An Interview With Chad Silverstein
Bet on yourself, this is something that I will never stop talking about, in school we learn about getting a job, school trains us to get a job. It is so hard to break free from this mentality; the subtle conformity that keeps us stuck doing something we don’t like it’s killing our dreams. You have a dream about a business for a reason; go do that without waiting for approval from others. Bet on yourself, have faith in yourself.
We are starting a new interview series about the world of entrepreneurship beyond the classroom — a realm where theory meets grit, and education meets real-world challenges. We want to hear about critical business wisdom that often goes unspoken in academic settings. I had the honor of interviewing Cristina Dovan.
Cristina is a Mindvalley certified life coach specialising in mindset and transformation, and writer who blends her passion for human behavior with her experience in digital entrepreneurship. She embarked on her personal development journey over five years ago and is now devoted to using her insights to help others transform their lives. Cristina’s story is one of growth and change, starting from her academic roots in International Relations to launching her own business in 2020. She lives in Coventry, United Kingdom, and is dedicated to guiding her clients towards realizing their full potential.
Thanks for being part of this series. Let’s jump in and focus on your early years. Can you share who was your biggest influence when you were young and provide specific examples of what you learned from them that helped shape who you’ve become and how you live your life today?
The person that had the most influence in my life and still does has been my mum. I’ve learned so much from her, her life lessons have shaped me into the person I am today. My mum is the strongest, most loving person I know. From her I’ve learned to be honest, to be an optimist and to fight for what I want. My love for books stems from my childhood; my mum would read stories to my siblings and me. She is the person that believed in me when I didn’t and always supported my dreams the best way she could. I would not be where I am without her love and support, having her believe in me has been a blessing. As a kid I benefited from the independence she allowed me to have, she allowed me to take decisions, to make mistakes, she gave me wings to fly. This has helped me take risks without being afraid, and follow my heart so I can achieve my dreams; it’s a testament of how I was raised. She thought me to stand up for myself and never allow failure to stop me.
Staying on the topic of influence, who has been your biggest catalyst more recently and what can you share that you’ve learned from them that led you to making changes in your life?
The last six years have been about growth and learning, many people have influenced my growth, my mentors, entrepreneurs, athletes they showed me what is possible. Every person that has influenced my growth brought me closer to the person I am today by helping me to clear my path for the future, getting rid of everything that doesn’t serve me, e.g toxic relationships, limiting beliefs, patterns that don’t serve me. I‘ve let go of the past, healed past trauma, and created a clear vision of who I want to become and stay on the path of becoming the best version of myself. Every layer of my growth needed answers and God has always provided me with the resources and people necessary to fulfil my dreams. I had to be in an environment that showed me what is possible. Growing up, no one at home or at school ever talked about starting a business, and so my mentors showed me what is possible. I started to implement small steps in my daily routine and shifted my mindset until my dream become a reality.
In this interview series, we aim to reveal what seasoned entrepreneurs wish they had known when they were starting out and capture what the textbooks and college professors left out.
The reality is that entrepreneurial success is not linear and it’s very unique to each and one of us, as is our life journey. Sometimes we think if we follow a certain pattern that others did, we will have the same experience. However, looking at so many successful people, the results might be similar, the output is similar, they might make the same amount of money, they might have big networks and wealth but the truth is their journey is unique to each and one of them. I wish I knew more about the power of adaptability so I do not feel discouraged when starting my business. I wish I knew earlier how to be more flexible and to understand that failure contains vital lessons and it was teaching me something instead of living guilty wasting time when I could have focused on progress. Therefore, I’ve learned not to live disappointed with myself when I fail and discouraged to start over, I now know to learn from each challenge and setback and move forward with renewed hope and knowledge necessary for the next steps.
In addition, you have to believe in yourself, you will doubt yourself at times but if you hold the belief that you can then nothing will stop you. You have to be focused on moving forward and look at how to solve what comes up, don’t dwell on what is not working, be flexible.
Mistakes are invaluable. Can you name one specific mistake that you made early on, and learned the most from, but wish you’d been forewarned about?
I think the mistake that cost me the most and was one of the most valuable lessons so far was focusing on what others want, what others expect from me. I had to learn the hard way it is only up to me and only me to figure out what I want and then present it to the world, this means who I am, how I present myself, and my authenticity. Waiting for validation means losing touch with yourself and it can derail your journey. You will never manage to please everybody so you cannot be dependent on outside approval. Everyone will advise you based on the experience and limits they have, you cannot wait for someone’s permission or validation to start a new life, a business, a family. Once I understood this I allowed myself to start, I’ve allowed myself to try things that I was told might fail, I took decisions to change my life, took responsibility for my failures as much as I have my success and never stopped because of outside resistance, I just adjusted . We all have bad days, we all experience hurt but the way we respond is what makes the difference.
Is there a leadership myth you believed early on that you’ve since debunked through your real-world experience?
I’ve been made to believe that leaders have to be strong all the time and that kindness is a weakness, which later on I’ve learned how wrong this is. Being kind is the most beautiful display of strength. Being emotionally mature is something many so-called leaders lack and you can see that reflecting on their team. A leader needs to ‘bench the ego’; control and anger cannot be present in leadership. A leader’s role is to support and inspire, as Phil Knight said ‘tell people what to do and then let them surprise you’. Your team will reflect back your leadership style and in the long-term business will suffer. We need more leaders that have emotional intelligence, that understand every employee has a personal life and we cannot expect them to have more passion for our business than we do.
What’s the key operational insight you’ve gained since running your business that was never mentioned in any classroom?
For me the key operational insight I have gained is that execution is vital. The smallest decision and action can save you a lot of time and money. I’ve learned through my business that knowledge is potential power, action is the real game changer. Many people talk but never execute, they talk about what they want and can do but few execute. Practice makes improvement.
I know it sounds like a no-brainer but procrastination is real and if you can’t get out of your head and execute then you are stuck in your old ways. If you have limiting beliefs around success and money, your business will suffer because you will unconsciously sabotage it. If you grow, your business will grow.
Did college prepare you for scaling a business? What specifically was missing?
Scaling a business is not something I’ve learned in school but my course thought me about the importance of progress. I really like the concept of cross-pollination, bringing industries together and so I have this approach on everything in my life. I think learning from a variety of areas can actually help more than just looking at your niche or one industry. In my coaching business, I learn about the human psyche from history leaders and events, athletes, entrepreneurs, entertainers and it gives me a variety of examples useful in coaching. I also learn with every new client, I learn something new about myself and I constantly gain insight about human behaviour. Business principles are the same but the wisdom to make it happen comes from so many different channels.
In addition, are you growing enough to sustain a bigger business? Are you elevating yourself mentally, emotionally, spiritually to get to where you want? Remember a ‘man is what he thinketh’ you are what you think about all day every day. Once you elevate yourself you will find the answers to what you are looking for, when you feel stuck in your business think about the place in yourself where you feel stuck. An internal barrier holds you back from reaching your full potential, you have to identify it and work through it to heal it. Your personal growth is more useful to scale your business than systems.
Have you had to unlearn any widely-accepted business ‘wisdom’ in your journey? What was it and how did it affect your strategy?
I’ve learned not to wait for things to be perfect, so many of us think I will start once I have more time, more money, more information, once I feel better. This endless procrastination, is only our brain experiencing something uncomfortable, it only keeps us stuck. You don’t have to wait for perfection because you will never start. I had moments like this; I felt stuck because I lacked sufficient knowledge about the tax system in different countries and the process of receiving payments from international publishers and so on. In the beginning it was overwhelming but really learning these was the easy part, there are always other things that can be challenging, the idea is that when you feel it’s hard just open your mind and learn instead of procrastinating.
What’s your advice for new entrepreneurs? What are your “5 Things You Won’t Learn in College but Must Know to Succeed in Business”?
- Personal development plays such an important role in our everyday lives; it is vital because it can teach you to believe in yourself, get outside your comfort zone, it can teach you to learn from failure instead of letting it stop you. Personal growth is necessary because we have to evolve, constantly improving can help you reach our full potential and become stronger and more resilient. Integrate learning in your daily routine. Know thyself!
- Financial literacy, I’ve struggled with money, I didn’t know how to handle it but I’ve learned money is not scary. All of us make mistakes and we should learn from them so we don’t repeat the same patterns and stay broke, read books on money and apply that knowledge. We should all learned in school about handling personal finance.
- Networking is a big component of doing business, it’s not as much as getting something palpable, it’s about exchanging ideas, about sharing experiences and surrounding yourself with like-minded people that are looking to elevate and grow. It’s such a game changer to have the right people around you and even if it cannot be in person, having access even online to people you admire it’s key to your own growth. It is important that you also are a light in someone else’s life, make a difference whenever you have the chance, you never know who is watching and who’s life you can touch by inspiring and showing them what is possible.
- Bet on yourself, this is something that I will never stop talking about, in school we learn about getting a job, school trains us to get a job. It is so hard to break free from this mentality; the subtle conformity that keeps us stuck doing something we don’t like it’s killing our dreams. You have a dream about a business for a reason; go do that without waiting for approval from others. Bet on yourself, have faith in yourself.
- Emotional intelligence matters, it’s like attitude, that little thing that makes a huge difference as Winston Churchill said. It is so important to have the ability to manage yourself and to have the capacity to understand others. Communication is very important in business but without having the capacity to understand, it is difficult to move forward. In business and personal life emotional intelligence it’s extremely important, in business you deal with different personalities, everyone has a story, a burden they carry that we cannot see, recognising that we all have something we deal with is of utmost importance. Truth is we cannot teach emotional intelligence in school, it doesn’t come from textbooks, it comes from experience and being brave enough to learn from it.
If we were sitting together two years from now, looking back at the past 24 months, what specifically has to happen for you personally and professionally, for you to be happy with your results?
I want to become a motivational speaker and write books on topics like mindset and transformation. In two years’ time, I want to have at least a book published and to speak at different events and do a Ted talk. I want to be happy while I’m doing this and to keep growing into the person that will embody the strength and resilience to turn these aspirations into reality. I also want to have another business that brings passive income while I embark on my speaking journey. I would love to travel more and visit more countries; it’s on my vision board to experience more cultures.
Looking back over the last two years, what key accomplishments make you satisfied with your progress?
I’m happy I started my coaching business, it is a learning curve and I’ve grown so much since I started. I’m satisfied I didn’t let failure stop me. It was hard, many times I didn’t see a way but I persevered and I am so happy I did. Things take time and giving up when you don’t see results can be a huge mistake, not starting my coaching business would have been a big mistake. I am more satisfied with my personal evolution than with anything that has to do with my business. I am proud of constantly working on myself, I am not a complacent person, and learning and growing bring me joy.
As someone with significant influence, what’s the one change you’d like to inspire that would benefit people the most?
Always be kind, understanding and inclusive. Sometimes I feel like I sound like a broken record but invest in your personal growth and thank me later. I feel if there is one thing you can do that doesn’t cost much is to elevate yourself through personal development and from there everything else will follow and make sense. This small change will help you improve your relationship with money, friends, and love, remove toxic behaviour and drama from your life and chase your dreams. Aspire to become the best version of yourself and you will.
How can our readers keep up with your work?
https://www.linkedin.com/in/cristina-dovan-76882895/
Thank you so much for joining us! We wish you only success.
About the Interviewer: Chad Silverstein is a seasoned entrepreneur and Thought Leader with over 25 years of business experience. He has founded, operated, and exited multiple companies and now builds into a handful of high impact CEOs. Chad has launched multiple online communities, including a recent leadership development platform, and also serves as a strategic advisor for Authority Magazine’s thought-leader incubator program.
To learn more and connect with Chad visit: chadsilverstein.io
Coach Cristina Dovan On 5 Things They Forgot To Mention In College was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.