Motivational
When Doors don’t open for you, Kick them down!
Pooja has become a familiar face in the GTA greeting you every morning as the Host of Toronto’s number one morning show on CP24 Breakfast. She’s had the opportunity to cover some significant events in the city from elections, to hosting the Caribbean Carnival and Toronto Pride Parade, to reporting on The Toronto International Film Festival and in 2019 The Raptors Championship Parade. Pooja has interviewed hundreds of public figures, celebrities and everyday people over the course of her career and has spent the last 20 years trying to find her true passion. She’s come a long way from her start in News as a Traffic Reporter, but the journey hasn’t been an easy one and it continues to evolve. Pooja shares her story both personally and professionally and reminds you that you can achieve anything if you work hard and hone your skills. Her attitude of gratitude has gone a long way but she recognized early in her career that opportunities don’t always come to you. Pooja takes you through how she achieved her goals, even when doors didn’t open for her. She talks about being a woman of colour in a highly competitive and heavily scrutinized industry and how she managed to navigate her way through it. She talks about how hearing “no” has helped her go after her dreams even harder and how living with the mantra “When doors don’t open for you, kick them down” has helped her become a fan favourite in this city.
Infertility; How To Find Joy In The Every Day Even When It Feels Hopeless
While Pooja has lived a very public life on TV she has struggled in her personal life with infertility. Her journey has been long and painful and most people would never know what she was battling behind closed doors. After 7 years of trying to get pregnant, including 7 rounds of IVF, 2 rounds of IUI and 11 failed embryo transfers, she had no choice but accept that her dream of growing her family would likely not happen. This was a hard pill to swallow but one that she learned she had very little control over. After time off work, multiple surgeries and seeking therapy, Pooja managed to find joy in her life despite not being able to fulfill something she always dreamed of. Being a mom was something she longed for and in June of 2022, she welcomed a baby girl into the world via surrogate. It was only a few months later, she was blessed with another baby, a boy, via surrogate. It’s an incredible story of how two women, who were complete strangers, offered to help Pooja start her family through surrogacy. She’s now a mom to twiblings! While her story ended on a happy note, she learned that not every story does and a feeling of hopelessness is no way to live. Pooja knows that feeling all too well and despite that, continued to try and put a smile on the faces others she greeted every morning on Radio and TV. Pooja knows she is not alone in facing adversity and understands first hand how it can grab a hold of you and sometimes paralyze you from living your life to the fullest. Pooja shares her story and how she found joy in the every day.