Tehzeeb Lalani is a young and dynamic entrepreneur based in Mumbai, India with a degree in Clinical Nutrition and Food Studies from New York University. She is the proprietor of a health and nutrition consultancy service called Scale Beyond Scale (SBS) where she helps her patients look beyond the weighing scale and guides them through a host of health woes-from diabetes to heart disease and everything in between. When not working, speaking, writing, or studying the latest health trends, she practices yoga, attempts to polish her French-speaking and listening skills, partakes in simple home cooking experiments, and plays hide-and-go-seek with her 1 and 3-year-old nephews (accepting all suggestions for other playtime ideas). 

Website: https://sbstransform.thinkific.com

Can you tell our readers about your background? 

I have known for a long time that I wanted to do something ‘science-ey’ without becoming a doctor. My degree in Clinical Nutrition and Food Studies made this possible. I have lived in Mumbai, India most of my life barring the four years when I went to New York for my degree. 

What inspired you to start your business? 

In all transparency, I didn’t think I had a choice. I wanted to gather some work experience after my undergraduate degree and the job opportunities in India for my industry were abysmal - the work hours, the salary, and the fact that Nutritionists weren’t very well-respected and it was always the doctors who had the final word. Aside from all of this, you only had 3-5 minutes with each patient and I worried about what kind of change/impact I could create within such a short time frame. I knew I didn’t want to distribute ready meal plan templates and eating guidelines without fully understanding patient constraints and limitations. 

Keeping all this in mind, I decided that if I wanted to start a business, this was as good a time as any. I was young (only 22!), I didn’t have any grand responsibilities and it wouldn’t be the worst thing if I failed. I would dust myself off and move on. I reasoned that at least I would get to serve exactly the way I envisioned and with or without failure, the experience would allow for me to accumulate some incredible life lessons. 

Where is your business based?

My business is based in Mumbai, India but I work with patients from across the globe. 

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

I had a close friend who is an artist - I gave her my concept idea and asked her to design a logo. I got these logos printed and started sharing these with people in my near and distant network who inquired about health counseling. Simultaneously, I designed my program offerings with different timelines and different price points and made a one-page PDF that had all of the information I could share with prospects. I then made a backend working draft of some high-level objectives and what I would like to achieve for my patient - each week and by the end of the program. With these few things in place, I was officially open for business! Even a website came after many months and after I had seen the first few patients and gathered insights from their experience. 

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business? 

Honestly, it’s been delivering a good experience to the people I serve. They want to talk about me and my services. I don’t like the idea of hard selling or spending money on salesy looking ad comms. Sharing authentic and relevant content via social media has been another effective way of raising awareness.  

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them? 

Like any entrepreneur, the challenges have been too many and come by too often. I think second-guessing yourself and feeling like an imposter despite a degree and relevant credentials is a big one. Personally, for me, because I am temperamentally introverted, being the face of the brand and sharing my own images and videos and constantly having to “put yourself out there” continues to be a big struggle. I am not sure if there is a set strategy to move past these challenges. It’s really just been a lot of soothing self-talk and acknowledging that all of this is ephemeral and eventually making decisions for the greater good of the brand.  

How do you stay focused?

When I am in a virtual meeting - it’s easy. It involves keeping all gadgets away except the one which is currently in use for the meeting. For instance, if I am on my laptop for the meeting - I will ensure the person has my full attention, both my phones are kept away and all my laptop tabs are shut. I am listening and occasionally making notes and only doing that one thing. If it’s a phone call - I will move away from my laptop so that I am not distracted by an incoming email or something else that would catch my attention. 

For backend work - staying focused definitely involves some level of creativity. Below are some things that help me when I am feeling out of focus:

i) A 10-minute stretch break

ii) Instrumental music

iii) Writing down a task list for the next 40-60 minutes on a piece of paper 

iv) If all else fails, giving myself the time off and coming back to it later (assuming there isn’t a looming deadline). 

How do you differentiate your business from the competition? 

I am definitely not running a business that is trying to make sales off of people's insecurities (You weigh X? Pay an XYZ amount and lose Y kilos and then you will weigh Z which will make you happier and more worthy to yourself and to those around you). I hate this approach, it's everything I stand against and yet, it’s all too common in the health industry. My differentiator is that I am selling long-term good health as opposed to a number on the weighing scale.  

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business? 

Consistently sharing content and resources on social media has paid off long term and helped build trust and create a micro-community of followers. 

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs? 

Below are my top 2 pieces of advice:

i) Read up on growth mindset versus a fixed mindset and identify which one you exhibit. If you have a fixed mindset, think about how you can build a growth mindset. You will need it.

ii) Failures are inevitable - take the lesson and run with it as opposed to mulling over the failure for too long. 

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

Favorite App: Asana. It really helps me streamline projects into actionable items and manage a team remotely

Favorite Blog: This might be a bad confession but I don’t have a particular blog I follow. Currently, I read the Johns Hopkins newsletter regularly to get health updates from around the globe 

Favorite Book: There’s too many but with a gun to my head, if I had to pick one, my current favorite one would have to be ‘Dark Horse: Achieving Success Through the Pursuit of Fulfillment.’ The book shares stories of people who’ve had unconventional paths to success. 

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

Google Calendar is definitely my favorite tool since it helps me visualize my day and my week. I like to look through it the evening prior so that I am able to internalize how busy the next day looks and mentally prepare for it. I do the same activity on Friday evening for the coming week as well. Important personal commitments (birthdays, dinners, etc.) get put into my personal Calendar, and looking at the personal and professional commitments that have been lined up helps me plan ahead. 

Who is your business role model? Why? 

I don’t think I have a single one. I tend to take snippets of inspiration from different people. For instance, my driving teacher from many years ago comes to mind. He was an on-call driver for a Bollywood celebrity, was teaching my friend and me driving lessons and driving an auto-rickshaw. 1 person, 1 skill, and 3 different revenue streams from that - it goes to show just how much you can do with little. He had many other projects in the pipeline in addition to these 3 projects. For instance, he would put marketing posters on his auto-rickshaw for said Bollywood actor to promote his movies and charge compensation for that. I remember being extremely inspired by his energy levels and enthusiasm for whichever project he took on.  

How do you balance work and life? 

Excellent question. I think we spend a lot of time thinking about and talking about this elusive ‘balance.’ I know that entrepreneurs in particular definitely struggle with not letting work bleed into their life and vice-versa. I definitely try to create separation and compartmentalize but over time, I have gotten more comfortable accepting that work is a big part of my life and will make short appearances on a day-off, on a vacation, at a family wedding, and at other personal times. Either I get the task done when it crops up or say no and get to it later. 

The one important epiphany I have had is that if I spend time overthinking why work is coming my way at a personal time, it’s a losing battle. The one rule I do have is that I am extremely territorial about my Sundays and try to not open my laptop at all on that day. I do break this rule more times than I would like to accept. 

What’s your favorite way to decompress? 

My 90-minute yoga class 4 days/week! It’s my absolute favorite time of the day and feels like something I am doing not just for my physical health, but also for my emotional and mental health. It’s important to show up for yourself and re-fuel to then be able to disseminate that energy into other facets of your life. 

What do you have planned for the next six months? 

The main plan is to survive the pandemic. While doing that, I am re-looking at many aspects of the business and trying to re-strategize and redistribute how and where I spend my time. Learning some new skills and going back to the drawing board to see what’s next is also part of the six-month plan.  

How can our readers connect with you?

Feel free to connect with my via email on info@scalebeyondscale.com