Episode 295: Pushing Yourself to the Limits with Harpreet Kaur
To achieve success in business, it’s important to build a fearless mindset and intentionally push yourself to your limits. This involves taking calculated risks, stepping out of your comfort zone, and thinking outside the box. It also means being open to learning from your mistakes and failures, and using them as opportunities for growth and improvement.
Harpreet Kaur, Co-Founder of Oh So Yum and winner of The Apprentice UK, exemplifies this fearless mindset and winning mentality. She won the show, secured Lord Sugar’s investment in her business, and made significant waves in the business world.
In this episode, we feature Harpreet Kaur’s interview with Adam Stott at the recent Gold Circle event. They discuss her journey as an entrepreneur, including her experience joining and winning The Apprentice 2022. Harpreet shares how the show changed her life and business, and how she continually pushes herself to her limits as a fearless entrepreneur.
Show Highlights:
- Setting Up a Dessert Parlor Business as a Side Hustle
- How Harpreet Overcame Challenges When Starting Her Business
- Harpreet Kaur’s experience as the Winner of The Apprentice UK 2020
- Exploring the Opportunities of Being on The Apprentice
- Navigating Funding as a Female Entrepreneur
- The importance of Developing a Positive Mindset
Links Mentioned:
Connect with Harpreet Kaur on Instagram at @harpsi_kaur and visit ohsoyum.co.uk to learn more about her business.
Get your Business Growth Secrets SUCCESS PLANNER for FREE and profit like a pro: https://adamstottplanner.com/free-book47315172
Adams website: https://adamstott.com/?el=Pod
Watch the Episode on Adam’s YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/adamstottcoach?el=Pod
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Join Adam’s network on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-stott-coach/?el=Pod
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Transcript:
Please note this is a verbatim transcription from the original audio and therefore may include some minor grammatical errors.
Adam Stott:
Hey everybody, Adam Stott here. Thanks for checking out my podcast, Business Growth Secrets. You’re absolutely in the right place. This podcast is going to reveal to you all of the secrets that you’ve been looking to discover, they’re going to allow you to cure your cashflow problems, attain more clients, bring in more leads for your business, and create systems and processes that give you the growth that you want. You are going to discover the business growth secrets you have been looking for that I’ve used to sell over 50 million pounds worth of products and services on social media and help clients everywhere to grow their businesses on demand. So let’s get started on the Business Growth Secrets podcast. Welcome. Welcome to Gold Circle, Harpreet. How are you?
Harpreet Kaur:
I’m really good after you just picked me up like that.
Adam Stott:
You feeling good, yeah?
Harpreet Kaur:
I’m great. How’s everyone else? Oh, thank you. Okay, good, good.
Adam Stott:
Fabulous. So look, you know, I meant everything I said when I was watching the show, I was really, really a big fan of everything that you were doing. And I was really excited to bring you into Gold Circle. We obviously had that podcast interview. Being our head ticket was at the business show. It was a little bit shorter, so we didn’t get into everything. So I think it’d be really cool today to kind of look backwards to prior to going onto The Apprentice. You’re already in business and try and understand some of the challenges you had. Because everyone in this room, we’ve got different levels of businesses. We’ve got some people doing millions and millions in revenue. We’ve got some people that started a few months ago but they can certainly resonate with some of the challenges. And I know that you’ve had a really good way of handling that and I love your attitude. So where do things start for you? If we go back to you starting your own business, where were you at? What were your first steps and what did that look like?
Harpreet Kaur:
Okay. So, I think with The Apprentice, everyone often assumes that everyone that goes on there is maybe a new starter. But I’ve actually been in business, well, seven and a half years now. It’ll be eight years in September from when I first set up the company. I was 23. I was a bank manager for HSBC over in Oldham, in Manchester. And I’ve always had, well, I wouldn’t say always, that’s going way back, but I had this itch to earn a little bit of extra money. I knew there was something more in me and I just didn’t feel passionate about checking someone’s overdraft or giving them not 0.1% on their savings account like. So I thought, okay, there’s got to be something more to life. And I’m greedy. I love cake. I love ice cream. So I thought, okay, let me do something fun with my sister. So initially, intended to set up a business as a side hustle. As many of you know, in this room, that’s pretty much becomes near impossible because your business can take over your entire life. So you think you’re escaping the nine to five, but really you’re just jumping into a 24/7. It just never ever ends. So, yeah, we started doing a bit of research, we saw dessert parlours as a good option, you know. I know there’s quite a few now, but back then there was only a sprinkle of them, and we thought, okay, you know, let’s try this out. And we managed to get a meeting with the shopping center, and thought, okay, we’re going to sell waffles, like, this is the answer to me becoming a millionaire selling waffles. And very naively decided to, I quit my job, handed my notes in banking. My dad fell into depression. As a very proud Indian father was depressed that his daughter was going to sell ice cream for a living from a stand in a shopping center. But I did it. I wrote my sister in and we just off we went and I was 24 at the time.
Adam Stott:
And how was it in the beginning? How did it start? What were the challenges that you kind of experienced, getting it set up, getting it branded? How did it all kick off like that?
Harpreet Kaur:
My initial thought, I was going to just say that it was horrible.
Adam Stott:
You got shocked as I asked you the question, right?
Harpreet Kaur:
Don’t ask me that. The reason I say that is I had lots and lots of fun researching, okay, what menu are we going to put together? What prices are there going to be? You know. Super fun thinking of a name for a waffle. That’s easy. You know, it’s quite cute sitting down at your laptop and registering your company and all of that. When it gets difficult is when you, you know, you’re actually starting to trade. So I feel there’s not a misconception, but a lot of people can say that it’s difficult to start a business. Yeah, it is, but it’s way more difficult keeping that business running, turning it over into a profit, and making money in a sustainable way. So for me, it actually started to become more difficult as we, you know, went from those initial concept stages, planning this cute kiosk, thinking of a name, until day one, when we’d completely overstaffed the place. I think it was about eight of us in this five-meter, two meters kiosk tripping over each other. And when the bills started rolling in month one, that’s when it was like, okay. And when you don’t pay for yourself for the first six to twelve months, and you’ve just gone from a nice salary to absolutely nothing, that’s when it becomes hard.
Adam Stott:
And how did you handle that? What happened in that moment when you went through that? That pain of getting started, loving the concept, getting going to now actually, Oh my God, I’ve done six to 12 months without pay. How did that feel? And what kicked in in you?
Harpreet Kaur:
I think it was easier for me to take that risk at the time because I was 24. I lived with my parents. I didn’t have any real bills. I don’t have anyone depending on me. So I do feel that often the younger you are, the easier it can be to take that risk. Because it’s fine me sitting here and saying, take the risk, quit your job. But if you have a mortgage to pay, you have children, bills, you know, a certain lifestyle that comes into the equation. So for me, it was a little bit easier having less income coming in. That rapidly changed. So my personal circumstances changed over the course of that 12 months. And I then did have a mortgage and bills to pay. And it’s something that I actually don’t say very often. It’s probably the first time I’ve shared it in a public space, but like, I remember like 18 months into setting up the business of what? Six years ago, I remember going to Aldi, and my partner at the time, I remember picking him up some fresh chicken to take to the counter. And I remember like literally not getting myself anything because I didn’t want, I’m a pesce, so I only eat fish. I remember just literally leaving that salmon back on the shelf because I actually couldn’t afford it. And I used to sweat by the time I got to the checkout thinking, I hope this, like this transaction goes through. So that’s how difficult it was.
Adam Stott:
Give her a big round of applause for sharing that, right?
Harpreet Kaur:
Thank you.
Adam Stott:
And it can be tough, can’t it, right?
Harpreet Kaur:
Yeah.
Adam Stott:
And what kicked in in you in that point to say, right, I’m going to push this on? And when did it get easier? What were some of the things that you put in place to kind of counter those things happening?
Harpreet Kaur:
I’m going to be completely honest and say, I know that the thing that kept me personally going and the reason I didn’t quit is my ego.
Adam Stott:
There’s nothing wrong with that, right? There’s nothing wrong with that.
Harpreet Kaur:
Yeah. You know, I had an ego. You know, I can’t quit this business. I can’t prove my dad right. I can’t embarrass myself, which is silly to say because there’s absolutely nothing wrong with letting go of a business or a situation that just doesn’t serve you well. And I feel often in business, you can be really passionate, but you forget that you’re supposed to actually make money from the idea. So, for me, I know that my ego got in the way, and I have a very tough mindset that if somebody else can do it, why can’t I? Because for me, I believe we’re all equal. We all, you know, not, we don’t all have the same opportunities but you do make your own luck. And for me, I’m very much, right, if someone else has achieved that or can do it, there’s no reason that I can’t. I just need to, A, work harder and B, work smarter. So, I just battled through. I had the benefit of having my sister in business with me. I don’t think I could have done it alone, you know. We work really, really well together. And there was just no option. I could not turn around to my dad and say, by the way, Dad, I’m going back to banking. You were right. I had to push through and I had to find a way. And that’s what personally kept me going. I know it’s different for everybody.
Adam Stott:
You said work hard and work smarter, which are two different things, aren’t they?
Harpreet Kaur:
Two different things.
Adam Stott:
And what was the working smarter like? What were some of the things that you did to work smarter? Do you remember changes you made, things you did differently, any things that you did to kind of sharpen up, get things better? Did you learn? Did you have people around you? Did you get help? What happened next? What was the smarter bit? That’s what I’d like to know.
Harpreet Kaur:
I wish that I had attended events like this and reached out to like-minded individuals a lot sooner in my journey. So for me, I think everybody in this room is already doing the right thing by coming to a space like this, sharing your ideas, sharing your obstacles because you can help each other. I never did that. My sister never did that. We were just stuck in this ice cream kiosk, wondering where all the customers were in the middle of December. And I didn’t realize that actually, you can educate yourself by just opening your eyes a little bit. And I think, you know, we didn’t, I don’t have a family where there are any particular people that have set up a brand or set up a business. My parents own a business, I grew up in Birmingham, they moved up north, bought an off license, typical Indian thing to do. And so that was my own experience of business. I know I started young by like literally at the age of 13, I was in that shop helping my dad. But just didn’t have anyone to bounce off of, literally no mentors, nothing, and was just figuring it out. So in terms of working smart, I don’t know if it was working smart or just being overly ambitious, which I don’t think there’s anything wrong with. I think there’s only a certain amount that you can cut your costs and we all do it. And, you know, you look at your business and everyone’s saying, save money, save money, save money. That’s great. But with that, there is actually a ceiling and a stop point. And there’s only a certain amount of calls that you can make to your electricity supplier to say please give me a different rate. And then you’re done. So for me, it was the opposite way around. There’s no ceiling on making money. There’s no ceiling on growing your business and you can do it in so many different directions. So for me, you know, we quickly realized that actually co-owning this business together in its infancy is not going to make me X amount of pounds no matter how much I try and extract from this space. So we treated it like a box and thought, okay, we need to set up more boxes. So the goal then was to set up another store and another store within a three-year plan. And that’s exactly what we did. We increased our avenues of income.
Adam Stott:
Okay, brilliant. And then we come to, so the business is running, you’re running it with your sister, what made you then decide that you wanted to go on The Apprentice? And tell us a little bit about that. How did that come about?
Harpreet Kaur:
So I’ve grown up watching The Apprentice. Has everyone seen it? Does anyone, everyone watches it? Pretty sure you’re thinking exactly the same thing that I thought. Oh my god, these guys are a bunch of idiots. I can do this way better. And that’s exactly what I thought. And I’ve, I don’t really, I’m not really much of a TV person but I absolutely love The Apprentice and I love Dragon’s Den. I’ve always loved it. I’ve just always kind of had this vision and thought, I just really want to do those tasks. I’m a little bit of a nerd like I like exams and I get this weird satisfaction thinking, yeah, you know, I’m quite smart if I do well in something. So I wanted to do the tasks and I wanted the challenge. And for me, going from a bank manager space where, you know, I was set to have a quite a successful career to going it alone in the business space. You have no one to, there’s no benchmark, there’s no one to bounce off of, there’s no one to pat you on the back, there’s no one to say, okay, well done, keep going in the right direction. You are literally on your own. So it can feel like quite a lonely space and there’s no way to gauge or benchmark your abilities compared to others.
Adam Stott:
So you’re competitive.
Harpreet Kaur:
I’m very competitive. I just wanted to win. So, I’d actually went through some personal changes, I think 2019. And I made this plan that I was going to go backpacking in Asia. And I was going to go to Thailand and Bali and everywhere. I was going to become a teacher and do this course in Thailand and you know. And then COVID hit so there’s no planes going. Anywhere, so that was my travel plans trashed. And then, three days later, The Apprentice popped into my mind because I don’t know, I’ve always had it in my mind. So, I googled it and thought, oh, I’ve not seen it on TV for a while. And it literally said on that day, Lord Sugar had tweeted, The Apprentice applications are open. Thought, okay, this is my sign. That was it. I just absolutely fixated on the idea and I just, I genuinely hand on heart, I knew I was going to be on the show. I was that laser focused. I just knew it was my next step to progress myself.
Adam Stott:
Brilliant. So what happened with the process of getting on the show? Was that ever tested that resolve? Did you have to go? What were the auditions like? What was the process like for you?
Harpreet Kaur:
So the auditions were, it was around a six-month process. First, you had to sort of fill out this application form as to why you should be Lord Sugar’s next business partner. Takes around an hour to fill out. I think at that stage of the whole interview process, I just, I don’t know how I knew, but I just thought, okay, this is a TV show they’re going to want to recruit some personalities here to make this entertaining. And we all have certain traits of our personalities that come out that are quite extreme. So I really made sure that I drew those out on the application form, tried to be a little bit funny to stand out. And then you had to submit a 30-second video, and it just went on and on and on. Had to come down to London to present my business plan to someone that they said was Lord Sugar’s advisors. And he actually is, so I work with him, you know, every day now. And yeah, you present your business plan, you submit videos. You have to go through quite a long string until two weeks before you’re going to be entering the process, they tell you if you’re definitely on the show or if you’re a backup just in case someone drops out. And this was COVID at the time. And right in the middle of COVID, so they really had to pull together quite a few things to pull this off. So I had to isolate for two weeks in my apartment to make sure I didn’t catch COVID, because if I did, that was my chances gone. Then I had to isolate for two weeks in a hotel room. They take your phone off you. I had this weird burner phone to make one call a day. You got escorted around a car park for 20 minutes by someone. You weren’t allowed to leave your hotel room. And then you’re there. And day one, if you’ve all seen episode one where it says our candidates enter the boardroom and you’re all staring each other out, genuinely that is the first time that you meet everybody. And in the boardroom, when you see Lord Sugar, That is genuinely the first time you ever meet him and you just absolutely turn to jelly.
Adam Stott:
So how did you find the process? What was it like? You know, when did you feel like I’ve got this?
Harpreet Kaur:
So for me, I think this works to my advantage sometimes that I went into the situation quite naive. I thought, okay, this is a business show. I think I’m quite a good business person. I’m going to show my business skills and I’ll be fine. And when I got there, literally within the first task, it started to dawn on me that this is not just a business show. It’s a reality TV entertainment show. So everything that you see on television is probably 10% of what’s actually happened in reality. So there’s no acting. That is genuinely what’s happened. But the best way that I can describe it is imagine you’re going about your day and you’ve had a really, really good day, but there’s just that one minute where you’re on the road driving and someone cuts across you and you’re effing blind at them. You’re like roar and that’s the moment that they capture and that’s what they display on TV. So, I actually became really shocked after the first week, the first task, I think was labeled as disruptive. Because I had an opinion and I needed to say it. And you get one phone call a week and they hand you a phone and they say, right, you can call your sister or your mom. For me, it was my sister because she’s also my business partner. You have 10 minutes. And I remember that first phone call and I said, hi sis. And I burst into tears for a good nine minutes of the call. And I said to her, like, I’m really sorry if I embarrass us and I come home quickly because this is not what I thought it was. Like, this is like, you know, much more of a game than I thought it was. And there’s a lot of personality. So in business, you’re used to, you know, being the boss, you have maybe staff and you’re usually the leader. It’s very rare that you’re having to work as a team of with 15 of the people that are all gunning for the same prize and they’ve all got big personalities. So, I found it really tricky and I thought, okay, probably going to be going home much sooner than I thought. But then it got to week four, the first time I was project manager. And I can genuinely say that was the hardest task out of the whole process. Out of all 10 tasks, that was tough. And when I knew I’d bossed it and when I got to the boardroom and Lord Sugar said, yeah, your team has won, that’s when I knew I had it because I knew how tricky that was to pull off. So I was really pleased I did it. So from there I only got more and more confident.
Adam Stott:
Built that confidence up.
Harpreet Kaur:
Yeah.
Adam Stott:
And obviously went on to win, which was amazing. What was that like? What was like winning and actually getting crowned the winner? How did that feel? And, you know, did you feel vindicated? What were your thoughts there?
Harpreet Kaur:
So up until like you go through all the tests, you go through the interviews. I really enjoyed those weirdly enough. When I got to the final boardroom and you’re sat there and the other candidates come and help you and then they leave and it’s just you and Catherine who was the other finalist, I honestly couldn’t believe that moment. It was so surreal for me because I had literally imagined myself sitting there. So that’s when it hit and in that moment, I was really proud of myself because I thought regardless of whether I get this investment or not, I’ve given 110% of myself. I’ve given the best version of myself that I possibly can at this moment in time with what I know and the circumstances that I’m in. So regardless of the outcome, I’m good, you know. I couldn’t have done anything else. So for me, I genuinely was like at peace in that moment that, okay, if I get the investment, great. And if I don’t, I’m actually going to be fine anyway. But then when Lord Sugar gives you a call, you know, there’s a little bit of TV editing at that point and he gives you a private call later to find out if you actually have one or not. Yeah, I was frozen for around two hours. I told my sister first, she started screaming and yeah, my mom and dad knew it. They just said like, you’ve won. We can just feel it. We know it. I said, Oh, you don’t know. And yeah, it was just amazing. I’m genuinely like proud of the journey that I’ve got to, and you know, I’m quite open in saying that because I think you have to recognize where you’ve got to. I think so many, like on so many occasions you can give yourself a hard time and think I’m fixated on this to-do list which you’re never going to get through. And you often forget like the journey that you’ve been on and how many skills you’ve got along the way. And if you saw yourself 10 years ago, where you are now, put your hand up if you would be proud of yourself. If you rewind 10 years, 10 years back and you could see yourself now, would you be proud of yourself? Yeah, hell yeah. So, I don’t think we acknowledge that enough. And if you didn’t put your hand up and you don’t feel fully proud, maybe acknowledge, okay, what is it that I could do differently about that? Like, in what area am I letting myself down and what can I change? Or have personal circumstances not played out in your favor? But guess what? You’ve got so much time ahead where you can just make that impact today.
Adam Stott:
No, absolutely brilliant. And what’s it been like since then? You’ve obviously, you said before, it’s quite interesting, you said business was a lonely place. You’ve now gone and got a billionaire as a partner, as an investor. The support of lots of other people. How’s that changed things for you in business? What opportunities has that given you? What’s different now? Because I know that you’ve gone on and done really, really well since I been following your Instagram for quite a while. You’ve got new things happening all the time. What’s that been like now? And what’s the journey been like and how’s some of the best advice that you’ve been given maybe along the way?
Harpreet Kaur:
Everything is going like amazing, but what I would say is. Business at the end of the day is business. Okay. It’s tough. It’s not easy. And regardless of whether you’ve been on a TV show in front of millions, which you might think will automatically mean you’ve got millions of pounds in the bank. It doesn’t. And what I would say is if anyone in this room is looking for investment or an investor, it is not the, you know, magic ingredient that is gonna just suddenly turn things around for you. So yes, since The Apprentice, I now have the massive advantage that a lot more people know who I am. I didn’t invent cake but a lot more people are likely to buy it from me. And you know, it’s pretty cool like sometimes, you know, people will recognize me, but what I love is that they know what my business is and they know what I do and that was the whole purpose of me going on the show to promote my brand, to promote my business and grow it. So it opens up a lot more conversations. We are now stopped in Selfridges on the bakery counter. I’ve opened up another site with Lord Sugar’s investment. So I’ve got the three stores, we’re in three Selfridges outlets, and we also deliver nationwide. So, the e-commerce side of things was totally new to me. So 12 months ago, literally, zero digital skills. And I’ve had, that’s been, you know, something that I’ve had to grow, and make some mistakes along the way, and learn very quickly. So I’ve now got those sort of seven different revenue streams.
Adam Stott:
Nice.
Harpreet Kaur:
And it’s, you know, been a lot of graft across the past 12 months because yes, there’s been the media attention and it’s nice to come and do things like this, but I’ve still got to run the business at the end of the day, you know. Lord Sugar’s definitely not running it. So actually, it’s even more pressure. So my tip would just be, you know if you are looking for an investor or investment, it can sound really fancy and it can sound really cool. And it is, you know, but actually, once you’ve got that, it’s still your responsibility to now turn that investment around, you know. Not just make it successful for you, but you’re going to have to deliver a return for the investor now. So, it’s just something to definitely think about I would say.
Adam Stott:
And some of the lessons along the way in scaling, you’ve been obviously growing quite a bit since. I’d love to hear some of the lessons that you picked up around scaling and growing the business. What’s different now? How does your day look different? What are the things you’re doing different? Have you got more of a focus on the numbers? You know, what are some of the things that you would say a bit different now?
Harpreet Kaur:
So I would say, pre-Apprentice, you know, I was doing seven nights a week physically in the dessert shops. I enjoy it. I genuinely actually like speaking to customers. It’s fun. It’s fun making desserts. It’s fun eating them. And I liked that, but I know that’s not where my talents actually lie. I should be used to grow the business, okay? And I can employ a team to do those tasks that I can then delegate. So pre-Apprentice, you know, it’s very, because on one side you want to save those costs and you think, oh, I’ll just do it myself. But then you’ve really got to assess how much time am I dedicating to growing the business. So, I think The Apprentice has helped and forced me to step back. Because for those three months that I was in that process, you know, I had to have a team that ran the business with my sister and it forced me to come out of it. And actually, that allows you to flourish with your ideas, it gives you space and time to think rather than being in it. So that’s changed a lot for me, you know, since after the show. And I would definitely say if you’re finding yourself like really bogged down with constant admin, because that’s just how it is the same way that you dedicate that time to, you know, doing those daily tasks, you have to, you definitely have to diarize some strategy time. Because if not, you’re not going to be in any different position than you are in right now. Because what happens is, you know, you take a moment like this and you sit down and have all these ideas and you speak to amazing people, but then you go home and you’re, you know, doing a maintenance issue or fixing the ice cream machine or dealing with someone that said something the wrong way to someone at work or dealing with a customer complaint. And then that’s it, your day’s gone and you start again. So you have to, if you want to grow your business or progress yourself, just like you’ve made the time to come here today, be strict and set aside some strategy time. I would definitely say, you know if you don’t have a business partner that you can bounce off of, find someone like maybe your favorite team member or just. even someone in this room that you can back your ideas back and forth because we can’t think of everything ourselves. I forgot your original question.
Adam Stott:
That’s kind of what I was trying to get across. I think that you know, from you working in the business and now working on the business…
Harpreet Kaur:
Yeah.
Adam Stott:
It’s quite clear that you’re building the brand and the brand is driving clients as well into the business and you’re being more strategic, which is what I thought was really great. And that’s a clear differential, clear change there in the way that you go about things, you know, for sure. How’s the branding impact you is, you know, what would you describe pre-Apprentice being unknown? Being on The Apprentice and being known, what kind of opportunities has that delivered to you, brought you from building that brand?
Harpreet Kaur:
I would say prior to The Apprentice, If you asked me what I do for a living or what does my business do, I would tell you that we serve waffles and ice cream and cake. I wouldn’t have had any other answer, but going through this journey and having to really think about brand, which I’m not going to lie. Sometimes I hate that word because it’s like, you know, how are you supposed to brand something if you haven’t got a revolutionary idea? If you’re doing something that isn’t a brand new invention, how are you supposed to differentiate yourself? But I actually consulted a branding agency after I came out of The Apprentice. We were called something different before, but when you go on The Apprentice, because of the rules with BBC and advertising, you have to rebrand in the moment. So I literally thought of Oh So Yum and thought, okay, let’s roll with it. But you know, I very quickly realized that, okay, lots of people are going to see this logo and name, but it’s not enough. Like I have to stand for something. So I can now confidently say that actually at Oh So Yum, we deliver a taste of happiness, and if you’re going to treat yourself, make sure it’s a damn good treat. And that’s so different to selling waffles and ice cream. It’s about the emotion. So I think, you know, whatever you’re doing, it can be really tricky to think about, okay, what’s our purpose? And something that if we’re being honest with ourselves, I think a lot of people struggle with it is because actually, often, the main reason you’ve set up a business is to make money. It’s driven by profit, like, you know, you’ve had this idea and that’s great, but the purpose of the business is to provide an income for you. So it can get very wishy-washy sometimes when you’re looking online and, you know, people are telling you to have this major why and this major passion, and why are you doing this? And are you saving the world? And are you, you know, sustainable and using biodegradable forks? You know, it’s tricky to know where to fit because the core purpose of a business, you have to make money before you can do anything else. And I don’t think there’s anything wrong in saying that.
Adam Stott:
No, absolutely not. We’re all for making money in here and we raise your hand if you are. Yeah. So don’t worry. No, look, I think it’s been brilliant journey for you, Harpreet. Absolutely amazing story. Well, we’ve probably got a couple of minutes where we can open up to a couple of questions. So who might have a question that they might want to ask Harpreet about her journey, about building a business? Who wants to kick us off? Let’s go. So we’ve got Sunil. Give Sunil a big round of applause. And Nick’s going to speed over. Brilliant.
Sunil:
Hi, so pleased to meet you today. Just you talked to it, you touched on funding earlier. Just as a female in general, how tough was it and what tips do you give for going for funding? Because I know the stats are out there that it’s very low where they’re securing good funding for their businesses and being heard. And especially as a female and a woman of color as well you have other challenges so I don’t know if you could expand a bit on that, please.
Harpreet Kaur:
Sure. Thank you for your question. It’s a great question. And I think it’s very much a hot topic right now. So I’m Indian. I’m Punjabi. I’m Sikh. I’m also British. I’m also Asian. I’m also female. I’m a business owner. I’m an entrepreneur. There are so many labels out there that we can all kind of claim and cling on to. And I think especially when you’re a person of color, it means so much more you know. You are a minority. So I grew up in Birmingham and in my high school, there was one white person. Every single person was Punjabi, Indian, the same as me, British, but, you know, born to Indian parents or they were black. And I then got moved up to West Yorkshire where I was then the only Indian in the village, like literally, there was no other people of colour whatsoever, so I had that culture shock. So that’s when I started to experience, okay, I’m actually a minority here, and I’d never experienced that before. So at school I had a little bit of a tough time. As we all do, everyone’s got their stories from school. The thing that has worked for me, as a woman of colour, in being able to achieve what I have is removing that label in my own mind. I don’t see myself as a woman of color. I see myself as a human being. I feel like I’m equal to every single other person. Thank you. I’m just a person, you know, we’re all just people. It really doesn’t make a difference to you inside what color or sexuality or any of that is, we all have goals, ambitions, dreams that are driven by our past experiences, our role models in life, and we can all actually connect on that level that we’ve got dreams and ambitions. So, how about we shift our focus which is really difficult and I know it is because often you’re in situations where you’re not with people of the same mindset. And they do see you as a woman of colour or whatever it is, whether you’ve got a disability or whatever it is. Remove it from your own brain and you walk into a room with confidence and you recognize and believe the value that you bring to that room regardless of any of those labels, and that’s what you’ll become known for, none of the rest.
Adam Stott:
I love that. Well done. Thank you. Super, super job. Okay, probably got time for maybe one, just two more. Who else might have a question? We’ve got a question at the back there. Yep. Yep. Okay. Would you like a drink?
Harpreet Kaur:
I’ll have a little.
Audience 2:
Good afternoon.
Harpreet Kaur:
Hi.
Audience 2:
Can you give me Lord Sugar’s telephone number, please? No. The question is if you’d never won, would you think it would have took longer to get where you are today? If you never got Lord Sugar’s investment?
Harpreet Kaur:
I’m going to say no because coming out of the show, so there’s a filming period, you then have six months before it’s actually shown on TV, and there’s also a period where you don’t actually know if you’ve got the investment or not. The minute I came out of The Apprentice, I thought, okay, whether I’ve won or not is irrelevant. This is my business. This is my baby. I want to make as much money from this as possible. And I’m going to take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I’ve got to. I would be silly to sit here and think if I don’t get the investment, it’s irrelevant. Ok? Whatever your business focuses, whatever your goals are, there is nothing that should be stopping you from achieving those. So when I came out, that’s when I consulted the branding agency. Cost me a fair bit of money, and I could have done it cheaper, but hindsight’s hindsight. And, I just, I cracked on you know? Thought, okay, there’s about six million people that watched that final, they’re still going to see my logo and my dessert brand, and hopefully there’s people that like sweet things that watch the show. So, I’m just going to grasp whatever opportunities are presented to me. And going back to what Sunil said, that I’m a woman of colour, well luckily it works to your advantage sometimes because I’ve now got a massive community automatically of people that are Indian, Punjabi, Sikh, female, that are fighting for my, in my corner because I am that representation so.
Adam Stott:
You have got a really big following in that area, haven’t you? You’re very well-regarded and respected.
Harpreet Kaur:
I think it’s because they’re just culturally, you know. I actually came from a very, very strict upbringing, you know. I wasn’t allowed a mobile phone till I was 17. My dad was super super strict. So I’ve had to overcome those personal challenges and kind of break the mold and the only way that I’ve done that is by being true to myself. It makes no difference to me that I am all of those labels. I want to achieve my goals and I want to live life by putting in my best and achieving my best. And as long as I do that, it really doesn’t matter what happens because I can’t regret it. There’s no ifs or whys or buts because I gave it my best shot and that’s all I can do. So that’s exactly what I did when I came out of the show so, but luckily I won.
Adam Stott:
Yeah. Good question, right? Lovely. Okay. One last question. We’ve got one of, Edward right over there. Yep. We’re ready? Okay. One last question. And I did see your hand up there, Andrea. We’ve got time for one more.
Harpreet Kaur:
Yeah, I’ll talk quicker.
Adam Stott:
We’ll do one for Andrea as well. Yeah.
Edward:
Just a quick one, Harpreet. Apart from your ego, when you, you know, you face challenges, what else do you use to draw from when you face, you know, major challenges in your journey and in your business?
Harpreet Kaur:
What else do I draw, as in what helps me get through?
Edward:
Yes.
Harpreet Kaur:
I’d say two things. One is mindset. It’s very, very trendy to work on your mindset now. I can’t explain to you enough how much it will transform your progress, your life, personal, professional, every single way possible. If you have that self-belief and you work on yourself, you will be able to get through anything with ease and with peace. And, you know, for me, my partner, not business partner, love partner, whatever you call it. He taught me recently that actually, if you get a no and you are focused on a goal and you get a no and it doesn’t work out for you. for you, you should be so excited and happy because guess what? It means that something even better is lined up for you. Because if you are working consistently towards something, there’s no way you can backtrack. If you’re like vibrating that high and putting that energy out there, there’s only good that’s going to come to you. You’re only going to progress. And it goes back to my earlier, like point, are you way ahead now that you were 10 years ago? Yes. So something like knocks you down, you should think, yes, thank you, Lord, because this means good things are coming my way. And the second thing is people, if you’re responsible, like I’m in business with my sister, I have a responsibility to make this business a success because if I’m letting myself down, I’m letting her down and I’m a family girl.
Adam Stott:
I love that. Yeah. Lovely. Good question, Edward. Okay. One last question from Andrea. Ready, Andrea?
Andrea:
Hi.
Adam Stott:
We’re just going to get the mic over here for you.
Andrea:
Thanks, Nick. Hi. Hi, lovely to meet you. You’ve been very inspirational this afternoon.
Harpreet Kaur:
Thank you. Thank you.
Andrea:
Especially from a female point of view, I have to say. I just wanted to ask you, your experience on The Apprentice, you obviously are very, very business-focused, very business orientated and very successful. I do mindset and self development coaching so you’ve touched on a few things there that I’ve picked up on. What lessons did you learn personally from The Apprentice and has it changed you as a person from a personal point of view and not a business point of view? So what did you get out of that that actually changed you as a person, if anything?
Harpreet Kaur:
Oh, big time. I learned a lot. Like, I didn’t realize I was so aggressive. I’ve watched the show and I, you never actually watch yourself back on video. Do you? You just go about your day. You only ever see pictures of yourself, but you don’t see videos of yourself in business action. So for me, I was like, I’ve always had feedback from my sister that like, you are very assertive and it works because, you know, I’m naturally a leader, I would say. But watching yourself back is a whole different story. So if I could give you one tip, set up a secret camera and film yourself for the day and now it will then finally click. You know, all those negative things that people say about you, it will be like, Oh yeah, like I get it now. You know, I realized that my natural style is very assertive, I take control, I create a sense of urgency, and actually, it gave me so much more confidence. Because I realized that those qualities, if they’re channeled in the right way, that’s what produces the results for me, and that’s what works for me. Some others might see it as aggressive, or direct, or controlling, but it clearly works because I got the investment. So it actually made me more comfortable with who I am, with my business style, and recognize, oh, okay, so that’s what people mean when they say you’re quite full on and intense. I get it now, but it’s allowed me to kind of tune into that, understand myself, and calm down a little on the personal side. So, I’d say that has been the biggest benefit to me. And I just, I would say for me, The Apprentice was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. You know, it’s so much harder than what you see on television. It’s really challenging. I’m not a camera, you know, I had 600 followers on social media before. They were all pictures of my dog. I’m not naturally very good in front of the camera. I’m confident but if you put a camera in front of me, you know, I actually, like, close up. So I found that a really difficult challenge and I was pushed to my limits. And because I got through that, I thought, like, wow, I definitely know I can do anything now. So I’d say, you know, unconfident person, push yourself and do the thing that. It actually scares you the most. ’cause once you’ve done it, you’re totally fearless.
Adam Stott:
Hey everybody, Adam here and I hope you love today’s episode. Hope you thought it was fabulous. And if you did, I’d like to ask you a small favor. Could you jump over and go and give the podcast a review? Of course, I’ll be super grateful if that is a five-star review. We’re putting our all into this podcast for you, delivering you the content, giving you the secrets. And if you’ve enjoyed it, please go and give us a new review and talk about what your favorite episode is perhaps. Every single month I select someone from that review list to come to one of my exclusive Academy days and have lunch with me on the day, meeting hundreds of my clients. So if you want that to be you, then you’re going to be in with a shout if you go and give us a review on iTunes. Please, of course, do remember to subscribe so you can get all the up-to-date episodes. Peace and love and I’ll see you very, very soon. Thank you.