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Vishen Lakhiani Biography: Age, Career, Family and More

F4U Editorial Desk • Updated October 17, 2026 • 4 min read

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Quick Info

Date of birth14 January 1976

Age45 Years

BirthplaceKuala Lumpur, Malaysia

ProfessionEntrepreneur, Meditation Teacher, Activist, Author, and Speaker

NationalityMalaysian

Marital statusDivorced

SpouseKristina Mänd-Lakhiani

FamilyChildren: Hayden Lakhiani (son); Eve Lakhiani (daughter)

Vishen Lakhiani Biography

Malaysian-born entrepreneur Vishen Lakhiani is the founder and CEO of Mindvalley, a bestselling author, meditation teacher and speaker known for building a

Early life and background
Vishen Lakhiani was born on 14 January 1976 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. He grew up in a modest household and has described a childhood marked by limited means. He attended Malaysian government schools before moving to the United States at 17 to study at the University of Michigan, where he completed a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science in 1999.

Career
After university Vishen briefly interned at Microsoft and later spent time with AIESEC in New York. He pursued entrepreneurial projects in Silicon Valley and experienced several setbacks early in his career, including ventures that failed and periods when he worked for very little pay. In 2003 he discovered meditation in earnest and began teaching it in the evenings while working in sales. That same year he launched a small website called Mindvalley to share meditation teachings and sell related recordings.

Mindvalley grew from those beginnings into a wider education and personal growth company. Vishen consolidated various projects into Mindvalley Academy and launched features and initiatives under the Mindvalley brand, including a yearly transformational festival called A-Fest and the Mindvalley Quests learning platform. He also created programs such as the Health Transformation program WildFit and launched a City Campus in Barcelona. Mindvalley’s offerings as of 2021 included courses with fees ranging from a few hundred dollars up to US$15,000; a one-year all-access pass was listed at around US$595.

Vishen has repeatedly described his mission around evolving education, work and personal development. By 2021 he said Mindvalley employed roughly 300 people from 54 countries. He has been invited to speak at major organizations and events, including companies like Google and Facebook and at the United Nations.

Writing and books
In May 2016 Vishen published his first self-help book, The Code of the Extraordinary Mind. The book went on to become a New York Times bestseller and reached the top spots on Amazon multiple times; it has been translated into more than 25 languages. He followed with a second book, The Buddha and the Badass: The Secret Spiritual Art of Succeeding at Work, released in June 2020 through Penguin-Random House. That title reached number one on the Wall Street Journal Business Hardcover list and appeared on the New York Times How-To list.

Other ventures and recognitions
Vishen has founded or co-founded additional projects over the years, including group-buying and social bookmarking businesses. His work has earned several honors: Mindvalley was recognized repeatedly with WorldBlu awards for democratic workplaces; he was named in Prestige magazine’s Top 40 Under 40 in 2011; he won an XPRIZE audience vote in 2015; and he received entrepreneurial awards in Malaysia and Estonia in later years. In 2016 he also launched Mindvalley Quests, a format that became central to the company’s learning model.

Public profile
Vishen is a frequent public speaker and media presence within the personal growth and education spaces. He has shared aspects of his personal journey publicly, including difficult early schooling experiences that influenced his focus on reimagining education. He has described a shift away from formal religious identification while maintaining spiritual beliefs and practices. He has also spoken about goals such as transforming the lives of one billion people by 2038.

Personal life
Vishen was raised in Kuala Lumpur and is Malaysian by nationality. He married Kristina Mänd-Lakhiani in May 2003; the couple has two children, a son named Hayden and a daughter named Eve. They announced their separation and a conscious uncoupling in February 2019 after 16 years of marriage. In mid-2020 Vishen and his family relocated from Malaysia to Tallinn, Estonia.

Challenges and controversies
His public commentary has sometimes drawn strong responses. In January 2018 Vishen posted videos criticizing nutritional claims about a popular chocolate malt drink; the company issued clarifications and the exchanges received notable public attention. He has also experienced personal setbacks, including a knee injury in 2018 that required surgery.

Latest updates
As of 2021 Vishen continued to lead Mindvalley while working on several book projects and programs. He listed upcoming book titles and referenced ongoing development of Mindvalley’s course catalog and global activities. He and his family have been based in Tallinn since 2020, and Mindvalley continued to operate as an international team across many countries.

Editorial Review and Sources

This F4U profile is written from publicly available career and profile information, then reviewed for clarity before publication. If you spot an outdated detail about Vishen Lakhiani, send the page URL and a reliable correction source to f4udotin@gmail.com.

Reference context: StarsUnfolded

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Recent Work

The Buddha and the Badass: The Secret Spiritual Art of Succeeding at Work

Published June 2020; reached number one on the Wall Street Journal Business Hardcover list and appeared on the New York Times How-To list.

2020
The Code of the Extraordinary Mind

Debut self-help book published May 2016; became a New York Times bestseller and reached top positions on Amazon, translated into more than 25 languages.

2016
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Career Highlights

  1. Founder and CEO of Mindvalley
  2. Author of New York Times bestselling book The Code of the Extraordinary Mind
  3. Creator of Mindvalley Quests and the A-Fest festival
  4. Speaker at organizations including Google, Facebook and the United Nations
  5. Multiple awards including WorldBlu workplace recognition and national entrepreneurship honors
Reviewed by F4U Editorial Desk

F4U profile pages are prepared from public career information, checked for readability, and updated when reliable correction sources are shared with the editorial team.

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Frequently Asked Questions

When was Vishen Lakhiani born?

Vishen Lakhiani was born on 14 January 1976.

What is Vishen Lakhiani known for?

Vishen Lakhiani is known for entrepreneur, Meditation Teacher, Activist, Author, and Speaker.

What is Vishen Lakhiani’s marital status?

Vishen Lakhiani's marital status is listed as Divorced.

Who is Vishen Lakhiani married to?

Vishen Lakhiani is publicly listed as married to Kristina Mänd-Lakhiani.