I still call myself an ‘accidental writer’. It still hasn’t completely sunk it: Misha H Dhorda | Exclusive Interview

About the Author: A corporate dropout by choice, Misha Dhorda has worked in globally renowned organizations like IBM, J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, and Accenture for more than fifteen years. Starting at the grassroots level, she moved up the ranks handling leadership roles that were not only pan-India in profile but also across six other countries as well. Her first multi-geographical exposure was at Chase Bank as it involved interacting with teams from the United States and the Philippines. Misha’s first leadership role was at Accenture at the age of 27 years, handling teams of professionals far older and more experienced than her, across cultures like the United Kingdom and China. Her exposure to the family-owned small, medium and large-scale enterprises came with the advent of working in companies based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This also led to a significant amount of time being spent there along with working closely with teams from Russia, Australia, South Africa, and other GCC countries. This multi-cultural exposure enabled her to develop an inclusive view of people, processes, and systems. It also (by default) helped develop a rather acerbic sense of humor. When not working, Misha is a voracious reader, Netflix binge-watcher, an avid art and history aficionado, amateur baker, and travel junkie.

So below is our conversation with her. 🙂

Q1. Your 1st book ‘Trainer, Leader, Coach’ is mostly a self-help for people in Corporate World. What motivated you to write this book?
Ironically I never set out specifically at this time to be an author. Just like a lot of people, writing a book, making a movie, or traveling the world ‘someday’ was always on my bucket list but never really got cracking on it. The genesis of “Trainer, Leader, Coach” came about quite by accident. I was approached by a content company to write a book regarding Leadership in a way that would make it palatable & relevant for the generation today as it would be included in the MBA curriculum of a prestigious Management institution. So we brainstormed about the overall framework and of course, my experience across industries and multiple geographies helped as well. The student version however is more Indanized with an extensive bank of assessments for each segment & chapter. The self-help version is more global in terms of tone and examples. Also, except for a few DIY quizzes and some important case studies, it does not contain assessments of course.

Q2. As your book is already creating wonders on an international level, at what point do you think someone should call themselves a writer? When did you first call yourself a writer?
First off it just feels surreal that my book is actually out there and doing its own thing. So incredibly grateful for all of it. To be honest I still call myself an ‘accidental writer’. It still hasn’t completely sunk it. However, I cannot speak for anyone else. Each individual is free to choose the label that suits them best or none at all.

Q3. Have you received any negative reviews about your book yet? If yes, how did you process and deal with negative book reviews? If no how would you react if you get a couple?
Thus far there haven’t been any specifically negative reviews & I am very thankful for my honeymoon period continuing unabated. Everyone has been very supportive and appreciative. Jokes apart though, any constructive criticism is one of the best touch-points for growth so I would welcome it. Also as a first-time author, I am cognizant of the fact that I have a lot to learn. Always will. I consider myself a student of life…for life

Q4. Your book is really helpful for people in the corporate world that too on every stage, so are you planning a sequel?
It’s great to know that our little labour of love is helpful to people across all levels. “Trainer, Leader, Coach” is, in a lot of ways the amalgamation of more than my 15 years of corporate experience with all kinds of lessons learned. To amass that much material takes time so perhaps my next book might be something completely different… A cookbook perhaps. Who knows !?! The idea is to write books that find their own audience regardless of their content. And that only happens when it is qualitative work. Also, I wouldn’t want to limit myself to one genre only.

Q5. Now that you have published your book while getting it published via your publisher, what had been your most favorite and least favorite part of publishing?
My publishing partners are Notion Press and they have been absolutely fantastic. They clearly come with a lot of experience in this arena and that enables them to handle each author even first-timers like me with professionalism and consideration at all stages. There is an entire team that was allocated to me and they took great care of me throughout. No complaints whatsoever.

Q6. Our last question, what message would you like to send to your readers who are already reading your book?
First off a big thank you for embracing my first baby so beautifully. It is very encouraging for a first-time author. The only message I’d like to leave my readers with is that please give both feedback; positive and constructive with equal elan as that is the only thing that helps us better our qualitative output.

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