Decolonizing Entrepreneurship with Ariana Fotinakis, Co-founder of Decolonize and Rize
- Lindsay Johnson
- Jun 10
- 6 min read
Updated: 7 days ago
We're pulling back the curtain with Ariana Fotinakis, co-founder of Decolonize and Rize, for a raw and resonant reflection on entrepreneurship, decolonization, and redefining success. In this interview, Ariana shares powerful insights on navigating fear, burnout, and internalized systems of oppression as a change-making business owner.
What sparked your desire to speak up and create real change - beyond the surface-level reasons?
Have you ever wanted to use your voice to speak up about injustice but felt afraid to offend someone? Or witnessed harm but froze in fear? You're not alone.
Tackling social justice issues requires us to engage in ways that challenge our conditioning. At Decolonize and Rize, we take a well-being-based approach to this work, recognizing how much our thoughts, emotions, and lived experiences shape how we show up for change.
Our colonial systems aren't working for most people - so while change may feel hard, it's also necessary. Our brains may prefer the comfort of the status quo, but liberation lives in the discomfort.
This work asks us to get curious about our internalized systems and our nervous system responses. Our brain loves the status quo because the status quo is familiar, comfortable, and takes less energy to navigate. But as we know, the status quo isn’t working for the vast majority of folks.
What do people often get wrong about decolonizing entrepreneurship and who it’s for?
People assume decolonizing is something we do for Indigenous Peoples. While it absolutely benefits Indigenous Peoples, this work is also for everyone, this work is also for everyone.
Colonialism harms all of us. It's a system built on control, extraction, and separation. It drives burnout, loneliness, and disconnection. It convinces us that success must be earned through perfectionism and productivity.
Decolonizing absolutely benefits Indigenous Peoples, gives credit to where Indigenous knowledge has contributed to our “modern” ways, and creates space for the revitalization of Indigenous ways of Knowing and Being into our present-day systems.
And, it also benefits the small business owner who is constantly feeling burned out trying to keep up with the demands of competition and capitalism. It benefits the folks who feel lonely and disconnected from family (chosen or otherwise) and community. It benefits all parts of an ecosystem, both human and non.
As Nikki Sanchez says: Decolonization is for everyone.
How did your earlier career prepare you to lead complex, change-focused conversations today?
I spent eight years as a personal trainer supporting clients who were struggling to change their lives. Change isn't linear. It brings up resistance, fear, and shame.
Those years helped me understand how people respond to discomfort - and that insight has been invaluable in my current work. Systems change is also human change, and I'm able to meet folks where they're at while offering tools to move forward.
I had no idea that those conversations with my clients would give me insight into how to navigate conversations about decolonizing, anti-racism, and social justice. But it’s true - when we talk about systems change, there are human beings upholding and existing within those systems.
When self-doubt shows up in unfamiliar spaces, how do you reframe it through a decolonizing lens?
I’ve never experienced as much impostor syndrome as I have since launching Decolonize and Rize.
We often work with corporate clients, and I found myself thinking, "Who am I to facilitate conversations about workplace culture when I’ve never had a corporate job?"
But then I remember: professionalism is a colonial construct. Who’s measuring our worth, and why? Every time I find myself getting caught up in impostor syndrome, I remind myself that what I’m really getting caught up in is a colonial mindset. It’s a good motivator to be compassionate with myself as I reframe my thinking.
What freedoms do you cherish most in your entrepreneurial journey?
Autonomy. I get to spend time with my daughter, tend my garden, chase chickens, and do meaningful work with aligned clients.
And if I find myself in a toxic or misaligned space, I can walk away. That’s a privilege I hold with a lot of gratitude.
What did burnout teach you about redefining success and reclaiming your energy?
I burned out during my first five years in business trying to meet someone else’s definition of success - $10K months, endless scaling, hustle culture.
Even after quitting my job, I was still working 60-hour weeks. I thought I could rest once my to-do list was done (spoiler: it never was).
Burnout forced me to reimagine success. I learned I don't have to extract from myself to grow. I get to choose my markers of success...
I learned to identify what my level of 'enough' was, and am consistently and gently holding myself to that. Take that, capitalism.
What holds people back from doing this work, and how can we move forward together?
The fear of doing it wrong. Cancel culture is real, and many folks freeze at the thought of saying the wrong thing.
But that fear can be an opportunity. When two (or more) people are engaging with one another from their triggers, they aren’t accessing the parts of their brains that allow for critical thinking, empathy, or creative problem-solving.
I offer this powerful invitation: When you find yourself getting defensive, what might happen if you got curious and said to yourself, ‘Hey, I’m noticing myself feeling really defensive right now. I wonder what’s behind those defenses?'
How can folks get started on their own decolonizing journey?
Three invitations to begin your own decolonizing journey:
1. Honour your needs.
When you’re thirsty, drink, When you’re hungry, eat. When you need to go to the bathroom, go to the bathroom. No more working through lunchbreaks or “holding it in” so you can keep working. These behaviours are rooted in capitalism which measures our worth by our productivity, and they keep us disconnected from our body’s signals. And our body is really good at letting us know when we’re triggered! How do we expect to be able to pause and say “hey, I’m noticing myself feeling really triggered” if we don’t even let ourselves notice when we’re hungry or thirsty?
2. Engage in mindfulness practices that feel accessible to you.
Perhaps it’s sitting down to meditate, or maybe it’s as simple as feeling the breeze on your face or savouring the taste and smell of your morning coffee. As we become more attuned to our senses, it becomes easier to notice the sensations inside our bodies that let us know if we’re getting triggered. Taking just a brief moment to pause throughout the day is good training for learning to pause when we’re in the midst of a difficult conversation.
3. Explore the ways you dehumanize yourself.
What unrealistic expectations do you hold of yourself in your work and your life? Where do you expect yourself to show up perfectly, to never make mistakes, and to have all the answers? In what scenarios do you cut parts of yourself off in order to fit in? These are all behaviours learned from colonialism and capitalism, because colonialism and capitalism teach us that we have to know everything, do everything, and be everything to everyone. They teach us that those wonderfully unique parts of ourselves are not welcome in spaces. Decolonizing our minds gives us space to be more human, and it helps us see others as human to
Do you want to leave us with any final thoughts?
Doing the messy work of understanding our triggers and unlearning internalized colonialism doesn’t just change us - it changes how we relate to others. It softens our judgments, shifts our expectations, and helps us respond with compassion instead of reactivity.
This work is layered and not equally accessible to everyone.
For those still actively oppressed by these systems, nervous system regulation can feel impossible. But if you do have some space and resources, even just enough to begin - start.
The discomfort is real, but so is the transformation. Future generations are counting on us.
About Decolonize and Rize
Decolonize and Rize is a heart-centered organization offering decolonial training and workshops for mid to large size organizations. Our flagship offering is Reconciliation & Well-Being -- equipping our clients with nervous system regulation and holistic well-being to be able to engage in reconciliation, anti-racism and meaningful EDI efforts. We also offer an Indigenous Well-Being series -- offering well-being tools rooted in Indigenous ways of knowing and being for holistic employee well-being.
A rising tide lifts all canoes – Let’s ensure we rise and thrive together.
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