158. Make Flourishing Your Competitive Edge with Ashish Kothari

Our guest on the podcast today is Ashish Kothari, an executive coach, author, consultant, and founder of Happiness Squad, a company focused on helping individuals and organizations make flourishing their competitive edge and operate at their fullest potential. Ashish is the author of the best-selling book “Hardwired for Happiness” in which he outlines an easy-to-follow recipe that can help anyone increase joy, health, love and meaning in their lives.

Prior to starting Happiness Squad, Ashish Kothari was a Partner at the global management consulting firm, McKinsey & Company and spent over two decades helping thousands of leaders and their organizations achieve breakthrough performance through increasing their effectiveness, building more human centric cultures, and transforming capabilities at scale. Ashish has a Masters in Business administration (MBA) from Chicago Booth and a Bachelors and Masters degree in Chemical Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, India. He is married and lives in Boulder, Colorado with his wife, Lizzie, his son, Ashwin and their pug, Hufflepuff.

In today's episode, you'll hear Ashish speak to the essence of what it means to truly flourish in both personal and professional realms, challenging the conventional dichotomy between success and well-being. He presents the argument that true flourishing can, in fact, be a competitive advantage both in the workplace and in life. With insights drawn from various disciplines, including neuroscience, positive psychology, and ancient spiritual texts, Ashish shares the latest research and practical strategies for shifting from mere survival to genuine thriving.

Through exploring human connection, mindfulness, and the power of being present, this episode offers actionable wisdom for anyone seeking to transform their life and work. We discuss the complexities of modern life, examining why so many people feel stuck in survival mode and how they can break free to lead more meaningful, connected, and joyous lives. Join us as we uncover the profound shift from surviving to thriving and learn how to make flourishing your ultimate competitive edge.

Key Takeaways

• Ashish’s perspective on why we aren’t flourishing and what we can do about it
• How so many of us are asleep in our busy lives
• What the research shows about society, our patterns, and behavior for flourishing and where we’re struggling
• Becoming self-authored with validations from neuroscience and positive psychology
• How leveraging data is so important to systemic change
• Simple practices to integrate mindfulness into daily routines

Episode Resources:

• Happiness Squad Website
• Ashish Linkedin Profile
• BOOK: Hardwired For Happiness by Ashish Kothari
• SacredChangemakers.com
• Our Sacred Community
• Jayne Warrilow on Linkedin

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