Daring Forever (Find your Extraordinary)

Latest Episodes:

The art of the pivot at the intersection of creativity and hospitality - Dahlia Ishak 🇨🇦 / 🇦🇺 Apr 28, 2025

Show notes

"My biggest personal challenge is that I want to do more than I'm capable of ever doing, being just me. I'm open to so many things." - Dalia Ishak

In this episode, Dahlia Ishak shares her unconventional creative journey from accidentally discovering graphic design during university to running a food and beverage branding studio.

Born to Egyptian parents in Northern Ontario, Dahlia initially pursued sciences before stumbling upon design.

Her career took her from advertising in Australia to entrepreneurship when she created a pioneering coworking cafe in Brisbane. After building a vibrant community, circumstances forced her return to Canada where she rebuilt her life through new cafes before pivoting to a branding studio following pandemic challenges.

Throughout her journey, Dahlia has balanced design work, hospitality businesses, and teaching at Shillington College, consistently finding ways to connect creativity with community.

Key Takeaways

Dahlia discovered design accidentally despite always being creative – she hadn't made the connection between her passion for collecting designed objects and actual career possibilities.
Using her design skills, she created a brochure that established the first student exchange program between her Canadian design school and an Australian university.
After experiencing burnout in advertising, Dahlia found new creative fulfillment in Australia's coffee culture, leading her to open a coworking cafe.
Rather than abandoning creativity completely when running hospitality businesses, she maintained connections by hosting creative events and building relationships with local designers.
When forced to relocate to Canada, Dahlia used her hospitality business to meet people and build a new network in an unfamiliar city.
During the pandemic, she pivoted to helping hospitality businesses survive by offering design services, which eventually evolved into her current branding studio.
Throughout all her ventures, Dahlia has consistently taught design at night, finding it energizing rather than draining.
Her story demonstrates the value of transferable skills across industries – her hospitality experience directly informs her current focus on food and beverage branding.
Dahlia's journey shows how creativity can manifest in different ways beyond traditional design roles – as a facilitator, connector, and community builder.
Her biggest challenge remains wanting to do more than is possible, highlighting the entrepreneurial drive that has fueled her many successful pivots.

Daring Forever. Podcast with Radim Malinic

daringcreativity.com | desk@daringcreativity.com

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Five minute magic pt. 62 - How to get into the State of Flow Apr 24, 2025

Show notes

Welcome to five-minute magic from Mindful Creative Podcast. A short bonus episode, sharing tips and insights from the book's pages of the same title.

Every week I'll share one or two ideas that can give you an actionable takeaway for your creative process or work/business, or just the food for thought for the weekend ahead.

These bonus episodes share content from the audio book, and you can find the link to the full version in the show notes.

Daring Forever. Podcast with Radim Malinic

daringcreativity.com | desk@daringcreativity.com

The impact of building a creative community - Simon Wright and Richard Wiggins (All Flows) Apr 21, 2025

Show notes

"It wasn't until I returned that I began to understand the city a little bit more and see it in a slightly different way." - Simon Wright

This episode features Simon Wright and Richard Wiggins, the founders of All Flows, a creative festival in Milton Keynes. They discuss their journey from hosting Milton Keynes Geek Night to launching All Flows festival, their creative agency Ville, and their dedication to championing Milton Keynes' unique design heritage.

Despite being a relatively young city, Milton Keynes has a rich history of using arts to build community, with radical approaches to urban design that attracted influential architects and designers. Simon and Richard share their passion for creating intimate, inspirational events that connect international creatives with local talent, highlighting their commitment to quality programming and community building over commercial success.

Takeaways

Milton Keynes, despite being only 56 years old, has a rich design heritage that included contributions from figures like Buckminster Fuller.
All Flows began as a passion project between two friends who wanted to create the kind of creative event they'd want to attend.
The founders intentionally keep All Flows intimate to foster meaningful connections between speakers and attendees.
Both Simon and Richard are driven more by passion than commercial interests, prioritizing quality and inspiration over profit.
Their curation process involves researching speakers extensively and creating a balanced program that mixes established names with emerging talents.
Student involvement through scholarships and volunteering is a key part of their mission to inspire the next generation of local creatives.
The venue challenges in Milton Keynes have shaped the festival's character rather than deterring its growth.
The festival has gained international recognition, with attendees traveling from as far as Michigan and New Zealand.
All Flows is now included in Milton Keynes' five-year cultural and tech strategy, signifying its importance to the city.
The founders see All Flows as continuing Milton Keynes' legacy of using arts and creativity to build community and create a sense of place.

Daring Forever. Podcast with Radim Malinic

daringcreativity.com | desk@daringcreativity.com

Five minute magic pt. 61 - What do we expect from creativity? Introduction to Flow states Apr 17, 2025

Show notes

Welcome to five-minute magic from Mindful Creative Podcast. A short bonus episode, sharing tips and insights from the book's pages of the same title.

Every week I'll share one or two ideas that can give you an actionable takeaway for your creative process or work/business, or just the food for thought for the weekend ahead.

These bonus episodes share content from the audio book, and you can find the link to the full version in the show notes.

Daring Forever. Podcast with Radim Malinic

daringcreativity.com | desk@daringcreativity.com

Optimism as a strategy for creativity without limits - Talia Cotton Apr 14, 2025

Show notes

"I'm the eternal optimist. If you want something hard enough, you'll figure out the right strategy, get the right talent, and nothing will get in your way." - Talia Cotton

In this episode, Radim Malinic interviews Talia Cotton, designer, coder, and founder of Cotton, a design and technology agency.

Talia shares her journey from growing up in a musical household in New York City to founding her own agency that uniquely combines branding and technology. She discusses her education in business and psychology at Carnegie Mellon, her year teaching English in Italy, overcoming a life-threatening accident, and her experiences working at Pentagram before launching her own studio.

Throughout the conversation, Talia reveals how her musical background influenced her approach to design and coding, her strategic mindset toward business growth, and her philosophy on team happiness and creative leadership.

Key Takeaways

Talia's musical background directly influenced her attention to detail and ability to understand nuance in design and code.
Growing up in New York City instilled a sense of confidence, independence, and drive that continues to shape her approach to business.
The combination of business/psychology education with creative training gives her a strategic advantage in the branding industry.
Living abroad provided valuable perspective and communication skills essential for understanding clients in branding work.
After a life-threatening accident, Talia approached her creative career with renewed passion and appreciation.
Her strategic approach to business includes thorough planning, data analysis, and anticipating challenges before they arise.
Talia views her team's happiness as the top priority and essential to the company's long-term success.
She sees AI as a tool rather than a threat, believing human creativity will always remain essential.
Her optimistic philosophy centers on the belief that anything is possible with enough determination and smart strategy.
Future plans include potentially productizing custom design tools that bridge technology and branding in unique ways.

Daring Forever. Podcast with Radim Malinic

daringcreativity.com | desk@daringcreativity.com

Five minute magic pt. 60 - Your business won't fall apart because you take time off. Apr 10, 2025

Show notes

Welcome to five-minute magic from Mindful Creative Podcast. A short bonus episode, sharing tips and insights from the book's pages of the same title.

Every week I'll share one or two ideas that can give you an actionable takeaway for your creative process or work/business, or just the food for thought for the weekend ahead.

These bonus episodes share content from the audio book, and you can find the link to the full version in the show notes.

Daring Forever. Podcast with Radim Malinic

daringcreativity.com | desk@daringcreativity.com

Brand strategy lessons from Disney's customer-centric thinking - Ezequiel Abramzon Apr 07, 2025

Show notes

"The creative industry has something wrong - we speed up the strategy part to go fast to the creative part to justify the decisions we make later." - Ezequiel Abramzon

In this episode, Ezequiel Abramson shares his remarkable journey from an art student in Argentina to becoming a senior executive at Disney and eventually a strategic brand consultant.

He discusses his early passion for drawing and graphic design, his 22-year career at Disney where he led digital transformation initiatives, and his experience with burnout that led to a career reset during the pandemic.

Now based in Madrid, Ezequiel explains his methodical four-month brand strategy process that helps entrepreneurs build lasting businesses by shifting from product-centric to customer-centric thinking.

Key takeaways:

Ezequiel's artistic foundation began with learning patience through formal art classes in Argentina, which continues to influence his work today.
During his 22 years at Disney, Ezequiel evolved from a graphic designer to a digital business leader, pioneering many firsts for the company in Latin America.
Long-term strategic thinking was embedded into Ezequiel's approach at Disney, where executives had to present 5-10 year plans annually.
After experiencing burnout, Ezequiel made the difficult decision to leave his executive career and reset his professional identity during the pandemic.
Ezequiel identified that many startups and entrepreneurs lack proper strategic thinking, rushing to execution without adequate foundation.
His consulting approach takes 4 months of weekly strategic sessions before execution, helping companies build sustainable brands and business practices.
The most significant shift Ezequiel helps clients make is moving from product-centric to customer-centric thinking, which he calls developing a "brand mindset."

Daring Forever. Podcast with Radim Malinic

daringcreativity.com | desk@daringcreativity.com

Five minute magic pt. 59 - Creative block doesn't exist. Here's why! Apr 03, 2025

Show notes

Welcome to five-minute magic from Mindful Creative Podcast. A short bonus episode, sharing tips and insights from the book's pages of the same title.

Every week I'll share one or two ideas that can give you an actionable takeaway for your creative process or work/business, or just the food for thought for the weekend ahead.

These bonus episodes share content from the audio book, and you can find the link to the full version in the show notes.

Daring Forever. Podcast with Radim Malinic

daringcreativity.com | desk@daringcreativity.com

Beyond food, environmental inputs and building resilience - Sarah Bayliss Mar 31, 2025

Show notes

"Convenience is a lie because it doesn't save time. You might save time in that moment, but it steals your energy moments after." - Sarah Bayliss

In this candid conversation, nutritional therapist Sarah Bayliss shares her journey from struggling with severe dyslexia throughout her education to finding her purpose in nutrition.

After pushing through the educational system and landing in a high-stress marketing career that led to burnout, Sarah discovered the profound impact of proper nutrition on her health, which inspired a career change. Despite her learning challenges, she pursued a degree in nutritional therapy, even tackling biochemistry.

Sarah explains how she helps clients understand that their environmental inputs - from food to sleep to relationships - directly impact their physical and mental function. She advocates for simple, intentional changes rather than quick fixes, emphasizing awareness of how daily choices affect long-term health.

Do Nourish: How to eat for resilience - Paperback out now

Key Takeaways

Sarah's early diagnosis with severe dyslexia created educational challenges that framed her mindset as a "survival journey" rather than pursuing what she loved.
After achieving success in marketing, Sarah experienced burnout and health issues that led her to discover the transformative power of nutrition.
Despite her dyslexia, Sarah boldly pursued nutritional therapy education, including biochemistry, motivated by wanting her daughter to see her happy in her work.
Sarah views symptoms as the body's communication system - signals that something is functionally not optimal that should be addressed rather than ignored.
She emphasizes understanding how environmental inputs (food, sleep, light, movement, relationships) impact function, rather than just treating symptoms.
Sarah cautions against "convenience" foods, which may save time in the moment but steal energy and health in the long run.
Breaking out of "autopilot" requires self-awareness and connecting behaviors to deeper purpose - making small, consistent changes that accumulate over time.
Rather than prescribing specific meal plans, Sarah helps clients develop awareness of their own habits and make sustainable changes within their capabilities.
The gut microbiome is crucial for immunity and digestion - both fermented foods (probiotics) and fiber-rich foods (prebiotics) are important for gut health.
Simple changes made consistently can have profound effects - adding one healthy choice daily equals 365 positive inputs per year.

Daring Forever. Podcast with Radim Malinic

daringcreativity.com | desk@daringcreativity.com

Five minute magic pt. 58 - "Have you had your Mars bar yet?" Mar 27, 2025

Show notes

Welcome to five-minute magic from Mindful Creative Podcast. A short bonus episode, sharing tips and insights from the book's pages of the same title.

Every week I'll share one or two ideas that can give you an actionable takeaway for your creative process or work/business, or just the food for thought for the weekend ahead.

These bonus episodes share content from the audio book, and you can find the link to the full version in the show notes.

Daring Forever. Podcast with Radim Malinic

daringcreativity.com | desk@daringcreativity.com

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