From Advertising to Yoga to Medicine to Bamboo Architecture: Rajiv Arapurakal on the Continuous Reinvention of Self

Today, Rajiv Arapurakal joins Full Tilt with Belinda Bradford. Rajiv is Co-Founder and Director of Strategy at IBUKU, the Bali-based design studio known for its work in sustainable bamboo architecture. Before Bali, he spent a decade practicing internal medicine in New Jersey, and before that, he walked away from a career in advertising to train as a yoga teacher. He is now an E-RYT 500-certified senior yoga teacher at ISHTA Yoga, having led over 3,000 classes in settings from hospitals to NYC's Times Square.In this episode, you'll learn:How his last day in advertising became his first day of yoga teacher training, and what that leap actually tookWhy he calls himself “an aggressive listener,” and what changed when he started applying that instinct to medicineWhat he learned about belonging and listening from a decade practicing internal medicine in New JerseyHow marrying into Elora Hardy's world introduced him to IBUKU and Bali's bamboo architecture movementThe piece of advice he still lives by today: "Beware the man of one book”Why walking away from a steady advertising paycheck remains one of the hardest calls he's ever madeThis is a conversation about reinvention: what it costs, what it teaches you, and why he keeps choosing it again.Connect with Rajiv ArapurakalLinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajiv-arapurakal-md-8b41b91/ Connect with Belinda Bradford and WEGroup GlobalBelinda Bradford on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/belinda-bradford-a7b41513/Our website: WEGroup Global: wegroup-global.comNominate someone to be our next guest: [email protected]#FullTiltPodcast #WEGroupGlobal #ReinventionMentioned in this episode:Full Tilt with Belinda Bradford is brought to you by WEGroup Global. We design and run retreats, summits, and offsites for creators, growing businesses, associations, and enterprises. We build on a simple belief: human connection matters more now than ever. The world has never been more connected, and people have never felt more alone. As AI takes over the routine work, judgement, trust, and the ability to lead a room are what's left to compete on. That still only happens in person. That's why we do what we do. We handle the hotels, the venues, the bookings, the logistics, and all the risks, backed by a network of 8,000+ hotels and venues in over 100 countries, trusted vendors and tour partners, and access to VIP tickets and top speakers most people can't get on their own. All you have to do is show up and connect with the people in the room. One team, one plan, from first idea to final day. Learn more about us at wegroup-global.com Connect with us at [email protected]