Unconventional Life – Podcast, Blog, Live Events

Category: Business

  • Ep266: Bars and Brainwaves, with Myndlift CEO and co-founder Aziz Kaddan

    Ep266: Bars and Brainwaves, with Myndlift CEO and co-founder Aziz Kaddan

    Growing up with a pediatric neurologist as the man of the house, it’s no surprise that neuroscience would be a common topic at the dinner table of Aziz Kaddan’s childhood, and why he found himself years later in the same branch of science.

    At an early age, he was exposed to the topic of mental health and conditions particularly ADHD. He witnessed how his two siblings were examined by their father, and how much they rejected the medication that he gave them. As research in neuroscience expanded over the decades and therapy improved, Aziz now finds himself as the CEO of Myndlift, and building on the breakthrough that is Neurofeedback.

    To simplify, Aziz explained that “Neurofeedback is based on something called Operant Conditioning. Whenever you do a certain action, you get a reward or a no reward, and if you get a reward immediately after doing that action, that action or that behaviour is being reinforced, right? So if you’re rewarding a baby, for example, whenever they do a specific behaviour over and over and over again, at some point they’re going to do that behaviour more and more naturally.”

    This was the culmination of the research put into measuring brain activity which allowed for the non-invasive undertaking of sending frequencies to parts of the brain, which paved the way for therapy that improved actions like focus and treat conditions that affect the brain like ADHD and depression.

     

    Starting the Start-up

    Despite its effectiveness, Aziz acknowledges that it is yet to go mainstream, “Other than the high costs associated with it, the need to visit the clinic so often made it something that is sort of a last resort for many people,” he says, “you would prefer to take medication rather than stick to 60-day training regimen with therapy.

    “I tried it myself and it helped me. I know the benefits of research, why is it not accessible? So we worked super hard on making it accessible by using wearable technology and mobile technology and just providing it from home.”

    It was this idea that led Aziz and his co-founders to quit their jobs in 2014 and fly from Tel Aviv to a technology accelerator in Boston. It was a difficult journey educating investors and it took almost 10 months of work to make the first dollar for their start-up, but they persevered.

    Now their compact Myndlift technology and software are being used in hundreds of clinics globally, inching their way closer to making this groundbreaking treatment a mainstream option in the field of mental health.

     

    Rhymes and Relaxation

    Having experienced the difficulties of being a new entrepreneur, Aziz encourages other dreamers, and aspiring CEOs to not forget about themselves in this painstaking process of growth, as their mental health is equally important as their goals.

    “At the end of the day,” Aziz says, entrepreneurs are very prone to suffer from depression or anxiety due to the difficulty of what they’re doing—you’re alone, you’re building something big. Every day is a struggle and you don’t have somebody telling you what to do—you have to figure it out by yourself, all of these factors can be daunting. For example, if you’re funding for a big idea, and you have, you fully believe in that idea, your mom also believes in it [but] when you go to investors and they tell you well this will never work, or you’re getting rejection after rejection after rejection that can take a toll on your mental health.

    Aziz shares that it’s hard to push through with projects when you’re dealing with internal burdens, so he suggests that from time to time, entrepreneurs take a day off to pursue other projects.

    “I really recommend to every single entrepreneur out there that are just starting out, have an artistic project, whether it’s singing, drawing—whatever it is, because when you have such a project where you create something, and you’re not dependent on people—vying for the market or investors and it’s just your creation that you fully control in your own world, on the weekend. It just gives you that break that you desperately need.”

    For Aziz, music and the lyrical world of rap was his part-time project outside Myndlift, and the CEO himself writes his own rhymes from time to time as his way of clearing his head.

     

    Science and Stigma

    Even though they have made treatment for mental health more accessible, Aziz acknowledges that the stigma of mental health treatment is still there. Many countries and parts of our communities are still associating it with disability and jumping to uneducated conclusions on the topic of mental conditions, but there are noticeable signs of acceptance in more areas.

    He says that during this time of COVID-19 where many of us are stuck at home, many are starting to see the importance of mental health.

    “[At times] I’m interviewing candidates who want to work at Myndlift and I’m noticing a lot of openness,” Aziz shares, “people are telling me ‘look I really connect with this company because I’ve suffered from a mental health issue, and I think I’m still suffering’ they know that I’m not gonna pass judgment. And so, that’s the beautiful thing that’s happening right now and I hope that this continues to grow.”

     

    More from Aziz and Myndlift:

  • Ep265: Knowing the Whys Behind the Whats of Success, with Naked Underwear co-founder Joel Primus

    Ep265: Knowing the Whys Behind the Whats of Success, with Naked Underwear co-founder Joel Primus

    On a farm in the countryside is the last place you would think of to find entrepreneur and business coach Joel Primus. Having made a fortune from the Naked Underwear clothing brand—which he started from the comforts of his own dining table—the successful businessman is now in the process of stripping away his attachments and looking inward to know his true self.

    Under all the fancy suits and business trips, the pains of growing a company from scratch take a tremendous toll on one’s physical and mental health, and for Naked Underwear to become what it is today, Joel went through stress and fatigue that resulted in his hospitalization, and nearly ended his marriage as well hurting his relationship with his daughter.

    Despite the joy of growing the company from scratch, Joel says that his journey with Naked caused a lot of anxiety and depression. This contributed to his new mindset of stepping back and realigning with his internal foundations.

    “For the last few years,” Joel says, “Naked, at the end of the day, broke me. I was very anxious and depressed at the end of it. So I had to do a lot of inner work to kind of get the foundation back in a place where I could springboard into whatever was next. I haven’t figured it all out, but that’s why we’re out here, we’re, we’re looking for ways to lessen what we do, and do it better.”

    Joel describes that his current path for growth isn’t about acquiring more but rather stepping back and letting go.

    Though he is still chasing success and still not straying far from the business field, he is now being more cautious and is encouraging people not to divide themselves between work and life.

    “I reconcile this constant drive to be successful and this inner desire for peace,” he says, “the spiritual Joel and the entrepreneurial feel very dualistic, and but [in truth they’re] two manifestations, within one whole relationship. They’re not separated, and when we will feel the happiest in how we live our lives is when those two things actually form into one and we don’t feel like we’re Jekyll and Hyde all the time.”

    He advises that when they reach this sinking feeling of anxiety and depression because of their work, they should reexamine and know “the whys behind the what”

    “We’re most self-destructive when we’re operating without knowing why we’re operating that way,” he says, “if we can understand our why’s for a lot of the things we do, it doesn’t mean we stop doing it, but we’re operating from a much clearer space.”

    Joel values this inner reconciliation of himself and is encouraging people to not just find the middle ground but to truly be happy with everything that they put their effort in.

    “It’s about holistically, living our lives in a way that makes us feel fulfilled and enjoying what we do—not always looking for the next, and the collateral damage that comes with that.”

     

    More from Joel:

  • Ep263: YouTube Ads and How You Can be a Retargeting Ad Machine, with AdOutreach President Aleric Heck

    Ep263: YouTube Ads and How You Can be a Retargeting Ad Machine, with AdOutreach President Aleric Heck

    Have you ever seen a bullfrog eat a dozen smaller frogs? Or a video on a haircut transformation? Or even wet paint being scraped off the side of a barrel in the most satisfying manner?

    Youtube is one of the many strange places on the internet where you find yourself spending hours upon hours, jumping from algebra lessons to cat videos, to a crash course in philosophy, and to videos about a dance group carrying a coffin. It entertains, educates, but as Aleric Heck of AdOutreach found out, it can also make millions.

    Aleric, before being the president of his own company, made his first exploits on Youtube through a review channel called AppFind which impressed the heck out of a client. So much so that they invited him to work for them.

    “They basically called me up and said, ‘Hey, we would love for you to drop out of college, fly out here to Silicon Valley, be in charge of YouTube ads and you know in this tiny side of YouTube thing will give you a six-figure salary,’” he narrated. “Maybe for a second I looked at that,” Aleric said, “but I knew that I’ve always been this way—that I wanted to be the king of my own castle.” He understood that there was more to Youtube than cat videos and Top 10 countdowns which is why he is encouraging everyone to dive into this new era of content advertising.

    “Right now is the time to come in as an early adopter on YouTube ads,” he emphasized, “and take advantage of that blue ocean.” He notes that Youtube is the second biggest search engine next to Google and it is a place where you can find leads, get sales, and most importantly, make revenue.

    On top of that, Aleric explains that even young starting influencers can grow their audience using what’s called Youtube Discovery Ads, where users will be suggested to watch your video next because it has the same theme as the previous video you watched; sort of riding the same wave that a more prominent channel has. A great tool for YouTubers looking to grow a fan base or take in more subscribers.

    Aleric notes that each business needs to make adjustments and decide on ads based on their own capabilities, but for him, there are set rules that one should follow which pay off big in the long run, one of these is to at least spend 20% on retargeting ads, guided by the Pareto Principle.

    He also encourages businesses to diversify their online presence in multiple platforms—omnipresence as Aleric put it—where he spends at least $50 a day, testing new platforms.

     

    More from Aleric:

  • Ep261: How To Book Big Names Into Your Podcast, with Command Your Brand Media founder, Jeremy Ryan Slate

    Ep261: How To Book Big Names Into Your Podcast, with Command Your Brand Media founder, Jeremy Ryan Slate

    Other than it’s time-consuming advertisements and often mediocre content, there are more and more reasons why a lot of us are turning away from the television. One of those is that in today’s advancing digital access and almost production-level free software, almost anyone can host their own “TV Show” and make an Oprah Winfrey of themselves with a computer, internet, and some recording hardware.

    However, with everyone racing to get the most views and internet traffic it’s easy to get buried by the sheer number of digital influencers who’ve had a head start. So how can you catch up to this fun and lucrative use of online media?

    Before Jeremy Ryan Slate was dubbed a Top Influencer by Forbes, the young Oxford graduate made money through some handy-man jobs, before teaching at a high school. Now he hosts the Create Your Own Life podcast that studies people of excellence, and the Command Your Brand Media that helps businesses optimize their PR strategy. Here are three tricks he shared with us to increase your reach and audience.

     

    The First 24 Hours Make The Biggest Mark

    Starting out in podcasting as an unpopular person, Jeremy knew that he needed to come in guns blazing—getting every person he could find to subscribe.

    “When I started out, I knew that one of the major things that ranks a podcast is the number of subscribers you can get in a 24-hour period in ratio to the number of current subscribers that you have,” he noted, “so right out of the gate, I was really pushing everybody that I noticed to subscribe—I was pushing for reviews, too, but they don’t really have much influence on your ranking if any at all. So really I was pushing as many people as I could to subscribe, and that really pushed us to have 10,000 listens in our first 30 days.”

     

    Know What Makes You Different

    It’s easy to get lost in trends and copy the styles that work, but Jeremy stressed that you should have a reason for what you’re doing. It should be clearly defined what your podcast talks about, what your channel is used to, and what a viewer can expect from your platform.

    There is an audience for everybody but it’s key to start somewhere that people already like, then grow more defined as you go along.

    “My show started as something for people creating life on their own terms,” Jeremy said, “and it’s gone gradually too, how do you be extraordinary and be world-class at that. So you kind of continue working on that [your show’s initial reason] to get there.”

     

    Content is King

    Being a regular “Joe Nobody,” Jeremy was counting on the fame and quality of his guests to carry and grow his podcast. To do this he made a list of 100 people that he admired and created an intense system of follow-ups that ensured every guest was there to make the most of every episode.

    “I created a Google Sheet, without all the names, emails, phone numbers anything I could find”, Jeremy emphasized, “and I created a follow-up system where I basically reached out to all these people day one by writing individual emails to them. It took me about eight hours which was pretty nuts, and I followed up with him every 30 to 60 days. The first person I reached out to was Seth Godin and he said ‘No, but when you get to 400, we’ll do it,’ and he was Episode 400 of the show.

    It was this consistency and dedication to the show that earned Jeremy his place in iTunes Top 100 and the number spot in the business category. Jeremy noted that even American entrepreneur Dave Asprey found time for his show after half a year of follow-ups.

    This intense dedication to the show’s subscribers is also reflecting in Jeremy’s ad campaign strategy, which he shares with us, that utilizes Retargeting Ads, a formula for making viral 30-second videos, and even noting the relevance of LinkedIn—a relatively smaller social media site with a more professional audience—to extend his reach and promotion of the show.

     

    More from Jeremy:

  • Ep257: Strong Roots Give Way to Beautiful Branches with Atlanta’s Personal Injury Lawyer Ali Awad

    Ep257: Strong Roots Give Way to Beautiful Branches with Atlanta’s Personal Injury Lawyer Ali Awad

    It’s very easy to lose ourselves with how the world is now. With television and the internet overflowing with Hollywood gossip and western influence, it’s hard not to feel like we are part of that space in the world. We envy so much the culture on TV that raised us as fans, that we sometimes forget to admire the culture that raised us as people.

    Brought up by Palestinian Muslim immigrants, CEO Lawyer Ali Awad shares his culture, religion, and how his parents made sure that he stays true to his roots as a young man living in Dalton, Georgia.

     

    Fifth Avenue

    Starting their life in the USA was nothing like the pretty suburban romcoms we see in movies. Ali’s family lived in an area in Dalton, where it showed a clear division of privilege. Despite the life in the neighbourhood, Ali’s dad made sure that all six of their kids would live a more guided life, not defined by where they live.

    “My dad was very, very conscious of ensuring that we held on to our Palestinian roots [and] in our Arabic language. And so even now, it’s very rare that I meet people that can speak Arabic who grew up their entire lives in the US. That discipline started manifesting itself in other areas of my life.”

     

     An Eye for Opportunity

    On top of his dad’s strict discipline, Ali is gifted to see profit where it is unlikely to grow.

    “I started my unconventional life around the age of five,” he narrated, “And I learned very early on that it’s fun, the business that I started at five years old was just selling pictures of Dragonball Z characters to my friends.”

    With his father working for a carpet company, Ali had access to a computer and a printer. And with the power of Google, he turned his classroom into his first and very own Super Sayan monopoly.

     

    Pressure as Privilege

    In a dinner he had with best-selling author and entrepreneur, Jesse Itzler, Ali reflected on how this difficult upbringing– being both poor and an immigrant– saw that he was privileged to be unprivileged.

    “You literally cannot teach hungry,” he said. “Most people don’t have the privilege of being under pressure. Most people live through life lackadaisical and get to enjoy the fruits of someone else’s labour. Most people don’t have the opportunity to grow up poor and to learn grit and to learn hard work and discipline. That’s why you and I speak different languages.”

    Ali described how the years of the pressure he got from poverty shaped his views. Ali noted that most people see success as the luxurious materials that people share on Instagram. Still, hardly anyone acknowledges the grit, the upbringing and the ugliness of “paving your own path.”

    “If all you’re exposed to is the highlight reels of everyone else, then you’re never going to have time to create your own highlight reel. You’re just going to look around and see that everyone else is excellent and that you’re not. [But] that excellence comes from just working a little bit at a time, day by day, piece by piece month by month.”

    Ali Awad is continuously providing support to professionals and people who are starting in business all over the world through consultations and coaching sessions.

     

    More from Ali:

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