Dr, Arpan Shailesh Yagnik

Dr Arpan Yagnik is a distinguished expert and coach specializing in Fear and Creativity. Originally from India, Dr. Yagnik lives in the USA. With over 20 years of experience in academia, industry, and entrepreneurial arenas, Dr. Yagnik has worked with top global brands such as Sony and is currently a Professor and Head of Department at the Penn State University in USA. Penn State University is among the Top 100 Universities in the World and one of the three universities globally with a combined standing of Land-Grant, Sea-Grant, Space-Grant, and Sun-Grant universities.

Dr. Yagnik completed his undergraduate studies in Economics, followed by a management degree specializing in retail. His doctoral studies and expertise were in deep behavior and deep stigma and deep taboo, where he became well-versed with untying the challenging complex behavioural knots of deep human behavior. Dr. Yagnik holds visiting faculty positions at Manipal University and Rishihood University. He was the Founding coordinator of the Center for Creativity Enhancement at Manipal University.

Thought Leadership:

Dr. Yagnik is the only global expert with a dual expertise in Fear and Creativity. It is due to this unique expertise that Dr. Yagnik holds the distinct honor of training high-ranking generals, officers of the National Defense Forces, and senior commandants of special forces in strategies for Defeating Fear and Creative Leadership. His expertise extends beyond the Defence Forces. Dr. Yagnik was appointed as a Commissioner on the Pennsylvania Governor’s Advisory Commission to consult on matters pertaining to Asian American and Pacific Islanders. He has consulted senior leadership and management of numerous large corporate houses on topics such as Fear, Creativity, and Intergenerational Harmony.

Dr. Yagnik holds the special distinction of being a General Education Faculty Scholar where he is responsible for the general education curriculum of 90,000 students. This is a three-year commitment, and Dr. Yagnik will be introducing Creativity as a means of learning and as an outcome of learning into the general education curriculum, which totals 45 out of 120 credits. He also leads the Media and Communication Department. He was a senator for the university and held the key position of the Vice-Chair for the Education Equity and College Environment committee.

Publications and Research:

Dr Yagnik is a prolific author, having written multiple books and published several research papers in international journals. His book cover topics such as Defeating Fear, Managing Instability, Enhancing Creativity, and Improving Intergenerational Harmony. He is also a well-known columnist, with a column titled Diaspora Viewpoint in the daily newspaper Ahmedabad Mirror. Dr. Yagnik is a TEDx speaker, and has delivered talks in five continents to a diverse set of audiences. In addition to Fear and Creativity, Dr. Yagnik is a renowned scholar with published expertise in the role of mass media in destigmatizing menstruation. In addition, Dr. Yagnik served as the Convenor and Chairperson of IofC’s global Youth Team, an advocacy body representing youth from 60 countries, dedicated to empowering and inspiring young leaders worldwide.

Vision & Commitment:

Dr. Yagnik’s motto is Defeat Fear and be Creative. He believes in action inspired by creativity. He is committed to Self Renewal through the erasure of fear in life’s equation and enhancement of creativity to actualize true God given potential.