London 2012 What an Inspiration

Wow what an eventful 2 weeks! Who would have thought that Team GB would have finished 3rd in the tables? Can you remember where you were on ‘Super Saturday’? I remember shouting at the television with the family as Jessica Ennis, sprinted to the finishing line as she won gold in the Heptathlon, then a few minutes later cheering as the lovely Greg Rutherford took home gold in the long jump, and then moments later, jumping for joy as Mo Farah won the countries first gold in the 10,000 meters in over 100 years.

1 week on and I still get goose bumps thinking about some of these events.


You could write & reminisce for hours over the wonderful achievements that Team GB have achieved, not just in winning medals, but the way the whole country united together and what an inspiration every athlete has been. There are not many people who would get a fractured jaw as a result of getting wacked with a hockey stick, and will be back on the pitch 3 days later like Kate Walsh, then successfully achieve bronze in the tournament.

Working and living in London, I have experienced the other side of the Olympics as well, and the atmosphere around the city has been electric. Just walking around, every street was filled with red, blue & white in all different forms, from flags, to buildings and clothing. Every bar and pub would have an event showing, and you would hear silence as the athletes were about to start their journey to the finish line. That silence would last for spilt of a second, as it was shortly followed by cheering and shouting.

The Olympics has changed the country and lifted our spirits in these difficult times. Children and adults of all ages have been inspired & motivated to take up a sport, or to hold their own family version of the Olympics, and it does make you proud to be British, and is an experience that we will relive forever.

Well done Team GB on everything that you have achieved!

In the last two weeks the London office has had a lovely visit from Stephen Holgate who is a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer and currently residing in New York.

Steve, or Stevo to his friends, is such an inspiring person that I thought I would write about him for this blog post.

Originally from Brisbane, Australia, Steve headed to London when he was a mere 24 years old after graduating University with a Bachelor of Business, majoring in marketing. Having read the book How to Win Friends and Influence People he approached our office for a job. His easy going attitude and unbound enthusiasm along with an available opening, immediately secured him a sales consultant role with us.

From there he headed on to be not only a great sales person forming fantastic relationships with his clients, but also started his path to become a Dale Carnegie Trainer. Once he started training our flagship programme, The Dale Carnegie Course, his sales took off even more.

He was with our London office for 4 years and became a trainer for many of our programmes when he decided to return to Australia to be with his girlfriend and to work within the Sydney office of Dale Carnegie. Again he was successful in building up a business which at that time wasn’t well established in the area and travelled to Asia and other parts of the world delivering many of the Dale Carnegie programmes. At this point (2007) he became a Master Trainer, which may I say is no mean feat, especially for someone so young. You have to be the best and have excellent trainer results to even be considered for this role, and then undertake rigorous training.

Eventually the lure of travel was too much and Steve fulfilled another one of his ambitions which was to work and live in New York. And this is where he currently lives, two years on, enjoying his life there, taking improv classes and generally living his dream. He is the chap in our Smartphone apps as well as being a personal coach for CEO’s.

So when Stevo came back to the UK last week for business and tagged on some additional time to see his friends and pop back to the office where it all began, I decided to ask him what the key was to his success. Because Steve is one of the most likeable, motivated, friendly and passionate people I know. He has goals which he achieves, dreams he aspires to achieve and does all this living the life he desires.

Steve:
I actually feel the need to define "success" as what success means to me. For me, success is about being able to be happy with your life, and have a positive impact on the world ("the world" might include people, the environment, and/or ethical organisations). I know I've got the happiness thing, and would like to hope that I have had some form of positive impact on others.

So then the question is how have I done that?
* Work out what you want to be doing (how you can be happy)
* Set long term, medium term, and short term goals to achieve that
* Persist; understand that it won't happen instantly, and that you'll have many set backs and that they are all part of the process, not the end
* Take time out for reflection; replicate what you're doing well, change what you're not
* Create happiness for others; then others will help create it for you

Thanks Steve for those tips.....and may I say how lovely it was to see you again.

Helen

Inspirational Lady

“The Greatest Love of All” is the song I always sing on karaoke.

“I Will Always Love You” is the song that reminds me of the time my Nan moved to New York, 14 years ago.


“I Wanna Dance with Somebody” is the song that is guaranteed to get me up on the dance floor.


If someone asked me to name my favorite Whitney song, I do not think I could…could you? She really was an inspirational lady, as every celebrity and person who has paid their respects has mentioned. And the more I heard how Whitney had inspired actors, members of the public and singers such as Britney Spears and Mariah Carey, I started to think a) who has inspired me and b) have I ever inspired anyone.
There are 2 people who have inspired me in my life time. My mum has shown me that hard work and work life balance does pay off, and that you can achieve if you try. The other is Richard Branson, he has inspired me that no matter your background, if you believe in your dreams and are prepared to take the risks, you can achieve beyond your original dreams, and become one of the most successful people in the World.

It took me a lot longer to answer b, as I can think of many stories where I have influenced others but not inspired. Then I overheard a conversation between my mum and aunty, when I realized that I have in fact inspired my 2 baby sisters. They have seen what years of hard work and determination can achieve, and as they approach their last year of being a teen, and first year of the 20s, they are following their older sisters footsteps and are on track to achieving great success (if I do say so myself…Carla & Kirsty do not let me down). The feeling and smile that I have a result of knowing that I have inspired and helped my sisters to being successful and happy, is one that I cannot explain.

If you want to become an inspirational person like Whitney and myself, then come down to our free seminar on 7th March, where we can help turn you into an inspirational leader.


Stephanie Fletcher

Wheres The Motivation?

It was two weeks ago, on a wet and cold Thursday evening (a bit like today), and I had just fought my way through rush hour, and I sat on the sofa, with a cup of tea watching Come Dine With With Me, for what was suppose to be a 5 minute rest, before I went to the gym.



5 minutes slowly turned into 10 then into 20 minutes, and before long I had lost all motivation to go. I sat there an hour later, regretting not going straight from work, as then I would not have had the temptation of saying “I will make up for it tomorrow” or “it’s too cold to go back outside”. My mother didn’t help by convincing me that it is too cold outside, and that I had had a long day either.


We were watching BBC Ones The One Show, when Fern Cotton and Gary Lineker did an advert for run 1 mile for Sports Relief on 25th March. It was then, I got my motivation! Seeing and hearing how my contribution to running a mile would help raise money for charities all over the UK and the World, and how it has bought families, communities the young and the old together has inspired me. I instantly logged on on-line to sign up, where I then had the dilemma of running, 1, 3 or 6 miles. I thought to myself that 1 mile would be a “walk in the park”, 3 miles would be achievable, but 6 miles would be a challenge for someone who was at her peak 10 years ago, and whom needs to reach her target by May.


2 weeks on, I am training 4/5 times a week to complete my first ever charity run, and finish the 6 miles in an hour. So far, it’s going well, I have inspired another fellow “Get Fit” lady, who has seen me on numerous occasions in the gym to enter, as well as the men of Dale Carnegie London, and I have even broken my record by 2 minutes, but it hasn’t been easy. I am a very sociable person, and I can easily be persuaded into activities which are not fit related, but my motivation is at an all time high so I have actually said no, on the odd occasion. I have been inspired to not only reach my own personal goals, but hopefully help to achieve others along my way too. It’s not always about reaching your targets, but how you achieve them, and trying to keep motivated as you do so. To achieve my target, I will be doing a range of events, including one which will be a big test to me……..a day’s silence!! If I can achieve that, then I can achieve anything, and so can you.





Stephanie Fletcher

Never give up your dreams

Image courtesy of The Big Issue

I have been known in the past to talk about Billie The Big Issue Seller, mainly because personally I find her extremely inspiring.

From the time I have known her – about 8 or 9 years – she has met Boris Johnson, The Prime Minister (and been inside Number 10 Downing Street), appeared on Radio London talking about the Night Walk, had numerous articles written about her, the latest one being in Time Out Magazine a few months ago and is somewhat of a celebrity in her own right on the corner of Cranbourn Street and St Martin’s Lane.

The reason for me talking about her once again is because in less than two months time she will be employed and helping people who are in need of drug and alcohol rehabilitation.

Just over a year ago we stood on her pitch chatting about the winter weather and how cold it was – I think at that point snow had fallen in London. She told me that she was worried about being out in the cold in the mornings as her health is not too good due to the years of abuse she put her body through. She just didn’t want to do it anymore. As we were chatting we got on to the subject of working with people who needed help to conquer their drug and alcohol addictions and that she would be perfect for the role. It was something I knew at the time Billie would be good at as she has a real way with people. I will never forget how she looked out for me, hugged me and listened to me when my father was going through terminal cancer. She was amazing.

It was Billie’s dream and one that she held on to.

A few months ago her long term relationship ended and she was almost forced back on the streets again. It’s the only time I have ever seen Billie lost and quiet (you can hear her cheery voice from a good distance). She was scared as she didn’t want to go down that road again. Her customers rallied round and gave back to Billie what she had given to them in all the years she was on that corner. We gave her encouragement, towels, bed linen, curtains....customers looked after her dog when she couldn’t have her and they even gave her money to see her through whilst she was unable to work in order to sit at the council and beg for somewhere to stay. She was given emergency accommodation and started to get back on her feet.

Image courtesy of the London Housing Trust

It was at this accommodation that she met the landlord who helped house people with drug and alcohol problems and they saw her in action. Saw how she dealt with people. And how she really understood them as she had been there. She didn’t judge, but listened.

Around that time Billie started taking days off from her pitch, which is rare for her and it turns out that she was put on a course to become a drug and alcohol rehabilitation counsellor so she could do this properly. They loved her so much and admired how she helped people that they offered her a job. She has her own office, computer and above all respect.

So as from the end of January, Billie will be starting a new phase in her life. With everything she has been through – and from what I have read, she has been through a lot – she deserves to have this chance. She will be missed on the corner as she is more of a friend than a Big Issue Seller, but I am over the moon that she is doing what she loves especially as she told me that she was made to do this job.

And it goes to prove that when you have a dream, a goal, an ambition, never let it go, hold on to it and take little steps to make it happen. Grasp opportunities and say out loud what you want. Your dream can come true too!

You can read Billy's story here
Helen Mills