THE END OF ROMANTICISING ENTREPRENEURSHIP
I get so many messages asking me what I do exactly, how I am able to live my privileged lifestyle, how I got here etc., and it makes me think of a phrase my dad uses: “Everybody wants to go the heaven, but nobody wants to die”.
You see…I don’t have any more hours in a day than you do. I just made a habit out of creating my own opportunities, taking (calculated) risks and most importantly, putting in the work, always giving 200%. I continuously challenge myself to find smarter, more efficient ways to get things done. To me, easy is boring. So is too much of a routine or playing it safe. I’m always leveling up by choosing the difficult paths, out of my comfort zone, cause I love the thrill of a good challenge.
But the number of times I failed? Countless! None of which I shared on Social Media and still learning every day. By now I’ve embraced the falling, cause I know from experience I’ll always stand up again: wiser & stronger. The anticipation of the knockout punch, is what makes it interesting!
A lil’ bit of blood, loads of sweat and a ton of tears is what it takes. Sacrifice. Patience. Continuous improvement and investment. Being flexible
and constantly re-strategizing. Smart scaling & delegating. Staying away from negativity and spending your energy wisely. But also, taking time
to rest and reflect.
I think entrepreneurship is highly romanticized and when reality kicks in, many just give up. Everyone wants things fast and easy, yet nothing worthwhile having is obtained immediately without effort. To the contrary, I believe, you have to be willing to “die”, in order to proceed to “heaven”.
If you’re not to some degree, you’ll have no choice but to settle, which is fine too, depending on your vision for life.
So this freedom I have, all the things you see me do, none of it comes falling out of the sky. It’s purely me reaping seeds I’ve planted for years. It’s me manifesting everything I visualized, pored all my energy into. I wish I could tell you a more fairytale-like story, but the good news is, that it’s fairly “simple” and it’s entirely up to you! 😉
📍Location: Panamá, Central America
- Published in Business & Entrepreneurship, Self-Discovery & Growth
When The Root Is Deep…Why I don’t have resolutions for 2018.
Ah, here we are, 2017…almost over! It has prominently been a year of discovery and learning for me, a year of rooting…trying, succeeding, trying, failing, trying again, and in the process: getting to know myself and my skills, evolving, growing. The year started with heart break and loss, and almost ended with a burn out and basically everything in between (high and low) came by.
The decision to stop with fashion blogging, allowed me to allocate so much of my time to exploring amazing opportunities that came onto my path. I’ve been working on several marketing projects, all of them for different branches, which allowed me to get a good insight into what I can do with my knowledge and skills and which kind of projects I enjoy doing the most. From SEO for a dentist company to organising a complete fashion week and everything in between. From struggles with time-management, underestimating work load (big time!), miscommunications, doing business with friends (not a good idea btw!), disappointments in the quality of work of partners, while you were bringing your A-game, and more….So many challenges and stumbles, but so much wisdom gained. In my opinion, ”to stumble is to live” and I’m extremely grateful to be able to say that my other two companies, including the Wulterkens Customized Wear Store in Hilversum have been thriving, with a total sales increase of 280% compared to 2016! 🙂 🙂
These accomplishments that I’ve worked so hard for making the longest days (roughly, 90 hours a week) also had a counter side. At some point I felt like I was numb, like I was on autopilot, just getting done what needed to be done and I wasn’t really allowing myself to feel and fully experience all the things happening around me. I didn’t even stand still to enjoy my accomplishments, which is not how I know myself. I’ve been verrrry close to a burn out, gained quite some weight due to having a major foot injury and not eating (yes, not eating is worse than eating too much!). I’ve really slacked on taking care of myself, which I’m not proud of.
Despite being in contact with so many people and having thousands of social media followers, I’ve never felt more alone and misunderstood. At several points I felt like an alien, when for instance, IF there was a rare moment that I had some free time, I just didn’t know what to do with it! It got me feeling bored and I found myself unable to enjoy things that basically everyone does, like watching Netflix for too long or going out (which lead me to getting into too much work, because I somehow had this desperate need to be productive at all times). I’ve ”lost” so many ”friends”, because I simply couldn’t (or wouldn’t) keep up socially. Relationship wise, it has been a challenge too, because after 8 years and working together 24/7, despite the love definitely being there, it’s not easy to keep that fire burning hot…
I guess it’s all about choices and priorities….and despite knowing how important balance is, I think I failed on balancing out this year…Yet, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Things happen for a reason. Analysing my 2017, I clearly see everything and everyone I needed, came to me, exactly when I needed it and the same goes for the other way around. Everything (and everyone) I felt like I ”lost”, was for the better and lead me to something else. I’ve come to care a lot less about things that would upset me before, such as not being able to post good content regularly on social media and thus, losing many followers. Definitely upped my game of putting things into perspective, which brought me a lot of peace. I’ve learned to be more direct, raw and honest about my thoughts and feelings towards people…and I’ve gratefully seen a lot of wishes that I articulated, either through speech or pen to paper in 2016 coming true in 2017 (for better or for worse, because even some of the good ones came with lessons or some kind of repercussion).
So there it is…2018…in front of us: 365 days full of beautiful, magical opportunities. But here it comes…Apart from financial targets (still an entrepreneur 😉 ), I do not have resolutions for the new year 🙂 .
Why, you ask? Well…because I’ve learned in 2017 that we are constant works in progress and live happens, it’s so messy and plans change, constantly. I can only hope to experience as much as possible and stumble, stumble and stumble, again and again. To live kindly and lovingly, should really be the only resolution for all of us.
I do, however, visualise for myself a year of continuous prosperity and personal growth. A year where I just enjoy and handle things as they come. I also see more rest and (self) love, as I have learned enough to become more picky with regards to the projects I take on. I’m realising how fortunate I am to be in the luxurious position, where I get to be picky on which jobs to take on, so why not make use of it. Moreover, I see a healthy, fitter, stronger version of myself, more mentally and socially balanced. And I see a lot of traveling and adventure, starting january 2018 with Boston & New York. I just can’t wait!!
”When the root is deep, there is no reason to fear the wind”. I found that 2017 has rooted me and my businesses, so whatever winds come along in 2018, I’m flexible to bend and fearlessly ready!
Hoping you have a lot of beautiful memories and solid lessons to look back on for 2017 and wishing you all a healthy, happy, loving, prosperous 2018! Let’s make some magic!
After all, it’s up to you and you only…and the best is yet to come 😉 .
Oh, and I might not say this enough, but to have you here or on my social media, watching, ”listening”/ reading and spending your time with me and my thoughts instead of doing anything else at the moment, makes me the most grateful. Thank you!!
Sending you all my LOVE & LIGHT, party hard & be safe!
Nadira
P.S.1 Apparently 2017 was a sexy year on Instagram haha, grateful for the love! Not following yet? Click on the picture below 😉
P.S.2 In case you were wondering: earrings in first picture are by Dori Csengeri. If you’re interested in this stunning jewellery brand and are located in the Netherlands, contact the exclusive Dutch agent Limor.
Purple Rain
Because it’s raining and feels like winter is already here (yes, I’m a drama queen, who is not a fan of seasonal transitions) AND I was dared to use this legendary song as a blog title ;-).
This time no deep philosophies…It’s been a bit quiet from my side because I have been in over my head with work. Currently juggling 10 different projects of which 4 Marketing Consultancy projects for my company To The Nines, and the rest are (pretty huge) projects for the Wulterkens Store and my textile printing company EW Products. We’ve grown a lot with so many new customers, of which some very big, well known companies and brands (NS – Dutch National Railways, fashion label SuperTrash, many media companies and tv-shows etc.).
Also, I’m on the board of entrepreneurs of all the stores in the Gooische Brink (the passageway where my store is located), which makes me responsible for increasing traffic to that part of the city and organising fun events. With the ”Midnight Shopping” event coming up October 6th, it’s taking up a lot of my time as well.
One of the highlights of the end of august is us being sponsors of the Africa Fashion Week Europe with the Wulterkens Store. It was an awesome event, with amazingly talented designers. To check out my absolute favorite, click here. Some of you might have seen a bit in my Instagram stories and I have some pictures of the night on my Instagram. Up next is the Asia Fashion Week Europe in the city of Arnhem at the end of november, of which we are sponsors as well!
Another highlight: since January this year I’ve been working on developing a marketing campaign for Hilversum City, because Hilversum is an awesome city, with the best specialty stores, all the chain-stores you need and every kind of restaurant you can imagine. It’s known as the media city from which all news is spread to around the globe. It’s the 17th biggest city of the Netherlands, but feels like a village, with a community of friendly people, where everyone pretty much knows everyone. We felt at home very quickly since we’ve moved here, because everything is closeby and there is always something happening. Together with some fellow marketing experts, entrepreneurs and the municipality of Hilversum, we sat together and thought out a campaign that would make people want to come to Hilversum and the people of Hilversum proud to be from Hilversum.
This week the campaign was launched all over the city, and people are very excited about it. Social Media is exploding with people talking about it and so are the local newspapers. For the campaign, the Wulterkens Store is one of the merchandising partners. The municipality spread about 10,000 postcard ladders, which includes one from the Wulterkens Store (with my face on it haha) and it’s been crazy busy since. I’m hoping you will come by and check out the awesome city of Hilversum and get a t-shirt of course! 🙂
Another project I’m really looking forward to is the Marketing training I will be giving in my home country Suriname, along with two other marketing experts, whom I also happy to call friends. It was planned for October this year, but due to our busy schedules and us wanting to make it an unforgettable event, we decided to postpone it to February 2018. It’s very exciting for me to go back to my home town and finally be able to contribute with my knowledge, expertise and experience. My Surinamese readers who are active in the field of marketing, I’m hoping you will join and learn the latest in marketing. Stay tuned and start marking your calendars for February, I will keep you posted on the exact date!
Most of the other projects I’m working on are in progress, so I can’t say too much about them yet. A lot has changed…80 hour-work weeks have become a normality, but I am not complaining at all! I am extremely grateful for all the amazing things coming my way allowing me to keep on pushing myself, growing, evolving and shining.
”Honey I know, I know, I know times are changing
It’s time we all reach out for something new
That means you too
You say you want a leader
But you can’t seem to make up your mind
I think you better close it”. – Prince, Purple Rain.
I wish all the same for you. Go get it!
Love,
Nadira
- Published in Business & Entrepreneurship, Written Archives 2013-2018
New Beginnings & Perfect Endings
That moment…when you just got off the rollercoaster ride…pumped with adrenaline, slightly nauseous, overwhelmed, kinda tired, but you are ready to go for another ride!
Most of you who follow me on my social media know that on December 1st, I opened my very first physical store: The Wulterkens Customized Wear Store in the Gooische Brink Passage, Hilversum!
Needless to say the past few months have been unbelievably hectic and crazy. We received the keys to the store on November 7th, and we had our grand opening on December 1st, so in 24 days, we built up the entire store. Let’s just say…the next time someone says they are ”busy”, because they have a few things going on, I’m willing to give them the ”batman meme” slap.
I’ve managed to get things done that I never thought I could. Tackling one challenge at a time, constant problem solving, a lot of sweat, some tears as well…In those 3 weeks, I’ve learned so much, I feel like a completely different person and it was all so worth it. I will get into some lessons learned (there have been a lot) in future posts.
2016 has taken a completely unexpected turn for us, amazing opportunities came onto our path, which we literally grabbed with both hands and along with the help of so many loving friends and beautiful souls around us, we couldn’t be more grateful. For an impression, you can find the after movie of the grand opening of the Wulterkens Store below.
We’ve also moved to a great apartment in Hilversum, so we’re settling into our new home. In retrospect, 2016, was an amazing year. We’ve taken our businesses Wulterkens and Customized Wear to a whole other level, bringing them together to the consumer in the Wulterkens Store. We’ve launched a new t-shirt brand King Of Rebels. I can finally call myself Nadira Ramautarsing, MSc. Marketing! Looking back to my first post this year, Raise Your Standards, I’ve accomplished most of my goals. I am fit, healthy, taking things to the next level, focussing, prioritising, back on track. Yes! Madame Selfmade has been put on hold for a little while, because while I am superwoman, there are some limits to my powers, such as the 24 hours I only have a day, but stay tuned! Mastering the moonwalk is something I will pick up in 2017 as well ;-).
There is this saying that ”every next level of life demands another version of you”. It took me a while to evolve (read more in The Unknown), but I look back in gratitude, and I am so excited for what 2017 will bring.
I wish you all beautiful holidays, with loving people and great food!
Take care and much LOVE,
Nadira
Full Outfitdetails in my photo diary: Jingle Bells 
Shop:
More of my outfit here.
Big Bets & Jumping
A little bit longer than a week ago I had the privilege of being invited to the Inspiration 360 event in the Ziggodome in Amsterdam. The evening was more than inspiring with influential entrepreneurs as keynote speakers such as Sir Richard Branson, Bear Grylls, Anita Alberse and Al Gore. My partner got lucky to meet Sir Richard Branson personally, which was awesome.
A lot that has been said that night has been confirming to us that we’re on the right path and track with our mindsets. At the same time we’ve learned a lot. One of the things Anita Alberse said was really interesting and not long after, her words have really guided us while making some very important business decisions.
What she explained was that in investing, but also in life, we tend to make a number of small bets, because we assume that to be safer. However, according to the Blockbuster strategy she speaks of, there is less risk in making fewer large investments or so called ”big bets”. Going all out on one project appears to be a safer strategy.
This made me think of a video I came across of Steve Harvey, who was talking about taking risks in life and business, which he referred to as ”jumping”. ”If you want to be successful, you have to jump” he said.
As we speak, there are big bets being made and my partner and I decided to make a jump with our business. The risk is high, but the rewards are expected to be much higher, so we’re doing it! Unfortunately you will have to wait a little bit longer before I can tell you what exactly will be happening, but believe me as I say, it’s a big step for us and it’s going to be awesome!
This being said, I probably will not be able to blog consistently during the upcoming two months. Will do my best to do a post at least once every 3-4 weeks though, so no worries.
Leaving you with a quote by Mark Zuckerberg: ”The biggest risk is not taking any risk… In a world that’s changing really quickly, the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks”.
Sending you all my love!
Nadira
Full photo diary & Outfit details below.
Sweater: SheIn. Shoes: Timbaland. Bag: River Island. Hat: H&M.
Outfit details:
Photography by Jesse Verboog.
Nadira R. Ramautarsing, MSc.
It’s been a while loves, I hope you haven’t missed me too much! For those of you who are following me on Instagram or Facebook know that I’ve been in my hometown Paramaribo for the past month.
It was a mix of pleasure and pain. Yes, I know…you’re probably thinking, ”Pain”?
So…My daddy, who lives in Suriname, turned 60 and we celebrated with a big party, which was soo much fun!! On the other hand there was the pain and struggle of finishing my Master thesis. Nothing is worse than being in paradise and having to spend all your time on your laptop doing SPSS analyses!
The struggle paid off though…As of last week I’m proud to officially be able to call myself Master of Science in Marketing!
Despite everything I still managed to enjoy being home, quality time with my parents and close friends mixed with a little business on the side as well.
We celebrated the victory and huge load falling off my shoulders a bit, but at the same time I started a 16-week intensive personal training program by Elite.Fit. It’s heavy both mentally and physically, meant to change your lifestyle.I really needed a challenge, so I’m excited. Will update you guys with more information in the coming weeks.
Oh and great news, this blog is getting a complete makeover, with so much more lifestyle, beauty and fashion coming your way. I’m so excited about it, so stay tuned!!
There is so much going on with business, fun projects coming up, and so many other things on my mind, all will reveal itself in due time.
For this blog/photodiary I wanted to do something sophisticated yet playful and casual. I decided to play with patterns and prints and add some funky colour to the black & whites. I hope you guys love it as much as I do. Also, I’ve discovered my new favourite store SheIn, where I get the most adorable outfits for less, because every fashionable entrepreneur loves a good bargain right? Check out below for more detailed info!
Sending you my love,
Nadira
P.S. Below you can find the full photo diary and outfit details, if you click on the product pictures you can shop the outfit immediately, or even faster, click here.
OOTD: Blouse, Skirt, Shoes & Bag Shop here: Shein.com
Outfit details: (Click on Product Pictures to go to shop).
Skirts: Similar
Bag: Similar
Shoes: Similar
The Illusion Of Comfort
We all love comfort and we often associate having certain degree of comfort with happiness. Wealth provides us with comfort, which is one of the reasons why we strive for wealth. We think if we’re wealthy, we get more comfort, and we will become happier. This way of thinking results in us working our asses off for a comfortable life, whether it is for ourselves or for our loved ones.
But the thing is…Comfort is actually an illusion. An illusion that too many of us become slaves of, because it’s so easy to get sucked into.
Don’t lose yourself in the illusion of Comfort.
Many don’t know this, but at one point in my life, in the very beginning of starting with our businesses, I was extremely broke. We never worked with any investors and banks were very anxious at that time to give out loans to startups. At that time I was still a Bachelor student. Apart from some financial aid from my dad, we invested everything we earned (which wasn’t that much yet) into our new brand, which at the time wasn’t generating much income yet. It was a vicious circle. As you might know, brand awareness takes a load of time, I’m talking decades, not a year or two.
I found myself facing a harsh truth of life: Struggle to pay the rent and bills. I’ve never had to struggle like that before, because I was lucky to have my parents who always supported me financially all the way through college.
I had two options:
1. I could borrow more money from my parents.
2. I could give this struggling life a go.
I felt like the first wasn’t really an option, as it was my choice to start a business and not go for a 9-5 job at some multinational. Also, I felt, I was an adult, and it just felt wrong to keep running to my daddy for money, so there was a lot of ego and pride involved too.
So, I decided to give the struggling life a go, because I wanted to see if I could really survive. My dad started his consulting company from scratch too, so I should be able to do so as well.
It was tough…I mean reaaally tough for quite a while. I wouldn’t call myself spoiled, but I come from a good family and always got everything I needed, and almost everything I wanted. So it was a real lifestyle shift for me. However, I am very grateful for this period in my life, because I’ve learned and grown so much from it. I’ve gotten more tough, my mind got stronger. When you know you are capable of living uncomfortably, there isn’t much you’re afraid of anymore. I realised that fear of failure is actually the fear of having to live an uncomfortable life, but I survived…and I was fine. I know now that, no matter what happens in life, I will find a way to survive. I can easily adapt to changing circumstances.
Apart from learning great financial management skills, I realized how many things we tend to buy that we actually don’t need. I was used to buying new clothes every month (maybe even every week!), so many accessories, and all those little things that we splurge on and we don’t need. All the food we buy that goes bad, because we buy too much. You have to become inventive, creative to make the most out of what you have. The constant realization that every euro you spend now, you won’t have to spend tomorrow, so it has to be spent wisely. While it is not a way of living that I would like to maintain, as it is quite extreme, it has taught me so much. I’ve decided to maintain this new mentality and it still serves me well, because no matter how much you earn, it doesn’t hurt to be conscious.
The new mentality – habit of living with less – basically refers to no unnecessary shopping (Ask yourself, do I really need this? And be honest!), eating in (cooking), staying in (entertain yourself at home).
One of the results of employing this mentality is something I am extremely grateful for, which is looking for happiness from within, rather from external sources.
It’s the realization that, buying that ’’new dress that you don’t really need, but it’s soo cute and it will look great on instagram’’, is fun, but not real happiness.
During the struggle period I had to find ‘’free things’’ to do, things that I could enjoy without having to spend any cent. Apart from working a lot, I started reading more, writing more, streaming television series, enjoying nature, working out. All things that costs relatively little to no money, but are actually really good for you. Being in my early twenties, with all my friends still going out partying and splurging, it was tough. But as a result, I became happier from within, and it wasn’t based on external factors. I found out, that I didn’t need a lot of comfort to make me happy.
Sometimes the uncomfortable things in life are there to teach us lessons because to go through a change of habit, we need to feel uncomfortable. – Mo Seetubtim
Give it a try if you can. Learn to live with less. Become comfortable with living uncomfortably. Then you’ll realize that there’s more to life than finding comfort. Because after all, comfort is just an illusion.
Love,
Nadira
P.S. I bet you guys didn’t know I could walk on water…;-). Pictures taken at Babunhol Resort in my home country Suriname by Surej Tul.
Manipulate Your Own Mind
Starting From Small, It Becomes Big – The trick to manipulate your own mind.
One thing I’ve learned up to this point in life is that the mind has a memory. And it’s damn smart; it “subconsciously” recognizes patterns. Once the patterns become a habit, it’s hard to stop. It requires extra mental strength to break the habit. This is why it’s so difficult to stop doing something that you are used to doing, like smoking or becoming a morning person. At the same time, it offers the opportunity to create better habits for life, given that you are aware of this and have the mental power to pursue an activity long enough for your mind to make it a recognizable pattern.
“Starting from small, it becomes big.”
Starting with white lies, repeatedly, you become a compulsive liar.
Starting with shoplifting a candy bar, repeatedly, you become a thief.
At the same time…
Starting with exercising at least 3 times a week, repeatedly, you become fit.
Starting with eating healthy everyday, repeatedly, you become well and healthy.
Starting with walking with your back straight, repeatedly, you have an elegant posture.
Starting with smiling and being positive, you become a happy person to be around inside and out and attract people with the same energy to you.
Starting with giving unused clothes and loose change to the homeless, repeatedly, you become empathetic and giving.
Starting with sharing things with others, repeatedly, you become generous.
Starting with only doing things that align with your core values, repeatedly, you are a person of meaningful values.
Starting with reading, repeatedly, you become addicted to learning.
Starting with making sure you get what you need done for the day, repeatedly, you are always on top of everything.
Starting with being focused, each task at a time, repeatedly, you can easily get into the flow and be productive.
Starting with thinking outside the box, repeatedly, you become extremely creative.
Starting with getting out of your comfort zone, repeatedly, you become confident and fearless.
And so on…
Conclusion:
Starting with telling yourself what you want to achieve in life, repeatedly, you will get there.
Starting with just getting it started, repeatedly, anything you want to be and do, you can be and do.
So instead of thinking ‘’It’s too hard to stop or change’’ or ‘’I don’t know where to start’’, just start, and go step by step, day by day. Self-Mastery comes with consistency or as the great Aristotle once said ‘’We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.’’
Love,
Nadira
P.S. Pictures taken on a lovely day out in Haarlem, the Netherlands. Such a lovely city.
Outfit details: Sweater: H&M, Pants: Missguided, Heels: Mango, Sunglasses: ZeroUv, Lips: Dolce K by Kyliecosmetics.
Raise Your Standards
The Master, The Fighter & The Moonwalker
It’s February 1, 2016 and I honestly feel like I haven’t properly started 2016…at least not the way I wanted to. Having spent half of the month of January in my home country Suriname, I was out of my usual working environment. When I arrived in the Netherlands, I really needed some time to get back out of vacation mode into a normal routine, with a serious case of Jet lag hitting me combined with a stubborn flu, from which I’m still recovering two weeks later.
Right before I left for Suriname for the holidays I felt so overwhelmed by everything I was doing that I knew I was close to suffering from a burn out. For a long time I suffered from writer’s block and lack of inspiration, just because I was trying to accomplish too many things at the same time (which is also why you haven’t heard from me for quite a while). I’m not the most creative person, but I found myself completely lacking creativity. It felt like I lost my Mojo.
Suriname, which still feels like home, was good to me, as it always is. The (too little) time spent relaxing, swimming, sleeping, taking walks in nature has done me good, yet still when I came back to the Netherlands, I didn’t feel ready to handle the chaos again. I still don’t feel completely ready, but I guess I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.
2016 is going to be an interesting year, at the least. It’s the year I’ll be graduating from the University with a Master’s degree in Marketing. It’s the year I will officially launch my third business Madame Selfmade, which I will tell you guys more about soon (for real this time). It’s also the year I’ll bring my other 2 businesses Customized Wear and Wulterkens to a higher level. With a completely newly furnished office, and an entire new look and feel of my Sport, Fashion & Lifestyle brand Wulterkens, it has become both exciting and challenging to bring it to the next level.
2016 is the year of ‘’Raising Standards’’.
I hope to find my balance of being the workaholic my 3 businesses + thesis require me to be, with exploring meditation and boxing. Quite a combination, I know! I’m already working on becoming more skilled in Boxing, as I found it’s the perfect workout for me to blow off steam, and it’s most definitely the best way to get/stay in a killer shape. Meditation appears to be more similar to boxing than I thought, as it is more of a ”fight” than anything else now. Luckily, I have the best guidance for both boxing and meditation. Another goal of mine this year is to learn the Moonwalk! (the people who know me closely are probably laughing out really loud right know, but it’s just soooo friggin’ cool, so I’mma do it!).
Raising standards (with everything) & Be even more Badass than before….Sounds like a plan right?
As you can tell from my goals and responsibilities, it’s easy for me to become overwhelmed and burnt out. I’ve given it a lot of thought, but for me, doing less is simply not an option at the moment. I’ve always been a multitasker, but one thing I’m working on now, is really taking things step by step. With a lot of focus on each step/task, and not thinking about the other steps/tasks until I’ve completed the first. This focus helps me with completing the tasks at hand with success, without becoming stressed with all the other things I have to do. So I write down everything I have to do, I prioritise them according the level of importance or urgency, and then I just focus on doing whatever needs to be done first. One thing at a time, and so on…
While this seems logical and easy, it’s really not if your head is all over the place, and you think you can do 4 things at the same time and still be efficient. This was probably the reason I was close to a burn out 2 months ago, so I’m hoping that by mastering this ”step by step, one thing at a time- technique”, I will be able to handle things better with less stress, be more efficient and productive.
I would love to hear about your resolutions and how they are going so far. Or maybe you are starting along with me today, February first? Remember, you can start (over) at any time, you don’t need to wait another year. All you need is a new dawn and a new day!
I had to really discipline myself the past 2 weeks to get into it, and so far, so good. Still have a long way to go, but nobody ever said it was going to be easy. If it was easy, everyone would do it! ;-). Oh…and if you happen to know any other handy tactics on dealing with the above, please share!
Love,
Nadira
P.S. As some of you might know, I am a fan of simplicity, and there is nothing more intriguing than a woman in a simple, little black dress. The one I’m wearing is called MARA, exclusively available at one of my favorite Dutch online shops www.jurkjes.com.
Heels & Clutch: Zara. Necklace Tattoo: www.chiquetattoos.nl. Earrings: H&M.
Lipstick: A mix of Chili by MAC Cosmetics & 85722 by Contem1g Make up.
Location: Hotel Royal Torarica, Paramaribo, Suriname.
When on vacation in my beautiful home country Suriname, I would definitely recommend The Torarica Group of Hotels, if you find luxury and comfort a must. I had the privilege to shoot in the Royal botanical garden, with peaceful and impressive Buddha, ponds with mini waterfalls and local Tropical fishes, the saltwater swimming pool, Gazebo’s, a unique giant chess board and the Mangrove forest along the Suriname River.
Big thank you to Royal Torarica for the hospitality!
Photography by Surej Tul, special thank you! Copyrights: Nadira R. Ramautarsing.
You’re More Successful Than You Think: 15 Signs
For the past few days I’ve been reflecting on the concept of success, and from personal experience, especially when you hold high standards for yourself (like I do), it can sometimes feel like you’re a bit of a failure. Usually we tend to focus on the big picture, which takes (loads of) time to achieve, and we forget the ‘’little things’’ that make us grow better. Under the veil of ‘’The only time you should look back, is to see how far you’ve come’’, and ”It’s not about the destination, but the journey”, I’ve come up with 15 signs of success that we tend to forget to recognize in the process of getting where we want to be.
- You have raised your standards.
You don’t tolerate certain negative behavior anymore, from others, but also from yourself. You believe in accountability and taking responsibility for actions. You spend your time wisely with only those who add value, instead of those who steal your energy and fill your life with pointless drama.
- You are aware that failure and setbacks are part of life and growth.
Nobody has success 100% of the time, life is not a Disney story ( and even Disney stories depict setbacks!).
Life is about victories and losses (ying & yang). Every setback can be a stepping stone to something better, if you choose to look at and handle it that way. But really there is no such thing as a setback. It’s all just part a fun rollercoaster journey.
- You accept what you can’t change.
Our power only reaches to a certain degree in many cases, especially when you are dependent on external factors. If you can’t change it, change the way you look at it. If you can change your negative perspective on situations to a positive one, then you are successful.
- You change what you can.
On the same note, there are many things we do have control over. Successful people don’t sit around accepting the negatives that are changeable. They get out there and do something about it!
5. You let go of things that don’t make you feel good.
Self-love is success. Love yourself enough to say ‘no’ to anything that doesn’t make you happy, doesn’t serve your purpose, or drags you down. It’s not narcissistic or egoistic, because if you don’t choose you, no one will.
- You have learned to appreciate who you see in the mirror.
Love yourself. You are awesome.
- You know ‘’your people’’ who would do anything for you.
You know exactly who really has your back and who only pretends that they do. It’s a painful realization and process, but once you learn to see the signs, you can stay away from those people.
- You’re grateful
Because you know you’re blessed. Even though life is not perfect, there is always plenty to be thankful for.
- You applaud for others’ successes.
You know what it takes to create success, and you admire others for reaching it. When others succeed, it doesn’t mean you fail. You applaud the people who rise to the top. The more positive energy you give to other people’s victories, the more you will create your own.
- You have passions & goals that you pursue.
You have unique gifts and talents. You know you have something wonderful to contribute to the world. Not only do you know it, you pursue it. It’s this excitement of something to look forward to, that drives you.
- You refuse to be a victim.
You know that life doesn’t always happen to you. Life is 10% of what happens to you and 90% how you react to it. No matter what happens, rise up and conquer anyway.
- You don’t care what other people think.
You can’t please everyone, and you know it. You know that the standards with which society judges people is unrealistic. So you just keep true to yourself and love the person you are.
- You love deeply and open yourself up to be loved by others.
Love is risky, and sometimes scary, because there is always the risk of rejection or getting hurt. If you open your heart enough to love and be loved, then you are successful.
- You always look on the bright side.
It’s all about the perspective you choose. Life can be full of disappointments –Or, learning opportunities. No negative experience is ever wasted as long as you learn from it.
- You are happy.
To me, pure happiness with what is, is the ultimate definition of success. It doesn’t matter what the balance is in your bank account, how big your house is, or how many fancy vacations you take. If you are happy, then you are successful in life.
I hope you can recognize a lot of these signs and that this will give you a little motivation boost to keep at it. Don’t worry if you find yourself not at the above mentioned points yet, because it’s always a process, take your time, just keep moving forward.
Keep growing and learning!
Lots of love,
Nadira
Outfitdetails: Straight Outta Gym Tshirt by Wulterkens. Blazer & Boots from Zara, Hat from Missguided, Skirt from Nasty Gal.
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