Rishi did not show me how to Become a Leader; He helped me see that I could BE one now!
My work is dedicated to a single idea: The Awakened Leader.
This isn’t a leader with more strategies, but one who operates from a fundamentally different place: a place of deep presence, clarity, and alignment.
It’s for the leader who is successful on paper, but is secretly wondering: “Is this really it?” It’s for those who know how to play the game, but now want to lead from somewhere deeper.
I know this space well because I’ve lived it.
My journey into this work wasn’t linear. It began early on in life, with using tools like NLP to pull myself out of depression, which sparked a deep curiosity about the human mind. I dove into psychology, then into Western philosophy, searching for answers to life’s biggest questions.
That search led me to a strange place: a successful career, high-functioning on the outside, but in a quiet, internal existential crisis. I remember a moment where I realized that although I was convinced there was no point in living, something in me still wanted to live. I decided to trust that “something.”
This led me to a second, more intentional part of my journey. I came across a profound insight that created a fundamental shift in my perception and my Being. It was like the constant, noisy chatter of my mind went silent for the first time. In that quiet space, the big existential questions that had driven me for years simply dissolved, and I was left with a sense of profound peace and clarity.
That insight set me off on another exploration, this time into the non-dual philosophies of my own heritage in India. As all this was happening, I was also studying inspired leadership, organizational development, and pursuing my formal coaching credentials with the ICF, living in two very different worlds at the same time.
My coaching practice today is the integration of these two paths. It’s a blend of the practical and the profound. One day, a coaching session might be a deep dive into your team’s performance; the next, it might be a single, silent moment of seeing that changes everything.
I don’t stand on the other bank of the river and tell you where to go. My work is to meet you exactly where you are and to hold a space for your own journey to unfold.
I have come to see that the answers to our most complex business challenges and personal struggles are not found in new trends, but in ancient wisdom.
By understanding the fundamental principles behind the human experience, we can navigate life and leadership more effectively. When you learn to see the world differently — through the lens of presence and alignment — everything changes. Decisions become clearer, leadership becomes more impactful, and work starts to feel a lot more effortless.
My approach is grounded in a diverse set of understandings, including Ontology, the Three Principles, Non-duality, and Neuroscience, and is supported by years of real-world experience.
I have had the privilege of serving on the Board of the ICF Hyderabad Charter Chapter and I co-authored the book, ‘The Rise of Manager as Coach.‘ My journey has also taken me from leading a 1500+ member IEEE professional chapter and running an award-winning start-up, to consulting for Deloitte and becoming a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) with the International Coaching Federation.
Along the way, I have had many incredible teachers, extraordinary mentors and some of the world’s most sought-after coaches. I’m privileged to now call them my colleagues and friends. You can say I have a healthy obsession with the craft of coaching and the science of human potential.
I dedicate myself to life-long learning and continue to enhance my craft. I study, and research more than anyone I know, and invest a huge amount of my time, energy and money into my continuous professional and personal development.
I support leaders in their uniquely individual journey, helping them own their leadership and lead more effectively. I champion my clients’ highest potential, and coach around insight and results.
If this resonates with you, I would love to connect and explore how I might serve you and your organization powerfully in your unique journey.
Rishi’s work is in shifting the way people experience themselves and their world. As a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) with the International Coaching Federation (ICF), he works with leaders, entrepreneurs, and teams to create real impact—not by teaching more strategies, but by helping them cut through the noise of overthinking, self-doubt, and conditioned patterns.
With a background spanning startups, global enterprise risk, and financial consulting, Rishi’s journey into coaching wasn’t a planned career move. It was a relentless personal exploration—through the intersections of psychology, philosophy, and spirituality—that led him to see human potential beyond conventional wisdom.
This led to Rishi founding a boutique coaching firm called Paradigm Shift specializing in transformative coaching. His clients don’t just come for frameworks or strategies. They come for something much rarer—a space where they can see themselves more clearly than ever before. And in that space, things shift. They lead with more presence, make decisions with more clarity, and move forward without the second-guessing that used to slow them down.
Whether it’s a business leader making high-stakes decisions with ease, an entrepreneur navigating uncertainty without stress, or a professional stepping into their full presence, the shift is always the same—less effort, more impact.