We recently connected with Meera Sharma and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Meera thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.
I’m a firm believer in no risk, no reward. It’s how you view the term risk – a lot of the time it has some negative connotations around it but I believe life is all about making those risky decisions and pushing yourself out of your comfort zone. Taking risks ensures life does not stay stagnant and you end up learning a lot.
I’ve taken plenty of risks in my time, be it deciding last minute to not go to law school and instead pursuing a degree in fashion design. To then making another career pivot from fashion to media.
And most recently, packing up my life in the UK to relocate to Los Angeles. Relocation isn’t easy, which I’ve learned. After all you are basically starting life from scratch in a new country – new rules, new language, making new friends which isn’t easy especially when you’re in your mid thirties. I could have stayed in the UK where I had a great life but I decided I wanted to do something new and what better than relocating. Whilst the UK and USA seem very similar there are a number of differences whether it’s the food, beauty products, language, I could go on – it hasn’t been easy but it has certainly been a great learning experience.
That’s exactly how I look at risks – it stops you wondering what could have been. In this case, if I hadn’t decided to move halfway across the world I would have always wondered what life would have been like. And I’m more about living life thinking glad I tried something, rather than wondering what could have been.
When it comes to taking risks remember that it either works out or if it doesn’t then regardless you learn something.
So here is your reminder to take that risk; send that text, say how you feel, apply for that job, start that business – whatever it is you want to do, just do it! Things will always work out exactly how they are supposed to.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I came to the limelight on ITV’s Take Me Out, which is a dating show that’s really popular in the UK, since then I’ve been using my platform to talk about identity, representation, and staying motivated. I’ve written for the likes of The Independent, as well as appearing on BBC radio, Channel 4 to name a few.
During the pandemic I created the platform, The School of Sass to educate women on the skills they need to become self-assured, spirited, and strong. Strong enough to live the life they’ve imagined by channeling their inner sass.
The reason I want to appeal to women is because I feel as women, we can often see so many narratives about how we need to look a certain way act a certain way. I wanted my platform to encourage women to be the best versions of themselves, not compare themselves to others and channel their inner sassy self to achieve whatever they want to in life.
My platform also includes The Sass Life, where I’ve interviewed the likes of Maya Vander, Charithra Chandran, Diipa Khosla, Sydney Cummings. I have a new series launching later this year as part of the new partnership between Rukus Avenue Radio and iHeartRadio, which I’m excited about.
I also post inspirational posts, daily affirmations (and much more) on theschoolofsass Instagram, have created free downloadable worksheets on theschoolofsass.com & I have a motivational book, The Little Book of Sass, to perk women up when they need it the most.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
The mission driving my journey is to encourage women to live their best life. I feel as women, we can often see so many narratives about how we need to look and act a certain way. These narratives can make us feel less than or that we need to change things about ourselves in order to fit in with specific beauty standards. I however feel that we are beautiful the way we are – you don’t need to change yourself. You can live life how you want to live life and I wanted my platform to encourage women to be the best versions of themselves, not compare themselves to others and channel their inner sassy self.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Life isn’t a smooth road but I’m a firm believer in changing how we view challenges and failure. Changing the viewpoint will in turn build resilience. If you’ve failed, it’s not the end of the world – if anything, it shows you tried! It may not have worked out, but it just means you need to see what went wrong, pivot, and try again. Just don’t give up, and don’t fear failure.
In terms of my resilience, I’ve received a lot of no’s or ‘rejections’ when it comes to my career, but rather than letting it get me down, I would always remember the quote, “rejection is redirection.” When I look back, I can see that if something didn’t work out it was for the best. You have to remember to trust the process and realize that good things take time. Patience is key!
Also, I’m in my thirties and am now ticking off a lot of items of my bucket list, including moving to a new country – I mention this because as women, we often are made to feel time is ticking away and we have to do things by a certain age! Even reading lists such as 30 under 30 lists or articles about how people in their 20s are achieving so much can make you wonder why it’s not happening to you. I’m here to remind you that age is just a number; focus on your own journey, and don’t compare! You’re not behind; you’re on time & in the right place for your journey!
Contact Info:
- Website: http://theschoolofsass.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theschoolofsass/ & www.instagram.com/meerasharm
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MeeraSharmaOfficial/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/MeeraSharm
Image Credits
Rukus Avenue Radio and Dallas Telle