated by this “If not now, when”
What are some of the strategies that you believe have helped you grow as a person?
> Making happiness a habit
> To not take things personally and moving away from people/situations that make me feel otherwise.
> Living in the present.
> Gratitude: I am not whole without you all.
> Assessing who I am and disregarding who I am perceived as.
In your opinion what are the keys to success?
(1) Loving your life. Every inch of it and to know that if you will not build that dream life for yourself no one else would.
(2) To be diligent: to learn, update and network. To have a growth mindset and be ready to be disagreed with.
(3) To be with people who intimidate you: with their growth, success, intellectual, kindness, spirituality, or emotions.
(4) To not wait for the right moment or the right person. You are the right person and NOW is the right moment.
(5) Be an action taker. PERIOD.
What advice would you give to our readers?
Take charge of your life. Start now, do not wait for things to happen, just start building it. Everyone learns with their own experiences and mistakes but read and learn from others’ journey too.
Work on acquiring more skills, being present, networking and maintaining the relationships that leads you to success.
There is no one mantra for success but follow this “I KNOW WHAT I AM CAPABLE OF AND I WILL NOT STOP UNTIL I GET THERE” REPEAT THAT!!!
Last but not least, what about your journey makes it satisfying/exciting?
I am sailing, enjoying the wind and the occasional water splashes on my face. Is the journey smooth: NO!!! But do I love it! YES!!! I know my parents saw a dream for us: me and my siblings.
We all are sailing through to be the best versions of ourselves and to make them proud. They had one goal: their children. For me, the satisfaction is to hear “We are so proud of you” from them when I cry about missing them.
My high is when my siblings tell me how happy they are about my growth and that no matter what, they love me. I give a lot of credit of my financial independence to my husband who probed the question of my identity and self-dependency, and I am forever grateful to him for that.
My friends who stood by me through my evolving years and constantly asked me “If I was okay” When I see a client getting their dream job or overcoming their fear of public speaking. To me, this is a success: Living the life you want to live! Which is not easy at all, but with the right education, determination and intentions, everything is achievable.
All of these experiences make this journey and life-nourishing. There is so much more to the existence, and I am glad I have my constants: Perseverance, Passion and People!
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.
