Nishi Selva

I don’t think we talk enough about the people who quietly change the course of our lives.Not the people who intentionally set out to help you.I mean the people who probably don’t even remember the conversation.

The ones who said something in passing. Encouraged you to take a chance. Gave you a piece of advice you almost ignored.

Years later, you realise your life would have looked completely different if they hadn’t and I often think about these people who shaped my journey as I know if I hadn’t met them, I wouldn’t have ended up, where I am today. The crazy thing is none of them would know they’ve had such a big impact on me.

Here are three of them.

The friend who saw potential I couldn’t see

Years ago, I was working as a waitress.

Like a lot of people in their early twenties, I knew I wanted something more, but I had no idea what that something actually was. The restaurant chain I worked for advertised an opportunity to create content for the business. It was a freelance role alongside our normal jobs and was designed to help employees develop new skills.

I remember seeing it, thinking it was interesting and then continuing scrolling.

My friend who I worked with (who was building his side hustle at the time and has now gone on to be quite successful) had seen it too and thought I should go for it.

I didn’t really get why he was bringing it up but I told him you needed a portfolio to apply and I didn’t have one.

Without letting me finish, he said ‘what about your blog’.

The weird thing is, I don’t ever remember telling him about my blog, I barely told anyone. It was something I had written, on and off over the years, but to use that as a portfolio never crossed my mind, nor applying for this role.

Despite feeling like I wouldn’t get the role, I applied anyways. Guess what…I got an interview. When I went in for the interview, there were people who were more qualified than me, one had written a book, another gone to uni to do journalism.

I was convinced I wouldn’t get it but I was wrong. Not only that, I build a lot of resilience, going up against people more experienced than me. As a whole, this experience taught me not to say no to yourself before someone else has had the chance to.

Sometimes all it takes is one person believing in you just enough for you to start believing in yourself.

The friend who just asked for a favour

The second person was a close friend who was studying fashion at university. She needed someone to model for one of her projects and asked a few of her friends. I said yes.

When I say it wasn’t the most glamorous experience, I’m not exaggerating. I was standing outside in December wearing a see-through top.

But while I was there, I realised this was exactly the kind of environment I wanted to be in. Not in front of the camera, but behind it. At that point, I was still waitressing, but for the first time I knew I wanted to work in fashion.

That day, I went home and decided I was going to move to Manchester. I didn’t particularly want to move to London as I had never been a fan, and I knew that if I wanted to work in fashion, Manchester was where I wanted to be. Within a month, I’d moved to a completely different city because of one random opportunity that I’d simply said yes to.

I’ve now worked in fashion for five years. It hasn’t always been easy, but I think I have a lot of resilience because I remember how long I waited to find an industry that genuinely excited me.

The friend who told me to take myself seriously

The last person was someone I used to sit next to at one of my jobs. At the time, I wasn’t a LinkedIn person at all. I thought it was a bit cringe, and it just felt like everyone was boasting (occasionally I still do!).

He was about ten years older than me and had built a successful career in the creative fashion industry and had kept telling me I needed to take LinkedIn seriously because that’s how you progress in this industry.

At the time, I didn’t really take him that seriously as I was happy in my role and I wasn’t too bothered about my next move.

Eventually, I handed in my notice without another job lined up, which is a story for another day. On my first day after leaving, I didn’t know what my next move was but something made me remember what he’d said, so I spent the whole day updating my LinkedIn. And it was worth it. I had a job within 2 weeks and have learnt to put myself out there as much as I can now and I don’t worry about ever not having something lined up.

Looking back, I know that decision has brought me so many opportunities. It’s made me much more employable, introduced me to people in my industry, and helped me stay up to date with what’s happening. More than anything, it changed how seriously I took my career, and I know I wouldn’t have had half the opportunities I’ve had without it.

Small moments, big impact

It’s wild to think how the moments that seem so small at the time end up becoming the biggest turning points in your life.

I’m so grateful for those three people because I genuinely don’t think I’d be working in fashion and marketing today if it wasn’t for them. They probably have no idea the impact they’ve had on me, but they’re a reminder that sometimes one conversation, one opportunity, or one piece of advice can completely change the direction of someone’s life.