Aesara Partners 

At Aesara Partners, our mission is simple: enable you to be the best version of yourself. We offer a range of focused services that unlock the potential of people, teams and cultures to maximise business performance. 

Collectively our Partners and Associates have decades of experience both in executive coaching and as board level leaders themselves working in multiple sectors across global markets.

Partner & Executive Coach

Doshisha University

Professor of Strategic Management, Global MBA Program

The CFO Coach K.K.

The CFO Coach K.K. is a boutique executive coaching firm specializing in developing High-Performance​ Financial Leaders and Teams.

Founder & Executive Coach

Kansai Gaidai University

•	Awarded President's Global Education Award (Teacher of the Year).

Professor of Leadership & Management

Benesse Holdings, Inc. (USD 4.5B; Tokyo Stock Exchange Code: 9783)

•	Member of the Board of Directors for Berlitz Corporation; Benesse Corporation; and Benesse Style Care.  Chairman of Audit Committee for Berlitz Corporation. Member of Benesse Holdings Pension Committee.
•	Global CFO covering all 40+ Benesse group companies
•	Championed and supported multiple cash generation initiatives including a CFO led "Save to Grow" initiative to improve Company Financial performance and to identify significant savings for business reinvestment
•	Enhanced Finance bench strength and hired a high potential team to start financial business consulting
•	Implemented several process and capability best practices to move group companies towards global standards

Global Chief Financial Officer & Corporate Senior Vice President

McCann Worldgroup Holdings

• Overall Responsibility for Operations (Finance, IT, Legal, and Administration - 10 legal entities) 
• Successfully turned around long term loss making lead agency by delivering double digit margin improvements within two years
• Delivered double digit margin improvements for all six MWG Group companies 
• Built a new Finance team and moved from Scorekeeping to Business Partnership and improved business performance
• Major projects within last two years include: 
  - Shared Service center creation/migration
  - New Financial System Migration
  - Acquisition & Divestiture
  - Business Turnaround
  - Retirement Plan consolidation/change
  - Office relocation/rent reductions

Group Chief Financial Officer, Executive Vice President, and Member of The Board

Becton, Dickinson and Company

• Led Finance, Procurement, General Affairs, and Rebates teams (43 staff) to deliver multi-million dollar cash and profit performance improvement for first year and beyond. Exceeded all budget expectations.
• Engaged Japan Management Team and Global Finance Leadership Team on company objectives to deliver best outcome (Finance Transformation initiative, Sales effectiveness improvement, Key Account Management, Business Continuity plan, and strategy/selection of backup distribution center).  Led process for 2012-16 Business Plan development
• Developed and executed Finance department strategy and vision to move from scorekeeping to business partnership. Implemented job rotation program and hired several high potential employees to improve bench strength.
• Championed multiple Finance and Procurement initiatives including definition and implementation of new 401k Retirement Plan; divestiture of non-core business; change of primary banks (reduced bank fees by over 30%); vendor reduction process, and new travel expense management system 
• Taught New Manager Essentials program and selected as leadership trainer for PEPFAR program in South Africa to teach Leadership and Change Management to African Health Ministry officials

Finance and Administration Director

Avon Products Inc.

•	Implementation project leader for Avon Sales Leadership Framework (ASLF) – Highest priority project for the Company to adapt to a new Sales Model.  Completed project implementation in record timing.  Awarded regional award as part of ASLF Team. Only person in Asia recognized for both Top-line and Bottom-line contributions in the same year.
•	Defined and executed new vision and mission and led Sales Support department to complete over 40 initiatives (within a six-month period) as part of Team’s new journey towards field motivational excellence. Incorporated new processes to deliver high impact incentives, and to create Sales energy and momentum for sales turn-around.    
•	Achieved highest employee engagement scores with Sales Support Department significantly exceeding country results in over 95% of categories.  Previously had also led Finance department to highest employee engagement scores.
•	Global Project leader for a high potential, multi-functional, multi-national team to study and recommend actions to improve Global Sales Incentive management/spending process.
•	Oversaw execution of a variety of Company and Public/Media events ranging from Sales Conferences to Philanthropic events including Annual Awards to Women, and Pink Ribbon Campaign support.

Executive Director and Member of the Board

•	Responsible for Financial policy making/implementation and reporting for Avon Japan as a public company (including statutory/public, and Board Meetings). All year-end financial documents audited with no comments/exceptions.
•	Defined and executed new department Vision and Mission, and recruited, trained and developed a completely new Finance team (80% new hires within a six month period) to move from scorekeeping to business partnership. Finance team formed core of country high potential list.
•	Consistently over achieved profit performance commitment under adverse conditions of sales decline by aggressively managing strategic business needs with cost cutting; Delivered zero overhead growth during all years; Japan winner of regional awards for best cost management performance, and for boldest transformation strategy.
•	Provided leadership and support for critical decisions and strategy development as Japan Leadership Team Member.  Actively led change management process within company.
•	Consistently achieved best internal control results in Asia-Pacific/Avon over a period of eight audits.  Japan one of only two countries with highest audit rating. Outstanding performance generated support to remove Japan from list of High Coverage countries.
• Co-developed strategic/financial business case, and obtained approval for number of campaign reduction in 2006 making Avon Japan only country ever in Avon to undergo campaign reduction. 
• Independently analyzed and provided strategic direction for Plant study which challenged and reversed previous recommendation by outside consultants on plant closure.
• Provided leadership in several restructuring initiatives by providing an achievable plan to achieve 12% people related cost reduction.  Played lead role in this study representing Finance, Supply Chain and HR 
• Consistently achieved highest performance rating and nominations to several high potential programs
• Elected (and re-elected) to Board of Directors

Executive Director, CFO and Member of the Board of Directors

Delphi

• Prepared Asia-Pacific regional messages / presentations for Delphi Strategy Board, and for Delphi Board of Directors.
• Supported development and implementation of critical Asia-Pacific strategies.  Performed competitive intelligence and other special studies to identify risks / competitive threats and outlined regional / corporate response.
• Provided Miller Heiman strategic selling process training to Asia-Pacific personnel to improve value propositions and increase sales effectiveness.

Director Asia-Pacific Planning

• Management responsibilities for Finance, HR, General Affairs, and Six-Sigma.
• Active member of the Japan Strategy Board and Japan management team.  
• Six-Sigma Deployment Champion for Delphi Japan.

Delphi Japan – CFO & Administration Director

Country Responsibilities:
• Managed all finance functions including accounting, budgeting / forecasting and treasury.
• Lead development of cross-functional and cross-divisional Internal Control Review Board.
• Lead and supported strategic initiatives including venture development support, site enhancement, competitive analysis, transfer pricing, and cost reduction studies.
• Represented Japan in Asia-Pacific Financial Task Team.

Regional Responsibilities:
• Coached country CFO and staff to implement common financial reporting processes.
• Supervised and provided training for engineering / commercial / plant / site analysts.  Coordinated regional financial training programs for the sector in the Asia-Pacific region.
• Coordinated the regional budget, business plan, and capital management process.
• Supported development of common financial practices among ventures including:  Loan monitoring, F/X and cash management, compliance with accounting principles, report submission, etc. Provided regional oversight of venture risk exposure.

Asia-Pacific Senior Finance Mgr.

Executive Coach | MBA Professor | Ex-Global CFO

I help senior leaders master complexity, elevate strategic impact, and lead with authentic authority.

I bring over 25 years of C-level and boardroom experience as a former Global CFO for a $5B publicly traded company, combined with a deep commitment to human-centered leadership development.

Today, I coach global executives, CEOs, and leadership teams — specializing in executive transitions, strategic leadership, high-performance teams, and Asian leadership development.

I am also an MBA Professor of Leadership and Strategic Management, blending research-driven frameworks with boardroom-tested insights to develop transformational leaders.

Based in Kyoto, fluent in English, Urdu, and Japanese.

Connect with me: arif@thecfocoach.jp

Website: www.thecfocoach.jp (please sign up on my mailing list to receive future announcements and newsletters)

Arif Iqball

Top 1% LinkedIn Creator Worldwide | Helping You to Escape Corporate & Develop AI Skills | CEO- BrightWork AI | exBig4 | National Champion in Aerobic Gymnastics

Hi, I’m Anna Bilan, Founder of Brightwork AI. We help small—to mid-sized companies integrate AI into their operations for maximum efficiency and growth. I bring years of consulting expertise, empowering professional firms, insurance companies, financial institutions, and healthcare organizations to harness the power of AI for measurable results.

---

Services Offered:

1. Executive AI Strategy Sessions:  
   Tailored consultations to help leaders identify high-impact AI opportunities and create actionable roadmaps for success.

2. Custom AI Software Implementation:  
   End-to-end development of AI solutions, designed to address your unique business challenges and streamline operations.

3. Adopting Internal AI Tools:  
   Seamlessly integrate advanced tools like Microsoft Copilot, Gemini 2.0, and other cutting-edge platforms into your workflows.

4. Employee AI Training:  
   You can give your team the skills to effectively adopt AI technologies, fostering innovation and efficiency across your organization.

---

Why Work with Brightwork AI?  
☑️ Expertise in simplifying complex AI concepts for practical use in professional firms, insurance, financial services, and healthcare.  
☑️ Proven success in delivering AI solutions that enhance decision-making, reduce operational costs, and drive growth.  
☑️ A client-focused approach to ensure measurable ROI and long-term value.

---

📩 Let’s Work Together:  
✉️ Email: anna@brightworkai.com  
🔗 LinkedIn DM: 

Message me “AI Growth” to discuss how we can future-proof your business with transformative AI solutions.

Anna Bilan ⚡️

Most people blindly use ChatGPT for everything.

The top 1% switch between AI tools.

I've spent this year testing every major AI tool.
And I can confidently say that ChatGPT can't do it all.

Different tools excel at different tasks.

The immigrant mathematics of AI mastery:
One tool for everything = average output
Right tool for the task = unfair advantage
And I don't want to be average. 
So you are. 

Thanks to Chris Donnelly for the post idea and a graphic. 

Here's your cheat sheet:

🤖 ChatGPT

What it is:
↳ The all-rounder. Text, vision, audio, browsing.

When to use it:
→ Creative workflows and automation
→ Quick drafts and brainstorming
→ Anything that needs plugins or memory

Use cases:
✅ Turn a Notion doc into a polished guide
✅ Summarize your competitor's homepage
✅ Auto-generate outreach emails

Pros:
👍 Fast, intuitive, multimodal
👍 Massive custom GPT ecosystem
👍 Built-in browsing and memory

Cons:
👎 Free tier = outdated model
👎 Still makes things up
👎 Requires human judgment

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🤖 Gemini

What it is:
↳ Google's answer. Wired into Gmail, Docs, and Search.

When to use it:
→ You live inside Google Workspace
→ Long documents with images, audio, video
→ Team collaboration and async prep

Use cases:
✅ Summarize email threads + attachments
✅ Create drafts with charts and images
✅ Multimodal research workflows

Pros:
👍 Deep Google integration
👍 Handles multi-modal content better
👍 Great for team collaboration

Cons:
👎 Best features behind paywall
👎 Chat UX is still rough
👎 Most powerful only in the Google ecosystem

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🤖 Claude

What it is:
↳ Anthropic's reasoning powerhouse. Built for depth.

When to use it:
→ Legal, policy, or research output
→ When context depth (200k+ tokens) matters
→ When accuracy is non-negotiable

Use cases:
✅ Digest a 90-page legal agreement and highlight risks
✅ Break research-heavy articles into social posts
✅ Drop in a long script and get clean code back

Pros:
👍 Superior handling of long documents
👍 Strong accuracy in technical domains
👍 More natural, conversational tone

Cons:
👎 No images or audio generation
👎 Can be overly cautious in style
👎 Slower for quick idea generation

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The best AI users aren't loyal to one tool.
They're loyal to results.

While everyone debates which AI is "the best,"
Smart users are switching between all three.

💭 Which AI tool do you use most—and for what?

♻️ Repost to help your network work smarter
➕ Follow Anna Bilan ⚡️ for AI insights, entrepreneurship & personal brand

undefined undefined

Co Founder of Searchable.com | Follow for posts on Business, Marketing, Personal Brand & AI

There's a Claude feature most people ignore.
It's the only one I use for real work.

Most people use AI wrong.
They open ChatGPT. Type a question. Get a generic answer.
Then wonder why AI "doesn't work" for them.

The immigrant mathematics of AI tools:
Random prompts + No context = Useless outputs
Right mode + Your files = An actual assistant

I use Claude. And it changed how I work.

Great infographic breakdown by Ruben Hassid 👇

Here's what most people miss:

Claude has 3 modes. Each one does something different.

Chat
You type. It answers.
No memory. No context. Starts blank every time.
Good for quick questions. Bad for real work.

Projects
Upload your files once. Write instructions once.
Claude remembers everything.
Perfect for recurring tasks — newsletters, reports, weekly content.

Cowork
This is the one most people skip.
Claude sits on your desktop. Reads your files. Creates new ones.
It sounds like you because it knows your style.

Yes, it sometimes takes 3 minutes. Sometimes more.
But the outputs are 10x better.

I want accurate answers over instant answers.

I'd rather wait 3 minutes for something I can use
than get 10 instant responses I have to rewrite.

Here's how I use it:

→ Chat for brainstorming and quick lookups
→ Projects for anything I do weekly
→ Cowork for deep work sessions where I need real files

Stop treating AI like a search engine.
Start treating it like a team member who needs context.

💭 Which mode do you use most? Have you tried Extended Thinking?

♻️ Repost to help someone stop wasting time with AI
➕ Follow Anna Bilan ⚡️ for AI insights that drive growth

Yesterday I walked into EY's corporate walls.

For the first time in years.

But this time I wasn't an employee.
I was the entrepreneur they were celebrating.

EY hosted an event honouring founders.
The people who risk everything while everyone watches the highlight reel.

Sam Osmow & Bernadette Osmow-Farag catered the event. Osmow's. 
266 locations across Canada.

I put chicken on my plate, and my brain went straight to:
"How does this taste exactly the same as 3 years ago? Across 266 locations?"

So I asked him.

His story broke me.

Sam immigrated from Egypt. Started making sandwiches.
Then Subway opened next door.
Revenue dropped to $49 a day.

Forty-nine dollars. Family to feed. Mortgage to pay. Pressure is real. 

One day, frustrated, he was cooking Egyptian food for himself.
A customer walked in and asked, "What's that? Can I try it?"

He went home that night and told his family:
"We're cooking shawarma from now on."

25 years ago, Canadians didn't know what shawarma was.
Sam believed anyway.
Put his last money into it.

Then bars opened nearby.
Late-night crowds came hungry after drinks.
The Bread and Honey festival brought thousands.
Shawarma became popular overnight.

25 years later: 266 locations.
Every piece of chicken is marinated in-house.
That's why it tastes the same everywhere.

The immigrant mathematics of entrepreneurship:
We see the 266 locations.
We don't see the $49 days.
The decisions nobody understood.
The belief when nothing made sense.

Thank you, EY, Futurpreneurs, and every organization that celebrates entrepreneurs.

Put me on the list to win the award next time 😉 

Thank you for hosting me, Carlos Chalico, Selene Benavides, MBA
Thank you, Janis Nixon, Lauren Adams, Roxana L. & Futurpreneur for growing next-generation entrepreneurs. 

Thank you, Kevin Liu , Asar Qadir , and Dmitry G., for not being afraid and for building cool things check their businesses. 

♻️ Repost to honour the founders who built from nothing
➕ Follow Anna Bilan ⚡️ for AI, entrepreneurship & personal brand

Founder & Principal at Osmow's Inc.

President at Osmow’s Inc.

Information Security and Privacy Passionate | IT Risk Management Practitioner | Information Governance professional

CFO at ALPFA Inc./ALPFA Foundation Inc.

Chief Growth Officer

Senior Manager, Partnerships at Futurpreneur

Social Media | Brand | Content | Monday Girl Social Club Member

Futurpreneur

I build companies and communities.

Executive Vice President @ Harmix Group

Founder & Operator

I used to screenshot infographics.
Now I make them in 3 minutes.

The immigrant mathematics of content:
Saving infographics = Promoting their brand
Creating infographics = Building yours

Image credits: Ruben Hassid

Here's how I make sketch infographics with AI:

1️⃣ Find a YouTube video worth visualizing

Go to YouTube. Find an actionable video. Copy the URL.


2️⃣ Let Gemini do the heavy lifting

Paste the URL into Gemini with this prompt:

"Analyse this YouTube video about [topic]: [YT URL]. Summarise this into direct, actionable steps to follow along."

Wait for Gemini to process. You'll get clean, structured notes.


3️⃣ Turn notes into a visual

Click Tools → Create images.

Use this prompt:

"Visualise the summary of these notes. Create a realistic photograph of a dry-erase whiteboard with a frame. The content should be presented as a hand-drawn sketchnote using 'graphic recording' style. The layout should be in 9:16 format.

Style & Layout Guidelines:
→ Medium: Whiteboard surface with dry-erase markers (not paper)
→ Colors: Black for outlines, boxes, and main text. Red, Blue, and Green for headers and accents
→ Structure: Title "[TITLE]" at the top in large, open lettering. Five numbered rectangular boxes arranged in a grid below
→ Visuals: Simple line-drawing doodles for each point
→ Typography: Handwritten, all-caps printing, legible and organized
→ Environment: Include a used whiteboard eraser and colorful EXPO-style markers on the bottom wooden ledge"


That's it. 3 minutes. Your content. Your brand.

Stop saving. Start creating.

💭 What video are you turning into an infographic first?

♻️ Repost to help someone level up their content
➕ Follow Anna Bilan ⚡️ for AI, entrepreneurship & personal brand

Anna ️

How to create viral infographic using Gemini

Google built 17+ AI tools.

I am sure you don't know half of them.

I missed a few. Google ships so fast that some tools don't last two years. 
(RIP Google Tables, end of 2025.)

Great idea and visual for the post came from Charlie Hills 🦩 . 
 
Here's what's worth your attention:

THE MODELS

Gemini 3 Thinking: The reasoning engine.
"Deep Think" capabilities for complex coding and logic.

Gemini 3 Fast: The speed engine.
Low-latency model for high-volume tasks and instant responses.

IMAGE & DESIGN

Nano Banana: AI Image Editor.
Rapidly remix images while keeping subjects consistent.

Google Imagen 3: Photorealistic Generation.
Create high-res, professional images from scratch.
↳ https://lnkd.in/gUipzGHR

Whisk: The Scene Mixer.
Blend three separate inputs (Subject, Scene, Style) into one image.
↳ https://lnkd.in/gD4ZrsFs

Google Stitch: UI Architect.
Turn prompts into fully layered designs and frontend code.
↳ https://lnkd.in/gPM7kT5P

VIDEO & MOTION

Google Flow: Cinematic Studio.
The pro filmmaking suite for consistent characters and storyboards.
↳ https://lnkd.in/g49uZEut

Google Veo 3.1: Cinematic Video.
Generates 1080p+ clips with synchronized dialogue and audio.

Google Lumiere: Fluid Motion.
Uses "Space-Time Diffusion" for natural, realistic movement.
↳ https://lnkd.in/ggwHHY8y

Google Vids: Enterprise Video.
Turns docs and slides into polished video presentations.
↳ https://lnkd.in/gQrnYjeu

BUILD & CODE

Google Opal: No-Code Builder.
Turn prompts into functional mini-apps in seconds.
↳ https://opal.google/

Google Antigravity: Agentic IDE.
An environment where AI agents plan and write code autonomously.
↳ https://lnkd.in/gKAZ-stW

Google Jules: The Async Coder.
An agent that lives in your repo to fix bugs and manage pull requests.
↳ http://jules.google/

Google AI Studio: Prototyping Lab.
Access raw models and test prompts before building.
↳ https://lnkd.in/gKW8vPZd

ASSISTANTS & BUSINESS

NotebookLM: Research Assistant.
Turns docs into "Deep Dive" audio podcasts and study guides.
↳ https://notebooklm.google/

Google Pomelli: Marketing Agent.
Scans your brand to auto-generate on-brand campaigns and copy.
↳ https://lnkd.in/gYDxDJD3

Gemini Gems: Custom Personas.
Create personalized experts with unique memories and instructions.
↳ https://lnkd.in/gcMu3E4H

The immigrant mathematics of Google's strategy:
Deploy separately + Test in the wild = Roll into core products

Lumiere powers Veo 3.1. Vids feeds into NotebookLM.

They're not building tools. They're building an ecosystem where each piece strengthens the whole.

While everyone debates which AI company will win,
Google is quietly connecting the dots.

💭 Which tool are you trying first?

♻️ Repost to let your friends know
➕ Follow Anna Bilan ⚡️ for AI insights, Entrepreneurship & Personal Brand.

I help you (actually) use AI for content.

I watched 50 AI tutorials.
Still couldn't automate a single workflow.

I was jumping between tools.
ChatGPT one day. Agents, the next. Then some framework I didn't understand.

Nothing stuck. Nothing connected.

The immigrant mathematics of AI learning:
Random tools + No foundation = Expensive confusion
Step-by-step approach + Real use cases = AI fluency

Here's the 15-step roadmap I wish I had:

1. AI Chatbots (Master the basics first)

→ Understand how LLMs actually think
→ Learn prompting. Get consistent outputs every time
→ Apply it: content, research, brainstorming
→ Explore plugins and custom GPTs
→ Use chatbots for business support and idea validation

2. AI Agents (Automate the boring stuff)

→ Pick a platform: Make, Zapier, or n8n
→ Connect your apps and databases
→ Build workflows that run without you
→ Add error handling. Make it bulletproof
→ Plug in LLMs for intelligent automation

3. Agentic AI (Build what others can't)

→ Learn agent frameworks and tool integration
→ Set up vector databases for memory
→ Apply chain-of-thought reasoning
→ Build agent teams that solve complex problems
→ Deploy full pipelines with smart decision-making

Most people start at step 15.
Then wonder why nothing works.

Start simple. Build skills. Then build agents.

The goal isn't to collect AI tools.
It's to solve real problems with them.

💭 Which level are you at right now?

♻️ Repost to help someone stop learning backwards
➕ Follow Anna Bilan ⚡️ for AI, entrepreneurship & personal brand

Stop guessing what your Audience want.
They're already telling you on Reddit.

I use Reddit to find what people actually struggle with.
Then I turn their pain into posts that perform.

The immigrant mathematics of content research:
Guessing topics + Generic advice = Posts that flop
Real pain points + AI workflow = Content that hits

Here's my exact system:

Step 1: Find the pain

→ Go to Reddit
→ Find a post in your niche with real discussion
→ Add /.json to the end of the URL
→ Copy the entire metadata (includes all replies)

Step 2: Extract what matters

→ Open Grok
→ Paste this prompt:

"Here's the JSON of a Reddit conversation around: "[TOPIC]".

Extract the pain points, then make 5 viral hooks (2 lines each) on the same topic.

Match the format, style and tone of these 3 hooks:

///Hook 1
[paste your best performing hook]
///Hook 2
[paste your best performing hook]
///Hook 3
[paste your best performing hook]

JSON: [PASTE REDDIT METADATA]"

Step 3: Turn pain into posts

→ Open Claude
→ Paste this prompt:

"Act like a LinkedIn ghostwriter who writes posts that get saved + shared.

Goal: Create 5 LinkedIn posts on this topic.

Use my 4 example posts below. Match their structure, pacing, formatting (short lines + whitespace), and voice — but ideas, wording, and hooks must be NEW.

Rules:
- Each post starts with a strong 2-line hook
- Keep it skimmable
- 1 clear takeaway + 1 framework
- End with a CTA: 'Repost for others to...'
- No generic advice. No repeated angles.
- Do NOT copy phrases from examples.

Example posts:

///Post 1
[PASTE POST]
///Post 2
[PASTE POST]
///Post 3
[PASTE POST]
///Post 4
[PASTE POST]

Now write 5 new posts about: [TOPIC FROM GROK]"

Your audience isn't waiting for your content.
They're complaining about their problems on Reddit right now.

Go listen.

💭 What subreddit would give you the best content ideas?

♻️ Repost to help someone stop guessing what to write
➕ Follow Anna Bilan ⚡️ for AI, entrepreneurship & personal brand

How to create linkedin posts with reddit

I couldn't get out of bed for 2 months.

Not sick. Not injured.
Depressed.

Today I finally did a workout.
First one in weeks.

And I realized something I've been avoiding:

Entrepreneurship is a subscription to suffering.

Everyone brings you their problems.
You absorb them all.
You pretend you're fine.
You're not.

The immigrant mathematics of entrepreneurship:
Chaos doesn't stop = you learn to carry it
Avoiding pain = more pain later
Reacting better = the only way forward

I kept thinking it would change.
That one day the problems would stop coming.
That I'd finally "figure it out" and feel okay.

It won't change.
This is the game.

The only thing I can control is how I react.

We live in an era of uncertainty.
AI is rewriting the rules every week.
Nobody knows what's coming tomorrow.

So instead of overthinking, I'm doing.
Instead of waiting for clarity, I'm moving.
Instead of avoiding the hard stuff, I'm walking into it.

The founders who make it aren't the ones who avoid suffering.
They're the ones who stop letting it paralyze them.

I'm still learning this.
Some days I forget completely.

But today I got out of bed.
And that's enough for now.

💭 What's the hardest part of entrepreneurship nobody warned you about?

♻️ Repost if a founder in your network is silently struggling
➕ Follow Anna Bilan ⚡️ for the real side of building

The biggest challenge of entrepreneurship isn't customers.
It's not revenue.
It's managing your own emotions.

Founder depression is real. 
And nobody talks about it.

After the New Year, I was depressed. 
Sour feelings. Staying in bed. Avoiding any personal contact. 
Tired. "Lazy". Eating. Watching movies. 

You work 80-hour weeks.
Execute everything you planned.
Follow the playbook perfectly.

And it still doesn't work.

The immigrant mathematics of employment:
Good performance = paycheck
Bad performance = still paycheck

The immigrant mathematics of entrepreneurship:
Perfect execution = maybe nothing
80% of effort = wasted anyway

It's the mindset that needs to be changed. 
It's about allowing yourself to fail. 
It's allowing yourself to not always be at your best. 

I'd do everything right.
Still fail.
Then spiral.

My reaction to bad circumstances shouldn't affect my mental health.
But it does.
Every single time.

When you're an employee, you're protected from outcomes.
When you're a founder, outcomes are all you have.

And when they don't come?
You question everything.
Your skills. Your judgment. Your worth.

What I had to learn the hard way:

80% of the effort is wasted. That's the game.
Not a sign you're failing.
A sign you're playing.

The founders who survive aren't the ones who avoid failure.
They're the ones who stop letting failure live rent-free in their heads.

I'm still learning this.
Some days I forget it completely.

But the shift from employment to entrepreneurship isn't about strategy.
It's about accepting that chaos is the baseline.

And your mental health is the only asset that compounds.

💭 How do you protect your headspace when results don't match effort?

♻️ Repost if a founder in your network needs to hear this
➕ Follow Anna Bilan ⚡️ for the real side of entrepreneurship

taplio

The Battle

Arif Iqball

Anna Bilan ⚡️

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance ScoreAnna Bilan ⚡️'s LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

Arif Iqball

Anna Bilan ⚡️

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Anna Bilan ⚡️'s LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreAnna Bilan ⚡️'s LinkedIn Performance