Entrepreneurship gives us the opportunity to do what truly excites us

Introduce yourself in a few words…

My name is Tanya Terziyska, for 16 years I have been working for myself. By profession, I am a "Career Consultant", by vocation – a "People Gatherer". Owner and organizer of an event for business book summaries BookTalks.

I consider myself a dynamic person with diverse interests.

Passionate lover of cycling. 

How would you describe your career in a few words?

“A cocktail with diverse ingredients“.

On one hand, over the years I have engaged in various things that at first glance have nothing in common  – career consultant, owner of a coworking space, personal branding specialist, publishing audiobooks, event organizer…

If we look deeper -  there has always been an underlying connection between my various projects and professional interests.

Today, as an organizer of a monthly book summary event, I enjoy living the things I believe in:

(1) to experiment boldly;

(2) not to be afraid to share your ideas;

(3) to constantly broaden my perspective – knowledge, interests, experience;

 (4) to connect with interesting people.

What was the most important choice that shaped your path For you?

To realize that corporate career is not for me. At 25, I chose the path of entrepreneurship. This gave me the opportunity to do things I enjoy and that excite me greatly.

 

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

Not everything always goes according to plan, the efforts invested do not necessarily lead us to the desired result. It’s not scary to start over.

 

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

Quick textbook answer: Phase 1: Get to know yourself, discover your strengths and develop your weaknesses. Phase 2: Seek information about existing professions. Phase 3: Choose the most suitable profession, which matches your profile, interests, etc.

In practice: Follow your intuition, test and do not be afraid to make changes. Knowledge and experience are not lost, but transformed.

Philosophically speaking: Seek professions that bring you meaning and connect with your values.

My experience: At 21 - 23, I dreamed of becoming a “HR manager in a large, international company”, because I really wanted to help people develop and enhance their potential. I reached the position of “Personnel Specialist”. And here my journey to the dreamed career ended.

Today I help people enhance their potential by organizing an event that helps them see certain topics and problems from a new angle, overcome internal barriers, feel bolder and more confident, and be daring and decisive… I am actually doing what I dreamed of, but in a completely different form and without having a business card with the position “HR manager”. 

For several years we have been increasingly aware of the trend: “There are no lifetime professions”. It is important to be flexible  and to make career transformations, where we combine experience,  knowledge, skills from  our previous roles with the new context, professional field and be open to learning new things and letting go of old beliefs.  

Which skills do you think will be key in the next 10 years?

Primarily, I think of: The ability to concentrate. To be able to hold our attention for more than 3 seconds in a world of total distraction.

Looking deeper: in a world of fast  dopamine, to be able to show persistence and discipline, to delay the expectation of quick results.

The book “Think Again” (author Adam Grant) gave me a new perspective: how important it is to rethink our beliefs, the things we believe in. Everything around us is changing, in the era of AI the speed of dynamics will become even higher and I think that more and more, we need to rethink and let go of outdated knowledge, skills, to free up capacity for new.

 

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

The network of contacts is invaluable fuel for our career, especially in a world where we are forced to be flexible and make frequent transformations. I don’t understand why we should build a network of useful contacts “without looking interested”.

We build trust most fully (the first step towards a wide and deep network of contacts), when we demonstrate genuine interest in the person opposite us. People open up to us when we are excited about their personality.

If the question implies the understanding “without looking like opportunists” – OK. If we are insincere, it will show. If we memorize 1-2 phrases for “effective networking” – this may help us momentarily, but in the long run, it won’t work. Building a meaningful network of contacts is a long-term process, in which you invest – time, effort, attention and continuously prove that it was right to trust you.  

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

In career terms, I can’t recall a big mistake: I have followed some opportunities, and I have turned down others.

In personal terms, during the Covid crisis and the bankruptcy of my coworking space, I realized that some of our beliefs can lead us to burnout.

Until that moment, I believed that every successful endeavor is the result of a huge amount of effort and there is no way it won’t work out, but alas, I experienced a different situation. After burnout, I allowed myself to believe that 99% is effort, diligence, and discipline. But there is 1% luck. It may be negligible, but it is part of the recipe for success.  If you don’t have it at that moment, everything can turn upside down and you may not achieve a successful result.

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

I have no experience in a corporate environment. In total, I have barely 1 year of work in a company, I vaguely remember being a witness to some intrigues between individuals, I suppose this creates a toxic atmosphere. I did not feel comfortable in an environment of micromanagement.

Today, as the owner of a small business, I mainly work with small businesses or freelancers and it’s a bit different. I try not to allow such elements (intrigues and micromanagement) in my working style.

I hope I am not creating a toxic environment.

What would you do differently if you could start over?

Not to view patience as a negative personal quality. Today I believe it is invaluable to be patient.

How to maintain our motivation in times of stagnation?

Motivation is a volatile element. One day it is there, but the next it may be totally absent. At the same time, it is influenced by many factors and circumstances. Motivation is unpredictably variable.

I believe that being disciplined is much more valuable, because it makes you continue when there are no visible results and it is incredibly difficult for you.

 

How to achieve a balance between professional and personal life?

I am a woman, entrepreneur, mother of two children: a baby and an 11-year-old athlete. Over the past year, I have spent more time as a housewife and a driver, averaging 50 km per day in the direction to and from:  school, trainings, competitions, etc.

I have no formula for balancing work and personal life.

I believe that at different stages we have different priorities. We can strive for balance, but we actually manage our priorities. At one moment, career is in the foreground, at another, it is family and caring for children, when and where we can, we combine them. But it is not always possible.  What is important is to accept changes in priorities and not to pressure ourselves, self-judge, and blame ourselves for not succeeding in everything at the same time. In one thing we will succeed, in another we will lag behind during that period.

Everything has its time.

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

Option 1:

When our career stops exciting us, challenging us to surpass what we have achieved so far.

Option 2: When we start to feel that there is no longer anything we can give in a given niche – we have exhausted the reservoir of ideas and enthusiasm, and the desire to create cool projects, products, with which to  enrich our presence in a given industry.

Option 3: When a new opportunity opens up for us in life – we choose to live in another place, we have a child who is an athlete, or we simply decide to fulfill a dream that requires change.

Option 4: When AI the revolution leads to new opportunities and professions.

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

Disciplinedly follow your vision – this makes you confident that you are on the right path.

 

What is Your definition of “successful career”?

As of today, it includes the following elements:

Learn – from everything and everyone along the way.

Broaden your perspective.

Invest in a wide and deep network of contacts.

Persistence and patience.

Probably in 10 years I will enrich it. J