Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in personal and business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Gabriela Casineanu, Founder of Introverts Academy, located in Toronto, ON, Canada.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

Introverts Academy offers online courses, books, coaching, and training for introverts and organizations. We aim to raise awareness about introverts' strengths—and how to tap into their impressive inner power for personal, professional, organizational, and systemic development—to build a better world for all of us.

Tell us about yourself

I'm Gabriela Casineanu—an introvert with a multi-disciplinary background that spans various fields—which noticed that is not enough awareness about the introvert strengths and how tapping into the complementary innate traits of introversion and extraversion could benefit us in individual, interpersonal, and organizational level. Passionate about this cause and encouraged by the positive feedback received, I started the Introverts Academy. It's rewarding to see the positive changes it triggers and the ripple effect of my work.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Trusting my intuition and allowing it to guide me through any change and challenge I've been through. This strengthened me and helped me build the skills and expertise the Introverts Academy relies on. An intuitive thought during a burnout—when I couldn't speak for four months—became a blessing in disguise: it showed me a way to make a bigger impact by writing my first award-winning book for introverts. When a business direction was not right, the intuition gave me signs to course correct. Even the idea of starting an introverts academy came as an intuitive thought, which hit me with so much energy that I couldn't ignore it.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

Using system thinking (the big picture view) combined with a compelling mission to build the business. Too often, I see people starting a business without a "Why" they're passionate about or forgetting about it in time. Or business owners focused only on working IN the business (operations), ignoring that working ON the business is equally important. A business is a system exposed to inner and outer challenges; this system has several subsystems (operations being one of them). By not embracing systemic thinking, which takes more elements into consideration before making decisions, it's hard to get a business off the ground and grow it.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. Trust yourself that you can find solutions because there will be challenges in any business phase. Do not give up when things get hard.
  2. Building a business is a self-growth process, and failure is part of it. Be open to learning, adjust, and ask for help.
  3. Leverage your time and energy. Look for existing resources, delegate, and build partnerships and operational systems that free your time to do more important things.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

I came to realize that life is a self-discovery journey worth exploring. With any change of direction, I pushed myself through—from electronics engineering to professional coaching, training, artistic expression, and entrepreneurship—I discovered more about myself and built a fulfilling professional path. However, none of the previous experiences were lost. They were just stepping stones that helped me gain skills and expertise useful in everything I do (even with Introverts Academy). The journey keeps unfolding, and growing the business is part of it.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://introvertsacademy.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/introverts.academy
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/introvertsacademy/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/introverts_acad
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrielacasineanu/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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