"Trainers require patience, exceptional communication skills and strong interest in observing human behaviour. They also enjoy being with people."
Meet Maneesha Kapur. She has 17 years of experience in various capacities and is presently Founder & Director, Creative Manan Learning Solutions in Gurgaon. She conducts training for large organizations globally in the areas of communication, interpersonal skills and leadership development. She started her career at ICRIER, where she worked as Reasearcher, Economics, for two years, before joining McKinsey & Company where she worked for 11 years. Joining McKinsey to research economics related issues, she gradually discovered the calling that she pursues today.
The interests she pursues today evolved gradually. While carrying out economics related research, she received opportunities to teach economics to people in her organization and even clients of her consulting firm. She realized here that she enjoys helping people learn and grow. From economics, she went on to teach communications and realized that this was her passion. From Economics, she moved to learning development. To aid her in her work, she acquired several global certifications.
Before she left McKinsey to start on her own, she was the global faculty on communications, interpersonal and leadership skills for Mckinsey clients and employees. She conducted trainings all over the world and received the exposure of interacting and working with people from different cultures and backgrounds.
She continues to do the same work in an entrepreneurial capacity now. She sees her professional mission as helping people grow and aiding them in their development journey. Working on her own allows her to pick the assignments she is passionate about and that which challenge her. Most importantly, the flexibility that she gets out of working on her own fits perfectly with her personal circumstances. Maneesha gets more time to spend with her two children now as she works from home and travels for work not more than a day or two a week.
Maneesha's career has been one where she discovered her calling gradually. In classes 11th and 12th, she studied science with biology and maths. She then graduated in Economics (Hons) and also did her Masters in Economics. She started working thereafter and undertook several on the job trainings and certifications. Today, she is certified in MBTI, DISC, NLP, PWI, and Advanced Applications in coaching and Team work.
According to Maneesha, there is need to constantly update your skills and knowledge to keep growing in the career. Learning is a lifelong process. She recommends her career if you are an excellent communicator, have powerful observation skills of human behaviour, are patient, and enjoy being with people. To be a trainer, she suggests a psychology major in college. Thereafter, she suggests entering the corporate world. "At the entry level you start by helping as an apprentice. Before going into coaching and facilitation, you need serious corporate experience in the HR department. As the hair begin to grey, you will assess your personal areas of interests, acquire abilities in the area and begin to be recognized and acknowledged," she recommends.
According to Maneesha, there is need to constantly update your skills and knowledge to keep growing in the career. Learning is a lifelong process. She recommends her career if you are an excellent communicator, have powerful observation skills of human behaviour, are patient, and enjoy being with people. To be a trainer, she suggests a psychology major in college. Thereafter, she suggests entering the corporate world. "At the entry level you start by helping as an apprentice. Before going into coaching and facilitation, you need serious corporate experience in the HR department. As the hair begin to grey, you will assess your personal areas of interests, acquire abilities in the area and begin to be recognized and acknowledged," she recommends.
