Hi everyone! I hope you're having a great week so far. Today we continue our series on entrepreneurship, with a focus on having the courage to pivot. This is an area we sometimes find difficult. In this episode we have our guest Delphine Chui, who shares her journey so vulnerably.
Delphine an award-winning editor, has over 10 years’ experience as a journalist and branded content lead across print and digital. Outside of freelance writing and editing, Delphine runs CareDogs, a charity that decreases loneliness and social isolation among older people through befriending services with volunteers and their dogs. Delphine was named one of WACL's Future Leaders in 2019 and won a 'Star of the Year' title with the Small Charities Coalition in 2021. Delphine is a faithful Catholic and also writes content for Catholic Women in Business and records video content for Christian dating app, Salt.
We hope this conversation meets you where you are.
Rhieme: Hi, Delphine, thank you so much for joining us today. Can you please tell us about yourself?
Delphine: Hey, I'm Delphine and I am 33. I'm from South London, although both my parents are actually immigrants. So my mum’s from Belgium, and my dad is from Hong Kong but I was born and raised here. My working background centres around magazine journalism. I’ve been working in magazines for about 10- 11 years. From then I started branching out as a freelancer, getting experience in both editorial and commercial magazines. Asides all this I’ve also started my own charity, which has been really fruitful. In terms of my faith, I am catholic, but it was only up until I turned 30 when, by the grace of God, I reverted back to my faith. So it has been a real journey.
Rhieme: Thank you so much for sharing. Given that you touched on your background and experiences, how have you’ve been able to navigate such different career paths?
Delphine: Yeah, I think something that someone told me really early on, when I started out when I was just a magazine intern, was that sometimes you need to move out to move up. And, and it was a really good piece of advice, because I'd spent the first, probably five, six years of my 20’s just moving around. So I’d only really be in places for about eight months to a year, and then I’d use it as a launchpad to go somewhere else. Doing things this way, was such a good learning experience for me, because it just allowed me to be a bit of a sponge. I remember during my internship at GQ magazine, my old boss had said to me,
“When you go into your next role, just be like a sponge for the first few weeks, just observe, take everything in, and then begin to make your mark on your position”.
So, in terms of navigating different roles, I think it's so important to have mentors and really become open to being mentored. Because often times many of us think we know it all, when we start something. But it's really humbling to just look at other people who might have a completely different background from you, whether it be age, ethnicity, or culture wise and still be able to learn from their experiences. I'd also say, always be open to inspiration. Because it might be that, you think you know best but when it comes to starting out in your role then you realise actually, this doesn’t perfectly fit your personality and even your career goals. So being flexible is a big one. For example, I started out in fashion and beauty. Yet I quickly realised that it was more so a hobby of mine rather than a career passion. But still, even after having transitioned into journalism, where I had an amazing role, I was the culture editor at Conde Nast, writing about entertainment and culture, again the unexpected happened. The magazine closed down. And so at age 24 I found myself made redundant. At that moment I just thought, oh my gosh, this was my dream job, what am I going to do now? So once again, I ended up doing something completely different, this time working in a commercial role. And it was at this point I remember having these questions of “Is this really what I want to do?” I knew I wanted to be a magazine editor. That was my top dream, but at that point I felt I was veering away from that. So in response , I chose to instead embrace the times. Magazine journalism had begun to really grow especially given the rise of bloggers and influencers, which meant I had to learn how to navigate the growing digital sphere. And so it then became the case of “Okay, how do I now fit my dream with how fast the world is changing? “All this to say, I’ve had my fair share of career pivots, trying to future proof my career and gain skills that would make me more attractive in the industry, but ultimately it always comes back to being open to where God wants to send you. It's not always going to be a normal ladder in most cases, it’s a jungle gym. You're going to be going from side to side. But be open to the movement because in the long run it all contributes to your “edge”.
Rhieme: Wow, thank you so much for sharing. I love what you said about how it's not necessarily about having everything figured out at once, but rather absorbing as much as you can from different roles. I feel that as people, when we set our minds towards achieving a certain career path, or journey, we become so fixated on adhering to a formula, that there's only “one size that fits all” , to the point where we perceive anything else as bad. But as you said, it's more about gaining experience in pursuit of that edge and being able to “go with the flow” where God is leading you. I’d also add, that one thing which has helped me silence the fears and worries of “Oh, what should I do next?”, “What if it doesn't make sense to people around me” is constantly trying to reassure myself of the truth that my life is planned by God. I’ve found that in knowing this, there's really no need to start getting scared. So thank you so much for sharing.
Delphine: I love that point that you just made, because the Bible literally says Be anxious about nothing. I even have a bracelet with that engraved on it ! I am a quite highly strong person so it's easy for me to worry, but having the verse there to look at all the time really helps. But I definitely agree, and you're so right to have touched upon divine providence. Like, In terms of my career, it's all gone a bit mad, really, in the sense that I'm nowhere close to where I thought I'd be when I was 18, 21. The dream completely changed. The pathway changed. However I can honestly say it's been a change for the better. The only reason it's become better than I could have imagined is because I have really just learnt to lean in, surrendering everything all so that God could take over.
Rhieme: Exactly, and I feel that's the best position to be at. A state of surrender. Whilst it may feel scary because you're unsure about what's going to happen next, at the same time you know you're in safe hands. I guess that element of surprise makes the journey even more interesting, rather than having every single thing planned this is going to happen.
Rhieme: So in a previous interview we've had, you mentioned how your faith has played a massive role in your calling, and that you're ultimately going after what God wants for you. I would love for you to elaborate, how you've been able to navigate that whole journey?
Delphine: Yeah, great question. So, I reverted back to my faith when I turned 30 and on reflection, I can really see that in my 20s, I was really relying on myself, saying things like okay, here's the plan. This is the timeline, these are the milestones I'm going to hit. Yet during it all, I remember feeling under so much pressure. Every time I was hitting a goal, I'd accomplish a goal I never felt fully fulfilled as I thought I’d be would then I would try and focus on another goal.
It was as if I was on this hamster wheel trying to achieve in order to be happy. And obviously I know that my happiness isn't based on any achievement or any milestone, but it really is in God in our Creator. I think that time for me, it was very much just on that hamster wheel of work and on the treadmill and feeling like I couldn't get off. I think when I really got back into my faith, I started to slow down. I used to be out all the time, I never had time to think, let alone pray or hear God. When I got these pets, I actually needed to look after them and stay home a bit and be a bit more rooted.
Just before my reversion, I started to feelI was being called and I knew it was by God, but I couldn't quite explain it, but I knew it was to do something that was purposeful. I had this idea about starting a charity that would help lonely and socially isolated older people. I starte, trying to figure out how do you start a charity? I remember googling ‘How do you start a charity?” and having no idea. It was really a journey from the beginning, but I think it was a leap of faith for me because I didn't have those skills. I'm a very creative person, I love coming up with ideas. I'm not amazing at executing things and strategy. So for me it was really outside of my comfort zone and I think navigating that along with my faith just made me feel fearless about doing it and trying it. Stepping out of the plan I had put upon myself and realising, actually, I might have been made for something even bigger and leaning into God and accepting I had time to pause.Then COVID happened and it gave me even more time and space to really hear and have that clarity.
Rhieme: Yeah. Wow, no, that that was really, really good. Thank you so much for sharing. And I love how you mentioned, the minute you started leaning into your faith more, you began to slow down. That's such a profound point, because it shows that at that point in time, you really trusted that God so there was no need to strive.I love what you mentioned about knowing that you were created for more. Even though you weren't necessarily, qualified by the world’s standards,you knew that you had the skills. It shows that when God calls you somewhere, He prepares you, and He equips you. So it's more of telling yourself I’m not going to talk myself out of something that has been ordained, just because I’ve never done it before.
Rhieme: So with everything you shared, how have you had the courage to pivot and move forward? Especially when you know, things aren't going according to your plan but there’s a higher calling of God on your life?
Delphine: Yeah, that's a really good question. And just what you were saying before, so beautifully said, I loved the term what we were ordained for.I think something that really we all deal with, is imposter syndrome.Constantly putting ourselves down and thinking I couldn't possibly do that, I'm not experienced enough, or people won't take me seriously. I had all these kind of voices in my head telling me this and it's really knowing that a thought only becomes a belief when you,let it become that. So something says, “oh, you're not qualified to do this”. I say to myself, no, I'm definitely not. Having self knowledge means I know I'm nothing without God. Without Him,I don't have the grace, the intelligence or to produce anything.That takes a lot of the pressure off, because I say to myself, I’m being empowered by our Creator. So I think trying to not be ruled by fear, and trying to see every failure as an opportunity to grow across your life, not only in your career, but in your personal life as well. Anytime anything goes wrong, it's an opportunity for us to grow in virtue, to become more humble, to become less proud. So I always think that God never gives us a challenge that we can't rise to, or He never gives us anything that we aren't able to get out of, or to learn from. That's really comforting, because otherwise, you wonder, what is this suffering and hardship for? But it's ultimately so we can really grow in our character.
Rhieme: I love that you mentioned how the challenges are to make us become more like Christ. I feel like sometimes we forget that this whole journey ultimately is to become more like Jesus and embody more of God. It’s so easy for people to be caught up on the next move, so thank you for that reminder.
Rhieme: What advice would you give someone who knows they've been called to an unconventional path, and they’re dealing with a lot of fear?
Delphine: Last year during COVID, my position at work was at risk of becoming redundant. I was thinking, this happened to me when I was 23, what's going on? I panicked about it, because I had a lot security in my monthly paycheck knowing I had a pension and I could attach a job title to my name.The opportunity came where I had this amazing opportunity and I was able to choose if I wanted to stay or go. I prayed about it and asked God to show me what he wanted me to do. I went out on a walk and after asking God what he wanted me to do, my dog ran up to another dog. It had a 90 year old owner and she was saying to me that she was feeling really upset because she doesn't have a community or network and she was going to have to let go of her dog. God could not have made it clearer, He said to me, you are being called, you have connection and community with people, stop playing it safe. I ended up handing in my notice saying I was going to leave. According to the world, it a bit crazy, it was during a pandemic, where people were being made redundant. I think in that fear, we have to remove that worldly fear and know that God will always support us.
I started realising, dreams don't need to be dreams, you can make them a reality in whatever way that might be.Thankfully for me, I've been able to get enough freelance work to really keep me going. But you know, I could have always had a part time job or something that kind of allowed me to have this freedom for my creative and my passion projects.I think it's freeing ourselves from the status quo.
Rhieme: Thank you so much for sharing and it everything really ties back to faith. I found that the more you trust God,the more He blows up your mind in terms of what is possible. I love what you mentioned about when you actually have faith in your dreams, they can become a reality. I feel that a lot of the time when most people haven't seen things done before,they don't think it is worth pursuing because it's never been done before. But these days, I see it as how God chooses to express himself through different people in different ways. So the question is why would you limit God's expression in your life?
Rhieme: So far then, what key lessons have you learned as you stepped out in faith?
Delphine: Oh, that's a big one. Key lessons are although I am very impatient, God is constantly there to humble me. I feel like he is quite funny in the way he does it as well trying to teach me how to be patient and be willing to surrender, I'm using that word again. Because this whole problem of self reliance, and thinking we are in control of everything is an unattainable way to live. It's too stressful, there's too much pressure. So I think letting go of my type A personality has been a really key lesson. Being flexible and being open to God's plan. Sometimes, I think my day is going to look a certain way, and it goes completely pear shaped. My initial reaction is to panic or feel really flustered. But I’m learning to be open and receptive.For example, my original charity idea I really had to pivot because after we started to actually operate the service, we realised the demand was for something slightly different. But I was so attached to my original idea, I found it difficult to let go of it, even though people needed me to do something a bit different. A big lesson there is to be open with where God is going to send you and the way He’s going to send you. Rejection is God's redirection.I think our lives are these massive puzzles, we can't understand it yet but when it's all put together, we'll see how everything was part of the plan. So I think trusting that and also trying to really believe in God and have faith in your life, in both moments of consolation where things are going amazingly and also moments of desolation, where everything seems like it's falling apart. Because the good thing is that God never changes. As much as our world is crazy, God remains the same.
And I think it's really much harder, you know, it's much harder to do than to just say it, but I think that is a game changer. If you just can hold on to that faith no matter what, because it's not easy. We live in a fallen world, we're in a fallen time, this isn't heaven. So, you know, we have a lot of downs as well. So just really trying to keep our eyes on above. And seeing how any obstacles or pitfalls can be lessons and opportunities to grow.
Rhieme: Wow, thank you so much for sharing that, honestly. Especially what you said on seeing things as lessons and looking forward to pull out in every situation, because I guess when things don't go as planned, it's very easy to take on a victim mentality. But as you said, constantly trying to hear out what God is trying to say in every given situation, ultimately makes the journey more interesting. And I sometimes see it as pruning in a way, because God is reviewing and showing us parts of ourselves that are so caught up with our agenda. As you said, it’s about constantly drawing out the lessons and moving forward.For some people it can be hard when you feel God did order your steps, but you're still facing rejection, but it’s about focusing on obedience rather than the bigger picture.
Rhieme: Lastly, what decisions have you made that have contributed to the woman you are today?
Delphine:Well, firstly, I just wanted to say that every time you give me feedback on my answers, I'm like, wow, she's making me sound so much more clever than I am. I love it. It's also nice to hear your reflection on what I'm saying. Regarding the decisions I’ve made,my life has really changed in the past three years. I had a very, high status job I I was travelling all the time, I was with celebrities, all these kind of things that I thought would make me happy. But I knew I had this longing for something else. The past three years, in some ways, God stripped me of everything. I left my secular relationship, some of my friendships dwindled down, I suppose we had different priorities.I think making that decision, like trying to always choose the path to heaven, not just the easy path it's been difficult for me, but it has really opened so many avenues. So for example, now, my charity is really doing well, there's a high demand for it. I've got enough freelance work to keep me financially stable. By God's grace,I’ve been given new opportunities to write for other Catholic women, and also I do videos for other Christians. And I ask, when did I ever think I would have the opportunity to do these? These are things that have just come into my life.It’s about making the decision to let go of what you let go of the life you thought you were going to live. For the past few years, I've been entering into my real identity. This whole time I've been dealing with insecurity and worry but I've been the daughter of God. the king. I've got a joy now, which I think is inexplicable.
Rhieme: Thank you so much. I love how you mentioned, as we follow God we follow God, there are sacrifices to be made because sometimes people have this idea that choosing God is the easiest decision. I found that whenever you put God first and you allow him to take control, there are certain areas of your life that have to change because they're not aligned with where he's calling you to.
Delphine: I think what you said earlier about pruning,that was a really good analogy because, any type of growth is painful that's why they call growing pains. I strayed from the church for about 12 years because I didn't understand that concept that actually, it's exactly through hard times you're growing to become an even nicer and a better person.
Rhieme: Yes, definitely. Thank you so much for sharing. Do you have any last words, any word of advice, or anything that's been on your mind recently?
Delphine: Something that's been on my mind, especially is trying to rediscover who I am as a woman. My piece of advice to people is to take a minute to see how God has placed you where you are now, and where he might be leading you to and be open to it because it might be completely different to what you were thinking. But I guarantee you it will be better than anything you could have planned yourself.
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