Exclusive! Fitness Is a Part of 360-Degree Mental, Spiritual and Physical Well-Being, says Yash Birla

Yashovardhan Birla, also known as Yash Birla, is an Indian businessman and the chairman of the Yash Birla Group. Yash Birla has been involved in fitness, bodybuilding and has maintained a visibly fit lifestyle. Yash Birla completed his schooling in Mumbai. Following his secondary schooling, he enrolled in an HR college in Mumbai before obtaining his degree in Business Administration from the United States.

In an exclusive conversation with us, Yash Birla spoke about his journey, innovation in business, and dedication to fitness and wellness.

Here are the edited excerpts from the exclusive and delightful interaction:

Can you share a brief overview of your journey and how you have become a successful entrepreneur?

So I think for an industrial family which has been industrial for three generations, its partly genetics, where from our childhood we are told that this is something which you need to do as your duty, as your karma is to manage business legacies. I used to come to the office when I was 16 years old, after my classes in junior college, to learn accounts. We are always trained to look at micromanagement when we first write journal entries and then post things into the cash book. This way, before I studied accounting in college, I already studied it in my office. My father used to keep strict vigilance on how I used to do all the assignments here. Then, I also attended many meetings with him to understand how he looks at things. After that, I pursued my MBA, which was partially complete, though, in 1990, which gave me further experience. When I came back, obviously, it was all of a sudden, but through experience, through mistakes, through guidance from stalwarts like Mr Rahul Bajaj and Mr Aditya Vikram Birla, they trained me how to look at things from an entrepreneurial chairman's point of view, and that's what eventually happened.

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What motivated you to venture into the business world? And what inspired you to pursue entrepreneurship?

So technically, yes, it is a choice, but in practice, we don't exercise that choice in industrial families who are down for the fifth generation now. For example, you're programmed to get up in the morning and brush your teeth like that. We are programmed that you will grow up and become an entrepreneur. It's not that we are compelled to do it, but that's automatically the choice we always make. So it was naturally ingrained from childhood, and it just manifested into the right choice for us to do because it's not something you create or choose, it's there, and you have to take it and move it forward and carry on the legacy.

How do you foster innovation and adaptability within your businesses to stay relevant in a constantly evolving market?

For me, innovation is basically accepting that there are a lot of ideas you can get from people from the outside world. Any kind of work where you feel you know everything, that's the end of that progression in that field of profession, whatever you're in. So you must always keep your eyes and ears open. Even novices, let's say I'm talking to you in some conversation, you may give me an idea which can click in a business decision for me. So innovation comes from adaptability to understanding people's minds, to be able to perceive how they think and to be able to apply their thought process in your business. Also, to hire the right people who keep thinking ahead of time to take advice from people who will look at global scenarios and think how global scenarios have moved ahead and how we look at things before they come. Let's say, for example, artificial intelligence is the new buzzword, so we have to see how we can apply it in different business areas and how we innovate based on that. How does our team become innovative based on that? So that's how we talk about innovation and moving forward with time because time moves forward; it doesn't stop for you.

In addition to your business ventures, you are known for your dedication to fitness and wellness. Can you share how that passion developed and how it influenced your life and work?

So when I was in the United States for my MBA, I used to study about 13 hours a day, the rest of the time, I had not much to do because just a students town with some bars, and I used not like to visit any bars, so I just used to walk around. And suddenly, I came across an absolutely magnificent gym. It was like 20,000 sqft on one floor and all students, young people working out. So I got motivated and started working out, and I saw the results very quickly. I saw how it changed not only my body but also my mind. It changed the way I thought. My willpower, alertness, positivity, and ability to deal with stress all changed. And then that from then has become a part of my lifestyle. Because it's not only about physical fitness, it's physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual all integrated into one.

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What does fitness mean to you?

Fitness is ultimate. As I say, it's part of 360-degree mental, spiritual and physical well-being. So fitness is a very integral part because unless your body is fit and your hormones are functioning properly, how will you think properly? And if you do not think properly, how will you meditate properly? Because you'd be stressed all the time, and the process of meditation is to drop the thoughts. So it's all for me. Spirituality is my foundation. So physical fitness is one of the very important steps which makes me pursue that very actively.

How do you balance the demands of your professional life with your well-being and relationships?

When we think it has to be balanced, then that's when it becomes a pressure. There is always a natural balance in the life of everything. So if you wake up a lot and stay awake too many hours during the week, there'll be some nights when you'll oversleep. The body naturally balances itself. That way, the mind and the body can find ways to do what you think is important. It will happen. It just needs the willpower to do it at the right time. Let's say, okay, I'm feeling lazy to work out. I'll look at the internet, start looking on Instagram, and waste my time. But instead of that, if I have my willpower, instead of wasting my time on Instagram, I can do Instagram as long as I finish my workout, or I can do it in between after my workout, just as leisure on the treadmill or whatever, then that discipline says that there's no balance required because I've got enough time for it. I have time to look at Instagram. I have time for social media. I have time to return messages. So how can working out be less important than that? People don't think it's important and say we have to balance it out.

Can you provide any advice or tips for aspiring entrepreneurs looking to start their businesses?

So, as I said, one is consistency in whatever you do. Whatever you do, start and follow it consistently. Don't be like a yoyo. Take something and drop it, then take something else, drop something new. Whatever you do, decide and be after it because it'll lead you onto something else, even if that's not ideal. Second, you have to be focused, dedicated. You have to be able to get along with a team. The main thing is that you need to get along with people. People are your main wealth. Unless you learn how to communicate with people, how to interact with people, how to make people motivated and happy, and how to make them involved in your success journey and make them feel responsible for it, rather than taking all the credit for yourself, that's the main success of any entrepreneurship, which is starting up.

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What inspires and motivates you to continue pushing boundaries and pursuing new opportunities?

Everything in life is that you have to keep moving on that's life because it doesn't end whenever you don't push boundaries. That means you've stopped, and you've regressed. The moment the boundaries are not pushed, automatically, you'll regress for everything in life, whether it's a profession, work, spiritual, emotional maturity, or relationships. You have to keep improving everything because the moment you become stagnant, it's like a natural springboard that will take you back. We should always keep moving ahead. And even if we think we are moving back, there's a way to push and move back. And then ultimately, when you push, you'll step across what you felt you were going back because of and cross over it. So keep pushing.

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