Episode Transcript
Hello, my name is Aziz and I'm the son of a divorced mother.
She is really my superhero.
That's why it's important for me to support women to share their uniqueness, their perspective,
personalities, and emotions about this world.
In these difficult times in human history, we need to bring the people of the world together.
And when we hear the voices of women, when we listen to real lives of women from other
countries, we connect our cultures without differences or stereotypes, and we get inspired
by their stories to live a better life.
That's what this podcast is all about.
My guest today is Adriana Hoey.
Adriana is a jewelry and gemstones expert living in Dubai, the UAE.
Originally a double national from Romania and the Republic of Moldova, Adriana loves
traveling, exploring new places, driving fast, fishing, deep sea fishing, and mountain climbing.
Adriana, how are you today?
Hi, Aziz.
First of all, I would like to share I have shiver when you start your message about your
mother, because I can relate.
I was divorced and I raised my son by myself for a couple of years and I can relate to
that and I know how easy it is.
And thank you for creating such a beautiful podcast and to bring all the ladies around
the world who share their life stories.
It's really impressive.
As a young man to do that, I can give you a five.
Thank you for including me in this beautiful, beautiful podcast.
I really appreciate it.
I'm honored.
I'm lucky.
I appreciate you very much.
Thank you for the kind words.
And I'm very curious to share your voice and your perspective.
So I'll begin with this nice first question.
Adriana, the people who know you best and love you very much, your friends and those
who understand you, how would they describe your personality?
I believe when it's my birthday, the people, the first word, what they used to when they
toast me, they say, oh, she's so kind and she's giving and loving.
It's not my words.
It's their words.
And yes, I like to give and I like to spread love around me.
But also, I am adventurous.
And there's many people who know me.
They call me a dirty devil.
So this is the words, what they're describing me.
Thank you.
And it makes me curious as someone like they describe you to be so kind that you're giving
that you spread love around.
Often life can be cruel to such a good person.
So you get disappointed.
Some people betray you.
How do you keep yourself positive and stay kind when many other women can close their
hearts if it gets broken too many times, which is often the situation of someone who's giving
a lot?
You're absolutely right.
Saying sometimes their kindness is taking to different level or people they can use
you or they can harm you.
But I all the time strongly believe you can break everything.
This love doesn't matter how the life treats you back.
You always, always try to do your best and try to give the love because through years
I'll say I believe strongly in God.
I've been raised by my family and love and care.
And I think this is why I have such a love seed on me from my parents.
And they've been struggling all their life.
But anyone who come in our house, my mother has or doesn't have food in the fridge.
She managed to put something on the table because it was very important to give.
And I think I'm carrying this to these days.
I don't care what people after that they do.
I care about how I feel inside of me.
And this is more important than anything else to share this love.
Because when I do that, I feel I get more energy.
And through my life, sometimes I see the person very angry and he's so frustrated.
And he wants to crush me.
And there's a calm voice.
And I try to slowly, slowly ask about him.
And the person is changing.
The person is changing.
And his attitude towards me has changed a lot.
So, you know, when people say about love, it's not just the word.
It's just your way of living.
You have it in you or you don't have it in you.
That is the question, you know.
So you like to do that or you don't like to do that, you know.
And I think more people in these days are more kind and generous if you give them a
chance to show that.
I agree 100%.
Love is the energy that heals the pain of the world and makes everything better.
And to ask you, you mentioned that you were raised with a deep faith in God.
So spiritually, how do you see yourself in this world that helps you stay okay and positive?
Do you see yourself as protected by God?
Do you see yourself that there is destiny and you're creating it?
And so everything will be okay in the end?
Or how does your faith or the way you see reality, maybe you believe in manifestation
with the good vibes or how do you perceive it?
You see, if I'll be honest with you, I never not feel myself like I'm lonely because strongly
I believe I'm with God because I choose that, not because I choose to believe.
I choose to have faith in that.
And through my life, my faith to God has shown many occasions.
It's given me, sometimes saved me, saved me in many, many ways.
And it's very difficult to describe to people your faith in God.
It's very important because if you have this faith and you have this love
and understanding inside of you, you cannot do harm to anyone.
And you treat people the way how you would like to be treated because
everything in life is more easier in many, many ways.
We as humans, we try to complicate it, many things.
And related to God, many people say it's just people using these words.
But truly, if you truly believe in that, you see how your life is changing.
And sometimes if you have difficulties or you have challenges in life,
you know, and people they say, or death, for example, some of my friends,
they lost their kids and they say, how does God let this happen?
You know, and for them, my answer, have faith in God, it's very strange.
But I all the time reply to them, this is not exactly from God.
It's coming from just the destiny of the person.
This is how it's happened for him.
And maybe the person, he already finished the work, what must be done in this life.
Now he's in a better place.
But it's very difficult to a parent to explain that when they lost a child.
So to say my faith in God, it's very powerful.
And truly, through my life, I have his love.
I have his, I know my life changed drastically.
Coming to Dubai is $100 and now I'm having a gemstone businesses without his help.
I don't think I'll achieve that in life without his protection, without his support.
Maybe I'm a naive person, some people say, but I believe in many occasions,
my faith and my belief get me from so many troubles.
Thank you. I love that attitude.
I don't believe you're naive because as you said before,
it feels very good to be a positive person who has faith and believes.
Otherwise, you will be paranoid.
And even if there are no enemies, you will kill yourself inside with that negativity.
And to ask you, of course, you're protected with your faith, God and love, etc.
But as a successful person and woman, often people who are good liars and
psychopaths and sociopaths, they're attracted to success.
What is your advice to other women who can be successful or want to be successful,
but they worry, oh, maybe I'll be around too many bad people, fake people who will abuse me.
What is your advice to know who is genuine and a good person
and who seems to be genuine, but they have a bad intention
so that they will take out the toxic people from their lives
and only surround themselves with positive, ambitious, good people?
If that kind of people is around you and you know it inside of you,
you already know that person is not good for you, but you're still in that.
My advice, run away or, you know, just don't be around that person.
Because I believe if your friends, fake friends or your co-workers or who is around you,
don't bring the best on you, that people are not to be around your circle.
Simple as that. It's not a big dilemma.
Don't try to lie to yourself because your intuition is already telling you
that person, around that person, you are not feeling good, you are not progressing,
you are more depressed or something bring not the good side on you,
but bring the bad side of you. Run away.
I love how much wisdom you have. This is really, really great.
And I want to know even more about the person and the story.
Some people, when they heard you said you went to Dubai with $100, what is the story of that?
Why did you choose Dubai? Share some of the miracle or magical things that happened to you
so that maybe it inspires some women. Because we live in a time where some women worry,
they have anxiety or worry about judgment or they think, oh, if I fail,
my parents will be disappointed. Everyone will laugh at me.
So can you share some inspiration and advice to motivate some women
so that they follow their ambition without fear?
I quite relate to that because when I come to Dubai and basically, as I say, $100,
this fear not to come back home as a failure, it keeps me moving.
So don't be scared about this fear.
But what I'm trying to say, you stay focused and doesn't matter what's happened,
because it's not happening overnight. Many people coming to Dubai, they have this,
oh, hearing about Dubai, the lifestyle of Dubai.
They have this, oh, in one year you'll become a millionaire.
No, it takes time and takes so many failures to become.
But when you have some failure, it's not about the failure,
it's about you are learning from this, you are getting some experience
and you are getting more up and up and up.
For example, for me, by profession, I was a doctor.
That time in the Republic of Moldova, we have a war between Russia and Moldova.
Everything economically, social, everything was so bad.
And as a doctor, I've been receiving $10 a month.
Many people not relate to this. I'm a 50-year-old lady.
So that, I can say, that period of time was $10 a month and we survived.
So this is what made me to move to Dubai for support my son,
because I get divorced and I need to do something.
So I came here and work not as my degree, I was working as a sales assistant.
My English was so bad at that time.
I learned physically to speak English here in Dubai.
So work long hours, but my salary at that time was $1,000.
So $10 and $1,000, it's a big difference.
And I can't support my family.
And irrespectively, that job was not the way what I studied, was not pleasant.
Maybe sometimes I was crying at night time.
I knew I need to put bread on my table.
And that was more important than any other influence in my life.
You know, what they say, how they say about me.
So it's very important for you to be focused and to know where you want to achieve.
At that time also, Dubai was growing.
So I believe I was in the right time and the right place.
So when my English starts to be much better, I get in real estate.
And that period of time in 2004, people, they know they make lots of money.
This is why I call myself adventurous and not just me.
Many ladies, many men, they go, they take a risk.
And sometimes they say, take a risk.
And after that, you can drink the champagne.
You know, so was my case.
After that, through that, I met my husband, my second husband.
And also, he was very supportive.
So through the failure, through the many judgmental people,
or I knew what I want to be.
I knew I must put bread on the table for my family.
And this was more important than any other factors.
And I'm quite strong.
I know the young people, they are more affected by the social media, by another.
We didn't have this.
We didn't have this.
For us, it was not that important.
For us, I believe, like for your mother, I need to buy him shoes.
I need to buy him clothes to go to school.
Or I need to make him sure he's fed.
And that was more important than to be famous or to have more money.
And from that point, slowly, slowly, slowly, you are growing.
Trust me, I lost.
I gained.
I lost.
I gained.
But all the time, I have a strong head not to let the negativity to come to me.
I'm just refusing.
I know how it sounds, this message.
I just refuse.
And if it's a bad day, I know this bad day will not be forever.
It'll be another day.
I love that very much.
That's very, very inspiring and something that many women can learn from.
Because like, yes, you're going with the attitude that there is no other option,
only success and failure.
Even if it happens, it's temporary until you return and never, ever give up.
I love that very, very much.
And to speak about Dubai, some women, let's say from Europe or other places,
they only visit Dubai on vacation or not at all.
And then they think, oh, maybe it's a patriarchy.
Maybe women don't have opportunity for success.
While some others say the network of successful women support each other in Dubai very much.
There is a great energy of entrepreneurial women.
Well, what is the truth?
What's your perspective and experience?
Is it possible and like something that if you're an ambitious woman who's willing to work hard
and meet people and be a good person who gives and receives rather than just takes,
you have a lot of success?
Or is it a patriarchy and women are limited and there is a ceiling or whatever some people say?
It's very interesting questions.
And I can say many people, they have this perception about the ladies in Dubai.
But I would like to say actually United Arab, you know, UAE, actually they support ladies more.
This is not Saudi Arabia.
It's basically so many rulers in Dubai are ladies.
So if you are very educated and you have a good background and you are very ambitious
and you know what you would like to achieve in your life,
so many companies are hiring ladies in Dubai.
Yes, it's not as easy as in Europe or in UK or in the States,
but more and more ladies have been accepted here in the Middle East.
And I think it's no need to be scared.
Just come and go for it.
I don't know what to say, but the same, for example, my husband's company,
five ladies are working.
I'm in the GDP where it's actually dominated by the male.
I know jewelry and gem industry in general is dominated by the male,
but I feel comfortable, you know, and they give me respect.
And we have a few ladies in the jewelry industry who are very successful
and being supported by the men, actually, being supported by the men.
I agree 100 percent.
And there are many examples of even European and foreign women or local, etc.
in the UAE and in Dubai who are women and they are very, very successful.
And to ask you, you spoke about the gemstones, the jewelry.
I'm curious, what is the cause of your love for gemstones and jewelry?
Is it more spiritual that you see some gemstones balance your energy in the right way,
attract to you luck or something?
Or are you someone who's very fascinated with beauty, with things that are special and rare?
And so it's from that.
Or is it more like pieces of art and you feel like you are within the art sphere
by dealing in jewelry and gemstones?
I'll be honest.
I get in this business from the beginning as an investor,
as a businesswoman who would like to get just profit and live her life beautifully.
But after that, I end up working daily by daily.
And the energy of the stones changed completely my,
not my attitude, but sorry, because of my English.
They changed me.
I have few people who really share their feedback after they've been buying the gemstones.
And the gemstones changed their life.
And they convinced me.
And not just they convinced me, but daily working with the gemstones,
I changed my perception about gemstones, how their energy is fascinating.
And actually, it's not people choosing the stones.
Actually, the stone choosing the people.
Because so many people, sometimes they're coming and they want something to buy.
But when they look through the window and they see, oh, I like that one.
They're attracted by the stone.
And after that, they bought that stone.
This is one.
Of course, I like to be surrounded by the art and jewelry, creating jewelry.
It's a form of art and form of showing your creativity.
That's for sure.
It's what I'm gaining for that.
I'm using my creativity side in this business.
And the second is, it's very good as investment.
When you're talking about the gemstones, it's not just about
beauty, astrological side of the gemstones.
It's a very good piece to invest.
So it's three in one, I would like to say.
Thank you.
I love how much wisdom and experience you have, as well as that you think things through
deeper rather than shallow.
And I'm wondering, a lot of women, like you said, younger generation, they don't have
that much confidence.
They grew up on social media, so they feel ugly or unsuccessful.
And their self-esteem is lower maybe because of the situation or just the pandemic gave
them a bit of shyness because they were distant from other people.
What's your advice for them?
So they go after their big dreams, take risks, even if inside they might feel like anxiety
or afraid, so that women will live to their potential rather than live a life where later
on they regret and they think, wow, I should have tried more.
I should have taken more risks.
If I say to them, love yourself first, they look at me and say, why are you saying that?
But it's true.
When you start to love yourself and don't look around because someone definitely will
be more beautiful, more successful, more educated.
And if you try to compare yourself with somebody else, you'll never be happy.
First of all, forget about other people around you.
It's about you.
You must decide inside of you who you really would like to be and who you like to see in
the morning when you look in the mirror.
And if you look in the mirror and you don't like yourself, how other people can love
you, that is very important because I've been saying to my kids, they all go through
all this anxiety, depression, because all the time they compare themselves with somebody
else.
Your parents create you and you are unique and you have the uniqueness and you bring
that uniqueness to the world because you have this in you.
And if you are not confident because for different reasons, start to study, start to
develop yourself because some people, for example, for me also the same, I'm not comfortable
to talk in front of the people, but I know I need to do that.
So I take some lessons to give me this confidence.
It's not impossible.
It's just go and try new things, learn new things.
If you're thinking you are not beautiful, these days, many things to create your beautiful
is nothing wrong to go to the plastic surgeon or if you have a big nose and this really
make you uncomfortable.
So I'm not saying you must do that, but it will not help you in another way.
So use medical services to help you.
If you want to be more successful, go and learn, go on some courses because definitely
will bring you this.
And it's very difficult to say what you must to do to a person who is depressed or who
is excited because they don't want to hear you.
They don't want to listen to all these advices because they already very deep and inside
of them and they don't love themselves.
But they must have found somewhere or someone who can bring them love to themselves and
that time everything will change.
One hundred percent.
Adriana, thank you.
It was my honor and my privilege to include you in this project, to share your voice in
this podcast.
I learned a lot and there is so much inspiration there.
I wish you success to you, to your children and all the happiness in the world to all
those that you love.
Thank you.
Thank you so much.
This was very interesting to have just conversation.
I can say not like an interview.
You are really lovely young man and what you are doing in this podcast.
I hope one day you'll be recognized for what you are doing.
And you'll be appreciated.
Yeah.
Thank you.
