Aashna started her entrepreneurial journey when she was 23. Born in Nahan in Himachal Pradesh, she did her schooling from Chandigarh. She finished her masters in Psychology from DAV College in May 2015 from Chandigarh.
When she set out to find a job after her Masters, she realised that she could not find any. Though ridden with self-doubt, she decided not to take the easy way out by joining the family business. She wanted to pursue her love for psychology and hence, kick started her entrepreneurial journey with Psychopedia in July 2015.
Psychopedia is a psychology-training institute, the first in Chandigarh, where psychology is taught through various workshops from art therapy to dance to reiki. The aim of Psychopedia is to learn, train, and heal. Their focus is on teaching age groups between 16 and 30, and when they conduct workshops, they cater to children as well as parents.
“We are our students’ counselor, teacher, and mentor. We aren’t focused on just book-based learning but we also teach them a lot about life, how to stay positive and optimistic and how to be kind and empathic towards others. So we focus on the emotional too,” she says.
The ride has not been easy, and there were times when Aashna wanted to quit and take up a job just for the security. The initial four months were a real struggle as there were hardly any takers for the courses and people did not know about Psychopedia.
Aashna often questioned herself and wondered if it would all ever work out. “I used to tell everyone I am the peon, the marketing head, and also the teacher. I felt like a one-woman army and there were days when I used to break down. Things have changed because as an entrepreneur I have changed. I have started being more grateful even if one student turns up,” she says.
With a few support staff, Aashna and her colleague are the primary drivers of Psychopedia. The intrinsic motivation to make a difference — one student at a time — and to reach out to as many students as she can are what drives her. Her faith in God and unconditional love from family and friends keeps her going.
Ask her how she has dealt with challenges that an entrepreneur’s life presents, she replies, “Be humble. Be grateful for all that you have. There will be times when you would want to give up, hold on and have faith in yourself. Give your best and no matter what field you are in, don’t forget to be kind and happy. When you have more, do not build a fence, build a table, serve and help others.”
While these three women chase their dreams, they agree that there is only one thing you need – and that is passion. Passion will take you forward and help you overcome any challenges that stand in the way of your dreams.
