In this Business Blast Podcast episode, host Tyler Wagner interviews Kajal Naina, a former dentist who transitioned into a jewelry designer over the past two years. Kajal shares a personal story of resilience, emphasizing the importance of staying strong internally to navigate life's challenges. She offers practical advice for jewelry buyers, urging research, budget‑conscious choices, and prioritizing quality over size, especially when purchasing items like pearl necklaces. Drawing from her non‑business background, Kajal explains how she educated herself through online business courses, stressing the need to understand one’s fundamentals and work with passion. She reflects on advice she would give her younger self—being more observant and learning from surroundings. Her philosophy of happiness centers on realistic expectations, knowing strengths and weaknesses, and balancing ambition with well‑being. Kajal’s favorite quote highlights handling “Plan B” as a key to navigating life’s unpredictability. The episode concludes with her contact information: website www.cajunena.com, email kajal@kajalmenna.com, and a WhatsApp option.
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Welcome to the Business Blast Podcast. I'm your host, Tyler Wagner. This episode is brought to you by Authors Unite. Authors Unite provides you with all the resources you need to become a successful author. You can learn more about Authors Unite and join the free community at authorsunite.com. Now let's jump into the episode.
Alright everyone, welcome back to another episode of the Business Blast Podcast. I'm your host Tyler Wagner. Today I have Kaja Nana with us. She is a jewelry designer, so welcome to the show.
Hi Tyler, thanks for having me here. I'm very glad to be here.
Of course, thanks for joining us. I'm also really excited to have you here, and we'll dive in. The first question I have for you is, what is the best story from your life that has an underlying valuable message?
Aha, so I would say that I have a lot of stories from my life and it is a story of resilience, of staying strong inside no matter what. So life, life hit me many times at different levels, but I always bounced back stronger. So, so no matter how stormy it might be inside, if, if from inside you stay strong, I think that you will be able to navigate through life.
So that's what I would like to And what is the most valuable piece of information we should know that is within your expertise or industry?
Ah, so if I have to— so earlier I used to be a dentist and I turned into a jewelry designer since the last 2 years. So what I realized is that a lot of people, they don't know much about jewelry when setting out to buy. So I would say that it is always a good thing to do your research and know a little bit about what you want, or, you know, think that you're buying. So that always helps a lot. And, and, and while, um, buying— suppose you're buying a pearl necklace, so it would be like, I would say always go for within your budget, just go for something nicer instead of trying to go for size. So in the long run, that always, um, lasts longer, looks better, people appreciate more, the value is more. So, uh, so within the jewelry industry, yeah, I would say for for buyers or for outside the industry people, just, just, it helps to do a little bit of homework. Yeah.
And what is your best piece of overall business advice? You're not necessarily industry-specific.
Uh-huh. So overall business advice, I would say that I actually come from a very non-business background. Until 2 years back, I was, I was not a business person. So the first year of business, I kind of struggled because I couldn't understand a lot of things. So I, and then I started, I started doing a lot of research. I got into online business school, learned a lot about business, and then it has been really, really, you know, smooth. So I would say that overall business advice would be to know your grounds really well and then work with full passion. And I think that's very important to get you started, get you going, and take you places.
And if you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would that be?
So the advice I would like to give myself, okay, so I really don't regret much about how I lived my life so far, but in the big picture, I think I've done pretty okay with all the changes and with all the curveballs that life has thrown me. But if there's one thing I wish I had done more of, that would be, I, I wish I had been wise enough to learn more from the world around me, the people around me, you know, like where I've been before when I was young in different places. So I guess what I would like to do and tell my younger self is to be more aware of my surroundings and to understand life better by doing so. Like, you know, the world is a book kind of thing. Yeah, that was what— that's what I would tell my younger self.
And in your opinion, what is the key to happiness?
Aha. So, um, my key to happiness has always been actually keeping the expectations real in life and knowing my strengths and weaknesses. So that's how, like, you keep the balance. And by keeping the balance, I think, um, you, you, you, um, you kind of protect yourself from from being unhappy. So I always believe in aiming high, but not so high that it keeps you stressed. And, you know, just do things that make you happy. Yeah, that's it, I guess.
And what is the best book that you've read and what's the number one thing you learned from that?
Well, so I used to read a lot of books before, but recently in the past few years, I haven't read too many books that I read. But none which really, really made a mark in my head. But I still read a lot, not just much books, but I read a lot of like blogs, articles, quotes. I sign up to newspapers, newsletters that I like, that help motivate me, makes me happy. So yeah, I've just been reading a lot of random stuff which helps me.
And what is your favorite quote and why?
My favorite quote these days is that I, you know, I came across a quote a few years back which says that life is all about how you handle Plan B. So yeah, that's it. Very short and very sweet and to the point because I feel that that's so true. And so someone who has understand to handle Plan B in life because life doesn't always go as we think and a lot of times We need to improvise life. So if we understand that, I think one can navigate through the highs and lows of life, yeah, like a boss.
Yes, like a boss. Thank you so much for coming on. The last question I have for you before we let you go is where's the best place for people to find you online?
People can find me online through my website. That would be www.cajunena.com. So that's my jewelry website actually. So my, my, my phone number is also given there so people, someone can WhatsApp me if they really want to get directly in touch with me, or even through my email. So, so you can email me at kajal@kajalmenna.com.
Amazing. Thank you so much for coming on. We appreciate it.
Thank you very much, Tyler Wagner, for having me here.
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