Dive into a treasure trove of articles to start your year

I am humbled that over 2500 of you are now subscribers to my (almost) weekly blog all about my journey through life and the IQ, EQ and FQ lessons that I draw from it.

For those of you new to my newsletter, the journey didn't start here; I've been blogging consistently for over 2 years on Medium and 4 years on LinkedIn and we've had some humdingers during that time.

So, if you want to catch up or just find something interesting to read, I thought it worth pulling out some of the more interesting ones for you to explore:

The most popular

1. That time I got evicted https://farisaranki.medium.com/how-i-discovered-that-being-evicted-can-happen-to-anyone-5cb6712bc243
2. How trying to find a new flat in London is a nightmare https://farisaranki.medium.com/want-to-know-the-truth-about-flat-hunting-in-the-current-london-market-a9e2a0433c9b
3. All my top tips for travelling, considering I work-travel a lot https://farisaranki.medium.com/travelling-for-work-pleasure-or-pain-either-way-heres-some-tips-3d8960062ab4
4. I've been on over 400 podcasts so I have learnt a lot about them https://farisaranki.medium.com/what-ive-learnt-from-being-on-50-podcasts-in-a-year-5d526882e3f
5. That time I had no internet for a month https://farisaranki.medium.com/8-valuable-lessons-from-having-no-internet-connection-for-a-week-and-counting-6de399b79053

If you want to get to know me better then check these out

1. An intro https://farisaranki.medium.com/and-so-it-begins-let-me-introduce-myself-55de4f1e9269
2. My career story https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/who-needs-cv-heres-my-career-story-faris/?trackingId=18troc9qSDW%2BIUoQAR7ErA%3D%3D
3. Some lessons learned the hard way https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/things-i-learnt-pssing-off-powerful-people-faris/?trackingId=18troc9qSDW%2BIUoQAR7ErA%3D%3D
4. Why I built the business that I did https://farisaranki.medium.com/why-did-i-build-a-business-around-the-most-nebulous-of-things-fa1bf277e097
5. The story of Shiageto https://farisaranki.medium.com/how-do-you-deal-with-something-that-gnaws-away-at-you-aka-the-story-behind-shiageto-9b53dde0488b
6. The success equation behind Shiageto https://farisaranki.medium.com/the-oft-neglected-elements-of-success-ce1877e990f0
7. What is effectiveness https://farisaranki.medium.com/shiagetos-mission-what-does-it-mean-to-help-others-be-more-effective-a9ca25b07461
8. What drives me https://farisaranki.medium.com/like-the-best-of-a-cat-and-a-dog-it-is-curiosity-and-empathy-that-drives-me-and-my-business-fe4766600a58

If you run your own business then you want to check these ones out

1. How I run my business and the results it delivers https://blog.venturemagazine.net/getting-under-the-skin-of-what-it-takes-to-run-a-small-consulting-firm-my-2023-in-numbers-c0e38870e8da
2. What I've learnt about running a business the hard way https://farisaranki.medium.com/nobody-gives-a-damn-the-21-rules-i-learnt-the-hard-way-founding-a-business-ff14c2f73776
3. How you can stand out from the crowd https://blog.venturemagazine.net/ways-to-stay-top-of-mind-as-a-small-business-7d384cb4ae80
4. Why voice notes may be your new way to do business development https://farisaranki.medium.com/voice-notes-for-business-development-all-ive-learnt-so-far-1bea69c7f3c5 and https://farisaranki.medium.com/100-responses-see-behind-the-curtain-of-the-humble-linkedin-voice-note-an-absolute-eq-50cb8eab1339
5. Do mass emails lead to work https://blog.venturemagazine.net/life-as-a-small-business-owner-what-happens-when-you-email-200-connections-asking-if-there-are-193d421175fc
6. How to do pricing for your business https://blog.venturemagazine.net/lessons-on-pricing-from-my-cleaner-vs-how-we-do-pricing-for-my-consulting-business-ef3a1da2b7ab
7. A series on lessons learnt from my first 6 months running my own business https://blog.venturemagazine.net/business-in-the-time-of-corona-learnings-from-my-first-6-months-of-shiageto-that-might-help-57f323545043
8. Why one small issue can lead to much bigger things https://farisaranki.medium.com/it-problems-one-bit-i-hate-about-being-a-small-business-owner-e672fd7844fe
9. Losing business never gets easier https://blog.venturemagazine.net/losing-business-never-gets-easier-writing-about-it-helps-6cfab7e92279

The link between my business life and my personal life

1. Why business and dating have similarities https://farisaranki.medium.com/what-ive-learnt-from-running-my-start-up-business-that-also-applies-to-my-dating-life-a745e9b0fe7d
2. Why we all need an external pair of eyes https://blog.venturemagazine.net/its-easy-to-be-blind-to-things-sometimes-you-need-a-fresh-pair-of-eyes-to-help-you-out-3e887c08ed9b or https://farisaranki.medium.com/poorly-tasting-hummus-doesnt-know-how-to-fix-itself-an-analogy-for-business-improvement-46a024f3b2ee
3. Why luck plays a large part in success https://farisaranki.medium.com/are-careers-all-about-luck-what-a-wise-cabbie-made-me-realise-about-my-world-e414697b17b8
4. Why community is so important https://farisaranki.medium.com/go-find-your-tribe-let-me-tell-you-about-the-solopreneurs-club-7c3ccbde5a2c
5. Why your response to a problem is key https://farisaranki.medium.com/life-is-all-about-how-you-respond-to-problems-226a689350f5
6. Why understanding how to motivate yourself is important https://farisaranki.medium.com/resolutions-schmesolutions-heres-how-i-get-myself-to-be-a-better-version-of-myself-91b5c583179c
7. Why a strategy is only as good as the results it delivers https://farisaranki.medium.com/a-strategy-is-only-as-good-as-the-results-it-delivers-why-im-giving-up-on-dating-apps-9effd7dd8cd3
8. Why failure drives me more than success https://blog.venturemagazine.net/why-my-2023-failures-rather-than-my-successes-are-the-things-that-will-drive-me-more-in-2024-7455ee4ece93
9. Who should pay for coffee in and out of work https://blog.venturemagazine.net/why-deciding-who-pays-for-coffee-or-a-meal-in-business-and-dating-really-can-be-a-minefield-3c1919961a0c
10. Life lessons from an emergency trip to the dentist https://farisaranki.medium.com/10-lessons-i-learnt-from-terrible-toothache-this-week-its-a-big-fq-problem-and-a-real-chance-to-e77926a414f1
11. Don't forget about your health https://blog.venturemagazine.net/your-relationship-to-food-and-exercise-is-an-often-forgotten-part-of-running-a-small-business-and-c6dde092a399
12. How to work when sick https://farisaranki.medium.com/facilitating-for-a-week-when-ill-what-i-learnt-the-hard-way-35abc6200d52

My relationship with LinkedIn

1. My approach to using LinkedIn as a journal https://blog.venturemagazine.net/why-linkedin-for-me-is-more-a-journal-than-it-is-a-marketing-tool-890f74435fd2
2. Spreading joy through LinkedIn https://farisaranki.medium.com/simple-ways-to-spread-a-bit-more-joy-and-gain-more-eq-in-life-cc93f2d0da86
3. The good things that come from LinkedIn https://blog.venturemagazine.net/feed-the-beast-and-the-beast-will-feed-you-3-linkedin-examples-from-my-week-that-emphasise-why-9e3c2372b330
4. Why do I accrue connections https://blog.venturemagazine.net/why-do-i-love-accruing-connections-and-followers-its-not-what-you-may-think-0af607f7fb5c
5. Changing my relationship https://farisaranki.medium.com/why-i-had-to-change-my-relationship-with-linkedin-and-how-i-did-it-4f3104d53db0
6. Admitting to being an obsessive https://blog.venturemagazine.net/the-good-and-the-bad-of-being-a-linkedin-obsessive-7e7a38630688
7. What does it take to get a like https://blog.venturemagazine.net/the-anatomy-of-a-social-media-like-why-do-people-hit-like-on-a-post-cdb3bd4fa96a
8. It's not always good to have lots of followers https://farisaranki.medium.com/the-hidden-side-of-having-lots-of-followers-3a6359362bda

Being Palestinian

1. What it's like being Palestinian since the recent war broke out https://blog.venturemagazine.net/positivepalestinian-what-its-like-to-be-a-high-profile-palestinian-small-business-owner-right-5940cdf1804e
2. Why it's hard answering the question "Are you OK?" https://farisaranki.medium.com/are-you-ok-3351b947f7f7
3. The impact being Palestinian has had on my life https://farisaranki.medium.com/why-being-palestinian-has-greatly-influenced-my-life-choices-and-the-business-that-i-started-e967018ade1b
4. Why being Palestinian has made me a great facilitator https://farisaranki.medium.com/i-facilitate-because-i-am-palestinian-but-being-palestinian-has-actually-moulded-me-to-be-a-better-2251a5d7bea8
5. The impact on war to everyone https://farisaranki.medium.com/war-do-you-realise-the-impact-it-has-on-our-iq-eq-and-fq-daecc574bb7b

EQ Tips

1. What is EQ https://farisaranki.medium.com/we-need-to-talk-about-eq-545cdd48a6cd
2. Good EQ can make or break a company https://farisaranki.medium.com/why-good-eq-can-make-or-break-success-in-business-e3c52fab7ecc
3. Why it's important to put yourself in someone else's shoes https://farisaranki.medium.com/how-well-do-you-remember-what-it-is-like-to-be-a-kid-i-had-to-think-about-that-a-lot-this-week-970e84f69f62
4. The importance of names https://farisaranki.medium.com/the-power-of-names-and-what-happens-when-you-forget-one-e145d10d637b
5. Maintaining relationships https://blog.venturemagazine.net/every-relationship-has-a-half-life-what-are-you-doing-to-maintain-yours-40bbda2ae63f
6. Community is key https://blog.venturemagazine.net/finding-a-community-such-an-important-but-difficult-aspect-of-starting-your-own-business-17e880b27ba7
7. Resetting relationships https://farisaranki.medium.com/have-you-ever-tried-to-reset-a-relationship-its-not-as-easy-as-it-seems-7139f06b9b03
8. How to talk to strangers https://blog.venturemagazine.net/finding-a-community-such-an-important-but-difficult-aspect-of-starting-your-own-business-17e880b27ba7
9. You set the tone for a lot of life https://blog.venturemagazine.net/eq-reflections-we-all-set-the-tone-for-the-conversations-we-are-about-to-have-we-just-dont-af8add0aa463
10. Being positive in your interactions https://farisaranki.medium.com/what-do-you-do-when-you-bump-into-a-former-acquaintance-ef261c41915f
11. Psychological safety is the key to so many things https://farisaranki.medium.com/you-may-not-play-golf-but-the-story-im-about-to-tell-you-should-resonate-p-s-bc51e9f319b3
12. It all comes back to change https://blog.venturemagazine.net/effectiveness-its-a-lot-to-do-with-change-so-does-change-make-you-or-1bc3e919687f
13. We change more to negative experiences than positive ones https://farisaranki.medium.com/how-a-recent-trip-to-the-dentist-highlighted-my-approach-to-change-c40c40ee4d0d
14. How to hack your own mindset https://blog.venturemagazine.net/new-me-vs-old-me-should-you-really-compete-against-your-former-self-1a895c9caf6
15. 5 quick ways to deal with change https://farisaranki.medium.com/what-have-smashing-my-phone-and-replacing-a-fridge-got-in-common-5544485600e1
16. How to overcome even the worst situation https://blog.venturemagazine.net/the-1-wish-genie-in-a-bottle-technique-to-navigate-challenging-times-4d4342d343e8

FQ Tips

1. What is FQ https://farisaranki.medium.com/for-focus-sake-e3585074182
2. Confusion can be the biggest FQ problem https://farisaranki.medium.com/confusion-is-a-big-distraction-c4daf26133bf
3. Having good focus is the key https://farisaranki.medium.com/how-having-good-focus-helps-me-be-more-effective-in-my-work-and-in-life-too-296a242e324d
4. Goal setting is vital https://farisaranki.medium.com/mid-year-reset-why-the-summer-is-the-perfect-time-to-update-your-life-and-business-plans-c0b292ba636b
5. Declutter to focus https://farisaranki.medium.com/how-getting-rid-of-stacks-of-old-newspapers-as-part-of-a-declutter-helped-me-improve-my-focus-fq-9cd908f3a24e
6. Always work smart https://farisaranki.medium.com/are-you-working-smart-bb2778cd0cf7
7. Spring clean regularly https://farisaranki.medium.com/fq-distilled-stop-start-and-enhance-aka-what-marie-kondo-queer-eye-would-do-for-business-6ea29d3cdddf
8. Unclear language can drain FQ https://farisaranki.medium.com/inshallah-and-other-massive-sources-of-fq-drain-52ea4ced30fc
9. Distractions can come from all places https://farisaranki.medium.com/how-can-sun-cream-improve-your-fq-2681644f74e8
10. A problem is only a problem when it's a problem https://farisaranki.medium.com/a-problem-is-only-a-problem-when-its-a-problem-6b5b2d795a74
11. How to stay focused when things are tough https://farisaranki.medium.com/heres-a-simple-motivational-technique-that-might-help-you-pick-up-a-new-habit-6e15b2003f44
12. Break everything down into smaller components https://blog.venturemagazine.net/q-how-do-you-eat-an-elephant-ea38ffe94ac4

IQ Tips

1. Increase your creativity https://farisaranki.medium.com/how-many-ways-can-you-come-up-with-to-use-a-paper-clip-in-60-seconds-9a3557b2e79e
2. Getting teams to gel quickly https://blog.venturemagazine.net/how-to-get-teams-to-gel-quickly-harsh-lessons-from-holidays-with-loose-connections-that-holds-eaf9093dc845
3. Getting teams to think more https://farisaranki.medium.com/lightning-rods-and-speed-bumps-2-fantastic-facilitation-techniques-885575021df6
4. Get the right out of office before the holidays https://farisaranki.medium.com/how-effective-is-your-out-of-office-and-what-does-it-say-about-you-b74139ea469c
5. Dress the right way https://blog.venturemagazine.net/what-should-i-wear-to-work-more-importantly-how-might-it-impact-my-effectiveness-abdbeef51be5
6. How to network correctly https://farisaranki.medium.com/i-never-imagined-that-id-build-my-entire-business-on-my-joy-of-networking-da38b3cf251
7. How to run a great training session https://farisaranki.medium.com/what-makes-a-great-training-session-794dbfdc14e5

Other

1. 10 lessons learned from my life https://farisaranki.medium.com/10-lessons-learned-from-my-life-so-far-3e1d03c760c4
2. How I came to be a billboard star https://farisaranki.medium.com/sh1t-are-you-in-an-advert-how-i-came-to-star-in-an-insurance-advertising-campaign-82e647aa504f
3. The highs and lows of promotion season in companies https://farisaranki.medium.com/ah-promotion-season-how-i-love-and-hate-you-at-the-same-time-6e065a0c7a62
4. Why facilitation is a life skill https://farisaranki.medium.com/good-facilitation-one-of-the-greatest-superpowers-in-business-939922d6f2cd
5. Why trying more new things is good https://farisaranki.medium.com/how-your-approach-to-food-when-you-go-travelling-may-indicate-whether-you-would-be-a-perfect-62127a07b65b
6. The downsides of Labels and stereotyping https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/ah-youre-wrong-im-simply-fork-faris/?trackingId=18troc9qSDW%2BIUoQAR7ErA%3D%3D
7. Traditions can be good and bad https://farisaranki.medium.com/twas-the-night-before-christmas-why-some-traditions-are-worth-continuing-as-long-as-possible-cb8a7c226613
8. The link between Christmas and change https://farisaranki.medium.com/damn-you-christmas-youre-forever-reminding-me-of-important-lessons-but-thanks-for-the-gift-b92866b75f4e
9. How to make a lasting impression https://farisaranki.medium.com/if-you-want-to-make-a-lasting-impression-its-all-about-being-memorable-here-s-some-tips-on-how-b45419f8c1d9
10. Approach everything with a positive mindset https://farisaranki.medium.com/why-you-should-always-approach-a-new-situation-with-an-im-going-to-enjoy-this-mindset-23eaa96e9738

There you go, that's more than enough to get stuck into....just don't blame me if you don't surface until the end of 2025 ??

Plus I'll be adding to these as the year goes on so sit back and enjoy the read ??

Faris

Faris is the CEO and Founder of Shiageto Consulting, an innovative consultancy that helps firms and individuals sharpen their effectiveness. Connect with him here

Success = IQ x EQ x FQ

Want to assess your levels of IQ, EQ and FQ? click here