Today, storytelling and entrepreneur Gayathri Shukla joins the show to share her journey from engineer to Founder of Campfire Kinship, a social impact firm that provides immersive training and strategic advisory for teams to advance on their inclusion and diversity goals. After starting her engineering career at Fort Mac and spending 17 years primarily in high-level positions in the engineering and mining sector, Gayathri combined her passions for storytelling and inclusion in the workplace by leaving her job and forming her own company. She recently published the best-selling anthology Landed: Transformative Stories of Canadian Immigrant Women to illustrate the life-changing experience of immigration by sharing the personal stories of 37 women from 30 countries of origin. Gayathri also hosts the Hearth 2 Heart podcast, in which she helps her guests highlight their stories of purpose and belonging.
“Between two dots – really, the value is in that line: the journey.”
Episode Highlights:
0:57 – Introduction; Gayathri’s young life in Indian, Saudi Arabia, and Canada
6:12 – How Gayathri connects to her roots as an immigrant rather than someone whose parents immigrated.
9:34 – Why she decided to leave her career to pursue entrepreneurship
18:10 – Why effective storytelling is a “missing link” to a more inclusive and diverse work environment
21:25 – A message from our sponsors
23:25 – How Gayathri gets people involved in her business and cause
30:25 – Why the transition into entrepreneurship has been her greatest challenge and reward
33:37 – Why walking, cups of tea, and family are the foundations of Gayathri’s wellness regimen
38:43 – Gayathri’s organic process for developing, writing, publishing, and marketing her book
45:55 – Her intentional approach to appreciating the community that helps her succeed
49:24 – Gayathri’s advice to her younger self
53:13 – Why she is driven most by feeling like she make a positive impact on other peoples’ lives
55:17 – The quote that Gayathri bases much of her life on
56:21 – How you can support Gayathri
Connect with Gayathri and support her work:
LinkedIn: ca.linkedin.com/in/gayathri-shukla
Campfire Kinship: campfirekinship.com
Sponsors of this episode:
Bloom Benefits: www.bloombenefits.ca
Iridium: www.irsnavacord.com
Zelos: www.zelosglobal.com
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the hosts and the guests do not necessarily reflect any agency, organization, or affiliated companies