331. A Career Vision in a Split-Second Flash
Dr. Swati Lodha
Born to loving—and enlightened—parents in a traditional culture in Rajasthan, India, she realized how fortunate she was to be encouraged to think for herself. As a college student, she heard a speaker talk about paradigm shifts, and in a split-second she knew what her career would be.
Dr. Swati Lodha is the founder of Life Lemonade, a training organization for life transformation, women empowerment, leadership and parenting. With a doctorate in Women Entrepreneurship, she is an Amazon No. 1 bestselling author of Don’t Raise Your Children, Raise Yourself and many other bestselling books. At the age of 21, she founded her first Company, SWASH Pvt. Ltd. (Skills, Wit and Attitude are Shaped Here) to groom Indian Youth. She has been Dean of several Indian business schools.
How Did You Start Using Your Talents?
“I was born in India to amazing Indian parents who loved me and gave me the freedom to think and decide. That was mostly unheard of in Rajasthan, which is a traditional state in India. My mom always wanted, no matter what, that we should have enough education and be self-reliant. At the age of 21, while I was pursuing my post-grad program in management, I started an organization called SWASH, where I worked with thousands of children, adolescents and professionals, helping them gain confidence and become effective speakers. When all my other friends were sending out resumes and looking for jobs, I decided to work on my own with the organization I had started. I believe that if I change one person, I change one world.”
The Most Impactful Turning Point?
“In college, I attended a small leadership program conducted by an organization in my city. I was there as an observer. One of the speakers was talking about paradigm shifts. As I was listening to him, I decided in a split-second what I wanted to do all my life. I realized that my career was to become a motivational speaker or a life coach, though I was not familiar with these terms at that time. From then on, I started talking to people, to learn from them, to help them find their purpose, to make them confident.”
The Most Powerful Lessons Learned?
“It’s very important to be failure-friendly, and to be positively accepting when we fail. So, let’s learn to fail better, because we learn more when we fail. There’s no better teacher in life than failure. Then, it’s perfectly fine to learn the lesson and move on.”
Steps to Success from Dr. Swati Lodha
1. Know what will keep you alive, what will keep you passionate in the long run.
2. Don’t let yourself be overly affected by what others are doing. The comparison-bug kills most of us.
3. Welcome failure with open arms, and success with a nod. It makes us courageous when we fail, and grounded when we achieve.
On Her Bookshelf
How Will You Measure Your Life? by Clayton M. Christensen, James Allworth and Karen Dillon
Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life’s Greatest Lesson, by Mitch Albom
Leadership on the Line: Staying Alive through the Dangers of Leading, by Martin Linsky and Ronald A. Heifetz
Elon Musk: Biography of a Self-Made Visionary, Entrepreneur and Billionaire, by B Storm
Why Women Are What They Are, by Swati Lodha
Don’t Raise Your Children, Raise Yourself, by Swati Lodha
Come On, Get Set, Go, by Sailesh Lodha and Swati Lodha
Connecting With Dr. Swati Lodha
Website: drswatilodha.com
Twitter: @Dr_Swati_Lodha
Facebook: facebook.com/Dr.SwatiLodha/
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/drswatilodha
Free Gift
Don’t Grow Cold, As You Grow Old – A Free E-Book to Learn Important Lessons from Our Children. Visit drswatilodha.com
