Tag: Inspiration

Participate in the process & measure the progress
‘I don’t care about making money, I want to make a difference with this.’

This stopped my coach training mentor in her flow and she paused to repeat back what I’d just said. This resonated and really stuck with me. I’d had a feeling for a while that coaching was my calling – that moment confirmed it.

This conversation was a few months prior to really considering what my business and brand could be aside to from the coaching world.

I worked with trusted coaches, mentors and peers along with hours of self-reflection and research – all helped along by the fact that I’m someone who is obsessed with inspiration.

Sometimes I seek it out, sometimes it comes to me in the middle of a conversation, TV show, song, book or talk. These inspirations give me meaning and guidance and help me bring my goals to life.

When you become a coach, you quickly get focused on goals

The are key in solution focused coaching and the models I was becoming familiar with. If the client has a goal for the session and we successfully work towards achieving it, then we can safely say that the session has been useful.

A few hundred more hours along, my coaching is no longer just about the goal… Sometimes there is other work to do too.

Along with my coaching practice, I was starting to build some goals for myself and the business.

A trusted mentor began gently guiding me to future focused achievements. There was some amusement in some of these sessions too. When I bound excitedly into my online mentoring session with my new logo and branding colours, excited to put it out to the world on social media, Jane’s reaction was priceless…

‘Oh, I don’t think we’re connected on Linked In yet, let me check’.

She pulled out her phone and after finding me, she paused and looked up at the screen to me over her glasses with a warm but firm honesty – ‘Well, you only have 30 connections, so don’t launch anything yet because no one is going to see it!’.

This moment still makes me smile when I look back but it made me realise the power of people in your corner, who you trust to tell you the truth and back you all the way.

While we are never in full ‘tell’ mode in mentoring, there was a certainty in the message from this session – go and make some worthwhile connections. ‘When you’re at 100 – we’ll launch!’.

The accountability along with the consistent, supportive drive and championing of my success markers from Jane got me there and beyond within about 3 weeks!

Along with Jane’s sessions, some excellent peer coaching introduced me to the power of visualisation: When I’m successful…
- Where am I standing?
- How am I standing?
- What am I wearing?
- How am I feeling?
One particular session around this work led to the infamous pink jacket that has become a staple of my brand. From the visualisation, I knew that when I was successful, I would be wearing a pink jacket.

Not long after the business launched, I saw a candy pink blazer hanging in H&M on a London visit with my husband. We were a couple of wines in on our way to dinner and with our mutual adoration of Michael Portillo, we grabbed it for a fun photo op.

But as I looked in the store mirror, that visualisation came back to me…

this is the jacket that is going to help me bring my vision to life!

The first photo I picked when creating my bio and website was of me in the jacket – it somehow represented success – even though at this point I had no paying clients!

But with goals and achievements, it of course takes work. And the achievement of a goal doesn’t always bring the desired effect. The business being a success felt huge – unbelievable even. Would people ever pay me?

So, like with coaching and visualisation, we need to figure out what the goal is and work things back from there.

Big goals like this take focused action over a long period of time. Sounds scary but if you break it down into small steps of progress you can see it clearer. You can then start.
- Success depends on action…
- Action leads to momentum…
- Before you know it, you’re halfway there.
Speaking of Bon Jovi (how long have you got?!)… Thanks to mum, I’ve been in love with Jon and the band from around age 8! Mum and I have a matching Bon Jovi tattoo and I have their music notes around it too. I carry their inspiration with me as a part of my canvas.

Watching their documentary ‘Thank You, Goodnight’ in late 2024 was planned as just a girls night with mum and sister, but with the business and all this goal setting world growing, something landed from the man himself when talking about the early days of the band.

He spent years as a runner prior to his success, sweeping the floors and making the coffee in the recording studios and watching the greats such as Queen and Springsteen at work.

His commitment to observing and learning the craft was inspiring.

And after years of success as a platinum selling musician, the pivot into action was again approached in that same way – start by learning the craft, know it inside out and grow with continuous improvement. Don’t just take the big paid job because of your name.

This took me back to that mentoring conversation. This wasn’t just to build a business to make money. This was me learning a craft and building a grounding to a whole different type of success – personal and professional excellence.

So, feeling inspired that even the greats start way before the starting line, and realising there is possibly some truth in the term ‘It takes 10 years to become an overnight success’, I settled into a sense of pride for the work I was putting in.

But it really resonated when Jon Bon Jovi talked about overcoming his vocal surgery and the way it could have easily the end of his career. For someone with less tenacity, it may well have been, but the mindset work it took was probably more of a challenge than relearning a new way to sing those incredible hits we all know and love.

Clearly a difficult road to travel, his simple phrase stuck with me and caused me to pause the TV and make everyone wait while I wrote it down!

‘Not every day you’re going to win, but every day is an opportunity to participate in the process and measure the progress’.

Knowing one day, there’ll be something in that quote to come back to, I kept it safe.

More recently, I knew I wanted to write this blog but I wanted to wait until I’d witnessed Jon’s return to the stadium stage. And wow, last week did I do just that!

After 15 years away from UK stadiums and any shows of that magnitude, Bon Jovi walked out and delivered 2.5 hours of amazing entertainment, with a presence that simply said ‘we’re not done yet’.

For mum, me and sister (along with the other 65,000 people!), it was the best night we could imagine, but I kind of think it was an ever better one for Jon and the band.
- Goals are set.
- Visions are brought to life.
- Barriers can show up unexpectedly in the shape of huge boulders…
But from what I can see after my years in leadership and L&D and now in business ownership, the sure way to success, to the next achievement or goal (or Linked In connection!) is hard flippin’ work (and a lot of coaching!).

So, learn the craft, put in the hours, find your network, do the practice, and that’s the way there’ll be longevity.

I was right in that mentoring session, I’m not just here to make money. I’m here to make an impact, to craft moments of reflection, emotion and connection that endure long after the session ends.
09/06/2026
The Music Always Makes Me Stay

It’s been a while since my last blog post… you might think after my last one, that I’ve been hidden away writing my book.

I was so excited, so passionate and so motivated to write a story I knew I would love. But since April, I haven’t written a word.

Despite the best of intentions and some excellent coaching sessions to prepare me, I didn’t keep momentum when things got very busy. Well, it’s ok, I thought, November is my deadline. Plenty of time, I’ll get back on track in June once things settle…

Then the world ended.
Grandad passed away.
Relatively unexpectedly and very suddenly.

How to hold on to every spinning plate when you are spiralling out of control is near on impossible.

Last year, after losing both grandmothers within 2 months, I wrote about stress and grief and the impact they can have both physically and mentally on us. I’ve had this in my mind during these last few months, particularly due to an ongoing shoulder injury causing a lot of pain. It’s all been so much weight to carry.

So many times, my manager has said to me how amazed they are by my resilience. While I’m quick to make light that my only success to celebrate this year is the miracle of no sick leave – is that a success or stupidity?! A little of both I think!

So, two months on without grandad, there’s a gaping hole in my life without him. We were inseparable, there was such a bond between us. I loved all of my grandparents so much, 18 months ago, 3 of them were very much still here… he was the last to go. I wasn’t ready.

When I sat down to write this, I had little to say but I hoped the words might come. As a start, I went to my inspiration notes to see what sparked something in me, there they were – song lyrics can get us through so much.

The first was a note I found that I made after a special event – an acoustic pre-show soundcheck by Nick Carter from Backstreet Boys (in case you didn’t know, my first love!). In the Q&A someone asked him is favourite Backstreet Boys lyric – he smiled and instantly sung:

‘As long as there’ll be music, we’ll be coming back again’

(From their iconic – Everybody (Backstreets Back) anthem).

No matter how far we walk from the path of life, the music always helps to guide us back. Whether it’s to lift our mood, celebrate events, help us feel something or give us the inspiration we need to get back up and keep going. This felt fitting and took me to one of my other favourites from another favourite – Kip Moore…

‘I’ve tried before to just walk away, but the music always makes me stay’

My music, isn’t music itself. In the case of this metaphor, it’s writing. Throughout all of this pain, I’ve not felt any inspiration or interest, just the absolute essentials of work and business. But I’ve known what’s missing, I’ve heard that silent niggle – you need to write, book or blog, ‘just start creating and see what happens’.

Grandad loved music, he loved people around him and he always wanted everyone to feel included and a part of the fun and memories we made. I made a promise in my dedication to him that I’d continue to do that for him.

Music and lyrics have helped me create and shape a very corporate looking concept into a business that is all me – my creativity shines out of it.

And, it’s took me until this point to mention, despite taking my foot off the gas recently, it’s continuing to grow and thrive and build my brand.

I know every minute of work is creating this success, but the foundations are there for me to keep coming back to for the next path to tread.

Ideas are starting to bubble for what the future could look like. I have a new timeline for my employed role, which has given me more space to plan the next chapter of the business, write the book at a steadier pace and most importantly start to heal and enjoy the beauty of life along the way…

The music always makes me stay.

Writing this reminded me that even in the hardest seasons, something always calls us back to ourselves.

We all lose momentum when life shifts beneath us. What matters is recognising the moments that call us back – to our creativity, our purpose, our joy.

What’s the ‘music’ in your life that helps you return to yourself when everything feels heavy?

08/16/2026
The Accidental Author
If you’ve been on this business growth journey with me for long enough, you’ll know that foundations are a key to success, especially when they are tied to strong vision and core values.

I’ve lost count of the number of people who have asked me who my target market is, what’s my niche and who’s my ideal customer.

The answers to some of these questions are still shifting and changing but there’s a definite certainty in most of them.

Part of the work in finding those answers was looking back on all the years in my career to see what I’m actually about. Going really detailed with it and then putting a curious slant on it with a ‘why’ or a ‘so what’ and looking at the past with a future focused mindset:
- Why does that shape me now?
- What can that past experience bring to this situation?
I was tentative at first but the more I’ve looked back over the last few years, the more I fell in love with my past career all over again. Those of you who have gone through redundancy will know the impact it can have, the feelings you can take with you and hold against the past because of how it ended.

The focus ends up being all on that final chapter of an otherwise outstanding book! And it can sometimes take time to remember that the earlier chapters were overflowing with life, learning and joy.

Speaking of books – I’m not one to write a review but when a book grabs you the way a recent one did me, you have to tell your world about it.

That book was ‘I Shop, Therefore I am’ by Mary Portas.

I happened upon the book while on a girls weekend with mum. We were at Good Housekeeping Live. Mary had been the resident author a few days prior, doing book signings. I picked up the book and read the synopsis:

‘From the legendary doyenne of the high street comes a no-holds-barred account about her time as the window dresser and creative director for Harvey Nichols that is immersed in the fashion world, full of juicy anecdotes and bursting with ‘90’s nostalgia.’

I got excited about this… Let’s not forget, I am by trade ‘a retailer’. I read the inside cover summary; the final paragraph started with:

‘Mary takes us behind the shop window – to the people who kept the show on the road and the early lessons that shaped her career.’

I was sold. With a big smile on my face, this 43 year old approaches mum and says ‘ Please can I have this for Christmas?’!

Now, I could have bought it myself but it felt like a gift, like something I’ll be excited to open on Christmas Day and that will also remind me of this great weekend shared with my mum.

The book sparked something in me. Mary wasn’t a salesgirl, she was a creative. But the way the book weaves through the behind the scenes of retail, fashion and high street reawakened all of the glamour, pride, humour, exhaustion, chaos and sometimes horrors that make up the mystifying world of being a store manager in ladies fashion…

Oh the stories I could tell… and do you know what? I think I just might!

When I sat down to write this blog, before I knew it, I had eight pages of A4.

I realised, it wasn’t a blog anymore, there was a force in me to start writing my story from the beginning. I want to revisit all of those memories, all of those special times, the struggles, meeting L&D, working at headquarters, the fashions, the sales, the insane amount of hours in the workdays, the endless journeys across the country and most importantly, the incredible people I worked with, most notably all my wonderful Wallis girls, the core of whom are still at the centre of my friendship group today.

So, I have Mary’s book as a shining inspiration that told me how special my story with Wallis was. And how much of it is still helping me today.

I’m still living the brand… only this time, it’s my brand!

So I am it seems, accidentally writing a book! The book is a long way off completion – it may never be. It may never see the eyes of anyone outside my office but if that’s the case, I’m still doing it for me. And I’m excited to see where it goes. I’m so in love with revisiting those days and creating something from it.

So with a little thank you to Mary Portas, I’ll get back to my pen and paper. But before we wrap up, let’s reflect:
- What story from your past still has something to teach you today?
- What experience might you have undervalued that actually shaped your brilliance?
- And what could you create if you simply allowed yourself to begin?
04/05/2026
Resistance – What’s Needed Now?

Thoughts – ‘I don’t want to write. I can’t think of what to say at the moment. Actually, I don’t want to think about doing any work – even work that I love!’

Noticing that I was resistant to anything over the Christmas period and into January, I thought to myself; well, if I feel this way and it’s part of my career, I surely shouldn’t be posting to others about the expectation of motivation and ‘New Year resets’!

So, I wasn’t even going to write this. But as the weekend began and the plan to ‘take down’ Christmas was ahead of me, I got the niggle of inspiration. And as I wrote those first few sentences, the words came tumbling out.

I’ve always been authentic with what I write and create, so whilst I respected others in the industry that did want to put out email newsletters, blogs, promotions and motivating posts about the new year, it just didn’t feel right for me.

I just kept deleting email after email that was anything about work…

Or about networking event planning for 2026. No thanks, I’m fine right here in my bubble – ‘That’s a next year task’. I also purposely didn’t go on LinkedIn, only Instagram. LinkedIn somehow feels like ‘the office’!

Maybe also, I was a little resistant because it gave me the feeling that I should be writing or creating something. If I saw something great or inspiring, then I’d think I should be doing that too and it would give me a task I didn’t really need.

But even when I thought about doing something, looked through my notes and inspiration to think about what it could look like, it was just a blank page that I didn’t know how to fill… and then I’d let myself get distracted again by the holidays, perhaps with a pang of guilt or panic that the spark wasn’t there but not enough to make me feel uneasy, it seemed that I was internally pleased to be choosing simplicity.

If you recall ‘Choice’ was on my vision board at the start of last year as a key guide for me.

I have been intentional with my choices mostly and when I haven’t, I’ve noticed how different it’s felt.

Throughout autumn, I could literally feel my mind and body screaming at me to slow down. I kept thinking, is this burnout? I don’t think so, but if I had kept up that pace, maybe it could have been. So, when I finally did give my mind and body permission to slow down mid-December, I think they just kept wanting more time. I could have pushed though this and got myself into stuff, I’m sure of it, but instead, I listened a bit and let go of thinking what I should do and instead considered what I needed to do.

A great coaching question to myself here: ‘What’s needed now?’

The last few weeks, I’ve been seeing lots of posts about Wintering, about not rushing straight into the new year with rigidity. I’ve always quite liked January. The feeling of a fresh, blank canvas to create new chapters and I do always like the idea of taking my time and doing some trial and error until the year really gets going. I love the goal / feeling of being ‘ready’ for Spring. That for me is mentally, physically and professionally.

So, I am doing a cleanse – my body is crying out for it! But otherwise, January will be a slower pace: yoga, gym, walks, reading, inspiration and time to really be present before the chaos and pace lands on us again.

And I’m excited to work on my 1% Diary (Stephen Bartlett) over the next 3 months. I’ve set 3 important goals that have been key for me for a long time and haven’t been tackled. But I’ll do these with a comfortable kindness, not a rigid ‘must not fail’ attitude. The diary is very clever in how it supports you to do this.

So, this wasn’t the blog I planned, but it is where I’m at now.

Let’s see where the year goes from here. I’ll be taking the time that I need this January and will keep choosing and following my instincts.

And as you step into your own January, perhaps pause and ask yourself: If I really listened in… what’s needed now?

01/04/2026
Lyrics, Lessons, & The Leader in Me
Turning song lyrics into life lessons – and sharing them out loud.

The more I explore Role Model & Inspiration, the more it keeps finding me.

In recent weeks I’ve received emails talking about it, resources around it, leadership themes, webinars all around the importance of role model and inspiring leadership.

Well, this is what I’ve been doing for years… is everyone else only just catching on or is it suddenly now cool – a bit like country music?!

Similarly to my shift, my clients are also finding this pivotal in their growth. So, I’d like to share what happened for me to discover this useful anchor and see the great benefit of it.

Personal growth often happens following a challenge of some kind.

I’d heard the term ‘no rain, no flowers’. However, I didn’t really see this until around three years ago. Prior to this I seemed to get stuck in any kind of setback, clinging onto the negative of something not working out or going the way I hoped. I let things become my identity and took pity on myself, instead of seeing it as just a part of my journey and something to grow from.

I’ve written before about my excitement when a quote or song lyric appeals to me, but it really all came together for me in a personal development workshop in 2022.

Our exercise was to describe our experiences and journey using something creative. I had no idea where to start until I looked at my reflective journal notebook where I constantly write quotes and song lyrics in when they appeal to me. I took some time to think about the highs I’d had in the past, and how the lows that followed affected me. So how did that compare to where I am now?

Only then could I see that it was because of those highs and lows and the in between parts of ups and downs, trying to find my way back that made me who I am now.
- Every mistake gave me learning
- Every challenge and tough time gave me resilience
- Every step forward gave me strength
- Every new day gave me hope
I’m now so proud of myself for being honest when I was struggling and getting the help I needed to give me the power to find me and my passion.

So I gave myself a song, which, I believe is me speaking to me.

It’s by Kip Moore, my favourite artist and it’s called ‘Comeback Kid’… one line is ‘I’ll get where I’m going, because I know where I’ve been’.

I’m also very proud of being brave enough to tell this story to strangers in a workshop and now to all of you! But the reaction I got back made me so overwhelmed and elated.

Now, I’ve spoken before about Kip Moore, this lyric is now on my website along with some other inspiring quotes. I love him and his music but the reason he’s a role model for me is the excellence in what he creates and his dedication to it, his humility and his authenticity. He’s led by the passion for grit and determination with a depth of self-belief I was once envious of but I’ve now developed for myself. He quotes ‘don’t look at the pack, do what you really feel’. This gave me the confidence to do what I believed in, and what was in my gut.

So, in that workshop a confidence in honest vulnerability came to me…

My core passion is through music and lyric and how it speaks to me. When I found an inspiration and a confidence to use that, things really started to shift.

My work almost 20 years ago was in ‘Role Model Leadership’. I trained, led and developed people using the ‘Inspiring Others’ approach. I always wanted to be a role model to others, but I never considered back then, the importance of having one of my own and also being one for myself. And it’s had a profound impact on my self-confidence and personal brand.

A more recent group coaching session explored ‘Role Model’ and I built on what I did in that first workshop, only this time I reflected on it by creating tools and resources to discuss and use with my clients, it really works! This isn’t copying, it’s using your inspiration to create your own style and become a role model in your own right – to both yourself and others.

Since then, I’ve sought out inspirations and built on my growth by using them, but that first one, is a real special one.

The stars aligned last month when I ran into Kip unexpectedly. I was over the moon to have a chance to chat with him and be brave enough to tell him about the inspiration he and the ‘Comeback Kid’ lyric have been. His reaction was so humbling to see – I guess no matter how well known someone is, hearing that your work meant something so real to someone else, that’s the magic we’re all looking for, right?

You don’t need to be a leader of people to influence others positively, leading yourself authentically will result in you leading yourself to success.

So be proud of yourself

Don’t give up on yourself and don’t be afraid to share your journey, you’ll be amazed at the feeling it gives you when you hear how it’s influenced or helped other people. The sharing in itself will also help you too!
06/29/2025