Jul 9, 2022
Sheetal Ajmani
Sheetal Ajmani is a pediatrician, bestselling author, and the founder of Radiant Living Institute – guiding strong successful women to get unstuck and live radiantly again after major life transitions. Her holistic approach combines modern science, yoga, ayurveda, mindset, mindfulness, and psychology.
One Line Life Lessons from Sheetal
Episode Highlights
- 0:00 – Introduction to Sheetal Ajmani, pediatrician and founder of Radiant Living Institute
- 3:15 – Game of “underrated or overrated” with host Nitin Bajaj
- 7:40 – Description of Radiant Living Institute and its purpose
- 10:20 – Ajmani’s vision to expand her impact and team in the future
- 13:45 – Advantages of running a virtual solo show and its global reach
- 17:30 – Motivation for working with Radiant Living and addressing inner dialogues
- 21:10 – Importance of addressing life’s challenges for self-empowerment
- 24:50 – Fulfillment in helping women navigate difficult transitions
- 28:15 – Rewarding experience of working with high-achieving individuals
- 31:00 – Value and adaptability of Radiant Living programs
- 34:20 – Discussion on the importance of addressing personal problems for effective products/services
- 38:00 – Sharing one-line life lessons and concluding remarks on self-empowerment and celebrating achievements
Show Transcript
Transcript - Full Episode
Nitin Bajaj
Welcome to the industry show. I’m your host, Nitin Bajaj, and joining me today is Sheetal Ajmani. Sheetal, welcome on the show.
Sheetal Ajmani
Thank you, Nitin. Thank you for having me. I’ve tuned in to the industry show before, and I absolutely love what you’re doing here. So it’s such an honor to be here.
Nitin Bajaj
Thank you. And the pleasure is all ours. So let’s start with who is Sheetal.
Sheetal Ajmani
Yeah. So who is Sheetal?
So first and foremost, I am a, spiritual being having an human experience, and I realized that that is a bit of an esoteric response. So I am also a pediatrician. I’m a best selling author. I am the founder of Radiant Living Institute. I am a runner, a yogi. Most recently, I’ve gotten into gardening, which I’m really excited about.
Nitin Bajaj
Yep.
Sheetal Ajmani
I’m also a daughter, sister, and friend to Ajmani.
Nitin Bajaj
That’s amazing. But we’ll learn more about you. But before we jump into that, let’s play a game. We call this the underrated, overrated. And, it’s a one word response about these mega themes that impact us a little bit. Right? So let’s start with, stock market prices.
Sheetal Ajmani
Overrated.
Nitin Bajaj
What about our grill estate places?
Sheetal Ajmani
Can I say overrated and underrated in some ways? I know you said to avoid long explanations with this game.
Nitin Bajaj
But that’s the trick of the game. Right? It’s hard to do that. What about NFT?
Sheetal Ajmani
Overrated. Crypto? Overrated.
Nitin Bajaj
And the metaverse?
Sheetal Ajmani
Overrated.
Nitin Bajaj
- What about, cash?
Sheetal Ajmani
I’m gonna say overrated.
Nitin Bajaj
- And, inflation?
Sheetal Ajmani
Oh. Underrated.
Nitin Bajaj
- And the last one, the great resignation.
Sheetal Ajmani
Underrated.
Nitin Bajaj
- Well, thanks for playing along. Hopefully, it was a little bit of fun.
Sheetal Ajmani
Of course, there was such a long discussion we could get into with every one of those.
Nitin Bajaj
I know.
Sheetal Ajmani
I was saying before the recording, I’ve seen you do this in other recordings with other guests, and I was like, oh, I wonder if he’s gonna play this game with me because it’s such a tough game. There’s so much we could go into with all of those.
Nitin Bajaj
It’s all about resisting the temptation. So tell us what is the Radiant Living Institute. What’s the mission, the vision? And then, you know, after that, a little bit of the the impact, the size, and scale of your operations.
Sheetal Ajmani
Sure. Sure. So Radiant Living Institute is a place where strong successful women, come to get unstuck and learn to live radiantly again. And, particularly as they’re navigating and coming through major life transitions. And they do that through, holistic life coaching and personal development programs that combine yoga, Ayurveda, mindfulness, mindset, psychology, and neuroscience. In terms of you asked about kind of the size and scale of the operations. So right now, I’m a solopreneur, and the impact is really 1 on 1. And so I work with clients 1 on 1 and in small group settings, virtually. So all of my programs are, what could be considered high touch programs, meaning a lot of face to face time with me to specifically help you, my clients, work through your needs. And, certainly, I plan to scale and grow this business, The, impact in the team over the next few years. But right now, I’m running a solo show.
Nitin Bajaj
That’s awesome. And, you know, the good thing about being virtual is you can help people anywhere they are. Right? So even within that, it does tend to be a little bit of a challenge when it comes to the time of the day and and the days in the week. So have you looked at and considered what geographies you’re servicing right now?
Sheetal Ajmani
Yeah. Actually, I have serviced, internationally, which is really it’s really amazing that with the technology that we have these days that we can connect with people all over the world. So, you know, I’ve served, clients in India. And so certainly a challenge in terms of, you know, finding the, right time. India, Dubai, Canada, that was a little bit easier to coordinate times. So, from all over all over the states as well as internationally, I have, served clients. And it’s just it’s so rewarding and amazing to be able, especially with the type of work that I do, that wherever you live, whatever culture, like, we’re all have so many of the same sort of struggles and inner inner conflicts, inner dialogues that we’re going through and that we’re managing and that we’re, trying to overcome to live our best lives. And that’s what Radiant Living really helps with.
Nitin Bajaj
And, you know, this is a bit of, I kinda get it, but I still wanna hear it. You’re a penetration, a best selling author. You’re serving and you were serving people and helping them be better versions of themselves. Why do this?
Sheetal Ajmani
Yeah. I love the way that you framed that as well. You know? I do serve in so many ways, in my, training and career as a pediatrician, helping and serving children and families. And, you know, there’s, and then also early on in my medical career, I discovered yoga and Ayurveda. And those are areas that address very different parts of our self than traditional allopathic medicine does. Traditional allopathic medicine is very focused on the physical body as it should be, as it needs to be, and I think that there’s a place for both of these. Mhmm. What I really enjoy about my work with Radiant Living is to be able to dive a bit deeper into those sort of inner dialogues that we have. I truly believe that and it has been shown and validated that our emotions, our mind, our mental state, our emotional state, the thoughts that we think directly affect how our energy, how we’re able to show up each day physically as well. And so to be able to to with Radiant Living Institute, I’m able to dive a little bit deeper into those areas. I’m not able to in my traditional clinical practice.
Nitin Bajaj
So true. And, you know, as you do that, it’s extremely hard for for just even me to look inside or to allow anyone to help me do that. Right? So this can be a difficult well, it’s not a job, but a difficult profession to be in. If you were to pick one big challenge, what would that be?
Sheetal Ajmani
Yeah. I think I think people have to be at a place where they’re ready to look Nitin, right, to to to start their work with me.
Nitin Bajaj
Mhmm. And
Sheetal Ajmani
so I’m not sure if this is a challenge, but more to address kind of the first part of of your question that it is very difficult to within. And I think, you know, one of the things that I always or a couple things that I always say is that life’s challenges are the greatest catalyst for self empowerment. Like, it’s when it’s those moments when life kinda knocks you to your knees, when you reach that place of burnout in your career or in your relationship or some major life change that you start to really examine and look inward for answers and seek those answers because something in your external world has just fallen apart. And we place so much emphasis on the things in our external world, on our external environment. And but those are always changing. They’re always changing no matter what. And so when we attach ourselves too much to those things, which is natural, we’re, again, living this human experience. Right? So that’s natural to happen. But when when we attach ourselves too much to those things and then those come crashing down, we start to look within. And that’s why I always say that life’s challenges are the greatest catalyst for that, for self discovery and for doing that in our work. And so, you know, it’s it’s an honor to be able to meet people where they are in that moment and to help them start to sometimes often start to listen to their inner voice for the very first time. Then the other thing I always say and is the core of living is that a radiant life starts from within. So so, you know, you reach this place where you’re starting to look within. And what I do is I help guide people to look within, start there, and then we start to rebuild the external world to reflect your inner priorities and core values so that you’re really living from this place of intention and alignment and continually, fostering and cultivating and strengthening that relationship with yourself, with your core.
Nitin Bajaj
And I can see it’s extremely rewarding. It’s hard work, but at the same time, it’s extremely rewarding. So kudos to you for doing what you do. And, you know, let’s look at the brighter side of things. Mhmm. What’s the most exciting opportunity you’re targeting?
Sheetal Ajmani
The most exciting thing for me is reaching women and guiding them through this process, through this journey. You know, I’ve guided so many women from a place of feeling depleted and drained, being in toxic, really unhealthy relationships or work environments Mhmm. Or, things like empty nest syndrome. For the first time in 18 years, their kids have left the home for the first time and trying to navigate rediscovering themselves or transitioning to retirement.
Nitin Bajaj
Mhmm.
Sheetal Ajmani
You know, these big moments in our lives when we’re rediscovering and and kind of getting our bearings straight again. And so the most exciting opportunity is working directly with those women and seeing their transformation. It just lights me up to see them, work through all of that and get to the others this other side of just joy and radiance, joy and radiance and feeling fulfilled, and that they are starting to, in terms of their relationship with themselves, cultivating greater self compassion. So many of the people I work with, we tend to be, you know, strong, successful, high achieving, which also which is wonderful, but also comes with, right, being really, really hard on our ourselves. And so guiding people through this journey while also cultivating and with a sense of self compassion and grace, is just so rewarding to witness that. And to me, that’s the most exciting is seeing that impact and how it translates into their daily life. You know, I just see them doing things that they had long forgotten was even something that interested them or just having more energy to do the things that they love and spending quality time with their family and friends. I mean, just those things that like, those intangible things in life that make life beautiful and magical.
Nitin Bajaj
True. So true. Now if we look back in time in, you know, through your career profession, if you were to pick out 2 instances, one that really blew your own expectations, and then another one where it ended up being a failure and you picked up some lessons from that. What would be those two instances?
Sheetal Ajmani
Yeah. So so in terms of kind of something that I’ve learned as a lesson, I would say, you know, it isn’t a failure if you learn something from it. Right? That is a definite core belief for me that I have and that I hold. And so, goodness, there’s been, honestly, so many things that could be, quote, unquote, considered, failures or or things that I did not expect to go the way I’d hoped or expected both personally and professionally over over the years, over my life. And so, you know, each one of those, have the pushed me to study deeper
Nitin Bajaj
Mhmm.
Sheetal Ajmani
To dive deeper into myself, to dive deeper into these tools. And the lesson in each of those in every single circumstance, the lessons that I’ve learned are now things that I have been able to put into these programs to help women to build this really powerful, the science behind them. I studied the science behind them. I, implemented them and found ways to implement them in my own life. You know, as a busy doctor, as a solopreneur, I found ways to fit these in. And it’s such a passion of mine to help to help anyone and everyone find ways to, fit these into their daily life. And so that’s my big biggest lessons from all of the, quote, unquote, failures. And, you know, when I say I love being able to help people kind of fit these tools and practices into their daily life. You know, another thing I always say is small changes make a large impact. And so, you know, really working with with people to make those small tiny changes because so often we think we have to make really huge changes in our life to see a difference. But often, it’s those small things that we do on a regular basis.
Nitin Bajaj
So true. It’s that 1% a day. Right?
Sheetal Ajmani
Absolutely. And it has a cumulative effect. That’s the thing. It definitely has a cumulative effect on your energy and your overall well-being. And then kind of a a success, something that, always blows me away or that I’m really proud of is that the my client success stories. And to kind of pull out I love, you know, all of my client success stories. I’m just, feel so proud of and so humbled and honored to be a part of their journey. But specifically, kinda to pick one example is whenever clients come back to me months or years after we have together or after they’ve gone through my programs, and they tell me that they’re still using those tools. And they tell me that they’ve referred back, that they’ve saved all the worksheets and put them in a binder, and that they go back they still go back to that, anytime they’re going through a difficult situation. And so that longevity of what I’m offering is something that I’m really proud of because I’m sure you can relate. I think we’ve all been in those situations where we sign up for a program or a course. We make this big investment, which is always really scary, right, to make an investment like that, not knowing exactly the result you’re gonna get out of it. And then, you know, you go, you attend the program or the course. It seems really helpful at the time, and then a week later, you’re back in your regular day to day life and you Yep. You know, forgotten all of that. And so I think we’ve all experienced that at some point or another. And so the fact that, clients have come back to me months years later still using these tools, still note still, you know, it’s still having a huge impact in their life. I mean, that’s just the greatest compliment. And, I just I feel really proud of that and, you know, feel really proud kinda standing by the programs that I’m offering.
Nitin Bajaj
True. In one, it’s extremely valuable because it grows with you and it can stay along. And and the other thing is you can use these tools irrespective of what those challenges are. It’s not restricted to it’s not a analytical tool that you can only use for work or it’s not a, you know, allopathic pill that only solves for this problem. Irrespective of any of those life changes when you have your back to the wall, you can go back and use these tools to bring the best out of you. Yeah. Really? Absolutely.
Sheetal Ajmani
Really? Absolutely. And, you know, what I’ve done, like I mentioned before, and I and I realized I didn’t get into specifics, but kind of all the quote and quote failures and life transitions that I’ve gone through, so many. I, you know, tried and tested all of these things myself. Right? And through that, how I created my programs was I looked back at that and I you know, so many thick tools from yoga, from Ayurveda, from personal development programs, from psychology. And I pulled together the core, foundational pieces that I found to be most powerful. And these core pieces are validated not only from ancient traditions, such as yoga or an Ayurveda, but they’re also research backed practices. And I have all of these core foundational tools, or these 6 core foundational principles outlined in, a free workbook that I would love to offer anyone who’s listening right now, and we’ll include the link, but it’s called 6 Steps to Create Your Radiant Life. And you download that workbook, give yourself 20 to 30 minutes to just work through it. There’s action items. You’re gonna be writing things out, and I guarantee you’ll walk away with actionable steps. And these are the core, parts of of my program.
Nitin Bajaj
That’s amazing. And thanks for sharing that, and we’ll make sure to put that in the link, as we post this interview. But I think that’s something most people 2 things that that, you know, really important here. 1, I believe the best services and the best products are the ones that solve for your own problems because you then make sure that you’re addressing every single aspect, every single issue. So that comes with a lot of validation there. And the other thing is having the awareness that this is something you need because we just tend to go from one problem to the next, from one high moment to the next, from a low point to another, and to be able to pause and reflect and say, well, there is help out there. Right? You just have to take the time and realize that, yes, I should do this because it’s going to make me a better and a stronger person Mhmm. In the run. So Yeah. Yeah. Really appreciate you sharing that. And, you know, this brings me to my favorite part of the show, which is the one line life lessons. So I would invite you to share your one line life lessons with us.
Sheetal Ajmani
Yeah. Absolutely. I love this part too. I love this, part in all of your shows as well. A few of them I’ve already mentioned. Mhmm. So a radiant life starts from within.
Nitin Bajaj
Yes.
Sheetal Ajmani
Small changes make a large impact.
Nitin Bajaj
Mhmm.
Sheetal Ajmani
Life’s challenges are catalysts are the greatest catalyst for self empowerment. Your relationship with yourself is the most important relationship Mhmm. And the foundation for everything else in your life. And success builds upon success, so celebrate your achievements.
Nitin Bajaj
Love those. And I love how you weave all of them throughout your your responses and, you know, so it’s personally to me, that’s amazing, right, that you you reflect these life lessons in your day to day, in your practice, in your work with your clients. And, thanks again for pulling these all together. And for our audience, we have an entire collection at onelineelife lessons.com and wherever you socialize digitally. And, Sheetal, once again, thank you for taking the time to be with us and for sharing your journey and for offering, that workbook, which we’ll be sure to include, in the comments. Thank you once again.
Sheetal Ajmani
Yes. Thank you so much, Nitin, for having me on. It’s been such a pleasure to chat with you.