About
The Journey
I was born in India, raised in a family of physicians, and grew up believing that knowledge and service were the highest callings.
Then came an arranged marriage and with it, a love that grew slowly, deeply, and beautifully. I crossed an ocean, and found myself building a life - and a career - in a country that didn’t yet know my name.
For 25 years, I worked. I led. I sat in meetings alongside CEOs at companies like True Value, ORS Nasco, Essendant and Grainger, navigating the complexity of global supply chains, strategic transformation, finding margin expansion opportunities and the quiet, daily work of earning a seat at a table that wasn’t always expecting me.
I learned a great deal in those years. I learned what great leadership looks like under pressure - and what it costs when it’s missing. I learned that the most effective leaders aren’t the loudest ones. And I learned, slowly and then all at once, that the work I was most drawn to wasn’t the strategy on the whiteboard.
It was the person standing in front of it, wondering if they were enough.
The Moment Everything Shifted
When my daughter Ashna was four months old, I went back to work.
I had a new job, a new baby, and a guilt that no job title could quiet. I knew - I truly knew - that staying home wasn’t right for me. But knowing something and feeling it are two very different things.
So I hired a coach.
And in those sessions, something opened. Not just clarity about my career, but a deeper
understanding of who I was and what I was here to do. I had been coaching people informally for years - through my writing, through conversations, through the way I naturally showed up as a leader. The certification didn’t make me a coach.
It just gave a name to what my soul was already doing.
That is the gift I now bring to every person who sits across from me.
Who I Am Beyond the Work
I am a daughter of a family of physicians - Dr. Prafulla Gumashta, Dr. Gita Gumashta, and my brother Dr. Anurag Gumashta - who are not only my family but my spiritual teachers. They taught me that a life of service is a life well lived, and that true wisdom is always paired with humility.
I am a wife to Pranav - the love of my life, who has supported every version of me with humour, wisdom, and an unwavering belief that I could do this. And I am a mother to Ashna, who at fifteen has already read my books and tells me when my ideas need sharper edges. My father-in-law Bhupen lives with us and brings a quiet, beautiful spiritual presence to our home - a daily reminder of what it means to move through the world with grace.
I am an author of three books - Over a Cup of Coffee, Let it Brew, and Grounds of Reflection - each one written slowly, steeped in poetry and self-reflection, for anyone who loves to sit with a thought until it blooms.
I am a student of mindfulness, a practitioner of stillness, and a teacher of Kirtans - devotional music from the Pushtimarg tradition - to a circle of wise, beautiful women who have taught me far more than I have taught them.
And I bring 25 years of operational expertise to organizations looking to expand their margins and sharpen their strategy because the boardroom and the coaching chair are not as different as they seem. Both require you to see people clearly.
I don’t coach from theory. I coach from life.
A Note on Giving Back
Fifty percent of proceeds post expenses goes to charity. This was a decision I made deliberately - not as a gesture, but as a practice. A reminder to myself that abundance flows best when it moves.
My Approach & Credentials
My coaching draws from multiple traditions - mindfulness, somatic awareness, DISC profiling,
Socratic dialogue, and non-violent communication. Every session begins with stillness before it begins with strategy, because lasting change starts from the inside out.
I have trained through Mindvalley and ICF frameworks, while always following what the person in front of me actually needs - which doesn’t always fit neatly into a box.
Workshop and coaching clients include AbbVie, Discover, Capital One, True Value, and Boys & Girls Clubs of America - including pro bono coaching of BGCA CEOs and Alzheimer's
Association leaders. A consulting engagement in pricing strategy delivered $10M in savings.
In numbers:
• 760+ coaching hours with 70+ leaders
• Certified through Mindvalley
• 25 years corporate experience, 15 years working directly with C-suite
• Workshop clients include Discover- Capital One, True Value, Boys & Girls Clubs
• Author of three books
What Those Who Know Me Say
“Having known Urmi since we were about 4 years old, I can confidently say that she is a radiantly positive person who is authentic, caring, patient, and driven by unlocking the potential in others. She challenged me to think bigger and broader.”
— Gitesh Dubal, MBA
Commercial Executive in Healthcare, C-level
“Her understanding of people, business, strategy, cultures, and everything in between is well-rounded and seems limitless — yet she somehow maintains being one of the most humble and kind-hearted people I know. Her desire to help others is genuine.”
— Filomena Dawson
Executive Assistant to Senior Executives
