Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Arliss Dudley-Cash, Owner of Soullutions LLC., located in Kamuela, HI, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

I am a business consultant that truly wants to see businesses grow. I specialize in organization, process, and streamlining operations so that entrepreneurs can get out and have more fun. My business is based in Hawaii, but I have clients all over the US. I'm known as The Ideas Queen as I'm an outside-the-box thinker. I love working with business owners that are hungry for knowledge and are lifelong learners. In my workshops and presentations, I focus on the Power Skills of Business: Emotional Intelligence, Self-Compassion, and Mindfulness. My clients are new entrepreneurs or established entrepreneurs who are looking to create processes and systems to streamline through business and build their business with soul.

Tell us about yourself

Four years into a Neuroscience Ph.D. program, life threw me a giant curveball: I was diagnosed with a terminal diagnosis of a rare genetic disease. I was 28 years old. This diagnosis turned my life upside down and then led me on a path of radical self-love and self-care. In order to live, I had to start asking myself: What if you were the love of your life?

Through my experience, I’ve come to find that the secret to living is self-love. Self-love is incredibly powerful and transformative. Yet, it remains one of the most under-taught, undervalued skills on the planet. I’m on a mission to change this by helping others cultivate a life-changing practice of self-love and self-care.

In 2019, I founded Soullutions by Arliss to help entrepreneurs, professionals, and busy human beings who are struggling in their life and business. My personal journey to self-love and healing, combined with my extensive education and professional experience, makes me unique as a coach.

I have an MBA from the University of the People, a Master's Degree in Neuroscience from the University of Iowa, and an Inner MBA from Sounds True University. I am currently pursuing a Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification at Sounds True University. Before starting my coaching business, I held positions in business management, taught science at the University of California Merced, and served as a Deputy Coroner.

I’m a big believer in the magic of our individual stories and the power of storytelling to affect positive change in this world. I’m a member of Toastmasters and a frequent speaker at international conferences and events. In 2021, I co-founded The Body Positivity Podcast, which I host with my friend Diana Gremillion.

In my free time, you can find me in the Pacific Ocean, painting or playing with my three chihuahuas – Tonks, Moony, and Fluffy. I live in Waimea on the beautiful Big Island of Hawaii with my partner Matthew.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

I am a #1 International Best-Selling Author, Business Consultant, Self-Love Coach, inspirational speaker, and self-love movement leader. With a background in business, neuroscience, and forensics, my career expands over several industries, including operations management, research science, and death investigation. I unite this eclectic background with my personal journey to overcome the odds and survive a terminal diagnosis.

My awarding winning presentations include topics on extreme self-love, mindful business practices, and body positivity. Through my company, Soullutions LLC, I'm passionate about helping my clients to become powerful, joyful, authentic business owners experiencing freedom, having a lot more fun in their business, and experiencing the success of their dreams. My dream is for each of us to become the loves of our lives!

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

Being an entrepreneur is one of the bravest things you can do. It involves risks and leaps of faith. It requires superwoman-esque self-confidence and enough open-mindedness to ask for help. You need savvy communication skills, resilience in the face of failure, and, I would argue, a black belt in self-care to prevent burnout!

Let’s be real: you don’t have to be all these things already. We are all a work in progress. The key is having the willingness to grow because growth in your business is directly related to your personal growth. This is the beauty of the journey.

A mindful entrepreneur understands the important connection between building a business and building a strong physical, mental, and spiritual foundation within themselves.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

Compassion and Business. According to the Center for Compassion and Altruism Research at Stanford University (yes! how rad is the existence of this place?) Compassion is a “concern for the wellbeing of others” and “is the feeling that arises in witnessing another’s suffering, and that motivates a subsequent desire to help.”

Author Kristen Neff highlights the importance of self-compassion and how this is the seed for having more compassion for others. She also offers a free self-compassion assessment on her website – a great way to see where you are at. The results may surprise you!

So, how can we practice self-compassion and compassion for others in the business? Here are a few ideas:

  • Speak to yourself and others in a kind, encouraging, and positive manner
  • Frame failures or mistakes as learning experiences
  • Take time for rest and relaxation, and set boundaries around time spent working
  • Encourage open and honest dialogue around your own and your team member’s mental, physical, and emotional well being
  • Take time to rest and recover when sick, and encourage team members to do the same with generous health benefits and sick time
  • Take time for major life events like births, deaths, and marriages, and give team members the same grace to deal with similar events

In the last few decades, we’ve seen a rise in more businesses integrating compassion into their business model. A great example of this is the company Patagonia – which is driven by a strong set of core values. Businesses have the power to shape the societies in which they operate. We can be drivers of compassionate change or stick to the old “dog eat dog” status quo.

“Business as usual is not good enough anymore, and we want to lead by example. The plain truth is that capitalism needs to evolve if humanity is going to survive. More than ever, business needs to step up for democracy and a civil society.”
- Rose Marcario, CEO of Patagonia

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: http://soullutions.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/arliss.dudleycash.1/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/arliss.dudley.cash/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arliss-dudley-cash/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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