Meet Navixha Bagga
Navixha Bagga wears a lot of hats. She’s a mother, social media creator, seasoned corporate leader, mindset mentor, and women’s leadership advocate to name just a few of her titles.
Navixha’s mission is to empower individuals and organizations to unlock their true potential and realize their most flourished, synergized, and effective versions. Along with mental health and mindset development, Navixha advocates for women’s leadership.
Having 23 years of professional experience in corporate IT, Navixha brings a leadership mindset that has helped organizations achieve strategic alignment, optimize processes, and overcome constraints to realize their vision. She envisions enabling people to reconnect with their inner powerhouse and source of peace and calm – to maximize their potential and significantly enhance their life experience.
With life coaching and mindset management experience of over 25 years, Navixha empowers individuals to tap into their wealth of potential, innate creativity and talent, and inner joy that may seem hidden but exists deep within everyone.
On October 15th, she is hosting a Saree Walk to benefit women empowerment/diversity and domestic violence, with Senator Katie Muth as a special participant.
Read more about Navixha and this upcoming event below:
Welcome to the blog Navixha! I’m so thrilled to have you here. To begin, can you share a bit about your journey and what led you to become passionate about women’s empowerment and diversity?
Thanks Camille – I am thrilled to be here as well! As an immigrant into this country, over two decades ago, I actually did never bear a chip about being the underdog or having a lesser advantage than anyone else from other parts of the world. One incident etched in my conscience is – when a very wise and very white lady in her 80’s said to me who was just fresh off the boat and in my 20’s – “You are young, you are educated, you are sensible, and you are brown … remember, you can do anything!”. And that hit home differently, from one at the peak of their experience to the one who had many lessons to learn yet!
So, all my knowledge about inequity and the lack of diversity as an adult was actually acquired via my experiences and not just as baggage of popular culture. And actually, looking back at my early years of growing up in India, outside of the four walls of my own home – the world never was a safe place for women. I saw them disrespected and taken for granted all around me – the moms, the housemaids, the vendors, the public officers, just women in general.
And while the setting became more modernized and sophisticated here – the lack of parity and equal dignity for women remained a consistent theme. I learned here that a stay-at-home mom was a stereotype and that women with a seat at the table were still not equal to the menfolk at the same table.
Additionally, regardless of what one wise woman said to me once – the truth was, I looked different, spoke different, and had a different set of experiences – and very early I realized, it was not a welcome or ‘cool’ difference. In the corporate or mainstream settings – it was harder to find an equal footing, to make my voice equally heard, or my experience and opinions be equally valued. Of course, that never daunted me – it only taught me to strive for greater confidence, get my master’s, learn more skills, and never be afraid to be who I am.
And the more I went through my own journey of dealing with barriers of bias and inequity, the more I realized how women of every color and nationality, irrespective of the geography – were dealing with barriers to the glass ceiling, equal opportunities, respect and dignity, and dis-proportionate responsibilities in their domestic lives.
Now, the reality of being a woman truly hit home.
I am someone who innately cannot be passive in a situation; even if it is about accepting something – I would rather do that actively.
Therefore, I started my work in the space of women’s advocacy and leadership awareness. Over the past few years, I have organized many thought-provoking salons, created networking and support forums for women, and launched the 5K saree walk that aims to shatter barriers of labels and perceptions of a woman’s abilities.
I think as women, we have the plight of “she does it all!”, but at the end of the day, we are human. Between being a professional, a mother, an advocate, and content creator – you do a lot! I think we’re always looking for ways to manage it all, while still maintaining a level of emotional well-being. What tips or advice do you have for women trying to “do it all”?
To be there for ourselves, to give ourselves grace, and to stop setting impossible barometers for ourselves. I see this a lot in my own life – my expectations of myself are far outreaching and more onerous than what anyone else would ever care to expect.
It is important to prioritize and if necessary, to even pick and choose what you need to focus on and invest your energy in, at any given time. In trying to do it all, and do it perfectly at that – we only cause burnout for ourselves and create a high-strung vibe around us that makes others in our circle of interaction edgy as well.
We need to blame ourselves and berate our mistakes less. We need to love ourselves more and consciously make more time for self-love and self-care!
Many people aspire to become advocates for positive change on social media. What advice do you have for someone who wants to use their online presence to promote women’s empowerment and diversity effectively?
One thing I am learning in my own journey is – to walk the talk, before talking (posting) about supporting other women, on social media. It is important to intentionally cultivate an attitude of wanting to support, facilitate connections, recognize someone’s work or efforts, and give her a funnel … to basically act as the person I am trying to promote the idea of.
When it comes to communicating this message on social media, here are a few quick suggestions
- Create yourself a tribe of powerful and supportive women – both off and online.
- Write and share without fear, but with empathy. Mindlessly cursing the system is not the way. Explore problems and offer solutions.
- Create interactive discussions that engage the community and inspire positive change.
- Support a cause, root for a theme, and showcase the active efforts you are making, to help change.
Next month, you are spearheading the Saree Walk, which benefits women empowerment, diversity and domestic violence. How can people attend or become involved in this event?
Last year the first OYL Saree Walk was such an amazing experience that we cannot wait to create another powerful event on November 5, 2023 11am to 2pm at the Norristown Farm Park in PA. Our proceeds this year benefit The Crime Victims Center of Chester County and the powerhouse Senator Katie Much is our guest of honor.
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