Online Business By Design

Hosted by Ivana Ivanek

Entrepreneurship Health Fitness Education

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Episodes

229

Latest episode

Aug 2026

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About the show

Welcome to the Online Business By Design Podcast. I'm your host Ivana Ivanek, and this is your mindset and marketing podcast to help you reach your full potential and build your digital business without burning out. And most importantly, enjoy your business journey while you are making money and impact. Grab your favourite note-taking device, lean back and get inspired. I believe that everything you need to build the business of your dreams is already within you. It is time to stop playing small!

Listen to episodes

60 recent

August 5, 2026Episode 23019 min

Ep.84 Consistency That Fits Your Real Life and Builds Your Personal Brand

Host Ivana Ivanek discusses how new, bigger goals often feel “impossible,” especially around consistent content creation and personal branding, and argues that action—not overthinking—compounds results. She shares her own journey of believing it was impossible to live by the ocean, delaying for 10 years, then committing to opportunities that led her from Greece to Southeast Asia to living in Curaçao, while acknowledging imperfect realities like bureaucracy, fatigue, and shifting priorities. Ivana reframes consistency as something that must be redefined with changing identities and circumstances, like adjusting an exercise routine from her athlete days to now. Grab your favourite note-taking device and get inspired.

July 22, 2026Episode 22844 min

Ep.83 The Leadership Identity Shift - with Navid Nazemian

In this episode, Ivana Ivanek connects with leadership expert Navid Nazemian to unpack what really happens when high performers step into leadership roles. Drawing from decades inside global companies like Adidas, GE, and Vodafone, Navid reveals why even the most capable leaders struggle when the stakes rise—and what’s missing in how we prepare them. Together, they explore the inner and outer game of leadership, the six qualities that define extraordinary leaders today, and why burnout is more common at the top than we think. This conversation is a must-listen for anyone growing a business, building a personal brand, or stepping into bigger responsibility. Grab your favourite note taking device and enjoy the listen.

July 8, 2026Episode 22726 min

Ep.82 Why Personal Branding is No Longer Optional

In this episode, Ivana Ivanek shares a raw and honest behind-the-scenes look at her recent move to Curaçao and the deeper lessons it revealed about business, identity, and personal branding. She breaks down why personal branding is no longer optional in today’s saturated market and why most people aren’t held back by strategy, but by fear, self-judgment, and identity blocks. If you’ve been struggling to show up online, feel “weird” on camera, or worry about what people think, this episode will help you understand what’s really holding you back and how to move through it. Grab your favourite note taking device and get inspired.

June 24, 2026Episode 22438 min

Ep.81 How to Stop Procrastinating - with Robin J Emdon

Host Ivana Ivanek welcomes Robin J. Emdon to the Online Business by Design podcast to unpack chronic procrastination and how it quietly blocks progress, growth, and energy, especially for entrepreneurs building an online business and personal brand. Robin shares how he recognized his own long-term procrastination after taking 10 years to finish a part-time degree, then connected it to costs across health, finances, relationships, and career. He explains procrastination as an “inside job,” driven by survival wiring (limbic system) overriding rational planning (prefrontal cortex), and describes three “ingredients” for productivity. They discuss practical momentum-building through understanding energy patterns, using a toolbox of strategies, and relying on external accountability—particularly for solopreneurs without a boss—to stay consistent on long-term projects and a personal life vision. Grab your favourite note taking device and get inspired.

May 27, 2026Episode 22332 min

Ep.80 Building an Online Business: Hypnotherapy and Avoiding Burnout - with Dr. Jennifer Schlueter

Host Ivana Ivanek welcomes hypnotherapist and Magic and Miracles podcast founder Jennifer Schlueter to discuss traveling while building an online business, staying grounded, and doubling down on full potential. Jennifer shares her path from a small town in Germany to studying and working in the US, feeling inspired by the “anything is possible” mindset, and deciding after a hypnosis session to quit her job and travel. She explains hypnotherapy as a relaxed state that helps access and release unhelpful patterns and fear, making decisions feel clearer. The conversation covers handling parental and societal judgment, reducing comparison by limiting social media and focusing on people you serve, and practical burnout prevention.

May 13, 2026Episode 22616 min

Ep.79 Why Social Media Engagement Matters (and Simple Ways to Improve It)

Host Ivana Ivanek debugs social media myths by explaining what engagement is, why it matters, and best practices to improve it. She shares a personal story about moving from Barcelona to Austria and deciding to return to the Caribbean, emphasizing taking responsibility for decisions despite others’ judgment. Using a client example, she explains how focusing only on lead generation can create a large follower count but near-zero engagement, which undermines trust for potential clients, collaborators, podcast hosts, and speaking opportunities. Grab your favourite note taking device and get inspired.

April 29, 2026Episode 22249 min

Ep.78 Building a Personal Brand While Living on the Road - with Mariah on MacInnes

Podcast host Ivana Ivanek interviews Australia-based marketer Mariah McInnes about content marketing, what makes good content, and how to tell better stories while building a personal brand online. Mariah shares her path from corporate marketing to freelancing and digital nomad life, including quitting her job during COVID, a major surgery after discovering rare neuroendocrine cancer, and how recovery led her to meet her partner, who now complements her business skills. They discuss living and working from a car and then a bus, resilience through business setbacks, and Mariah’s practical storytelling approach: align content to a sales goal and content strategy, build a story bank, and use a simple framework, while focusing on connection over vanity metrics. Grab your favourite note-taking device and get inspired.

April 15, 2026Episode 22517 min

Ep.77 Why a Business Bestie & a Social Media Presence Matter

Host Ivana Ivanek shares a mindset shift and strategic move for building an online personal brand people trust and buy from while running a business alongside a nine-to-five. After feeling tired during a busy stretch in Vienna, she reflects on a coffee chat with her peer Karina about resting without seeing it as failure, handling fear of judgment and silent rejection from others, and how some people—including partners—may not support your vision. Ivana’s immediate action step is to get a “business bestie” and actively cheer for peers so support is reciprocal. Strategically, she frames social media as a “digital business card,” encouraging consistent visibility over hiding behind perfecting offers. She highlights Karina’s progress, then outlines next steps: leverage what’s built.

April 1, 2026Episode 22140 min

Ep.76 The ROI of Prioritizing Health - with Dr. John Torrens

Host Ivana Ivanek welcomes Dr. John Torrens to discuss the return on investment entrepreneurs gain by prioritizing mental, physical, and spiritual health instead of hustle culture. Torrens shares how rapid company growth led him toward burnout, pre-diabetes, inflammation, poor sleep, and an ADHD diagnosis, prompting him to treat his health as an experiment and reject “hero” grind worship that can resemble addiction. He explains practical sleep-first habits—tracking sleep data, managing light exposure with blue-blocking glasses and morning sunlight, using infrared sauna, eating earlier, avoiding alcohol within hours of bed, and exploring grounding—and describes how better sleep improves creativity, decision-making, relationships, resilience, and leadership performance. He also outlines Syracuse University’s Center for the Creator Economy, researching creator-specific challenges like identity fusion, loneliness, algorithm-driven income uncertainty, and mental health pressures, informed by his own experience posting content regularly. Grab your favourite note-taking device and get inspired!

March 18, 2026Episode 22023 min

Ep.75 3 Steps to Build a Trustworthy Personal Brand

Host Ivana Ivanek shares three actions to immediately build a trustworthy personal brand people buy from. Grab your favourite note-taking device and get inspired!