Praise for the book

“A seminal work that has the power to significantly influence your life and leadership.”

~ From the Foreword by Anand Mahindra

“To build sustainable institutions, you need leaders with grit, humility, strong values and an ability to meaningfully introspect. This book expands on such ideas and goes well beyond. A must read for leaders or anyone who aspires to be one!”

~ Harsh Mariwala, Chairman, Marico

“Inside-out leadership is as much about professional growth as it is about personal fulfilment. The power of ‘purpose’ and the criticality of building ‘personal mastery’ are key ideas that resonated strongly with me. Full of powerful thoughts, simply told. I highly recommend it.”

~ Nitin Paranjpe, Chief Operating Officer, Unilever

“Inside-Out leadership is a real eye opener. Rajiv draws on many years as a business leader and executive coach to offer a practical, authentic and compelling guide to effective leadership. The inner journey of personal mastery described by him is indeed the key to unlocking your full potential as a leader.”

~ Satish Shankar, Regional Managing Partner, Bain & Company Asia-Pacific

“The biggest obstacle to our success is the person in the mirror.  But even when you realise this, how do you learn to get out of your own way? Rajiv offers practical insights based on many years of working with diverse executives across Asia. This is an exceptionally useful read and I recommend it highly.”

~ Ravi Venkatesan, Social Entrepreneur; Former Chairman, Microsoft India and former Co-Chairman, Infosys

“As Mahatma Gandhi once said, ‘Our future is defined by what we do in the present’. Faced with a global pandemic, climate change and economic uncertainty, we need impactful and thoughtful leadership now in business, politics and civil society. Rajiv’s insights, based on real world coaching experience, will help all of us to become better leaders.”

~ Mark Gainsborough, Co-Founder, Low Carbon Advisors; Former Executive Vice President – New Energies, Shell

“In an era when time cycles are shrinking for everything, from product life cycles to tenures of CEOs, how do you become, and remain, an enduring and relevant leader? Rajiv, based on his learnings from coaching numerous CEOs, across geographies, spells out a clearly articulated methodology for evolving into a truly respected leader. The secret sauce is to understand yourself and be comfortable with what you see, before venturing out to lead others.”

~ Deepak Satwalekar, Independent Director, Wipro, Piramal Enterprises, Asian Paints; Former MD, HDFC and then MD & CEO, HDFC Standard Life Insurance

“Pause…reflect…reorient. That’s what Rajiv encourages all of us to do. And this is the missing link to move from good to great leadership. A very insightful and thoughtful collection of experiences and wisdom woven into the book. Will make us pause, reflect and reorient not just our leadership but our lives.”

~ Mukul Deoras, President Asia-Pacific, Colgate-Palmolive Company

“This profound and inspiring book is a must-read for leaders and aspiring leaders who wish to be authentic and impactful. Rajiv lucidly illustrates the centrality of ‘self-mastery’ in one’s leadership journey, synthesised from thousands of hours spent coaching leaders in critical roles. As a direct beneficiary of his coaching, I am delighted that he is making his thoughts and methods available to a larger audience in this book.”

~ Raman Ramachandran Ph.D. Former Chairman & MD, BASF India Ltd; MD & CEO, PI Industries

“The journey of personal mastery described in this book is close to my heart. As you grow in your leadership, you will certainly appreciate the significance of this path and the simple but profound underlying insights lucidly captured by Rajiv.”

~ Rajesh Jejurikar, Executive Director, Auto and Farm Sectors, Mahindra & Mahindra

“Rajiv approaches the concept of leadership from a much deeper level than one would typically find. The questions he asks, the perspectives he brings and the framing he applies have benefited me enormously. An understanding of his approach will help any leader increase their effectiveness and create a future with clarity.”

~ Sri Rajan, Former Chairman, Bain and Company India

“Topical and much needed perspective on a range of issues at the core of leadership. Avoiding the normal, standard approaches, Rajiv shows us how to grow leadership by strengthening our inner self. Impactfully. Captures well the essence of the work he has been doing in transforming lives and leadership approaches.”

~ Ashok Ramchandran, Group Executive President – Group Human Resources, Aditya Birla Group

“When a coaching conversation moves smoothly but is highly impactful, you know you have found a top-class coach. From starting the coaching program to inspiring leaders at TCS, Rajiv has that kind of effortless impact on all and it reflects in his book. Inside-Out Leadership is full of learnings, simply put, yet deeply impactful. It forces you to examine yourself and offers great practical tips for current and potential leaders.”

~ Dr. Ritu Anand, Chief Leadership and Diversity Officer, Tata Consultancy Services

“This book is an amazing culmination of Rajiv’s insights and learnings. It is liberating leaders by highlighting that the secret to enhancing their effectiveness is within their control thereby empowering them to take control of their life and their destiny. The short exercises are a great way to reinforce applications of these learnings.”

~ Dr. Raju Mistry, President and Global Chief People Officer, Cipla

“Rajiv Vij’s message in Inside-Out Leadership inspires personal mastery and authentic leadership for leaders at all levels. He provides the reader with a blueprint to examine personal values, inner beliefs, and what’s required for self-mastery.  Revealing insights and wonderfully written, this is a timely book, and a must read for anyone charged with leading and making a difference.”

~ Brendan Kelly, Former Global Head of Leadership and Talent, Credit Suisse Group

“Great leaders become so because of their focus on inner transformation. Drawn from his enormous executive coaching experience, the key insights articulated by Rajiv can help any leader embark on such a transformation. I found these insights comprehensive and extremely helpful in enabling us to calibrate ourselves and work on becoming a better leader.”

~ Krish Shankar, Executive Vice President, Group Head – Human Resource Development, Infosys