EP 91 She Taught Math in Prison, Now She Teaches Fortune 500 Companies How to Rise with Rashmi Airan
Thu Feb 05 2026
What happens when a high-achieving lawyer who did everything "right" finds herself facing federal prison? In this powerful episode of the Human Future podcast, Rashmi Airan (@rashmiairanspeaker) shares her extraordinary journey from being indicted for bank fraud to discovering her true purpose through the most unlikely circumstances.
Rashmi opens up about the moment she learned she would be indicted while praying at a Hindu temple, the gut-wrenching process of telling her young children, and how calling nearly 200 people to personally share her story became an unexpected path to healing. She reveals the profound lessons learned during her time in federal prison, including teaching math to inmates and discovering that the "prison of her mind" had been far more confining than any physical cell.
Now a sought-after keynote speaker and author of the upcoming book "All Rise: A Lawyer's Evolution from Prison to Purpose," Rashmi shares her RISE Framework for navigating adversity: Reframe, Identify your anchors, Surrender ego and control, and Evolve through gratitude and presence. Her message challenges conventional wisdom about pushing through hardship, arguing instead that true growth comes from going through the pain, not above it.
00:00 Trailer: "She Taught Math in Prison, Now She Teaches Fortune 500 Companies How to Rise
02:05 The Moment Everything Changed: Two Pivotal Stories
06:00 Telling Family and Community: Unexpected Support
11:25 The Journey to Self-Forgiveness
14:22 Surrendering to Prison: The First Night
18:48 Life Inside: Jobs, Friendships, and Daily Routines
29:17 The Hardest Part: Being Away from Her Children
33:31 Coming Home: The Surprise Reunion
45:35 The RISE Framework Explained
51:29 Vision for a Desirable Human Future
58:51 Closing Thoughts and How to Connect
This show has been brought to you by 22HUMANS Podcast Agency. If you need help with launching or growing your own show, feel free to reach out to us at hello@22humans.com. We would be happy to help!
About Rashmi Airan
Website: https://rashmiairan.com/Instagram: @rashmiairanYouTube: @rashmiairanspeaker
About the Host: Kirill Ignatieff
Links: https://igkirill.com
Other Links
Instagram: https://humanfutur.com/instagram
YouTube: https://humanfutur.com/youtube
TikTok: https://humanfutur.com/tiktok
Website: https://humanfutur.com
Spotify: https://humanfutur.com/spotify
Apple Podcast: https://humanfutur.com/applepodcast
More
What happens when a high-achieving lawyer who did everything "right" finds herself facing federal prison? In this powerful episode of the Human Future podcast, Rashmi Airan (@rashmiairanspeaker) shares her extraordinary journey from being indicted for bank fraud to discovering her true purpose through the most unlikely circumstances. Rashmi opens up about the moment she learned she would be indicted while praying at a Hindu temple, the gut-wrenching process of telling her young children, and how calling nearly 200 people to personally share her story became an unexpected path to healing. She reveals the profound lessons learned during her time in federal prison, including teaching math to inmates and discovering that the "prison of her mind" had been far more confining than any physical cell. Now a sought-after keynote speaker and author of the upcoming book "All Rise: A Lawyer's Evolution from Prison to Purpose," Rashmi shares her RISE Framework for navigating adversity: Reframe, Identify your anchors, Surrender ego and control, and Evolve through gratitude and presence. Her message challenges conventional wisdom about pushing through hardship, arguing instead that true growth comes from going through the pain, not above it. 00:00 Trailer: "She Taught Math in Prison, Now She Teaches Fortune 500 Companies How to Rise 02:05 The Moment Everything Changed: Two Pivotal Stories 06:00 Telling Family and Community: Unexpected Support 11:25 The Journey to Self-Forgiveness 14:22 Surrendering to Prison: The First Night 18:48 Life Inside: Jobs, Friendships, and Daily Routines 29:17 The Hardest Part: Being Away from Her Children 33:31 Coming Home: The Surprise Reunion 45:35 The RISE Framework Explained 51:29 Vision for a Desirable Human Future 58:51 Closing Thoughts and How to Connect This show has been brought to you by 22HUMANS Podcast Agency. If you need help with launching or growing your own show, feel free to reach out to us at hello@22humans.com. We would be happy to help! About Rashmi Airan Website: https://rashmiairan.com/Instagram: @rashmiairanYouTube: @rashmiairanspeaker About the Host: Kirill Ignatieff Links: https://igkirill.com Other Links Instagram: https://humanfutur.com/instagram YouTube: https://humanfutur.com/youtube TikTok: https://humanfutur.com/tiktok Website: https://humanfutur.com Spotify: https://humanfutur.com/spotify Apple Podcast: https://humanfutur.com/applepodcast