Choosing my Destination

At school, we received a lot of guidance in choosing subjects and applying to College/Uni which was really beneficial at the time. Later down the line when beginning my career, I spoke to the guys who owned the gym I trained at & another PT I knew who suggested a certain online qualification which I worked on during the pandemic and it went from there! I also spent time working in a surf school behind the desk before I was qualified to teach lessons & in terms of the surf modelling I reached to photographers and brands - it's important to put yourself out there, what's the worst that can happen? This all helped boost me to where I am now & looking back I am so grateful for everything that I did to get me here.

Extra Curricular & Work Experience

I took part in some sports whilst I was at school - dancing & horse-riding which kept me active. I also had a part-time job from the age of 16 as a recreational gymnastics coach which helped massively in terms of experience in coaching & leading big groups. Getting the qualification itself was useful as it pushed me out of my comfort zone and got me comfortable with being assessed/teaching in front of others.

Skills I've developed

My communication skills have developed a lot through my career, on a daily basis I am communicating with a big range of people. It's been important to learn how to empathise with different people in order to provide the best coaching service I can to each and every one. In running my own business I have also learned a lot about how to stand up for myself and set boundaries with clients etc, as a former people-pleaser this didn't come naturally but is really important. In order to expand my business, I have also had to be very creative - for example, planning events, retreats, finding different & more efficient ways of structuring my offer suite, this has come with time, experience and a little bit of thinking outside the box. Another major thing is learning that first impressions are so important, if I am working with someone new (or not), it is vital that I am on time, energetic and friendly - doing so has gained me so many more opportunities.

My Advice

Honestly, you don't need to have it all figured out - and you won't! Go with what feels right, follow your gut when making choices and see where it takes you. If you follow your intuition and work hard along the way, it will all work out better than you could have expected. Also, be kind to your peers & teachers, you never know what someone is going through and a little bit of kindness can go a long way.

Put yourself out there, take all the opportunities you can & don't worry about what anyone else is thinking - it's your life.