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ISSUE 12 • APRIL 2021

IN CONVERSATION WITH

Grace Trowbridge Founder of Simply Noir

Top tips for building confidence in your child

6 Inspirational parents who started a business during the pandemic BRAND VOICE Should you be speaking up more as a business 1

CONTRIBUTORS SALIHAH AGBAJE, FOUNDER AND CREATIVE DIRECTOR AT SPOKEN WORLD PRODUCTIONS

Salihah is the founder and creative director at Spoken World Productions, a theatre in education organisation for children that specialises in providing physical and virtual Drama, movement and mindfulness workshops to enhance confidence, creativity and much, much more. www.spokenworldproductions.com

SHONA CHAMBERS, MARKETING CONSULTANT Shona Chambers is a Marketing Consultant and owner of Shona Chambers Marketing, a Marketing Agency based in Nunhead near Peckham. Specialising in helping Small Business Owners and Freelancers with their Marketing. *Photo credit Portrayed Photography www.shonachambersmarketing.co.uk

AMY DOWNES, CONTENT PLANNING WIZARD Amy Downes is the Content Planning Wizard. A mum of two boys under 5 (yes, it's chaos!), the social media coach is an expert at planning your posts to growing your audience, and she's sharing the tricks you need to wave a magic wand over your social media pages. www.contentplanningwizard.com

YOLANDA SISSING, FOUNDER OF SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANY PINKLEAF SOCIAL Yolanda Sissing is a former journalist now founder of the social media company PinkLeaf Social. Born in South Africa and living in the UK, Yolanda has had her fair share of challenging stereotypes wrongfully attached to a particular version of who she is or who she is supposed to be. She hasn’t always worked in Social Media, but she has always had a passion for storytelling. Yoland is a serial volunteer, conscious parent, public speaker, budding pianist and a terrible cook. www.pinkleafsocial.co.uk

KAVIN WADHAR, FOUNDER OF KIDCOACHAPP Kavin left an FTSE100 corporate role to pursue his passion. He has built KidCoachApp, which provides parents with hundreds of guided conversations for parents to get their kids talking, thinking and feeling - and building skills they will need to thrive. He lives in North London with his wife and 2 young children. www.kidcoach.app

RUBBI BHOGAL-WOOD, SOCIAL MEDIA EDUCATOR Rubbi Bhogal-Wood is a social media educator and founder of Wild & Form Digital. With 20+ years of sales & marketing experience under her belt, working for the likes of Microsoft and Facebook partners, Rubbi knows social media and is the go-to expert educator in this field. With a no jargon approach, Rubbi is known for her down-to-earth, solid social media advice that empowers audiences to grow their company, strengthen their school brand, or support their child in their social media habits. She works primarily with clients in the small business and education sectors. www.wildandformdigital.com

BHAVINI LAKHANI , GRAPHIC DESIGNER Bhavini is an independent graphic designer specialising in branding and design for print, and is a mum of 2. She’s based in Milton Keynes, with a client base that spans global brands such as Conti Espresso, Barclaycard and British Gas, as well as local businesses across the UK. www.b81designs.com

Do you like what we do? Why not become a guest contributor. Let’s collaborate contact bridget@parentsinbiz.co.uk Magazine designed by B81 Designs www.b81designs.com Disclaimer views expressed in the articles are those strictly of the authors. Every effort is made to ensure that all information given is correct but Parents in Biz limited accepts no liability for inaccuracies, errors or omissions that may occur or their consequences. This publication is copyright and may not be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form without written permission from the publisher. Copyright includes (and not limited to) the content syndication of the RSS feed of this publication. The content and images used in any of the articles of this publication. The Parents in Business Magazine logo and any of its derivatives.

EDITOR’S WELCOME Welcome to the 12th issue of the Parents in Business Magazine. Family, inspiration and business are the focus of this issue. Shona Chambers reviews the book How to raise entrepreneurial kids. Kavin Wadhar and Salihah Agbaje have both written articles that cover children and their wellbeing. A recent report revealed that many families are navigating the rapidly changing digital world with little discussion or openness. Rubbi Bhogal-Wood, a Social Media Educator, covers children and social media. There’s never a perfect time to start a business, but even if there were, starting a business in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic probably wouldn’t qualify. Our special feature covers 6 inspirational parents who started a business during the pandemic.

This is the goal of Laura Rana, Founder of Khushi Kantha. ‘Khushi Kantha’ means ‘Happy Blanket.’ Read about this social cause on page 26. We have articles covering social media, brand activism, and so much more. Whether you are thinking of starting a business or own a business, the Parents in Business Magazine offers the best advice to support you on your business journey.

We have interviews with Grace Trowbridge, Founder of Simply Noir, and Samantha Francis, a Positive Parenting and Relationship Specialist. For many business people, achieving a profit is the main objective. However, some businesses have the main target to achieve a goal that benefits society.

Happy reading

Bridget

Bridget Daley Editor

www.parentsinbiz.co.uk

We are a Work for Good Partner and give a proportion of proceeds to charity.

Top Tips For Building Confidence in Your Child The minds of children have been compared to sponges for a very good reason. Soaking up information and demonstrations in record time is a skill that you’ll have noticed most children have down as an art form. They are able to regurgitate that impression you do so well of your mother in law, (mastered when you thought there was nobody else looking). They’re able to tell you what pizza order with all the trimmings and toppings you should place, and they certainly know how hard to push your buttons, there’s no doubt about that. However, taking that boldness out into the world is another story. Directing that colourful personality in the right direction so that it can create a positive impact within society can be a challenge, especially when the child comes up against other bold personalities and relationship dynamics in school and social settings. Learning how to interact with others, bold or otherwise, is an important learning curve for any child. It takes time to learn how to balance the emotions of creating friendships that work and accepting there will be some that don’t. It takes patience to understand how to have conversations and the framework that comes with that (some adults are still learning that listening is an integral part of that framework!). How about the general understanding of turn taking and not just waiting your turn but ensuring you actually take your turn and not just let it pass you by. Why is this important? Because it is not the aspiration of many parents for their children to be overlooked. Waiting in line without being assertive enough to step forward and actually take your turn before somebody else does require some level of confidence. Being overlooked can be an unwelcome feeling that leads to low self

esteem at any age but will be a naturally occurring circumstance for many, all because they are not comfortable tapping into their confidence. So, how do we encourage confidence in children? Working with children for over 10 years has brought a myriad of personalities to our attention. This past year placed us in a position where we have been able to observe personalities from alternative angles, as we expanded our services to include Drama and Performing Arts sessions via Zoom. We learned that even a screen won’t conceal low self esteem. Confidence is like a muscle that can be built up through activity, and there are different ways to look at confidence, according to Professor Steve Peters, author of The Chimp Paradox and My Hidden Chimp. In both books about mind management, Professor Peters breaks down our

complex grey matter and explains how our emotions (also known as our chimp) can sometimes overpower our logical thinking. However, when we learn how to manage our emotions, life situations are handled much more easily. The consultant psychiatrist, who specialises in assisting athletes to optimise their performance, goes on to explain that in order for us to feel confident, we need not brainwash ourselves into believing we can do something that we actually cannot do. Rather, we should place confidence in our ability of trying to do that thing well, which is far more attainable. It also helps that should the end result be a disappointing one, there will be a valid consolation-the best effort was made, and one should find it easier to try again to get an even better outcome next time. If we have to apply this in everyday scenarios for stimulating confidence in children, we

can help them to place more emphasis on the actual attempt being made at sports day, for instance, and not the outcome. Deciding to try their best at the egg and spoon race and competing against others, with the mindset of giving nothing less than their best effort, is where confidence should be placed. This is because nobody can guarantee a win, one can, however, be confident that they will try their best. If confidence is placed in the end result, the focus shifts to the fact that others may be disappointed, and there’s a possibility of a less than favourable outcome. The child then operates from a place of fear without considering the fact that they could actually enjoy racing and possibly do a great job at it

too! Therefore, remind your child to try their best to be the best version of themselves and have a good time doing so.

Model confidence We know without the shadow of a doubt that children mimic what they see. Phrases, attitudes and behaviours are all learned, and the first school is the home. Demonstrate confidence in your daily responsibilities, even if you have to fake it! Ensure you model confidence in your transactions and allow your children to be aware of how to respond from a place of strength when dealing with situations that crop up.

Praise perseverance Giving up can often be the easiest option when given the choice, so encourage and praise

perseverance. Children require cheerleaders in their grown-ups, and recognising determination even for the smallest task gives a huge boost to their dopamine levels, releasing the happy hormone and providing a surge to keep going.

Are you proud? My bonus tip is to remind the child to look inwardly and ask, ‘did I make myself proud?’ This is incredibly important for the journey towards building confidence which lives side by side with self-esteem. Building up a good understanding of self-worth means a child should learn how to acknowledge their own achievements and feel a sense of joy from within when they have met or even superseded their own expectations. Salihah Agbaje Founder and Creative Director at Spoken World Productions www.spokenworldproductions.com

SOCIAL CAUSE SPOTLIGHT Laura Rana Founder of Khushi Kantha I’m setting up Khushi Kantha alongside my ‘24/7 job’ as the mother of 21-month old half-British, half-Bangladeshi (and 100% cheeky!) twin daughters, Opi and Mahi, and my ‘day job’ helping organisations who are doing brilliant things in the UK and around the world measure, communicate and enhance their impacts.

I have fourteen years’ experience in the international development and humanitarian sectors. My work with organisations like Save the Children, the British Red Cross and War Child UK has taken me to nearly thirty countries, from Sierra Leone to Mongolia, and Iraq to Paraguay…but Bangladesh remains my favourite place in the world!

Khushi Kantha in a nutshell Khushi Kantha makes sustainable, multi-purpose baby blankets with a vibrant ‘stand out’ factor, hand-stitched from reclaimed and ethically-sourced cotton and embroidered with empowerment by mothers in Bangladesh. As practical as they are pretty, a Khushi Kantha makes the perfect gift. Besides being used as a blanket, Khushi Kanthas can function as pram liners, sun shades or mini playmats while out and about….and even act as makeshift changing mats when the need arises!

What does Khushi Kantha mean? ‘Kantha’ (which translates as “stitched cloth”) refers to the Bengali tradition of repurposing old cotton saris to create ultrasoft, multi-layered blankets, especially for babies.

The traditional embroidery stitch that is applied over the top is known as the ‘Kantha stitch. ‘Kantha’ can also simply mean ‘blanket’. ‘Khushi’ is the Bengali word for ‘happy’ – so ‘Khushi Kantha’ means ‘Happy Blanket.’

Why do we call them ‘happy blankets’? • A Khushi Kantha is multi-purpose - our blankets can be used for just about every task on a parent’s daily to-do list, which means you can buy less and buy better. • A Khushi Kantha is handmade with love - each blanket takes up to 20 hours to hand-stitch. • A Khushi Kantha creates opportunities for mothers in Bangladesh to provide for their children with dignity. • A Khushi Kantha strengthens the fabric of the community - we’ll be reinvesting profits back into the communities we’re partnering with. • A Khushi Kantha is made to last - Instilled with the strength and spirit of the mothers who create them, our blankets are designed to withstand the daily wear-and-tear of life with a little one.

What inspired you to start Khushi Kantha? I was inspired to start Khushi Kantha by the birth of my halfBritish, half-Bangladeshi twin daughters in July 2019, and my first-hand experience of working on the humanitarian response to the Rohingya refugee crisis while I was pregnant with them. During the year I spent working in the coastal town of Cox’s Bazar in South-Eastern Bangladesh, I got to know some mothers from the host communities and learned how it impacted their lives. With so many hundreds of thousands of refugees settling nearby and bringing all sorts of additional struggles to their daily lives in the form of falling wage rates, rising food prices and depleted natural resources, surely they would be resentful?!

Their compassion humbled me. When I arrived at the home of one mother, despite struggling to provide for her own children, she told me she had shared some of her vegetables with the refugees, as she had heard that children were not being provided with enough during food distributions in the camps. I first moved to Bangladesh over a decade ago, and I’ve lived there on and off ever since. I’ve been endlessly overwhelmed by the resilience and generosity of Bangladeshi mothers living below the poverty line. I’ve always wanted to use everything I’ve experienced and learned from my experience of living and working with extremely poor women in Bangladesh to start my own social enterprise.

When I became pregnant, I couldn’t stop thinking about all the opportunities my daughters would have and how unfair it was that the mothers all around me wouldn’t be able to give their own children everything they deserved. I came home to London determined to do something to create opportunities for Bangladeshi mothers to provide for their children with dignity – but I wasn’t sure how I was going to go about it. When my daughters were born, they were given a large collection of traditional Banglaseshi ‘kantha’ blankets.

SOCIAL CAUSE SPOTLIGHT I was a bit overwhelmed to receive so many and wondered what we were going to do with them all! But I quickly realised their numerous uses: from swaddling the girls as tiny newborns to functioning as pram liners, sun shades, mini playmats or even makeshift changing mats while out and about.

They washed really well and dried quickly – and their vibrant colours and traditional ‘kantha’ stitching were drawing compliments wherever we went! I saw that there could be a market for them….and the idea for ‘Khushi Kantha’ was born! I’d been excited to travel to Bangladesh in May last year to introduce my daughters to their Bangladeshi family members and set up production.

Then COVID-19 happened – and like the rest of the world, my plans had to change. I knew I had to start testing the market asap - the last thing I want to do is raise expectations among the mothers who will create our blankets that I won’t be able to meet if Khushi Kantha can’t find any customers! I created a first, limited-edition collection of blankets with support from an incredible group of volunteer stitchers from my local community to start testing the market. They received the seal of approval from local Kantha expert Surjeet Hussain, and we conducted safety testing before selling them through an online auction. The funds raised enabled me to keep going and start figuring out how to establish production in Bangladesh. We’ve recently confirmed our fabric sourcing approach and had some beautiful samples made, so we’re all set to get going on our first ‘made in Bangladesh’ collection as soon as we have enough pre-orders. We’re launching a crowdfunding campaign on 22nd April (International Mother Earth Day) with the aim of raising £10,000 (the equivalent of 200 pre-orders at £50 each).

What is your mission? All mothers want the best for their children – and will use every resource they have to offer them the future they deserve. Motherhood is the most rewarding job in the world – but it’s also the hardest. Every day brings new challenges. For some, these challenges include being able to meet basic needs like food, clothing and education. Khushi Kantha aims to create opportunities for mothers in Bangladesh to provide for their children with dignity. Our children will inherit the planet – we want to pass it down to them in the best state possible. Khushi Kantha promotes the circular economy – we want to promote a shift from ‘take-make-waste’ to ‘reclaim-repurpose-reuse’. I want to use the collaborative power of a global community of mothers to build better futures for the next generation. I quickly realised that if I wanted to empower Bangladeshi mothers to use their existing skills to generate sustainable incomes, I couldn’t rely on ‘pity purchases’. I had to offer something that I’d be able to sell at scale. Over the fourteen years I’ve spent living and working in Bangladesh and other similar contexts, I’ve seen many well-meaning initiatives that didn’t manage to get off the

ground properly because there weren’t enough people who wanted to buy what they were selling. I want the mothers Khushi Kantha is partnering with to be able to provide for their children month in, month out. Predictability of income is a crucial factor determining whether parents make the kind of decisions that really matter in the long-term – like sending children to school rather than out to work. This is why Khushi Kantha is reworking the Kantha technique in order to meet global hygiene and safety standards, and why our designs represent a cultural fusion of ‘East meets West’ while retaining the design principles of reclaim-repurpose-reuse and bringing the cultural heritage of Bangladesh to a wider audience. We don’t use second-hand saris, as per the traditional approach. Our blankets are created from six layers of 100% cotton fabric: the outside layers are made from ethically-produced traditional handloom fabric, and we use deadstock cotton fabric from the Bangladeshi garments sector for the insides of our blankets. Laura Rana Khushi Kantha ww.khushikantha.com

PARENTS IN BUSINESS DIRECTORY

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Vee Roberts Insight2marketing

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Your everyday virtual admin solution providing personal assistant support to conquer general admin tasks, so consultants and small business can focus on growing their business.

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Services offered Strategic Planning Campaign Design and Implementation Brand Development Web Design Leaflet Distribution

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www.etsy.com/uk/shop/ MockingbirdMakesCo

Services offered General administration Proofreading and editing Virtual personal assistant www.mjmvirtualsolutions.com

Louise Worsley Worsley Training

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Worsley Training is run by Louise Worsley, a professional teacher with an instinctive ability to make learning First Aid memorable and enjoyable. She has over fifteen years of hands-on First Aid experience, both as a global expedition leader and as a parent.

Format Services is a Virtual Assistant Company taking care of all of your administration needs. Offer various services which can support you to grow your business, and you can view them further in the Services section. There are many benefits of outsourcing your administration, and this is something that we can discuss further as every business is unique.

Bhavini, is a Milton Keynes-based graphic designer with a shed-load of passion and the experience to match. She loves working with clients of all shapes and sizes, from the likes of Barclaycard and British Gas to business-to-business start-ups.

Some of the courses offered Baby and Child First Aid Paediatric First Aid Mini Life-Savers (first aid for primary school children) Teen-Aiders (First aid for teenagers & secondary school children) Basic Life Support with Defibrillator First Aid Training So many other courses are on offer so be sure to check out the website. Notebooks and planners

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