Intro: Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX Studios in Atlanta, Georgia. It’s time for High Velocity Radio.

Lee Kantor: Lee Kantor here another episode of High Velocity Radio and this is going to be a good one. Today on this show, we have Doctor Vinod Jain with Vinod Jain Coaching author of the book The Empowered You Practical Strategies for Becoming Resilient, Present and Whole. Welcome to the show.

Vinod Jain: Thank you Lee. Appreciate your show and the opportunity to talk to you.

Lee Kantor: Well, I am excited to learn about your practice. Tell us about your practice. How are you serving folks as an executive coach?

Vinod Jain: Well, I, I have a coaching business, so I’m a motivational speaker and author. As you can see, I have served about 100 or so Clients are in the business world, in technology consulting world and so on. And I am retired now for my professional career as such, the technology consulting work. And now I am retirement and enjoying my professional coaching and speaking work.

Lee Kantor: So how did you get involved in coaching and speaking? Was that part of your career before you became a certified coach?

Vinod Jain: Not really. While I was a principal technology and management consultant at Miter Corporation. It kind of occurred to me that a great field for me to get into would be professional coaching. I went through my own journey and I found that it was my calling. But while I was at work, I got a certification and gave myself almost 3 three four years before I left that consulting world and got into coaching. So I prepared the ground before getting into the coaching world.

Lee Kantor: Did something happen that was kind of a catalyst for this kind of shift in your career?

Vinod Jain: Yes, Lee, I tried in my book a situation in 2018 where I went through a cancer diagnosis. I had a, uh, early stage kidney cancer. And, you know, I was driving around my neighborhood. I was at a red stoplight and I started to cry, kind of like had an emotional breakdown. And as I sat there and it was just like minute and a half or two, I was asking myself, what is my life about? And it was a very profound question to myself, like, why should I be given a chance to, you know, get another life? So to say. And the response was that my life has as a purpose is to help other people. And, uh, so slowly and steadily, it became clear to me that I can do that work better through professional coaching, through motivational speaking, and through writing this book I’ve written.

Lee Kantor: So when that happened, how long did it take for that kind of a.

Vinod Jain: Message of clarity for.

Lee Kantor: Me? Right. So the moment of clarity happened. Now, does that mean you just gave your two weeks notice and then you changed, or was there something that is now? Okay, let me consider this and then kind of slowly have a plan to execute it.

Vinod Jain: Yeah. I think the later part, I mean, it’s very hard to say, okay, you know, I have this profound clarity and I can leave my job immediately, basically from that moment onward. I said, I want to become a professional coach. And so I enrolled in a professional coaching certification program through the International Coaching Federation. My company where I work paid for my. And then the certification process takes a while. So I was not in a hurry to leave my job, so to say. Uh, but, uh, eventually I did. And, uh, I’m glad that I prepared the ground and was ready, uh, to jump in with a plan.

Lee Kantor: Now, where did the book fit in? Was the book happening at the same time as you were going through the certification, or was the book after you started coaching?

Vinod Jain: I think book happened after I started coaching because I started to talk to, uh, my, uh, So I started talking to my clients, and I started to deliver workshops on topics related to resilience, topics related to leadership, presence. And, uh, I started to then think about, okay, I have had a 40 plus year career in science and technology. I, I’m having these great conversations with my clients. I’ve gone through this very empowering, uh, coaching training and, uh, uh, and I found my authentic purpose, so to say. And so I started to. Put together this idea that I’m going to write a book. I found a great editor and publisher. And so it took me 2 or 3 years to, uh, execute, uh, my desire to write a book. And finally, it has happened.

Lee Kantor: So now for the folks who haven’t read the book yet, is there any takeaways that you can share with our listener right now that maybe is actionable today based on what you share? Is there something that you can leave with us from the book that somebody can take action today?

Vinod Jain: Yes. Um, so the core message of the book is that anyone can cultivate a resiliency presence and a feeling of wholeness. So that’s anyone, regardless of their background, circumstances or, uh, national affiliation. Right. And, uh, so the book provides a roadmap of how to get there through ten practices, Which are which I have outlined in the book and the 3 to 5 core methods. The key message is, is I’ll share three key messages. All right. So resilience is within everyone’s reach. And by resilience means the ability to, uh, dream. Ability to execute your, uh, plans and recover from any setbacks or failures. Uh, so this raw resilience allows you to continue to thrive no matter what happens to you in the journey. Second takeaway is that authenticity and purpose drive fulfillment. Uh, and I learned that firsthand until I had that clarity of my own purpose. Uh, until I learned about my own calling. You know, I was somewhat confused and unclear, but once I had that vision of what my life is about, things became more fulfilling for me. And then, uh, other third key takeaway is that presence, what I call leadership presence or presence in general. And calmness. Calmness is like, uh, being calm and centered. These are superpowers, uh, in the technical world or business worlds. We often don’t talk about those attributes, but to me, uh, those are superpowers. And, uh, they are, uh, each represents practices and chapter in my book. How does that sound?

Lee Kantor: It sounds great. Now, specifically around kind of the practice of it sounds a little like mindfulness to me. What you’re saying in the last part of that is there, do you have kind of a ritual or a routine you use to kind of get in the right mindset to start your day, or maybe throughout the day if things get stressful?

Vinod Jain: Yeah. Um, you know, I, uh, yes, I do have, and I have shared that practice in the book very clearly. So I have a practice which lasts about 25 to 30 minutes every day. And in that, uh, time, I do, uh, breathwork like I do deep inhalation exhalation. I do some chanting of some mantra, ancient Indian mantras. Uh, and then I do a gratitude, gratitude and visualization exercise in which I say it loud. Why? Why I’m grateful today. I. Uh, visualize a lot of love and support coming to me throughout my life, and I create a powerful intention that I show up, uh, today with great joy and energy. And I repeat that pretty much every day. And I have, uh, pretty much regularly done in the last 5 or 6 years.

Lee Kantor: And that’s, uh, that’s something that gets your day off in the right and that gets your day off in the right, uh, way.

Vinod Jain: Absolutely. And I just wanted to share with your listeners that, uh, you know, we all go through fears, anxieties, and, uh, these thoughts in our head saying, oh, you know, this day is going to have this challenge or I may be inadequate or not. Uh, how am I going to, you know, achieve, uh, something you want to do? But once you go through that mindfulness practice, um, you, you develop a certain amount of calmness. You are able to tune into your inner wisdom and, uh, a great sense of clarity emerges in terms of. Uh, ideas and, uh, cues for what will help you during the day. So that knowledge is there within us. We just need to tap into it. And it’s also a way to transcend Our normal fears and anxieties.

Lee Kantor: So now in your practice, do you have kind of an ideal client profile that you work best with? Is there a type of industry or individual that is your sweet spot when it comes to coaching?

Vinod Jain: Yeah, I, um, you know, I have a profile on LinkedIn and I have created a program called Level up for tech leaders, uh, because most of my career has been, uh, working in the science and technology arena, uh, for about 21 years. I was a technology and management consultant, um, you know, working to support technology programs in the federal government. So that’s my sweet spot helping tech and business leaders. Uh, but, uh, because of my background, are people who are working in the technology industry. You know, it’s a easier way to talk to them, but I’m open to coaching anyone, uh, in literally any field, uh, any business leader or emerging leader or, uh, people who are in, uh, colleges, people who are early in their career, mid-career people, senior executives, you name it.

Lee Kantor: Now, what is kind of the problem or challenge? Uh, the, the person that comes to you is having right before they contact you, what is happening in their career or life that would get them to pick up the phone or email to call or contact you.

Vinod Jain: Yeah. Uh, so when people call me and, uh, set up, uh, these conversations or coaching sessions, they’re usually suffering from, uh, extreme anxiety about where their career is. Uh. They may be feeling some emerging threats. They may be feeling a layoff. They may be feeling like a promotion was due to them, which they didn’t get. Uh, they are feeling stuck in some way. And, uh, they don’t want to go to a therapist. You know that that’s a route some people could take. You know, like, I need to talk to a therapist, but a professional coach is a forward looking person who has, uh, uh, background in the area they are looking to talk about and who has a professional capacity to help them get unstuck. And so the issues they bring out again, are burnout issues, uh, career transition issues, anxieties about their career, uh, their feelings about imposter syndrome, uh, feelings about inadequacy.

Lee Kantor: Now, is there a story that you could share that illustrates what it’s like to work with you? Don’t name the individual, but maybe share the challenge that someone came to you with and how you were able to help them get to a new level.

Vinod Jain: Yeah. So, uh, recently I have been working with a, uh, senior tech professional, a female who was laid off from her technical job, and she was looking for jobs for 4 or 5 months and wasn’t able to, uh, find a position. She was feeling hopeless. Uh, she was trying to see how do I show up in my career search? What is my personal narrative which will get me interviews? And within three months she reported that she found a great job and she was very happy and are talking to me. Helped her clarify her own value proposition, clarify what kind of companies would be the ideal target for her and, uh, what would give her more interviews and success in those interviews. So that’s one example. Now, um, I’ll give you another one. Um, yeah, if you. Yeah. It depends on.

Lee Kantor: Yeah. No. Do you have one around burnout because you mentioned that earlier, I think you mentioned it a couple of times now. And that’s something that a lot of people are struggling with. Do you have a story around burnout where people just need, um, some coaching to help them through this.

Vinod Jain: Absolutely. So, uh, I often work with, uh, people who, who I call high achievers. Um, and to be honest with you, I have been a high achiever myself and I have experienced, uh, those burnout moments. Uh, but if somebody is feeling burnt out for an extended period, coaching is a great way to get support. And, uh, with a client who was a senior director with a, a senior living facility, uh, and actually she’s still my client. I was able to basically talk to her about the importance of personal well-being while she shows up as a terrific leader. And, uh, that it didn’t have to be at the cost of that personal well-being. So we talked about how she could create moments every day, uh, different time slot during the day where she devotes that to personal well-being, which allows her to eat well, uh, walk around a bit, uh, talk to her colleagues rather than being in this never ending set of meetings, uh, which leaves her and people sometimes no time to even eat, even take a breather. And this leader was reaching home late at night, and, uh, she was feeling guilty, uh, about, uh, leaving the, the care of her kids to her husband. So, You know, it starts with a recognition by the person that there is a problem and that there is an opportunity to seek coaching support. But once you are talking about that issue, um, you know, as a coach, I can help them see more clearly how they can achieve that balance, where you are, where you’re achieving that personal sense of personal well-being without, uh, without reducing their capacity to be successful leader.

Lee Kantor: And, and the impact is real, right? Because when you start helping an individual, it trickles to their whole family and sometimes their community.

Vinod Jain: Absolutely. Um, because these leaders, the high achievers, they often have people who report to them. And so they create the the cascading effect. Because if they are stressed, if they’re not happy, then, uh, people around them also tense. And, uh, so with this client, uh, who report out when we were able to make, uh, a sense of reprioritization of our activities and, uh, when she started to take those breaks, uh, one of the things she put on her agenda was I will have conversation with my, uh, staff members. And, uh, those conversations would be acknowledging these people, supporting these people and showing a more empathetic, uh, side of her who is more joyous and happy.

Lee Kantor: So now when you are working with folks, how do you deliver your coaching, is it mainly one on ones? Do you do group coaching? Do you have cohorts? Do you do kind of team training? How do you deliver your work?

Vinod Jain: So, um, mostly, um, through virtual calls because, uh, one of my clients are distributed, um, uh, you know, if my client happens to be locally, I live in the Northern Virginia area. I have met clients for coffee or for lunches also. So build that personal rapport. But, uh, I believe through virtual calls now we can deliver these lessons. But I also have done group mentoring coaching session where there are, um, 15, 20 people learning from me how to increase their leadership presence, how to tap into the power of resilience. So, uh, I give motivational talks, I give, uh, this group mentoring sessions. And from these sessions, sometimes people will say, okay, you know what? I need to sign up with you as a coach. So, uh, these are different set of activities which are kind of related. Um, I do webinars also, by the way, uh, and, uh, invite people from LinkedIn or Facebook groups and say, uh, I’m offering this webinar. Come and listen to my ideas. And then, uh, we set up coaching conversations as I see the interest.

Lee Kantor: So if somebody wants to learn more about your coaching practice or get a hold of your book, is there a website? What’s the best way to connect with you?

Vinod Jain: Uh, so there are three ways they can connect with me. Number one, um, I have a LinkedIn profile, uh, with, uh, Vinod Jain, uh, executive career coach, uh, with my signature program level up for, uh, tech leaders, uh, so they can book an appointment, uh, through my LinkedIn profile. Uh, there’s a button they can push and, uh, see my schedule and book a appointment. I also have a website called, uh, Vinod Jain coaching www.vinodjaincoaching.com. And uh, uh, now they can, uh, buy my book, uh, through Amazon prime platform. Uh, my book is available for preorders and my paperback will become available in the next couple of days. Uh, my publisher have, uh, sort of put that final paperback version and, uh, um, uh, the book is already available. Paperback will become available in a couple of days.

Lee Kantor: And that website once again is Vinod Jain Coaching vinodjaincoaching.com.

Vinod Jain: Yes. Uh, absolutely. And my email, if anybody needs is we know that. Vinod Jain coaching.com. And I live here in, uh, a northern Virginia. Um, yes.

Lee Kantor: Well, thank you so much.

Vinod Jain: For your question.

Lee Kantor: Yep. Thank you so much for sharing your story today. You’re doing such important work and we appreciate you.

Vinod Jain: All right. Thank you, Lee, I appreciate your work all.

Lee Kantor: All right. This is Lee Kantor. We’ll see you all next time on High Velocity Radio.