IT HAS TAKEN ME OVER 15 YEARS OF SELF-DISCOVERY TO REACH A PLACE WHERE I FEEL CONFIDENT AND COMFORTABLE TO PROCLAIM MY AWESOMENESS.
I often ask others, especially during workshops or coaching conversations to share what makes them awesome.
Just like I did, people really struggle to muster up the courage to look within and openly share why they are special, valuable and worth being here on this planet.
WHY IS IT SO IMPORTANT TO BELIEVE IN YOUR OWN GREATNESS?
I believe deep down that every living being on this planet has a purpose otherwise they wouldn’t be here. From the trees to animals, a raison d’être keeps them alive until that purpose has been fully exhausted.
The same applies to you and me – whilst we are alive, we have our own unique gifts to offer. I realised that when we live from a place of ‘service’ – using our gifts as a contribution to others, no matter how big or small, we gain access to the highest joy. Now, this doesn’t have to be radical – it could simply be an act of truly listening to someone when they speak.
When you were born – you didn’t start with your current limiting beliefs about feeling useless, inadequate or inferior. You felt unstoppable and would fearlessly pursue anything you could think of! However, as you began to grow, the world started telling you what you were good and bad at. Sometimes intentionally, but mostly not, our most trusted one’s – parents, siblings, teachers, friends – began to shape the size and scale of our capabilities as we began to solidify our sense of ‘self’.
You wake up one morning as a 30-something professional trying to achieve success in life yet continuously feeling unfulfilled regardless of your outstanding accomplishments, whether that’s your career, money, relationships or travels.
ISN’T TALKING ABOUT YOURSELF LIKE THIS IS JUST BEING ARROGANT?
I know the critiques out there will be saying – ‘I don’t want to be arrogant’. When we speak from a place of insecurity, fear and low self-worth, it’s often an ego-led attempt at out-doing another person with words that puff up our chest to show we are the bigger person. Then yes, that would be arrogance. Many people who boast about their lives often are speaking from their child self (TA, Eric Berne) proving to the world around them how much they matter, because they feel a sense of threat to their self-identity – as if they are a 7-year old in a school playground. However, maintaining these beliefs no longer serves you and so I invite you to explore the possibility of authentically looking in the mirror and seeing yourself for who you are.
Another easy way to do this is to imagine if your loved ones were to describe you and your life – what would they say are your greatest features, qualities and achievements? When we are able to do this ourselves, there is an energetic shift in our consciousness. Whilst you could argue that you are not your material achievements and qualities either, what this does enable is a shift from a disempowering context to an empowering context. We all have a dark side, a ‘shadow’ in which we have rage, anger, fear and other negative emotion which need validation, acceptance and space. However, continuously living from that space isn’t effective in living the life we seek.
And here begins the awakening from which you actually start to enjoy being you. You feel a deep inner calm and peace – whether your Facebook posts get any likes or not!
OK, I GET IT, PRAMAL. SO, TELL ME WHAT MAKES YOU AWESOME!
As I start coaching online, I will have to connect with many new people who won’t know me. So here is my not-so-humble attempt at sharing why I’m awesome and my journey to get here, including the #EpicFails which ended up making me stronger. Then you can decide if this is the kind of being you want to connect with and support your journey to grow and discover your awesomeness.
- Raised in humble beginnings in a small town called Walsall, in the West Midlands (UK), I was the first in my family to go to University. My grandmother always encouraged me to get the best marks possible, so I made it my goal to aim as high as I could… Whilst Oxford said ‘no’, I was accepted into the London School of Economics.
- In 2003, I established a thriving cultural and spiritual society at my University Student Union, running everything from debates on consciousness to spectacular Indian arts and drama shows open to the public.
- In 2004, I was awarded a community-leader ticket to Unleash the Power Within – a 3-day transformational weekend programme with 10,000 other people in London and the world’s most famous life coach: Tony Robbins. Fire-walking on hot burning coals, I got the first taste of my indomitable spirit and declared that one day, I too would super-charge and inspire 1000s of people!
- From 2006 onwards, I completed and embedded many of the life-transforming programmes by Landmark Education. From the basic ‘Landmark Forum’ to a more advanced year-long adventure ‘Wisdom Unlimited’ which “explores the possibilities of untold joy available for the living of your whole life, and that maybe anything else is just a mistake, an oversight, that’s easily corrected”. There is a tangible sense of fun and play since I completed Wisdom Unlimited in 2017.
- After completing internships whilst at LSE, I secured a graduate programme at PriceWaterhouseCoopers – the No.1 professional services firm in the world at the time. I undertook rigorous client and technical development, including an exciting secondment to support Partners in developing ‘soft skills and engage teams more effectively’. However, after 3 years I concluded that Accountancy wasn’t the right profession for me – so in the midst of the 2008 recession, I took a leap of faith and left to go to India!
- In 2008 I co-led ‘Learning Journey’ and a few years later ‘Insight India’ – two programmes in which we took a group of young professionals and teenagers to India for 10 days to discover themselves and their heritage in a truly transformative experience.
- Three-months of grassroots community volunteering at the Manav Sadhna, based at the Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad, India, inspired me to become an Indicorps Fellow in 2009 – working for 1-year training unemployed graduates in South India to secure employment and permanently take their families out of the poverty trap.
- In 2011, I married a girl who shared my passion for development in India, not truly understanding or realising what constituted a healthy and empowering relationship – and as a result, we decided to break up shortly after. A whole host of traditional and cultural programming played a role in getting to that point and the process of recovery lasted a couple of years; coming out the other end with higher levels of self-awareness, courage, and determination to learn about true love – most importantly, starting with self-love. I feel proud of my relationship journey and feel like it’s made way for a more compassionate, understanding and wholesome lover than I could have ever been, had it not been for this heartbreak!
- For my 30th birthday, to avoid feeling sorry for myself being alone, without my own home (and a lot of comparison to friends feeling ‘behind’) I checked myself into a 10-day silent meditation retreat – who I was walking out the other end was very different to the ‘me’ walking in – most notable difference was the ease and peace I felt just sitting alone by myself doing nothing!
- My Management Consulting career involved working with two very exciting companies – Pcubed and PA Consulting. My favourite project involved making beautiful red tractors and flying to India every month for over 2 years driving the programme relationship with our partners over there.
- Over the last few years, I have had a stronger sense within that I have the capacity to be a healer – and so I have begun to cultivate my natural gifts; ranging from learning Reiki to crystal healing to working with energy, angels and spirit – I have adopted many new practices in my life feeling benefits daily!
- Inner transformation is pointless if the body in which you reside is not optimised! To educate myself and start the life-long journey of conditioning my physical self, I completed two great 90-day programmes: In WildFit I learned about the power of nutrition and that ‘nothing tastes as good as healthy feels’. FitBanker helped me to continue to my discovery in my psychological relationship with food, health and fitness.
- In 2016, I drove 1800 km across India in a rickety old tuk-tuk to raise money for girls education in India including playing the role of cameraman for feature film Road to Change.
- In 2018, it became clear that an area of my self-development had been missing: ‘Mens work’. Through a powerful retreat by Rebel Wisdom entitled “New Masculinity”, I was introduced to Vitamin ‘M’ – M for Masculinity. My journey in exploring a new vision of masculinity; embodying a relaxed confidence that is secure, directed and in service to the world began!
- Last year, 2019, was the most transformative to date. During the month of February, me and two other friends walked over 300 km from Lumbini, Nepal, where the Buddha was born, via Bodhgaya, his place of enlightenment to Kushinagar, India, his final resting place. Retracing the life of the Buddha on foot would fundamentally shift my identity and provide a grounding to experience myself as true bliss and peace. There was something magical about sitting in the same caves this man would have sat 2,500 years ago. Here is a short video teaser whilst we work on the longer feature.
OK, I GET THE IDEA. WHERE DO I START?
YOU are here, right now, at this moment reading this. YOU matter. YOU are here for a reason. YOU are supposed to shine.
So, I dare you.
Ask yourself: What makes me AWESOME?
Then let me know.
Need more inspiration? Read one of my favourite poems:
