Strong Yet Feminine Profiles are a series of interviews, showcasing ambitious women who are striving to follow their passion. Many are working full time and pursuing their dream on the side, some have already taken the leap, and share their experiences (the good and the bad!).

Any career decision is difficult, but making a leap into a different field, in order to pursue a true passion, has to be one of the most inspiring stories. I know, for me, hearing stories like these were crucial to bolstering my confidence when considering my own change in direction.

Sally Lane Jewellery is designed for exactly such Strong Yet Feminine women…the fierceness of the edgy triangle jewellery is the perfect accessory to these confident, go get ‘em ladies...all power to you!

Rosalind Chik, Founder of Smokin’ Lotus shares her experience of following her dreams to launch her Delicious and Original Street Food business.

Q: Tell us a bit about your career path before Smokin’ Lotus

My career path was incredibly varied before I started Smokin’ Lotus. Nothing I did before this ever seemed right. I always felt like I was having to pretend to be something I wasn’t. I taught English in China, sold advertising for the Commonwealth, worked in environmentally sustainable tourism at Tourism Concern and The International Tourism Partnership, and finally I was a Technology Consultant at Accenture.    

Q: Was there a eureka moment when you knew you had to go for it?

During my time as a Technology Consultant I became more and more unhappy. I hated my work, I hated the travel and spent every second I could thinking about what to cook next and dreaming of going of going back to school to study cooking. I started toying with the idea of starting a street food stall and running supper clubs to see if my cooking would pass the test with paying customers. But the real eureka moment came when I was planning my wedding. I was getting catering quotes and all of the ones I really wanted were coming in at 10 to 12k and it was just a bit out of our price range. One day I went to visit my friend Annette and she sat me down and said “do the catering yourself, you are more than capable and it will be better than anything you can buy”. We then convinced my husband to let me spend 8k on equipment, I created the first Smokin’ Lotus menu and it was launched at the wedding. The rest is history.

Q: Had you always had a passion for food or is it something you cultivated over time?

I have always loved food. When I was a child my favourite moments were watching my mum cook dinner and BBQing with my dad. Even though it is something I have always loved, that love has gotten much stronger over time. It was only in the last 3 years that I started to realise that food was in the core of my being and the thing I wanted to dedicate my life to.

Q: What has been the most challenging element of this journey?

This is a great question! This journey has been more challenging than I could have ever imagined! It has taken all of my strength, resolve and will power to stay focused and to keep going at times. The first year that was the toughest. It was so lonely, cold and more physically demanding than I could ever imagine. I often wanted to pack it all in but this little voice inside of me kept saying “but what else would you do” and that kept me going. I ran around frantically doing prep, admin, trying to get good market spots, going to shops and carrying 50kilos of groceries home in my backpacking backpack (pre getting my driving licence), setting up and taking down my whole gazebo set up and running markets by myself, the whole time making no money getting myself in debt to continue.

Q: What has surprised you the most about your new career?

My new Kerb side family. For me getting signed as one of the Kerb traders has totally changed my business and things have really gone up from there. I no longer feel lonely as every day I go to the market the people who should be my competitors are actually my new-found family. We all muck in together and do anything we can to make sure each other are ok. When I forget something like gas they have my back and vice versa. It gives me hope and shows how well the world could work if we all just helped each other out!  

Q: Were your friends and family supportive of your choice?

Incredibly!!!  Without them I never would have had the guts to follow my heart and my dreams. I also would have been homeless and starving during that first year!

Q: What is it that motivates you when you feel like giving up?

My friends, family and that little voice that says “but what else would you do”

Q: What advice would you give to anyone else thinking of taking the plunge to go it alone?

Do it! It is the most rewarding thing you can ever do. However, be ready to truly push the boundaries of what you think is possible. Aim big and never give up on yourself. 

Q: What experience from your earlier career has been the most useful for Smokin’ Lotus?

Strangely enough it was the job I hated most that prepared me for running a business. As a Technology Consultant I learnt how to be organised, how to present information and deal with a huge range of different people for different backgrounds.    

Q: What has been the most rewarding moment to date?

Three spring to mind: getting signed as a Kerb trader; being listed as one of Timeout’s top 50 street food traders in London, and getting invited to cook in the Angela Hartnett tent as part of London Food Month.

It’s finally happened…I have taken the leap of faith and left my full-time job to focus 100% on my beloved jewellery. It is without a doubt one of the scariest decisions I have made, after having worked in the Digital and Adtech world for over 13 years with no break. Now, I have a beautiful calm studio space in the comfort of my own home, and I couldn’t be happier.

For some time, people have advised that I need to focus on Sally Lane Jewellery 100% in order to really make a success of it but there is no doubt that turning your back on a successful career, and the standard of living that it affords, is incredibly daunting.  When you are consumed in a world of commuting and work stress, it is easy to splash the cash without a second thought: ‘I deserve it because I work so hard’, I’d say to myself as I spent £60 on dinner for the second time that week. If I wanted something, I bought it; ‘Why do I work so hard if it isn’t to spend money?’, another common phrase I would reassure myself by. I realised that after so long being with money, I felt I couldn’t leave my job until the jewellery business was earning as much (which was likely to be never, when I was only working on it evenings and weekends) and so I had my Catch-22.

It took a complete burnout, and the thought of being stuck in New York for two years, without friends and family, in a role I was no longer enjoying, to make me take a step back and reassess what really brings me happiness. Yes, I enjoyed progressing in my career, and I wanted to ‘have it all’ and live in New York enjoying ‘that dream life’, but the reality was unfolding, and it was to be two years of further stress, taking me away from my true creative passion. ENOUGH. I quit and reversed all the planning that had been going into transporting my and my boyfriend’s life across the Atlantic (which is pretty awkward, let me tell you). Fortunately, my employer was very understanding and wished me well on my new venture…and so my new life started to form ahead of me.

They say: ‘fortune favours the brave’, and so far I couldn’t agree more. Opening myself up to my new life and discussing it with whoever I can has revealed a heart-warming number of people ready to help, advise and put me in touch with relevant people. New opportunities are forming and it is incredibly exciting.

What I do know is that, for me, it had to come to that breaking point. I was not ready before, and it is only with the new, fierce desire to have a different type of lifestyle, with creativity and not money at the heart of it, that I had the courage to overcome the anxiety that follows such a life-changing decision. Without realising it, my work had become a defining part of my confidence, and as such it was vital for me to break that down and understand how to rebuild that in my new working life. What was amazing to me, was that all of it was transferable, and best of all, it is now in addition to my main passion…jewellery. I have a stripped back life, with a considerably lower budget, but I get to spend my days dreaming up the next gorgeous jewellery pieces to adorn all the StrongYetFeminine ladies out there.  

Watch out for some new killer designs, and a lot more communication from me. I will be sharing stories from many women following their passion, corporate or independent, to inspire us all. I am so elated to be fully dedicated to the StrongYetFeminine ethos that I whole heartedly believe in.

It is so easy to fear failure and let that stop you giving 100%. Time to reframe what failure is; not pursuing my dream would be the saddest failure of all. Δ

We are very excited to be at the Crafty Fox Christmas fair this Sunday at Peckham Bussey Building. There will be many stools of unique handmade designers, ready to solve all your Christmas shopping needs. We would love to see you - and you can see our jewellery in full splendour. See more details here: http://www.craftyfoxmarket.co.uk/marketdates/2016/12/10/christmas-market-peckham-10-11-december