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Do you take time out to celebrate your successes? Do you make sure your team gets the recognition it deserves? Are you confident the people around you feel appreciated? Minoti Parikh from this pampered life shows us how to celebrate success.

About Minoti Parikh

Minoti Parikh, the Founder of This Pampered Life has facilitated more than 1500 corporate events across 20 countries over the last 12 years.

Minoti lives in Leeds, but was a TV star from India. She moved to Leeds for love! (She says it is the love of her life, her husband, I suspect it is Leeds United!). After a couple of years of having long distance relationship, parents prompted them with a ‘where are you heading?’ question. Marriage followed and Minoti moved to the UK.

Minoti found fame in India as a TV presenter and as an incredibly successful Master of Ceremonies. Since being in the UK, she has founded a business called This Pampered Life.

Minoti Parikh - This Pampered Life

Minoti Parikh – This Pampered Life

This Pampered Life

All of us are always so busy, all the time. You have birthdays, anniversaries and special occasions, where you celebrate with loved ones. There are actually very few times when you actually switch off from our daily routine and just celebrate who we are what we’ve done.

This Pampered Life is all about creating a personalised memory for your clients. But, Minoti calls clients “Stars”. They treat them like a star, like a VIP.

Minoti reverses the chase for people looking for experiences. She just makes it happen. She makes her stars really special and celebrated.

We have all got interesting stories, a set of achievements, realising how amazing we are.

What’s on your bucket list?

Going up in a hot-air balloon? Sky-diving? This Pampered Life will help you tick it off. This Pampered Life is about living in the present, soaking in what you are, who you are.

For Minoti, she’d like to see Bucket Lists with just experiences in them. Not about acquiring things, like houses, cars etc. It should be a lot more about memories. Creating memories. When you look back at life, it is really those memories that make the difference!

What would you like to be remembered by? Giving, enjoying.

One of the reasons why Minoti is well placed to deliver these sorts of experiences is her background in India.

Minoti the TV Star

She has been a Master of Ceremonies and TV Presenter for about 12 years in India. Minoti has presented more than 1,500 live events. Across 25 countries.

She had her own TV show for 7 years, which was a sports-based show on a national TV channel.

She has been fortunate enough to work alongside the Indian Prime Minister, also the President of India. The biggest names in terms of sports personalities. Movie stars. Industrialists.

Minoti has had the opportunity to work for the biggest companies. The biggest MNCs (multi-national companies) in the world – Apple, Samsung, Volkswagen, General Motors.

When she was an MC, it was really about creating special experiences. Typically, their events are a bigger scale, with larger audiences. From hundreds to 20,000 people. Her MC role was about creating special moments through the event.

  • The games played
  • Interaction at the event
  • Team building
  • Motivational talks

It has always been about recognising others. Making them feel special. The medium has been slightly different to This Pampered Life, but the message has been pretty much the same.

Here are some YouTube Links to see Minoti in action as an Master of Ceremonies.

TV Showreel:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSFM09ahJXo

Presenting the CNBC Retail Awards 2012:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_E-Lt4foSU

Hyundai Eon Launch:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZF6BJg4-KQ

Back in India, Minoti lead a very busy life. One quick tip: have 4 suitcases ready! She was often literally in and out of the City of Mumbai. So, having a suitcase, fully equipped for the next event, was a secret to success!

Even within the city, she might have been doing a press conference in the morning and an Awards ceremony in the evening.

That was her life for a good 10 years!

Success is in the detail

Minoti recommends playing to your strengths. She travelled internationally for so many of her events. She realised her UNIQUE SELLING POINT was she always put in a lot of time, gave a lot of attention to each event. Effect to understand what the client wanted.

Then delivered to those expectations.

Even if that means she missed out on doing an extra event, or an extra TV show, she would sacrifice opportunities to spend enough time with the client to help with scripting, creative concept, the team for the event. She would spend the requisite time.

That’s why her clients liked her and provided her with repeat work. She was recalled year after year for so many events. Which was not a feature for so many other MCs.

Clients liked the consistency of her performance. Minoti realised that whatever she did in life she needed to keep that part going.

TV Show

Minoti presented a rally and motocross sports show for 7 years. She wasn’t a fan at all when she started. She was asked by chance to audition for the show. Luck played a part. She was introduced to the producer of the show.

He liked the way she spoke – especially in a live TV show she was featuring in.

After an audition, he asked her to do a trial show. By that time, she had done a lot of research. Because she wanted to get it right. The trial went well and they signed a contract.

The experience on the ground was different. Drivers and riders were not used to seeing a female presenter there on the tracks. It’s obviously a very male dominated sport.

People gave her contempt-full stares – what is she up to. She confronted these challenges and after a couple of years, most bikers and racers forged a rapport with her.

She drove most of the cars, but never rode the bikes.

How would you plan an event?

  1. Understand what you want to achieve at the end of the event Before you get into logistics, understand what is the message you want to bring across. Is it to let employees know they are cared for, recognised, or rewarded? Or is it something like you want to train them. Or it might be a wedding. What do you want to achieve at the end of the event?
  2. Who is you audience? What are their tastes like? their lifestyle like? What wont they appreciate or even care for? You might save on a lot of extras if your audience doesn’t care for XYZ. An insider view is NOT to do everything. If your event is 70% male and 30% female, you might not want to spend a huge amount on lavish décor. If it is about having a good time, invest in a very good venue, good food and a very god quality DJ and a dance floor. That is what will make the party a success.
  3. What is your budget?

Once they are sorted. The second phase, is theme, invites – all the extras.

After the event, for team building, or corporate packages:

  • This Pampered Life engages with the client about a month ahead of the scheduled event to understand the gaps, challenges and what employees like about the work-space as well.
  • Then the create a plan. A theme day. They send through emails, small gifts etc just to keep the interest of the participants. To build up employee’s motivation. So, they are really forward to the event.
  • The event.
  • Feedback loop. How much of the experience has helped improve productivity, how it has helped employees feel about the company? The result. They measure progress against known gaps. They gauge feedback through forms, telephone interviews.

Corporate – This Pampered Life

Her clients ask her to provide presentation skills. Once clients discover Minoti has considerable experience of presenting and being in front of a camera, they naturally are keen for her to share that experience and knowledge for team members. So, she also provides courses:

  • Confident presenting
  • Improving inter-personal skills

Minoti is challenging herself to grow in new directions – by starting This Pampered Life. This despite being “quiet a pain” for a few months after relocating – she just wasn’t used to doing certain things that back in India she had help for. For her, it was a big deal if someone told her to put the dishes in the dishwasher!

Her husband helped her make the transition! You’ve made a decision to be with me here, you live with it!

What’s the magic ingredient when planning an event?

People buy people. If you genuinely care and creating a good event, it’s all the person wants. Make your client feel their employees matter. It’s the emotion. If that is genuine, then your employees will feel special no matter what.

How to connect with Minoti:

Website:                  http://www.thispamperedlife.com

Twitter:                    @life_pampered

LinkedIn:                  https://www.linkedin.com/in/minotiparikh/

Facebook:               https://www.facebook.com/thispamperedlife

Instagram:              https://www.instagram.com/thispamperedlife/

More about Minoti:              http://www.minotiparikh.com

The Next 100 Days Podcast is brought to you by Graham Arrowsmith and Kevin Appleby