Although he was brave enough to follow his passion for sweets, Dražen Zeljković tells us about his greatest fears and lack of self-confidence
After 10 years of a "sedentary lifestyle", i.e. working in production on visual effects and animations for film and television, Dražen Zeljković made a complete turnaround and currently spends all his time in the kitchen. You must have already heard about his unique chocolate candies - they are about the taste and the sight of wonderful sweets known under the name Chozen.
"I have worked on numerous domestic and foreign productions, some of which are shown on Netflix, but a year ago I made perhaps the biggest decision in my life, as far as work is concerned, and decided to devote myself entirely to chocolate making. After numerous educations and much experimentation with chocolate, I decided to start a small brand that turned my world upside down. His name is Chozen and that's exactly what it means - chocolate zen", Dražen tells us right at the beginning of the conversation and admits that he has always been a true sweet tooth, which he probably inherited from his father.
"Sweets have always been in my focus, although I never looked at them the way I look at them today. When I started earning, the first things I would spend on were chocolates and biscuits that I hadn't tried yet." After "everything was cooking" for a long time in the background, seven months ago Chozen finally saw the light of day and experienced real success.
"The whole process and education before launching the brand lasted about two years: from taste testing, candy design to creating the entire branding. I think that was crucial because people immediately recognized how, even though it is a small brand, great attention is paid to details in every sense. Branding is largely responsible for success because everyone loves a good, beautifully packaged story, and if it's also tasty - you have the whole package," Dražen tells us, adding that he doesn't lack ideas, but his motto is "slowly but surely". so he is not in a hurry with novelties anywhere.
"IT'S GOOD TO FACE FEARS AND LACK OF CONFIDENCE SOMETIMES."
Do you ever struggle with low self-confidence and if so, how do you deal with it?
Of course, I believe that everyone has self-confidence problems to some extent, and also their own ways of solving them. Normally, I am a very "zen" person, but my lack of self-confidence manifests itself as an attack of fear, fear of "falling", but I manage to keep a clear head and move on. Most often, a conversation with the people closest to me helps here, sometimes a conversation with myself and even a good night's sleep. No matter what "fail" I experience, I always return to the correct path and way of thinking. Ultimately, it's good to occasionally face fears and lack of self-confidence - one learns something about oneself.
What are the characteristics of a modern man?
One of the characteristics that a man should have is calmness. In today's time of fast life and stress, it is easy for us to lose our compass and this affects the person as well as his environment. You need to be resourceful in every sense of the word, resourceful to get out of stressful situations, be resourceful in general in life. Openness and generosity are also qualities that he should satisfy, and I also put kindness and willingness to help others on the list.
What is success for you?
Despite having, I can say, a very successful career in video post production, I still can't quite define success, but I could say that success is finding something that you can enjoy to the fullest, whether it's a job, a relationship, friendship and the like. Everyone builds their own happiness and success, but countless factors must be satisfied.
How do you balance your private and business life?
This has always been difficult for me because I am the type of person who likes to devote myself to one thing. If I have countless work-related ideas, it will be difficult for me to coordinate and satisfy both the private and business side of my life. However, over time I realized and learned how to balance between both worlds. Work can always wait if I feel that my private life is suffering. I used to get bogged down and forget about one of those items, but after a few difficult moments, you realize that nobody waits forever.
What are the unwritten rules of male friendship?
From my experience, at least in my company, there are usually no overly serious conversations at men's gatherings (except in emergency situations); as if we all turned into 12-year-olds again, with super stupid forums. I believe that it is an exhaust valve for all of us from all the stressful situations that may have accumulated in the meantime. That's why, as the first unwritten rule, I put total frivolity on the list.
What is your biggest fear?
I divide fears into simple and extended. The simple ones are the fear of heights, which I only discovered a few years ago, while the extended ones include elemental disasters that we cannot protect ourselves from or prepare for. I am not overly afraid, I believe that this is where my calmness comes from.
What is hard for you to resist?
This is a difficult question to answer. Definitely a good dessert! Considering that I come from the visual world, it's hard for me to resist beautiful, and relatedly, expensive things. Nevertheless, I manage to control myself and do not exaggerate, but from time to time I treat myself with gusto to something that catches my eye.
Biggest change in life?
That would certainly be a departure from the safe zone of film and a safe job into something completely unknown. In my case, passion simply prevailed, leading me to the path I am on now. This is exactly why many people tell me that they are inspired by my move, because it is not something that everyone would dare to do.
What could you not live without?
I didn't think too much about it, I always try to adapt to the situation, but considering that I will soon become a father, I believe that a small miracle will be first on the list.
Gloria glam
