What's a mistake that you're happy you've made?
When I was 16 (way before the internet) I founded a travel-partner agency to connect people from different backgrounds seeking travel companions. After a year, I had to close the agency due to a lack of customers and the confusion some callers had regarding the nature of the “service.” Despite this setback, I gained invaluable insights into sales, communication and people’s needs, solidifying my desire to run a business that helps people.
What do you do to maintain balance in your life?
To maintain balance in my life, I rely on a combination of cycling, meditation, and spending time with good friends. Cycling helps me release stress and stay physically active, while meditation allows me to center my thoughts and cultivate mindfulness. Additionally, having a laugh with friends provides me with energy, even if meeting them results in a lack of sleep!
What can we do to create a great workplace for our colleagues?
Creating a great workplace for our colleagues involves fostering an autonomous, self-regulating team by granting them independence while encouraging open communication and collaboration. This approach empowers individuals to take ownership of their work, bringing out their best and enabling them to achieve high levels of performance.
What motivated you to become an entrepreneur?
Self-employment was almost inevitable for me, being driven by a strong inner desire for autonomy and an almost manic passion for identifying areas that can, no, that have to (!) ;-) be improved or services that are needed to make a positive impact. When I realized how transformative my study abroad experience in Australia had been, and how few students went abroad to Australia from my country, I felt compelled to inspire other students to pursue similar study abroad experiences. From that moment, the decision to take the next steps to start up a student-counselling / recruitment agency was a no-brainer.
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Here’s More, From Other Founders Around the World
What motivated you to become an entrepreneur?
After graduating, I worked for an extremely well-paying automotive company. But I always had the feeling that there was more out there. So I quit and went into research with the aim of becoming a founder.
What should leaders understand about their own role and responsibility?
There are no overnight miracles, it's very hard work: both physically and emotionally. Requires resilience, grit, strategic approach and grind.
What’s an important guiding principle that informs the way you build and run your business?
One of our core values is experimentation. Rather than get stuck in arguing about what solution may best solve a problem or play to our ego, we focus on the smallest step we could possibly take to learn whether that’s true. It moves our minds away from thinking too big without sweating the small stuff and from getting stuck in discussions rather than actually doing something to understand the possible solutions better.
What should leaders understand about their own role and responsibility?
Your own time and energy is the most precious resource you have. Use it wisely, and learn what gives you energy, and what saps you. In the early years of building something, you need to throw a huge amount of time at it - and do many things you perhaps don’t like doing. But as you scale, it’s vital to take a step back and build a business that can grow rapidly beyond the time you put into it.