The Transcript

Today we are celebrating a milestone. It been a year since we launched CulturallyOurs. A year of podcasting, a year of content creation, a year of organizing retreats, a year of entrepreneurship. You get the idea right? Basically a year with of successes and perhaps even more failures.

As Winston Churchill so famously said,

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal; it is the courage to continue that counts.”

First and foremost, I want to say Thank You to all of you who listen to the podcast, read the content on the website and engage with me on social media. It is such a pleasure and a privilege to get to be a small part of your day.

Today I want to share with you what this past year has been like. I will not lie, it has been pretty non-stop since last October. CulturallyOurs has been my day in and day out along with running my other business, which has taken a little bit of a back seat. But that’s okay. But in keeping with the tradition of celebrating our successes, no matter how small or inconsequential we might think it is, I want to share some of CulturallyOurs biggest successes and key learnings from this year as a creative entrepreneur on this episode of the podcast.

Lets break it down, shall we?

Branding

In terms of the CulturallyOurs brand, I have heard consistently how much people love the look and feel of the website. While the website is just a part of the whole CulturallyOurs experience, having a great first impression means you will come back for more. I am eternally grateful for Hannah Beasley, my graphic designer and a past podcast guest for taking my vision from handwritten notes and squiggly drawings and building it to what it is today.

Content

Slowly but surely, people are visiting the website more often, downloading podcast episodes and even leaving reviews and comments on how much they love the content we share. In the one year of the website being live, the average time a user stays on the website is around 2.5 minutes. In a day and age when the average user leaves the website with within 15 seconds, that number got such a huge smile to my face.

Inspiring Guests

I have to admit I have a little bit of fan girl crush on all the people who have come on the CulturallyOurs podcast till date. These people are inspiring, kind and above all else ready to be vulnerable by sharing their story out for the world to hear. There is something so powerful in that. We have over 40 episodes on the podcast. I know that might not seem like much in the grand scheme of things but let me remind you, we started CulturallyOurs with an audience of 0 – yes, a big fat zero. The one consistent message I hear from everyone is on how connected they feel when listening to the interview. Deep down, we really are more similar with each other that we are different.

Global Reach

CulturallyOurs is a global platform and my mission is to bring diverse voices, stories and narratives from around the world. We have had guests from countries like India, Australia, Germany, Iceland, South Africa and beyond. And so far our audience reach is across 50 different countries in 5 continents. That says something about the power of connecting with others around the world, doesn’t it?

But in case you are wondering, the road to get here hasn’t been easy. Of course, everything we do in life teaches us something. Here are some lessons I have learnt this past year.

#1 Perfection is a myth.

Please don’t fall for the trap of perfection. Are there things I would have done differently before launching the podcast a year ago? Absolutely. But I am so glad I did not listen to those voices in my own head that kept telling me I am not ready. I don’t know why, but there was something so liberating for me in hitting publish on that first podcast interview. There was no turning back and I quite liked that feeling.

#2 Superhero’s don’t always wear a cape.

Ask for help. There is always someone out there who is willing to help you. Help doesn’t always mean financial. Help can be as simple as listening to you cry or hold your hand and tell you, you got this! Or even a simple smile and a hug. That my friends is all you need at times. CulturallyOurs has a steady stream of freelancers who write, post and edit the content. I cannot possibly do it all myself and that is something I learnt a long time ago.

#3 Differential between a business and a passion project

Don’t we all have a dream of making a million dollars in the blink of an eye. Well! Let me tell you that is not easy. Unless you think like a business owner and behave like one, it is not a business. It is a passion project. My husband always likes to remind me that hope is not a strategy in business. Having clear goals and taking small steps towards them is very much needed. I try and remind myself of that everyday and especially when I am in the trenches doing the work.

#4 All good things come in small packages

Take your time and make slow and steady progress towards what you want to achieve. I feel like this is a lesson that CulturallyOurs taught me not just in business but also in life. I know I have spoken many times before on what a terrible cook I am. This holiday season I am adamant in learning how to bake cookies. So far, I have only burnt 3 out of the 4 batches I have made. That says something about progress, right?

#5 Reflect, reset and move forward

It is so important to take time to reset, reflect and course correct if needed. Sometimes things work out right away. But more often than not, it doesn’t. And you know what, that’s okay. As long as you learn from it and move forward, it is a good thing.

One of the questions I ask my guests during every interview is what has been the biggest ‘aha’ moment for them? And today I want to answer that question for myself. If this journey has taught me anything it is to be your biggest fan. I don’t mean this in a way to sound boastful or egotistical. But believe in yourself. Talk positive to yourself. Celebrate your courage – no matter what you do. I still have that post-it note that was on the door of my closet that said ‘recording in progress, don’t open this door’ during my very first interview with Nik Sharma, my guest on the inaugural episode of CulturallyOurs. It is always a reminder for me to tell me how far I have come and how far I still have to go.

So no matter you do, why fit in, when you are born to stand out. I have to believe we all have unique gifts, lets bring that out in the world because the world needs what you have. Many months ago, my friend Nadeen Flynn sent me a note. She listened to a few episodes of the podcast and said “Karthika, you have found your calling. This is what you are meant to do.” Those words meant the world to me. Of course, I have doubts, I hate listening to my own voice as I record. I often miss-pronounce certain words, but I am so thankful for the courage I had to hit record to that very first episode of CulturallyOurs on October 8^th 2018.

Thank you so very much for being a part of this journey. If you have listened to an episode, commented on a blog post or even shared a word about CulturallyOurs to your friends and family, it means the world to me.

I am so excited to see what the next year will bring forth for CulturallyOurs.