Tell us your name and a little about yourself.
I am Vanky Kenny Kataria from Nashik, India.
I am a Motivational Speaker and Educator. I had the honor to represent India twice on the international level and was blessed enough to bag the second spot in South Asia for my public speaking skills when I represented India in 2016. That’s how my journey kickstarted. Since, then, My work has a speaker who has been featured in books such as Love What You Do by Maigen Thomas, Your 10 Year-old Self by Krista Moore, 30&Under by Peter Cuderman and in magazines such as Entrepreneur, Huffington Post, MSN, and others. I am also a LinkedIn consultant and a Visiting Professor at Rasbihari International School, India.
What exactly does your company do?
I love speaking and interacting with others. That’s one thing I absolutely love and can do it all the time. I normally speak on topics such as Personal Branding, How to communicate with confidence, How to make use of LinkedIn and my two favorites-Science of Everything and How to become the best 20 Year Old! And, I offer LinkedIn consulting services as well.
What were the biggest challenges you have faced and how did you overcome them?
Beginning with my public speaking, I had lost 6 local level competitions and every competition was like a battle where I was going to lose every time. Then, something changed. I realized that the problem is in my mindset and that winning or losing doesn’t matter. All that matters is learning. So, I started to take feedback, make a note of it and improve upon my weaknesses from the feedback received. This way, I was able to improve my speaking and within months, I had received the honor to represent India in the International arena. Though, When I did represent India at the International level for the first time in 2015, I was called as the worst presenters on the day by one of the judges and was absolutely devastated. So, I again worked hard on myself for one complete year and the next year, I did represent India again and bagged the second spot in South Asia for my public speaking skills.
What piece of advice do you wish someone had given you at the start of your career?
I wish someone would have told me that all that matters is one’s life is that one should be happy pursuing what he/she is doing. When I was young, I hardly remember someone telling me to follow my passion as a living(My parents being the exception though). I believe everyone should have a go at what they truly love and are passionate about. That’s what makes the difference. When you don’t wait for weekends to arrive. Rather, you are excited to see it as a day where you could get to do more of what you love i.e your WORK!
Who are your biggest influences and people you admire and why?
The biggest inspiration in my profession is Gary Vaynerchuk. I love the no-nonsense attitude of his and the fact that he takes the onus on him and asks everyone to do the same. He is not a person who likes excuses and is a straightforward guy with a massive desire to help people around the world. He is a guy who could make a world of difference in anyone’s lives just by a simple video of his! And, The second of my inspirations would be my mom who has worked extremely hard to allow me to follow my passion and always backed me up and giving me the right piece of advice! She’s the real hero in my story!
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are?
Absolutely! I can’t agree with you more. We all need help. Immense help and support! For me, A massive amount of support and mentorship has come from my mother Sweta Kataria who took on all the responsibilities and problems head-on after my father passed away and asked me to pursue my passion. And, My mentor Professor Jaydeep Shah who was the first person to motivate me to get into public speaking and worked hard on me so that I improve and become a better speaker. Also, A huge thanks to everyone who has kept believing in me and supported me when not many did.
What do you see as your greatest success in life?
The greatest success in my life has been that I have come to know the fact that –
You don’t win and lose in life, You only win and learn in life!
Life is not about having the right aptitude, It’s about having the right attitude.
I believe having a positive mindset and not getting upset from failures are somethings which have helped me immensely and achieving this kind of mindset has been by far my biggest victory!
Contact Information
https://www.linkedin.com/in/vankykataria
https://www.instagram.com/motivation_with_vanky
