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 Sujana Prakash Rao for an exclusive interview with us. She is an Entrepreneur, Leader, Coach, Content Creator, 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 Sujana:
Could you please talk us through your background and your journey?
I feel grateful as I write about my journey of this amazing ‘life’. Professionally, I am a Life Coach, A Content Creator and an Entrepreneur. These are the roles I have taken up over the last few years.
After years of self-reflection, these are the new roles I chose for myself. These roles are completely aligned with who I am as a person and the work that I have been doing so far has been extremely fulfilling.”
Coming to this point where I am doing exactly the kind of work I have always wanted to do, is a blessing in itself.
I completed my Masters in Marketing Management in the year 2006. I worked for seven years across two major MNC companies in the domain of Market Research and content creation. I tried to fit in well in my role and in the corporate culture as I was trying to build a strong foundation for my career.
Initially, everything seemed exciting, the place, the people, the systems and the learning but eventually I wasn’t enjoying my work. I wasn’t seeing much real growth happening as the work felt monotonous and I felt stuck. At the core, I missed fulfilment and excitement for the work I did. It was a great company, a good role, good salary, It was all that I always wanted and it was all that most people around me were happy with.
I had a lot of such questions bothering me but I never found any answers back then and I continued working in the same roles until March 2012. The same year, my life took a new turn as I had to relocate to a new place owing to my husband’s transfer. I had to leave everything behind in the city, I had grown up and built my career and connections.”
Although it didn’t look like a great thing to happen back then, I decided to accept and embrace the change. I made up my mind and I was all set for a new life, new connections, new opportunities and new experiences in a new city which was culturally quite different.
On the personal front, I did miss my place and my people but the new place was promising as I felt loved and welcomed by all. I started to adapt myself with the new environment and within no time, I could build some beautiful connections and gel well with the people. On the work front, I had to take a career break. So, I took a break of two years to take care of my young daughter and things at home.
Eventually, it occurred to me, I couldn’t be that way for long. I liked to be in motion always and for those two years, I experienced FOMO. In 2015 I decided to take up teaching as a career. English language has always been close to my heart and I worked with two of the most reputed schools as an English Faculty from 2015 until 2022.
Somewhere in 2018, I felt the urge to seriously figure out what I really wanted to do with my life. There was a lot of learning and growth involved in my teaching journey but at the core I wanted to accomplish something more. I somehow have always believed that we are here to make a positive difference in the lives of people. I really wanted to make a greater contribution. So with an open heart and mind, I was exploring a lot of other opportunities that could lead me to create a greater impact and further enhance my skillset and mindset.”
As they say, “What you are seeking is already seeking you.”, That’s how I got into coaching. I became a certified life coach in 2021 after completing my Coach Certification Programme- PCC level from the prestigious, “Master My Life” Institute. From there on, there has been no looking back. I work as a full-time coach, focusing on the areas of personal growth and career development of individuals. I realised this was my true calling and how much I love to empower and support people in discovering their best version.
Another great thing happened as I came across a wonderful opportunity that was again aligned with my core values of learning and growth. I started understanding the power of connections and networking.
This further led me to venture into entrepreneurship and I started my entrepreneurial journey in 2022. I take great pride in the fact that I am a part of Global Business and a Leadership Development Programme, Atlantis Leadership.”
Our mission as a team is to develop world-class leaders through coaching and mentorship and build a community of successful entrepreneurs while striving to learn and grow continually.
How did you discover your passion?
Over the span of the last fifteen years, I have taken up various roles and analysed my career at every step.
I was always passionate about connecting with people and helping them to lead a better life. I was exploring a lot of things related to Learning and Development. One thing led to another and I got introduced to the world of coaching.”
This quest led me to take up the coaching certification and when I did that, I could connect all the dots. I realised, I was a true seeker and learner and loved to be in the growth zone always.
Some of the job roles I took, did not offer me that learning environment so when I got into coaching, it was easy for me to figure out what served and what did not serve me.
Ultimately It was about doing things and taking up roles where I could make the best of my potential and do justice to myself and the people around me. When I embraced authenticity as my core value, discovering my passion became an easy and fulfilling choice.
How do you manage to keep going despite the challenges? What drives you?
I believe a life without challenges is just a myth. We all have gone through them at various times to varied degrees. The bigger the dreams we have, the greater the challenges. I think if you are okay with a mediocre life and don’t bother about your purpose or calling, your life will be less challenging.
As for me, I am a learner, seeker and dreamer. I have always wanted to live an extraordinary life of purpose and that calls for being prepared to face greater challenges. Every challenge I have come across has made me a better person. People and their stories inspire me a lot.”
When I read stories of great men and women, I know well how many challenges and obstacles they have gone through, yet they made a success story because they decided to never give up.
This has inspired me to never give up on my dreams no matter how difficult the situation. Also, I have realised the beauty and essence of the journey we take to accomplish our dreams. The journey matters more than the destination. My efforts matter more than my goals. This value of enjoying my journey and yet being passionate about my dreams, drives me every single day.
Who do you believe has been the biggest source of motivation in your daily life?
Well, I have a long list to share if I have to answer this. This entire universe or mother nature, everything inspires me. Everything follows a perfect pattern and all the aspects of nature are functioning so smoothly.
I feel deeply connected to these elements and drive motivation to create the same harmony in my life and the lives of others. I get inspired by the books I read and the stories I hear about people who have been living a meaningful and purposeful life not just for themselves but for making this world a better place to live.
I am blessed to have the support of great family and friends who have stood by me in my thick and thin. My parents were and will always remain my cheerleaders even though they have left this world. The values they shared and the ways in which they inspired me, will remain forever, guiding me throughout this life.”
I met my spiritual Guru Sri Sri Ravishankarji very early on in my life when I went through the Art of Living course. This beautiful AOL family and my Guru have always been instrumental in shaping my life.
Another source of guiding light and profound wisdom has been Steve Hardison and the Ultimate Coach Community. I got associated with both of these after reading the book, “The Ultimate Coach”. Steve Hardison preaches the one grand principle of life that “being’ is everything.” This profound wisdom has changed the way I look at my life and I am inspired to create a beautiful life every single day.
Last but not least my personal coaches and mentors in my coaching community and business community inspire me every single day. I am so grateful to my personal mentors Vikas Sugandhi and Neeha Sugandhi who have played a significant role in shaping my thought process and keep guiding and inspiring me to give out my best.
What are some of the strategies that you believe have helped you grow as a person?
> My core values and beliefs to be a life-long learner
> Self-love and self-care
> Reading Books
> Listening to podcasts
> Travelling to places
> Coaching and mentorship
> Meaningful connections
> Strong belief in myself and god
> Having a loving and compassionate heart
> Being True to who I am and being intentional about who I want to be
In your opinion what are the keys to success?
I believe having a growth mindset and a strong future desired state for which you are willing to put in the required work are the essential keys for success. Being committed to your dreams and goals and having belief in yourself that you have it in you, will lead to success.
One of the most important keys to success I believe is to be a giver more than a taker, when you are intentional about making a positive difference in people’s lives, you are sure to grow in all areas of your life. Anything big that you want to accomplish in your life requires you to have strong commitment, conviction and courage to act at every milestone and never give up even when you fall down.
You need to vibrate higher and have a positive frequency to manifest success in your life. The core principle I have understood is that success is not an overnight thing. I have to put in some work every single day in order to create a successful life or a life of great significance.
What advice would you give to our readers?
I want all my readers to understand that life is not a bed of roses always. There are good and bad days. Don’t give up when you face the storms. Love yourself the most and live a meaningful and purposeful life.
Don’t be afraid of getting out of your comfort zone because growth happens outside of the comfort zone. Be willing to put consistent work in the direction of your dreams and goals. Never stop creating. Create every single day. Smile more and be present for others unconditionally.
Try to make a positive difference in the lives of people. Have strong belief and faith in yourself and in god. No matter where you are today, believe that the best is yet to come if you are open to receiving it. Follow the Go-Giver Principles in life and spread love always. Last but not the least, be fiercely authentic. Wear your authenticity with pride. Enjoy this journey of life as it is more about who you are becoming in the process. Never give up on your dreams no matter what someone tells you. Live life to the fullest and celebrate your life often!
Last but not least, what about your journey makes it satisfying/exciting?
There are a lot of things that make my journey satisfying and exciting:
I have experienced big transitions in my life like change of places, culture, people and job roles. All of these brought some challenges but I can say with great pride, that the journey has been one of learning, satisfaction and excitement.
Two years back when I became a life coach and left my full-time job, that transition has been the most exciting part of my life. As things started progressing gradually in my coaching business and also after I ventured on my entrepreneurial journey, I started to feel the excitement of life.
To be able to do things that are deeply fulfilling and aligned with my values is a great blessing. The fact that I have taken better charge of my life and doing all that I love to do, fills me with immense joy every single day.
I believe life is all about being excited about everything you do. Every day when I wake up, I am being intentional about creating an exciting day. I try to give my best in the present and that inspires me to look forward to an exciting and inspiring future.
Last but not least I am a people person. People excite me the most. My, family, friends, coaches, mentors, communities I am a part of and my connections are the prime reason for my growth and excitement. I am excited every day as I get to learn, share, care and grow with them.
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.
