The world has changed greatly ever since the school system first came to be. Although we’ve to some extent modernized the tools we teach with and the environment we teach in, we’ve neglected to re-design the overall structure and focus on areas which ultimately matters the most- relationships, health, attitude, mindset and well being.
Learn Infinity is an educational platform that focuses on personalized learning through its unique courses that are necessary both professionally and personally. Few weeks back we had an insightful conversation with the very versatile and passionate Ms. Aditi Goyal, founder of Learn Infinity who shared with us the journey of this much needed learning platform in Nepal!
Read our conversation to know more!
Tell us about your journey of starting Learn Infinity.
Getting into the education sector hit me up when I was in college. As soon as I started working professionally, I was able to generate a keen interest in education and by the end of my graduation, back in 2018, I had the plan of starting something around education within the next 5 to 6 years. Again, since I was new to the whole concept of being a one man army and starting a venture on my own, I felt I had to gather more knowledge academically too. But the universe had some other plans for me. Within just 2 months of graduation, I got the opportunity to start a school consultant partnership firm, which sadly didn’t last long, but the good thing was it gave me the time to understand the sector better and also gain the confidence to move ahead.
So, in 2019 I started school consulting on my own. I used to consult my clients on the 21st century skills and the need to bring them to the classroom, help them make their teaching learning experience better and as per the needs of the students with special focus towards personalized learning. Things were going well, then came the tumultuous 2020 COVID-19 crisis. With the lockdown imposed, it started getting tough to work on consultation projects online, especially with schools, so we hit a pause. Within a week of the consultation project taking a pause, because I am the kind of person who has to do something all the time, I decided to start Learn Infinity, an idea that had been in my mind for the longest possible time. I then actively started prepping for Learn Infinity in May 2020 , did some pilot and launched the venture after 2 months in July 2020.
What social change does Learn Infinity bring to society?
Because I was a consultant I knew how most of the schools in Nepal were operating. In addition, as a part of Teach for Nepal’s recruitment team I had conducted multiple researches. So right from my theoretical research plus practical reasons I identified two major pain points.
Firstly schools have tiers, there are a handful of schools that try to stay ahead of the curve, they are very open towards bringing in new stuff. These types of schools fall under the expensive range. Then there are medium range schools that have a great number of students, trying to adapt to change and come to the forefront but large numbers of students hold them back. When observing these schools I noticed that even though they try to incorporate life skills and practical courses, they face difficulty as our national curriculum is vast and the teachers have a huge pressure with little to no training. Secondly the kids, they too have a lot on their plates with academics and extracurricular activities which again are haywirely managed.
Hence, we through our courses are working on addressing these issues. Our courses are designed in a way that ensures everyone from the kids to adults can acquire and learn regular life skills. Also, along with this Learn Infinity is working on bringing out the talents and good qualities of kids to the forefront through equal opportunity and personalized learning. Further, we are bringing a lot of courses from international level which are new here in Nepal, body positivity course for instance. Finally, mentorship, is one of the biggest gaps that Learn Infinity addresses through our Be Remarkable Mentorship program, not only in terms of career but in real life too.
How did the students take the mentorship course as most people often find sharing their feelings and emotions difficult?
Most of the students are reluctant at the very beginning. But by the end of the very first day, what I have noticed is they are convinced that this is something that is their cup of tea which is what we thrive for. We do our best to make the kind of environment where the students themselves open up without the feeling of compulsion.
How do you approach the high school students and the schools to be a part of Learn Infinity?
Till date we have been using social media marketing and email marketing to reach out to our target audiences. Recently we have also moved to B2B, we have partnered with a few schools and colleges to deliver the courses. COVID has of course impacted our effectiveness in this aspect but we have seen the growth from last year.
With the lockdown, educational institutions have moved to digital platforms, how has it impacted your venture given that the majority of courses at Learn Infinity are online based?
To be very honest the lockdown, especially the first one, has been a boon in fact. With growing awareness among the students and parents on online learning, we saw a surge in people joining us and becoming a part of Learn Infinity.
But with the second lockdown we saw some negative impacts because the virus was spreading like crazy, there was both emotional as well as financial turmoil. Also, this year we had the plan of going B2B, which was highly impacted, because with the lockdown, the educational institutions themselves were having a hard time to operate.
Who are your allies in running the ventures?
We have three employees who look after communication, marketing and content and day to day operations. We have a small core team. Apart from this we have trainers for the different courses we offer, most of whom are young.
What are your immediate future plans for Learn Infinity?
We are looking forward to diversifying our E-Learning for Organization programs to Nepali organizations, companies and corporate houses.
Secondly, we are looking forward to direct B2B partnerships with schools, colleges and companies so that we can bring in a good number of people in a short period of time and in a much more effective way. We have partnered with few but hopefully once COVID goes away we will see exponential growth.
These will be something that we will be actively working on in the near future.
Can you tell us more about the E-Learning for Organization program?
This is a new service that we have recently started. Though E-Learning is a new concept here in Nepal, it has been adapted by some really well known business houses and corporations across the globe.
So, through this program we help NGOs, INGOs, corporate houses, conglomerates, to automate their regular training programs. Usually routine trainings like customer service training, technical training, sales training, distribution agent training and product training are adopted in e-learning by the companies globally. With E-Learning all the trainings are self paced and can be accessed anytime, anywhere as per the needs of the employees. Cherry on top, the companies can easily monitor the impacts of these training.
How has your journey been so far? What have been your most crucial learnings?
The journey has no doubt been wonderful with learnings, growth and important life lessons. To be very honest, the majority of aspiring entrepreneurs, before starting a venture, think that having good network connections and skills are enough. Trust me I thought the same. However, now with time I have learned that entrepreneurship is an unpredictable journey. So, focusing on personal growth is vital for the growth of your company. Hence, I make sure that I have my own personal development going on each and every day before I help others develop personally.
Also it is essential to understand your customer needs, their pain points, and the faster you work on addressing them the better is your positioning in the market. Lastly, your team is the foundation, so they need to be properly taken care of, with focus on their continuous learning and growth. These were few of my learnings.
What do you want to say to aspiring entrepreneurs who are hesitant to take a plunge?
I would say go ahead, the worst that could happen is things not working out. Regardless, you will land up with lots of learning which will help you with other things that you pursue.
Secondly, whatever you want to pursue, do proper research. Just having a good idea is not enough, you have to explore in depth the particular sector or industry, conduct market research, understand your target market, meet people, understand and observe their opinions too. I dropped a lot of ideas before starting Learn Infinity, the good things – I did a lot of research, met everyone associated with it. So, I don’t have any regrets that I dropped those ideas.
Third and most important, have patience!
Want to know about the unique courses offered by Learn Infinity? Go check out their website and give them a follow on their Instagram page! (@learninfinity.co) to stay up to date on their programs!!
