Sometimes in our lives there are things that are painfully obvious to others but that we ourselves don’t entirely notice. This was exactly the case for Bedriye Hülya when she first set out on her entrepreneurial path. Forcing herself into a role that felt suffocating and somehow “off”, she was so determined to make things work that she was unable to perceive some of the glaring problems caused by this approach. Bedriye describes this time as like trying to fit into a dress that was clearly not her size, with growing frustration that came to poison other areas of her life.
“There was something very precious that I was spending mindlessly: time. I was spending time on things that I really didn’t enjoy and wasn’t good at. And feeling frustrated not knowing why. I was thinking that I would never be able to get rid of my frustration and that urgent feeling. Then along came the Wellbeing Project…
It was not easy to face my own truth during our retreats. With patience and tools that helped me to see from different perspectives, today I am looking at my three businesses and consciously keeping out of the way so they can try new things and unfold their strengths, sometimes stopping myself from showing them what to do and mostly enjoying the surprise that they are evolving into different outcomes than I might have thought. And I am free. There is always another way, and it starts with taking care of oneself.”
Bedriye finally took action to face the reality of the situation and the effects were enormous, both within and all around her Starting with herself, she came face to face with many traumas and losses that she had not reflected on for so long. She now looks back on that period with a valuable perspective that informs her steps moving forward, reaching and changing more lives and building a momentum that sprang from simple personal awareness and insight. And her favorite part? That the process never ends. At any point in time there is always an opportunity to keep making a positive impact, both for ourselves and for the world around us.
Bedriye’s work with B-Fit has impacted over 800 000 women across 200 sports and healthy living centers in Turkey