Meet the Bestselling Author & Mom YashodharaLal

Meet YashodharaLal, a bestselling author, a Zumba instructor, a blogger, a corporate woman, and a mom of three, she quite has her hands full and is managing all of this like a supermom. She authored hilarious best-selling books “Just Married, Please Excuse” and “Sorting Out Sid”. Read her inspiring story of being there and making it happen here:

1. My mom quotient (MQ):

I think I’m always judging myself as a mom. I’m the kind of person who never thought she’d have kids,and I’ve been blessed with not one, nor two – but three little ones! I’d like to think I’m fairly involved in what my kids are up to – even though I may not physically spend too much time with them, I try and stay connected with what’s going on in their heads. They’re all in the big school now and they tend to be very involved with each other ( three is a good number for a party- all the time), so that’s a real relief for me because frankly I think me and my kids really benefit from getting enough time together and yet, enough space from each other.

With not so much time in hand,I love taking the kids for a walk in the rain, or swimming, or an ice-cream. I love seeing the enjoyment and pleasure they get from the little things in life and really savour the moments. At the same time, I think I’m the far stricter of the two parents – I make sure the homework gets done, and that they’re also learning things like piano or Taekwondo and so on. So I try to balance things, and try to be a better parent as I go along. I think that counts for a lot, and one day I’ll stop judging myself but still be conscious of how I’m doing – because this is, after all, the most important role that I have, and that’s not always easy to remember.

2. My Mom Inc. Story:

I don’t know if I’d really call myself an entrepreneur in the traditional sense of the term, but maybe the description does fit because I’ve tried to carve out my own space. I actually have a job in the corporate world, but it’s one which involves part time work; my passion of writing has resulted in my writing three books in the last 3 years- Just Married, Please Excuse” and “Sorting Out Sid&my latest ‘There’s Something About you’.

The seeds for my decision to quit the corporate world full-time came about in 2010, although I actually implemented it only 2 years later. After my twin sons were born, I had a complicated surgery and came as close to a near-death experience as anyone would ever want. It made me re-evaluate my priorities and so I wrote my first book in the months immediately following the surgery. It took me a while to realize that managing a full-time job, a writing career and three small kids was not exactly an easy thing to do – and so, I stepped out for a sabbatical. It was a fabulous time wherein I got to explore many different things, write my second and third books, work on consulting projects, learn to become a Zumba instructor, and so on. But I soon realized that it would make sense for me to go back to work because I had the skills and training and the capacity to earn for my family. And so, about 8 months ago, I went back to work and am quite enjoying what I’m doing.

Apart from this, on weekends, I take Zumba classes in the morning and indulge in yoga and music. Ialso own a blog www.yashodharalal.com where I write about my family, writing, work and various other things.

So basically, I am attempting to strike a balance with everything, not just my parenting style! As of now, I know I’m more content than I’ve ever been, so that’s a sign that I’m going in the right direction.

3. Who Inspired/ Supported Me:

When I got through IIM-Bangalore several years ago, I remember my mom sitting me down and giving me a short talk about not getting caught up in the Rat Race. I didn’t quite understand or appreciate what she meant at that time, but I know much more now. In general, my mom continues to be a source of inspiration and support. She’s a great lady, the kind who keeps on giving and never asks for anything in return, and very brave and strong and independent. My husband is the other major source of inspiration and support. It was tough for me to break away from the corporate grind and there’s no way I would have been able to do what I do without his continued support. He was the one who assured me it would be alright and the world wouldn’t fall apart if I quit working full-time. Now I feel I should return the favour and offer him the same! He’s a wonderful man, and I’m basically very lucky that life threw us together. The story of our first few years of marriage actually turned into my first book ‘Just Married, Please Excuse’ and he allowed me to make a lot of fun of him as the lanky, hilarious hero of the book, which is almost entirely autobiographical. It takes a lot to allow your wife to write a book on your quirks! That’s the kind of guy Vijay is.

4. Advice/Tips:

The first tip I would give is bring your passion to work, means whatever you’re doing, be enthused by it. And if you truly, truly can’t find yourself being enthused by it, look for something else to do. Secondly, help others. Help because it’s a good thing to do, and help because it all comes around eventually. For whatever reason, be as cooperative as you can with everyone. Personally, Look out for yourself. They say a happy mom makes for a happy family. I thoroughly agree that it’s one of the most vital ingredients. So be selfish sometimes, it’s perfectly alright. Also, Check in with yourself often. Spend time on becoming more self-aware.

5. My Kids:

I have three children. Peanut, as I call her is and Pickle and Papad, my twin sons.  They’re quite an entertaining lot, and I blog about them and writing and other things at www.yashodharalal.com

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