As we continue the celebration of International Women Day (#IWD2021) throughout this week, I believe it is so important for us to remember to #choosetochallenge the norms to build great businesses for our families (i.e our grandmother, our mothers, our girls); as well as contribute to the economy and build our communities in our neck of the woods. Let us build back a better Canada. Let us build back our communities during pandemic times and give hope for the future. I believe it is important to explore the lens of female entrepreneurs who share with us their stories and deep dive into their business journeys.
Last year, I was thrilled to interview a dynamic leader, just a few days after lockdown because of Covid-19, Varsha Wadnikop, Owner and Operations Manager of Pür & Simple Restaurant located in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. After 22 years of IT work, Varsha decided to challenge herself and she ventured into starting a restaurant. She is an IT Career Professional as well as as the current Owner and Operations Manager of Pur & Simple located in Saint John, New Brunswick. She is a big promoter of eating healthy and making the right choices when it comes to food. She decided to go with this chain as the concept and brand is exceptional due to the continuous investment into innovation, research and development.
In this episode we discussed her many pivots including her journey from India to Canada, different leadership styles; infusing positivity in business; and the importance of mentorship. I pulled out some great golden nuggets including advice for young people making the transition into corporate and entrepreneurship as well as the importance of smart money saving management and believing in yourself.
Question: What advice do you have for young people getting into the corporate world or entrepreneurship?
Six golden nuggets:
1. Get out of your comfort zone;
2. If you see that you are not growing, change your role and learn something new to continue to grow in your career;
3. If you hit the ceiling in one place and there is no room to grow find another place to grow;
4. Be mindful and intentional of how you grow in your career;
5. Motivation = Motive + Action, you need to have a motive and take action to grow continuously; and
6. Believe in yourself always.
Varsha’s Favorite Book: Leaders Last by Simone Sinek
Listen to the full audio episode above, or on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts or any other audio player of your choice here.
Question: What advice do you have for smart money management in business and life?
Eight golden nuggets:-
1. In business, establish a money mindset where you use your spending on the right items;
2. Keep focus on the end goals of the business since happy customers and happy employees are good for business which will lead to more money;
3. Spend more on high quality products to give the best experience to your customers;
4. Within the home it is very important show to your kids from an early age the value of savings;
5. Do not spend excessively, only buy what you need;
6. Take your kids to the groceries and let them pick what they need and teach them the value of money;
7. Drive this smart money and savings mindset in your kids from an early age; and most importantly
8. Save your money you never know when the storm might come and you there may be a day when you need it.
These are some super golden nuggets for you to take with use and apply as you wish. I caught up with Varsha earlier this year and she has made many of strides with her business by quickly adopting new technologies and engaging new digital partnerships to keep her business afloat. You can listen to all about it on my recap episode below:
The Canadian Side Hustle Business Podcast with Producer and Host Irenia Roussel, was designed for you to give you the inspiration and tactical advice you need to succeed in business. There will be no sugar coating on the hard steps. You will need to hear this to help you stay in the long game. Believe me when I say : “you need to have staying power to be successful in business today.”
Every week, we will bring you some key tactical business insights to help you grow and scale your Canadian Side Hustle Business. Feel free to send in a direct message with your feedback here. Your feedback is important to us because this is how we can make this even more relevant as we build this platform for you! We are always looking for amazing guests, feel free to nominate yourself or someone you know.
you!
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