BE#76: Take the chance you have nothing to loose says our guest "Rachel Beck "

Speaker A: Hello everyone. This is your host, kk. I'm super excited to let you know that I've launched my first book called why Me First. It's available on Amazon.com I'm putting the link in the show notes. Click the link, grab your copy. Today there is a free gift for everyone inside the book. May I also request you to please leave me a review that would mean the world to me. Thank you so much.

Speaker B: Imagine celebrating your success, going on holidays, having bonfire on the beach with your loved ones. Unfortunately, most entrepreneurs experience burnout within the first year. But what is it that m makes others succeed? I'm your host, Ajal Khurana. Call me KK Join me as we have fireside chats with experts who have insider secrets around how to rest, rejuvenate, recharge and be Bonfire entrepreneurs.

Speaker C: Foreign. Hello and welcome to be Bonfire Entrepreneurs with your host, KK Kajal Khurana. Our amazing guest today is an author and she loves spreading happiness. I will let her introduce you so that you know, you know better who she is. She is Rachel Beck. Welcome to our show, Rachel.

Speaker D: Thank you, Kajal, so much for having me. I'm really excited to be here with you. Thank you.

Speaker C: It's an honor. Uh, so Rachel, please tell our listeners, uh, who Rachel Beck is.

Speaker D: I am a author, I'm an entrepreneur. I'm a retired photographer. I am also a social media influencer and my story is who I am. I m have a very different story, Very different story. But all those encompass who I am.

Speaker C: Awesome. So please share with us more about have you discovered who you are or you're still in the.

Speaker D: You know, I'm constantly learning who I am. A lot of the questions to my past haven't been answered yet. So I'm still researching that. I was born in India but was an orphan. My mom died two days after giving birth. I am looking for my biological father. I don't know if he's alive. I was put into the founder of an orphanage and was adopted by an American family in the US And I was adopted by incredible people who are my family. But I still unlocking a lot of pieces to my past. And I go back and I say at the orphanage and I unlock more pieces. So that's a huge part of my story. I am an Indian Jewish woman.

Speaker C: Okay, I'm so sorry to hear about that. But on the positive note, you are lucky because I'm also born in India and I know how bad it could be. You know, if you're still in Indian orphanage there life is not as good as you would have in America. Right. So definitely there is side of the coin which is not very pleasant. I would say pleasing to your heart, to your soul, to your mind. But the flip side of it is you are lucky enough. Honestly, I feel very grateful.

Speaker D: And Kajal, you know what I'm doing? The orphanage is in my soul. It's in my heart. So I'm donating. Part of the proceeds of my book are going directly back to the orphanage.

Speaker C: Very nice. So, Rachel. Yeah, sorry, go ahead.

Speaker D: Uh, it's a huge part of my soul is the kids of the orphanage. I never, ever forget where I come from, ever.

Speaker C: That's amazing. You know, a lot of people actually forget their roots most of the time, especially when they become successful or they have achieved certain things in life. Most of them, they don't remember their roots. And it's so important to remember your roots, you know, where you come from. And just to be grounded, I believe.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker C: Just to feel contented that, okay, this is what I was born with, and this is where I am today. I need to be grateful for what I have today. Not, you know, complaining or cribbing, uh, about things which are not working out in my life.

Speaker D: Attitude of gratitude. Right. And I was raised that way. You know, I was raised that way and learned that from two years. Two years old on. It was instilled with me. I watched my family do incredible things. Giving back to the world is huge to them, so they've instilled that in all those children.

Speaker C: Amazing. Hats off to your parents who. Who are always giving. I mean, it already shows their actions when they adopted you. You know, they don't have that feeling of, uh, you know, difference. Like these days, people have, oh, I'm Indian American. You know, I'm European, I'm white, I'm brown, I'm black. Especially with what's happening around the world, people discriminate. You know, there is racism and there are cultural difference. So I'm sure your parents are amazing people on this earth. And we need more of those kind of people, especially in today's time, who are loving and giving and caring without any, you know, caste, creed, or gender, you know, being racist, I would say. Amazing. So, Rachel, for how long you have been an entrepreneur?

Speaker D: Been an entrepreneur for 15 years.

Speaker C: Awesome. And who are your ideal clients?

Speaker D: My m. My role models?

Speaker C: Yeah, ideal clients. Who do you serve, actually?

Speaker D: Oh, my client. So I ran a photography business for 10 years.

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker D: So I had my clients. So, yeah, that. That's who and I. So through that through my art and through my photography was a way for me to express myself. So I like, I've done art shows, you know, all over the U.S. so it's, it was through my clients and different organizations and I got to volunteer and give back through photography too. Uh, and that was really important to me. And then doing writing has been extremely healing for me because I've been through a lot.

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker C: So when you train aspiring, ah, entrepreneurs, what are some of the common things you notice? Common mistakes. I would ask you if you can, you know, because you've been in this industry for 15 years and times have changed, especially with ever evolving technology, lot of things are changing. Mindset is changing. What other common mistakes you see entrepreneurs do these days?

Speaker D: Okay, so this is, that's a really wonderful question. So I've been giving talks for 15 years and that's a, that's a, uh, it's a question that, you know, people ask, how are you doing this? It really comes down a couple of things, Kajal. Uh, one, it's about, um, not having an ego. I am still in a continuous phase of learning. I think that there is so much more to gain. Another part is asking for help, saying that, you know what, there's times when I need help and I go to my network, I go to friends and say, you know, I need some help on this. And because, like, I have no ego involved in it, I'm okay asking, like, okay, how do you do this? I need some help on that. So I think that that's a huge mistake entrepreneurs make is that their ego stops them because they want to do it all. They think they know it all. And that's not necessarily the case. You can't know it all. None of us can. That's one thing is asking for help. The other thing is you need to continuously learn. I'm always in a state of learning, furthering myself, especially now through this pandemic. It is about innovating, it's about being motivated. It's learning to evolve. Everybody's had to do this or they're going to become stagnant. So that's really crucial. Are you continuing to learn right now or are you stuck in your old ways? And if your old ways aren't working, then you need to ask yourself why. That is a really, really important question. So that's, yeah, that's another tip I would pass on. The other tip I would pass on to an entrepreneur is to, you know, I've done many things as an entrepreneur that have taken me out of my comfort Zone. Many, many things. And I'm, you know, looking back, I'm really happy that I did it right.

Speaker C: I always say best things happens outside comfort zone.

Speaker D: So those are the biggest things, right?

Speaker C: It's. It's interesting, you know, because I asked these questions to some of the guests, you know, and everybody has a different perspective to it because things are changing really very fast, you know, every day. The technology is, like, evolving from one day to. There's different things, and people don't even have patience. And you are right. Ego plays a big role on your mind and your emotions. People are afraid of asking for help. They think, oh, people are going to be judgmental about, you know, hey, he or she doesn't know this. He's asking me, she's asking me. It's absolutely fine. Like you said, nobody knows everything at all. You are always learning. You are a student of life. Life will teach you more lessons than any university or, you know, probably sometimes,

Speaker D: because I'll, uh, be honest. Times where, like, you know, I had a hard time asking for help, you know, and then I realized, because I'm a very independent woman and I hold on to that, and it's extremely important to me. So it was also like, learning to go, you know what it was about me trusting people. It was about, would they be reliable? Because when you're an entrepreneur, the whole business comes down to you. The success of the business comes down to you. So. And I, like, I know what I have to get done. I know what I have to do. But if I pass on a project and say, hey, Kajal, you know, could you help me with this? Then I need to put trust in you going, I have faith in Kajal. I know she can do this. So, yeah, it's a big lesson to learn. It's about humility.

Speaker C: Do you think people are trusting each other these days? Easily compared to last 10 or 20 years back?

Speaker D: I think it comes down to the relationships. I don't just, like, jump into business with anybody. I don't collaborate with just anybody. I, like, pick and choose who I want to collaborate with. Because, like you said, it comes down to trust. It's a huge part. So. And, uh, because I have the freedom to do that and say, I want to work with Kajal. I want to do this podcast with Kajal.

Speaker C: Why I'm asking is because these days, people are working remotely. Like, I have my team. I live in Singapore, and, uh, my team is in Philippines, Indonesia, India. There are a few people, I work with them as a freelance, you know, so, yeah, but if you have to work on big projects or collaborate, then definitely there needs to be a relationship. You should know the person and you should have that inner instinct telling you that yes, you can trust this person. Right. So when it comes to remote working, I think it becomes a bit challenging to easily trust anyone these days.

Speaker D: I think you have to, you have to know what you're doing. Right? You have to know it's about taking, like putting in faith. Look, I've, I've had people who've disappointed me. I'm not gonna lie to you. I mean, it's part of life, like, but part of it now is either, you know, they didn't show up when they said they were gonna, they didn't follow through working remotely. That hasn't changed a lot for me because, uh, I've worked from home for 15 years. That hasn't been like a huge adjustment. I think to answer you is, I've learned how to adapt to that for 15 years. So I've kind of built that foundation ready.

Speaker C: Right. So if you have to go back in time, say 10 years back from now, what or how would you do things differently?

Speaker D: Oh, that is an excellent question. Excellent question.

Speaker C: Because we are trying to help people who are 10 years behind you or five years behind you, you are ahead of them. So they should know what they need to do now.

Speaker D: What they need to do right now is to upskill right now. And you know, I hear people say I'm bored. Uh, that's constantly something I've heard through this pandemic. I've seen it on, um, post over and over again. They should be working on every skill that they have. They should be working on the plan. Because we have no idea how long this pandemic is going to be. That's the reality of it. They should be working on themselves right now. They should be investing into themselves right now. What would I have done differently 10 years ago? I think it came down to having a little bit more faith in myself. Does that make sense?

Speaker C: Yes.

Speaker D: You know, you start off as an entrepreneur, you have a lot of self doubt. You have a lot of is this gonna be successful? Is it, is this workout? You have no idea. In the beginning, if you're gonna run a 10 year business, you have no clue. So I think part of it is saying, I'm gonna take this chance, I'm gonna take this step, I'm gonna take this chance. I would rather have try something than never try something. I don't want to have regrets. There are certain things in my life That I want to do and I'm just going to try it. So take the chance. You have nothing to lose.

Speaker C: And what were some of your challenges?

Speaker D: I think a huge, uh. So photography is like a very big different field, right? Because it involves, first of all, involves like billing, building your client base, getting into art galleries. It's a lot. You are responsible for PR and marketing. That is something I know that a lot some businesses really fail on is the PR and the marketing aspect, which you and I both know doing what we do, how important PR marketing is.

Speaker C: It's not what you know, it's who you know sometimes.

Speaker D: Oh, that's. That's a huge part. I was taught that lesson. I was 18 years old, right? That was the first. Yeah, I was taught that by my father. Like, it's the most important thing when it comes to business. So are you building your network right now? Are you taking the time? Are you learning how to do PR and marketing? That is a huge, crucial part of entrepreneurship and that's something that you can't ignore. You can't say, okay, I'm gonna like build this today, but I have no marketing plan. I have no business plan. Do you have those in place? Like, I know what my five year plan is. I have thoughts about it. I've, you know, written it out. You could take the time right now and write out your business plan M

Speaker C: or at least write down what you're passionate about. One thing you would really want to do or love to do. I tell people it could be as simple as cooking. If you really love cooking, enjoy eating food, you know, and you're passionate about it. You have the knowledge about different ingredients or cuisines. Start thinking about, you know, how you can teach other people how to cook. Even that is an art and a skill in itself. It's as simple as that. You can think, okay, I am not educated, I've never worked. And all these negative inner dialogues. And I'll say, how about cooking? How about, you know, stitching? You know, maybe weaving or something like that? What is it that you're really passionate about? Because for sure, the next generation needs the cooking skills. The way it's going, people are eating outside and youngsters are so busy these days because they work long hours, they don't have time to cook for themselves. They end up eating outside, which is causing all the, you know, diseases in their body and their mind because sometimes you don't even know what you're putting into your system. So like you said, people should utilize this time now, especially during pandemic and at least identify what they are passionate about. It could be simplest thing like gardening, cooking, music, anything. You don't have to have a multimillion dollar business plan right now. Start from what you're passionate. What is your passion? And like I always say, make your passion your business. You know, it's so easy then. Then you don't feel bored or tired or, you know, you don't feel that I don't want to do it. Kind of. Those feelings won't arise very easily because there's passion.

Speaker D: And here's another tip, Kajal. Then this is. This is really crucial. Who you surround yourself with is huge for your success. I agree that that is gonna be really like make it or break it. You. If you're not surrounding yourself with positive people and that I'm not talking about people who are going to tell you what you want to hear, right?

Speaker C: You want people who are going to

Speaker D: tell you truth, who are going to be honest with you, give you feedback on what's working and what's not working. But that core amount, if you have Nate. And don't think I haven't had naysayers, had a lot of naysayers come my way, you know, or uh, you can't do this. You're not.

Speaker B: You just.

Speaker D: So that is really, really crucial that you build like a filter who to take the information and are they a reliable source?

Speaker C: Right? No, I believe and trust in what you're saying because I have definitely experienced it myself. There are a lot of people who pull you down and create doubts in your head. Don't surround yourself, uh, you know, with those. Like Jim Rohn says you are average of five people you surround yourself with. So it's interesting that you mentioned that. Amazing.

Speaker D: It's really important, right?

Speaker C: So, Rachel, what motivates you? Do you have a routine you follow to take care of your body, your mind, your emotions? Or is there a coach who really motivates you to stay inspired?

Speaker D: It's really easy answer. What motivates me is the kids at the orphanage. That's why I get up for every single day. That's my motivation. You know, I think about them, think about, you know, I have a financial goal of what I want to donate to the orphanage. So that's what motivates me every day.

Speaker C: And who inspires you the most?

Speaker D: Who inspires me the most? Probably this is a really honest answer. It's family members. It comes down to my mother, father, and it comes down to my aunt and uncle. Those are the four biggest role models. In my life. Interesting. What I've seen them do has been incredible. So I watched, I learned, I asked questions, and they're all, you know, very successful people in their businesses. And they passed down, you know, the information and said, uh, hey, this is how you do not. And then I watched them become successful, and then they said, okay, now it's time to get back to the world. And then I watched that, too. So that's. I've been extremely lucky that way. Those. Those are my four biggest role models in my life.

Speaker C: Interesting. Yeah, you are lucky because these days, people don't have that kind of human touch, even with their own family members, I would say, which is very important. And we're trying to make people understand that it is important to be human. That should be one of your core values. Don't get, you know, attracted by shiny object syndrome and, you know, do not value the loved ones you have around you. You are lucky. So I don't take it for granted.

Speaker D: I don't take it for granted at all.

Speaker C: Cool. So do you have a favorite quote, uh, Rachel, or something that really, uh, has, you know, like, stuck with you and you? Yeah. Quote.

Speaker D: Yeah. By Gandhi. Be the change you wish to see in the world. That's my mantra.

Speaker C: Right.

Speaker D: I have it on. I was so excited because a couple months ago, I found it on shirts. I bought two shirts with it.

Speaker A: Right.

Speaker D: That is my quote. That is my mantra.

Speaker C: Interesting. I always tell people the same. Well, people.

Speaker D: People are always complaining about what they see in the world.

Speaker C: Right, right.

Speaker D: Right. So I. I'm an advocate for women's. I stand up for women's rights. I stand up for diversity. I stand up because I am an Indian Jewish woman. I've had a lot of racism, a lot of antisemitism. I've had very scary situations. So I use my voice for all those huge. On women, supporting women. That's extremely important to me. So, yeah. So instead of seeing what's wrong in the world, I want to be part of that change. So that's. That's my mantra.

Speaker C: Awesome. And talk to us about your book. Rachel, you mentioned you are published author. Uh, what kind of books do you write and what are the titles of your books?

Speaker D: My book is called Finding your Way, When Life Changes yous Plans. And it's an autobiography. It's my true story.

Speaker B: Wow.

Speaker C: I love that.

Speaker D: I'm writing the second one.

Speaker C: Awesome. Very interesting. So, Rachel, before we say bye, what is one piece of advice you would want to give entrepreneurs to escape burnouts or increase their productivity to take care

Speaker D: of themselves and to take breaks and take time for themselves. So this is. Some of my friends know this, but so I block out one hour a day, my schedule, and that's my hour. Not I, uh, like, I'll take a walk, I'll do something that's gonna help my soul. It's gonna help my health. I'm very big on taking care of my mental health because I had ptsd. So I'm big on taking care of my mental health. So taking a walk is very peaceful for me. Or resting for an hour. So that's something I would give to entrepreneurs. Every single hour of your day does not need to be scheduled. And my. My days are. They're pretty scheduled, but one hour belongs to me and I hold on to that.

Speaker C: Interesting. Very nice. Connecting to your own self. I would say disconnecting from the external noises and just, uh, going back to your own self. Very nice. Thank you for that. So, Rachel, please tell our listeners. Where can they find you?

Speaker D: I'm on LinkedIn. That's where you'll find me. Under Rachel back.

Speaker C: Okay, awesome. I'm going to put that in the show notes. Thank you so much for your time, Rachel. Have an amazing evening and thank you.

Speaker D: Thank you for having me. Kajal, it was so wonderful to see you. Thank you.

Speaker C: It was a pleasure. Thanks. Bye.

Speaker B: M. Thank you so much for listening. M. Do you know fragrance remains in the hands that gives rose. Would you please share this episode with your entrepreneur friends so we can help each other escape burnout, increase productivity, and achieve our goals faster? Also, let me know what topics you want me to cover in our future episodes@, uh, infobodymindsolution.com. would you please take a moment to

Speaker C: rate and review this show?

Speaker B: That would mean the world to me. And yes, yes, don't forget to subscribe. This is your host, kk. Until next time.

Speaker A: Take care.

Speaker C: Bye.

Speaker B: Bye.