Interview for the Creative Wellbeing Circle newsletter

I was proud to be asked to feature in the Creative Wellbeing Circle's summer newsletter.  Here's my interview:

Who is your biggest role model?

My Great Grandmother – we called her Caravan Grannie. She was 4ft not very much and a force to be reckoned with. She lived through two world wars, brought up 4 children and worked as a teacher (among other jobs). She handwrote in notebooks that she filled with information, from local Lincolnshire dialect to recipes. I have some of these books and they include notes for healing arthritis and other ailments, so perhaps this is where I get my own interest in natural health and healing from. Bearing in mind this was decades ago, she was ahead of her time. 

Mostly I remember her for being creative – she was hugely talented and one of her tapestries hung for many years in Lincoln Cathedral. She always encouraged us with our own projects, and I know she would have loved what I’m doing now. Oh, and you didn’t mess with her. She was straight talking, no nonsense and didn’t take any crap from anybody!

How do you define success?

I think this is a very personal thing. In terms of my business, success is being able to have a job doing something I love which enables me to make enough money to live the life I want. I’m very much ‘work to live’ not ‘live to work’ and feel very lucky that the work part is something I love doing too. I’m proud of the business I have built up, it’s still growing and evolving but it also allows me flexibility to take time out to do other things if I want to.  

On a day-to-day basis, success is seeing results in my clinic work. When a client’s pain condition resolves, or they sleep better, or have more energy or less anxiety… I frequently get over-excited or happy dance in my treatment room. Or they just walk in one day and they look different because they FEEL better in themselves. I talk to a lot of my clients about ‘getting their sparkle back’ and you can see this happen.  

What is your favourite part of being an entrepreneur?

I’m my own boss, it’s my business and my baby and up to me if it’s a success or not. I’m a bit of a perfectionist, my husband and I built my cabin, and I like that it’s all mine! I like the flexibility – I choose when I work or have time off. There’s no office politics and no mindless annual training. I deal with people on my terms and that’s very liberating.  

What makes a good leader?

Someone who is honest, fair, plain speaking, kind, who looks after others and leads by example.

How do you deal with fear and doubt?

Positive thinking and positive self-talk. Not getting caught up in anxiety and letting it take over. Anxiety and doubt are very limiting both physically and emotionally as they effect health and wellbeing in so many ways, so I am conscious of listening to what makes me anxious or uncomfortable and trying to sort it. I’m a big believer in gut instinct and if something feels right (or wrong), I go with it.  

At what point did you look at your business and consider it a success?

I set small goals along the way so each one I hit was a win. The first month I earnt the same as a therapist as I had when in nursing was probably when I considered it a success.

How have you grown personally from becoming an entrepreneur?

My work life balance is so much better. My own well-being is super important after being in a job where high levels of stress and burnout was common, and I’m very protective of MY TIME away from work time. I’m more confident in my own abilities as a therapist, which therapies resonate with me, and my own limitations.

Ultimately, I am happier.

What would you change about your business journey if you could go back?

I don’t think I would change anything. Plucking up courage to quit my old job took a while and maybe I could have done that sooner, but the timing was probably right. In a way, starting up my business in Oxfordshire turned out to be a bit of a practice run for when I had to start it up again from scratch in Herefordshire, so I was able to learn from previous mistakes and get things going much more quickly. It’s all good. 

The Creative Wellbeing Circle holds regular Networking and Retreat Day events in beautiful countryside in Herefordshire and surrounding area to support women running their own creative and well-being businesses.  You can find them on Instagram and join their Facebook group for more information.