How Self-Awareness Helps YOU Find Real Balance in Life w/ Vaishnavi Reddy

[00:00:00] Vaishnavi: And like your confident, like, you know, it does like it does destroy you, like you start feeling insecure,you start, and I think that’s the entire point of being aware and actually educating yourself because once you know what happens, once you know why it’s actually caused? Once you know why people have different skin color, that’s the entire science, right? And like, once you actually know, why does a person have anxiety why does a person have depression? These are all like chemicals in your brain. You know, it’s not about like being crazy or anything and I think that’s about educating yourself and being aware. 

[00:00:35] Amardeep: Welcome to the Mindful and Driven Podcast, where we help you to not lose sight of what’s really important whilst chasing your dreams. Today’s guest is Vaishnavi Reddy. She’s the founder of Unsweetened Beauty. It’s a direct-to-consumer beauty brand that focuses on creating knowledge and helping people to accept their own skin. They want to redefine beauty standards so people don’t feel such toxic attitudes when they look at social media. It’s a pleasure to chat with her and I really believe in her mission. I hope you enjoy listening to our conversation! I’d love it if you could subscribe, leave me a review and follow me on social channels. 

Welcome Vaish, to Mindful and Driven. 

[00:01:04] Vaishnavi: Thank you so much for having me here. I’m actually really excited because I think this is my first podcast and I’ve been listening to so many podcasts, so it’s nice to be on the other side. 

[00:01:14] Amardeep: And for the people listening back home, we actually know each other from university. So we’ve both been to University of Bath together, many years ago now, or at least many years ago for me and then Vaish moved back to India, to Hyderabad and just started her own business out there. It woul d be a great chance to catch up through this podcast. 

And one thing I want to learn from you right at the start, Vaish is, I’m curious as what some common advice you’ve seen, but you disagree with? 

[00:01:36] Vaishnavi: So a common advise that I actually disagree with is how people say it’s important to have a work-life balance. You know, you need to work towards habit, maintaining a work-life balance. 

I disagree with this because I think it doesn’t really, the balance doesn’t matter. It, it it’s more to do with your priorities. So I was actually listening to a podcast, another podcast, recently by Kiran Shaw, who is the chairman of Biocon. So she was actually, someone asked her the same question and she went back to saying, it really depends on your priorities. 

So if today my priority is work. There’s no work-life balance, but tomorrow, if I have something personal that comes up, which is important for me. So that would be my priority for that day. So I think that’s one thing that I do disagree with. The reason being it’s, you know, sometimes it’s we try to stick with the norm and we stress ourselves out and it’s, there’s no need to do that. 

You can have your own rules. So I think in this case, my rule is a work-life balance is not it more than a work-life balance. It’s the priorities that matter. 

[00:02:36] Amardeep: Yeah, and I think when people often say work-life balance, they mean within the same day. Whereas I think for you, what it’s more about is that in the longer term, right? 

So it’s that, you don’t want to be working all the time so that you can’t do the things that important to your personal life, but it’s not a balance on a daily basis or on a specific road to a routine. It’s more about what do you care about and making time for that, whether that’s work or whether it’s personal in your life. 

[00:03:01] Vaishnavi: Yeah, a hundred percent. And I think even this, you know, even weekends or Sundays, you know, are, I mean, I think way before, you know, it’s Friday night, you know, meeting friends, I don’t think that happens anymore, especially in this stage of life. So I think in terms of that, and kind of trying to stress, stressing over not socializing and socializing. 

You know, I, and I think that’s it eventually, actually this goes back to lack of FOMO, I think not having FOMO, missing out on things, and I don’t think you have that once you realize this is my priority, this is what I’m going to focus on. 

[00:03:33] Amardeep: I think the socializing, it should be that you’re going out because you want to go out, because you’re excited about going out rather than because you don’t want to miss out. 

And I think that really depends on the person too, right? For some people, if the guy got every Friday night, but that’s when they really enjoy it, they to see their friends. They like to go out. But for other people, it might not be the top of that priority list and that’s okay. Then you can choose not to go out. There’s no point in going out just because everybody else is. 

If that’s not what you want? 

[00:03:58] Vaishnavi: Yeah. I know. I agree with that because I think that’s the thing, even being out sometimes would stress me out because I’m, this is not what I want to do. I want to be, there are other things I want to finish. And then I actually realized, what’s the point of going out and stressing or not being present in the moment. 

 You’re not even having a good time. And that’s when I realized, there’s no point trying to, you know, do these things. It’s fine, you know, when I do go out now I’m actually fully present. So it’s, kind of, you know, you’re getting a priorities because that day I know this is important to me. 

So I made time to come out for this. I time, time to, you know, even making time to, see your family, your friends. And I think eventually people who, they would understand your priorities and the people who would stick around are the ones who know, you know, this is not, this is nothing to do, nothing to do with anyone personally. 

It’s just your own priorities, right? 

[00:04:47] Amardeep: You used to live and work in London a few years ago, and then you said you moved back to India again, because although you were enjoying the job, kind of a hole in a way, right. It wasn’t quite making you happy and something was not quite right. Can you tell us a bit about that and how you then made the decision to move back home and how that benefited you? 

[00:05:05] Vaishnavi: Yes. So actually I absolutely love my job in London. There’s nothing I would change about it. And I think that time in London, and looking back, I feel that was the foundation, but also, I mean, there were bad days. There were days, I mean, I cried on the tube. I cried in the bathroom. Just there are days of all of that, but I think it was overall, the experience was really, really good. 

So I think what I felt then was, I enjoyed work, but there was no real purpose, as in, it was just, I was okay, you’re working, working, working. The weekend comes, you’re looking, you’re thinking about work again, the Monday. So I think that’s when I realized, okay, there must be something more than this because, 

you know to be honest, I didn’t really experience a burnout, but I think that was my burnout because I was, what am I really doing? But I used to meet people. It was a very, a forced thing, Okay, it’s a Saturday, I’m going to meet people. It’s a Sunday. I’m going to do my laundry. I’m going to cook for the week. 

And then it’s Monday morning, I’m back at work. So I think that’s when I realized, okay, I’m going to move back home. One main thing I would say though, is I think it’s, for lack of a better word, I’m going to say lonely, but I don’t think it was just a loneliness. I think it’s just that kind of you know, you, you want to do something bigger and that’s actually what always, always inclined me towards the startup ecosystem, which is why even after I graduated from college, I decided not to go into the corporate world and I wanted to work with startups. 

Both have their pros and cons, you know, but I decided to go into the startup ecosystem because I need to feel more fulfilled with whatever I’m doing. And I, I don’t know, not be replaceable, right? So yeah, and I think that’s why, even when I moved back to India, I did get a job, work at an Income, and Acceleration Incubation Center where I was still working with startups. 

So yeah, that I really enjoyed my job in India too. Actually I was, I would say. I’m really fortunate because everywhere I work, I really enjoyed my jobs. My colleagues were amazing. My, the, my managers were really, really supportive and there’s a lot I learned from them. I think now it’s, you know, while I was working at ISB and then transitioned to Unsweetened Beauty so that, you know, it’s, it’s another journey completely, right? So now, I think that’s when, even, I said, I, my purpose at work, I wasn’t doing as much as I could. I wasn’t living up to my potential. And that’s what I felt . And that’s when I started exploring this, this part of it with our team. Who’s the co-founder and yeah, now we are at Unsweetened Beauty, 

which is, it’s been a really interesting journey and I’m sure it’s going to get even more challenging and even more fulfilling. 

[00:07:41] Amardeep: You said quite a few interesting different things there, but one thing you mentioned is about being lonely, but you said, for lack of a better term, and this is one thing I think it’s difficult for sometimes people to admit that, but if you look at surveys, it’s often that people will say one in three adults alone, is something which you wouldn’t necessarily say out loud, because as soon as you said it, then you straight away decided, oh wait, no, I don’t really mean. But it’s okay to be, feel lonely, right? That’s completely normal emotion. And there are many people in cities such as London, who feel that way. 

[00:08:10] Vaishnavi: Yeah. Sorry. Yeah. The reason I said for a lack of better word, because I don’t know if I was actually lonely, but I think I was, but I don’t, I mean, that’s how I, I don’t know if this, it you’re supposed to feel some other way if you’re lonely, because it’s not, I felt, okay, you know, I need to be dating or I need to be doing this or that, but it’s just that, 

it was just, okay. I a basic example, I actually felt I had friends in London. I had my uni friends in London, I had family in London too. But I think at one point I was just, okay, if my mother doesn’t call me today, over the weekend, people wouldn’t know if something happens to me till Monday morning, till I go back to work. 

That’s the time they’ll be, okay, why isn’t Vaish in the office? But there’s been, you know, I, and I think that’s the thing, right? I think that was one of the main reasons. And this is something that I, that always plays in my head about why, when I decided, okay, I am going to move. But yes, I would say alone. 

I think it’s hard to admit it. And I think that’s why London is a great place to be alone and not alone also because they are so many people going through the same thing. 

[00:09:14] Amardeep: And I think it’s really good that you’ve admitted that because I know a lot of people listening will probably feel the same way as you. 

And it’s could you say you didn’t burn out, but it’s almost as if you find a bit rough and that’s kind of a form of burnout in a way, where sometimes, it’s not that you’re doing too much, it’s that the stuff you’re doing, isn’t quite fulfilling you, so in a way, what you’re doing now, you’re probably working more than you were before in some ways. 

But that’s, that fulfills you. So it’s, it’s giving you energy rather than taking it away. 

[00:09:44] Vaishnavi: Yeah. And I agree, and I think that was my thing with London, and with ISB, the time I realized. It’s, it’s just not giving me that satisfaction anymore, and I think that’s when I was, okay, onto the next thing. 

But I would say, I kind of think that’s an entrepreneurs, I didn’t know that was in me, to be honest, if you ask me back in Bath saying, Vaish, do you think you’re going to start a business? I don’t think I would have said yes, you know, because I didn’t, I did not, this was not a part of my, you know, the plan, maybe it was, okay, doing an MBA, trying to get a job here and all of that, 

but somehow I think my heart was always in this and that’s why I was always inclined towards being in the startup ecosystem and working with startups. So, yeah, I think that’s how I actually ended up here, which I didn’t think I would, 

[00:10:30] Amardeep: Obviously you started on Unsweetened Beauty as a side hustle in away while you’re still working. What made you decide to then take that full time? 

And obviously you love what you do now, but you also love your old job too, so how did you make that decision? Because it can be so tough for some people to make that leap. 

[00:10:46] Vaishnavi: Yes. So I think, yes, definitely because, okay. I went from getting, getting a paycheck every day to, okay, I’m taking this risk. 

I don’t even know if it’s going to work. I am so new to this space. The reason we started is to make people feel empowered because we realized when we were speaking to people, there were a lot of people saying beauty standards. I mean, all of us go through it with the amount of content we’re consuming. I mean, you said, It took me time to even admit that I was lonely. 

But if I, if you see, see my, maybe my Instagram profile, or if you see any, you know, you’re not going to know, no one’s going to know that. And you know, and I think that’s the problem, because everything we see is so sugar coated, which is also the name Unsweetened Beauty. So I think that’s when I’m, okay, I’m, I’m really in for this thing, you know, I feel I could make a true difference to someone. And now I could go on telling you so many stories about, you know, the kind of people we’ve interacted with and when they come back and tell us because of you, I felt empowered to post my first unfiltered photo because they spoke to us about something and I’m, okay, this pretty much, I’m happy. This made my day. I feel what I’m doing is worth, worth it because one person felt this. 

[00:11:57] Amardeep: I’d love to hear an example story about somebody who you’ve helped and what difference makes in their life through Unsweetened Beauty? 

[00:12:03] Vaishnavi: Yes. So actually we had someone who messaged. She has eczema about some products and she said her medication, I mean, her eczema medication was causing her acne. 

So she was, you know, that’s not even the issue. She, the issue is a lot of, you know, you don’t, you don’t feel good about going out and after a few conversations, she said, I actually want to tell you something that I haven’t spoken to anyone about. So we will, I mean, I was, yes, because this was, you know, these were, this was the initial days where, we were the, I was the one on Instagram messaging every day, 

and, you know, so when she said that, I was, yeah, sure. And then she was, so because of anxiety, a lot of people start picking on their body hair, which I don’t know how many people know about this. So, because of your anxiety, you know, it happens. And she was, this happens to me. 

So, you know what, what do, is this normal and you know what, I haven’t admitted this to anyone other than her till now, that happened to me too. I used to do the same thing. And I was, I used to do the same thing and, you know, I have anxiety. So I was, it’s fine. And I’m, you know, it’s okay to feel this. 

And how do you find a solution to this? Right? So we spoke about it and, I gave her a few, I, I told her what I did, and then she actually posted a photo. You know, Unsweetened Beauty inspired me to post my first unfiltered photo, empowered me to post my first unfiltered photo, and that I still have a photo saved on my phone. 

And, you know, that really made my day. I mean, there are a lot more stories because, you know, I mentioned someone with vitiligo, someone with rosacea and these things are not taken seriously. And the only things we, only thing a lot of people know is acne or a lot of people are asking you for lightening creams and you’re, okay, you know, and I think that’s one thing for me, this is also something which I haven’t spoken about much. In India, it’s all about fair skin. Everyone’s trying to have fair skin. And I think for me, I never really faced an issue because I’m on the fairer side, but I always actually saw that as a disadvantage too, because I just felt there were a lot of times being in India, being fair, you would just get unnecessary attention. 

And I think I’m, there are so many times when I did get attention, I never used to think about anything else. And I’m, okay. Yeah, you’re better than the population. And you’re getting this. And that is such a horrible thing because it’s, how can anyone be given preference based on their skin color? 

How does that make sense? So I think these are really the, you know, the traditional beauty standards that we are really trying to break because that’s not how it should be. It’s, it’s so much more than that, Beauty is so much more than that and your confidence, you know, it, it does, it does destroy you, you start feeling insecure, you start, 

and I think that’s the entire point of being aware and actually educating yourself because once you know what happens, once you know why it’s acne caused, once you know why people have different skin colors, that’s the entire science, right? And, once you actually know why does a person have anxiety? 

Why does a person have depression? These are all chemicals in your brain. You know, it’s not about being crazy or anything. And I think that’s about educating yourself. 

[00:15:08] Amardeep: Hi everyone. I hope you’re enjoying the episode so far. I want to take a quick break to ask you to check in with yourself. There’s many people struggling with balance and it’s nothing to be ashamed about. It’s tips that my guests might share can hopefully help you along the way, but if you already feel overwhelmed or burnt out, it’s probably best that you ask somebody for help too. For some, this might be a friend or family member, while others might feel like they have nobody they can talk to. If you’re one of these people, check out the link in the show notes, it’s for United for Global Mental Health. They’ve got health plans all across the world, with people willing to listen on the other side. It’s important to let somebody know how you’re feeling. Now, back to the show. 

You mentioned there that at the beginning, you were doing all of the messaging yourself in Instagram, but now I know you’ve got a bigger team and you’re managing people and everything as well. 

So do you think now you’ve got the right balance and how you’re living your life? Are there still things she need to make better? 

[00:15:57] Vaishnavi: I think it’s still hard because it’s still something that we’re very close to and, you know, because we, you want to know, you know, so we still check our DMs every day. We still see what people are talking about. 

And I think, yes, you let go of the control a little bit. And, you know, you know, you hire the right person to take, take charge of it. But I think even now you still check for the DMs and all that. I think the balance, yes, I would definitely, for example, in terms of the content that goes out to, if, you know, we’re constantly looking at it and looking at it every day and not even focusing on the bigger things, it takes up so much of your time. 

 Before it was literally every story I post, I would post every single story and it’s, you know, it just takes up time and you don’t focus on the bigger pictures. So I think it’s trusting someone can do it. And I think that also goes back to your ability of hiring the right people, so you know, okay, 

, you know, we’re all on the same mission. We all, you know, trying to achieve the same thing, 

[00:16:55] Amardeep: What things do you do to release that pressure of it, because obviously, it’s all day, you’re now, you made this very subtle transition as well, because then you’ve been over a year and a half to go from, working with somebody else to now leading your team. 

What’s your release valve? How do you unwind? 

[00:17:10] Vaishnavi: Okay. One thing is, which is very, very important to me and it impacts my, the rest of my day is working out in the morning. That’s definitely my time to unwind and, you know, it’s my time that I don’t think about anything. It was a habit and now it’s become my lifestyle. 

So, when I think it’s that’s one thing I would definitely say is very important for me to start my day. And I, I mean, even now, I, I think I, I do try to read, but to be very honest, that’s something I haven’t found time for, and I need to make time because I that’s something I’d really enjoy to do. 

I just haven’t found the time to do it, so I think that’s another way of unwinding. I think if you ask me one way, how do you unwind? I would definitely say my workouts. 

[00:17:49] Amardeep: And say, I’ve got a strange thing as well, because the bulk of what I do is, in terms of the writing, but I found that that stopped me from reading because when I read, it’s almost analytical now, because I’m trying to work hard, oh, is this a good idea or should I write about this? It means I can’t enjoy it anymore because I’m analyzing it, and imagine it’s the same for somebody who works in say the film industry. It might be harder to watch a film because you can’t just shut up and just enjoy it. They’d think, oh, that’s a nice shot. Oh, they did that. And it’s one of these weird things to think when you work with something that you’re so passionate about. 

To then be able to switch off from that as well and sometimes just to enjoy what you’re doing. 

[00:18:28] Vaishnavi: You know, I think that’s a hundred percent because you know what, Instagram before was a social media platform for me, where I still go to see, what are your friends doing or something. Now it’s a work platform. There’s nothing other than work that, every time I see someone I’m, that’s an interesting post. 

That’s an interesting concept. I need to pick that up. You know, maybe you should think about doing this. So yeah, now with Instagram, the same way you were mentioning, reading is so hard for you, because you end up thinking about writing, you’re always over analyzing it because I think for us, Instagram is our main, we have a retail audience now. 

Yeah. Instagram is just not a, a, It’s work. If I open Instagram it’s for work, it’s definitely not, you know, let’s chat with my friend or anything. 

[00:19:10] Amardeep: I’ve got the same weird transition going on as well. I guess where, there’s, I’ve got two different accounts. Ones my personal account and one’s the brand account. And it’s trying to not blur those lines where I still have the account where I can still see my friends and their baby pictures, wherever it’s. 

And that’s kind of a feed, which has nothing to do with work. And then the other feed, which is just generally more creators, people in a creative space, people who I look up to as well, but it does very much blend in. It’s, it’s that how to keep the line between the personal unit and the work group, because you want to have that time switch off too. 

This is one of the problems of my expansion, is I’m kind of ruining everything because even what from YouTube now, I’m expanding with YouTube, so I need to analyze that so it’s sometimes it’s quite good idea to just keep some things which are sacred in a way too. 

Yeah, actually I agree. So I think what you were talking about is creating different compartments, right? 

You know, having this and I think that’s kind of, I agree, especially I think, related to working out. When anyone says anything about a business plan related to work out, I’m, I am not even thinking about it because that’s my, that’s my happy place. I mean, you know, that’s my switch off time. I don’t want, I don’t want to think about this in terms of work. 

[00:20:27] Vaishnavi: How can I convert this into a business idea? No? 

[00:20:29] Amardeep: There’s so much online now about converting everything that you’re good at into a business, but I disagree. I think it’s good to have something that you would do, just for fun. So, so you know that I danced a lot and I danced back uni and I still do it now, but I don’t want to make it into some kind of a business or really go into such depth because if I keep it more lighthearted, then it stays fun. If I need to dance because I need to win gigs or to get into music videos or whatever it is, then it’s no longer as much fun. 

[00:21:01] Vaishnavi: Yeah. Then it just becomes work, right? It’s not something you do to de-stress or, you know, you do something to kind of pay time off because, I mean, I remember you dancing that was, you’re properly, having fun and, you know, you’re in it, but I’m sure if you knew, someone’s recording you to, be it, it has to be posted somewhere or, you know, you’re sending it for an audition. 

I don’t think that same thing would come 

[00:21:22] Amardeep: So looking forwards now, what kind of lifestyle are you aiming to achieve in the future? So you’re hiring more people, you’re building the business, but do you want to kind of reduce your hours? Because at the moment you said you work almost everyday. What’s the kind of lifestyle you’re striving for in say a few years time? 

[00:21:38] Vaishnavi: Yeah. So I, in terms of that, I think I don’t want to reduce the amount I’m working because I, I think I’m kind of a workaholic at heart and especially, I mean, we’re still in our twenties, we’re still young and I think this is the time to, be working, so I don’t want to reduce the amount of work I’m putting in, but I think what I would want though, is I think kind of. 

At this point, it’s also we’re young, obviously. I’m not going to, you know, I think this is another thing, which a lot of people don’t talk about enough is your finances. You need to have finances, everyone needs food. Everyone needs to survive. We all need to buy food. We all need to, you know, the basic stuff, to get around. 

And I think that’s the thing that, where you’re in a situation where you, I think what I am striving for right now is to have financial freedom. And I’m saying, you know, I love the work I do. I think going back to everything I pointed and, not even taking a corporate job and going into the startup world, from all of that, you can money wasn’t my priority. 

It was more to find something to do fulfilling, but then I think, I’ve come to realize, or I think I always knew this, but my main thing is, it’s fine, I can still find my passion. I can still do enjoy what I’m doing and I can still get the financial freedom. And I think that’s what I’m striving for. 

 I don’t want to be one of those people. Who’s, I hate my job, but my paycheck is great. So I’m going to stick with this, but I think it’s, I love my job. It is giving me money. So it’s a win-win situation. 

[00:23:08] Amardeep: Yeah. And I guess in a few years time, what you’d hope for is that you’ve done well enough that you don’t really need to work anymore for the money. 

But you’re doing it still because you enjoy it. And I guess that takes some of the pressure off, right? because It then becomes almost a hobby. 

[00:23:23] Vaishnavi: Yeah, I agree. And I think that’s the thing, you know, once the financial thing has gone and I think when you’re enjoying, you’re enjoying your work, I don’t think you would stop. 

, I don’t think, I think, I mean, I’m not saying, I think, yeah, the, the it’s good that there is a retirement age. I think all of that is really good, but I think when you’re really enjoying what you’re doing and the money comes in, it’s great, but even when the money comes in and you’re really enjoying doing it, you’ll continue. 

You’re going to continue to do. And I think that’s that’s where I always want to be, I don’t ever want to be stuck in a situation where I’m, I don’t want to do this. I’m just waiting for my day-to-end. I don’t want to be in that situation. So yeah. I think that’s the kind of life I would see going forward. 

, yes, we have so many plans with Unsweetened Beauty, you know, there’s so much we have planned out, but I would say in the bigger picture, I don’t want to reduce working, but I think getting, you know, but the financial freedom definitely matters. And just keep working on things. And I think it’s getting out of your comfort zone. 

I think anytime you get too comfortable with anything, I think it’s time to be, okay, let’s try to find something more challenging. And I, I feel I’m the kind of person who always does that. Maybe it’s not a great thing all the time, because you’re, oh, there’s another challenge coming, but it’s okay. 

I think it keeps it, it makes me feel alive. So it’s good. 

[00:24:41] Amardeep: I think one thing I’ve realized about myself is that so people often chases different achievements, right? And it’s the end of the year now, we’re recording this, but people think, oh, what did I achieve this year? And to me that doesn’t really give me the happiness. 

It’s the bit, that’s the doing the challenge in the first place, working out, for example, how can I increase my writing, such that it adds value to people. So when it actually adds value to people, that’s great. And it’s nice to hear the good feedback, but actually enjoy the process of working out same from the podcasts, trying to work out how to make an engaging podcast. 

That bit is fun to me. The end result is nice. It’s great, but the actual process is what I enjoy. And that’s why I keep finding new challenges. It’s not because the last one didn’t make me happy. It’s that I enjoy the actual challenge itself and I think that’s something I’ve realized about myself. It might be similar for you. 

[00:25:32] Vaishnavi: Do you think it’s about stimulating your brain? It’s, you know, just finding something, you know, so your brain is always stimulated, you know, you’re not, because I think that’s kind of what happens, you know how we were saying it’s not, it’s not that the previous challenge was not fun or it was, you know, something, you know, it wasn’t something you wanted to do, but I think it’s also about, just keeping your brain stimulated all the time, 

[00:25:54] Amardeep: It’s in that like, the sweet spot, sweet spot, where it’s not so difficult that you beat yourself up when you think I can never achieve this and you start to put yourself down, but it’s not too easy where you don’t have to try. 

So it’s that perfect point where we’re trying hard but you feel that confidence too, and you’re agreeing with that and you feel you’re becoming better as a person by doing the challenge that you’re doing. 

[00:26:18] Vaishnavi: Yes. And I think that kind of goes back to the growth, right?, you know, for example, maybe I mean, even if you take uni, for example, if someone came in told me, Or if I challenged myself, I remember the bad half marathon. 

I, and if I remember, you know everyone running that and everything I wasn’t into working out then I, that was not something I was doing then. And if I went and said, okay, today, I’m going to go run the half Bath, half marathon, I don’t think that’s a realistic thing, but now I know I’ve done, I’ve done two half marathons and I’m, okay, now I think I’m ready to do a full one, you know? And I think that’s a realistic challenge and that’s a realistic goal to keep. 

[00:26:55] Amardeep: One of the things you mentioned earlier is about being in your twenties and this is time to work, but I guess it also kind of brings up the point about twenties is when you’re idle as well. So if you wanted to do a challenge, for example like going across the world and doing Kilimanjaro or something that, this was the best time for that too. So it’s kind of trying to think about that. Sometimes prioritizing work is in stages, yes. But don’t forget that, you’re only ever this old for today and then you always a day older to try to make the most of your energy and where you can do the things that you want to do because sometime we don’t know what’s going to happen. 

[00:27:31] Vaishnavi: Yeah, I agree. And I think that’s actually a really good, that’s very, very important because I think what all of us, or at least I do, I take my body for granted. I don’t think I give it the respect it needs. And I think this is what I’m sure, a lot of athletes would know, because, when you get injured is when you’re, oh my God, I can’t do this, and that’s when you realize, oh, no, this is my leg has been doing this for so long. 

[00:27:56] Amardeep: For people listening today, what’s one mindset shift do you think they could make that would make positive changes to their lives? 

[00:28:02] Vaishnavi: I think journaling is a great, great thing to do. Just so, you know, what’s happening and what, what your goals are and what are you looking at? For example, maybe back in uni or something, my priorities were different and my lifestyle was different. So if I continue to do that today and I wouldn’t be happy with that because my priorities today have changed. 

And I think it’s the same going forward, you know, maybe once you enter your, your forties or something and you’re getting older, so maybe today, what I’m trying to do. So it’s, you know, if I, if I continue doing this then, and I’m unhappy, then I need to go back and check. 

Okay, what, what, what am I ? You know, it’s all aligning with what I am, what I want to do today. And I think that’s something most of us forget because we are habits of creature and, you know, we’re just, we just get into this thing. So but yeah, I think it’s important to go back and, because it’s just growth, it’s not possible to think you’re going to be what you were in your teens. 

You’re going to be in your twenties or what you’re, when in your twenties is going to be in your thirties. I think we’re meant to grow. I think they’re meant to evolve. And I think while you’re doing that, it is really important to keep going back and checking what is important to me at this point in my life. 

[00:29:08] Amardeep: And the point about it being so specific to where you are today is also really important because same people have goals that they set a while ago, which they didn’t actually care about anymore, but they’re still trying to do it just because they said they were going to do it. I said, well, if you don’t want to run a marathon anymore, then what’s the point of forcing yourself to do it? Choose a different goal. 

And it’s kind of being adaptable and not just saying, oh, when I was 10 years old, I wanted to do this when I grew up because, actually I don’t , well, 10 year old me wanted do it so I’m going to keep doing it. 

[00:29:38] Vaishnavi: Yeah, no, I agree. A hundred percent. And I think, you know, there were so many things where I was, oh, I really wanted to do that. And I realized, no, I don’t want to do this. I just said this when I was younger or something, you know, so I don’t really want to do that anymore, and I’m just posting myself. 

I actually, I had a conversation with someone recently and I think this is for everyone who’s listening, who is in their twenties or at least late twenties, because I was, oh my God, you know, my twenties are almost done, but I think it gets better in your thirties because I think we kind of learned to evolve. Because in your twenties, you still care about what other people think. If, okay, the same thing you said, oh, I said, I’m going to do this when I was younger, so it, it, what would people think if I don’t do it now? I don’t think that’s the way it happens. Right? Everyone’s things change. So I think maybe, as we get older, hopefully we evolve and grow and get to a point where everyone’s more comfortable with themselves. 

[00:30:31] Amardeep: It’s been a pleasure to talk to you today Vaish. Where can people hear more from you who are listening today? 

[00:30:35] Vaishnavi: No, it’s been absolutely amazing, actually speaking to you today because it’s a completely new experience. And I think where you can find me, I think one place is LinkedIn, but other than that, I would love for all of you to follow Unsweetened Beauty, big on Instagram. 

That’s where we are really active, and the reason I’m saying this is because all the content we put out is always the main goal is to empower people. The main goal is to make people feel good. 

[00:31:02] Amardeep: So the final thing I want to end up with is, what’s one small thing that’s brought you joy recently? 

[00:31:07] Vaishnavi: So the one small thing that brought me joy is my morning run. 

I’m not going to lie. I think that’s the thing that, you know, every time, I think when I run, that’s the, that’s the most joyful time of my day. 

[00:31:25] Amardeep: If you’re listening on Apple Podcasts, I’d love it If you could leave me a five star review, it really helps get the message out further. Wherever you’re listening, it would be awesome If you could subscribe and share in your social media channels. If you want to see more of my work and advice, you can find all of the links in the show notes. Thank you again for listening and I hope you have a lovely day.