Business Fit Magazine November 2019 Issue 2

Nov/Dec 2019

The

Benefits of Knowledge

Climate Change:

The Young Advocates

Find Your Path to Growth and

Transformation

How To Spot Amazing Business Opportunities

Tania Arrayales RodrĂ­guez On a mission to conserve and protect the environment and ecosystems

feminine and empowering womenswear luxury London-based couture fashion

www.olgaanderson.co.uk @ olgaandersonofficial @ olgaandersonofficial

Welcome to all Business Fit readers, this is our last issue of 2019 and we’re closing it with amazing contents and some amazing transformational thoughts.

I do believe in the power of cycles, cycles of nature, cycles of women’s bodies, cycles upon cycles. Life is a cycle, you are born, you grow, you choose to live a life of love or hate and then you die. I don’t mean to sound morbid, but it is true, life is cyclic.

Today I want to speak about transforming your life and your business to a better place; to the next level. People come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. Some will stay with you on your journey, helping you to step up on the ladder and climbing with you. Others will come along to help you grow a part of your life or business and then you let them go or they leave. And others come into your life for a reason, teach you the lesson and then leave.

All These types of people have come to my life at some point and I am thankful for all of them.

They have taught me how to act and react to the different situation I have encountered in my life. If we are to grow bigger, if we want to

help more people, we need to transform into a better person, with more patience, stronger love, greater intelligence. We must learn to trust, feel and follow our intuition. Sometimes we don’t listen and then we go through moments in life we don’t like, but from which we also learn.

My lesson has been to surround yourself with a great team, one which respects you and who you respect. A team which supports you and comes up with solutions, a team which doesn’t add to your troubles, but helps to solve them.

Surround yourself with people who want to see you glow, shine and step forward to climb up the ladder of life. Surround yourself with love and smart people, much smarter than you.

A saying I used to hear when I first started was: If you are the most intelligent person in the room, you are in the wrong room! Why? Because I do believe you should surround yourself with people who are more intelligent and who have been through situations you haven’t experienced yet, even though they are not your experiences, you can still learn from them.

Whether the people in your life are there for a reason, a season, or a lifetime, be thankful and learn from every step you take on this road called life.

Verónica Sosa Publisher www.businessfitmagazine.com

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Pashion Fasion - p34 Fashion Feng Shui Sue Donnelly

FIT FEATURES

Travel Fit - p10 Pastoral Meditation Ilkay UtaĹ&#x;

Karin Mack p20 Ingrid Macher p42 Tania Rodriguez p56 Remembering the Bliss of Pre-Natal Innocence Michael de Glanville p38

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Conscious Leadership Artemis Evangelidi p6 Those Who Don’t Find Themselves Inside, are Lost Outside Ismael Cala p18

How to Spot Amazing Business Opportunities MaLish p26

Forgiveness Viola Edward p30

3 Benefits of Knowledge Jacqueline CamachoRuiz p48

Diversity and SelfAwareness Barbara Dalle Pezze p54

Publisher & Founder Verónica Sosa Business Fit International Advisory Board Viola Edward Vikki Thomas

REACH OUT For information on advertising or placing an article in Business Fit Contact us: Email: hello@businessfitmagazine.com editor@businessfitmagazine.com Phone: +32 468 218 887

Contributors Artemis Evangelidi Barbara Dalle Pezze Claire Morley Elena Sharanhovich Ilkay Utaş Ismael Cala Jacqueline Camacho-Ruiz Malish Michael de Glanville Sue Donnelly Viola Edward General Editorial Coordinator Claire Morley Art and Design Director Leo Collier Bett Graphic Designer Adverts Javier Sanchez

Think Yourself to Happiness Elena Sharanhovich p16

Climate change Claire Morley p50

Photo Credit: Tania’s cape by Tihar Women Prisoners - Fashion for a Cause, Charity on Wheels

Copyright © 2019 by Verónica Sosa.

All rights reserved.

This Magazine or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher.

M-20318-2017

5

Business

Conscious

Leadership

– Empowering, Inspiring and Creating Change

Working with corporate leaders and entrepreneurs Artemis Evangelidi explains how Conscious Leadership can be applied in business and the five key attributes required to achieve it.

It is safe to say that we are living in some very exciting times. The winds of change are well upon us and archaic structures are rapidly being dismantled to make way for the new.

As a result, our mindsets are shifting, our experiences are expanding and our consciousness is rising, shining a light on the leaders around us – in our homes, in our communities, in our businesses and in our governments.

Leadership that had, at its foundation, fear, control, misinformation, miscommunication and a disregard for the world around us has been recognised for what it is – unconscious, unmindful and unwanted. Our inherent need to work from a place of love as we approach all tasks with compassion and mindfulness – recognising the interconnectedness of it all - has ushered in the new era of Conscious Leadership.

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Leadership that knows that every action, thought and reaction is impacting the field around us.

Leadership that recognises the impact every small and large response can have. Leadership that values each person’s unique qualities, their purpose, their knowledge and what they can contribute to the team. Leadership that empowers, inspires and paves the way for change agents to step forward and do their work – supported and loved.

And for those of you who still feel that this could not possibly apply to business, allow me to introduce you to some Conscious Leaders you already know. From Anita Roddick, to Richard Branson. From Paul Polman to Tory Burch.

From Ariana Huffington to Oprah Winfrey. The list is expansive and it is a list filled with success, innovation and inspiration.

As someone who has spent the better part of 20 years in the commercial corporate world, I am not only an advocate for Conscious Leadership having seen first-hand how it works, but I have dedicated my life over the past six years and will continue to do so, assisting people all

over the world to integrate these principles into their daily lives.

Conscious Leadership has at its core, first and foremost, key elements of personal development.

We must first work on ourselves before we can integrate change elsewhere. We look at things such as courage, ego, fear, freedom, faith, gratitude, happiness, success, creativity, our presence and love as our driving force. We go deep to see what we want to work on, what we need to let go of or bring more of on our journey.

Our overall aim is to free ourselves from past conditioning that we no longer need as well as other people’s expectations and judgements so we can love and respect ourselves as needed.

Then, and only then, we can begin to integrate all of this to achieve the five key attributes of the Conscious Leader.

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Business

We must take responsibility for what we say, how we act and what we think

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1. Taking Responsibility

In order to lead, we must be empowered and able to manage the situations we are faced with, otherwise we are unable to navigate problems and find solutions. When we blame, we are effectively relinquishing any power we have and any accountability that goes with it. When we are in charge, we take ownership of any issues that arise regardless of who created them and look at ways to ensure they do not happen again. We must take responsibility for what we say, how we act and what we think. This is how we grow and how we truly lead.

2. Having Emotional Intelligence

A ‘soft skill’ that is anything but. It is imperative to be able to understand our emotions, what triggers us and why. We accept what we are feeling, we recognise it and take the time to respond in the most appropriate manner before we react. Mastering this skill allows us to show compassion and empathy for those around us.

Everyone knows making decisions when stressed or anxious is not productive just as we know the leader who reacts with irrational explosions or by harbouring resentment effectively pushes the rest of the team away. Here is where a daily mindfulness practice such as meditation becomes a prerequisite for leading from the heart with love for those around us.

3. Acting Ethically

Integrity, transparency and trust are some of the key values which define and motivate Conscious Leaders. There can never be an ‘end justifies the means’ mindset. Decisions taken must be ethical and our intentions should be made known - not only during negotiations but in our everyday interactions. We must communicate openly and honestly. We must say what we mean and we must value our word so that others know they can rely on us.

4. Constantly Learning

When we allow our ego to take a break, we can admit we do not know it all. And in fact, why would we want to? We are surrounded by the opportunity to learn constantly and that is one of life’s greatest gifts. When we listen to those around us and learn from their different

experiences, outlooks and perspectives, we can build our own knowledge base from the knowledge which surrounds us. Opinions are subjective – when we accept this, it opens us up to a lifetime of learning. When we listen to our team members, our colleagues and even our friends, we foster collaboration, enthusiasm and teamwork. We remove fear from the equation and learn without judgement.

5. Letting Love Lead the Way

Recognising there is either love-based leadership or fear-based leadership is what makes most people sit up and listen. What legacy do you want to leave behind? What change do you want to create? What impact do you want to have with whatever it is you are doing? All great things come from a place of love – be it a song, a poem, a building, a service. When you approach everything you do with love, you can diffuse tension and stress and allow yourself to see the bigger picture. Conscious Leaders cannot operate in a loveless void – it is one of their principal values and the core element of their being.

As humanity evolves, so must businesses. As members of a global community, we must commit to developing our awareness of what is going on around us and take responsibility for all we think, say and do. We are being watched by our children, our peers, our team members and as such we have the perfect opportunity to lead the way by example. This power has always been ours and is ours to keep. Let us be the change we want to see in this world for the benefit of all.

Conscious Leadership has at its core, key elements of personal development

Artemis Evangelidi is a holistic business lawyer, trainer and author of

‘Life. Thoughts That Make The World Go Around (And Up, Not Down)’. Artemis works with corporate leaders and entrepreneurs around the world enabling them to create their Conscious Businesses and giving them the tools they need to succeed at every level. www.aipeia.com

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Travel

Pastoral Meditation

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Travel Always looking to discover new ideas, Ilkay Utaş shares with us the beauty, tranquillity and nature of Islamlar village in the Mediterranean Taurus mountains, where the traditions of village life continue.

Islamlar village with its dramatic rolling scenery offering every hour a subtle change of hue, productive lands, from time to time swirling cloud and sudden showers - welcome to high plateau life on the Mediterranean Taurus mountains.

Have you heard of Islamlar Village? Or Bodamya if you prefer the old Greek name? Like most of the responses I get I am sure you will say ‘No’.

Strange then that foreigners know Islamlar better than we Turks for it is fast becoming a hot spot for luxury villas. Moreover, eighty percent of visitors are English and the rest a rainbow of passports from five different continents.

Sitting 600 metres above the sea, Pine, Cedar and hundred-year-old Juniper forests surround

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this mountain village, part of the Kaş district in the thriving province of Antalya. Civilisation has ticked by for five thousand years without interruption.

During Lycian and Roman times, these mountains supplied water to ancient coastal towns such as Patara. In fact, the meaning of the Greek name Bodamya is ‘rivers’; and wherever you turn, you come across a Lycian rock thumb or an historical water cistern.

It also offers a welcome escape from the summer heat with its ice-cold rivers and forests up on the Mediterranean plateau.

This is especially true during July, August and September when the Antalya region swelters.

Indeed, after spending a whole day breathing its clean air with no humidity, you might need a shawl at night.

The story goes that after settlement by Muslims, the village was named after Islam Bey as “ISLAMLAR”, while the locals still call it Bodamya. “And talking about history of this

and the rest is used to make organic soap and detergent to use at home. At the end of the day you take your share, product of your hard work, to your home.

Civilisation has ticked by for five thousand years without interruption

land” says my host Osman Utaş, Owner of Villa Mira, “Even the table you are drinking your coffee on is a 650-year-old cedar. And reflect, when this tree was planted, Istanbul was under Byzantine rule”.

I hear his words but am unable to reply so stunned am I by the view in front of me.

Imagine watching a whole city at your feet, words fail! The horizon which connects the sky and sea fades off into infinity; The Bay of Kalkan, antique Patara city and craggy islands lined up in front of you as if saluting.

Sea, Sand and Sun and a trend towards holidays spent with nature all point to Islamlar Village where expectations of a great holiday are met; tastes, civilisation, trekking, socialising with locals and staying in a private villa rather than a hotel. In such a way, you suddenly find yourself part of local life rather than just an observer. The traditions of village life continue; many things are bartered for rather than bought. For example, September is harvest time for pomegranate to make vinegar and grapes to make molasses.

Right after this is the harvest time for olives and again it is communal work to collect, group and cure. Sesame and wheat are taken to grind at antique 200-year-old stone Greek Mills. The highest quality of virgin olive oil is called “spoon” oil and is filtered from regular oil

Villas with private pools, Jacuzzis and huge, delightful gardens now number nearly 200 in Islamlar. These Villas are mostly managed by professional boutique holiday companies like Simpson travel and Vintage travel. I stayed at Villa Lidya which was featured with a full page in Independent Newspaper Travel section in March 2016.

Osman Utaş left Istanbul in 2002 after falling in love in the Patara region 30 years ago. Being, in his own words, a “mountain man” he picked Islamlar village which is only ten minutes from Patara beach. Villa Mira and Villa Lidya the two rentals were all but built by Osman Utaş himself. He says this region is on a “fault line” and he would not live in or recommend anyone live in a building he did not manage himself.

The four-bedroom villas (with a maximum capacity for eight people) have two floors with expensive finishes such as handmade Greek tiles on the kitchen floor to add an authentic atmosphere. The living and dining room have calming colours on the walls, while the choice in the bedrooms, bathrooms and kitchen are in lively pinks and blues. The villas include cupboards using 200-year-old antique doors and may even house a play station.

In Villa Lidya whatever you touch is a reminder you are close to nature. For example, pistachio shampoos, olive oil soap, hair treatment oil made from aromatic herbs and organic toothpaste are among the first things you notice. The same natural look is all over the linen curtains, hundred percent cotton linens and organic towels. Healing natural spring water runs through your tap while many visitors have to fly over hundreds of miles to drink it. The infinity pool with breath taking scenery is filled with this natural spring water with a PH level 11 and only organic rock salt is used to chlorinate it.

For one minute I feel like a kid in a candy store.

Shall I hurl myself into the pool? Stretch out on a sunbed for a sunbathe? Or sink in the soft pillows of the gazebo by the pool? But first is my breakfast date with the Utaş family.

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Travel

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Over fresh homemade curd cheese with a thick black mulberry marmalade (from the garden of course), the double roasted sesame paste mixed with homemade grape molasses leaves a thick chocolate taste and freshly picked crispy green peppers roasted on the grill, aromatic herb salad, homemade rye bread, five kinds of olives and of course rosy tomatoes and eggs from the neighbour’s hen completes the colour palette of our table.

Owing to its steep hills, yogurt, cheese, butter and cream are made from goat’s milk. I now understand what real no-additive organic cheese tastes like; a strong smell with a sharp taste. They have a system in the village; you get a case of apples if your neighbour has it, you may suddenly find a bin of goat’s milk at your door or your door bell rings and there is a tray of village bread cooked next door. Such is life in Islamlar.

You never have to leave anyway as Utaş’s driver is ready to get your shopping list completed for you anytime you like. If you would like to taste local food, you can arrange for a local lady to come to your villa to cook for you; everything from yoghurt soup to stuffed vine leaves, meat and chick peas in a casserole and village bread can be prepared for little money. You must try the local tea house or chat with the local deli and learn more about the region. Eating trout at the restaurants situated by the water in the middle of the village is a must too.

I now understand what real no-additive organic cheese tastes like

Ilkay Utas is mother to two girls; Mira and Lidya. They live in between two amazing locations of the Mediterranean, Kalkan, Antalya and Kyrenia, Cyprus.

As the founder of a professional women supporting web site which will be launched soon, she is never bored of discovering and establishing new ideas.

It is her life motto.

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Spirituality

THINK YOURSELF TO

Happiness Transformation Coach, Elena Sharanhovich, believes we can use our thoughts to change our state of mind to one of happiness. Our body responds to our thoughts, if we can stop dwelling on the past and change our thought patterns, it will help us achieve happiness.

Do you believe in the idea that the way you think has some effect on your life?

It was my “AHA” moment; the life I am living today is a result of my past thinking. As soon as I realised that my thoughts create my reality, my life started shifting completely. After resting my brain for 17 long years in the beauty industry, working with my hands, I started transforming first my own life and then the lives of others as a coach.

Did you know that the average person has 6070 thousand thoughts a day and 90% of those thoughts are the same as the day before?

Thinking is one of our habits and we humans are the architects of our habits.

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You wake up in the morning and start to focus on your problems, while your problems are circuit memories from the brain, each one of them connected to people, things and certain times and places. Each one of those memories has an emotion. Our emotion is the product of our past experiences. The moment when you recall those memories you feel sad, you feel pain, or you could feel very happy, depending on the memory you connect with. So, how you think and how you feel creates your state of being, and if you choose to focus on your familiar past, sooner or later it will be your predictable future.

Then you go through a series of routine behaviours: checking social media accounts as soon as you open your eyes and collecting bad news from all over the world, going to work the same way, having the same unconscious meaningless conversations with the same people, which pushes the same emotional buttons… which becomes a routine/neural pathway in your mind. You program your subconscious mind with your habitual behaviours and old routines which

don’t serve you. By the age of 35, 95% of who we are is a memorised set of behaviours, emotional reactions, unconscious habits, hard wired attitudes, beliefs and perceptions, which function like a computer program. So, a person can say with 5% of the conscious mind they are using daily; I am happy, I am healthy, but your body is saying something completely different. Our body is 100% responding to our thoughts.

I challenge you, for next seven days, just to observe your thinking patterns.

Does dwelling on the past help you to create your happy future?

Follow this simple formula and remember:

Furthermore, a lot of people are living most of their lives in a state of stress, where the brain and body are out of balance. However, if you are experiencing this all day, triggered by your perceptions of your daily duties; your colleagues’ opinions; your partner’s actions; your friends or children and your stress response is permanently turned on fight/flight mode, in the long term, this will make you ill.

No organism in nature can live in emergency/ survival mode for a long time.

Emotions created by biochemical stress and connected to our survival instinct are: anger, aggression, fear, anxiety, worry, pain, suffering, guilt, shame, jealousy. If you constantly connect to something negative which happened six months ago or six years ago, you are conditioning your body to stay in a state of fear, it is programmed subconsciously. If you are still angry about something which happened to you ten years ago, it simply means you didn’t learn or change since that time.

It is a scientifically proven fact that biochemicals of stress inhibit your immune system, making you vulnerable to disease. We can create a stress response by one thought, meaning our thoughts can make us sick. So, if it’s possible our thoughts can make us sick, could they make us well and happy?

Absolutely!

Meditation is a magic tool to change the operating system of your mind and could improve your mental and emotional health.

Most people wait for something dramatic to happen in their life before they change; trauma, loss, illness, tragedy. Why wait? You can choose to learn and change in a state of suffering or in a state of love and happiness.

The same thoughts lead to the same choices The same choices lead to the same emotions The same emotions create the same experiences The same experience produces the same behaviour and creates your life

Elena Sharanhovich Transformation Coach, founder of Space for Success Academy and Property Investor. My mission is to empower people, so they need less things outside of themselves and start using more the power that we all have within to make us happy, to live a peaceful life, to feel more connected to each other and be the best version of themselves.

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Mindset & Emotion

Those Who Don’t Find Themselves Inside, Are Lost

OUTSIDE

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Happiness is inward, and not outward

A specialist in personal development and mindful exponential leadership, Ismael Cala, explains the importance of supporting our happiness with experiences, not with belongings.

In the course of life, there are occasions in which “having” stands above “being”. That is, we become more concerned with the material goods we have or accumulate than with enjoying quality time for ourselves or with our loved ones.

That’s when I usually question and tell people: what is the meaning of having so much money if you don’t have the time, people, or disposition to enjoy it? Or what is worse, what if you have so many material things, but you don’t have the physical and mental health to take advantage of it?

When we see “having” as the purpose, and not as the means to reach our goals, we enter into a lost career of accumulating more and more material objects which do not fill our existential void at all.

As Henry Van Dyke said, “Happiness is inward, and not outward; and so, it does not depend on what we have, but on what we are”. Real prosperity is not in your belongings, but in your experiences.

Professor Sonja Lyubomirsky, from the Department of Psychology at the University of California, defines happiness as “an experience of well-being that is associated with a deep satisfaction and sense of vital purpose”. The psychologist Martin Seligman says that the concept we have of happiness is deeply connected to how satisfied we are with our lives.

This is achieved thanks to three key points: the positive emotions which emanate from enjoyment; enjoyment or comfort, the pleasure that generates us to perform certain activities and the satisfaction that comes from using our personal skills to generate the greater good.

An activity as simple and powerful as helping someone in need can make a difference, it builds a magical moment and becomes an experience which elevates our level of well-being. This is not my theory, it has been scientifically proven.

If it is so simple, why is it so difficult for us to implement it? In our events like Secretos del Bambú (Bamboo Secrets), the goal is to practice meditation and mindfulness to find our vital centre, those who don’t find themselves inside, are lost outside! Support your happiness with experiences, not with belongings.

What is the meaning of having money if you don’t have the time to enjoy it?

Ismael Cala is a life and business strategist, best-selling author, and international speaker specialising in personal development and mindful exponential leadership. The New York Times identified him as “the Latino Larry King”. He is a member of the National Speakers Association (NSA), USA. Founder and president of CALA Enterprises Corporation - focusing on leadership, mindfulness, happiness, productivity, and excellence. www.IsmaelCala.com

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Interview

Karin

Mack

A powerful woman on a mission

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Working to give women the power to be selfreliant, independent JUCHHEIM products consultant, Karin Mack speaks to Business Fit Magazine readers about her mission and motivation and how she has grown her multi-million Euro international beauty and healthcare business with her partner Udo Klawitter

Who are you?

A powerful woman on a mission with her heart and soul in a leadership position, showing how you can easily work today even if your mind knows the only key for success is being ‘hard working’ - It’s time for ‘heart working’ At the age of 21, I started my first business. Later, I held corporate leadership positions for years and about 10 years ago I decided to go back and become an entrepreneur and trainer. As a teenager, I was told I was different. I had a strong inner intuition and an ability to read people and their energy. Today we call this: “sensory processing sensibility” (SPS). With this God given gift of being a highly sensitive person (HPS), I am able to interact differently with people and use this ability to an advantage for my students when I lead them to success as a business coach.

With this background I started my working transformation 10 years ago with the support of the best trainers and coaches, in the world today. The results of this huge investment in myself - I think about €200.000 over the last few years – put me in my current position, and this knowledge the women in my business team now get for free and become rich.

What is your Mission and Motivation to achieve what you have?

Giving women the power to be self-reliant no matter their country, culture or age; building empires through beauty and health care.

From my experience as a former sales and leadership trainer for large corporations, I was searching for a system which would give female entrepreneurs the opportunity to use their personal knowledge and commitment to achieve their financial dreams. I believe women are very creative. As future entrepreneurs we will make this world a better place for our children and the environment. I feel driven and motivated every day to better myself, to get out of my comfort

zone, to push the limits and grow our business.

I want to encourage and support women entrepreneurs to the same.

My partner, Udo Klawitter, and I are venturing ahead with our international business development. Udo’s background was in international sales and marketing for several global corporations and running his own consulting company. This brings the experience needed to take our business into the global arena. His international contacts are invaluable, but together as a couple, we are able to open many doors, be more effective and create great opportunities. Running the business together is a dream.

What advice has your partner Udo Klawitter for men between 35-55 in this business?

Udo: Interestingly men are not so successful in this business as women. In my opinion this has to do with identity and persistence. Unlike an employee, you need 6-12 months to earn according to your time invest. After that the income growth is constant and the time invested decreases, of course, depending on your personal goals.

Most men in our business don’t have the persistence to last through this starting phase.

They get distracted with additional business opportunities and lose focus. When the results then don’t come, men think the business is not working, however, it is just not working for them because of lack of focus and persistence. Men also see money as a strong appreciation of their work. At the beginning the payments are small and they don’t see their personal efforts valued enough in the business.

Making our team successful means running and leading a successful business

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Interview

The second important factor is identity. Most men think they have to change their identity and become a cosmetic or food supplement expert. However, people trust them for their achievements they have had in the past.

Therefore, you need to say what you stand for.

In my case I’m a sales and marketing expert and an engineer. People trust me because of my objective opinion and recommendations.

This identity will conclude in your personal ‘why’.

I have not always felt positive about Karin’s business. I was critical and checked T&C’s and numbers carefully. However, with the launch of Juchheim’s full hemp extract, Cannapur, improving my personal health and getting pain relief within days, I saw the opportunity of improving the living condition of many people either with extremely effective products or with an ethically high business case and this was the game changer for me.

Additionally, being a team leader in international corporations, I was coaching my teams. However, this was limited to the work tasks. Today, I’m able to use my full potential to coach our team partners holistically. This provides much more fun and appreciation than, I had experienced in leadership roles before.

How did you hear about your Cooperation Partner ?

Karin: After seeing sensational before and after “WOW” photos of a colleague using JUCHHEIM products, our curiosity was heightened. Torsten Will, a Global Success Coach and Key-Note Speaker and a trusted advisor, had committed to promoting the JUCHHEIM product line, which also inspired me.

In September 2016, I became an independent partner with Dr. Juchheim. After 22 months, I reached the highest rank possible, Presidents Team Member. In 2018 I received the Top 10 Presidents Team Member award, I ranked top 10 out of 20,000 independent partners.

You are talking about a ‘Dr. Juchheim – Method’ – what exactly is this?

The Dr. Juchheim Method is a synthesis between natural active ingredients and state-of-the-art high-tech science. These components are exactly balanced to each other and are processed in the JUCHHEIM method. The result: visible instant

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Karin meeting with Vanilla Ice backstage

Karin & Udo building the business in ANZ

#1 Wealth & Success Coach JTFoxx interviewed Karin & Udo on stage at Mega Success 2018 conference about their business success

effects, combined with impressive long-term impact. The best thing about it is that these impacts can be achieved at home without any extensive or professional cosmetic assistance.

This conviction is the base of the science and the complete product range of Dr. Juchheim. During his more than 30 years of experience this wellknown doctor has always placed emphasis on the connection between the actual technology and traditional art of healing from distant countries. So, he had been using the traditional Indian Ayurveda teachings for a long time before it became common in the Western world. During his extensive journeys through India, Asia and Africa he studied the fascinating effect of foreign medical plants and started extensive research.

Besides the work on medical and caring methods the current situation in science and research has always been included in development of the products.

Dr. Jürgen Juchheim sees his work as holistic: The active ingredients of the Effect cosmetic which carries his name, needs to be well tuned just like instruments in an orchestra in order to be as effective as possible. Any slight changes in the concentrations can lead to a different effect.

Anyone who sees the effects with their own eyes, will understand that the distinction between science and art is exceeded. The discovery of the “3D effect” A big advance in the cosmetic field was the common insight that herbal ingredients with

lipophile parts enter deeper into the skin and become effective there. Based on this knowledge Dr. Juchheim had the brilliant idea to combine these “sluicing factors“ with activating and circulation-enhancing ingredients.

Today he implements this “3D effect“ into the anti-cellulite cream ByeBye Cellulite®. Even from the very first application cellulite will be visibly reduced. After four weeks a reduction in circumference of the thighs of up to four cm could be measured. The female testers were deeply impressed and happy about the beautiful and visibly improved appearance of their skin.

The legalisation of hemp and its products has started in several countries – tell us about your product?

CannaPur Complete Balance contains a decarboxylated hemp extract with the natural spectrum of valuable ingredients. The hemp used comes from legal EU-certified Cannabis sativa L. seeds.

Apart from THC, which is virtually not present in CannaPur Complete because of its psychoactive effect, the phyto-cannabinoids of the hemp plant work synergistically in a natural active complex.

This natural full-spectrum active complex shows incomparable qualities and achievements.

You can read many personal stories and experiences on Facebook. These people talk about how it made a difference to their life.

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Interview

Tell us about a time when things didn’t go the way you wanted and how you dealt with it?

In August 2016, I was experiencing hard financial losses as a sales and leadership trainer entrepreneur. I lost a big sales training contract and as a result, overnight, I had no planned revenue. I decided to take a chance, max out my credit card and fly to Mallorca, Spain for a JUCHHEIM Effectday. I wanted to meet and speak to the business influencer Torsten Will. I wanted to know from Torsten, whether it was possible for me to build a monthly commission of 7 - 10,000 euros with the JUCHHEIM business and if it could be done in six months. I also wanted to know if he supported my mission’s idea to empower and inspire 1000 women to success.

Torsten Will’s answer to my questions was “YES” not once, but twice and I started the business.

Since then I have achieved both goals.

In August 2018, Udo and I started a big roadshow through Switzerland and Germany to support the local team partners setting up their weekly business presentations. Since then we have been building our team worldwide. Last year our team achieved a turnover of €2.2 million net. We have fun supporting and coaching our people, changing their financial situation and at the same time improving their lives with our amazing beauty and healthcare products. Since we started our business together, the business partner team has grown by 100% from November 2018 to August 2019.

And this year two with families, out of our team partners have achieved the highest career stage and now earn six figure incomes, and they have more time as mothers. This is the proof that with a clear goal and perseverance, anyone can do this with us in three years, background or history is not important, you just put all your know-how into this business system.

As a coach you normally get paid after you sell your programme and before you deliver results.

I get paid when the women earn money as entrepreneurs, and, then it is commission for my cooperation company. It’s a win-win-win position for all. I searched for this kind of system for years.

What is the single best piece of business advice which helped shape who you are now and Why?

Build a system! Over the past five years, this advice has driven me to find a business system which is duplicatable and allows me to funnel my 25 years of experience as a sales trainer and business coach and turn it into a passive income as I build my golden goose. Now I’m able to run my business on and offline from any place in the world and make others successful.

Also, get out of your comfort zone, use social media, go public and create a following. I started with Facebook Live at a time when it was new and unusual for women. It was very hard to be Live and not have any idea who is watching you.

Now, because I stepped out of my comfort zone and conquered fear through courage, my first Facebook followers are my strongest supporters.

What “dream” could you fulfil thanks to network marketing?

JUCHHEIM: visible instant effects, combined with impressive longterm impact

My dream has always been to combine our business with worldwide travel. In 2017, I was already on the go in all five continents, while I continued to run my business successfully online and offline.

This is the advantage of modern times; we work where we are. Either in a rented office worldwide, in a cafe or at home. We are flexible at any time

What was your biggest achievement?

Our Team. Today we run an international team of over 2000 entrepreneurs. Men and women.

The products work for everyone. Making our

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team successful means running and leading a successful business. 90 per cent of the time women start with the business loving the products, but once their partners see an income increase of 3-5000 Euros, they are keen to follow.

Avoid procrastination, work hard on yourself and be open for change of old habits are the most important qualifications to be successful in this business.

Today we have partners in our team which outrun income wise their husbands in Top management positions. Not every man is able to deal with this and sees the prosperous future which lies in front of them together.

Being part of the Juchheim success story worldwide.

To support many of the team on their way to 5- and 6-figure yearly incomes. In addition, of course, to continue to build the international business. We currently have team partners all over Europe, (Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Netherlands, Finland, Great Britain and Hungary) as well as in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. There are many more countries to follow. The business is still a start-up, and, has a huge potential world-wide.

Nevertheless, JUCHHEIM is already the fastest growing luxury beauty label in Europe ever.

How do you recruit new team members?

Online via Facebook and offline at international events and wherever we are. You feel our passion, energy and honesty. Interestingly, in many cases we just talk with people and are interested in their life and business. When they ask us about our business, they might not see the opportunity for themselves, but can for friends and business contacts. Men get interested when it comes to numbers and income. Hearing about that we currently reach a monthly net product turnover of $400.000 with our team, the bell starts to ring for many.

What are your next goals?

Please feel free to contact us on anytime via: Shop: www.beinghighwithoutbeinghigh.com Business: www.yourbestbusinessever.com

What advice would you give a new team member?

a) Become an Example of the Product you promote. Have your own before and after “WowEffect” photos. Because JUCHHEIM products are sensational, enjoy the process, have fun and document your results. b) Just Do It! Don’t just plan…Start! c) Create a one-year clear business plan with measurable and realistic goals. d) Invest in yourself; your mind, character and personality. e) Give yourself and your business three years to rise to the top.

Why should people work with you?

Walt Disney once said, ‘If you can dream it you can do it.” Udo and I show this together as a team to our partners, every day. Your dreams do come true and you can live as you dreamed, with fun and ease, and most importantly, as a couple.

The important difference is how you work with ambitious partners. Making them successful is our goal. Therefore, we share all information with them and offer personal coaching if they want to make the next step.

Karin congratulates Cindia Rheinwalt of her team to achieve President’s team honour!

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Business

Regular contributors to Business Fit Magazine Maike Benner and Lilli Rohde founders of MaLish consulting, share with our readers a case study of how their initial business idea changed direction and the entrepreneurial journey it took them on.

Life is a journey and so is business. Especially when setting up a business, change is the only constant. Often, we as entrepreneurs start out at one point and then the business evolves along the way. Just think of Nokia which was into rubber in the 19th century, became the market leader for mobile phones at the turn of the millennium and is now a network equipment company.

One of the most important traits as an entrepreneur is to be flexible and grab chances when they present themselves. That is especially true when setting up a business.

There is no right or wrong, no blueprint, no

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universal formula and most notably: usually you need to figure out for yourself which road to take.

Today we want to share with you one entrepreneurial journey which is very close to our hearts and where hopefully inspiring conclusions can be drawn. It’s the story of our own business Malish

The Start

Our business journey started internationally.

We had decided to make it abroad first, before starting to approach the local German market.

Maybe we were very naĂŻve but when we started to speak to people in the Netherlands, Canada and UK they were all very open to talking to us and giving us a chance. Everyone was very positive towards our decision to leave our corporate jobs and start something on our own. We were given the time to develop

Entrepreneurship: How to Spot Amazing Business Opportunities – A Case Study

our consulting idea into a ready-to-sell and implementable product.

The Local Market

After one year on the international stage - we had during this journey spoken on different stages in New York, London, Paris, Tirana, and had acquired substantial branding we decided to conquer the local market.

Being totally excited and pampered by our international customer base we thought it would be easy. Our plan was to approach the German companies with the same strategy but all of them wanted to see certificates, for example from agile coaching institutes and no one could understand our holistic team approach. For the first time in our relatively short entrepreneurial journey we faced rejection and financial challenges. We started questioning ourselves and thought about going back into the corporate world.

However, what we realised was that we attracted a lot of individuals during networking events, when we spoke on stage or lead female business networks. After being asked over and over again for business advice (from start-ups) or career tips (from employees and former colleagues), we realised that we should add coaching to our portfolio. In our case this meant reviewing our business model and adding personal coaching.

This was the logical step – even though we had said at the beginning of our entrepreneurship that we would not go into individual coaching.

We now – on top of company consulting – coach individuals in their career development or their business challenges or in transition from one “world” to the other. This is a natural extension to our business, as we love working with people and can apply our knowledge from past functions and industries which we had acquired in the corporate world.

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Business

Trust in yourself and your knowledge We are both convinced that we survived the critical start-up phase which makes or breaks a business, because we combined our learned traits (time management, sticking to deadlines, corporate communication) with entrepreneurial “can-do-sprit�, creativity and bravery, to our own business.

To pass this on to individuals and help them develop their career or business has become our mission. It was logical to not only combine the experience from both worlds in one programme but also name it accordingly.

Our signature coaching programme is thus called compagneur – which is the combination of company and entrepreneur.

Lesson No.1:

Be open to the horizontal extension of your business: do not give in to stagnation - find an addition to your service or product.

Exercise No.1:

Write down on a sheet of paper possible vertical extension for your service/product and evaluate whether they are feasible.

This extension opened a totally new business opportunity for us. Of course, we had to adapt our marketing message and define our avatar customers: where to find them and how to approach them. Being in the privileged position of leading an international network, we had access to our main avatar group. The business and career coaching we are offering is the perfect combination of our experience and know-how. Our work experience in the corporate world ranges from Pricing and Controlling, to Customer Service and Account Management, implementing tools and systems, HR processes like selecting, interviewing, hiring and onboarding team members all over the world.

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What you least expect often happens

While we were focused on our coaching customers, our previous persistence with corporates began to take effect and in early summer we were approached by a company for a consulting service for a real estate project.

The briefing was to re-negotiate a commercial rental deal with one of the biggest German supermarket chains which was due to expire.

Our first reaction was to reject this request, as we had no experience in commercial real estate. Although we knew the Food & Beverage industry and the retail chain was one of our customers in the corporate past. Also we knew pricing and commercial negotiation, but to renegotiate real estate? We are consultants for teams, processes and structures and experts in career development! But the client insisted on having us as consultants for this case.

Remembering our coach saying, first say yes and then figure out how to deal with it, we decided to take this challenge.

Lesson No.2:

Trust in yourself and your knowledge, people do not hire you if they are not convinced that you have the solution for their problem.

Exercise No.2:

Make a list of all skills you have - from excel to making the best muffins in the world. If you like, also pat yourself on the back.

The challenge

As mentioned, our task was to re-negotiate the rental deal which was due to expire. The landlord wanted to achieve a rental increase. So, the mission was clear. We started to research square metre prices in the region; educated ourselves about commercial estate and retail business in Germany. After visiting the site, we were really impressed: the supermarket size was nearly 1500m2 on two floors, residential housing on top and the landlord owned the area around it, which was nearly 3000m2.

We approached the retailer and introduced ourselves as the consultants for our client, the reaction was something between surprise and shock, as nobody at their end had expected to have to negotiate with consultants. Of course,

we went about it as told, and informed the retailer that from our customer’s point of view an increase was overdue. A few weeks before our agreed meeting with the retailer, our customer received a notice of termination.

The retailer informed us they would leave the facility in the next six weeks, leaving the building empty for the rest of the contract and consumers wondering where to do their grocery shopping.

Wow, that was a big hit! Hardly having started with the work and all of a sudden there was no more work for us. We were worried about the reaction of our customer, as this had come completely out of the blue. Would they blame us and our negotiation skills? Imagine a small town now without a supermarket. It was a disaster. We were contacted by the local press to give a statement, our customer was approached by desperate locals and all of a sudden, we were in the middle of talking to press and the mayor of the city trying to describe the situation and to appease all with the confirmation that we would find a new tenant asap. Not to mention that we were 300km away from the area which made it even harder to find new tenants.

Our customer was convinced that we were the right consultants and that we should take over the case to find a new tenant.

Getting to work

And here the main problems started. After the supermarket was out of the building, we did an inspection with architects and construction experts and found out that the building was totally run down and a general overhaul would be needed. Again, we started to educate ourselves in construction, repair, architecture. We took online courses, started meeting people from the industry and talking to experts – and of course this had to be done in a very short time. We ordered experts to value the overhaul costs, started to negotiate with possible new tenants about rent and who would bear the costs.

from major supermarkets, we were shocked.

We couldn’t come to an agreement. The maintenance work would cost a fortune which would take a decade to redeem with current supermarket rental prices.

Our customer was disillusioned and authorised us to find a new solution.

During our visits to the site we had more than once had the idea that the location was perfect for a totally new and innovative project if the building was torn down. Our vision was to build a prestige building for the city, the mayor and the region.

So we decided to introduce this idea to our customer, creating the vision of a sustainable concept including generating and creating additional value to the region. We were very nervous but understood as well that our customer was desperate to present a solution to the mayor and the citizens. We did not sleep for three days working day and night on the presentation of our concept. Then the big day came… could we convince our customer to go for it? You can only imagine how excited we were. All of a sudden, we became a real estate project developer and were responsible for a project worth multiple million euros, which kept us busy for more than five years. We were proud to be able to support the people in this city with an innovative concept which increased their quality of life.

Lesson No.3:

Trust your gut feeling. If you have an idea, even if it is a very crazy one, give it a chance to develop in your mind.

Exercise No.3:

Have a little notebook with you and write down all ideas coming into your head When you are sitting in a plane, or standing at a supermarket check-out, all ideas are worth to thinking about.

And you never know…

After an overview on reconstruction costs for a basic restoration and the rent expectation

Maike Benner & Lilli Rohde founders of MaLish consulting, an international business consultancy and coaching company. Combining their experiences and strengths in people management, financials, tools and system, communication and leadership MaLish offers a variety of services for companies and individuals. malish.global/about/malish-business

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Mindset & Emotion

FORGIVENESS 30

A specialist in relationship training, Viola Edward, explains the importance of forgiving those who we feel have wronged us, but also of forgiving ourselves and how by doing so, we set ourselves free from guilt and shame.

For every metre of an iceberg seen floating above the surface of the water, there are nine metres which cannot be seen below it. People are like icebergs in that, to transform our behaviour (i.e. the ‘visible’ result above the surface), we must first work on ourselves at a deeper level or down around the nine metre mark, which is where the thought patterns and beliefs forming the basis of our attitude towards life and lead us to express ourselves with one form of behaviour or another are to be found.

Then it is essential to forgive in order to integrate and really grow emotionally. If not, your awareness will be endlessly subject to the realm of your emotions and these emotions will confuse your ability to see the truth, keeping you captive of your attitude of mind. This situation will feed on your energy, keeping you trapped. Being tied to the emotional body keeps you trapped at a physical level which keeps both your body and mind captive. Therefore Conscious Connected breathing is fundamental to liberate body, emotion and mind.

Forgiveness is another way of acting consciously to clear and change any thought, emotion or sensation which leaves you feeling alienated from your divine essence. Forgiveness sets you free because, by forgiving yourself and others, you give up the need to hide the guilt and shame you feel as a result of having thought you were a defenceless victim or that you have been relentlessly victimising others.

Why bother to forgive? When you forgive others, you are loving yourself because you release your heart and mind from judgement and resentment.

When you judge others, you only judge yourself and use the same yardstick for both yourself and them. Holding on to resentment means that you are keeping your memory and emotive nature busy with a painful memory and all resentment does is feed this and magnify it. Forgiveness turns the yardstick into a wand that sets you free and makes you generous with yourself, your surroundings and with others. By integrating experiences from the past and being free to celebrate the present moment, your memory and emotions can then offer themselves to serve you for a better life here and now.

Guilt, anger, and fear hold us captive when the emotional body feeds off fear. You can fake you are not feeling anger, guilt, fear or sadness but there is no way around the emotion. Sooner or later, you will have to pass through it and absorb it with your consciousness. However, you can only absorb the emotions that you are aware of.

In short, the key to moving forwards in all areas of your life is to integrate what you are and what your experiences of life have taught you.

Guilt, anger, and fear hold us captive when the emotional body feeds off fear

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Mindset & Emotion

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Forgiveness is not suffering from amnesia but rather freeing the heart and mind from judgement, grief and distrust. Forgiveness is loving and trusting by using experiences from the past as a support for your discernment of the present.

As with any process, it may seem that you don’t have anything or know of anybody to forgive in the beginning. Your individual world, however, is a microcosm within the universal macrocosm where all energy exists. This means that all women represent your mother, or your mother figure and you relate with the men in your life by copying the pattern you established with your father or your father figure. You distinguish trust, help and sympathy according to the relationship you established with your faith, and the hands you encounter in your life which supported you or not.

Forgive deeply and widely: yourself, your mother, your father, your siblings, any other figure of loving authority from your childhood and you will clear your path of weeds, walls and chasms which impede your process of development.

Writing a forgiveness affirmation is done in the first person, just like other affirmations, and you can also include the second and third person as well. Create the forgiveness affirmation with an open end and every time, you can finish the sentence off with an ‘emotional response ending’.

It is essential to forgive in order to integrate and really grow emotionally

Viola Edward is a Transcultural Psychotherapist and breathwork pioneer with over 25 years’ experience. A leader with individual and corporate clients. A specialist giving professional trainings in Relationship, Breathwork Mentoring, Stress Mastery, Feminine Energy and Breathwork for Recovery. She is the co-owner of Kayana International and author of two books: “Breathing the Rhythm of Success” and “Who Makes the Bed?” - www.violaedward.com

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Pashion Fashion

Fashion Feng Shui: International award-winning image coach, Sue Donnelly, tells us about the five elements of Feng Shui, how they are personas with different qualities and asks us to take the Essential Way of Being Quiz to determine which persona applies to us.

The corporate world is changing at breakneck speed. Whether you’re an employee, employer, or an entrepreneur, the work force has become extremely diverse in terms of culture, language, age, gender, religion and age. Barriers need to be recognised and overcome, with a real need for creating clear communication and trust with co-workers and clients.

In the past, making a professional “first impression” and having a “personal brand” were the criteria for success. Unfortunately, we can’t make assumptions about clothing within the work environment anymore. Today, we need to talk about “story,” having screen presence, standing out and communicating from a distance. Leadership will now be about influence, warmth and trust, not just power and respect. Leadership of the future will look to raise vibrations in the workplace to the benefit of all humanity—not just the immediate team.

Building strong, sustainable relationships has never been more important.

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Dressing Mind, Body and Soul for Success

The ancient practice of Feng Shui has enabled a positive flow of energy in our environments for 5,000-plus years. Based on the five primordial elements that are present in everything, it’s used to create harmony and prosperity, usually within a home. These very same principles are also applicable to business organisations, and the people working within them. Understanding and utilising the positive energy of the elements can improve and enhance relationships, create productive flow, increase retention of good people, enable them to excel as individuals and teams, and utilise their skill base in a work environment to stimulate the flow of good energy. As a result, they can create similar positive results in the corporate sphere.

To create trust and wellness, we have to feel “at home” in our clothing. Fashion Feng Shui takes the concept of Feng Shui and uses it within the corporate context to enhance and fulfil our authentic story (essence), flatter our physical body and complexion (appearance), function for the industry (lifestyle), and fortify us to realise our goals and aspirations (intention).

It’s a merging of mind, body and spirit which creates an image that’s authentically us.

Each of the five elements of Feng Shui become personas with different qualities, skills and

Building strong, sustainable relationships has never been more important

Wood: The Crusader

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Pashion Fashion

Water: The Contemplator

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Metal: The Connoisseur

Fire: The Captivator

Earth: The Caregiver

needs. They apply equally to people and organisations, which explains why we can love our job in one company but feel out of sorts in the same role in another.

When you understand who you are and how to express it visually, you are more likely to feel harmonious and balanced within your own workplace. This leads to success, on your own terms.

So just who are you? One way to find out is to take our Essential Way of Being Quiz. Once you have your result, consider the following personas to see if we’ve nailed down your own essence!

Water: The Contemplator

You’re reflective, imaginative, creative, calm, still, deep, introspective, you go with the flow, have mental clarity and are a unique problem solver.

You feel best in dark colours, abstract patterns, fluid/sheer fabrics and flowing shapes. Your clothing needs to give you FREEDOM.

Wood: The Crusader

You’re energetic, flexible, motivational, speedy, fresh, enthusiastic, driven, outgoing, decisive, courageous, active and a visionary goal setter.

You go for blues and greens, florals and stripes, stretch or plant-based fabrics and linear silhouettes. Your clothing choices allow you to MOVE.

Fire: The Captivator

You’re friendly, charismatic, outgoing, warm, charming, spontaneous, vibrant, talkative, enthusiastic, expressive, joyful, sociable, adaptable and a skilled presenter/orator.

You crave reds and purples, pointed or life-based patterns, animal or shiny fabrics and angular shapes. You need to ATTRACT ATTENTION with your clothing choices.

Earth: The Caregiver

You’re nurturing, committed, grounded, sensitive, compassionate, comforting, stable and balanced, you work with the team in mind and you have a sense of community You’re most comfortable in yellows, browns or earth tones, square patterns, textured fabrics and boxy shapes. You prefer the tried-andtested TRADITIONAL styles of clothing.

Metal: The Connoisseur

You’re structured, disciplined, ordered, virtuous, discreet and principled. You have high standards, sound judgment, precision and the capacity to lead, shape and organise.

You require white or pale colours, round patterns, luxurious fabrics and curvy shapes.

Wearing REFINED garments makes you feel complete.

By determining your essential way of being, you can make sure your clothes honour who you are. Elemental dressing isn’t just about how you look. Fashion Feng Shui goes so much deeper than image. Whether you discover your talents lie in creativity, motivation, communication, teamwork or leadership, Wardrobe Wellness fortifies you to dress in a way that empowers you and makes you productive and happy. It’s the sure-fire way to guarantee your well-being and career success!

Fashion Feng Shui takes the concept of Feng Shui and uses it within the corporate context

Sue Donnelly is an international award-winning image coach, facilitator, speaker, author, TV expert and columnist and Master of Fashion Feng Shui.

She believes one size does NOT fit all, and that our style needs to evolve as we do. When you find who you truly are, dressing your ‘self’ creates harmony, balance and an overall feeling of wellness. www.wardrobe-wellness.com

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Body

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Remembering the Bliss of

Pre-Natal Innocence

Watsu practitioner and massage therapist.

Michael de Glanville, looks at the connections between our relationship with water and the memories we have as a developing embryo being totally immersed in the amniotic fluid contained in the mother’s uterus.

There exists deep in the somatic core of the human psyche, a fond memory of immersion in water as being a sustaining, life giving environment and a sensual, gentle, gravity free support. Human origins were aquatic before the evolutionary transition to survival on dry land.

Our primal cellular organisms were water borne and obtained nourishment from the oxygen component of the water in which they were immersed.

Water has an energy which can calm us or vitalise us. Some love to dip quietly into cool country pools; others will frisk, vital and lively, under natural tumbling cascades of mountain stream water or swim wild and free in the sea. Who does not delight to live in view of the ever-changing blues and moods of the waves by the seashore?

Recognised or not, the fluid, sensual nature of the water is there. The attraction of the water’s energy is tangible. Our bodies are touched, caressed and comforted by it, even if we are not immersed in it.

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Body A similarity exists between the sequence of changes in human physiology over millions of years when compared with the changes manifested during the nine-month period of growth of the human embryo in the uterus. In this process of human conception, gestation and birth, we can see repeated, in ‘fast forward’, the history of the emergence of humans from the oceans onto the dry land.

In both these processes of development, the source of nourishment changes from oxygen absorbed from an aqueous environment to a source of oxygen gas inhaled into the lungs from a gaseous atmosphere. Such changes require amazingly complicated organic transformations in the hosting body.

Early human origins were those of aquatic mammals. They subsequently emerged from the oceans to survive successfully on dry land. To do this they had to develop lungs enabling them to survive out of the water in the natural gaseous atmosphere.

The developing embryo is also aquatic, being totally immersed in the amniotic fluid contained in the mother’s uterus. The lungs are developing but they are not in use and there is no ‘breathing’ process taking place. The oxygen and other elements required by the growing embryo are being supplied umbilically from the placenta in the blood being pumped by the mother’s heart.

On completion of its birth, the newborn baby goes through an amazing transition of taking that first breath, switching to an oxygen supply inhaled from the surrounding air into its unused lungs. It’s wondrous life of personal breathing has begun.

Water has an energy which can calm us or vitalise us

One of the most significant human evolutions was the development of this lung system, capable of inhaling the available mixture of atmospheric gases, separating out and absorbing the nourishing oxygen element while alternately exhaling the waste product of carbon dioxide.

Here we see the magic of evolution at work.

A powerful trio of organs involved in how we manage life is the operational group of brain, heart, and lungs. These three organs control most of the autonomous reactions exhibited in response to surrounding environmental situations. However, we should remember that these autonomous breathing reactions, (fight or flight) appeared and were most effective in ensuring survival in very different environmental surroundings than those we face today.

Through the study and practice of breathwork, we can recognise and learn to discard unhelpful habitual breathing styles and consciously replace them with a more appropriate selection. What is required is a thorough knowledge of breathwork, inner awareness of our breathing process and action by the breathing muscles.

Note that we are capable of implementing helpful breathing rhythms more easily than we manage to influence heartbeat speed or initiate autonomous brain response. Nevertheless, with awareness and familiarity of different breathing dynamics and their effects on the heart and the brain, we can make important contributions to improving the energy and moods with which we live our lives.

Since their discovery in the sixties, conscious connected breathing sessions have had a recognised capacity to trigger the expression of emotions. The peaceful or traumatic memories generating these emotions, seem to be stored in the subconscious and one of breathwork’s effects is to bring them to the surface of our conscious minds.

During the breathing sessions, the feelings of safety created by the presence of the breathworker, in combination with the stimulating increase of oxygenation in the blood flow to the brain, are thought to be important factors in this process. In addition, the rhythm of conscious breathing has an effect of bringing the breather’s attention to areas of the body that are energetically neglected.

Body and mind relaxation will release us from states of chronic stress and toxic side

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effects. Stress and Relaxation are fundamental opposites and cannot exist in the same place at the same time. Relaxation is the most powerful natural healer of stress, so at Kayana Center, we have directed our search for effective stress release towards the use of deep relaxation.

The positive effects of our recently developed WaterBreathFusion (WBF) techniques on state of mind and physical wellbeing are taking the practice of somatic therapy to a new level.

WBF intentionally recreates ‘in utero’ surroundings with the intention of reconnecting the receiver with somatic memories of their embryonic, pre-natal, stress free state of bliss.

The impressive results are generated by the introduction of Conscious Connected Breathing into the gentle dynamics of a body temperature flotation session (Watsu), bringing together two powerful physical practices, both of which are renowned for their stress dissolving capabilities.

Balanced flotation implies the total absence of the body heaviness created by gravity. The receiver’s body becomes free to be guided effortlessly through the water in smooth, flowing silence. As the ears are mostly immersed, the sounds heard are a familiar heartbeat and the rhythm of the breath.

Sensing the flowing movements and the fulfilment of receiving love and innocent touch in an agenda free context is also very effective in stress release. The gentle, caring contact with the practitioner entices the mind and the body to drift deep into this profound mental and physical relaxation state during the WaterBreathFusion.

Many participants later share that the last time they experienced being held in the arms of an adult outside of any sexual context and cared for in this innocent, agenda free way, was as a child in the arms of mother or father.

WaterBreathFusion

“As the relaxed mind dances with the body bliss of warm weightless immersion, a window of delicate vulnerability softly swings ajar, revealing, safely snuggled at the surface of the seeker’s subconscious, a heart healing memory of nourishing sensations”.

You deserve the fulfilment of receiving. Extend your experience of breathing to include the heartopening, blissful relaxation of WaterBreathFusion.

Awareness of the breath and conscious choices of breathing patterns, lead to positive, productive states of mind and body wellness. Explore your inner world. Acquire the practice of a powerful natural method of stress release.

Body and mind relaxation will release us from states of chronic stress and toxic side effects

During the sessions, body boundaries become indistinct. Blissful mind states are encountered with a sense of completeness and mind clarity There is an elevated oxygen content in the blood stream due to the conscious connected breathing that often triggers emotional memory release from the sub-conscious.

Michael de Glanville is a writer, breathwork trainer, Watsu practitioner and massage therapist. Ingenious engineer and hang glider pilot, enthusiastic, adventurous explorer of land, seas and skies, he retrained as a bodyworker in France returning to Cyprus, island of his birth in 1999. Michael and adored wife Viola Edward, now practice at Kayana International Center on the island’s beautiful North Coast.

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Interview

Ingrid

MACHER Guiding millions of women to take control of their lives

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The most influential Hispanic woman when it comes to nutrition and living a healthy lifestyle, we interview Ingrid Macher, to find out more about her motivation, her success and her passions. Now an authority for anyone looking to live a healthy lifestyle, it is her own experience with weight issues which has given her the most credibility before both the public and the media as an expert.

Who are you?

My name is Ingrid Macher. I am a celebrity transformation coach, business founder and president of Burn20 LLC, expert in holistic nutrition, certified personal trainer, master coach in NLP, major in mass communications and journalism, three-time fitness champion, motivational speaker, bestselling author and creator of digital weight loss programmes. I was nominated as “Most Influential Hispanic Women” in fitness & wellness in Latin America and the United States and the brain behind Adelgaza20. com, creative content machine, reaching over 70 million women around the world via internet per week.

After losing over 22 kilos in 90 days, I became the preferred source for health, fitness, and nutrition for women who desperately needed to adjust their lifestyle without sacrificing their roles as mothers, wives, and professionals. My personal struggle and success with weight loss has genuinely granted my credibility with the Latin American community and mass media platforms as an expert on the subject. I recently overcame my battle with breast cancer which inspired me to create a programme by the name of “Fabulous And Fit”, which offers four different meal plans, workout routines and regimen for at home or in the gym, expert live conferences, motivation, and coaching daily; providing the tools and information to overcome the obstacles women typically encounter when enduring their weight

Women are the definition of superheroes

loss journeys. Most importantly, the success from my programmes allows me to engage in philanthropic work through my two foundations, The Cathy Salguero Foundation and The Mission REMA Foundation.

What was your motivation to achieve what you have?

Being born in Colombia, I arrived in the United States in search of success. Years of hard work and sacrifice were a staple in my life, until it took a turn for the worst: At seven months pregnant I was rushed to the emergency room where I was clinging onto life after a severe asthma attack.

As if God had not tested me enough, the recession in 2008 forced me to reinvent myself and start from scratch. Although things seemed to improve over time there was a void that could not be fulfilled. This was the beginning of my transformation into a public figure, influencer, and face of a brand which has reached millions of women, guiding them to take control of their lives. The phenomenal success has been one of the most striking case studies for the internet industry and marketing gurus. My biggest motivation was the love for my children and the absolute necessity to be present, healthy, and supportive as they grow.

Recently, after an extensive battle with breast cancer I decided to make a drastic, yet vital decision. In August of 2019, I underwent a bilateral mastectomy leaving cancer in the past. I am blessed with a second chance at life and I am beyond elated to be able to spread awareness and aid others enduring the same traumatic experience.

What is your major discovery in life? And how has it influenced your life?

I would have to say the most significant discovery in my life would have to be before becoming a successful woman, I limited myself in many aspects and set parameters on what I could achieve. I believe I lacked the confidence to pursue my goals because of how I was raised and the tendencies and lessons of my childhood.

This led me to think no doors would open for me along my journey. I was pleasantly mistaken.

Soon after, I crossed paths with my husband Jeff, he taught me an extremely valuable lesson which I will carry on throughout my lifetime; and that is the power of knowledge. He taught me that success comes from hard work, research,

Photo Credit: @jblancophotos

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One of my greatest passions would have to be the want and desire to help others

and study. I broke free of the shackles I had restrained myself with and began to use my knowledge to my advantage. Since then, I have accomplished achievements beyond my wildest dreams. For example, I was never very computer savvy, however, I made it an objective of mine to become adept in computer proficiency. I used to hesitate when speaking publicly in English, being that it isn’t my first language. However, with the support of my husband, practice, and repetition I have become trained, efficient, and capable in speaking English within a professional and public setting. I hadn’t tried many things because of fear, doubt, and insecurity. By maintaining my faith in God, a positive attitude, and surrounding myself with those who love and support me I was able to overcome these obstacles.

What are you most passionate about and why?

One of my greatest passions would have to be the want and desire to help others. This has been a passion of mine since my youth. My parents were always extremely generous, noble, and selfless. They were the type of people who would feed others and go hungry. I genuinely believe that growing up surrounded by parents who were beyond charitable, set the tone for my moral compass long term. Not only does this apply to my personal life, but it extends into my professional life. The objective of my brand is to motivate women who have lost hope, succumbed to their insecurities, and lost sight of their wellness goals. My true passion is to make women aware that wellness does not only come from your diet. It stems from your spiritual, mental, and overall wellbeing. With a little faith, hope, and motivation anything is possible. I want to not only be their coach, but also their shoulder to lean on.

Photo Credit: @daniabreuphotography

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What is the biggest mistake you have ever made in business and what you did you learn from it?

One of the biggest mistakes I’ve made throughout my career as a businesswoman took place at the beginning of my time as an entrepreneur. I completely over-estimated the power of media, like many other influencers in the industry. I believed that with an abundance of TV appearances, radio interviews, and magazine articles I would gain the recognition I needed to build my brand. After launching my first wellness programme “Fat Loss Fiesta” I realised what was truly going to cause significant development and growth in my business, was investing the majority of my time, efforts, and knowledge in my customers who had already provided me with an attentive audience. Dedicating time to my office is what made a drastic difference in my business and brand evolving.

If you could be a superhero who would it be and why?

My favourite superhero has always been the infamous, Wonder Woman. When I was little my father went to Germany and brought me the gift of a trench coat. I have the vivid memories of using the coat as a cape and pretending to be Wonder Woman live, in action. To some this may seem cliché, but all I ever wanted was to save the world.

As I became older and wiser, I came to realise that women are the definition of superheroes.

Aside from maintaining the household, working, and being a parent, we have to maintain stability, strength, and confidence. We never stop moving, but we always somehow maintain a balance. I can relate to the strength, power, and willingness to help others that Wonder Woman possesses.

If you never dedicated your career to fitness what career path would you have chosen?

If my career wasn’t fitness focussed I would definitely have invested my time in business and finance education. My dream would have been to hold seminars worldwide for women looking to grow, develop, and evolve in the world of business and finance. The objective would be to show them how to sell themselves, their hard work, and their brand via social media and digital platforms. I thrive when it comes to speaking to large audiences in a public setting and although this wasn’t the main focus of my career in the beginning, I feel like the goal is still very much attainable in my future.

What’s your advice to young women looking to follow in your footsteps?

For the young women looking to follow in my footsteps, I know it’s exciting when first building your brand especially on social media, but keep in mind that hard work comes first. This industry fluctuates constantly being that we base our success on algorithms, patterns, and companies which are constantly dictating your progress. The key to success is to invest the core of your time and efforts on studying, working hard, and staying determined throughout the process; especially because with a market that is constantly evolving, you need to be open to evolve with it. In today’s society, our youth tends to think they can rule the world with social media, but there is so much more going on behind the scenes

Who is and has been your biggest inspiration?

God is one of my greatest inspirations indefinitely.

He is wise beyond words and with his guidance he has shown many the path of enlightenment throughout centuries around the world. My husband Jeff has also been an immense support and inspiration for me. He taught me very early on that you do not need to work for anyone, but rather be your own boss. He showed me the importance of knowledge, education, and independence.

If you were in the jungle what kind of animal would you be and why?

If I could be any creature in the jungle, I would definitely be a Blue Morpho Butterfly. The Blue Morpho Butterfly is not only attention grabbing, but it is also abundant, delicate, and bright. Also, butterflies are a symbol of evolution, growth, and freedom. I genuinely feel like I can relate to the butterfly being that throughout my life struggles I have evolved, grown, and become the most vibrant and beautiful version of myself, inside and out.

What’s in the future for Ingrid Macher?

My hope for the future is to give full attention to the 4 F’s: family, fitness, finance, and most importantly faith. Eventually, I plan to set fitness aside and engage with women regarding business and entrepreneurship.

Photo Credit: @jblancophotos

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Business

Benefits of

Knowledge:

A Powerful Tool That Can Change Your Life

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Seek knowledge to advance your life, business and career Award-winning serial entrepreneur, Jacqueline Camacho-Ruiz, explains to Business Fit Magazine readers the importance and power of increasing our knowledge and the benefits of making the effort to learn.

From the beginning of time, knowledge has been a great tool to advance generations, to conquer countries, to gain more power and to create unimaginable possibilities!

Servants were purposely excluded from conversations with their bosses for the fear that they would “know too much” and conspire against them. Slaves were forbidden from learning how to read and write to avoid rebellion.

At the same time, it is the pursuit of knowledge which has allowed our humanity to advance in incredible ways. The greatest inventions of all times have been based on securing, embracing, applying knowledge. Take for example, the invention of the first plane. It took the Wright brothers a lot trials and accumulation of data to finally made it possible to launch the very first plane.

In my journey as a pilot, I have realised the importance of knowledge more than ever before. You see, to become a pilot in command of an aircraft, it requires not only the ability to embrace new principles which defy everything you are used to on the ground, but also the skill to infuse them together to allow you to make the right decisions while you fly.

I believe once you learn something, no one can take it away from you. I believe knowledge is the most precious gift anyone possesses.

I believe that knowledge is….

An equaliser

With adequate knowledge and training, you can be in any situation and participate in any conversation to add value. Without it, you might be a deer in the headlights. If there’s a topic you love, invest time learning about it.

You will feel confident when interacting with others and they will respect you.

A great accelerator

Seek knowledge to advance your life, business and career. Why take 10 years to experience something when you can learn from others who have gone through those experiences before. Acquire knowledge by reading, listening to audio books, researching on the internet, talking to subject matter experts. It is available to you if you want it. It will accelerate your life in ways you never imagined. Start today!

A legacy generator

The more you share your knowledge, the more you retain it and it becomes part of who you are. The most genuine gesture from a human being to another is the transfer of knowledge.

It is the best way to leave a legacy for future generations. You can share it through conversations, training others, writing books or capturing your intellectual property on videos.

Keep sharing it!

Is there something that you have been wanting to explore and fear has stopped you from finding out more? Is there something holding you back from expressing your full potential? Is there a subject you are passionate about, but have not have made the time to learn about it?

Imagine all the possibilities of your new acquired knowledge. The connections you will make, the people you will meet, the respect, the advancement of your career, the new adventures you will embark on…all due to knowledge.

Take your next adventure, soak in every piece of information you can get, share with others and make your life amazing!

Jacqueline Camacho-Ruiz is an award-winning serial entrepreneur, international speaker, philanthropist and author of ten books. She founded The Fig Factor Foundation and created Today’s Inspired Latina book series and international movement. Jacqueline is a regular guest on local and national TV, radio and print publications. She has featured in Forbes, INC Magazine, Despierta America, CBS World News and others. www.jackiecamacho.com

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Environment

Climate Change: The Young

Advocates Climate change is a very emotive subject at the present time, with Swedish activist Greta Thunberg taking a very public stance for the future generations. Here, Business Fit editor Claire Morley, takes a look at some of the other young people also fighting the environmental battle for their future.

The subject of Climate Change is never far from the news these days. In part due to David Attenborough’s documentaries exploring the devastating effects of humans on the environment and the actions of young Swedish activist Greta Thunberg.

Greta first came to public notice in 2018 at the age of 15, when she started sitting

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outside Swedish Parliament calling for action on global warming. A year later, she is recognised worldwide as the teenage face of climate change. Her impassioned speech at the UN Climate Action Summit sparked a worldwide response – not all of it supportive.

Indeed it seems quite extraordinary that a young woman, asking world leaders to start taking measures against the pollution we are bringing on our planet, should be subjected to such hatred.

Conspiracy theories, online abuse, insults about her looks, her mental health, her appearance have appeared all over the media. Even if climate change weren’t a thing, what she’s suggesting still makes sense. We should be taking better care of our planet, our rainforests, the other living creatures which share our world, each other. We fill the air we breathe full of pollution; we have been aware of the thinning ozone layer due to CFCs since the 1970s; more and more species are becoming extinct due to our actions and our oceans are full of microplastics. We needed a wake-up call, it appears not everyone likes it to come from a teenager.

One post circulating Facebook complains about how the current teenage generation are the first to demand aircon in every classroom; be driven to school in 4x4s; eat unhealthy fast food and use too many electronic devices – who do they think gave those children those things? Children didn’t demand their parents buy the gas-guzzling cars; parents could have encouraged conversation rather than supplying devices and who was buying the fast food rather than

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Environment

teaching their children about healthy diets. It seems many don’t want to take responsibility for what is happening and rather than doing something about it, are looking for someone else to blame.

However, it is the responsibility of us all to treat our world with respect; to be aware of the damage, we as a human race, are wreaking on mother nature; to stop the march of materialism and put the environment first.

Fortunately, although Greta is the most wellknown, there are plenty of other young people advocating action against the damage we seem intent on inflicting on our world.

One of the first young people attempting to bring the subject of environmental issues to public notice was Severn Cullis-Suzuki. From Vancouver, at the age of nine, she founded the Environmental Children’s Organisation (ECO), a group of children dedicated to learning and teaching other youngsters about environmental issues. At the age of 12, in 1992, she attended the Earth Summit in Brazil, having raised money with members of ECO to travel there. Her video, popularly known as “The Girl Who Silenced the World for

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5 Minutes” presented environmental issues from a youth perspective. She continues to be an environmental activist, and has spoken around the world about environmental issues, urging listeners to define their values, act with the future in mind, and take individual responsibility.

In Canada, 15-year old Autumn Peltier is an indigenous, clean water activist. A member of the Wikwemikong First Nation in northern Ontario, she is also known as the “water warrior” and has been campaigning for the universal right of clean drinking water since the age of eight.

In Kenya, 14-year old Lesein Yes has combined his love for nature and for football. After hearing about deforestation, he wanted to make a difference and now plants a tree for every goal he scores. He hopes to take his Trees for Goals initiative across Kenya and then Africa.

Helena Gualinga, is 17 and from a small community in Ecuador called Sarayuku in the Amazon rainforest. She is part of the Living Forests Declaration, which seeks to attain recognition for the permanent protection of

Indigenous territories respecting the physical and spiritual interconnection between Indigenous peoples and their homelands; and which upholds Indigenous rights. The indigenous people in the Amazon have been protecting the world’s rainforest for a very long time. The Amazon rainforest is the world’s largest carbon dioxide sink and this year experienced devastating fires throughout much of South America.

Tekanang, 21, is from the tiny reef-lined island nation of Tuvalu, which is spread across less than 20 square miles in the South Pacific and sit, on average, about two metres above sea level. As such, the atolls are constantly affected by sea-level rise and storm surges. In 2013, the government launched climate actions, encouraging the youth to be active and voice opinions about their feelings for the future.

Tekanag helps spread awareness with posters, for people to be aware of the climate change struggle.

At only eight year’s old, Havana ChapmanEdwards is a US diplomat, a passionate community organiser and humanitarian, she is known as The Tiny Diplomat. In June she was one of the young climate protesters crowded outside the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington DC, where she said: “Girls are crying out for help because of droughts, air pollution, floods, and other climate disasters, but the politicians are not listening. I asked them to commit to hosting a climate debate. But the Democrats locked us out and pretended not to hear us.”

In Alaska, 17-year old Quannah Chasinghorse has helped win protections for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, which the Trump administration had opened to oil drilling. The Artic communities are also badly affected by rising temperatures, and in some cases have been evacuated from their homes and ancestral lands due to climate change Originally from Bangladesh, now living in the US, 19-year old Kulsum Rifa represents the youthled social justice group SustainUS. She was

part of this year’s UN youth climate delegation in New York, where she spoke about climate refugees. “By 2050, parts of Bangladesh will be underwater,” she said. “Just the thought of [my family] not having a place to live breaks my heart. If we take action now on climate change, they won’t have to become refugees.”

Jurwaria Jama is 17-year’s old, a daughter to Somali immigrants. She now lives in north Minneapolis, a predominantly African America community, where there is much industrialisation and a lot of pollution from fossil fuels. Jurwaria has spoken alongside US Rep. Ilhan Omar at a recent climate rally saying: “Climate change has affected my parents’ home in Somalia because of droughts and food shortages there; this work I’m doing relates to them as well. Something that gives me a lot of hope is seeing so many different people fighting for this common issue and realizing that I am not alone.”

Aneesa Khan, 23, has been organising for climate justice since she was 16. Executive coordinator of SustainUS, she was born in India and raised in Oman, where she experienced first-hand the painful impacts of fossil fuel extraction. She grew up in a country where providing drinking water was more expensive than drilling for oil. Her family’s home on the South Indian coast was devastated by droughts and floods, which influenced Aneesa to dedicate herself to climate justice. She says: “Climate change isn’t something in the future. That narrative is fundamentally flawed because there are millions impacted and so many displaced already. That is the new inconvenient truth that no one wants to hear.”

These are just a few of the young people who are taking climate change seriously and are making attempts to turn the current situation around, so that future generations have a future. We need to take our cue from them and ensure we too are making efforts to protect our ailing planet.

Claire Morley is an eco-warrior in her adopted country of Cyprus. She is the Editorial Coordinator for Business Fit and has worked as a journalist and editor in Cyprus and has written a fictional book inspired by her experience as a volunteer in the Philippines. She also runs a business helping authors to self-publish and promote their books www.myepublishbook.com

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Mindset & Emotion

Diversity and Self-Awareness: Internationally recognised coach and leadership development expert, Barbara Dalle Pezze, believes the next level of growth and transformation is achieved by being open to diversity. Through being open to seeing things differently, we can grow and evolve I was asked what is, in my opinion, the next level of growth and transformation. I believe it is to be open to diversity, honour it, be questioned by it, learn to engage with it and when possible integrate it into our life.

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A Path to Growth and Transformation

When we honour diversity, we give ourselves an opportunity to expand the way we know, feel and interpret ourselves and our life. Diversity exposes us to something new that we probably never thought of, and it puts us in a position of power and responsibility towards ourselves and our life because we can choose what to do with ‘the new’ that the diverse puts in front of us.

By being open to what’s different, by engaging and interacting with it, we give ourselves a chance to move beyond a limited and limiting way of thinking and being that interprets the diverse as a threat.

That which is different from me, my culture, my world, my way of thinking and living, is often perceived, consciously or unconsciously, as a threat. When we interact with what’s different, we are exposed to ways of being and living which might put our own way of being and living into question. And that’s scary and uncomfortable.

We prefer to be validated in the way we are and choose to be. We don’t like to be questioned about it.

But if we want to grow and evolve as human beings, we need to endure the discomfort of being questioned, and learn how to transform that discomfort into a force that propels us into a path of personal growth and transformation.

To be questioned by diversity gives us an opportunity to discover more about ourselves, who we are and what we really want in life.

Diversity is a life opener to those who dare to take a chance and risk going beyond their comfort zone.

We cannot, however, authentically honour the diversity others bring to us if we don’t first recognise, appreciate and honour ourselves in our own diversity, which is in fact our uniqueness.

We are complex and sophisticated creatures, and to really be free to engage and grow by being in dialogue with diversity, we need to devote time and energy to discover who we are and how we function from the inside out.

Our reality is complex and the clearer we are about our own inner world, the more we become capable of creating a happier life, full of possibilities and opportunities, not limited by

experiences and memories of the past, but open to all possibilities the future brings.

We need to learn to become transparent to ourselves. When I am transparent to myself, I know who I am, my talents and shortcomings, I know what moves me, what I react to, my limiting beliefs and my empowering beliefs. I know what I value and why, what’s important to me and why, what motivates me and what holds me back. I know how to master myself and how to be the best version of myself.

By becoming transparent to myself I become free to appreciate myself and others. I am not led by my emotions because I know how to manage them, I know where they come from, how I create them and how I can leverage them.

When I am transparent to myself and honour myself, I am not afraid of what others think of me, I don’t keep comparing myself and my life to the life of others, perhaps suffering because I judge their life better than mine.

When I am clear about myself, I am comfortable in my own skin, I am aware of my choices and I know I am free to change and create a different reality for myself, should I so decide.

What can we do, then, to begin a journey of self-discovery, learn to become transparent to ourselves and be free to honour and be enriched by diversity?

We start by quieting our mind and listening attentively to those inner whispers we tend to ignore. We learn to pay attention to what’s happening inside of us. We learn to recognise our own emotions and our own thoughts, and this means that we learn to notice, see, feel, distinguish the components of our inner world.

We can begin by asking ourselves three questions: How am I feeling right now? Which three words describe my emotions today? How are my feelings influencing my thoughts and behaviours?

Let’s take some time during the day to check in with ourselves. Paying attention, listening and becoming aware will centre us and open us to an amazing journey of growth and transformation.

Barbara Dalle Pezze, Ph.D., is an internationally recognised coach and

leadership development expert with over 18 years of global experience.

Women CEOs and Senior Executives of Fortune 500 companies hire her to help them expand their potential and elevate the quality of their life and impact as leaders. Barbara is passionate about transforming the conversation about women, diversity and inclusion. www.barbaradallepezze.com - bidi@barbaradallepezze.com

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Interview

Tania

Arrayales RodrĂ­guez

Building with compassion for the environment 56

Award winning architect, entrepreneur, athlete and international public speaker Tania Arrayales Rodríguez is an advocate for Sustainable Architecture and through her company Green Habitat project and her nonprofit project Green Habitat Preservation is on a mission to help people live in balance and harmony with nature.

Who are you?

My name is Tania Arrayales Rodriguez and I was born in North America. My curiosity has led me to discover many cultures in several countries and fall in love with the food, architecture, temples, songs and sunsets around the world.

My ancestors were brave women and men from the area of Teotihuacan near Mexico City where the Sun and Moon pyramids were built thousands of years ago.

When I travel around the world, I discover cities by walking the streets and eating where the locals eat. I love getting lost and let the time pass as my senses discover the smells and colours of the cities and nature. I always find sacred and special spaces to contemplate nature and calm the mind so I can develop my vision and map my next steps in business and life.

What is the single best piece of business advice which helped shape who you are now and Why?

Innovate and take action. The key is to always keep improving your ideas and moving them in the direction of progress. Measure your results regularly to make all the necessary changes on your path because no one gets it right first time.

Always have mentors. Life development and business need planning and a large amount of reality to move in the correct direction.

Sometimes it is not the same direction you wanted to go and that’s why listening to others who have walked the same road as you can save you time and effort.

Simplify your life. In my 15 years as an entrepreneur and architect I have seen many people trying to open doors in the most complicated way. Always ask yourself how you can make your life and projects easier and more practical. Remember that entrepreneurship, in most cases, is about solving problems in a way

Always keep improving your ideas and moving them in the direction of progress which is unique and efficient. It is about learning to transform and adapt to a better outcome, so reinvent yourself and don’t be afraid to expose and give life to that crazy idea which is in your head.

What is your definition of success? How did you finally know you had succeeded in your business?

Success is related to the way we answer to life.

It is having a magical power to align mind, body and spirit with the reality you want to see in front of you.

The first step to being successful is to define how it looks for you and then map out on a vision board what do you need to overcome to achieve that reality. The second step is to always remember where you are going, with life distractions and social pressure it can be easy to compromise your vision unless you have an everyday reminder and take the necessary steps to stay on it and be loyal.

Does “Balance” in life exist for you? If so, how do you achieve it?

Balance is an everyday achievement for me.

I have my rituals to keep myself in alignment.

When I wake up I play music whch inspires me and I set a high vibration for the day. I think about food in terms of cravings and I make sure I eat what makes me happy (like avocado and mango).

I go to the beach every day and contemplate the ocean, I have found that living near water is essential for my peace and to achieve a blissful existence.

Photo Credit: Paul Capelli Photography - London

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Interview In my experience a balanced and successful life starts with enjoying the simple gifts of life, immersing our senses in joyful experiences will always help centre our emotions.

What is your next milestone?

My mission in life is related to conservation and protection of the environment and ecosystems. I feel inspired by the brave humans who have used their time on this earth to make a difference and leave a positive mark in our society and planet. As an Eco-Architect and Conscience Investor I feel accomplished when I design and develop healthy homes and green communities as an alternative to what is offered in the market today with toxic materials and aggressive designs.

My company, Green Habitat Project, is making progress in Eco-Design and sustainable developments on three properties in the Caribbean, all of them offering Hi-End residences with hotel amenities five minutes away from a white beach and blue lagoons. A property designed for investors that want to visit, live or do short term rental options to achieve an attractive ROI. In the next five years Green Habitat will develop an exclusive green community, “Green City” in a popular destination Tulum, Mexico. It will offer an option to live in paradise and enjoy vacations around nature while contributing to the protection of the environment and biodiversity.

What is your favourite quote and why?

“Look deep into nature and then you will understand everything better.”

Albert Einstein

We build with an eco-conscience and compassion for the environment and others

This quote talks to my spirit very deeply. My need to contemplate nature and surrender to the perfection and the energy has been a constant in my life since I was a little girl. I remember my desire to spend my weekends in the rivers and mountains near my house. I was happy just showering with the smells of the pine trees and the wet soil. I loved to ride horses and talk to them; look underneath the rocks and play with trees and the wind, pretending I could see fairies and other creatures living in a magical world.

Tell us about Green Habitat Project and Green Habitat Preservation

The Green Habitat Project was born to inspire innovative architecture which embraces the environment as a fundamental part of the design and construction process. It brings natural landscape, cultural heritage and biodiversity closer to humanity.

Green Habitat Project works under a global vision with a for profit and non-profit approach under the same umbrella contributing to social change within the community during the period of construction.

1. “Green Habitat Developments” offers an ecoconscious approach. It has a multidisciplinary team including biologists and geologists who, in an effort to preserve the environment, help with the selection of land; classify trees and plan reforestation during and after construction.

2.“Green Habitat Preservation” is a non-profit initiative to launch custom campaigns based on sustainable needs of the community and environment such as 1. Turtle protection programs 2. Melipona Maya bee-stingless pollinator 3. Plastic recollection from the beach to transform them into art.

What is your most recent development?

The latest development -VITA TULUM-Eco-Luxury Residences with Hotel Amenities - models a new way to create sustainable architecture preserving biodiversity and offering solutions to preserve and empower indigenous cultural heritage and their biodiversity.

VITA Tulum was carefully designed with modular architecture to preserve as many trees as

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possible and to maximise the visibility of the jungle from all corners and levels of the property.

It also creates a bio-climate to reduce radiation and prevent overheating in the residences. The orientation of the building towards the passive ventilation of the south-east winds naturally cools down the property reducing the need for electricity and expanding the lifespan of air conditioning units with lower use.

How is sustainable architecture incorporated into you project?

The Green Habitat Project, through VITA Tulum development, is participating to gain green and sustainable architecture certifications.

To lower water consumption, water supplied to the property is treated so it can be reused at least three times. Energy produced through solar panels, solar water tanks, passive pool heaters and wind generators with home friendly turbines GHP contributes to creating a green building, integrating friendly and non-toxic materials and highlighting bio-constriction design. A large urban garden has been designed on the rooftop of the property, providing some principles of permaculture and urban agriculture and reducing waste. In addition the use of electric vehicles and electric bicycles is offered as part

of the hotel amenities for private transportation and clean mobility.

Tell us what you mean by Building with Compassion

After the big earthquake in Nepal, I participated in the campaign to rehabilitate the affected areas.

I visited places near Katmandu and contributed with ideas for 3D printing and a basic education platform in rudimentary structural knowledge for locals to rebuild their schools and homes which they had lost in the disaster. I am passionate about supporting women’s development by assigning all artwork for our developments to local artists, in many cases women working with textiles. I also like to include local materials and resources found in the area, which have been used for generations.

The Green Habitat vision contributes to a minimum footprint on the planet with maximum positive impact on local communities by supporting the global message to build with ecoconscience and compassion for the environment and others.

You can find out more about Tania’s projects by visiting: www.mygreenhabitat.org www.greenhabitatproject.com

Interview by Viola Edward

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