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Great Companies- What exactly is 'Crossed Design' all about? What are the different services you offer? Saurabh Garg : Crossed Design is a design thinking led innovation company. As a company we use the principals of Human Centered Design to understand complex systems from user's point of view and design solutions focused around the user’s experience throughout the lifecycle of the product. As an innovation company, we offer services like UX Research, New Product (or service) Design, Strategy & Innovation Management. Apart from that, we also help organisations like British Council & Mahindra to build a culture of innovation within their cross functional teams using Design Thinking. Great Companies- Why did you choose being an entrepreneur rather than doing a job as it involves less risk? Saurabh Garg : Right after completing Masters of Design from National Institute of Design I started working as a Concept Designer with TATA Motors - India’s largest car manufacturer. Like most newbies, I was very fascinated by the idea of working with large OEMs. Soon I realised that as a car designer, I was barely scratching the tip of the iceberg. Earlier during my design education, I understood that design as a discipline has immense potential to offer. Something I have always wanted to do was to experiment with design and explore its potential in bringing innovation across domains and sectors. I felt that the job, I was in, was very limiting in terms of exploring applications of design. With this curiosity, I resigned from my cushioned job and started hunting and scavenging. It was not an easy choice. I had to pay my bills, eat food and survive. For a good two years, I worked on multitudes of projects ranging from branding, UX/UI, custom motorcycle design, interiors and space design, retails experience design, design research etc. I grabbed onto any opportunity I could and learnt my way through it. During those two years, I got exposed to the term ‘Design Thinking’ through some folk from the business world. The tools and methods that were being used by designers for ages had been re-framed & repacked as ‘Design Thinking’. Design Thinking was selling like hot cakes across Businesses. This became an entry point into the business world. By then I realized that I was more of a hands-on person and needed someone with a lateral thought process. Someone who has the ability to understand complex systems and someone who could be comfortable with the disequilibrium. Sanchi, an old friend, studied Strategic Design Management at NID. She has always guided me throughout my journey until now. That time she was working at Shuttl as Product Manager leading their consumer product development team. I reached out to her and proposed the idea of working together. After multiple conversations over chai, together we envisioned Crossed Design, as you see it today. Since then it has been a roller coaster ride. Great Companies- 'Crossed Design' seem to offer a lot of services, how you ensure efficiency and timely delivery? Saurabh Garg : Oh! well, that’s something we are proud of! We try not to have multiple projects simultaneously; instead, we immerse ourself into one or two projects at max at one point of time. That also makes us a little selective in picking up projects. Fortunately, interesting projects keep falling into our laps. For instance, we got a chance to design a gamified learning platform for kids, we worked with Google on some of their India centric projects, we worked on formulating governance policies with a global NGOs etc. At crossed Design, instead of obsessing for quantity of projects, we focus on quality of project. All that said, creativity comes at a cost - you can’t fast forward through the process. Designers are infamous for their creative blocks and breakdowns. These blocks are necessary for creativity. There is always this period of chaos, when you feel that your brain is not working and you are not able to find the right answers. In reality, that is the time when the brain is working the most - it is thinking, reflecting and processing. As creative professionals, we acknowledge these ‘creative blocks’. With practice, we have learnt to accommodate these ‘periods of thinking’ within our project timelines. Great Companies- What is the mission of 'Crossed Design' and how close are you in achieving it? Saurabh Garg : Ahh! Not at all close. I think I dream bigger than I can handle. We see Crossed Design as becoming the whirlpool of Ideas and Innovation. A place where failing is encouraged and curiosity is bread. Crossed Design will be a place where pure design led innovation can happen in the true spirit of experimentation. We want to create a space which will offer a platform for young minds who are willing to experiment with design, art, culture and technology. We are sort of already on the path, I believe. We are associating with universities to carry out some interesting academic research and innovation projects through collaborations. We have already developed few published frameworks of our own, which are worth patenting. We are always on a lookout for organisations and individuals who are investing into the idea of bringing innovation through design. Great Companies- Any advice you would like to give to aspiring entrepreneurs? Saurabh Garg : There will be lots of times in your life when you will feel dejected and rejected. You will find everyone standing against you, trying to pull you down - that is the time when you have to be strong. No matter what, just don’t give up. Just don’t! #design #Designing #designthinking

Great Companies- When and how was the idea of Kineer Services Pvt Ltd incubated? Manish Jain The plight of the Hijra Community (Third/Neutral gender) is not hidden from anyone but still no/ very little action has been taken towards providing a sustainable employment/ income source for them. They are left with a choice to either beg on the roads or to indulge in Skin Trade. It was surprising to see that the grants too were only focused in ways of distributing condoms or taking HIV/ safe sex sessions. Which we feel is just another way of labelling/ approving their indulgence in skin trade. During my tenure at the healthcare industry I faced a unique challenge - Providing male attendants for male patients and female attendants for female patients. This would drastically increase my manpower cost for GDAs. This led to a thought - ' Could two issues self-correct if merged' What if we hire the third gender which could not only resolve this issue but also assist in the paradigm shift for them being treated as care givers henceforth. A person with the strength of a man and a heart of a woman, who could lift a stretcher if required and also mother a patient if needed. Same applies to washroom attendants - Male for Male and Female for Female - wouldn't the neutral gender be the perfect fit? 'If not NOW then WHEN?' and 'If not US then WHO?' were the questions that led to the initiation of Kineer Services. We at Kineer believe that our community has gaps where the Hijras can fit perfectly. For example at India it is considered unsafe for a girl/ lady to travel by a cab/taxi alone. Our question is why the cabs of the leading taxi service companies can’t be operated by the members of the third gender. This would not only eradicate the concern of safety for women travellers but would also provide a dignified employment opportunity for the Hijra. Call centre placement was also one area that could be worked upon. Great Companies- Article 377 has been abolished, what do you have to say about it? Manish Jain Abolishing Article 377 is a major step in acceptance of the community but still there is a long road ahead. Focus is now required towards changing of mindsets and ensuring that equal opportunities are now provided not just by the govt. but by the private sector. We understand that lots need to be done in terms of capacity building and sensitization. Even easing the formalities of specification change in terms of Adhaar, PAN etc would assist in fast tracking placements. Great Companies- There is still a lot of stigma attached to transgender, how do you think it can be addressed and removed? Manish Jain Mindset change is the biggest hurdle when it comes to mainstreaming the community. Challenges are to be met with a very open mindset not just from external environment but also by the internal traditions of the communities. Open forums of discussions have been initiated at companies with formation of POSH and Pride circles but they can only gain traction when the mission of mainstreaming the community is taken up in the company’s mission and vision and in their CSR mandates. Showcasing of initiatives such as ours would also play a big role in understanding the urgent need for everyone to be inclusive. But true change can only come once everyone aligns to the removal of this social evil and is willing to open their own blindfold. Media plays a very important role and a focused approach by the govt. can bring about a paradigm shift in due course of time. Great Companies- Kineer Services Pvt Ltd offers a lot of services from education platforms to cosmetic range. How do you manage such different domains which are not at all related? Manish Jain Passion is the only thing that can make everything easy. Once your heart is set on brining the change, this passion resonates with others and resources start to come together. You would be surprised to see how all these initiatives are intertwined. If we talk about Kineer Services, the focus was on mainstreaming the community whether it was placing the members in our own factories or whether it was training them to fit roles with other companies who were willing to take them on board. Our education platform works on a reverse integration model, wherein members are trained on the subject matter according to the Job Profiles shared by the company who are willing to hire. Partners such as Diversey India came forward to conduct these capacity building sessions and Partners such as Essar foundation came forward to support the daily wage loss during attending these workshops. Together is another word that makes every problem solvable. Great Companies- You are working towards forming a 'KINEER NATIONAL CRICKET TEAM', please tell us something about it. Also, what do you define as success? Manish Jain Talent comes in all forms. We saw the same in the members and wished to enhance their own passion rather than creating another mould of conformity. It is only once we as a society see the community excel in all walks of life will the blindfold start to loosen its grip. Acceptance only in one area will create further prejudice so we at Kineer believe that we need to explore all possibilities of acceptance and mainstreaming. Success for me is when you are able to enlighten the flame of your passion with someone else, because that is the only way that a vision can be everlasting. #transgender #hijra #employment

Great Companies- Can you please tell us about some of the services provided at Intellexsys Legal Solutions? Adv. Roshni Lachhwani - Intellexsys was founded 4 years ago to provide legal solutions in the field of intellectual property rights, information technology, media and business laws. Intellexsys assists businesses, start-ups, individuals, organisations, etc. with a holistic array of process involved in legal business development, trade mark, copyright, patents, web agreements, media agreements, franchise agreements, intellectual property and information technology, legal and business consultancy, legal due diligence for clients based across the globe having catered to countries such as Dubai, Singapore, Japan, Netherlands, USA, Italy, Hong Kong, Hungary, Malaysia and Russia. Great Companies- Your company provides many services related to IP, how do you ensure efficiency and accuracy in your work? Adv. Roshni Lachhwani - With the advent of artificial intelligence, Intellexsys has launched its own mobile application. Any customer can download the APP to view the current status of all the applications filed in their name which has streamlined my processes with regards to sending e-mails/SMS for constant changes in the status of an application. Further, a link which is available on my website upon request allows customers to create drafts of standard process related document within a few seconds by filling a small form to execute with pre-defined instructions. This keeps the management of work efficient. Further, updating drafting and legal skills by taking up new courses and constantly innovating are small attempts to reach a new level of delivering accuracy in work. It’s a never-ending practice. Great Companies- What made you start a company and be an entrepreneur rather than work as a lawyer? Adv. Roshni Lachhwani – Legal requirements for businesses are growing by the second, and what’s important to young and established businesses is to get honest legal advice for the price paid. Further, no business wants to tie its growth to litigation simply for being unaware of how intellectual property rights work has become a pre-requisite for businesses across the globe. That’s precisely where my business, Intellexsys Legal Solutions, fit the bill. Our sole motto is to provide litigation-free solutions by trying alternate legal modalities within a short span of time, successfully fetching the results our patrons wanted and at the price a start-up could afford too! Great Companies- What are the problems that you faced during your starting years? Adv. Roshni Lachhwani - Being a young lawyer and freshly versed in the field, it was a challenge to convince others about the quality of the work and skill on offer. Legal consultancy is one of those professions where a customer expects an elderly looking wise man/woman to guide them and help them avoid making mistakes in business. No-one expects a doe-eyed girl to guide them in legal processes. Precise and timely responsiveness is what helped me carve my own space. However, initially, when I started providing legal services as a freelancer, a small obstacle was to start from scratch using all the savings from internships and jobs towards business expenses, which eventually did generate income but the wait was exasperating. To add to this, lack of manpower support and lack of mentorship would create self-doubt. I gained confidence in my work when I was chosen by few MNC’s to handle their IP work solely due to my understanding of the subject, especially after I pitched along with existing big and small intellectual property firms. Great Companies- Any advice you would like to give to aspiring entrepreneurs? Adv. Roshni Lachhwani – Knowing is not enough, building upon your knowledge is – it leads to innovation. A student’s approach with a learning attitude towards business helps move beyond and overcome errors with a fresh mind set to help avoid a repeat episode. Taking responsibility with integrity, honesty and acceptance along with constant innovation and a learner’s approach is the path to the development of a sustainable business model. Your work should reflect you! #law #advocate #intellectualproperty #IPR

Interviewer - What is the story behind 'Style Space'? Radhika Shankar : In the year 2011, we constructed our house, and I personally had invested efforts in designing and selecting the right materials, colors etc for the Interiors. I found that I had this knack of designing and execution. With this experience, I started helping friends and relatives (Pro Bono work) in their Interior needs. I then realized that this is my strength, and hence founded Style Space in 2013. It has been a great journey since then, with over 250 happy customers. Interviewer - What are your core values which you follow to design homes? Radhika Shankar : I have three core beliefs, which I practice religiously at Style Space 1. Never compromise on Quality (Material, Finish etc) 2. Never compromise on Timely Delivery 3. Home is not a place, it is a feeling. (Deliver an experience to the customer, not just woodwork) Interviewer- What makes 'Your Style Space' different from other interior designing companies? Radhika Shankar : Style space is a Boutique Interior firm, and it stands apart from other Interior Designing companies by way of : 1. Style Space is one of the very few Women Owned and Run Interior Designing Companies. As a woman, I understand the nuances of what a home needs in terms of effective space management, style and lighting. 2. Though I take up and execute the interiors (wood work), I ensure that I spend additional time and effort to suggest and select the right Lighting, Screens, Movable Furniture, Fittings & Accessories etc, that match with the interiors theme that we create. 3. I believe that Interior Design is an art and science of understanding people's behavior to create a functional space. I ensure that I digest the customer's dreams (requirements) and add on to it to create the best interiors that are cherished by them. 4. I believe that ENVIRONMENT is more important than ECONOMY. Hence we at Style Space, plant a Tree after the completion of every Project. Interviewer- What are the strategies you follow to stay ahead of your competitors? Radhika Shankar : A few concepts that have been working for me successfully are : 1. I do not do any marketing (Advertisement, campaigns etc). I do not employ any marketing people, but my CUSTOMERS BECOME MY MARKETING TEAM, as they are happy with the overall output, price and timely delivery. All the 250 projects that I have completed have come ONLY FROM CUSTOMER REFERRALS. 2. TEAM WORK means MORE WE and LESS ME. My 70+ Strong team of skilled Carpenters are my strength, and I have leveraged this to provide exemplary finish, in the least timelines. 3. As a Woman, I understand that each thing in a house needs its own space. Starting from your news paper to your expensive jewelry, we plan the right Place, Space and Size for each of these items. Interviewer- What is your success mantra? Radhika Shankar : Simple. "No one has traveled the road of Success, without crossing the street of Failure". Every project I complete, gives me a new lesson, which I ensure to utilize in the next Project. I look at PAIN as Positive Attitude In Negative Situation. This keeps me going, and makes me to deliver the best to my customers, and keep them as Happy Customers for ever. #Designing #InteriorDesigning

Great Companies - From where did you get the idea of 'Vibha Education Services Corp'? Harini: While I was fascinated and attracted by the teaching profession from childhood, and inspired by my tuition teacher, I started my tuition while I was doing my Master's. Over the years of teaching, I gained knowledge and became an expert in subject matter as the saying goes "Teach to become an expert". I was doing great with my small business 10 years ago. I have had the experience of being a math tuition teacher for 12 years and I have helped hundreds of students to excel. Sometimes I have seen children complain of stomach discomfort or panic on the day of the exams. They do well in schools and my classes, but in the exams, they were not able to give their best. I started to think about it. As I continued taking my classes, I had to relocate. I thought to continue my tuition there, which I could not do so because of the language barriers. I had to sit at home doing nothing. I felt like I had lost my identity, I was depressed and I was under stress. It was at that point of time I realized that I was not happy sitting idle and I knew that I was not me anymore. I started to face health challenges and I struggled a lot to cope up. I realized that I have to learn the skills needed to handle my stress when I saw others excel in their life. I understood life has to be perceived and lived differently and my mind was full of curiosity to learn how to get there. By the time, I came back to India and started my tuition again in 2013. Then, I realized though I was a subject matter expert, I lacked some life skills like problem-solving, decision making, critical thinking. Then I practiced some of them, mindfulness, meditations and undertook some courses, and I applied. Eventually, I saw changes in my life. I felt a gap which was not taught to me in school or anywhere else. We didn’t know how to handle ourselves during hard and challenging times. One day, out of the blue, a thought came to me ‘Why don’t I train students on self-awareness, mindfulness, and Life skills?.’ It was a sudden thought that came up to help students and train them on life skills. I started to give small training in my community from 2013. Then I brought some of my services under the name Vibha Education services Corp. on May 2014. That’s where all it started five years back. Great Companies - What all different kind of services do 'Vibha Education Services Corp' provide? Harini: We provide training and coaching for students between the age 6-23. We train them on The top 10 life skills defined by WHO like Self- Awareness, Goal setting, cognitive skills, coping up with stress and emotion. Apart from this we also provide training on Time Management, personality development program. We deliver One-on-One Coaching for children who suffer from issues like bullying, self -esteem, low confidence and other adolescent issues. Parents and teachers play an important role in the life of children. In that aspect, we conduct workshops for parents on positive parenting and Leadership training programs for teachers. Vibha’s vision is to create a channel that nurtures emotionally strong children, we hold their hand when they stumble through mental blocks leading them to where they truly ought to be. We also train and coach budding and aspiring entrepreneurs to create a blueprint of their dreams, help them to gain clarity and focus through goal-setting sessions. Great Companies - What is your success mantra? Harini : Mantra 1: Take action /steps on the ideas Take action on ideas and dreams as the first step towards success. Mantra 2: Keep working with patience and perseverance There have been times where I didn’t have any projects, all did was promoting myself. When you have a goal and write it down, it helps to focus and be on track. My life experience has taught me resilience and to bounce back. Mantra 3: Keep upgrading your knowledge and skills. Learning is an integral part of me. I realized that during my early years of entrepreneurship and I keep updating my skills ever since. I feel that people in the service industry must be in par with current strategies and skills to succeed Mantra 4: Networking I never miss any opportunity to explore and connect with people. I have never felt embarrassed to talk about myself or my service whenever I meet new people. Unabashed marketing is what every entrepreneur needs to do. I attended a lot of networking events and connected with many people. During these meets, apart from marketing and connecting, we can learn a lot from other’s experiences and the strategies that they follow, and the mistakes they did. This helps to reduce the time and avoid mistakes. Great Companies -- What is the ultimate goal of 'Vibha Education Services Corp' and how you plan to achieve it? Harini: The ultimate goal of Vibha is to empower children and women with values, boosting their confidence, building stronger and brighter personalities with resilience, Believing in yourself, following your intuitions, loving and accepting yourself are the key goals that we focus on while empowering future leaders. We are planning to achieve this by conducting classroom sessions in schools, We act as a helping hand to students who need more clarity through one-on-one sessions. We also focus on conducting training programs for teachers, when a teacher is empowered, thousands of lives get impacted. If we empower one woman entire future generations will get empowered with her skills and knowledge. So we are also coaching women through one-on-one sessions and we are planning to conduct classroom training programs for a woman in the future. Great Companies - What suggestion would you like to give to other aspiring entrepreneurs? Harini: Set smart goals and create action plans to achieve them. Work on achieving those action plans. Revisiting your goals often, it will help to get it manifested soon. Patience and perseverance are two keys to unlock success. While you are growing never try to put down another budding entrepreneur and come up. In fact, please share the tips and knowledge and grow together. It is a must for an entrepreneur to be updated with current skills. Keep learning new things and be open to learning. Attend networking events, socialize, connect and build a relationship with others. It will help you in some way or another. Listen to other entrepreneurs and their stories. Never hesitate to spread the word about yourself. Find a mentor to help you. Never hesitate to ask for help. Everyone needs a mentor. #services #Education #Vibha #GoalSetting #personalitydevelopment

Great Companies- How did you get the idea of 'Pilipili Entertainment'? SAJNI SRIVASTAVA: Well we are from Bollywood & ShahRukh khan has the company called Red Chillies so we thought why not keep our company name PiliPili which means Hot, so that's how we got the idea of PiliPili Entertainment. Great Companies- What were the initial problems that you faced while establishing your company? SAJNI SRIVASTAVA: We had lots of problems while establishing because East Africa was a new place for us to set up this company,since it's a Virgin market we had to understand the Market .. Great Companies- How has been your journey so far? SAJNI SRIVASTAVA: Well u forget about all the Problems & Hard work once your work is been rewarded & Appreciated not only in That country but all over the world. Great Companies- What is the ultimate goal of your company and how you plan to achieve it? SAJNI SRIVASTAVA: Well our ultimate goal is to provide good content & entertainment to our viewers & also with stuff that is message oriented. Great Companies- Any advice you would like to give to aspiring entrepreneurs? SAJNI SRIVASTAVA: I would like to say that keep going focus on your goal..Accept challenges & my motto is that Today's victory is tomorrow's challenge. #services

Great Companies - How did you get the idea of 'Bajillion Labs Pvt Ltd'? Chandrashekar.B.K: Bajillion Labs, the vision was to setup an entity to do something different and to bring out a unique value proposition to the people. We had been working on few ideas for about 6 months before we could mature that into a formal entity. Couple of the Verticals we had shortlisted was Laundry, Smart Lockers and Supporting Technology platform all would be developed and managed in-house. With the above vision the company was formulated. Laundry and Laundromats is one of the growing markets and we had a plan to bring in Turnkey Setup concept which never existed in INDIA and more importantly offer a cost effective one stop solution to all out clients. We are happy now that we are associated with 20+ Laundry brands across India, we are in to Institutional and Community based laundries And Hotel Laundries as well. We are now recognized by people for not selling machines but for selling a concept/solution and offer a one stop service post sales, guide them with the requisite information and data and support for making this a organised segment. Our own Tech Platform for Laundry Management is used by 30+ Clients and we are continuously improvising the same at a very affordable cost so that all the Launderers can take the benefit of the latest technology platform. Further we are now promoting Laundry locker Concepts to have virtual stores instead of physical stores where by you have a huge savings on the Capex an Opex cost. This is a upcoming concept and we expect the same to grow over a period of time. Great Companies - What steps do you take to maintain consistency in your work to give the best outputs? Chandrashekar.B.K: We have a team which is fully set and operational and when we sign a project we have a checklist that need to adhered from arranging the equipment’s, chemicals, accessories, logistics, delivery and installation. We make sure one of the senior management people is also available at the site at the time of installation, most of the time I try myself to be there so that we have a good client relationship built over a period of time. Our key to success is after sales support and service that we render to our client which is why we have more than 80+ Clients and growing which we could bag over a short span of time. Great Companies- What barriers did you face initially while establishing your company? Chandrashekar.B.K: Any Entrepreneur when he starts must be more determined, have patience and adapt to the latest trends and advancements. We also when through the similar challenges and phases over the last 2~3 years. Being self-funded and sustain yourself and make a name in the industry needs a lot of patience and perseverance. Have a vision and make it happen with the latest technology platform, we did have a lot of financial challenges, manpower challenges and the technology platform challenge. But with lot of efforts and dedication we are now happy to be identified and a successful company in the way we want to take things to market, keeping it cost effective and more importantly be there for you client when is in need of help and support. Great Companies- Do you have any plans for expanding the services your company provides? Chandrashekar.B.K: We plan to expand our Turnkey concept initially across South India and then eventually we plan up Pan India operations and if opportunity permits we can look at this in other countries as well. Being a one stop shop of a growing and unorganized market is more challenging and at the same time the efforts to make it organised keeps us going long way to make thing happen. With support of the Industry and people we can expand and support this concept in a much bigger way and that's what we want to continue and will thrive for the same. Great Companies- What suggestions would you give to future business corporations and budding entrepreneurs? Chandrashekar.B.K: Entrepreneurship is a challenge and not all are ready to take up this kind of challenge. One must be determined and stay focused during the Ups and Down as its not always a smooth ride, it’s a roller coaster ride, but once you pass through the same with patience you will come out with flying colours. Never let yourself or your self confidence down, stay ahead of the market, have a vision and put all your efforts to make the vision come true. #services

Great Companies- What are the values that set SUMD’SIGN architextures™ apart from all other architect services? Sumegh P. Shinde: Climate responsiveness is the heart of every project that we undertake. In the process of developing bespoke designs and strategies to bring the project to life, importance is given to the local culture, practices and materials to accommodate modern lifestyles for a sustainable living not just for today but also keeping the future in mind. Great Companies- What steps do you take to ensure efficiency in your work? Sumegh P. Shinde: We believe that our work is efficient if we achieve the design values that we vouch for. We have a process that goes stage-wise. Great Companies- What are the strategies you follow to stay ahead of your competitors? Sumegh P. Shinde: The world today is witnessing a drastic climate change and buildings are unable to respond to the climate. Our approach towards design and choice of materials is inclined to the climate responsive nature of buildings for a comfortable and memorable experience of the designed space. Which means high usage of locally sourced natural building materials. Great Companies- What is your success mantra? Sumegh P. Shinde: Never agree to the opinion that you are successful. Innovation in design with a perspective of climate responsiveness and energy efficiency keeps us going ahead. Great Companies- What suggestions would you give to future business corporations and budding entrepreneurs? Sumegh P. Shinde: Business should not be looked upon as competition with peers rather should be looked upon as collaboration with peers. This is what will help each other grow steadily. #architecture

Great Companies- How was the idea of 'Lakshya Jeevan Jagriti' born? Summaiya Afreen: When I was in college I met my co-founder Rahul Goswami and my team. We all were the part of distance learning college so we didn't have benefits and exposure which regular students get and to enhance our knowledge and overall development together we all used to participate in a different national and international conference to enhance our knowledge and confidence. Rahul was working on a case study which was around single lady parent and we presented that case study at IIM-Ahmedabad where we won that competition with some prize money. We all decided to invest that money to start an organization which can empower women and youth. Great Companies- What is the ultimate goal of 'Lakshya Jeevan Jagriti'? How you plan to achieve it? Summaiya Afreen: To uplift the status of women and youth by making them skilled, independent and productive contributors to the communities in which they live. We train women and young people in basic education, financial education, and IT skills. Our special designed workshops train them in leadership skills and make them responsible contributor in society. Great Companies- What steps do you take to ensure efficiency in your work? Summaiya Afreen: Our most important assets are our trainers. We train our trainers on a timely basis. We ensure the environment in our centers remains positive, we give everyone a space to express themselves. Our counselors are always available for our students and beneficiaries. Our personal-mastery and leadership workshops motivate our students to keep sharing about their achievements and failures. We practice sharing of everything to keep the community close and together as a support group. Great Companies- Your website mentions that Lakshya Jeevan Jagriti promotes gender equality across all programs, why you think, gender equality is important. How you plan to achieve it? Summaiya Afreen: The rate of girl child dropouts are higher than the male child in India. After spending 9 years of my life working at the grassroots I have personally observed that women and girls face discrimination when it comes to taking up higher education or a professional course. Parents tend to invest in boy's education rather in girl's education. To maintain an equal balance of both gender we ensure a ratio of 50:50 for both boys and girls in all our programs. Women are equal contributors to our society and have equal potential we just need to train and support them to achieve their full potential. We also run a program called Aao Sath Maa where we educate and train mothers. A mother spends most of their time with children it becomes even more critical if a woman is not educated. We train these mothers in basic education so that they can also contribute to their children's education but also gain confidence, self-esteem, and knowledge. Great Companies- What is your success mantra? Summaiya Afreen: Be consistent in what you are doing. And always be present on why have you started it. When we start something we do it with full passion and enthusiasm but down the line, as road becomes difficult we lose hope and feel demotivated. My mantra is I always ask myself a question. Am I doing my 100%? I always see my gaps first and work on it. #socialwork

Interviewer - What made you think of combining 'gifts' with 'business'? How was the idea of 'The Doodle Soup' born? Keya Shah: The Doodle Soup started out as a hobby for me. I created doodle posters to brighten up my room and my best friend made me realize there's a market for these products as well. Everyone continuously looks for gifting unique things but the need for a personalized touch is growing everyday to show a bit more effort and thought. I was lucky enough to have the opportunity created for me when people approached me to make custom gifts for them. That's where "The Doodle Soup" finally took form - I realized very quickly that there is a gap in this market for affordable yet completely customized work. Interviewer - What struggles and challenge you faced when you started? Keya Shah: I started when I was 19 so as you can imagine, not a lot of my suppliers and vendors took me seriously. It was difficult to negotiate contracts with agents for framing, mug printing, etc. However, once they saw the bulk of my orders, they soon realized I meant serious business. Another challenge I faced was also studying, giving exams, (I am a ranking financial markets graduate and am pursuing Actuarial Science) and still handling calls for orders with designing, packing and delivering. It was a real test on time management. Interviewer- There are many websites offering customized gifts, what makes 'The Doodle Soup' different? Keya Shah: There are hundreds of websites out there that will put your name on a mug or cushion but there aren't as many that can fit in years of memories into quirky cartoon designs that captures the real essence of the your relationship. I am personally vested in your story. It isn't an automated design, I doodle everything by hand. I make it as unique to you as I can. Not a lot of businesses can boast about the personal connections I've made while doing this business. Interviewer- You are from a strong academics background and you are doing something which is not at all related to your field, what was your family's reaction when you told them about this? Keya Shah - My parents and sister have always always been super supportive. As this was something that had a very natural course and not something I took up suddenly one day, they've seen me grow through my orders. They know how happy this makes me. It definitely helps that I am as dedicated to my academic background as I am to this business! Interviewer- What suggestions would you like to give to the young budding entrepreneurs? Keya Shah - I was often told I'll burn out and I can't manage everything - that I need to choose what I want to do and do just that. I am here to tell them that's absolutely untrue. You make the time for what you want to do, the rest are all excuses. When you really feel passionate about something, however simple it might seem at the beginning, it can really be a viable business. Never think your idea is too small or insignificant because well, I've made an entire business on doodling! If I can do it, so can you! #business

INTERVIEWER- Why you wanted to be a Make-up artist? What do you like most about your profession? ANJALI TATER: I started my career as an Event Planner initially. I came across people from various industries and the Fashion world topped it all. Being mesmerized by the colourful and a creative life of a fashionista, my passion for fashion grew, I discovered the art of makeup and turned my passion into my career. Totally addicted to the job, I found myself making the world a more beautiful place elbow deep in makeup, researching makeup, experimenting with makeup, or daydreaming about makeup. INTERVIEWER- A makeup artist is not a conventional profession, how did your family and friends respond when you told them that you want to be a makeup artist? ANJALI TATER: I am a girl who's born and brought up in a family of entrepreneurs. I was always taught to never stay idol. Since childhood, I was involved in painting, accessory making and crafts as part of extra-curricular activities. I knew I'm not the one to be in a Nine-to-five job. My parents were aware of my interests, they pushed me forward to do it. My Mom is my support pillar in all this! INTERVIEWER- How has been your journey so far? ANJALI TATER: I was drawn towards the makeup and the fashion industry because of the mass culture and the diversified ideologies, values, cultures, so on and so forth. Working alongside with various music artists, sports personalities, editors, TVCs, commercials, bridal, runway, advertising, fashion bloggers, photographers, etc. brings out the variation in the job. I did not have to struggle a lot because I was clear about who I wanted to work with, and the kind of work I wanted to do.The fascination in this career space is quenched by networking, exploring and experimenting with colours, looks, locations, cosmetics, styles, and other attributes. INTERVIEWER- What are the core values that help you do better? ANJALI TATER: I believe in inner beauty more than external beauty. External Beauty is just skin-deep, any alterations could be made with the upcoming technologies, science, cosmetics, etc. However, when it comes to inner beauty, it never needs Make-Up. If you're beautiful from inside you automatically are beautiful outside. I truly believe in enhancing the features than changing the all over look of a person. INTERVIEWER- Any advice or suggestions you would like to give to an aspiring makeup artist? ANJALI TATER: With so many artists in the field, it is vital to have one’s signature style that helps one stand out. My signature style is Glass like skin, and I personally love working with highlighters and illuminators. If you are switching careers, note - it is not easy. •Take classes to enhance your skills. •Assist MakeUp Artists, intern with them. Have Hands-on experience. •Stay updated with trends, research constantly. •Change styles frequently, according to photographers, designers, to stay in the game. •Last but not the least, never assume expensive products can make you a MakeUp Artist! #ARTIST #MAKEUPARTIST

Interviewer - How was the idea of 'Break free from Stress' born? Poonam: When I completed my certification course as a Corporate Trainer, I was trying to identify an area where I had to focus for my training. The pain points in the society and the areas where people lack training. As I believe, the universe always guides you and send message to reach to solutions, you just have to be aware to get it and read them at right time. I still remember, that day, when my husband came back from office, so tensed. Though tension is a part of life of all corporate employees, but that day I could sense something unusual. And it was, I was shocked to know that one of his closest friend in office suffered a cardiac arrest in the office at his workplace. The reasons for the complication could be many, but that led me to research for the reasons. During my research, I could find out that stress is the main reason for most of the health related issues these days. Surprisingly, there is hardly any focus during our childhood till adulthood, to prepare us for dealing with stress. Stress management is always considered as part of wellness programs, where I feel that it is an essential life skill to be honed by all individuals. So that moment, I decided, I have to do something to help people to de-stress and that determination led to the birth of “Break free from stress”. The idea that was planned by universe and implanted through me, via break free from stress, now called BFFS training solutions. Interviewer - What were the initial struggles faced by you in establishing the company? Poonam: I am still in the initial stages of the venture, BFFS was founded in the year 2018 with the vision of guiding people of all ages, around the world to be stress free and encourage them to have joyful life. The struggles keep on changing as we move ahead, it started from: 1. How to prepare myself: Once you have an idea, you have to chalk out a plan to implement idea and prepare yourself. So at first I had to identify the areas where I had to work more to get relevant experience, so as to let people believe in my work and build trust. I invested a lot of time in learning the techniques that can help people to de-stress and am still in the process of adding on. 2. How to promote the idea: My focus was not to get the work, but to let people know that there is someone who is thinking about them and is there to help. The focus was more on brand building and not sales. 3. How to get feedback: Having known that I am doing my best, I wanted to know whether I am right in my approach to help people. To get feedback for my work, I needed people to use my services, which I am still working on and struggling to get it. So far, mostly positive feedbacks have been added to the score card. 4. How to develop team: When people start believing in you and your work, its time to add on more people to your team who can make it happen and can consistently add on to your efforts. The struggle is still on to find such like minded people. Interviewer- People are still not very open about stress, depression and anxiety. How can more people be made aware of all these problems? Poonam: The first thing that people have to understand is that, stress, depression and anxiety is not a problem. As humans we have emotions and we all react differently to a same situation. What is stressful to one person may not be stressful for the other, so what is a problem for one, may not be a problem for the other. If we are able to understand the mechanism of our own body, we may be able to understand how to be happy and stress free. I strongly believe that “Humans are ruled by thoughts, and thoughts can be changed.” But one has to be willing to change the thoughts. We have to create the willingness in the people to change for better. We have to make people believe that, they can and they should live a happy life, with all the resources they have. And that is 100% possible. Interviewer- What are the keys you use to maintain the efficiency of your skills and work? Poonam: I am a lifelong student and I read a lot to learn as much as I can. I don’t leave any opportunity to learn, that can help me to achieve my purpose.I am my biggest critique, after every training program I evaluate my performance and note down the areas of improvement to work upon it. I try to offer help in any possible way I can, and universe takes care of me when I need it. I believe “I can, and I will”. Interviewer- What is your Success Mantra? Poonam: Always keep a scope for improvement and try working on that, without being hard onyourself. Enjoy life, after all there is only one! https://www.eventshigh.com/detail/Bangalore/e7d4496d5a505c482bcf388fc69918ba Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ca.poonammadaan Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ca-poonammadaan Website: www.breakfreefromstress.com Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4MK1imhQXBOh3O1adRmmHg Pinterest: https://pin.it/wfmjxdlbhd7hqz #CorporateTraining #Training #HQ #HappinessQuotient #Empowering #HumanCapital #WorkCulture #BFFS #StressManagement