The TasCast Show

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnINCD1M0Ho[/embed]   Hello hello listeners from all over the world. Thank you for being patient and continue listening to my podcast even during a period without much new content creation and thank you very much for your support and kind words. Above you can see the video from my new podcast episode in the form of Vlog and at the end of the post you can find the podcast. As always you can listen to my podcast on iTunes and Stitchers as well as Lybsin. I’m changing my approach from simply having guessed onto the show to me creating short episodes, blogs, and even a vlog, yes a vlog so you can put a face to my voice if you want to. I’ll continue talking about life hacks, motivation, marketing..as well as some experiments that I’ll do to become more productive, energetic and organised. So without further ado, in this episode, I want to talk about the 90 seconds shower hack. Yes, you heard right, a shower hack. Yesterday I read a post on LinkedIn, posted by the Entrepreneur Media account, written by Phil Dumontet, Founder, and CEO of DASHED about a morning shower trick that can energize you for your work day. I did not know Phil or his company Dashed before I read this post so let me note here, you can see why content and guest posting are powerful inbound marketing techniques. Dashed is a food delivery service in the Northeast United States, delivering food from the best restaurants in the Northeast. I will probably never use this service as I have never been to the USA but any of you listeners out there might use it. With that being said, Phil talks suggests that when you reach the end of your morning shower turn the water to the coldest temperature possible for 30 seconds, then to the hottest possible for 30 seconds, and then finish with another 30 seconds with the coldest temperature possible. He did a very nice job explaining that if you simply take a shower it will help you relax, and in fact taking a shower is recommended as a technique that helps you go to bed at night. But adding the temperature changes at the end and making sure that you always finish with cold water will energize you. So I’ve tried it this morning for the first time. Let me tell you it’s hard. Stay under cold water for 30 seconds it’s painful! I started breathing really quick and feeling intense, but in a weird way this reaction contributed to me really waking up in the morning. But there are other reasons, more scientific ones that Phil is talking about in his piece. For example, hot and cold hydrotherapy which, according to a post on the website of the University of New Hampshire, is the use of water for restoring, maintaining, and regulating health. In the 19th century, a Bavarian monk formulated many of the techniques still used today and claimed that his patients were cured from disease after plunging into cold rivers 2-3 times a week. Hydrotherapy Hydrotherapy is based on the concept that water has the ability to alter blood flow and revitalize health. Temperature plays a large part in this process, and different ailments can be controlled by practices using different temperatures. Cold water stimulates the body by constricting blood vessels and restricting blood flow to slow inflammation. It also sends blood towards the internal organs to make them function more efficiently. Hot water relaxes the body by dilating blood vessels, increasing blood flow and sending it to the skin and muscles to ease stiffness. Using hot and cold water together or alternately is common in hydrotherapy practices, and is said to boost hormonal function, improve circulation and activate organ function. So the headlines or the important things to consider here is that according to studies therapies like hydrotherapy help with: A stronger immune system Stress reduction Improved blood circulation Increased ability to burn fat (which I personally need) Aid to battling depression You can also find that athletes like David Beckham are taking ice baths after working out, see the picture below: [caption id="attachment_114" align="alignnone" width="300"] Kevin Hart and David Beckham taking an ice bath after a workout[/caption] As I mentioned earlier, it is difficult to stay under the cold water, but I could feel more awake afterwards. Of course, I made some sounds in the shower for which I’m not particularly proud but a small sacrifice for improved focus and energy. I will continue doing it every morning and talk about how I feel in a week for now again. I’m also in the look of more experiments, I’m currently looking for some martial arts and meditation or yoga lessons in Edinburgh to help me exercise and learn a new art of some kind. Good friends have recommended a proper memory foam pillow and a mattress topper which I should by in the next month or so. Do you have any recommendations for me? Have you tried anything you want to share? Do you want to try something but you’re not sure if it’s safe, I might try it for you. Let me know in the comments below or tweet me @tdalis

I feel like no-one is talking about the inner qualities that make a successful entrepreneur nowdays - Toni Yordanov Join our conversation with Toni Yordanov, founder of Prestigo Research. Toni co-founded Prestigo Research while he was a first-year student at St Andrews University, 5 years ago. During our talk he shares some of his experiences, telling us how he balanced studying and growing a business, how he had to defend his business many times especially when he was trying to sell and how you will face the same challenges if haven't already. How did he overcome those challenges, how did he become a good "sales" person for his business. Here is a spoiler, he read hundreds of books on the subject, but not only this. One of the highlights about is Prestigo Research journey is how much he appreciates his co-founder, telling us that "The right co-founder will help you create a dynamic for success and also do the tasks twice as fast" The partners need to have the same values. Make sure you share the same values or you won't go far. Toni's "why" is FREEDOM! "Freedom of choice, Freedom of travel, Freedom to be my own boss, Freedom of having much flexible time in general." He points out that many people might think that giving up your 9-5 job to start working for 16 hours a day as an entrepreneur is not much freedom, but Toni argues that you still have the choice, you can choose to work 16 hours a day and work from wherever you want. Your "why" will motivate you so you get going, but to continue on the journey you need the inner quality of discipline. The conversation expands in many interesting areas, we are talking about how you keep healthy. What you choose to eat will affect your work, the way you communicate, your energy. Also, combining a balanced diet with exercise and bioenergetics will help you have more energy and fresh thinking. There are much more interesting things in our conversation, make sure you click the play button so you listen to them. :) The book that influenced Toni's life the most is Think and Grow Rich - It's said to be one of the books that helped America to get out of the great recession. When it comes to leadership, Toni doesn't have a specific recommendation, but he suggests any book written by Sir Richard Branson. May the book Like A Virgin: Secrets They Won't Teach You at Business School is a good start.Same goes for the communication book. Toni doesn't have a specific recommendation, but he says that any sales book will help you on that. I went on and asked my network for a more specific recommendation and I've got a number of very good recommendations. From the recommendations I chose the one that I would like to read next Crossing the Chasm, 3rd Edition: Marketing and Selling Disruptive Products to Mainstream Customers (Collins Business Essentials). From personal experience, I know that selling a disruptive product to mainstream customers can be very challenging. I am personally curious about the teachings I will find in this book, what about you? You can get in touch with Toni directly via Facebook here - Feel free to be friendly, ask for advice or collaboration. Let me know if you come in touch, it'll make me happy! If you're enjoying the TasCast Show, follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook for more of our content. If you like the books we recommend, please use the links provided on our blog, it will help our show to keep running and getting better :) Also, share our show with friends that you think will like it :) Download this episode and the rest on iTunes and on Stitcher  

James and I recorded this episode about a month ago. It took me a while to edit it and upload it, mainly because of challenges in my personal life, so I would like to ask you sorry for that. Also, while I was editing this episode, I came to realise that I need to learn how to speak properly. That's not a big issue, as James is the one doing most of the important talking :D James has over 24 years of experience as an entrepreneur. This means that I was born after he started his first company. James talks about his experience, but he also explains how having a clear reason "WHY" helps him move forward and push beyond "human" limits. He says that his "why" is his compass, it's a very interesting way to put it. James recommends 3 books during the conversation. Check the links bellow for the books. Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill - The book that gave James the idea about the Mastermind groups. You can get this book free from Inverlife, just click on the title of the book and it'll take you there. Start with Why by Simon Sinek - As you can hear in during our talk, James says that his "why" plays the role of his compass on many occasions Good to Great by Jim Collins - A book which according to James it redefines what a leader of a tremendously successful business is. You can get in touch with James for advice or business at james@heroicentrepreneurs.com

After lots of hesitation, I finally decided to launch my own Podcast. Why now? In December, a good friend of mine and fellow entrepreneur, Ross Viviani, asked me why don't I record videos to share my knowledge and experience. So after putting some thought into it, I decided that one of my new year resolutions would be to launch a podcast show of my own.  On the first episode, we talk with John Botia about his 25 years long career working with companies such as Unilever and Heineken. He also shares with us why he decided to quit the corporate world, return to Edinburgh, and become an entrepreneur and a mentor. He shares how he keeps his body and mind healthy and why you should too. At the end of every TasCast show, I'll be asking my guests to recommend a couple of books for you to read and I'll be adding the details in the description of the episode. John recommends two books: 1) Good to great by Jim Collins 2) First break all the rules by Curt Coffman and Marcus Buckingham If you want to talk to John for advice or work with him and Spirit Level get in touch with him via email at john.botia@blueyonder.co.uk   Please comment, let me know what you like and what you don't and I'll make my best to improve. You can reach me with comments here, on Twitter @tdalis or @tascastshow