July 2026 — the month we put ourselves out there
The first of our monthly reports. What we did, what we learned, and what is coming. We will publish one of these at the end of every month.
One number
78 people.
That is how many we sat with directly this month, one conversation at a time — 50 at the I Invent in India showcase, 14 at the first Chennai Social, 7 children in Readathon Live, and 7 in the compassion session with the IDG India Coalition Network.
We are not a large organisation. We would rather report the number we actually met than the number we reached.
What happened
1 July — I Invent in India
We took part in the I Invent in India showcase. Over two hundred people came from across Tamil Nadu, and we spoke one-to-one with more than fifty of them — people who arrived genuinely curious about what is being invented and what they might learn from it.
This was our first showcase since we began, and it gave us a place to say plainly what we do. What struck us was the range. Healthcare, education, musical instruments — innovators bringing real solutions to ordinary problems, trying to make life better for people around them.
At the level of intention, that is a welcome change. But we noticed something missing.
There are very few spaces where an innovator can slow down and ask why — a question that goes past market readiness and return on investment. Very few people or organisations nurture scientific temperament alongside inner clarity and a concern for society and the planet. That gap is the whole reason we do this work, and standing in that hall for a day made us more certain of it, not less.
In each conversation we found ourselves describing the same thing: good work keeps coming undone because the solutions are fragmented, not whole. The Inner Compass, our flagship programme, sits exactly at that intersection — inner transformation, social consciousness and regenerative leadership.
17 July — Chennai Social, Act One
We held our first social gathering for social-sector leaders. No agenda, no panel. A place where the people behind the roles could turn up whole, talk about what they want for the sector, and share both the difficulty and the hope of solving it together.
Fourteen professionals came.
We are fixing the third or fourth Friday of every month as the standing date, so people can plan their lives around it.
One participant said something that has stayed with us:
“Why is this limited to Chennai? We should plan for other districts, because people everywhere in Tamil Nadu need this. If you announce early, those who keep visiting Chennai will plan their travels around it.”
That one line made the evening worth it. We knew these spaces were needed. We did not expect to be told to go further, that fast.
Notes from the first Chennai Social →
25 July — Connecting with Compassion, Within and Beyond
Co-hosted with the Inner Development Goals India Coalition Network, marking the 91st birthday of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
Ninety minutes on how compassion moves — first towards oneself, and only then outward. Finding compassion for yourself turns out to be the anchor for directing it anywhere else.
We tried a somatic approach to Loving Kindness Meditation, and it was harder than we expected. Most of us are so disconnected from our bodies that we keep compassion filed under matters of the heart alone. Locating it physically — actually feeling where it sits — changed the quality of the connection. People drew strength, clarity and a kind of quiet happiness from it, and then had something real to give away.
Fill the cup first. Then pour.
One thing we changed our minds about
22–23 July — the Atma SEO workshop
Two days online with about sixty-five participants and three facilitators, one from Atma and two from EY.
We went in expecting a technical session about search rankings. We came out redesigning our website, because the workshop surfaced a gap we had not seen: our landing pages were not using the words our own people use.
Then one homework question did more damage than the whole two days. Which audience matters most to your organisation this year?
Sitting with that, Jayashree and I got clear: this year, our focus is social-sector leaders. That single sentence has since decided how we spend our weeks and our very limited money.
Here is the harder admission. This July we put ourselves in front of people, over and over, and we discovered our messaging was thin. We were good at describing what we offer and poor at naming the problem, the gap, and why the two are connected. So we changed how we talk about the work — and then we rebuilt the site around it.
It is still very much in progress. But it is pointed the right way now.
What Atma taught us about our website →
What is coming in August
A full month.
8 August — National Mental Health Conclave, Vision 2047. We are attending to share our work.
22 August, 8–9 am — Readathon Live, Season Two. An online reading circle for children aged eight to twelve, hosted by an eleven-year-old. Eight Saturdays. ₹1,198 for the season.
22 August, 2–6 pm — The Relationship Hackathon. Our first Regen Lab, for the one who holds the thread that no one sees. Twenty seats, LBR Towers, Teynampet. Yes, the same Saturday as the Readathon — one at breakfast, one after lunch.
28 August — Chennai Social, Act Two. We may rename it, so that people outside Chennai feel invited too.
30 August — Kindness Kitchen, hosted with the Kindness Kitchen movement from Auroville. Pay it forward: we cook and share a vegan meal. We open the doors to strangers and end up with friends.
Through August — a children’s cookbook, Indian edition, co-created through project-based learning with about six families from the Chennai homeschooling group.
Everything, with dates and details →
One ask
We know “regenerative leadership” sounds fancy, and a little overpowering.
So: if we were to make one thing that helped you come closer to this work — an essay, a video, an experience, a walkthrough — what would you want it to be?
Write to us at info@innercompanion.in. We will get cracking.
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