The Book Launch
Hello, Business Leaders of Tomorrow! Welcome to the fourth installment of our blog. I’m your host, Amit Chawla, Business Clarity Coach.
An Unforgettable Afternoon
Picture this: It’s the afternoon of January 7th, 2023. I was standing outside the Araya Zion Club in Gurgaon, admiring the standees for Deepika’s book launch. The much-anticipated event was set to begin at 2:30 pm. Inside, the hall was buzzing with activity—the stage was being prepared, the signup corner was being set up, round tables were strategically placed around the room, and the food layout looked inviting.
I approached one of the guards and requested a wheelchair. He obligingly brought one and said, “Sir, I will get the guest when someone needs the wheelchair.” I smiled and said, “No, I will take the wheelchair because our author, Deepika, will be needing it.” His face registered surprise, as the standees of Deepika gave no hint of this.
The Unexpected Turn
Rewind to December 25th, 2022. We had a family day out at Madhav Garh farmhouse, 75 km from our house. There were around 20 of us, celebrating Christmas with family. After some delicious snacks, we saw the Burma Bridge with children crossing it. Deepika got curious and climbed the bridge—it was only 5 feet above the ground. As she navigated, stepping and balancing herself while holding the ropes, I got excited and followed her. My brother was filming us as we crossed the low-hanging bridge.
Suddenly, she lost her balance. Her sandal got stuck in the rope, and she fell on her back. We rushed to get her up and put her on a chair. I asked, “Are you okay?” expecting a positive reply. She said, “No, something is broken.”
We took her to a nearby clinic and got her X-ray done. My daughter Drishti was with me. As we entered the doctor’s cabin, we saw the x-ray films in his hand. I anxiously asked the doctor, “What does the X-ray show?” He looked at us gravely and said, “Well, there is good news and bad news. The bad news is that Deepika’s hip bone has a hairline fracture.” My heart sank, but I pressed, “And the good news?” “The good news is that it’s a self-healing injury and it can be cured with complete bed rest for three months,” he replied.
“Doctor, her book is getting launched in 2 weeks. Can she somehow attend the launch?” I asked hopefully. He initially said no but gave us a little hope when I insisted. “If she takes utmost care, doesn’t exert much, and uses a wheelchair, she might manage.”
The Launch Day
With a ray of hope, we decided to keep the launch date unchanged. With Deepika on complete bed rest, Roy and I took charge and did whatever was needed to get the launch pad ready. Fast forward to the launch day, Deepika entered the hall in a wheelchair, surprising many. The event was a tremendous success. Over 100 people attended, including many of our seniors, close friends, and family members. Throughout the event, Deepika stood in one place (very unlike her). I was running around (very unlike me). Many who came did not even know she had a fractured hip bone.
After the launch, Deepika, my children, and Roy went to the restaurant at the club to celebrate. As we sipped red wine, we recounted how we got there in the first place.
The Genesis of “Speak Up Lady”
It was January 2020 when Deepika, Roy, and I were at Clarity Hive. Throughout her career of more than 30 years in the corporate world, Deepika had the opportunity to learn, lead, and re-learn from mentors, colleagues, and mentees. These experiences helped her grow, teaching her lessons from both her successes and failures.
By then, Deepika had compassionately mentored many women professionals within her network and among her colleagues. In this journey, she observed women more closely, whether at the office, at home, or through her philanthropic endeavors. She found gaps and challenges that particularly torment women professionals as they navigate their own hero’s journey of struggle and success.
David Kelley, Founder of IDEO and Design Thinking Principles, once said, “The main tenet of design thinking is empathy for the people you’re trying to design for. Leadership is exactly the same thing—building empathy for the people you’re entrusted to help.” Kelley emphasized that the most important breakthroughs result from understanding what other people genuinely need. In other words, empathy opens the door to greater and perhaps unexpected ideas that can set your approach apart from others.
Sipping her coffee, Deepika mentioned that while she had been mentoring women, her reach was limited to the few women she was in contact with. “How can I bring about a larger impact in the lives of women professionals?” This question weighed on her mind, prompting her to conceive “Speak Up Lady,” a women’s mentorship program. We put together a five-week program for each batch where Deepika mentors working women, helping them break their own biases and shatter their own glass ceilings.
The Power of Compassion and Catalysis
Compassion had met a catalyst. The impact was visible as mentees penned down their unique experiences and takeaways from the program. These women not only looked up to a mentor per se, but they needed a sounding board to open up, cry at times, and then restart a journey of empowerment. Little nudges, honesty in empathy, helping them create their own vision and storyboards, what we call personal branding, and above all, being a genuine motivator… that’s what Deepika acted out for all of them.
As someone said, “Compassion ignites the catalyst for healing and transforms the way we see the world.”
Being a catalyst for change and building empathy for those entrusted to you is exactly what leadership entails. It becomes simple once you understand what people truly value because then you can mostly give it to them.
Fast forward to mid-December 2021, Deepika’s program, “Speak Up Lady,” had been running for over a year. Approximately 100 women had been mentored by then. And we found ourselves once again sitting at Clarity Hive, this time enjoying lunch.
Strategizing the Future
We were discussing how to strategize the future roadmap for the program and elevate it to the next level. Deepika mentioned that during the numerous one-on-one sessions with her mentees, she had heard unique stories from each one of them. I asked her what the common pattern was that she had observed in those stories. She said that women often harbor many of their own biases, which become obstacles to their success. Many times, women expect others to solve their problems. And many times, they shy away from asking for help.
Roy suggested, “You should write these stories about overcoming biases and compile them into a book.” I looked up and responded, “Why not? If I can write it, you can too.” Deepika was unprepared and expressed concern that she didn’t know how to write or have the time to do it.
The Birth of a Book
I knew that a small seed had been planted in her mind. It was now time for me to nurture it slowly. Over two to three weeks, acting as a catalyst, I kept checking on her interest. Still unconvinced, I suggested, “Why don’t you write two or three stories and see where it takes us?”
This tactic worked, and now the seed was taking root. She wrote two stories which we sent to Roy for his review, and he returned them with revisions. Upon reading them and noticing the way Roy had structured the stories, I had a flash of inspiration. I suggested to Deepika that we should bring Roy on board to help us crystallize the book. She questioned why we were spending so much money on this, to which I replied, “It’s a legacy you are creating, it’s not an expense – it’s an investment for creating a brighter future for many women.”
So, Roy was brought on board. The team was now set. Even a catalyst herself would need a catalyst not only to speed up the process but also to invest compassionately into the mission. And it was an interesting mission.
The journey of writing thus began—Deepika would record audio, draft the stories, and Roy would redraft them; afterward, we would review each draft. Every story had to be validated—sometimes this involved interviewing the women, and other times we had to check the messaging. This exercise went on for almost 6 months. The three of us would either meet at Clarity Hive, our home, or a café.
The Challenging Collaboration
It wasn’t easy at the word go. While Deepika and I come from corporate backgrounds, Roy, being an advertiser and a brand communication guy, has always been on the other side of the table. His way of interpreting a narrative is vastly different from what we observe, interpret, and engage at corporate levels. It was a classic clash between the right and left brain. But that helped a lot. There was a challenger amongst us, and we couldn’t take any interpretation for granted. Who knows, had this not been the case, the book would not have become a bestseller!
We debated, locked our horns, and tried to extract a seamless morale. Whatever was said and done, all three of us were committed to a common cause: the book.
We drafted around 20 stories and eventually chose 14 of them. While this was going on, I recalled that it had taken me two failed attempts and two years to write my own book. I had experienced the ups and downs in my attempts with my
book. And somewhere, Deepika started feeling what I had felt: excitement, joy, despair, anxiety, uncertainty, and a sense of “let’s stop it now.” In all honesty, there were times I wondered why had I nudged her, but I realized I couldn’t stop, or else we would never get this done.
The Power of Teamwork
The interesting part was how we collaborated. Deepika and I agreed on our roles. She needed to remain positive and connected with her mentees, while I would take care of our home and work fronts. We made sure that all stories were directly reviewed by her. Each story was either evolving a specific character, situation, or persona with related storytelling and quotes. As Deepika concluded the draft, Roy and I structured the sequence of chapters for the final manuscript.
Eventually, we managed to get a publisher on board and get it published. On 7th January 2023, the day finally arrived to share it with the world. This book is a testimony to a woman who displayed compassion for other women, who turned their lives into empowering stories. Compassion was ignited, and the result became a catalyst of change for hundreds.
As Deepika launched the book, each guest felt inspired and many congratulated us. The entire venue was filled with a blend of joy, admiration, and a feeling of compassion.
Conclusion: Catalysts of Compassion
So, my dear readers, sometimes, even the strongest need a helping hand and even a leader needs to be led. As Deepika’s book becomes a lighthouse for many women navigating their professional lives, let us remember that we all can be catalysts for someone else. All it takes is a little compassion, some understanding, and the willingness to walk an extra mile.
In this world full of challenges, our compassionate hearts can be the catalysts for the change we wish to see. Let’s remember that every step taken with empathy brings us closer to a more inclusive and understanding world.
Thank you for reading, and until next time, stay compassionate and keep leading the way!.
Amit Chawla (Business Clarity Coach)
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