Rishika Satyarthi

I attribute my success to a combination of persistence, adaptability, and the people who have stood beside me through every chapter, including early leadership experiences through Omega Phi Chi that shaped how I think about responsibility, service, and collective progress. Working across policy, civic leadership, and now beauty taught me how systems function and where change is possible, while lived experience taught me how urgent that change can be. Navigating chronic illness required me to build resilience, clarity, and discipline early, skills that continue to shape how I lead and build. I am also deeply grateful for mentors, collaborators, and community who believed in my work and trusted me with responsibility before I ever asked for it. I measure success less by personal milestones and more by whether the work I am doing expands access, opportunity, and voice for others.

Be okay with your plans changing. Real growth happens when you step outside your comfort zone, release rigid expectations, and build intentionally in unfamiliar territory. When your work is rooted in purpose, uncertainty becomes momentum rather than a setback.

If you are entering the beauty industry, learn how power actually moves, not just how it is presented. Representation matters, but only when it leads to real inclusion. Pay attention to who gets centered, whose bodies are assumed, and who is still treated as an edge case. Visibility alone is not impact. Early in my career, a mentor shared advice that has stayed with me: be kind, be useful, and be fearless. That combination will carry you further than visibility alone.

Be willing to let your plans evolve, especially when they no longer align with your values. Beauty has enormous cultural influence, and when your work is rooted in purpose, discomfort becomes a signal that you are building something meaningful rather than simply fitting in.

One of the biggest challenges in beauty right now is that inclusion is still too often treated as a layer added at the end rather than a blueprint from the start. The industry has expanded representation in shades and campaigns, but many everyday systems remain inaccessible. Packaging, applicators, store experiences, digital content, and even product instructions frequently assume a narrow range of bodies, abilities, and energy levels. That creates friction in the most intimate parts of a person’s routine, where dignity and identity are on the line.

The opportunity is to lead a shift from representation to design. Brands that embed inclusive design into product development, user testing, and leadership decision making can serve customers more fully and build deeper trust. Beauty has cultural power, and the next era of influence will belong to companies that treat accessibility as innovation, not charity, and build products and experiences that are both aspirational and truly usable for the full range of lived experience.

The values that matter most to me are integrity, usefulness, and mutual respect. I believe in doing work that is honest, thoughtful, and grounded in real impact rather than optics. Being useful means listening closely, building intentionally, and contributing in ways that actually improve people’s lives. Mutual respect means valuing people’s time, voices, and lived experiences, especially when perspectives differ.

In my personal life, love is everything. It is the foundation that sustains me and shapes how I show up for the people and communities around me. That grounding makes it possible for me to lead with courage and compassion at the same time. Courage to challenge systems that exclude, and compassion for the people navigating those systems every day.

At the core of everything I do is a belief that how we treat people matters. Values are not abstract to me. They show up in how decisions are made, whose voices are centered, and whether the work leaves things better than it found them.