Six years ago today, Naseem Rochette was crossing the street in her suburban hometown in New Jersey. Her husband was waiting for her on the other side, and watched in horror as she was struck by a car and then run over multiple times. The extreme accident, which left her with several injuries, though no broken bones or internal bleeding, was something Rochette intended to find purpose in. Rochette considered herself lucky.
In the time since the accident, Rochette, a Google alum and a sales leader at Microsoft, has shared her story. Turning the lemons life had handed her into lemonade, Rochette wrote The Unexpected Benefits of Being Run Over, out now.
In the book, Rochette recounts the accident, sharing her life as it led up to that faithful day—she grew up with Indian parents in New Jersey in the 1970s and is now raising three children of her own in her home state. A busy life as a full-time working mom zig-zagging in and out of Manhattan came to a halt when Rochette was forced to slow down and focus on healing. With an unshakable optimism (the book s title says it all), Rochette s book ends with a chapter she calls "The Sermon”—a neat list of 10 takeaways she hopes to impart to readers.
Since the accident, Rochette has reclaimed the day of May 21 in what she calls “Unbreakable Day.” On this Unbreakable Day, a Q&A with Rochette:
What inspired you to write "The Unexpected Benefits of Being Run Over" ?
To be honest, writing a memoir was not something I wanted to do—I didn t think my life was very remarkable—and I would have preferred to just publish the 10 things I learned from being run over—the "my sermon" section. However, I realized that I needed to share the details of my life and the background of my transformation to make my lessons meaningful and authentic. It’s hard to appreciate milestones and victories without knowing where the journey started.
How soon after your incident did you start writing your story?
On that first evening at the hospital, after we all realized I had survived being hit by a car and run over three times, the medical staff kept saying it was a miracle—and I had to do something good with it. I had no idea what that meant, and, to be honest, that really stressed me out! However, I did decide early on that I wanted to do something. I started writing down the things I learned. It was only when we were in COVID-19 lockdown when many people were living through a kind of “Unbreakable Day” that I thought some of my insights could help others.
How have you maintained an optimism throughout this experience?
I have always preferred joy and optimism—it takes much more energy to be pessimistic!—and I didn t want to live a life of crying, pain, struggle, and difficulty. I wanted a happy story, and I was set on finding that. It was hard and sometimes I lost hope, but over the years, I learned that we can shape our own stories—even in the toughest times. That belief kept me going then and still does. I still try to remember who I want to be—and have even gotten some tattoos to remind myself of what I went through and what I learned. Lessons I was fortunate to learn and never want to forget.
How the writing process was an aid in your recovery?
It was an intriguing process to write the book. After I committed to it, I finished most of it in a matter of weeks. The hardest part was the contextual details that took almost two years—because they were very personal, and I had to be emotionally ready to delve into my life—my past and even my present. Deciding what was interesting and relevant to the story required a lot of introspection (writing and revising!), especially because I wanted my words to express that I am sharing what I learned–not pretending to be “enlightened”—just hoping to help others.
What s been the most surprising outcome of this journey?
I never expected my book to reach anyone beyond my close friends and family, so the book s success was a huge surprise. Moreover, the diversity of people who have contacted me—who have even made changes in their lives because they felt encouraged and motivated by my story—was beyond my wildest dreams. I have heard from 80-year-old grandmothers in Florida, teenagers with social anxiety, and executives in their 40s-50s who have never spoken about their challenges. I am amazed and delighted by how much sharing my difficulties, achievements, and insights has helped others. I even give keynotes, run workshops, and offer life coaching now because people want to connect and apply these messages and learnings to their lives and careers.
What has been the feedback of sharing your story?
Every time I share the story, or hear from a reader, or speak at an event, I am amazed by how many strangers approach me and tell me their stories and how they feel empowered or encouraged by mine. Sometimes they will follow up weeks later and tell me they are still reflecting on the story, and it has improved them for the better, made them more resilient and compassionate to themselves and others. That feedback is especially meaningful because the story is very personal; the details I reveal about my life are private, and knowing that my friends, colleagues, and strangers have so much more insight into me than I have into them feels quite odd.
What are your future plans?
Now that I have shared my story publicly—I am literally an open book!—I want to keep helping people feel stronger, more confident in who they are and in shaping their story. So right now, that means continuing to give talks and keynotes, run workshops, and do more life coaching. Sharing our journeys, accepting help, being kind to ourselves; these have not been the signs of strength that most of us have been raised with. It s a new aspect of strength and a new skill for people to develop—and I enjoy helping them do that both in their personal lives and their careers.
Tell us about what you ve dubbed as Unbreakable Day.
It is based on the art, the Japanese philosophy of Kintsugi, and appreciating our cracks— difficulties, traumas—as part of our unique journey. Not something to hide or judge. Just recognition that we all have cracks of some kind. Then, once we can accept our cracks, hopefully we look at our experiences and appreciate the resilience it took to overcome those hard moments, to put the pieces back together. Even if we are still on the journey—we can celebrate progress. Recovery doesn t happen in a day, and the small wins deserve recognition. The people who help us achieve those wins deserve recognition. Appreciate the insights that our challenges give us; appreciate the wonderful people and communities that help us move forward. That is what Unbreakable Day is about, and we are all Unbreakable if we choose to be.
May 21 marks the anniversary of the accident. Can you share how you intended to mark the moment?
We rejoice! This year, we will just spend time with family, but in the previous years, we had a big party—and I love ’70s fashion, so we theme it Staying Alive, and I get to wear some extra fabulous halters and bell bottoms! But whatever we do, we also pause to appreciate, thank ourselves for what we have survived, and thank the people who have supported us through our hard times. Many people have told me they celebrate Unbreakable Day, too, and I m glad that a traumatic accident led to something so wonderful. It s really just a day to celebrate our journeys and remember that we have the power to create our own stories…and that doesn t mean those stories won t have difficulties and hard moments; we just get to choose if those moments break us or if they are just cracks in our unbreakable journey.