Reality of Moving Countries with Naila Abbasova

08/06/19 • 103 min

In today’s episode we chat with our long-time friend Naila Abbasova, a beautiful human being who goes after her dream life and wanders the world looking for meaningful life-transformative adventures. In this episode, we unpack Naila’s life journey and discover the reality of moving countries and secrets of staying joyful, optimistic and excited about life.

Naila Abbasova is a great example of being a “regular” person, working on a “regular” job, and then risking it all to move to London, find the dream job at Google, open a business and enjoy life to the maximum. Tune in now and join us in this very open, honest and vulnerable conversation.

Similar to Mimi, Naila was born and raised in Baku, Azerbaijan. At the age of 16, Naila and her family moved to Canada leaving everything behind. This huge step into the unknown future had a fundamental impact on her. As Naila arrived to Canada being a 16-year-old young girl brimming with confidence and inner power, she knew that this was her golden ticket to life.

“I have this obsession for standing out and being remembered. Nowadays, I want to be remembered for being happy, being the kindest person to anyone I have worked with, to be empathetic and make other people feel comfortable” – Naila

Being proactive and applying for multiple scholarships, Naila got the best university experience. Pursuing her obsession to be remembered for something big, she participated in different student organisations and travelled a lot around Europe. By that time, she became a real experiences catcher with innate desire to explore, to go out of the comfort zone and to bring joy to everything she does.

At the age of 25, Naila made a drastic decision to move to London. Stepping into what looked like a dream path after graduating from the university, Naila soon found everything that used to excite her becoming dull. After spending one week in Portugal surfing and doing yoga, Naila managed to find the peace of her body and mind. Looking at the calm waves of the ocean, she felt that she needed to move to Europe and escape the robotic lifestyle of Toronto. The next day she applied for her UK visa.

“When you move to a whole new different life, give yourself time to get adjusted to your new reality and let go the preconceptions of what you thought your life would be, and then start building something new without judging” – Naila

With survival mode kicked in to the highest, Naila moved to London, got the job at Selfridges and found a charming tiny flat few steps away from Regent’s Park. However, the reality of moving to a new country was tough, especially when it was her first experience of living alone. Dealing with loneliness, adjusting to the new realities and accepting the things she didn’t know, Naila realised that it was only her responsibility to program her life for the better.

Naila came to London with a genuine belief that everything would work out. And it did. Now, working at Google, designing her own clothing line and having endless meaningful experiences of observing the beauty of life and nature, Naila and her husband have finally found their comfort place in the city that never stops. Answering the question of how to stay excited and joyful about life, Naila advises to ask yourself whether you want to waste your precious time by being upset.

“On bad days I just have an “adult” conversation with myself and answer 2 very simple questions: Is it worth my attention? What is the worst that could happen at that point? And by going through the worst case scenarios I just move on from that. You need to understand that you have a choice whether to be happy or not, and eventually everything that happens is your choice and your responsibility only” – Naila

Here is what else we have talked about:

Programming your mind for the better
How to squeeze most of every experience
Why childhood is a huge part of one’s personality and how it reflects on one’s adulthood
How to get a scholarship
How being honest, transparent and vulnerable during the job interview will help you get your dream job
How to change the mindset of “I’m not going to get it” to “I will do my best and go for it”
How to negotiate to get your dream apartment
Why it is so important to be very precise with your desires
How commuting to work can push you to change your life
Reaching out for help during the most difficult times
Being proactive in building meaningful and deep relationships
Overcoming fear of being judged by people you love
The power of networking

https://www.ikonns.com/podcast/episode48

Here is what else we have talked about:

Programming your mind for the better
How to squeeze most of every experience
Why childhood is a huge part of one’s personality and how it reflects on one’s adulthood
How to get a scholarship
How being honest, transparent and vulnerable during the job interview will help you get your dream job
How to change the mindset of “I’m not going to get it” to “I will do my best and go for it”
How to negotiate to get your dream apartment
Why it is so important to be very precise with your desires
How commuting to work can push you to change your life
Reaching out for help during the most difficult times
Being proactive in building meaningful and deep relationships
Overcoming fear of being judged by people you love
The power of networking

https://www.ikonns.com/podcast/episode48

Previous Episode

Can Money Buy You Happiness?

In today’s episode, Alex and Mimi talk about a very controversial, yet so essential and important topic – Can money buy you happiness? Coming from experience of having nothing and now being able to live in abundance, Mimi and Alex reflect on their life journey, questioning how money has played a part in their happiness.

As one study has showed, money can buy you happiness up to a certain degree of an income – let’s say, 75.000 USD/year –, but what happens after that? Does money really affect your happiness? Does it make a difference to your wellbeing, life, mindset, personality? Tune in now and you’ll find out that and so much more life wisdom in this very deep episode.

Both Mimi and Alex have come from very humble beginnings, growing up with a concept that money will solve all the problems and buy them happiness. Years later, after starting Luxy Hair business that brought them 1 million US dollar revenue in the first year and made them financially free, Mimi and Alex understood – paradoxically, money couldn’t buy them happiness.

“Being more comfortable with spending and realising how to properly spend money and not just blow it, mindlessly spending it on material goods, I realize that money can in a way amplify your happiness. I don’t know if it can buy you happiness, but it can definitely add to your experiences and bring you joy”. – Mimi

After years of reflection about themselves and observation of what really brings them joy, Alex and Mimi discovered that happiness comes from buying experiences – not material things, and not only for yourself, but most importantly, for people you love and care about. And here’s the lesson the Ikonns family want you to take away: ultimately, the whole meaning of life is about creating, giving and sharing unique and beautiful experiences with your community.

Have you ever wondered why people pay premium to go and watch live events, music festivals, sports games? Why? Because of the desire to share the experience, “Because there is something very tribal in our DNA about doing that and having that tribe experience” Alex explains. So, going back to the question does money buy you happiness – it doesn’t, but if you spend it on establishing new relationships, building your community, creating, giving and amplifying experiences, then it makes you feel happier.

The mindset Mimi and Alex have is always asking themselves what really makes them happy, so that they spend money accordingly. They spend a lot of money on experiences for themselves, their family, friends, people they love, travelling, good food, rent. For them, the material possessions are the last on the list.

Obviously, there is nothing wrong with possessing lovely material things. It’s important to understand that the whole concept of how money can bring you happiness is highly specialised for each person. The decisions Alex and Mimi make come from a personal understanding of what makes them happy and how they want to live their life day to day.

“The most important thing to ask yourself is: What brings me the most happiness? And I’m really grateful for being able to design my life in a way where I choose to live, work and commute” – Alex

Here is some practical advice that can help you feel happier:

Know yourself and discover what activities and things really bring you joy and happiness.
Figure out if the place/city you are living in really makes you happy.
Use your money to build social relationships.
Create experiences for people you love, create wonderful moments together. And remember, by planning an experience you actually live an anticipation of happiness.
Audit your spendings of the last year and see what brought you more happiness: material things or experiences.

And just a kind reminder: Mimi and Alex are not here to judge, they are here to help you create awareness of what can help you bring closer to happiness and your dream life. Going through these conversations, thoughts, exercises and being honest with yourself, you are able to know yourself better and understand what is really important to you.

Here is what else we talk about in this episode:

Difference between how money can bring you happiness if you are an extrovert or an introvert
How sharing experiences with other people can intensify your happiness
Why so many people gravitate towards the idea to be in a community
How your lifestyle impacts your level of happiness
Does material things bring you joy
Sustainable aspect of consumerism
Difference between high quality timeless products vs. fast fashion trends
How the concept Pay Per Use will help you justify your purchases
How to audit yourself, your spendings and your level of happiness. Show Notes

Next Episode

Building Our Lives and Businesses | Interview with Aaron Alexander

Today we have a very special episode – the tables have turned and now it’s time for us, Alex and Mimi, to go deep and unpack our life journey. Interviewed by Aaron Alexander from Align podcast, we talk about entrepreneurial lifestyle, meaningful work, healthy relationships and life fulfilment. Tune in now and discover how we have been able to design our dream life.

https://www.ikonns.com/podcast/episode49