Everyone has stories to tell. Even when we are doing nothing we are telling stories to ourselves. All that was needed is a safe space where these stories could be shared, heard and learnt from. Everyday of the week. In everyone’s voice. From everyone’s perspective.
Business World and the eminent jury’s (led by Padma Shri T V Mohandas Pai) focus on innovation and inclusivity in EduTech is perhaps the reason why they found us worthy of being the digital learning company of the year. At just about a year old, we are enthused by this amazing reinforcement. On behalf of the 200k mentza members, the beautiful storytellers and the listeners who encourage these 1000s of stories & learn from them everyday, it was a pleasure to receive an award.
Having been nominated for the award, I also had the free-pass to the wonderful EduTech Conference organised by BW at the Imperial hotel. Through the day, most panel discussions, were focussed on:
a. The need for true-innovation in education that takes parents and students beyond just scores and evaluations
b. The need for tech to lead the change. And for Edutech to have educators and not just tech, to ensure that tech delivers the right impact
c. The need for way-greater inclusivity across the learning and teaching spectrum
Nothing surprising. But saying it repeatedly and across different forums is absolutely critical. I have myself, mentored over 35 different EdTech companies in deploying learnings from behavioral & cognitive sciences and the issues were always the same.
Mentza is an attempt in these very directions of Innovation & Inclusivity. Mentza’s live audio platform with its 20-minute focussed conversations, is a place where all those who want to share a story or learn from others’ stories, find their circle.
A circle where you don’t just listen but are also heard. Be it for learning a language, developing your personality, supporting your fitness journey, discovering your spiritual self or building the next unicorn. Be it in chaste or broken English, Hindi, Marathi, Tamil, Bengali, Gujarati, Malayalam or any language one finds natural. Be it with experts, influencers or just friends. Be it a farmer, a crypto dealer, a life coach, a startup founder, a student from tier 3 town or a budding artist. No voice remains unheard. No story untold.
Being a social audio platform, we were often nudged and advised on doing things that social media does. More entertainment, rapid user base growth, popular influencers and the likes. But we have stuck to our vision. Instead of becoming another social sinkhole in the garb of learning we have been steadfast about the 20-minute limits & open to speak platform (no other platform whether a seminar, webinar, live audio allow speakers to join without the permission of the initiator), and other such features, each one ensuring that social energy is harnessed for learning and growing together.
In the last one year, Mentza has continually reinforced my belief that, once we take the spotlight, the mic and the stage out, we will get to see the millions of people who have billions of stories to create trillions of learning opportunities for each one of us. I love being part of those stories and invite all readers to come share theirs.
Happy Learning & Congratulations to All!
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