Surviving to Thriving

One day, while observing a group of students and instructors at a prestigious institution, we veterans realised something unsettling. In a room abuzz with activity, ideas hardly moved. From seating plan to pedagogy — one could hear echoes of past deficits. The institution, the faculty, and the students wanted learning to happen. But genuine learning outcomes and growth remained both elusive and non-stimulating.

When we interacted with corporate employees, we heard:“We prepare & perform in exams. We graduate with degrees. But somewhere between the classroom and the real world, we realise: we were never taught how to truly thrive and be happy.”

During numerous personality and behavioural interviews, candidates repeated:“We do not lack intelligence. It’s not that we didn’t work hard. If the system had invested in telling us who we are, how we learn, and how to navigate career & life — we would have been striving to thrive rather than striving to survive.”

Over time, we realised there is a build-up of *carry-over deficits* in the first principles of thriving — deficits that we are unaware of. These gaps compound silently from childhood to college to corporate life.This realisation led to the creation of VDYA’s Deficit Grid and Competency Model.