Paper Napkin Wisdom Podcast: Marina Byezhanova on Standing Out, Speaking Up, and Being Radically Authentic

by Marina Byezhanova

About Paper Napkin Wisdom

Paper Napkin Wisdom is a podcast for entrepreneurs, leaders, and difference makers that proves you don't need lengthy seminars or thick business books to revolutionize your thinking. Each episode features a guest who shares their most profound insight - simple enough to fit on a paper napkin, but powerful enough to change your world. Hosted by Govindh Jayaraman, the show distills complex leadership insights into napkin-sized wisdom that cuts through the noise.

About the Host

Govindh Jayaraman is a portfolio entrepreneur who has founded or partnered in over a dozen companies since 1990, spanning technology, healthcare, contracting, and renewable fuels. He co-founded IMBA Medical in 2015, whose Take Action platform leads chronic disease prevention and wellness support across the US and Canada. In 2012, he launched the Paper Napkin Wisdom podcast and authored an international bestselling book by the same name. Committed to ensuring universal access to healthcare, Jayaraman believes in paying forward entrepreneurial failures to guide future generations. 

About the Guest

Marina Byezhanova is the Co-Founder of Brand of a Leader, a global personal branding agency that helps CEOs and executives become visible thought leaders in their industries. Marina has been quoted and referenced in such publications as Inc.com, Forbes.com, Fast Company, Success Magazine, Wall Street Journal and the Financial Post, and has spoken to audiences of entrepreneurs and business executives in North America, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Brand of a Leader’s purpose is to help entrepreneurs realize and express their greatness. Marina is a proud member of Entrepreneurs' Organization and is presently part of the Global Learning and Global Products Portfolio teams. 

The Interview

Govindh Jayaraman: What did you write on your paper napkin for the show?

Marina Byezhanova: Stand out. Speak up. Be radically authentic.

Govindh Jayaraman: Why did you choose that message?

Marina Byezhanova: It's become my life motto and took me many years to realize that's my north star for myself. As I started a personal branding agency for founders and CEOs, that became the north star for them as well.

Govindh Jayaraman: What was your experience as an immigrant to Canada?

Marina Byezhanova: I was a teenager when we came to Canada. All I wanted to do was find a way to blend in. All I wanted was when I would meet someone and say hello for their first question not to be "where are you from" because that was a signal that I couldn't even say the word hello without a thick accent.

Govindh Jayaraman: When did you first feel comfortable being different?

Marina Byezhanova: The first time I felt normal in being different was actually at an Entrepreneurs' Organization event. It was the first event where I walked into a room and felt more on the square side of things.

Govindh Jayaraman: What does "speak up" mean in your philosophy?

Marina Byezhanova: Speaking up is about having a voice and having our voice being heard. I was born in Ukraine when it was still Soviet Union. There was that culture of being silenced. When we moved to Canada, I was 16, walking around thinking I can have a voice, I can speak up, this is democracy.

Govindh Jayaraman: What prevents business leaders from speaking up?

Marina Byezhanova: I hear these things all the time: Who wants to hear what I have to say? What do I have to say that's so unique? If I put myself out there, people are going to think I'm self-promotional. I just want to be behind my business building the business. What if I say the wrong thing and I'm cancelled?

Govindh Jayaraman: Is the fear of speaking up universal?

Marina Byezhanova: Right now I'm finding it's universal, barring people who are more narcissistic or looking to become social media influencers. Real CEOs, real business owners building real businesses aren't on social media to begin with, aren't sure they should be engaging in speaking engagements or podcasts.

Govindh Jayaraman: What motivated you to start speaking publicly?

Marina Byezhanova: The motivation wasn't the audience. I just felt that having a voice and being able to be heard is such a privilege and an asset. I just wanted that experience. I had that dream that I'm going to stand on the stage and people are going to listen to me and hear beyond the accent.

Govindh Jayaraman: How did building your personal visibility affect your business?

Marina Byezhanova: As I was creating visibility around myself, I started noticing incredible benefits happening to the business. The SEO of the business started going up organically. We started attracting higher caliber of clients. We started attracting people who said "I want to work for your organization."

Govindh Jayaraman: Why don't more business owners build their visibility?

Marina Byezhanova: A lot of our clients see visibility as a necessary evil. What blows my mind is when I'm speaking with somebody brilliant and successful who has built an incredible business, and then I say why aren't you sharing this more publicly, and the same person goes "oh come on Marina, who wants to hear from me?"

Govindh Jayaraman: What does "radically authentic" mean?

Marina Byezhanova: When we're radically authentic, that means we truly are ourselves and we're willing to take the backlash that can bring because not everybody likes us when we truly show who we are.

Govindh Jayaraman: How do you advise leaders to start building visibility?

Marina Byezhanova: Start with one thing. Choose one platform that feels like the path of least resistance. For a lot of people that is LinkedIn because it's written content. When that is consistent and you're comfortable with it, add a second platform if you must. But less is more.

Govindh Jayaraman: How has AI affected your business?

Marina Byezhanova: When ChatGPT first hit, we started losing clients because we got a competitor that's not as good as us but it's getting better and it's free. We made a radical change - we completely embraced AI. We're using AI to create content but we interview clients first for their thought leadership. We let go of our entire writing team of seven people and invested in top-notch human editing.

Govindh Jayaraman: How are people finding businesses differently now?

Marina Byezhanova: We're shifting from Google search to asking GPT. Google searches by organizations. GPT searches by expertise, by thought leadership, which is led by a human being. When people find us in GPT it says "Marina Byezhanova is an expert and a leader in personal branding. And she has a CEO branding agency called Brand of a Leader."

Govindh Jayaraman: What percentage of people trust organizations more when executives are visible?

Marina Byezhanova: Research shows that over 70% of people trust an organization more and are more likely to buy from an organization when their executive team, particularly the CEO, has visibility.

Connect

• Learn more about Brand of a Leader’s services: brandofaleader.com
• Listen to Paper Napkin Wisdom: papernapkinwisdom.com
• Connect with Marina on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/marinabyezhanova
• Connect with Govindh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/govindhj/