An Interview with John Giftah: A Aerospace Engineer, Author, Podcaster, Inspirational Speaker Shares his story with Mypencildotcom.

Mypencildotcom: Your Recent book became a #1 New Release on Amazon. Can you tell us about the book?

John: Yes, my latest bestseller, “Unveil Your Purpose” became a #1 New Release on Amazon. In a nutshell, the book takes its readers on a quest to discover their purpose and to start walking in it. Though the central theme of the book is ‘Don’t just live a Purposeful life but rather live the Purpose of your life!’, the 8 sections are filled with real-life stories, experiences, anecdotes, inspiration, motivation and practical tools to help the readers live the life that they were created for.  It not only covers the step-by-step guide to discover our purpose, but also teaches the fundamentals of walking in our purpose, having a purpose-driven mindset, a purpose-driven lifestyle, and a lot of inspiration from my life on how to face the various challenges that come when we set off on this new journey. The book also received ‘India Prime Education Award’ and ‘The Literary Award’ in 2021.

Mypencildotcom: When did you first realise that you wanted to be a writer and when did you write your first book?

John: I have been writing ever since I was young. I have manuscripts of moral-based stories which I had written when I was as young as nine years old. As writing is my passion, I get lost in it for hours and have always dreamt of publishing them as books someday. It was while doing my Aerospace engineering program that I started writing the content with a keen focus on publishing them as books and ended up publishing my first book, “Who Am I?” in 2017. 

Mypencildotcom: You are also a Top-ranking podcaster. Can you tell us about your podcasts? 

John: Sure. I host two top-ranking podcasts. My main podcast, “Fuel for the Soul with John Giftah” mostly ranks as #1 Christian podcast in India on multiple platforms and regularly trends across the globe on different platforms. This DAILY podcast is a hub for short motivational messages, keys for practical living and for interviews and discussions and has even hosted renowned guests like Holly Starr, Stella Ramola and Andrew F Carter. 
My recently started podcast, “The Inspiration Hub” will give you a dose of inspiration, motivation and personal development and has started climbing the charts in India under Self-Development and Education categories. Apart from 10-minute average solo episodes, I recently had my first guest on the show, Anagha Suresh – A Life Purpose Life Coach. I am looking forward to having more guests in the coming weeks. 

Mypencildotcom: Wow! Ranking at #1 is something that many people just dream about and you are living that dream! Congratulations! How does that feel and how has your journey in podcasting been?
John: Thank you! Yes, it feels so surreal and I am so humbled and filled with gratitude towards GOD and also towards my listeners for listening consistently and sharing it around. The journey hasn’t been easy but it’s worth it. I started out sending daily podcasts in 2013 and faced immense discouragement and opposition. From a time when literally ‘no one’ would listen to my podcast to a time when it’s among the top in the country and trending across the globe, it just melts me thinking about it. The kind of remarks naysayers made and the way I was ridiculed, mocked and abused are all still fresh in my mind. But, seeing the light on the other side of the tunnel now, I am overwhelmed and glad that I continued against the odds and hadn’t given up. 

Mypencildotcom: What would be your single most-important advice to budding podcasters?
John: My main advise would be to be “Consistent” with your podcast. Unfortunately, many people start with deep passion and fire and stop almost immediately or are often very inconsistent. Whether you are releasing a daily episode or a weekly one, be consistent with it. No matter how hard it is, or how tired and exhausted I may be, I try my best to be consistent and have been releasing episodes every single day even if it means that I have to stay up late just to release the episode for the day. There were times when I consistently released episodes even when I was admitted in the hospital for a few days – so I believe, where there’s a will, there’s definitely a way! 

Mypencildotcom: You are also an inspirational speaker, tell us in detail about this quality of yours. 

John: One of the things that come naturally to me is to inspire, encourage and motivate people. Having gone through a lot of discouragement and other challenges, I can relate and hence encourage others who are going through their battles. At the same time, I motivate and challenge others to take the right steps to live the best life they were created for. Apart from speaking in reputable platforms like TEDx and Success Gyan, I also frequently speak in schools, colleges, corporates, personality development sessions, podcasts and more. One of the unique aspects of my speeches include the way I bring messages and life lessons from random things like a watch or GPS or random examples like Lessons from Scooby-Doo, Snake Island or the Titanic. Whether it is to speak to thousands or to one person at a time, I love to use this gift to make the listener better than they were before!

Mypencildotcom: You are also a World-Record holder. What is the record all about? 

John: Well, I am a big-time fan of the popular TV show, Scooby-Doo and have been collecting unique and rare Scooby-Doo collectibles for years (like toothbrush, shades, clocks, pen drive, etc.) and bring out messages and life lessons through voice-overs, videos, etc and have been featured on many avenues, forums and newspaper, which garnered me the nickname, “Scooby Pastor”. So, 2 different International Books of World Records have accredited my memorabilia and Scooby-themed endeavours as a world-record.  

Mypencildotcom: You have done engineering, you are a writer, you are also a podcast host as well as a YouTuber, inspirational speaker as well as a world-record holder, how do you manage all this together? Please share with us.

John: Yes, I am an Aerospace Engineer by profession and I also having many things under my sleeves like the books, podcasts, Youtube channel, regular Instagram posts, and so on and so forth. It’s definitely not easy and involves a lot of dedication, commitment, sacrifice and so on. Most days, I hardly sleep for around four to five hours and have to be on the constant run from each podcast release to the next speaking engagement to the next YouTube video preparation on and on. I prioritise and keep doing one thing after another and yet sometimes I feel like I am running out of time! One of the major steps I took this year was to uninstall most social media apps from my phone and cut myself off from them except for posting content; that helped me gain substantial amount of time which I could use towards these daily assignments.

Mypencildotcom: Do you have any upcoming new projects and endeavors? 

John: Well, yes! A non-profit radio station from the United States has invited me to host a weekly 1-hour radio show on their station which is a new opportunity that I am excited about in 2022. Though this will not give me monetary benefit, I am looking forward to the new things that I am going to learn as a radio-host and the impact my voice can make across the globe. 

Mypencildotcom: How can someone connect with you for any collaboration or interviews or business opportunities? Also, Where can they find your books and podcasts?

John: My website, www.johngiftah.com is a one-stop hub for various details as well as to connect with me through its contact form. Otherwise, they can drop in a mail to [email protected]. My books are available on Amazon and my podcasts are available on over 50 podcast platforms including Apple Podcast, Spotify, Castbox, Jio Saavn, etc. You can find my account on YouTube and Instagram : @JohnGiftah

Mypencildotcom: Give One message for the readers:

John: I always say, “You cannot climb two mountains at the same time”. Likewise in life, if you want to climb to the top and be successful, try to focus on one thing at a time instead of putting your hands into many things. I live by this principle : It’s better to be the best at 2-3 things than to be average in 20 different things. So, I always encourage you – in whatever you do – be the best and grow deeper and you will definitely climb higher!