“For most of history, Anonymous was a woman.” ~ Virginia Woolf. On this International Women’s Day, GlobalSpa recognizes and celebrates the women in the industry as we delve into their success mantra they follow, mistakes that have helped them grow, and of course, their WELLNESS philosophy.

Aishwarya Rao is the Director of The Vivekalaya Group of Institutions. From walking down the same corridors as a student of Vivekalaya to now as Director, Aishwarya is a second generation educationalist brings new ideas and vast plans for the future.

What is your wellness philosophy?

I believe that the mind needs to be calm for overall health and wellbeing. Yes, we all lead lives that can sometimes be stressful and difficult, but taking care of our mental health is paramount. I ensure that I always take time off to do things that give me joy and peace, it can be cooking, traveling, reading a good book or even watching a movie. These little moments grant me peace and ensure that I am able to do my best at work.

Your success mantra?

To me, success is defined by finding purpose in passion and profession. I believe that an ethical and disciplined approach to work produces the best rewards. My success mantra would be – the aligning of attention, intension, effort and vision produces success.

A lesson you learned from making a mistake?

I think the most important learning from any mistake is that no one is above making one. What is important is what we learn from our mistakes. Failure I belive reveals true character. We are in truth defined by our coping of failure and not the celebrations of our success. So definitely my greatest lesson has been to be patient in failure, take time to assess what went wrong, understand how you can correct it and plan to ensure you don’t repeat it.

Any piece of advice for all the women out there?

My greatest hope and vision for all women is to never lose their voices, never stop being curious and never think you are incapable. Believe in yourself and armour your self with an education. The world is waking up to the capabilities of women, it is realising their acumen, ability, grit and foresight and by harnessing our best attributes we can create successful life for ourselves and our families.

What has been your biggest pride as a doyenne?

It is, firstly, certainly a privilege to be considered an eminent figure in the sector. But I believe greatest attribute has been my ethics and values, it is something that is very important to me and something that I believe defines me as a human being. I believe that it serves as a foundation for all else and without it one would be lost.