Evercoach's Ajit Nawalkha on leadership, coaching and the power of inner clarity

Gulf Business

12-05-2025

Image: Supplied/ Rene Lutterus
Ajit Nawalkha, co-founder of
From his early leadership days in AIESEC to launching transformative coaching programmes and preparing to host the 'Limitless Immersion' experience in Dubai, Nawalkha's work is grounded in purpose, clarity and sustainable personal growth.
In this exclusive interview with
Gulf Business
, he shares the mindset shifts shaping the coaching industry, what truly drives transformation, and why success must start from within.
Your journey from AIESEC to becoming the face of Mindvalley Coach is inspiring. What early leadership lessons from AIESEC continue to guide you today in how you lead and coach others?
AIESEC is a student volunteer organisation that promotes world peace through understanding. It was also the place where I first discovered what it means to lead — not just manage. And those early lessons have never left me.
The first lesson I learned was that resources matter far less than resourcefulness. When I joined AIESEC, I led a small local chapter in a town with limited visibility and almost no legacy of success. We didn't have the numbers, the budget, or the infrastructure. But what we had — or rather, what we built — was resourcefulness.
Under my leadership, we went from being one of the least-known chapters globally to becoming the number one local committee worldwide. That transformation didn't happen because we had more. It happened because we used what we had better. I've carried that mindset into every business I've built. Tools and funding matter, but never more than creativity, initiative, and intelligent effort.
The second lesson was that leadership isn't about time — it's about intensity. In AIESEC, leadership roles turn over every year. You don't get five years to find your voice. You get 12 months — sometimes less — to build trust, drive impact, and leave a legacy. That environment taught me how quickly leadership can be earned if you lead with clarity, conviction, and heart. It's a lesson I bring into coaching every day: you don't need more time to change your life — you need more intention.
Finally, AIESEC showed me the power of consistency over intensity. Many chapters operated in bursts — peaking in summer, fading in winter. We didn't do that. We chose to be consistent all year round. That consistency — not short-term hype — created real, lasting success. I see the same pattern in coaching and entrepreneurship: the ones who win aren't always the loudest or the fastest—they're the ones who keep showing up.
In many ways, AIESEC didn't just teach me how to lead; it shaped the entire foundation of how I coach, build, and serve.
What do you think makes a transformational coaching programme truly effective?
After working with over 15,000 coaches, I've found that true transformation follows structure. I call it the '6 Cs of Transformation':
Commitment – Creating a strong internal desire for change
Clarity – Setting specific, embodied goals
Courage – Inviting bold decisions
Capability – Equipping clients with real skills
Confidence – Building inner certainty through action
Community – Offering accountability and support
Transformation doesn't happen by chance — it's built with intention and supported with the right structure.
In 2015, a personal crisis led you to pivot toward coaching. How did that reshape your understanding of success, and what do you tell others navigating burnout or disillusionment?
In 2015, I looked successful on paper — leading a Dhs100m company — but inside, I was in crisis. My marriage was ending, and I felt disconnected. That's when I stopped chasing success and started defining it for myself.
Burnout isn't just about hard work. It's about spending your life doing things that no longer matter to you or doing what others expect. When someone feels burned out, I ask:
Why are you doing what you're doing — and what is it costing you?
The shift begins not with more effort, but more truth.
With programmes like the Certified Business Coach and Certified Life Coach reaching thousands, what trends are you seeing in the type of coaching people need today versus five years ago?
When we first launched these programmes five years ago, the world was in a very different place. We were navigating the collective uncertainty of Covid-19 lockdowns, isolation, and the emotional weight of an unpredictable future.
At that time, coaching was deeply rooted in personal resilience. People were asking questions like:
How do I find mental peace? How do I stay connected in a disconnected world?
Life coaching focused on helping individuals manage anxiety, regain inner balance, and rebuild emotional strength.
On the business side, the conversation was all about survival. Entrepreneurs were figuring out how to pivot, launch digital-first businesses, and access financial support to stay afloat. That period sparked a wave of entrepreneurship, but it also created a deep need for guidance — which is where business coaching began to thrive.
Fast forward to today, and the landscape has evolved significantly. Coaching has shifted from being a niche concept to a widely accepted solution. In the West, both life and business coaching are now mainstream. People actively seek out coaches not only during crises but also for growth, clarity, and performance.
We're also starting to see this trend gain traction in the East, though the pace of adoption is unfolding differently.
Today, coaching is mainstream. People now seek it for growth, performance, and deeper alignment. Two major trends are shaping business coaching today:
The rise of AI and tech: Coaches are helping leaders adopt new tools and shift their mindset to stay relevant.
Generational change: Younger entrepreneurs are moving away from traditional business models toward impact, intellectual property, and innovation.
In life coaching, themes like mental wellbeing, career change, and relationship clarity are dominant. People want to feel whole, not just successful.
What mindset shifts do you instill in entrepreneurs aiming to build high-impact businesses?
The first shift is that success isn't about working harder — it's about thinking clearly. High-impact businesses aren't built on more hustle, but on alignment between your offer, message, and identity.
Second, identity matters. I ask:
Who do you need to become to lead the business you envision?
Transformation starts by upgrading skills, habits, and beliefs.
Lastly, I teach the power of systems and simplicity. Most businesses fail not from lack of money but from founder fatigue. Simpler, smarter systems protect energy and focus.
For someone ready to transform their life, what one powerful practice would you recommend?
One of the most significant mindset shifts I teach is this:
You don't build a high-impact business by working harder; you build it by thinking clearly.
A lot of coaches and entrepreneurs come into this work overwhelmed. They believe success is just beyond more effort, more content, more clients, and more tools. While all of that helps at the beginning, it stops working when you're trying to scale. High-impact businesses aren't built through more work—they're built through more alignment.
When your offer, message, and method of working align with who you truly are, you no longer have to fight for momentum. You create pull, not push.
The second major mindset shift is around identity. Most people try to build the business they want without becoming the person who can lead it. So I help them bridge that gap by asking:
Who do you need to become to build the business you envision?
True transformation begins when you see clearly which skills, habits, and beliefs you need to upgrade.
Third, I emphasise the power of systems and simplicity. Businesses don't fail because they run out of money — they fail because business owners run out of energy. Rene Lutterus They burn out doing the wrong things. They get exhausted running without the right systems — or without any systems at all.
Most of us are buried in noise. We listen to everyone around us — about everything. But the people who create the life they truly want are the ones who
know what that life looks like
. They've learned how to tune out the noise and tune into their signal.
In both business and life, we're surrounded by a constant stream of opinions, strategies, trends, and expectations. Everyone's telling you what you should do, how fast you should move, and what success is supposed to look like.
But noise doesn't create clarity — it creates confusion, comparison, and burnout.
What
does
create transformation is your signal: that quiet, grounded voice inside you that actually knows what matters most.
Tune out the noise and listen to your own signal. We're constantly told what success should look like, but clarity comes from within.
I recommend setting aside 15 minutes to answer:
Who am I beyond work and title?
What do I want beyond money and recognition?
What does my perfect day and life look like?
Clarity is your most underused advantage. Act from your signal, not the noise — and that's where transformation begins.
Tell us about your upcoming programme in Dubai.
Limitless Immersion
is a three-day live experience in Dubai from May 23-25 . It's for entrepreneurs who feel stuck — not because of external strategy, but internal limitations.
This experience helps you confront the identity holding your business back and step into the version of yourself that's ready for the next level. Most people try to scale by doing more.
Limitless
flips that — you scale by becoming more.
We help leaders recalibrate, shed old beliefs, and grow from the inside out. Because your business can only grow to the extent that
you
do.