Your Big Year

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[Part 2] The Ever-Changing Evolution of an Entrepreneur - Sudha Subedi, Nepal

Marti Grimminck

~Sudha Subedi

Nepal

Behind the story:

A few years ago, we interviewed Sudha about her business venture, Youth Legend. Since, Sudha has gone on adventures and discovered more about herself, evolving the direction of her business today. We recommend that you read ‘part 1 ‘so that you can see the personal and professional growth Sudha has undergone.

Sudha’s first article: Self — Exploration in Nepal

What is your Project/organization you are working on/with?

I became a certified life coach recently, so, let's say that would be my next project in my life. I have been working with people from diverse age groups and countries as a Dance Movement Therapist, leadership trainer, facilitator for about a decade already, therefore, I will be opening my life coaching services. Alongside that, I will be advocating and creating awareness on overall wellbeing, conscious living, and alternate healing.

My coaching will revolve around the mantra or motto of living best life. Keeping this in mind, I started #livingbestlifechallenge to transform different areas of my life. I recently created a living best life challenge Facebook group which I will make public soon and this is where people can come together for safe space to challenge each other to be in their best version, growing and evolving together. I am very excited about this too.

Also as a founder/CEO of social enterprise Youth Legend, we were affected badly by covid19 pandemic too like many other small businesses around the world, Therefore, we will be significantly changing the way we worked since the past 6 years. Since, we are a global organization focusing on international exchanges, camps, youth empowerment and most of our events focus on bringing youths of diverse communities together which involves lots of travel, we have to make some changes.

What was your inspiration?

I am really grateful for having this human life and really passionate about this life and our short visit to this world. I think because of that I have a deep desire to create impact, do something beautiful in this world. I made Living Best Life my mantra because I really want to live the best life which signifies living life being true to yourself, unlearning and freeing yourself from the past conditionings, evolving every day to your better version so that you won’t have any regret in your last breath. This is what inspires me to keep going during tough times, adversity, and dark days.

What have been some of your highlights in your career so far… why?

Starting my company youth legend with no prior idea of business but just with a dream and passion was definitely a highlight of my career! Many ups and downs, learnings, and great stories!

Starting eCommerce, doing dropshipping business, selling clothes, doing part-time jobs to earn enough money to sustain youth legend during tough times was definitely a highlight too. We had featured one inspiring woman working with Autism in Nepal and later she told us that she got an international award and recognition because of our feature article. When we were providing free psychosocial counseling services, we got a heartfelt message from many people and some told us that we literally saved their lives. Many beautiful feedbacks from people who have been part of youth legend has motivated us in many ways.

Before youth legend, being a finalist of Your Big Year global competition 2013 and having a wonderful learning experience in San Francisco is what inspired me to be in the path of entrepreneurship.

Being facilitator of Dance Movement Therapy, doing leadership training has been a highlight too as it helped me to share my knowledge and skills to help them dive deep into themselves, heal, prosper, and grow.

There was this one time when I initiated cloth for all project, I used to collect clothes, carry, fold, manage it, and send it to remote areas and remote Schools of Nepal. I was in University, didn’t have money but now when I look back, I wonder how I did it. I was also the founding member of an NGO lets help Nepal when I was 18, that’s the time when I joined social work and psychology in my masters too, so working as a founding member in my own NGO and pursuing a bachelor degree while volunteering in many other NGO’s became a start of a journey to something bigger.

Being able to travel to many countries with scholarships I got definitely has to be one of the highlights of my career too which helped me to learn more, be more, do more... I had a dream of traveling the world in my late teens and when I told people, they thought it was too ambitious, being a girl from middle-class family it felt like an impossible dream, I am so grateful for the journey.

What challenges have you faced?

Marriage pressure from my family and relatives since my early twenties and the pressure to get a “Real Job” all the time was difficult.

Not having enough money to sustain youth legend was difficult. There was this one time when I did not have enough money for a bus fare that I walked back to my home. I remember putting a Facebook status “Entrepreneurship is wanting to have pizza sometimes but not being able to. #broke”. We always found a way to thrive somehow such as in this crisis like COVID-19 pandemic, a huge earthquake in Nepal. I always believed there is a solution to every problem and problems can be figured out. That definitely helped us to thrive.

Another challenge is the challenge with the self, the self-doubts, the anxiety, stress, the loneliness, pressure. I identified myself as an introvert and had extreme social anxiety since childhood so, dealing with that, embracing, accepting, and still being able to do what I wanted to do following my heart was a challenge but definitely worth it.

What you have found to be your best resources?

Youtube, Udemy, Coursera, blogs, Google AdWords

What advice do you have for your peers?

May you keep having the strength to not label yourself in any stereotypes, dogmas and put yourself in any boxes created by society labels of being of a certain gender, age, place or anything. I hope you will be able to unlearn, unbecome, and evolve into real you freeing yourself from unhealthy conditionings and patterns that do not belong to you.

Do you have any future projects or ideas?

Yes! As I mentioned earlier, I will be starting my life coaching. And in youth legend, we will be creating virtual ways to work on our mission of empowerment and creating impacts.

Want to connect with Sudha?

Read Part One!