Empowering Women Through Mission-Driven Work

Paula: [00:00:00] Hello everyone and welcome to another episode of Chatting with the Experts TV show where I showcase amazing, interesting, I’m out of descriptions. Women from Africa, from the Caribbean and the Diaspora. Our mission, that’s my guest and myself, is to inspire, to motivate and empower women globally. I sometimes have men, but for the most part, my guests are women. Today, our topic is Working As A Mission. And my guest, Dr. Shanti Persaud, says that our belief system as Christians can hinder our calling and prevent us from fulfilling our God-given purpose. She asks, as Christians, do we see our work as a mission field, [00:01:00] or as something worldly, and can we understand that everything that we have is stewarding for a higher calling?
Let me tell you a bit about Dr. Shanti. She’s a passionate servant leader. She’s a wife and mother of three girls, and she is on a mission to empower women… not women, but people. Women are people to live empowering lives. I could say more about her. But why don’t I let her come on to the show. And with that, I welcome Dr. Shanti Persaud to Chatting With the Experts. Hi.
Dr Shanti: Hi Paula. Thank you so much for this invitation.
Paula: Absolutely. And thank you for saying yes.
Dr Shanti: You’re welcome.
Paula: I read a bit of your bio, but I didn’t say all. Can you just embellish it a little [00:02:00] bit? Or did I say it all?
Dr Shanti: You said a lot there about myself and usually sometimes my bio, it goes for two pages. And so I tell people, please don’t, I give them very short version to just, you know, that’s just simple me.
Paula: Yes. So what you haven’t said is that you hold a degree in business management, you have a master’s in business administration, and a doctorate in transformational leadership. And you’ve had over 10 years of experience in corporate training, and more than seven years of experience in business and executive coaching. You’ve got a lot that you didn’t say, but you’re humble.
Dr Shanti: Sometimes people think that you know, when they see my CV or so they say, you know how intimidating your background there is. And, you know, I said to [00:03:00] people, it’s not about intimidation, but how can I inspire you to be all that you are made to be right. And I do believe there is greatness in all of us that sometimes we self-sabotage ourselves, you know, in that aspect that, you know, we sell ourselves short. We don’t explore every possible thing that God has put you on this earth to do. And I tell people, if you’re not going to live your purpose, then you’re pretty much robbing someone, you know, that gift that God would have given you to bless them with. You know, so don’t go to your grave and with all these gifts and all the things that you are capable of doing.
Paula: I love that you say that because yes, sometimes people are so intimidated by other people that you don’t even spend time getting to know them, you know, and you miss out so much because people are people first and foremost, and all those other things are [00:04:00] secondary. And as Christians, we know first and foremost, our mission is to serve God, and every other thing follows after that. So yeah, I can understand why your CV intimidates, especially when I look at you, you look so young. I mean, off camera, you were telling me that your eldest daughter is 21 and I almost collapsed. I’m like, you, I thought you were 21.
Dr Shanti: Oh, thank you. I would love to be 21 right now. You know, many times people say stuff like this, if I knew what I know now, like 20 years back, right? You know, what kind of different life you’d be having. So yeah, I wish I was 21 with all the knowledge that I have now.
Paula: You know, that’s why I don’t want to be 21 anymore, because I know at 21, I was so uncertain [00:05:00] of myself, not confident in the least bit and kind of fearful of next things in life. But now, I’m no longer that way. And it’s, a lot has to do with me giving my life to Christ and changing,. That He changed me. And that’s why I’m happy not to be 21 again, because when I was 21, I didn’t know the Lord the way I know Him now.
Dr Shanti: Yep.
Paula: So let’s talk about some of our beliefs as Christians. Why sometimes do we feel that you know, we hinder our calling and we think that we’re not fulfilling our God-given purpose?
Dr Shanti: So something and I’m sharing my lessons that I learned coming through this journey of life. And, you know, coming from a Hindu background and being converted to a Christian during my university [00:06:00] age. So during between 18 and 19, that’s where I met the Lord. And if I’m to tell you the whole story behind that, we’re going to spend hours on this program. But during my conversion is that, you know, my heart was so much in for the Lord and I want to do everything that was being told to me that as Christians we should do. And at some point during this whole journey here too is that, you know, I got programmed to believe certain things. And I’ll give you an example of it, is that as Christians, I was taught that, you know what, there’s sacred work and there’s secular work, kind of, right?
And when I started my MBA in Bakke Graduate University, which is a Christian university, really shattered all of those belief systems and helped me to understand that, you know, thinking that work [00:07:00] is, there’s some sacred work and there’s some secular work, That, therefore, God didn’t make all work. And we understood that everything under the sun, God made everything. Right, and he made work. I mean, I am not a preacher. I am not the person to be teaching you about Christianity or the faith or anything along that line, but you can read it in the Bible where, you know, in the beginning where God talked about work and the whole aspect of work, but the word work comes with this kind of belief that it’s hard.
Right, because when you hear, I have to go to work. Oh my gosh, work, that is like going to be draining and what’s not, and so we were taught that, you know, work could be joyful. That God made all of us, and he made work, he made Adam and Eve, he put them in the garden, and he told them to, you know, take care of it as work, [00:08:00] and it was joyful. You live off of the land, all the time, you could read the whole story there, and you know, he said that we’re made to do good works too. Right, so there’s something good in all of us that we could bring out, but the belief system that work is something hard, that, you know, there are certain work only God blesses, and then there are certain work that he doesn’t bless, right? And yes, there are certain things that people do that maybe it’s not in line with what God you know, want us to be doing.
But let’s talk about our regular work. Like for me, I always thought, okay, as a Christian, now I need to resign my job. So I manage a business with my husband and we have over 40 employees. We import stuff and like the machines and different things that help our farmers, our miners, and you know, different people that need certain [00:09:00] machine to help make their work easier. And I thought to myself, you know what I am not fulfilling what God maybe put me on this earth to do. I’m supposed to be a missionary and missionary means that you leave your job, you go maybe in the interior of Diana, where I’m from, or you go to Africa, or you go to some third world country that people are suffering and you go there and you give them the word of God and you help them through that. That was my mentality of mission.
Right. And, you know, coming to that understanding when I did my first class that talk about theology of work. And yeah, it was like a mind blowing class for me that shattered everything that I thought this is what in that class I learned that I am actually a missionary in the same store that I’m running, that I’m a missionary there, and that I can fulfill my [00:10:00] God-given purpose there as a missionary. And, you know, the whole aspect of people, you know, what we’re doing there, it’s for a bigger purpose. It’s to do just for a higher calling. There are people there that need to also see what God looks like in us. And I don’t need to go leave the job and go somewhere else to show people what God looks like through my behavior and, you know, my life or to tell them anything.
And there, there were so much life lessons in stuff that where our belief system would have hinder us. from actually stepping out to do great things. I’m going to give you one more example of how my belief system also trapped me. So, I was taught, you know, that this I call it a wiring. So, my brains got wired to think that if I get more money, if I [00:11:00] gain more things in life, right, you get houses, whatever assets, If you get more, then you become worldly, right? And so the more you focus and you build those things or whatever you have become a worldly person. Christian should not be worldly, right? And so I thought, okay, why focus on all those things? You know, why even try to achieve getting money, more money or anything like that? Why do all of that?
So I’ll never set a revenue goal for myself. Right, and I have never worked towards achieving anything grand, because if I do so, I was taught that I’m going to become worldly, and I’m going after the world, per se. And so, the belief system is that, you know, where it says that, but money, the whole aspect of both money and gaining more money or so, or money becoming your god, [00:12:00] kind of, you know, so the idea I, you know, came to understand through all of it is that, It’s not about having the monies. If you have the money, that becomes your God.
Paula: Yes.
Dr Shanti: If you are worshipping the money, that you do every, like, money to just get at whatever cost or whatever, then you might be in some problem there.
Paula: Yes.
Dr Shanti: But the other aspect of many Christians I see that are struggling. Right. They’re struggling to get by in life. And I don’t believe that’s what God meant because he said about having an abundant life too. And I’m not talking abundance where money alone is concerned. I’m talking about mentally abundance in your relationship, in love, and a whole aspects of abundance here. And not only about money here, but it was something that I had to understand [00:13:00] Money is not you know, the root of all evil. It is a love that the word that came before. It’s the love of it. It becomes, you know, that. And so the whole idea of restructuring your thinking here to understand that there’s some belief system that is causing you not to step out. And now that I understand that I started to set revenue goals. I came out of that mentality. You know what? If I earn more, I can able to help more people.
Paula: Yeah more. Yes.
Dr Shanti: We have a foundation that brings value based teaching into schools. And to get that going, it costs because we have to give the materials to the students. And so, if I can earn more, I can actually reach more students through this year. And we’re talking country transformation in a few years from now. How the children coming out of high school can actually see what leadership should look like and live [00:14:00] that. Right. And they will bring the change, but I’m just saying, I might not live to see all of that, but I can start something here because of my mindset that, you know what I can earn to be able to do something greater too. But I’m going to stop there and hear your thoughts, Paula.
Paula: I agree with you 100 percent. And that’s a discussion I’ve been having, excuse me, a lot of new Christians, young, both in their walk with the Lord and young also in age, where they believe that, hmm, now I’m a Christian, then I’m not supposed to, you know, actually pursue a career. Or, excuse me, or, you know, get educated because it means that I am, you know, becoming more worldly. And I have to remind them that first and foremost, [00:15:00] you have to realize that as a Christian, it’s your heart that changes and your heart is what drives everything. So, you know, you can have all that money and your heart is right and you can have no money and your heart is not right.
So, it’s your heart that controls your belief. Your belief, first of all, is in Christ, and then you try and develop a relationship with him. But he himself, Jesus himself, said, render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar, when someone asked him about paying taxes. So that means he knew that there was a difference between, you know, the worshipping, the worldly things and actually having the right heart relationship for God. And so I agree with you. If you don’t earn enough money, you may not be able to support some very necessary and needed causes because you are restricting [00:16:00] yourself. I also think also of the parable of the persons who had the five talents, the three talents and the one talent and, you know, saying you have to know who you are and how you are called and work accordingly with that calling to be the blessing that God has called you to be.
So thank you for pointing that out with your life. I’m giving that example because it makes it even clearer to see, you know, what we expected to do as a Christian. So thank you. I know one of the things you wanted to talk about was stewardship. We have limited time and so I don’t want to… let’s talk about stewardship.
Dr Shanti: This whole aspect of stewardship was something new also for me to understand that, you know, everything that I have. It is not mine. So even [00:17:00] though you’re working so hard for your money and what’s not, it’s to understand it doesn’t belong to you. And some people get confused with me saying that, yeah, I worked for it, you know, I’ve been laboring all my life, but I’ve earned this thing, I have this vehicle, I have this house, I have whatever, right? And the whole aspect of It’s something that I had to understand is that all these things belongs to God, and I’m just storing it for him. I’m looking after it for Him. He’s given it and coming to my kids. I have three daughters, right? Your relationships, all these things. My kids is not, they’re not mine. They belong to the Lord. And I’m just storing them for him. Right? And so, so many times when people see me with certain things. I tell them plain, it’s not mine.
It’s [00:18:00] the Lord’s and it’s free to be used for him. And you know, when understanding that concept of stewardship, one of the big thing that hit me as a manager, as somebody who’s leading a team and all of that was that my team, I’m stewarding for the Lord. And the people that are reporting to me, I’m stewarding their lives too. And that opened up my whole perspective as to how do I want to lead them, right? And how am I going to take care of them too, being that God has entrusted me to look over this business, the people in the business, the customers and all of that. And so we’re talking about work as a mission field here. So I’m just giving you a little understanding of the things I had to understand as a Christian and to help me to know that, you know, nothing holds me because [00:19:00] I know it doesn’t belong to me. Right. And so having more money or having a vehicle, having a house, having whatever might be that you have, that you know that as Christians we understand we’re storing it.
One day we’re going to die, and we’re going to leave everything and I don’t know how many leaders understand that concept. Because the way we see people behave these days is like everything grab, grab, grab. And the more they can grab, and you’re going to die and leave all of it, right? What are you putting it to use for, right? And so I’m just in this aspect of understanding that you are storing even your life, right? And how do you want to live it? You’re storing it for the Lord. What are you going to do? Your decisions? How are you investing in you to make you even better? So that you [00:20:00] can lead those people better, right? How are you learning to do those things then? And the importance of doing it well. Many times I do interviews, I tell people that in my work here, my principle comes from the Bible. And it says that whatever you do, do it as if you’re doing it for God.
Paula: Yes.
Dr Shanti: And so, That is our policy. Whatever you do, do it. Don’t do it for me. You’re reporting. Don’t do it for me. Don’t do it because I asked you to or you’re here because and you were told that you have a job description and do this. Do it because you’re doing it for a higher calling.
Paula: Yeah.
Dr Shanti: You’re doing it for a higher calling. You’re not doing it for the person who’s paying you to do it. Whether you’re sweeping the floor, or you are making some serious decision at the next level, whatever it is that you’re doing, do it as if you’re doing it for God. So what kind of [00:21:00] quality would you give him? Right? What kind of quality you want to give him? You’re going to do some mediocre thing, and you know, you didn’t even verify, you didn’t check that, you know, what kind of quality you want to give? So remembering that. You’re storing it for him. And what quality would you give to him if you understand doing your work for that? We have so much disengagement problem around the world, right? And with people in jobs, not only in my country, around the world. And why? Because we think we’re doing our job for somebody else.
Paula: Yeah.
Dr Shanti: Instead of we’re doing it for a higher calling. And if we understand that principle, we will do things totally different. So I want to leave that part with you that you are storing the lives of the people, your relationships, your [00:22:00] assets, wherever it is that you have, it doesn’t belong to you. You’re going to die and leave everything. So you might as well make sure that you don’t let it hold on to you and your decisions are being made based on that.
Paula: I love it. Because one thing that I mean, I love your part in words, which is nothing belongs to you. You’re going to die because that’s one thing we know for sure. We are going to die and leave these material things behind. But if we have been walking in the calling, if we have been walking in our purpose, if we have been walking in a way that people’s lives have been changed. Or through them looking at our lives, they have changed. Then we’ve done what we have been called to do. Oh my word. Dr. Shanti, this has been very good. Can you tell us where we can find you online? Please, for those who have heard you and who want to know more about you and the work that you do. [00:23:00]
Dr Shanti: You can search for me. I’m on Facebook, Shanti Persaud, or LinkedIn, and we do have our company website. Our company name is LEADTOINFLUENCE, L E A D T O INFLUENCE. com. So you can search for us at leadtoinfluence.com. And you have a lot of information there about myself too, what we do. Here in the end on per se, and yeah connect. Let’s hear any questions or anything you know that you want to ask us or ask me, ask Paula.
Paula: Yes, and of course, for the Q & A session you’ll be there to speak and answer any questions that anyone who joins can or wants to ask you.
Dr Shanti: Definitely.
Paula: So for those of you who have just viewed this or subsequently [00:24:00] listen to this on the podcast. I want to tell you that if you’d like to be a guest. Please reach out to me on my website, which is chattingwiththeexperts. com. I am also on LinkedIn as Paula Okonneh. I am on Instagram. My handle there is at chat_experts_podcast, and I’m also on Facebook as Paula Okonneh. Thank you so much, Dr. Shanti for this. I appreciate you coming on and I appreciate the work that you’re doing to change neighborhoods, communities, the countries, the country you live in and because you mentioned earlier on about high schoolers and being influential in or enabling a change to come about in their life by what you’re doing. So thank you.