Welcome to Part 2 of our interview with Mika Newton, Bahar’s first-ever client when she became a lawyer. In the last episode, we learned a bit about Mika, who has been a professional singer in the Ukraine since she was 15. After learning what brought her and Bahar together, and hearing about her experience of the law in the US, we found out about Mika’s cancer diagnosis just last year. In this episode, we talk a bit more about her journey with ovarian cancer, and Mika shares her experience of immigrating to the US and her advice for young creatives hoping to break into the music industry. Tune in to hear how Mika tried to prove her masculine energy instead of owning her feminine energy and why she is grateful for her diagnosis, as well as her belief in the power of a positive mindset and her advice for being kinder to yourself. Listeners also receive some practical legal advice from Bahar, about balancing her logical and creative energy in a male-dominated environment and using the power of negotiation, as well as understanding the value of your intellectual property. It’s never too late to stop, reassess your life, and make a change, and Mika hopes to inspire others with her story, so make sure to tune in today to find out more about loving yourself, knowing yourself, and valuing yourself!
Key Points From This Episode:
Why choosing between family and work was easy for Mika when she was younger.
Proving her masculine energy through hard work instead of owning her femininity.
Mika tells the story of how she met her husband and giving him her email address.
How Mika’s husband lets her be her authentic self without trying to diminish her.
How their journey of wanting children together was interrupted by Mika’s ovarian cancer.
Why Mika is grateful for her cancer diagnosis – it’s a teacher, not a punishment.
Mika explains why she believes that our energy and feeling the way we feel is vital.
Learn how Mika worked to transform the negative into positive results.
The importance of mindset, self-care, and taking charge of your own happiness.
To love yourself, you have to know yourself – the pursuit of happiness is self-fulfillment.
Mika shares some practical advice and activities for being kinder to yourself.
Immigrating to the States and how Mika overcame the initial challenges she faced by connecting more deeply with herself.
Mika asks Bahar how she balances her logical and creative energy as a lawyer.
The value of being honest with yourself by taking inventory of your needs.
Mika asserts that it’s never too late to stop and reassess your life and make a change.
Some legal advice from Bahar for artists reviewing a contract in the music industry.
One of the challenges Mika faced as a young artist – she was scared to negotiate.
Bahar explains why you always have the power to negotiate: the worst that can happen is that they will say no.
Understanding your intellectual property and being compensated fairly for it.
The importance of gaining knowledge and accepting yourself – and doing it on your own.
Tweetables:
“I’m honestly very grateful because I took and I’m taking any sickness as a teacher and not as a punishment. I think a lot of people think, ‘Why me?’ No. I’m always like, ‘What am I learning from this situation?’” — @MikaNewton [0:13:41]
“Awareness about where you are at and facing yourself, physically and emotionally, I think that’s the key to happiness and to joy.” — @MikaNewton [0:22:39]
“To love anything, you have to know that thing. To love yourself, you have to know yourself. The pursuit of happiness is self-fulfillment.” — @baharansarilaw [0:25:40]
“I have noticed that all my biggest mistakes were made because I wanted to look nice. I never wanted to be [perceived as though] I’m obsessed with myself.” — @MikaNewton [0:48:35]
“Before you want to do anything on your own, you need to sit down and write it [down], what I like about myself, what I don’t like about myself, then accept that person. It doesn’t matter where you’re at right now. Look in the mirror and love that person, accept the person, and then, when you accept all those negative thoughts about yourself, then you can start something to do on your own.” — @MikaNewton [0:55:59]
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode: