In this conversation, Bianca Best discusses her journey as an entrepreneur and her passion for empowering women. She shares her experiences with burnout and the importance of self-care. The conversation also touches on the challenges of balancing work and personal life, as well as the choice between career and children. Bianca highlights the need for focus and clarity in order to create maximum impact.
Get in Contact:
Bianca Best – 07976 290767
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Désiré Mir • The Brand Maverick @ TILT Creative
Website —> www.TILTcreative.agency
WhatsApp —> https://wa.me/447955805340
Youtube —> https://tilt.ltd/yt
Podcast —> https://tilt.ltd/pod
Linkedin —> https://tilt.ltd/li
Instagram —> https://tilt.ltd/ig
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Transforming Trailblazers from Meh to Heck Yeah!
Désiré, The Brand Maverick, is more than an international brand extraordinaire; she is a catalyst for turning aspirations into triumphs.
Désiré’s work is a fusion of artistry and strategy, infusing your brand’s narrative with abstract creativity. She crafts a unique experience that resonates individually with your customers, seamlessly aligning with your business objectives. Her commitment to excellence is evident in a meticulous research process, an unwavering attention to detail, and an unrelenting pursuit of perfection, enhancing every facet of her work.
Born in the UK, raised in the Caribbean, and enriched by Indian and Persian heritages, Désiré possesses a unique perspective that sets her apart in the realm of branding. This cultural richness informs her storytelling, making her a potent communicator and a true unicorn in the branding landscape.
Known for her exceptional efficiency, Désiré’s accelerated work pace, propelled by intense hyperfocus, ensures high-quality deliverables in significantly less time. It’s as if her brain operates on rocket fuel, consistently achieving exceptional results.
TILT Creative Agency: Désiré is the force behind TILT Creative Agency, a brand consultancy tailored for service-focused B2B Gen-Z and Millennial solo/entrepreneurs, consultants, startups, and micro, small, and medium businesses. TILT offers an intensive yet cost-effective service to clarify messaging, define brand DNA, and refine voice for increased revenue, market visibility, and competitive advantage.
Her Brand Maverick Nexus sessions offer accessible options for those seeking improvement but are constrained by budgets. This includes a low-cost group option and a more involved level with a premium newsletter, bootcamps, and 1:1 WhatsApp support.
TILT.social: Désiré’s commitment to fostering a supportive entrepreneurial community led to the creation of TILT.social, a free-to-use entrepreneur social network. With over 10,000 like-minded users, this platform offers an advertising and algorithm-free space to connect and promote businesses and events.
Désiré is not just a brand consultant; she is a dedicated educator. She offers free branding tips and advice directly on WhatsApp and provides a free brand self-audit for entrepreneurs on TILT.social.
As a podcast host and prolific content creator, Désiré shares her insights through various channels, including social media, Youtube, The TILT Creative podcast, the weekly Elevate Your Brand free Zoom session and the Idea to Enterprise – Entrepreneur Think Tank live event on LinkedIn.
With an active LinkedIn following of 23,000, TILT.social crossing 10,000 users in under four months, a WhatsApp contact base of over 25,000 people, and an email list of over 14,000, Désiré is a digital influencer with a substantial and engaged audience.
In her pursuit of elevating brands and changing lives, Désiré Mir continues to challenge the status quo, demonstrating that branding isn’t just a business endeavour—it’s a transformative journey.
If you want to work with her, use the contact points on the TILT Creative website (www.TILTcreative.agency) or her content portfolio on www.DesM.uk
Transcript Generated by AI
welcome to the Entrepreneur Spotlight and thank you for being here.
Just for everybody who’s listening, do you wanna just tell me what your name is or tell them what your name is, your company and what it is that you do? Yep, absolutely. So thank you so much for having me here on your show today. So my name is Bianca Best and I am an author. I am a single parent of four gorgeous kids. I am chief growth officer for Publicis Group, which is one of the world’s largest communication groups. We have around 120,000 people.
And I’m a writer, I am an executive coach. And I think most proudly and probably most importantly, I’m an advocate for graceful productivity. And I’ve really spent the past couple of decades really getting myself to a place where I can have maximum impact without burning out. And so that is what I teach. And actually here’s one of my books, which is called Flourish.
redefine success and create more time, energy, impact, and happiness, because I really believe that we can kind of bottle up all the good energy so that we can contribute in a maximum way out into society, but it’s up to us to take personal accountability for ourselves. So that’s me. I think one more title you need to put on that is Superwoman. I think you need to preface it with.
Désiré, The Brand Maverick @ TILT Creative (12:17.894)
Okay, so I am a superwoman and this is what this entails. Because my God, running a business and so many things that you do plus four kids, I don’t know how you do it. Well, they’re older now, so it’s easier and I won’t in any which way pretend that it’s been easy all the way. I have burnt out a lot over the years and I can tell you some stories there. But now I’m in a place where I feel like I’ve honed it. I’ve worked out how to have that maximum impact. How to hack it, yeah.
Yeah, exactly. So how long have you been in business for? Well, I call myself an accidental entrepreneur and launched my first business back in 2004. When I was at home with two young children and I created a gift for my then husband for our 10 year anniversary.
And I then turned that gift concept into a huge personalized gift empire, which I ran for a decade. So it went from the seed of an idea to making something at home, to everyone that came around to visit us and see the new baby saying, where did you buy that? Where did you buy that? And I thought, oh, could I turn this into a marketable commodity? And I just had unwavering faith and vision in that product. I took it out to market
ended up building a manufacturing business, a direct consumer business, an omnichannel business, and ended up selling that business 10 years later. So I had an incredible ride for a decade, really leaning into personalized gifts. And I didn’t know anything about it. I didn’t know anything about myself as an entrepreneur. I was in my twenties. I was just at home with babies, just learning how to be a mummy. And then I ended up realizing, wow,
I’m an entrepreneur. And one of the most important things really that I learned across that decade is that with the right energy, focus and attention, you can create anything you so desire. But the most important thing is staying very, very focused because the reason I’m not on a yacht right now sipping champagne, but have subsequently moved into corporate and launched more businesses is because I think I was distracted by the shiny and the new.
Désiré, The Brand Maverick @ TILT Creative (14:37.094)
And I diluted some of that core potency of the original business idea. So that would be my advice to any other entrepreneurs, stay very, very focused. So back to your question, that first business I ran for a decade and sold that in 2014. I’ve been in corporate since because I realized it’s fun and stimulating and I’m learning a lot and I really enjoy the people that I work with in corporate.
I still run now a personalized business around female empowerment, and I coach and facilitate workshops, keynotes, events that ensure individuals have maximum impact without burning out. And part of that is writing books, it’s keynotes, it’s very much a business based around me, but my intention is eventually this will scale and grow. And yeah, I’m just in that lovely phase.
So I’m five years into running this business. Oh, wow. So what kind of clientele are you interested in working with? Ambitious women that are prepared to work hard. I have learnt a lot during my years as a coach about myself, but also about the types of clients that I really enjoy seeing.
are the types of clients I enjoy working with and people that are really ready to just push beyond their comfort zone and expand their own horizons are the ones that experience the biggest transformation. But the work has to happen. And so- Because you’ve got to do the work. You can’t just show up. Like a lot of people think that. They think, oh, well, if I just pay for this thing and I’m just present, then fine. And I mean, yes, showing up is step one.
You’ve got to dig deep. You’ve really got to dig deep for this stuff. You know that. Well, exactly. Like everything you’re doing here, you’re pushing out beyond what is familiar and comfortable. And you’re just making a stake in the ground saying, look, I’m here. And so, oh, yeah, it’s a big it’s a big unicorn stake. Exactly. Good for you. Good for you. So what kind of price range are we looking for? For my well, I mean.
Désiré, The Brand Maverick @ TILT Creative (16:57.938)
It really varies. If we’re talking about executive coaching, it starts at 300 pounds an hour. If I’m doing a 60 minute webinar, it’s 500 pounds. If I’m on stage, it can be thousands. It really varies depending on the audience. I’m hosting a one day Snapchat book to me to host a leaders retreat recently. And that’s big numbers, let’s just say. So it really depends on the audience and the structure of the work that I’m delivering. Yeah, I just wanted to give everybody kind of an idea if they were interested.
so that they kind of know what to expect as well. Because I hate walking into something and just getting almost like, what do they call it? It’s like a sticker shock. So you get shocked, it’s almost like a, oh, okay, that’s great. Yeah, it’s like the last thing that people want, which is why I tend to ask this kind of question. So- One thing I would say is that because the work that I’m doing, I’m not selling rigid products. I mean, my books, there’s a fixed price there.
So because I am devoted to a cause which is ensuring that women feel empowered to unleash their most vibrant, powerful selves out into the world, if there’s anybody listening that is interested in working with me, I will always understand what that work looks like and we can always discuss what is actually required and if someone wants.
certain way, I care so much about making sure that people that wanna play big can play big. So, you know, I’m happy to just liaise with anyone that wants to get in touch and see what I can do to help. Absolutely. So if you could have any clients, and I mean anyone, who would they be and why? Oh, I’m gonna say you, because I’ve just met you and you’re just radiating all of this sparkle and vibrancy and I can see you’re just.
bursting with the intention of how you want to unleash yourself onto the world. So yeah, I’d love to work with someone like you. There you go. Yes, I am literally powered by rocket fuel. So yeah, good luck with that one. So how much time do you spend working on your business as opposed to in your business?
Désiré, The Brand Maverick @ TILT Creative (19:10.542)
I read the entrepreneur myth many, many years ago, which is where that gem of wisdom comes from about working on the business, not in the business. And I think I have always been a very strategic business woman who understands where my strengths lie, how to apply my strengths and how to direct others to deliver where…
I necessarily am not going to add the most powerful sprinkle of contribution. And so I ensure I’m always on the business, but what I will never let go of is my creativity. So the new book deal, I was just telling you, I’ve got this international book deal. I will write that book myself because I get energy from that. I’m passionate about it. So that’s something I’ve never delegate because I’m a writer.
and we need to ensure that the work that we are doing energizes and invigorates us. So I take responsibility for ensuring that I work on the business and in it when it invigorates me. That’s amazing because a lot of people are the complete opposite to you where they’re like, oh, I don’t work on the business enough, I’m always stuck in it, which is why I asked this question because this is one of those powerful questions that make people think and go, oh yeah, that’s not about that.
Yeah. That’s such a good question. And I do, I sit on a few boards of entrepreneur businesses. So I do give that advice myself a lot, because you’re right. People get so swept up in their ability to create a particular product and they’re passionate about it. And actually they don’t know how to scale the business, but perhaps they shouldn’t scale the business. They should be in the business because that’s their passion zone. Exactly. That’s actually mine. I’m very, very good in the business, in the dirt
I’m really good. I’m the good boots on the ground. I love, love working with clients and doing it all. So, but I’m not always the best person to work on the business, which is why I just outsource that. Yeah, perfect. Good for you. Yeah, perfect. Yeah. So what’s the one thing that fuels your passion? Writing. I’m absolutely passionate about writing. But if we think about the work that I’m doing to empower
Désiré, The Brand Maverick @ TILT Creative (21:27.582)
women, it’s because I honestly believe too many women experience life as a struggle, and that there are polarities in life, should I have children, shouldn’t I have children, and I just don’t believe we should ever be boxed into any arena. I believe that when we honor our values and we live our lives with full integrity,
then we absolutely flourish and we expand and we soar we’re happier and our contribution is greater. So I am very, very driven by ensuring no woman with a burning glimmer of bright brilliance ever plays small. And that really is something I’m very impassioned by. Yeah. That’s amazing. That’s beautiful to hear. I can’t wait to see your reaction. You have to come, come to one of my events. Definitely, definitely will. So.
If you had unlimited resources, what world problem would you solve? Oh, what world problem would I solve? It would be supporting the global citizen, lovely man who I met a couple of years ago, actually, on eradicating child hunger.
Yeah, that’s the hard, that’s a tough one. Someone answered that yesterday as well. And go. Yeah, yeah. It’s something that we should never ever go without food. No, exactly. We waste way too much in Europe. Yeah. It’s actually quite disheartening to, you know, see how much food is wasted here. But the people here that, you know, starve. So, yeah. Yeah. That’s a tough one.
So what has been the hardest thing about entrepreneurship for you?
Désiré, The Brand Maverick @ TILT Creative (23:21.282)
For me, it was in the early days of running my business when I had my young children and my burning desire. So I’ve got me as a mother, me as an entrepreneur, the accidental entrepreneur that I didn’t know I was. And I had a belief system that was entrenched in me that if I ever had childcare, that I was somehow failing, failing as a mother, failing as a woman, and that I was somehow disappointing my children.
disappointing myself. And so I set about running the business around my children. So I thought it was normal to put the children to bed and then work through the night. I thought it was normal to go on a family holiday and for me to go and sit down in the lobby of the hotel at 4 a.m. and work until 10 a.m. till everyone else got up and met me at breakfast. I thought it was normal to never ever give myself a break because I was protecting my children and not investing in childcare.
And of course I ended up in hospital with total immune collapse and chronic burnout. And I had to come to the realization that was someone else’s belief system. I’d inherited that from my family lineage, which was that women stay at home and look after the children. And that had just contorted the view of, or that contorted the reality of me as a modern woman that wanted to work and build a business because I was passionate about it. I was passionate about my children too, but I needed childcare.
and I needed to put models in place that ensured they were cared for, I was cared for, and then the business would be cared for. So that was the biggest lesson ever. And it really is something that, you know, now I focus so much on that self care and the self preservation, the whole mentality and philosophy of put the oxygen mask on yourself first. I wasn’t doing that and I broke until I did start doing it. And so…
That was the toughest, toughest part for me, just working out that as an entrepreneur, you’ve got to look after yourself first. Yeah, absolutely. Especially if you’re a solopreneur because if you break, the business breaks. Yeah. When you’re at the center of it, yeah. That’s one of the hardest, hardest things for us to learn as entrepreneurs. And so many people have this dream, oh, I’m going to chase entrepreneurship because I’ll be free and I can travel the world and I can work. Oh no, it’s worse.
Désiré, The Brand Maverick @ TILT Creative (25:44.946)
It’s, to be honest, it is far worse than being employed. Yeah, it is. I can have holidays and sick days in my corporate job. And some- What is a holiday? Yeah, exactly. What is that thing? Sick day? Tough. We don’t get paid for those. Yeah, so what would be your parting gift of wisdom for people in the audience? Just to remember that with the right focused energy and attention,
You can create anything you so desire, but you need to just have that unwavering belief and faith in what it is you’re pursuing and then work hard, hard. But if you love what you’re doing, that work will be play and you’ll be able to create everything that you envisage and have loads of fun along the way. That is beautiful and so, so true. It really is, isn’t it? It really is.
All right, well, thank you for coming on the Entrepreneur Spotlight. It has been amazing having you here today. Do you want to just tell everybody how they can reach you? Yes, please go to my website, BiancaBest.com, and I publish a newsletter on LinkedIn called Flourish O’Clock. So LinkedIn me and then subscribe to my newsletter and then we can keep in touch and I can ensure that you’re informed of events and book launches and free giveaways and all sorts. So yeah, please get in touch.
Thank you. Awesome, I’ll put all those details in the show notes as well, so you’ll be able to actually find them. Amazing, perfect. Thank you so much. Thank you for inviting me on. Thank you. Of course, you’re very welcome.