Guest User 11/18/19 Guest User 11/18/19

MAD LOVE MONDAY | Tanya Nafe

I am the owner of Sweet Bouquets Cupcakes in Edmonton. I specialize in floral cupcakes and cakes. There are a lot of bakers in the Edmonton area but I am proud to say that I am the only baker who specializes in floral cupcakes to this extent. I created the company because I love gifting baked goods to friends and family and what is better than receiving a beautifully designed flower arrangement that you can eat?

Photography by: Claudine Lavoie Photography

As a child my mother would bake us the coolest cakes. I grew up counting down the days until I could choose a cake from her cookbook for my birthday. And as I grew older, I started sharing her love for baking by treating my friends to cakes and puff pastries on a regular basis. It became my way of showing people I care for them. It grew into a business where customers know when they purchase cupcakes from me, it’s been made with love and they can gift it with love to someone else.

I believe in coming from a place of yes and kindness.

And that is how I run my business.

I want each and every customer to feel they are not only valued but appreciated for supporting my dream. When they knock on my door and leave with cupcakes or cakes, I want them to leave feeling happy. I have been blessed to have customers become friends and I hope to continue not only growing my business but my amazing group of friends as well that have blossomed out of this business venture.

As my company continues to grow, I’d like to focus more on teaching. I would love to see more people create stunning floral creations to continue spreading joy with cupcakes. Now that I have built a solid business, I’d like to place more focus on turning my business digital with online tutorials and videos. I am in the process of creating a paid Facebook group that will be a community for bakers of all backgrounds and skill levels to come together, learn from each other and encourage each other to build strong, solid businesses.

I absolutely love being an entrepreneur. I am solely in control of where I take my company. I can grow it as fast or as slow as I need, in the direction I feel is best for myself, my family and my company. Being able to work for yourself is such a freeing feeling and Having my kids look up to me Can’t even be put into words. For them to see what you can create with hard work and your hands is a life lesson they can’t learn anywhere else.

There were times when I started where I wondered if I’ll ever sell a bouquet or cupcakes. Whether people would even pay what I charge. I had a constant battle of feeling like I’m charging too much but also worrying that I’m selling myself short. But my husband constantly reassured me I have to believe in my product and it would speak for itself. And that has absolutely been the case. It’s one thing to be able to create a beautiful cupcake but I needed people to love the taste as well. And I have been fortunate that my tried and true recipes not only look good but tastes just as amazing as it looks.

I have been fortunate to be able to grow a consistent Instagram following that has not only given me international recognition but also brings in local orders. Instagram and Facebook has been a huge part in me not only receiving orders from the States but also student who fly in for one on one lessons. As my company continues to grow I will now be turning to YouTube and Pinterest to continue growing a wider audience.

Balancing work and life is a bit of a challenge. I have 3 children ages 11,9 and 8 with a husband who works in Texas, USA. So finding the time to juggle mom, wife and business owner can get a bit tricky and I would be Lying if I said that some days I don’t lose my mind. It’s a fine line that I walk but I enjoy every minute of it, even the late nights, early mornings and late school pick ups (sorry kids). Gym time for me is must, it’s where I shut off my phone, blast some music and just focus on strengthening my body and mind.

I base my work around the gym as it’s an important part of helping me stay sane.

I am looking forward to connecting with like minded women who have a drive to push themselves and other people around them to higher grounds. Being able to have a tribe of women who not only wants to see you succeed but also what’s to be a part of helping you reach your goals is what society needs. Women lifting up other women so we can all be successful.

Tanya Nafe | Sweet Bouquet Cupcakes
instagram.com/sweetbouquetscupcakes
facebook.com/sweetbouquetscupcakes

Guest User 11/12/19 Guest User 11/12/19

How changing your mindset and dropping the diet mentality can positively affect your mental health

Brandy, a nutrition and lifestyle coach is here to discuss a topic on #tipsytuesday that most of us women may struggle with, the diet mentality. It can be hard to stop with all the rules you’ve likely been following for years. Every diet has rules. The question is how do you break free?

Even macro tracking has rules. However, at least with macro tracking, it can teach you one very valuable tool... portion control. I believe that is one of the best benefits of macro tracking.

But how do you let go of labeling food good vs bad? How do you start eating more carbs? How do you stop restricting yourself to then binge on it later? How do you eat before bed? How do put time aside for yourself? How do you stop over-exercising? With so many rules, so now it’s time to start breaking some of these rules.

If you want to feel free, you have to start letting go of the rules.

Breaking the rules can have you feeling shame and guilt, no different than overeating. It will take time but all you need to do is start.

Changing your mindset is a great place to begin. Stop thinking with a scarcity mindset and switch to living and thinking in abundance.

Those who live with a scarcity mindset tend to have rules, restrictions, guilt, and shame. They will think about the past and dwell on a binge or cheat meal. They will seek control and resort to negative self-talk. Procrastination takes over, driven by a self-sabotaging ego that fuels fear and anxiety. Those who live with a scarcity mindset tend to carry a lot of self-doubts and strive for perfection.

Switch to an abundance mindset, you will think more about consistency, flexibility, and sustainability. You will have more compassion for yourself, learn from your experiences and focus on the present. You will begin to let go of what you can not control and lean into the unknown. You will have more self-confidence and acknowledge when mistakes happen. The best part, you give yourself permission to live and to trust yourself.

The next thing you can do is change the language you have around food. There are no good foods and there are no bad foods. There will always be a better choice. Accept that you are not a good person for choosing to eat salad just like you are NOT a bad person for choosing to eat cake.

How silly does it sound... I’m bad about eating cake? Seriously? This does not make you bad. It makes you human. The diet mentality will have you believe you are wrong, bad, unhealthy, nondeserving but this is simply not true.

You have to start listening to your body. You have to start trusting your body.

You have to change your mindset.

You have to start making peace with food. Carbs do not make you fat. OVER indulging, bingeing can lead to weight gain but what leads to overeating, to begin with? That is where you need to start. If you are not eating enough or if you RESTRICT certain food groups you will likely feel more hungry and will desire whatever it is you tell yourself you can’t have until you give in (aka - living with a scarcity mindset).

Change the approach and change your mindset. There is no diet out there that will help you with this. You must be willing to allow yourself to listen to your body. Are you hungry? Are you full? Are you craving food because you restrict certain choices?

There are many myths out there when it comes to nutrition. The first step is to get more educated and you can do this by hiring a nutrition coach. Look for one that has experience along with knowledge. Ask for referrals, jump on a call and ask the coach questions. Don’t fall into marketing gimmicks promising results.

Diet mentality, it did not happen overnight. Neither will a change in your mindset. If you have always been on a diet or tried various ones, you will be stuck in a belief system that taught you nothing except to fear food or lay a foundation for disordered eating mentality.

You can use metrics like macros to help you figure out calories if you like but again, it’s only a method of tracking. It’s no different than journaling food. Both create awareness. From there, change your mindset. Change the language and how you speak to yourself and learn to trust yourself more. It’s about keeping your eyes on your plate and doing what is best for you. Comparisons will break you. What works for that person will not necessarily work for you.

Diets are not the answer to fat loss. YOU are the answer.

You have to be willing to let go, dig deep and put the effort in. Do you realize that you are a bi-product of the choices you’ve made over time? This is usually a result of the diet mentality. Always on a diet, never actually trying to listen to your body and figuring out what is truly best for you.

You will become a healthier human by changing your mindset. You will feel better and by default likely look better too. Mindset is a big piece of the puzzle and the key to helping you drop the diet mentality. Lean into the unknown, trust yourself, be honest with yourself, have an open mind and stop procrastinating.

#TipsyTuesday post submitted by Brandy Schroeder
Motivate and B Fit | motivateandbfit.com
https://www.instagram.com/motivateandbfit
https://www.facebook.com/motivateandbfit

Guest User 11/11/19 Guest User 11/11/19

MAD LOVE MONDAY | Caterina Snyder

I know a lot of people say that they were born as entrepreneurs and that they left their jobs to pursue their passion or their true calling, but I’m not one of them. Not even close. The truth is that although I’ve always been very driven and outwardly successful, in my education, career, for most of my life that was a pretty picture I painted, not a reflection of my inner reality.

I know a lot of people say that they were born as entrepreneurs and that they left their jobs to pursue their passion or their true calling, but I’m not one of them. Not even close.

The truth is that although I’ve always been very driven and outwardly successful, in my education, career, for most of my life that was a pretty picture I painted, not a reflection of my inner reality.

The truth is that I struggled HARD behind the scenes and I never fit in. Not even a little bit. I was bullied from elementary school to high school. I was sick all the time and had chronic infections, brutal migraines, and insomnia. In fact, I was on a pretty regular schedule of major burnouts every 10 years (age 15, 25 and 35) and minor burnouts every 2 years. Despite all this, my ambition, work ethic, and need for approval and validation allowed me to excel in University, skip my masters and go straight into a fully funded Ph.D. program, AND have a lot of pretty impressive jobs… all before I was 30.

But I was living a lie and lies will always fall apart. I was constantly plagued by self-doubt and anxiety.

And even though my transcripts and resume are impressive I quit my Ph.D. program after 2 years because I basically had a nervous breakdown. I've also been fired from 3 different jobs! The people I worked with in my corporate phase mostly hated me, even when I didn’t get fired because I was constantly rocking the boat and pushing the envelope. And let's be honest, in our vanilla society, disruptors are rarely valued, especially when they're fat feminists who are loud AF and are challenging everything you hold dear. But as ugly and miserable as that struggle was, I persisted. I got back up. Again. And again.

I learned from my ‘mistakes’ and all the rejection but not in the way you might expect. Instead, I didn’t tone myself down or try to be more likable… well, that’s a lie, I did try but that failed too. In short, I refused to go quietly into the night and conform to what the world told me I ‘should’ be. And that’s how I met entrepreneurship.

I wish I could say that it was this romantic love at first sight introduction, but the truth is we got off to a rocky start. I didn’t leave my job because I had the courage to change my life, I left on medical leave. Then I spent the next 4 uninspired years trying to make a go of it with in-the-box consulting work. I was eventually financially successful, but I had SERIOUSLY jerky clients. And then things got really bad. Lol. I went 9 months without a single client. My hubby supported us, but we nearly maxed out our credit and cashed in most of our savings. In this time of ‘failure’, however, I did something that the Universe had been waiting 38 years for me to do.

I stopped apologizing for who I was and stepped up to be the leader I was born to be.

It began, in earnest, when I met a life coach, named Glenda Lane. She told me something that blew my mind. Something I had never considered. She said, “You’re a Unicorn, thank God you’re not normal!” In my 38 years on earth, I had never once considered that being so weird was actually an advantage?!? A reason why people might like me instead of disliking me and pay me more instead of less?!? Suddenly, the world of entrepreneurship started to look very different. And I realized something that would, over the next two years, change everything in my life and business. I realized that the only rules were the ones YOU CREATE. In truth, there are NO RULES. No right way and wrong way. And this knowledge set me free.

I finally stopped apologizing for who I was and instead started screaming it from the rooftops. I stopped talking about what I do and instead talked about what I believe because that’s what actually matters. And it worked. Like BIG TIME. People began to see me differently and a community rapidly built itself around me. This is turn gave me the courage and insight to pursue what had always been my true passion and greatest gift, helping other Unicorns realize they’re Unicorns and then using that unicorness (totally a word!) to build confidence, community, and world-changing movements.

In the year following my 9-months-with-NO-clients phase I made $150K, landed my first $50k+ client, and went from working with assholes to working with the kind of Unicorns that are shattering ceilings, debunking myths about who we ‘should’ be, and completely reinventing in an utterly unique way, how we define success.

And the icing on the cake? I even have a team of badass Unicorns who help me do this!

So the next time you think that Entrepreneurship is all about struggle or that you’re never going to make an impact, have a community, or be loved for who you really are… STOP that runaway train of self-sabotage and KNOW THIS: Each of us is a magical fucking unicorn and that all you need to do is let her out.

Caterina Snyder | Brand Consultant & Coach
https://caterinasnyder.com/
https://www.instagram.com/caterina.snyder/
https://www.facebook.com/caterinasnyderconsulting/