Finding inner peace for Aayushi Jain lies in learning detachment to different situations in life and she believes that this is what will lead her to attain complete happiness as a person. Sarada Vishnubhatla finds out that Aayushi is putting all this into practice while executing her roles as a wife, mother and a professional successfully.
Human spirit is what motivates her to do good all around her. Not numbers or targets. She believes in bridging people and building networks. Seamlessly. To create a better and happy community.
Aayushi Jain received entrepreneurial spirit and the art of connecting with people from her parents. Born in Kanpur in 1992, her childhood was spent in various places across the country owing to her father’s work in the military.
She shares: “My younger sister and I have always been inspired by our parents, especially our mother, who is a self-made businesswoman. I too have always wanted to have my own business.”
Post her chemical engineering, she opted to become a Fellow with ‘Teach For India’ instead of accepting job offers with noted IT companies.
Aayushi confides: “Teach For India is driven by the dream that all children must attain education because education is seen as a great equalizer in any society. Working with them gave me an up, close and personal view of the ground reality in India. The platform works with government schools across India and as their Fellows, we are placed in these schools after a two-month training. I was one from 2014 to 2015, and I taught various subjects to fourth graders in Delhi. I was happy teaching 34 kids who would invariably be accompanied by their smaller siblings to the class. It will always remain my most precious experience in life.”
Aayushi is someone who wants to do good for the people around her. She may not be an active Fellow anymore, but she continues to mentor under-graduates or those in their mid-careers, whenever the opportunity arises.
In 2015, Aayushi moved to the US and for the next four years or so, she built a career for herself in climate change and also grew as a person. Today, she continues to work in transportation, environment, and sustainable agriculture domains.
She says, “In the US, I worked with over 25 portfolio companies across various climate sectors and helped them get to market under the Department of Market Transformation. India is also steadily working towards creating a sustainable ecosystem rather than looking at various aspects in silos.”
When Aayushi returned to India in 2019, EVs were emerging as a promising alternate transportation and her work with a non-profit organization involved her to work on electric mobility policy in the country. Her next stint at an Indian EV unicorn saw her working in sync with government bodies such as NITI Aayog, local transport secretaries and commissioners.
She explains: “Building relationships will always remain at the core of whatever I may do in life. In line with that, I have taken to actively understanding how politics can pave the way for social service on a larger scale.”
Throughout her career, Aayushi has maintained a ‘take no prisoners’ attitude especially when her being a woman professional is seen as less than competitive. She thrives when she can find a balance in interpersonal equations with people around her – be it at home or in her business circles.
As a person, Aayushi Jain has learnt that when life happens, it pays for a person to be flexible… and that is why she is able to live a well-rounded life on her own terms, in her own unique way.