In my book I wrote that “The hardest part about being a Misfit Entrepreneur isn’t building a successful business endeavor; it’s doing so while being true to yourself.” The challenge is earning an income while filling your cup. This is particularly difficult because the need to earn a living can trump the need to align your efforts with fulfilling your greater purpose. Furthermore, finding that sweet spot doesn’t happen over night. So many of us need to earn a living and so we

Some people seem to have a penchant for putting themselves out there. They can go from phone call to phone call, meeting to meeting, without ever seeming to tire. They can receive a constant stream of rejections without being the least bit phased. They just churn and churn, go and go, nothing seems to derail their determination to make a sale. I am not one of those people. I feel like I’ve had a relatively low threshold for putting myself out there… Maybe it’s because I thriv

We are creatures of habit. And by habit I mean our brains are etched with neural pathways that create these patterned responses we enact every single day of our lives. That’s why you have the same reaction to certain stimuli – like when someone cuts you off while you’re driving. Or when someone utters a word that rubs you the wrong way. It’s just your brain running through a patterned response like a rat running a maze to it’s food bowl. As you begin to be more aware of your

Last fall I did something completely unexpected…I moved my family into a new home. It was an exciting change and as we approached moving day I was eager with anticipation. It wasn’t until after we moved that I started to feel lethargic, fatigued and overwhelmed…turns out moving really is stressful. And it hit me like a ton of bricks. I felt depressed, lost, exhausted, unable to focus… Rather then get sucked into the vortex of over-analyzing the situation by asking questions l

This past week, we hosted our Annual Rosabella Tea and Cookies community celebration in honor and memory of our namesake’s birthday. I love everything about this tradition. Particularly the fact that it helps keep me grounded and connected to the source of inspiration that has led me down this path. I am also a big fan of Rosabella Tea, the scent of chamomile, spearmint and rose buds is so refreshing and calming. For five years now, we’ve been making and gifting Rosabella Tea

One sure fire way to de-clutter my mind from overwhelm like that is to do a brain dump. Of course I do this in my journal. In fact, the last pages of my journal are dedicated to brain dumps. Sometimes I’ll fill up over a page in 1 session. Other times I’ll write down just a handful of ideas. Either way, my brain dump pages are the inbox of my journal. Ideas go into my brain dump to ensure I capture them and integrate them into the rest of my planning efforts later. Otherwise

Lately I’ve been having a lot of conversations with people about feeling overwhelmed and stressed. The pervasive sense is that there’s too much that has to get done and not enough time to do it all. With our penchant for keeping busy as a society and the possibility to always do more, these feelings can persist. Compound all that with the desire to be a good person by helping others out, and saying no comes with a heap of guilt that is easiest to avoid by just agreeing. The r

We tend not to take the time to look back and acknowledge how far we have come. I think this is a common struggle for the Misfit Entrepreneur. There’s always something new and exciting to strive for, as a result we become future focused to a fault. But it is important, necessary even, to take a moment and celebrate past accomplishments and milestones. It gives perspective and resolve to persevere. This year is different, in large part because we have a few huge milestones to

When we were brought in, Water for People was in the midst of many changes. They had new leadership and the organization had been going through tremendous growth, hiring many new staff members. They were preparing to host their Annual Reflection retreat for the second year, and they were rolling out a new 5 year strategic plan. One of the changes that the new CEO brought to Water For People was implementing a Balanced Scorecard (BSC). The BSC is a tool that sets organizationa

Today I want to explore a topic nobody ever talks about, but all of us feel…loneliness. A few months ago at church there was a sermon where we explored reconciling. During the service we were instructed to text (I know how very 21st century) the things we felt ashamed about in our lives. Then our stories were anonymously woven into the sermon. There were a lot of really heavy and traumatic things shared. But one thing that a number of people wrote stood out to me, they were a

Last summer I was scheduled to go on my second writing retreat to finish editing the manuscript of my book when our world turned upside down…instead of escaping to the serenity of a cabin in Peaceful Valley I was sitting in a sterile hospital room fighting back tears while I felt like my heart was breaking. Wondering what was going to happen next and how long we would have together. A cancer diagnosis never gave me hope before, but this time it did. Because this time it meant

Ariana facilitated a panel on Self-Publishing Without Losing Your Shirt or Your Soul I’ve been speaking a lot at various events in the last few weeks, sharing the Misfit Entrepreneur’s story and encouraging others to be the master of their own entrepreneurial journeys. It’s been thrilling, rewarding and scary (as is always the case when you’re putting yourself out there)! Standing in front of a group of strangers and telling your stories of failure is not typically how peopl

Sometimes I just don’t feel on my game. The weather is dreary, it’s cold outside and there’s a fierce wind whipping around. Then there’s a mixup, a no-show for an appointment I re-arranged my entire schedule to accommodate. Things continue to pile-on, car troubles, computer issues, the rude waiter. After a while, I’m ready to pack my bag, crawl into a hole and wait to come out until it’s spring…if only! Unfortunately, life doesn’t work that way. As much as I would love to hib

Ariana presenting on the Business Model Canvas at Fort Collins Startup Week! For the first time since I started publishing weekly journaling prompts on my blog, I’m late! My apologies, this is Fort Collins Startup Week, so naturally I have scheduled all my speaking engagements for Q1 this week…and only two of them are at Startup Week! Anyway, in the spirit of Startup Week, I wanted to share 4 reflection questions to help you get started with your startup. Although, these are

Last year we announced a campaign to promote entrepreneurship and literacy with the release of A Misfit Entrepreneur’s Guide to Building a Business Your Way. The goal was to donate 100 copies of the book to libraries in Northern Colorado and beyond…like any entrepreneurial endeavor, it has become that and more. We have 76 copies sponsored and ready to go to libraries. And we have begun distributing them, as you can see on this handy google map! But we need your help… Request

I have come to accept that we all struggle with letting your inner critic sabotage your efforts. It sneaks in at the most inopportune time; when you’re already feeling bad, when you realize you’ve made a mistake, when you feel scared or uncertain. And it pulls the thread of that tension exacerbating your negative feelings… I just spoke with a client about this very problem the other day. He was feeling pretty down and out. He recently became aware of some pretty serious blund

I’m so fascinated by the correlation between journaling and success that I’ve started interviewing people about their journaling practices. One of the reasons I love journaling is that it deepens my self-awareness. And everyone I have interviewed so far expressed that deeper self-awareness has been one of the benefits of their practice as well. It’s amazing how such a simple act, writing in a journal, can have such a profound impact on how you see yourself and the world. But

A program that primes the brain for trust, partnership and mutual success Fort Collins, CO (January 17, 2017) Ariana Friedlander, founder of Rosabella Consulting, LLC has earned the prestigious designation of Conversational Intelligence (C-IQ) Certified Coach. Ariana is one of 240 coaches world-wide who has earned C-IQ Certified Coach in the inaugural program. She is one of the only Millennials to be Certified in the world and one of four coaches Certified in Colorado. Conver

The recipients are listed below, with a brief writeup of what they were selected for. Recipients will be recognized at the Fort Collins High School Spring Assembly, where they will be presented with their awards. Global Award – Suzanne Miller, Do a Liz Thing Suzanne Miller suffered an un-imaginable loss when her daughter, Liz, passed away in 2008. She turned her grief into inspiration to honor Liz’s legacy. Liz was a vibrant, beautiful young woman with a big smile, booming la

I know many people are looking forward to ringing in the New Year and leaving 2016 behind! Before you get too excited for 2017 I am going to urge you to look back over this year first, and then look forward to the next one. Giving yourself the time and space to review and reflect on your past struggles and accomplishments, is an important step for making 2017 a breakthrough year. Most of us are likely to over-emphasize the negative and under-emphasize the positive. There’s a