WOW! WHAT A YEAR As I sit and reflect on what this year has taught me and I what I hope to achieve next year, I am overwhelmed by how much I have learned about the people around me. This is for you, you lovely lot: To all my WONDERFUL CLIENTS who continue to trust me with your hard-earned cash as well as your dreams and confidence and with representing your brands, THANK YOU. I am humbled by how brave, determined and authentic you all are. I see amazing things for all of you in 2019. Keep going. To all of MY GORGEOUS FRIENDS & FAMILY who relentlessly like, share, engage and encourage every ..read more

Can you visualise what you want?  I mean really see it, feel it, describe it, maybe even draw it? If you think about what you haven’t achieved in your life, could you describe it in detail, the impact, the benefits, the costs? I’ll wager that the times in your life that you have been most successful and achieved any kind of goal is when you were absolutely crystal clear on what you wanted.  I bet you could describe very clearly when asked exactly what you were going to do and how and what it would mean to you and those around you. This is the key building block to goal setting.  ..read more

As a coach I try and live my brand and constantly look at what I am not doing and where I am uncomfortable and grow from it.  After all, just outside your comfort zone is where the magic happens.  As a small business start-up, I have plenty of things I avoid like the plague, and top of the list, is the dreading NETWORKING. Urgh, just the word can paralyse me.  Not because I am not confident, or don’t like speaking in front of people – far from it!  It’s the HAWKWARD sidling up to people, who are also feeling uncomfortable, and the sometimes-inauthentic small talk that I hav ..read more

Choosing a coach can feel overwhelming and confusing, and recent years have seen a rise in ‘coaches’ promising to change your life in return for, at times, astronomical subscription fees for their ‘signature’ programme.  As an un-regulated industry, just like counselling and areas of psychology, anyone can spin up a sparkly website or Instagram page overnight and become a ‘coach’… but there is a lot more to it than that!  As a consumer you might be feeling unclear on what truly makes a trained, professional, safe and reliable coach with a robust process that will support you in worki ..read more

There is a military saying that I think applies to owning your own business – ‘if you can’t take a joke, don’t sign up’.  Owning your own business is challenging.  Life is full of unexpected events and facing adversity is a fact of life and business.  We know this now.  And as small business owners, boy have we faced adversity this year.  It has at times felt like just hustling to do whatever we have to do to survive this year rather than a strategic implementation of a business plan, but we can squeeze more value out of this year by reviewing it through the lens ..read more

They say it takes a village to raise a child.  The same is true in small business.  We go into business because of a specific passion and then often end up doing everything but that most of the time!  Set yourself up for success by bringing in the experts early so you can concentrate on your brilliance.  Here are some key tips for the infrastructure and support you need to set you up for success from day one. Think about gaining support in the following areas and ensuring every week you are giving time and attention to each: ·       Finance, Op ..read more

If working from home fatigue is setting in, perhaps it’s time to get a bit more intentional about how you set yourself up as a successful home worker. Here’s 22 tips from Life & Career coach Tracy James to get you started. ENVIRONMENT AND SET UP 1.     Create a morning routine.  Make sure you get dressed, shower and look after yourself like you would if you were going to work. 2.     Where possible create a space that is dedicated to working that doesn’t spill over into personal space.  Boundaries are incredibly important and they need to b ..read more

Redundancy can be a roller coaster of emotions whilst also requiring you to keep a cool head as you navigate the complexity of the legalities, challenges and realities that it brings. There are lots of advisory services and resources out there to help with you the practical side of things.  Here’s ten ways to help you manage your mindset and mitigate the erosion that can occur through prolonged periods of stress and uncertainty: 1.       Face your fears – write down everything you are worried about.  Finances are likely to be right up there.  Invest ..read more

Finding the right coach can be overwhelming and confusing. It’s an unregulated industry and there are many different types of coach to choose from. Here are my tips on how to select a coach that you know is professionally trained, credible and working within a set of core ethics and guidelines as well as in the way that works best for you and your preferences ..read more

From bad service at the Christmas checkouts to the kids forgetting to write ‘please’ on their Christmas list to Santa, this season of abundant festive fun and cheer seems to have pushed good old-fashioned manners to the side-lines. Christmas for most of us conjures up images of a snowy, peaceful and serene Dickensian Christmas of days gone by, where you tipped your hat as you greeted your neighbour in the street and cherished that satsuma in the bottom of your stocking.   But a modern-day Christmas can at times be very different. When did this season of good intentions, gratitude and givi ..read more