About the AuthorPatricia Talbot( CEO and Co-Founder )

Patti cultivates homegrown changemakers prepared to step into their power and work with others to create the world they want to live in.  Get in touch to find out how you can grow the social changemaker in yourself and those you serve with Blue Roads Changemaker YOU. 

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Tatiana Tsoir is someone I wish I had the chance to meet in my early in my entrepreneurial journey. Entrepreneurship comes with road bumps and challenges, but having someone with business smarts walk down that path beside you will help you avoid some common pitfalls. 

In this episode of “On Your Own Terms,” Changemaker Tatiana Tsoir shares her “Homegrown Solutions for a Patchwork World” from the unique perspective of an immigrant to the United States. Watch the video of our conversation, listen to the podcast, and read the summary here to catch up! Stay tuned to the end and you'll even get to tune in to a sample of Tatiana's public speaking. Enjoy!

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Homegrown TatianaTatiana’s roots began in the Soviet Union. Life in Belarus was hard for her growing up. Even though her parents were both educated doctors, she says they were paid less than janitors. Money was tight and Tatiana’s father had to leave medicine to start a business to get by. 










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I grew up speaking two languages in Belarus: Russian and Belarussian.

Tatiana lived in Belarus until she was 19 when she moved to the United States and made it her home. She found that life in America provided her more opportunities to pursue her dreams. 

Tatiana's SolutionsWhen Tatiana went to university, she initially wanted to be a lawyer. After deeper reflection, however, she changed her mind. She started bookkeeping to help her pay for her higher education and found she had a special knack for accounting.

Somewhere along the journey, I fell in love with small business as I was learning business theory in school.

This love blossomed when she opened her own firm so she could be freer to set her own hours as a young mother.  Tatiana no longer wanted the stress of tax season in a CPA firm.  She has now been her own boss for over 18 years and she's learned a lot of lessons along the way she uses to help others following in her footsteps. 

In the US, a million businesses get started every year, and only 50% of them make it over the five year mark.

Failure or success for these startup businesses has a major impact on families and communities.  Since family is the building block of society, these small businesses have a profound impact on the US economy. 

Many businesses fail due to money challenges. Financial problems lead to higher anxiety levels in the family and the entrepreneurs who are building their dreams brick by brick. Tatiana believes that stronger businesses lead to stronger people. And stronger people build stronger communities.

This truth drives Tatiana's mission to change the status quo by helping small businesses get off the ground with a much higher potential for success. 

Tatiana's Patchwork

Tatiana sees herself as a strong example of the benefits of diverse experiences precisely because she has had the opportunity to live and work in two very different cultures. From Belarus to New York, Tatiana has met and worked with people from all over the world. 

I've learned from each and every one of them.

Tatiana especially credits her husband with having a big influence over her worldview – especially as a parent.  Her experiences growing up in Belarus didn't quite prepare her for the tightknit family dynamics that her husband grew up with in his Jewish culture. This was an epiphany for Tatiana. She realized she did not have to raise her children the same way she was brought up. 

 

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I became a better person because of him.

Changemaker Tatiana

Entrepreneurship is a challenging endeavor. You have to wear many hats while trying to build a sustainable business. For immigrants, entrepreneurship is even harder. Everything from taxes to business law is different.  This just makes Tatiana more determined. 

 

I see a lot more emerging businesses with unique ideas because we all have the potential to be special. We just have to nourish that potential.

Tatiana believes that if everyone was able to live up to their potential, the world would be a brighter place to be in. It all comes down to asking the right questions. Her advice is to start with yourself. Get to know the person you are by asking the hard questions. The more you know yourself, the better you are able to tap into your unique gifts. 

Entrepreneurship is a whole brain craft, and what that means is that you cannot build a business by being a visionary and not pay attention to your numbers. You also cannot be stuck in the spreadsheets and avoid seeing the big picture.

With this core message in mind, Tatiana helps entrepreneurs scale their businesses sustainably so that the owners can sell the business and “never have to work again.” Her book Dream Big, Start Smart is a good place to start.  It can be found at all major book retailers.  Learn more about her work and how to get in touch with her here https://www.tatianatsoir.com/.

Tatiana's efforts help many while advancing several of the Sustainable Development Goals.  Her insights start with Goal #4 – Quality Education and Goal #8 – Decent Work and Economic Growth.  The long-term benefits to her work advance Goal #9 – Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure, and Goal #11 – Sustainable Cities and Communities as well. 

Get in touch to let us know what you and people you know are doing to realize these Global Goals by the year 2030.  When we use both sides of our brains as Tatiana recommends, we can create a world we all want to live in. 

CHECK OUT our CHANGEMAKER YOU course to help you get started today! 

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