All the ‘Sister’ Ladies: A Discussion with Harbeen Arora, Ph.D by Michelle Pierson Young

This planet is for everyone,  borders are for no one. It’s all about freedom. ~ Benjamin Zephaniah, author of Refugee Boy

Two people who’ve just met for the first time arrive at an empty room. They enter, close the door, and sit in chairs. With nothing else to do but be together, how much time will pass before they’ve each shared significant anecdotes from their life’s story?

When Harbeen Arora and I met for the first time on a Zoom call, we established a deep bond within minutes. While this probably happens often to others, it took me by surprise. The word on which we bonded was “sister,” and it allowed me to see her work as having no boundaries.

Harbeen Arora, Ph.D., a native of Delhi, is the founder and global chairperson of All Ladies League (ALL) with a mission that promotes “Sisters Beyond Borders” through the Women Economic Forum (WEF) (www.wef.org.in). Some of the various labels she wears are: seeker, entrepreneur, philanthropist, visionary, leader, icon, author, professional, collaborator, speaker, and revolutionary.

But I know her as “sister.”

As I did the necessary research for what I thought would be an interview, I saw a woman dedicated to serving humanity through leadership. When our call began, I ditched the research I’d done and threw out the questions I’d formulated. More discussion than interview, I mentioned that I’d prefer to “just have a freewheeling conversation.” Harbeen said, “You’re speaking my language! Freewheeling conversation is what we'll do.”

In an introductory email, Harbeen wrote about being grounded by her spirituality; how she was able to see beyond a person’s spirit, to see their very soul. I was so touched that I began freewheeling by telling her a bit about myself: “I’m an American, raised in a very small farming community. That environment was one I found to be very limiting and scary. In addition, my relationship with my mother has been difficult, hurtful. The journey of my life has been all about learning from my sisters, my female friends, and resonating with the lessons they’ve taught. The reason I'm telling you this is because even though we don't know who we are, you called me ‘sister.’

That admission set the tone for the discussion that followed.

Here are a few excerpts:

Pierson Young: Please share what you experienced before you came to the place in life where you are now.

Arora: I was a very private person, very reclusive in my world of books and learning. I was always very drawn to knowledge, spirituality, deeper truths. I was in my solitude. However, I was very much the leader when I stepped on stage because business was part of my pursuit, my calling. I earned a master’s, and my Ph.D. in business. I was always a person with the purpose, you know, a bit a little too serious. I could be a little scary to some people at that point in time.

Pierson Young: Did you have support in your family while you were pursuing your goals and living out your calling?

Arora: I grew up in a family where our upbringing was very non-discriminatory; in a sense, there was no difference between me or my brother. We grew up in a middle-class, Indian family, where education, your studies were everything. My brother and I were the-enter of our parents’ universe; we were the chief guests of their life, everything was done for us, for me, my brother, everything was decided based on the value it would add for us. We were not a unique family—we were raised according to the Indian mindset—everything is about children, and the family is everything. Both my parents worked outside our home. And, they shared the household chores, so for me, the breaking down of gender stereotypes began with them.

What was unique or rare in my case was the fact that at that point in time, there was the belief that a boy was an economic asset and a girl was an economic liability. But I questioned this. If you go deep into our spirituality, a woman is the goddess of wealth; she is the power of creation, she is Shakti. But somehow there was a disconnect over the years between what we worshiped and what we believed in. I think that's a gap that is getting filled right now. With the work we are doing, we remind ourselves of that forgotten majesty of the woman. When we remember it, we will radiate it, and people will see it and know it and believe it and follow it.

Pierson Young: Your spirituality is a big part of your life and work. Whose teachings—for you—hold meaning?

Arora: The guru I follow is Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. He says that when yearning is true and deep, the guru, learning will arrive in the form that you need. That is, you know, it could come through a leaf, it could come through a flower, it could come through a phrase like “soul sister.” That’s it. It can just come to you.

In India, we believe in karma. Destiny is not something that happens to you from the outside. It’s something that you've been building upon yourself, for yourself, through the force of your karma, through the force of your actions. A lot of energy is released through whatever thoughts you have to whatever actions you do, according to whatever vibrational feeling you have. Your thoughts and actions bring forth the fruit of destiny. People understand destiny in a very different way in the West, but in India, we are very clear that destiny simply means something that has come to pass because of whatever seeds were sown by you.

Pierson Young: When I was growing up, I heard ‘women are women's worst enemies.’ it felt healing to learn about your perspective of how women can be positive with each other.

Arora: Somehow when I hear a woman’s story, I feel it is my story. I don't know why; it’s a very strange thing. I receive others’ stories in a very personal way, like, ‘This is her story. This, this is also my story.’ I don't know where that comes from, but I’m deeply connected to it. It matters. And, it matters as much to any girl who comes from an underserved background.

Speaking in such a freewheeling way with Harbeen Arora changed my life for the better. She improved my vision of the path I’m walking, and I encourage you to get to know her through the work she is doing through ALL and WEF. As she said to me in closing:

“We are all on our journeys, Michelle has been and is on her journey. And the divine force of nature—I call it Shakti—is the power of the universe and it is feminine. It is there for you and gives you ample opportunities on your journey.” All of our journeys truly have no borders—if we are free.

Over the course of her 30+-year career, Michelle Pierson Young has earned multiple coaching certifications. She also creates presentations, teaches, and coaches men and women toward their goals. www.michelleyoungcoaching.com