Frying in Your Own Oil with Dr. Neri Karra Sillaman

"Immigrant entrepreneurs are powerful at reframing. Reframing rejection. Reframing failure. Reframing their past." - Dr. Neri Karra Sillaman

What if the hardest chapter of your life - the one where you lost everything - turned out to be the thing that shaped you into the leader you were always meant to be? In this episode, I talk with Dr. Neri Karra Sillaman, whose journey from child refugee to Oxford professor and global entrepreneur is nothing short of incredible. Her work has appeared in BBC, Forbes, Financial Times, Harvard Business Review, CNBC and others. She's also the author of Pioneers: Eight Principles of Business Longevity from Immigrant Entrepreneurs, a book that captures both her lived experience and her research into what really helps immigrant-led businesses thrive - not just survive.

You'll hear us talk about:

• What it was like being forced to flee Bulgaria as a child, and how that shaped her identity and worldview
• How growing up under a regime that tried to erase her culture made her fiercely committed to authenticity and purpose
• Why immigrant entrepreneurs often build stronger, longer-lasting businesses - and why that’s not a coincidence
• What “frying in your own oil” means, and why it’s such a powerful mindset for building something from scratch
• How reframing rejection and failure is a common thread in the stories of successful immigrant founders
• The huge role community, trust, and relationships play in business longevity - and why these things are often overlooked
• Why chasing profit isn’t the priority for many immigrant entrepreneurs - and what they focus on instead
• The kind of leadership that puts people, not ego, at the center - and why that matters now more than ever

Resources

Neri Karra Sillaman on Website | LinkedIn | Neri's book: Pioneers: 8 Principles of Business Longevity from Immigrant Entrepreneurs

Winnie da Silva on LinkedIn | On the Web | Substack | Email - winnie@winnifred.org