What Happens When a Founder Steps Away from their Business for Two Months? | Shadi Enbashi

 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗮 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲𝘀, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀? 🤔

In this episode, Rayhan Aleem sits down with Shadi Enbashi, Co-Founder of SEVA Experience, to explore his path from corporate life into building one of Dubai’s early wellness spaces. Shadi shares why Dubai stayed his anchor, how SEVA grew from a personal way of living into a business, and why the brand was built around values, experience, and integrity rather than quick wins.

The conversation then turns more personal. Shadi reflects on the intensity of entrepreneurship, the moment he stepped away from the business for two months in the Amazon, and a life changing period that reshaped how he sees control, priorities, and leadership. It is a thoughtful episode for founders thinking about business, identity, and what it means to build without losing yourself.

👉 Follow Shadi Enbashi on LinkedIn:http://bit.ly/4ty8QWF
👉 Learn more about SEVA Experience: https://www.sevaexperience.com/

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𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗔𝗺 𝗜?

My name is  Rayhan Aleem, Founder and CEO of 𝗧𝗮𝘅 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿 and 𝗔𝗹𝗽𝗵𝗮 𝗣𝗿𝗼 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀. At  𝗔𝗹𝗽𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘂𝗿𝘀 podcast I sit with top industry leaders for in-depth conversations that dive deep into their success stories, market dynamics, and firsthand tips on entrepreneurship and profitability. Whether you're just starting out or already running your own business, 𝗔𝗹𝗽𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘂𝗿𝘀 offers something valuable for everyone.

👉 Follow 𝗥𝗮𝘆𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗔𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗺 on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/49yyO4n
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𝟭-𝗔𝗹𝗽𝗵𝗮 𝗣𝗿𝗼 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀:
  -𝗪𝗲𝗯𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲:  https://www.alphapartners.co
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𝟮-𝗧𝗮𝘅 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿:
  -𝗪𝗲𝗯𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲:  https://www.taxstar.app
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🔗 𝗪𝗲𝗯𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗲: https://bit.ly/4nmA53y
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𝗘𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗽𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗱𝗲? 𝗦𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗔𝗹𝗽𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘂𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝘃𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝘂𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀! 

Transcript

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We think we are so important. We think we have so much command of power in our hand, and that's part of the illusion that makes our life very difficult. Um, we are so insignificant. One day we're gonna close our eyes and we're gonna open them again, and we don't know when is that gonna be Welcome to the Alphapreneurs podcast. I'm your host, Rayhan Aleem. I'm also the founder of Alpha Pro Partners, a bookkeeping business based in Dubai, and Tax Star, a tax technology startup automating corporation tax returns. Join me on each episode as we talk to inspiring Dubai-based entrepreneurs who share their stories, challenges, and secrets on building world-class businesses I'm pleased to have Shadi on the show today. Shadi is a co-founder of Seva Experience and is a longtime Dubai resident. Shadi, um, I'm super excited to have you on the show today. Um, we've had lots of conversations, not just about accounts, but deep into lots of different other things as well, and I really wanted to bring you on the show and kind of get the world to hear your insights and what you've learned and what you've been through as well. Go- we do a bit of business, and then we do a bit of kind of self-development, because our target are, is entrepreneurs. So the, for those who don't know you, do you want to give us a quick introduction about yourself? Um, you was born here. Not born here, sorry. You grew up here. I was born here. Oh, you was born here. Yeah. Oh, wow. So you was born here, and, uh, you've had a lot of your experience here, whether it's growing up, at school, corporate, setting up a business. So tell us about, tell us about you. Let's start backward for a change. I, um, I'm a body work therapist, I'm a kundalini yoga teacher, and, uh, I'm the co-founder of, uh, Seva Experience, a plant-based cafe and an ecology of humans, um, wellness center, yoga studio. And, um, yeah, I um… Carbon-based life form, to say the least, you know? Human being. All these labels and titles keep changing in time. Yeah. I come from corporate background, um, for 16 years in financial and payment solutions. And, uh, at the moment, I am fully immersed in the, um, Seva Experience. Nice. And, um, you obviously grew up here, uh, you worked here, and then you set up your bus- well, you co-founded, uh, a wellness cafe. Tell us about your kind of early experience of being in Dubai and, you know, you could have gone to other places to work or study or to, uh, to do an entrepreneur. But, uh, what made you stay in Dubai to continue your journey here? It's very easy to say I had made clear decisions or, um- It was in my horizon. As a matter of fact, um, my, uh, direct family, my siblings are-- My sister is in Holland, my brother is in the US. Um, from my direct family, I'm the only one who stays here, you know? So, um, it was just, um, the natural movement of life. I, uh, I grew up here. I studied here. Even in my corporate career, I traveled to more countries than my years on this planet. Um, I had a venture in South America for a period of time. And, um, no matter what, there was always an anchor in Dubai. Mm. Um, it feels home. It is home. Um, there is a connection with the land. There is a connection, um, that is not very, um, poetic or nostalgic. It's just real, and, uh, I honor it, you know? Maybe tomorrow will be a different day with different object-objectives and goals and strategies, so we'll see what happens. Yep. No, let's, let's see what happens indeed. I wanna go back to Seva. So you're the co-founder of Seva. Uh, you know, we've worked with you for quite a number of years and, you know, it's been great experience going through that journey with you as well. Um, you, with Eda, set up a, a wellness business, which also factored in plant-based restaurant cafe. Uh, great food obviously, um, as well as selling, um, items as well, uh, that's related within what, what you do. Now, I remember that being one of the early wellness centers in Dubai, so You're probably one of the OGs of having a wellness center, and now you see them everywhere, and so you was kinda like the trendsetter. So what kinda got you to, and Eda, to think about setting something up like that in Dubai, um, and kind of having a plant-based restaurant, you know, given the fact that in Dubai most place- you could see a burger joint everywhere nowadays, right? How did you see that envision happening in, in Dubai? And now, now you see more and more vegan options and, um, and you know, a lot more yoga studios and, uh, wellness centers. What made you envision to set up here, uh, when no one else was doing it? I'll try to an- answer and address all the points. Um, firstly, I acknowledge that, um, our partnership and collaboration and work has been, um, a major pillar in sustaining the business, and I, uh, I'm very, very, um, grateful for our friendship and, um, our business relationship, which was very, very supportive, especially at the times of the difficult, uh, period of COVID. So, um, that is something that, um, yeah, in the, um- The star map always. We didn't know better, to say the least. Uh, we were playing. It was, uh, it was, it was our way of living. It was the way that we were expressing our way, um, of, um, integrating with the constellation of life. Um, prior to Seva or even Lifein1, um, before Seva, I, uh, I was practicing yoga. I was plant-based. I was, uh, curious about, um, what's it like to be a human being and all the esoteric, um, deep dive. And that was at times where even resources and access to knowledge was very, very limited. And then, um, the co-creation of Seva, um, or Lifein1 prior to Seva was, um, sustained by the little interaction from those who were resonating, um, a minority in the community, I must say. Until in 2017, we had, um, won a competition with Cambridge, um, University in the UK, the MBA school, and, um, it was a competition about pitching a topic, um, a business model, and the winning, um, uh, application would get a number of their students to come and execute this research, which was simply studying the wellness landscape in the Middle East. So, um, it was quite an eye-opener. We had been competing with big, big brands. We're talking about Coca-Cola and, um, um, large-scale multinational organizations And little did we know that we had no idea what we were doing as a business. Mm. The branding was terrible. The identity was confusing. Um, our understanding of the SWOT analysis was completely off the grid. So that, that gave us an anchor, um, to just have a reality check, and then we put it aside, and we continued doing what we're doing. And at some point, honoring the community, honoring our people, honoring the, the, the supporters, we said, "It's time to up the game," and we went through an up-branding venture for 18 months. And at some point through the process, we realized that we are actually unaware, aligning with the recommendations that came from that research from MBA students. Mm. And, um, we did a massive up-branding, and, um, prior to that, I would say Life N One used to be called Healing Center, um, which we dropped, and we coined the name Experience, and there is a very clear and precise reason for that at that time. And then in March 2020, we launched Seva three days before the lockdown, and then we had to shut down for s- nearly, nearly a year, which was very, very- Yeah … difficult. And we only had the opportunity for the brand to express itself late 2020. Um, as OGs and as the original players in this field, um, I acknowledge there were a handful of centers, um, in, in this field, in this, in this field. Um, as a, as a cafe, we are the first plant-based cafe that is gluten-free and cane sugar-free in the Middle East, uh, since 2014. And, um, again, it was the way of us expressing the way we live- Mm … and our values and virtues more than Trying to penetrate the market niche, uh, which only surfaced as a niche later on. Um, COVID was a blessing in disguise. It, um, it was very difficult for us, and in ways directly and indirectly, we sustained the year. And then the explosion of this market was nothing but a response to the necessities people expressed about looking after themselves. That hard reset, in a way, made people more aware about their priorities, health, education, connection. Contact was, um, um, something overlooked in the day-to-day activities of everybody. So we scaled very, very fast. We were less than eight people, six or seven people, and now we are nearly 40 people, and that explosion came rapidly. We didn't understand how to sustain it. We learned along the way. Jumping-- It's almost like jumping from plane and building the parachute on the way. Um, and as you mentioned today, every backyard and every corner and every patio is offering something in what we jokingly call the spiritual supermarket. Um, today it's, um, it's very confusing and confused as the way we see it. Um, we were part of it, and at the same time we Um, we don't see ourself as trendsetters nor- Yeah trend followers. We simply are completely dropping the trend from our own formula. When we express ourself, we express it, um, out of values and out of our understanding of the ecology that we are part of, rather than trying to gain and catch onto, uh, low-hanging fruits or quick wins. Of course, we need to play the game- Mm in order to be, um, relatable to the masses, which was very challenging in order to sustain values and integrity in the way we offer things and at the same time speak the language of the market. So I guess, um, this was more you went into the business, you initially started off with an analytical kind of review of what's going on in, in the Middle East, but it was actually more of a passion project that you really enjoyed doing and you was part of that helped you grow and sustain the business as a result. Yeah. The passion is, is, is there every day. Mm. And, um, I must say today we see it more of a purpose and a mission. I wouldn't say I know my purpose on this planet. I would say rather we respond to the natural movement of the environment around us. Tell us some stories about, you obviously set up the first plant-based cafe. How did that… What was the first kinda reactions that you got, and were you… h- do you have any examples of where someone came in and they were like, "You know, I'm a meat eater," or,"I don't know what veganism is," is, and they then became a, a vegan or they changed their lifestyle as a result? I'll bring some clarification on a few things. Even though we are a plant-based cafe, technically, we don't use the term vegan- Yeah… simply because veganism is a movement, and it's beyond what you consume and you eat. Um, it's a belief system. It's a way of, uh, positioning yourself. And we've seen, um, that it is beyond what we are expressing, so we didn't wanna carry a label or wear a hat bigger than what we are doing. Um, at the same time, we are not, um, in the business of promoting- people to convert from whatever diet they are into- Mm-hmm … into plant-based. Um, the way we see it is not even-- We're doing our best even not to mention the word plant-based, but it's tricky in the way we are being, uh, labeled- Mm-hmm … um, by community, by social media, by PR and marketing and so on. Um, what's important for us is the connection with Earth, the connection with the elements, the connection with the seasons, and the connection with ourselves. Um, I, um, I believe there is no perfect diet. Every part of the world has its own way. Even, uh, when we talk about health I believe it's very subjective and, um, there is, um, you know, the research about the long-lasting humans on the planet, the blue zones. None of them is plant-based. None of them is vegan. It's, um, a tiny little piece in the big puzzle of, uh, the way you live. You know, there is the social interactions, there is the, uh, um, emotional stability and, um, the, um, environmental aspects and so on and so forth. So our message, um, is more about, um Being plant forward and soil aware and, um, connecting with the process. We are whole food, uh, cafe. Everything is made from scratch, and this is something that's way more important than being, uh, vegan or plant-based or whatnot. Mm. And, uh, we simply drop down some of the allergens and some of the elements like the cane sugar and the gluten, um, as a way to make it as clean as possible, um, within our capacity. Uh, we aim at being locally sourced, uh, as much as possible and, um, seasonal as much as possible, which is also challenging to be in Dubai. Yeah, I can imagine. But we do our best, and, um, the intention is to be transparent and clean and clear. And as a matter of fact, as you also know, um, it's not about only the food, it's the overall sensory experience, the garden, the ambiance, the texture, the sound, the scent. So we design the environment to give you a holistic experience where what you eat is only a small part of it. But of course, we have a wonderful, wonderful culinary expert, Kiki, our chef, and our, uh, dear friend and family. She's been with us from the beginning. She's, uh, spearheading the cafe now in-house, um, back office, front office. She understands, um, Seva completely, and she feels into it literally under the skin. Mm. As a matter of fact, she just graduated as a therapist last weekend. Oh, wow. So she's gonna be one of your therapists as well now. Yes. That's, uh, a topic that is gonna be also revealed in the near future. But, um, it was a big, uh, ride this last 12 months- Mm where, um, she completed the, the, the main pillar of the bodywork therapy, Nir Levi Method, um, training. And, um, the transformation was radical as, uh, as, as witnessing her. But at the same time, it was wonderful to witness since she is a chef who uses her hands and fingers technically above and beyond the average person today with computers and screens and so on. Yeah. Her expression with the bodywork was completely outstanding. Yeah. So, um, Kiki leads the cafe. Um, we align, and we are all very, very passionate, um, about what we express as offerings. Um, and in a way, for those who are not into this kind of diet or, or way of eating. Mm. The invitation is have a meal a day or have a day a week, see how it feels. Most of the time when we look at- Not just have a avocado on toast every time you come in, right? That's right. Uh, when, when, when you come by. Well, um, the, the idea here is if we look at all diets, you know, everybody goes into one of these, um, um, popular diets today, and they gain some benefits. Yeah. And that's when they start swearing by it. I believe any clean diet starts with elimination. When we eliminate the noise, we feel the value. Mm. And, um, again, I don't claim that we are, um, holding the perfect diet. What we offer is something very clean. Uh, we look at the process end to end, and we aim at making it as alive as possible, as aesthetically, visually appealing as possible, and as delicious as possible. Texture and food, uh, taste is very, very important. We don't compromise. If we can't make it taste amazing, it's not on the menu. I think you need to get a Michelin star at least at some point. It's, it's on the list. It's on the list of, um, topics that we will, uh, give a priority very, very soon. We've heard so many remarks and feedbacks from well-seasoned people in, uh, being consu- gastronomy consumers and, uh, we believe, uh, we just need to put it on our, uh, horizon very, very soon. And, uh, yeah. Yep. No, no. Look, look forward to it. Look forward to that day. Um, I wanna go back to the days when you, you was in corporate, and the days when you were also working on Sevva as well as, and on top of that being a kundalini yoga trainer, and amongst other things, you're doing loads of other things as well. Um, so obviously I know you're someone who just keeps yourself busy constantly. Um, and then obviously we, you have your breaks, and we'll talk about your breaks later on. But one of the common themes that we have here is a lot of the entrepreneurs who come here, they were in corporate, and then they moved to set up the business. Um, my journey's the same as well. I was in corporate, and I set up a business when I moved to Dubai. Now- I was with you in the trenches at the time, right?'Cause we used to have our meetings once a week. Um, and you were obviously juggling multiple things. How did you… H- uh, how did you-- how were you able to cope working in a… Yeah, and your job wasn't a, you know, it was a highly demanding job, right? How were you able to cope running a business and maintaining your, the business and growing the business? And at what point did you say to yourself, "Okay, I need to quit my business and do this full-time"? What were the kinda trigger points for, for you? I, um, I've been reflecting on this in the past, uh, several months, as a matter of fact. Um, first and foremost, I, uh, I'm very, very grateful for the opportunity to have had the chance to be in that, uh, career path. I joined the, um, the, the corporate world at a very, very high-end, um, and a very serious, uh, field, um, in the payment solutions since I was 22 years old. As a matter of fact, um, I only had, uh, one ride, but with multiple, uh, journeys within the big organization. Um, I learned a lot and, um, I would say even before that, I always realized that, um, extremes have been substantial part of the way I live. Um, I I grew up in martial arts. I was into extreme sports, and then, uh, the way I would deal with every day, um, was through extremes. So if it wasn't for two jobs, probably it would be something else to keep me busy and, uh, put that intensity into, um, the way I interact with my environment. I paid prices. I paid prices into that affected my health, that affected my, uh, social life, affected my priorities. Um, but at the same time, I kept going. Um, to say how is mere resilience. Mm. And at the same time, perhaps, um, again, I didn't know better. We think we have command and power, and we look at others who achieve things, and we think sometimes that, um, they have abilities we don't have. But at the same time, especially through the past years of, um, being in the therapy field and having, um, receivers who are on a world-class high achievers, you realize that the broken pieces in us motivate us to express ourselves in what seems to be superior. But at the same time, it's a need. Mm. We don't pay attention to the subtleties of our needs to validate and be validated. Um, sometimes it's survival need that can seem to be a great achievement, but internally, it's a chaos. So I did what I could do best over the years. Um, and like I said, it took a toll on me. Sometime I reflect even within Seva, like you mentioned, we are a cafe, we are a wellness center, we are a retail store, three verticals that are completely different. Mm. If we even took one and go deeper into them, perhaps we would be in a different ballgame, you know? So it was not easy to juggle internally within Seva, at the same time having that parallel field. But, um, if I would reflect on one thing, I can only say we don't know what we're capable of doing. The capacities within us are beyond our comprehension. Mm. Would I do it back again? Perhaps. You know, do I wanna do it- Bit more measured though, right? Pardon? You'd probably be a bit more measured. I don't know. I love risks, and I like to, um, to be honest, I… The more I look around me today, especially that now we are in the field for 11 years- Mm … we have plenty of data. You know, our clients, our facilitators, our own selves, and the evolution of what we go through. Um, we think we know. I believe we are governed by so many layers of, um, belief systems, conditionings, and unconscious, unaware- Yeah um, expressions that make us be who we are. Yeah. Yeah. And what made you make that? What, what triggered you to make that move- It, it was wither-… full-time as an entrepreneur? It, it was, it was withering. It was withering. It wasn't like a, an aha moment or a flip, um, overnight. Yeah. It wasn't black and white. It was, um, in a way similar to how we rebranded from Life and went to Seva over 18 months. It was beyond a year-long, uh, process. Mm. I faded, and my interest was not in the previous, um, uh, priority anymore. And at the same time, Seva was demanding a lot from my time and my attention. I remember being in one of our sales kickoff in somewhere in Europe, being on the phone, I mean, when with my corporate, um, responsibilities, on the phone while we're doing the construction and the rebranding across continents, across, uh, overseas, trying to sort things out remotely. And I realized at that, at that time, it doesn't make sense. I am not being fair to myself nor to either of the two responsibilities. Yeah. So it started to fade away, and, uh, towards end of 2020, Seva became my top priority as, um, work and career-wise. Yeah. No, thank, thanks for sharing that. I also wanna talk about, you know, some of the things you've been through as an, as an entrepreneur as well. Um, one of the things I wanna touch upon is, one thing that strikes me when I go to the cafe, um, is you, y- you know, you and Eda had a good, a very high sense of detail in terms of the business, the way you run it, the way you look at the menu, look, the way the look and feel and experience is when you go in, into the center. And for me, that's a very important trait to have as a s- as a successful entrepreneur, to be able to, uh, look at the finer details and be able to keep improving, keep, keep that experience refreshed Looking into the finer details cannot, can be taught in such a way, but sometimes it's just inherent. How do you approach, what's your thought process when you're looking at the business and you're looking at, okay, how can I make these changes in my business to then make it more and more world-class, more and more, um, a business that Continues to grow, continues to be stronger. Um, how do you s- how, how do you take the looking at the finer details part of it, and how do you… What's your thought process behind that? Um, it feels very strange to be called an entrepreneur. I, I know in certain context this is a title. Um, I never dreamt of it. I never, um, imagined I'll be in where I am today. Um, it just happened. Mm. Yeah. But, uh, in terms of the expression of what we do at Seva, I would say the way you do one thing is the way you do everything. Just yesterday, I got more than 40 plants into my little own personal space. Um, that's a measure. I have more than 50 plants in a very, very small space, and I was just looking at why am I doing this, you know. I like details. I like, um, witnessing nature and life. And even if people see Dubai as, um, artificial space or full of glitters or not, or lacking nature, I would say, um, the, the waterfront is nature, the desert is nature. Um, if I have one ability, I would say I notice, I notice things. Mm. That's, that's, that's one thing, um, I'm skilled at. Um, since younger years I was into street photography, watching the environment around me like a flaneur. And, um, today I would say when I look at Seva, we were playing. Sometime we play Um, like kids, and sometime we play seriously. But then we are governed by our values and virtues. So we remove our little self out of the way. Mm. We express, um, for a faraway horizon We're not into low-hanging fruits. We're not into chasing trends. We're not into pleasing everybody, you know? It needs to be meaningful. Um, aesthetics are very important for me personally. I appreciate beauty, and we are inspired by nature. Many people come and say,"Oh, this is like Bali." I've never been to Bali. We have never been to Bali. I love nature. I go to the mountains, I go to the jungle, but we have never been in the process of replicating something, uh, that already exists. Um, I believe we have so much within us to express. If we look at all the original artists, if we call them original, great, but everything is a remix. Yep. So how do we orchestrate our expression in a way? So when it comes to the aesthetics and the details, as you mentioned, it's us doing our best to express our best. Mm. No shortcuts, no compromises. So what I heard is, obviously you're not trying to copy something else, you're trying to be yourself. Um, and it's… From what, what I heard what you said, it's more, for you it comes more natural than anything else. Um, and I guess it takes time for someone to kinda get into that phase of mind where they will start noticing the smallest detail to then improve it for, for, for their business. I am… If I want to be very, very honest, um, if I listen to music, I think of Saval. Mm. If I read a book, I think what can I get out of it? If I watch a movie, um, I research a lot. I study a lot. I consume a lot of, um, art and history material- Mm … um, for my own joy. And at the same time, I see what's possible to express through this platform- Yeah … through this campus. Obviously known you for a long time, and we've… You've shared a lot of stories with me, and one of the things that you did as an entrepreneur is you literally left the business for a month, two months. You left the business for two months, and you embarked on a journey to the Amazon jungle, and you stayed there for two months completely, um, unreachable. So you didn't have your phone. Um, I think the only way to get in contact was through smoke signals maybe or through pigeons. Pige- uh, uh, pigeon messages. Um, and for entrepreneurs, that's really tough. Like, most entrepreneurs I know, they are still within their business, not on top of the business. So when you're in the business, you can't really take a day off. When you're on top of the business, you can But most people are in, in this, in this phase. And at the time when I was in my business, when you did- doing that, I was like, I was thinking, "I cannot take even three, four days out of my schedule just to take a break from my business, let alone two months." Um, and I understand why sometimes it's important for entrepreneurs to literally disconnect and reset and go back to the business afterwards. But tell us about your thinking. Why, why did you want to… Why two months? Why complete isolation from the whole world? And when you came out of that experience, what, what changed? Yeah. Yeah. The, um, the whole, uh, idea Was, um, crystallized over a dinner. Let me turn 40 in the jungle, and that was late 2020 and, um, or 2021, and I, I went there in 2021. I am very, very grateful. I have an amazing friend and teacher and guide and a brother who, um, um, supported me and guided me over the years prior to that into deepening my understanding with the cosmology of the jungle and the way, um, the work of the jungle is being done from a very authentic and real lineage, um, that is beyond the, um, spiritual tourism that happens nowadays mostly. Um, and, um, I went there for two months simply because I couldn't stay longer. I would have loved to stay there for two years. Um, it wasn't easy, but it was wonderful. Um, just prior to that, I was, um, playing with martial arts and jujitsu for quite a while. So, uh, I dropped a routine and I went into total chaos in the jungle, which was, um, fascinating. Mm. I truly was, uh, off the grid. I was in a place that even smoke signals wouldn't make it through the canopy of trees and, and, and, and how dense the greenery was. And I lived with a family that is, um, within the tribe at a very high, um, responsibility and rank, but also is not accessible to the mainstream. Um, again, thankful to my teacher who opened the door and the possibility and put me in contact with his teacher, um, with whom I lived. I, I was with this wonderful, wonderful human being who at that time was 105 years old. Wow. Him and his wife, who was 100 years old, and just living with them was a ceremony by itself. Um, I lived in the open. I was on a patio w- in a bed with a mosquito net And, um, yeah, there was a lot of, um, training and, um, there was initially a bigger group of people for a short period of time, and then I was left behind with a family. Mm. And, um, I went into, um, yeah, a dieta special practice and, um, um, I was in isolation, no eye contact, no connection with the outside world. Uh, and not even within the, the, the field. I only had one or two people who were the people I could connect with for a period of month. I must admit, um, it felt very natural. Um, I have very strong connection with nature and earth, and it was a beautiful escape. I didn't miss the city. Um, I actually exposed myself to, um, more intense, um, environmental aspects, uh, through, um, bugs and insects and so on than the average. I was, uh, almost topless all the time. I got bitten by a lot of mosquitoes. I got even, um, had some allergies and so on, and it was even wonderful to witness how I was, um, helped into being treated by natural plants in that time. Mm. It was, it was wonderful to watch very, very simple people, um, who appeared to be simple. But mind you, I was at that time in the middle of my year-long therapist training as well. So that, that was a break in between the modules. So we already were trained on reading people, reading the body language, reading the posture, and so on. And it was fascinating to watch because one of the things we pay attention to is the conflict between the pra- pragmatic aspects and the emotional aspects that we are unaware, but the body expresses. Mm. And those people were wonderfully in synergy and harmony. It was amazing to watch even the feet posture, for example, that doesn't show internal conflicts. They were in rhythm with nature. Of course, they were humans. They had their own drama, their own stories, their own needs and, and so on and so forth. But nonetheless, they didn't have that noise that comes from being in a, in a very, um, crowded, um, environment. Yep. You know? Um- The, the disconnection from work was only possible because my partner at that time and my team, um, were able to sustain looking after things. Mm. Again, that was not easy, um, from sense of responsibility, from certain interdependency. There was a massive handover and guidelines and so on, and SOPs put together on all what I was looking after. But it went through. Mm. You know? Um, looking back, I am, um, very, very grateful. I can't wait for another extended trip, because since then I didn't get to leave the business, um, behind for that while. Yeah. And when you came back, what was the transition for the business? How did, how did the business-- How were you able to make an impact to the business having had two months off? I'm sure that you had a long period of re-reflection of what you was doing, what kind of things was going on in the business. What kind of things were you able to impact the business as a result of having a, having a break? It set a different tone into my relationship with the business- Mm … and my relationship with what I am expressing through Seva. Um, there are aspects that are very, very private and intimate. Um, they are expressed through the work that we offer. Yeah. But the intention is private, and, um, at the same time, it made me also, um, reset my relationship and my priorities, um, through experiences I, I went to in there. For example, I remember at some point I met, um, a medicine man who does readings and, uh, protections and prayers and so on. And I was told I will meet this person in advance, and he would ask for photos of important people and things- Mm that you would, uh, simply, um, show it to him. And I went there with a stack of photos, and I was showing, um, that wonderful teacher and, uh, leader photos of my families and the business, and, and, and, and, and, and then there was my photo. And then he looked at me and he laughed, and he told me, um, "It's very obvious that you're very confused about your priorities because your photo was the last." He told me, "You are the essence of your life, and you need to operate accordingly." Mm. And it, it relates to the saying, "You can't serve from an empty cup." Of course, we are told to be selfless. Even the word seva is interpreted as selfless act of service. Mm. But at the same time, you can't lead from a place of power and ability and stability if you don't look after yourself first and foremost. And so the flip coin is be selfish and take the world with you, because that's how you can serve better. Can you have deeper impact, long-lasting narrative, and, uh, story to tell- Mm … in a way? So that, that all mapped into how I looked at the business when I returned, how… It wasn't easy. It wasn't easy at all to come back. Um, it took even over a year's time of stabilization after the jungle to bring, um, clarity into how can I transmute and distill my experience, which is ongoing until today. Yeah. Because it taught me also to act again from values and virtues rather than aiming at achieving outcomes and be goal-orientated. Yeah, no, that's a very, very good perspective, and I think one thing I would like to reflect on what, what you've shared is, you know, um, when you-- a lot of entrepreneurs, they don't put themselves first. Uh, they put others first. They have to, right? Employees, customers, um, partners, um, you know, regulations and all of that. But sometimes you have to think about yourself as well, because if you're the driving force of the business, then you need to make sure that you're, um, you're at a good level where you can contribute, uh, and keep the bus- the, the, keep the The theme of the business running, uh, because you are the center focal point of that. Um, so thank you for sharing that. Of course. Of course. And as, as a matter of fact, I wanna say, um, you need to be the essence of your life, but at the same time to remove your little self out of the way. Mm. Because it's a, it's a paradoxical positioning here. Um, who are you and what is the relationship between us? Yeah. And, uh, how can I be the best version of myself in my expression while looking after myself, while being real and honest and expressing and offering things of purpose, you know? Um, it takes courage, it takes clarity, and it takes brutal honesty between you and you. What do you want to do? Mm-hmm. You know, the why, why are you doing what you're doing? And at the same time, how high is the ceiling you wanna play under? What's your goal? Yes. That's, that's very important. Uh, I wanna talk about something different now. Um, now you went through a short period where you had a life-threatening situation, um, and you was obviously out of the business for quite some time. Uh, and this was quite, not, not without going into too much detail obviously, but this was a situation where you literally had to leave the business without planning. So with the jungle retreat, there was some planning, uh, and you were able to plan your SOPs, the team, and prepare them to say, "Look, I'm gonna now step out the business for a few months, but then I'll come back." This is a situation where you abruptly left the business. You, there was no know- there was no knowing when you would come back, uh, but the business had to keep running. Can you give us some insights in terms of how-- what happened in the business at the time, and what was your feeling when this situation happened? And how were you then able to… How long did it take for you to recover to get back into the business to then start making an impact again? What kind of advice would you give to that entrepreneur when they go through that shock, and they then have to… Business is running, you can't stop it, and especially with Sevva where you've got customers coming every day. In my business, it's consulting, right? So we don't have a shop front. But with you, you have a shop front, and you have people coming in to have courses, to take-- are taking courses to have food, to, you know, to buy things from there. Tell us about that and what advice you would give to other entrepreneurs I don't give advices, and the main reason is I am never under anybody's skin. Mm-hmm. Nor do I have the pair of parents, nor do I have the journey or the belief system. I can only share my story and, um, express my own perception and perspective about it. Um, and then for anybody who listens, they can take their own pieces, you know. I don't believe we should take advices in, in my opinion. Um, we should just, um, absorb data and content- Mm… and see what comes out of it, because nothing, um, nothing beats an experience, a first-hand experience. That's why we call it self-experience. We're not here telling you what to do. We are offering you a space to express yourself through first-hand experience. Um, that, uh, that incident, um, was, um, was a hard reset in many ways. Um, um, of course, it affected the business and at the same time, it was at the time when the business was expanding, um, exponentially. Um, but at that time it wasn't a priority to see how is it going with the business. It was my priority, um, at the time when

I was in the ambulance, uh, at 4: 46:49

00 a.m. to, to cancel my meetings that day and tell the team what to do with those people who would show up and so on, and then I switch off the phone. And as a matter of fact, my phone was also not with me. It was under investigation for two months after that to find out what happened and so on and so forth. But anyway, um, the point is, um, uh, life goes on. Mm. We think we are so important. We think we have so much command and power in our hand, and that's part of the illusion that makes our life very difficult. Um, we are so insignificant. One day we're gonna close our eyes, and never gonna open them again, and we don't know when is that gonna be. Yeah. So, um, how can we play the game of living fully today like it's your last day and planning for tomorrow like the horizon is towards the infinite, you know? It's not easy, but also it gives us the awareness and the understanding of being fully present in every moment, you know, planning for today and planning for tomorrow. Um- Two years ago, I read a book about tracking lions in Africa, and, um, it was a beautiful, wonderful book that has

a line: 48:03

"I don't know what I'm-- I don't know where I am going, but I know exactly how to get there." Because, um, those people understand terrains, understand unpredictable movements in the bushes, understand that, uh, the goal or the target is not static, is not fixated. Everything is in motion. So the only thing that we can do is to enhance our stability and flexibility to look after the next step and the next step and the next step. So this is where you develop your instruments. I had big, um, arguments with one of my seniors long, long time ago when I was in a corporate about this whole story of three-year plans and five-year plans and, you know, it's a classic. But then you understand that the vision here is to create a framework and a direction. Mm. And then you refresh this five-year plan every year or every six months, so you keep it alive. You know, even from a, um, philosophical and esoteric teaching, there was a saying, uh, one of the stories of the Buddha that, um, he was saying, "Even if you fall, fall in the right direction." And how do you determine the right direction? Is when you are tuned into your heart in a way. So you fall, you get up, and you walk. You fall, you keep going. You know? This is, um, this is life. The jungle is not a safe space. We are so confused about aspects and values like peace. Mm. We don't use peace in any of our offerings. We change it and replace it with rhythm because If you are walking in the jungle and you twist your ankle or you fall in a little hole that was under a piece of leaf or a, a, a, a branch and you break your leg, chances are you're gonna be eaten by ants within 48 hours. Mm. You know? So, uh, and this is our inspiration when we talk about nature, because life is fierce, and there is something about the illusion of softness, softness and softening and cushioning the way we live, uh, niceness. These virtues and these ways of living are confusing us because there is a big difference between niceness and kindness. There is a big difference between peace and rhythm, you know? Um, there is something about our relationship with conflict and friction. We are avoiding them often, but we don't, we don't learn how to maintain the tension without collapsation. Just like when in the jungle there is a predator and a prey, the relationship needs to be two ways, and both packs stay alive. Mm. We don't wanna protect somebody from the natural course. What we want is to enforce their stability- Yeah… and flexibility into how they express themselves, because you need to express your fierceness in life. That's how you become real. Not good, not bad. These are positions. How you are real, one day you are angry, one day you are very aware, one day you are fogged and confused, one day you are tired and exhausted. How do you position yourself is in accordance to many, many aspects. So stability and flexibility is what we need to enhance in, uh, in the course of life. And of course, it comes with responsibilities, and that is the test of how strong is your relationship with the pillars that you define your identity with, you know? Again, I go back to the reality that we are not significant. We are so unimportant. As a matter of fact, bees are way more important than us on the ecology of what we live, right? And like my teacher Nir says, the bee can go from the hive to the flower 100 times a day. Not one moment it will pause and says,"Why am I here? What's my purpose? What am I gonna do if things collapse?" And so on. But we are full of stories. We need to reduce their importance. Mm. Shadi, you've been an amazing guest, and, um, thank you for sharing your insights, uh, your knowledge, and some of the things you went through, uh, in your entrepreneurial career. Um- Tell us what kind of things you're working on. I know you do a million things. So you're a kundalini yoga instructor. You're doing courses. Just came back from Nepal and got me a honey from the Himalayas, so thank you for that. Uh, what kind of things are you working on, and how can Seva help entrepreneurs? We have an internal line we say, "Not a dull day." We are constantly, uh, um, on the go, and, uh, what's behind the scenes is far beyond what's being expressed. We are a very small team, and we are running around the clock. Mm. Um, I have an amazing, amazing general manager who is looking after the big picture right now and is allowing me, in parts, to look after my other offerings as a teacher and a therapist and, um, looking after the vision and the narrative while he looks after the execution, operations, and so on and so forth. Um- In terms of what we are working on, we have a spree of, uh, trainings. Um, the major one starts in May, our major therapist training, um, as we just finished the, uh, recent batch, generation three, this weekend. Um, but at the same time, we are already, um, engaged with, um, industry. When we talk about clients beyond B2C and just individuals, we are working with businesses. We are offering pragmatic solutions to how can we bring those teachings, those offerings, not only for those who are looking after esoteric knowledge or practicing yoga and breathwork for their own, you know, inner journey, but also mapping all this into a very practical and impactful way to look at constellations of how leadership can be more effective, um, how can it be more real, how can we bring, uh, stability and flexibility to the ecosystem of a work environment. The awareness of the regulation of the nervous system and all these things are things we already do in-- at Seva in different modalities, but we are now positioning it more and more in the corporate world. So this is one of the major movements that we have this year. Um, Ramadan is, um, coming up very, very soon, so we have an amazing offering in the cafe and the environment with, uh, reset plans and, um, new menus and so on and so forth. And in terms of what we can offer to entrepreneurs is nothing but, um, an experience, you know. It's an invitation always to come and, um, don't take our words for it. Have the experience, whether in the cafe, whether in the garden, whether in any of the services, uh, we offer. Like I mentioned earlier, we design environments. We are creating a space that is not safe, because safe is not… It's controlled. It's rather a supported space. We want people to take risks. We want people to go out of their comfort zone, but we are here to support, you know. When we talk about the ecology, we're talking about the interrelations, and that by itself, being part of it, brings awareness to any entrepreneur to understand how can they take this experience and map it into their vision, into their relationship with their team and their clients and so on and so forth. I believe we are our relations. It's an old saying, and it's part of the order that we follow. So the most important relationship we have is with ourselves. Mm. So that brings again, Kundalini Yoga is also called the yoga of awareness. I can't bring you anything and inject it into you that enhances your self-awareness than your own breath, your own sound, your own physical movement, your own intention. So this is what we offer. We offer a field for an experience that prompts you a movement, a possibility, because you are the potential of your future self. And so we calculate an environment without having it very rigid, um, to create a possibility beyond anything else. Thank you for sharing that. Um, what's the best way our listeners can, uh, get in contact with you? In real life. So they gotta come down to the cafe. Yes. And they can, they can, uh, they can come and see you, or book one of your oversubscribed Kundalini Yoga courses as well. I just, uh, came from a, a festival in Abu Dhabi this weekend, um, teaching a class for hundreds of people, which was fascinating experience. It's the second year I go to this festival. Um, I, uh, we don't work in large scale. We like intimate groups. Mm. We have a cap for classes, for trainings, because that allows the connection to be more real and visible and intimate and impactful. Um, of course, we offer things and promote things and, uh, share things on our social media. Um, but nothing compares to the real firsthand experience. Cool. Thank you very much for coming on, coming to the show. Glad to be here. Thank you for having me. Thank you for joining us on the Alphapreneurs podcast. I hope you enjoyed the show. Please subscribe and give us a five-star rating and a review. Your feedback is appreciated. For show notes and more, check the link in the description and connect to me on LinkedIn and search for Rayhan Aleem. See you in the next episode