n t
and now I was as free as a bird to But it was, after all, the voyage of our
i a
e f
D
I
grew up in the town of Ranchi and
DREAMS
after my post-graduation I found
myself staring at a wall with the
words “get married and settle down”
Flights, family, fitness and
printed in parochial fonts. Marriage
was certainly on the cards but I wasn’t
entrepreneurship. By Anupriya Sinha
ready to accept that as the cul-de-sac
of my dreams. Something wasn’t
right. A voice in me was constantly
asking me to look around myself and
find that door of opportunity. And, as
luck would have it, a large airline was
recruiting for cabin crew and I found
myself sitting before the interview
panel and – guess what – I walked out
with an offer. Back then, the job of a
cabin crew was still an unconventional
one, especially for people in smaller
towns. For me, donning the flight
crew uniform wasn’t anything short
of a leap of life. I had developed
wings! Where my world used to be
college, home and friends, I suddenly
found myself having my breakfast in
Mumbai, lunch at Dubai and dinner in
London. I loved my job, I loved
globetrotting and I loved the money
that came. The
schedule was
grueling. I was
T HI S I S A P O IN T O F flying long hauls, working across time
I N F L E C T I ON W H E N zones – but who has time to complain
when you’re having so much fun.
M O S T W OM E N H A V E My stint as a cabin crew wasn’t all
T O NE G O T I A T E . E V E N about travel, money and fun. It was a
phase of serious learning and
C O NV E N T I O NA L introspection. Interacting with
CAREER OPTIONS colleagues, visiting distant
lands, meeting people
PUT FORTH MYRIAD from various
CHALLENGES IN meeting
cultures,
BALANCING extremely
MOTHERHOOD AND successful people and
then meeting absolute
PROFESSIONS. scoundrels-every interaction
taught me something. My job broke
the cocoon of self-imposed limitations
direction which would lead me to the
think. And I did think. I realised that
there are opportunities all around us.
That while it may not always be
possible to get “the opportunity”, we
can always find “an opportunity” and
then it is for us to make the best out
of it.
The job of a cabin crew is physically
demanding and I realised that one of
the ingredients of success in any
endeavour is physical fitness. By the
time I completed my first year with
the airline, I had become a die-hard
fitness freak, an obsession that
continues till today. I had scarce
realisation of what kind of role this
personal passion of mine was to play
in future.
I was having a blast in my life. I had
travelled the globe and was making
decent money. I thought I had arrived
in life. The next logical step was
marriage which was soon followed by
motherhood. My life became a
triangle between my job which I
loved, my husband and our child who
was the centre of our world. The
pitter-patter of his tiny feet filled our
life with music and I was consumed
with my maternal duties.
This is a point of inflection when
most women have to negotiate. Even
conventional career options put forth
myriad challenges in balancing
motherhood and professions. In my
case, the challenge was compounded
by the fact that I had to travel abroad.
I was fortunate to have my husband
who stood by me and of course, our
families who extended their support.
life and we were supposed to captain
the ship. With all the generous
support that we received, I resumed
my flying.
But there was a furious maelstrom
of emotions that I was going through.
My mere presence brought the
shimmer of a zillion stars in my baby’s
little eyes. The very sight of me
packing my suitcase or ironing my
flight uniform would instantly cause
an inexplicable longing in his eyes.
With his forlorn eyes, he’d stare at his
mother ironing her prized uniform.
Helplessly. Wishing, praying and then
eventually accepting his mother’s yet
another absence. I was forced to
reconsider continuing being a
professional cabin crew. But if not
this, then what?
P O SI TI V E C HAN G E S
Motherhood had completed me
but the fire to do something, make a
mark in the world and most
importantly, be the reason for some
positive change was simmering in my
belly. First I loved being a full-time
mother. Second I could not continue
with my flying job. Last but not the
last, I still wanted to make it by in my
life. I needed a sweet spot, a
confluence of these three asks, a
meeting point of conflicting realities.
But that wasn’t easy. Quitting my job
and being a full-time mom was a very
natural slope down the hill of
confusion that I stood on atop. But
then, I was looking for that one
beautiful valley of opportunities
wherein I could be a dutiful mom and
work at the same time.
By this time the fitness freak in me
had consumed me completely. I had
learnt aerobics, zumba, pilate,
kickboxing, and yoga and was already
participating in marathons. The rush
of adrenaline that I get every time
when I push myself during workouts is
something that I crave for. Soon, I had
developed a circle of friends who
inspired me and also found me
inspiring. It was at this time that I
started looking at a career in fitness
seriously.
Now, it’s one thing to enroll
oneself at a gym and totally a
different ballgame to float your own
fitness business. Self-doubts are the
biggest foes of success and I had my
more than fair share of them. No one
in my family had been an
entrepreneur. No one had ever
thought of going on one’s own.
Study, grow up, find a job was the
mantra. An unsaid notion that
permeated the milieu that I grew up in
was that a job brought respect,
business was, well you know “…he
couldn’t do anything and is now trying
business” kind of thing. Growing up in
a parochial environment, such a
plunge was almost unthinkable for me
while I was growing up.
On the other hand, in today’s
world, entrepreneurship is cool. It’s. It
immediately conjures up the image of
a group of twenty-somethings
huddled in a basement or garage
devouring countless cups of coffee
coming up with that one bright idea
that’d change the world. Those super-
intelligent beings who’d be
millionaires by the time they reach
their thirties and then epics would be
written about them.
Sadly, I was neither in my twenties,
nor did I have any clue of how to
create the next Facebook of Google. I
was a wife and a mother who was
struggling to manage her professional
aspirations with my familial
commitments. This is another of my
learnings which I’d like to observe.
Entrepreneurship isn’t just about that
one change-the-world idea. It’s also
about a leap of faith. It’s about a
desire to impact lives. Above all, it’s
about taking that chance and taking it
here and now.
With a lot of encouragement from
my family and friends and a lot of
trepidation, I announced the launch of
Elixir Wellness, a professional set-up
providing fitness classes. I started
with a single client who continues to
be with me till today. It used to look a
tad odd for a group exercise session
being conducted in a large hall, music
at full blast and with just two people –
a trainer and a client.
People would call to make
enquiries and then then there would
be a long taxing wait. Sometimes,
they’d call back, sometimes they
wouldn’t. Day after a day, I’d expect
my client base to grow and every day I
came back disappointed. At this point,
I’d like to observe another of my
learnings.
Patience, perseverance,
continuous self-assessment and goal
alignment are important. It’s one’s
commitment to one’s craft and faith
in the cause that is required to tide
over this phase. Even the most
seasoned professionals of the
industry, people whom I and others in
our fraternity look up to, had to take
that first class with that first client.
Slowly, my client base grew and
good word about my services did the
rest. Another learning – one word of
genuine appreciation from a client is
34
much more impactful than a ton of
advertising. Client’s satisfaction is the
barometer of success and the pen you
write your success story with.
Thankfully, my little team of fitness
freaks was growing and I was getting
extremely encouraging feedbacks. I
found myself spending a lot of time
and money on upgrading my
knowledge and skills, something I
continue to do till today.
Today I’ve hundreds of satisfied
clients I’m associated with several
corporates and my dream of being a
brand is slowly taking shape.
B E I N G O NE S E L F
Most importantly, I’m able to pack
the lunchbox for my husband and son
in the morning, see my son go to
school, receive him when he’s back,
help him with studies, crafts and
games, elocutions and drama.
Today I’m a wife, a mother, an
entrepreneur. I’m myself.
Other women like me, who are on
the crossroads of life struggling to
strike a balance between family life,
motherhood and their own craving
for making a mark on the terra firma
of their inner calling. Always
remember that there’s always a door
of opportunity round the corner. Do
not give up. It’s never too late to
start. The ride’s going to be bumpy.
Setbacks would lurk at every nook
and corner. Naysayers will ridicule
Woman’s Era ● August (Second) 2017
you. But they’ll also teach you a
valuable life lesson – whom not to pay
heed to.
You’ll also find people who
encourage you with words and deeds
and otherwise and they are your true
partners in life. They deserve more of
you and better of you. Give yourself
to those relationships whether it’s
your spouse, sibling, cousin, friend,
beloved or just your neighbour.
They’ll rejoice in your success and
hold your hands when you’re down.
Further, success will not endure
forever, nor will failure. They are
intermediate camps, the fun lies in
journey. Whatever happens to your
venture eventually, the experience
that you get while you’re at it would
be rewarding. It’ll be yours. Forever.
The true prize of your endeavor.
I’m forced to recollect Chak De
India here. Whether you win or lose
the hockey match, no one can take
those 70 minutes from you. Go get
your 70 minutes from providence.
I found my hockey in fitness. Yours
could be in cooking or baking or
painting or music or social service or
politics or philosophy or being a
mathematician or an astrophysicist or
for that matter anything under the
warm glow of the sun. Go, get up and
Chak De….
We
Be civil to all; sociable to many;
familiar with few; friend to one;
enemy to none.