We have witnessed many instances where women have proven that they can accomplish remarkable things regardless of their age, background or social standing. From homemakers with side hustles to women in full-time jobs, women have laboured hard to achieve greater heights. Successful women exhibit several similar traits. While their passion and willingness to learn sets them up toward a path to success, it is ultimately their motivation and perseverance to withstand tribulations that help them through the dark days and propel them toward their goals. However, the pertinent question is – where do you start? How do you become successful?
Let’s hear from two eminent women who have endeavoured to help other women succeed by mentoring, empowering and upskilling them.
A woman who wears many hats, the 27-year-old Datin Paduka Eina Azman is an actress, singer, model, food enthusiast, and a mother to two children. Eina shares about her journey and how she hopes to mentor more women to succeed in whatever they aim to do.
Recalling fond memories of her younger days, Eina shared that growing up, she has often been reprimanded by her mother and grandmother in the kitchen as she did not live up to their standards when it comes to cooking. However, she never allowed that to deter her. In fact, she invested more hours in the kitchen lending a helping hand, watching, learning and practising. Eina’s hard work and persistence drove her to perfect her cooking over time and she began sharing her homemade cooking videos on her social media platforms. Today, she’s an influential role model for Malaysians, motivating them to take the first step to try cooking simple yet delicious meals!
Her appointment as Spokesperson and Brand Ambassador for MAGGI® CukupRasa led her to be one of the three mentors of the Program Mentor Wanita Cukup Berani MAGGI®. “Since the rollout of the mentorship programme, I have seen thousands of women come with hope and passion to go further, and a handful were eventually selected to compete in the Resipi Berani MAGGI® TV reality show to vie for the grand prize.
“As mentors, we focus on knowledge-sharing and offering guidance to the mentees, not only to improve their culinary skills but also their business acumen, critical thinking and self-confidence through various components of the mentorship programme,” said Eina.
On how to be successful, Eina shared, “Learning new skills and gaining knowledge is the first step towards building self-confidence, and one must also overcome their fears. These are the core messages I impart to the women partaking in this journey towards becoming ‘Wanita Cukup Berani’.
I’ve witnessed mentees who completely transformed, going out of their comfort zones while some were rather afraid to put themselves out there. But through upskilling and mentorship, they can go further. Women can accomplish great feats, if they put in the work hard and believe in themselves – all it takes is that one step to try something new. You have to look deep to find what is unique about you – discover that! Eliminate your fear. Reach for the skies and never give up. Adakah anda ‘Cukup Berani’?” Eina quipped.
In a brief conversation with Geetha Balakrishna, Business Executive Officer of MAGGI®, Nestle (Malaysia) Berhad, she shared about how the Resipi Berani MAGGI® reality show came about and its role in helping the women of today.
Could you share a little about the role MAGGI® plays in empowering women?
Geetha: It’s commonplace that the main meal providers at home are women – our mothers, grandmothers, aunts, sisters and friends – who cook for us, feed us and nurture us, all while working hard and striving to provide the best for their families. MAGGI® CukupRasa helps women prepare a variety of delicious meals for their families despite their hectic schedules and time constraints, turning family favourites from good to great. It allows women to further experiment with various types of dishes, enhancing the taste of the meals or even improving their culinary business.
In 2020, MAGGI® launched the Program Mentor Wanita Cukup Berani MAGGI® in partnership with Google Malaysia via Women Will, a Grow with Google programme. The programme is deeply rooted in MAGGI® CukupRasa’s ‘Tak Kenal Tak Cinta’ (Never Try, Never Know) spirit which aims to get women out of their comfort zones and try to achieve greater heights by empowering and uplifting women from all over Malaysia, focusing on personal growth, business acumen, culinary skills, communications and digital marketing.
Also read: MAGGI® Celebrates Women Empowerment With The Launch Of PROGRAM MENTOR WANITA CUKUP BERANI
The programme is divided into three components – the 3-day Bengkel Online Wanita Cukup Berani MAGGI® workshop, a Masterclass on ‘How to Run a Food Business’ and Resipi Berani MAGGI®, the six-episode reality series which tests the mentees’ mettle via culinary and entrepreneurship-focused challenges.
Could you share a little about Resipi Berani MAGGI® and how this programme can help these women achieve their success?
Geetha: The Resipi Berani MAGGI® reality show strives to empower women by putting them through various criteria and challenges to test them in the areas of Personal Growth, Business Acumen and Cooking Skills. The 12 mentees of the Resipi Berani MAGGI® Season 2 were selected from a pool of 2,000 women who attended the 3-day online workshop, having gone through a series of interviews and evaluations before being selected to participate in the reality show.
Apart from culinary challenges, the mentees will also be guided on food sustainability, business viability as well as leveraging on content creation for social media platforms. The winner of the Resipi Berani MAGGI® will walk away with cash prize and an intensive 8-week mentorship programme with successful businesswoman, Anne Idris. The reality show has helped many women improve themselves and their business skills, enhancing their overall quality of life.
The aim of the programme is to guide and equip these women on the knowledge and skillset required to get them out of their comfort zones, challenge them to become better and eventually supports them in the overall improvements and growth of their food business.
At MAGGI®, we truly believe that women can achieve anything they set their heart upon, as long as they are willing to learn, work hard and chase after their dreams. As a woman and a mother, I am deeply invested in the Program Mentor Wanita Cukup Berani MAGGI®, which aims to empower as many women out there to take the first step to try something new – be it be it in cooking, in life or in business. Anyone can be successful and MAGGI® is here to support you!
Two mentees from this season shared about their journey and experience on this mentorship programme.
Resipi Berani MAGGI® Season 2: Nurul Hajar (Left) and Nur Syahidah (Right)
32-year-old Nur Syahidah Aimullah Binti Abdul Rahim from Kedah opened up to us about her unsurmountable fears and how she joined the Resipi Berani MAGGI® Season 2 despite her innate reservations. “I’ve always felt different and lesser due to my hereditary Blepharophimosis syndrome (or monolid). I hope to improve my self-confidence and gain new skills to expand my business and introduce my new signature product, the ‘Dendeng’ beef,” said Syahidah.
Nurul Hajar binti Ismail, the Johor-based 38-year-old mother of four shared on what she learnt from the Resipi Berani MAGGI® Season 2. “The most important thing that I learnt via this reality show is that knowledge is crucial. I will absorb everything that I have learnt and I hope this will help me go further towards success,” said Hajar, who runs a home-based food business selling kuih, Laksa Johor and varieties of local delicacies which she delivers by herself, not only within Ayer Itam where she’s based, but also to neighbouring towns in Johor.
Resipi Berani MAGGI® Season 2 is available on MAGGI® YouTube channel
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