The Lighthearted Women group began as a passion project in early 2020. As a Business Coach I was very aware of the challenges that Covid-19 brought to business all over the world. I wanted to reach out to my colleagues and clients in support, to offer them an avenue to express themselves and their stress and to help them reach out to others.

So I arranged an online catch up every Tuesday morning at 11am. As the group progressed, it became apparent that these gorgeous women had started to thrive in the group, building connections, bonds and even gaining business from the group.

The topics change every week and everybody contributes to the conversation. The energy in the group is Lighthearted and supportive, and that is how the name of the group came about.

I have also set up a private Facebook group of the same name and plan to develop a podcast of the same name too, celebrating the members of the group who would like to tell their story and share their business advice.

Who needs a new tribe?

• Would you like to be part of a dynamic supportive group of women who are there to help each other become better every day?
• Would you like to build new business contacts and get new referrals?
• Would you like to be inspired by the stories and experiences of your colleagues?
• Would you like a pep in your step every Tuesday morning?
• Well….you know what to do!

With Lighthearted Women, you get access to 20 other like minded women in your pod who are your cheerleaders, willing you to do better, be better but loving you as you are!

You get to explore ideas about your business; get advice, inspiration and suggestions on how to develop, improve your business idea.

You surround yourself with people who want to do better, be better and be influenced by this energy to improve your business. It is a closed group, the same people show up every week to learn from each other, which means that you get to know your people.

One of the biggest challenges that women in business experience is isolation- when you are setting up your business a lot of your friends and family will not understand what you are doing and some will think that you are crazy to even consider going out on your own!

When you are with other solopreneurs who understand what it is like to be alone, what it is like to start a business and thrive in their success, you will feel stronger and more able to keep going even in the tricky times. You will be with your solopreneur tribe.

You get to present to the group on our #soapbox, describe your services, share your background story. All of this is done in a small group setting with some wonderful feedback to be shared afterwards.

You even get to keep a copy of the recording if you wish so that you can look back and soak up all the compliments.

“But I have nothing to offer the group!”
Yes you do! By being there, supporting the other women in their #soapbox or challenges they experience, giving them a virtual hug, that is a wonderful offering.

Sometimes we don’t realise our power or impact, and a kind word from you could mean all the difference. Plus you have friends and family who could be future customers for the members of your pod!

“But I don’t really have a business, only a business idea.”
We have members in the group who are starting out in business, we have women who are much longer in business.

All of these women have something to learn from each other and equally contribute to the group. There is a quote out there about surrounding yourself with people who you want to be.

Sometimes it is nice to be surrounded by like minded women to build what you really want.

“I am a bit shy in groups.”
This is a very different group. Everyone gets to speak in this group. There is no pecking order in the group. There are no “clicks” in this group.

People may know some people but when we are in this space, we are safe and supported. But you can see for yourself, try it for a month and give yourself time to settle in.

“I can’t make it every week.”
That is fine, there are other members who have this challenge due to other commitments. You can continue to be a member as long you are consistent in your attendance and your presence is authentic.

“I don’t know if this is the right time for me..”

Whenever we think about making changes in our lives, we will usually experience self-doubt: the gremlins kick in with all sorts of reasons not to do something.

If you settle down and really listen to what is happening, I am sure you can reassure yourself that this is indeed the right time and that I will be there to support you and encourage you on your journey.

The fear is real, I understand this, but I also know that the need for change is real too, so I work very gently with you, at your pace, focusing on small actions to make change.

As someone said to me recently, “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time” I promise you won’t have to eat elephants but we will break this programme into tiny bite size pieces xx

“I have so much on at the moment, how am I going to keep up with the programme?”

Our time is so full these days but I promise this programme will help you with that. By having a coach as your wingwoman, I can help you get laser focused on what is important and manage your workload and life responsibilities better.

The programme is flexible to you, I have clients who can only do early morning or late evening appointments or lunchtime appointments and we work around that. The way that I have structured the programme allows you to have time to set and complete goals with realistic timelines and realistic expectations.

Yes life can get in the way sometimes but when we work together we will look at all potential challenges and roadblocks so that we can help you manage and thrive with your business and life.

“I don’t think I can work to a rigid programme”

Neither can I!! When you work with me you will understand that my programmes are tailored to each client because we all know that everyone is so different for each other.

I don’t have a week 1/week 2 structured type programme; I bring with me a set of mindset and coaching tools that I have developed over the past 20 years. I use these tools as required to help you build your strategy, get focused on your goals, build your confidence and keep you on the road to success.

“I don’t know if I can afford it”

Everybody has financial responsibilities, and I understand that a prudent person needs to be sure that their money is well spent. With my programme, you have 3 months of coaching from a highly experienced coach, who is with you all the way.

Think about it, if you are unhappy where you are right now, if you really want something to change and you really want to see change in a short time, how much are you willing to invest to make this happen?

My programme has shown significant results with people, including earning back the value of the programme within a short time, getting that amazing job, starting that new business with ease.

By working with me, you will get laser focused on your bigger plan, you could be going for that promotion you have always wanted, you could be moving from a 5k month to a 10k month. How much are you willing to invest in yourself.

What do I have to do?

Working with me is very simple, when you meet me I invite you to just be yourself, share your story in a non-judgemental space and together we will work out what is the true path for you.

With my 20 plus years of experience of helping people succeed at life, business and career, I have tools and skills that I can share with you to help you get clear about your challenges and find simple ways to get through them so that you can get on with living your best life!

I understand that change can be scary, especially when you are not sure what you are changing to, but there is a reason you want something to change in the first place.

Things are not the way you want them, life can grow arms and legs that we never expected, things creep up on us and we are not aware of it until it becomes uncomfortable and sometimes suffocating!

When you work with me, you have your wingwoman beside you, making sure you succeed at finding the right fit in your life, finding that feeling you want from your new way of living, working, doing business.

Sometimes we are not completely sure of what we want because we haven’t see it yet, but we are very clear about what we don’t want! And by working with me, you get to explore all the possibilities before deciding on the one that fits you perfectly.

Sometimes when you get advice or training, you are left to go implement all your ideas on your own. With my programme, you will not be alone.

Over the 3 months of coaching, you get to chose your goal, your direction and I will be with you all the way, guiding you, advocating for you, pushing you and cheering you along the way.

Just bring yourself, the real version of you, the one that is enthusiastic, excited, scared, nervous, motivated and always curious.

I have been there…

When I look back on my life, I can pinpoint a few pivotal moments when the earth moved for me. When I failed out of college almost 30 years ago, I had no idea what I was going to do.

I drifted for about 6 months, working in a meaningless job, losing my confidence and unsure of what was in store for me. I was picked up and supported by a family member who took the time to find out what I really wanted.

With this support, I found a really good job that took me in the direction of where I was truly meant to go in life and career. I went back to college and graduated a few years later with a degree and a strong group of lifelong friends.

At one point in my life, I burned out from the challenging career that I had pursued. I had spent 10 years living the high life, work hard play hard kinda lifestyle, so it was going to catch up on me eventually!

Yet again I was at a crossroads in my life, mentally exhausted and unsure of my direction and not sure what was out there for me. I took a career break for 6 months and went to live in a small fishing village in West Cork.

A good friend who took me on for the 6 months as a Diving Instructor (I know! How cool! Don’t worry, I was trained!), to work on the boats and outdoors. It was exactly what I needed to recover and find myself again.

When it was time to return to my old job, I knew that it wasn’t going to fit me anymore. With the help of my friend, I stayed in West Cork and I found an amazing job as a Job Coach and a whole new world opened up to me.

So the reason I am sharing this with you is that we all outgrow our lives at some stage, like the caterpillar growing into a butterfly, except we do it a few more times than the caterpillar!

I like to think of it as living in our box, our box being our comfort zone, our safe space, a place where we can make sense of our world. At some point in time, we start to grow (emotionally, spiritually, intellectually) and the box can feel a bit squashed in places.

We know it feels a bit pinched but we like our box so we try to shape ourselves to fit the box. This can work for a while but soon you will have to build little adaptations to the box, for example, build an extension to our box to allow for space. I call this a compromise.

Soon the compromise might wear thin and you may need to build another fix to the box that you are in. Soon your box will look like a patchwork fix and still it might serve your purposes.

At this point you have a decision to make, do you continue living in this over adapted box, or do you blast the roof off and build a new box that will fit with your current reality using your original strong foundations.

For me, I feel that I have done this at least 3 times in my life. When life was getting over-complicated with my compromises and compliance, and I was still unhappy with my circumstance, I decided to do a complete survey of my box and do a major overhaul and really decide what I truly wanted with my life and work.

The transition to a new and improved box is challenging but when you get there the view is amazing!! Plus I always had a wingwoman with me to help me make the transition smooth!!