The challenge in the coming years will be to keep your interest in what you do

Introduce yourself in a few words…

I am Aleksandar Durchev. For over 25 years, I have been involved in management, starting and ruining businesses, although some, especially in the field of marketing communications, are quite successful. I am the managing partner of All Channels Communication Group . The company is the largest Bulgarian independent communication group with numerous Bulgarian and international awards for various achievements. We have offices in Sofia and Vienna and offer integrated services in advertising, PR, BTL and event management, influencer marketing and media planning. I am a co-owner of Cohones Brewery – a craft brewery producing exceptional beers. I have been teaching for many years at the American University in Bulgaria. I have taught over the years at SU and NBU. I have studied quite a bit – I have two and a half master's degrees and a doctoral degree. I have two wonderful daughters and a wife.  

How would you describe your career in a few words?

Launching. I started my business at 24 years old. The company quickly gained important clients and awards and became popular. None of this would have been possible without my partners and the wonderful people who came, stayed, or left from All Channels. Things happened incredibly fast and I didn't have much time to reflect on them over the years. We had to keep ourselves  above the waves with colleagues and not allow ourselves to lose sight of who we are and why we do all this – whether due to heavy burnouts or because of being dazzled by temporary successes.  

What was the most important choice that shaped your path In?

There are a few. The first was when I realized that there was no way I could be an employee in this life and I jumped into something that cost a lot – nerves, friendships, moments with family, missed parties, and alcohol consumed by someone else. The second is when my colleagues and I realized that, to be a successful entrepreneur, you need to have guts. So in 2008, right in the midst of the shock and horror of the financial crisis, we launched our advertising agency – the second independent operation in the Group. From there, appetite came with eating. This predetermined our transformation into a communication group – a model that many companies in the market followed. There are many other important decisions as well. The life of an entrepreneur is filled with joyless moments, where choices must be made, some of which are painful but important for the survival of the business.   

What would you like to know at the beginning of your career, but no one told you?

That you can't manage people, processes, and clients with horns forward. Business is like an organism – you have to take care of it, train it regularly, and give it the opportunity to grow gradually. Excessive growth leads to overheating of people, business management systems, and loss of clients. I learned this the hard way.   

Another important thing I wish I had known as an empathetic and social person is that at the top it is lonely and cold. In a hierarchical society like Bulgarian, people often look up and see… backsides. I believe that over the years we attracted and nurtured people for whom hierarchy is not us against the backsides, but is based on the skills and experience that my colleagues and I exchanged over the years. We call it the hierarchy of experience – it doesn't matter if you have gray hair, but what experience you can share with others.

How can a person understand which profession is suitable for them?

When a person feels butterflies in their stomach when doing something that brings them money and after work instead of scrolling to total brainrot, they delve into and read about that same topic, it means they have found their calling. To get there, they need to experiment, search, and be excited. Today this is a big challenge – social media often squeeze the last drop of enthusiasm, especially in the younger generation, offering cheap numbing dopamine. Again, we see natural selection in an ironic, new version.

Which skills according to Inwill be key in the next 10 years?

In my opinion, the most important skill in the coming years will be to be disciplined, to focus and deepen, and to keep your interest in what you do. The economy of the moving thumb teaches us to seek quick pleasures, which kills people's patience for things to happen at their natural pace. Everyone expects quick accumulation of knowledge, quick problem-solving, quick careers, new dopamine. This will be the big problem of future generations in my opinion. Technologies will change many industries beyond recognition. To succeed or even just to survive in these changes, it will not be enough just to have specific knowledge and skills. People will be expected to be self-disciplined, flexible, and resilient. And to be such, you need to be focused on the things you love, but which are likely to change tomorrow.   

How to build a network of useful contacts without appearing interested?

Why shouldn't we appear interested? In my opinion, contacts are built when we clearly share that we are passionate about a given topic. When we clearly share with the object of our interest that we share the same passion and admire their successes in a given field, we create something like a spiritual connection. If the object of your professional interest does not respond, giving you a signal that they are excited about the same area, it means you do not need that contact. And probably this person is what many people think of them.

What is the biggest mistake you have made in your career, and what did you learn from it?

A wisdom says that a person is the only animal that stumbles twice over the same stone. And I have made hundreds of mistakes, some of which I have repeated. What happened during Covid was a big lesson for me. I allowed myself to be overconfident, but I also made many abrupt movements. We parted ways with many valuable people and broke many friendships in the company. What would have happened if I had acted differently is hard to guess. The truth is that today the company is back on its feet, with an incredible team and clients.

How to recognize a toxic work environment and when is it time to leave?

When people start to “solve” the company's problems in internal chats, it means things have gone bad. This means that hate groups have formed, who always “know” better how the company's problems can be solved, but the managers do not deserve to hear their big solutions. This also means that the managers have distanced themselves from their team, have elevated themselves to their pedestals, forgetting that every person has their own perspective and have allowed this perspective to become a topic of informal discussions in the company. These are tough moments, in which, if the people in the hate groups have not left, they should be uncompromisingly released. This is painful because it often “burns” wonderful specialists, it leads to a wave of subsequent departures, and last but not least – the essence of the problem must be communicated directly to the company's managers.

What would you do differently if you could start over?

I would probably start later. I started my company before finishing university and with 1-2 years of practical experience. I would have gained more managerial experience before diving into all of this. This might have saved me a lot of awkward and difficult moments.

How to maintain our motivation in times of stagnation?

Some try with complaining – defining a string of problems, throwing them out, finding dissatisfied allies, and defining their common misery. Believe me, this does not work. On the contrary – it deepens the issues, as I tried to explain earlier. I have a new favorite saying, unexpectedly, from Oleksandr Usyk – “I have no motivation, I have discipline.” Motivation easily disappears. You are tired, angry, disheartened, and… poof – one day you just don’t feel like going to work, you don’t feel like doing the same stupid things. This is where discipline comes in. Discipline  to wake up, to get up and go regardless of yourself, to deal with the problems. And as we know – when we handle the problems, sunny days always come.

How to achieve a balance between professional and personal life?

There will be work even after us. Unless you are a brain surgeon, you need to realize that this balance is extremely important, so you don’t have to force your motivation with military discipline. But if your work gives you more pleasure than interacting with loved ones, it may be time to turn to a specialist. Unfortunately, even here you need discipline – to stop, ask yourself questions, find the answers, and make changes in your life.

When is it time to change our career, not just the job?

Probably when we realize that we just have some job. The butterflies are gone, discipline doesn’t help, and we see more problems than solutions. I have seen people who have lost their direction in a given industry and this is a good opportunity for them not just to change companies, but  even the industry. This restart is often extremely beneficial for people's mental health and helps them gain new knowledge, skills, and make a great new career.

If you had to give just one piece of advice to people seeking success, what would it be?

To be disciplined not to give up.

What is Inyour definition of “successful career”?

To be happy, even in moments when the house of cards collapses, because there is someone to help you build it up again.