JOAN DSOUZA
- A Brief about yourself and how you describe your own Personality and Persona.
"Stay hungry. Stay foolish”. This phrase quoted by Steve Jobs has always been my motto in life. In pursuit of my journey to gain credentials, after my Bachelors in Homeopathic Medicine and Surgery (BHMS) in Mumbai (India), I decided to pursue Clinical Research at University of Cincinnati (US) and then Juris Doctorate (J.D) in law in Ohio (US). I am licensed to practice as a lawyer in the state of Minnesota (US). I describe myself as a tenacious, hard-working, self-driven, self-disciplined, focussed and empathetic person; someone who is consistently looking for opportunities for self-growth and opportunities to grow people around me. I have always believed in ”not to quit”. Not just to think about success but to have an action plan to succeed, and eventually to make a difference in the world. My hobbies are reading, singing, dancing, exercising, and playing badminton and piano.
- Your Achievements that make you feel high.
• Completed both my professional certification in Clinical Research and my J.D in law when my daughters were little, age 12 and 8. • Recently titled as Mrs India IAB- International 2019. • Founder of Vichar Vimarsh (Inspire Me Inspire You) a platform to empower Moms and high school children and to bring out their best. • Worked as FLIP (Friends of Litigant in Person) in the Singapore Supreme Court to provide assistance to indigenous/poor litigants. • I and my 12 year daughter together collected used books and sold them on the streets to send that money to a underprivileged school in Mumbai (India) run by my father for over 40 years. • Co-chaired India booth at the International fair at Singapore American School in 2019, and led 3 teams; silent auction, cultural and merchandise team. We raised close to 7,000 SGD. • Worked at “Beautiful People” a non-profit organization, totally devoted to rehabilitate children from dysfunctional families. • Currently, learning Chinese and German. • Very active in various reputed Toastmasters clubs in Singapore where I continuously undertake various challenging roles to promote growth.
- Define the true beauty.
A simple woman who simply radiates, joy, compassion, and empathy within her immediate surrounding, and yet is consistently resilient in all adversities is a true beauty. A person who reinforces positivity in her immediate surrounding and a nurturing atmosphere. Someone who has a positive self-image; treats everyone with utmost respect, making everyone feel valuable and important. Has a healthy self-esteem; who loves herself, unless you love yourself you cannot love people around you and eventually spread happiness. Someone who is self-disciplined, has faith in herself that she is capable of doing anything. A person who is confident and holds herself in dignity in public will always glow.
- What makes a complete, healthy and happy family for you?
Families, where "love" reigns higher than being “consistently right” is a healthy and a happy family. Where love is patient and kind and members continuously practice respect, compassion and empathy for each other, and tremendous forgiveness. Also, where each family member continuously practices gratitude and thanks others even for small deeds. Finally, no family is perfect but if each member vows to maintain a cohesive and a nurturing atmosphere and looks at each other’s strengths than weaknesses that family is certainly a happy family.
- What is your favourite Idea of Holidaying?
Serving in my dad’s school in India is my favourite idea of a holiday. As mentioned earlier, my father was a chairman of a very poor school in Mumbai (India) for over 40 years; unfortunately he is no more. The kids are actually picked from slums and are given not only books but also school uniforms and food. We love to work there during holidays. It gives us a tremendous sense of fulfilment. We also take our kids to our remote villages in India and actually show them the standard of living. It develops not only a sense of gratitude, but also compassion and humility. All these places add to our purposeful learning.
- Why you are participating in Mrs India Queen of Substance?
Currently, I run a platform called Vichar Vimarsh (Inspire Me Inspire You). The goal is to inspire all "Mothers" in India to come out of their comfort zone and grow to their maximum potential. Also, the platform provides an opportunity for all women especially "Mom" entrepreneurs to grow. A title of Mrs India Queen of Substance will empower me to influence many more mothers to be the best version of themselves. To uplift many mothers and help them to stay constantly optimistic and resilient in all adversities. As the title will provide a lot of authority I can be a voice to million other mothers.
- What bothers you most about what is happening in the country today?
There are many issues which bother me, such as growing greenhouse gas emissions, displacing citizens from their own homeland, such as the Rohingya refugees from Myanmar or the Yezidis from Iraq. However, I still consider gender inequality as the most important issue as it affects women of all races, nationalities and ethnicities. Worldwide statistics show that women are abused every 3 mins. These are just reported incidences. So then we wonder how many cases go unreported. So then should we say that women are abused each and every minute or even each and every second?. A woman is the "powerhouse" of the family and deserves complete respect. I would like to empower each and every women so that they have the ability to take active steps to stop both visible/invisible abuse. Even a simple eve teasing should not be tolerated. We need a safe place to move around. We have to envision a society where there is absolute gender equality.
- The Quote or saying that encourages you?
There will never be another now- I’ll make the most of today. There will never be another me- I’ll make the most of myself.
- What is true “Sportsmanship” for you?
To take winning or losing with an equal stride is a true Sportsmanship. In a game we will have an opponent, and someone has to lose, and someone has to win but it's important to keep the team spirit. It doesn't matter who wins or losses. Failures are inevitable, but it's rather important to learn from our mistakes and keep working on our strengths, to be more empowered and start rising again. To stay focused and give our best shot at each and every step of a game but at the same time respecting our opponent’s boundaries. I would rather lose with dignity than win by manipulating, and take responsibility of my actions rather than blame others for my misfortune.
- If you were selected as a Charity Ambassador what Value addition would you like to make for our Society and how?
I am involved in many projects, such as Vichar Vimarsh (Inspire Me Inspire You), Friends of Litigant in person etc. My purpose is to make sure that each and every "Mother" can find meaning and purpose in her life. In our International fair at my children's school in 2019 we encouraged many Moms to bring forth their talents from our rich heritage in India and expose it to people from around the world. Thus, uplifting Moms is just not my "purpose" but my "passion". A mother is the essence of a family. If a mother is happy the entire family is happy, and the world is a happy place to live in. Even if I am able to stabilize one mother, I have automatically stabilized many more people, not only for this generation, but also for all our future generations. Furthermore, having lived overseas for many years, I have the capacity to reach out to many multicultural Moms and inspire them.
