BRAND MINDS starts on Friday. Upgrade your mindset for success!

BRAND MINDS LIVE 2020 has launched its live streaming and networking platform. If you haven’t bought a ticket yet, now it’s time to upgrade your mindset for success!

The event starts on Friday, September 25th and ends on Saturday, September 26th. Business-class and First-class ticket participants will join us on Sunday, September 27th for Marketing Masterclass with Martin Lindstrom.

4 ways participants are invited to take advantage of the BRAND MINDS LIVE Streaming platform for business and personal growth

1. NETWORKING – More people to meet, more opportunities for success

Networking is possibly one of the most important soft skills that professionals and entrepreneurs need to acquire and develop. Successful businessman Robert Kiyosaki said this:

The richest people in the world look for and build networks, everyone else looks for work.

The event participants are professionals working in various industries and verticals in 50 countries. BRAND MINDS helps them achieve their goals by providing them with extended networking opportunities inside the live stream platform.

The participants are invited to find connections searching by name, country, company and interests and connect by messaging. At an in-person event, one could only network during half-hour breaks or over lunch, with a limited number of people.

At BRAND MINDS LIVE participants are offered the opportunity to network with a larger number of people in the days leading to and during the event.

2. SCHEDULE VIDEO MEETINGS to establish trust

Apart from messaging, participants are provided with another way of networking, via video.

Event participants can schedule video meetings and thus take their networking strategy to the next level. Seeing the other person is a great way to connect with each other and establish trust.

3. CHECK THE ACTIVATIONS of BRAND MINDS LIVE Partners

Our event is supported by Visa, UniCredit Bank and UniCredit Leasing, BMW, Coca-Cola, TikTok, Nespresso, CEZ Romania, Regina Maria, Lidl, ProTV, KissFM, Carturesti, Bucharest Business Institute, One United, Fratelli, Simion Baciu, Mavericks, Curtea Veche, Editura Trei, Publica, Social Bee, Underline and White Image.

Participants are invited to visit our partners’ rooms in the live streaming platform. Some of our partners are running contests with amazingly valuable prizes. Others have prepared great offers created specifically for BRAND MINDS participants.

4. GROW YOUR KNOWLEDGE – Keep reading, keep learning

World-changers keep learning. Carturesti, one of the largest bookstore chains in Romania, together with the event’s main publishing partners, Publica, Curtea Veche and Trei have prepared an exquisite selection of books dedicated to the BRAND MINDS community of highly-skilled professionals and entrepreneurs.

Event participants are invited to find their favourite books on business and personal growth in Carturesti Book shop, where they can also purchase them.

BRAND MINDS LIVE starts on Friday. Get your tickets!

Why a Pursuit for Personal Achievement Offers us our Greatest Successes

We all want to be successful. But how do you define success?

In this article, Caroline shares her own pursuit for personal achievement and success, what being successful meant to her in the past and what success means to her now.

The Fake Message of Success

My life was a catastrophe.

My dreams of future success and happiness were over.

I had failed.

At age 24 I had not gained the one for my university degree, that I had so desperately worked for. I had been given endless messages that anything less than this would ruin my chances of succeeding in training as a psychiatrist and being admitted into a prestigious psychological society.

What did my life mean now?

What could I achieve other than anything mediocre?

The idea was terrifying and for a time I was submerged in fear, confusion, sadness and self-reproach for not being good enough.

This did not last for long. My strong self-belief, deep sense of what was meaningful and my determination to achieve turned this around for me.

No-one was going to tell me that I wasn’t good enough. No one and nothing was going to stand in my way of living the life I had chosen for myself. In fact, throughout my secondary school years, the teachers had told me that I would never go to University.

What is success anyway?

Our concept of success relates to the experiences which have been imposed on us from birth. That first smile, first steps, first word, ability to make friends, to be popular, get good grades, have the perfect partner, gain our dream job and it goes on throughout our personal and professional lives.

Success can be defined in several ways. Generally viewed as an accomplishment of wealth, respect, fame or the achievement of a desired / positive outcome.

Our concepts of success are strongly influenced by our society, culture, education system and our parents, as well as our own aspirations, which are deeply based on all of the pre-mentioned factors.

When asked the question Do you think you are a success? or Is he/she a success? our immediate reaction is often to assess this in terms of a person’s material wealth, family status, partner relationship, job/career progression or the level of a person’s influence, popularity or power. This is not so surprising, particularly for someone we do not know because we have little else to go on.

The Success Mindset that Drags you Down

Success is often based on comparing ourselves to others, so we have to be honest here.

Many of us receive a deep sense of joy and satisfaction in believing that we have attained sought after goals, especially over that of others. After all, we are socialised and accustomed to this.

This creates a satisfying sense that some people have done better or are actually better than others.

This also expresses messages that others are abler, have more possibilities, are more valued, more respected, possess more power and are much happier.

This perspective is not only skewed, limited and hard to break away from, it also leads to a mindset which can be detrimental and unproductive to our mental wellbeing and life satisfaction.

Personal Achievement: The Success Mindset that makes you Mentally Healthier

People with a mindset of “success”, based on their own personal achievements possess the ability to positively influence their life perspective.

Their view of themselves and life experience does not involve comparison and is not determined by the expectations and accomplishments of others.

Their sense of self is formed from what they have personally faced and overcome. This also enables them to set realistic and achievable goals, decrease the demands placed upon themselves and make things less stressful.

In this way, they are focused on a perspective which gives personal meaning and self-worth.

When achievements are based on one’s own terms, which are judged and valued by ourselves, we reach greater fulfilment and create happier and mentally healthier lives.

Making Yourself the Dream and the Dreamer

We are all achieving every day with personal achievements being made from hour to hour, day to day, month to month and year to year. Facing, overcoming, resolving and achieving personal aspirations represent the defining moments of who we are.

We witness this in many different ways:

Continually confronting our fears and life challenges.

For someone who is severely depressed, “success” can be defined in terms of their personal achievements of being able to get out of bed, wash, get dressed, make something to eat or go out.

Surviving or leaving an unhappy or abusive situation or relationship.

Caring for loved ones.

Regaining something that we had once lost.

The commitment and responsibility of parenthood.

Being the first to achieve an unattained feat.

Accomplishing our personal best.

Learning a new skill.

Gain greater insight and knowledge.

Completing a set task, no matter how small or how big.

All of these examples reveal just a tiny fraction of our continual personal achievements.

Whenever I came up against an obstacle, I found a way around and my focus was clear. When things seem to block your way see this as an opportunity to explore the wider possibilities.

I didn’t become a psychiatrist and this led me to follow a more fulfilling path in becoming an Existential Psychotherapist. This perfectly suited my personal beliefs and way of life.

Creating our own Success

I don’t care if people view me as a success or not. This is not what is important or meaningful.

My life has been a continuous stream of personal achievements. I have overcome severe depression, I’ve faced prejudice, discrimination, hatred, jealousy with reserve and dignity.

I am honoured to fulfil a fantastic career in the service of supporting others.

I have learnt a new language, lived in a foreign country.

I learnt to love myself and am loved by others.

I continually strive to be respectful, kind and caring to family, friends and strangers.

I maintain an open mind and am constantly growing; my personal feats are countless.

Ten Ways to Cultivate a Great Personal Achievement Mindset

1. Stop wasting time comparing yourself to others’ achievements. Invest in your strength and resources for attaining your own meaningful goals.
2. Clarify the expectations that you have for yourself and those placed by others. Decide which expectations reflect your own personal needs and aspirations. Plan realistic steps in achieving these (Consider working with a coach or counsellor, who could support you with this).
3. Be the architect of your own life. Do not let others define who you are and what you can achieve. You may face setbacks, obstacles and people who try to pull you down or hold you back. Staying focused and persevering enables you to overcome your hardest challenges and achieve your greatest aspirations.
4. Perceive things as challenges rather than problems. If your focus is one of finding a way forward or attaining a goal, then you positively draw on all of your resources, in order to get you to where you want to be.
5. Cultivate your self-belief and inner confidence. Utilise the power of self-talk: Continually talk to yourself in positive ways, in order to reinforce your self-worth and what you want to achieve.
6. Shut out the negative messages and people who hold you back or drag you down.
7. Engage in what you are passionate about. To believe and feel deeply about something, which brings meaning and a sense of worthwhile engagement is one of your greatest motivators. This drives you, brings enjoyment and enables you to perform at your best.
8. Regularly take a moment to express gratitude for all of the things which you possess, do and get you through life.
9. Acknowledge and appreciate every accomplishment you make, no matter how small. It’s the small things that can make a big difference. These are the steps which move you forward and build you up.
10. Regularly take time to reflect and value on where you were in the past and where you are now.

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Don’t Expect Your Spouse To Make You Happy

Do you expect your spouse to make you happy?

In this article, I am talking about the romantic expectation of relying on your spouse to make you happy and why this is wrong.

“It’s my spouse’s job to make me happy.”

Your happiness is your responsibility. No one can make you happy – or make you feel anything for that matter. According to developmental psychologists, a hallmark of adulthood is taking responsibility for our lives. Our finances, our decisions, and our emotions.

Dr Karin Anderson Abrell, psychologist

If you think your spouse’s main responsibility is to make you happy, think again.

Your spouse is with you out of love and desire to share his/her life with you. Your responsibility as a couple is to support each other on your journey to become the best of yourself and make your lives better in the process. The secret to a healthy and happy marriage is to give.

It’s not your spouse’s job to make you happy. It’s yours.

Fulfilment – another term for happiness

Here are some of the questions you need to find answers to:

Why am I not happy?

What aspects of my life am I unhappy about?

What prevents me from being happy?

Am I happy with my job, with my previous life or career choices?

More often than not happiness is another term for fulfilment.

Discovering what you like and makes you happy and fulfilled is a life-discovering journey. Some know very early on.

For others, it’s about uncovering past emotional traumas which burden their present and darken their future. Theirs is a painful journey, but a necessary step towards change and improvement. With professional support and guidance, it’s possible to heal your emotional wounds. When people heal their emotional wounds, they usually feel liberated and free. It’s like a heavy shadow has been lifted from their minds and hearts.

Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.

C.G. Jung

Happiness – not a mindset

You cannot wake up one morning and decide you will be happy throughout the rest of your life. Your happiness is not based on your mindset – that is the result. A happy and strong mind is a result of being confident and aware of your strengths and places to grow.

When you’re not happy with yourself, your self-confidence is low and that deters you from opening up to exciting opportunities.

When you feel unworthy of the best things that life has to offer you, you make bad choices in both your personal and professional lives.

Happiness is not a mindset. You cannot will your mind into being happy. The mind is powerful but when you instruct your mind to ignore or erase negative thoughts when they appear instead of addressing them – it does more harm than good.

Your spouse cannot make you feel good about yourself no matter how much he or she tries if you don’t believe it yourself.

Happiness is an inside job

Your spouse may love you, but you must first love yourself to accept his/her love.

Your spouse may support you in achieving your goals, but you must first set goals for yourself.

Your spouse may show empathy towards you, but you must first be aware of your own feelings and emotions.

Your spouse may treat you with respect, but you must first respect yourself through self-care, setting healthy boundaries and building good habits.

Your spouse may be considerate of you, but you must also be aware of your own behaviours and attitudes and how they influence your life and the lives of the people around you.

Your spouse may give you all that, but he/she cannot give you happiness because happiness is an inside job.

Happiness will be fleeting if you constantly search for it in places that can be taken away. It’s an inside job.

Nikki Rowe, author of Once A Girl, Now A Woman

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10 things you might not know about Lenja Faraguna

She was declared one of 12^th World Changers by the New York Times Bestselling author Roy H. Williams and one of 40^th most influential radio personalities under 40 by the Radio Advertising Bureau USA. Lenja Faraguna believes that “for your marketing to be supremely effective you don’t need a degree in marketing but in humanity.” This thought is the biggest lessons she’s learned in the last 12 years as an entrepreneur and coach and it is the DNA of her mission in life.

More things about her that you might not know:

 

1.The old marketing, the screaming one, discount throwing and narcisistic one is dead, because it yells, lies, undervalues and is loathed by most people.

2. She has a Bachelor degree in Philosophy, English and American Studies and Semiotics of Advertising at Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz, Austria.

3. She is the founder of Worldchangers Slovenia – the embassy of Slovenian entrepreneurs who are brave, give a damn, make money and change the world. A melting pot of knowledge, opportunity, ass-kicking environment and the first marcareting academy for smaller Slovenian entrepreneurs called “Crazy diamonds”.

4. She believes that everybody is unique in the world and she supports that. “There is no one like you. There was a 1: 400 trillion chance for you to be born. Even if someone has the same product/service, all the other components that make up a (PERSONAL) BRAND are unique to you! ONLY YOU! Yet most of the time, you do not show this uniqueness through your marketing = your communication with the outside world,” she write on http://ilovemarcareting.com/.

5. Success starts with yourself. Say YES to yourself and customers out there who are waiting for you to make their lives better. You will re-brand your MINDSET, re-brand your (personal) brand and finally give you tools to do marketing the modern way as marCAREting – so you can achieve a game changing success.

6. She believes marcareting works only when you CARE. About yourself and the others.

7. She is “nakedly” honest. “I’m real, raw, honest and I will call you up on your bull**it, spin your mindset and you will have to put in the work and go into action. Why? Because I believe that “ACTIONS are the endangered species in the world, not IDEAS”.

8. She doesn’t hide anymore. She admits her failures and learned from them. She had a major personal and business collapse in 2012 and when it couldn’t go lower it went up. She has risen like a phoenix, from her own ashes. She went from “bribing” her friends and dad to come to her seminars in 2011 for free, … to speaking to thousands all over Slovenia and Europe, at TEDx and on May 22nd 2017 with Gary Vaynerchuk, Robert Murray, Dr Kjell A. Nordström and Dr Jonas Ridderstråle (Funky Business), Julian Treasure (multi TED talk speaker) at Brands Minds Summit in Bucharest in front of 900 people!

9. She has worked with 134 start-ups as a mentor. She co-founded Club 466 International, where she sharpens the business diamonds of women leaders.

10. She loves the weather before the storm and Madness’ song “How can I tell you” and Xavier Naidoo song “Bitter hör nicht aud zu Träumen”, because they sum up my values about life and communication.