In this 6‑questions‑in‑7‑minutes interview, Professor Pete Alexander talks with Aashi Arora, an executive coach who specializes in helping healthcare providers and executives develop leadership skills. Aashi explains her role, shares what makes her smile—supporting the people who care for everyone during the stress of COVID—and emphasizes the importance of a "Coaching Mindset" that equips leaders to become their own coaches. She advises business leaders to be curious rather than judgmental, encouraging questioning to surface solutions already present in teams. Aashi recommends fellow coach Michelle Beauchamp for the podcast, noting her work in diversity, equity, and inclusion. She recounts her first job as a teenage billing assistant in her physician parents' offices, highlighting how early exposure shaped her passion for healthcare. The episode concludes with contact information for her firm, iRise Executive Coaching, and her social media handles.
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This is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast, where business leaders share their insights. It is 6 questions in 7 minutes because successful business leaders are busy and rarely have more time to spare. So let's get to it. Question number 1: In a few sentences, please tell me who you are and what you do.
Hi Pete, thanks for having me on here. My name is Ashi Arora and I am an executive coach. I specialize in working with healthcare professionals, namely healthcare providers as well as healthcare executives, on helping them rise in leadership. And I usually do that through 3 different ways. I have clients who come to me during times of career transitions, times when they are looking to have career trajectory or when they're really struggling with career turnovers.
Well, Ashi, it is a pleasure to have you on the show. Question number 2, what is something that makes you smile and/or laugh about working in your industry?
I love helping the people that help everyone else. I think that in healthcare, especially during this COVID times, that there is so much stress in the healthcare environment and on the providers and even the administrators who who are dealing with so many different issues in the medical and healthcare professions that I am there to support those that support everyone else. So that really brings a smile to my face.
And I can concur. My, my wife is in the medical practice as well. And it's ever since COVID hit, stress has been really, really high. So I can completely appreciate that. Question number 3, I have a fictitious book with all the answers for business. What chapter would you think most companies should read?
The Coaching Mindset. So I think everyone can be a coach. I often tell my clients that you don't need me forever because if I've done my job really well, I've armed you with the tools and resources to become your own coach. And so I really work on helping leaders understand how to really develop that coaching mindset and become a coach for themselves as well as develop it into their leadership style. Style to coach more than consult or tell others how to do their work.
I really like that, and I especially like the point that you make that coaching themselves as well, because we have to be able to take care of ourselves if we can be good mentors, leaders for others. So that's a really wise point. Thank you. Question number 4: Other than the generic work harder, have a great attitude, and care for customers, what advice or insight would you give to other business leaders?
Be curious and not judgmental.
You want to expand a little bit about that?
Yeah, absolutely. When we ask questions, it also, it shows that we're trying to be more curious and we're trying to understand what the other person is doing or what they're going through. And so that's what I mean by also developing that coaching mindset. So much as leaders, business owners, we tend to want to fix everything, we want to do everything. But instead, if we can be more curious, we can ask more questions, we start getting the other person or the other people or the other— our teams to be thinking through problem solving on their own. We're just trying to get it out of them for them to see the solutions that are often already here in their heads.
Yeah, that's really, really interesting too, because yeah, it's in their heads, just got to get it out and moving forward. I think that that's very wise. Thank you. Question number 5, what are the business leader like yourself would you like to acknowledge and invite to be on my podcast?
Yes, a fellow coach, Michelle Beauchamp from The Champ Group. I think she'd be an excellent guest for your podcast here, especially as she is doing a lot in the diversity, equity, and inclusion space. So I'd love to hear some of her insights.
Perfect. I look forward to reaching out and connecting with her. And our final question, question number 6, please tell me about your first job.
Ah, my first job was a teenager. So my parents are both physicians. This is where my, my love of healthcare really started at a young age, and helping to support healthcare providers was always really important to me. So I was a billing person in their offices, as well as doing some front office, back office work during the summers in high school. So yeah, my earliest job was 14, doing some billing work. And it's kind of interesting going to work with your parents, but, but nonetheless, I think it helped me understand what they did and helped bring that bond to them even closer.
So, yeah, and I think that that's important, especially as a teenager, because often teenagers want to go out their own way and try and reject their parents. And I think that, that, that you're saying about bonding and stuff is really important. It can really work, working for your parents, if it's in the right situation.
Yeah, absolutely.
So, Ashi, thank you so much for being on the show. How could people find you?
Yeah, um, my company's name is iRise Executive Coaching, so you can reach out to me, www.iRiseExecutiveCoaching, or ashley@iriseexecutivecoaching.com. I'm also on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. I'm all over the place.
Perfect. This is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast. Thanks for listening.
