March 11, 2025 • 20 mins
In this heartfelt episode of The Mosaic, I take you on a journey to Simijaca, Colombia—a hidden gem that opened my eyes to the beauty of simplicity and the importance of prioritizing what matters most. From breathtaking waterfalls and soul-stirring cold plunges to family emergencies that remind us of our true priorities, I share personal stories that transformed my perspective on life and business. Join me as I reveal how to embrace flexibility, find beauty in every moment, and stay true to your priorities.
Don’t forget to get my free offer that will help you strengthen your mindset and map out your customer journey. Sign up on arzugosney.com to get access to my Customer Journey Workbook and four days of powerful business affirmations.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Hey there my friends, welcome back to the Mosaic. This is where we piece together life, business
(00:09):
and purpose, one intentional step at a time. Okay, so I am so grateful that you're here
today because today's episode is a little bit of an extra close to my heart because
I am sharing one of my recent travels to a small place called Simiaka in Colombia and
(00:40):
a place that really thought me so much about beauty, flexibility when it comes to what
life throws at you and above it all really staying true to what truly matters most.
(01:00):
So I told you in the last episode that I have had a couple of trips in the last two weeks,
one of which was I spent what was meant to be at first a two week trip into a small
(01:22):
town called Simiaka and this town is nested in a valley between two mountains. Now if
you haven't listened to the episode about my background and go back and check it out, okay,
I am coming from Turkey, I am very familiar with small villages but this town was definitely
(01:52):
something else that I even me was a little bit shocked at first because even though there is
power, poverty, it's visible in the outside looking in, right, when you look at the worn out
(02:15):
buildings and there are roads filled with potholes and all that but there is also an undeniable
sense of peace and belonging and raw natural beauty in this place and as I wander through
(02:39):
the town as the days goes on, I really was starting to get struck by the contrast of the
old structures with just roofs barely like holding it together to newer buildings that
were kind of starting to pop up and yet it still preserved the town's authenticity and
(03:04):
it somehow made me think you know I are reliving living life too complicated at times, right,
because I watched street dogs and cats roam freely, I met people in this town although
they didn't have much, they embraced life with open hearts and have this peace and happiness
(03:31):
filled their hearts, I had so many exotic foods, met this vibrant community spirit in
this small town and from outside you could say they don't have much but the way that
nature framed every scene, it was like stepping into this beautiful and different world and
(03:58):
it was mesmerizing to say the least.
Now we did have one day dedicated to climbing one of the mountains surrounding the small
town and eventually reaching a place that has the beautiful, amazing waterfall that
(04:26):
is surrounded by possibly Indian cemeteries, it was so magical and authentic and raw but
anyhow I am getting ahead of myself, right, so we are heading over to this mountain waterfall
(04:51):
which is breathtaking and the sheer of beauty of these cascading water, it was so overwhelming
and that I mean even heading into the waterfall when I started to look at and came across
this mountain stream I just couldn't help but tears fall because in that moment, right,
(05:20):
we live in a place where people pay exaggerant amounts of daily park entry fees just to see
these man-made versions of what I was seeing and there is nothing wrong with that by the
(05:43):
way, I mean I would still go to the parks, I would still go to the entertainment and
all that but even though in that moment, right, now that I am seeing this natural beauty in
the most raw form, I realize like even though people here don't have much in terms of material
(06:07):
things, they really have access to the most amazing natural beauty and this indescribable
sense of family and belonging and nature and abundance and they embrace that, they are
(06:28):
happy, right and let me tell you a little bit about one of the most transformational
moments for me was when towards the end we ended up reaching the waterfall and this was
a time where we could do get into the water and yes, this is almost like taking that cold
(06:54):
plunge, you need to remember and this is January and the water is cold so this is taking a
cold plunge in a waterfall in the most natural form that you could ever have, you could ever
encounter and I have to say I was hesitant at first and I was not a believer in cold
(07:20):
plunches and I am not saying that I am going to have cold plunge every day, I am not doing
that now but once I stepped into that, I see water, okay, I felt my entire body awaken,
I mean the shock of the cold quickly turned into this like feeling of invigoration, right,
(07:44):
I saw my skin flush red and warm and I knew that I had just proven to myself that I could
do hard things, okay, so in fact, so on the way to this waterfall we had to cross a log,
(08:05):
okay, over this shallow section of the mountain waterfall and at first I was going to try to
kind of walk through the water mountain stream like small water stream but I decided, you
know what, maybe I just still keep my clothes dry so I decided that I could just push myself
(08:30):
through this log over this mountain stream so I started out with crawling and terrified
of falling down this log so going to the waterfall that was my experience passing this water
mountain stream, water stream but so once I took the plunge and I mean it pun intended,
(08:58):
right, this cold plunge on the way back from the waterfall, mountain fall, right, I made
the log cross the log, mustering the courage to walk back confidently, I honestly didn't
know where it came from and thinking back so that simple act, right, you know, from
(09:24):
crawling to confidently walking the log over the mountain water stream, waterfall, right,
mustering that courage, I mean really mirroring that lesson that sometimes the first step
is the hardest but once you concur like your fears, it's almost like you find a new level
(09:49):
of strength within you that you didn't even know existed, right, so that was a little
bit of discovery that I've had, right, lessons learned, we will get to the lessons learned
(10:10):
and maybe I can list my lessons learned and I've had three of them and I will have some
action items for you towards the end of this episode but wrapping up my story of this trip
like as magical as my time in Simi Hakka was, life and other plans I had an unexpected family
(10:31):
emergency which forced me to cut my trip a little bit short and I had to fly back to
Istanbul on the same day and I do will have another episode to share the details of my
trip to Turkey and I'm still processing those emotions but this experience really reaffirmed
(10:54):
that crucial truth that I have been talking about throughout my the podcast episode that
that living your life based on your priorities and really staying flexible and being open
to what life draws at you, right, even things don't go as planned trusting that what is
(11:16):
meant to be will be and it will unfold on its own time so I'll get to the second part
of the journey and my recent travels to Turkey and my takeaways from that trip in another
episode but let's start talking about the lessons and really wrapping up and summarizing
(11:41):
this episode and maybe giving you some action items that you can think through this week
on how you can apply and how you can do some things in your life and and think truth through
your life and how it applies to you, okay.
So first of all, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and we say that all the time, but
(12:05):
even in places where material wealth is scarce, there is an abundance of natural beauty and
community warm and opportunities for deep connections waiting for us that we may not
realize that it is there.
So my your action step from this episode that I want you to think about this week, I mean,
(12:31):
take a walk outside or jot jot down three things that you find beautiful in your surroundings
and and it doesn't have to be exaggerant right so it can be super simple.
I want you to write things down and really think through the simple things that you have
in your life that brings you joy and and beauty and keeps that that connection with others
(12:58):
in your life and write them down and be thankful and grateful for those things in your life,
okay.
So that is the first takeaway for you that I want you to really embrace this week.
And then second of all, I want you to think of new experiences that you can take on possibly
(13:22):
right whether it is taking a cold punch or stepping into an unknown and trying new things
and it could be as simple as speaking up in a meeting.
Okay, it could be saying what you really truly feel in a good way.
(13:43):
You can say anything that you want to say to someone as long as it is respectful and
honors their boundaries and honors your own boundaries right speaking up, saying what's
in your mind and you never know how those little simple acts of courage and how they
(14:04):
will transform you and your life one little step at a time.
So I want you to really this week to think about and challenge yourself to do one new
activity, one new action, one new thought, even if it is scary a little bit and doing
(14:25):
that and reflecting on the courage or the bravery that it brings on and adds to your
life.
I want you to really embrace those new experiences this week, okay.
Write it down and try it out.
And then finally, my third takeaway, takeaway for you for this episode is really prioritizing
(14:51):
what truly matters.
I mean, life is unpredictable.
And just like I had to cut my trip short to take care of family, it really reminded me
that our loved ones and inner peace is really what truly matters.
So I want you to write down or reaffirm if you already have them.
(15:11):
Look at them, if you already wrote it down, what are your top three priorities in life
and assess how those your daily actions align with those priorities.
Look at your schedule.
Is it aligning and honoring your priorities in life?
(15:33):
And then just if adjustments are needed, please to ensure that you're honoring them and making
those adjustments slowly.
I mean, it can be dramatically, but I mean, it doesn't have to be dramatic, right?
You can do it as slow as you need to to make your adjustments so you honor the priorities
(15:59):
in your life.
Okay.
So let's wrap up this episode by going through some of the affirmations that I wrote down
so that we can anchor the episode lessons to some thoughts that I want to have.
(16:24):
I want you to have this week.
I honor my priorities and trust that my path unfolds as it should.
I am brave.
(16:45):
I try new experiences and each challenge that I take on makes me stronger.
I find beauty and inspiration in every moment, no matter where I am.
(17:08):
I embrace change.
I stay flexible.
I know my true path is guided by what matters most in my life.
I am grateful for the love of my family and the abundance of life around me.
(17:33):
Okay.
Thank you so much for sharing this journey with me today.
My trip to Simiaka taught me so much.
And it's not just about this hidden gem in Colombia, but about the beauty of life and
what it means to stay true to your priorities.
(17:56):
Life will throw unexpected changes your way.
But as long as you trust your path and remain flexible, you always find your way.
Okay.
Now, I did talk about the exciting offer that I have on my website in the last episode,
(18:18):
where I will be talking about this till you sign up to get that freebie and get my giveaway.
Please head over to ourzegaze.com and get that giveaway.
I am giving an exclusive business building affirmations and customer journey workbook
(18:40):
to help you start mapping out your path to success.
So this is really my way of giving back to my community of dreamers and doers and the
change makers.
And that is you.
Okay.
So please go give me your email address and get those four days of affirmations in your
(19:04):
inbox for the next four days.
And if this episode resonated with you, I want you to please subscribe to the podcast,
share it with a friend.
I want you to leave a comment about maybe how about this?
Leave a comment about the moments that when you have embraced a change and took a bravery
(19:30):
in your life and found an unexpected beauty and how it gave you even more courage to do
bigger and better things.
I would love to hear your stories.
Please send them to me.
Okay.
And remember my friends, I mean, life is really about honoring our priorities, trusting our
(19:53):
journey and really embracing every moment with gratitude.
I love you.
I believe in you.
And I will see you in our next episode of The Most Naked.
I am out now.
Until next time.
Bye.
Hey there my friends, welcome back to the Mosaic. This is where we piece together life, business
(00:09):
and purpose, one intentional step at a time. Okay, so I am so grateful that you're here
today because today's episode is a little bit of an extra close to my heart because
I am sharing one of my recent travels to a small place called Simiaka in Colombia and
(00:40):
a place that really thought me so much about beauty, flexibility when it comes to what
life throws at you and above it all really staying true to what truly matters most.
(01:00):
So I told you in the last episode that I have had a couple of trips in the last two weeks,
one of which was I spent what was meant to be at first a two week trip into a small
(01:22):
town called Simiaka and this town is nested in a valley between two mountains. Now if
you haven't listened to the episode about my background and go back and check it out, okay,
I am coming from Turkey, I am very familiar with small villages but this town was definitely
(01:52):
something else that I even me was a little bit shocked at first because even though there is
power, poverty, it's visible in the outside looking in, right, when you look at the worn out
(02:15):
buildings and there are roads filled with potholes and all that but there is also an undeniable
sense of peace and belonging and raw natural beauty in this place and as I wander through
(02:39):
the town as the days goes on, I really was starting to get struck by the contrast of the
old structures with just roofs barely like holding it together to newer buildings that
were kind of starting to pop up and yet it still preserved the town's authenticity and
(03:04):
it somehow made me think you know I are reliving living life too complicated at times, right,
because I watched street dogs and cats roam freely, I met people in this town although
they didn't have much, they embraced life with open hearts and have this peace and happiness
(03:31):
filled their hearts, I had so many exotic foods, met this vibrant community spirit in
this small town and from outside you could say they don't have much but the way that
nature framed every scene, it was like stepping into this beautiful and different world and
(03:58):
it was mesmerizing to say the least.
Now we did have one day dedicated to climbing one of the mountains surrounding the small
town and eventually reaching a place that has the beautiful, amazing waterfall that
(04:26):
is surrounded by possibly Indian cemeteries, it was so magical and authentic and raw but
anyhow I am getting ahead of myself, right, so we are heading over to this mountain waterfall
(04:51):
which is breathtaking and the sheer of beauty of these cascading water, it was so overwhelming
and that I mean even heading into the waterfall when I started to look at and came across
this mountain stream I just couldn't help but tears fall because in that moment, right,
(05:20):
we live in a place where people pay exaggerant amounts of daily park entry fees just to see
these man-made versions of what I was seeing and there is nothing wrong with that by the
(05:43):
way, I mean I would still go to the parks, I would still go to the entertainment and
all that but even though in that moment, right, now that I am seeing this natural beauty in
the most raw form, I realize like even though people here don't have much in terms of material
(06:07):
things, they really have access to the most amazing natural beauty and this indescribable
sense of family and belonging and nature and abundance and they embrace that, they are
(06:28):
happy, right and let me tell you a little bit about one of the most transformational
moments for me was when towards the end we ended up reaching the waterfall and this was
a time where we could do get into the water and yes, this is almost like taking that cold
(06:54):
plunge, you need to remember and this is January and the water is cold so this is taking a
cold plunge in a waterfall in the most natural form that you could ever have, you could ever
encounter and I have to say I was hesitant at first and I was not a believer in cold
(07:20):
plunches and I am not saying that I am going to have cold plunge every day, I am not doing
that now but once I stepped into that, I see water, okay, I felt my entire body awaken,
I mean the shock of the cold quickly turned into this like feeling of invigoration, right,
(07:44):
I saw my skin flush red and warm and I knew that I had just proven to myself that I could
do hard things, okay, so in fact, so on the way to this waterfall we had to cross a log,
(08:05):
okay, over this shallow section of the mountain waterfall and at first I was going to try to
kind of walk through the water mountain stream like small water stream but I decided, you
know what, maybe I just still keep my clothes dry so I decided that I could just push myself
(08:30):
through this log over this mountain stream so I started out with crawling and terrified
of falling down this log so going to the waterfall that was my experience passing this water
mountain stream, water stream but so once I took the plunge and I mean it pun intended,
(08:58):
right, this cold plunge on the way back from the waterfall, mountain fall, right, I made
the log cross the log, mustering the courage to walk back confidently, I honestly didn't
know where it came from and thinking back so that simple act, right, you know, from
(09:24):
crawling to confidently walking the log over the mountain water stream, waterfall, right,
mustering that courage, I mean really mirroring that lesson that sometimes the first step
is the hardest but once you concur like your fears, it's almost like you find a new level
(09:49):
of strength within you that you didn't even know existed, right, so that was a little
bit of discovery that I've had, right, lessons learned, we will get to the lessons learned
(10:10):
and maybe I can list my lessons learned and I've had three of them and I will have some
action items for you towards the end of this episode but wrapping up my story of this trip
like as magical as my time in Simi Hakka was, life and other plans I had an unexpected family
(10:31):
emergency which forced me to cut my trip a little bit short and I had to fly back to
Istanbul on the same day and I do will have another episode to share the details of my
trip to Turkey and I'm still processing those emotions but this experience really reaffirmed
(10:54):
that crucial truth that I have been talking about throughout my the podcast episode that
that living your life based on your priorities and really staying flexible and being open
to what life draws at you, right, even things don't go as planned trusting that what is
(11:16):
meant to be will be and it will unfold on its own time so I'll get to the second part
of the journey and my recent travels to Turkey and my takeaways from that trip in another
episode but let's start talking about the lessons and really wrapping up and summarizing
(11:41):
this episode and maybe giving you some action items that you can think through this week
on how you can apply and how you can do some things in your life and and think truth through
your life and how it applies to you, okay.
So first of all, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and we say that all the time, but
(12:05):
even in places where material wealth is scarce, there is an abundance of natural beauty and
community warm and opportunities for deep connections waiting for us that we may not
realize that it is there.
So my your action step from this episode that I want you to think about this week, I mean,
(12:31):
take a walk outside or jot jot down three things that you find beautiful in your surroundings
and and it doesn't have to be exaggerant right so it can be super simple.
I want you to write things down and really think through the simple things that you have
in your life that brings you joy and and beauty and keeps that that connection with others
(12:58):
in your life and write them down and be thankful and grateful for those things in your life,
okay.
So that is the first takeaway for you that I want you to really embrace this week.
And then second of all, I want you to think of new experiences that you can take on possibly
(13:22):
right whether it is taking a cold punch or stepping into an unknown and trying new things
and it could be as simple as speaking up in a meeting.
Okay, it could be saying what you really truly feel in a good way.
(13:43):
You can say anything that you want to say to someone as long as it is respectful and
honors their boundaries and honors your own boundaries right speaking up, saying what's
in your mind and you never know how those little simple acts of courage and how they
(14:04):
will transform you and your life one little step at a time.
So I want you to really this week to think about and challenge yourself to do one new
activity, one new action, one new thought, even if it is scary a little bit and doing
(14:25):
that and reflecting on the courage or the bravery that it brings on and adds to your
life.
I want you to really embrace those new experiences this week, okay.
Write it down and try it out.
And then finally, my third takeaway, takeaway for you for this episode is really prioritizing
(14:51):
what truly matters.
I mean, life is unpredictable.
And just like I had to cut my trip short to take care of family, it really reminded me
that our loved ones and inner peace is really what truly matters.
So I want you to write down or reaffirm if you already have them.
(15:11):
Look at them, if you already wrote it down, what are your top three priorities in life
and assess how those your daily actions align with those priorities.
Look at your schedule.
Is it aligning and honoring your priorities in life?
(15:33):
And then just if adjustments are needed, please to ensure that you're honoring them and making
those adjustments slowly.
I mean, it can be dramatically, but I mean, it doesn't have to be dramatic, right?
You can do it as slow as you need to to make your adjustments so you honor the priorities
(15:59):
in your life.
Okay.
So let's wrap up this episode by going through some of the affirmations that I wrote down
so that we can anchor the episode lessons to some thoughts that I want to have.
(16:24):
I want you to have this week.
I honor my priorities and trust that my path unfolds as it should.
I am brave.
(16:45):
I try new experiences and each challenge that I take on makes me stronger.
I find beauty and inspiration in every moment, no matter where I am.
(17:08):
I embrace change.
I stay flexible.
I know my true path is guided by what matters most in my life.
I am grateful for the love of my family and the abundance of life around me.
(17:33):
Okay.
Thank you so much for sharing this journey with me today.
My trip to Simiaka taught me so much.
And it's not just about this hidden gem in Colombia, but about the beauty of life and
what it means to stay true to your priorities.
(17:56):
Life will throw unexpected changes your way.
But as long as you trust your path and remain flexible, you always find your way.
Okay.
Now, I did talk about the exciting offer that I have on my website in the last episode,
(18:18):
where I will be talking about this till you sign up to get that freebie and get my giveaway.
Please head over to ourzegaze.com and get that giveaway.
I am giving an exclusive business building affirmations and customer journey workbook
(18:40):
to help you start mapping out your path to success.
So this is really my way of giving back to my community of dreamers and doers and the
change makers.
And that is you.
Okay.
So please go give me your email address and get those four days of affirmations in your
(19:04):
inbox for the next four days.
And if this episode resonated with you, I want you to please subscribe to the podcast,
share it with a friend.
I want you to leave a comment about maybe how about this?
Leave a comment about the moments that when you have embraced a change and took a bravery
(19:30):
in your life and found an unexpected beauty and how it gave you even more courage to do
bigger and better things.
I would love to hear your stories.
Please send them to me.
Okay.
And remember my friends, I mean, life is really about honoring our priorities, trusting our
(19:53):
journey and really embracing every moment with gratitude.
I love you.
I believe in you.
And I will see you in our next episode of The Most Naked.
I am out now.
Until next time.
Bye.
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