Hi! I’m Gauri Yardi (she/her) – multidisciplinary creative, naturopath and creative wellbeing coach.
My mission is to help blocked and burnt out creatives return to their art.
I believe that our work is unfairly considered a luxury. Music, art, literature, TV, movies and theatre all change—and in some cases save—lives. I can think of at least two songs and two books without which I wouldn’t be here today, and I know I’m not the only one who can say that.
I am deeply concerned that creative burnout might rob us of some of the greatest art of our time.
I’ve also experienced burnout that left me unable to write for years, so this work is of great personal importance to me and I try to live it on a daily basis.
My intention is to help blocked and burnt out creatives get back to the art they were born to make.
A few things you might like to know about me
My name is pronounced ‘GOW-ree’ (it rhymes with ‘dowry’)
I have a Bachelor of Health Science (Naturopathy) and spent four years in clinical practice helping people with their health using nutritional supplements, herbal medicine and diet and lifestyle coaching
I’ve been writing ever since I could pick up a pen
My original plan was to kill time working in publishing while waiting for my ‘big break’ as a novelist (!!!) but a serious illness inspired me to become a healthcare practitioner instead
I’m an INFJ and an enneagram 3 or 4 depending on the day (I’m told that’s not how the enneagram works – and yet, here we are!)
I am of Indian origin and grew up in Australia. People regularly mistake me for white and I often have to ‘come out’ as Indian, which is always strange
I believe that black lives matter, the land I live on is stolen, gender equality is essential, we need to do everything we can to stop climate change, and the LGBTQI+ community deserves all the rights they’ve been denied
Inclusion statement
Over the four years I've been part of the creative coaching space, I have noticed that it overwhelmingly attracts and caters to white people. As a result, BIPOC creatives are often left feeling only partially supported.
This is especially apparent in group coaching situations, where they may not feel the same level of belonging and acceptance as their white counterparts.
As a person of Indian origin, I am committed to creating safer coaching spaces for BIPOC creatives. I seek to centre our voices and experiences and de-centre whiteness in the spaces I facilitate.
That said, I grew up in Australia under white supremacy and have internalised its messages. So, my first step in the journey towards creating safer spaces is to come to terms with my own internalised racism and colourism, decolonise myself and learn to centre my own ethnic identity.
My journey led me to complete Represented, a 10 week online program with Annie Gichuru for online business owners building racially equitable businesses. Represented was an incredibly transformative experience and one I highly recommend.
I am only at the very beginning of this journey, so I am likely to make mistakes. I welcome feedback from BIPOCs on how I'm doing and how I can do better.
I will continue to update this statement as I do this work.