The Journey of Misha Dange: Building Careers and Changing Lives

• Misha Dange was brought up in a progressive family that she credits for inculcating a value system such as the freedom to choose your life goals and take responsibility for your actions.
• She believes that leadership is not about prevailing over people with your ideas, but also caring deeply for them and rooting for their success.
• Misha advocates for educating youth with the relevant skills that can provide them with a suitable vocation and within a decade she has managed to spread her business across several states. In the past decade, she has touched the lives of more than a lakh youth by skilling them and providing employment in different industrial sectors. She has also empowered more than ten thousand women and made them economically independent.
• She believes in developing meaningful friendships, enjoying nature, and investing in oneself.

1. Can you share a bit about your childhood and how your experiences influenced your life journey?

I come from a progressive family where females have been raised and respected as equal partners and in those times my parents had an intercaste love marriage in spite of societal pressure. My parents were educationists and were broad-minded individuals who have always valued personal growth more than following societal norms. They have raised me and my younger brother by giving us an equal amount of freedom and without any discrimination any opportunities.

Career choices were limited in my time unlike today and since I was good at studies I happened to go for a bachelor’s in engineering and was shocked to see the ratio of girls is so low of course, we always become the minority ones, and so in my management degree later on. Things are not easy if you are rubbing your shoulders with your male counterparts to prove your mettle. I have faced this discrimination more at work but it has made me more determined and strategic in my approach later on especially when I embarked on my journey of entrepreneurship. 

I lost my father in 1991, and credit goes to my mother for supporting us all throughout. Being an enterprising person she used to make all investment decisions and made sure that our family should never face any financial problems. I had the full freedom to explore my options whether in my personal life or career, to give a break to myself I even dabbled in modeling for a while. Even in our previous generation my grandmother also believed in the importance of education and financial independence of women. She completed her post-graduation after her marriage and she became the principal of a vocational training institute in Bhopal. All the women in our family have been financially independent and I strongly advocate the same to our younger generation.

2. What does leadership mean to you, and how do you balance your personal and professional life?

Leadership for me does not mean influencing people with your views but it’s more about caring deeply for their growth and rooting for their success. Times have changed and so have people and the meaning of leadership. 

A good leader cares about society, believes in sustainability, and encourages and motivates others to give their best in every situation. Today, how well you care for your environment and community matters as much as how much profit you make. Balancing my personal and professional life comes organically to me because of my understanding husband who’s also an IT entrepreneur and over the period of time we have learned to give the required space to each other. It’s important to align the same life goals with your companion to make the journey interesting all the while.

3. What was the most surprising aspect of your leadership position?

I used to travel to my college, IMT Ghaziabad, and used to notice the high number of educational institutes in that area esp between Delhi Meerut Highway, and often wondered what employment opportunities would look like for the thousands/lakhs of students from all those tier 2 or tier 3 institutes if they passed. I think there is nothing that can be more frustrating than not getting the job esp after holding these professional degrees.

Considering Half of our population is under the age of 25 if we don’t make them employable or financially independent now then soon would be a liability to the nation. So we started with a finishing college concept that would bridge the gap between these educational institutes and the organizations and help them in getting placed to start with we focussed on the telecom and retail industry at the entry-level jobs but soon got hit due to the global recession in the year 2008-09. We then shifted our focus towards vocational training courses where the number was huge for employment and it gives access to a lot of youth from the semi-urban and rural areas. Our first opportunity was setting up a center of excellence based on a suggestion by the respected Chief Minister of Rajasthan. We then moved to West Bengal, Assam, Orissa, MP, Bihar, and several states within three to four years. 

We understood that education alone is not enough and we needed to empower the youth with the required skills and expertise of a specific sector along with the proper certification which has the recognition of the industry. We Have provided training and employment to more than a lakh youth which includes 10,000 women working in industrial houses in different states. I have witnessed how the landscape has evolved. We are constantly moving forward, multiplying the positive results and changing lives.

4. Should vulnerability be considered a weakness in any leader, and is there a balance between vulnerability and authenticity?

All human beings have their vulnerabilities. It is the source of empathy and accountability. I believe that as a leader, you can turn your vulnerability into your strength and make your bonding more effective with your team. People appreciate your genuine self rather than the masked persona. If you have repressed emotions, it will affect the working environment. Better to acknowledge them and be real with your people and feel empowered which will ultimately create a healthier work environment.

5. Have you had any mentors throughout your career, and how have they influenced your life?

My father during his lifetime has told me about various nuances of life but more at the philosophical level since he was one of the most renowned scholars of Indian Philosophy of his time but ultimately I learned a lot about life and survival from my mother. She always supported me, when I faced issues in relationships or at work, and till today she has been my constant pillar of support.

I believe that what you seek is what you get. I have always had the opportunity to meet inspirational figures who have motivated and guided me in different spheres of my life whether it was for funding for my first venture in e-commerce or motivating me to work for the social cause or guiding me towards my spiritual journey. I consider myself fortunate to have different mentors to support and lighten my path ahead.

6. In times of adversity and challenges in your personal life, from where do you gather strength and resilience?

I believe COVID-19 was a huge eye-opener for most people. Many, including me, realized that health should be our utmost priority. Investing in oneself should be our biggest priority In our today’s hectic lifestyle emotional stress is taking a toll on everyone, especially the young generation who are constantly multitasking. To get my sanity back I plug in with my loved ones and sometimes just submitting myself to the Supreme will really help. Going for long walks or going to the hills stabilizes my energy and grounds my restlessness One should have goals and ambitions to drive you ahead, but that doesn’t mean you neglect yourself. So, my advice would be to nurture your physical and emotional selves, develop meaningful friendships, start doing things that you always wanted to do like I started learning music now, and enjoy your food and surroundings. In the end, it’s all about you and your journey.

7. What is your favorite mantra, quote, or book?

I am a philosophy geek and have been an avid reader, especially nonfiction. A few of my favorites are Autobiography of a Yogi, The Forty Rules of Love, Mind to Matter, Sapients, Many Lives, many masters, and Siddharta. Since my childhood, I used to contemplate a lot about my existence and my purpose in life— the big omnipresent question. My mantra is to love your journey while learning, appreciating evolving, and finding your own balance. All the conflicts are within and we have to learn to control our mind. I believe deep down at the subatomic level we all are energy fields vibrating at different frequencies and we all have the power of healing ourselves to experience it I have delved and learned various therapies like Reiki, Pranic, Hypnotherapy, Chakra healing, etc. We all are interdependent on each other in this universe and we can’t exist in isolation. So, we have to be caring and sensitive towards our environment.

Misha Dange shares her journey towards bringing change and changing the lives of the young generation. She advocates for educating youth with relevant skills and expertise in a particular niche. She has witnessed the transformation and believes that the coming change in the education pattern will be the most important landmark for the progress of the country.