Aja Marie Horváth

After so many years of writing anonymously, I am now reconsidering. I have been doing business for 5 years and blogging for over eight years. To every single one of you, I have been so close and yet so far, you have created a version of me in your head that solely exists for yourself. I have hidden my age, my life, my most significant achievements and my equally significant failures, I have been your best friend and yet, I was never truly. After extensive reconsideration, I would rather you know me, I would rather you see me on this journey. I want to use “I” in my writing and speak to you. After careful consideration I am ready – my name is Aja Marie Horváth and this is my story.

I am very conscious that exposing myself also means you now get to see everything. Everything means total transparency – the overall extent of my adventures and personality. It is incrementally scary. However, more than being direful, it feels both right and empowering. I knew very early in life what I wanted and who I wanted to be. This vision has grown with me over the years. I wanted to be her – gracious, fierce, go-getter, kind, loving, elegant, inspired, interested, lively, authentic and excellent. It is at 12 years of age that I decided I was going to live an extraordinary life. My goal was to make anyone crossing my path feel exceptional – as they should. At 23 years old, I am getting closer than ever to her, and yet there is still so much to achieve.

Over the years I have taken the means to achieve that goal: I started blogging, so I could meet you. I have started businesses so I could serve you. I now trust to grow with you. If showing imperfections used to be my fear, it now is my sole act of graciousness. I may not always be fearless, but isn’t it one’s duty to be brave? I think it is only fair to let you on my journey as you are on yours. Potentially, you will relate, maybe you will not, but I hope it meets you on some level. I hope we meet on some levels, if your journey resembles mine, I hope you find yourself in this.

I wanted to be Audrey Hepburn

I wanted to be Audrey Hepburn, Jackie Kennedy, Blair Waldorf, Michelle Obama, Grace Kelly, and Emma Watson – the icons I grew up with shaping me and inspiring me. This is where it all started, truly. Imitation behaviours are utterly powerful, mine were the way I planned my life, it was the way I first took action, by imitating behaviours I admired. The first thing I applied was kindness and dedication, it was my only leverage, I took pride in doing things with excellence, in learning new things and in showing unconditional love to the world. Seizing opportunities and giving my all. I knew I was potentially not the smartest person in the room, nor the prettiest, but I could be the kindest and the most hard-working, the one who listened most and the one who learnt from others the most.

I listed all the little ways I was about to change my life, and I applied each with a dedication that was to the limit of religion. I took pride in owning who I was and closing the gap between me of now and the me I hope so dearly to be in my tomorrow. I practice daily on the traits I was less proud of, treating myself like a diamond with rough edges, I worked hard on ensuring I was well-rounded.

I learnt that style was not only what I wore but who I was, it was the presence you had around others. It is the thing that makes you palpably real, it is the way you moved, talked and acted toward others. It is also the books you read, and the music you listen to. Style was an amalgam of things that make one who they are and what the world perceived them as. We may be so much more than what meets the eye, but what the thing that the eye meets first says about you is of utter importance, it is the first impression, and first impressions tend to stick. I worked restlessly on composure and unconditional kindness, catching myself up and ensuring I would correct my mistakes, it still is not a perfect science, but month by month I could see myself changing.

I polished my language by reading more complex literature out loud and I curated my wardrobe (many many times, and still need to – the never-ending story of the girl who enjoys shopping every season). I started having a routine for the woman I wanted to be, something that would make me proud and help me become more. I put my health first (I learnt in that process that I was allergic to soy, and gluten and widely intolerant to lactose) I stopped treating my body harshly and put kindness and love at the centre of my routine, doing exercise I enjoy, eating food that did not feel like a sacrifice, no more unsustainable diets. To this day I hold myself to the highest standards, I put health, learning, growing, love and peace at the core of all I am and all I do.

As I grew up I found peace in being a version of me I was proud of, choosing love and excellence and acting with grace toward myself and others as been my only mantra and my power.

A business love story

I started my first business called La Perle when I was 18 years old. From that moment everything in my life changed, I had to be more. I had to be there every day, to show up, to be present. The company boomed the following year, I quit my waitress role in the restaurant I was working at and dove into entrepreneurship head first.

I was in my first year of university, with a bachelor’s in Business Science full time. I graduated with great results and started my master’s degree the next year. I did not study much, honestly. I practised. All that was learned, I took it out of theoretical and into the real world, it was the only leverage I had. I did not graduate as an A+ student, overall at some point, I had to choose my battles. La Perle grew steadily, we soon became partners with dentists and could slowly decentralise and hire.

I noticed what made my business grow fast as the marketing efforts, as I studied it and so did my right-hand man, we combined organic and paid strategies. We started expanding and doing it for other businesses we worked with. In my first year of my master’s, I launched B0LD digital with which I assist businesses in digital PR and SEO as I specialize in organic marketing. I discovered that being a business owner’s growth partner was both my passion and what made me feel aligned with my values and who I wanted to be. I am a private consultant taking a very limited amount of customers internationally because I ensure to deliver strategies and apply them solely for them, nothing is pre-generated nor looks like another. If you would like a consultation, please let me know.

Through the years, I have remained close to the world of writing, my inner artist has worked hand in hand with le theatre Les Gros Becs in order to publish in 2017 a youth/ adolescent play name Cupidon, which in September 2022 will be available for schools and teachers to use as material for classes. I try as much as I to participate in conferences, podcasts and projects that are close to my heart. I vanquished my fear of public talking by doing conferences on female entrepreneurship for my university and in Liberte 45 podcast on entrepreneurship.

As school came to an end, I had to stop and wonder what I wanted to do with all this free time. Do not get me wrong, I keep myself busy but I want the right kind of busy, an impactful busy. This is why I committed myself to build this with you. I am hoping my journey into building a community of people oriented towards growth, business, and empire builders but also family, elegance and gracious lifestyle will connect to you,

I plan to interview entrepreneurs, influencers but also remarkable personalities. Moreover, I plan on diving into a more practical but also a passionate style of communication with more personal insight and more development – in the pursuit of graciousness and excellence in my writings and my learning of the world too.

On a personal note

I feel it is only fair to let you know briefly who I am, in the hopes that maybe you can tell me who you are too – I have an obsession with creamy black tea, books of all kinds and coffee shops. I am never seen with undone nails but I only do my nails in a nude creamy pink. I have a big standard poodle, his name is Gustav. I travel a lot, between Quebec, Vancouver and Mexico, I live in all of these places regularly. I wish I could go to New york more often and I am dying to go to London. I plan on making a stop in Morroco and in Spain soon. I am known for the way I laugh and sneeze. I am a shy and discreet person, I am also an overthinker – on a professional level. I meditate and work out daily. I have to admit being a fan of fashion but in a very “turtle neck, trousers, heeled ballerinas and pretty handbag” type of way. I’m an avid pilates and barre workout type of girl.

I am from Hungarian, Welsh and french Canadian heritage – an interesting mix. I speak English, French and Spanish fluently. I babble in Hungarian, German and Arabic, I plan on mastering Hungarian and Arabic in the following years. I put a lot of importance on family and honouring my heritage and lineage. I am not known to talk a lot, but I do write endless letters to my loved ones. I listen to classical music, and jazz but also to alternative rock and punk, and I also love all the good classic singing in the car tubes. My favourite movie is either Roman Holiday or Kiki’s Delivery Service. I like high-end brands but solely in the most discreet way. I love cooking for my loved ones but hate doing it for myself. I could live on salads only. If I was a colour I would be dark purple, but my favourite colour is eggshell or dusty peony type of purple. I adore hydrangeas.

My friends and family call me Jiji, Mimz or Ajita. I am easygoing with everything except when it comes to achieving my goals. I am known to be disciplined which is the highest form of compliment. I enjoy more than anything when people tell me about things they are passionate about. I could listen endlessly. I am a disorganized organised person, I have to check on myself regularly because I lose more socks and AirPods than anyone you have ever met. I never know where my cellphone is either. If you want to make me the happiest, write to me about your story and how our journey’s intertwined.

with love,

Aja Marie Horváth