PeakMind by 4 IITians: Enhances Child’s Academic Performance by Improving their Mental Health

Child mental health is just as essential as us elders. Yeah, most of us do not consider it to be A THING at all, just because they are kids. However, a group of IITians (Neeraj Kumar, Manish Chowdhary, Parth Sharma, and Sandeep Gautam), witnessing disturbed mental health of their kids while attempting competitive exams, decided to help them. Thus, PeakMind was developed. It is a digital platform which empowers students by fostering competitiveness, performance motivation, optimism, mindfulness, and mental toughness for success.

Competitors: Mom’s Belief, Wysa, AUMHUM, Work in Progress, Emotionally.in, and Lissun

The Problem: Why Does This Matter?

Exam pressure is not just another phase in a kid’s life, but a harsh reality of today’s competitive world. We as adults say it easily that they must score above 90%, but little did we realize about the stress they go through.

There is no one to blame here except the growing competition and distractions in society. We as parents want the best for our kids, and they want a life.

Students’ suicide is not an alien topic for us, especially students appearing for board examinations. Again, the culprit is stress to score highest in the class, or even on the board.

The teenage years are an ideal phase for kids. During this time, they learn to acknowledge and navigate their emotions. We all know that only technological proficiency is not enough to enter and win the race. Kids need to be proficient in skills like collaboration, anxiety & stress management, conflict resolving, relationship leveraging, and collaboration.

Spoiler: No Education System Teaches These Skills.

Fact Check:

According to NCRB data, in 2021, around 13,089 students’ suicide cases were registered (if not counting the unregistered ones). This data was 12,526 in 2020.

Pic Credits: IMHO.org

The Solution: PeakMind by 4 IITians

When a group of IITian fathers realized the need of mental health care for their children, they, as parents, realized that this is something needed by all the students.

Thus, in 2020, Neeraj Kumar (Emotional Intelligence & Career Coach, IIT Delhi), Sandeep Gautam (Strength Coach, IIT Delhi), Parth Sharma,(Product Head, IIT Kanpur) and Manish Chowdhary (Education Evangelist, IIT Delhi, IIM BLR) co-founded PeakMind. This platform helps students to prepare for competitive exams by teaching them skills like:

• Stress management

• Mindfulness

• Optimism, and more.

The journey began with bootstrapping a significant amount of the founders’ capital. Eventually, angel investors and supportive network connections got involved providing essential financial backing. Initially, they focused on the B2B sector, to effectively manage the costs.

PeakMind created 2 different programs to cater to students’ needs (various age groups).

1. Complete: It is for the students who are beginning or in the middle of taking the competitive exams.

1. Flourish: It is designed for grade 7th to 10th students.

The startup’s additional students’ ability assessments are in 5 categories:

1. Emotional wellness

1. Memory and focus

1. Mental toughness

1. Positive attitude

1. Productivity

1. Social connectivity

The platform assists NEET and JEE candidates while working with coaching institutions like Sri Chaitanya and Aakash Institute. So far, with its machine learning algorithms and modular approach to its services, the platform has helped around 1.2 lakh students.

The results are shared with parents and students via WhatsApp. PeakMind has professionally trained counsellors in the fields of Applied Psychology, Behavior Science, Performance Coaching, and Positive Psychology.

You can reach out to the counselors via WhatsApp and schedule a private Zoom meeting. Moreover, there are coaching sessions and webinars for students to learn the related skills.

Additionally, the Flourish program gives year-long access to the specialized knowledge and skill development program through exercises, assessments, and group live sessions to enhance life skills: emotional well-being, intelligence, mindfulness, productivity, and resilience.

Business Model: How Do They Make Money?

This Bengaluru-based startup works on both B2B and B2C business models. PeakMind offers 50+ habit-building tools and trackers like SMART Goals and Productivity BINGO. It also provides guided visualization videos for common situations kids encounter. Moreover, there are more than 50 podcasts, workshops, tests, and evaluations.

Moreover, in 2021, the startup has raised around $300K from angel investors.

The evaluation is free of charge. However, other charges are as follows:

• For each Zoom session, the company charges Rs 499.

• For a 7-day coaching program via WhatsApp, the charges are Rs 249.

PeakMind aims to balance growth and social impact. By using research and technology, it creates accessible and affordable solutions for everyone. Its primary growth metric is social impact, which it measures by lives touched, followed by other important metrics.

Challenges/Struggles: What Roadblocks Are They Facing?

Data breach and leaking of students’ information was the main challenge and concern of the parents and kids. PeakMind, found the best possible solutions for the same:

Data privacy and security is prioritized by PeakMind. With top cloud services (AWS/Azure) and strong security measures, which includes end-to-end encryption and secure servers, it maintains data confidentiality.

The data protection regulations like GDPR and India’s Personal Data Protection Bill are strictly followed by PeakMind. Moreover, clear information about data practices and consent are shared with the users, thus, promoting transparency and trust. Furthermore, to keep student data safe and confidential, regular security audits and updates are performed.

Future Vision: What’s Next?

To support its ambitious growth plans, PeakMind is now aiming to raise additional capital in the coming year. The startup is specifically focusing on expanding its market presence in Singapore, India, and the Middle East.

Specifically, PeakMind is developing localized versions for the Middle East. These versions will have culturally relevant languages, practices, and materials.

Moreover, it is also seeking to strengthen its partnerships with educational institutions to provide better services catering to students’ mental health needs.

Key Takeaways: Why Should Users Care?

• We are not alone in the problems we are facing. Thus, solutions that work for us are needed by others in the market.

• There are numerous people who are facing the same issues.

• Identify the need of the solution, its market reach, and launch it.

• Focus on quality rather than quantity.

• Prioritize customers’ satisfaction and deliver superior services, rather than focusing on profits.

• Focus on stable growth and not on large-scale and rushed growth.

Pic Credits: The Hindu Business Line (featured), IMHO.org (suicide data)