Have you ever thought about the correlation between a weight loss journey and entrepreneurship?  I've recently connected the two.  If you spotted the correlation yourself, then awesome and I'd love to hear how you see them syncing up.   So summer 2016 for me is about 2 key objectives, a) starting my business, and b) weight loss and getting my fitness back.  To achieve both I've been spending the first part of the early morning on the treadmill where for one hour I walk and run to achieve around 9000 steps. My aim is to average around 12000 daily steps.  This morning effort really boosts that number to achieve my daily step count. It also helps with the 2nd objective of starting my business by helping me get clear, having a healthy mindset and achieve my daily 'to do' list about what I need to get done.  Apart from this morning exercise boost, the majority of my day is very sedentary. I spend a chunk of time in front of the computer or in meetings, a car or just relaxing. Its pretty hot outside so going out really isn't advisable so getting my exercise done first thing is crucial. I'm not a afternoon gym person nor an evening person so the mornings gets it done.  

​anyway....

So during these sessions I've been listening to a podcast called 'Tips of the Scale'.  It's a great podcast and community about people sharing their weight loss journeys.  I have found all these stories inspirational and really help boost my own weight loss journey.  Me and weight loss have always been at odds but I know I'm healthy and fit.  I don't have an issue running a 10km run and so I do pride myself on that achievement.  This coming winter I plan to get some more runs under me. I'm even contemplating doing the 42km Dubai marathon as opposed to the usual 10km - which I've been doing for 6 years. Still not sure. The distance does bother me!!!

I was listening to a particular podcast with a lady called Elizabeth Benton and she spoke about how alot about how weigh loss and motivation is a mindset thing.  I heard her loud and clear. There are times on the treadmill where I just want to stop and give up but I try super hard to not listen to that inner voice and tell myself that this is awesome and my body needs this fitness. 

But as I listened and ran I thought about my other key objective and that was starting my social media business.  I realised as Sam (the host) and Elizabeth chatted that there were similarities between a weight loss journey and entrepreneurship.  I'd never made the connection before.  But here it was. So I wanted to share with you these connections and so when you are next at the gym or know someone on a weight loss journey you can totally relate to them.  Only the topic is different. 

Entrepreneurship is an all immersing experience

The other day I interviewed a very smart and astute business woman called Saana Azzam - she is the founder of MENA Speakers and she said, 'Entrepreneurship is an all immersing experience'. I couldn't agree more with her statement.  The whole subject of passion for your idea, creating it and making it happen just totally takes over your life. You eat, sleep and breath the subject and are constantly fired up by the energy that this passion it creates.   You spend your time talking, sharing, building, thriving and trailblazing all in the name of your idea so you can see it become the vision you had in your head.  Weight loss is very much the same.  It is an all immersing experience. With weight loss its an all or nothing experience.  You have to exercise, pay attention to your food, educate yourself, stay informed, read and just embrace it, in its totality otherwise you will not break old habits or achieve the goals you so want to see and feel.

Isolation

With both weight loss and entrepreneurship there is a heavy sense of isolation despite in both cases you will have the support of family and friends around you.  When you are building your business you spend a lot of time in front of the computer reading, building and strategizing. A lot of this time can be on your own or quite lonely.  Unlike in a large corporate office you have teams or individuals that are involved in the same projects or tasks as you.  The same with the weight loss journey. It can, a lot of the time be done in isolation. You go the gym but folk rarely speak or interact, you go to dinner and you are having internal conversations with yourself about the menu.  What looks good, what's off the menu for you, how can you compromise so  you can still enjoy yourself but have something yummy!  You do these conversations in isolation too.  Well I do!!  Ultimately you have to make the effort yourself, you have to take responsibility even with community and friends around. That is what isolation can be.

Endless Courses and Diets

Elizabeth spoke about the number of different diets she had done during her life to lose weight. All promised weight loss and all promised a new level of confidence.  She would lose the weight and then as soon as the diet was done she would see the weight return. An endless cycle of torcher for her mentally as well as physically.  Entrepreneurship is very much the same.  How many of you have bought the, 'I went from $0 to a six figure dollar sum in 4 months - and my life change forever' courses?  Who has done it?  I have.  Eventually you learn schemes and quick fixes NEVER solve the problem long term nor do they deal wit the fundamental space in your head which makes all of this effort happen.

The Emotional Journey

Weight loss and entrepreneurship are both emotional journeys.  You've seen that classic iceberg picture where it dissects the iceberg so you can see the tip and what goes on under water and that truly is a mental and emotional journey.  There are great days, awful days, give up days, I'm done days and the best days.... oh the cycle goes up and down like the stock market.  Its the same with your weight loss journey... those days when you've worked out all week, you've kept to your plan and then you get on the scales and nothing has changed or you've even put on a pound. Those days are the worst.  Then there are days when you eat a burger and you are having an 'off' day and you lose weight!!! what is that all about!!!  Anyway the key thing is, is that that too is an emotional journey. For both entrepreneurs and those on their weight loss journey they all have to constantly stay aware of their thoughts so they don't impact your feelings and land up creating a negative day or experience.  I find this correlations the most fascinating!

Have to Find Like Minded People

Finding people like yourself really is crucial to your growth and your confidence.  I find that when I speak to non like minded people they can often question my intent or direction and then land up causing me confusion and mental misdirection in my head.  That really does annoy me particularly for both my journeys through weight loss and entrepreneurship.  I have to remind myself that I'm dealing with their fears and reckless attitudes, not mine!  When I was younger found myself to be more easily persuaded by someone else's ideas and thoughts. Today I still have that a little bit but i do make sure I remain in a questioning state as best I can. Its a muscle I have to keep training I suppose.  Its the same with both entrepreneurship and weight loss - find people that relate.  Find people that you can connect with and 'get' where you are coming from. Its so easy to be sucked into negative non-like minded people who might think they are coming from a place of caring and sharing but for you its all wrong and it you don't nip it in the bud you could fall pray to negative thinking and falling from your objectives and mission. Find your Tribe.

So, what do you think? I'm sure you can see the correlations yourself and probably a lot more like I mentioned earlier.  Both journeys are filled with hurdles, bumps, detours all sorts of moments and you just have to forgive yourself when the negative stuff comes around and just push through. Both are long term goals that require consistency, energy, positivity and mental strength.  I'm working on both and its without a doubt tough  They are both heavily intertwined and not separate objectives for me - they both feed from the same source and if I can keep the power up hopefully by the end of year I would have lost the stone I'm hoping to lose, ran a number of 10km or further distances that i wanted and my business is pushing through to it s 6 month anniversary.  Its a social media service for women in business, business if you are interested.  

Thanks for listening or reading, which ever way you consumer your knowledge.  Do let me know where else you see a correlation in your own journeys. It might not be weight loss and business start up but that's ok. I'm looking for patterns.  Have an awesome day.

So last week  - I had a new 'first' in my life!  I walked across the desert from Al Ain to Abu Dhabi.  We were supposed to do 120km but unusual stormy weather across the UAE cancelled 2 days of our journey.  The experience was such a mix bag of emotions. From exciting and nerves at the beginning, too 'I don't want to do this anymore' in the middle, too feeling overwhelmed and teary that we had achieved our objective at the end.

The Women Heritage Walk
The Women’s Heritage Walk (WHW) from Al Ain to Abu Dhabi honors the women of the United Arab Emirates who made this journey twice a year not so long ago.  Forty-four women retraced this historical trek. Expat women accompanied Emirati women walking in the footsteps of their ancestors who helped sculpt this country. This experience was a celebration of the past and an invitation to shape a vibrant future.

My 'Sand sisters' and I took on the dunes of the desert and during the whole walk I was able to assimilate many feelings and thoughts that I could relate back to daily life for women as entrepreneurs!  Women pushing forward, making change and taking action to evolve and grow.  Through this journey I noted words and phrases said by the ladies that reflected life and our work life and how it doesn't matter what you are doing there are key skills that apply everywhere!

Skill 1: One step at a time

​​'I love it when people come passed in the Mall or in a cafe and say thanks for helping me find a job'.  Its for that reason Elsbeth loves what she does.  She strives to connect Women to jobs in Qatar and further their career.

Elsbeth is the Founder & CEO of Global Women Qatar, Qatar’s first and only recruitment agency to focus exclusively on the recruitment of women.  Elsbeth and her partner recognised a gap in the market for a service focused on the recruitment of women.  A very niche area but they discovered that companies were looking to employ more women in Doha to diversify their workforce. Read More & Listen

How many podcasts do you listen too? I bet the number is either none, some or loads!!!  Its really fascinating when you talk to people about podcasting and they are either totally into them or haven't got a clue!! Often the cluelessness is based around the 'Why would I listen to them?' or 'Where do I get them?' or quite plainly 'what is a podcast'.  Living here in the UAE I have to say the latter of those questions is the most common, but then weird things happen like, I get the opportunity to be part of The National newspaper on podcasting. That was awesome by the way! :) So it really is a 'learning curve' when it comes to podcasting!  

So if you are one that sits of the fence as a listener or as someone that could see the medium as a tool then here are my 4 superpowers of podcasts that 'hopefully' will help you jump off the fence to downloading a couple to listen to some or start your own.  Really there are thousands of podcasts. I am part of 4 communities on Facebook where there are podcasters producing shows and episodes and nearly everyday we see a new show launching around another niche area.  From health & wellness to fly fishing, there are literally thousands of podcasts out there!  Check out ITunes or Stitcher and Im sure you will find something you like.

They Can Educate - Don't stop Learning!

A recent guest of mine Rana El Chemailly said to me 'if you stop learning you will fail'.  She's right!  Just because we have finished school and got that degree doesn't mean we need to stop learning. To move forward and be successful at whatever we do, we need to be learning all the time.  

But the big issue to learning is time! We are all so busy with our lives with work, kids and trying to have fun ourselves, when do we schedule in learn?  I've recently starting asking this question on my podcast because it was something I was struggling with too. How are these ladies still continuing to grow and learn and still run a business? Good question right?  The answer was simple. They all made time to learn. Some were up early and studied and some added it as a 'to do' item into their schedule.  I'm still bartering time and learning I have to say but one tool I know I can do is learn and be on the go!  I have the school runs, I have traffic jams, I have walk training and I have trips to Dubai. All these trips equal time and that is when I can learn.  I can download my favourite podcasts and get myself plugged in and while I either exercise or just 'get through the journey' I can listen, learn and question.  This is what a podcast can do, it can educate you. There are soooo many great podcasts out there from educators, consultants, facilitators or councillors who are keen to share their knowledge and insight to help you with your journey.  You can do the same.  Show off your insight and knowledge.  Create that thought leader persona that is inside you and help build your business and drive your career.

They Can Entertain - Find a podcast that fits your mood!

We all need to be swept out of our daily life and just be entertained.  Much like Friends of the 1990's or 'How I met your mother' in the 2000's - its nice just to be entertained. Take us away from our daily chores or work and just sit back and let the story unravel in-front of us.  Podcast can do that too!  I don't know about you but when I get on a plane I want to zone out, be undisturbed for the duration of the flight.  Much like a good book or a movie, listening to a podcast is just another form of engagement and you can binge listen much like you would with a TV series or a good book.  But the cool thing is you can physically be doing something while you indulge in your favourite episode.  So you can de-clutter your closet, clean out the car, paint a picture or weed the garden all while you are being entertained. Things we would all rather NOT to but have to do from time to time. So use the time productively and be entertained at the same time.

They Can Inform - Give yourself An Edge

Being informed has many advantages.  Being informed helps you build informed opinions, helps you get off the fence and help influence a line of thought at work, at home or on a cause you are passionate about. Being informed helps you learn about other cultures outside of your own.  Being informed sparks engaging discussions, positive debate and helps grows awareness about issues around you. Being informed helps you travel, it supplies you with useful and insightful knowledge to help you get from A to B.  Being informed gives you an advantage.  Just this week a friend of mine did an interview and she had to make a presentation based on the case study presented to her for the interview.  She used some right up to date knowledge she had learnt via a podcast making part of her presentation bang up to date. She came across as knowledgeable, informed and forward thinking!  Great eh!  So this could be you too.  As a podcaster you can share your views, opinions or be a content curator and really give your audience the information they need to support their career or business. As a podcast listener, the work is done for you. You get information in structured setting, you are able to articulate it and go away and do further work around it.  You are informed.

They Can Inspire - Give yourself a daily dose of goodness

You have probably heard these expression. 'You are who you surround yourself with.  Well here is another, 'You are what you listen too'.  I've read alot recently from thought leaders that say 'weed out the negative people' or 'hang around with smarter people' or 'be the person you want to become' and I do believe there is a lot of merit to this.  The power of the mind to cling to negativity is magnetic.  Its so much easier to be negative than it is too be positive so we need to really work at keeping a positive mindset so why not be inspired.

Listening to Podcasts really can inspire you.  From exercising to commuting or working you can be inspired at any time.  They are some GREAT people out there just driving positive change and energy. They are fiercely fighting the negative, weeding out the sh&t and helping you be better you, or better at your job or be a better member of the community.  Yes I know its easy to go down the negative path but when so many great people are just offering you up daily doses of inspiration, why fall for the dark stuff!  Get yourself on ITunes or Stitcher and type in your keyword and be inspired. 

So where do I start?

I am very much a person who has a wide interest in many things.  I am a people explorer and a subject geek. Podcasts give me quick access to themes, ideas, stories, people and topics which can be absorbed in 30 minutes.  I am a slow reader and I don't have much time these days to sit an enjoy a movie or many documentaries.  Podcasts offer up these superpowers and I love to listen to stuff that will give me that edge, keep me informed or use as a reference when I need it.  And the best part of all is I get to update my knowledge bank without spending a penny because Podcasts are free knowledge.  I don't by magazine anymore, I just head over to ITunes or Stitcher or use one of the podcast directory apps and research keywords or topics. Then I download.  If I don't like it, there is a delete button!  There is no clutter, no mess and if I want to refer back to something, I can just upload that episode again and find what I need.  

I really recommend you give it a go!  I know its new and will definitely feel weird to start with but you will find a library of topics that you love and be on your way to the super powers of podcasts.

Nicholla xx

ps. I have no idea what you like and rally thre are thousands of podcast but here are a few links to some good articles on podcasts. You may like.

http://www.vulture.com/2015/12/10-best-podcasts-2015.html
http://www.lifehack.org/308519/you-are-what-you-listen-11-podcasts-inspire-yourself
​http://dailyburn.com/life/fitness/best-podcasts-running/​
​https://www.richer-poorer.com/blog/art/podcasts-to-entertain-you-while-you-clean-out-your-closet

The Learning Curve Podcast - THE Podcast for Women Entrepreneurs in the Middle East and North Africa Region: Nicholla sat down with Dee. The Author of the book, The Blue Campervan. She's also a qualified Hypnotherapist, trained in NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) and EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) or Tapping as it is also known, as well as Transactional Analysis.  I’m also qualified in many other complementary therapies. She's passionate about empowering people and uses her Hypnotherapy and Coaching skills to help wonderful people improve their self-confidence, success, motivation and self-esteem.  She also works with people who are experiencing anxiety, stress, depression and panic attacks.  Her intention is to help as many people as possible rediscover their zest for life! Read More & Listen

Picture this: you’ve spent months (years even) plowing all of your energy into your big, brilliant idea and you finally get in front of someone who matters.

You deliver your pitch and… it falls flat. For whatever reason, that potential client, investor or other third party just doesn’t get it.


So, what do you do? First up, it’s natural to feel like the world is closing in on you and you can’t breathe. If you weren’t feeling this way, it’d be fair to say you’re not really passionate about what you’re trying to get up off the ground.

The thing is, rejection is inevitable at some point for all entrepreneurs.

Consider these famous tales:

• When Arianna Huffington (co-founder of The Huffington Post) wrote her second book, it was rejected by 36 publishers.
  
• Bill Gates’ first company failed.
  
• The great Walt Disney was told he lacked creativity.
  

When it comes to rejection, the real problem lies in our perception of it. Far too often, it stops people dead in their tracks… there’s the embarrassment, the shame, the fear that the saying about ‘light at the end of the tunnel’, is just a myth.

What separates those who succeed from those who fail, is their ability to fall and rise again. The quicker you get back up, the quicker who can continue moving ahead.
 
If you’ve just experienced a rejection that rocked you to the core, keep these 5 things in mind.

 #1 – Not everyone is going to love what you do
This one’s just a fact of life. Think of your favourite movie… not everyone loves it right? Well that’s how you need to think of whatever you’re trying to create business-wise. You’ll have your fans and then you’ll have people who just don’t fit into your target market.

#2 – Ask yourself what you can take away from the rejection
Give yourself a couple of days to allow the emotion to settle. Then, go back to the feedback and consider whether there’s any substance as to what’s being said. In the long run, this will only help you to improve whatever it is you’re trying to do.

#3 – Remember it’s all part of the process
Entrepreneurship is no easy gig. Otherwise, everyone would be doing it. However, remind yourself why you first chose this journey as opposed to having a standard 9am to 5pm job. Anyone who tells you what you’re doing will be easy, is lying. But the rewards are likely to be sweeter in the end.

#4 – Don’t take it personally
If someone has given you their honest feedback, the worst thing you can do is lash out and be unpleasant. Just be polite and remember this: you never know when you may run into someone again. You don’t want to burn bridges unnecessarily.


#5 – Keep going!
If you have faith in whatever you’re trying to create, don’t allow rejection to stop you in your tracks. Keep at it… keep persevering and refining whatever it is you have on your hands.

Most importantly, remember that easy success is very much the exception… keep your eyes forward and focus on the positives. Sure, learn from the negatives but don’t allow yourself to drown in them.