Fit to Lead | Byju's cofounder Divya Gokulnath: You can't delegate workouts. It's the same with leadership

Byju's cofounder Divya Gokulnath says she tries to figure out biking trails whenever she's travelling.

Note to readers: Fit to lead is a series of interviews with business leaders on their approach to fitness, leadership and navigating the new normal.

A video call with edtech startup Byju's cofounder Divya Gokulnath quickly turns to a discussion on the idea of Eudaemonia - an ancient Greek idea of the holistic pursuit of wellness in everything you do. Eudaemonia "is about living a fulfilling life, a meaningful life. Sort of a deeper happiness or authentic happiness. So it's not just from temporary emotions, but long-term wellbeing, long-term personal growth," Gokulnath says. It's a guiding principle she uses at work and in life, she adds.

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Byju's has been on something of a rollercoaster ride these past six months, with some big highs and lows. The company laid off 2,500 employees in October 2022 and over 1,000 in 2023, to cut costs. There was backlash as the company announced in November 2022 that was bringing on Lionel Messi as brand ambassador. Then in December 2022, Bloomberg reported that some lenders to the world's most valued privately held edtech firm also asked it for quicker repayment of part of a $1.2 billion loan, after it missed its September deadline for sharing results for the financial year till March 2022, among other conditions. By the time we talk in mid-March, though, things seem to be on the upswing again - the Hurun Global Rich List 2023 ranked Byju Raveendran and his family 994th on the global list of Indian billionaires (up from 1,005 positions), with a fortune of $3.3 billion, according to the report. The report added that Byju's valuation had tripled in the last three years, from around $8 billion in February 2022 to $22 billion as of October last year.

As we speak for the Fit to Lead series on the intersection of fitness and leadership, Gokulnath emphasizes a bias for action - to continually work towards self-improvement, at home and in the office, as a way to achieve overall wellbeing - Eudaemonia. Excerpts from the conversation:

I hear you used to play basketball?

I used to play basketball, I used to swim, and I'm also an athlete - I used to run.

As I grew up, I had a lot of emphasis on sport. I've been swimming since the age of five. I also did gymnastics from the age of four until the age of eight - after that I didn't pursue gymnastics. But sports has always been a very integral part of my life.

After my first son was born, within a year-and-a-half to two years, I got back to high-intensity workout. Then I took a break again during the pandemic, when I had a second child - I gave it a pause during the pregnancy and just for a couple of months afterwards. But then I restarted immediately with exercises very, very consistently three to four times a week.

Today I do a mix of yoga, some cardio, Pilates, I swim sometimes, and I love to bike. Whenever I travel, I like to figure out biking trails, go to new places. But that being said, I don't spend more than 30 minutes to an hour a day (working out) because there's so much to be done. Now I somehow manage to fit in at least 30 minutes of workout in my daily schedule, five days a week.

What was the last vacation where you did a lot of biking?

I had gone for a conference to the US. We stayed on the outskirts of New York. So, I was able to not just attend meetings in the city, but also, there were bike trails from one town to the other and I would bike up and down instead of taking the car.

Byju's co-founder Divya Gokulnath says she works out for at least 30 minutes, five days a week.

How did you get interested in sports and fitness?

My mother is a cricket player, tennis player... Sports has just been very engrained in my system and my family... it's just part of what we do. After school, I remember clearly, two to three days a week, I would be taken for swimming by my grandparents in an auto in Bangalore. My father was in the Indian Air Force. So close to my school, there was this army area - it's not really a running track, but more a deserted area where you can run in circles without seeing much traffic. The same thing is what I continue to say to my kids, I try to ensure that they have at least an hour an hour and a half of playing sport, fitness included in their activities.

Any learnings from your sports and fitness journey that might have seeped into your startup life?

If there is any leadership lesson which I've learned in my fitness journey, it is that you have to lead from the front and you have to lead by example, because no one else can work out for you. Right? You can't delegate.

Working out is very similar to this philosophy called Eudaemonia. It's a concept of happiness or wellbeing that goes beyond just feeling good in the moment. It's about living a fulfilling life, meaningful life. Sort of a deeper happiness or authentic happiness. So it's not just from temporary emotions, but long-term wellbeing long-term personal growth. Working out is not about (warding off) sick - the feeling that you get from being able to devote, say, 30 minutes in a day to something that is for long-term happiness or an authentic happiness, it is worthy eudaemonia, it goes a very long way.

Lead from the front, is that also how you sort of describe your leadership style? Or is there something more to it?

Leadership style has to be leading by example, for me. And I feel that's important, especially as women see. When you don't see enough (women in leadership roles), you don't believe it can be true. Which is why leading by example is important, because then women who are aspirational, who want to become future leaders also see other leaders on top doing it, showing them how, by just telling or delegating, things won't happen.

My leadership style is more about enablement, empowerment, bringing people up from within. We have 40 percent representation of women in our first 300 employees who are part of the founding set, we have more than 60 of them with us even today.

If you look at the whole definition of leadership and entrepreneurship, it's not about just being aggressive, just being loud anymore. There are a lot of changes happening in the ecosystem. It's also important to understand that women are redefining entrepreneurship and leadership. We can be humble but bold, we can be empathetic but decisive, we can also be optimistic but focused. So these are a combination of things that we've shown that and that's what's constantly evolving.

What is the one thing that you would tell your team to do for their fitness and wellbeing?

Do not consider it as fitness activities, it needs to be fun. So I enjoy burpees, I enjoy cycling, I enjoy swimming. Remember that fitness is not fitness activities, it's not a punishment for what you ate, but a celebration of what your body can do. Which is super important, right? You need to enjoy it. Because when you enjoy it, you give it your all and that's when it starts benefiting you. You'll see long term results.

One important thing there will always be more excuses. We all wish to go to the gym to workout, but you can have my baby next to you on the bed and  workout because you want to make it happen. You want to make the 30 minutes happen. That's so for me, it's always the location-agnostic and getting it done.

Second thing is, especially for women, we tend to prioritise everybody over ourselves. It's a great thing, that's our strengths, but also remember that if you're prioritising 10 things, at least put yourself as number 10. Take care of yourself.